APC deserves to rule Lagos again –Ambode

The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Lagos State, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode, has said that the party has made remarkable achievements that qualified it to rule Lagos again.

Ambode spoke on Wednesday during a courtesy visit to the Chief Henry Ajomale-led executive council of the APC at the party secretariat in Ikeja.

He said the party had demonstrated openness and internal democracy that was worthy of emulation by other political parties in Nigeria.

He said, “It is a clear message that not only can other parties learn from us, but that the APC deserves to retain our dear state Lagos and take over the federal structure in 2015. No one can be in doubt any longer that as our members converge on Lagos today for our national convention, the same spirit of openness, fairness and camaraderie will prevail in choosing our presidential candidate.

Ambode commended Ajomale for the success of the primaries, noting that the exercise was done credibly in the state.

He said, “I congratulate and express my gratitude to the leadership of our party in Lagos for the successes recorded so far in the primary conducted by the party in Lagos State. The rancour-free, open and transparent manner in which the primaries to the State House of Assembly, National Assembly and for the governorship slots were conducted, in the full glare of the media and various observers, made the All progressives Party to be a party worthy of emulation.

“Unlike elsewhere where parallel elections are being held by different factions; where the aspirants are constrained to wear bullet-proof vests and casualties being recorded, the APC primaries under your watch have recorded no violence whatsoever. Not a single candidate has threatened to leave the party on account of the conduct of the primaries. Instead, aspirants are congratulating winners with a promise to ensure victory for the party at the February 2015 elections.

“APC in Lagos State has demonstrated strength, popularity and acceptability as the preferred choice of the people. We have done this through the huge number of delegates that voted at our primary last Thursday. Our competitor could only muster a fraction of our delegates, even at that, their figures could barely add up.

“In line with its progressive orientation, our party has shown to the world its sterling qualities; that ours is a unified, non-acrimonious, and accountable party. We have also shown that internal democracy can thrive and be well communicated to the whole nation. This is what your leadership has achieved. This is what has been clearly communicated and which is being applauded even by critics.”   

PUNCH.

Political risks shake global markets

Political risks are big threats not only to the Nigerian stock market, but to other markets across the world, a report has showed.

Beyond the falling crude oil prices and the devaluation of the naira, the Nigerian equities market has had a poor year with the Nigerian Stock Exchange All-Share Index year-to-date return currently 22.08 per cent negative.

Analysts had predicted earlier in the year that considering that the build up to general elections would affect the market negatively.

In September, the Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange, Mr. Oscar Onyema, had said the country’s equities market would see stronger movements after the general elections.

“We anticipate that once the elections are out of the way and we have a better clarity on the security and health situation, you should see a more definite movement in the market,” he said.

According to a report by the British Broadcasting Corporation, the big risks to markets and the global economy right now are political risks, or decisions by governments that spook investors.

One event that had spooked investors this year, according to market operators, was the sudden removal of Lamido Sanusi as the Central Bank Governor. Another was the regulatory headwinds that led to a drop in the profits of Deposit Money Banks.

In China, on Tuesday, the BBC report noted that the price of shares on the Shangai stock market dropped by more than five per cent “seemingly prompted by a new restriction on how investors can borrow – which raised anxieties about the sustainability of the country’s debt-financed growth.”

Synagogue: TB Joshua loses bid to stop coroner’s inquest

TB Joshua

The coroner probing the September 12 Synagogue building collapse, Magistrate O.A. Komolafe, has dismissed an application seeking a temporary suspension of the inquest.

Komolafe, while dismissing the application on Wednesday, described it as an abuse of court processes.

The Founder of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, Prophet Temitope Joshua, filed the application asking Komolafe to put on hold further inquisition into the cause of death of the victims of the collapsed building.

No fewer than 116 persons lost their lives while several others sustained varying degrees of injuries in the tragic incident.

Joshua’s application for stay of proceedings, dated November 11, 2014, came on the heels of an application he had filed before a Lagos State High Court in Ikeja.

In the said application before Justice Lateefat Okunnu, Joshua asked for a judicial review of the coroner’s proceedings, which began on October 13.

Falana, LEDAP ask Nigerians to demand for security

Mr. Femi Falana

LAGOS-based lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), and a civil society group, Legal Defence and Accountability Project, have asked Nigerians to continue to demand for adequate security of lives and property in the country.

They made the call on Wednesday in separate statements to mark this year’s celebration of the international human rights day, an annual event which holds internationally on December 10.

