Tastefully Finished Four Bedroom Fully Detached House with 1 Rm BQ For Sale
₦100,000,000

Lekky County Megamound Lekki Lagos, 5 minutes to Shoprite and VGC.
Four Bedroom Luxury Fully detached house with one room Boys quarters for sale at Lekky County Megamound. Lekky County is a fully fenced estate with tight security and controlled access where you have to call the resident to call the gate before you can be allowed into the estate. The estate has a great drainage system, interlocked roads and streets and central water supply from the Estate's treatment plant.

Features of the House: Concrete-stamped Flooring, Custom made shower glass, Exquisite windows, Modern POP design, pressure pump, two pumping machines, enclosed overhead tank with floating switch, outside 3,000 liters tank with floating switch, central water heater, Connection to Estate water supply paid, Connection to Electricity paid already, Gerald Roofing, Luxury finishing, Turkey stainless steel railings for stair case, Luxury Fitted Kitchen with granite top, fitted cooker, microwave, extractor, and oven, Luxury wardrobes, Turkey stainless steel for balcony with 10mm tinted glass, parking for five cars, CCTV Camera wiring in place, DSTV wiring in place, Video Bell wiring in place, PPR pipes for plumbing.



For pictures and contact information, kindly click this link - Nigeria Property Centre
https://www.nigeriapropertycentre.com/for-sale/houses/detached-duplexes/lagos/lekki/ikota-villa-estate/322011-tastefully-finished-four-bedroom-fully-detached-house-with-1-rm-bq-for-sale

URGENT - 1,400-1,500sqms of vacant land needed at Obasanjo Hilltop GRA Abeokuta.

1. The land must have a CofO or Governor's Consent with originals available for viewing
2. The land must be either a flat surface land or land that slopes forward to the front of the house
3. The owner must be on ground either in Lagos or Abeokuta for closing.
4. Seller or Original owner who holds direct CofO or Governor's consent preferred to reseller.
Contact me at - 08122199530, 08033216775

http://saharareporters.com/2015/08/23/open-letter-president-muhammadu-buhari-economic-perspective-how-creatively-curb-both

Open Letter To President Muhammadu Buhari: An Economic Perspective On How To Creatively Curb Both The Demand And Supply Side Of Corruption In Nigeria

The supply side involves individuals and companies who are the bribe givers. While the demand side of corruption involves the potential bribe takers who are usually state actors like governors, commissioners, presidents, ministers, local government chairmen, permanent secretaries and directors at the Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal and State Governments.

The supply side involves individuals and companies who are the bribe givers. While the demand side of corruption involves the potential bribe takers who are usually state actors like governors, commissioners, presidents, ministers, local government chairmen, permanent secretaries and directors at the Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal and State Governments. The demand side of corruption also refers to state actors like members of the national assembly, state houses of assembly, local government councillors as well as state and federal judicial officers from the magistrate court to the Supreme Court. Bunmi Awoyemi

For us to curb the level of corruption in the land, we must energize and fund the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and restructure the agency in such a way that it can partner or collaborate with religious bodies, NGOs and our development partners to aggressively educate Nigerians on the cataclysmic effects of corruption on the nation. The target of this enlightenment campaign must be the whole of Nigeria, from the urban to the rural areas. The goal of the campaign is to change the hearts and minds of Nigerians on corruption.

Nigerians must be informed through these enlightenment campaigns to be carried out in all our major languages that the reason why people die in road accidents, and in death centers called hospitals is because most of the funds that ought to have been used to build good roads and well equipped hospitals are being embezzled by corrupt government officials and civil servants. They must be made to understand that the reason why the police force has become the enemy of the people instead of the friend of the people is the endemic corruption in the police force. The reason miscarriage of justice and delays in resolution of legal matters is so pervasive in our society is judicial corruption.

Merely prosecuting the corrupt and sending them to jail will not reduce corruption significantly because of the collective action problem. Looking at it from an economic angle, to achieve imprisonments or jail terms will cost the nation billions of naira to accomplish because the EFCC and ICPC will need to spend that much on litigations, and the government will probably have to spend billions also on prison expansion and upgrading the capacity of our court system to cope with an expected exponential rise in the number of cases that will be filed once you add corruption cases to the existing cases. Ex ante the introduction of the deluge of corruption cases to the existing courts system the system was already over burdened and dispensation of justice has been extremely and painfully slow for decades to the extent that it takes on the average 20-30 years for cases to go through the courts from filing at the High Court to final judgment at the Supreme Court.

After spending billions of naira, the outcome may be a slight reduction in the supply side of corruption. Not doing something creative to reduce the demand side of corruption may result in the role actors in the supply side of corruption reorganizing their strategies to simply pay higher or bigger bribes to accomplish the same thing that they would have accomplished with lower or smaller bribes. That means that much more laundered proceeds of corruption may be passing through our economy disguised as legitimate business concerns.

If a one-size-fits-all approach of just sending the corrupt to prison is adopted, the number of bribes coming from the supply side will reduce slightly, but the volume of money offered as bribes may be significantly higher even though there are slightly fewer cases of bribes. If the demand side is significantly reduced then significantly fewer bribes will be flowing to the demand side from the supply side. It is just like in cases of drug addiction. The more the addicts that are rehabilitated the fewer the hard drugs that will be demanded by the drug addiction market. The fewer drug addicts you have in a community the lower will be the amount of drugs that can be sold to them and the lower the volume of illicit proceeds of the drug trade that will be passing through the economy of that community.

The best way to reduce the supply side of corruption significantly is to put outside-the-box strategies in place that helps cut down the volume of bribes demanded by the demand side of corruption,

Not curbing the supply side of corruption is dangerous for the economy because you will have a few powerful companies using bribes to dictate the direction of government policy with the singular goal of running their competitors out of town by engaging in anti-trust or anti-competition acts like price fixing, output reduction, sabotage, tying arrangements, predatory pricing and the like.

Not tackling the supply side of corruption also allows the role actors in the supply side to seriously undermine existing labor laws because of significantly lax enforcement of those laws by compromised regulators who are beholden to corrupting offers of bribe for business. It allows the role actors in the supply side to unduly influence lawmakers to pass legislation that are aimed at turning their organizations into monopolistic profit centers. It allows them use their bribery power to make telecommunication regulators, environmental regulators, food and drug regulators etc look the other way as they perpetrate evil and inflict injury and death on the populace with reckless abandon.

Not attacking the supply side head-on with demand-side reduction strategies will allow the role actors in the supply side manufacture or import into the country, substandard and harmful products. It will make the society a lawless and rudderless society of anything goes.

On the demand side of corruption, the NOA collaboration with religious bodies and NGOs will help change the culture of embracing and celebrating corruption to a culture of hatred for corruption and this will result in a major reduction in the demand side of corruption. The same rehabilitation strategy that is used in reducing demand for hard drugs by addicts in a community should be used in rehabilitating the mindset of Nigerians who have come to accept corruption as a an acceptable life style or standard of behavior. Massive nationwide enlightenment campaigns must be embarked upon to change hearts and minds. If the demand for corruption is reduced significantly the government will not need to spend as much as it would have had to spend in the absence of that reduction.

The NOA should be made to work with these organizations to set-up whistleblowers help centers equipped with call center equipment so that people can call in anonymously with tips about corrupt acts that may be going on in their various government offices so that the role actors can be investigated, prosecuted and jailed.

To achieve a significant reduction in the supply side of corruption, the government can sponsor legislation to require professional bodies like the ICAN, NUJ, NBA, NSE, ACEN, NIM, NIQS, MBAN, REDAN, CIBN, NICE, NSCHE, ANAN, CITN, CISN, APCON, NIPR etc to adopt a code for disbarring or suspending any of their members that are convicted of corruption by the law courts if the corrupt acts were carried out while discharging their professional duties. The law could also provide that any company convicted of corruption shall be blacklisted from being a government consultant or contractor for a certain number of years. The law could provide that when a company is convicted three times that company will suffer a permanent blacklisting from government business. The law should require that all national honors given to anyone convicted of corruption should be cancelled and the cancellation should be announced publicly. That legislation should also ban anyone convicted of corrupt acts from holding a seat on the board of a company or non-profit organization registered in Nigeria under the Companies and Allied Matters Act.

