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THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 28, 2015 59 FOREIGN NEWS Nepal quake: International aid effort stepped up •Death toll climbs to almost 4000 THE international aid effort for Nepal is gathering pace, with Saturday’s huge earthquake now known to have killed at least 3,900 people and injured 7,000. China, India, Pakistan and Britain are among the countries contributing to the effort, alongside major aid agencies. Nepal has asked for more help, saying it needs everything from helicopters and blankets to paramedics and drivers. At least 200 climbers have now been rescued around Mount Everest, after the quake triggered avalanches. Vast tent cities have sprung up in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, for those displaced or afraid to return to their homes. Across the country, thousands spent Sunday night - their second night - outside. Much of the effort is now turning to recovery of bodies in and around Kathmandu Cremations are taking place near a river in Kathmandu The Nepalese government’s Chief Secretary, Lila Mani Poudyal, said his country was short of relief materials and medical teams. He said there was a desperate need for “tents, dry goods, blankets, mattresses and 80 different medicines”. “We don’t have the helicopters that we need or the expertise to rescue the •Museveni Museveni: Train Ugandan youths to tackle al-Shabab PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has ordered security agencies to re-introduce military training for Ugandan civilians to counter the threat from al-Shabab., Mr Museveni said that although al-Shabab was “defeated”, Ugandans need to guard against attacks. Uganda has more than 6,000 troops in Somalia as part of an African Union force battling the Islamist militants. In 2010, al-Shabab bomb attacks in Kampala killed at least 76 people. In the 1980s and 990s, Ugandan school leavers used to perform two years of national service before attending university. President Museveni said he had already given instructions to the relevant security agencies to launch the programme, focusing initially on the most vulnerable areas in the country. He did not give many details about the scheme, but Ugandan army spokesman Lt Col Paddy Ankunda said that there were no plans to arm the civilian population FRANCE and Australia have condemned the death penalty as executions for three of their na- tionals loom in Indonesia. Earlier, Australia called on Indonesia to delay executing two convicted Australian drug traffickers until corruption claims were investigated. Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were convicted in 2006. The two, along six other foreigners and an Indonesian, have been formally told of their execution. A French trafficker is appealing against his conviction. Under Indonesian law, convicts must be given 72 hours’ notice of execution. This means the executions by the firing squad could be carried out SUDAN’S President Omar al- Bashir has been re-elected with 94% of the vote, according to official results. The country’s main opposition parties boycotted the elections, saying they would not be free and fair. Turnout was officially 46% but BBC Sudan analyst James Copnall says many believe the real figure was even lower. Mr Bashir, who has been in power since 1989, denies International Criminal Court (ICC) charges of ordering a •An injured person is loaded onto a rescue helicopter at Everest base camp at the aftermath of the Nepal quake. More than 18 climbers were killed at the camp base. PHOTO: Getty League, and Russia, says our correspondent. The ICC arrest warrant for Mr Bashir relates to the Darfur conflict, which began in 2003, and in which the UN estimates 300,000 people died and more than two million displaced. The African Union (AU) has rejected the ICC’s attempts to have him arrested, arguing that Mr Bashir enjoys presidential immunity and therefore cannot be tried while in office. In December 2014, the ICC dropped its investigation into the crimes, blam- JAPAN and the United States unveiled new guidelines for defence cooperation yesterday, reflecting Japan’s willingness to take on a more robust international role at a time of growing Chinese power and rising concerns about nuclear-armed North Korea. The first revision to the guidelines since 1997 allows for global cooperation militarily, ranging from defence against ballistic missile, cyber and space attacks and maritime security, following a Japanese Cabinet resolution last year reinterpreting Japan’s pacifist constitution to allow the exercise of the right to “collective self-defence.” The guidelines reflect a changing world and mean Japan could shoot down missiles heading toward the United States and come to the aid of third countries under attack. as early as Tuesday. “France and Australia share the same attachment to human rights and condemn the death penalty in all places and all circumstances,” the French presidency said in a statement after a meeting between French President Francois Hollande and Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott in Paris. French convict Serge Atlaoui still has an appeal before the courts. France has warned of “consequences” if the execution goes ahead. Meanwhile, Philippine President Benigno Aquino appealed to Indonesian President Joko Widodo for “humanitarian consideration” in connection with the case of a Filipina people trapped.” The need for doctors would rise as more survivors were pulled from the rubble, he added. Dozens of people are also reported to have been killed by the earthquake in neighbouring China and India. Both countries have sent emergency teams to Nepal, along with Pakistan, which said it was dispatching four C130 transport planes carrying