A vintage fender guitar owned by legendary Nigerian musician, King Sunny Ade, was at the weekend auctioned for a record N52.1 million in Lagos.

The guitar, which was auctioned by Dr. Jogun Onabanjo, a certified auctioneer and chief executive of Onabanjo and Onabanjo & Co, is known to have been designed by Nigerian artist, Victor Ehikamenor.

The glittering artistic piece was placed on the block at the King Sunny Ade 70th birthday concert tagged, Sunny on Sunday, which was attended by Nigeria’s richest and top celebrities, reported the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

The starting bid of N9 million was followed by a very competitive bidding war by the well-heeled audience comprising influential businessmen such as Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Mr. Femi Otedola, before closing at N52.1 million.

While the bid was in progress, the asking price for the guitar doubled to N17 million under two minutes before exceeding the N50 million mark in 15 minutes.

As is usually the case, the eventual winner of the auction was not revealed.

The concert held at the Temple Balmoral Marquee, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Expectedly, the social media, especially twitter, was agog yesterday after the auction of the guitar.

DaddyMO said: “What recession??? King Sunny Ade’s guitar went for N52.1million from a starting price of N9m…Legendary!!!!!”

Chidi Okereke @Chydee said: “So, last night, somebody bought King Sunny Ade’s guitar for N52.1 million. In this recession?”

Ehikioya @Mistakingso said: “If a guitar by King Sunny Ade could go for N53m, how much do you think Fela’s sax will go for?”

Dele Ogbodo in Abuja

The Nigeria Police monday said they had finally arrested the last of the 10-man gang believed to have been involved in the kidnapping of the wife of the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mrs. Margaret Emiefele, at Ugoneki village, along the Benin-Agbor Expressway last September.

The police had in October paraded nine of the suspected gang members who confessed their involvement in the kidnapping, with large sums of money and ammunition recovered from them.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Don Awunah, a Deputy Commissioner of Police, while giving the latest suspect’s identity as Umar Abubakar, aka Kiriwa, in a statement said Abubakar was arrested in Minna, Niger State last Thursday.

He said the Inspector General of Police (IG) Intelligence Response Team succeeded in arresting the suspect through monitoring, intelligence gathering and support from the public.

The statement read: “Umar Abubakar, one of the arrow heads of the daredevil kidnapping gang led detectives to two houses and three plots of empty land he purchased with the proceeds of his share of the ransom paid (by the family).

“The arrested kingpin confessed that he used N3 million, part of the ransom, to open a provision shop in Minna, Niger State which he was running with his wife.”

According to Awunah, the original papers of the houses and plots of land have been recovered and registered as exhibits and the shop also sealed.

“The Nigeria Police Force, with the assistance and the support of the people will ensure that no crime committed will go undetected and perpetrators apprehended for justice and closure to prevail in the court of law,” he said.

He said the IG reassured Nigerians and foreigners of the readiness of the police under his leadership to deliver dedicated and quality policing.

He urged all to be vigilant, provide useful information and report suspicious movements and activities to the police for prompt response.

Ejiofor Alike with agency report

Crude oil rose by as much as 6.5 per cent monday to an 18-month high after the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC producers reached their first deal since 2001 to jointly reduce output to try to tackle global oversupply and boost prices.

After a year of wrangling, OPEC had agreed on November 30 to cut output by 1.2 million bpd for six months, effective January 1, 2017, with top exporter Saudi Arabia cutting around 486,000 bpd to curb the oversupply that has dogged markets for two years.

The Guardian of the UK reported that a group of 11 countries, which are not part of the OPEC cartel, also collectively agreed to cut output by 558,000 barrels per day from January 1, 2017.

The cut by non-OPEC bolstered the production cuts agreed by OPEC to stem the worldwide glut in oil and drive prices higher.

Also, the deal between OPEC and non-OPEC producers was the first of such deals between the two groups in 15 years.

Saudi Arabia further signalled that it might be prepared to make deeper cuts, on top of the 486,000 bpd it initially pledged.

“I can tell you with absolute certainty that effective January 1, we’re going to cut and cut substantially to be below the level that we have committed to on November 30,” said Saudi’s Oil Minister Khalid al-Falih after Sunday’s meeting.

Reuters also reported that on Saturday, producers from outside OPEC, led by Russia, agreed to reduce output by 558,000 bpd, short of the target of 600,000 bpd but still the largest contribution by non-OPEC members ever.

From outside OPEC, Russia said it would gradually cut 300,000 bpd.

Following the steps taken by the global producers to reduce the inventory in the oil market, Brent crude futures were up $2.21 at $56.54 per barrel, after hitting a session peak of $57.89, the highest since July 2015.

The price was 50 per cent higher than at this time last year, marking the largest year-on-year rise on any given day since September 2011.

US crude futures were up $2.16 at $53.66 a barrel.

With the deal signed after almost a year of disagreements within OPEC and mistrust in the willingness of non-OPEC Russia to participate, focus is switching to compliance of the agreement.

Saudi Aramco has told US and European customers that it will reduce oil deliveries from January.

• Church’s pastor speaks from hospital bed, absolves self of blame

Chiemelie Ezeobi in Lagos and Okon Bassey in Uyo with agency report

The number of people who died in Saturday’s collapsed Reigners Bible Church building in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom capital, has been put at 29.

The state Commissioner of Police, Murtala Mani, confirmed this in Uyo while speaking to the media yesterday.

However, Reuters disputed the figures, anchoring doubts on witness accounts. Reuters said no fewer than 100 people were killed by the collapsed church belonging to Reigners Bible Church International, according to a resident and photojournalist who visited a morgue.

On Sunday, it was reported that 27 had died, while 37 persons, who suffered from various degrees of injury were receiving treatment at designated hospitals.

The latest figure now shows that 35 persons injured were receiving treatment. The police commissioner said: “The remaining 35 persons are responding to treatment.”

He however declined to confirm whether any member of the Akwa Ibom Executive Council (EXCO) was involved. “I don’t know of any EXCO member involved,” Mani said.

He also said that he was not aware of the arrest of the contractor and the engineers that handled the church building project.

In a statewide broadcast on Sunday condoling the victims’ families, the state governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel, had ordered the arrest of the contractor that handled the church building.

Emmanuel also ordered an investigation into the cause of the building collapse during a worship session, where the governor himself, who was in attendance but escaped unhurt.

The governor was the special guest of honour at the bishopric consecration service of the church’s founder, Mr. Akan Weeks.

The church sited along Uyo village road near Government House, was alleged to have been hastily completed to host the bishopric enthronement of the founder.

Despite the official casualty figures provided by the police, the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Charles Udoh, yesterday said that the state government could not release or confirm the exact number of deaths recorded following the collapse of the church until reports of various agencies involved in the rescue operation were compiled.

The commissioner, who was one of the survivors of the tragedy and was admitted at the Ibom Specialist Hospital for the injuries he sustained, made the statement from his hospital bed.

“I have directed my Permanent Secretary and Chief Information Officer to get in touch with emergency agencies to ascertain the actual figures so that we can release them formally.

