₦airaland Forum

By Henry Gbadebo
Yesterday, I again stumbled on a report making the rounds that Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode is planning to defect to another party over alleged conclusion of All Progressives Congress, APC leadership, especially Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to replace him with another governorship candidate in the 2019 elections. Haba! Kilode?
The report specifically claimed that Ambode had told his aides that he was pondering defecting to either the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) or the African Democratic Congress (ADC) should the APC leadership deny him a second term ticket.
The same report also claimed that former Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji, who is also an indigene of Epe, is being touted as Ambode’s likely replacement by the APC leadership.
Before addressing the tissue of lies the author of such malicious report purported, I need to quickly place it on record that this same Ikuforiji came out openly to dismiss such claim, describing it as the handiwork of mischief makers and detractors within the party. So I would rather not dwell on that issue, since we have heard from the horses’ mouth.
However, what baffles me is the wicked suggestion that our Governor intends to leave the APC, a party that he has struggled to build over the last three years. This is sacrilege, unbelievable and absolutely despicable! As a keen follower of the political developments in the Centre of Excellence, I know for sure that this is a hoax and a cheap blackmail. It is totally baseless and unfounded.
This is the pastime of detractors and more so in this era of social media where anybody with access to the internet can sit down and conjure falsehood and present it as the truth, one would not be too surprised about this report. Personally, I am not surprised that shameless elements are again up in arms and putting up crass report since it aligns with their evil agenda to cling to any straw in a desperate attempt to denigrate the government of the day in Lagos.
What we all know to be true is that there is no such plan by the governor to seek reelection in 2019 on the platform of another party other than the APC. Why should he anyway when he is the acknowledged poster boy of the party right now!
The Governor has spent the last three years in transforming the State through sterling projects and programmes and it is glaring even to his critics that the State has been moved a notch higher since he assumed office and he is ever ready to surpass what he has already achieved in the second term.
People should also care to note that this is the season of political jobbers and more of such baseless, unfounded and irresponsible report would find its way to the open space before the elections and so, the public should be wary of such malicious fabrications targeted at creating disaffection and confusion where none exists.

The Awujale and Paramount Ruler of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona has thanked Globacom for radically transforming the annual Ojude Oba festival in the last ten years to an internationally recognized event listed in the global tourism calendar.

The monarch who stated this in his speech at the 2018 Ojude Oba Festival held recently expressed deep gratitude to Globacom for “greatly transforming Ojude Oba festival in dimension, quality and popularity over the past one decade. We cannot thank its Chairman, Otunba (Dr.) Mike Adenuga, Jr. enough for his undying benevolence and relentless magnanimity towards the sustainability of the festival”.

He described the theme of this year’s festival, “Celebration of rich cultural heritage” as apt as it connotes perpetual testimonial of rich culture of the Ijebu people, which has not only become a model and showpiece in the nation, continent and the world, but has also become a huge asset of the Ijebu, that we are bequeathing to generations, yet unborn.

In his goodwill message, Globacom Chairman, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr. commended the can-do spirit of Nigerians which had kept the country going despite odds adding that this attribute would lead Nigerians to excel in any field of human endeavour.

Dr. Adenuga said: “It is instructive to note that Ijebuland has been moving from glory to glory and the Ojude Oba Festival has given us the opportunity to place developmental issues on the front burner of national discourse. Mindful of our brand promise, Globacom is always in the vanguard of efforts to support, grow and nurture Nigerian culture and festivals. We have been promoting all things bright and noble through sponsorship of notable festivals.”

He assured Nigerians of continuous provision of unique value offerings, telecommunications solutions, innovation and pocket friendly rates adding that the network had been comprehensively upgraded to offer maximum satisfaction to subscribers.

Financial institution with a dying philosophy

Unity Bank Pls is one of the tier 2 commercial banks in the country, but has lagged behind its counterparts for several reasons. The Tomi Somefun-led financial institution has been tagged a financial institution without a banking philosophy.

Years ago, a Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, Henry Semeniteri, was quoted saying that the financial institution was repositioning to have a South/Western outlook, as to be able to rub shoulders with its competitors in the nearest future.

The plan was a good one, as the bank which wanted to come mainstream had being labeled a northern financial institution. For this reason, it was being undermined in some business spheres. There was definitely no arguing it, Unity Bank Plc was a northern bank to a lot of people.

Less than two years into the implementation of the plan that was to see Unity Bank Plc metamorphose for good, Semeniteri alongside his dreams were axed overnight. He was accused of not complying with in house policies of the bank, and so he had to go. Without a thoroughbred leader, the bank remained what it was, a struggling one with little business strength.

Not only did the proposed reposition of the bank fail, since then, the bank has been operating on the peripheral lacking the ability to even pass for a third tier bank not to talk about rubbing shoulders with the top financial institutions in Nigeria. To aspire to be among the Systemically Important Banks was a wild goose chase.

Its inability to innovate and kickoff new business ideas soon became evident in the bank’s net income, as Unity Bank Plc slid by almost 54 percent to N2.18bn ($6.1m) in the 12 months through December 2016, with assets of N493bn, according to the company’s latest annual report.

Somefun, hinged the bad business result of the bank on “economic headwinds stifled business growth during the period accompanied by increased inflation and foreign exchange liquidity“. Unfortunately, she failed to reveal to her depositors that there were other in house problems bedeviling the bank.

Interest of the management put above those of its investors and depositors became too obvious, as tales were abound of how investors were being turned away due to conflicting interests, despite the dare need to recapitalise.

A case in point was the withdrawal of Milost Global Inc., a New York-based private equity firm which announced its termination of its proposed $1billion investment in Unity Bank Plc, after receiving threats.

Milost terminates Unity Bank deal, sues against Business Day
In a statement released via GlobeNewswire , the equity firm said that termination of the deal came as a result of threat messages the company received from a ‘well connected’ politician since an initial announcement of the deal broke out.
“The said individual was very well informed about our dealings with Unity Bank such that he knew the audit group Milost had hired to carry out the final due diligence. He told Milost to tell the board of Unity Bank that the audit firm had instructed Milost that Unity Bank was a bad investment, failing which he would unleash the media on Milost using among other things accusations that would cause the government to send Milost packing. These threatening emails were shared with the CEO of Unity Bank and the then CFO Ebenezer Kawole.

A $1billion investment into Unity Bank Plc would have done the financial institution a lot of good, as it affairs would have been expanded tremendously.

However, with that deal having hit the rock once again, it is back to the basis, as the financial institution continues to operate in an abysmal condition seeking ideal leadership and business skills to move it to its next level which seems oblivious even to those at the top echelon of its affairs.

History
Unity bank was founded in 2006 from the merger of 9 commercial banks namely; Intercity Bank Plc, First Interstate Bank Plc, Tropical Commercial Bank Plc, Pacific Bank Limited, Centre Point Bank Plc, Societe Bancaire Limited, NNB International Bank Plc, Bank of the North Ltd and New Africa Bank Plc. This is following the consolidation exercise mandated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2004

-Injures APC Women Leader’s PA

Hell was let loose on Monday 27 August, 2018 as the South West Women Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and an Executive Director of National Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Chief (Mrs.) Kemi Nelson invaded the Lagos State secretariat of the party with thugs.

Sources revealed that some executive members of the party in the state were having a meeting in the office of the state Chairman of the party, Hon. Tunde Balogun, when Kemi Nelson stormed the secretariat with about six thugs.

Sources disclosed that the thugs went straight to the State Women Leader of Party, Hon. Jumoke Okoya-Thomas at the party chairman’s office and warned her to behave herself, while trying to provoke her to a fight, but Okoya-Thomas kept her cool and did not utter a word, but rather left the meeting for her make-shift office in the secretariat.

It was however gathered that Kemi Nelson and her hoodlums were still not satisfied.

“The thugs then went outside the office where they sighted the Personal Assistant of Hon. Jumoke Okoya-Thomas, Alhaja Abiodun and engaged her in a serious fight that caused the PA serious body injury to the extent that she lost a lot of blood in the process.

“Alhaja Abiodun had to be rushed to a nearby hospital, else she would have lost her life over unnecessary jealousy and envy.

“Only God knows what Kemi Nelson wants after she has been elevated from the state Women Leader to the position of South West Women Leader of the party apart from being an appointee of President Muhammadu Buhari as a board member of NSITF,” said a source.

Investigation revealed that the crisis between Jumoke Okoya-Thomas and Kemi Nelson started shortly after Okoya-Thomas was sworn-in as the state Women Leader of the party.

It was gathered that Kemi Nelson refused to hand over to Okoya-Thomas. Till date, she is yet to vacate her office in the state party Secretariat to the latter, to the chagrin of watchers of events.

Sources revealed that all efforts made by the common friends of the duo to resolve the matter between them were rebuffed by Kemi Nelson, who has vowed to make things difficult for Okoya-Thomas.

Sources informed us that the office of the South West APC Women Leader was intentionally created for Kemi Nelson by the leaders of the party, who had pre-empted what is happening at the moment, and that Kemi Nelson is still not happy and that she has vowed to ensure that “Jumoke Okoya-Thomas does not succeed as the Lagos APC Women Leader no matter how hard she tries.”

Source : http://www.theelitesng.com/kemi-nelson-invades-lagos-apc-party-secretariat-with-thugs-attacks-okoya-thomas/

Moshood Salvador, chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos state, has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) with “over 10,000 members” of the opposition party.

He announced his defection to journalists at his residence in the Surulere area of the state on Monday.

Salvador said he was no longer comfortable with “greedy leaders who are fond of telling lies and destabilising the party for their selfish interest”.

He has been having a running battle with Bode George, a prominent chieftain of the party in Lagos.

Salvador, a former member of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), was a member of the house of representatives between 1999 and 2003.

He became the state chairman of the party in November 2017.

Last month, Salvador was remanded in Kirikiri prisons following his arraignment at a Yaba chief magistrates’ court alongside 10 others on a two-count charge of conspiracy and unlawful killing.

He was arrested in connection with the murder of Adeniyi Aborishade, PDP chairman of Apapa local government area.

Aborishade was murdered on July 21, during the PDP visitation meeting that held at Igbosuku Village, Eti-Osa LGA.

An Ikeja high court later dismissed the murder charge filed against Salvador but the experience worsened the crisis in Lagos PDP.