I agree that corruption is not fought on the pages of newspapers. I believe that for a war on corruption to be successful waged, an "all of the above" approach must be considered including in some cases the utilization of the death penalty for a period of time for severe cases of corruption involving sums above N1 billion.The adoption of the death penalty can later be reviewed downwards to prison terms based on the feedbacks the government gets back from the National Bureau of Statistics as to the effects these policies are having on the society. For instance, Netherlands and Sweden have been closing down a dozen or more prisons every year in the last 3 years because the number of inmates being admitted were plummeting annually.

These nations did not get to that enviable position of closing down prisons for lack of convicted criminals overnight. Well thought out policies over time resulted in that outcome.

Nigeria can adopt the kind of strategies discussed in this article and set a target for a significant reduction in the level of corruption in the country. The time to act is now.

Bunmi Awoyemi, Ph.D, a Public Affairs Analyst, a Corporate Finance & Project Finance Expert, as well as an International Lawyer and Entrepreneur.

By Bunmi Awoyemi, Ph.D

Published On: Mon, Aug 31st, 2015
OpEd | By NewsRescue

A Brief Assessment of President Muhammadu Buhari’s first 100 days in office

Buhari has achieved in his first 100 days what GEJ did not achieve in 6 years. Forget about whatever controversy was generated by a purported denial of a PMB 1st 100 days in office election season document by Garba Shehu. Let us leave form and face substance.
The koko of the matter is that Nigeria is rising again. The eagle is flying again. PMB met the economy of Nigeria in shambles with most states in financial quagmire but now PMB is bailing these states out with a N400 billion bail-out plan which includes their creditors exchanging the debts of those states for government bonds.
Boko Haram is on the run. Corruption and looters are on the run. Defence Ministry and military expenditure of over N4.6 trillion naira is being tracked and traced to facilitate recovery and prosecution of state and non-state actors involved in the monumental heist. N30 trillion naira stolen via crude oil theft and outright non-remittance of revenue from crude oil sales is being traced and tracked to ensure recovery and prosecution of state and non-state actors involved in the unprecedented treasury clean-out.
Power is improving. The revenue generating bodies like the FIRS, the Nigerian Customs Service, the NNPC, NIMASA, NPA are being rejigged and repositioned for service delivery by the appointment of competent individuals who are already producing results.
A Treasury Single Account has been set up and the more than 50 accounts that were being used to plunder the nation’s wealth have been closed down.
The US Government is assisting PMB to trace and track around $6b stolen by Diezani K. Alison-Madueke and her cronies from the oil industry.
Only NNPC will be allowed to import fuel from next month. Over 125 vessels used for oil theft have been banned from Nigerian waters. Oil swap deals between NNPC and some refineries abroad which were used to short-change Nigeria by not supplying refined fuel commensurate with the crude oil supplied have been cancelled. All GEJ and Diezani K. Alison-Madueke front companies that were being used to sell Nigeria’s crude oil have had their lifting licences cancelled. Since July only 5-10 major international oil trading firms are allowed to sell Nigeria’s crude oil.
Long queues have disappeared from petrol stations and petrol stations selling above the N87 approved pump prize are being shut down by the Department of Petroleum Resources. Three months to GEJ’s handover of power the impunity which was nurtured under him allowed petrol marketers to put Nigerians through untold hardship. Anyone did whatever they felt like doing without consequences.
The amount paid per liter as subsidy to marketers has dropped from N51 per liter to N38 per liter.The nation’s oil refineries have roared back to life after being shut down for years under an alleged turn-around maintenance regime that had no specific terminal date. The aim was to eventually turn them around and sell them-off to cronies and fronts if GEJ had won reelection. Most of these oil refineries were deliberately starved of crude oil to ensure that they do not produce refined products so that PDP stalwarts, GEJ, Diezani K. Alison-Madueke and their cronies can import refined products from refineries belonging to them outside Nigeria’s shores.
Stolen assets belonging to the FG are being recovered. Civil servants who cannot defend the sources of their stupendous wealth are on a watch list for recovery of assets and prosecution.
When doctors receive an emergency accident victim the first thing they do before anything else is arrest the bleeding. If an accident victims loses too much blood he could die. Nigeria’s economy was bleeding at the time PMB took over. Most of the measures he took in the last 100 days was targeted at arresting the bleeding so that Nigeria does not end up like GREECE.
You cannot expect PMB to hit the ground running without first of all stopping the bleeding of the economy inflicted on Nigeria by GEJ and his plundering death cults. You have to have a reasonably healthy economy first before you can execute your party’s road map.
Let us be sincere with ourselves, the level of rot that PMB inherited was much more horrible than we first thought. GEJ took the Nigerian economy to the cleaners. He plundered Nigeria’s economy brazenly and recklessly. Now there is a new Sheriff in town and he is cleaning up GEJ’s mess.
My long term mentor, Pastor William Bendega whom I respect so much had this to say about the unfair nature of the destructive criticisms directed daily at PMB:
“It is extremely laughable that people who were used to the old order of looting, who benefitted from the ‘wuruwuru’ of the past have sought to give different unfortunate labels to the style of Buhari’s governance. These are the same people who used everything possible to make sure he did not win the elections because they had private interests to protect, they had cases to answer, they had things that when uncovered would embarrass them, their families and cronies. Now, some have called him ‘Baba Go Slow.”
Written by Bunmi Awoyemi, Ph.D, a Public Affairs Analyst, a Corporate Finance & Project Finance Expert, as well as an International Lawyer and Entrepreneur.

Read more: http://newsrescue.com/a-brief-assessment-of-president-muhammadu-buharis-first-100-days-in-office/#ixzz3lMoj1kTX

http://newsrescue.com/open-letter-to-president-muhammadu-buhari-how-to-aggressively-diversify-the-nigerian-economy/#axzz3lIaLeGiV




OpEd | By NewsRescue

By Bunmi Awoyemi, Ph.D

Open Letter To President Muhammadu Buhari: How To Aggressively Diversify The Nigerian Economy



For our dear nation Nigeria, it has never been about how rich we are in natural resources. It has always been about lack of prudent management of resources.

HOW TO MANAGE OUR VAST NATURAL AND HUMAN RESOURCES

The resources squandered so far are oil, gas and human capital. It is time to diversify our economy by developing other resources that we have in abundance such as solid minerals, agriculture, sports, tourism, and human capital. Each Nigerian state has tremendous amounts of solid minerals that can be explored and processed into finished products that we can market within Nigeria and across Africa.

We need to put a plan together that ensures that by 2019 we are refining 100% of our daily crude oil output. Eight separate 200,000,000 barrels per day oil refineries will refine 1.6 million barrels per day of crude oil and create at least 500,000 jobs. 10 to 20 petrochemical and fertilizer plants can also spring up around these refineries to create and additional 250,000 jobs. These jobs will cut across different fields of engineering and absorb unemployed graduates with top Nigerian engineers working in managerial positions in world class oil and gas firms called in from diaspora to come and run and manage these refineries with each of them having sweat equity in the oil refineries.

The Nigerian government can enter into joint venture oil refinery private public partnership arrangements of Build Operate and Manage. With arrangements like these, the government simply invests only a small percentage of the funds needed for the engineering procurement and construction of these refineries, while the rest comes from private equity investors and debt financiers.

With the kind of clout Nigeria has across Africa, excess white or refined oil produced can be sold in Africa via off take bilateral agreements with other African nations. We could end up becoming importers of crude oil should we decide to build additional refineries in the future. We will then export the finished refined oil products even beyond Africa to Asia and Europe. This will create millions of high paying jobs and will make our membership of OPEC unnecessary.

We must go beyond being a nation known for exportation of natural resources to a nation that adds value to those resources by using them to manufacture finished products that we can both consume and export to other African nations. No natural resources dependent nation can become a global economic power.

PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP MODEL FOR INFRASTRUCTURE

The government should invest in health, roads, bridges, electricity so that Nigerians can enjoy their lives in good health at affordable prices and to ensure that finished products can get to market on time. When all these infrastructure are put in place expect the entrepreneurial potential of Nigerians to be unleashed. The good news is that the government need not use the old model of just awarding contracts. Private Public Partnership models should be encouraged so that entrepreneurs can come in and plan and invest alongside the government in putting these infrastructure in place. This approach will create at least 500,000 construction jobs. It is not rocket science. Government must open up governance and remove bureaucracy from the system so that ideas and investments can come in. The government does not have the finances to go it alone on infrastructure.

UNDERSTANDING AND UNLEASHING OUR TOURISM POTENTIAL

If Buhari can maintain law, order and security the tourism potential of Nigeria can be unleashed. Based on my calculations Nigerian tourism sector can make $4b a year from tourism starting from October 2017 based on plans put in place from October 2015. This revenue is exclusive of revenues already coming in from existing hotels and tourism spots. Trinidad and Tobago is a Caribbean nation with vast gas resources but its annual revenue from gas cannot be compared to the huge revenue the Bahamas makes from tourism.

Florida has one of the highest GDPs among American states and arguably a larger economy than Nigeria yet it relies on tourism revenue with some hotels investing billions of dollars in expansion. We need to diversify our economy and tourism holds the key. UAE realized long ago that oil revenue has its high and low seasons and focused on tourism in the 1980’s, and they are reaping the rewards today. They are not feeling the effects of the shale oil dynamics in their revenue stream as Nigeria is feeling it. Buhari needs out of the box non-text book thinkers and visionaries to make this eagle fly again.

With over 70% of medical graduates since the 1970s working for hospitals in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Austria, Germany, Saudi Arabia etc, imagine what world class infrastructural investments could do for the healthcare sector. It will be a magnet for attracting our medical doctors back to Nigeria. They will come in with lots of experience and medical tourism will earn us higher revenue than crude oil. When they are coming back they will be coming with huge international financial backing for the purposes of building high quality general and specialist hospitals.

Written by Bunmi Awoyemi, Ph.D, a public Affairs analyst, a Corporate and Project Finance expert as well as an international lawyer.


Read more: http://newsrescue.com/open-letter-to-president-muhammadu-buhari-how-to-aggressively-diversify-the-nigerian-economy/#ixzz3lMmkjWJJ

gtrust:
Here in France, we don't even see garri, always tapioca!!!

That my earlier post was not meant for you. I tried to delete it but can't see any delete button. It was meant for the other guy.

BackDatAssUp:
www.nairaland.com/attachments/1921783_kwan24_jpegc2378dd4a6ed729a4097efc2411754c8

This is not Kano but on Airport Rd Abuja and it is a shopping mall owned by the Chinese.

Why OP?

You are a monumental liar. See Governor Kwankwaso inspecting it in the picture below when it was under construction. So you want to steal another Kwankwaso picture for your failed Oga, Goodluck Jonathan? The buildings may look alike but it is not the same building. Open your eyes. I was in Kano and saw all these things myself. So, stop your wicked lies.

gtrust:
Here in France, we don't even see garri, always tapioca!!!

You are a monumental liar. See Governor Kwankwaso inspecting it in the picture below when it was under construction. So you want to steal another Kwankwaso picture for your failed Oga, Goodluck Jonathan? The buildings may look alike but it is not the same building. Open your eyes. I was in Kano and saw all these things myself. So, stop your wicked lies.

A standing ovation for our President-in-waiting: Rabiu Kwankwaso, Mr. Capital Projects and Mr. Compassion

#2015Kwankwaso See youtube video -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MTzOBTuEoA&feature=youtu.be

By Bunmi Awoyemi, Ph.D

A standing ovation for our President-in-waiting: Rabiu Kwankwaso, Mr. Capital Projects and Mr. Compassion

Some sycophantic ignoramuses are working assiduously to portray our wonderful President Jonathan as the Christian President who is representing Christians and their interests. But nothing could be further from the truth.

One of the ten commandments is "'Thou shall not steal." Unfortunately our dear "'gentle" President and his campaign team are fond of stealing pictures of Governor Kwankwaso's (alias, Mr. Capital Projects) monumental achievements in Kano State and passing it off as his own projects. Like they did with pictures of the temporary site of the Northwest University established by Mr. Capital Projects as well as a picture of the ICT institute which is just one among 21 other institutes and 44 skill acquisition centers established by Mr. Capital Projects. See. https://www.Facebook.com/2015Kwankwaso/photos_stream and https://www.Facebook.com/2015Kwankwaso/timeline They have also taken pictures of a bridge he built in Kano and passed it off as one of President Jonathan's projects. They have been consistent and unrelenting in passing off Federal roads resurfaced by state governors as roads fixed by President Jonathan under his fake transformation agenda that I have renamed "TANsformation" or "Deformation" agenda. Nigerians should take all pictures posted by President Jonathan and his campaign team with a pinch of salt because most of those pictures are stolen from the achievements of state governors who have fixed federal roads with state resources without getting any refund of their expenditure from the Federal government. For instance the Lagos state government has expended over N50b on dilapidated Federal Roads in Lagos state and has received no refunds whatsoever for its expenditure.

Our so called 'gentle' President has demonstrated that there is nothing gentle about him when he ordered the raid of the APC office in Lagos and allowed his hooded snipers to raid and steal court documents from a law firm that had sued him and challenged his eligibility to contest in the February 2015 Presidential election, having been sworn in twice as President. There is no real gentility in a President who ordered the Inspector General of Police to seal the gates leading into the hallowed chambers of the House of Representatives which then necessitated the climbing of the gates by our elected representatives to prevent the impending impeachment of the speaker and the declaration of his seat as vacant along with the seat of his fellow former PDP members who left the PDP's sinking ship for the APC.

President Jonathan and his campaign team are afraid of a Presidential contest in which Rabiu Kwankwaso will be the APC flag bearer because of his colossal achievements as Kano state governor. President Jonathan had no choice other than to steal from Mr. Capital projects' achievements becasue he has turned Kano state into a mini-London and mini-Dubai in just 3 years. President Jonathan has nothing but a long list of failures as President. When you score him on Security & Defence, Power, Water Resources, Job creation and youth empowerment, Health, Education etc, he scores F in each of these areas. The only area where he has a passmark is in Agriculture where he scores a B.

As of December 2013, Mr. Capital Projects achieved 60 health development milestones in just 30 months in the Kano State Health Sector. He purchased and distributed 120 ambulances among the state hospitals and equipped the hospitals with world class medical equipment and hired experienced medical personnel to run the hospitals. When he was sworn in, he met a medical sector in a state of comatose.

He sent over 5,000 Kano residents (Christians and Muslims) who are degree holders on full scholarship including feeding and accommodation abroad. Out of this a significant number are women and they were chosen 100% on merit, not based on "man know man."' You need a 1st class or 2nd class upper in your first degree to qualify.

He took beggars off Kano streets by putting them through the skill acquisition centers and paying them N10,000 per month and mobilizing them with between N65k and N150k upon graduation plus equipment relevant to the kind of businesses they have been trained to engage in. He equipped jobless youths with 250 tear rubber or brand new Toyota Corollas which cost the state government over N1.1b with 750 more to be distributed before May 29, 2015. These youths are to use the cars for Luxury Taxi Services in Kano state.


He bought 120 buses and distributed them among the 44 Local Governments for the purposes of his "Girl Child Education" initiative. This was done to encourage the girl child to attend school instead of being married off at a very young age and to stem the spread of VVF, a disease which affects the excretory system of young girls who are married off too early.

He served as Defence Minister under former President Obasanjo for 4 years and under him there was no insurgency because of his leadership skills at the Ministry of Defence. President Obasanjo brought him on board to replace Gen. T.Y. Danjuma Rtd. who resigned as Defence Minister for personal reasons. He ensured the proper equipping of the armed forces, the DMI and DSS even though he ran the ministry on a budget that is just 10% of the N4 trillion budget of President Jonathan of the last 4 years. When you factor in the $1b loan that is about to be accessed for Defence, the Defence budget in the last 4 years will be much more than N4 trillion.