a 30- bed hospital. Other countries, including Britain, Australia and New Zealand are also contributing. However, congestion at Kathmandu’s airport has caused delays, with Indian TV reporting that an Indian relief flight was forced to turn back. United Nations World Food Programme spokeswoman Elisabeth Byrs told AFP that the agency planned “a large, massive operation”. Water is becoming scarce and there are fears that children in particular could be at risk of disease. Even residents of some of the city’s smarter neighbourhoods are sleeping on carpets and mattresses outside their homes. Aid flights are coming in rapidly and in fact Kathmandu airport is running out of parking bays, so many aircraft have to wait before getting permission to land. Officials have warned that the number of casualties could rise as rescue teams reach remote mountainous areas of western Nepal. Rescuers have been able to take injured people off Mount Everest On Mount Everest, clear weather yesterday allowed helicopters to rescue foreign climbers and their Nepalese guides who had been stranded by a huge avalanche. At least 18 people have been killed by avalanches on the mountain. U.S., Japan unveil new defence pact Indonesia condemned over death penalty Sudan’s Bashir wins by a landslide genocide in the Darfur conflict. Pro-government militias were accused of ethnic cleansing during the Darfur conflict Western countries, including the US, Britain and Norway, criticised the polls for not being free and fair. The African Union monitors said that basic freedoms and human rights would have “enhanced” the polls. Most Western countries will not accept the elections as meaningful, but 71-year-old President Bashir can count on support from the likes of the Arab A centrepiece of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s U.S. visit this week, the guidelines are part of Abe’s wider signal that Japan is ready to take more responsibility for its security as China modernizes its military and flexes its muscles in Asia. In return, the conservative Japanese leader, who is scheduled to meet U.S. President Barack Obama today, has been seeking fresh assurances that America comes to Japan’s aid if necessary in a clash with China. A joint statement issued after the meeting “reconfirmed the alliance’s commitment to the security of Japan,” as well as Japan’s sovereignty over islets in the East China Sea known as the Senkakus in Japan and the Diaoyus in China, the subject of a bitter territorial dispute. The surge in China’s military spending since 1997, when the last U.S.-Japan defence cooperation guidelines were issued, and its more assertive stance in maritime and territorial disputes has uneased both Japan and U.S. allies in Southeast Asia. Announced after a meeting of the U.S. and Japanese foreign and defence ministers in New York, the guidelines eliminate geographic restrictions that had largely limited joint work to the defence of Japan and the surrounding area, a senior U.S. official said. The changes would allow greater coordination and information sharing, for example, in missile defence, and allow Japan to shoot down any missiles heading for U.S. territory or to defend U.S. ships engaged in missile-defence in the vicinity of Japan, he said. They would also allow increased cooperation in cyber security and defence of assets in space, the U.S. official said. woman, Mary Jane Veloso, who is also on death row for drug-trafficking offences. Mr Widodo’s spokesman said he was “sympathetic” and was consulting the attorney general on legal issues. Australia made last-minute pleas on behalf of the two Australian men to delay their execution until a corruption investigation into their case was complete. But on Monday evening, Indonesia’s attorney general confirmed that the nine death row convicts would be executed as planned, without giving an indication of when the executions would be likely to take place. •Bashir ing inaction by the UN Security Council. President Jonathan commiserates with Nepal quake victims ON behalf of the government and people of Nigeria, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan extends sincere condolences to the government and people of Nepal over the loss of thousands of lives in the devastating earthquake that has occurred in the country. President Jonathan notes that the tragedy has caused deep sorrow, not just for the Nepalese but all humanity. The President assures the government and people of Nepal of the deepest sympathy and solidarity of the people of Nigeria as they mourn those who lost their lives to the earthquake and begin the onerous task of rehabilitating survivors and rebuilding affected parts of their country. President Jonathan also assures the Nepalese government of Nigeria's preparedness to join other sympathetic nations in assisting the people of Nepal to overcome the damage and destruction caused by the earthquake. Pope calls for aid for quake victims POPE Francis has led prayers in St. Peter’s Square for the dead and displaced from the massive earthquake in Nepal and surrounding areas. Francis called for assistance for the survivors during his weekly Sunday blessing. He said he was praying for the victims, the injured and “all those who are suffering from this calamity,” and asked that they have the “support and fraternal solidarity” they need. On Saturday, the Vatican secretary of state sent a formal telegram of condolences seeking to encourage rescue crews and comfort the survivors. Saturday’s magnitude 7.8 earthquake left at least 1,900 people dead, spreading horror from Kathmandu to small villages and to the slopes of Mount Everest, triggering an avalanche that buried part of the base camp packed with foreign climbers. Togo president ahead in polls TOGO’S incumbent President