24112022

Array of experts, Oyo rally: 

2023: APC kicks 

personalities line up LP campaign 

9 

org, aviation 

against deployment of 

as 2nd Vanguard authorities BVAs, IReV 

Mental Health Summit bicker over 

Osinachi was always afraid in her 

•Peter Obi 

opens 23 grounded plane 

DMO raises N3.2 trn from domestic market to fund 2022 budget 

husband’s presence, brother tells court 

8 

8 

7 

VOL. 39: NO. 9,930 

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022 

Why I approved redesign 

of Naira locally – BUHARI 

•Why naira has not been redesigned in 19 years – EMEFIELE•Adds: We're yet to receive large 

deposits•Says only N165bn received as at last Friday•Warns there'll be no deadline extension 

5 

UNVEILING THE NEWLY DESIGNED NAIRA NOTES 

$418m 

Paris 

refund: 

Govs vow 

payment 

8 

Foreign 

N321bn 

Mr & Mrs 

Obi represents soul of Ndigbo — OHANAEZE 11 

2023: We've recovered 

Baby factory: Nigeria at risk of 

UK watching 

Police rescue 6 

$1bn looted 

grey-listing by 

closely, says 

girls, 6 months 

9 funds since 

9 

Financial Action 

British High 

old baby in Task Force next 

Commissioner 

2015 — FG Nasarawa 23 year — ICPC 8 

L-R; MD/CEO, Printing and Minting, Mr Ahmed Halilu, CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefile, President Muhammadu Buhari, Minister 

of State Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Agba , ICPC Chairman, Prof Bolaji Owasanoye and EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed 

Bawa, at the unveiling of the newly designed Naira notes at FEC meeting in Abuja, yesterday. INSET: CBN Governor, Mr Godwin 

Emefiele presenting the newly redesigned Naira notes to President Muhammadu Buhari at the event. Photo: State House. 

COLUMNIST OLU FASAN 16 

AMAECHI 17 

to stop 

consultants' 

portfolio 

investments 

rise 

11.8% to 

19

2 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022

Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022 —3


Why I approved redesign of 

Naira locally – BUHARI 

By Emma Ujah, Abuja 

Bureau Chief & 

Johnbosco Agbakwuru 

PRESIDENT Muhammadu 

Buhari yesterday inaugurated 

the new Naira 

banknotes, expressing delight 

that the redesigned 

currencies were locally produced 

by the Nigerian Security 

Printing and Minting, 

NSPM Plc. 

Speaking at the inauguration 

of the new banknotes, 

which preceded the 

Federal Executive Council, 

FEC, meeting in Abuja yesterday, 

Buhari explained in 

detail the basis for his approval 

to the Central Bank 

of Nigeria, CBN, to redesign 

the N200, N500 and 

N1000 banknotes. 

According to him, the 

new Naira banknotes have 

been fortified with security 

features that make them 

difficult to counterfeit. 

He added that the new 

banknotes would help 

CBN to design and implement 

better monetary policy 

objectives, as well as 

enrich the collective memory 

of Nigeria’s heritage. 

Buhari, who commended 

the CBN Governor Godwin 

Emefiele and his deputies 

for the initiative, also 

thanked the Managing 

Director, Mr. Ahmed Halilu, 

Executive Directors and 

staff of NSPM PLC “for 

working tirelessly with the 

apex bank to make the currency 

redesign a reality, 

and for printing the new 

Naira notes within a comparatively 

short time.” 

The President noted that 

international best practice 

required central banks and 

national authorities to issue 

new or redesigned currency 

notes every five to eight 

years. 

Redesign long 

overdue 

• Why naira has not been redesigned in 19 years – 

EMEFIELE•We're yet to receive large deposits – CBN•Says 

only N165bn received as at last Friday•Warns there'll be no 

deadline extension 

–BUHARI 

He noted that it was now 

almost 20 years since the 

last major redesign of the 

country’s local currency 

was done, adding that implied 

that the Naira was 

long overdue for a redesign. 

The President said: ''A 

cycle of banknote redesign 

is generally aimed at 

achieving specific objectives, 

including, but not limited 

to improving security 

of banknotes. 

”It is also aimed at mitigating 

counterfeiting, preserving 

the collective national 

heritage, controlling 

currency in circulation, and 

reducing the overall cost of 

currency management. 

‘‘As is known, our local 

laws, specifically the Central 

Bank of Nigeria Act of 

2007, grants the CBN the 

power to issue and redesign 

the Naira. 

“In line with this power, 

From left: Leader of Afenifere, Chief Ayo Adebanjo raising the hands of Presidential 

candidate of Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, while the Vice Presidential 

Candidate of Labour Party, Senator Yussuf Datti Ahmed and others look on 

during the Labour presidential rally at Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba, 

Ibadan, yesterday. Photo: Dare Fasube. 

Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022 — 5 

POCKET CARTOON 

the bank’s governor approached 

me earlier in this 

year to seek my permission 

to embark on a currency 

redesign project. I considered 

all the facts and reasons 

presented before me 

by the CBN.” 

He expressed the hope 

that the new notes would 

address the urgent need to 

take control of currency in 

circulation, adding that it 

would also address the 

menace of hoarding Naira 

banknotes outside the 

banking system and curb 

the shortage of clean and 

fit banknotes in circulation. 

Design was locally 

done 

Buhari said the redesigned 

notes would equally 

address the increase in 

counterfeiting of high-denomination 

Naira banknotes. 

“It is on this basis that I 

gave my approval for the 

redesign of the N200, N500 

and N1000 banknotes. 

“While this may not be 

apparent to many Nigerians, 

only four out of the 54 

African countries print their 

currencies in their countries, 

and Nigeria is one, 

hence a majority of African 

countries print their currencies 

abroad and import 

them the way we import 

other goods. 

“That is why it is with 

immense pride that I announce 

to you that these 

redesigned currencies are 

locally produced right here 

in Nigeria by NSPM Plc,’’ 

he said. 

Currency ought 

to be redesigned, 

re-issued by 5-8 

yrs – EMEFIELE 

In his remarks, Emefiele 

explained that in line with 

global practice, the naira 

was supposed to be redesigned 

and re-issued between 

five and eight years. 

He regretted that in Nigeria, 

the naira had not 

been redesigned for about 

19 years now because of 

lack of political will from 

the previous leaders. 

He said: "In the past, I 

have to confess that attempts 

by the CBN to redesign 

and reissue the 

naira notes have been resisred. 

It is only President 

Muhammadu Buhari that 

has the courage to do so." 

Emefiele said it was the 

mandate of the CBN to redesign 

and reissue the 

notes, assuring that henceforth, 

the exercise would 

take place after five to eight 

years. 

"After today, the CBN will 

begin to redesign and reissue 

the naira for every 

five to eight years," he said. 

Continues on Page 28 

By Mariam Eko 

On 133m Nigerians living in poverty and way forward 

A 

nation that is not pro 

ducing goods cannot 

lift its citizens from poverty. 

The NBS statistics is a clarion 

call to the authorities 

that Nigeria is sitting on a 

time bomb and the implications 

are highly dangerous. 

Corruption and crime 

will be in the order of the 

day if the situation is not addressed 

quickly. 

—Idris Ishola, 

Stockbroker 

THE poverty level in 

the country is getting 

worse. Most families cannot 

afford one meal per day 

and the level of deprivation 

in all aspects of living is 

absurd for a country blessed 

with both natural and human 

resources. This is so 

sad. 

—Egwuagha Ngozi, 

Trader 

Iagree with NBS that 

Nigerians are suffering 

from multidimensional 

poverty. Most kids have 

dropped out of school and 

they are hawking for their 

parents. Honestly, people 

are suffering. Some people 

are homeless, and jobless, 

and government 

should act fast. 

—Oluwakemi Bamidele, 

Caterer 

THE level of poverty 

in this country is alarming. 

You get paid but you 

can’t even save because a lot 

of bills are already waiting 

to slaughter the salary. 

How long are we going to 

continue like this? Government 

should take this issue 

before it gets out of hand. 

—Benjamin Nzekwu, 

Credit control executive 

THE statistic is a nobrainer 

because most 

of us can feel poverty and 

deprivation. Moreover, 

these indicators are 

bound to happen under 

this current government. 

Until we have a working 

system that can checkmate 

corrupt leaders, the situation 

cannot get any better. 

—Folaranmi Ayodele, 

Photograhper 

NIGERIANS 

now 

lack the basics of 

human existence as cheap 

as food. The level of hunger 

has further heightened 

the level of insecurity in the 

country. I believe the NBS 

report but feels it may be 

far higher than that based 

on the reality around us. 

—Adeniji Silvanus, 

Architect

6 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022 

Akirun: Violence 

as new monarch 

attempts to 

access locked 

palace 

•One dead, mob 

stops fire fighters 

By Shina Abubakar 

ONE person was reportedly shot 

dead , yesterday, in Ikirun, Osun 

State, as the new Akirun of Ikirun, Oba 

Yinusa Akadiri, and a group of persons 

tried to force their way into the palace 

(that had been locked and sealed off with 

traditional charms). 

It was gathered that in the process of 

being resisted by some residents of the 

community, an imbroglio ensued and 

the victim was reportedly shot dead and 

part of the palace set ablaze. 

It will be recalled that Some people 

in the town, who had been calling for a 

reversal of Akadiri’s appointment and 

installation, allegedly locked up the 

palace to deny the installed Oba access 

to the palace. 

An eye witness, who pleaded 

anonymity, told Vanguard that some 

youths had gathered at the Oja-Oba area 

where the palace was located yesterday 

morning waiting for the Monarch's 

arrival. 

"As soon as the policemen arrived the 

palace main entrance with some 

herbalists, they neutralise the charm 

therein and forced the gate opened, but 

could not open the gate to the main 

palace building before some youths 

started pelting them with satchet water. 

"The police fired tear gar to disperse 

the mob but it was not successful, hence, 

there was an exchange of gunshots 

between the security operatives and the 

youths around the palace," the source 

added. 

While the shooting was going on, 

Vanguard gathered that some youths 

scaled the fence of the palace to set it 

ablaze. 

A Prince from Gboleru ruling house, 

Lukman Olatunji, it was gathered , was 

shot during the cross fire in front of the 

palace. 

An elder brother to the deceased, 

Prince Tajudeen Gboleru disclosed to 

newsmen that the deceased led some 

people towards the palace upon hearing 

that some persons attempted to forcefully 

gain access into the palace. 

According to him, I heard that there 

was gunshots in front of the palace by 

security operatives with some people and 

he was killed right in front of the palace. 

"I don't know who really shoot him 

but there was gunshot by soldiers and 

police and he was killed". 

Meanwhile, operatives of the Fire 

Service Department who were alerted 

to quench the fire at the palace were 

attacked by a mob outside, preventing 

the vehicle from accessing the scene. 

Three of the operatives, our 

correspondent gathered, were injured, 

taken to hospital and the vehicle 

abandoned at the scene. 

The department's spokesperson, 

Adekunle Ibrahim while confirming the 

incident, said the injured personnel are 

recuperating at a private hospital in the 

town. 

"We were alerted to the fire incident by 

police and personnel were deployed to 

quench the fire. However, a mob stopped 

the vehicle from accessing the palace 

and our personnel were attacked. 

•The palace on fire. 

:Vanguard 

News 

:@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 

•Long queues at filling stations as fuel scarcity returns. 

Okada ban: Tears, anger as 

taskforce destroys 356 bikes 

By Omeiza Ajayi 

Amotorcyclists, BUJA—COMMERCIAL 

popularly known 

as Okada, watched helplessly as over 

356 motorcycles impounded from them 

were, yesterday, destroyed by officials 

of the Federal Capital Territory 

Administration, FCTA. 

While the FCTA has not pronounced 

a blanket ban on commercial 

motorcycle operations, there are districts 

where they are not allowed to operate. 

Notwithstanding the restrictions, 

defiant bike owners and operators have 

remained adamant about flouting the 

partial ban. 

The massive raids through highbrow 

Missing elder's son found dead in 

prophet's church 

By Dayo Johnson 

AKURE—An Akure Chief 

Magistrate's Court, in Ondo 

State, has ordered the remand of 45- 

year-old Prophet, Samuel Alade-Emin, 

for allegedly killing the son of an elder, 

Olasupo Abiona, in his church. 

The mother of the deceased is the 

lya-ljo of the church. 

Vanguard learned that the deceased 

had been declared missing for seven 

days, until his corpse was allegedly found 

in the prophet’s custody. 

He was alleged to have died after 

consuming a concoction given to him 

by the suspect. 

Meanwhile, the defendant was 

arraigned before Chief Magistrate, 

Musa Al-Yunus, on two counts bothering 

on deprivation of liberty and murder. 

The Police prosecutor, Nelson 

4 kidnap suspects arrested in Ogun 

By James Ogunnaike 

ABEOKUTA—FOUR members 

of a notorious kidnap gang 

terrorising Abeokuta and its environs 

have been apprehended by operatives 

of Ogun State Police Command. 

The command's Police Public 

Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, 

said the suspects were arrested, following 

a series of kidnap cases at Soyooye and 

Ibara Orile area of Abeokuta. 

Having received reports of kidnap 

cases in the aforementioned area, the 

Commissioner of Police, Lanre Bankole, 

directed the Anti kidnapping team to 

move into the area and fish out the 

perpetrators of the dastardly act. 

In compliance with the CP's directive, 

Guzape and Durumi districts, Airport 

road-Lugbe and Kubwa were supported 

by the defence and security forces. 

Senior Special Assistant to the FCT 

Minister on Monitoring, Inspection and 

Enforcement, Attah Ikharo, said the 

Minister is worried about the flagrant 

attitude of the operators who violate 

traffic rules. 

He said the administration only 

allowed them to operate in interior 

villages and estates, where possible, but 

they have continued to violate the 

restrictions with arrogance and constant 

violent attacks on enforcement officers. 

"This operation is a signature project 

and a decision of the FCTA Security 

Committee. They agreed that we should 

....Ondo court remands prophet in prison 

Akintimehin, said that the defendant 

committed the offence between August 

22 and 27, 2022 at Alagbado village via 

Ore, Odigbo council area of the state. 

According to Akintimehin, the prophet 

unlawfully detained the deceased, who 

happened to be the son of one of the 

elders in the church, one Olasupo 

Abiona, in his custody against his wish, 

which deprived him of his liberty. 

Adetimehin also alleged that the 

defendant in the process administered a 

substance suspected to be poison to the 

deceased which made him vomit blood 

that led to his death. 

The offences contravene sections 365 

and 316(5) of the Criminal Law of Ondo 

State, 2006. 

The police prosecutor, therefore, urged 

the court to remand the defendant at the 

Olokuta Correctional Centre pending 

the outcome of advice from the 

the SP Taiwo Opadiran led team embarked 

on a technical and intelligencebased 

investigation, which led them to 

one of the suspects, Irukura Abu, who 

was later discovered to be the supplier of 

guns to the hoodlums. 

His arrest led to the arrest of Musa 

Muhammed, while he was coming out 

from their hideout to buy food for their 

victims and members of the gang. 

The duo after thorough investigation, 

confessed to being members of a kidnap 

gang responsible for the abduction of 

one Bishop Oladimeji Joshua of Prayer 

City, Keesan, Abeokuta, on the 22nd of 

September 2022. 

They also informed the police that they 

were responsible for the kidnap of one Kafayat 

Jelili of Ogo Titun area of Ibara Orile. 

go back to massive enforcement of the 

ban on commercial motorcycles in the 

Federal Capital City as well as some 

strategic locations, like the airport road 

and Kubwa where they have become a 

big threat to the people. 

"We have brought the 356 

motorcycles here in Area 1 for primary 

crushing because the menace cannot 

continue. We have gotten complaints 

daily about Okada riders across the 

city. 

"Last week in Durumi, a personnel in 

uniform was stabbed and killed, and 

another officer was also stabbed in the 

head by these same characters, the 

Okada riders. We have gotten forfeiture 

orders for all of these," he added. 

Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). 

The prophet said he is innocent of the 

allegations levelled against him. 

Alade-Emi said the deceased was under 

treatment in his church before he got 

missing. 

He added that he was part of the search 

team looking for the deceased when he 

was declared missing for almost six days 

before the deceased walked into the 

church premises. 

The defendant denied that the victim 

died in his church but in the hospital after 

he was found. 

According to him: "It was quite 

unfortunate that he died in the hospital 

after ten days of treatment,“ 

His counsel, A. Motunrayo, prayed the 

court to grant her client bail in the most 

liberal terms, because of his innocence. 

But, in his response, the trial Chief 

Magistrate, Musa Al-Yunus, ordered 

his remand, pending advice from the 

state DPP. 

Magistrate, Al-Yunus, therefore, 

adjourned the case till February 9, 

next year. 

Wife stabs 

husband to death 

over sexual 

demands 

By Adeola Badru 

A 

27year-old housewife, Odunayo 

Olumale, has reportedly stabbed 

her husband, Olamilekan 

Salahudeen, to death, for making 

sexual advances at her. 

The incident happened three months 

after the couple reconciled and 

reunited after a separation. 

Speaking in Ibadan while parading the 

suspect at the Oyo Police Command 

headquarter, Eleyele, Ibadan, yesterday, 

Police spokesman, Adewale Osifeso, said 

the preliminary investigation showed that 

the deceased and his wife returned to their 

house in Oko-Oba area of Oyo town on 

the day of the incident after their threemonth 

separation. 

Osifeso said one Ismaila Tijani reported 

at Dubar Divisional Police headquarters 

that his son named Olamilekan 

Salahudeen age 35 was stabbed to death 

with a knife by his wife Odunayo. 

It was gathered that the deceased made 

a move to have sexual intercourse with his 

wife who rejected, “ a struggle ensued and 

the deceased collected and smashed his 

wife’s phone and in retaliation, the 

deceased was stabbed on the chest, leading 

to his death 

Panic as killer 

herdsmen 

invade Rivers 

community, 

allegedly kill 2 

By Davies Iheamnachor 

TWO persons were reportedly 

killed by suspected herdsmen, 

who invaded Agbeta II Tuabon 

Community in Ebubu Clan, Eleme 

Local Government Area of Rivers State. 

The killers, who attacked the 

community, last Sunday, also allegedly 

injured many. 

The Youth president of the 

community, Mr. Justice Kanikpo, cried 

that residents of the area are now 

relocating for fear of further attacks by 

the killer herdsmen. 

Kanikpo said: "People are moving 

out of the community as a result of fear 

because the herders always come to 

the area with AK45 riffle every day so 

people are afraid for their lives. They 

have killed two people. 

"I don’t know why the local 

government chairman is not bordered 

about the situation, so I am appealing 

to the government to come to our aid 

and rescue us from what we are facing." 

Meanwhile, the Chairman, Council 

of Chiefs and Elders, Agbeta II Tuabon 

Community, Kayonee Gbaranen, 

noted that farmers in the community 

can no longer access their farmlands 

due to the killer herdsmen. 

"The people no longer go to their 

farms because what they planted has 

been destroyed, they are now buying 

crops and foodstuffs that they normally 

produce because they can no longer 

enter their farms. They are afraid, and 

most of the people have started leaving 

the community. 

•The 

apprehended 

bandits 

paraded 

by 

the 

police.


:Vanguard 

News 

:@vanguardnews :@vanguardnewsNEWS HOTLINES: 

Social Media Conversation 

•Late Osinachi and husband, Peter Nwachukwu. 

Osinachi was always afraid in her 

husband’s presence, brother tells court 

By Fortune 

Eromosele 

AMadu, BUJA—GODWIN 

brother of the late 

gospel singer, Osinachi 

Nwachukwu, has told a Federal 

Capital Territory High Court, 

sitting in Abuja, how the late 

songbird answered calls and 

spoke in fear, due to her husband’s 

(Peter Nwachukwu) presence. 

Led in evidence by the 

Prosecution counsel, Aderonke 

Imana, Madu also told the court 

how Nwachukwu allegedly 

abused Osinachi verbally and 

physically. 

He said: “Whenever we called 

Osinachi to hear from her, she 

answered with fear. 

"In 2019 August, my mom was 

sick, Osinachi begged Peter for 

my mom to come over, but he 

refused. Then Osinachi went to 

Pastor Enenche’s wife, Becky, of 

Dunamis Church, to prevail on 

Peter to allow Osinachi’s mom 

to come down to Abuja for 

treatment. 

“So, Becky met with Peter and 

begged him, before he accepted. 

Then when she came down to 

Abuja. 

The first day Peter sent his son, 

Ebube, to go get water for him 

with a cup. When he went to get 

the water, as a child, the water 

spilled from the cup. Peter beat 

Ebube mercilessly, just because 

the boy made a very little 

mistake. 

“When my mom heard his cry, 

she started telling Peter that he 

should take it easy on him, that 

he is a child and mistakes were 

part of their learning. I was there 

listening to my mom, and the next 

thing Peter did was insult my 

mom, calling her names that she 

was a witch and that she wants to 

scatter his family. 

Scolding 

Osinachi's mom 

“When he was saying all those 

things, my mum kept quiet and 

didn’t respond. The next day my 

sister was in the kitchen cooking, 

and she called on me to come 

and assist her, I was in the kitchen 

helping her to cut onions, Peter 

then came to the kitchen and 

asked what I was doing there. 

My sister said to him, please 

allow him he is helping me, he 

started insulting my sister, calling 

her names. That day he said to 

her ‘you know how I used to be to 

you,’ in my presence for the first 

time. 

“Then the second day, he did 

the same thing, I was in the 

kitchen helping my sister. He told 

her that I have warned you 

several times not to allow this 

your useless brother inside my 

kitchen, then my sister said to 

him, there are so many things to 

do in the kitchen. He repeated 

the same words, ‘you know how 

I used to be to you,’ in my presence 

for the second time. 

“The next day, I was in the 

kitchen helping my sister wash 

the plates, and he repeated the 

same words to my sister. When 

he said it I was very angry that 

very day, I said to Osinachi what 

does this man mean by these 

things he is saying, he heard what 

I said and started insulting me. 

“On the fourth day, I was with 

my mom in the room where she 

was when I was going to the 

kitchen, I saw him he raised his 

hands to hit my sister Osinachi, 

then I said if you try it, my mom 

heard my voice and she called 

me, Peter started insulting me 

again. 

“The next day, he chased me 

and my mom out of his house, I 

called Osinachi’s twin sister, 

Amarachi, and I told her what 

happened, she called one of her 

Delta woman friends, it was the 

woman that came and picked 

me and my mom. 

“It was in that woman’s house 

that we stayed for one month until 

she completed her treatment 

before we both went back to 

Enugu. Then I came back to 

Abuja, I started my music stuff 

then when I go to church on 

Sunday, that is when I normally 

see my sister(Osinachi) and 

whenever she’s talking to me and 

notices the presence of Peter, she 

will be afraid, she will quickly 

leave and tell me later." 

Narrates hospital 

experience before 

death 

“For years, it kept happening 

like that until March, this year, 

when my sister was sick, it was 

through my mom that I knew 

that my sister was sick. My mom 

said to me that I should go and 

find out what was happening to 

Osinachi. I went to their house, I 

knocked and knocked, Ebube 

came out the first son. When he 

came out he now asked Ebube 

who is that, Ebube said it was 

uncle Godwin. He told Ebube to 

tell me that I should go. 

“Then the next day, my sister 

was in the hospital, he never 

wanted to tell me that my sister 

was in the hospital. My sister 

cried and begged him to send 

the address of the hospital so that 

I can come. When I came to the 

hospital, I saw my sister in severe 

pain, holding her chest, I saw a 

doctor that was with her there. 

Right there when the doctor 

Peter sent 

his son, 

Ebube, to go 

get water for 

him with a 

cup. When 

he went to 

get the water, 

as a child, 

the water 

spilled from 

the cup. 

Peter beat 

Ebube 

mercilessly, 

just because 

the boy made 

a very little 

mistake 

finished attending to her, Peter 

was there too, I wanted to see the 

doctor, but Peter blocked me and 

called security to push me out. 

“The second day, I came to the 

hospital he didn’t allow me to 

come close. Then before the twin 

sister Amarachi came, when she 

came, Peter started asking her 

what was doing there in the 

hospital, she said that she came 

to take care of her sister, and Peter 

said she should better go back to 

where she was coming from. 

“She didn’t say anything to Peter. 

Peter said we should both leave the 

hospital, that we should go far to the 

garden as he was expecting 

somebody. “For more than twenty 

minutes we were outside so that he 

will tell us the person had come and 

we can go in. 

“We waited for so long before we 

now came to the room in the hospital 

where they were, then my sister 

Osinachi was begging the twin sister 

that she should not be angry, 

Amarachi said okay that there’s no 

problem. After that, Peter brought 

out a lab result and gave it to 

Osinachi and said to her, you don’t 

have cancer, despite the pain and 

what Osinachi was passing through 

right there, she smiled. 

“Peter went to the toilet to ease 

himself, Osinachi said to us that 

please we should go and check on 

the children, that she doesn’t want 

any torture from Peter again." 

Stop ‘monkeying' in others' affairs! 

School first! 

Work your dreams!


BRIEFING: 

From left, Ekiti 

State Governor, 

Mr Biodun 

Oyebanji; his 

Deputy, Mrs 

Monisade Afuye; 

Secretary to the 

State 

Government, Mrs 

Habibat Adubiaro 

and Head of 

Service, Bamidele 

Agbede, during 

the Day 3 briefing 

by Heads of 

MDAs, at the 

EXCO Chamber, 

Governor’s 

office, Ado-Ekiti, 

yesterday. 

DMO raises N3.2 trn from domestic 

market to fund 2022 budget 

•As Sukuk yields N612bn 

By Emma Ujah, 

Abuja Bureau Chief 

THE DEBT Management 

Office, DMO, has raised a 

total of N3.23 trillion from the 

domestic market to finance the 

2022 federal government budget. 

The Director-General of 

DMO, Ms. Patience Oniha, 

disclosed this, in Abuja, 

yesterday, while briefing the 

media on the N100 billion Sukuk 

now being offered to the Nigerian 

public for investment. 

According to her, DMO has 

raised the sum of N612 billion 

through Sukuk, the ethical debt 

instrument since it was introduced 

in September, 2017, with all 

proceeds dedicated to road 

infrastructure. 

She said: “We raised all of those 

monies for roads and bridges and 

there are signs around them so 

that Nigerians can see them and 

hold us accountable for the 

utilization of the proceeds.” 

Ms. Oniha, who expressed 

satisfaction that the product had 

become widely accepted to the 

investing, said: “The first time we 

did Sukuk, we had to undertake 

road shows to five states and held 

bilateral meetings to convince 

members of the public to invest in 

the product but since then, the 

instrument has become very 

acceptable to Nigerian public 

“The fact that people can see 

the roads and bridges that are 

being constructed by Sukuk when 

they drive around, has helped a 

lot. Sukuk has a product that is 

selling itself. 

“We are happy to reach a lot 

more people to invest in the 

Sukuk. We have a lot of products 

that are available to all investors, 

local and foreign, including retail 

investors but Sukuk has the 

added advantage that it is 

financing infrastructure. 

“We are driving retail investors 

and promoting financial inclusion, 

meaning those who have 

investible funds but having no 

securities that are acceptable for 

them to invest in find the Sukuk 

that product that they can invest 

in and earn some money. 

“So overall, we are specifically 

borrowing to fund infrastructure 

and developing the market and 

giving people more investment 

opportunities.” 

Why only N100bn 

The DG noted that Nigerians 

were asking for the product but 

that her team put N100 billion on 

offer because it was already very 

close to its domestic borrowing limit 

of about N3. 5 trillion for the current 

fiscal year. 

:Vanguard News 

According to her, there has been 

a lot of excitement around Sukuk 

because road infrastructure 

provided job opportunities and 

added value to the socio-economic 

development of the nation, 

describing it as a “win-win situation 

for all members of the public. 

By Fortune 

Eromosele 

ABUJA—THE Independent 

Corrupt Practices and Other 

Related Offences Commission, 

ICPC, has warned that Nigeria i s 

at risk of being grey-listed by the 

Financial Action Task Force, FATF 

in February next year. 

The commission also cautioned 

lawyers to desist from unlawful and 

corrupt practices, saying they are 

part of the factors that would aid 

Nigeria being grey-listed by the 

FATF. 

The Chairman, ICPC, Professor 

Bolaji Owasanoye, stated this 

while hosting the new National 

Executive Committee of the 

Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, on 

a courtesy visit to the commission’s 

headquarters in Abuja yesterday. 

The Financial Action Task 

Force, FATF, as defined, is an intergovernmental 

policymaking body 

whose purpose is to establish 

international standards, develop 

and promote policies, both at 

national and international levels, 

to combat money laundering and 

the financing of terrorism. 

Owasanoye who decried the 

alarming rate at how some lawyers 

undermined the profession, cited 

examples of lawyers who 

enmeshed themselves in 

questionable acts that had overtly 

rubbed off on the legal profession 

in the country. 

He said: “Many who claimed to 

be lawyers are not living up to the 

name and they embarrass all of 

us. Many of them undermine the 

integrity of the profession by 

betraying the very essence of our 

training. How do you explain why 

a lawyer would put forward or try 

to defend an illegal contract. 

“We have seen an agreement 

prepared by a lawyer for people to 

engage in illegal transaction. While 

the agreement was violated, a 

lawyer who we believe should 

know better wrote to ICPC to 

intervene. We all know it is wrong 

for someone to pay to get a job in 

public service and here we are 

seeing a lawyer drafting an 

agreement for the parties 


The N100 billion to be raised 

from the current exercise, she said, 

would be applied on road 

infrastructure, under the Federal 

Ministry of Works and Housing 

and the Federal Capital Territory 

Administration. 

Offer for the N100 billion Sukuk 

will close on Tuesday, next week 

Ms. Oniha said: “Our focus is 

those people who ordinarily won’t 

invest either for reasons of ethics 

or they are not even aware that 

their money, though not big, can 

buy Sukuk. Or some who say, ‘I 

want to give my money to the 

government but I want to see what 

they are doing with my money.’ 

Sukuk is just the right product.” 

She stated that funds borrowed 

from the capital market, at cheaper 

rates earlier in the year, had been 

very helpful in supporting the 

government in the implementation 

of the budget. 

Nigeria at risk of grey-listing by 

Financial Action Task Force next year 

—ICPC •Warns lawyers to desist from corrupt practices 

involved.” 

The ICPC chairman added that 

the unprofessional conduct of 

some lawyers were reasons the 

perception of the legal body was 

low in the country, adding that it 

could lead to Nigeria being greylisted 

by the Financial Action Task 

Force. 

“You may be aware that there is 

a mutual evaluation on the 

country by the Financial Action 

Task Force and Nigeria is currently 

at the risk of being grey-listed. One 

of the reasons for that is because 

the legal profession has been seen 

to be resistant to the anti-money 

laundering and financing 

autonomy requirements. 