A summary of a fraction of his achievements include the following:


- prudence in the management of resources

- Visionary leadership

-Man of integrity

-Man of the people

-Detribalized leader

- He is number 1 in education among the Governors in Nigeria- free education at all levels including university education.

-Provided scholarships to more than 2500 Kano indigenes for their 1st degree in private universities in Nigeria and equipped them with free laptops. He pays N1m per year per student to take care of their tuition, accommodation and feeding.

-Transparent leadership by publishing the minutes of all the state executive council meetings.

-Training 100 Kano graduates sponsored to become pilots in Jordan- they are all set to graduate in 2015. It costs around $10m to train such huge number of pilots in most highly reputable aviation schools.

-300 graduates sponsored to different areas of advanced degree specialization in medicine

-100 graduates sponsored for their Masters’ degree in Pharmacy.

-24 graduates sponsored for their Masters’ degree in various fields of Engineering

-Pays the school fees (N17m per year) of all the Kano law graduates at the 5 campuses of the Nigerian law school.

-Abolished office of 1st Lady

-Abolished security vote that runs into billions of naira and is a typical corruption conduit

-Stopped sponsoring religious pilgrimages thereby saving billions of naira.


-Spends 75% of annual budget on capital projects that benefits the people directly instead of the typical 30% spent by President Jonathan and most state governments on capital projects


- Stopped ram buying for civil servants and saved billions of naira from this and other areas of waste which has been channeled into making education free from Primary school to University level.

- Invested N1.1b in the purchase of 250 brand new cars and handed it over to unemployed graduates for them to run a luxury taxi business.

-Met empty treasury, a debt burden of N77 billion and an additional $203 million in foreign loans on assumption of office, he has through prudent management of resources put Kano State on the path of accelerated development. This total debt burden of over N120b has been reduced drastically to a mere N20b which will be paid off before May 29, 2015.

-Thousands of classrooms and hundreds of teachers offices have been constructed in primary schools across the state

-Free breakfast and lunch in primary and secondary schools during school hours. “A child whose parents cannot give him three square meals can now go to school because he knows that there would be food for him to eat in school." - Kano State Commissioner for Education.


-Free uniforms and free books have encouraged children of the less privileged in the state to go to school.

-In order to provide access roads for the rural communities, started and has almost completed the construction of a five- kilometre road in the headquarters of each of the 44 local government areas of the state. This will bring it to a total of 220 kms of roads.


-Numerous road and flyover projects across the entire state that makes Kano state look like Dubai.


- A 2km underpass, the 1st of its kind in Nigeria is nearing completion.


- Over 2000 health technology graduates and pharmacists have been trained & given free N50,000 & a non interest loan of N100,000 to operate pharmacies under the LAFIYA JARI PROG.

-Water supply to the people of Kano state rose from the meager 40 million litres per day that was being pumped into the city to 500 million litres per day as of June 2014.

-Unprecedented Upgrade and proper equipping of primary health care centers and government hospitals across Kano state.


- He built three new cities namely: kwankwasiyya city, Amana city, and Bandarawo citiy. These are cities not housing estates. They are cities in the true sense of the word.


-1700 youths trained in the use of modern farm equipment and each mobilized with the sum of N140k each.

-To ensure transparency no commissioner can approve an amount above N200k for any project, if above N200k it must be approved by the state executive council. This measure has cut off wastage and has freed up capital for the capital projects being carried out.

-All medical students who are Kano residents get a level 9 civil service level salary per month from their 1st year of medical school to their housemanship - the 1st of its kind in Nigeria.

-Built two universities and several academic institutions within three years and offered the Kano residents who attend 100% free education at all levels in Kano State.

-Trained 1120 unemployed youths as vulcanizers and mechanics and gave each of them between N53k and N63k and a tool box and machines to set up their own businesses.

-Spends N3.3b annually to feed primary and secondary school students!

- Creating construction, developing and funding of Kano University of Science and Technology with 7 faculties and 29 departments

- Creating, constructing and funding Northwest University with 4 faculties and 16 departments

- Established and funded School of Nursing and midwifery madobi

- Established and funded School of nursing Gezawa

- Established and funded School of health Technology Bebeji

- Established and funded School of Informatics Studies Kura

- Started degree awarding programs at College of Education Kano

-NCE and degree program at School of Legal Studies Kano

-Skills Acquisition Schools in all 44 LGAs of the state

- Over 27 crafts, technical, security, sport and entrepreneurial schools were built all over the state.

- Looking at this capital expenditure with the little allocation from Abuja and the meager Internally Generated Revenue of the state which is half of that of Lagos, Rivers and Akwa-Ibom states and the transformation that we have seen in all sectors of the Kano economy, especially transportation (road construction) education and health sectors, it is clear that we have in Engr (Dr.) Rabiu Kwankwaso a leader that can govern Nigeria effectively.

Let all Nigerians stand up and give Mr. Capital Projects and our next President, a standing ovation. Stand up and clap for the man of the people, the lover of the down trodden, the liberator of the women folk, the friend of the physically challenged, the elderly, the pensioner and the forgotten. Let us stand up for this lover of education, lover of the youth and a man of integrity. With Kwankwaso what you have seen him do in Kano state is what he will do in greater proportion when he becomes President. Kindly share this on all your walls on social media and traditional media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Blackberry, Whatsapp etc. The time for change is now. Nigeria cannot afford to bungle this opportunity to elect someone who has the best governance scorecard in Nigeria today. That person is none other than Mr. Capital Projects, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, the founder of the red cap revolution ideology!!

The author of this article, Bunmi Awoyemi, Ph.D is a public affairs analyst, international lawyer, author and entrepreneur.

temitope23: [b][/b]


What do u knmw about altitude? Do u know the number of days it will take 4 SE to acclamatise. Abegi keep quiet and let me enjoy the match.

FIFA recommends that if teams want to play in high altitude regions they should arrive the location 24 hours to the match and that explains why the NFF planned it that way!

SPLENDIDFLOZZY: Dat was a 1daful goal

This is what I told Keshi on his facebook page. Strategy- If we underrate what it takes to play in Ethiopia away we will be doing so at our own risk. I know that on a good day they cannot challenge us, but their high altitude is the issue. We must not go there to play full blown attacking football. We must play mainly defensive to conserve energy and breath and then rely only on counter-attacks against them with fast attackers like Ahmed Musa and Brown Ideye as well as Emenike. Bolivia and Ethiopia have one thing in common - High Altitude that makes soccer players gasp for breath. I was in Addis Ababa late last year and can testify to the high altitude. That is why most people cannot beat them in long distance races. Bolivia is 13,000 ft above sea level. Addis Ababa lies at an altitude of 7,546 feet. If care is not taken some players could pass out. If there is any FIFA window available I would suggest an emergency friendly match with Bolivia's Senior national team in La paz. Before South Africa had problems with Ethiopia who qualified ahead of South Africa for the next round despite 3 points being deducted from their unassailable points advantage. Ex ante their match in Ethiopia Bafana Bafana coach Gordon Igesund felt the high altitude of their next venue could be problematic in their quest to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in Brazil next year. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_altitude_football_controversy
High altitude football controversy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org

Havilah93: 30 mins to go

This was my advise to Stephen Keshi on his facebook page:Strategy- If we underrate what it takes to play in Ethiopia away we will be doing so at our own risk. I know that on a good day they cannot challenge us, but their high altitude is the issue. We must not go there to play full blown attacking football. We must play mainly defensive to conserve energy and breath and then rely only on counter-attacks against them with fast attackers like Ahmed Musa and Brown Ideye as well as Emenike. Bolivia and Ethiopia have one thing in common - High Altitude that makes soccer players gasp for breath. I was in Addis Ababa late last year and can testify to the high altitude. That is why most people cannot beat them in long distance races. Bolivia is 13,000 ft above sea level. Addis Ababa lies at an altitude of 7,546 feet. If care is not taken some players could pass out. If there is any FIFA window available I would suggest an emergency friendly match with Bolivia's Senior national team in La paz. Before South Africa had problems with Ethiopia who qualified ahead of South Africa for the next round despite 3 points being deducted from their unassailable points advantage. Ex ante their match in Ethiopia Bafana Bafana coach Gordon Igesund felt the high altitude of their next venue could be problematic in their quest to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in Brazil next year. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_altitude_football_controversy
High altitude football controversy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
en.wikipedia.org

bionicdude: nigeria has played one of the worst football i have ever seen them play.this is appalling

If Nigeria comes away with a draw its a good performance considering the high altitude. I noticed the altitude when I was in Addis Ababa in October of 2012. Please let us cut our players some slack. I believe we may run away with a 1-0 or 2-0 victory. We cannot play our normal game we must rely on counter-attack

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http://thenationonlineng.net/new/business/insurance/dana-air-crash-lawyers-accuse-prestige-others-of-laxity/

Dana Air crash: Lawyers accuse Prestige, others of laxity
Posted by: Uyoatta Eshiet Posted date: January 14, 2013 In: Insurance | comment : 0

A firm of solicitors and legal consultants, M.O. Awoyemi & Co , has accused Prestige Assurance PLC of neglecting the family members of those who died in the Dana Air crash in June, last year.