Faure Gnassingbe appeared set for a third term after a weekend election, with partial results issued on Monday giving him a strong lead. The Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) said Gnassingbe had won 62 percent of the vote, far ahead of his nearest rival Jean-Pierre Fabre, who took 32 percent with about 12 percent of ballots counted. Up to around 55 percent of the country’s 3.5 million voters turned out on Saturday, according to the CENI, which has five days to announce the final outcome. Turnout was significantly lower than in 2010, when nearly two thirds of registered voters took part. Experts had said the narrow chance of a loss for Gnassingbe would depend on a massive voter turnout, but civil society groups said participation rates were “very weak”. results came from 934 of a total of 8,994 polling stations in six regions of the country, a long strip of land that lies between Ghana and Benin, the commission said. Gnassingbe has been in power since the death of his father, Gnassingbe Eyadema, in 2005, winning contested elections that year and five years later. His father came to power in 1967, and ruled the country with an iron fist. When he died in February 2005, the army put his son in power, causing an outcry. Faure Gnassingbe resigned and then won a hastily organised election. Analysts say divisions within the opposition five-party coalition Combat for Political Change (CAP 2015) combined with the benefits of incumbency made Fabre’s prospects of victory very dim.
60 NEWS THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 28, 2015 The multi-billion dollar scam in NNPC, by auditors Continued from page 4 may still require third party liabilities to meet costs of operations and subsidies, and may not be able to make any remittances to FAAC.” It, therefore, recommended that the “NNPC model of operation must be urgently reviewed and restructured, as the current model, which has been in operation since the creation of the Corporation, cannot be sustained”. PwC also established that a “determination is required as to whether all or a portion of other costs not directly attributable to crude oil operations can be defrayed by NNPC”. It recommended that the NNPC be required to disclose details of all existing liabilities and impact on proceeds of future crude oil sales. PwC said: “Accordingly, all the Corporations costs, and those of its loss making subsidiaries have been defrayed in the analysis provided by the Corporation for the review period. However, the profit making subsidiaries and dividends received have been excluded from the analysis provided. This suggests that there are other sources of net revenues available to the Corporation not currently disclosed. A proper estimate of the actual potential excess remittance/under-remittance can only be arrived at if all revenues and all costs of the Corporation and all its subsidiaries are accounted for in a consolidated position. A detailed review of this was beyond the scope of our mandate. “We, therefore, recommend that NNPC be required to disclose the consolidated position of the Group and its subsidiaries, and expected remittances to the Federation accounts be determined from the available consolidated net revenues. Furthermore, the nature of costs that are allowable should be predetermined by all relevant parties. “We also recommend that the NNPC Act be reviewed as the content contradicts the requirement for NNPC to be run as a commercially viable entity. It appears the act has given the Corporation a ‘blank’ cheque to spend money without limit or control. This is untenable and unsustainable and must be addressed immediately. The Corporation should be required to create value, and meet its expenses entirely from the value created. “Proceeds from the FGN’s crude oil sales should be remitted entirely to the Federation Account. Commisions for the Corporation services can then be paid based on agreed terms.” It added: “We also expect that NPDC should remit dividends to NNPC and ultimately the Federation Account, based on NPDC’s dividend policy and declaration of dividend for the review period.We did not have access to NPDC’s full accounts and records and we have not ascertained the amount of costs and expenses which should be applied to the $5.11billion Crude Oil revenue (net of royalties and PPT paid) per the NPDC submission to the Senate Committee hearing in order to arrive at the Net Revenue (in line with the AG’s Opinion), which should be subjected to dividend remittance.We are also not aware that NPDC declared dividend for the review period. These matters need to be followed up for final resolution in terms of the NPDC Net Revenue (dividend) for Crude Oil relating to the transfers, PPT and royalty unremitted, and the transfer price valuation and remittance.” The auditors’ other findings include “possible errors in the computation of crude oil prices at the NNPC that resulted in a $3.6 million shortfall in incomes to the Federation Account. “The major beneficiaries were Fujairah Refinery - $805,545, NNPC (KRPC/WRPC) – $697,995 and NNPC (COMD) - $2,107,275. Subsequent to our identification of this issue, NNPC has amended the errors, and have reflected the amendments in the remittances to FAAC in October 2014.” The report uncovered iregularities in Kerosine subsidy. It said: “Our review of the DPK sales process revealed that NNPC sells DPK to bulk DPK marketers in Nigeria at N40.90 per litre at a location on the coastal waterways (off shore Lagos). The expected/official regulated retail price of DPK in Nigeria is N50 per litre. This retail price of N50 comprises the ex-depot price of N34.51 and a margin of N15.49. NNPC should be required to explain the reason for selling DPK at N40.90, rather than the regulated Ex-depot