“This may lead to the grey-listing 

of Nigeria by FATF in February 

next year. The implication of the 

grey-listing is that Nigeria’s 

economy is running on loans and 

when you are grey-listed, you will 

have to borrow at a premium. If 

your neighbour borrows at four 

percent, you will have to borrow at 

twelve to fifteen percent,'' 

Owasanoye said. 

The ICPC chairman stressed the 

need to educate members of the 

INDEPENDENT MARKETERS 

of petroleum products, 

yesterday, increased the price of 

petrol further to N240 per litre, from 

about N230 per litre as shortage 

persisted in Lagos and its environs 

yesterday. 

Checks by Vanguard indicated 

that the marketers currently lift 

the product from the depots at 

N200 per litre, unlike in the past 

when they lifted the product for 

N148 per litre. 

Consequently, the pump price 

of petrol has increased to N240 

per litre, from the N165 per litre 

government regulated price, while 

the total cost hovered at N220 per 

litre, including transport and 

margins. 

However, the major marketers, 

NBA on the implications of their 

actions on the economy. 

He also urged the National 

Executive Committee of the NBA 

to push forward policies that would 

advance the course of the justice 

sector reform. 

Earlier in his address, the 

National President of the Nigerian 

Bar Association, NBA, Mr. Yakubu 

Chonoko Maikyau, SAN, 

expressed concern about the 

perception of the legal profession 

in the public, saying the profession 

was not as corrupt as the press 

would want to make the public 

believe. 

He stated that the NBA under 

his leadership, was on the same 

page with the ICPC in the fight 

against corruption and would 

make itself available for any form 

of collaboration with the 

commission to advance its course 

in reducing the menace of 

corruption in the country. 

Maikyau also suggested that 

cases of infractions by lawyers that 

had been noted by the ICPC could 

be forwarded to the NBA’s 

secretariat for necessary 

disciplinary actions by the body. 

$418m Paris Refund: Govs vow 

to stop payment to consultants 

By Henry Umoru 

ABUJA—GOVERNORS of the 

36 states of the federation, 

under the aegis of Nigerian 

Governors' Forum, NGF, vowed,, 

yesterday, to explore all legal 

channels to pursue the $418 

million Paris Club Refund and 

ensure that states’ resources are 

not unjustly paid to a few in the 

name of consultancy. 

In a statement after the 8th 

teleconference meeting of the 

NGF, Chairman of the forum and 

Sokoto State governor , Aminu 

Tambuwal said, “regarding the 

$418 Million Paris Club Refund and 

promissory notes issued to 

Consultants by the Federal 

Ministry of Finance and the Debt 

Management Office, DMO, the 

Forum remains resolute in 

exploring all legal channels 

available to it in ensuring that 

resources belonging to States are 

not unjustly or illegally paid to a 

few in the guise of consultancies. 

He also said that the forum is 

continuing its quest to stop the 

proposed privatization of 10 

National Integrated Power 

Projects, NIPPs, by the Federal 

Government. He said the forum 

had instructed its lawyers to 

approach the Federal High Court 

which at present has issued an 

order restraining all the parties in 

the suit from taking any step or 

action that will make or render the 

outcome of the motion on notice 

seeking for interlocutory injunction 

nugatory. 

Tambuwal said: “The effect of 

the Order of the Court is that 

Respondents cannot proceed with 

the proposed sale of the power 

plants belonging to the Niger 

Delta Power Holding Company 

By Omeiza Ajayi 

ABUJA—THE ruling All 

Progressives Congress, APC, 

has kicked against the decision of 

the Independent National 

Electoral Commission INEC to 

deploy the Bimodal Voter 

Accreditation System BVAS and 

the INEC Results Viewing Portal 

IReV, saying Nigeria is not ripe for 

the use of such technology. 

This was as the electoral umpire 

insisted there is no going back on 

the deployment of the technology. 

There had been allegations that 

the ruling party was sponsoring 

moves to oust the INEC Chairman 

because of his insistence to deploy 

greater technology to enhance the 

electoral process. 

APC National Chairman, 

Limited, NDPHCL, until the 

hearing and determination of the 

Motion on Notice for Interlocutory 

Injunction.'' 

He noted that sequel to 

discussions between subsovereigns 

at the recently 

concluded 2nd African Sub- 

Sovereign Government Network, 

AfSNET, Conference, the Forum 

agreed to pursue through its 

membership on the Forum of 

Regions of Africa, FORAF. 

The Sokoto State governor, who 

noted that the Forum was 

monitoring the flood situation 

across the country and working 

with the Federal Government 

through the National Economic 

Council, NEC, said: “In 

collaboration with the Federal 

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural 

Development, FMARD, Federal 

Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, 

Disaster Management and Social 

Development, FMHDSD. 

“National Emergency 

Management Agency, NEMA, 

Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, 

Federal Ministry of Finance, 

Budget and National Planning, 

FMFBNP, and the World Bank to 

prepare emergency interventions 

to ameliorate the impact of the flood 

crisis especially to sustain Food 

Security. 

“Members were also briefed by 

the World Bank Task Team Leader, 

TTL, Professor Foluso 

Okunmadewa, on the desired 

restructuring of the $750 million 

Nigeria COVID-19 Action 

Recovery and Economic Stimulus 

Program, CARES, programme to 

respond to Nigeria 2022 Flood 

Response following discussions 

with States and the National 

Economic Council, NEC, Ad hoc 

Committee on Flooding.“ 

2023: APC kicks against 

deployment of BVAS, IReV 

•As INEC insists no going back 

Independent marketers raise petrol price to N240 

per litre as shortage persists in Lagos 

By Udeme Akpan, 

Energy Editor 

who have much capacity and 

access to the product continued to 

sell at N175 per litre. 

Long queues at the retail outlets 

of the major marketers were, 

however, noticed yesterday as 

many motorists and other users 

preferred to wait patiently for the 

product. 

Meanwhile, some illegal 

operators were seen in some parts 

of Lagos, including Ikorodu road, 

hawking the product in cans and 

bottles and sold in excess of 

between N250 and N300 per litre, 

depending on location. 

“Speaking in a telephone 

interview with Vanguard, the 

National Operations Controller, 

IPMAN, Mr Mike Osatuyi, said: 

“Unlike the past when our 

members used to lift the product 

at N148 per litre, they currently lift 

it at N200 per litre. It would be 

impossible for them to sell petrol at 

N165 per litre regulated price. 

“Our members pass through 

much difficulty to get the product 

at this time. The marketers also 

spend much to take the product to 

many parts of the nation because 

of the high cost of diesel, currently 

selling at about N800 per litre.” 

Similarly, the National President 

of IPMAN, Chinedu Okoronkwo, 

who confirmed the hike in price, 

put the blame on private depots 

owners. 

He said: “The real cause of the 

price hike is the incessant 

increment in price by private depot 

owners. A litre of fuel is being sold 

to us at the rate of N210 and N214 

per litre. When you add transport 

and logistics, you can imagine 

what the figure will amount to.“ 

Senator Abdullahi Adamu stated 

this on Wednesday evening when 

he received a delegation from the 

Commonwealth Election 

Observation Mission. 

He said; "First, I was privileged 

to serve as a senator. Our concern 

is how ready are we to deploy some 

of these technologies as regards 

transmission because we are 

taking a major step in transmitting 

election results in real time. 

"To transmit results, every part 

of the nation Nigeria I'm not sure 

that the network covers it, I know 

that even in parts of Abuja there 

is no network and we have from 

now till February when in 

substantial parts of the country 

there is no electricity. 

"INEC must assure us 100 

percent that as at when due in 

transmitting results they are ready 

because they spoke about 

recharging batteries but we had in 

previous elections when it says it 

can't recharge". 

National Organizing Secretary 

of the party, Ambassador Suleiman 

Argungu also kicked against the 

technology. 

He said; "As a rider to what the 

national chairman just said about 

INEC transmitting results directly 

during the coming election, apart 

from the issue of electricity that is 

unstable, a lot of the villages and 

communities bordering other 

countries for instance my state 

Kebbi that is bordering two nations 

during the previous elections the 

network of Nigeria for all the 

networks, Glo, MTN, Airtel you 

can't get them. If you want to get 

them you have to use the number 

of the other countries to reach 

them. So, during election I don't 

see how transmission of result will 

work. I see it coming".


PRESENTATION: From 

left— Head of 

Marketing, May & Baker 

Nigeria Plc., Mr. 

Obinna Emeribe; 

Executive Director, 

Pharma Sales & 

Marketing, Mr. 

Valentine Okelu; 

Winner of Professional 

Service Award, Prof. Ray 

Ozolua; Mrs. Nkiru 

Ozolua and Mr. Adeniyi 

Akinyandenu, National 

Sales Manager, May & 

Baker Nigeria Plc, at the 

presentation of the May 

& Baker Professional 

Service Award at the 

just concluded PSN 

National conference in 

Jos. 



Oyo rally: LP Campaign, aviation 

authorities bicker over grounded plane 

•Our aircraft was grounded by ‘powers that be’, LP Campaign alleges 

•Crew of aircraft only made air return after noticing faults —NCAA 

•We aren't aware of it —FAAN 

•As Obi-Datti Campaign raises alarm over attempts to sabotage PVC collection 

By Prince Okafor & 

John Alechenu 

LABOUR PARTY Campaign 

Organisation and aviation 

authorities in the country 

disagreed yesterday over alleged 

grounding of the aircraft meant 

to take the party's presidential 

candidate, Peter Obi and his 

running mate, Datti Ahmed, to 

Ibadan, Oyo State for the party's 

campaign rally. 

This is even as the Obi-Datti 

Media Office also yesterday 

raised alarm over reports that the 

collection of Permanent Voter 

Cards, PVCs, was not going 

smoothly in some centers across 

the country. 

The party had alleged that the 

aircraft was grounded at the 

Nnamdi Azikiwe International 

Airport, Abuja, by those it 

described as ''powers that be'', but 

the Nigerian Civil Aviation 

Authority, NCAA, which is the 

regulatory agency, said no plane 

was grounded, adding that the 

pilot of the aircraft only made an 

air return after noticing some 

faults in the plane. 

The Federal Airports Authority 

of Nigerian, FAAN, in its reaction, 

said it was not aware of any such 

grounding of aircraft meant to fly 

the Labour Party team. 

Diran Onifade, head of media 

for the LP campaign, said in a 

statement yesterday that the 

Obidient plane was grounded for 

“regulatory reasons”, and asked 

supporters of the party to ignore 

“mischievous rumours” 

suggesting the plane was 

impounded. 

“The Obidient plane was 

grounded today (yesterday) by 

the powers that be 'for regulatory 

reasons' only. Please ignore any 

mischievous rumour. Our 

massive rally in Ibadan is going 

on as planned,” the statement 

read. 

Obi is one of the leading 

candidates for the 2023 

presidential election, alongside 

Atiku Abubakar of Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP; Bola 

Tinubu of All Progressives 

Congress, APC; and Rabiu Musa 

Kwankwaso of New Nigeria 

Peoples Party, NNPP.. 

Reacting to the allegation, the 

Nigerian Civil Aviation 

Authority, NCAA, spokesperson, 

Sam Adurogboye, told Vanguard 

that the agency did not ground 

any aircraft as reported. 

He said: “I understand NCAA 

did not ground any aircraft today 

(yesterday). The aircraft being 

said to be grounded is mere 

sensationalism. 

“The reason is that the flight 

crew made an air return soon 

after takeoff and had issues they 

needed to come back and correct. 

“This is what is termed as 

safety precautionary flight. Let's 

be careful not to drag NCAA into 

politics in its operations. Our 

mandate is to ensure the safety 

of all aircraft operating in Nigeria 

airspace, regardless of whom 

they carry. 

“Presidential candidates of all 

parties in the country have been 

flying around and NCAA’s 

mandate is to ensure that every 

aircraft flying meets safety 

standard. 

“We have been grounding 

planes not fit for flying before now. 

When former President, 

Olusegun Obasanjo was 

campaigning for a second term, 

he wanted to use a particular 

plane donated by a Nigerian. We 

noticed that the aircraft was not 

fit for flying, we grounded it.'' 

Similarly, the spokesperson of 

the Federal Airport Authority of 

Nigeria, FAAN, Faithful Hope- 

Ivbaze, said they were not aware 

of any flight being grounded at 

the Abuja airport. 

She said: “We are airport 

operators and not in charge of 

regulating flights movement. We 

cannot comment on political 

issues.” 

Obi-Datti Campaign 

raise alarm over 

attempts to sabotage 

PVC collection 

Meanwhile, the Obi-Datti 

Media Office Office has raised 

alarm over reports reaching it that 

the collection of Permanent Voter 

Cards is not going smoothly in 

some centers across the country. 

It said it’s attention was drawn 

in particular to Lagos State 

where in some identified areas, 

prospective voters wishing to 

collect their voter’s cards were 

being frustrated with all kinds of 

excuses to disrupt the PVC 

collection. 

The Media Office said in a 

statement issued in Abuja: “We 

are also aware of the large 

inducement to some personnel 

of the Independent National 

Electoral Commission, INEC in 

Lagos to lure them into the 

dubious nefarious act. 

“When we recently charged 

President Muhammedu Buhari 

and the INEC Chairman Prof. 

Mahmoud Yakubu to walk their 

talk of their promise to conduct 

free and fair elections in 2023, 

we expect that they should be 

concerned about all pre-election 

day activities. 

“Concentrating only on 

Election Day activities while the 

major rigging is taking place 

ahead of the election is counter 

productive and will defeat all the 

good intentions of the President 

and the commission. 

“There should be no 

preferential treatment of any 

area or individuals as being 

reported in Lagos state and 

where such exist should 

discontinue immediately and 

affected commission officials 

seriously reprimanded. 

“Obi-Datti Media Office 

expects the Commission even 

before now to have drummed it 

into the ears of their staff, the 

critical importance of this election 

to the survival of the country and 

the need to make their patriotic 

contributions at their various 

levels by religiously playing by 

the rules in all they do before , 

By Juliet Umeh 

SPOKESMAN of the Atiku/ 

Okowa Presidential Campaign 

Council, PCC, Daniel Bwala, has 

said Rivers State governor, Nyesom 

Wike’s non-support for Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, in the 2023 

presidential election would not affect 

its chances at the polls. 

Governor Wike and his allies in 

the G5 have been at daggers drawn 

with the leadership of the party since 

its presidential primary which threw 

up Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as its 

presidential candidate. 

But speaking in an interview on 

Channels Television's breakfast 

programme, Sunrise Daily, 

yesterday, Bwala downplayed 

Wike's influence, saying the party 

was poised to win next year’s 

presidential election. 

He said: “Our party is poised to 

during and after the election. 

“Also of curious interest to the 

Obi-Datti group is the large 

number of underaged voters 

registered by INEC officials and 

to demand that those 

Commission personnel involved 

in this should be identified, 

isolated and prosecuted as 

electoral offenders. 

“Not to do that immediately by 

the commission is to look at the 

presence of a rat in your kitchen 

and expect to have all your items 

intact.” 

The Obi-Datti Media Office 

claimed it was privy to credible 

intelligence that some politicians 

and political parties, aware that 

the BVAS voting arrangement 

might be difficult to manipulate, 

had resolved to start the election 

maneuvering from the stage of 

PVC registration and collection. 

It appealed to INEC and 

relevant security agencies to see 

any move to undermine the 

electoral process as a huge crime 

against the state and should be 

so treated. 

“We finally urge all Nigerians 

particularly the Obidient family 

to remain resolute and ensure 

they resist any anti democratic 

moves against free, fair and 

credible elections in 2023. Taking 

back Nigeria is an inevitable duty 

for all patriotic citizens,“ the 

statement added. 

PDP crisis: Wike’s non-support won’t affect Atiku’s 

chances, says PCC spokesman 

We’ve recovered $1bn looted 

funds since 2015 —FG 

•As FEC okays new anti-corruption strategy 

document 

By Johnbosco 

Agbakwuru 

ABUJA—THE 

Federal 

Government said yesterday 

it has recovered $1 billion, being 

looted funds, since the inception 

of President Muhammadu 

Buhari’s administration till date. 

The Attorney General of the 

Federation, AGF, and Minister 

of Justice, Abubakar Malami, 

who disclosed this while briefing 

State House correspondents at 

the end of the weekly Federal 

Executive Council, FEC, 

meeting presided over by 

President Buhari at the Council 

Chamber, Presidential Villa, 

Abuja, affirmed that the 

recovered assets had been 

deployed to various sectors of the 

economy, including poverty 

alleviation. 

The AGF, while revealing that 

preceding government recorded 

only 109 convictions before 2015, 

said the Buhari administration 

has convicted over 3,000 

offenders and recovered about 

$1b to date. 

He expressed government's 

concern over sundry cases of 

budget padding, describing the 

development as worrisome. 

While noting that necessary 

measures would be explored to 

address the menace, Malami 

announced the council's 

approval of the new anticorruption 

strategy document to 

strengthen anti-graft fight in the 

country. 

He said: “FEC approved 

validation extension of the 

National Anti- Corruption 

program to 2026. A new policy 

which resulted from cooperation 

amongst Justice." 

He noted that the anticorruption 

initiatives had helped 

the government to recover about 

By John Alechenu 

ABUJA—THE British High 

Commissioner to Nigeria, 

Cateriona Laing, has said the 

United Kingdom, like the rest of 

the international community, 

would be watching the 2023 

general elections in Nigeria very 

closely. 

This, she explained, is because 

of the important position occupied 

by Nigeria in Africa and the rest of 

the world. 

Laing, who stated this during a 

meeting with the National 

Working Committee, NWC, of 

win the election. Wike’s nonparticipation 

would affect a little bit 

of the margin. So, if we are supposed 

to win with nine million votes or 

eight million votes, that may reduce 

to six million votes or something 

like that. 

“But this victory is destined by 

God and I can tell you that there 

can be conspiracy and collaboration 

or anything. We know the Electoral 

Amendment Act and what it brings. 

''We saw it in Osun where some 

members of our party even worked 

against the party in that state. But 

what happened? The ‘dancing 

senator’ (Ademola Adeleke) danced 

his way to victory because the 

people spoke and their voices were 

heard. 

''This is how we are going to be 

looking at this election because the 

bigger picture is what we are looking 

at. Have you not seen the multidimensional 

poverty index?” 

Bwala also claimed that the Rivers 

State governor “chased” the 

Labour Party (LP) presidential 

candidate, Peter Obi, Governor 

Dave Umahi, and others out of the 

PDP. 

He, however, maintained that 

Atiku is committed to uniting 

Nigeria, despite the crisis in the 

party. 

Bwala also noted that former 

President Goodluck Jonathan is on 

the side of Atiku Abubakar, 

dismissing claims by Wike that the 

former president was against his 

principal. 

''Recall that when our candidate 

and his running mate, Governor 

Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State, 

visited President Jonathan recently, 

he addressed Okowa as incoming 

vice president. This will tell you 

that he (Jonathan0 knows that our 

presidential candidate will win the 

election,'' he added. 

$1billion stolen funds from the 

public coffers, adding that “the 

new anticorruption strategy 

will strengthen the war against 

corruption between 2022 and 

2026.“ 

Malami, while responding to 

question on budget padding, 

decried the menace allegedly 

carried out by Ministries, 

Departments and Agencies, 

MDAs. 

Specifically, Malami’s position 

is coming on the heels of several 

revelations from the ongoing 

MDAs budget defence in the 

National Assembly. 

Recall that the Minister of 

Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster 

Management, and Social 

Development, Saddiya Farouk, 

had blamed the Minister of 

Finance, Zainab Ahmed, for 

adding N206bn to the 

humanitarian ministry’s budget. 

Farouq, who appeared before 

the Senate Committee on 

Special Duties on Monday to 

defend the 2023 budget, claimed 

that the ministry requested some 

projects for the North East 

Development Commission and 

the National Social Safety Net 

Project in the 2022 budget, which 

were not released, but was 

surprised to see an inflated 

amount in the 2023 budget of 

the ministry. 

Elisha Abbo, the APC senator 

representing Adamawa North 

senatorial district, had asked the 

minister about the inflated N206 

billion in the budget. 

The minister said: “Yes, we 

made mention of the projects for 

2022 that were not released, and 

part of it was for the NEDC." 

Malami, while responding to 

questions on the revelations 

alleging budget padding, stated 

that the federal government was 

studying the details and would 

do what was necessary to address 

it. 

2023: UK is watching closely, 

says British High Commissioner, 

Laing 

Peoples Democratic Party, at the 

PDP National Secretariat, Abuja, 

yesterday, said: “This election is 

very important to Africa and the 

rest of the world, so the spotlight 

will be on Nigeria and the UK will 

be watching closely. 

“We engage in so many ways, 

we have spoken with INEC, civil 

societies, we don't support any 

political party, it is for the people of 

Nigeria to decide who will lead them 

at the federal level and state levels. 

In that spirit, we are meeting all 

the main political parties. 

“I met with the chairman in 

February, this is our second 

meeting and I will be meeting all 

the other chairs of the main 

political parties.” 

Speaking about her concerns for 

the elections, she said: “The few 

things that are on my mind, just to 

make sure that the elections go 

very well, number one is security, 

and we have been really 

concerned about the recent 

events. 

''52 election violence-related 

issues in 22 states, including an 

attack on the PDP convoy in 

Maiduguri, is a real concern, and 

we want to exchange our thoughts 

on what you can do as a political 

party to ensure that the elections 

are as peaceful as possible. 

“When people feel intimidated, 

they can't get out to vote, the 

election itself will not be credible, 

that is why violence is of great 

concern. On the issue of electoral 

violence, you can make a 

statement about the last election, 

as well as we do have positive 

support, since we do have 

sanctions in the form of our visa 

program.



Mega rally for Tinubu: Lagos 

APC assures tight security 

By Olasunkanmi 

Akoni 

LAGOS—THE All Progressives 

Congress, APC, in Lagos State, 

yesterday, assured the public of 

adequate security to guarantee a 

hitch-free presidential campaign 

rally for the party's Presidential 

candidate, Bola Tinubu at the 

Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere 

in Lagos, slated for Saturday. 

The Director-General of the 

Local Organising Committee for the 

Presidential Campaign in Lagos 

State Campaign Council, Senator 

Ganiyu Solomon, who briefed 

newsmen on the activities lined up 

for the grand rally scheduled to hold 

on Saturday, said the rally will be a 

homecoming for Tinubu. 

Solomon said: "You may wish to 

recall that Tinubu excelled as a 

Senator representing Lagos-West 

Senatorial District and as the 

Governor of Lagos State between 

1999 and 2007. Therefore, the 

event is like a homecoming for our 

leader and mentor who has become 

a national pride. 

"As a responsible political party, 

it is imperative to seek the 

cooperation of the general public 

as regards the need for temporary 

diversion of traffic and mass 

movement of supporters within 

the vicinity of the rally.'' 

On security arrangements for 

the rally, Solomon stated that men 

of the Nigerian Police Force, Lagos 

State Traffic Management 

Authority, LASTMA, officials and 

other law enforcement agencies 

would be fully mobilized to prevent 

security infractions and traffic 

disruptions. 

Aribisogan’s impeachment, 

display of rascality 

— Afe Babalola, Olanipekun, Falana, others 

By Rotimi 

Ojomoyela 

A Advocates DO-EKITI—SENIOR 

of Nigeria of 

Ekiti State origin led by Chief Afe 

Babalola, Wole Olanipekun and 

five others, yesterday, described 

the impeachment of the 

embattled Speaker of the House 

of Assembly, Mr Gboyega 

Aribisogan as crass exhibition of 

brute force and illegality. 

The legal icons expressed 

concern over the inaction of 

Governor Biodun Oyebanji while 

the lawmakers were brazenly 

displaying legislative rascality 

with reckless abandon. 

Reacting to the removal of 

Aribisogan from office and the 

subsequent election of Mrs 

Bunmi Adelugba, the lawyers 

faulted the speedy way at which 

the lawmakers had moved 

against Aribisogan under flimsy 

excuses and unleashed their 

venom on him. 

Signatories to the statement 

were Chief Afe Babalola, SAN, 

Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, 

Dele Adesina, SAN, Olu 

Daramola, SAN, Femi Falana, 

SAN, Dayo Akinlaja, SAN 

and Gboyega Oyewole, SAN. 

2023: Shine your eyes, 

Onitiri cautions Nigerian voters 

By Innocent Anaba 

LAGOS—THE Labour Party, LP, 

senatorial candidate for Lagos 

Central, Lagos State, Adesunbo 

Onitiri, yesterday, urged Nigerians 

not to allow themselves to be 

deceived again to vote for the All 

Progressives Congress, APC, back 

to power. 

Onitiri, in a statement, said: 

"Nigerian electorate are cautioned 

to shine their eyes and watch 

politicians' lips and not to be fooled 

again. 

"We cannot and should not miss 

this great opportunity that 2023 

affords us to correct our past 

mistakes and put Nigeria on the 

path of progress, security, unity, 

economic recovery and buoyancy. 

"Many politicians are now on the 

prowl to deceive Nigerian voters 

with all kinds of promises, both 

realistic and unrealistic. 

"Will Nigerians allow themselves 

to be deceived again? God forbid a 

second affliction on this blessed 

country. The rescue mission is 

firmly in our hands." 

2022 LAIF awards: Over 400 

entries from 17 agencies 

shortlisted 

LAGOS—THE organisers of 

the 2022 edition of the Lagos 

Advertising and Ideas Festival, 

LAIF, awards said over 400 entries 

have been shortlisted for the 

prestigious awards. 

While speaking on the 

forthcoming edition of the award 

shortly after the completion of the 

jury sittings, the Chairman, of the 

LAIF Management Board, Mr 

Lanre Adisa, said a total number 

of 17 creative agencies from 

Nigeria and Ghana will be 

The statement reads: “To say the 

very least, the situation in the Ekiti 

State House of Assembly should 

be of extremely grave concern to 

every decent and discerning mind. 

“Before going further, it is 

pertinent to underscore the 

prime importance of the State 

House of Assembly in the affairs 

of any State in the country. 

“By virtue of Section 92 of the 

Constitution of the Federal 

Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as 

amended), once elected by the 

members of the House, as done 

in the case of Aribisogan, the 

Speaker shall continue to be in 

office during the lifespan of the 

particular House except, inter 

alia, removed from office by a 

resolution of the House of 

Assembly by the votes of not less 

than two-third majority of the 

House. From the short 

background above, it is plain as 

day that the elected Speaker was 

not allowed to function in office 

for the spate of one day before 

the sealing off of the Complex. 

Pray, therefore, at what point in 

time could he have committed any 

infraction of the constitution, any 

other law or the Rules of the 

House to warrant his supposed 

removal?" 

competing for awards in different 

categories including Print, Film, 

Outdoor, Digital Craft, 

Campaign, Film Craft, Radio- 

Craft, Film Craft among others. 

He said: "We are very excited 

that a creative agency from 

Ghana, Social Ghana, will be 

making history as the first agency 

outside Nigeria's shores to 

participate in the award. It 

validates our goal of building 

LAIF to be a worthy and 

respected sub-regional award 

festival", he said. 


VISIT: From left, Group Chief Executive, FCMB Group Plc, Mr. Ladi Balogun; Executive Director, 

Wholesale Banking, First City Monument Bank, FCMB, Mr. Obaro Odeghe; Managing Director of the 

Bank, Mrs. Yemisi Edun; Divisional Head, Agribusiness, Mr. Kudzai Gumunya and Group Production 

Manager, Psaltry International Limited, Odegua Ogunbo, during a courtesy visit and factory tour by 

the Management of FCMB to Psaltry Limited at Alayide Village, Ado-Awaiye in Oyo State. 

Unpaid salaries: You can't punish us 

for your insincerity, ASUU tells FG 

•Says Ngige must be removed 

By Dayo Johnson & 

Shina Abubakar 

AKURE—THE Academic Staff 

Union of Universities, 

ASUU, yesterday, insisted that 

its members cannot be punished 

with a "no work, no pay" policy 

for the Federal Government's 

insensitivity and insincerity to 

the prolonged strike. 

Chairman of the union in the 

Federal University of 

Technology, FUTA, Akure, Prof. 

Olayinka Awopetu, said this 

during a protest rally to express 

their dissatisfaction over the 

Federal Government's half 

salary payment after its eight 

months strike. 

Awopetu said it is unfair for 

members of the union to bear 

the brunt of the failure of the 

government. 

He said: "We did not go on 

strike because we wanted to go 

on strike, or happy to go on strike, 

but because the government 

failed to do its part, so we can't 

be punished for that. 

"If you go on legal strike, you 

shouldn't be punished for it but 

we are being punished by 

withholding our salaries. So why 

is the government now 

criminalising a strike that was 

forced on our members? 

"The government wants to 

turn the table against ASUU, 

but they've failed this time 

because what we are fighting for 

is in the public domain. 

"They've been telling halftruths 

in a bid to play the divideand-rule 

game. 

"It is illegal for the Federal 

Government to casualise the 

academics in Nigeria. This 

protest is to let everyone know 

that ASUU in general and 

ASUU FUTA, in particular, is 

condemning in entirety the 

casualisation of academics and 

the criminalization of the illegal 

strike. 

"The way forward for the 

federal government is to do the 

needful, pay us our money, the 

job they said we didn't do is the 

job we are doing now and we 

will continue to do the job." 

Ngige must be removed 

Similarly, the ASUU chapter 

of the Obafemi Awolowo 

University, OAU, yesterday, 

urged the Federal Government 

to remove the Minister of 

Labour, Dr Chris Ngige over the 

protracted ASUU/government 

negotiation on revitalizing 

University education. 

The Union said this after its 

congress held inside the 

University campus. 

Members of the union were 

armed with placards with 

inscriptions such as 'Lecturers are 

not slaves, 'Invest in Education', 

'A nation that values education 

is a nation that develops', 'IPPIS 

is a scam', among others. 

Addressing newsmen at the 

protest ground, OAU ASUU 

Chairman, Professor Tony Odiwe 

said lecturers were not employed 

solely to teach but to also 

conduct research. 

His words: "When we are 

employed, our condition of 

service is not solely on teaching; 

we have three components 

including research and 

community service. We only 

withdrew one of the services 

which is teaching. 

"We are not interested in who 

the minister is, we are interested 

in doing what is right. If Chris 

Ngige is not doing what is right 

or turned our negotiation with 

Federal Government into a 

personal issue or an ego fight, 

then the government should 

remove him." 