The firm, which represents 40 families, who died in the crash, said the insurance firm refused to pay its clients the mandatory $30,000 claims as stipulated by international law, seven months after the crash.

In a statement made available to The Nation and signed by its Managing Partner, Dr Bunmi Awoyemi, the law firm accused Prestige Assurance and its reinsurers, Pritchard Insurance Limited/Lloyd’s of London, of not caring for the family members of the crash victims.

He said of the 40 families, only 13 have been paid the $30,000 each.

He said out of the over 150 victims involved in the crash, only 80 of their family members have been compensated, adding that many of them include families, who lost more than one member. For such families, most of them were paid $30,000 per family, instead of the mandatory $30,000 per victim.

He said the insurer and re-insurers deliberately want to postpone the amount to be included with the balance of $70,000 they are offering to make victims family members sign-off their rights to a law suit.

He said: “They are doing this despite the fact that the Civil Aviation Act makes the payment of $30,000 per victim mandatory and payable within 30 days of any air crash.

”This wicked and callous action is being perpetrated by Prestige Assurance PLC and its re-insurer of 70 percent of the risk, Pritchard Insurance Limited/Lloyd’s of London, who have instructed their solicitors to pay only $30,000 per family, which explains why the Oyosoro’s and Ibe’s were each paid $30,000 instead of $60,000 despite the fact that they each lost two family members each. As of today, only one more of our remaining clients has been paid.”

Awoyemi condemned the Aviation Minister and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for allowing Dana Air to resume operationswhen it has not paid compensation.

He said: ”One hundred and sixty lives were lost; many of the relatives of the dead are still dealing with the issues arising from the death of their family members. In fact, some are yet to pick up the bodies of their dead relatives; while some family members only got body parts, others are yet to find the bodies of their relatives because their bodies were incinerated.

He said based on his earlier petition to the Aviation Committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives, a report recommending the withdrawal of Dana Airlines operating licence for a number of reasons, including the fact that they were yet to pay proper compensation to the victims of the crash was issued.

Furthermore, the House of Representatives passed a resolution adopting the recommendations of these Committees and called on the Minister of Aviation to implement the recommendations.

“I am shocked that the Minister of Aviation still went ahead to write Dana Airlines authorising their resumption of flight in defiance of the recommendations of the report of the Joint Aviation Committees of both the Senate and House of Representatives and in defiance of the resolutions of the House of Representatives.”

Awoyemi said what Dana and Prestige Assurance are doing in Nigeria cannot be tolerated in any other country. He called on the Federal Government and well-meaning Nigerians to warnDana and Prestige Assurance to respect Nigerians.

However, the Managing Director of Prestige Assurance Plc, Annand Mittal, denied the allegation. He said as soon as they receive the advice to pay, they would pay others.

He said the decision to pay comes from Dana Air management through their lawyers.

Mittal said, to date, they have paid 80 victims the mandatory 30 per cent, adding that the balance would be paid by Re-insurers, Pritchard Insurance limited and Lloyds of London.

He added that it is not their responsibility to determine who to pay, but that of Dana Management.

http://blueprintng.com/2013/01/flying-amidst-unresolved-issues/

Dana Air, whose operations were suspended following the crash of its MD-83 aircraft in Lagos on June 3, 2012, re-launched scheduled operations a few days ago. While some members of the public applaud the return of the airline, families of victims of the crash, as well as those who lost properties to the accident, are uncomfortable with it because of some unresolved issues. IME AKPAN reports

Seven months into the Dana Air crash of June 3, 2012 in Lagos, the minister of aviation, Princess Stella Oduah directed the director general of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr. Harold Demuren to allow the airline resume scheduled services.

She said the airline should however complete payment of all insurance obligations and claims to the dependants of victims of the crash within two months, and also abide by the safety regulations of NCAA.

Demuren had earlier insisted the airline would not be allowed to fly until it showed evidence of full payment of $100,000 compensation to the families of victims of the accident. According to him, the full compensation was part of the compliance to safety regulations, and consumer protection which the authority stands to protect. He added that until that was done the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) presented to the airline would remain invalid

Justifying the resumption of flights, NCAA spokesman, Mr. Sam Adurogboye said Dana Air passed through the entire five phases of re-certification to obtain the AOC. “From the point of view of safety, everything has been taken care of from our end,” he said

However, counsel for 40 families of victims of the crash, Dr. Bunmi Awoyemi, criticized the minister for authorizing the resumption of Dana Air when victims were yet to be compensated. Awoyemi said many of the relatives of the dead were still dealing with issues arising from the death of their family members.

“Some are yet to find the bodies of their relatives because their bodies were incinerated. Nigerians should bear in mind that Dana Air still owes 80 victims mandatory $30, 000 per victim,” he said.

Awoyemi who had earlier sued the airline in the United States alleged that non-payment of compensation is perpetrated by Prestige Assurance PLC and its re-insurer of 70 percent of the risk, Pritchard Insurance Ltd. /Lloyd’s of London that instructed their solicitors to pay $30, 000 per family.

“Only 13 of the 40 victims have been paid $30,000 per victim. Only 80 victims’ family members had been paid any form of compensation. Many of the 80 include families which lost multiple members of their families to the crash. For such families most of them were paid $30,000 per family instead of the mandatory $30,000 per victim in order to discourage them from suing in the United States.

They deliberately want to postpone the remainder to be included with the balance of $70,000 they are offering in order to make victims family members sign off their rights to a law suit. They are doing this despite the fact that the Civil Aviation Act makes the payment of $30,000 per victim mandatory and payable within 30 days of any fatal air crash.

“This explains why the Oyosoro’s and Ibe’s were each paid $30, 000 each instead of $60, 000 despite the fact that they each lost two family members each,” said Awoyemi.

Lagos lawyer and counsel for ‘seriously affected victims’ Mr. Monday Ubani, said he had expected the federal government to ensure that all affected persons were compensated by the airline before allowing it to resume scheduled flights.

“They have not paid anything or said anything to the victims. They wrote me two months ago that they wanted additional information, which I immediately provided. But since their licence has been returned even before now, the government should compel them to attend to the aggrieved persons.

“I have tried to avoid litigation, but if by the end of January they are still nonchalant about the plight of those whose businesses are adversely affected, we will have no other option than to go to court,” he said.

One of the ground victims, Pastor Daniel Oluranti Omowunmi, suffered collateral damage as his buildings on 8/10 Popoola Street were destroyed completely.

The fallout of the loss, according to Omowunmi, is that he and his family had been squatting in a church since they were displaced. Omowunmi filed for more that than N500m claims from the airline.

He divided the claims into three categories viz: property and items destroyed at N213.1 million, fully stocked imported educational books, N250.5 million and large quantity imported kitchen utensils for sale, N40 million.

He said following the request of the airline’s management on June 20, 2012 to persons who lost properties to file their claims, he, through his solicitors, Messrs Dele Adesina & Co forwarded a comprehensive letter of claims to the airline, but regretted that since the letter forwarded to the airline, no step had been taken to address the situation.

He stated that after the receipt of his letter, a meeting was held between him and the airline’s management where he was offered the sum of N500, 000, an amount he rejected and described as “insulting.”