LEDAP in a statement by its National Co-ordinator, Mr. Chino Obiagwu, decried the inability of government to rescue the over 200 Chibok girls abducted by Boko Haram since April 14, 2014.

The statement read, “LEDAP is deeply concerned that the issue of the abduction of the Chibok girls and other abductions remains a mirage. Worthy of note is the incessant bombings and the spate of kidnappings across the entire polity, which till date; no ascertainable action has been effected by the Government.

“LEDAP in line with this year’s theme ‘Human Rights 365’ supports the fundamental proposition in the Universal Declaration that each one of us, everywhere, at all times, is entitled to a full range of human rights; that every day is a Human Rights Day and that human rights belong equally to each one of us and bind us together.

“LEDAP reiterates that the Federal Government owns Nigerians a duty to ensure that there is a free and fair election in the upcoming election. The vote of its citizens must count.

“The government is reminded of its commitment to ensuring that Nigeria as a country stands in agreement with the United Nations to ensure that the rights of the citizens are protected and in occurrence of any infringement, the perpetrators are brought to justice.”

Falana on his part, said ordinary Nigerians had been deprived the enjoyment of fundamental rights guaranteed them by the constitution.

He said, “The police and other security agencies have been regularly indicted for subjecting suspects to torture and other forms of indignity. Many innocent persons have been extra-judicially murdered. Detention without trial is a common phenomenon.