“They have assured me they are on top of it. I will get in touch with them again and will be able to sort that out as soon as possible,” he said.

Opening up on his ordeal at the church, Udoh said: “Watching the roof come down was like watching a scene in a movie. I was actually trying to rush out to catch a flight, just as I stood up to seek His Excellency’s (the governor) permission, I saw the roof coming down.

“Surprisingly I did not panic, even with the notion that the roof was coming down. The first thing that came to my mind was to avoid the main pillar from hitting me; the other option was to try and get in between the iron rods, this was within a split of second.

“When that thought came I was like: ‘This thing is going to chop off my head.’ So the next thought was to pick up a chair to protect my head, but and the thing slammed the chair out of my hands and landed on my head.

“I didn’t fall, I was still standing, then my phone fell, so I bent to find my phone when I realised that my face was covered with blood.

“I tried finding my way out, when the lady that was beside held me and begged for help. I tried to help but couldn’t because she was already trapped.

“At that moment the only thing that came to mind was to get out of the rubble before I lost consciousness. Luckily for me, as I got out, I saw my police orderlies and was rushed to the hospital.”

Nollywood actor, Ekere Nkanga, who was also injured, said: “From my knowledge of safety first, there is no accident that is not a human error.

“I actually observed that the church was under construction and the roof was partly covered. Shortly after the governor and all the EXCO members and the bishops took their seats, we were about start the main event, then we heard a loud sound.

“From the moment we heard the sound and the moment we saw corpses wasn’t up to 10 seconds. This was beyond comprehension; I personally saw death coming but some force greater than me kept me alive.

“A few seconds later, when I was trying to get up, the body of a man cut into two from the belly was on me. There were corpses on me. From the crumbled parts of corpses, God raised me up.

“I looked at the man on my left, he was like a vegetable, so I picked him up and gave him to the next man, looked out for my brother but I couldn’t find him but I was able to control the panic rising in me.

“So, I later found my phone and called the Chairman of Uyo Local Government Area to mobilise rescue and medical teams. People were crying seeing their relatives dead.

“I had to start beating people to ascertain those that were dead and those who were alive. We were able to free about five to eight people who were trapped before I started searching for my brother.”

Nkanga added that in the mayhem that ensued, he did not know that he had been injured in the neck until he felt a paid around the neck and a subsequent x-ray at the hospital showed that he neck was sprained necessitating his admission.

Church’s Pastor Absolves Self of Blame

Also speaking in a radio broadcast from his hospital bed in Uyo, the founder and presiding pastor of the church, Mr. Weeks, appealed to residents of Akwa Ibom State not to blame him for the tragedy, insisting that he was innocent.

Weeks, who spoke from an undisclosed hospital, said: “I am presently injured, one of my legs has been condemned and I am still being treated. This is not the time to criticise me. I am still your brother, I am still your pastor, all members of Reigners’ family stand by their people.”

The pastor debunked rumours that despite the tragedy, he still went ahead the same day to be enthroned as a bishop at a church near Uyo.

“Please, let nobody believe the rumour that I have been enthroned as a bishop. The enthronement was cancelled completely and I am not interested.

“I am much more interested in the souls of those people that I laboured to win over to Christ over the years right from my tender age. I am so sorry I sympathise with all the families. Please let us rise and pray, together we will win the battle,” he said.

He added: “The incident that happened on Saturday during my enthronement was very unfortunate. But God is still on the throne. What happened, God knows best, nobody can question him and I want to say that for the departed souls and those injured, God will give a quick and speedy recovery wherever they are.”

He said since the incident occurred, the church’s leaders had visited all the hospitals across the state to pray with people and console them.

“I want to say to every family in pain that God is the healer. Let all Christians in Akwa Ibom State know that this battle is not Akan Weeks and his church. It is a battle between the kingdom of darkness and the church in the land,” he said.

Weeks thanked the state government, security operatives, hospitals and blood donors, among others, who had helped with the rescue operation.

“I want to say a very big thank you to the governor, Deacon Udom Emmanuel, for his support and love for standing by us in this trying moment.

“I also want to appreciate all the medical personnel, the hospitals, those that have donated blood, and those that have been standing by us in this trying moment.

“I am really sympathetic over the departed souls; you are really in my heart. As soon as I recover fully, I will come on air to also pray and appreciate every one of you,” he promised.

Synagogue Dismisses Claims of Stampede

Meanwhile, the Synagogue Church of all Nations (SCOAN) yesterday dismissed claims that three persons were killed in a stampede that allegedly occurred within the church’s premises at the Ikotun area of Lagos.

Reports earlier yesterday said the victims died while struggling to see and touch the General Overseer of the church, Prophet Temitope Joshua, popularly known as TB Joshua, during a special healing service held at the church.

Although the reports claimed that the police from the Ikotun Division had moved the corpses to the mortuary pending identification by their relatives, the church claimed no stampede occurred.

The Synagogue church witnessed a similar tragedy two years ago, when a six-storey guest house within its premises collapsed, killing 115 persons, 84 of them from South Africa.

Speaking yesterday on the condition of anonymity, one of the media officials of the church said: “It was just a rumour. I can tell you categorically that nothing of such happened here.

“Funny enough, I was even in church on that said Saturday when they claimed it happened. All the same, when I got the call from a journalist, I still consulted the media team.

“You can do your findings. Nothing like that happened. You know the media team follows the prophet around with a video and still camera. How come none of the cameras picked up the stampede?”

When THISDAY reached out to both the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and its state counterpart, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), they also said they were not aware of any stampede at the Lagos-based church.

The state Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, also said he was not aware of any stampede of any nature in Lagos.

According to Owoseni, there was no way something of that nature could have happened without the police in the area being aware of the incident.

He said he was aware that the Synagogue Church had a programme over the weekend and asked for security, but added that his men did not file any report of a stampede.

Further attempts by THISDAY to reach out to the chief security officer of the church, one Mohamdim Ahmed, proved abortive, as he did not respond to the calls on his phone. He also did not reply to a text message sent to him as of press time.

• PDP wins two, APC one as both parties reject results
• Wike: Federal might will not work in 2019
• Makarfi, Sheriff trade words over mega party

Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt and Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The anarchy in Rivers State arising from the violent rerun elections held in the state on Saturday, took a turn for the worse yesterday when some security operatives made up of soldiers and policemen in Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) uniforms stormed the Port Harcourt City Hall collation centre and tried to disrupt the declaration of results by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

INEC yesterday had announced the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidates – Senator George Sekibo and Mr. Osinachukwu Ideozu – winners of the senatorial rerun elections in Rivers East and Rivers West Senatorial Districts, respectively.

This was after the commission had declared Senator Magnus Abe as the winner of the Rivers South East Senatorial District election on Sunday.

However, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state kicked against the results that showed PDP had won two of the senatorial seats, saying it would contest them as it was not done in accordance with the law.

Declaring the results at the collation centre, the Returning Officer for Rivers East, Prof. Orji Okumenkama, said Sekibo scored 93,098 votes to defeat the candidate of the APC, Chief Andrew Uchendu, who scored 34,193 votes.