A representative of Dana Airlines, Mr. A.B. Anand got in touch with me on phone and a meeting was scheduled for July 3, 2012. Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) boss Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintoluwas at the meeting.

“It was at this meeting that Mr. Anand offered me N500, 000 as temporary relief. Naturally, I felt insulted by this high level of insensitivity on the part of the airline and I questioned how the N500, 000 will address the inconveniences and torture my family and I have been put into. Is it to address our homelessness or to rent a house?” he queried.

A resident, Mr. Emmanuel Soyemi, who had a part of his one-storey building destroyed by the aircraft’s wings said he was still traumatized by the event. He is estimate the value of the damaged part of his building.

For some occupants of buildings in the impact zone, the airline gave N200, 000 to each of them as “a first step” with the promise that “when the time of compensation comes, we will duly take care of them.” While some collected the money, others rejected it on the grounds that the amount was paltry.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation expressed concern that the federal government had cleared Dana Airline to resume operations in spite of the many unresolved issues arising from the accident.

Its chairman, Mrs. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, frowned at the non- payment of compensations to the families of the victims of the crash.

“The committee is particularly worried that all issues relating to the crash have not been resolved, including the payment of compensation to victims, air safety and sundry issues,” she said.

However, the group director of the airline, Mr. Francis Ogboro, said about 90 percent of the bereaved families had been compensated with the initial $30, 000 compensation, while about 80 families had applied for the balance of $70,000.

“The payment of insurance claims due to the families of the victims is not something that will come from Dana Air’ and pocket. We are fully insured. I can assure you that our insurance companies led by Lloyds of London have made adequate arrangement to pay all the families involved in the crash.

“If after two months, payments have not been made, it’s not because Dana Air insurance has not come up with the money to pay,” he said.

He described the accident which involved one of the airline’s MD-83 aircraft as “unfortunate” and maintained that the crash had necessitated its resolve to enhance the maintenance culture of its fleet.

Meanwhile, the chairman of Air Transport Senior Staff Services Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) branch, Mr. Ekanem Ekanem, said the return of Dana would reduce the hardship experienced by air travellers due to limited number of airlines operating in the country.

“It is a good development that Dana Air has been allowed to fly. It will allow for flexibility as passengers will be free to pick the choice of airline they want to fly,” he said.

In his reaction, Adurogboye said the temporary exit of the airline resulted in a lot of traffic at the airport. Before the crash, Dana was one of the most sought-after airlines and I believe they were customer-friendly

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/12/dana-crash-victims-families-hail-suspension-recommendation/


By ROSEMARY ONUOHA

About 40 families of the victims of the Dana plane that crashed on the 3rd of June, 2012 have hailed the recommendation of the House of Representatives committee on aviation calling for the immediate suspension of the operating license of Dana Airlines and that all compensation owed to victims and their families be paid.

The families hailed the move on the grounds that 28 families of victims out of the 40 that petitioned the National Assembly are yet to receive the $30,000 initial compensation.

According to the families, the Ibe and Oyosoro family each lost two people and were each paid $30,000 per family instead of $60,000 per family.

Dana-Crash

The families who petitioned the Senate and House Committees on Aviation called on the Aviation Minister, the Federal Executive Council, and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, to immediately implement the recommendations of the House Committee’s report.

Speaking through their Solicitors and Legal Consultants of M.O. Awoyemi & Co., the families said that they are confident that the Senate Committee on aviation will also act on their petition and make far reaching recommendations.

The families said “You will recall that we wrote a petition to the Senate and House committees on aviation on the 27th of November 2012. We are therefore in full support of the final report of the House of Representatives committee on aviation and its recommendations that the operating license of Dana Airlines be suspended immediately and that all compensation owed to victims and their families should be paid. We expect the Aviation Minister, the Federal Executive Council, and the NCAA to immediately implement the recommendations of the House Committee’s report. We are confident that the Senate Committee on aviation will also act on our petition and make far reaching recommendations.”

According to Bunmi Awoyemi, Managing Partner of M.O. Awoyemi & Co., it is time for the National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, to wield the big stick against Prestige Assurance Plc and compel them to pay $30,000 per victim within a firm deadline date.

Awoyemi said “On the 30th of November, we petitioned NAICOM on the need to live up to their responsibilities as the regulator of the insurance industry in Nigeria. We told them that it was wrong for the lead local insurer, Prestige Assurance Plc to refuse to remit premium payments to its co-local underwriters thereby making them back out of the coverage based on the statutory principle of ‘no premium no cover.’ This left them as the sole underwriter of 30 per cent of the insurance risk which they have no choice other than to pay under Nigerian insurance statutes.

Unfortunately, Prestige Assurance and its Re-insurer of 70 per cent of the risk, Pritchard

Insurance Ltd/Lloyd’s of London have instructed their solicitors to pay only $30,000 per family which explains why the Oyosoro’s and Ibe’s were each paid $30,000 each instead of $60,000 despite the fact that they each lost two family members each.”

“It is time for NAICOM to wield the big stick against Prestige Assurance and compel them to pay $30,000 per victim within a firm deadline date. It will be unfair to pay one of our clients who lost five family members at once $30,000 instead of $150,000. It will be equally wicked of them to pay one of our clients who lost three family members $30,000 instead of $90,000. It is also illegal for them to ask our clients that lost five family members to prove that they deserve more than $30,000. There is no place in the Civil Aviation Act where proof is required for the $30,000 per victim payment which is supposed to be “without prejudice,” Awoyemi said.

It will be recalled that Managing Partner of M.O. Awoyemi & Co. & New York State admitted attorney, Bunmi Awoyemi, is representing 40 death victims in total in a mass tort law suit in the United States.

He listed the aircraft passenger victims to include Revd. Ayodeji Cole; Revd. Ngozi Cole; Daniel Awani; Georgina Awani; Christopher Ojugbana; Amaka Ojugbana; Ogechi Njoku; Oluchi Onyeyiri; Jennifer Onita; Josephine Onita; as well as Ahmad Dukawa.

Others are Aisha Abdu Garba; Nabila Abdu Garba; Dr. Abdu Garba; Maria Abuiyere as well as five other death victims.

Some of the victims that were given half payment of $15,000 instead of $30,000 were Rajulie Oyosoro; Ugabio Oyosoro; Jessica Ibe and Echendu Ibe.

The ground victims were Mohammed Yusuf; Habibat Yusuf; Nwabuwa Okafor as well as Paul Ebhodaghe.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/dana-crash-40-families-petition-senate/


Dana crash: 40 families petition Senate
On November 30, 2012 · In News
5:19 am

BY ROSEMARY ONUOHA

About 40 families of victims of the ill-fated Dana Airplane that crashed on June 3, 2012 in Lagos have petitioned the Senate Committee on Aviation on the deliberate refusal of the airline to pay them the statutory $30,000 compensation.
The deliberate refusal, according to the families, is as a result of the wicked machinations of Dana Airline and its representatives.

The families also claimed that the names of two of them, Ahmad Dukawa and Femi Shobowale, were fraudulently listed by Dana Airlines, its local and international insurers, Prestige Assurance Plc and Pritchard Insurance/Lloyd’s of London as having been paid $30,000 each.

Consequently, the families have petitioned the Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation to wade into the matter.

Briefing newsmen in Lagos yesterday, through their legal practitioners and consultants, M.O Awoniyi & Co, the families said that it is a wilful, deliberate and malicious refusal by Dana and its insurers to pay the statutory compensation to them.

It will be recalled that Section 48(3) of the Civil Aviation Act provides: “In any case of aircraft accident resulting in death or injury of passengers, the carrier shall make advance payments of at least US $30,000 within 30 days from the date of such accident, to the natural person or such natural persons who are entitled to claim compensation in order to meet the immediate economic needs of such persons and such advance payments shall not constitute recognition of liability and may be offset against any amounts subsequently paid as damages by the carrier.”

According to Bunmi Awoyemi, one of the lawyers representing the families of the victims, all efforts to get the claims t paid thus far have proved abortive.

Awoyemi said: “We have tried severally and in vain, via written and oral communication(s) to get the Airline and its insurer’s solicitors, to pay our clients their monies.