President Jonathan’s acceptance speech at PDP convention

Acceptance Speech by

His Excellency, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR

On His Victory at the

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) 2014 National Convention

Eagle Square, Abuja

Wednesday 10th – Thursday 11th December 2014

PROTOCOLS

1. Mr Chairman, our dear delegates, today is another great day in the history of our great Party; The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and indeed in the history of our great Nation.
2. Nothing gives me greater joy, as leader of our party, than such an opportunity as presented today, for direct interaction with so many enthusiastic and dedicated fellow party members, and may I add, all proudly dressed in our party colours and regalia.
3. It is also my pleasure to be here as a delegate today and I welcome whole heartedly all our delegates, party members and all Nigerians, from across the country and beyond; including those joining us by television and online, as we gather here in the Eagle Square, to reaffirm the noble democratic traditions and foundations, that bind us together.
4. I thank the Party and the Organizing Committee for a successful convention. I thank all the delegates for a smooth nomination process.
5. Let me congratulate, the Chairman of our great Party, the game changer, Alhaji Ahmed Adamu Muazu. I have no doubt that the democratic process we have witnessed here today, and his confirmation as Party chairman, are both pointers to the consolidation of democracy in our country as a whole.
6. There is no doubt that his commitment to the ideals of our party, his consistency and hard work, has helped to reposition the party. And today we are stronger, bigger, and more in tune with the yearnings of our people. Let me also congratulate Professor Wale Oladipo and Alhaji Adewale Adeyanju whose appointments as National Secretary and National Auditor, respectively, have been ratified at this Convention.
7. Nigeria is undergoing great changes at this time, and also experiencing great challenges; so, political parties must rise above the fray, to provide hope and clear direction, to propel the development of our country.
8. As expected in every contest, especially political contests, the journey to this convention has not been without issues in some constituencies. Indeed, Party Congresses from the ward to state levels, and the legislative and state primaries, have produced both triumphs and some misgivings.
9. Without prejudice to various on-going resolution mechanisms, we will take steps, after the elections to review and refine the candidate selection procedures within our party. An appropriate committee will be set up to work on this, with contributions across board.
10. I commend the efforts of the supervising and appeal committee members, who travelled across the country to conduct and oversee the primaries and congresses. I appreciate also the dedication of the various working committees and special committees engaged in organising and delivering all aspects of the election season programmes.
11. Fellow delegates, dear party members, while we congratulate our candidates who have emerged at the primaries, we must reassure all our members, that our party remains a large, accommodating and responsible party.
12. We will make sure that conflicts are amicably resolved and that the genuine interest of every member is respected and assured.
13. As party members, we must be conscious of the responsibility we hold to our Nation. The political party is the vehicle for national organisation, and the PDP is the foremost political party in Nigeria.
14. For the sake of the entire nation, we must, at this time, more than ever, stand together as one united party. We are all joint stake holders, this party belongs to all of us.
15. What we have achieved today should be a lesson to all who care about Nigeria. What we have done exemplifies our unity. What we have done exemplifies our determination. What we have done exemplifies our purpose.
16. We are a Party that accepts challenges. We are a Party that confronts those challenges. But above all, we are a Party that resolves challenges. And it is exactly these qualities that will lead us to victory.
17. Distinguished Delegates, ladies and gentlemen, I stand before you as your humble servant, to accept your nomination as the Presidential candidate of our great Party, the PDP.
18. Having placed great faith in me and chosen me as your candidate, I assure you, that I am truly honoured tonight, to lead another electoral contest.
19. This will be a campaign, and an election, that will serve to consolidate our successes.
20. I will give my all.
21. I will not let you down.
22. I will not fail the PDP.
23. I will not fail you.
24. Above all, I promise, I will not fail our great nation, Nigeria.
25. This convention shows that we are ready.
26. The PDP is ready.
27. Nigerians know we are ready.
28. And today in Abuja, we begin the next phase of our mission.
29. Our mission is to secure Nigeria’s future.
30. First of all, let me give gratitude to God Almighty who has sustained the nation.
31. There is much to say, but permit me some special words of gratitude. These last four years have not always been easy, but through it all, my wife has effortlessly taken care of our home. So to you, my companion and my foremost supporter, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
32. I also want to thank, the Vice President, my brother, Arch Namadi Sambo, and his dear wife. You have both provided loyal support and commitment to this presidency; working with you for our people, has been a pleasure.
33. The work and progress recorded these past four years has been possible because we have had the best team possible. The Ministers, Advisers, Assistants and staff that have formed the Transformation team, have shown great dedication, creativity and loyalty.
34. They have put in extra hours when necessary, and always gone the extra mile to ensure delivery. Today, I thank them fervently for their patriotism and hard work.
35. Our Party, the PDP, has been the foundation of our Transformation Agenda. I thank the Chairman and Party Executive at all levels, the Board of Trustees and National Working Committee, the PDP Governors Forum, Federal and state legislators, Secretariat Staff and volunteers, across the country. You have played your part well, and I am indeed very grateful.
36. It is not a mere coincidence that our National Convention this year starts on the same day as the United Nations World Human Rights Day. This government, led by our Party, has made the respect of human rights and individual freedoms, the cornerstone of our administration.
37. I did say during my declaration on November 11, 2014, that we are proud that no Nigerian has been exiled or imprisoned on our watch, for holding contrary views. We must ensure that we continue to water the tree bearing the fruits of freedom, for our beloved people.
38. In the last 16 years, the PDP has kept faith with the Nigerian people by promoting and projecting a united nation, under God. We have united our people around common national goals for the good of our citizens and the development of our nation.
39. Through its years of office, our great Party, the PDP created the Anti-corruption agencies, that is, the EFCC and the ICPC, the Excess Crude Account, the Pension Reforms, Fiscal Responsibility Regime, the Sovereign Wealth Fund and various privatization programmes.
40. We initiated Debt Relief, the Amnesty Programme, the Presidential Jobs Creation Board, Power Sector Reforms and the National Infrastructure Master-plan; the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan, the National Automobile Policy, the Freedom of Information regime, the Nigerian Mortgage Refinancing Company, and the Infrastructure Bank, amongst others.
41. At the advent of democracy in 1999, Nigeria’s GDP was 35.9 billion US dollars. Today, it is 510 billion US dollars – and we have become Africa’s biggest economy. In 1999, our debt to GDP Ratio was 93.1%. Today, it is 13.6 % of which external debt to GDP ratio is 1.89%.
42. As at 1999, only 400,000 telephone lines were active in our country. Today, we have about 120 million lines, which have created many more jobs for our youths.
43. This administration is also working to revitalize our insurance industry. Compared to other emerging economies, our insurance industry has not achieved its full potential. Today, only 3 million of our citizens are insurance policy holders, and overall insurance penetration is less than 0.5 percent of our GDP. We want to transform this sector, just as we have done for our banking sector and our pensions industry.
44. Our goal is to grow the total insurance premiums in our country from 300 billion naira currently to 1 trillion naira in the next three years. And to increase the number of direct jobs created in this sector from about 30,000 people today to over 100,000 people in the next few years.
45. My brothers and sisters, the PDP as a party has delivered on its promise. In the last decade, it has seen to the largest expansion of the middle class in Africa. Certainly, our Party has a rich history of enduring legacies.
46. For those who defected from the PDP, I enjoin you to tell the truth in your campaigns. Many of the developments in your States were initiated by the PDP. So be honest with the voters and give credit where it is due.