2023: We'll secure, unite, create 

wealth for Nigeria ---Obi 

•It's S-East turn to produce President, 

—Adebanjo 

By Adeola Badru 

IBADAN—THE Presidential 

candidate of Labour Party, LP, 

Mr Peter Obi, yesterday, restated 

his commitment to ensure a 

secured and united Nigeria, 

saying he would create wealth 

for Nigerians if elected president 

in 2023. 

Obi made the pledge made the 

pledge during his Sout-West 

campaign rally held at the Lekan 

Salami Stadium, Adamasingba 

in Ibadan. 

The LP presidential candidate, 

who highlighted the challenges 

of the country, expressed 

optimism that the challenges 

could be addressed. 

He said: "We must secure and 

unite the country. When you 

secure the country, you are able 

to bring famers to return to the 

farm. That alone will start 

addressing food inflation." 

"By moving the country from 

consumption to production you 

are moving people away from 

By Rotimi 

Ojomoyela 

ADO-EKITI—THE Election 

Petition Tribunal sitting in 

Ekiti, yesterday, reserved 

judgment to a date to be 

communicated to parties in the 

dispute arising from the 

governorship election held on 

18th June 2022, in Ekiti State 

which produced Governor Biodun 

Oyebanji as the winner. 

The Chairman of the threemember 

panel, Justice Wilfred 

Kpochi, reserved judgment for a 

later date after all parties adopted 

their final written addresses at the 

sitting held inside a packed 

courtroom in Ado Ekiti. 

At the adoption of written 

addresses, Governor Oyebanji, 

poverty. The more you pull 

people out of poverty, the more 

you address criminality. 

"Nigeria now has 13.8 per cent 

drug prevalence against the 

global average of 5 per cent. To 

deal with that crisis is production. 

We need to feed ourselves. 

"Next year's election should 

not be based on tribe. If it is by 

tribe, the north would have been 

safer and be more developed. 

"We must respect the issue of 

religion, but even at that, we 

should not follow people blindly 

because of religion. 

"We cannot use the process of 

yesterday or those who did not 

solve it yesterday for tomorrow." 

Pledging to fight corruption and 

make the education sector to 

work, the LP candidate said: "I 

am not going give excuses. The 

work of a leader is not to give 

excuses. I am not going to 

complain. It is not the job of a 

leader. I am not going to 

complain of the past. You are 

hiring for the future and I am 

going to be for the future." 

It's S-East turn to 

produce President 

—Adebanjo 

Earlier, leader of the pan- 

Yoruba socio-political 

organization, Afenifere, Pa Ayo 

Adebanjo, said in the spirit of 

fairness, the South-East should 

produce the next president in 

line with the agreement reached 

by past Nigerian leaders in 1954 

that each geopolitical zone 

should produce president. 

Adebanjo, who faulted the 

presidential ambition of the 

Presidential Candidate of the All 

Progressives Congress, APC, 

Senator Bola Tinubu, recalled 

that before he (Tinubu) became 

governor of Lagos State, he had 

supported him on several 

occasions during his two-term 

administration. 

He said: "When he was the 

governor of Lagos State, I 

supported him; I did not hate him 

then, why will I have the course 

to now hate him? 

"Tinubu cannot confront me 

on this, but only people that are 

benefiting from him that are 

speaking ills of me." 

Ekiti poll: Tribunal reserves judgment 

his party, the All Progressives 

Congress, APC, and the 

Independent National Electoral 

Commission, INEC, yesterday, 

urged the Election Petition 

Tribunal to dismiss the petition 

filed by the Social Democratic 

Party, SDP, governorship 

candidate, Chief Segun Oni. 

Oyebanji maintained that Oni 

and his party, the SDP, have failed 

woefully to sufficiently discharge 

the burden of proof on them to 

convince the Tribunal that the 

election did not comply with the 

provisions of the Electoral Act and 

the Constitution of the Federal 

Republic of Nigeria 1999 as 

amended. 

Oni and the SDP are the 1st 

and 2nd Petitioners in case. The 

Respondents are Oyebanji (1st), 

the APC (2nd), Yobe State 

Governor Mai Mala Buni, in his 

capacity as the Chairman of the 

APC Caretaker Extraordinary 

Convention Planning Committee 

(3rd), INEC (4th) and the Deputy 

Governor, Mrs Monisade Afuye 

(5th). 

Oyebanji and Afuye (1st and 

5th Respondents) through their 

counsel, Prof. Kayode Olatoke 

(SAN), told the Tribunal that their 

written address was dated 29th 

October and filed on 30th October 

and adopted same before the 

Tribunal as evidence. 

The Governor and the Deputy 

Governor further told the 

Tribunal through their counsel 

that they filed their reply on point 

of law which was dated and filed 

on 11th November upon the 

receipt of the Petitioners' written 

address.


VISIT: Governor 

Hope Uzodimma 

of Imo State 

receives the 

Managing 

Director/CEO of 

Polaris Bank, Mr. 

Adekunle Sonola, 

who paid a 

working visit to 

the Governor's 

office in 

Government 

House, Owerri, 

yesterday. 

IPoB blames Enugu traditional rulers, 

PGs, youths for herdsmen attacks 

By Chimaobi 

Nwaiwu 

NNEWI—THE Indigenous 

People of Biafra, IPoB, 

yesterday said that most Enugu 

State communities that worked 

against the Eastern Security 

Network, ESN, are today the 

ones facing the attacks of killer 

herdsmen. 

IPoB singled out Aguamede 

community, in Eha-Amufu, Isiuzo 

Council Local Area of Enugu 

State being presently attacked 

by herdsmen as one of such 

communities that worked 

against ESN. 

A statement by IPoB's Media 

and Publicity Secretary, Emma 

Powerful, blamed the traditional 

rulers, town union leaders, and 

some youths used to work 

against ESN for their woes. 

IPoB's statement read: "The 

attention of the global 

movement and family of the 

Indigenous People of Biafra IPoB, 

under the command and 

leadership of our great 

indefatigable liberator, Mazi 

Nnamdi Okwuchukwu Kanu, 

has been drawn to the constant 

and numerous massacre of our 

people in Aguamede community 

Eha-Amufu in Isiuzo Council 

area of Enugu State. 

"The traditional rulers, 

Presidents General and youth 

leaders of Eha-Amufu and its 

environs contributed in heavy 

measure to the massacre in their 

community. 

"These people mentioned 

joined hands with Nigerian 

government to chase ESN 

operatives out from their 

community in their desperation 

to ensure that the Fulani take 

over the community and ESN 

operatives were forced out and 

the Fulani came in to massacre 

them. This time, their people are 

being massacred and ESN will 

not be there to rescue them 

because they allowed terrorists 

to move into their communities. 

"When ESN was established, 

a batch of the operatives of the 

security outfit was sent into their 

communities but ESN was 

attacked by the Eha-Amufu 

community and many operatives 

of ESN and IPoB members were 

killed and detained by the 

community and their youths. 

"The communities involved 

have discovered scores of dead 

bodies who were massacred by 

Fulani jihadists and foot soldiers 

and have realized that they 

goofed working against ESN. 

"IPoB has resolved that any 


•Enugu govt condemns attacks 

community that joined in 

sacking ESN operatives from 

their place should not expect 

ESN operatives back to their 

home. 

"The Nigeria Army and Police 

have failed to respond to the 

attacks on them because they 

are behind and in support of the 

attacks by the terrorists who are 

now killing innocent citizens of 

Enugu State. We are sure that 

they are directly responsible for 

the massacres and mayhem 

witnessed by our people in 

Enugu. 

"We want to let everyone know 

that these communities should 

not expect ESN back in their 

communities. ESN is not coming 

to defend them since the 

Nigerian government they 

collaborated with, the military 

and police, to fight ESN, have 

refused to come to their help. 

"IPoB has already directed the 

ESN operatives not to move to 

those communities in Enugu 

State because we cannot afford 

to defend them as they don't 

want us. They should continue 

to face Fulani constant 

By Johnbosco 

Agbakwuru 

ABUJA—THE 

Federal 

Government yesterday, said 

that the 2nd Niger Bridge will be 

partially opened for public use 

during the yuletide. 

The announcement will bring 

respite to commuters plying the 

ever-busy Asaba-Onitsha road. 

The Minister of Works and 

Housing, Babatunde Raji 

Fashola, SAN, disclosed this 

while fielding questions from 

State House correspondents at 

the end of the weekly Federal 

Executive Council, FEC, 

meeting presided over by 

President Muhammadu Buhari 

at the Council Chambers, 

Presidential Villa Abuja. 

The Minister said that the 

federal government is favourably 

disposed to open a section of the 

2nd Niger Bridge partially for 

public use this December to 

reduce the heavy gridlock on the 

existing bridge. 

According to him: "Considering 

the untold hardships commuters 

go through on the Asaba- 

Onitsha road especially on the 

old Niger Bridge during a festive 


elimination of their people. 

"Biafrans who sympathize with 

them must ask the traditional 

rulers, their Presidents' General, 

and the youths why they worked 

against ESN in their 

communities." 

Enugu govt 

condemns attack on 

farmers in Eha 

Amufu 

Meantime,following these 

unfortunate attacks on farmers 

in their farm settlements at 

Aguamaede and Mgbuji 

communities in Eha Amufu, Isi- 

Uzo Local Government Area by 

suspected herders, the Enugu 

State Government has 

condemned, in its entirety, the 

dastardly act which resulted in 

causalities with some indigenes 

of the communities displaced. 

In a statement by the Secretary 

to the State Government, Prof. 

Simon Uchenna Ortuanya, the 

State Government called on 

heads of security agencies to rise 

to the challenge and deploy 

more personnel to the affected 

communities to provide adequate 

security for life and property. 

Prof. Ortuanya stated that the 

State Government, in its 

determination to put an end to 

the lingering crisis between 

farmers and herders in Eha 

Amufu, will meet with their 

leaders to decisively resolve the 

contentious issues that might 

have led to the recent attacks. 

The State Government 

condoled the families of the 

deceased and sympathized with 

the victims who sustained 

injuries as well as those who 

were displaced. 

The statement disclosed that 

Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has 

released the sum of N10 million 

for the immediate needs of the 

victims in the Internally 

Displaced Persons, IDPs, camp 

and further committed to paying 

all the medical bills of those 

receiving treatments in the 

hospital. 

It also announced that 

Governor Ugwuanyi has directed 

a state government delegation 

to visit the victims in the hospital 

and IDPs camp to review their 

situation and ensure that they 

receive adequate medical 

attention. 

2nd Niger Bridge'll partially be opened 

by December —FG 

period like the Christmas and 

New Year, the federal 

government has decided to open 

one section of the 2nd Niger 

Bridge in December" 

He said that the Bridge is 

almost completed, although work 

is still ongoing on the approach 

roads from Asaba end of the 

bridge, adding that works have 

been completed on the approach 

roads from the Onitsha end. 

He said traffic will be diverted 

to the west bound of the new 

bridge after the festivities. 

The former Lagos State 

governor also revealed that 

government will close the entire 

2nd Niger Bridge after the 

yuletide to enable the 

contractors complete the project 

and formally hand it over to the 

Nigerian government. 

He blamed the delay in the 

completion of the 2nd Niger 

Bridge by the present 

administration on many factors 

especially the high rate of 

inflation which has made the cost 

of the projected increase 

astronomical. 

Fashola however promised 

that the project will be completed 

and commissioned by President 

Muhammadu Buhari before he 

leaves office in May 2023. 

Why we're contesting Abuja 

Court judgment —Enugu LP 

By Anayo Okoli 

ENUGU—LABOUR Party in 

Enugu State has explained 

why it appealed the judgment of 

Abuja Federal High Court which 

sacked its governorship 

candidate, Chijioke Edeoga and 

ordered another primary 

election. The party described the 

judgment as a miscarriage of 

justice. 

The party said the ruling of the 

Federal High Court contradicted 

the spirit of the Constitution and 

the Electoral Act. 

They accused the ruling PDP 

in the state of sponsoring the 

legal tissue to distract them from 

their focused campaign toward 

the 2023 elections in the state. 

The Abuja Court had nullified 

the governorship primary that 

produced Chijioke Edeoga was 

the party’s candidate on the 

ground that the plaintiff, Captain 

Evaristus Nnaji was excluded 

from the primary election. The 

court ordered the party to 

conduct another primary 

election within 14 days from the 

date of the ruling. 

But not satisfied with the 

decision, Labour Party 

approached the Court of Appeal 

Soludo to S-East youths: 

Don't be agents of distraction 

By Vincent Ujumadu 

A Chukwuma WKA—GOVERNOR 

Soludo of 

Anambra State has warned South 

East youths not to allow 

themselves to be used as agents of 

distraction, but to realize that they 

are future leaders of the country. 

The warning came on the heels 

of a threat by the Coalition of 

South East Youth Leaders, 

COSEYL) to dump wastes at the 

Anambra Government House to 

drive home their displeasure over 

comments by the governor 

concerning the aspiration of the 

Labour Party, LP, presidential 

candidate, Mr. Peter Obi. 

Reacting through his Press 

Secretary, Mr. Christian Aburime, 

the governor advised the youths 

to rethink so as not to constitute 

themselves into being part of the 

and faulted the judgment on 

nine grounds. 

The party argued that the 

court allowed itself to be drawn 

into a matter that ordinarily 

negated the spirit of the electoral 

act, pointing out that Edeoga 

who was the product of the 

annulled primary whose name 

has been submitted to INEC was 

not joined in the case. 

“In the case of Evaristus Nnaji 

(plaintiff) against Labour Party 

and INEC, Nnaji first went to 

the Federal High Court, Port 

Harcourt, and sued Labour Party 

and INEC and Chijioke Edeoga 

as the third respondent and he 

tried to obtain exparte order 

against the parties. But when it 

was not possible, he filed a notice 

of discontinuance and we 

thought that was the end of the 

matter. We didn’t hear anything 

again until the Labour Party 

headquarters was served with 

originating summons. 

“This time around, he didn’t 

join Chijioke Edeoga. He sued 

only the Labour Party and INEC. 

And in his case, he told the court 

that the Labour Party promised 

to make him the sole 

governorship candidate in 

Enugu State, and this was after 

Edeoga had emerged.“ 

Uzodimma approves promotion 

of Imo civil servants 

problem to be solved in the society, 

but to be part of the solution. 

Soludo wondered why the 

youths should allow themselves 

to be used as tools by some 

politicians or individuals who, 

according to him, have no good 

plans for them. 

To him, the politicians' aims are 

just to use the youths to achieve 

their mischievous objectives and 

dump them thereafter. 

“Instead of threatening to come 

and dump refuse at the 

Government House, the youths 

should rally round and support the 

government of Prof. Chukwuma 

Soludo, because his administration 

is working for the betterment of 

their lives, to see that both the 

youths of this present generation 

and the generation to come will 

have something that can make life 

more meaningful for them. " he 

said. 

We're solidly behind Obi, he represents soul of Ndigbo —Ohanaeze 

By Anayo Okoli 

ENUGU—THE apex Igbo 

socio-cultural body, Ohanaeze 

Ndigbo has again reaffirmed the 

full support of Ndigbo for the 

presindential ambition of Labour 

Party candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, 

saying that he represents the body 

and soul of Ndigbo. 

Ohanaeze was reacting to the 

fear expressed by the spokesman 

of Northern Elders Forum, Dr. 

Hakeem Baba-Ahmed over the 

support of the people of South East 

for Obi. 

According to Ohanaeze Ndigbo, 

the Labour Party candidate 

represents the body and soul of 

Ndigbo, insisting on their full 

support for him. 

“The Ohanaeze Ndigbo 

Worldwide led by Ambassador 

Professor George Obiozor 

reassures the Northern Elders 

Forum and indeed the whole 

Nigeria that the South East of 

Nigeria or better put, the Igbo are 

O WERRI—GOVERNOR 

Hope Uzodimma of Imo 

State has approved the 

immediate promotion of civil 

servants who have suffered 

stagnation for years in the hands 

of previous administrations. 

The Governor gave the 

directive yesterday at the Imo 

State Executive Council Meeting 

which he presided over. 

At a recent meeting the 

Governor had with civil servants 

in Imo State, the workers had 

complained bitterly that they have 

not been promoted for years now. 

Governor Uzodimma had 

assured them that he is ready to 

rectify the situation as a way of 

solidly behind our illustrious son, 

Mr. Peter Obi. 

“There is no gainsaying the 

distraction by the negligible 

minority-elite who by the aid of 

the social media have over 

exaggerated their self-worth, 

authority, power and political 

relevance. 

“Instructively, the Christian 

religion informs that in every 

twelve, there must be a Judas. This 

is a statement of fact, history, 

experience and a socio-political 

encouraging them to put in their 

best in the interest of the state as 

his government does not joke 

with reward system. 

Briefing newsmen at the end of 

the Exco Meeting, the 

Commissioner for Information 

and Strategy, Declan Mbadiwe 

Emelumba said that “in line with 

the Governor's promise to look 

into the promotion arrears of Civil 

and Public Servants in Imo State 

when he announced the Health 

Insurance Policy for Imo workers, 

he has graciously approved 

immediate promotions of the Civil 

and Public Servants to clear the 

arrears/backlog that have existed 

since 8-10 years.” 

imperative. 

“In other words, it is rather 

inconceivable to expect everybody 

to support Obi. What is important 

is that the Obi-Datti Movement 

has gained the support of over 

ninety percent of the Igbo and 

continues to swell with time. 

“Ohanaeze will not join issues 

with those who are opposed to the 

collective Igbo aspiration with hope 

that, as in every ideology, more 

converts will key in when the logs 

of wood in their eyes are cleared."


:Vanguard 

News 


MEETING—From left: Govs Godwin Obaseki (Edo State); Ifeanyi Okowa (Delta), host; Douye 

Diri (Bayelsa); Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom), and Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, Sen. 

Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, during the meeting of the South-South governors, at the Government 

House, Yenagoa, yesterday. 

2023: S-South govs restate support 

for Atiku/Okowa 

GOVERNORS of the 

South South geopolitical 

zone have reaffirmed 

their absolute 

support for the presidential 

candidate of the Peoples 

Democratic Party (PDP), 

Atiku Abubakar, and his 

running mate, Dr. Ifeanyi 

Okowa. 

Speaking to newsmen in 

Government House, Yenagoa 

shortly after a meeting of four 

of the South-South 

governors, which included 

Okowa (Delta State), Udom 

Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom), 

Godwin Obaseki (Edo) and 

Senator Douye Diri (Bayelsa), 

Okowa said the governors 

Buhari nominates Lauretta Onochie as NDDC Chairman 

•Sends 14 others names to Senate for confirmation •Transmits commission's 

budget to Senate •Omo-Agege makes case for Delta representative on list 


AMuhammadu BUJA—PRESIDENT 

Buhari 

has written the Senate, 

seeking for the confirmation 

of his Special Assistant on 

new Media, Lauretta 

Onochie from Delta as 

Chairman of the Niger Delta 

Development Commission, 

NDDC. 

President Buhari, who 

wrote the President of the 

Senate, Senator Ahmad 

Lawan, said that the 

Correspondent was in 

accordance with the 

provisions of Section 2(2)A of 

Rivers 2023: APC'll address hunger, poverty —Amaechi 

By Egufe Yafugborhi 

PORT HARCOURT— 

Immediate past 

Transportation Minister, Mr. 

Rotimi Ameachi, has 

expressed worry over 

perceived hunger and 

poverty prevailing in Rivers 

State, hinting that raising 

funds to address the twin 

issues would be the first thing 

All Progressives Congress, 

APC, will do when they 

reclaim Rivers State 

government in 2023. 

Ameachi spoke, yesterday, 

at Ward 19, Elekahia, Port 

Harcourt City Local 

Government Area of the state 

during ongoing Rivers APC 

were determined to deliver 

their party in next year’s 

presidential election. 

He said the issues involving 

their party’s G-5 Governors 

led by the Rivers State 

Governor, Nyesom Wike, 

were being addressed. 

He assured that the PDP 

presidential candidate and the 

five other governors will meet 

soon. 

His words: "We believe that 

we are one family. There are 

still issues and they are being 

attended to. Very soon there 

will be a meeting between the 

presidential candidate with 

the G-5 Governors. 

“They are part of the family 

the NDDC Act, Cap N 86, 

Laws of the Federation of 

Nigeria 2004. 

The letter was read by 

Lawan on the floor of the 

Senate during plenary. 

Buhari's letter read, "Dear 

distinguished Senate 

President, confirmation of 

appointments of Chairman 

and members of the NDDC. 

"In accordance with the 

provisions of Section 2(2)A of 

the NDDC Act, Cap N86, Laws 

of the Federation of Nigeria 

2004, I hereby, present the 

underlisted 15 names of 

nominees as Chairman and 

members of the NDDC for 

ward to ward sensitization 

ahead of next year's polls. 

Apparently throwing jabs at 

his successor again, the former 

Rivers governor, who recently 

pictured Rivers under 

Governor Nyesom Wike as 

being in its worst state ever, 

said he neither politicised 

development nor insulted 

traditional rulers during his 

time as governor. 

He told the Elekahia 

gathering, "I built a primary 

school that people were 

coming to watch. I declared 

health care free in Rivers 

State, I did not politicise it. I 

never insulted any chief or any 

Rivers man. If you are a 

Christian, one thing God hates 

and we are not going to allow 

them go. So, obviously, 

everything is being put in 

place to reconcile all 

differences and move together 

as a family." 

Also speaking, Governor 

Douye Diri described the 

South-South as a stronghold 

of the PDP, assuring that the 

party will emerge victorious 

at all levels in next year's 

general election. 

He expressed delight over 

the unity and love among the 

governors of the region and 

expressed confidence that the 

differences in the party, which 

he described as family issues, 

will be resolved amicably. 

Governor Diri thanked his 

colleagues for their support to 

the state during the recent 

confirmation by the Senate. 

"Copies of their Curriculum 

Vitae are attached herewith. 

"While, I hope the request 

will receive the usual 

expeditious consideration, 

and confirmation of the 

Senate, please accept the 

Senate President, the 

assurances of my highest 

consideration." 

According to Buhari in the 

letter, Chief Samuel Ibukun 

will serve as the Managing 

Director for a term of two 

years to complete the term of 

his predecessor in office. 

Bayelsa State, South-South 

has Major General Charles 

is arrogance and pride. 

"We are not here to campaign 

but to access our wards. They 

(political opponents) will try to 

intimidate you. The young men 

G OVERNMENT 

College Ughelli Old 

Boys Association, GCUOBA, 

Benin City, Edo State branch, 

is holding its annual dinner, 

Merit Award Night and 

Induction of Ancient 

Mariner, on November 26, 

2022. 

According to the Publicity 

Secretary, Mr. Erhuvwu 

Okpalefe, the GCUOBA 

floods, saying the people of 

the state will always be 

grateful to them. 

He said: "I can only say on 

behalf of the government and 

the people of Bayelsa State, 

we appreciate the South- 

South governors. 

“As my brother, the governor 

of Edo has stated, we are one. 

In the family there are always 

dispute. Those disputes do not 

separate us. We will resolve 

them and we continue to push 

on as one. 

"South-South is a PDP region. 

South South is a place where no 

other party can contend except 

PDP. I assure you that in all the 

elections from the presidency to 

the governorship, the national 

assembly and the state assembly, 

PDP will again triumph." 

Airhiavbere (retd) to serve as 

Executive Director, Finance 

and Charles Ogunmola, 

Executive Director Project, 

Ondo, South-West. 

Other members of the 

proposed NDDC board as 

forwarded to the Senate are 

former Deputy Governor of 

Edo State, Dr. Pius Odubu as 

State Representative, Edo 

State, South -South; Dimgba 

Erugba (State Representative, 

Abia, South-East); Dr. Ene 

Wills, State Representative, 

Akwa Ibom, South -South; 

Elder Dimaroe Bofa, State 

Representative, Bayelsa State, 

South -South; Orok Duke, 

in your ward must not allow them 

to intimidate you. When will win, 

first thing will be to bring out 

money to address hunger and 

poverty." 

GCUOBA holds annual dinner 

Sat 

Benin is expecting to host the 

President-General World- 

Wide, Mr. Charles Majoroh, 

and friends of the College 

from all works of life. 

Hence, the executive 

council and the entire 

members of the branch 

specially invite all 

mariners, who are resident 

in Edo State and in the 

Diaspora, to grace the 

occasion to keep the Ship 

Sailing. 

I've fulfilled my promises to 

Judiciary —Wike 

By Egufe Yafugborhi 

PORT HARCOURT— 

GOVERNOR Nyesom 

Wike of Rivers State has 

expressed fulfillment over his 

administration's diligent 

support at enhancing the 

judiciary to discharge its 

constitutional mandate. 

Wike at the 2022/23 Legal 

Year opening ceremony, held 

in Port Harcourt, yesterday, 

said all promises his 

administration made 

concerning the judiciary had 

been fulfilled in impressive 

achievements beyond the 

imaginations of many. 

The governor noted on 

assumption of office in 2015, 

"The state High Court had no 

Chief Judge, leadership, or 

direction for nearly two years. 

The governor then attempted 

to impose a Chief Judge on 

the state outside the due 

process. When this devious 

attempt was resisted, he 

instigated a phantom crisis 

and closed down the state 

courts until he left office. 

“We knew that the ensuing 

social and economic anarchy 

would ruin Rivers State 

without functional courts to 

uphold and defend the rule of 

Delta PDP ward-to-ward 

campaign berths in riverine 

communities 

THE Delta state Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, 

ward to ward campaign has 

moved to riverine 

communities in the Warri 

North and Warri South Local 

Government Areas of Delta 

State, with the aim of 

interacting one on one with the 

people. 

The campaign train is led 

State Representative, Cross 

River, South-South; Engr. 

Anthony Ekenne, State 

Representative, Imo State, 

South-East and Gbenga 

Edema, 

State 

Representative, Ondo State, 

South - West. 

Others are Elekwachi 

Dimkpa, 

State 

Representative, Rivers State, 

South-South; Alhaji 

Mohammed Abubakar, ( 

Zonal Representative, 

Nasarawa State, North- 

Central; Alhaji Sule Sami 

(Zonal Representative, Kebbi 

State, North-West; and Prof. 

Tahir Mamman, SAN, (Zonal 

Representative, Adamawa 

State, North-East. 

Soon after the list was read, 

the Deputy President of the 

Senate, Senator Ovie Omo- 

Agege, APC, Delta Central 

protested that the there was no 

representation from Delta 

State in line with the act 

establishing the NDDC that 

each state of the NDDC must 

have a representative, just as 

he pleaded with the Executive 

to correct the anomaly. 

Buhari transmits 

commission's 

budget to Senate 

Meanwhile, President 

Buhari has forwarded to the 

Senate for consideration and 

approval, the 2022 budget 

proposals of the Niger Delta 

Development Commission, 

law. Beyond the crisis, we 

also inherited a judiciary 

neglected to the hilt, 

dilapidated and inadequate 

courthouses and unpaid 

salary arrears. 

“Our first task was to revive 

the judiciary and ensure the 

speedy administration of 

justice. Without wasting time, 

we appointed the first female 

Chief Judge for the state, 

reopened the courts and 

restored judicial services from 

our first day in office.” 

He explained that his 

administration began 

rehabilitating the existing 

courthouses and built new 

ones for the state High Court 

and within the first year in 

office, provided a new Special 

Utility Vehicle to judges as 

official cars, which have since 

been replaced since 2019. 

Wike said prior to his 

administration, judges in 

the state were faced with 

the challenge of lack of a 

retirement home, his 

government considered it 

morally wrong for the state 

to evict judges from their 

official quarters and force 

them to rented apartments 

after they retired from 

service. 

by the PDP South Senatorial 

Chairman, Dr. Julius 

Takeme, with his Vice John 

Okoroloko, the Warri North 

Party Chairman, Dr. Isaac 

Wiliki, and Missan 

Ukubeyinje, the Director 

General of the Campaign 

Organisation, and Elders 

and Leaders of the party, 

Chief Otimeyin Adams, 

Godwin Ebosa, Chief 

Solomon Arenyeke, 

Richard Omare, 

Evangelist Micheal Diden, 

and Coordinator of Benin 

River Vanguard, Anthony 

Okotie and host of other 

Party stalwarts. 

At Opuama Ward 7, 

Takeme who expressed 

gratitude to the huge 

crowd of people present for 

the campaign, assured the 

community that they 

would not be denied the 

dividends of democracy 

upon assumption of power. 

13% refund: 

Edo received 

only N2.1bn 

—Govt 

By Ozioruva Aliu 

BENIN CITY—THE 

Edo State government, 

yesterday, reacted to the 

controversy trailing the 

alleged release of trillions of 

naira out of the arrears owing 

the state from the country’s 13 

percent derivation formula, 

saying it has only received 

N2.1 billion out of the 

N28billion due to the state. 

Addressing newsmen in 

Benin City, state 

Commissioner for Finance, 

Joseph Eboigbe flanked by his 

Communication and 

Orientation counterpart, 

Chris Neikhare and the 

Special Adviser on Media 

Projects to Governor Godwin 

Obaseki, Crusoe Osagie, said 

there was a repayment plan 

of the arrears to be paid in five 

years of four quarters in a year.


14—Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER, 24, 2022 

:Vanguard News :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 

I'll tackle insecurity in Enugu through massive job 

creation —Mbah, PDP gov candidate 

Representatives, 

NUGU—AHEAD of the 2023 

Egeneral elections, the 

governorship candidate of the 

Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, 

in Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, 

has assured the people of the 

state that his administration 

would tackle the security 

challenges through massive job 

creation if elected. 

Mbah, who disclosed this at 

town-hall meetings in Mbanabo 

North and Mbanabo South 

Development Centres both in 

Awgu Local Area, vowed to 

engage the youths in meaningful 

ventures and turn them to 

productive assets. 

“We cannot achieve our goals 

without ensuring adequate 

security. We have aggressive 

programmes to address 

unemployment in our state. 

Enugu State will not only 

address the issue of 

unemployment, but is going to 

be job and wealth creator. By so 

doing, we will be addressing the 

menace of insecurity. 

Noting that agriculture would 

play a major role in providing jobs 

creation, Mbah assured of his 

administration’s resolve to 

migrate agriculture from manual 

and pipeline to mechanised and 

platform agriculture if elected, 

adding that Enugu State under 

his leadership would create 

special agro-allied processing 

zones, including a value chain 

that would generate more 

revenues for the people. 

Observing that his 

comprehensive manifesto had 

already captured the concerns 

raised by the people of the area, 

Mbah stressed that he had 

programmes which covered 

access roads, industrialisation, 

operational healthcare system, 

robust education, portable water, 

irrigation, ICT, skills and 

vocational training centres, 

availability of revolving loans for 

micro, small, and medium 

enterprises. 