They have only through, deceitful and deliberate measures prevented our clients from meeting their immediate and economic needs occasioned by the death of their loved ones in the plane crash. The name of two of our clients Ahmad Dukawa and Femi Shobowale were fraudulently listed by Dana Airlines, its local and international insurers, Prestige Assurance Plc and Pritchard Insurance/Lloyd’s of London as having been paid $30,000 each.”

http://www.punchng.com/business/business-economy/dana-crash-controversy-surrounds-insurance-claims-settlement/


Some displeased relatives of victims of the ill fated Dana Air plane that crashed in Lagos on June 3, 2012 have accused the carrier’s insurers of refusing to settle the insurance claims appropriately.

The concerned relatives, who spoke through their solicitors during a press conference in Lagos on Thursday, claimed that while some of them had been given the initial 30 per cent of the total claims, others had either been underpaid or not settled at all.

However, Prestige Assurance Plc, the lead underwriter of the aircraft, denied the allegations, claiming that it was following due process in settling all the claims brought before it.

The Managing Partner, M. O. Awoyemi and Co, a firm of legal practitioners and consultants, Mr. Bunmi Awoyemi, who represents 40 of the victims in a mass tort law suit in the United States, said only 13 families of his clients had been paid $30,000 each, while the others had yet to be paid.

He said, four of the 27 victims, whose families had not been paid, died on the ground when the plane crashed into their buildings of residence.

According to Awoyemi, Section 48(3) of the Civil Aviation Act states, “In any case of aircraft accident resulting in death or injury of passengers, the carrier shall make advance payment of at least $30,000 within 30 days from the date of such accident to the natural person or such persons who are entitled to claim compensation in order to meet the immediate economic needs of such persons, and such advance payment shall not constitute recognition of liabilities and may be offset against any amounts subsequently paid as damages by the carrier.”

In a letter to the Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, the firm sought the committee’s intervention by putting pressure on the insurers to pay the claims according to the stated amount.

“We have tried several times and in vain through written letters and oral communication to get the airline and its insurers’ solicitors, particularly the law firm of Yomi Oshikoya and Co, who are responsible for giving the cheques to the families of the victims, to pay our clients their money as stipulated in the Act, but all our efforts have not produced the desired result,” Awoyemi said.

The solicitor also alleged that while four of his clients were paid $15,000 each instead of $30,000, the airline fraudulently listed two other members as having been settled the initial 30 per cent when they were not paid anything.

However, the Managing Director, Prestige Assurance, Mr. Anand Mittal, said whenever investigations and documentation were completed on the claims process, the findings would be passed to the firm and cheques issued immediately to claimants.

He said, “We don’t have any direct dealings with the relatives; they are purely legal issues; so, whatever documentations are complete, Yomi Oshikoya accepts them, and send to us to prepare for payment; based on that we issue our cheque and pass it down to Yomi Oshikoya and give the firm the discharge letter.

“We pay $9,000 and London pays $21,000. That is how it is done because these are purely legal issues.”

According to him, in aviation claims, when it comes to the liability aspect, the insurance company does not deal directly with the claimants because such liabilities have to be done by lawyers.

http://premiumtimesng.com/news/109284-dana-airlines-deceit-is-painful-dead-victims-families-say.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=dana-airlines-deceit-is-painful-dead-victims-families-say


Dana Airline’s “deceit” painful, victims’ families say
Ben Ezeamalu

The victims accused Dana of deceiving the public on compensation.
Some families of the dead victims of the June 3 Dana Air crash in Lagos have said that the attitude of the airline’s management towards compensation claims is “painful.”

At a press conference in Lagos, Thursday, the families said that they are yet to receive the US$30,000 initial compensation, six months after the crash.

It was gathered that about 80 families out of the 120 who submitted claims have been compensated.

“Personally we’ve seen the cat and mouse game they are playing and it’s painful for an organization like Dana Air to toy with people’s lives and there’s no consequences,” said Sanya Shobowale, a lawyer and cousin of Femi Shobowale who was aboard the ill-fated flight.

‘Dana’s deceit’

Bunmi Awoyemi, whose firm is representing 40 victims of the plane mishap, said that there is “a lot of deception going on.”

He said 27 of the clients his firm is representing are yet to be paid.

However, four out of that number got half of the stipulated US$30,000, Mr. Awoyemi said.

“They told them that they should prove that they deserve more than US$15,000. That the babies are not supposed to be paid anything because they don’t have income and dependents,” Mr. Awoyemi said.

The Civil Aviation Act provides that the carrier shall pay at least US$30,000 within 30 days of an aircraft accident to persons who are entitled to claim compensation.

“We have tried severally and in vain, via written and oral communications to get the airline and its insurer’s solicitors to pay our clients their monies as stipulated in the Act, but all our efforts have not produced the desired result,” Mr. Awoyemi said.

More shocking, according to the lawyer, is the listing of two of his clients, Femi Shobowale and Ahmad Dukawa, by Dana and its insurers as having received the initial US30,000 compensation.

On discovery of the “fraud,” Mr. Shobowale said that they began calling the company’s lawyers to correct the error.

Titi Shobowale, the deceased’s wife, said that she met with Dana Air’s lawyer who asked her “to give them some days.”

“Then he (the lawyer) called my lawyer and said I should go and withdraw my case in the US,” Mrs. Shobowale said.

Mr. Awoyemi said that his firm had filed a tort suit in the United States, last month, to press for the total compensation of the families.

“One of the major reasons why we decided to file in US courts is because of the major delays we have in the Nigerian judicial system, sometimes up to 20 years.

“In US, it takes 2 – 3 years from the court of first instance up to the Supreme court,” Mr. Awoyemi added.

On November 27, the lawyers wrote to the Senate Committee on Aviation about the “willful, deliberate and malicious refusal” to compensate the 40 families.

Mr. Awoyemi said that both Dana Air and its insurers – Prestige Assurance Plc and Pritchard Insurance/Lloyd’s of London – are trying to stall the process and frustrate the claimants into walking away.

“They have said that because we have filed lawsuits, they are not supposed to do anything until the suit is resolved,” said Mr. Awoyemi.

“It is very clear that they do not want to pay.”

Dana responds

Tony Usidanem, Dana Air’s Spokesperson, said that claims that the airline’s insurers are not paying compensation are untrue.

Mr. Usidanem told PREMIUM TIMES that, in some cases, there have been delays due to multiple claims – a statement Mr. Awoyemi termed a “total falsehood.”

“In other cases, legal actions have been taken by people who preferred to go to court,” said Mr. Usidanem. “We have always abided by the law and in such cases, the law will take its course,”

The Dana Air Spokesperson also refuted claims that some families received half of the interim compensation claims.

“That is very very unlikely because the law is clear. It is 30 per cent interim advance payment and 70 per cent final payment,” Mr. Usidanem said.

“There is no way that any family will have received US$15, 000. It is not in accordance with the law.”

On the case of Mrs. Shobowale, the spokesperson said that it was an error.

“An apology was tendered right there at the meeting, after confirming that the cheque had actually not been issued,” Mr. Usidanem said.

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=106432:families-of-dana-air-crash-victims-petition-senate&catid=82:insurance&Itemid=588



‘Prestige Assurance, Dana Air insincere’


THE families of 40 death victims of the ill-fated Dana plane crash have petitioned the Senate Committee on Aviation to compel the management of Dana Air to pay statutory compensation to the families of the victims.

The petition, which was signed by Bunmi Awoyemi, Managing Partner, M.O. Awoyemi & Co. calls on the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to wade into this matter, to compel these reluctant local insurers to honour their own 30 per cent share of commitment under the third party liability claim.

Addressing a press conference in Lagos, Awoyemi said: “What is deduceable from S. 48(3) of the Civil Aviation Acts is that Dana Airline is not given an alternative other than to pay $30,000 within the stipulated time of 30 days.”

According to him, “We have tried severally and in vain, via written and oral communication(s) to get the Airline and its insurer’s solicitors, who are responsible for giving the cheques to the families of the victims to pay our clients their monies as stipulated in the Act failed.”