Bangladesh oil spill ‘threatens rare dolphins’

Bangladesh officials warned Thursday that an oil spill from a crashed tanker is threatening endangered dolphins and other wildlife in the massive Sundarbans mangrove region, branding the leak an ecological “catastrophe”.

The tanker carrying an estimated 350,000 litres (75,000 gallons) of oil collided on Tuesday with another vessel and partly sank in the Sundarbans’ Shela river, home to rare Irrawaddy and Ganges dolphins.

Although officials are unsure how much oil has spilled, they warned the slick has spread to another river as well as a network of canals in the vast Sundarbans delta.

“The oil spill has spread over a 60 kilometre-long (37 mile) area in the Shela and Passur rivers,” Amir Hossain, chief forest official of the Sundarbans, told AFP.

“It’s a catastrophe for the delicate ecology of the Sundarbans. The oil spill has already blackened the shoreline, threatening trees, plankton, vast populations of small fishes and dolphins,” Hossain said.

“The symptoms of environmental damage will be visible soon as the water quality has already been damaged,” he added.

Authorities have launched a small-scale clean-up, but warned they lack the hardware and experience for a major effort. Navy boats and government officials were en route to salvage the tanker.

“We’ve not started any major clean-up efforts yet. In fact, the forest department doesn’t have the technology to deal with this kind of disaster,” said Hossain.

Bangladesh’s state-run petroleum corporation was using buoys to restrict the slick, while local fishermen have been ordered to use nets to try to stop the oil entering small canals.

Spread over 10,000 square kilometres (3,900 square miles), the Sundarbans is a UNESCO-listed World Heritage Site and home to hundreds of Bengal tigers. The delta comprises a network of rivers and canals straddling Bangladesh and India.

The accident occurred inside one of three sanctuaries set up for the dolphins, said Rubayat Mansur, Bangladesh head of the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society.

The three areas were declared dolphin sanctuaries in 2011 after studies found they are home to some 6,000 of the animals. Fishermen are banned from making catches there, but tankers and other boats are allowed to pass through.

Speaking to AFP from the accident site, Mansur labelled the spill a “national disaster” and accused authorities of not doing enough to contain the damage.

“There are no coordinated efforts to tackle the disaster. The air has become toxic and we got news from fishermen they’ve seen dead fishes. Crabs which make up the largest single group in the forest are facing the biggest threat,” he said.

“And if crabs are hit, the dolphins and tigers will be affected. Dolphins will find it very difficult to breathe this foul air,” he added.

Buhari, Atiku, others battle for APC presidential ticket

Atiku and Buhari

The race for the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress climaxed early Thursday morning with none of the five aspirants heeding entreaties by the national leadership of the party to have a consensus candidate.

Findings showed that several meetings by the leadership of the party failed to yield a consensus candidate as each aspirant expressed readiness to go the whole hog.

It was reliably gathered that an attempt by the party’s leaders to get the Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, to step down was turned down.

The arrival of the aspirants- Maj. Gen. Mahuammadu Buhari, Rochas Okorocha, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Atiku Abubakar, and Sam Ndah Isaiah – elicited cheers from their delegates.

A former Lagos State Governor Bola Tinubu; ex-Interim National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande, governors Rotimi Amaech (Rivers), Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), Abiola Ajimobi(Oyo), Babatunde Fashola(Lagos), Ibikunle Amosun(Ogun), Ahmed Abdulfatah (Kwara), Rauf Aregbesola(Osun), Kashim Shettima(Borno), Umar Al-Makura, Aliu Wamako, Ibrahim Geidam were all seated at the VIP section of the stadium when the aspirants started arriving,

Court orders police, DSS to seize Obasanjo’s book

Olusegun Obasanjo

A Federal Capital Territory High Court judge, Justice Valentine Ashi, on Wednesday ordered security agents, including the police and operatives of the Department of State Service, to confiscate the latest book of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, My Watch.

The judge of the FCT Wuse Zone II court said the publication of the book, which was presented to the public on Tuesday in Lagos, contravened the order of the court restraining the publication.

Justice Ashi also gave Obasanjo 21 days within which to explain why he should not be punished for flouting the court order.

He ordered that the enrolled orders of the court be served on all media houses in the country and be equally served on the defendant by publication in two national daily newspapers.

The judge held, “I hold the defendant not only in contempt of the court, but to show cause why he should not be punished for contempt and ordered to undo what he has wrongly done.