The Returning Officer for the Rivers West Senatorial District, Prof Raphael Ndubuisi Echebiri, also declared that Ideozu of the PDP had polled 107,166 votes to defeat APC’s Otelemaba Amachree who scored 46,898 votes.

The announcement of the results, however, did not come without drama, as some security operatives made up of soldiers and policemen in SARS uniforms stormed the Port Harcourt City Hall collation centre and tried to disrupt the process.

However, as more people were attracted to the melee that ensued at the city hall, the security operatives shot sporadically into the air to scare the people and made their exit.

In the ensuing confusion, an INEC election officer, Mary Tokoyo, was manhandled.

“They (security operatives) hit me with a chair, they slapped me. I was molested,” she told journalists as she was taken to the hospital for medical attention.

The state governor, Nyesom Wike, was among those who rushed to the collation centre, as the security operatives invaded the centre.

Addressing supporters shortly after the announcement of the results, Sekibo dedicated his victory to “the resilience of the Rivers governor and the people”.

“I dedicate this victory to all the people of the Rivers East Senatorial District and indeed the entire people of the state. If not for their commitment and that they came out to support democracy, I believe that the hell-raiders would have taken away our mandate,” he said.

He also promised to pursue electoral reforms when he rejoins his colleagues at the Senate.

Also addressing the crowd at the city hall, Wike said the overbearing federal might which he said was on display before, during and after the rerun polls in the state, would not be allowed to happen in any other election in Rivers State, as the people had been taught how to prepare for elections.

He also threatened to withdraw logistics support to security agencies in the state in response to their activities during the elections.

Wike said: “I thank God for the strength and courage he has given to us in this election. We have really sacrificed. I know that freedom comes with sacrifice.

“Rivers people were murdered for just simple legislative elections. The federal government came with their might to conquer Rivers State, just because they wanted to win. They killed people because they want the state.

“The blood of those people they killed will be on their heads. States that cannot pay their workers salary and cannot carry out meaningful projects brought money to rig the elections in this state.

“They should be ashamed because they won one senatorial seat but we won two of the senatorial seats. They fought but God said, no way, do not be intimidated. This will never happen in 2019.

“They have shown us that there is no democracy in Nigeria, if not why don’t they conduct elections the way they have been done in other countries.”

In his reaction to the results released yesterday, APC gubernatorial candidate in the 2015 election and Director General of the National Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside, said the party would not accept the results, alleging that some local government areas were not collated.

Addressing journalists at the APC state secretariat, Peterside said: “We want to quickly give you a few important developments that happened today so that Rivers people and Nigerians will know what is happening in the state.

“This morning by 9:00 hours, Chinyere Igwe, a member of the Rivers State Executive Council, who is not an INEC official was caught with original pre-filled senatorial results for Emohua Local Government Area. The police have since arrested him.

“As I speak, Chinyere Igwe is still with the police and those pre-filled result sheets by members of the PDP are with the police. We have also been briefed by our representatives that they have gone ahead to collate senatorial results without the result of Emohua, which is the local government of our senatorial candidate.

“Meanwhile, there was a proper election in Emohua and credible results where APC emerged victorious. However, because, they could not bring in their fake result sheets, the result they filled outside the purview of INEC, they have gone ahead to declare a few other results.”

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Nnamdi Omoni (DSP), expressed ignorance over the arrest of Igwe.

He said he was not aware that the commissioner was arrested for any election malpractice.

Other results declared by INEC showed that the PDP’s candidate, Boma Goodhead, won federal constituency seat in Akukutoru/Asaritoru, Tai Barinada of the APC won the Tai/Eleme/Oyigbo federal constituency, Pronen Maurice of APC won the Khana/Gokana federal constituency, while Wihioka Chidi Frank of APC won the Ikwerre/Emohua federal constituency.

Also, Tekena Wellington of the PDP won the Asaritoru I state constituency, Enemi Alabo George of the PDP won Asaritory II state constituency, Blessing Pepple of the PDP won Bonny state constituency, Josiah John Olu of the APC won Eleme state constituency, Friday Nubari Nkeye of APC won Khana II state constituency, and Nwanjoku Chikre Azubuike of APC won the Ikwerre state constituency.

After the results were announced, INEC confirmed the conclusion of the senatorial elections in Rivers State.

Briefing journalists at the state headquarters in Port Harcourt last night, INEC’s National Commissioner in charge of the South-south Zone, Dr. Lecki Mustapha, said: “At the senatorial district level, we have three seats that were contested and all three seat have been returned. Nothing is outstanding as far as the senatorial elections are concerned.

“With regards to federal constituencies, we have eight federal constituency seats that were contested. Of this eight, four have been declared and four are outstanding. The four outstanding are Andoni/Opobo/Nkoro, Bonny/ Degema, Etche/Omuma and Okrika/Ogu/Bolo.

“As far as the state constituencies are concerned, we have nine state House of Assembly positions that were contested. Six out of these nine have been declared, three are outstanding comprising Andoni, Etche II and Gokana.”

On the Etche state constituency election, Mustapha added: “We had a lot of difficulties in Etche arising from violence, ballot snatching, attack on INEC officials and all these things affected the character of the election.

“As a result, we were not able to conclude the outstanding rerun election in Etche, pending further announcement from INEC.”

He also said: “As regards Andoni, which is also outstanding, we had a lot of difficulties due to violence. We went back there several times and up till this moment, after a meeting with Andoni stakeholders, we have agreed that we can reset the collation.

“So as we speak, the collation from the ward level up to the LGA level, which will result in the announcement at the state constituency level, we believe that before tomorrow morning that will be concluded and we will have a declaration for Andoni as far as the state constituency and federal constituency are concerned.”

PDP Rejects Senator Abe’s Victory

But in its reaction to the results declared by INEC, the PDP yesterday rejected the victory of Senator Magnus Abe in Rivers South East Senatorial District and accused the commission of using fabricated results to arrive at its decision.

The PDP also demanded that the commission should conduct another election in the senatorial district and condemned the continued delay by INEC in releasing the remaining collated results of the rerun elections.

A statement issued by the party’s spokesman, Mr. Dayo Adeyeye, accused INEC of withholding the results in collaboration with the security agencies to pave the way for the APC to manipulate the outcome of the elections.

“The result that has been released which declared Magnus Abe of the APC winner, is an unprecedented massive manipulation of the electoral process, in active connivance with the security agencies.

“The whole world knows that elections did not take place in the Rivers South East Senatorial District.

“We therefore reject the declaration of Magnus Abe with the fabricated results, and demand INEC to conduct another election in that district. We promise to avail ourselves of every opportunity to seek redress on this matter in the interest of democracy and that of the constituents who were denied their right to vote,” it said.

While expressing dismay at the continued delay of the remaining results by INEC, PDP asked the commission to immediately release the affected results intact.

“Anything short of this is unacceptable and INEC, the security agencies and the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, should be held responsible for whatever manner the people of Rivers State decide to react for robbing them of their votes.

“We again condemn in totality, the adverse role of the Nigerian Army, the Police Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and other security agencies during this rerun elections in Rivers State.