“Because we are interested 

in moving Enugu State from 

public sector economy to private 

sector-driven economy, we will 

MUAHIA—ABIA Freedom 

UAlliance, AFA, an 

association of concerned 

technocrats, professionals, 

businessmen, religious leaders 

and political stakeholders in 

Abia State, has congratulated 

the Labour Party, LP, 

governorship candidate in Abia, 

Dr. Alex Otti, on the launch of 

Signature Bank. 

AFA says the coming of 

Signature Bank from all 

indication will bring hope to 

millions of unbanked and 

underbanked Nigerians, as well 

as set the pace for innovation 

in the banking industry. 

Otti, a former Group 

Managing Director/Chief 

Executive Officer of the 

erstwhile Diamond Bank Plc, is 

the founder and promoter of 

Signature Bank, which formally 

opened its doors to business on 

Monday, November 21, 2022 in 

Abuja, Nigeria’s Federal Capital 

Territory. 

In a letter dated November 

23, 2022 and signed by its 

Convener, Prince Uzor 

Nwachukwu, AFA praised Otti 

for his boldness to re-establish 

and improve on the success 

story he began with Diamond 

Bank, while he was CEO 

between 2011 and 2014. 

Otti was reputed to have 

partner with investors by creating 

an enabling environment for 

them. This will also include tapping 

from our abundant energy and 

mineral resources sector to upscale 

our economy”, he added. 

Earlier in his remark, the Deputy 

Minority Leader, House of 

Toby 

Okechukwu, commended Dr. 

Mbah for initiating the town hall 

meetings across the 68 local 

government development 

centres in the state to personally 

interact with the people to know 

their peculiar needs, saying it was 

novel in electioneering politics in 

Enugu State. 

Group congratulates Otti, says Signature Bank'll 

set pace in innovative banking 

taken Diamond Bank from a lossmaking 

position to profitability and 

one of Nigeria’s eight systemically 

important banks, according to the 

Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, 

within a space of three years. 

He voluntarily resigned in 2014 

to contest for the governorship seat 

of Abia State in 2015. Even 

though the overwhelming 

population of Abia residents voted 

for him, as further attested to by 

the Court of Appeal, his victory 

dance was cut short by the 

judgment of the Supreme Court, 

which remains controversial. 

The letter reads in part: “Our 

very dear Dr. Alex Otti, we are very 

glad to felicitate with you on the 

official unveiling and opening of 

your Bank - Signature Bank 

Limited. 

“We celebrate your unique 

personage and ideas which you 

bring to bear on every Project you 

are associated with. 

“The robust history of your 

studentship in the various 

institutions you attended, and 

your career in the Banking sector, 

all tell tales of excellence and rare 

giftedness. 

“These, and more, are the 

reasons why we, as distinguished 

Abia Elites from diverse fields of 

human endeavour, stand firmly 

behind you as God sets out to 

use you to redeem Abia State and 

liberate her from decades of gross 

misgovernance 

visionlessness." 

and 

UBTH begins emergencies' 

residency training, wants health 

insurance for poor people 

By Festus Ahon 

Bmanagement ENIN CITY—THE 

of the 

University of Benin Teaching 

Hospital, UBTH, yesterday 

said it has begun residency 

training for medical personnel 

working in its Accident and 

Emergency ward just as it called 

on the operators of the 

National Health Insurance 

Scheme to make it accessible 

to the poor. 

Addressing a press 

conference while announcing 

activities to mark the hospital’s 

50 years anniversary, the Chief 

Medical Director, CMD, of the 

hospital, Professor Darlington 

Obaseki said the hospital in 

2021 alone forfeited N84 million 

bills for patients who could not 

pay or deliberately refused to 

while this year so far, the same 

gesture has exceeded N100m 

hence his call for the extension 

of the insurance scheme to the 

poor. 

Obaseki said that in spite of 

the mass exodus of medical 

personnel, as one of the 

challenges confronting health 

PIND, MNDA, collaborate on peacebuilding strategy in Niger Delta 

THE Partnership Initiatives 

in the Niger Delta, PIND, is 

providing technical support to 

the Ministry of Niger Delta 

Affairs, MNDA, in designing 

and developing a regional 

peacebuilding infrastructure to 

address conflict and security 

issues in the Niger Delta 

through the Niger Delta 

Regional Peacebuilding 

Strategy, NDRPS. 

NDRSP will drive conflict 

prevention, mitigation, and 

resolution efforts. 

PIND's Peacebuilding 

Manager, David Udofia, 

stated that the NDPRS 

document would provide a 

framework for adopting 

multi-stakeholder approaches 

to peacebuilding and conflict 

resolution. 

He said a Technical 

Working Group (TWG) 

comprised of partners vested 

in promoting peace in the 

region and stakeholders 

drawn from the nine Niger 

Delta states will be 

inaugurated on Wednesday, 

November 30, 2022, in Port 

Harcourt, Rivers State, to 

drive the document's design. 

There will also be a 

technical session on 

December 1, where the TWG 

members will be briefed on 

how they will support PIND 

and MNDA on the NDRPS. 

As a holistic approach, 

PIND said the NDRPS will 

care delivery in the nation, the 

teaching hospital had been able 

to deliver on the mandates of the 

founding fathers of the hospital. 

He said: “We have been given 

approval to start training, we are 

the second in the country to start 

training resident doctors in 

emergency medicine. We now 

have a brand new department 

called Emergency Medicine 

Department. It is critical because 

teaching hospitals are rested on 

resident doctors who are in 

training to become specialists but 

all these, while no teaching 

hospital was doing this specialised 

training so it led to gaps in 

emergency care most of the 

doctors there are not specialist and 

some other doctors from other 

departments, rotate so this will 

change that.” 

He announced that part of 

events slated to mark its 50th 

anniversary among others is free 

training for first responders on 

basic life support, free Cancer 

Screening, executive Screening 

and subsidized surgeries 

He said the free Cancer 

Screening takes place in January, 

2023, while the Executive 

Screening which involves medical 

Screening for top executives, 

including members of the Edo 

State Executive Council takes 

place in February. 

focus on the drivers of conflict 

and identify proactive 

measures geared at conflict 

prevention, reduction, and 

mitigation. 

PIND said the designing and 

subsequent implementation of 

the NDRPS is a timely process 

that will complement current 

conflict mitigation approaches 

by the government and other 

stakeholders in the Niger 

Delta.

As 2023 elections close by, the 

General Overseer of the Seed of Christ 

Golden Church, Land of Reality world 

wide, Apostle (Dr.) Solomon Oni 

Mustapha JP has warned Nigerians 

to pray fervently to avert a looming 

crises in the country. In this interview, 

the cleric, who hails from Isanlu, 

Yagba East, Kogi State, speaks on 

several issues affecting the country 

and the need to be proactive to avert 

crisis that may mar the forthcoming 

elections. Apostle Mustapha JP is also 

receiving International Award of 

Mayor of Peace 2022 from 

International Association of World 

Peace Advocates. Excerpts: 

CAN you give us the background 

story about your ministry? 

To God be the glory, God located me. 

In 1994, I was in Ekiti on the 17th of 

July, I heard the voice of God that told 

me to go to the city called Ibadan to 

go and start a ministry and that He 

was going to use me all over the world. 

And he showed me a crowd that I 

did not know where it ended. 

Then, I woke up because it was a 

dream. Meanwhile, in 1993 on the 

17th of September in My dream; I saw 

heaven opened and seven angels of 

God descended from above and 

anointed me, and told me to go and 

preach the word of God to the world. 

When I woke up, the anointing was 

flowing in my body and it did not drop 

on my bed. 

So, those are the secrets people do 

not know. I heard the voice of God that 

led me. 

After then, I began to argue with God 

on why should I begin my ministry in 

Ibadan. 

I did not know anybody in Ibadan; I 

did not have any relatives in Ibadan. 

These arguments took me nine (9) 

years, but to God be the glory after 

that, I decided to accept the call, I 

fasted for seven (7) years and I went 

to Ikeji Arakeji, where God called 

Apostle Babalola then, to know what 

is happening to me, first and second 

day on Ikeji Arakeji I didn't receive 

any message from God. On the third 

day, I was coming out from the 

bathroom, I heard a voice saying: "I 

sent you to Ibadan and you refused, 

that was why you were encountering 

the problems and until you follow my 

wish, your problems would not stop." 

It was after then I began to follow 

the voice of God and decided to come 

to Ibadan. I was a printer by 

profession; I was also a timber 

contractor, I engaged in laundry 

business. I have washing machines, 

industrial irons, Lister generator to 

power my equipment. 

Then at the same time, I had a 

barbers' shop. Then, my business 

name was BLESSMOM Ventures. 

Then I received an instruction that 

as I was going to Ibadan, I should not 

take any belonging along with me. I 

should just leave everything behind. 

I left with three(3) trousers, three (3) 

shirts and three (3) undies, 

That was how I came to Ibadan 

without any property. I was married 

with kids. There was nothing I could 

do, I had to source for money on 

relocating to Ibadan. That was how my 

ministry started, after we started the 

ministry God commanded me to start 

50 days white fasting and prayer, 

which I did for 12 good years, after it 

God still commanded me to start 201 

days fast and prayer, after He still 

commanded me to start 250 days vigil 

, God again commanded me to go on 

INTERVIEW 

2023: How to avert looming 

crisis — Apostle Mustapha, GO, 

Seed of Christ Golden Church 

Apostle (Dr.) Solomon Oni Mustapha, JP. 

On the third day, I was 

coming out from the 

bathroom, I heard a 

voice saying: "I sent 

you to Ibadan and you 

refused, that was why 

you were encountering 

the problems and until 

you follow my wish, 

your problems would 

not stop 


365 days Fasting and Prayer after all 

this fasting and prayer, God now came 

to the ministry. That is the secret of 

the ministry. 

How did you come about the 

crusade name: 'Olorun Se bi Oba'? 

Thank you. One day, I was travelling 

to Lagos and when I got to beggar, I 

saw a revelation; "Power to Reign". 

Our programmes were in Yoruba. So, 

I thought of how to interpret the 

revelation into Yoruba. So, it came to 

me as "Agbara lati se bi Oba" that was 

how I interpreted it. 

And I started a Programme tagged: 

"Agbara lati se bi Oba." When I started 

this weekly Programme, we recorded, 

twenty people, thirty people could 

worship with us, but as time went on, 

we started recording one-fifty or two 

hundred people. 

So, when people saw miracles, they 

started saying we are going to "Se bi 

Oba." That was how I got the nickname 

till date. 

Since you started your ministry, 

how has 'the road' been? 

Well, crisis happens everywhere, but 

to God be the glory , I have never 

experienced any crisis in my ministry. 

All I knew was that, if you are truly 

called by God, there are certain things 

you must encounter, but I did not look 

into that as crisis. They are ways of 

strengthening someone in the 

ministry. And to the glory of God, the 

church is growing in lips and bounds. 

Talking about the growth of his 

church, Apostle Solomon said " when 

a church is growing, the minister is 

also growing, though, on this 

mountain, , it was a rented apartment 

before. But to the glory of God, 

whatever structures you are seeing 

today were the hand work of God. We 

have several branches in Ibadan, Iri 

Owuro and Wakati Iyanu programme 

is aired in 75 radio and television 

stations across the country. 

We have branches also outside the 

country, That is, we are heard locally 

and internationally. 

As the 2023 General Election is 

approaching, what is your message 

for Nigerian? 

Lots of pressmen have been here to 

seek my opinion on the forthcoming 

elections, but I have been trying to 

refrain from making comments. I have 

my reasons for that. In the past, I made 

some predictions and they came to 

pass about the former President 

Goodluck Jonathan So, I don't want 

to make any prediction now. I made a 

prediction about Jonathan that he 

would not win the second term 

election and it came to pass. I said 

then that I saw a change of 

government. I saw that Buhari won 

the election. I even predicted his 

second term emergence; which was 

published in many newspapers in 

Nigeria then, I was not so much 

famous, but now, I am a bit famous 

(smiling). 

If I say anything now, it will go viral. 

We know what is happening and lots 

of hidden agenda. Everybody 

believes that elections will not be held 

next year (2023) because of what they 

are saying. Now, the Yoruba group has 

a problem that has been on for a long 

time. 

Let's cast our minds back to 1963, 

Obafemi Awolowo was supposed to be 

the Prime Minister, but it eluded him. 

The same thing happened to M.K.O. 

Abiola in 1993, thirty years after. 

Another thirty years here again, the 

same scenario is about to happen. So, 

Yoruba people need to pray. 

I raised this message during one of 

my services, "Iri Owuro" before a 

political party decided on having 

Muslim- Muslim ticket. I told them 

they should be watching what will 

happen. The Yoruba should watch 

what will happen. 

Now, Yoruba is against Muslim - 

Muslim ticket, Christians are against 

Muslim -Muslim ticket. Nigerians 

should pray very well. I will reveal a 

little. God showed me a vision twelve 

years ago that Nigerians should pray 

very well that a time was coming that 

one man will rise from the Igboland, 

and that man people will love him. 

And another man will in Yorubaland 

and people will love him. Another man 

will rise from the north and few people 

will love him. That was what God told 

me. Now the problem is, that Yoruba 

man needs serious prayers, because 

there will be a great protection for the 

man that will rise from the Igboland. 

I saw arrow set towards the man. So, 

before elections day, that man needs 

prayers. I announced the revelation 

in my church. 

If they kill that Igboman man, there 

will be a crisis. So, Nigerians need to 

pray very well to avert imminent war 

in 2023. 

So, Nigerians need to pray very well 

to avert imminent war in 2023.


AHEAD of the 1993 

presidential election, 

General Ibrahim Babangida, the 

then military head of state, made a 

profound statement. He said: “I 

don’t know who will succeed me, 

but I know who will not.” Sadly, 

that statement panned out with the 

annulment of the June 12, 

1993presidential election. Yet, in 

principle, it was a perfectly 

reasonable statement. 

Here’s why. If General 

Babangida had damaging 

intelligence on MKO Abiola, the 

presumed winner of the election, 

an intelligence that could bring 

international shame on Nigeria, he 

had a duty to stop him from 

running for president. 

Babangida’s eternal mistake, 

assuming he had such intelligence, 

was to allow Abiola to run, 

encourage Nigerians to vote and 

then annul the election. But there 

was nothing wrong with saying “I 

don’t know who will succeed me, 

but I know who will not,” provided 

it was in the national interest. Of 

course, in a democracy, a president 

cannot simply say: “I know who 

will not succeed me.” But a 

president should signal a nation’s 

values. 

Yet, President Muhammadu 

Buhari says he doesn’t care who 

succeeds him. Channels TV asked 

Buhari: “Are you interested in who 

succeeds you?” He responded: “No, 

let him come, whoever it is!” That 

response has twointerpretations: 

one positive, another negative. 

The positive interpretation is that 

President Buhari would ensure 

next year’s presidential election is 

free and fair, a point he has, indeed, 

made. But the negative 

interpretation is that he doesn’t care 

about the integrity, characterand 

honesty of who succeeds him. 

Tinubu as president? Buhari 

must really hate Nigeria 

That negative interpretation is 

my concernhere, and it’s premised 

on Buhari’s support for the 

election of Bola Tinubu as 

Nigeria’s next president. It 

concerns me because I’m fully 

convinced that a Tinubu 

presidency would not only 

destabilise Nigeria internally, it 

would damage Nigeriaglobally, 

making it a big laughingstock, a 

butt of dark international jokes! 

Truth is, next year’s presidential 

election will have huge long-term 

implications, its outcome will 

affect Nigeria for decades. 

Therefore, no patriotic Nigerian 

should sit on the fence; that 

patriotism is what underpins this 

intervention. To be sure, the 

presidential election should be as 

much about character as 

manifesto. 

The presidency is too serious an 

office to be invested in someone 

with serious integrity deficit. Those 

ignoring character and integrity 

should remember the Turkish 

proverb: “When a clown moves 

into a palace, he doesn’t become a 

king. 

The palace becomes a circus.” 

Returning to Buhari and Tinubu, 

there was a Faustian pact between 

them in 2015. Tinubu put it 

pointedly in his famous Abeokuta 

outburst. “Without me, Buhari 

won’t be president,” he said, 

adding memorably:"Emilokan! It’s 

my turn!” Well, Buhari now 

accepts it’s payback time. He’s the 

chairman of Tinubu’s presidential 

campaign council, PCC; his wife, 

Truth is, Buhari 

is wrong to 

campaign for 

Tinubu to 

succeed him; it 

betrays the 

national interest! 

Aisha, chairs the PCC’s women 

wing. Both Buhari and his wife say 

they want Tinubu to become 

Nigeria’s next president and are 

mobilising the North behind him. 

But here are questions for 

President Buhari: Is he aware of 

the damaging allegations swirling 

around Tinubu? Given what he 

knows, does he think Tinubu is a 

fit and proper person to be 

Nigeria’s president? Is he happy 

that Tinubu’s life, pedigree and 

backstory are veiled in secrecy or, 

as someone puts it, a “miasma of 

dubiety”? 

In the US, every major 

presidential candidate is an open 

book. But not Tinubu. He 

arrogantly refuses to answer 

uncomfortable questions about 

his past. Instead, he uses 

surrogates – Festus Keyamo, Femi 

Fani-Kayode, Bayo Onanuga – 

who see him as their route to 

advancement and are blatantly 

lying to Nigerians, treating them 

as morons. Recently, they came full 

throttle with deliberate untruths 

about the drug allegations against 

Tinubu. 

Briefly, here’s the case: Between 

1988 and 1991, Tinubu deposited 

$1.4m in different bank accounts, 

despite earning just $2,400 per 

month and despite confirming he 

had no other sources of income. 

The US concluded the funds 

represented “proceeds of narcotic 

trafficking and money 

laundering,” derived from his 

dealings with two drug traffickers, 

Mueez Akande and Abiodun 

Agbele. 

Put simply, Tinubu was alleged 

to be a bagman handling and 

laundering drug money. 

Tinubu claimed the funds 

belonged to Kafaru Tinubu and 

Alhaja Habibat Mogaji, even 

though, years later, he told The 

News magazine that all the money 

belonged to him. 

In the end, Tinubu forfeited 

$460,000 held in his name by 

Heritage Bank, where he and 

Akande had strong links. “Why did 

they return $1m?” Fani-Kayode 

asked. The remaining funds were 

released to Kafaru Tinubu and 

AlhajaMogaji, who claimed 

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ownership interests. That’s the 

nature of settlements: Abacha 

allegedly stole $5bn; half of it was 

returned to his family! 

The biggest lie, peddled by 

Keyamo and Fani-Kayode, is that 

the $460,000 forfeited by Tinubu 

was a tax. 

The cover sheet of the certified 

true copy of the settlement, issued 

on August 10, 2022, explicitly states 

under “Nature of Suit” that it’s 

forfeitureunder “Code 625: Drug 

related seizure of property 21 USC 

881.” The two boxes under 

“Federal tax suits” were not ticked. 

So, the $460, 000 was not a tax but 

a drug-related forfeiture. 

Tinubu’s surrogates and spin 

doctors say he wasn’t indicted or 

convicted. But no rational 

individual would forfeit $460,000 

of his hard-earned money, 

especially when linked to drug 

trafficking, without fighting to 

clear his name. 

By having a “drug related seizure 

of property” recorded against his 

name, Tinubu is seriously tainted 

as a presidential candidate, and 

would cause Nigeria huge 

embarrassment if he became 

president. 

Which brings us back to Buhari. 

As military head of state in 1984/ 

85, his regime executed eight 

young Nigerians for drug 

trafficking. How could he, in good 

conscience, campaign for Tinubu 

to be president without 

apologising to the families of those 

young Nigerians. Also, given 

Tinubu’s stupendous unexplained 

wealth, does Buhari regret jailing 

governors for hundreds of years in 

1984 for corruption? Truth is, 

Buhari is wrong to campaign for 

Tinubu to succeed him. It betrays 

the national interest! 

Wike and 13 percent derivation 

By OSE UMUKORO 

IT is now obvious that some politicians 

in Nigeria prefer the gutter of infamy 

to the hallway of integrity and honour. If 

not, how do you place the blatant lies and 

obvious misrepresentations by the 

governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, 

former APC chairman; Adams 

Oshiomhole, and the deputy president of 

the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege? The trio and 

their army of recruits went overboard with 

their spin of falsehood over the status of 

the 13 percent derivation arrears. 

Wike, the emperor of Rivers State, whom 

his constituents have accused of running 

the state like his fiefdom, set the ball 

rolling when he declared that all the money 

he’s using to build flyovers was from the 

accumulated 13 percent derivation, which 

the previous governments refused to pay 

but was paid by the Muhammadu Buhari 

government. This is sheer fallacy. Sadly, 

some Nigerians have bought into this 

cheap lie, meant primarily for the selfglorification 

of Wike and to discredit the 

previous PDP governments as well as the 

governments of the oil-bearing Niger Delta 

states. 

For the sake of decency and the sanctity 

of facts, it is imperative to present the true 

picture. Records at the Federation Account 

Allocation Committee, FAAC, show that the 

Federal Government has not paid 23 years' 

worth of derivation fund arrears. What was 

paid to affected states was only ten months' 

worth of installments in accordance with 

the order of the court, which ruled that the 

arrears be liquidated "in sixty equal 

monthly installments" and disbursed to 

states quarterly, starting in February 2022, 

the first quarter being February to April 

2022. 

This means that only 10 months out of 

the 60 monthly installments have been 

paid, with the remaining 50 months yet to 

be paid. 

The story of the 13 percent derivation has 

a history. In 2021, some states approached 

the court to press for the payment of 

outstanding deductions on the derivation 

fund, which the Federal Government was 

reluctant to pay. In June last year, a Federal 

High Court sitting in Abuja ordered the 

Federal Government to pay $951 million 

to the Bayelsa State government as arrears 

of the 13 percent derivation sum due to the 

state. Within that period, another court 

ordered the Federal Government to pay 

over $3.3 billion to the Rivers and Akwa 

Ibom states, as their share of revenue from 

crude oil sales. The court cases were 

sparked by the $62 billion that the federal 

government had recovered from some oil 

companies but had yet to distribute to the 

states. Justice Taiwo Taiwo ordered that 

$1.114 billion be paid to Rivers State, while 

$2.258 billion be paid to Akwa Ibom State, 

being their claims from the $62 billion 

recovered from oil companies. 

The court further awarded post-judgment 

interest of 10 percent in favour of the 

plaintiffs until the final liquidation of the 

debt. Plaintiffs in the suit were the attorneys 

general of Rivers and Akwa Ibom states. 

Also, in November last year, a Federal High 

Court in Abuja ordered the Federal 

Government to pay the sum of $1.638 

billion to Delta State, which is the 13 

percent derivation sum due as arrears to 

the state. Justice Donatus Okorowo, while 

delivering the judgment, held that Delta, 

like other oil-bearing states, as part of the 

Federation, deserves its share of the oil 

revenue. 

In all these cases, the Attorney-General 

of the Federation, AGF, Abubakar Malami, 

was the sole defendant, meaning that the 

President Buhari government was 

unwilling to pay the arrears. 

The truth is, the Buhari government is 

too broke to even attempt paying the 

arrears in one fell swoop. No governor in 

the Niger Delta has received the entire 

arrears. Wike should explain to the world 

how he was able to receive his state’s 

arrears, which were premised on a court 

judgment from last year, as he claimed. Did 

the Federal Government single out Rivers 

State for a special favour? As a lawyer, Wike 

should know that the court order said 

payment should be made "in sixty equal 

monthly installments," meaning over a 

period of five years.“ Both Akwa Ibom and 

Delta have said they started receiving the 

arrears this year after the judgement last 

year. It, therefore, amounts to mischief for 

anyone to insinuate that all the arrears 

have been paid. 

How could any governor 

have received all the arrears 

when the judgment was only 

delivered last year with a 

caveat for the arrears to be 

paid over 60 months? 

As it now stands, only 10 months out of 

the 60 monthly instalments have been paid, 

with the remaining 50 months yet to be 

paid. So, how did Wike, Oshiomhole and 

Omo-Agege invent their spurious figures? 

Governor Wike was obviously playing to 

the gallery, as usual, when he asked other 

Niger Delta state governors to explain what 

they did with their money. He has ipso facto 

constituted himself as an ombudsman, a 

foreman supervising other states. By 

commissioning flyovers and streaming the 

event live on at least four TV stations, he 

thinks of himself as a superstar governor. 

This is the hallmark of an egoistic, power 

drunk leader intent only on selfglorification. 

Somebody should tell the governor that 

the flyovers he celebrates on TV are being 

built, some even better, by the governors of 

Delta and Akwa Ibom without attracting 

undue attention to themselves. He should 

know that in terms of the Human 

Development Index, especially in 

education and healthcare, he does not 

come close to the Delta and Akwa Ibom 

governors. The well-structured small and 

medium enterprise scheme in Delta is 

second to none in the country. Aside from 

winning both local and international 

awards, it has empowered the youth of Delta 

State such that yesterday’s job-seekers have 

become today’s wealth creators. 

But it’s obvious why the Rivers State 

governor is tearing himself up. He is a sour 

loser. Since he lost the presidential ticket 

of the PDP, deservedly, and the vicepresidential 

slot, more for his intemperate 

character than anything else, he has gone 

wild like a sheep in a salt market; eating 

every salt in sight without knowing when 

to stop. How could any governor have 

received all the arrears when the judgment 

was only delivered last year with a caveat 

for the arrears to be paid over 60 months? 

By giving glory to Buhari, the governor 

further exposed his mischief. The judiciary, 

not Buhari, deserves the glory because the 

judgement was delivered against 

opposition from the Buhari Federal 

Government. In all of this, the biggest loser 

is Omo-Agege, the APC governorship 

candidate in Delta. Omo-Agege is telling 

Nigerians, particularly Deltans, that the 

snatching of a mace incident linked to him 

in 2018 is nothing compared to the massive 

damage he intends to do to democracy in 

2023 by spinning lies and dishing out 

blatant lies. Little wonder Deltans have 

roundly rejected him before ever the first 

ballot is cast. 

•Umukoro, a social commentator, wrote 

from Warri

Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022 —17 

Buhari women, poverty and budget padding 

TWO stories broke in the last one week 

that tend to amplify the fact that President 

Muhammadu Buhari’s goal of running 

Nigeria completely aground continues apace 

even as his administration, on the home stretch, 

and its vuvuzelas, continue to play the ostrich. 

First, the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, 

disclosed on November 17, that 133 million 

Nigerians are multi-dimensionally poor. That 

represents about 63 per cent of the estimated 

population of about 218 million people. 

Ordinarily, this information shouldn’t 

surprise anyone considering that Nigeria had 

adorned the infamous 'World Poverty Capital' 

badge since 2018. World Bank data had shown 

since 2016 that four in every ten Nigerians live 

below the poverty line of $1.9 per day. Two 

years later, the country was declared world’s 

poverty capital by the Brookings Institution, 

knocking off India from the inglorious perch. 

The Brookings’ report said: “At the end of May 

2018, our trajectories suggest that Nigeria had 

about 87 million people in extreme poverty, 

compared with India’s 73 million. What is 

more, extreme poverty in Nigeria is growing 

by six people every minute, while poverty in 

India continues to fall.” 

The numbers climbed up to 93.9 million 

people in 2021 with Mr. Bismarck Rewane, 

Managing Director, Financial Derivatives 

Company, FDC, Limited, and a member of 

Buhari’s Economic Advisory Council, EAC, 

quoting a World Bank data, which stated that 

seven million Nigerians fell into extreme 

poverty in 2020. That was grim. The 

government always pooh-poohs such reports, 

accusing international organisations of bad 

faith, while flaunting the so-called wonders of 

the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster 

Management and Social Development. 

That’s why the NBS report matters. It is a 

government agency statutorily mandated to 

v e r i f y , 

approve, 

administer 

and publish 

b a s i c 

national 

statistical 

data. No one 

can accuse it 

of bad faith. 

T h e 

Multidimensional 

Poverty Index, 

It is absurd that an 

expenditure by a 

ministry was defined 

as non-budgetary, 

but with this 

government, 

impunity is the name 

of the game 

MPI, offers a multivariate form of poverty 

assessment, which identifies deprivations 

across health, education, living standards, etc. 

According to the NBS Statistician-General, 

Semiu Adeniran, a sample size of over 56,610 

people in 109 senatorial districts in the 36 states 

of Nigeria, was used in the survey – the first 

time the agency will conduct a standard 

multidimensional poverty survey in Nigeria. 

The United Nations Resident Humanitarian 

Coordinator in Nigeria, Matthias Schmale, 

who revealed the findings from the report, said 

63 per cent of Nigerians are multidimensionally 

poor. The Buhari government 

had always claimed that the Ministry of 

Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management 

and Social Development was doing wonders 

in alleviating poverty when Nigerians know 

that to the contrary, the ministry has become a 

cesspit of corruption. 

Little wonder no eyebrows were raised when 

a few days after the NBS report, the second 

news broke that the minister, Mrs. Sadiya 

Umar Farouq, disowned the N206 billion 

inserted into the ministry’s 2023 budget 

allegedly by the Ministry of Finance, Budget 

and National Planning. 

On Monday, Farouq told the Senate 

Committee on Special Duties that the fund, 

meant to implement projects for the North East 

Development Commission, NEDC, was 

inserted in the budget after a similar request 

in 2022 was not released. A member of the 

committee, Senator Elisha Abbo, told the 

minister to give details of the projects to be 

executed with the N206 billion. 

“In 2023, you intend to borrow N206 billion 

for some projects. What are the projects to be 

implemented and are they captured in the 

Medium-Term Expenditure Framework? If 

they are, what are the specific project locations 

and activities?” the lawmaker from Adamawa 

State asked, not knowing that he had, 

unwittingly, opened a Pandora’s Box. Farouq, 

who didn’t show any sign of surprise, either, 

simply shrugged her shoulders and washed 

her hands off the smelly scandal. “Yes, we made 

mention of the projects for 2022, part of it was 

for the North East Development Commission, 

NEDC. The money was not released and now 

we have seen it recurring by almost 10 folds,” 

she told the bewildered lawmakers. 

“We are also going to clarify from the 

Ministry of Finance to know why this increase 

in spite of the fact that the previous year, the 

money was not even released for the projects. 

So, we will get the details, then send it to you.” 

On the upscaling of the National Social Safety 

Net project, she said: “I cannot really give full 

details of how this amount is going to be utilised 

because it is something that was negotiated 

between the Ministry of Finance and World 

Bank.” Isn’t it scandalous that a minister is 

claiming ignorance of her ministry’s budget 

proposals and to what use the money will be 

deployed if approved? 

The Senate Committee resolved to summon 

the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, 

to explain what she intended to do with the 

N206 billion she unilaterally inserted, if 

Farouq is to be believed, into the ministry’s 

budget. But that is where the problem lies – 

absolute trust deficit. Nothing said or done by 

the Buhari government can pass the test of 

credibility. It is all subterfuge and deceit. It 

will not be a surprise if Zainab Ahmed throws 

her hand in the air tomorrow, claiming 

ignorance of the “ten-fold” budget padding. 