One of the foremost indigenous oil marketers Sahara Energy has found itself on the wrong side of a legal suit after being dragged before a federal high court. The complainant in the case, Eterna Oil, is accusing the company of failing to facilitate the payment of the oil subsidy sum of approximately ₦4.3 billion.

Standing as joint defendants in the suit filed before Justice Rilwan Aikawa are the trio of Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Federal Ministry of Finance of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the Attorney General of the Federation.

However, in a recent and surprising development, counsel for the plaintiff Oluwakemi Balogun, SAN has filed a notice of discontinuance on behalf of Eterna Oil, seeking to put an end to the suit. The court has fixed 3rd of October, 2018 for hearing.

Eterna had gone to court to compel Sahara Energy to carry out the necessary steps needed for the release of oil subsidy payment totalling ₦4.3 billion by PPPRA and the ministry of finance. The payment is the difference between the cost of importing Petroleum Motor Spirit and the selling price fixed by the federal government.

Eterna had alleged that it entered into a joint venture agreement with Sahara Energy for the delivery and sale of 15 000 metric tonnes of PMS after which the two parties carried our three further transactions of the same nature.

It claimed that because Sahara Energy has failed to pay the requisite Petroleum Equalization Fund PEF and PPPRA administration charges totalling around ₦246.7 million, the ministry of finance has refused to pay them the petroleum subsidy. Payment of both fees is a precondition for the issuance of requisite sovereign debt Note for payment of Petroleum Subsidy.

Despite their complicity in the non-release of the subsidy funds, Eterna claimed, Sahara Energy wrote the company a letter titled “statutory demand for payment of outstanding sum of ₦2,685,855,939.19”. The mentioned sum represents Sahara Energy’s share of the subsidy payment under the joint venture agreement.

The company therefore sought among other reliefs a perpetual injunction restraining Sahara Energy and its agents from doing anything that can disrupt the smooth operation of Eterna Oil or submitting a winding up or related petitions against Eterna Oil in relation to the nonpayment of their share of the subsidy amount.

Keystone Bank Limited, Africa’s best customer service provider recently signed up popular Nollywood actress, writer and producer, Funke Akindele Bello popularly known as ‘Jenifa’ as its official brand ambassador.

By virtue of this partnership, the multiple award-winning screen diva, Funke Akindele, will prominently represent the Keystone Bank brand and feature heavily in the lender’s marketing campaigns and consumer-focused strategies, while leveraging her large followership and popularity that cuts across socio-economic classes and age groups to further deepen the brand’s growing impression in the market.

Speaking during the contract signing ceremony at the bank’s head office in Lagos, on Friday August 17, 2018, the Group Managing Director/CEO of Keystone Bank Limited, Dr. Obeahon Ohiwerei said “the bank will explore every good platform to deepen it’s strength in the retail and youth segment. He reiterated that “The Nigerian entertainment industry is driven largely by SMEs and is growing exponentially, positioning the nation globally and positively impacting our GDP.

“We are extremely pleased to partner with a hardworking entrepreneur like Jenifa who is also a role model to a wide spectrum of youths and people from all walks of life. This partnership aligns with our corporate objective of supporting SMEs and empowering enterprising women, through our PINK account and network.”

Commenting on the development, Akindele revealed her excitement at being the Bank’s choice which according to her, is a great institution that Is fast making it’s marks in the sector. “I am delighted to be signed on as a brand ambassador for Keystone Bank. It is a privilege to be associated with one of the fastest growing financial institutions in the country today, We will certainly put the Bank on the World Map together” Akindele said.

Funke Akindele plays the lead character in the ongoing hit TV show ‘Jenifa’s Diary’, a spin-off from the movie titled ‘Jenifa’. Akindele has over 100 movies to her credit.

Since its recent acquisition by Sigma Golf – Riverbank consortium, Keystone Bank Limited, a technology and service-driven commercial bank, offering tailor-made convenient and reliable solutions to customer’s needs has been on upward swing.

Armed bandits have reportedly written to four villages in Sokoto and other locations in Zamfara State, threatening to unleash terror if they refused to meet their demands.
In the said letters to villages of Ruwan Tsamiya and Kursa in Gandi district of Rabah Local Government Area of Sokoto State and also dropped at villages of Kaiwar Dawa and Malela in the same district, the bandits particularly demanded huge amount of money from one Alhaji Mani Shehu, a rich farmer in Ruwan Tsamiya, a resident of the village, Mallam Zaidi said.
“The villagers are now planning to raise money for the bandits to avoid attack. We can’t call the bandits’ bluff because we saw what happened to other villages.”
A lecturer at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Mansur Buhari, disclosed that he received calls Saturday night from one of the villagers, lamenting about the bandits’ demands.
Reacting, Sokoto Police Command spokesperson, Cordelia Nwawe, explained that the police had not received the report.
“There are two mobile police units in the Gandi general area, hundreds of policemen are patrolling the area”, he said.
“Ask them to report the matter to police not journalists so that we take action.
“If they feel threatened, they should not hesitate to go to the IDP camp and settle for some time,” Nwawe advised.

Nigeria politic generally is poor and most people believe there’s no saint in politics which I completely agree, but there are some of these politician who are actually good/fair.

We take you through the 5 first timer Governor in Nigeria that deserves a second term ticket come 2019 general election.

1. Mr. Akinwumi Ambode
Although the list is in no particular order but even if the list is in descending order, Governor Ambode would still be our number 1.

When Fashola was the Governor, we thought Lagos state has witnessed the best of development but Ambode has taken that to another level. He within the space of 3 years turned Epe around to a city to be proud of, he constructed over 21 roads in Alimosho area of the state.

He brought another set of modern bus to replace the usual BRT buses, Lagos State as rowdy as it is is witnessing the best secured environment in the history of the state with his achievement in the security sector, he lighted up at least 365 streets in Lagos state.

Ambode had also greatly improved the Internal Generated Revenues in Lagos state as the state is making around 1bn per day now. What of the Pen Cinema Flyover, the world class Oshodi Transport Interchange, five new Art Theatre built, Epe and Badagry Marina Projects, Airport Road, Abule-Egba to Oshodi BRT laneetc.

That only little above 6 months to a general election, virtually no opposition members has shown interest in replacing Ambode speaks volume of how high the opposition in Lagos state rate the performance of his administration

The excellent man overseeing the affairs of the center of excellence has performed excellently well and therefore deserves a second term.

2. Nyesom Wike
The controversial Governor of Rivers state who is also now the leading opposition party, PDP figure is without any iota of doubt an achiever, he may have been in the news more for political related issues but the truth is, the infrastructure provision he is providing for the River state people is unprecedented.

One and his most important achievement is that, Rivers state which is known to be a killers den, Rivers state which house arguably the highest number of Cultists, political thugs, touts, hooligans and rascals in Nigeria is enjoying a relative peace.

There was a time Killing used to be a day to day occurrence in all the nook and crannies of River state but the narrative has changed with Wike in charge.

Any government that is successful in the provision of adequate security for her citizen is a government that deserves to be credited. Wike is credited for this and should be returned to complete his reform in River state.

3. Atiku Baguda
Unlike Wike, the Kebbi state Governor is a silent achiever, there is a silent revolution taking place in areas such as agriculture, education, health, youth empowerment and security.

There has been so much noise and advice about diversifying the Nigeria economy and Baguda is one of the few Governors walking the talk.

In the area of agriculture, Kebbi state signed a partnership deal with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to provide loan facilities to the rice and wheat farmers in the state.

The same Kebbi state under Baguda had a partnership with Lagos for the production of Rice in large quantities, today, Kebbi is providing over one million metric tons of rice and that is the brain behind the LAKE rice which has flooded our market. This agricultural achievement has also created thousands of job opportunity to the Kebbi citizen. State like Imo, Enugu, Katsina, Ebonyi etc have all visited Kebbi to understudy their rice production techniques.

Baguda also performed well in the education sector by renovating several school and providing enough teaching and learning materials to students and teachers. Teacher in Kebbi are been retrained among other landmark educational achievement in Kebbi.

In the health sector, all the General Hospitals in the state has been renovated by Baguda, All the existing comprehensive health centers in the rural areas were not left out as they were provided with necessary drugs, equipments, qualified personnel to man them and the list continues.

Baguda is a testament to the popular saying that empty barrel makes the loudest noise. He is not a popular media figure like Fayose but he is an achiever per excellence that deserves to be returned for a second tenure.

4. Dave Umahi
The Governor of Ebonyi state has built over 20 standard roads within the capital city of Abakaliki, road construction are visibly seen to either be ongoing or completed across Ebonyi, the first fly over in the state was constructed by this present government

In other to reduce Lassa Fever, Umahi built the first virology centre in the south east from scratch. Umahi greatest achievement however is in the area of agricultural.

Like Baguda, Umahi has turned around Ebonyi state with his agricultural initiatives, soft loans to the tunes of billions was provided for the farmers to expand rice production and the results has already been seen as rice production tripled in Ebonyi in 2017.

Umahi also provided parboiling machines for the 3 rice mills in the state and the state is today the biggest producer of rice in Nigeria.

The workers welfare is another great achievement of the Umahi led Ebonyi state government, for a state which had no concrete source of IGR, for a state that is in the caliber of Osun, Ekiti to be able to pay the workers salaries promptly despite the economic quagmire, such state Governor deserves an accolade.

The government has paid workers’ salaries till date and workers have received 13th month salaries for the last two years. Salaries are paid before 20th of every month, while those of teachers are paid before the 15th of every month. Pension of retired workers are also paid as and when due.

No doubt, Dave Umahi deserves to be re-elected.

5. Nasir El-Rufai
The lanky Governor of Kaduna is not just one of the most popular and influential Governor in Nigeria, he is also one of the best performing Governor, he has performed remarkably in steering the progress of Kaduna state.

The most notable of his achievement is Kaduna Educational reform, El-Rufai despite the criticism wielded out the unqualified teachers in Kaduna state, he then appointed over 2,500 qualified and well screened teachers, he further embark on a massive renovation of the state owned public schools.

State owned Tertiary Institutions were also giving the deserved attention as there are massive capital projects that are either ongoing or completed in the state’s tertiary institution, this is aside the increased budgetary allocations to these institutions to boost their effectiveness and place them amongst the leading tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

El-Rufai is also fighting corruption as much as Buhari is fighting it. First was the massive recovery of government’s property from illegal occupiers and encroachers which had hither to led to distortion in some of the government’s plan.

