Abducted Customs Officer Feared Killed

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May 2, 2018

By Stephen Ubanna

Hopes of rescuing Rasheed Abdulsalam, the abducted Customs driver, attached to the Nigeria Customs, NCS, Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone A, Ikeja, by a combined team of the Customs, Army and the police who had been in search for him looks slim as people feared that he may have been killed .

This is evident going by the rumours making the rounds in Sango Otta, Ogun state and its environs that he has been killed by the” fireworks”. The rumour became more pronounced last week that ” fireworks” had ”killed the abducted Customs officer, as traders were scared a many smugglers were forced to go underground for fear of reprisal attack by Customs Personnel.

The alleged killing of the abducted Customs officer by” fireworks” dominated the talks of traders and their Customers in the market. Okada riders in the Ogun state Commercial hub are said to be more careful in the way they volunteer information to visitors as they refused to be drawn into any discussion over the fate of the abducted Customs officer.

Given the situation on ground, they were suspicious of as well dressed passengers as security operatives or informants to the Police or Customs Authorities. The situation was so bad at Sango Otta, a passenger remarked.

More worrisome is the fact that most of the Okada riders who make a living by crossing bags of foreign par boiled and cartons of poultry product for their smuggler Customers at an agreed spot at Otta may have been thrown out of business for now because of the tight security at the land border.

They claimed that the alleged killing of the abducted Customs officer may have forced the Customs Authorities to tighten up security at the border Communities in Ogun state to forestall smuggling of rice, poultry products and vehicles rice into the busy Sango Otta and the Lagos market .

That much was confirmed by a trader who said that there several vehicles loaded with rice at the Republic of Benin side of the Communities in Yelwa and other local government areas that share boundary with Republic of Benin but could not find their way into the Nigeria market.

The trader disclosed that the difficulty in crossing rice from Republic of Benin into the Sango Otta market and other parts of Ogun state due to the tight security along the Sango Otta – Idiroko road had jerked up the price of rice per bag.. He disclosed that a bag of foreign parboiled rice if found at the market now sells between N14,000.00 and N15,000.00 as against N12,000.00.

He fears that the price may go higher than that because of the anger in the face of Customs patrol teams and those at checkpoints who are under instruction by Muhammed Uba Garba, the Comptroller, FOU, Zone A, to ensure that foreign rice did not enter the Nigeria market. The anger of the seized of their goods may have forced them to abduct Abdulsalam as they laid ambush for the FOU, Zone A Lagos Roving Team which was led by Jack Okpabi Jack, a Chief Superintendent of Customs.

The team acting on information were said to be on patrol at Sango Otta axis on Saturday, April 14, 2018, over a large stockpiling of vehicles and rice in a hideout in the area. Notwithstanding the general impression being created over the gruesome murder of the abducted Customs officer, there are those who still believe that he is alive and would be released by the smugglers when the dust might have settled.

Trouble may have started when the smugglers frustrated the FOU, Zone A, Roving team from getting to the location where alleged smuggled items were hidden as they were said to have laid siege on the Customs team from Shop Rite, along the Lagos- Sango Otta Express Way.

The Customs officers who got wind that the smugglers were prepared for them were said to have decided to beat a retreat to avoid bloodshed. Abdulsalam , who is still in the custody of the smugglers may have been unlucky to fall into the waiting hands of the fireworks when he tried to make a u-turn from the Sango- Otta Shop-Rite premises to join his Colleagues who were waiting at a distance for him when the smugglers swooped on him and other occupants of the Customs Hilux Van.

The anger of the seizure of their goods may have forced them to abduct Abdulsalam as they laid ambush for the FOU, Zone A Lagos Roving Team which was led by Jack Okpabi Jack, a Chief Superintendent of Customs at Shop Rite, along the Lagos-Sango-Otta Express Way.

It would be recalled that the team acting on information were said to have been on patrol at Sango Otta axis on Saturday, April 14, 2018, over a large stockpiling of vehicles and rice in a hideout in the area.

Muda Yusuf, Director General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, LCCI, said what is driving the smuggling of of rice across the border is the high tariff. Yusuf lamented that irrespective of where you source your forex to import rice through the nation’s seaport,the importer is bound to pay 70 percent levey. He noted that it is the high tariff and 70 percent levy that may have forced many rice importers to relocate to Cotonou port in Republic of Benin and other ports in the West African sub-region which found their way into the Nigeria market through illegal routes.

He would want the government to consider a downward review of the tariff of rice to curb its smuggling constant clash between smugglers and Customs officers. ”Rice is not contraband and could be imported through the nation’s seaport”, he said. He maintained that what has created the smuggling problem is the high tariff.

He disclosed that the market share of smuggled rice in the country is still bigger than the share of rice produced locally which has given officers and men of the FOU, national wide much job to do as they go after rice smugglers. From Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Cross River, Jigawa, Katsina, Kano, Sokoto to Zamfara states the story is the same: intensified anti-smuggling operations and seizure of thousands of bags of foreign parboiled rice from smugglers.