And I dare say that when that happens, nothing 

will happen. There will be no consequence. 

The ‘Buhari women’ are sacred cows – 

untouchable and above the law. Like the young 

man in Igbo folklore who kicks the door open 

when sent on a stealing expedition by his father, 

the Buhari women act with impunity, knowing 

full well that they have their principal’s back. 

During the 2021 budget defence, lawmakers 

in the House of Representatives raised 

eyebrows over the Humanitarian Affairs 

Ministry’s extra-budgetary spending and the 

incomplete budget documents submitted by 

Farouq. Of course, it is absurd that an 

expenditure by a ministry was defined as nonbudgetary, 

but with Buhari, impunity is the 

name of the game. The minister got away with 

the explanation that the “non-budgetary 

expenditure” was a special intervention fund 

by the President under the so-called 

Conditional Cash Transfer programme. 

The sad thing is that these funds being spent 

recklessly, without any iota of accountability – 

literally stolen – are monies that are borrowed 

on behalf of all Nigerians. Here is a man who 

promised that the overall economic target of 

his government was to lift 100 million 

Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years. In his 

2021 Democracy Day speech, he claimed 

without any evidence that his government had 

lifted 10.5 million Nigerians out of poverty 

between June 2019 and June 2021.“In the last 

two years we lifted 10.5 million people out of 

poverty – farmers, small-scale traders, artisans, 

market women and the like. I am very 

convinced that this 100 million target can be 

met and this informed the development of a 

National Poverty Reduction with Growth 

Strategy. The specific details of this accelerated 

strategy will be unveiled shortly,” he said on 

June 12, 2021. 

Now, a government agency is putting a lie to 

his harebrained claims. Rather than lifting 100 

million people out of poverty, we now know 

that under Buhari’s watch, 133 million people 

have been sucked into the septic tank of poverty. 

At the end of the day, the much-maligned, selfexiled 

Diezani Alison-Madueke, former 

Minister of Petroleum Resources, who is 

currently being paraded as the poster-girl of 

corruption, warts and all, will be canonized 

when held in the mirror of probity with the 

Buhari women. Time will tell. 

Writers, see your readers as customers 

SOME business owners 

thrive on content 

creation to attract prospects to 

their business. A large bulk of 

content creation hinges on 

writing for prospective clients. 

This week’s article focuses on 

how business owners or their 

representatives can write in a 

way that appeals to their 

readers because they are their 

customers. There ought to be a 

conversational manner 

deployed to keep the flow of 

writing interactive and fun to 

read. To succeed in doing this, 

think about what you would appreciate if you 

were the one savouring the content. The need 

to have fellow feeling and compassion as you 

write for your audience cannot be 

overemphasized. For one thing, putting 

yourself in the shoes of your readers forces you 

to think about several things you ought to do 

as you write. For example, think about the 

recipients of your business document. Your 

ability to categorise your readers helps you to 

know how to write for them – you can consider 

their language ability, level of education, 

media preference, age, etc. This greatly helps 

you in tailoring custom made content that 

suits their purpose and interest. Because your 

primary goal lies in effectively communicating 

and selling your brand, you want to do so in a 

way that would appeal to their hearts and move 

them to action, and one thing to do to achieve 

this is to keep things short and simple. 

Keeping things short and simple entails that 

in writing you do not bore your readers with 

verbose and irrelevant details. There are some 

kinds of writing that you should by all means 

avoid. Kindly do not use two negatives in one 

sentence because not everyone understands 

that double negatives in one sentence means 

that the sentence is positive. What I mean is 

that in a sentence such as ‘I do not think that 

you dislike her’, I actually mean that ‘I think 

that you like her’! How about ‘They project 

that it is unlikely that the dollar won’t continue 

to rise against the Naira’? This, in other words, 

means it is likely the dollar will continue to 

rise against the dollar. Did you find that a bit 

confusing too? And have you heard people use 

double negatives 

when they really By all means then, 

mean the aim to avoid the use 

negative? So 

why use the of negatives as 

double negatives much as you 

which could be 

confusing to possibly can in your 

your readers? writing 

Consider also 

the next example: ‘It was not without some 

struggles that he achieved his victory.’ Wouldn’t 

it have been much easier for the reader to 

understand the point if the writer had this as ‘It 

was with some struggles that he achieved his 

victory’? By all means then, aim to avoid the 

use of negatives as much as you possibly can 

in your writing. Yet another strategy for writing 

and appealing faster to your audience is the 

use of simple expressions. With simplicity 

saturating your writing, you always impress 

your readers. Verbose and redundant 

expressions do not appeal to most people. 

Imagine sending out a business letter and your 

receiver – your client – has to check their 

dictionary (or Google) for the meaning of 

words! That’d be a disaster for your business! 

Granted, there is technical jargon that suits 

the purpose of certain professions. That 

notwithstanding, feel free to switch things up 

and explain what the jargon means if you fear 

that your reader may not understand its use. 

Undoubtedly, some people believe that to 

impress others they need to use highfalutin – 

pompous or pretentious – expressions. This is 

in a bid to earn the respect of others, but most 

times the opposite is the case. Who wouldn’t 

prefer to be written to in a manner that makes 

them understand even difficult and rather 

complex concepts? I’m sure you would! 

Imagine receiving a court judgment riddled 

with lots of jargon and old-fashioned 

expressions! How does that help the client at 

all? Many people nowadays prefer writers who 

keep it simple, understandable, and easy to 

act upon. 

One last strategy I share with you here is 

that of constructing your writing mostly in the 

active voice. In the English language, we have 

the active and the passive voice in writing. My 

intention here is not to bore you with technical 

jargon! But I do want you to appreciate what 

both uses can do for your writing and how the 

use of the active voice will facilitate your 

reaching your readers’ heart quicker. For one 

thing, use of the active voice means that the 

subject of the sentence performs the action of 

the verb. Its use is precise and unambiguous 

to the reader – they can easily tell who is doing 

what in the sentence. To illustrate: ‘The CEO 

of Build-Well Integrated Services, Mr 

Uchechukwu Oji, commended his staff 

members for their diligence and dedication 

to the company.’ From the sentence you can 

identify the subject as ‘The CEO of Build-Well 

Integrated Services’ – to identify the subject of 

your sentence, simply ask the question ‘who/ 

what verb(s) or verb(ed); in this case, we ask, 

‘Who commended his staff members for their 

diligence and dedication to the company?’ The 

answer we get is the subject of the sentence/ 

verb.It is thus clear, isn’t it, that the one who 

performed the action of commending is the 

CEO. And just from reading the sentence – 

because it is written in the active voice – the 

point is easily taken. 

On the contrary, use of the passive voice 

means that the subject of the sentence is acted 

upon or receives the action of the verb. The 

construction often takes a ‘by the …’ form where 

the agent that performs the action is placed. I 

often say to my students that people who in 

writing like to hide agency – that is the one(s) 

performing the action – use the passive voice. 

The drawback is that your reader does not 

connect much with you when you passivise 

your sentence. They may judge you as trying 

to withhold information from them! Let’s see 

an example of a passive sentence: ‘The 

secretary was laid off by the Human Resources 

manager.’ In this sentence, the focus is on the 

secretary being laid off. The secretary is the 

subject of the sentence because it answers the 

question, ‘Who was laid off by the Human 

Resources manager?’ Do you, however, notice 

that this sentence structure pays less attention 

to who did the laying off? 

Yes, the focus is on the receiver of the action. 

Additionally, some passive sentences 

completely remove the agent that perform the 

action: ‘Three hundred billion Naira was 

stolen from the Accountant General’s office.’ 

Now, we do not know who did the stealing. A 

reader may be absolutely confused and not 

know what to make out of such information. 

In other cases, however, some deliberately use 

the passive voice to hide information that isn’t 

necessary for public consumption: ‘An apology 

has been sent to the public’ as opposed to ‘The 

president has apologised to the public.’ In 

order to avoid a blame-game or to avoid 

exposing the wrongdoing of an elite, the 

passive voice is deployed. This may lead 

people to worry less about the doer and focus 

more on the action. 

•Dr. Oji is a Senior Lecturer of English 

at the Institute of Humanities, Pan- 

Atlantic University, Lagos


BRAIN drain is beyond the normal 

migration of people to greener 

pastures or adventure. It involves the 

mass movement of a skilled workforce 

from one place to another. In the 1960s 

and 1970s, Nigeria was a great 

destination for skilled foreign workers 

such as doctors, university lecturers, 

high school teachers and others from 

sectors, the conditions of service of 

such places as Europe, India, the West 

these professionals worsened at home. 

Indies and Ghana. 

Nigerian-trained doctors, nurses and 

When the first oil boom ended around 

other healthcare professionals have 

1978, the economic hardship that 

since maintained a steady stream of 

ensued triggered the first brain drain, 

migration out of the country to places 

involving the mass migration of skilled 

where they could find job satisfaction. 

Nigerians to Europe and America. 

In 2015, there were only 34,000 doctors 

Many students who went to study 

serving about 180 million people. This 

abroad no longer returned to lend their 

year, the number has gone down to 

skills to the development of the nation. 

24,000, according to the Nigerian 

The health sector has been the hardest 

Medical Association, NMA. 

hit in recent years when some countries 

Meanwhile, the Worldometer estimates 

in Europe, America and the Middle 

that Nigeria’s population has climbed 

East became particularly interested in 

to over 211 million. 

hiring from Nigeria. 

Within the last year, the United 

With successive governments failing 

Kingdom alone received 1,307 

to prioritise the education and health 

Curbing health sector brain drain 

Nigerian doctors. As the dearth of 

doctors and other health professionals 

approaches crisis proportions, the UK 

High Commissioner to Nigeria, 

Catriona Laing, recently told the media 

that she was in talks with Nigerian 

government officials to "prevent" brain 

drain in the Nigerian medical sector. 

From the picture already painted with 

the figures above, the brain drain needs 

reversal, not prevention, because our 

system is already starving. 

The effort to reverse the sorry 

situation must start with Nigerians. Our 

current leaders and even some of our 

intending leaders have virtually 

abandoned our public health sector, 

where the common citizen goes for 

care. They and their families travel to 

hospitals abroad to take care of 

themselves at the taxpayers’ expense, 

leaving our system decrepit, and the 

professionals poorly paid and 

motivated. 

Unless the Nigerian people take the 

opportunity of the 2023 general 

elections to elect fresh, vibrant, 

exemplary, and visionary leaders who 

have in their track records 

demonstrated their concern for the 

common people, the scourge will 

continue. No foreign country, no 

matter how well-intentioned, can solve 

our brain drain problem for us. 

Only when our government 

prioritises the social sector with 

adequate funding, equipment, and 

competitive welfare will we see a 

reduction in brain drain. A rejuvenated 

system will even attract foreign doctors 

once again. The UK and other allies can 

support Nigeria with funds for positive 

change. 

OPINION 

How to save Nigeria's N500 trillion insurance industry 

By ELVIS EROMOSELE 

LAST week, I passed by the ever-busy 

Computer Village and saw shop after 

shop loaded from floor to ceiling with laptops. 

I thought to myself, “What happens if there is 

an incident, say a fire? Do they have insurance?” 

I shuddered to think of the sheer 

loss. Insurance is not new in Nigeria, but 

plenty of people disagree with its acclaimed 

importance. Records show that the insurance 

business has existed in one form or another in 

the country since 1958. What is amazing is 

that after such a long time, the sector is still 

struggling to overcome the twin problems of 

ignorance and acceptance. They are related. 

This implies that if potential customers can 

appreciate the true value of the sector, it will 

automatically lead to more widespread 

acceptance. And this will naturally boost 

patronage, spur the growth of premium 

generation, and precipitate more meaningful 

contributions to the nation's gross domestic 

product, GDP. Conversely, as acceptance grows, 

the estimation and value of the sector will rise 

and spread. 

Solving one issue will resolve the other, and 

vice versa. Ignorance does not mean people 

cannot define insurance. It is more a lack of 

understanding of the way it works or how it is 

supposed to work. Insurance, according to 

Investopedia, is "a contract, represented by a 

policy, in which a policyholder receives 

financial protection or reimbursement against 

losses from an insurance company. The 

company pools clients’ risks to make payments 

more affordable for the insured." 

Investopedia explains that there are different 

types of insurance policies. Life, health, 

homeowners, and auto insurance are the most 

common forms of insurance. The core 

components that make up most insurance 

policies are the deductible, policy limit, and 

premium. The truth must be said, the Nigerian 

insurance industry is enormous. Augusto & Co's 

2022 insurance report reveals that the gross 

premium income, GPI, stands at over N520 

trillion. 

This places the country 62nd in the world 

today. With a GDP of $443 billion as of 2020 

and a population of 210 million, Nigeria is 

easily the largest economy in Africa. Yet, the 

insurance penetration rate is lower than one 

percent. Herein lies the problem. Take car 

insurance, for instance. The Nigeria Insurance 

Association, NIA, January 2022 report 

indicates that only 3.4 million out of a total of 

12 million registered vehicles are insured. Also, 

less than five percent of Nigerians have health 

insurance of any sort. It is not a pretty picture. 

This is the real challenge; how to get more 

people to sign up for insurance. The issues are 

long-standing and seemingly insurmountable. 

In my mind, it is at once a problem of policy 

and process; an issue of promotion and 

progress; and a matter of personnel and 

professionalism. And since they are only 

seemingly insurmountable, they can be 

overcome, resolved, and improved. With close 

to 100 million Nigerians living below the 

poverty line, it is no surprise that many cannot 

afford to pay insurance premiums under the 

current arrangement. 

The bulk of the population lives from hand 

to mouth, so there is little room for anything 

else when the bare essentials are barely taken 

care of. Only affordable and flexible insurance 

with a clear highlight of the core benefits will 

appeal to Nigerians. What would work is 

something that does not tax the pocket or the 

mental capacity of the man on the street. People 

who find funds to load recharge cards, make 

sports bets, and go on the occasional weekend 

treat, can find the money for premium if it 

makes sense to them. 

When people talk of ignorance of insurance, 

it is beyond a lack of knowledge of its existence. 

It is a question of trust. True mass acceptance 

is necessarily a function of ubiquitous access 

and trust. Once people see why, nothing can 

stop them from investing in the future through 

insurance. This brings us right back to 

education, awareness, and access. The only 

way to be assured of a future is for the insurance 

industry as a whole to undergo radical change. 

The current cosmetic makeup does not cut it. 

The industry needs a major makeover. The 

regulators must look at policies that will 

fundamentally change the way the industry 

conducts its business, engages with its 

customers, and, in fact, who can engage in the 

business. The call is for a truly functional 

microinsurance scheme. In the recent past, 

Nigeria had mobile insurance offered by a 

The only way to be assured of 

a future is for the insurance 

industry as a whole to undergo 

radical change; the current 

cosmetic makeup does not cut it 

telco, but it failed. No! It was not because it 

was not viable, it was due more to resistance 

and regulatory issues. Think of how impossible 

mobile money has looked in Nigeria and how 

it has thrived spectacularly in other climes (read 

Kenya). The only real difference was policy 

formulation and the regulatory framework. 

Mobile money is only now beginning to look 

feasible and viable. What changed? Simple 

policy and regulatory requirements. But I 

digress. 

The International Association of Insurance 

Supervisors, IAIS, defines microinsurance as 

"the protection of low-income people against 

specific perils in exchange for regular 

premium payments appropriate to the 

Send Opinions & Letters to: 

opinions1234@yahoo.com 

likelihood and cost of the risk 

involved." According to the IAIS, the term 

refers to servicing a specific income segment 

in emerging market jurisdictions where the 

insurance markets are not well-developed. 

Nigeria fits this bill to a T. To be fair, experts 

argue that micro-insurance works in much 

the same way as conventional insurance, 

except that it is targeted at low-income 

households, specifically the working poor, who 

have few or no financial reserves and incomes 

that fluctuate considerably. The National 

Insurance Commission, NAICOM, the 

regulator of the insurance sector, has explained 

that it is actively pursuing the execution of 

various regulatory and market development 

initiatives intended to uplift the insurance 

sector to a global standard. Industry watchers 

insist that the Commission is doing well. I 

believe that the Commission must now take 

another look at the micro-insurance market. 

It is currently barely scratching the surface. To 

get going and truly thrive, it needs favourable 

policies, legal and regulatory adaptations, and 

sector-wide institutional capacity building. 

Firms that will provide the service must 

understand how it has evolved. The license 

fees should be affordable for operators. 

Naturally, there would be close monitoring of 

the operations to prevent abuse and ensure 

that they stay on the straight and narrow.While 

typically, microinsurance can be delivered 

through a variety of institutional channels, 

including licensed insurers, healthcare 

providers, community-based organizations, 

and non-governmental organizations, in 

Nigeria, the ubiquitous reach of telecom 

services, the grassroots know how of 

microfinance banks, and the depth of 

academic institutions, make them good 

candidates to drive such a scheme. 

Continues online:www.vanguardngr.com 

•Eromosele, a Corporate Communication 

professional and public affairs analyst 

lives in Lagos.

Foreign Portfolio Investments rise 11.8% to 

N321bn 

By Peter Egwuatu 

NIGERIA’s Foreign Portfo 

lio Investments, FPIs, 

has risen to N321.04 billion in 

the third quarter of 2022, Q3’22, 

about 11.8 per cent higher than 

N287.2 billion recorded in the 

corresponding period of 2021, 

Q3’21. FPI represents value of 

foreign investments in the Nigerian 

stock market. 

Though usually called ‘hot 

money’ because of the speed of 

entry and exit, analysts believe 

the higher balance in the FPI 

position is attributable to the inability 

of the investors to move 

out their money due to unavailability 

of foreign exchange. 

Meanwhile, the value of retail 

investments in the stock market 

continued to rise hitting N556.78 

billion in Q3’22, about 27.5 per 

cent increase as against N436.53 

billion in corresponding period 

of 2021. 

Analysts attributed this increase 

to improved investors’ confidence 

occasioned by several changes 

that have taken place in the market 

environment this year. 

“Through regulatory interventions 

by Securities and Exchange 

Commission, SEC and Central 

Bank of Nigeria , CBN, new rules 

have been made to regulate several 

unregulated practices in the 

capital market, especially margin 

trading which mismanagement 

caused the credit boom that 

precipitated the dangerous asset 

bubble have led to increased investor 

confidence”, analysts 

noted. 

Vanguard’s findings from the 

Nigerian Exchange Limited, 

NGX, shows that foreign investors’ 

contribution to the entire 

value of transactions at N1.97 

trillion in Q3’22 was 16.3 per cent 

while retail investors’ contribution 

stood at 28.3 per cent. 

Commenting on the FPI position, 

analyst and CEO, APT Securities 

& Funds Limited, 

Mallam Garba Kurfi, said: “We 

are not surprised at the increase 

in the Foreign Portfolio Investments, 

which was due to lack of 

VISIT TO LABORATORY —— From left: Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety 

Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Bashir Jamoh OFR; Honourable Minister of Transportation, Mu’azuJaji Sambo; 

Secretary General, International Maritime Organisation (IMO), His Excellency Kitack Lim; and Permanent 

Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transportation, Dr. Magdalene Ajani at the Marine Pollution Laboratory 

section of the Nigerian Maritime Resource Development Centre, Lagos. 

Poor Electricity: TCN blames GENCOs, 

DISCOs for grid collapses 

CURRENCY BUYING SELLING 

US 

DOLLAR 

POUNDS 

EURO 

FRANC 

YEN 

CFA 

WAUA 

RENMINBI 

RIYAL 

RAND 

Danish Krona 

160.45 -1.35 

2403.00 + 22.00 

19.61 - 0.13 

84.56 - 3.54 

87.65 +5.12 

442.76 443.26 443.76 

525.7775 526.3713 526.965 

454.5374 455.0507 455.564 

463.6716 464.1952 464.7188 

3.1359 3.1395 3.143 

0.6719 0.6819 0.6919 

576.3837 577.0346 577.6855 

62.0103 62.0808 62.1513 

117.8023 117.9353 118.0684 

25.6548 25.6837 25.7127 

59.0766 59.1438 59.211 

CBN Exchange rate as at 23/11/2022 

MARITIME 

By Mariam Eko 

THE electricity Trans 

mission Company of 

Nigeria, TCN, has said that 

lack of capacity in the electricity 

Generation Companies, 

GENCOs, and the Distribution 

Companies, 

DISCOs, is the main reason 

for the incessant collapses 

in the national grid. 

The country’s power grid 

has collapsed about seven 

times this year, with the last 

collapse on September 26. 

At the backdrop of this the 

chairman, Technical and 

Monitoring Committee of 

TCN governing board, Mr. 

Nsima Ekere, stated that 

TCN was in the process of 

installing a supervisory control 

and data acquisition, 

SCADA system which would 

address the inconsistency 

leading to grid collapse. 

Ekere made this known at 

the inspection of TCN warehouse 

and some key substations 

by the committee 

board members of TCN in 

Lagos. 

According to him, “Grid 

collapse and network reliability 

is not TCN’s fault but 

majorly from the GENCOs 

and DISCOs as they take 

more power and sometimes 

less, which ultimately impacts 

negatively on the national 

grid. 

“The average generation in the 

country is from 3,000mw to 

4,000mw which is less than 40 

percent of the present capacity, 

but with the transmission expansion 

projects ongoing, in the next 

two or three years the capacity 

would be doubled. 

“There is need for the GENCOs 

and DISCOs to step up their capacity, 

make commensurable investments, 

work on infrastructure 

and improve on their capacity to 

take power and distribute in order 

for Nigerians to enjoy some 

level of stability in power supply.” 

He added, “TCN is in the process 

of installing a supervisory 

control and data acquisition, 

SCADA, system and once this is 

fully deployed, it will help to a 

large extent with reliability and 

eliminate grid collapses.” 

At the visit to Lagos-west substation 

in Ayobo, the General 

Manager, Lagos west substation 

of TCN, Mr. Mojeed Akintola, 

said the substation had the capacity 

to wheel 1,050mw, adding that 

it would supply three distribution 

companies namely, Eko Electricity 

Distribution Company, Ikeja 

Electric and some parts of Ibadan 

Electricity Distribution Company. 


Foreign Exchange that prevented 

the foreign investors from repatriating 

their funds; they rather 

buy back stocks and dividend received 

which cannot be taken 

away. They rather buy more 

stocks. There are very few that 

decided to bring additional funds 

in order to take advantage of the 

low price of the stocks.” 

On projection for the Q4’22, 

he said: “As a result of devaluation 

of Naira we are expecting 

more inflow to take advantage 

of the low price stocks as most of 

the blue chips are trading at 53 

weeks low.” 

ENERGY 

Commenting as well, an investment 

banker/Chartered Stockbroker, 

Tajudeen Olayinka, said: 

“The urge to move capital around 

the world for greater portfolio return 

(capital mobility) and the effect 

of inflation on nominal values 

could be responsible for 

nominal increase in the value of 

investments by foreign portfolio 

investors. However, the fact that 

economy and market did not really 

feel the impact of such level 

of capital flow, means that rising 

inflation and exchange rate 

movement were largely responsible 

for the level of increase we 

saw in the nine months of 2022. 

“Since the figure for retail investors 

is also a nominal value, 

it follows clearly that inflation 

and reinvestment of dividends 

could have been responsible for 

the increase in nominal value of 

investment by that class of investors.” 

Orji Kalu, PowerChina sign $500m 

Agro-industrial parks deal 

By Emma Ujah, Abuja 

Bureau Chief 

By Nkiruka Nnorom 

WAVELINE Growth Partners 

Limited, a Lagos-based 

Microfinance Institution (MFI), said 

it is poised to clinch a leadership 

position in the microfinance sector 

through creation and rendition of 

unique products and services to its 

clients. 

The company also said it is set to 

raise N500 million to expand its business. 

The Chief Executive Officer, Mrs 

Taba Peterside, who spoke at the 

company’s five-year anniversary celebration 

in Lagos, said that Waveline 

has disbursed over 2000 loans worth 

more than N300 million since its 

IMO Sec Gen opens NIMASA new 

headquarter 

INDUSTRY 

THE Secretary General of the 

International Maritime Organization, 

IMO, Mr. Kitack Lim, has 

commissioned the ultra-modern 

headquarters of the Nigerian Maritime 

Administration and Safety 

Agency, NIMASA, located at 

Victoria Island, Lagos. 

Speaking during the commissioning 

of the building, the IMO boss 

expressed confidence in the leadership 

of the transport sector of Nigeria 

while also extolling the dynamic 

role of the Minister of Transportation, 

Engr. Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, and 

the heads of the various parastatals 

FORMER Governor of Abia 

State, Sen. Orji Kalu and 

PowerChina has signed a deal for 

the establishment of five agro-industrial 

parks worth $500 million in 

different parts of the state. 

Kalu is facilitating the parks 

through SWIBER Africa in Alayi, 

Igbere, Ozu Item, Abiriba and 

Ukwueke. 

According to him, PowerChina 

and SWIBER Africa would jointly 

fund the project to be handled by the 

Chinese firm. 

The former governor said that the 

industrial parks would fulfil objectives 

of providing employment opportunities 

for members of the communities 

and raising foreign exchange 

for the country. 

According to him, “everything produced 

in the industrial park “will go 

to feeding Nigerians and export”. 

The Managing Director of 

PowerChina Nigeria, Mr. Diego 

Tian, said that the industrial parks 

would focus on the production and 

processing of rice, cassava and 

cashew nuts and related products. 

He added that the parks which will 

occupy about 11,000 hectares land 

would create new industries around 

agriculture, boost Nigeria’s self-sufficiency 

in food security and create 

at least 20,000 direct jobs. 

He also said that they would have 

rice mills, processing plants for cassava 

and cashew nuts and warehousing 

for them, in addition to the production 

of Ethanol and starch. 

Electricity power generation, he 

said, would be part of the project 

which has been slated to take off at 

the beginning of next year. 

Waveline Growth Partners targets 

leadership position 

*Expresses confidence 

in the maritime sector 

leadership 

inception in 2017. 

According to her the MFI would 

deploy improved technology and financial 

services professionals to redefine 

the business. 

She stated: “In addition to increasing 

our lending operations, we also 

plan to broaden our product base to 

include micro pensions and insurance, 

among other offerings to 

deepen our clients’ engagement with 

the formal economy. 

“Looking ahead, we are excited to 

be part of all the innovations taking 

place in Fintech, and look forward 

to further expanding our financial 

inclusion and empowerment mission 

through technology and partnerships,” 

Peterside said. 

under the supervision of the Transportation 

Ministry. 

He also harped on the importance 

of the human competency and capability 

in the sector adding, however, 

that leadership is the most paramount, 

as has been exhibited at the 

Transportation ministry. 

Speaking also at the event, Sambo 

expressed gratitude to the IMO 

scribe for having a first-hand opinion 

on the developmental strides in 

Nigeria’s maritime sector. He stated 

that Nigeria will strive to ensure Nigerian 

maritime activities are in line 

with best practices, while also embracing 

new technologies in the frontier 

of global maritime discourse. 

Jamoh expressed appreciation to 

the IMO boss for his goodwill to the 

Nigeria maritime sector. 

He informed him that NIMASA 

has embarked on various projects in 

the year, 2022, all with the aim of 

ensuring a robust and conducive 

maritime environment is attained in 

Nigeria.





AWARD: 

From left, Managing 

Director/Editor-in- 

Chief, New Telegraph 

Newspapers, Mr 

Ayodele Aminu 

presenting the award 

of the Most Improved 

Bank of the Year to the 

Executive Director, 

Lagos & South West, 

Fidelity Bank Plc, Dr 

Ken Opara; and 

Divisional Head, 

Brands and 

Communication, 

Fidelity Bank Plc, Dr 

Meksley Nwagboh, 

during the New 

Telegraph 2022 Awards 

at Federal Palace Hotel 

in Lagos. 

Senate refuses to approve N7bn refund to Kebbi 


ABUJA—THE 

Senate 

has refused to approve a 

promissory note of N7 billion for 

Kebbi State Government for 

projects executed on behalf of the 

Federal Government and has 

given the state government two 

weeks to defend claims. 

However, the Senate 

approved N18,663,843,119.39 for 

Yobe State and 

N2,470,525,729.54 for Taraba 

State, 

totally 

N21,134,368,848.93 for the two 

states for projects executed on 

behalf of the Federal 

Government. 

In Taraba State, the project 

was the reconstruction and 

rehabilitation of Bali- Serti- 

Gembu road which is 252 

kilometers while the projects in 

Yobe State were Damataru- 

Magzu Road section of 

Damataru- Biu Adamawa Road 

within Yobe which is 77 

kilometers; Nguru- Machina 

Road (57 km) and Kaliyari- 

Bayamari- Geidam road 

(109km). 

The refusal of that of Kebbi was 

a sequel to the consideration of 

the report of the Senator Clifford 

Ordia, led Senate Committee on 

Local and Foreign Debts. 

According to Ordia, Governor 

Abubakar Bagudu of Kebbi State 


•Gives gov 2wks to defend claims 

and the state government 

refused to appear before the 

Committee to defend the claim 

of the money for the construction 

of Malando, Garin Baka, Ngaski 

road which is 42 kilometers and 

the construction of Dabai, 

Mahuta Koko road which is 87 

kilometers. 

The Chairman said," that the 

Committee resolved to step down 

Kebbi State government's 

request due to its failure to 

appear before the Committee to 

defend its claims in respect of the 


Array of experts, personalities line up as 

2nd Vanguard Mental Health Summit opens 

By Sola Ogundipe & 

Chioma Obinna 

LAGOS—MENTAL health 

takes the front burner today 

as an array of enlightened 

speakers and panelists gather to 

deliberate on critical issues of 

mental health in Nigeria, as the 

2nd Vanguard Mental Health 

Summit kicks off at the Eko 

Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island, 

Lagos. 

Among the participants lined 

up for the exciting event which 

is endorsed by the Association 

of Psychiatrists of Nigeria, 

APN, are renowned 

psychiatrists, psychologists, 

social workers, administrators, 

and experts in various fields 

including fertility and 

technology. 

The event which is supported 

by 9mobile Nigeria and Guaranty 

Trust Bank Plc. will be chaired 

by the President of the World 

Medical Association, WMA, Dr. 

Osahon Enabulele, with the 

Lagos State Commissioner for 

Health, Prof Akin Abayomi as 

Special Guest of Honour. 

The Summit, themed “Mental 

Health in a Distressed 

Economy”, and sub-themed 

“Drug Abuse: A new force driving 

mental health crises in Nigeria” 

is designed to rekindle the 

awareness on mental health, 

tackle the challenges 

surrounding the management of 

the various mental disorders, 

and mitigate their effects on the 

community. 