A rigorous verification exercise that was carried out for the state civil servants which led to the extrication of over 13,000 ghost workers from the state’s payroll, thus saving the state huge sums of money and then the adoption of Treasury Single Account (TSA) was replicated in Kaduna state.

There are massive construction of road ongoing in Kaduna at the lowest possible cost. The IGR been generated in Kaduna state has also increased under El-Rufai by more than 60%, moving from 11.5B in 2015 to 17B in 2017. New investors are also moving to Kaduna on regular basis as the government signed a partnership deal with a Chinese firm to build a new 50,000 barrels per day refinery in the state.

The former F.C.T minister maybe in the news more often than not for political reasons but he is obviously a ground breaker when it comes to governance and therefore deserves to be returned next year.

Please comment your view on the listed Governors above for other readers to deliberate on it….

Ahead of the 2019 general elections, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on Friday met with Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, at the Government House, Asaba, even as the he said that he wouldn’t lose sleep over the impeachment threat in the upper legislative chamber.

The Delta State Government House made this known in a statement Saturday.

Mr. Saraki, who addressed the press after the more than 30 minutes closed door meeting, stated, “I spent four years with a very capable and competent colleague (Governor Okowa) in the Senate. We worked very closely together and I have come to spend some time with him and to hear his views now that I have rejoined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“Governor Okowa is a very important party member, he is someone I truly respect and I have come to listen to him, hear his views and to consult with him,” he said.

He lauded the level of development witnessed in Delta State in the past three years, saying, “There is lot of economic growth for the past three years in the state. A lot of opportunites have been created for Deltans. There is a lot of development in the state and this is what we want to see in most of our states.”

Saraki, who was accompanied by some Senators, including, Dino Melaye and Peter Nwaoboshi, also debunked claims that the Senate was yet to reconvene due to fear of his impeachment.

“I am not losing any sleep about impeachment. We have a country that a lot of Nigerians believe there must be rule of law. Those who are talking about impeachment are engaging in cheap blackmail and I am not concerned about that,” he said.

He also used the brief encounter to throw more light on why he left the All Progressive Congress.

He said, “I have made a four-page statement on why I left the All Progressives Congress (APC) and I made it very clear that the ideas and visions of what we expected, was not realised in the areas of democracy, justice, etc.”

He continued, “Those that followed the political terrain of the last three years can see that the people are not happy. It is not about myself but about Nigerians and about the kind of country we want to build, the kind of democracy we want practiced and the kind of leadership we need. But, we have not been able to achieve any of this under the APC as much as we have tried.”

In the meantime, Saraki, has been telling those who care to listen that he has not lost any sleep over the impeachment plot being orchestrated by the stalwarts of the APC.

The Senate President berated those scheming in APC to remove him and had gone to the roof top to announce the plot, to dissipate such energy on democratic ideals that would better the lots of Nigerians.

He said the mass defection from APC to PDP was a result of the fact that the party has denied Nigerians true democracy in the past three years.

Saraki, who said he was in the state to chart the way forward with Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, said nothing would derail the present Senate from upholding the tenets of good governance.

He said no amount of political intimidation and security harassment would prevent the business of law-making that would impact positively on the country.

He said, “Our ideas and visions on what we expect in a democratic setting were not met in APC, hence we left. It is not about myself but about democracy and Nigeria. I can assure you that very soon, every process will fizzle out as it should be.

“I don’t lose sleep because we have a country that believes in democracy and the way we should work and a constitution that guides what we do. So, I am not concerned about the impeachment plot.

For many, old age is a curse of bent back, weak limbs and recurrent sickness.

But for Madam Suzanne Elumelu, it is a blessing of warmth and love, thanks to her circle of children and grandchildren, who have showered her with lots of care in appreciation of the towering matriarch as a source of enduring pleasure in their lives.

As she turned 90, the elegant and ageless woman was overwhelmed with a beautiful birthday soiree planned by family members to celebrate her admission into the league of nonagenarians.

Leading the way is none other than Chairman of Heirs Holdings Limited, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Transcorp Plc and Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Mr. Tony Elumelu, who was in joyous mood at his mother 90th birthday celebration, saying, on his Twitter handle, that he would not have been what he is today without his mother. ‘I thank God for her life. Happy birthday mama!’

Celebrating his mother on his Instagram page recently, the philanthropist revealed that he and his family members were counting down to the milestone.

He wrote: “This is symbolic in many ways for me. I always talk about the need to empower women across Africa, because I know firsthand the power of just one enterprising woman.

“Suffice it to say that I wouldn’t be the man I am today without my mom.”

Pay TV operator, MultiChoice Nigeria, has described the court ruling restraining it from implementing its new subscription rates as an affront to free market economy.

The company’s position was made known in a statement released on yesterday. MultiChoice said it received, on Thursday, an interim court order dated 20 August from the Federal High Court regarding the price adjustment that it implemented on 1 August 2018.

“We believe that the order is an affront to the free market economy and we have now filed a Notice of Appeal and an application for stay of execution, pending the hearing of the Appeal.

“The CPC has been accordingly served with the requisite processes.

“In light of the application for a stay of execution, the status quo therefore prevails,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, the Pay TV company said it will always operate within the ambit of the law and will cooperate with the authorities to ensure the best outcome for its customers, as it remains committed to providing the best quality of entertainment and premium content at the best possible prices.

Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State, Mr Iyiola Oyedepo, has urged the people of the state to vote for his party during the 2019 general elections.

He told the people of the state not to forget the hardship they had allegedly been subjected to since 2003 under the leadership of Dr Bukola Saraki, the current administration and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

Oyedepo, in his Eid-el-Kabir message, called on Muslim faithful to use the occasion of the celebration to pray for the rescue of the state.

“Poverty, hunger, misery and despondency are everywhere and on every face of the people of the state”, NAN quoted him as saying.

“Succeeding governments since 2003 have pauperised the generality of the people of the state; the government has no programme that can benefit the masses”.

According to him, successive governments since 2003 only carried out projects that have no direct impact on the lives of the common people.
“What is the benefit of Aviation College, Metropolitan Square, Football Academy, Shonga Farm and Underpass to the ordinary people on the streets?

“All these projects have no direct benefit on the masses of the state,” Oyedepo said.

He also challenged the state government to disclose how much the Aviation College had generated as revenue since its establishment.

“You should not forget all these wasteful projects when voting during next year’s general election; Kwara people should vote wisely,” he said.

Oyedepo claimed that the state government since 2003 had received over N1 trillion in federal allocation, Value Added Tax, bonds, internally generated revenue and Paris Club refund.

He also appealed to the people of the state to collect their voter’s card to enable them to vote for all APC candidates in the 2019 general elections.

Financial institution with a dying philosophy

Unity Bank Pls is one of the tier 2 commercial banks in the country, but has lagged behind its counterparts for several reasons. The Tomi Somefun-led financial institution has been tagged a financial institution without a banking philosophy.

Years ago, a Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, Henry Semeniteri, was quoted saying that the financial institution was repositioning to have a South/Western outlook, as to be able to rub shoulders with its competitors in the nearest future.

The plan was a good one, as the bank which wanted to come mainstream had being labeled a northern financial institution. For this reason, it was being undermined in some business spheres. There was definitely no arguing it, Unity Bank Plc was a northern bank to a lot of people.

Less than two years into the implementation of the plan that was to see Unity Bank Plc metamorphose for good, Semeniteri alongside his dreams were axed overnight. He was accused of not complying with in house policies of the bank, and so he had to go. Without a thoroughbred leader, the bank remained what it was, a struggling one with little business strength.

Not only did the proposed reposition of the bank fail, since then, the bank has been operating on the peripheral lacking the ability to even pass for a third tier bank not to talk about rubbing shoulders with the top financial institutions in Nigeria. To aspire to be among the Systemically Important Banks was a wild goose chase.

Its inability to innovate and kickoff new business ideas soon became evident in the bank’s net income, as Unity Bank Plc slid by almost 54 percent to N2.18bn ($6.1m) in the 12 months through December 2016, with assets of N493bn, according to the company’s latest annual report.

Somefun, hinged the bad business result of the bank on “economic headwinds stifled business growth during the period accompanied by increased inflation and foreign exchange liquidity“. Unfortunately, she failed to reveal to her depositors that there were other in house problems bedeviling the bank.

Interest of the management put above those of its investors and depositors became too obvious, as tales were abound of how investors were being turned away due to conflicting interests, despite the dare need to recapitalise.

A case in point was the withdrawal of Milost Global Inc., a New York-based private equity firm which announced its termination of its proposed $1billion investment in Unity Bank Plc, after receiving threats.

Milost terminates Unity Bank deal, sues against Business Day
In a statement released via GlobeNewswire , the equity firm said that termination of the deal came as a result of threat messages the company received from a ‘well connected’ politician since an initial announcement of the deal broke out.
“The said individual was very well informed about our dealings with Unity Bank such that he knew the audit group Milost had hired to carry out the final due diligence. He told Milost to tell the board of Unity Bank that the audit firm had instructed Milost that Unity Bank was a bad investment, failing which he would unleash the media on Milost using among other things accusations that would cause the government to send Milost packing. These threatening emails were shared with the CEO of Unity Bank and the then CFO Ebenezer Kawole.

A $1billion investment into Unity Bank Plc would have done the financial institution a lot of good, as it affairs would have been expanded tremendously.

However, with that deal having hit the rock once again, it is back to the basis, as the financial institution continues to operate in an abysmal condition seeking ideal leadership and business skills to move it to its next level which seems oblivious even to those at the top echelon of its affairs.

History
Unity bank was founded in 2006 from the merger of 9 commercial banks namely; Intercity Bank Plc, First Interstate Bank Plc, Tropical Commercial Bank Plc, Pacific Bank Limited, Centre Point Bank Plc, Societe Bancaire Limited, NNB International Bank Plc, Bank of the North Ltd and New Africa Bank Plc. This is following the consolidation exercise mandated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2004

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has taunted President Muhammadu Buhari over the comment that the president is fit for another term because he trekked a distance of 800 meters in Daura, Katsina state, on Tuesday.

The issue of Buhari’s health has generated controversy, with some of his critics asking the president not to seek another term based on his health condition.