“It was a nightmare and a complete reversal of their constitutional mandates of safeguarding the territorial integrity of the country and the protection of lives and properties.

“There is incontrovertible evidence that the security agencies worked for the APC against the interest of the Rivers people. They followed the directives of the APC chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun and Governor Ibrahim Ganduje of Kano State during the mega rally of the APC last week.

“They killed, they maimed, they harassed, all in a desperate bid to help the APC win at all cost. Very sad!

“It is trite that the army dishonourably left its primary assignment and worked assiduously with INEC, in collusion with the APC leaders in Rivers State led by the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, and mindlessly wrote the results that produced Senator Magnus Abe in Rivers South East Senatorial District. This action depicts a sheer rape on democracy,” the party said.

In addition, the PDP’s factional leaders engaged each other in verbal attacks yesterday over moves to realign with other political groups ahead of the 2019 general election.

The spokesman of the Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led PDP, Mr. Adeyeye, said in a statement that Sheriff and his co-travellers were agents of the APC working to destabilise the PDP.

“We maintain that these people are agents of the APC. They are paid agents of the ruling party to destabilise our great party. It is evident that they are all profiting from the crisis.

“We are concerned about the massive rigging of the elections in Rivers State by the APC. These agents of the devil are careless. If they are true members of the party, will they be gloating over the open robbery of our party in Edo, Ondo and now Rivers?” he asked.

Adeyeye described the latest outburst from the Sheriff-led faction of the PDP as “acting on the prompting of its sponsors who want to use the faction to divert attention from the electoral heist in Rivers State”.

The statement said: “Note that Sherriff and his cohorts have never for once spoken for the party against the APC. Nor have they at anytime defended the interest of the party in any way.

“All they have always done is to constitute a source of distraction, nuisance and irritation for us at very critical times.”

But the Deputy Chairman of the Sheriff faction, Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, issued a counter statement, accusing Makarfi and the National Caretaker Committee that he chairs of a plan to drag the PDP into an alliance with other political groups.

“Senator Makarfi, in an interview, claimed that Ali Modu Sheriff in planning a one-party state in Nigeria. That is the same Ali Modu Sheriff that three governors claimed wanted to contest for the post of president in the PDP.

“Fellow Nigerians, party faithful, the illegal caretaker committee has now transcended from impunity to blackmail. There is nothing they will not say or do to lay claims to the headship of our dear PDP which they plan to annihilate.

“It is interesting to note that the Board of Trustees of the party has stated that the party will not change its name or join a mega party. Makarfi and his illegal caretaker committee is free to form their own party. They should kindly exit the party with their impunity and corruption,” he said.

Executive Secretary of Africa Free Zones Association, Chris Ndibe, has advised the Federal and Borno State Governments to consider developing the free trade zone at Banki, a border town between Borno State and Cameroun.

He said in an interview with THISDAY that if the free trade zone had been in operation, the Boko Haram insurgency would not have happened.

Ndibe suggested that putting it into operation as quickly as possible will stem further tendencies to engage in violent activities as many more youths will be engaged in gainful employment.

Noting that the Borno State government didn’t do much with regards to operationalising the free trade zone, he advised that greater effort be invested in that direction.

He also wants concession of Tinapa and Kano free zones to commence in earnest while all other free trade zones in the country should be reactivated. To achieve this seamlessly, he suggested the involvement of private sector investors to partner with the government.

Ndibe also urged the government to revisit the act establishing the free trade zones authority, noting that having been set up by a 1992 act, the enabling legal framework is overdue for review. He said in some climes, such acts are reviewed every five years.

According to him, that of Nigeria shouldn’t be different.

He also spoke on the report of a workshop held in Calabar which extensively discussed the need for a separation of regulations function of the board from management function in the running of the free zones scheme.

According to Ndibe, the communique from the workshop stated that incentive for the zones should be aligned with other laws to avoid conflict.
Some of the resolutions are as follow:
*Create a governance achievement with business setting in mind and that knowledgeable persons and free zones experts to form members of board of the Free Zones Authority.

*The Nigeria Customs Service and other relevant agencies should be directed to evolve a processing system which recognizes free zone as a one-stop shop where bureaucracy is minimised and commercial activities fast-tracked.

*Lack of trust between Customs and Free Trade Zone Authorities has affected the growth of the free trade scheme.

Ndibe stated that AFZA was against the establishment of NIDZA “for it has nothing to do with FTZ or oil and gas trade zone.”

He added : “The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, through its Nigeria Content, should develop appropriate synergy with the free zones in order to ensure that their activities promote the achievement of significant local content in the oil and gas industry.”

The communique also suggested: “There is the need to stipulate, as a matter of policy, that the free zones should produce a comprehensive master plan as a precondition for recognition. This will ensure the orderly development, phase by phase, of such zones in line with national policy objectives. “

In particular, it said Tinapa should be revived by appointing a free zones development and management consultant to manage it, adding that the process of its privatization ought to have started.

By John Shiklam in Kaduna

Kaduna state governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai has signed the state’s 2017 appropriation bill passed by the state assembly into law.

The size of the 2017 budget is N214.921 billion, made up of N83.46 billion in recurrent spending and N131.45 billion capital expenditure.

In his remark shortly after signing the document on Tuesday at the Government House, Kaduna, El-Rufai said the budget favours the poor and is aimed at improving access to education, healthcare, infrastructure, jobs and security.

“It puts the needs and interests of our people first. In 2017, Kaduna state will spend N44.84 billion on education; N10.49 billion on Health; N24.50 billion on infrastructure, N8.1 billion on water and N4.58 billion on agriculture.

He added that the programme on rebuilding and expansion of township roads will be expanded while the first phase of mass transit scheme will kick off.

He added that an emergency nutrition intervention programme will be introduced to reduce malnutrition and hunger amongst the poorest citizens and children.

According to him, the 2017 budget contains items that reflect increased investment in security and appropriate technology for deterring and detecting crimes and enabling the prosecution of criminals.

The governor who disclosed that the state had just received a debt refund from the federal government which was not captured in the budget, adding that a supplementary will soon be submitted to the state assembly to capture it.

He said 50 per cent of the funds belong to the state government while 45 per cent is for the 23 local governments in the state.

• as party resolves issues with House of Reps caucus

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara, has asked the National Chairman of Progressives Congress (APC) Chief John Odigie-Oyegun and other members of the National Working Committee (NWC) that the party cannot afford to be complacent if it hopes to remain in power.

Dogara who regretted that regular meetings the party leadership and its members at National Assembly ought to have been taken place before now, however,said the though many mistakes were made at the on set of the administration, the meeting was able to trash most of issues affecting the relationship with members in the House of Representatives.

“As long as it is human institution where human beings are involved, no human being is perfect. In a situation where you don’t have perfection, certInly there will be mistakes. There are plenty mistakes and wee will not run away from them. If we think that we should have a party that will have not have challenges or problems or crisis, you are just deceiving yourself.

” You can’t put the party in an autopilot as it were and expect that it will run on its own. We looked at all those areas and so e of the, are family issues which you can not bring to public glare. But as sons of the party, we have been able to look at those areas and I can assure you that we have trashed them,’ he said.