USA Financial Aid: Trump Exposes Buhari’s Government

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Steve Ubana

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May 2, 2018

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By Stephen Ubanna

President Muhammadu Buhari visits to the United States on the invitation of Donald Trump appears to have revealed how the United states had been giving $1 billion in foreign aid annually to Nigeria . The US President may have opened because he felt his country needed something in return from Nigeria for the financial aids. ”We think we are owed that”, Trump had said.

Trump revelation of the US $1 billion yearly financial aid to Nigeria may had come as a surprise to many who are still at a loss over what to make out of the aid as there is no trace of its impact on the nation’s economy which is still experiencing a slow growth in spite of the government projection of seven percent by the year 2020. Worse of it , the World Band the International Monetary Fund, IMF, put the country’s growth rate at two percent, which is very discouraging.

Perhaps to upstage the Asian country of China from its domination of the Nigeria economy, the US president was said to have asked Buhari to” remove all trade barriers to allow additional US investment in Nigeria”, assuring that the US will be investing substantially in the country if the government could create a level playing field .

Indications are rife that that Trump has given the nod to four US Companies led by General Electric an opportunity to invest an estimated $2 billion to modernize the country’s rail network between Lagos and the ancient city of Kano, and between Port Harcourt and Maiduguri, the operational of the Islamic Fundamentalists, BokoHaram in Borno state.

It was learnt that the US aircraft manufacturer, Boeing, are also warming up to supply aircrafts for the planned Nigeria airline project which had been on drawing board over the years. Hadi Serika, minister of state, Aviation, is optimistic that with the deal struck with Boeing, the proposed airline will be the largest in Africa.

The Buhari visits to US may have also opened discussion with the Export-Import Bank of the US and its Overseas Private Investment Corporation, O PIC for financing arrangements for projects in the country.

A Nigerian based in US, told the Magazine that as at 2015, the US, foreign direct investment, FID, in the country was about $55 billion. The US based Nigerian said the US FID could have been more than that both for the US president disparaging remarks Describing African nations as ”shithole countries”, which may have scared many potential investors from coming to Nigeria and other African countries to invest.

Many had expected Buhari to confront the US President with the disparaging remarks on African which was said to be scaring foreign investors away from the African nations, but he was said to have carefully avoided the topic , professing mutual respect for each other and their respective countries at a cordial news conference. He may have avoided confronting Trump on the disparaging remarks to avoid losing US investors that may be coming to Nigeria to invest and the yearly billion dollars financial aid from the US..

Many believe that President Buhari has never failed to use any available opportunity to woo foreign investors to come to Nigeria and invest. At the last Commonwealth heads of Government meeting in Britain, he was said to have promised a $15 billion investment into the country, which the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had described as a bogus claim that would never see the light of the day.

It would be recalled that the D8 meeting i at Istanbul, Capital of Turkey, on October, 2017, he had urged the D8 leaders to prioritise incentives and measures aimed at increasing trade and investment among member nations. he had expected that by interacting with the world leaders from the industrialized nations, it would translate to improved FID in Nigeria but that was far, he could go.

It is not surprising why he is very happy with the promises extracted from President Trump to increase US FID in Nigeria.

Indeed, what may have gladdened his heart so much was the break -through in getting the approval of the US President for the supply of the $600 million military aircrafts and other security equipment, that was said to had been stalled by the Barack Obama administration.

It was said to had been stalled over allegations that the Nigeria military has been involved in human rights violation and extra judicial killings in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe sates, in the north east geo-political region, the operation base of BokoHaram insurgents.

Trump confirmed that the US had entered into a very” big trade deal with Nigeria and are also working on the supply of military equipment – helicopters and the like to fight terrorism in the country”. ” We are very grateful to the US for agreeing to give us the aircraft we had asked for including spare parts”, Buhari nodded in approval, stressing that ”security is the major problem of Nigeria”.

The US President may have stepped in fully into the Nigeria crisis with the incessant killing of Christians by BokoHaram insurgents and those masquerading as herdsmen in Plateau, Borno, Niger, Taraba and Nasarawa states. This is in addition to killing of Christians and other innocent citizens in Adamawa and Zamfara states.

At a closed door meeting , Trump was said to have told Buhari unequivocally, ”we have had serious problems with Christians who have been killed in Nigeria”. An aggrieved US President had declared, ” we are going to be working on that problem, and working on that problem very, very hard, because we can’t allow that to happen again”.

Recently armed herdsmen killed scores of worshipers and two priests at a Catholic Church at Ukpor village in Gwer East Local government Area of Benue that attracted international attention forcing Tukur Buratai, Chief of Army Staff, Ibrahim Idris, Inspector General of Police, IGP, and Mamman Lawal Daura, the Director General, Department of State Security, DSS, to mobilize their men into action.

The Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, have mobilized their members for nation-wide peaceful protest to express their anger over the killing of Christians , particular in Benue state while calling the government to increase efforts towards the arrest and prosecution of the armed herdsmen, as measure for curtailing the incessant killings.

The Association had said the killings by the armed herdsmen had persisted because of government inability to positively arrest the situation, noting that the” country is gradually turning into a state of anomie” which analysts see as an indictment on Buhari and his security team. CAN may have stopped short of calling Buhari and his security team comprising of the ministers of Dense, Brig. general Mansur. minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazzau, Mohammed Babagana Munguno, National Security Adviser, Mamman Lawal Daura, Director General, Department of State Security, DSS, iBrahim Idris, Inspector General of Police, IGP, Ibrahim Magu, acting Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC among others.

CAN’s threat of a nationwide peaceful protest may have facilitate the recent raid at a suspected armed herdsmen militia Camp by troops of the 707 Special Force. the Special Force were said to be on patrol of the Guma Local Government when information filtered out about the existence of the herdsmen militia Camp in the area. and The Special Force were said to have arrested alleged four kingpins of the killer herdsmen , who are currently helping the Army, Police and DSS in their investigation to track others who are on the run.

Mourinho Still Wants More Of Wenger

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Akinwale Kasali

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April 30, 2018

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By Akinwale Kasali

Though, Arsene Wenger may have led Arsenal for the last time to Old Trafford, but Wenger’s ‘arch rival’ in the Barclays English Premier League, Jose Mourinho believes this wouldn’t be the last of Wenger he has seen for over a decade.

Mourinho hopes to cross swords with Wenger again after his Manchester United side condemned the Frenchman to a galling defeat on his last visit to Old Trafford as Arsenal boss, Independent.ie reports.

Wenger’s long and storied rivalry with United looked to be ending with a point apiece after former Red Devil Henrikh Mkhitaryan cancelled out Paul Pogba’s opener.

That would have represented a minor triumph given the much-changed and inexperienced Gunners XI he sent out, with more than half an eye on Thursday’s Europa League clash with Atletico Madrid.

But there was a sting in the tail, Marouane Fellaini climbing off the bench and flicking home a match-winning header in stoppage time.

Mourinho has had plenty of his own tussles with Wenger over the years but on a day where United paid generous tribute to him through Sir Alex Ferguson’s pre-match presentation, their current boss held out hope of further battles beyond Arsenal.

“I hope that I play against him again, I hope that can happen,” he said.

“If not in the Premier League, who knows, we still have a big match waiting for us.”

Wenger played down the prospect in the immediate future due to his apparent uncertainty over his next destination and – mischievously – Mourinho’s.

“I don’t know if honestly, first of all, he will be at Manchester United next year, certainly,” he said.

“I don’t know where I will be. At the moment I am in a bit of unknown territory, I don’t knew where I go from here or do I take a break? I would be surprised if I meet him next year.”

Wenger would be forgiven for indulging a little nostalgia as he revisited the scene of so many past skirmishes, triumphs and travails but even on a day where he received a pre-match presentation from Sir Alex Ferguson and an unusually cordial welcome from the home support, he stayed focused on the outcome.

Child and Adult Advocacy Group takes campaign to Primary Schools

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Uche Mbah

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April 30, 2018

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Soroptimist International, a global volunteer advocacy group with affiliation in Nigeria, have taken the war on child and adult rape to Nigerian primary schools. Recently, the Apapa chapter of the organization took their campaign to Ire Akari primary school, Iganmu, where they took out time to educate the children on the issue of rape and sexual violence. But incidentally they were busy educating the kids on rape but the parents were absent. But according to the president Apapa chapter, Magdaleen Obiano, they have been organizing seminars and enlightenment for parents and women under pressure even from their spouses. “You know a husband can ape his wife”; she said, with a wry smile on her face.

Child molestation and rape has been in the front burner of National discuss, with so many gory tales coming out of the media of girl-children and under age children being molested even by their parents and relatives.

But Obiano insisted their efforts are yielding fruits. Though she did not say whether there has been any litigation involving child molestation and rape, she admitted that there are cases of widows being maltreated by her late husbands relatives whose cases have been taken over by the organization. “We took over her case and resettled her, seeing about her children’s education”, she said, emphasizing that they basically cater for the women, children and underprivileged.

Currently, there about twelve clubs in Lagos alone, which includes Apapa, Surulere, and Ikeja.

According to Obiano, the organization has been in existence for a long time. It is represented in Europe and the Americas. “We just came back from Maracas where we attended an international conference” she said.

Although there is no direct affiliation with other non governmental organizations, they collaborate when needed. For example, the Lagos state ministry of women affairs, which happens to be one of the emergency contact groups for victims. In fact, Olaolu roberts, a staff of the local council, was on hand to monitor the issue for the local government.