Last year, the president spent over 150 days in London, treating an undisclosed ailment.

Garba Shehu, a presidential spokesman, had asked those opposed to Buhari’s second term to look for other issues because by trekking such a distance, Buhari had proven that his health is not a problem.

“He (Buhari) is curious that these days, one or two people who are aspiring to be president are campaigning on their youthfulness and good health.

“I think the president has done one thing today – that the issue is not how old one is but how fit is he; how healthy is he. Now that the president has proven his fitness and well-being to continue in office is a settled matter. I think that if people want to campaign against him they should do so on issue that are of significance to Nigerians. The president is fit, he is healthy; he is good to go.”

But Abubakar, who disagreed with Shehu, his former spokesman, tweeted a picture of himself at the gym and wrote: “I regularly jog more than a mile & exercise, but it will be pedestrian of me to ask Nigerians to vote for me because of that. I want my party – the PDP, and Nigerians, to vote for me because I WORK not because I WALK. I will work to create jobs. I won’t walk to create an illusion.”

… Victims petition IGP, demand N10bn compensation

Skye Bank Plc and its subsidiary, Skye Trustees Limited are currently enmeshed in fresh controversy following the demolition of more than 200 houses at the instance of the two organisations in Lagos.

While the President Muhammadu Buhari administration is striving so hard to achieve its target of delivering affordable housing to the people, the Tokunbo Abiru-led financial institution and its subsidiary on Thursday, July 26th 2018 visited hardship on the Glorious Villa Community in Ibeju Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State which housed over 3000 inhabitants when they demolished the properties.

We reliably learnt that trouble started when Skye Bank was discreetly sold a large expanse of land allegedly belonging to about 55 families by four of the families in Abule Parapo Phase 2, Awoyaya area of Ibeju Lekki.

It was further gathered that after winning the land dispute case from initial land grabbers, another set of family unit had three years earlier sold some plots located behind the famous Greenspring International School for the sum of N1.5 million each to the occupants who are now homeless after the destruction which gave them no chance to salvage their belongings.



Unknown to these family units, the four family units had also obtained a court judgment behind the scene and went ahead to sell the entire 200.184 hectares of land plus the court judgment to Skye Bank and Skye Trustees Limited which rushed to the Lagos State government through high-powered officers for the authentication of the lands in their company name.

Skye Bank, we learnt, reached out to the lawyers of the property owners to come over for ratification and demanded that they should pay sums of money ranging between N4 million and N8 million for the ratification of each of the plots in contention.

The property owners had suggested further negotiation and had reached a compromise with the bank, but Skye Bank allegedly went ahead with the demolition of the properties with the backing of about 300 armed operatives from various security outfits that harassed the residents and seized their belongings including phones and cameras.

The Skye Bank-ordered demolition has thrown the residents of the area into a state of distress and agony as majority of them now take refuge in uncompleted buildings outside of the community. Others have resorted to talking solace under the bridges around the area while some have moved in with their relations as squatters pending when luck will smile at them to acquire new accommodations.

Affected residents, most of who are customers of the Skye Bank have been counting their post-demolition losses, lamenting the suffering they are forced to go through.

“This pain is too much to bear, and to think that it comes from a bank I hitherto held so dear is worrying to me,” lamented a woman who did not provide her name.

Mr. Wise Iyanla while narrating his ordeal said: “I, my friends, my comrades and my families, we are closing all our accounts in Skye Bank. This is a trying moment but we will win this battle!

“As a young man in the corporate world, I strove harder to do some expensive things. One of the things I did was to strive to build a bungalow here in Ibeju Lekki axis (Awoyaya) and my land was properly acquired from the legitimate owners who originally acquired the landed properties from their forefathers as inheritance.

“All of a sudden, just last month here, I was at work when I received a WhatsApp message from a co-landlord, informing me that our properties built with our hard-earned sweat were being demolished by Skye Bank and their agent, Lekki Gardens Estate Limited with a battalion of security personnel to protect their heinous action.

“What can I say as a young father and hustler? I said to my co-landlord, man can never be hurt. What took us years to stand, as struggling young Nigerians, were demolished in minutes.

“The most painful aspect of the story is the fact that our buildings were demolished in error because there was no court judgment that warranted the destruction of our properties and I doubt that the IG was aware of the illegal police officers outing during the criminal and malicious destruction of our properties and now that it is established, 10 billion for the accounts is feasible.”

Another affected resident, a 64-year-old widow and retired civil servant, Mrs. Oyekunle Azeez, said ever since the incident, she has been living in a church and her blood pressure had risen. “In tears, the elderly woman said: I laboured so hard before I retired to build this house, how have I offended the bank and their directors? This was all I had. Why do they want to send me to an early grave?” Mrs. Azeez lamented.

The lawyers representing Glorious Villa Community Development Association, Reagan Nzeteh & Co. has written Lekki Gardens demanding the sum of N10 billion from Skye Bank plc and Skye Trustees Ltd for what it called trespass to land, willful/criminal/malicious damage of its client’s properties and illegal demolition of the properties in Abule Parapo Phase 2 by the two organisations. They have also threatened to sue the trio if the money is not paid within a stipulated period of time.

In the same vein, the inspector general of police has been petitioned regarding the illegal use of over 300 police officers in the operation.

Efforts by our reporter to reach the management of Skye Bank and Skye Trustees for their angle to the development proved futile as enquiries sent to the bank were not responded to as at press time.

A Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday restrained Multichoice Nigeria Limited from going ahead with its recent decision to increase the subscription tariffs for DSTV, its satellite cable television service providers.

The restraining order was issued in respect of Suit No FHC/ABJ/CS/894/18 brought before the court by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) in the light of the strong public interest raised in the application.

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, had granted the authority for the Council to initiate the suit under Section 10 and 16 of the Consumer Protection Council Act, Cap c25, LFN 2004.

In his order, the judge, Nnamdi Dimgba, said the interim injunction restrains Multichoice Nigeria or its agents and representatives from continuing the implementation of any increase in subscription rates or price review policy imposing increased charges and costs on the consumers pending the determination of the motion on notice.

Besides, the court also restrained DSTV from further carrying on or continuing any conduct or activity which interferes with or has effect of circumventing the outcome of ongoing investigations by the CPC into the company’s compliance or non-compliance with the February 16, 2016 order pending the determination of the motion on notice.

In July, MultiChoice Nigeria announced new monthly subscription rates for the DSTV Premium package from N14,700 to N15,800 (about 7.5 per cent) Compact Plus from N9,900 to N10,650; Compact bouquet from N6,300 to N6,800; Family from N3,800 to N4,000, and Access from N1,900 to N2,000.

The new rates took effect from August 1 this month.

The application was filed by the CPC on behalf of the federal government, with the Director General of the Council, Babatunde Irukera, leading other concerned Nigerians to appear in court for the case.

The application was accompanied with a nine-paragraph statement jointly signed by Messrs Irukera, Abimbola Ojenike, Eme David-Ojugo, Moray Adebayo, Teniola Medupin and Florence Abebe.

The CPC said in the statement that it has constitutional responsibility to protect the welfare and interest of consumers in Nigeria through the instrumentality of the Council.

In the exercise of its statutory mandate, the Council said it was conducting an investigation into DSTV’s compliance with its orders of February 16, 2016 over alleged unfairness, arbitrariness and excessiveness of pricing and billing systems.
Besides, the Council said it was also reviewing other emergent issues relating to whether DSTV‘s business practices and specific conducts were in violation of the law with respect to the rights of consumers in Nigeria.

The Council noted that in the course of its investigation and consultative engagement with the Multichoice Nigeria, DSTV “preemptively and surreptitiously introduced a subscription regime which imposes increased charges and costs on Nigerian Consumers of digital satellite television service with effect from 1st August, 2018”.

The agency argued that unless the court restrained Multichoice Nigeria, it was afraid DSTV or its representative would continue the implementation of the increased subscription rate.

The action, it pointed out, was capable of “rendering ineffective and nugatory the on-going regulatory investigation which seeks to prevent continuing exploitation of Nigerian consumers through obnoxious and exploitative billing systems and pricing regimes”.

“An order of interim injunction restraining the Defendant/Respondent by itself, agents, representatives, affiliates, officers or privies, howsoever described from continuing the implementation of any increased subscription rate or price review policy imposing increased charges and costs on the consumers of Defendant/Respondent’s services pending the determination of the Plaintiff/Applicant’s Motion on Notice for Interlocutory Injunction filed in this suit,” Mr Dimgba said.

The CPC asked the court to accord the matter accelerated hearing so that the substantive issues raised would be determined and settled definitively and expeditiously.

Consequently, the court adjourned the case to Tuesday, August 28, for hearing.

When contacted, the spokesperson of Multichoice Nigeria Limited, Carole Oghuma, promised to send the company’s reaction to the court order. However, at the time of this publication, the response was yet to come in.

The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has listed the many sins of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and leadership of All Progressives Congress (APC) which he said culminated in his defection.

Mr Saraki, who dumped the APC for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) last month, was reacting to a statement by the APC leader Bola Tinubu.

Mr Tinubu had in a statement on Sunday said the Senate President left because of his presidential ambition.

“Much the same for Senate President Saraki. Returning to the PDP, he harbors dreams of the presidency but Tambuwal’s ambition will dwarf Saraki’s when the two collide. If Saraki had remained in the APC, he would be unable to reclaim his Senate seat let alone the Senate Presidency. He thus bolted because he lusts for the presidency but was promised by the PDP, at least, a return to his position in the Senate.

“For Saraki to talk about lack of governance is for him to deny who he is and the position he holds. This man stands as Nigeria’s Number 3 citizen. Clothed is he in ample power and influence. If he saw areas where government and the nation needed help, he could have easily applied his energies to these areas. He could have drafted legislation and easily got laws passed.

“However, no progressive enactment bears his name for he cared not for progress. He has been more focused on changing the rules of the Senate to favour himself and changing the order of elections so as to coincide with his selfish designs,” Mr Tinubu said.

Mr Saraki in a statement on Monday said the reasons advanced by Mr Tinubu were false and mischievous.

He listed as reasons for his exit ‘contempt’ for the National Assembly by the Buhari administration.