“The defendant, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, shall be given 21 days, from the day this order is served on him, to show cause, via affidavit, why he should not be punished for contempt committed by publishing and distributing for sale to the public, the book, My Watch, in plain disregard of the pendency of substantive suit and the order of this court made on December 5, 2014 restraining him from doing so.

“The defendant, whether by himself, agents, servants, privies or whatever name called, is hereby restrained from further publication or offering for sale or distribution, in any way or manner, the book called My Watch or the like of the visual or written materials which contains a re-publication or statement extracted from the letter referred to by the plaintiff.”

Outraged Nigerians want power-drunk policeman, DPO punished

Ejeh; Grace

There has been widespread outrage at the action of a policeman, Dada Ogunsanya, who allegedly brutalised a photographer, Ejeh Smith and his wife, Grace, in the Lekki area of Lagos State.

Among those that called for the sanction of the officer was a human rights lawyer, Femi Falana and a constitutional lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay, who also stated that the Ikoyi Divisional Police Officer, Aisha Haruna, deserved harsher punishment for abetting the brutality.

The PUNCH online readers were unanimous in their condemnation of the act, with some calling for the sacking of the officer and the demotion of the DPO.

Our correspondent had reported on Wednesday that Ejeh and Grace were going home in a taxi when Ogunsanya and six other police officers patrolling the area flagged down their cab at the Lekki Roundabout.

The policeman was said to have asked the cab driver, Ndubuisi Iheaka, to open his boot for a routine check.

He allegedly asked the couple to alight the cab when they asked him to stop flashing his torch on them since the vehicle’s inner lights were on.

In the argument that ensued, our correspondent was told that the police officer hit Ejeh in the eye with the butt of his rifle and punched his wife in the face.

He also allegedly stepped on Grace’s stomach and dragged her on the floor until a stranger passing by intervened and insisted that the policemen call their boss to the scene.

After the Ikoyi DPO, Mrs. Haruna, arrived at the scene, she allegedly supported the officers and gave Grace’s phone to an inspector who deleted all her recordings of the incident.

She also allegedly said she would have locked up the duo in the cell but for their injuries.

The couple was said to have been treated at the Falomo Police Hospital, where they foot their medical bills.

The human rights lawyer, Falana, described the incident as unfortunate.

In a telephone interview with our correspondent, he said, “It is the height of infringement on their fundamental human rights to dignity. The policeman involved has to be shamed and prosecuted because he exposed them to mental, psychological and physical torture. The policeman certainly does not deserve to be in uniform.

“The DPO’s action subjected them to further torture. She has no power under the law to collect the phone and remove any information therein. Her case is worse than even the policeman she was trying to shield. She is paid to superintend the policemen under her. For colluding with the police officer, she also deserved the full weight of the law on her.”

Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said his chamber was prepared to take up the case for the family without any charge.

Sagay said the police officer was “an out-of-control animal, a brute and a killer.”

“The couple should sue the police for the enforcement of their fundamental rights. They will recover very high damages for the injury they suffered and an apology from the Inspector General of Police.

“The police officer is a danger to the public and should not be in the police force,” he added.

Our correspondent on Wednesday observed that the report, as of 5.45pm, had been read for more than 28,000 times and had received about 232 likes on the online portal of The PUNCH Newspapers.

The comments had also risen to over 250 with about 110 of them demanding punishment for the cop and the DPO.

A PUNCH reader, Hastel Idowu, said, “The only difference between our policemen and touts is the arms they are authorised to carry. They require training prior to being certified to carry out police duties and carry arms. When you go elsewhere, you will see the difference.”

Another reader, James Oke, urged the couple to see the brutality as a blessing in disguise.

He added, “Sue the police officer that assaulted you and join the DPO as co-defendant. Do not join the IG as that will make it more difficult to get a landslide victory. Ask for damages and compensation to the tune of N100m.”

Another reader, Femi Pedro, while reacting to a call for the demotion of the DPO, said, “Demoted? You mean incarcerated for a minimum of 10 years to serve as a deterrent to other bad leaders in the field of enforcement of the law? Maybe, then maybe, we will start to see changes in our law enforcement officers’ attitude and demeanor. We are citizens and not animals to be cowed.”

An anonymous reader asked the police authorities to investigate the case and give justice to the couple.

Another reader, Mota Gur, said, “The masses should find a common platform to protest atrocious acts like this by organising rallies and mass protests. Don’t let it die down because the police have soiled the image of this country enough.”