In attendance were Chinyere Udeagabala, slated t take over Apapa chapter; Magdalene Obiano, the current president Apapa Chapter; Joes Nwokedi, a member of board of trustees; and Bona Oluigbo, the immediate past President of the Chapter.

Recession: London Houses Sold At Cheaper Rates

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Akinwale Kasali

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April 30, 2018

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No doubt, real estate is presently in a recession period. This is not only in Nigeria, Africa, but also in the western world. Recently in the UK It was a buyer’s market in March as a record number of homes were sold for less than the asking price, new research from estate agents shows.

Some 86 per cent of properties, almost nine in 10, sold for less than the asking price, according to the data from the National Association of Estate Agents, the highest level seen since records began in 2013.

Propertywire.com reports that this is an increase of 12 per cent from the previous month when 74 per cent of sellers accepted offers below their original asking price and the figures also show that only one in 10 properties, 10 per cent, sold for the original asking price in March, also the lowest since records began.

At the same time demand has dipped slightly with the number of house hunters on estate agents’ down marginally from 309 registered per branch in February, to 308 in March.

The NAEA report also shows that year on year demand for housing is down by 22 per cent as agents registered 397 house hunters per branch in March 2017 compared with 417 in 2016.

The number of properties available to buy rose to the highest level since October 2017 with 40 available per branch in March compared with 35 in February.

Despite sales to first time byers rising at the beginning of the year following the abolition of stamp duty for most first time buyers the number in this group fell to 26 per cent in March, down from 29 per cent in February and 27 per cent in January.

The number of sales agreed stayed the same in March with an average of eight recorded per branch.

According to Mark Hayward, chief executive of the NAEA, the fact that the market is moving in the favour of buyers may trigger an upward swing in the number of sales agreed as they’re in a position to negotiate lower prices.

But he believes this is a short term situation. “Although demand has cooled off over the last few months and created these market conditions, it’s likely to increase again as those holding off on making purchases move to take advantage of these lower prices,” he explained.

“Ultimately, this means the number of offers accepted below asking price will fall again and the market will swing back in the favour of home owners. The only thing which will offer a long term solution is more homes to balance the issue of supply and demand,” he added.

Court Orders Forfeiture Of Patience Jonathan’s House

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Akinwale Kasali

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April 30, 2018

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The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday ordered an interim forfeiture of two properties linked to the wife of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Mrs. Patience Jonathan.

The properties of jonathan are at Plot No. 1960, Cadastral Zone A05, Maitama District; and Plot No. 1350, Cadastral Zone A00, both in Abuja.

The properties were said to be held in the name of Ariwabai Aruera Reachout Foundation, which Mrs. Jonathan was said to be one of its “trustees.”

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had, in an ex parte application filed in September last year, asked for an interim forfeiture of the properties, which it claimed were subjects of an ongoing criminal investigation.

Ruling on the commission’s ex parte application on Monday, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba dismissed Mrs. Jonathan’s objection to the application for lacking in merit.

The court then ordered the interim forfeiture, which he, however, ruled must only last for 45 days.

He ruled that within the 45 days, EFCC must conclude its investigations and charge the suspects being investigated in respect of the alleged crimes linked to properties.

He however added that the EFCC was at liberty to file an application for the extension of the life span of the order before the expiration of the initial 45 days.

He also ordered that if for any reason EFCC’s officials needed to access the properties within the period of interim forfeiture, they must do so with the respondents in attendance.

He ordered that the inventory of the fixtures in the properties and a report to that effect be submitted to the court.

Details later…..

More Troubles For Armed Herdsmen

By

Steve Ubana

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April 30, 2018

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By Stephen Ubaana

When Theophilus Danjuma, a retired Lt. General and a former Chief of Army Staff and minister of Defense , lampooned the Army on March 24, 2018, of colluding with armed herdsmen to kill innocent citizens in parts of the country he Amy did not find it funny.

in apparent response to the General’s accusation, the Army exonerated itself from blame over the herdsmen killings in parts of the country, stressing that ”it has sacrificed much life in dealing with the situation while absolutely remaining neutral”.

Many beieves that the former Chief of Army’s claim may have struck the right chord in security circles as the security Chiefs went back to work to bring the situation under control. The recent killings of scores of Worshippers and two priests at a Catholic Church at Ukpor village in Gwer East Local government Area of Benue state may have forced forced President Muhammadu Buhari to give a matching order to Abdulrahaman Dambazu, and Brig. Mansur Dan Ali Ministers of Internal Affairs and Defense respectively , Tukur Buratai, Chief of Army Staff, Ibrahim Idris, Inspector General of Police, IGPto crack down on the armed herdsmen causing the havoc in parts of the country.

The Presidential directive to the security Chiefs to stop the killings may have given ammunition to Mamman Lawal Daura and Mohammed Dauda, Director Generals, Department of State Security,DSS, and Defense Intelligence Agency, DIA, an to step up their intelligence gathering with the Coordination of Mohammed Babagana Munguno, the National Security Adviser, the NSA.