“I have always restrained from joining issues in the media with Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and this is based on my respect for him. However, I will not allow him to create a wrong, false and mischievous impression about the reasons for my decision to exit the All Progressives Congress (APC) and present his prejudice as facts for public consumption.

“I have been consistent in my complaints to all leaders of the APC, including Tinubu, that a situation where the National Assembly is not constructively engaged or carried along in key policy decisions, particularly those that will eventually require legislative approval, is not in the best interest of the nation.

“No genuine leader of the legislature will be comfortable that the Presidency will simply write a terse letter to the National Assembly on key issues which the federal legislature is expected to later deliberate upon and give its approval. The Buhari administration consistently treats the legislature with contempt and acts as if the lawmaking body should be an appendage of the Executive. To me, this is unacceptable.
“In the same way, I find it very objectionable that many stakeholders who worked strenuously to get the administration into office have now been excluded in the government and not consulted on key decisions as necessary and expected. In fact, some of them are treated as pariahs. A party that ignores justice, equity and inclusion as basic pre-conditions for peace, unity and stability cannot sustain its membership and leadership.”

Mr Saraki flashed back to his statement announcing his exit from the APC. He emphasised that the decision to leave was imposed on him by ‘certain elements and forces within the APC who have ensured that the minimum conditions for peace, cooperation, inclusion and a general sense of belonging did not exist.’

He added that the ‘elements’ had made sure that party principles required for a healthy functioning were deliberately violated.

The Senate President accused Mr Tinubu of siding with President Buhari in his reconciliatory move rather than addressing his grievances.

The statement reads further, “Tinubu himself will recall that during the various meetings he had with me at the time he was pursuing reconciliation within the APC, I raised all the above issues. I can also vividly recall that he himself always expressed his displeasure with the style of the government and also mentioned that he had equally suffered disrespect from the same government which we all worked to put in office. I also made the point that whatever travails I have gone through in the last three years belong to the past and will not shape my decisions now and in the future.

“However, during those meetings, the point of disagreement between Tinubu and I is that while I expressed my worries that there is nothing on ground to assure me that the administrative style and attitude would change in the next four years in a manner that will enable us to deliver the positive changes we promised to our people, he (Tinubu) expressed a strong opinion that he would rather ‘support a Buhari on the hospital stretcher’ to get a second term because in 2023, power will shift to the South-west. This viewpoint of Tinubu’s was not only expressed to me but to several of my colleagues. So much for acting in national interest.

“It is clear that while my own decision is based on protecting the collective national interest, Tinubu will rather live with the identified inadequacies of the government for the sake of fulfilling and preserving his presidential ambition in 2023. This new position of Tinubu has only demonstrated inconsistency — particularly when one reviews his antecedents over the years.”

Flashing back their differences to build up to the 2015 general elections, Mr Saraki accused Mr Tinubu of peddling falsehood on his defection.

“Again, let me reiterate my position that my uncertain and complex relationship with Tinubu has been continually defined by the event of 2014 when myself and other leaders of the APC opposed the Muslim-Muslim ticket arrangement about to be foisted on the APC for the 2015 polls. It should be noted that he has not forgotten the fact that I took the bull by the horns and told him that in the interest of the country, he should accept the need for the party to present a balanced ticket for the 2015 General Elections in terms of religion and geo-political zones. Since that time he has been very active; plotting at every point to undermine me, both within and outside the National Assembly.

“It is a surprise to me that Asiwaju Tinubu is still peddling the falsehood about the fact that my defection is about automatic ticket and sharing of resources. Members of the public will recall that when the issue of my decision to quit APC came to the fore and many APC leaders were holding meetings with me, a newspaper owned by the same Tinubu published a false report about the promise of automatic tickets, oil blocks and other benefits. I immediately rebutted their claims and categorically stated that I never discussed any such personal and pecuniary benefits with anybody. My challenge that anybody who has contrary facts should come forward with them still remains open.
“It should be known that Democracy is a system that allows people to freely make their choices. It is my choice that I have decided to join others to present a viable alternative platform for Nigerians in the coming elections. Tinubu and leaders of the APC had better respect this decision or lawfully deal with it. As for me, Allah gives power to whom He wishes. Human beings can only aspire and strive to fulfill their aspirations.”

Since his defection to the PDP last month, Mr Saraki has been under intense pressure from APC leaders and lawmakers insisting he vacate the seat since his party is now a minority in the senate.

Mr Saraki has vowed to keep his position.

The All Progressives Congress, APC, has said that its members, even those in President Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet will not be excused in the fight against corruption.

The Acting National Publicity Secretary of the party, Yekini Nabena, in a statement yesterday, challenged Nigerians to petition the anti-corruption agencies against any person they considered corrupt.

The APC was reacting to the barrage of attacks that trailed the threat from President Buhari to jail corrupt persons on arrival from London.

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and other Nigerians had demanded that Buhari should start the jailing with the ruling party’s National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, David Babachir Lawal and others.

The party stated, “It is not true that Mr. President is targeting opposition by that statement.

“We are all in this country to know that a serving APC Senator is currently facing trial over corruption.

“When he said he is going to jail more people, he was not targeting only the opposition.

“The law will always take its course and it does not matter where he starts. If Nigerians want Mr President to prosecute Oshiomhole or anyone close to the President, they should do the needful.

“If anyone can establish any case against them, let the law takes its course.

“Nobody is shielding anybody and we challenge the judiciary to live up to the expectations of Nigerians in handling corruption cases.”

Mavin queen, Tiwa Savage has finally reacted to rumours of an intimate relationship between her and music star, Wizkid.

Tiwa and Wizkid were spotted a few months ago in several pictures together.

The two even performed a few shows together and this led many speculating that perhaps there was something more between them.

However, speaking on SoundCity radio 98.5, at the weekend, Tiwa clarified that the relationship between them was not romantic in any way.

She said she had ignored all the rumours, and that there was no pressure on her to respond.

She said: “I heard all sorts of stories about Wizkid and I, but I chose to ignore them.

“At a point, people said I was dating Humblesmith; later they mentioned another (artiste?).

“How long will I continue to debunk these rumours.

“I have been in the music industry for quite a while and I have grown a thick skin, so certain rumours or insinuations don’t get to me again.”

I say without any equivocation that this young man who is there now-Akinwunmi Ambode- has raised the stake of performance (in Lagos State) especially in infrastructure –Olabode George, chieftain of the opposition People’s Democratic Party,( PDP).

About the time strident critics in Nigeria had begun to come to terms with the reality of Lagos as standing out of the pack in an environment of ill-performing states, posting distressing infrastructure-deficit indices, a global body has turned out a report suggesting the contrary. So on the one hand, we have the rare acclaim of a known censurer of the Ambode government; and on the hand we are being offered the partial picture of what is on the ground.

According to the 2018 Global Liveability Index released by The Economist Intelligence Unit(EIU) World Bank, ‘’Lagos is the third worst city to live in.’’ It examined 140 cities and placed Nigeria’s economic and commercial hub at 138, Syria and Bangladesh being the only two lower.

Vienna, the Austrian capital, was ranked the most liveable city in the world. Melbourne in Australia came in second place after a seven-year at number one. Japan’s Osaka came in at third position.

The ranking was based on five parameters: Political and Social Stability, Education, Culture, Environment, Infrastructure and Access to Health. For Infrastructure among the other factors, ‘’the quality of road network, quality of public transport, international links, availability of good quality housing, quality of energy provision, quality of water provision and quality of telecommunications were considered.’’

Interestingly, by the reckoning of a widely-travelled and respected Nigerian financial expert Mr. Bismarck Rewane, these are areas where Ambode’s Lagos has fared excellently. Not known for flippant comments on political and economic matters because of his integrity, Rewane has become a favourite of newsmen on hot-button issues. So when the EIU report came up, he spoke what many have regarded as the objective view.

He criticized the world body for its judgment that Lagos is the planet’s third worst city to choose to live in. It’s an unfair and harsh verdict, Rewane told an interviewer on a leading TV News station operating from Lagos last week. He declared solemnly: ‘’First and foremost, I think the report is subjective and it is based on warped criteria. Certainly, in a survey that says that number 86 is Johannesburg when you talk about crime, terrorism, insurgency and Lagos is 138 out of 140, it’s unfortunate. I feel safer in Lagos than in Johannesburg…I must come out strongly that the EIU …is a bit subjective and does not reflect the truth. Lagos is definitely not the third worst city to live in in the world. I stand by that and I am ready to join issues with the Economic Intelligence Unit whom I respect anyway…’’

His stand tallies with those of most dispassionate observers who have taken keen interest in developments in this state growing by leaps and bounds every day. Adjudged the fastest growing and the fifth largest economy in Africa, Lagos is heading for the 20 million population mark, earnings it the mega polis epithet. That poses inherent security and infrastructure challenges characteristic of such climes.

But that is precisely where to dig deep to find out if the Lagos authorities are aware the world is watching them to know if they are tackling the issues appropriately and in accordance with global best practices. The world has become a small space, any corner of which you can access from the comfort of your room. What happens in your backyard or bedroom is in the world domain, not even public domain. So the world can’t but notice the mammoth activity of urban renewal in Lagos. The entire state has become a veritable construction site, where new roads are either being built or existing ones are experiencing a face-lift via expansion and modernization. And to secure lives, residential and office apartments which have failed safety are being pulled down to make way for befitting centres of commerce and habitation.

The transport sector is similarly being driven to the next level, with the phasing out of the ubiquitous molue. The more appealing luxurious Lagbus fleet are taking over on newly created corridors not only to add aesthetic beauty to the city landscape, but also to deepen the security of commuters.

There is now an unprecedented move by the Ambode government to trash the notorious slums in the state into the dustbin of the past. He has come under attack for attempting what his predecessors dared not to undertake: displacing the huge ghettoes and rickety markets to create for modern and affordable settlements and business centres.

But, as ex-Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings told complaining compatriots when he was rebuilding Ghana after years of decay, ‘’it is a bitter pill that must be taken for lasting relief’’. Time is proving him right, because Ghana has enjoyed a sane and equable political and economic history since his days. It was a challenge the current generation of Ghanaian would have been battling with if Rawlings hadn’t confronted it then.

I think when reports of the nature under review are coming up, their authors must also consider on-going projects of renewal in societies being assessed. That way, they would avoid producing halfway verdicts of the type being criticized by well-meaning Nigerians. The critics are not those in government or so-called sponsored commentators. They are those who believe the EIU has not been fair to an administration whose members are having sleepless nights in order to make Lagos safe and turn it into a tourism haven as well as the investors’ dream destination.