He said: “We therefore, on behalf of our clients, crave your indulgence by registering your committee’s kind intervention in this matter with a view to putting pressure on them to pay the above stated money, and also to bring this development to the floor of the Senate, giving the Senate opportunity to look into this matter.”

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/business/insurance/prestige-assurance-dana-air-insincere/

‘Prestige Assurance, Dana Air insincere’
Posted by: Uyoatta Eshiet Posted date: December 03, 2012 In: Insurance | comment : 0

Five months after the Dana Airline crash which claimed about 200 lives, families of some of the victims have accused the insurer of the ill-fated aircraft, Prestige Assurance, of insensitivity for refusing to pay the claims of their dead beloved ones.

A lawyer said the law stipulates that within 30 days from crash date, the advance payment of $30,000 should be made to those who are entitled to it.

Some of the family members, who spoke with The Nation, lamented that they have been subjected to untold hardship since the sudden death of their breadwinners and the failure of Prestige Assurance to pay them. They also lamented that they had submitted all the papers demanded by Dana Air and the insurance firm for payment only for them to remain mum.

Mr James Okafor, who lost his brother, Nwabuwa, in the crash, said he conveyed the body from Lagos to Anambra State, bore his burial expenses, and has since been taking care of the late man’s children from his meagre income.

Also, Mrs Titi Shobowale, who lost her husband, Femi, said she had submitted the papers demanded by the airline and the insurance firm but had not received any response from them.

“I have completed all the fromalties, yet I have not recieved any positive response from either Prestige Assurance or Dana. I am tired of the ‘come today, come tomorrow’ by the two of them,” she said.

For Chief Obi Awani, a retiree, who lost his daughter and a nine- month-old grandson, it was a bitter tale too. According to him, after submitting all the documents demanded by the airline and the insurance firm, he was told that there was a division in his family and was advised to go and sort it out. “That was strange to me because there was no such problem among my family members,” he said.

Efforts to get the reaction of the management of Prestige Assurance proved futile as phone calls put to its Managing Director, Dr Anand Prakash Mittal, were not picked while the short message service (SMS) sent to him failed to elicit any response.

But the spokesman of Dana Airlines, Mr Tony Usidameh, said it was not true that Dana is uncaring. According to him, the families of about 80 families out of all the victims have been paid the mandatory $30,000. The balance would come from the reinsurers abroad, he said.

He said the cause of the delay was not from Dana and that it was difficult for the families to obtain letters of administration from the court as demanded by law. He assured that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and Dana Air were working with the Lagos State government to simplify the process.

He said the insurers would only pay if they have the right documents.

He said Dana does not delight in the suffering of the families of those who died in the crash. On the $15,000, he said it was not true. He said the law stipulates $30,000 as compensation for a victim and that is what they were paying.

He added that another cause of the delay for payment was of multiple family members coming for claims.

Meanwhile, lawyers representing some of the victims’families have accused the airline and its insurer of playing games with Nigerians and the families of the dead to frustrate them.

They said it was a deception against Nigeria and its people and wondered why the management of the airline and the insurance firm were treating Nigerians like that.

They appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan, members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, the Minister of Aviation, Mrs Stella Oduah and the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to prevail on the Prestige Assurance’s and Dana Air’s management to pay the mandatory $30,000 due to the surviving family members of the victims.

They called on the Senate and House Committees on Aviation and the NCCA Director-General, Mr Harold Demuren and other Nigerians to compel Dana Airline and Prestige Assurance to pay the mandatory compensation to alleviate the sufferings prevailing in these families

A group of legal practitioners, Dr Bunmi Awoyemi of the M.O. Awoyemi & Co., Mr Gbenga Eguntola, an aviation lawyer and Mr Aminu Ayama of H. Ibrahim & Co, Kano, who represent about 40 of the affected families, said they had done everything possible to get Prestige Assurance and the airline to alleviate the sufferings of the family members of the victims.

Awoyemi said the law states that within 30 days from the crash date, $30,000 should be paid to those who are legally entitled to it.

But after over five months, he said, Dana and its insurers have only paid 13 out of the 40 families. He said Prestige Assurance paid $15,000 instead of $30,000 to four more.

He gave their names as: Rajulie Oyosoro; Ugabio Oyosoro; Jessica Ibe and Echendu Ibe. He said the others had not had any payment even after submitting their documents.

Eguntola accused the airline and its insurer of not doing enough for the 18 ground victims whom, he said, had approached him to help seek redress.

Dana Air was not interested in bearing their responsibilities, he alleged.

Ayama said of the five families he represents, about 25 orphans were left without resources, adding that many of them were out of school.

Lawyers Seek Full Compensation for Nigeria Air Crash Victims

http://www.voanews.com/content/nigeria-dana-plane-crash-victims-lawsuit/1554290.html

James Butty

November 28, 2012
Lawyers for the families of the victims of a Dana Airlines crash in Lagos, Nigeria said financial compensation has been paid in only 80 cases nearly six months after the June 3rd crash.

The plane crashed as it approached the Lagos international airport. It plowed into a residential area 9 kilometers short of the airport killing all 153 on board and 10 people on the ground. Investigators said the crash was caused by engine failure.

The lawyers said the families of the victims are supposed to receive $30,000 in initial compensation, as required by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Act.

Lawyers representing about 40 victims have sent a letter to a committee of the Nigerian Senate to force the airline and its insurers to pay compensation to the families of all the victims. The lawyers also said they have filed a lawsuit in the United States.

Bunmi Awoyemi, one of the lawyers, said they have scheduled a news conference for Thursday in Lagos to bring world attention to what he calls dishonest and deliberate attempts by Dana Airlines and its representatives not to pay compensation to families of other victims of the crash.

“I’m sure you are aware that over 160 died as a result of the crash and, so far, the compensation that has been paid has been paid to about 80 victims, and that compensation is actually the mandatory compensation as stipulated in the Nigerian Civil Aviation Act, which spells out clearly that $30,000 should be paid immediately by the carrier within 30 days of the crash towards expenses for victims of the crash,” he said.
Butty interview with Awoyemi


Unfortunately, Awoyemi said, the families of only 80 victims have been able to receive the $30,000 per victim initial compensation.

“Even among the 80, about 20 people were paid half of what they were supposed to be paid, which is a clear breach of the provisions of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Act. So, we want to bring it to the attention of everyone for the whole world to know that there is a lot of deception going on by the insurers of Dana Airlines and also Dana Airlines itself,” Awoyemi said.

Lawyers representing about 40 victims of the crash have sent a letter to the Nigerian Senate Committee on Aviation to force the airlines and its insurers to pay compensation to the families of other victims.

“The purpose of the letter is to bring it to their attention because they had a number of hearings in the committee a few weeks after the crash. We want to bring it to the attention of the committee so that the committee will be able to summon the stakeholders like the airlines, their insurers, and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, so that they can ensure that the $30,000 is paid to the victims of the crash,” he said.

Awoyemi said repeated requests to get Dana Airlines to pay the compensation have not produced the desired results.

“Even there was a particular forum that was held at the offices of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority where the victims’ families were allowed to ask Dana Airlines officials questions, and also their local insurance company here in Nigeria were also there. Unfortunately, the answers they gave were not honest answers, and it was very clear that they were not being straightforward,” Awoyemi said.

He said victims’ lawyers have also filed a tort lawsuit in the United States in October on the same issue.

“One of the major reasons why we decided to file in US courts is because of the major delays that we have in the judicial system in Nigeria. On the average, it takes about 15 to 20 years to conclude a case right from the high court to the Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court,” Awoyemi said.

He said they filed the lawsuit in the US not just because of the speed with which US courts dispense of their case loads, but because a lot of US citizens were involved in the Dana Airlines crash. Nine Americans were on the MD-83 aircraft along with other foreigners.

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kazman7:

Its really not about meeting these girls/guys on facebook,its about people and there warped minds,you could as well meet a babe in the market,bank,supermarket,on the street and still go through the same experience,i have personally met wonderful people through facebook that are aasociates and partners now

@Kazman: You have a point. I have forged very good relationships with biz partners and social entrepreneurs on facebook. Most of these ladies watch too many movies and read too many novels that pollutes their minds. May be they can change!

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