With barely one moth that Danjuma, a former Chief of Army Staff lambasted the Army over the herdsmen killings and Buhari’s intervention to save the situation from degenerating, on Saturday, April, 28, 2018, there were screaming headlines in all the major Newspapers in the country, ” Troops arrest Boko Haram suspects linked with the recent attacks and killings in Benue state”. The on-line media also feasted on the story .

Olabisi Ayeni, a Major and the Assistant Director, Army Public Relations officer said a combined team of the Army, police, and the DSS, had made the arrest of the Boko Haram fighters based on” credible intelligence after a fierce fighting in Guma Local government area of the state”.

He disclosed that the troops of the 707 Special Force who were on patrol of the Guma local government on getting to the suspected militia Camp were sighted by the armed herdsmen who fired at the troops , forcing the soldiers to tep up their counter attack. The armed herdsmen were said to have been over powered by the superior fire power of the soldiers in the gun battle on Thursday, April 26, 2018 as they took to their heals leaving some of their weapons and ammunitions including handsets. Ayeni confirmed the arrest of three of the militia herdsmen in their camp located near Tormatar village in Guma.

the soldiers may have been thrilled with the arrest of the notorious Aminu Yaminu , alias Tashaku, who was their Commander. The Army Assistant Director, Public Relations, said the captured armed herdsmen militia was instrumental to all the attacks and killings in Benue state.

The notorious Armed herdsmen may have fallen into the waiting hands of the Army when information filtered out that he has concluded plans with his men in Borno, Yobe and Nasarawa states to launch another major attack in Benue state. The information may have provided ammunition for troops of the Special Forces 707 Brigade and 72 Battalion based in Makurdi to prepare to invade the milita camp.

The Army spokesman also confirmed the arrest of three other members of the herdsmen militia. They are Abubakar Umaru, Adam Likita and Yusufu Alhaji Yaro. The arrest of the four principal armed herdsmen in the camp may have put them in disarray as they could no longer come together to plan to launch attacks on innocent citizens.

Prior to the raid on the militia camp in Benue state, Ayeni, a Major, disclosed that on Wednesday, April 25, 2018,one AK.47 rifles and five rounds of 7.6mm special ammunition were recovered in the bush by troops of the 707 Brigade who were patrolling the general area of Naku village in the volatile Gwer West Local government area of the state .

The arrest of the four armed militia herdsmen who were linked to Boko Haram fighters in the north eastern states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states confirms people’s fear that the suspected herdsmen killers in Benue, Plateau Adamawa, Niger, Nasarawa and Zanfara, were Boko Haram fighters masquerading as Herdsmen .

An elated Suleiman Mohammed, a Lt.Colonel and Commandant of 72 Battalion, Makurdi, was said to have t paraded the arrested armed herdsmen on Saturday, April 27, 2018, in Guma Local government Area of the state . The Commandant was also said to have showcased the AK47, ammunitions, charms and handsets ” recovered from the bush and the militia Camp.

Umaru and Yusuf, the two armed herdsmen who are still in the Army custody were said to have volunteered informations on interrogation that they usually hold their meetings near a river under a mango tree in Awe Local government Area of Nasarawa state to decide on where to launch their attacks.

A security analysts told the Magazine that the Security Chiefs may have taken the battle to the armed the herdsmen militia Camp in Benue state to pre-empt the mass protest planned by members of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, slated on Sunday, April, 29, 2018. The planned protest by CAN could have been a big embarrassment to the All Progressive Congress , APC, led government of Buhari as the International were waiting to see how he would handle the crisis.

The analysts disclosed that the Army raid on the armed herdsmen militia Camp, clearly confirms what Danjuma, a former Chief of Army Staff said that the Army were colluding with the armed herdsmen to kill innocent citizens. This is because of the speed in which they raided the militia Camp within hours of a Presidential directive to the security Chiefs on Thursday, April26, 2018, to stop the killings in parts of the country, fueling speculation that the soldiers knew such a Camp exists in Benue state. there are fears in both official and unofficial circles that there may be other armed herdsmen militia Camps in Nasarawa and Taraba states.

Worried by the public outcry of people over the killings in Benue, Plateau, Nasarawa, Taraba, Adamawa and Zamfara by alleged armed herdsmen, Buhari had inaugurated a three-man Sub- Committee to unravel the causes of the incessant clashes between herdsmen and farmers and make recommendation on a way out of the crisis. on February 2018. The Sub-Committee was headed by Dave Umahi, an opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governor of Eboyi state.

The Umahi Committee was said to have submitted its report to the government which was received by Yemi Osibanjo, the Vice President on last Wednesday. Snippets of the report shows that there were three main categories of herdsmen criscrossing the country with their cattles , thus stepping the toe of farmers with the destruction of their crops.