Anibaba, a journalist wrote from Ikorodu, Lagos State

A 37-year-old ex-marketing officer of Addosser Micro-Finance Bank Plc, Aliu Mustapha, on Thursday appeared before an Igbosere Magistrates’ Court in Lagos over alleged N1 million theft.

The defendant was arrested on his wedding day, and is facing trial on a charge of stealing preferred against him by the police.

However, the defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The prosecutor, Samuel Mishozunnu, told the court that the defendant committed the alleged offence between May and June 2017, during working hours, at No. 32, Lewis St., Lagos Island.

He said that the defendant allegedly committed the offence while working with Addosser Micro-Finance Bank PLC.

Mishozunnu said that the defendant collected the N1 million from a customer of the micro-finance bank but refused to remit it to the bank.

“One of the customer’s gave the defendant N840, 000 and another customer gave him N160, 000, but the accused absconded with the money.

“Mustapha was arrested on August 11, during his wedding after the police got information that he was getting married.

“The police waited for him to exchange his marriage vows after which he was apprehended and charged,” Mishozunnu said.

According to the prosecutor, the offence contravened Section 287(7) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

The defence counsel, M. A. Rufai, urged the court to grant bail to the defendant on most liberal terms.
In his ruling, the magistrate, Y.O. Aro-Lambo, granted a N200, 000 bail to the defendant with two sureties in like sum.

He said that one of the sureties must be a community leader, adding that they must show evidence of tax payment to the Lagos State Government and have their addresses verified.

The case was adjourned until September 11 for trial.

Some eminent lawyers yesterday came down heavily on the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, over his recent utterances since he assumed his new position.

Specifically, among the utterances lawyers raised issue on was the one credited to Oshiomhole saying that, “No Court will save Saraki.”

The lawyers, who spoke, noted that such statement was a sign of disrespect to the nation’s judiciary.

They, however, reminded him that he cannot be a judge in his own case.

Oshiomhole had been calling for the resignation of the Senate President Bukola Saraki since he defected from the APC to the PDP.

He had stressed several times that Saraki ought to vacate his seat, having left the party on which platform he assumed the seat of the Senate President.

He had also threatened that the APC senators will impeach him and that no court can save him.

Commenting, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Chief Mike Ozekhome and a Vice President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Monday Ubani, both cautioned the APC national chairman to be wary of his utterances in his party’s quest to ensure the impeachment of Saraki.

Oshiomhole had while addressing APC’s caucus in the National Assembly on Tuesday stated that no court could save the Senate’s President.

However, in his reaction, Ozekhome, disclosed that the APC national chairman ought to know that court’s decision on any matter is final and no executive fiat can override it.

He said: “A court’s decision on any matter is final. No executive fiat can override it. The tripartite doctrine of separation of powers is found in Sections 4 (Legislation), 5 (Executive) and 6 (Judiciary), of the 1999 Constitution as amended. None of these arms of government can act in disobedience of the other.

“That doctrine of separation of powers was mostly popularised in 1748 by a great French philosopher, Baron de Montesquieu. Once a court gives a judgment, all governments, persons and authorities must obey it. Not to do so is a ready recipe for anarchy and chaos. Such torpedoes democracy and conscripts the democratic space.”

In his submissions, Ubani urged Oshiomhole to be circumspect in his approach to issues.

He said: “Mr. Chairman, note that I am not a fan of Mr. Saraki and I have not hidden my disdain for his personality and activities in the upper chamber, but try to be wise in some of your utterances and note that we have intelligent and educated people in Nigeria. We are not all fools, for God’s sake.

“The four ways for Mr. Saraki to leave the present seat as required by law are (1) Death (2) Resignation (3) Dissolution and (4) Impeachment by two – third majority of the entire membership of the Senate, approximately 73 senators. See Section 50(2) (c) of 1999 Constitution as amended:

“Section 50 (1) says, There shall be:-(a) a President and a Deputy President of the Senate, who shall be elected by the members of that House from among themselves; and

(b) A Speaker and a Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, who shall be elected by the members of that House from among themselves.

(2) The President or Deputy President of the Senate or the Speaker or Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives shall vacate his office –

(a) if he ceases to be a member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives, as the case may be, otherwise than by reason of a dissolution of the Senate or the House of Representatives; or

(b) When the House of which he was a member first sits after any dissolution of that House; or

(c) If he is removed from office by a resolution of the Senate or of the House of Representatives, as the case may be, by the votes of not less than two-thirds majority of the members of that House.

“The present status though not confirmed hundred percent in the Senate is, PDP 49 senators and APC 52, the remaining for APGA and ADC.

“So, I ask, how will the APC senators as presently constituted impeach Mr. Saraki, the Senate President? Is Mr. Oshiomhole planning an impeachment that will not comply with the strict provisions of the ground norm, the 1999 Constitution as amended?

“How do they intend to muster the 73 senators as required by law or is he engaging in intimidation, bullying and noise making which reduces his personality before right thinking members of the society?

“The “monster” Saraki was created by APC in their naive political engineering and I think the best approach would have been to handle him with wisdom and intelligence in order to get the best out of him in the interest of Nigeria.

“With the present configuration, the Senate cannot also impeach Mr. President, it is impossible legally. They can’t even try it,” Ubani said.

Another Abuja based lawyer, Kingdom Okere, noted that in the constitution which calls for amendment, it did not specifically provide that the presiding officers shall be elected from the majority political party.

“It is just a matter of convention, harmony and understanding among members of the majority party in both chambers that presiding officers had emerged from majority political party over the years,” he stated.

https://newtelegraphonline.com/2018/08/sarakis-impeachment-ozekhome-nba-chief-others-caution-oshiomhole/

Elder brother to the former Minority Leader in the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio , Chief Isong Akpabio, has revealed that Akwa Ibom State remains a stronghold of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), despite his younger brother’s defection to the ruling All Progressive Congress Party (APC).

This is as a pan-Akwa Ibom platform, Ibom Patriots, dismissed insinuations that the Federal Government would manipulate the security and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to work against the re-election of Governor Udom Emmanuel in 2019.

Isong’s statement was the first time someone from the Akpabio family would be reacting to the defection.

Speaking during an interview with journalists in Lagos, Akpabio said: “Senator Godswill Akpabio’s recent defection to the APC was shocking to me. I was outside the country for medical treatment and his defection came to me through a third party.

“He did not consult me, there was element of shock and I was confused like other persons when I received the news but you know in politics, nothing surprises anybody.”

Akpabio said Akwa Ibom people would not chose to vote for APC, despite his brother’s defection.

He said: “Akwa Ibom State is a PDP state. Despite the defection of Senator Godswill Akpabio, I am not going to decamp to APC and people in the state will not decamp because one person decamped. 99.9 per cent of the Akpabio family members are PDP members.

“We are known to be a strong political family right from the NCNC days. It will be an uphill task for APC to dislodge 19 years of PDP in the psych of the people. Moreover, the present government in Akwa Ibom state led by the Governor Udom Emmanuel is doing very well for the state. Udom was not a politician before he was elected governor.

“He was a banker but he has brought his wealth of experience to develop the state inspite of the poor revenue accruing from crude oil, he has moved the state forward. Like I said, Akwa Ibom State is a PDP state just like Lagos is an APC state and I would like to advice that in their bid to win in Akwa Ibom state by all means, APC should not bring in violence and cause killings in the state.”

Asked if his brother was threatened with arrest to join the APC over allegation of financial impropriety, the elder Akpabio said: “Godswill Akpabio is a grown man. I don’t believe he was threatened with arrest which made him to decamp to APC. If that was the case, all the past governors in Nigeria will be running marathon race to avoid arrest by the EFCC.

“His move to the APC may be strategic for his ambition at the national level. Let’s say he becomes the Senate president tomorrow that will be good for Akwa Ibom State and all those castigating him now will rally round him.”

In his address, the Chancellor of the group, Obong Bassey Inaueyen, noted that in 2003, under the then President Olusegun Obasanjo, it was believed that President Obansanjo will succeed in using federal might against the re-election of Governor Victor Attah, but he failed since the people resisted him.

Inaueyen charged all who are interested in 2019 elections to go about their campaigns democratically and see how to win the hearts of the people instead of hoping on using crude means to win the forthcoming elections.

He insisted that the group and Akwa Ibom people will “vehemently resist the manifestation of the loud boast that any defection in Akwa Ibom State will upset the traditional political equation of the state on the basis of the thickening plot to massively rig the 2019 general elections in justification of the misplaced electoral worth of some of the major defectors.”

The Chancellor further added: “Deacon Udom Emmanuel has exhibited praiseworthy capacity in his navigation through these thorny issues for the past over three years despite the unfavourable financial climate he has had to operate in.

“His commitment to and focus on the general development of the state stands him apart from a conventional politician. This is a staying power and quality that deserves encouragement as he seeks to maintain a balance in the cheerless state of our inherited finances and the gloomy national economy.

“No leader has ever been and no man can be God to singly determine the destiny of a people created by and named after God. Righteous vessels of God can never seek to supplant God. Akwa Ibom people should be encouraged to continue in their distinguishing qualities of humility and honesty as we collectively approach the bend into the defining year for Nigeria.”