price of N34.51. The Corporation should also be required to explain the reason for selling DPK to bulk DPK marketers at a location on the coastal waterways (off shore Lagos) rather than at the incountry depots.” The auditors criticised the accounting and reconciliation system for crude oil revenues used by government agencies as “inaccurate and weak”. “We noted significant discrepancies in data from different sources. The lack of independent audit and reconciliation led to over reliance on data produced from NNPC. This matter is further compounded by the lack of independence within NNPC as the business has conflicting interests of being a stand-alone self-funding entity and also the main source of revenue to the Federation Account,” they said. ment. Oluboyo’s confirmation took a short time after the speaker announced to members that he had been nominated by Mimiko. Oluboyo was later sworn in by the Chief Judge at an event attended by the Chief Imam of Akure, Alhaji Abdulakeem Mimiko gets new deputy as Ondo House sacks Olanusi Continued from page 4 Olanusi’s Impeachment can’t stand, says APC Continued from page 4 shall also cause any statement made in reply to the allegation by the holder of the office…”. Akinyelure said the above provision was not complied with or observed by the House of Assembly before the deputy governor was illegally or unconstitutionally removed from office. At the time the impeachment begun about fortnight ago, the vice chairman said the deputy governor had travelled out of the country for medical check-up, noting that the House did not serve the notice of impeachment on him or place it in any national daily as required by the 1999 Constitution. Akinyelure also accused the Assembly of violating Section 188(6) of the Constitution, which states that the holder of the office, whose conduct “is being investigated under this section shall have the right to defend himself in person or be represented before the panel on inquiry by a legal practitioner of his own choice”. As required under Section 188 (6) of the 1999 Constitution, Akinyelure said the deputy governor was not offered the opportunity to defend himself, noting that he was not in the county when the impeachment proceedings started. He said the deputy governor “has not returned to Nigeria since he travelled out”. Akorede. Mimiko assured the people that the change would not have a negative impact on the state. The governor said the impeachment enjoyed the support of the state government and the people. PDP praised the Assembly for impeaching Olanusi. A statement by its Director of “He was not given opportunity to defend himself. And the panel has three months to conclude its assignment as indicated in section 188(7)(b), out of which it has not exhausted two weeks. Why is the panel acted in a hurry? Why can it follow due process?” The APC chieftain also accused the lawmakers of breaching Section 188 (2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, which states that “the holder of such office is guilty of gross misconduct in performance of the functions of his office detailed particulars of which shall be provided.” Akinyelure said the impeachment did not comply with this provision, noting that it did not show substantive particulars of impeachable offences brought against him. On these grounds, the vice chairman argued Olanusi’s impeachment “left so much to be desired and that the decision of the panel would not stand.” The party would challenge illegal impeachment of the deputy governor,” Akinyelure said. The Ondo State APC also described the impeachment as “temporary.” In a statement by Publicity secretary Abayomi Adesanya, the party said it is laughable that the rubber stamp House of Assembly could hurriedly impeach the deputy governor and accept the nomination of another person in haste. The statement reads: “the Publicity, Ayo Fadaka, said for any governor to progress in his administrative duties, he must have a loyal and committed deputy governor. The PDP said: “Party takes absolute cognisance of the impeachment of Alhaji Ali Olanusi as Deputy Governor and commends the House of Assembly for its tenacity in prosecuting this action. impeachment of Alhaji Ali Olanusi as the deputy governor of Ondo State is temporary. The whole process of the impeachment was a sham and charade. How on earth will a deputy governor be impeached within five days? “It shows that there were unholy alliance among Governor Olusegun Mimiko, Chief Judge, Olasehinde Kumuyi and the governor’s stooges who call themselves lawmakers to embark on illegal process to impeach the deputy governor. “It was clear to the people that before the directive of the State Assembly Speaker to serve Olanusi the impeachment notice, the embattled deputy governor was not in the state. Without any court order, the Speaker directed them to paste the notice on the quarters of the deputy governor and this is unlawful. “The Chief Judge sets up a panel and a panel that was expected to sit for three months by giving room for fair hearing with the parties involved, only sat for five hours just because they have instructions for them to act upon. “We insist that the newly sworn-in Deputy Governor, Alhaji Laisisi Oluboyo, will only be there temporary as we still have faith in the judiciary that illegality perpetrated by the State Assembly will be set aside very soon”. “It is important to declare that the Parliament displayed its commitment to good governance that will be bereft of undue encumberances by removing from office a man who not only discharge his responsibilities with levity and mostly in abeyance, but also view with disdain his oath of office to bear true allegiance to the government he was an integral part of.”
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