According to the Committee, they are the nomadic herdsmen, foreign herdsmen and migrant herdsmen. The Committee members, who were said to have visited the flash point states confirmed that the continued activities of the armed herdsmen in the agrarian dominated Communities in these states was responsible for the for the frequent clashes with the farmers.

The Committee attributed the major causes of the conflict between the herdsmen and farmers a to perception and escalation of reports on the killings in these flash point states linked to the armed herdsmen in the media and competition for scarce resources. This is in addition” armed banditry through cattle rustlings and kidnapping”, the Committee remarked.

Osinbajo, however, believes that the frequent clashes between the armed herdsman and farmers in the flash point states was as a result of the proliferation of weapons in the country and the nation’s porous borders as criminal network took advantage of it to kill innocent citizens.

The Vice President was said to have told the gathering of the ministers of security and Agriculture/Natural Resources in Abuja recently that Nigeria intends to” follow the regional Cooperation model as applied to the threat posed by Boko Haram insurgents in the north in tackling the security threat posed by the escalating violence between herdsmen and farmers”.

Perhaps, to put an to the escalating tension, he was said to have called for a regional Cooperation, proper border management, Law Enforcement and identity management in the West African sub-region.

Jean Claude Kassi Brou, President, Economic Community of West Africa States, ECOWAS, Commission, who was said to have shared the same views with Osibanjo, the Nigeria Vice President, regretted that ”deaths and displacement of persons and the needless conflicts remain a major headache in the region in recent years which had resulted in” stigmatization of ethno-linguistic and cultural groups”.

In spite of the fact that Buhari has risen up to the challenge to face the herdsmen issue squarely, he may have played into the hands of the opposition PDP and other critics for failing to show up at the last FEC meeting to receive the Umahi Sub- Committee report forcing people to doubt every of his genuine moves to tackle the crisis.

The Committee had recommended a ”ban on open grazing across the country” and the establishment of ”ranches in the states affected by herdsmen onslaught ‘, which was endorsed by the Council’. The question on the lips of most people is: Will Buhari go along with the decision of the Council to adopt the recommendation of the Umahi Sub -Committee report on herdsmen and farmers incessant clashes? There are fears in both official and unofficial quarters that the report may gather dust in the Presidency like other good reports that had been prepared and presented to the government which had not seen the light of the day as he may not muster the political muscle to act on it.

Stan Football Academy: Discovering Future Soccer Stars

By

Akinwale Kasali

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April 30, 2018

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By Akinwale Kasali

Six years ago, little or nothing was known about Junior Oluwafemi Ajayi, Super Eagles striker, who made his debut for the national team in the friendly match against Serbia in London last month. The attacking prowess of Ajayi for his Egyptian club side, Al Ahly, caught the eyes of Super Eagles coach, Gernot Rohr, who invited the young lad to be part of last month’s friendlies against Poland and Serbia.

Junior Ajayi in action for Al Ahly of Egypt

For most soccer enthusiasts, Ajayi’s name became an household name following his impressive performance at the 2015 Under-23 African Championship held in Senegal, in which Nigeria qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics game. Prior to that competition, Ajayi shone like a star at the 2015 All African Games hosted in Brazzaville, Congo, where the Under-23 team coached by Samson Siasia came third. As at this time, Ajayi dorned the jersey of Shooting Stars Football Club of Ibadan, after parting ways with Union Bank Football Club.

Stan Football Academy: The Under 13 team in a group photograph

Though, Ajayi has become the ‘beautiful bride’ in the Egyptian league and also in the Tunisian league where he made his first appearance in northern Africa. But, Ajayi’s name wouldn’t have been heard if not for the tutelage, fatherly care, interest and belief of Stanley Ngorube, the founder of Stan Football Academy in Lagos, who gave Ajayi the platform to showcase his skills after his father’s demise years back.

Ngorube started the football academy 13 years ago single handedly without any financial or moral support from any company or individual, in which over 30 of his players have signed deals with clubs around the world and at the nation’s domestic league.

According to Ngorube, the journey started back then when he was in the university, he had passion and flair for football, and been a footballer also, he felt that discovering young talents and moulding them into future stars was necessary.

“Aside the business angle of it, i decided to go for coaching courses to sharpen my skills and also to be able to impact young talents. This were the reasons i started the soccer academy, and have not regretted this action, because seeing young talents excelling in this profession gives me joy. We have the have the Under-10, 13, 15 and 17”.

The Imo state born Ngorube says the academy has been a able to synergise with clubs both locally and internationally, in which the players go for trials, but the academy has been quiet about this because there was a time it fell prey to fraudulent scouts who deceived them and went away with the academy’s money.

The aspiration of Ngorube is high. He believes that with the support of certain companies who believe in the dream of the academy can key in into the dream to make it a reality.

Ngorube dishing out instruction for his players

“I am open to sponsorship from any companies, NGOs that will partner with the academy for our dreams and aspiration to come into fulfilment in earnest. The prospect i have for this team is big, and i am optimistic in the near future that we will get there”.