Yemi O. said, “Double betrayal. The police that should protect become the source of danger; the DPO in whom they then put their trust then rubber-stamped the act of wickedness. Let us see how far this rot goes. Will the press, the courts and government officials also sell out?” 

 PUNCH.

I’m not Obasanjo’s concubine –Ezekwesili

Ezekwesili

A former Vice-President of the World Bank, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, on Wednesday denied having any amorous relationship with former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Ezekwesili’s denial followed the widespread circulation of a photograph showing her in a very warm embrace with Obasanjo.

In the trending photo, the former President is seen holding Ezekwesili from behind and giving her a peck on the cheek.

The controversial picture was taken on Tuesday during the public presentation of Obasanjo’s three-part autobiography entitled, ‘My Watch’.

Many online commentators expressed displeasure with Ezekwesili and Obasanjo for behaving in such a manner in public.

They accused the former minister of education, who once served in Obasanjo’s cabinet, of being indecorous as a married woman and passing a wrong message to young girls who look up to her as a role model.

A group known as ‘Hope for Nigeria’ stated that it was taken aback by the decision of the two public figures to behave themselves that way in public.

“This is Dr. Oby Ezekwesili the #BringBackOurGirls crusader with former President Obasanjo at his book launch.

“Was it that Ezekwesili forgot that she was in a public place and a married woman? She threw caution to the wind. Anyway, we saw her sticking out her finger in excitement, while the ‘Chemistry’ lasted.

Oil price fall hits US energy stocks

United States stocks opened lower on Wednesday, with energy shares seeing some of the biggest falls as the oil price slid to a fresh five-year low, the British Broadcasting Corporation reported.

The price of Brent crude fell to $65.24 a barrel – its lowest since September 2009 – before recovering slightly.

The Dow Jones dropped 67.40 points to 17,733.80. Among oil stocks, Chevron fell 1.9 per cent and Exxon Mobil slid 1.5 per cent.

The S&P 500 index dropped 5.92 points to 2,053.90, while the Nasdaq was 14.30 points lower at 4,752.17.

Shares in Yum Brands fell nearly five per cent to $71.54 after the KFC owner cut its annual profit forecast for the year, due to slower sales in China.

Yum said its full-year profit growth would be a “mid-single-digit” percentage, down from the 10% it forecast in October. Earlier in the year, the firm had predicted growth of at least 20 per cent.

Costco shares rose 1.9 per cent after its quarterly profits beat expectations. Net income for the quarter to 23 November increased to $496m, up from $425m a year earlier.

US stocks had started the week on a negative note as the price of oil continued its sharp falls.

On Monday, the BBC reported that the price of Brent crude fell below $63 per barrel for the first time since July 2009 as weak demand and oversupply continue to put a damper on prices.

The Dow Jones fell 106.31 points to 17,852.48 and the S&P 500 dropped 15.06 points to 2,060.31.

The Nasdaq index shed 40.06 points to close at 4,740.69.

Concerns about the health of the global economy continued to weigh on investors.

Punch

Bank charges discouraging use of ATMs –NISER

The Nigeria Institute of Social and Economic Research on Tuesday called on the Central Bank of Nigeria to discourage all unnecessary charges by Deposit Money Banks for the use of Automated Teller Machines and Point of Sales Terminal.

The Director-General of the institute, Prof Olufemi Taiwo, stated this while unveiling the findings of a study conducted on the effects of cashless banking policy on the performance of informal business in Nigeria

Speaking in Abuja at the third annual NISER National policy dialogue on social and economic development, Taiwo said apart from the cashless policy, the study also appraised the level of disaster risk preparedness in Nigeria and the response of manufacturing sector to government policies.

On cashless policy, he said while the adoption of the policy had improved employment level, sales volume, profit level and cost of production of informal business enterprises in Nigeria, network connectivity had become a major challenge to the success of the policy.

To enjoy the benefit of the policy, he said there was a need for the central bank to work with the telecommunication industry and the private sector investors to remove this impediment.   

PUNCH.

France makes new effort to encourage hiring

Creating jobs in France is proving harder than expected.

The embattled Socialist-led government is making its second push this year to energize the labor market in Europe’s second-largest economy, after a top economic official called the previous plan “a failure.”

According to the Associated Press, although President Francois Hollande has made cutting unemployment the cornerstone of his tenure, the jobs market is in fact getting worse.