Leading the discourse is a 

P r o f e s s o r o f 

Psychiatry, Professor Francis 

Olatunji Aina of the Department 

of Psychiatry, College of 

Medicine, University of Lagos - 

a member of the Association of 

Psychiatrists of Nigeria, APN, 

who will present the keynote 

address. 

Notable among the speakers 

is the Chairman of the National 

Drug Law Enforcement Agency, 

NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohammed, 

will speak on the topic: “Growing 

Problem of Substance Abuse: 

The NDLEA Experience”. 

His presentation will give 

insight into the major reform of 

the agency in revamping the 

country’s narcotics challenge. 

Also, the details of the ongoing 

revolution on the issue of drug 

use, and the rehabilitation of drug 

users in the country will be 

showcased. 

The Acting Director-General 

of the National Agency for Food 

projects executed on behalf of the 

Federal Government for which 

it is seeking refund. 

"It is the policy of the Senate 

that if two senators from a state 

are against the request by any 

state government, such request 

should be stepped down. In this 

case, two Senators did not agree 

with the request. The committee 

will resume the consideration of 

the outstanding request in 

respect of Kebbi State 

Government as soon as it is able 

to defend its claims before the 

Committee." 

Meanwhile, Senators Adamu 

Aliero, and Abdullahi Yahaya, 

while speaking with Journalists 

said as stakeholders, they would 

not stop what would lead to the 

development of the state, saying 

that "N7 billion is huge for a poor 

state like Kebbi to miss. But the 

right thing must be done which 

has to do with the state 

government coming before the 

Senate to defend the claims." 

Earlier, the President of the 

Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan, 

asked the State Government to 

appear to defend the claims, 

giving the Committee two weeks 

to report back. 

Baby factory: Police rescue 6 girls, 

6 months old baby in Nasarawa 

LAFIA—OPERATIVES of the 

Nasarawa State Police 

Command, have uncovered a 

suspected baby factory operating 

under the guise of an orphanage 

in Karu Local Government Area, 

LGA, of the state. 

The operatives have arrested 

four suspects in the facility and 

also rescued six young girls and 

a baby of about six months. 

In a statement, the state Police 

Public Relations Officer, PPRO, 

DSP Ramhan Nansel, informed 

that detectives attached to Police 

Area Command, New Karu 

uncovered the factory located at 

Ado Kasa on Thursday. 

and Drug Administration and 

Control, NAFDAC, Dr Monica 

Eimunjeze, will speak on “The 

Challenges of Tackling Drugs & 

Substance Abuse and Drug Use 

in Nigeria”, while the immediate 

past Medical Director of the 

Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, Dr. 

Oluwayemi Ogun, will speak on 

“Mental Health in Children”. 

To shed light on 

the significance of fertility issues 

among factors that contribute 

to mental health 

challenges, the Clinic Manager 

of Nordica Fertility Centre, Lagos, 

Mrs Tola Ajayi, will speak on 

“Infertility: Coping with 

Depression”, even as 

Ms Chineze Amanfo, a talented 

and dedicated public relations 

professional, and public relations 

practitioner from the stable of 

9mobile Nigeria, will be on hand 

to add her voice to the discourse. 

Also scheduled to speak is Dr 

Babatunde Fadipe, a seasoned 

psychiatrist and consultant 

psychiatrist at the Lagos 

University Teaching Hospital. 

Fadipe who is a member of the 

Suicide Research and 

Prevention Initiative, SURPIN, 

an organization established to 

tackle the scourge of suicide 

through research, will speak on 

He said "The team arrested four 

suspects in the facility and also 

rescued six young girls and a 

baby of about six months. The 

owners of the factory are 

operating an illegal orphanage, 

St. Bridget Orphanage Home, 

where they carry out their illegal 

acts." 

According to the police, the 

proprietor of the orphanage 

allegedly abducted underage 

pregnant girls and held them 

against their will till they deliver, 

claiming that "children delivered 

in the orphanage were sold to 

highest bidders." 

He said that the command had 

“Suicide is a medical issue, not a 

crime”. 

Prof Taiwo Lateef Sheikh, the 

immediate past President of the 

Association of Psychiatrists of 

Nigeria, APN, and the 

Coordinator of the Vanguard 

Mental Health Chat Room will 

speak on the Chat Room and 

allied issues. 

A Deputy Director, Medical 

Social Services at the Lagos 

University Teaching Hospital 

(LUTH), Ms. Titilayo Tade, and 

the Training Coordinator for 

Suicide Research & Prevention 

Initiative (SURPIN) will speak on 

“Coping with the stigma of 

mental disorders - The LUTH 

SURPIN experience”. 

The Chief Consultant 

Psychiatrist at the Federal 

Neuropsychiatric Hospital 

Annex, Oshodi, Lagos, Dr. 

Olufunmilayo Akinola, 

will coordinate the panelists’ 

session. 

Among the panelists is Dr. 

Juliet Ottoh, a Clinical 

Psychologist an experienced 

therapist with empathy with 

years of fruitful experience from 

the Department of Psychiatry, 

Lagos University Teaching 

Hospital, LUTH. 

handed over the suspects and 

the victims to the National 

Agency for the Prohibition of 

Trafficking in Persons, for further 

investigation and prosecution. 

Nansel noted that the 

Commissioner of Police, Maiyaki 

Muhammed-Baba, warned that 

the command would mobilise 

resources to go after criminals 

operating in the state and urged 

parents to take care of their 

children. 

The commissioner also urged 

members of the public to avail 

the police with credible 

information that would assist in 

taming criminals in the state. 

Traffic: Niger begs NNPCL to 

establish truck transit parks 

MINNA—THE government 

of Niger yesterday urged the 

Nigerian National Petroleum 

Company Limited, NNPCL, to 

establish truck transit parks in 

some strategic parts of the state to 

reduce traffic on highways. 

It identified towns such as Tafa, 

Suleja, Mokwa, Bida, Tegina, 

Lambata and Minna, as major areas 

to be given attention in that regard. 

The Permanent Secretary in the 

Ministry of Mineral Resources in 

Niger, Abubakar Idris, made the 

call during the meeting of National 

Council on Hydrocarbons 

organised by the Ministry of 

Petroleum Resources in 

collaboration with the state 

government. 


establishment of the parks in the 

identified areas will reduce traffic 

on highways and generate revenue 

for state and the country at large. 

In the meeting entitled: 

"Roadmap and Strategic Option 

towards achieving energy transition 

in Nigeria", Idris presented a 

memorandum from the state 

government to the council on the 

need for the establishment of the 

transit parks. 

He explained that it would also 

Delta LP House of Assembly 

candidate unfolds agenda for 

Bomadi 

By Akinroye 

Abdulazeez 

AHEAD OF the 2023 general 

elections, A Labour Party, LP, 

House of Assembly candidate for 

Bomadi State Constituency, Delta 

State, Poweide Foburuku, has 

unfolded his plans for the people of 

his constituent if he is elected. 

Among others, he pledged to 

prioritize access to electricity for 

maximum benefit of all communities 

in Bomadi Local Government Area, 

LGA. 

Unfolding his plans for the LGA, 

Foburuku said "I will cultivate 

rapport with the executive arm of 

government and work with other 

legislators in the Assembly from 

riverine areas to seek support secure 

legislation that will make 

government declare an emergency 

on access to steady electricity in the 

area long deprived of same. 

"Government declaration of 

LAGOS—PARAMOUNT Africa 

made a statement introduction 

as a key stakeholder and partner of 

the African film industry at the 

recently concluded Africa 

International Film Festival, AFRIFF. 

The Festival brought together 

top-notch global and local 

filmmakers, directors, actors, 

executives and aspiring young 

people from across various genres 

of the film industry in Lagos. 

The 11th edition of the weeklong 

festival with the theme 

"Indigenous to Global" featured 

different movie and content 

premieres and screenings, 

workshops, pitch sessions, 

networking events as well as an 

award ceremony. 

Paramount Africa formally 

introduced itself to the African film 

community through an excellently 

curated panel session tagged “Meet 

Paramount”. It was moderated by 

Paramount Africa’s Culture Squad 

member, Folu Storms, and featured 

the Country Manager, Paramount 

Africa, Bada Akintunde-Johnson; 

the Vice President of Paramount 

Africa's Comedy Central, 

Nickelodeon and Creative 

Services, Dillon Khan; as well as 

the CEO and COO of Clive Morris 

create a partnership between the 

state and federal government to 

reduce the negative effects of heavy 

road traffic on highways, saying "the 

trucking industry is indispensable 

to the Nigerian economy as 

truckers are responsible for 

delivering fuel from depots to filling 

stations where they are dispensed. 

For these reasons, funds need to 

be released to build truck parks for 

ease of operations". 

He also called for the 

establishment of a frontier basin 

development commission with its 

headquarters in Niger. 


establishment of the commission 

will expedite the effective 

implementation of Petroleum Host 

Community Trust Fund and frontier 

basin exploration fund as captured 

in the Petroleum Industry Act 2021 

with headquarters in Niger. 

He said that the Nigeria's frontier 

basins consist of Anambra basin, 

the lower, middle and upper Benue 

trough, the South eastern sector of 

the Chad basin, the Mid-Niger 

(Bida) basin and Sokoto basin. 

Idris said that the basins would 

be better positioned for the 

opportunities in the hydrocarbons 

natural gas, oil and other minerals. 

emergency on electricity not only 

holds the potential to generate 

employment in many spheres and 

guarantee security, it can boost 

revenue generation for 

government via taxation and halt 

rural-urban drift. It is thus a 

harbinger of positive socioeconomic 

development. The 

benefits that come with the simple 

electrical bulbs, television, 

computers and now cell phones are 

yet to trickle down to my people for 

lack of access to steady electricity", 

Foburuku, who read electrical/ 

electronic engineering, lamented. 

According to him, with electricity, 

the people of Bomadi LGA can be 

empowered with unique technical 

and digital skills to prepare them for 

the benefits the robust gig 

economy already holds out to this 

and the incoming generation. I will 

attract and decentralize Technical 

and Digital Skills Training Centres 

to make them close to the people so 

especially our youths can keep up 

with a fast-paced digital world." 

Paramount Africa hosts content 

pitch for filmmakers at AFRIFF 

Productions, CMP, South Africa, 

Clive Morris and Khayelihle Dom 

Gumede respectively. 

Paramount Africa also hosted a 

pitch session where over 300 

filmmakers were given the 

opportunity to present their ideas 

across four genres: feature film, TV 

series, documentary, and reality. Of 

the total submissions received, the 

creators of the 15 top content ideas 

were invited for a physical pitch to a 

select jury of international content 

producers for a chance to collaborate 

with Paramount and be a part of 

future co-production and co-funding 

opportunities. 

"Providing co-production and cofunding 

opportunities for 

indigenous storytellers aligns with 

our philosophy of leveraging the 

power of content to reimagine the 

global Africa narrative and celebrate 

the continent's people, culture, and 

heritage. In addition to the coproduction 

and co-funding 

opportunities, we would consider 

some of the selected content from 

the pitches to feature on the 

Paramount+ platform when it is 

launched in Africa, thereby 

ensuring that we have local content 

that will be accessed and enjoyed 

by a truly global audience," said Bada 

Akintunde-Johnson.


By Ise-Oluwa Ige 

In this piece, Vanguard Law 

and Human Rights examines 

the background facts 

surrounding the on-going 

clamour for exclusion of 

serving judges from 

handling pre and post 

election matters, harvests 

views of lawyers and judges 

in the country on the issue 

and argues that logic is in 

favour of retaining the status 

quo. 

Background 

BETWEEN 2004 and 2006, the 

Supreme Court under the 

leadership of the second longest 

serving Chief Justice of Nigeria, 

Justice Muhammad Uwais grabbed 

the headlines but for the wrong 

reasons. 

Although allegations of corruption 

against judicial officers at the lower 

courts were rife before, during and 

after the period, such was rare at the 

apex level of the judicature. 

One of such rare occasions when 

the SC was tarred was in 1993 when 

a political case involving a business 

mogul and presidential candidate of 

the Social Democratic Party, SDP, 

Chief Moshood Abiola came before 

the court. 

The Saturday title of the Concord 

Press of Nigeria called Weekend 

Concord had published a report 

which alleged that the defunct 

government of the Military President 

of Nigeria, Gen Ibrahim Babangida 

bribed each Justice of the Supreme 

Court with Mercedez Benz E220 in 

order to influence them to give a 

legal imprimatur to the 

controversial annulment of the 1993 

presidential election believed to have 

been won by MKO Abiola. 

The serious allegation of 

corruption against the Supreme 

Court posed a challenge to its role 

as the guardian of the constitution, 

its image and legitimacy to 

pronounce on matters that come 

before it. 

The apex bench did not waste time 

as it sued the Concord Press at the 

Lagos High Court, during which 

available documentary evidence 

proved the allegation to the contrary 

while the Concord Press tendered an 

unreserved apology to the justices of 

the Supreme Court. 

Justice Uwais-led S’Court battles 

serious corruption allegation 

between 2004 and 2006 

But between 2004 and 2006, 

another attempt was made by some 

individuals to tar the image of the 

apex bench over an appeal in a 

political case involving a former 

Governor of Delta State, Chief James 

Ibori. 

The summary of the case was that 

two non-governmental 

organisations—the Derivation Front 

and Delta Elders Forum—had 

issued a press release in January 

2003 to allege that Ibori who was 

the serving governor was not 

qualified to have contested the 1999 

gubernatorial election in Delta State, 

having been allegedly convicted and 

sentenced to a one year jail term in a 

case of negligent conduct and 

criminal breach of trust on 

September 28, 1995, by an Upper 

Area Court, Bwari in FCT, Abuja. 

The two organisations had relied 

on the provision of section 182 (1) 

(e) of the 1999 Constitution which 

bars an ex-convict from seeking 

elective office in the country. 

The Section 182 (1) (e) specifically 

provides: “No person shall be 

qualified for election to the office of 

governor of a state if within a period 

EDITORIAL TEAM 

Ise-Oluwa Ige, PhD 

Innocent 

EDITORIAL 

Anaba 

Innocent 

Ikechukwu 

Anaba 

Nnochiri 

Henry Ojelu 

( Editor) 

Send 

Ikechukwu 

your mails 

Nnochiri 

and 

enquiries 

Henry 

to: 

Ojelu 

lawandhumanrights 

Onozure Dania 

@vanguardngr.com 

of less than 10 years before the date 

of election to the office of governor 

of a state, he has been convicted and 

sentenced for an offence involving 

dishonesty or he has been found 

guilty of the contravention of the 

Code of Conduct.” 

The promoters of the allegation 

were evidently out to stop Ibori from 

contesting the 2003 governorship 

election in the oil rich Delta State. 

But the governor had denied that 

he ever stood any trial at the Upper 

Area Court in Abuja in 1995 or at 

any other time. 

A lawsuit was, therefore, instituted 

by two Deltans, including Dr 

Goodnews Agbi at the High Court 

of the Federal Capital Territory 

based on the charge sheet they widely 

circulated to stop James Onanefe 

Ibori from contesting the 2003 

gubernatorial election In the state. 

The matter travelled from the high 

court to the Supreme Court, where 

the apex bench held that by the 

charge sheet, there was indeed a 

conviction but that the litigants 

should go back to the high court for 

a fresh trial to establish whether or 

not the James Onanefe Ibori that 

was convicted on September 28, 

1995, by the Upper Area Court, 

Bwari was the same James Onanefe 

Ibori that was the sitting governor of 

Delta State. 

The case, for the second time, 

travelled from the high court to the 

Supreme Court where the apex 

bench decided that though one 

James Onanefe Ibori was convicted 

by the Bwari Upper Area Court, yet, 

the governor of Delta State, Chief 

James Onanefe Ibori was not 

sufficiently identified as the same 

James Onanefe Ibori of Delta State 

that was convicted in 1995. 

The aggrieved promoters of the 

lawsuit, however, alleged that the 

Supreme Court decision was bought 

by Ibori for N5billion. 

At another time, it was alleged that 

the then CJN, Justice Uwais 

travelled to London with Ibori during 

the pendency of the case with his wife 

during which a whopping sum of 

£3.5million exchanged hands to 

negotiate Ibori’s November 8, 2004, 

legal victory at the Abuja High 

Court. 

The allegations did an 

incalculable damage to the image 

of the judiciary at the time as 

stakeholders including former 

World Court judge, Prince Bola 

Ajibola, advised Justice Uwais to 

speak out or sue his accusers if the 

allegations were untrue. 

Uwais who rarely gave press 

interviews during his tenure as the 

head of the judiciary was pained by 

the allegation and decided to 

explain his side of the story in an 

interview with select media 

including the Vanguard. 

Justice Uwais weeps over 

allegation of corruption 

During the interview attended by 

this reporter, Uwais battled tears to 

deny the allegation thus: “It is a lie. I 

did not travel to London with Ibori. 

Neither did my wife nor the Chief 

Registrar travel with him for any 

reason. I have been on the bench for 

31 years. This is the first time ever in 

my career that I am being accused 

of taking bribe. It has been done 

twice in this Ibori case. Why? Why? 

Why should that be?” 

Not quite a month after the 

£3.5million bribery allegation in the 

Ibori case was made against Justice 

Uwais, an auto-firm, Globe Motors 

Holding Limited locked in a N20 

billion lawsuit with its rival, The 

Honda Place Limited, filed a motion 

at the Supreme Court in the same 

2005 asking the Justice Uwais to 

disqualify himself from the resumed 

hearing in the matter on the account 

of likelihood of bias. 

The lawyer of the Globe Motors 

Holding Limited, one Ephraim 

Duru, who moved the application to 

disqualify Justice Uwais in the open 

Court on June 20, 2005, said they 

would not want the Chief Justice to 

sit on the matter because of certain 

developments in the case, including 

the on-going allegation of bribery 

against him in the Ibori case. 

As soon as the allegation was 

made, there was a pin drop silence 

inside the courtroom. As if in a coven, 

the justices gathered their heads 

together to discuss in a hushed tone 

the next line of action. 

In less than 90 seconds, Justice Idris 

Kutigi now late asked Duru from the 

high bench if he knew the implication 

of what he just said, threatening that 

the court might direct him to remove 

his wig and gown and enter the dock 

to substantiate his allegation. 

Notwithstanding the threat, Duru 

refused to eat his words as he insisted 

that he stood by his position. 

The court had to rise for the day. It 

was that bad. 

Uwais accusers disbarred 

over failure to prove 

corruption allegation 

The matter was taken up by the 

Supreme Court and it is history today 

that not only Ephraim Duru but also 

the two lawyers, who were at the 

forefront of the campaign of 

calumny against the ex-CJN Uwais 

and the Supreme Court were 

disbarred over the matter having 

failed woefully to prove the 

damaging allegations against 

Justice Uwais. 

Why serving judges should 

be excluded from handling 

election-related cases— 

Justices Uwais, Kanyip 

It was, therefore, not surprising 

when Justice Uwais, before and after 

he retired from the bench canvassed 

for the use of retired justices to handle 

political cases particularly the 

election petition matters to spare the 

judiciary of battling frivolous and 

unnecessary scandals. 

According to him, most of the 

scandals that shook the judiciary in 

the past emanated from politicians 

who lost their cases in court and felt 

that the judicial officers, who gave 

such judgment must suffer for doing 

their jobs. 

In 2013, the trial judge of a Lagos 

division of the National Industrial 

Court, Justice B. Kanyip, now 

President of the Industrial Court had 

also canvassed for a system barring 

serving judicial officers from 

08179614306/08152060944 

SANs disagree with Uwais, Babalola on 

use of retired judges for election cases 

*Former CJN, Justice Muhammad Uwais 

Justice Kanyip who 

argued that the 

country was blessed 

with plenty talented 

retired judges, who 

were not yet tired 

said that embracing 

his suggestion 

would also not only 

be economically 

wise, but afford the 

country to further 

benefit from the 

wisdom and 

experience of the 

retired judges 

*AareAfe Babalola, SAN 

entertaining election related cases in 

the country. 

The judge who advocated the use 

of retired judges for such political 

cases was of the view that taking 

away such responsibility from the 

serving judges would not only reduce 

the courts’ dockets but also insulate 

serving Judges and safeguard their 

integrity especially in the eyes of 

discerning public 

Justice Kanyip who argued that the 

country was blessed with plenty 

talented retired judges, who were not 

yet tired said that embracing his 

suggestion would also not only be 

economically wise, but afford the 

country to further benefit from the 

wisdom and experience of the retired 

judges. 

17 years after, Babalola, 

SAN, backs Uwais, Kanyip 

on exclusion of serving 

judges from election petition 

matters 

A foremost Senior Advocate of 

Nigeria, Aare Afe Babalola, had also 

recently argued in favour of using 

retired judges to handle election 

petition matters. 

According to him: “There have 

been accusations and counteraccusations 

from politicians 

regarding the integrity of some 

tribunals. Most of these accusations 

and allegations ranging from the 

plausible to the ludicrous have often 

been made or informed by no other 

factor than the side of the political 

divide on which the politician 

making the allegation has found 

himself on account of the judgment 

sought to be impugned. 

“Cases have been reported in 

which parties to election petitions 

already submitted to court for 

adjudication and in some cases even 

already adjourned for judgment, 

declared openly that the outcome or 

judgment of the petition would be 

favourable to them. Some have been 

reported to have distributed 

traditional wear or uniforms 

amongst their party members and 

supporters and made extensive 

elaborate preparations for 

celebrations, including 

engagements of musicians all before 

the actual judgement of the tribunal 

or appellate court is delivered. 

“At one time, there were allegations 

by a particular set of petitioners that 

the respondent, and also incumbent 

governor of the state at that time, was 

about to take steps to arrest by 

judicial means, the imminent 

delivery of the judgment of the 

appellate court. The respondent in 

reply, aside from a denial of the 

allegation, posed the question 

whether the petitioners had not by 

their allegation, inadvertently given 

away the fact that they were already 

privy to the contents of a judgment 

yet to be delivered. 

“He queried why they would be so 

bothered that anyone was trying to 

arrest a judgment if they had not been 

assured that it (the judgment) would 

be in their favour? He stated further 

that the petitioners had already 

distributed celebration uniforms to 

their supporters. The judgment, when 

it was eventually delivered, was in 

favour of the petitioners. 

“In yet another case, a newspaper 

reported soon after conclusions of 

arguments on a contentious 

application before a tribunal, that 

the application had been granted by 

the said tribunal. This was despite 

the fact that the tribunal was yet to 

deliver its ruling on the said 

application. It had as a matter of fact 

adjourned its ruling by over 48 hours 

Continues on page 25 

C 

M 

Y 

K


vicahiyoung@yahoo.com 

(08052202308) 

SANs disagree with Uwais, Babalola on 

use of retired judges for election cases 

Continues from Page 24 

in open court. 

“When this anomaly was 

investigated, it was 

discovered that the media 

accounts of the grant of the 

application were influenced 

by a media statement sent to 

several media houses before 

the actual delivery of the 

ruling in open court by one 

of the media assistants to one 

of the parties in the petition. 

Most curiously, the eventual 

decision of the tribunal, when 

it was eventually handed 

down by which it granted the 

application, tallied with the 

accounts reported by the 

newspapers a day before. 

“Having regard to the 

numerous, persistent, and 

disturbing accusations made 

against election tribunal 

judges by desperate 

politicians, the coincidence 

or otherwise of judgments 

which were predicted by 

politicians, who had made 

victory preparation in 

advance of the judgments, 

and the tempting pressure in 

a poor economy, is it proper 

for serving judges to handle 

political cases? 

“In any event, whether the 

“prediction” of politicians 

regarding the outcome of yet 

to be delivered judgments 

pans out or not, the integrity 

of the judiciary is always the 

ultimate loser. This is so for 

if the “prediction” is found 

to be correct, the losing side 

will forever point to the fact 

that the judgment had 

already been known well in 

advance of the delivery of 

same. If on the other hand 

the “prediction” is found to 

be false, then supporters of 

the losing side will also 

forever allege that some 

underhand dealings were 

responsible for the change in 

the judgment from what they 

had been told or assured to 

expect. 

“This heightened level of 

attention and criticism is 

bound to affect the psyche of 

some judges and rub off on 

their ability to discharge 

their duty. It exposes them in 

several instances to a 

situation in which their every 

conduct and pronouncement 

is expected to measure up not 

to the dictates of the law but 

to the high and often 

misguided and misplaced 

expectation of the public 

which in most cases is totally 

ignorant of the position of the 

law. “Judges being human 

beings and not infallible may 

sometimes unwittingly yield 

to some of these pressures 

and let themselves be 

influenced by totally 

irrelevant factors. 

Furthermore, serving judges 

are of course very much 

interested in career 

advancement,” Chief 

Babalola had argued, 

A prominent member of 

the inner bar, Mr. Samuel 

Okutepa, SAN, had also 

voted in favour of using 

retired judges to handle 

election petition cases. 

Notwithstanding the 

calibre of Nigerians 

clamouring for amendment 

of relevant sections of the 

1999 Constitution to exclude 

serving judges from 

handling election petition 

matters, there are also topflight 

legal practitioners who 

argued that it was better not 

to disturb the status quo, 

arguing that using retired 

judges would worsen the 

*AareAfe Babalola, SAN 

situation. 

Some of the top legal 

practitioners, who spoke on the 

issue are former President of 

the Nigerian Bar Association, 

NBA, Mr. OCJ Okocha, SAN, 

a member of the inner bar and 

renowned academic, Prof. 

Akinseye George, SAN, a 

prominent member of the 

inner bar and former lead 

counsel to Muhammadu 

Buhari, Chief Mike Ahamba, 

SAN, and an Abuja-based silk, 

Mr. Israel Olorundare, SAN. 

Okocha disagrees with 

Uwais, Babalola, others 

According to Okocha, 

“Even if retired judges are 

used, the integrity of the 

judiciary is still at stake. And 

then we all know that our 

judges retire from the high 

court at the age of 65 while 

they retire at the age of 70 from 

the Court of Appeal and the 

Supreme Court. 

“Knowing Nigeria for what 

it is with our medical facilities, 

and knowing the judges 

themselves with the conditions 

they find themselves when they 

retired, most of them are old 

and feeble. 

I do not think they are suited 

to do the rigorous work of the 

election tribunal. 

“Besides, election petition 

cases are time-bound. They 

have limited time to do their 

work so that the country can 

move forward. I don’t 

subscribe to the fact that 

retired justices should be 

brought back from retirement 

to sit on election petitions. 

“I am aware that the 

alternative they proposed 

when they were doing 

constitutional review was the 

creation of constitutional 

courts to hear only political 

matters such as election 

petition matter to determine 

who was properly and validly 

elected. It did not scale 

through. 

“I think proliferation of 

courts is not even a good thing. 

I believe that the regular 

judges, who have their 

reputation at stake should be 

allowed to do the job. They 

know that if they allow 

politicians to corrupt them, 

then, their image is already 

tarnished. 

“And let me say this: 

politicians like to raise all 

those issues: oh, it was a 

political judgment. It was a 

kangaroo court. But a fair 

conscience fears no 

accusation. Judges who 

constitute election petition 

tribunals and have done their 

work with truth and justice in 

mind, will not listen to all 

those frivolous allegations. 

They will do their job. And if 

they know there is one 

authority over them, the NJC, 

if they go and soil their hand 

and an allegation is booked 

against them, then, their 

whole career as a whole will 

be put in jeopardy. For all 

those reasons, the sitting 

judges should continue. 

“I know that this will affect 

their regular cases but that is 

the sacrifice lawyers and their 

clients will have to make. And 

it depends on how the judges 

schedule their work. They 

should schedule their work in 

such a way that even if they 

go for election petition which 

is time bound, they will be in 

a position to come back to 

finish or continue with the 

pending cases they have 

before their regular courts,” 

he submitted. 

3 reasons we should not 

fall into error of using retired 

judges —Prof George 

A renowned academic, 

Prof. George, SAN, said he 

disagreed with those 

canvassing for amendment of 

the constitution to exclude 

serving judges from handling 

election petition cases. 

He said: “Honestly, I do 

not think we should use 

retired judges to handle 

election petition matters for 

three reasons. One, retired 

judges are no longer legally 

contracted. They have 

concluded their tenure. That 

tenure is what gives them 

some form of extra 

allegiance to the state. The 

fear of being dismissed for 

misbehaviour is no longer 

there. And it is very important 

in a matter of election 

petition, 

“Two, most of the retired 

judges are old. None of them 

is less than 65 years. Most of 

them are 65 and above 

because at the high court, they 

retire compulsorily at 65. At 

the Appeal and Supreme 

Court, they retire 

compulsorily at 70. So, 

already, they are no longer 

dynamic. The election 

matters are very tasking, 

loaded and time-bound. It is 

energy sapping. 

Continue reading on 

Vanguardngr.com 

Bankers, others fume 

over poor pay, 

exploitations 

Stories by Victor 

Ahiuma-Young 

ANKERS and other 

Bworkers in the nation’s 

financial sector are 

not finding the working 

environment and conditions 

of service in the sector 

palatable and are taking 

the situation lightly. 

Under the aegis of the 

National Union of Banks, 

Insurance and Financial 

Employees, NUBIFIE, 

the workers are unhappy 

over their poor pay, exploitation 

and unfair labour 

practices their employers 

have been subjected. 

The workers who made 

their feelings known at 

the NUBIFIE’s National 

Executive Council, NEC, 

meeting in Abuja, contended 

that the matter is 

being made worse by the 

continuous subversion of 

workers’ right to collective 

bargaining through deliberate 

emasculation of Nigeria 

Employer’s Association 

of Banks, Insurance 

and Allied Institutions, 

NEABIAI, by employers 

in the banking and insurance 

sector, in clear 

breach of relevant labour 

laws and regulations, including 

International Labour 

Organisation, ILO 

conventions duly ratified 

by Nigeria. 

Vanguard captures the 

minds of the workers as 

presented by the President 

of NUBIFIE, Anthony 

Obakpa. 

According to Obakpa, 

members of the NEC at 

the meeting expressed 

disappointment over the 

poor rewards system in 

the sector that cannot be 

commensurate with their 

workload. 

He said after exhaustive 

deliberations, “the meeting 

came to the conclusion 

that workers in the finance 

industry, in particular 

banks and insurance 

companies have for long 

been subjected to strenuous 

work schedules and 

unwholesome expectation 

target demands by 

employers, with less commensurate 

rewards for 

workers. 

“The continuous subversion 

of workers’ right 

to collective bargaining 

through deliberate emasculation 

of Nigeria Employer’s 

Association of 

Banks, Insurance and 

Allied Institutions, NEA- 

BIAI, by its own members, 

namely, employers 

in the banking and insurance 

sector, in clear 

breach of relevant labour 

laws and regulations, including 

ILO conventions 

duly ratified by Nigeria. 