Financial institution with a dying philosophy

Unity Bank Pls is one of the tier 2 commercial banks in the country, but has lagged behind its counterparts for several reasons. The Tomi Somefun-led financial institution has been tagged a financial institution without a banking philosophy.
Years ago, a Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, Henry Semeniteri, was quoted saying that the financial institution was repositioning to have a South/Western outlook, as to be able to rub shoulders with its competitors in the nearest future.
The plan was a good one, as the bank which wanted to come mainstream had being labeled a northern financial institution. For this reason, it was being undermined in some business spheres. There was definitely no arguing it, Unity Bank Plc was a northern bank to a lot of people.
Less than two years into the implementation of the plan that was to see Unity Bank Plc metamorphose for good, Semeniteri alongside his dreams were axed overnight. He was accused of not complying with in house policies of the bank, and so he had to go. Without a thoroughbred leader, the bank remained what it was, a struggling one with little business strength.
Not only did the proposed reposition of the bank fail, since then, the bank has been operating on the peripheral lacking the ability to even pass for a third tier bank not to talk about rubbing shoulders with the top financial institutions in Nigeria. To aspire to be among the Systemically Important Banks was a wild goose chase.
Its inability to innovate and kickoff new business ideas soon became evident in the bank’s net income, as Unity Bank Plc slid by almost 54 percent to N2.18bn ($6.1m) in the 12 months through December 2016, with assets of N493bn, according to the company’s latest annual report.
Somefun, hinged the bad business result of the bank on “economic headwinds stifled business growth during the period accompanied by increased inflation and foreign exchange liquidity“. Unfortunately, she failed to reveal to her depositors that there were other in house problems bedeviling the bank.
Interest of the management put above those of its investors and depositors became too obvious, as tales were abound of how investors were being turned away due to conflicting interests, despite the dare need to recapitalise.
A case in point was the withdrawal of Milost Global Inc., a New York-based private equity firm which announced its termination of its proposed $1billion investment in Unity Bank Plc, after receiving threats.
Milost terminates Unity Bank deal, sues against Business Day
In a statement released via GlobeNewswire , the equity firm said that termination of the deal came as a result of threat messages the company received from a ‘well connected’ politician since an initial announcement of the deal broke out.
“The said individual was very well informed about our dealings with Unity Bank such that he knew the audit group Milost had hired to carry out the final due diligence. He told Milost to tell the board of Unity Bank that the audit firm had instructed Milost that Unity Bank was a bad investment, failing which he would unleash the media on Milost using among other things accusations that would cause the government to send Milost packing. These threatening emails were shared with the CEO of Unity Bank and the then CFO Ebenezer Kawole.
A $1billion investment into Unity Bank Plc would have done the financial institution a lot of good, as it affairs would have been expanded tremendously.
However, with that deal having hit the rock once again, it is back to the basis, as the financial institution continues to operate in an abysmal condition seeking ideal leadership and business skills to move it to its next level which seems oblivious even to those at the top echelon of its affairs.

History
Unity bank was founded in 2006 from the merger of 9 commercial banks namely; Intercity Bank Plc, First Interstate Bank Plc, Tropical Commercial Bank Plc, Pacific Bank Limited, Centre Point Bank Plc, Societe Bancaire Limited, NNB International Bank Plc, Bank of the North Ltd and New Africa Bank Plc. This is following the consolidation exercise mandated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2004

Aretha Franklin, whose gospel-rooted singing and bluesy yet expansive delivery earned her the title “the Queen of Soul,” has died, a family statement said Thursday. She was 76.
Franklin died at 9:50 a.m. at her home in Detroit, surrounded by family and friends, according to a statement on behalf of Franklin’s family from her longtime publicist Gwendolyn Quinn.
The “official cause of death was due to advanced pancreatic cancer of the neuroendocrine type, which was confirmed by Franklin’s oncologist, Dr. Philip Phillips of Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit,” the family statement said.
Her death comes three days after a source close to Franklin told CNN’s Don Lemon that the singer was in hospice care.
“In one of the darkest moments of our lives, we are not able to find the appropriate words to express the pain in our heart. We have lost the matriarch and rock of our family. The love she had for her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and cousins knew no bounds,” Franklin’s family said.
“We have been deeply touched by the incredible outpouring of love and support we have received from close friends, supporters and fans all around the world. Thank you for your compassion and prayers. We have felt your love for Aretha and it brings us comfort to know that her legacy will live on. As we grieve, we ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time.”
Funeral arrangements will be announced in the coming days, the statement said.
The singer had been reported to be in failing health for years and appeared frail in recent photos, but she kept her struggles private.
In February 2017, Franklin announced she would stop touring, but she continued to book concerts. Earlier this year, she canceled a pair of performances, including at the New Orleans Jazz Fest, on doctor’s orders, according to Rolling Stone.
The singer’s final public performance was last November, when she sang at an Elton John AIDS Foundation gala in New York.
Over the course of a professional career that spanned more than half a century, Franklin’s songs not only topped the charts but became part of the vernacular.
She made “Respect,” written by Otis Redding, a call to arms. “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” a Carole King song, was an earthy expression of sexuality. “Think,” which she wrote with her then-husband, Ted White, became a rallying cry for women fed up with loutish men.
The first woman admitted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, she had 88 Billboard chart hits during the rock era, tops among female vocalists. At the peak of her career — from 1967 to 1975 — she had more than two dozen Top 40 hits.
“Aretha Franklin is not only the definitive female soul singer of the Sixties,” according to her Rolling Stone biography, “she’s also one of the most influential and important voices in pop history.”
She won 18 Grammy awards, including the honor for best female R&B performance for eight straight years.
There was nothing run-of-the-mill about a Franklin performance. “I Never Loved a Man (the Way I Love You)” is slinky and gritty, Franklin’s voice sometimes a whisper over Spooner Oldham’s electric piano.
“The House That Jack Built” fairly crackles: “I got the house / I got the car / I got the rug / And I got the rack / But I ain’t got Jack,” Franklin belts.
In Franklin’s delivery, “Eleanor Rigby” was a figure of defiance; with Franklin’s voice, “Bridge Over Troubled Water” went places not even Art Garfunkel, whose angelic tenor dominated Simon & Garfunkel’s original version, could take it.
Her soul was as deep as her voice was strong.
“I think of Aretha as ‘Our Lady of Mysterious Sorrows,'” wrote the late Jerry Wexler, Franklin’s producer at Atlantic Records. “Her eyes are incredible, luminous eyes covering inexplicable pain. Her depressions could be as deep as the dark sea. I don’t pretend to know the sources of her anguish, but anguish surrounds Aretha as surely as the glory of her musical aura.”
A recording career at 14
Perhaps more than any other soul star, Franklin’s voice embodied the music’s debt to gospel.
She was born in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1942, but was raised mostly in Detroit, where her father, C.L. Franklin, was a prominent minister and a nationally known gospel singer. Franklin sang in the choir of her father’s church and, though she declined her dad’s offer of piano lessons and taught herself instead, began recording gospel music at age 14.
She toured the gospel circuit with her father, befriending stars such as Mahalia Jackson and Sam Cooke. She later performed at Jackson’s funeral.
She was signed to Columbia Records in 1960 by John Hammond, the eagle-eyed talent scout who also discovered Billie Holiday, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen, but she had only limited success at the label. It wasn’t until her arrival at Atlantic Records in the decade’s second half that she gave up trying to become a polished all-purpose entertainer for a career as a soul and R&B singer, backed by an earthy rhythm section from Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
“The backup musicians provided a much grittier, soulful and R&B-based accompaniment for Aretha’s voice,” according to the All Music Guide, “which soared with a passion and intensity suggesting a spirit that had been allowed to fly loose for the first time.”
Over a year-and-a-half stretch from 1967 to 1968, Franklin racked up 10 Top Ten hits.
“It had looked for the longest time like I would never have a gold record,” she told Time magazine in 1968. “I wanted one so bad.”
Songs like “Respect” were not only huge sellers, they were also adopted by African-Americans and feminists as anthems for social change. After Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, Franklin sang at his funeral.
The hits kept coming throughout the early 1970s, including “Spanish Harlem” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”
By the late ’70s, Franklin’s star power began to wane, as the golden age of soul ended and as critics and fans became less enthusiastic about her continuing output. However, she re-emerged in the 1980s, releasing the 1985 album “Who’s Zoomin’ Who?”, which spawned the hit “Freeway of Love.”
She also collaborated with the Eurythmics on “Sisters Are Doin’ It for Themselves” and British pop star George Michael on the smash duet, “I Knew You Were Waiting (for Me).” The latter hit No. 1, her last chart-topper.
“Don’t say Aretha is making a comeback,” she said at the time. “Who’s Zoomin’ Who” was released, she said, “because I’ve never been away.”
Personal pain lent depth to her music
Franklin’s reportedly tumultuous personal life, meanwhile — she was twice divorced and had brushes with the law — was shrouded in secrecy.
She was the mother of four sons — she gave birth to the first at 15 and the second at 17, according to a 1995 Ebony magazine profile. The article depicted her as a warm, down-to-earth woman with a crackling sense of humor, who answered the door in bare feet and confided her diet secret was a combination of Slim-Fast and younger men. She also was reportedly an accomplished cook, telling Ebony, “I can wear some chitlins out.”
The Ebony profile suggested the source of some of that pain might have been Franklin’s growing up largely without a mother — Barbara Franklin left the family in 1948, when Franklin was 6, and died four years later — or the anguish of losing her father.
C.L. Franklin was shot in his home by burglars in 1979 and lived for five years in a semi-coma before dying, the magazine said. Asked the toughest decision she ever had to make, Franklin told Ebony, “It was when my dad was in the hospital,” and began to cry.
She was also the godmother of Whitney Houston, who died in 2012.
But Franklin’s lows and the emotion involved fueled her music. She saw a number of resurgences in the past three decades and her image as a pop icon endured, with President Barack Obama featuring her singing “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” at his inauguration in 2009. She also performed at President Bill Clinton’s inauguration in 1992.
Franklin was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush in 2005. In 1986, her voice was declared a national resource by the Michigan Legislature. She even had an asteroid named for her.
“She looks rested and relaxed, like a housewife headed out to do some shopping at the local K-Mart,” Ebony reporter Laura Randolph wrote in the 1995 profile. “There, or at the Woolworth’s Five and Dime where, she recalls, she’s spent many an afternoon ‘browsing and buying knick-knacks’ then ‘sitting down at the counter to a scrumptious turkey and dressing plate with mashed potatoes oozing with gravy and loving it.’ “
Health issues derailed her late career
Franklin battled health issues in recent years, struggling with weight gain and associated ailments.
In August 2010, she canceled two free concerts in New York because of “fractured ribs and pain in the abdomen,” spokeswoman Gwendolyn Quinn said, adding that Franklin’s doctors had told her to come in for tests immediately.
That November, her doctors ordered her to cancel all personal appearances for the next six months, the Detroit Free Press reported. In early December, Franklin underwent surgery deemed “highly successful.”
She also canceled some appearances in 2013.
However, she recovered enough to return to touring in 2014, including a performance at New York’s Radio City Music Hall. She’d also lost almost 100 pounds.
“It’s fun buying new clothes!” she told USA Today. “I couldn’t stay out of the mirror, just turning every way. This is my natural weight.”
As for her old wardrobe? The shopper knew exactly what to do with those outfits.
“I’m thinking of giving them to a resale shop,” Franklin said.
Her final album, “A Brand New Me,” paired Franklin’s original recordings of some of her greatest hits with modern musical arrangements from London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

…Says report subjective, does not reflect truth

…Questions benchmarks for rating

Renowned financial expert, Mr. Bismarck Rewane has faulted a report rating Lagos as third worst city to live in the world.