Oyegun had led NWC to a similar meeting last week with the Senate caucus of the party led by the Senate President Bukola Saraki.

Speaking yesterday at the APC national secretariat before he led other principals members of the House to a closed-door meeting with the party national officers, Dogara warned that if the APC leaders hands nothing will be achieved.

Laleye Dipo in Minna
Following his inability to convince the Abuja Electricity Development Company (AEDC)  to improve its services, the Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello, has taken the case before President Muhammad Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo  and the National Assembly.

The governor’s petition was the last resort after the state had been thrown into blackout for more than three weeks leading to a near total collapse of commercial and social activities.

Bello personally disclosed that he had taken the step when he received the Korean Ambassador in Nigeria, Mr Non Kyu-Duk, in office after the inauguration of a rice processing plant in Bida town.

The governor condemned the over one week power blackout being experienced in the state and said the development was no longer acceptable.
The governor demanded immediate power restoration by Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) to the cities and towns in the state.

He expressed this concern at the weekend while inaugurating a multi-million dollar integrated rice milling plant in Bida, in Bida Local Government Area of the state.
The governor who said the state could no longer tolerate the poor service of the AEDC, declared that “Niger State alone contributes about 1,500 megawatts of power to the national grid, but we are the worst hit state in terms of power supply.
“During raining season, we suffer a lot of flooding. Our people living in the riverine areas suffer every year. This year alone, over 100 communities were submerged and yet we don’t have light.

“Minna, the state capital and many towns in the state have been without light for over three weeks. This is not acceptable. I have discussed with the president and the vice president. I have complained to Minister of Power and people who care to listen and I don’t want to continue to complain.”

He said the state knows its rights and was tired of complaining before asking the president and others to intervene before it would be too late.
“We know our rights. Whoever is in charge, whoever is responsible, I have one message, reverse the situation. We have been patient enough to be this day. We have complained and we have written series of letters. Let the distribution company reverse the situation now.

“We are  a patient people, we are law abiding citizens. Our patience, tolerance and obedience should and must not be interpreted as weakness,” the governor warned.
However, in a statement which the management of the AEDC circulated in the state last weekend, the company claimed the load shedding taking place in Niger, Nasarawa, Kogi and the Federal Capital Territory was as a result poor supply from the national grid.

It blamed the situation on the drop of water in the three hydro electric dams at Jebba, Kainji and Shiroro that contribute 20 per cent of electricity to the grid.
The management claimed that the rationing of electricity was not as a result of debt owed by customers in the franchise area as was being claimed in some circle.

• Police parade suspects in possession of election materials, arms

Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt and Dele Ogbodo in Abuja
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has alleged that some governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) donated N1 billion each to rig last Saturday’s rerun legislative elections in the state in favour of the APC.
He insisted that what he described as the brazen subversion of the democratic rights of Rivers people and the state-sponsored violence unleashed across the state during the December 10 rerun elections were carefully planned by some highly placed politicians and selected APC governors.

The governor said the violence unleashed and theft of the mandate of some constituencies by security agencies were bankrolled by the governors of Plateau, Benue, Kano and Bauchi States through the donation of N1 billion each by the said governors.

Addressing his people in a state broadcast yesterday, Wike said: “The brazen subversion of our democratic rights that took place on December 2016, was carefully planned and orchestrated by some highly-placed and desperate politicians from the state in concert with the governors of Bauchi, Benue, Kano and Plateau States, who reportedly bankrolled the plan with the sum of one billion naira each, at a time they cannot pay the salaries of civil servants, let alone embark on development projects in their states.

“If Rivers people could be visited with such a despicably high degree of violence, mayhem and killings by some renegade military and SARS operatives with impunity just to rescue the dying political fortunes of the APC in a mere legislative re-run elections, then we can now begin to imagine what is likely to happen in the state when the political stakes would be very much higher in 2019.”

He regretted the brazen manner that federal might was negatively used to ensure the return of APC candidates at all cost. He noted that the people of the state still needed to thank God because the negative outcome could have been worse.
The governor said the state government received credible information on the planned electoral theft and mass violence through the use of security agents, but all efforts to alert the nation were disregarded.

He pointed out that he hadbeen vindicated by the ugly incidents of December 10 where two senior policemen, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Steven Hasso and the Commander of Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) Chief Superintendent of Police, Akin Fakorede and other security operatives allegedly tormented Rivers people, killing many in the process.
He said: “They accused us of raising unnecessary alarms when we cried aloud over their devilish plans to use the federally-controlled SARS to disenfranchise our people and manipulate the re-run election process towards achieving some pre-arranged outcomes against the will of the people.

The governor added: “If Rivers people could be visited with such a despicably high degree of violence, mayhem and killings by some renegade military and SARS operatives with impunity just to rescue the dying political fortunes of the APC in a mere legislative re-run elections, then we can now begin to imagine what is likely to happen in the state when the political stakes would be very much higher in 2019.

“Nigeria often prides itself as a beacon of democracy and quickly congratulates other African countries for successful democratic elections and political transitions. Yet, the painful irony is that we are still unable to guarantee the minimum rights of our citizens to free, fair and credible electoral processes at home. What a shame!”
He thanked the people of the state for the courage they displayed in the face of state terror.

He sympathised with the families of those who lost their lives in the course of the rerun elections , praying God to grant them the strength to bear their loss.
Meanwhile, in the latest results released by the Independent national Electoral Commission (INEC), the PDP won two additional House of Representatives seats while the APC won one additional state House of Assembly seat.

The PDP won the Degema/Bonny Federal Constituency where Randolph Brown polled 16,815 votes to beat Ayeatamah Pepple of the APC who got 4,073 votes.

Hon. Gogo Bright Tamuno of the PDP also got 11,668 votes to beat Hon. Maureen Tamuno of the APC who polled 5,995 votes in the Okrika/Ogu-Bolo Federal Constituency.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) yesterday paraded five suspects found with sensitive INEC materials, arms and ammunition with the intention of rigging and causing violence in the cause of the election.

Briefing the media at the Force Headquarters, in Abuja, the Force Public Relations Officer, Don Awunah, said the five suspects caught with the materials and arms were arrested from different parts of the state in their attempted to scuttle the election.
The suspects paraded included, Noble Nwaerema, Dike Deinpiribo, Valentine Alalibo.   Onwunari J. Warmate and  Iloke Stephen,
Awunah said the attempt by some major political gladiators in the state to foist violence and trigger an atmosphere of insecurity failed woefully.

According to him, the conduct of the election in terms of police performance was acknowledged by major stakeholders as distinctively professional and a well-organised election when compared with previous elections in the state which major hallmarks were violence, disruption of electoral process, wanton destruction of lives and property.

In the course of the re-run election, some suspects who attempted to scuttle the electoral process were arrested and sensitive INEC materials were recovered from them, arms and ammunition inclusive.

The exhibits recovered from the suspects include: “A green INEC branded bag, eight booklets of ballot papers meant for Emohua Local Government Area, one  booklet of INEC accreditation incident report forms, one booklet of statement of results, one blood stained APC agent ID card.”