“Given the unilateral 

nature in the determination 

of worker’s conditions 

of service including 

disciplinary related matters, 

as well as the restrictions 

of fundamental 

rights to free expression 

and right of dissent at a 

workplace by employers, 

and for over a decade, 

efforts by the Union to get 

the attention of the government 

to remedy the 

situation were all futile, 

until now that the current 

government saw the urgency 

of the situation and 

had to convene stakeholders 

meeting comprising 

employers in 

both banks and insurance 

companies, including 

Central Bank of Nigeria, 

CBN, Nigeria Employers’ 

Consultative Association 

NECA as well as the 

Outsourcing companies, 

among others. 

“The painstaking coordination 

of the stakeholders 

deliberations and providing 

appropriate guidance 

and guidelines as 

an impartial umpire all 

through the process of 

data gathering and subsequent 

reviews before 

the unanimous adoption 

of the final contents of the 

guidelines by the stakeholders. 

The Federal 

Ministry of Labour and 

Employment has been 

thorough and professional 

in this regard. Of specific 

mention here is Minister 

of Labour and Employment, 

Senator Chris 

Ngige whom our Union 

owes a debt of gratitude 

and appreciation for 

standing his ground in 

defense of workers in the 

banking and insurance 

sector. 

We cannot but mentioned 

the moral and 

technical support of the 

Congress, NLC, especially 

the constant intervention 

and personal commitment 

of the Congress 

President, Ayuba Wabba 

in ensuring the conclusion 

of the sectoral guidelines 

despite the associated 

challenges. 

“As a Union, we understand 

this sectoral guideline 

as a panacea for promotion 

of industrial peace 

and harmony in the banking 

and insurance sub 

sector, as its primary objectives 

is to create balance 

and equity in the 

reward system for all categories 

of workers, especially 

non permanent 

workforce, at workplace. 

The sectoral guidelines 

seek to fill the gap in the 

absence of Collective Bargaining 

mechanism, 

which is a right step towards 

compliance with 

relevant labour laws as 

well as ILO conventions 

on workers right to collective 

bargaining. 

“Union expects employers 

in the sector 

(whether as principal or 

agent) to embrace the 

sectoral guidelines with 

open mind as the whole 

document is centered on 

workers welfare and 

shared opportunities, 

which engender commitment, 

loyalty and enhanced 

productivity. 

As a Union, we expect 

collaboration and partnership 

from our employers 

in the seamless 

implementation of the 

sectoral guidelines. We 

are hopeful employers in 

the sector would not make 

the implementation of the 

guidelines problematic, 

in the interest of industrial 

peace and harmony.” 

ASCSN appoints Apebo Secretary-General 

THE Association of Se 

nior Civil Servants of 

Nigeria, ASCSN, has appointed 

Joshua Apebo as its 

Secretariat-General. 

Apebo, who is the Deputy 

Secretary-General, DSG, of 

the Association, will take over 

from January, 2023. He will 

take-over the incumbent Secretary-General, 

Alade Bashir 

–Lawal, whose tenure ends 

on December 31, 2022. 

President of ASCSN, Dr 

Tommy Okon, who gave this 

hint during the Association’s 

National Executive Council, 

NEC, meeting in Lagos, 

among others, informed that 

“a new substantive Secretary- 

General, in the person of 

Joshua Apebo, has been appointed 

effective, January 

2023, explaining that the tenure 

of the incumbent Secretary-General, 

Alade Bashir – 

Lawal, would end on December 

31, 2022, ending the oneyear 

contract given to him to 

•Joshua Apebo 

stabilize the Association after 

retirement.” 

Meanwhile, a statement by 

ASCSN’s President and the 

outgoing Secretary-General, 

among others, said “Apebo 

was the Deputy Secretary- 

General of the Association 

from 1st March, 2019 until 

his elevation to the post of 

Secretary-General. He joined 

the service of the Association 

of Senior Civil Servants of 

Nigeria on the 5th January, 

2001. 

“He has a Bachelor of Arts 

(BA) Degree in Public Administration 

in 1998 from the 

Ahmadu Bello University, 

Zaria and also Master of Science 

(MSc) Degree in Public 

Administration in 2007 from 

the University of Maiduguri, 

Maiduguri. He has attended 

series of Trade Union Courses, 

Seminars and Workshops 

which have impacted positively 

on his performance. 

Apebo has served the Association 

in Borno State, Adamawa 

State and Benue 

State. On the 1st May, 2014, 

Comrade Apebo was promoted 

to the post of Assistant Secretary-General 

and transferred 

to the National Headquarters 

of the Association in 

Lagos.”


SEKONI 

I, formerly known and addressed 

as MISS SEKONI TINUBU 

ANUOLUWAPO, now wish to be 

known and addressed as MRS. 

BAMITEKO TINUBU 

ANUOLUWAPO. All former 

documents remain valid.General 

public take note. 

EYITEMI OB 

ENIYAN ASHIEN 

I Formerly known and 

addressed as OBUROH 

JOYCE EYITEMI now wish 

to be known and addressed as 

OBUROH JOYCE 

Henceforth all former 

documents remain valid 

General public take note 

ASHEMIROGEA 

I, formerly known and 

addressed as MISS. 

ASHEMIROGEA EVIDENCE, 

now wish to be known and 

addressed as MRS. ADEDIJI 

EVIDENCE. All documents 

bearing my former name 

remain valid, general public 

take note. 

MEASHEL 

This is to confirm that the names 

U M U A K P E R O 

ARUORIWOGHENE MEASHEL 

and UMUAKPERO ARUORIWO 

MEASHEL refer to the same person. 

I now wish to be known as 

UMUAKPERO ARUORIWO 

MEASHEL. All former documents 

remain valid. Banks and the general 

public please take note. 


ABUSONWAN ENIYAN 

MICHAEL and ABUSOMWAN 

ENIYAN MICHAEL Refer to one 

and same person now wish to be 

known and addressed as 

ABUSOMWAN ENIYAN 

MICHAEL Henceforth all former 

documents remain valid General 

public take note 

ETSEMITAN 


addressed as MISS. 

ETSEMITAN ENDURANCE 

FAVOUR ODIRI, now wish to 

be known and addressed as 

MRS. ATUMAH FAVOUR 

EFE. All documents bearing 

my former name remain valid, 

general public take note. 

SALIU 

I, formerly known as 

PHILLIPS ABOSEDE 

OLAOLUWA , now wish to be 


SALIU ABOSEDE GRACE 

OLAOLUWA. All former 

documents remain valid. 

General public should take 

note. 

LUKE 

I Formerly known as 

Eyerengba Patience now 

wish to be known and 

address as Mrs. Luke Barbara 

Patience. Former documents 

remain valid general public 

take note. 

UWERHIAVWE 


as UWERHIAVWE RITA, now 

wish to be known and addressed 

as IRHIRHI RITA KEVWE. All 

former documents remain valid. 

The general public should please 

take note. 


as ONYINYE MARTHA 

ASHIEN, now wish to be known 

and addressed as MRS. 

EGHIATOR GIFT MARTHA. 

Former documents remain valid. 

General public, to whom it may 

concern please take note. 

SUCCESS 


as MISSION SUCCESS 

YASOMBOZIBE and OBUGU 

YASOMBOZIBE, now wish to be 

known and addressed as MISSION 

YASOMBOZIBE NORYE. All 

former documents remain valid. 

General public please take note. 

AZEKHUEMHEN 

I, formerly miss 

AZEKHUEMHEN VIOLET 

AREBOHJIE, now wish to be 

addressed as MRS VIOLET 

AREBOHJIE ADELEYE. 

Former documents remain 

valid general public take note. 

OLUKUNLE 

I, formally known and addressed 

as Miss Olanike Omotola 

OMOLEHIN, now wish to be 

known and addressed as Mrs. 

Olanike Omotola OLUKUNLE. 

All former documents remain 

valid. The general public, please 

take note. 

AROKWE 


as AROKWE STANLEY 

CHISOM, now wish to be known 

and addressed as PIUS CHISOM. 

Former documents remain valid. 

General public, to whom it may 

concern please take note. 

ENO OD 


as ESEME ESTHER ENO and 

ESEME ESTHER, now wish to 

be known and addressed as ESEME 

ESTHER NDAH. All former 

documents remain valid. General 


CHARLES CHRIS DAVID 

TILAPA OD 

I, formerly known called and I, formerly known as CHRIS I, formerly known called and I, formerly known called and 

addressed as OMOFUMA 

addressed as Miss. Pamei addressed as MISS TILAPA 

IDOWU AREMOLA, now 

CHARLES, now wish to be 

Mercy and David Akeme, now ESE ESTHER, now wish to be 

addressed as EHIMARE wish to be known as wish to be addressed as Mrs. addressed as MRS 

CHARLES. All former ABIODUN IDOWU. All Mercy Akeme Onojaefe. All AIGBADON ESE ESTHER. 

documents remain valid Bank documents remain valid. 

former documents remain All former documents remain 

and the general public should 

valid, the general public should valid, the general public should 

please take note. 

General public take note. please take note. 


AYEWA 

OVIAWE 

OMON 

OMOROGBA 

I formerly known and I formerly known and I formerly known and I formerly known and 

addressed as, Miss Ayewa addressed as, Oviawe Loveth addressed as, Blessing Omon addressed as, Omorogba 

Amehi, now wish to be known Eduzola, now wish to be Musa, now wish to be known Godwin, now wish to be 

and addressed as, Mrs known and addressed as, 

known and addressed as, 

and addressed as, Musa 

Elimihe Faith Amehi, all Osamhanze Loveth 

Omologbe Godwin, all 

Salamat Blessing, all former 

former documents remains Ehiabhi, all former document 

former document remains 

valid, general public take remains valid, general public 

documents remains valid, valid, general public take 

note. 

take note. 

general public take note note 

NWAODUM 

IYOHA ABUDU TEBITE 

I formerly known and I formerly known and I Formerly known and I Formerly known and addressed 

addressed as, Nwaodum 

as TEBITE CAESAR NEIRO, 

addressesd as, Miss Iyoha addressed as RASHIDI was wrongly spelt as NETRO 

Miracle Ebube, now wish Lovina Irosayike, now wish DODODAWA Now wish to be captured on my University 

to be known and addressed to be known and addressed known and addressed as statement of result was wrongly 

as, Maxwell Miracle as, Mrs Odianosen Lovina 

spelt as NETRO instead of NEIRO 

ABUDU RASHIDI 

Ebube, all former documents 

that i now wish to be known and 

Irosayike, all former DODOAWA. All former addressed as TEBITE CAESAR . 

remains valid, general public documents remains valid, documents remain valid All former documents remain valid 

take note 

general public take note. general public please take note general public please take note 

ERAKPOWERI 

ULEBE 

ISAMU 

EGUMONA 

I Formerly known and I formerly known and addressed as I Formerly known and addressed I Formerly known and 

addressed as:ERAKPOWERI Miss ONOSORHUE as MRS. ISAMU PATIENCE addressed as: MR. MATHIAS 

DEBORAH, Now wish to be OMOTEKOBA. now wish to be ESE, ESSI ESE and ESSI OFAGBE Now wish to be 

Known and addressed as Mrs 


PATIENCE ESE Now wish to be known and addressed as: 

ULEBE OMOTEKOBA. All 

OHWADUA DEBORAH. All 


former document remain vaild. 

OFAGBE MATHIAS 

former documents remain 

ESE PATIENCE OREKEVWIE. 

General public, banks and 

EGUMONA. All former 

valid general public please take concerned institution should All former documents remain valid documents remain valid 

note 


general public please take note. general public please take note 

SAGEN 

OGBUKA 

OKON 

I, formerly known,call and I, formerly known,call and I, formerly known as Miss 

addressed as.MISS. KENNE addressed as.OGBUKA Mfonobong Sunday Robert, 

EDITH but,now wish to be PRINCE CHIJIOKE but,now now wish to be known and 

known,call and address as. wish to be known,call and 

addressed as Mrs Mfonobong 

MRS. SAGEN EDITH address as.AUSTINE 

KENNE. All documents PRINCE. CHIJIOKE. . All 

Samuel Okon. All former 

bearing former names remain documents bearing former documents remain valid. 

valid. General public, please names remain valid. General General public should take 

take note. 

public, please take note. note. 

ADESANYA 

PAUL 



Adesanya Abosede Adetayo, 

addressed as JEREMIAH 

now wish to be known and 

SAMSON, now wish to be 

addressed as Adejumo 


JEREMIAH SAMSON PAUL. 

Abosede Adetayo. All former 

All former document remain 


valid. Banks , concerned 


authorities and general public 

note. 

should please take note. 

JAMES 


JAMES JOY, JAMES JOY 

OLUCHI and JAMES JOY 

ENUDIOLUCHI belong to one and 

same person, now wish to be 

known as JAMES JOY OLUCHI. 

Former documents remain valid 


MENSA 


ADAGHORUFO MENSA, now 


as ADARIGHOFUA 

MENSAH. All former 



note. 

MODEME 


as MODEME PRISCILLA 

UZOR, now wish to be known 

and addressed as ENWEAZU 

PRISCILLA UZOR. All former 

document remain valid. Banks, 

concerned authorities and general 

public should please take note. 

ISHAKA 

I formerly known as 

O G H E N E K E V W E 

AGHOGHOGHENE EDITH 

and ISHAKA EDITH, now 


as ISHAKA EDITH 

AGHOGHO. All former documents 

remain valid general public please 

take note. 

ATANARUNO 

I Formerly known and addressed as 

ATANARUNO IRUOGHENE 

FAVOUR now wish to be known 

and addressed as ABUSOMWAN 

IRUOGHENE FAVOUR. 

Henceforth all former documents 

remain valid General public take 

note 

OBRIKI NWOSU 

I Formerly known and addressed 

as Miss Efe Tracy Laurentta 

Obriki now wish to be known and 

addressed as Mrs Laurentta 

Omomidue . Henceforth all former 

documents remain valid General 

public take note 

LEO 


as FREEMAN ALI LEO, now 


as FREEMAN ALI 

BARALANYO. All former 



OGOR 


addressed as Ogomegbunam 

Cynthia Nkeaka and Cynthia 

Ogor Nkeaka now wish to be 


Ogomegbunam Cynthia 

Macarthy.All former 

documents remain 

valid.General public take note. 

OMOSUN 

I formerly known and 

addressed as, Abhademere 

Efe, now wish to be known 

and addressed as, Omosun 

Efe Blessing, all former 

document remains valid, 


OFOUWINOR 


as. MISS. OFOUWINOR. 

ESTHER. Now wish to be known 

and addressed as. MRS. 

WURUSIBEWEI. ESTHER. 

WAREGBOLOGHABOFA. All 

former documents remain valid 

general public please take note 

AZORBO 

That the names AZORBO MOses , 

Azorbo .t. Moses, Azorbo Moses .t , 

Moses Azorbo And Azorbo Moses 

Tamarauemomoemi Belongs To One 

And Same Person though it appears 

differently in some of my documents. 

henceforth, I Wish To Be Known As 

Azorbo Moses Tamarauemomoemi. 

Former Documents Remain Valid. 

General Public Banks And All 

Concerned Institutions Take Note 

STEVE 

I, formerly known as STEVE 

OBORO, now wish to be 


EREWA OBORO. All former 



note. 

DANIEL 


addressed as Miss Chikezie 

Blessing Emeka, now wish to 

be known and addressed as Mrs 

Daniel Blessing Emeka. All 

documents bearing my former 

name remain valid.Banks, 


EMOR 

This is to confirm that in my 

account and BVN, I used the 

name EMOR ARTOI instead 

of TIMINIMI EMOR ARTOI, 

now wish to be known as 

TIMINIMI EMOR ARTOI. 

Former documents remain 

valid general public please take 

note. 

EG 

ISRAEL 


as MISS AGHWANA MERIT 

EGUONOR now wish to be 

known and addressed as MRS 

ISRAEL MERIT EGUONOR 

Henceforth all former documents 

remain valid General public take 

note 

NWAEZE 

I, formerly known as MISS 

IZUAGBE ONAZOTSENA 

ELIZABETH, now wish to be 


NWAEZE ONAZOTSENA 

ELIZABETH. All former 

documents remain valid. The 

general public please take note. 

HENRY 

This is to certify that the names 

OGEI HENRY EYENIMI and 

HENRY OGEI as seen in my 

documents refer to one and same 

me. I now wish to be known and 

addressed as OGEI HENRY 

EYENIMI. All former documents 

remain valid. General public please 

take note. 

OKAFOR 


addressed as MISS OKAFOR 

CHARITY NNENNA now 


as MRS EKECHI CHARITY 

NNENNA. All former 


General public please take 

note. 

FELIX 

I formerly known and 

addressed as, Oseghale 

Marvis Ebosetale, now wish 

to be known and addressed 

as, Felix Marvis Ebosetale, 

all former documents 

remains valid, general public 

take note 

AGBADO 

I Formerly known as 

AGBADO RUFFUS , now 

wishes to be known as 

LOVE RUFFUS. All former 

documents remain valid 

general public please take 

note . 

UNITY 

That MISS OSSAI JUDITH 

and OSSAI UNITY are same 

and one person but now wish 

to be addressed as MRS 

ODIGWE UNITY all formal 

documents remains valid 

general public whom it may 

concern take note 

MADUAKO 

I formally known and addressed as 

MISS. MOGEKWU STELLA 

NGOZI. Now wish to be known 


MADUAKO STELLA NGOZI. 


valid. The general public should 


ANIKWUSHE 

This is to confirm that my 

name was wrongly written as 

ANIKWUSHE YVONNE 

UKAMAKA instead of my 

CORRECT Name as 

ANIKWUSHE UKAMAKA 

YVONNE. Former documents 

remain valid general public 

take note. 

EZEDOM DAVID 

I Formerly known and 

addressed as DAVID 

THANKGOD now wish to be 


OKPERHIE THANKGOD. 


valid. General public take note.

NWANKWO 


NWANKWO EDITH 

AMARACHI, now wish to be 


WILFRED 

EDITH 

AMARACHI. All former 


Banks, and general public should 

take note. 

OBINANI 


OBINANI OLUCHI 

FAVOUR. Now wish to be 

known and addressed as MRS 

OKOYE OLUCHI 

FAVOUR. All documents 

bearing my former name remain 

valid. General public take note. 

OMAMOGHO 


OMAMOGHO DORCAS 

OGHENEVWAIRE. Now wish 


MRS MONDAY DORCAS 

STEPHANIE. All documents 

bearing my former name remain 


CHIKA 


addressed as Chika Hephzibah 

Uche now wish to be known 

and addressed as Mr 

Chikammale Hephzibah Uche. 


valid. BANKs, WAEC and 

General public take note. 


addressed as Gladys 

Oghenekome Eduviere, now 


as Gladys Oghenekome Uzeh. 



CHANGE OF NAME 

ADAMS 

I, formerly known as MISS UDEH 

MAUREEN ADAMS, am also 

formerly known and called UDEH 

MAUREEN MAMUYOWI, now 

wish to be known as MRS. 

IFEDIORA MAUREEN ADAMS. 

All former documents to remain 

valid. The General Public to please 

take note. 

ORANU 

I, formerly known as ORANU 

MIRACLE AMAKA. Now 


as OKOYE MIRACLE 

CHINECHEREM. All 


name remain valid. General 


OKOH 

I, formerly known as Miss 

Okoh Queen. Now wish to be 

known and addressed as Mrs 

Amechi Queen Atewe. All 


name remain valid. General 


MBAMA 


addressed as Miss Blessing 

Chinenye Mbama, now wish 


Mrs Blessing Chinenye 

Azubuike. All former 


General public take note. 

GABRIEL 

CHANGE OF FAMILY NAME FROM GABRIEL TO NWAJIOBI 

- The family members, formerly known as GABRIEL, now wish 

to be known as NWAJIOBI. The affected family members are: 

(i) MR. NWAJIOBI CHIBUIKE THADDUS, (ii) MASTER 

NWAJIOBI KAMSIYOCHUKWU ALVIN, (III) MASTER 

NWAJIOBI CHIKAIMA ALEXIS, (IV) MASTER NWAJIOBI 

KAMDILICHUKWU ANSELM. All former documents remain 

valid, general public, please take note. 

EDOJA 

I, FORMERY KNOWN AS 

ESUMEH 

I, formerly known as Miss 

MISS EDOJA HOPE, NOW Esumeh Nnwakaego Deborah. 

WISH TO BE KNOWN AND Now wish to be known and 

AS MRS ISHOLA HOPE. ALL addressed as Mrs Simon 

FORMER DOCUMENTS Nwakaego Deborah. All 

REMAIN VALID. GENERAL documents bearing my former 

PUBLIC PLEASE TAKE name remain valid. General 

NOTE. 


OTASOWIE 

OBUOKUM 


THAT I USED TWO NAMES OTASOWIE 

OBUOKUM OBIANUGBA 

OSAHENRUNMWEN TO REGISTER MY 

BANK ACCOUNT/BVN, NOW WISH TO FAVOUR, now wish to be 

ADD ISRAEL AS MY MIDDLE TO THE known and addressed as MRS 

NAMES IN MY BANK ACCOUNT/BVN/ OGBAJEDJE PATRICK 

NIN HENCEFORTH TO BE ADDRESSED FAVOUR. All former 

AS OTASOWIE OSAHENRUNMWEN documents remain valid, any 

ISRAEL. ALL FORMER DOCUMENTS authority it may concern and 

REMAIN VALID. GENERAL PUBLIC 

general public to take note. 

TAKE NOTE. 

OSAIN 

OHARE 

I, formerly known as OSAIN 

I, formerly known as MISS OHARE 

EMUOBONUVIE JOY, now wish to 

KEN, now wish to be known 

be known and addressed as MRS 

and addressed as IDEABIE 

OWHOTEMU OHARE 

KENNEDY. All former 

EMUOBONUVIE JOY. All former 

documents remain valid, any documents remain valid, any 

authority it may concern and authority it may concern and general 

general public to take note. public to take note. 

UWEM 

UMUKPERUO OT 

My name was wrongly arranged I, formerly known and 

as UWEM ASUKWO addressed as Umukperuo Grace 

EFFIONG, instead of UWEM Emudiaga, now wish to be 

EFFIONG ASUKWO. All 

known and addressed Emudiaga 


Blessed. All former documents 

valid, any authority it may 

remain valid. General public 

concern and general public to 

take note. 

take note. 

JOSEPH 

AGBRAGU 

I, Agbragu Ereremena Praise wish to 

I, formerly known and addressed notify the general public that my 

as Joseph Oghenetega Paul, name was wrongly arranged/ 

Written as Erere Agbragu Praise, 

now wish to be known and instead of Agbragu Ereremena Praise 

addressed as Okoro Paul Tega. which is my correct/Proper 


arrangement of my name. All former 


valid. General public take note. public take note. 

EDUVIERE 

EMAMUZO 


addressed as UGAH LUCKY 

EMAMUZO, now wish to be 

known and addressed as UGAH 

LUCKY SUNSHINE. All 



OBIOMA ABAJUO OKOH 

OKOH 

I, formerly known and addressed as 

MISS. PEACE OBIOMACHUKWU 

ABAJUO, now wish to be known 

and addressed as MRS. PEACE 

O B I O M A C H U K W U 

NZUBECHUKWU. All former 

documents remain valid. The general 


ODEH 


as MISS ODEH ABIEMWENSE 

CYNTHIA now wish to be known 


AIGBOBO-WILSON 

ABIEMWENSE CYNTHIA. 




OMINU 


as MISS OMINU DORIS, now 


as MRS. UNUEFEPHA DORIS. 




EDJEBA 

On my bank details my name was 

wrongly written as EDJEBA 

SAYE instead of EDJEBA 

OSAYE UFUOMA. I wish to add 

UFUOMA to my names and be 

known as EDJEBA OSAYE 

UFUOMA. All former documents 

remain valid. The general public 

and to whom it may concern 

should please take note. 

ASABOR 

I, formerly known as ONOME 

SUCCESS ASABOR now wish 

to be known and called MRS 

ONOME OJARIKRE. All former 

documents remain valid. The 

general public and to whom it may 

concern should please take note. 

OGBODU 

My full/correct name is OGBODU 

FELIX OMAMUZOU as it is in my 

Voters Card. My name appear in my 

bank account details as OGBODU 

FELIS. I now wish to correct FELIS 

as FELIX and add OMAMUZOU to 

my account details and be known as 

OGBODU FELIX OMAMUZOU. 

Documents bearing any of the names 

remain valid. General public take note. 

ISHOMI 

My correct name is ISHOMI 

LOVETH OGHENEFEGOR. My 

name appear in my BVN as OSHOMI 

LOVETH OGHENEFAGOR. In 

BVN, OGHENEFEGOR appear as 

OGHENEFAGOR while ISHOMI 

appear as OSHOMI. I now wish to 

correct the name as ISHOMI 

LOVETH OGHENEFEGOR. All 

documents bearing any of the names 

remain valid. Public take note. 

MIRIAM 

My Full/Correct Name Is 

Chukwudum Mirian Onyebuchi As 

It Is In My Nin/Cac Documents. My 

Name Appear In My Bvn As 

Chukwudum Miriam. I Now Wish To 

Correct Miriam As Mirian And Add 

Onyebuchi To My Bvn And Be 

Known As Chukwudum Mirian 

Onyebuchi. FORMER Documents 

Remain Valid. Public Take Note. 

EJOGO 

My correct name and arrangement is 

EJOGO ONYEISI JAMES as it is in 

my NIN. My name appear in my BVN/ 

Account as EJOGO JAMES 

ONYISI. I now wish to correct 

ONYISI as ONYEISI and arrange my 

name as EJOGO ONYEISI JAMES. 

Documents bearing any of the names 

remain valid. General public take 

note. 

Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER, 24, 2022—27 

:Vanguard :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 

NDDC: Group issues 14-day ultimatum to FG to inaugurate substantive board 

By Festus Ahon 

ASABA—THE Niger Delta Pa 

triots, a political pressure 

group, has issued 14 days ultimatum 

to the Federal Government 

to constitute a substantive board 

for the Niger Delta Development 

Commission, NDDC or face the 

wrath of the people of the region. 

Handing over the ultimatum 

during a press briefing in Asaba, 

convener of the group, Victor 

Okwereogu flanked by David 

Omoru, co-convener and Mr 

Obaro Unuafe, Secretary, said: 

"Since the Interim Management 

Committee, IMC of the NDDC 

started and completed it's work, 

there have been accusations and 

counter-accusations from the 

committee itself, from the senate 

and from some interested 

stakeholders. 

"It should be noted that the 

Niger Delta is Africa's most important 

oil producing region and 

one of the most polluted places 

on earth. Long years of oil exploration 

and exploitation in the region 

have led to degradation of 

the lands as well as the despoliation 

of the aquatic life of it's people. 

The area covering about 

70,000 sq km of wetland has 

2023:Dafinone inaugurates campaign council, says APC 

better positioned to take over Delta 

By Etop Ekanem 

GHELLI—CANDIDATE of 

Uthe All Progressives Congress, 

APC, in Delta Central Senatorial 

District, Ede Dafinone, yesterday, 

inaugurated his campaign 

organization for the 2023 general 

election, saying that the party is better 

positioned to take over governance of 

the state at the polls. 

Speaking at Ughelli, Ughelli North 

Local Government Area, while 

inaugurating the campaign 

organization which has Adelabu 

Bodjor as Director General, Dafinone 

noted that "Our campaign structure 

has engaged over seven thousand 

never known true peace. 

"There have been several 

conflicts that led to successive 

governments wanting to offer 

some palliatives to the people 

of the region. The core Niger 

Delta littoral states are Delta, 

Rivers and Bayelsa with a combined 

population of about 13 

million people while the expanded 

Niger Delta which now 

includes Ondo, Edo, Cross 

River, Akwa-Ibom, Imo and Abia 

states have combined population 

of about 33 million people, 

that is a fifth of Nigeria's population, 

which is higher than the 

people and we have not finished 

yet." 

He lauded Deputy Senate 

President and Delta State 

governorship candidate of the party, 

Senator Ovie Omo-Agege and 

O'tega Emerhor for their role in 

ensuring unity in the party. 

He said: "It has been a long 

journey. Many of you in this room 

are part of the beginning of APC, 

and we all know that in 2015 and 

2019 the party was fragmented and 

we were unable to unite and form a 

formidable opposition at those times. 

"But in 2022, we are united, the 

party has been positioned to take 

over Delta state come 2023. We owe 

population of any ethnic group in 

Nigeria. 

"From Henry Wilink's commission 

to Gen. Alex Ogomudia's 

commission one thing was clear. 

The Niger Delta region deserves 

a fairer deal in the nation called 

Nigeria. 

"Suffice it to note that in the 

year 2000, the President Olusegun 

Obasanjo administration established 

the NDDC as an offshoot 

of the Niger Delta Development 

Board and the OMPADEC, with 

the sole mandate of developing 

the oil rich Niger Delta region of 

Nigeria. 

this to our leaders and I want to single 

out one of them, the Deputy President 

of the Senate, Distinguished Senator 

Ovie Omo-Agege, who has nearly 

singlehandedly driven the process to 

where we are today. 

"We are much stronger today as a 

party than we ever were and our 

chances of winning the state, from 

House of Assembly to Senate to 

governorship and even to presidency 

in Delta state is brighter than ever." 

Charging members of campaign 

council to work towards the victory of 

all candidates of the party, he noted 

that "all politics is local and our mission 

here today is directed at localizing our 

politics. 2023 election is a real election, 

where votes will count and will be won 

unit by unit.


Almajiri, Out-of-School Children: 

Reps recall Jonathan's effort, 

heed Obasanjo's advise on 

education 

By Levinus 

Nwabughiogu 

ABUJA-Barely 24 hours after 

former President Olusegun 

Obasanjo raised the alarm 

that the huge number of outof-school 

children posed a 

threat to national security, the 

House of Representatives has 

passed for second reading a 

bill seeking to establish National 

Commission for Almajiri 

Education and out-ofschool 

children. 

It will be recalled that the 

government of former President 

Goodluck Jonathan also 

gave the almajirai a facelift, 

establishing schools to educate 

them. 

The bill was sponsored by 

Shehu Kakale and 18 other 

lawmakers. 

In his lead debate at yesterday's 

plenary, Kakale noted 

that Nigeria was among 

countries with millions of 

children that were out of 

school. 

He said: "Nigeria is among 

many other countries that is 

confronted with the phenomenon 

of out-ofschool children. 

As you may be aware, 

millions of children and teenagers 

across the country are 

currently out of school, due to 

one reason or the other. 