Unemployment climbed to 10.4 per cent in the third quarter despite a package of payroll tax cuts for businesses earlier this year that was meant to encourage hiring.

Economy Minister, Emmanuel Macron, presented Wednesday a new bundle of policies that aim mainly to free up France’s notoriously inflexible labor rules and regulations

“Macron’s Law,” as the bill has been dubbed, has sharply divided Hollande’s own Socialist Party but drawn praise from France’s powerful business lobby, Medef.

“Everybody must accept to change what doesn’t work, what penalizes hiring and economic activity”, Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, told a press conference.

“This bill is a proof that our country is able to change without giving up on its social model.”

One of the most controversial measures aims at relaxing rules on stores’ Sunday and evening opening hours, especially in tourist areas.

Former labor minister and emblematic Socialist figure Martine Aubry said she will fight the measure.

Sunday “is a precious time that must be devoted to family and friends, volunteer organisations, culture and sport,” she wrote in a column published in Le Monde.

Other measures include removing some restrictions on new bus lines to increase competition with national rail operator SNCF; and opening up regulated professions such as notaries and auctioneers to greater competition.

The bill also calls for reforming France’s complex system of labor relations boards and from five to ¤6bn worth of sales from the French state’s ¤76bn ($94bn) holdings of corporate assets.

The French parliament will only begin debating the bill next month, but it’s already sparked controversy.

Thousands of opponents were demonstrating in Paris Wednesday.

Macron is a former investment banker who Hollande brought in to government in August.

Macron has been quickly thrust onto the front lines of France’s effort to create jobs — and save Hollande’s.

Owning up to his failure to meet a pledge to start cutting unemployment by 2013, Hollande said last month that if he still hasn’t succeeded in the next two years, he won’t run for re-election in 2017.

The European Union, which has put France under surveillance along with a number of other countries for exceeding agreed limits to its deficit, forecasts France’s unemployment rate will remain above 10 per cent at least until 2016.

Hollande has blamed a lack of economic growth for unemployment’s continued rise.

The economy is only forecast to grow 0.4 per cent this year and one per cent in 2015.

Macron himself said the government’s last big effort to relaunch the economy, the so-called Responsibility Pact, was a failure.

The pact announced in January aims to ease payroll taxes by up to ¤40bn ($50bn) by 2017.

In exchange, companies were expected to hire.

Business owners, however, argue the reforms don’t go far enough to reduce labor costs, and earlier this month thousands of business owners protested in the streets of Paris and Toulouse against taxes and regulations.

Punch

Explosion Rocks Kano Market

A security source in Kano town has just tipped SaharaReporters of an explosion in a market situated in Kano town.

According to the security source, the blast is reported at a market popularly known as Kwari Market, but the actual nature of the blast and casualty is yet to be ascertained.

“Our men are on their way and I will brief you as soon as we get comprehensive details.” Also, the Police spokesperson in Kano, DCP Bagiga said he could not immediately confirm the nature of the blast.

The incident is coming barely two weeks after bombers killed over 100 persons and injured about 150 at Kano Central Mosque located inside Emir’s Palace in the ancient town.

Saharareports

Ken Weatherwax, Pugsley on 'Addams Family,' dies at 59

 
(CNN) -- Ken Weatherwax, who played Pugsley on the 1960s TV show "The Addams Family," died Sunday, according to the Ventura County Coroner's Office. He was 59.

According to the coroner's office, he died of natural causes. His niece, Shanyn Vieira, posted on Facebook that he had a heart attack.

Pugsley was the older of the two Addams children on the cheekily macabre comedy, based on Charles Addams' darkly humored New Yorker cartoons. His father, Gomez, was played by John Astin, and mother Morticia was played by Carolyn Jones.

Sister Wednesday (Lisa Loring), Uncle Fester (Jackie Coogan), butler Lurch (Ted Cassidy), Grandmama (Blossom Rock) and the disembodied hand Thing rounded out the cast.

The Addams Family cast

The series ran from 1964 to 1966. Weatherwax, who was about 9 when the show started, played the part for all 64 episodes. The show (and its catchy, finger-snapping theme song) were popular enough in reruns to spawn two movies in the 1990s and a 2009 Broadway musical.

After the show left the air, Weatherwax -- who struggled to find other acting roles -- entered the Army. He later provided the voice of Pugsley on an animated "Addams Family" and worked as a grip and set builder in Hollywood, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Weatherwax was related to other showbiz figures, including actress Ruby Keeler and Lassie trainer Rudd Weatherwax.