While the arms and ammunition recovered from the suspects include: one AK47 rifle, one assault rifle, six magazines, 112 rounds of live ammunition
However, he said  some security personnel were arrested for professional misconduct, actions, inactions, omission and commission that were detrimental to the electoral process.

He said: “Some of them directly or indirectly connived with some politicians to scuttle the process. A high powered investigative panel is currently looking into this unacceptable professional misconduct.”

Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa
The umbrella body of youths of Ijaw descent, the Ijaw Youth Council, worldwide, IYC, yesterday reacted to the increase in the proposed budget for the Niger Delta’s amnesty programme from N20 billion to N65 billion, saying that it shouldn’t call for any celebration from the people of the region.

The influential group argued that the increase would only enable the federal government meet its targeted daily output of oil from the region, describing the strategy as exploitative.

Instead, the IYC argued that attention should rather be shifted to how much is budgeted and released to the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, the Niger Delta Ministry and the federal Ministry of works to carry out developmental projects in the oil-rich coastal areas.

Spokesman of the IYC, Mr Eric Omare, told THISDAY yesterday, that it would be erroneous for the federal government to think that by increasing the amnesty budget, which he described as ‘security money’, it was doing the Niger Delta a favour.

President Muhammadu Buhari had during the presentation of the proposed 2017 budget noted that the government  would focus on a projected oil output of 2.2 million barrels per day at an assumed price of $42.5 dollars per barrel.

This year alone, there have been a series of attacks on oil and gas infrastructure by aggrieved  militants in the  Niger Delta, drastically reducing output and plunging the country into recession.

But the IYC noted that unless the development of the region is taken seriously, rather than the current ‘window dressing’ adopted by the government at the centre, the crisis in the region may never abate.

It said:” To put it in proper perspective, it should be noted that this increase is not for development of the Niger Delta, but for security and probably a bit of human capacity development.

“ The attention should be on how much is budgeted and released to the NDDC, the Niger Delta Ministry, the Ministry of works concerning the Niger Delta. Those are the areas we are interested in,” he said.

Omare maintained that even billions of naira that were budgeted in the past for the development of the region were never released, insisting that the increase in the amnesty budget should be viewed with cautious optimism.

However, the IYC commended the President for the increment in the amnesty budget, stressing that it was ‘ a right step in the right direction’.

“ We need to commend him, however. But this move has to be genuine. It is one thing to propose a budget, another for it to be passed and yet another thing for it to be released”, the group said.

The Managing Director, FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria PLC, Mr. Rahul Colaco, has been appointed Executive Director of the Business Group Consumer Products China with effect from 1 January 2017. He will report to Roelof Joosten, Global CEO, Royal FrieslandCampina, The Netherlands, and he will be located in Shanghai, China.

 Colaco will take over the responsibility for the Business Group Consumer Products China from Hein Schumacher, Chief Financial Officer, who is currently fulfilling the role on an interim basis.

Colaco has 19 years experience in the FMCG industry covering General Management, Marketing, Supply Chain and Finance, across developed and emerging markets.

He started his career with KPMG as an Auditor, after which he joined Hindustan Unilever, India in 1997 where he worked for six years, following which he had international experience with Unilever in various capacities in Italy and The Netherlands.

He later joined FrieslandCampina, one of the world’s leading dairy cooperatives, and was appointed Marketing Director in Malaysia (Dutch Lady Milk Industries) in 2010. He became the Managing Director in 2012, heading Malaysia’s leading dairy company, before his appointment in January 2015 as the Managing Director, FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria PLC, the leading dairy manufacturer in Nigeria.

Colaco holds a degree in Commerce from Mumbai University, India and he possesses an MBA from IMD Lausanne, Switzerland. He is a chartered accountant by profession.

The Executive Board of Royal FrieslandCampina and the Board of Directors of FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria wish Rahul Colaco every success in his new position.

FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc is affiliated to Royal FrieslandCampina of The
Netherlands and is a major player in the Nigerian dairy industry, nourishing Nigerians with quality dairy nutrition with key brands as Peak, Three Crowns and Friso.
According to the Corporate Affairs Director, Ore Famurewa, Colaco’s successor would be named soon.

Tobi Soniyi in Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the leadership of the Nigerian military for the intellectual transformation of the officer corps.

A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Garba Shehu, said the president spoke yesterday at a ceremony for the decoration of two senior officers working closely with him at the State House.

 The president said modern armies required superiority of intellect and imagination to achieve victory in warfare.

 Addressing the newly-promoted officers, Air-Vice Marshal Sadiq Ismaila Kaita, the Commander of the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF) and Colonel Mohammed Lawal Abubakar, his Aide-De-Camp (ADC), Buhari expressed happiness with the dazzling array of university degrees they had acquired.

He, however, urged all officers to ensure the translation of academic achievements to performance in the field and other places of assignment.

“I am happy with the intellectual approach of the military.  In our time, there was no time for academic pursuit.  It was all about war, coups and counter-coups,” he noted.
Buhari said in times of peace and stability, military officers should use such opportunity to pursue their intellectual transformation which should go side-by-side with hardware transformation of modern armies.

The president urged officers to read History, irrespective of their academic backgrounds, describing it as an important pre-requisite for strategic learning and success in the military.

He said the good quality of the officer corps of the Nigerian military called for good performance.
Buhari congratulated both officers on their various achievements in their services and urged them to always be mindful of the welfare of those placed under their command.

Both Air Vice-Marshal Kaita and Colonel Abubakar have, prior to their current assignments, served the country in peace-keeping missions abroad and are married with families.

• Official casualty figure now 26
Okon Bassey in Uyo
Akwa Ibom State Government yesterday dismissed any plan for the state to organise a mass burial for victims in the collapsed church building of Reigners Bible Church International Inc. in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital.

The clarification on the issue of mass burial of the victims was given at a press briefing held by the state government in Uyo, just as official and authentic figure of death recorded in the incident was put by the state government at 26.

The Special Assistant to the Governor on Public Affairs, Mr. Raphel Edem, was the spokesperson; with the state Commissioner for Health, Dominic Ukpong, Commissioner for Works, Ephraim Inyang, Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General of the state, Uwenedimo Nwoko, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Cordelia Nwaiwe and SA to the Governor on Medical in the panel.

“People are afraid that there will be mass burial, so they have been invading the hospitals, some of them actually attack some of our staff demanding the discharge of their dead.

“I want to assure you that government has no intention to do mass burial for the victims. What we are doing is to ensure that we preserve the bodies properly until the police give us the authority to release them.

“And when people come to claim them they have to be properly identified because at a time like this some people come to claim corpses that are not theirs. It is our responsibility to see that we release each body to the proper persons.

“There are four of these bodies not identified at all. I have brought experts to test for proper data so that people will not claim what is not their own. Let me announce to the state that government is responsible for all hospital charges of all those involved,” the Health Commissioner stated.

He explained that 168 cases were on admission in various hospitals, 30 of them have been discharged, while some are still in the hospitals; with 150 in the outpatient department who had been treated and released.