"Mr Speaker, as at September 

2022, out-of-school children 

in Nigeria was estimated 

to be 18.5 million by the 

United Nations Children's 

Fund, UNICEF,. However, the 

Universal Basic Education 

Commission, UBEC, estimated 

the same to be 13.2 million. 

The lawmaker also gave 

staggering statistics of the figures 

in many states of Nigeria, 

recalling Jonathan's efforts 

to build 157 schools for the 

almajirai. "The statistics appear 

even grimmer, judging 

from the rough estimate of 

out-of-school children per 

state in the country. 

"Mr. Speaker and my colleagues, 

the digest of basic 

education statistics by the 

Universal Basic Education 

Commission, UBEC, revealed 

that 10 of Nigeria's 36 

states were home to more than 

half of Nigeria's out-of-school 

children, as at 2018. 

''The 10 states at the top of 

the chart had about 5.2 million 

of the country's approximately 

10.2 million out-ofschool 

children at that time. 

In no particular order, Kano 

State had the most with 

989,234, followed by Akwa- 

Ibom (581,800), Katsina 

(536,122) and Kaduna 

•Pass bill to establish 

commission for both 

(524,670) followed closely. 

Taraba (499,923), Sokoto 

(436,570), Yobe (427,230), 

Zamfara (422,214) and 

Bauchi (354,373) were other 

states that ranked high on the 

list. States with the lowest 

numbers of out-of-school children 

were Cross River with 

97,919, Abia with 91, 548, 

Kwara with 84,247, Enugu 

with 82,051, Bayelsa with 

53,079, FCT with 52,972 and 

Ekiti with 50,945. 

"Mr. Speaker, several challenges 

are associated with the 

high number of out-of-school 

children in Nigeria. All out of 

school children in Nigeria are 

at risk of exploitation, vulnerable 

to recruitment by insurgents, 

human traffickers and 

by other criminal elements in 

the society. 

''In fact, in your address to 

members of the House of Representatives 

in this hallowed 

chamber on January 28, 

2020, Mr. Speaker, you were 

very clear on the rising number 

of out-of-school children and 

the danger it portends for the 

Nigerian state. 

"Mr Speaker and my colleagues, 

as I draw this debate 

to a close, permit me to reiterate 

the fact that education is 

pivotal to human development 

and the growth of a nation. 

It was in recognition of 

this that Dr. Goodluck Ebele 

Jonathan had to build 157 

Almajiri Model Schools to 

enable the education of the 

almajirai in Nigeria. 

"There cannot be a functional 

society without a functional 

educational system. Accordingly, 

the establishment 

of the proposed commission 

will ensure that the almajirai 

receive sound education that 

will shield them from exploitation 

by criminal elements. 

''It is in line with the foregoing, 

I urge you, Mr. Speaker 

and my respected colleagues, 

to support that this Bill be read 

the second time.'' 

In his contribution, Speaker 

of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, 

who said the bill 

was worthy of passage, said: 

"The sponsor and I worked 

very closely last year on the 

issue of almajiri. I commend 

him for this proactiveness. 

''Anything that has to do with 

education in this 9th assembly, 

we have been very proactive. 

Education has been a priority 

in our legislative agenda.” 

We have just concluded a 

two-day summit on tertiary 

education. We hope that at the 

end of the day, we will make 

recommendations." 

Naira appreciates to N445.38/ 

$ in I&E window 

By Elizabeth Adegbesan 

THE naira yesterday appreciated to N445.38 per 

dollar in the Investors and Exporters (I&E) 

window. 

Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative 

exchange rate for the window fell to N445.38 per 

dollar from N445.67 per dollar last week Friday, 

indicating 29 Kobo appreciation for the naira. 

However , the naira depreciated by N5 in the 

parallel market yesterday. Vanguard findings from 

black market traders showed that the exchange rate 

for the market rose to N785 per dollar from N780 

per dollar last week Friday. 

BILATERAL 

RELATIONS: 

Italian Ambassador 

to Nigeria , Stefano 

De Leo (left) with the 

Flag Officer Commanding 

Western 

Naval Command, 

WNC Rear Admiral 

Yakubu Wambai, 

during a coutersy visit 

by the former, at the 

WNC, Apapa, Lagos, 

as part of activities 

lined up for the port of 

call visit of the Italian 

Navy Ship, NAVE 

BORSINI, yesterday. 

I’ll emulate Sweden, Rwanda in appointing women 

into govt – ATIKU 

By John Alechenu 

THE presidential candi 

date of Peoples Democratic 

Party, Atiku Abubakar, 

has promised to emulate 

the policy of gender 

balance in the appointment 

of women into sensitive cabinet 

positions while renewing 

his pledge for an all inclusive 

government, if elected 

Ȧtiku said this during the 

inauguration of the PDP 

Women Campaign Council, 

in Abuja, yesterday. 

According to him, women 

have proven themselves as 

less corrupt and more committed 

to the democratic 

process because female voters 

are known to outnumber 

their male folk in successive 

elections. 

He recalled a trip he undertook 

to Sweden while in 

Why I approved redesign of Naira locally — BUHARI 

Continues from Page 5 

The CBN governor said 

Nigeria had gone cashless 

and that security agencies 

would monitor people making 

withdrawal at the counter 

to know how much withdrawn 

and also monitor the 

usage of the money. 

He said there was no 

need to insinuate that the 

policy was targeted at anyone, 

adding that the CBN 

was determined to ensure 

that the provision of the law 

on volume of money one 

should carry was followed. 

"The world has moved to 

cashless economy and the 

CBN has moved to cashless 

economy. We will restrain 

the volume of cash 

someone will withdraw 

over the counter. We will 

follow up with the person's 

data to know the reason for 

such withdrawal," he said. 

For those calling for extension 

of time for the usage 

of the old notes, the 

CBN boss said: "We will 

not go with people that want 

extension of time. From today, 

this currency that was 

re-issued will become a legal 

tender." 

He said there was no local 

government area in the 

country where there was no 

bank agent, adding that 

there was over one million 

point across the country 

that people could go and 

deposit the old notes. 

He also assured that the 

new notes could not be 

counterfeited because of the 

features in them. 

Distribution to 

CBN branches 

begins today, Currency 

Operations 

Director says 

Also speaking on the issue 

yesterday, the Director 

of Currency Operations, 

Mr. Bello Umar, said: 

“From Thursday, that is tomorrow 

(today), we will start 

distribution to CBN 

branches across the country, 

so that whenever we 

are set to launch, maybe at 

a later date, we already 

have the notes across the 

country.” 

The new notes are expected 

to be in circulation 

as from December 15, and 

will circulate side-by-side 

with the old notes until January, 

31 2023, when the latter 

would cease to be legal 

tender. Mr. Umar, said, 

however, that the apex 

bank was concerned that the 

rush to deposit old notes 

had not yet been seen, as 

anticipated. 

He revealed that as of 

Friday, last week, only 

N165 billion had been deposited 

by banks with the 

CBN, adding that even 

some of the banks with 

high customer-base records 

had not made any deposit. 

Under the policy, the 

CBN expects to mop up 

about N2.7 trillion held outside 

the banking system, 

out of the N3.2 trillion in 

circulation. 

Umar said: “When we 

designed this policy, there 

was about N2.7 trillion outside 

the banking system, 

out of the N3.2 trillion in 

circulation. As at Friday, 

November 18, the total deposit 

we have received from 

the banks was N165 billion, 

which is still small. 

“We are not seeing the 

rush. Some banks have not 

even made any deposits 

and some of them are banks 

with large customer-base. 

In fact, the Director, Banking 

Supervision had to 

bring it to the notice of the 

Inter-Agency Committee, 

yesterday. 

“It is a problem for us and 

we are hoping that it does 

not result in a stampede 

when we are getting close 

to the end of January.” 

The director said the 

CBN had extended its 

work days to Saturday and 

that the bank’s branches 

were opened to receive 

deposits from banks. 

He said the apex bank 

had also waived charges 

and removed all limits in 

terms of the amount of money 

a customer could deposit 

in his account, adding that 

there was no reason for anyone 

to be afraid to deposit 

their monies in their accounts. 

‘There'll be no 

deadline exten- 

office as Vice President, 

Atiku said: “When I was 

vice-president, I travelled to 

Sweden. The Head of government 

was a woman, 

Prime Minister; the Minister 

of Foreign Affairs was a 

woman, the Minister of 

Finance was a woman, the 

Minister of Education was 

a woman. 

“When I looked at my 

delegation, it was all men 

and I was embarrassed. I 

then committed myself to 

making sure that as long as 

I remain in politics, I will 

promote the advancement 

of women. 

“Therefore, we had no hesitation 

whatsoever in between 

1999 and 2015 to 

make sure at the very minimal 

we complied with the 

Beijing Declaration. 

He also said he was inspired 

by the Rwandan example 

where women were 

playing key roles in government 

and promised women 

that they would get at least 

35 percent of cabinet positions 

in his administration, 

if elected. 

In his address, National 

Chairman of the party, Dr. 

Iyorchia Ayu, described 

women as the bedrock of 

democracy. 

He said: “I always wonder 

at the capacity of a woman 

to not only work hard but 

also to be resilient and to do 

so many things in one day. 

“I think if a man works for 

eight hours a day, a woman 

works 16 hours a day. The 

management skill of a 

woman is second to none. I 

believe that without a woman, 

there can be no nation. 

“In this political party we 

give special place to women, 

recognising them as 

partners in progress, realising 

that if you have women 

on your side, the party will 

be a big and gigantic family. 

“Apart from saying that 

women, who contest should 

not pay for form, that is affirmative 

action for women, 

we also went out of the way 

in the first 16 years of this 

party when we were in government, 

to ensure that 

women were reasonably 

represented in government. 

“I'm happy to reveal to you 

that the driving force of that 

policy is my brother (Atiku), 

who is going to be the next 

president of the Federal Republic 

of Nigeria. 

“When he was the vice 

president of this country, I 

know exactly what he did in 

promoting women. Some of 

them he single-handedly 

head-hunted because of 

their capacity and brought 

them into government.” 

sion’ 

He warned that the January 

31, 2023, deadline was 

sacrosanct and that members 

of the public should 

make sure they returned 

the three denominations 

(N200, N500 and N1, 000) 

before January 31, 2023, as 

all monies held in those 

denominations would 

cease to be legal tender after 

that day. 

Network facilities, 

1.4 m agents to 

assist rural dwellers 

In his remarks, the Director 

of Corporate Communications, 

Mr. Osita Nwanisobi, 

assured that centres 

would be created for rural, 

unbanked members of the 

public to change their old 

notes. 

He added that the Shared 

Agent Network Expansion 

Facilities, SANEF, had over 

1.4 million agents across 

Nigeria to address that concern, 

''such that even where 

people don’t have bank 

accounts, they will still be 

able to change their money 

and we are going to be 

doing that within the next 

few days. 

“The CBN is very mindful 

and has said that we will 

do whatever needs to be 

done to enable people 

change whatever money 

they have."



•Cameroun Fans 

Lions set 

to roar 

against 

Switzerland 

•Ekambi 

Entering the tournament as one of the dark-horses, Switzerland are primed 

for an impressive World Cup opener after an impressive qualifying 

campaign where they finished top of a group that had European 

champions Italy, taking the only direct World Cup spot on offer from the 

group. 

They face-off against African giants Cameroon who won their group in the 

second round of qualification in spectacular fashion taking the only spot on 

offer in a group that had Ivory Coast before defeating Algeria in the third and 

final round of the African qualifiers. 

Today’s tie at the Al Janoub Stadium would be the first official meeting 

between both teams, Match form. 

Switzerland lost their World cup preparatory friendly against Ghana, while 

the last game Cameroon played was a 1-1 draw against Panama. 

Granit Xhaka has been in stellar form for his Arsenal side this season, in a 

‘newly’ defined role, scoring three goals already, and setting up another three 

for his teammates. If he looks anything as good as he has been for Arsenal this 

season Granit Xhaka would be a contender for player of the tournament. 

Manuel Akanji got a dream move in the summer to Manchester City, and 

the 27-year old has not put a foot wrong since, he would be looking to reprise 

his role as a reliable Centre-back for his country, and he is certainly one to 

watch. 

For Cameroon the ever present Vincent Abubakar, fresh from winning the 

AFCON golden boot who now represents Al Nassr in Saudi and the pacy Karl 

Toko Ekambi of Lyon are the ones to keep an eye on. 

•Abubakar 

•Xhaka 

•Steffen 

Ayew: Black 

Stars have quality 

to impress in 

Qatar 

Black Stars captain Andre Ayew 

believes the team’s inexperience 

will be irrelevant because they have 

the talent to beat any opponent in 

Qatar. 

Andre Ayew spoke to the press 

ahead of the Black Stars’ World Cup 

opener against Portugal today and 

was asked about the team’s chances 

given that only two players in the 

current squad have World Cup 

experience. 

While this will be Andre’s third 

appearance after appearances in 

2010 and 2014, Jordan will be 

making his second appearance after 

appearing in Brazil eight years ago. 

“It’s true my brother and I are the 

only ones [in the Ghana team] to 

play in the World Cup but it doesn’t 

mean anything because we also 

came to play and it was a first at 

some point and we were able to do 

good things on the field,” he said at 

the press conference ahead of the 

game against Portugal. 

“For me, I believe that we have 

the quality to really impress and 

show the World what we are capable 

of.” 

Female Ghanaian musician 

vows to go naked if Ghana beat 

Portugal 3-0 

Ghanaian musician Sister Afia has 

vowed to go naked if the Black 

Stars beat Ronaldo-led Portugal in 

their 2022 World Cup opener today. 

She stated in a tweet that if Ghana 

wins 3-0, she will record a live naked 

pool video of herself. 

“If Ghana score 3-0 against 

Portugal, on Thursday I will go 

NAKED and drop my self in a pool 

ON LIVE so God help me”, she tweeted 

on Tuesday. 

The celebrity’s comments raise the 

hopes of many Ghanaian fans ahead 

of the team’s first game against 

Budweiser ready to help Nigeria qualify for 2026 

World Cup 

By Jacob Ajom 

One of the greatest sporting 

tournaments, the FIFA World 

Cup, kicked off in Qatar with the 

attendant spectacle and excitement 

globally. The frenzy has led football 

fans in Nigeria to express mixed 

feelings as Nigeria is not playing in 

this world cup. 

Budweiser, a brand from the stables 

of International Breweries, and the 

official beer sponsor of the FIFA World 

Cup and the English Premier League 

has sparked up the conversation to 

seek Nigerians’ opinions and ideas that 

can ensure Nigeria is in the next World 

Cup, to continually make the nation 

proud as Nigerians are known for their 

love for football. 

Speaking on the topic, Marketing 

Director, International Breweries Plc, 

Tolulope Adedeji, explained Budweiser 

is aware of the love Nigerians have for 

football and how many cannot wait 

to see the nation back on the global 

pitch. This is why we have taken the 

initiative to kick off the conversation 

and are willing to partner to bring 

great ideas to return Nigeria to the 

•Amokachi 

global stage . 

In her words, “We partnered with 

Nigerian football legend Daniel “The 

Bull” Amokachi to drive the 

conversation so Nigerians can share 

their thoughts on what they believe 

should be done to make sure the 

country is represented in the next 

World Cup.” Consumers are 

encouraged to join the conversation 

on social media. 

However, we are not just going to 

talk about it, we are willing to partner 

to bring some of these ideas to reality 

working with the relevant local bodies 

and our global partner, FIFA. 

Football fans can air their opinions 

and contribute to the conversation 

aiming to trigger a robust discourse 

and collation of ideas while giving 

Nigerians a platform to express 

themselves. 

Marketing Manager, Budweiser, 

Olajumoke Okikiolu said, “We urge 

football fans to head to Twitter to share 

suggestions on what can be done to 

make sure Nigeria makes it to the 

next world cup using the hashtag.” 

Spain 7-0 Costa Rica: 

Enrique’s men lay down a World 

Cup marker in Qatar 

After the shock came the awe. While 

Japan’s stunning victory over 

Germany may have been the 

earthquake, Spain’s beautiful, brutal 

dismantling of Costa Rica will have 

sent tremors through Group E - and 

potentially beyond. 

They scored a magnificent seven. It 

could have been 14. After barely half 

an hour had been played Luis 

Enrique’s brilliant young maestros 

were 3-0 up. The game was out and 

the Mexican Waves were in. 

This is a dynamic young side mixed 

with a sprinkling of experience, the 

emphasis placed on the team rather 

than the individual. A flowing 4-3-3 

made in Barcelona was far, far too 

much for opponents whose presence 

here itself is a completed mission 

impossible, having secured their place 

via a play-off win after winning just 

one of their opening seven qualifying 

matches. 

The problem with the early stages 

of the World Cup – which will get 

worse when we are burdened with 

ludicrous expansion - is that it is often 

difficult to judge based on the quality 

of some of the sides in the tournament. 

Just as we should not be readying 

Trafalgar Square for a victory parade 

because England battered Iran, 

Enrique will not yet be digging out 

the bunting from 2010’s success on 

the back of a walk in the park. 

•Torres 

Portugal. 

Black Stars defender Denis Odoi 

believes they can draw inspiration 

from Saudi Arabia’s remarkable 

victory over Argentina. 

He said, “Of course, seeing what 

Saudi Arabia have achieved just 

proves that you have to play all the 

matches. It’s not because you are a 

smaller country than your opponent 

that everything is a foregone 

conclusion. And then, based on my 

experience, this season in the 

Champions League, nobody would 

have given us a chance to go to the 

round of 16. And yet, after four 

matches, we qualified. So my 

takeaway is that when you play as a 

team, you can do anything.” 

Both teams arrived in Qatar after 

impressive victories and are confident 

of making a strong start in Qatar. 

•Ayew Andre 

The 32-year-old quizzed on what it 

means for him to play at his third 

World Cup added, “Every 

tournament is different and every 

tournament has its own excitement. 

The World Cup is the one that we 

always dream to play as young kids 

so for me it’s unbelievable for me to 

Inka brings 

Peruvian 

culture to 

Qatar 

•Inka 

Inka is a 55-year-old super fan 

from Peru. He has been standing 

outside the Khalifa International 

Stadium all afternoon, posing for 

photos for anyone who asks. 

He pauses between photos to 

ask passersby if they have any 

spare tickets. Regardless of the 

response he smiles, waves and 

carries on. 

“I have come here to be part of 

the World Cup and bring my 

Peruvian culture to Qatar,” he 

says. 

This is Inka’s third World Cup 

and he hopes by the time the 2026 

edition comes around, he will be 

able to cheer for his team again. 

Until then, he his happy to take a 

bit of Peru wherever he goes. 

German team cover mouths 

in protest against FIFA 

Germany’s players covered their 

mouths for their team photo 

before their opening World Cup 

match in an apparent rebuke of FIFA’s 

clampdown on plans to wear 

armbands to protest against 

discrimination in host nation Qatar. 

The team lined up in the traditional 

formation before the game against 

Japan and each of the 11 players 

covered their mouth with their right 

hand.

Germany 1 Japan 2: 

Another huge World Cup shock! 

•Japan stun Germany in famous win 

IT was the Mexicans 

waving them bye-bye four 

years ago. 

And as a Mexican wave 

broke out here at Doha’s 

Khalifa Stadium, Germany 

may well be on the way to 

heading home early again 

thanks to Japan’s supersubs. 

Hansi Flick’s side looked to 

be cruising when Ilkay 

Gundogan’s penalty put 

them ahead just after the half 

hour. 

But their Asian opponents 

hit back with two goals from 

substitutes in eight secondhalf 

minutes, first through 

Ritsu Doan and then a 

stunner from Takuma Asano. 

Asano’s effort will go down 

in World Cup history as he 

brilliantly controlled a long 

ball, sped into the area and 

beat Manuel Neuer at his 

near post with a thumping 

finish. 

It leaves Germany in 

familiar territory, having 

crashed out at the group 

stage four years ago in Russia 

as reigning champions 

having lost their opening 

game to Mexico. 

Recovering from here could 

be very tricky given 2010 

champions Spain are also in 

their group, along with Costa 

Rica. 

Midfielder Joshua Kimmich 

had spoken on Tuesday of the 

team’s “huge motivation” to 

put things right this time and 

the importance of winning 

the first game. 

Yet despite starting so well, 

they are now in an equally 

perilous position and face a 

massive uphill battle to get out 

of the group. 

Germany’s players 

protested against Fifa ahead 

of the game, outraged by the 

pressure the world football 

governing body had put on 

them not to wear a One Love 

rainbow armband via threats 

of sporting sanctions. 

That included warming up 

in training kit with rainbows 

on the sleeves, having 

Morocco 0 Croatia 0: 

Croatia's Modric and Co flop 

against solid Moroccan side 

LUELESS Croatia served 

Cup the World Cup’s third 

goalless draw in the space of 

nine games as they failed to 

make an early impression on 

the tournament. 

The beaten finalists in 

Russia are not a patch on the 

team who knocked England 

out in the semi-finals four 

years ago. 

And now they might 

struggle to even make it 

beyond the group stages after 

being forced into a stalemate 

by a Moroccan team who 

simply refused to accept 

their role as World Cup 

whipping boys. 

Morocco might not 

have much of a World 

Cup pedigree, but 

all of their team 

play for leading 

European clubs 

and are 

certainly no 

mugs. 

T h e y 

have been boosted by 

the return of Hakim 

Ziyech, back in the fold 

after announcing his 

international 

retirement 

February. 

The Chelsea 

in 

winger quit after a row with 

boss Vahid Halilhodzic and 

only agreed to return when 

the fiery Bosnian was sacked 

in August. 

Ziyech was clearly going to 

be his team’s main source of 

inspiration but even he 

struggled to light up this 

edgy encounter. 

Croatian defender Josko 

Gvardiol was playing despite 

having his face rearranged in 

a collision with a Leipzig 

team-mate two weeks ago. 

But no-one put themself 

around more than 37-yearsyoung 

Luka Modric, who 

constantly tested the patience 

of the Argentine ref with the 

timing of some of his 

challenges. 

Yet what he lacks in pace 

he more than 

makes up for with 

his quality on the 

ball and barely a 

pass went astray 

from the Real 

Madrid maestro. 

•Modric 

rainbows etched on their 

boots and covering up their 

mouths for the team picture 

to indicate how their planned 

show of support to the 

LGBTQ community had been 

silenced. 

German interior minister 

Nancy Faeser also wore the 

One Love armband while 

sitting next to Fifa president 

Gianni Infantino up in the 

stands. 

It really was one-way traffic 

in the first half, making the 

turnaround all the more 

remarkable. Japan only 

completed 62 passes, while 

untroubled German 

goalkeeper Neuer had 35. 

Saying that, it was actually 

the Asian side who had the 

ball in the net first when striker 

Daizen Maeda emphatically 

finished off a rapid counter 

only to be ruled offside. 

Kimmich and Gundogan 

were firing warning shots from 

distance before Salvadoran 

referee Ivan Barton, at 31, the 

tournament’s third youngest 

whistler, awarded a penalty 

against Shuichi Gonda, two 

years his senior for tripping 

David Raum and then falling 

on him for good measure. 

Messi, Ronaldo don't need the 

World Cup — Kevin-Prince Boateng 

Former 

Ghana 

international Kevin- 

Prince Boateng has dismissed 

claims that Lionel Messi and 

Cristiano Ronaldo need to 

win the World Cup to cement 

their GOAT (Greatest of All 

Time) status in football. 

The 2022 World Cup will 

almost certainly be the final 

World Cup for the two iconic 

footballers, and Boateng has 

been analysing their chances 

in Qatar. 

"Finally, a few thoughts on 

what I consider to be the 

greatest footballers on this 

planet: Lionel Messi and 

Cristiano Ronaldo. It is 

•Ronaldo 

probably the last World Cup 

for the two and their last 

chance at the title. I know Leo 

from my time at Barca. An 

incredible player. Both 

deserved it," Boateng wrote for 

German website SPORT1 

"Messi has better chances 

with Argentina. But neither he 

nor Ronaldo will step down 

as world champions. They 

don't have to. It's part of their 

history: they don't need to win 

a world title to be the best of 

all time." 

Argentina started their 

campaign with a shock 2-1 

defeat to Saudi Arabia while 

Portugal take on Ghana on 

Thursday, November 24. 

•Messi 

Newcastle rule out move 

for Ronaldo 

Manchester United have placed no restrictions on where 

Cristiano Ronaldo can play next, but although he could 

join another Premier League team, Newcastle have already 

ruled out a move for the striker. 

The termination of Ronaldo's contract at Old Trafford, which 

was due to run until June, has been described as a "clean 

break," and the 37-year-old can sign for another club 

immediately without waiting for the January transfer window. 

Newcastle, owned by a consortium led by the sovereign 

wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, could be a possible destination 

for the Portugal international, but sources have told ESPN 

they have no interest. 

Sources have also told ESPN that Ronaldo's representatives 

are also hopeful of reigniting interest from Chelsea. 


Brazil begin World Cup title 

charge against Serbia 

Regarded by many as the 

favourites to go all the way 

at the 2022 World Cup, fivetime 

world champions Brazil 

kick off their Group G 

campaign against Serbia 

at the Lusail Stadium on 

Thursday. 

The two nations 

will renew 

acquaintances with 

one another after 

locking horns in 

the group stage 

four years ago, 

when the 

Selecao 

came out on 

top with a 2- 

0 victory. 

Brazil have arrived in 

Qatar as the only nation 

in World Cup history to 

have qualified for every 

tournament since the first 

edition back in 1930 following 

a record-breaking 

CONMEBOL qualification 

campaign, collecting more 

points (45) than ever before 

after winning 14 and drawing 

three of their 17 matches. 

The Selecao rarely struggle 

in qualifying and they have 

had few problems in the 

group stage over the years 

too, as they are unbeaten in 

their last 15 World Cup group 

fixtures since losing 2-1 to 

Norway back in 1998. 

However, 20 years have 

passed since Brazil got their 

hands on their fifth World Cup 

in Seoul and the pressure is 

on Tite's talented squad – 

ranked number one in the 

world by FIFA – to live up to 

the pre-tournament hype 

and improve on their quarterfinal 

exit against Belgium four 

years ago. 

Serbia will be the first nation 

to put Brazil's credentials to 

the test. 

After crashing out in the 

group stage at their previous 

three World Cup finals since 

gaining independence in 

1990, there is a sense of 

optimism that Serbia can 

finally reach the knockout 

rounds for the first time in 

Saudi Arabia’s left-back 

Yasser AlShahrani will 

undergo surgery in the 

capital Riyadh after 

suffering a severe head 

injury during his side’s 

historic 2-1 World Cup 

victory over Argentina. 

Saudi Arabian Football 

Federation said in a 

statement on Tuesday that 

AlShahrani was subjected to 

a strong hit to the head, chest 

and abdomen. 

It added that he 

underwent all the necessary 

medical examinations but 

will be kept under 

observation. It also 

confirmed that his condition 

is stable. 

AlShahrani left Qatar on 

Wednesday morning for 

Riyadh to undergo surgery 

at the National Guard 

Hospital. 

The 30-year-old was 

initially taken straight to 

Hamad Medical City in 

Doha where he underwent 

a full medical check-up and 

•Al Shahrani 

Qatar. 

The Eagles, ranked 25th in 

the world by FIFA, impressed 

in UEFA qualifying and 

topped their group after 

winning six and drawing 

two of their eight 

matches, including a 

last-gasp 2-1 triumph 

over Portugal in their 

final fixture. 

•Neymar 

FIFA gives New 

World TV licence 

for W/Cup 

viewing centres 

M 

atches of the 2022 FIFA 

World Cup have been 

unfolding with football fans 

who could not be in Qatar 

flocking to viewing 

centres.“Consequently the 

world soccer governing body 

has licenced New World TV 

and Media Business Solutions 

to organise public viewing 

events for the World Cup in sub 

Sahara Africa, excluding South 

Africa in line with FIFA 

regulations.“To this regard 

Brand Technology Limited has 

been appointed as 

representatives for the Nigeria 

territory. Brand reps, 

advertising companies and 

viewing centre operators have 

been enjoined to obtain their 

licences from New World TV 

through their Nigerian 

representatives.“"We want 

members of the public to beware 

of illegal use of content, it is 

prohibited," said an official of 

Brand 

Technology 

Limited.“The official continued, 

"any infringement on the 

viewing centre regulations is 

subject to litigation. So we are 

urging Nigerians to comply to 

avoid embarrassment." 

Saudi Arabia’s Al Shahrani to 

undergo surgery in Riyadh 

spent last night. 

AlShahrani was injured 

following a collision with 

Saudi’s goalkeeper 

Mohammed AlOwais’ knee 

during the second-half 

stoppage time at the Lusail 

Stadium. AlOwais was seen 

dropping to his knees in 

shock over the incident. 

AlShahrani initially tried 

to get to his feet but looked 

dazed as blood streamed 

from his nose. He was later 

stretchered off after a 

lengthy delay. 

The 30-year-old Al-Hilal 

player had given a heroic 

performance and largely 

kept the star-studded 

Argentinian team from 

producing any real chances 

in the second half. 

The match will go down 

as one of the biggest upsets 

in international football as 

Saudi Arabia became the 

first Asian team to beat 

Argentina at a World Cup.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022 

Sudoku 

TODAY’S PUZZLE 

How to Play Sudoku 

C 

M 

Y 

YESTERDAY’S ANSWER 

Place a number (1-9) in each blank cell. (No line can have two 

of the same number). 

Each row (nine lines from left to right), column, (also nine 

lines from top to bottom) and 3 X 3 block within a bold block 

(nine blocks) contains number from 1 through 9. This means 

that no number can appear twice in any block, column or row. 

No mathematics is involved – no adding, subtraction, division or 

multiplication, just plain logic and your imagination. 

QUICK CROSSWORD 

TODAY’S CROSSWORD 

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTION 

ACROSS 

1 Plant from which linen is made (4) 

3 Matrimony (8) 

9 Non-professional (7) 

10 Ski slope (5) 

11 In that place (5) 

12 Slumbering (6) 

14 Maxim (6) 

16 Gentle wind (6) 

19 Fully developed (6) 

21 Venomous snake (5) 

24 Preliminary period (3-2) 

25 Alleviate (7) 

26 Stubbornly persistent (8) 

27 Small island (4) 

DOWN 

1 Flute player (8) 

2 Stop sleeping (5) 

4 Aviator (6) 

5 Drive back (5) 

6 Severely simple (7) 

7 Always (4) 

8 Sea between Greece and Turkey (6) 

13 Bring back (8) 

15 Pined (7) 

17 Actually (6) 

18 Rue (6) 

20 Higher (5) 

22 Sediment (5) 

23 Jason's ship (4) 

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