Adeosun Puts A Close On Agencies , As April Revenue Shared Drops

By

Steve Ubana

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April 30, 2018

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By Stephen Ubanna

Kemi Adeosun, minister of Finance appears to have put a close tab on statutory agencies to improve on government revenue generation as the amount shared by the Federal, states and Local governments in the month of April drops.

There are fears in both official and unofficial circles that the situation may not change for the better in subsequent months despite the increase in the price of a barrel of Crude Oil in the International Oil market unless the statutory agencies remit the operating surplus to the Federation account as expected without waiting for the ministry of Finance officials to run after them with caps in hand begging as was the case in the past.

The government had set a revenue target of N886 billion for the statutory agencies this year. The amount excludes the remittance of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, and the Federal Inland Revenue Services and FIRS, known in official circles as the traditional government revenue generating agencies .

The revenue target may have put much pressures on these agencies including the traditional revenue generating agencies as they struggle to block areas of revenue leakages to meet the its monthly revenue expectation to lubricate the economy and meet the growing financial needs of the three tiers of government: Federal, states and local governments.

The Magazine learnt that since Adeosun, the minister of Finance stepped up the government revenue drive, there had been an intense competition among the government statutory agencies to remit revenue into the Federation Account to be in the good book of the minister as a performing agency. This is evident going by the amount that was said to had been remitted by the Nigeria Communications Commission, NCC, to the Federation Account between January and April 2018.

The remittance into the government coffers may have emboldened the agency to speak out . ”In compliance with the fiscal Responsibility Act of 2007, FRA 2007, the NCC, had remitted about N49.8 billion into the Federation Account, thus joining the league of government statutory revenue generating agencies.

President Muhammadu Buhari: Gave Adeosun the nod

Many believe that the NCC may have turned from a revenue defaulting agency to a revenue generating agency with the appointment of Umar Garba Danbata, as the Executive Vice Chairman by President Buhari in August 2015. to replace Eugene Juwa, whose tenure expired on July 29, 2015. Danbata was said to have started well by blocking areas of revenue leakage in the agency, thus making it possible for the Organization to remit its operating surpluses to the government monthly as required by law.

Danbata may have given a good signal to the ministry of Finance within his first year in office when the Commission made a remittance of N32.35 billion into government that it was ranked among the agencies that had turned a new leaf like the Nigeria Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Nigeria Tourism and Development Corporation, NTDC, National Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA and Nigeria Ports Authority.

The government revenue drive may have forced NPA, which over the years had been collaborating with officials of Integrated Logistics Services, INTELS , to deny the government the revenue it was supposed to remit into its coffers to pay $28.1 million debt owed the government. That much was confirmed by Hadiza Usman, Managing Director of the Authority, stressing that an additional $14.5 million is awaiting official confirmation. The NPA boss confirmed that the total amount that had so far been paid by the Company to the government through the agency was $42..6 million.

There is no gain saying the fact that rush by government statutory agencies to meet their financial obligation to the government has made more money available to be shared by the Federal, states and local governments.

This is evident going by the money that had continued to be shared by the three tiers of government since last year and now. In April, 2018, alone, the three tiers of government was said to have shared N626.8 billion.

Ahmed Idris, the Accountant General of the Federation, AGF, disclosed that the sharing of the amount was a fallout of the meeting of the Federal Account Allocation Committee, FAAC . Given an insider information, the AGF, confirmed that N480.59 billion was received as gross statutory revenue from NNPC, NCS, Central Bank of Nigeria and other revenue remitting agencies.

Last march, the total amount that was said to have been approved for the three tiers of government to be shared was said to be N557.94 billion by Idris, the AGF, showing a drop of N77.34. He attributed the drop in revenue shared in the month of April to the decrease in Crude oil export sales to trading partners in the Asian country of China, Europe and the United States of America, USA. The AGF, confirmed that the country’s Crude Oil export sales dropped by 13 percent when compared to the 5.42 million barrels exported in the month of March.

The revenue realized within the period from Oil exports was said to have dropped by $33. 58 million. According to him, the drop in Oil exports was not unexpected because of the ”Shuts- ins and Shut- downs at various terminals across the Niger Delta for repairs and maintenance”.

The revenue from the Oil sector could not have fared worse as the price of a barrel of Oil, Nigeria Bonny Light . in the international Oil market increased from $63.08 to $65.72 .

He said the three tiers government even had good revenue to share in the month of April because there was ”considerable rise in oil royalty payment by the Oil Producing Companies. This is in addition to the marginal increases recorded in Companies Income Tax, CIT, Value Added Tax, VAT, and Import Duty.

A good source of revenue that that the government had banked on to give a boost the amount that was shared in the month of April was the payment of Petroleum Profit Tax by the Oil Companies but the PPT payment was said to be a disappointment. ”There was a significant drop in income from PPT”, the AGF said.