“We have conducted eight major surgeries. Most of these  are people thought to have been killed. As at today, the death toll is 26. This report cannot be refuted.
“When you have such a tragedy with mass casualties there is bound to be confusion in figures. The most authentic figure is from the health department. At a time like this, there is a lot of anxiety and confusion.”

The SA on Public Information had in his briefing said: “After making the rounds of all the hospitals concerned, and in consultation with officials of the health and security services who were directly involved in the rescue operations, the figures we have been able to reconcile indicate that 26 people passed on as a result of the incident.”

“The government is at a loss as to how members of the public came by the alarming and bogus figures being bandied around by rumour mongers and some sections of the media.
“The government believes that it is morally wrong to seek to make profit form this tragedy by publishing sensational figures in order to boost newspaper sales, listenership or viewership.

“As much as we understand the desire to claim the remains of their loved ones, government also wishes to appeal to the family members of those who passed on to exercise patience as their demands would be met as soon as the security  agencies conclude their investigations.

The state government announced the restriction of members of the public from the site of the incident saying only investigators are allowed access to the environment.
He said the panel of investigation set up by the state government made up of seasoned professionals will commence work immediately on the tragedy.

• Says president not fit to intervene in Gambian political logjam
Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti
Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has described the Tuesday judgment of the Federal High Court in Ado-Ekiti declaring as illegal the freezing of his bank accounts by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) as a defeat of fascism being experienced under President Muhammadu Buhari.

The governor who stated this in Ado Ekiti yesterday through his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, said: “The trial judge ordered the EFCC to immediately defreeze the said accounts. This, again, is a welcome development.”
In his ruling, Justice Taiwo Taiwo said the EFCC viciously violated the laws of the land by deliberately neglecting to follow due process and laid down regulations in freezing my bank accounts.

The judge also found that the EFCC and its lawyers deliberately misled the court in securing its purported interim order to freeze my accounts by not declaring the identity of the owner of the account.

He commended Justice Taiwo for stating that as a sitting governor who enjoys “total constitutional immunity” under Section 308 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, no legal proceedings could be instituted against.

“To circumvent this, thereby perverting the course and cause of justice, the EFCC deliberately refused to declare my identity while moving against my accounts.
“The trial judge also found that I was deliberately kept in the dark about the EFCC’s sinister motives and devious plots in that I was not made a party to the case; yet, my accounts were the target of the EFCC’s actions.

“Justice Taiwo thus described this as a breach of my fundamental rights to fair hearing, adding: “The plaintiff is entitled to be heard before his property or money can be seized; doing otherwise will amount to denying him fair hearing and constitutional rights.”

Meanwhile, Fayose has described President Buhari’s involvement in the meeting with President Yahya Jammeh to persuade him to concede defeat as an aberration, saying: “A man like Buhari under whose free, fair and credible elections no longer exist lacks moral rights to preach obedience to democratic principles to anyone.”

The governor said great Africans like former President Goodluck Jonathan, President John Mahama of Ghana and others who have lost elections and conceded defeat were in the best position to intervene in the Gambia and not someone like Buhari, who lost election three times and never conceded defeat.

He said: “With what happened in Rivers State last weekend, it is certain that votes of Nigerians will no longer be allowed to count as the APC cabal in the Presidential Villa has now assumed the roles of INEC, allocating votes to their party and using security agents to force their will on the people.”

Fayose asked: “Did President Buhari face Jammeh and advised him to accept defeat the way he (Buhari) conceded defeat in 2003, 2007 and 2011 when violence was instigated and several people, including youth corps members were killed? Or did Buhari lecture Jammeh to take to democracy at gunpoint, which is now the norm in Nigeria?
“How can Buhari, who has destroyed the legacy of free, fair and credible elections that was handed over to him, be the one to prevail on someone else to adhere to democratic principles?

A Federal High Court in Lagos has fixed January 16, 17 and 18, 2017 for continuation of trial of a former Minister for Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, for money laundering.

Fani-Kayode, who was also a former Director of Media and Publicity, Campaign Committee of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, is charged alongside a former Minister of Finance, Nenandi Usman, and Danjuma Yusuf.

Also charged is a company, Joint Trust Dimension Nigeria Limited.
They were arraigned on a 17-count charge bordering on unlawful retention, unlawful use and unlawful payment of money in the tune of about N4.9 billion.

They had each pleaded not guilty to the charge and were granted bail.
The trial of the accused, which was earlier billed for December 12, was disrupted because of the public holidays.

The court has now fixed three days January 16, 17, and 18, 2017 for continuation of trial.
In the charge, the accused were alleged to have committed the offences between January and March 2015.

In counts one to seven, they were alleged to have unlawfully retained over N3.8 billion which they reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act of stealing and corruption.

In counts eight to 14, the accused were alleged to have unlawfully used over N970 million which they reasonably ought to have known formed part of an unlawful act of corruption.
Meanwhile, in counts 15 to17 Fani-Kayode and one Olubode Oke who is said to be at large, were alleged to have made cash payments of about N30 million, in excess of the amount allowed by law, without going through a financial institution.

Besides, Fani-Kayode was alleged to have made payments to one Paste Poster Co. (PPC) of No 125 Lewis Street, Lagos, in excess of amounts allowed by law.juui
All offences were said to have contravened the provisions of sections 15 (3) (4), 16 (2) (b), and 16 (5) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2012.

• Insists on payment of  $170m damages awarded by court
•US ambassador visits El-Rufai, silent on IMN leader

Paul Obi in Abuja and John Shiklam in Kaduna
Human Rights Watch (HRW) yesterday joined  the chain of stakeholders calling on the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to stop the persecution of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) as known as Shiites.

The group also frowned at government’s blatant disregard for the rule of law, specifically turning a blind to several court judgments against abuse of power.

Senior Researcher at Human Rights Watch, Nigeria, Mausi Segun, in the report, argued that the Nigerian authorities should end their violent repression of the IMN, a minority Shia group, that began with a three-day lethal crackdown on December 12-14, 2015, and free its leader, Human Rights Watch said yesterday.

“Sheik Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, leader of the IMN, and his wife, Zeenatudeen, have been detained without trial for a year. On December 12, 2015, the Nigeria army used disproportionate force against the group’s street procession in Zaria, Kaduna State in North-western Nigeria to clear a route for the army chief’s convoy.

“In an ensuing three-day violent crackdown, the army killed 347 members of the group and injured and arrested scores more. The violence against the group continued in a series of episodes in October and November 2016.

“The involvement of soldiers in the Zaria incidents, and subsequent police actions against the Shiites raises major questions about Nigeria’s commitment to military reform. The Kaduna state government’s continued repression of the group without holding the attackers responsible turns justice on its head,” Segun stressed.

According to HRW, “Nigerian authorities should hold accountable anyone who has committed crimes against Shiite members, and take immediate steps to comply with a federal court order mandating the release of El-Zakzaky and his wife.”

“HRW reported in December 2015 that the killings were unjustified and called for an independent and impartial investigation into the carnage.

“In a White Paper responding to the report released on December 5, 2016, the Kaduna State Government unilaterally declared the Shiite group to be an insurgent group against which the army was justified in using lethal force.