A report issued on Tuesday by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) had cited security, education and healthcare delivery as benchmarks for its ratings.

But speaking on a Television programme, ‘Network Africa’ on Channels TV monitored by our correspondent, Rewane, who is the Chief Executive Officer, Financial Derivatives Company, described the report as subjective adding that the criteria used in reaching such conclusion was inconsistent.

He said: “First and foremost, I think the report is subjective and it is based on warped criteria. Certainly, in a survey that says that number 86 is Johannesburg when you talk about crime, terrorism, insurgency and Lagos is number 138 out of 140, it’s unfortunate.

“I feel safer in Lagos than in Johannesburg in terms of crime. I cannot stop at a traffic light in Johannesburg without looking over my shoulder, in Lagos I could probably do that.”

EIU had ranked cities like Vienna, Melbourne, Osaka, Tokyo as the ten most-liveable cities, and ranked cities such as Damascus, Dakar, Karachi and Lagos as the 10 least liveable cities in 2018.

While stating that he was not in any way making excuses for Lagos, Rewane said that the survey itself was based on certain values which may not be universal.

He explained: “But having said that, to say that the risk of insurgency in Lagos – because I heard the interview and the guys talked about Boko Haram – quite frankly there is no Boko Haram existential threat in Lagos as anywhere.

“Lagos is safer from Boko Haram than say Yaoundé in Cameroon. So, I find it difficult to understand the criteria. Yes, there are other criteria but obviously to rank Lagos as the third worst city to live in in the world is a bit above the top.”

Rewane however said that Lagos still had a lot to do on terms of improving access in two critical sectors- healthcare and education.

“Lagos falls short definitely in access to healthcare because you can’t have a medical emergency in Nigeria and in Lagos in particular. Lagos falls short in terms of education, but having said that, we have a population in Lagos of anything between 12 to 20 million people. Things are improving but the message that paints to us is that Nigeria has to wake up and has to work hard. Whether you like it or not Nigeria is the 5th most populous country in the world. And Lagos is rising among the ranks of cities in terms of population.

“So, urban transit, urban renewal and things like that which Governor (Akinwunmi) Ambode is working on assiduously, it’s good enough to work hard on it but you must achieve the results that people want. Because other people are looking at us and ranking us.”

He also stated that “having said that, I must come out strongly that the EIU criteria is a bit subjective and does not reflect the truth. Lagos is definitely not the third worst city to live in the world. I stand by that and I am ready to join issues with the Economic Intelligence Unit whom I respect anyway, for their economic analysis. But in this case, I join issues with them.”

Despite his take on the EIU rating, Rewane said there are rooms for improvement in Lagos, which is currently adjudged as the fastest growing and the fifth largest economy in Africa.

“Lagos is not the most luxurious or affluent city to live in. And there are many Lagos. There are people living in Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Lekki. And there are people who are living in the slums of Makoko and others. But this is not…, look if I go to Rio de Janeiro, if I go to Sao Paulo, even in London, there are slums.

So, the truth is that the slum of Lagos is not as bad as it used to be. But when you compare it to other cities in the world, I would not say that Lagos is worse than Jakarta when you talk about the slums in Indonesia. I cannot say that Lagos slums are worse than those of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. But that does not mean that this justifies the slums.

“This is not a race to the bottom. But the point is that Lagos has a lot of work to do in terms of urban renewal, urban mass transit, waste management and so many other things. Crime, kidnapping and ransom, but if you look at crime in Lagos, I do not subscribe to the view that crime in Lagos is worse than crime in any of these crime cities.

More people – maybe the data is not available- more people die in the city of Chicago from gunshots than you can put in Lagos 10 times over.”

Stops movements and business activities in the community

The Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, lately signed a bill into law which prescribes 25 years imprisonment or death sentence for anyone found guilty of land grabbing.

He signed the bill 34 days after the state House of Assembly passed it. The law criminalises land grabbing or forceful takeover of landed property in the state.

The bill was passed on October 11, 2016. It is titled, “H.B. No. 03/2016 – A bill for a law to prohibit forcible entry and occupation of landed properties, violent and fraudulent conducts in relation to landed properties, armed robbery, kidnapping, cultism and allied matters and for other matters incidental thereto or connected therewith.”

According to the law, the death sentence applies when a life is or lives are lost in such a forceful takeover of land. Kidnappers also risk a life sentence.

However, at the peaceful neighbourhood of Isoso community, GRA Quarters, Sagamu, Ogun state; Land Grabbers has been drizzling terror on the dwellers of Sagamu and its vicinities; the community was disrupted some days ago by hoodlums, who stormed the area as thousand residents fled their homes.

The hooligans, who the residents described as land grabbers, aka ‘Omoniles,’ were said to have vandalised property worth millions of Naira.

The leader of the hoodlums, Chief Mutairu Owoeye aka (Baba Owoeye) who were said always using Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) to perpetuate his forbidding land grabbing activities was boasting he is above the law and no government can halt his actions

We gathered that sometimes ago, two families had a dispute over three hectares of land, and both headed to court.

In the end, both families secured the same Supreme Court judgment ceding the three hectares property for the two families that both must be in consent whenever any of them decides to sell out of the property.

We learnt that Mr Jimoh Olatunji the Agba Akin of Makun Kingdom in Sagamu cohort with Mr Onayemi, Mr Mutairu Owoeye AKA (Baba Owoeye) and one Olowo Ake led a 200 bandits harmed with sophisticated firearms, offensive weapons, malicious destruction/ demolition of houses and industries property, terrorizing the whole community whose their properties does not any way in jurisdiction of the three hectares of land belongs to the said families.

Visits to the community by our reporter, it was pulled together that land grabbers were full in operation with dangerous weapons, ready for war and already creates panic in the community as people of Isoso GRA Quarters were forced to have sleepless nights with horrified experience. Efforts to get more details and move around were prevented by these mobsters as our reporter seriously threatened to be pierced with a cutlass.

Presently, these lawbreakers is currently waylaying people in the community, raiding houses in the neighbourhood, using the opportunity to perpetrate a different kind of criminal activities. Shops and Offices closed down and no business doing because of the heavy presence of Land Grabbers exhibiting their malevolent movements in the community.

The elders of Isoso community in GRA Quarters, Sagamu, Ogun state have cried out to Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, Police IG and Security agencies to come to their rescue and deliver them from this broad daylight horror. Also, different petitions have been written to Governor’s office and Inspector General of Police over the dreadful activities of this notorious land grabbers in Ogun state and its environs.

The Lagos State Government, through the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, has announced its partnership with MultiChoice on the 6th edition of the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCAs).

The awards ceremony, which is the biggest celebration of film and television talent in front and behind the cameras, will hold on 1 September in Victoria Island, Lagos.

Managing Director, MultiChoice Nigeria, Mr. John Ugbe, said the company is delighted to have on board the state government as plans shift into top gear for the most anticipated movie awards on the continent.

“We are pleased to once again have the state government play host and partner with us on the 2018 AMVCAs as we celebrate excellence in the African film industry. This partnership further establishes Lagos state as a hub for the promotion of the arts in the country and by extension Africa.

“We are particularly pleased about the involvement of the state government in this edition of the awards as we celebrate our 25th anniversary as MultiChoice Nigeria. The AMVCAs is one of our significant investments in igniting Africa’s creative industries, helping them grow into vibrant, economic powerhouses,” said Ugbe.

He also said the company has partnered with the state government on numerous projects, including the annual One Lagos Fiesta.

In acknowledgement of the partnership, the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, said: “We are delighted that AMVCAs are back again in Lagos State this year and as a government with keen interest in promoting the Arts, we are very pleased to be associated with this major awards initiative that creates a unique platform for both the creators of content for motion pictures to be celebrated and for the viewers to be heard.

“As the birthplace of a film industry that has become a pacesetter in Africa and a pride to the entire black race, Lagos will always welcome the type of opportunities that AMVCAs and indeed MultiChoice provide in celebrating those who do not just bring joy to millions of homes through their talent and creativity but who also market the potentials of our state as the undeniable heartbeat of a continent where the creative beat never stops.”

The 2018 AMVCAs will hold at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos on Saturday, September 1, 2018. The awards will be aired live on all Africa Magic channels on DStv and GOtv.

Edwin Clark, Niger Delta leader and convener of Pan-Niger Delta Forum, says he stands by Senate President Bukola Saraki in his “current travails”.

Clark said this while reacting to reports that he wrote a letter of condemnation to Saraki.

He said the letter in circulation was the altered version of the one he wrote to the senate president in 2013.

Clark explained that what he wrote in the past was because of a misunderstanding between Saraki and his father.

“My attention has been drawn to a letter (albeit altered) currently being circulated in the social media, with the intent to misinform and mislead the reading public,” he said in a statement.

“The said letter which I wrote over five years ago was written out of despair and anger at the time to reach Saraki, who was then the governor of Kwara state, in order to mediate in a misunderstanding between my very close friend, his father, late Dr. Olusola Saraki, his daughter, Senator Gbemi Saraki on one side, and his son, Dr. Bukola Saraki himself.

“The circumstances that led to my writing the letter had been settled long ago. Today, Bukola Saraki is my son with whom I enjoy a good relationship.

“It is, therefore, surprising that the letter written over five years ago was altered in the said social media publication to suit the whims and caprices of the authors.

“Let me reinstate that the late Dr Olusola Saraki, father of the senate president, Dr Bukola Saraki, was my very good friend and colleague, in the senate of the second republic, where he was senate leader.

“Thereafter, both of us were leaders of our respective geopolitical zones. While he was leader of the northern union (NU), I was leader of the south-south peoples assembly (SSPA).

“Today, I have a duty to stand by my son, Dr. Bukola Saraki and also defend him from any act of persecution aimed at destroying his illustrious political career and his father’s rich legacy.”