There are fears that there may not be any improvement in revenue generation and amount shared by the three tiers of government for now because of the slow growth of the economy. Udoma Udo Udoma, the minister of National Planning painted the gloomy picture of the economy when he confirmed at a recent World Bank meeting that the ”rate of Nigeria’s economic growth is still very slow”.

Udoma Udo Udoma: Minister For National Planning

The minister lamented that the country’s problem for now is not ” debt settlement or rescheduling with Creditor nations but a revenue problem. It is not surprising why Adeosun, the Finance mister, is focused on generating more revenue for the government.

As part of the government efforts to improve on its revenue generation and put more money in FG, states and Local governments coffers, it was learnt that the government is trying the tax amnesty option and increase the tax revenue being generated as well as well as reviewing the list of Companies paying excise duties . This is evident with the review of the rates and bases for excise duties on alcoholic and beverages.

A source in ministry of Finance informed the Magazine that it was communicated to Hameed Ali, a rtd Colonel and Comptroller General, Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, on March 6, 2018. The Law, according is to become effective from June, 2018.

The new excisable duty regime for alcoholic, beverages and tobacco products currently the only excisable items in the country is an indication of a shift from advalorem specific rate taxation on for beer, stout, wines and spirits.

Insiders told the Magazine that new excise regime was informed by the decline in non oil revenues, revenue leakages and to control consumption of foreign goods.

The government had set the country’s economic growth rate at seven percent by the year 2020 to be Comfortable in running the country without borrowing from both local and foreign Creditors. Udoma, the National Planning minister disclosed that the government is working hard to ensure that the ”economy pick up”. He maintained that they are ”poised to continue focus on the various measures to accelerate growth and generate more revenues.

Ayade’s Industrialization Drive Lifts Cross Rivers

By

Chidiebere Onyemaizu

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April 27, 2018

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By Chidiebere Onyemaizu

When two Professors are Pilot and Co-Pilot respectively, and are at the helm of affairs in the cockpit, there must be a difference. This is true of Cross River state under the innovative leadership of Professor Ben Ayade and his Deputy, Professor Ivara Esu.

The last three years of the Ayade administration has clearly defined him as a governor with a difference in terms of the tenor of his achievements in office: Ayade has now and again demonstrated his focus is industrialization of the state hence under his watch, avalanche of multi-billion Naira, jobs creating industries now dot Cross Rivers state.

Some of the Ayade signature industries include a massive rice seeds and seedling factory, garment industry-the first of its kind in Africa with over 2,000 sewing machines, Calabar Pharmaceutical Company, the Bakassi deep seaport, Cosmetics factory, a 30000 tonnes per anum cocoa processing plant, and the ultramodern rice milk in Ogoja among other.

Speaking on Thursday amid cheers from farmers at the Cross River state Rice city situated at the Ayade Industrial Park in Calabar, venue for the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN)/ CBN/Cross River inauguration program said, the idea was to create jobs., the governor advised Cross Riverians to embrace agriculture, describing that sector an untapped goldmine: Anybody who has never believed in farming, this is the time to believe. It’s the future; it takes the federal government #460 billion and additional #60 billion in the month of December to import Rice”

The governor stated that the state was ready to harvest a whole chunk of the money because “we are producing seedlings in this big (Rice) factory”. He expressed the hope that a minimum of #100 billion will come from the Rice factory to help fund the state’s #1.3 trillion budget.

On the federal government’s decision to support about 25 thousand rice farmers in the state with N10.8 billion, the governor said: “We appreciate the gesture but what we will appreciate more is when our farmers don’t have to till or toil under the sun. Let them have the opportunity to use the latest technology in farming and not put them through the mercy of rainfall to be able to have their yield and harvest. Let them not toil in vain because by the time they harvest, there will be nobody to buy off the crops from them.”

The National deputy President of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), Segun Atoh applauded Ayade for embarking on agricultural ventures that will boost food sufficiency for self reliance.

Ayade’s performance has won him accolades and effusive praises.For example, on a visit to the state last year, former Deputy Senate President, Ibrahim Mantu hailed him as an achiever saying: “You have turned this state to into a role model; getting the least allocation yet paying salaries on or before the 25^th of every month, a feat only good governors and prudent managers of resources can guarantee”. And in recoginition of his giant strides in Cross Rivers, Vanguard Newspaper in 2016 awarded him Vanguard Man of the year 2016.

Essentially, governor Ayade has at every fora explained and justified his industrialization drive.In his words: “I know what I am doing when I made a choice to go into industrialization. I can build a road from here to Ougaduogu, it would not create jobs, but when you build a factory it creates jobs…why are you a governor when your people go to bed hungry?” “These factories have been built in just under three years in a state where we get near zero allocation from the federation account, a state that is the first to pay salaries ever since I came into office in spite of the fact that I have brought thousands of people into the pay roll through appointments.”