The group maintained that “contrary to the commission’s findings, the state government stated that soldiers who shot at protesters, laid siege to religious sites belonging to the group, killed 347 members and buried them in unmarked mass graves, acted according to the army’s rules of operation.

“The Kaduna State government is seeking the death penalty against 50 members of the group who are facing trial for the death of the only military casualty in the episode, Corporal Dan Kaduna Yakubu.

“But it has essentially exempted the army from any responsibility for the killings of the IMN members, and no-one has been held responsible for the deaths.”
HRW added that “on October 7, the state government banned the IMN, citing the commission of inquiry’s finding that the group was unregistered.

Meanwhile, the new United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Stuart Symington, was silent about recent calls by his country for the release of the IMN leader, El-Zakzaky, when he paid a courtesy  visit to the Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, at the Government House, Kaduna yesterday.

Symington, who was accompanied by some embassy officials and officials of the Nigeria- America Chamber of Commerce during the visit, said he came to listen and to learn.
“I don’t mean to disappoint the press, but I have no message to deliver today except this;  I have come to listen and to learn, inform by wise women and wise men.

The ambassador who met briefly with el-Rufai under closed door before the courtesy call said: “It is always a good idea to start out by learning before you attempted to teach. But I come with one message and that is the importance of this place (seat of power), not just me, but to every person in this world. As I look at you, (the governor), I think how important this place will always be to you, to every one in the world.”

About two weeks ago, the  US Assistant Secretary and Department spokesperson of the Bureau of Public Affairs, John Kirby,  called on the federal government to release El- Zakzaky  following the judgment of an Abuja High Court ordering his release from detention.
In his remarks, el-Rufai commended the US for its assistance to the state in its development efforts.

He said the  partnership with bilateral organisations, particularly the US, UK, EU  were key to the development of the state.
He said with a population of about 10 million people of which about 89 per cent are below  the age of 35, the state needs more jobs.

“We are the third largest state in Nigeria, we are the centre of northern Nigeria. This is where any investment will have the greatest impact because every northern governor comes to Kaduna, they all have liaison offices here and this is the headquarters of the northern states governors forum.

“Looking as the development indicators in Nigeria, you will see that we have two countries – the South has better human development indicators and the north has human development indicators that compare worst in the world” he said.

According to him, “there is a need for significant interventions in the area of health, education, agriculture, trade and infrastructure in this part of the country, not only for it to catch up, but also for our young people to have opportunities as well as hope because it is lack of opportunities and lack of hope, compounded by ignorance that has created the kind of problems we have seen in the northeast. God forbid, we don’t want a repetition of that.”

He said: “Here in Kaduna State, we are battling with kidnapping, rural banditry and all kinds of criminality. The foundation of all these, I insist, is lack of education, lack of opportunities and lack of hope.
“A person with no hope has nothing to loose and this, we must do whatever we can to prevent.
“What Kaduna State needs more than anything is jobs, we cannot create jobs without investments…”

Iyobosa Uwugiaren in Abuja
The Minister for Budget and National Planning, Senator Udo Udoma, has said that federal government did not submit a revised Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) as reported by some newspapers Tuesday, saying it only updated the document that was earlier submitted based on the current National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report.

It also said the minister also never said that the federal government was looking to raise N10 trillion in 2017 from oil and non-oil sources.

“The MTEF/FSP were actually prepared about July this year and approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in August. The document was produced early and it fully complied with the requirements of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA),’’ the special adviser (media) to the minister, James Akpande, stated.

He said the reason the ministry did it at that time was to comply with the provisions of the FRA, saying that even at that time, the ministry knew there would be some updates.

He added: “We recall that page 33 of that document said government is currently working on an Economic Recovery and Growth Plan which may necessitate certain adjustments in some strategic sectors of the economy.

“At the time we completed the MTEF, it had not yet been confirmed that we were in recession; recession was confirmed thereafter. That, among other things, means that some of the information and data had to be updated, and that is what we have been doing. We have been working hard updating the data to make sure that it is consistent with the latest information.’’

He said one of the areas that the government had updated is the revenue expectations saying ‘’if you are in a recession, you can’t expect to have the same level of revenue as before.’’

“So, we adjusted it downwards. Independent revenues were adjusted downwards; Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) projections were adjusted downwards’’, he added.

“Having adjusted revenue projections downwards, we were faced with the issue: how do we get out of recession without spending? If we adjusted everything down, we will end up with a small budget, with small capital; and that conceivably cannot get us out of recession.

“So, we had to be innovative. We spent a long time trying to establish how do we get alternative revenue sources for the ones which we are not likely going to realize, of which we have actually down-graded.

“And it was clear to us that we have to look again at the oil sector because in order to diversify out of oil, the lowest hanging fruit is actually the oil sector.’’
He further added that one of the things government is doing is to engage much more on Niger Delta to bring up oil production.

He quoted Udoma as saying: “We also looked at restructuring the oil industry to generate more revenue. We have already announced that we are exiting cash calls. We are restructuring our arrangements with joint ventures so that we can actually get more revenue.’’

He said that looking at early licensing renewals next year – all these aimed at getting additional revenue.
“We also looked at the Atlantic Energy issue – how to allow new companies to acquire some of the assets. Details are still being worked out by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources,’’ he added.

“We are also aggressively looking at royalties. We found out that there were a lot of outstanding royalties. We are going after collecting those royalties so that we can fund the budget.

“After getting the nod of the National Assembly, government will be issuing promissory notes for outstanding liabilities of at least N2 trillion. We believe that with all these, we will be able to make up for the shortfall with the reduction we have made.”
“Some of the funds expected will be in foreign currencies and these should be able to beef up our revenues as well as our foreign reserves.’’

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The federal government has launched an Information Mobile Application (IAAP) that the public can refer to as one-shop information tool on government activities, notably on contract tenders and job placement.

The platform, which is downloadable from Google Play Store and can be used on any smart phone or iOS or android device, was launched yesterday by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed.

He said one of the revolutionary benefits of the app is that it would allow Nigerians to access the Tender Journal that is published twice a month to announce available government jobs, in addition to enabling more people, irrespective of their locations, to bid for government jobs.

The application designed by a Nigerian company, L- Cube, would provide the public with timely, accurate and authentic news reports on government policies, programmes and activities, while also allowing feedback mechanism for the information ministry to know what citizens feel about government.

Another value-added service of the App is the ‘’Be Inspired’’ section which allows any Nigerian, irrespective of his status, age or academic background, to meet top political, business, religious and other leaders.

“The introduction of this App is in line with my pledge when I assumed office to leverage the unique power of information and culture to drive the Change agenda of this administration, with the view to ensuring that Nigerians take ownership of the agenda to bring about a paradigm shift in the way we do things. It is also in line with the mandate of the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture to lead in the management of the image and reputation of the people and policies of the federal government of Nigeria through a professional and dynamic public Information system that facilitates access by citizens and the global community to credible and timely information about our nation,’’ Mohammed said.

A representative of L-Cube, Olawale Wale- Falope said the world see the many hidden goods about Nigeria through the app and present current and real time news about the country.