Why Gov. Ngilari, other Adamawa party leaders back out

Bala Ngilari.

Barely 24 hours to the Peoples Democratic Party’s national convention in Abuja, the Adamawa state chapter of the party has announced its decision to boycott the event if President Goodluck Jonathan fails to cancel the state governorship primary held in Abuja.
A former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Nuhu Ribadu, won the governorship primary which held Monday.

The members of the Adamawa chapter, including six of the seven state governorship aspirants, during a press briefing at the party secretariat in Yola on Tuesday, condemned the outcome of the election, and what they said was the role of the National Working Committee of the party in the internal squabbles in the state.
The party leaders said they have resolved to boycott the party’s national convention on Wednesday.
“We therefore resolve to abstain from the National convention of the party scheduled for tomorrow,” said Joel Madaki, the suspended state chairman of the party.

The spokesperson of the group, Andrew Sawa, said, “The PDP stakeholders and all aspirants of all cadres express our displeasure with the way and manner our great party is being deliberately thrown into confusion by the national secretariat in collaboration with a few from the state.”

Mr. Sawa accused the national chapter of “flagrant and open abuse of the rule of law” for conducting the state governorship primary in Abuja on Monday.

Mr. Sawa noted that the party’s guidelines and the Electoral Act stated clearly that “should there be any change of election venue, there must be a notice of not less than seven days and more to that effect and all elections should be held in the various constituencies”.

He said in this case, there was no prior communication either from the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, or the party.

“We therefore call on President Goodluck Jonathan, who is the national leader of our great party to cancel the kangaroo primaries held by the NWC in Abuja or leave us with no option but to follow the view of the entire people of the party and the state,” he said.
Six of the aspirants were in attendance at the briefing: Ahamed Moddibo, Markus Gundiri, Aliyu Kama, Abubakar Girie, Grace Bent and Awal Tukur.

The state governor, Bala Ngillari, was represented at the meeting by his campaign director, Abubakar Girei.
They all condemned the action of the National Working Committee of the party and urged Mr. Jonathan to look into the issue before it disintegrates the party in Adamawa and Nigeria.

Mr. Madaki said party members regrets the way and manner the party thrown into confusion, “with the flagrant and open abuse of the rule and law with impunity with regard to party primaries and is a thing of serious concern that is heading to the complete eradication of the party in the minds of our grassroots supporters.”

Mr. Ngillari’s representative, Mr. Girei, said “it is our unanimous resolution to distance, condemn and reject it in its entirety, and that in protest to that we will not be part of any illegality that is happening within our party.”

PDPLagosPrimaries: Obanikoro challenges citizenship suit

Obanikoro

Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, who lost in the just concluded governorship primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, challenged the suit asking a Lagos High Court in Ikeja to stop him from contesting in any election in the future, including the recent primary.

Obanikoro filed a preliminary objection to the suit filed by some members of his party, PDP, against his aspiration before the court presided by Justice Kazeem Alogba.

Applicants in the suit include Micheal Babatunde Ogun, Suleiman Olayinka Saheed and Wasiu Adeniyi Odusan.

Joined as defendants alongside Senator Obanikoro are Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the PDP.

In his application, Obanikoro through his counsel, Gbenga Ojo, asked the court for an order striking out or dismissing the originating summons which he described as an abuse of court process.

He also asked for an order of the court striking out or dismissing the originating summons, saying it does not disclose reasonable cause of action and for any other the court may deem fit to make in the circumstances.

Obanikoro based his objection on four grounds and prayed the court to determine the matter based on the grounds of his preliminary objection to the suit.

Ojo told the court that all the documents relied upon by the applicants are “either uncertified public document or documents printed from internet without authentication of the source or certification.”

The application objecting to the suit also described “the entire case as speculative and abuse of the process of the court”.

At the resumed hearing of the matter, counsel to the applicants, Wahab Shittu said they were prepared to move the originating summon since the matter was already slated for hearing.

But Ojo told the court that there was no need to proceed into the matter since his client has lost the governorship primary election of the PDP in Lagos.

At this stage, Justice Alogba referred Obanikoro’s counsel to the relief sought by the applicants in their originating summons.

The trial judge, Justice Alogba after taking the submission of all counsels, adjourned the matter to January 14, 2015 for hearing of the originating summon.

Justice Alogba ordered all parties to file all applications before the adjourned date warning “I would not tolerate any further request for adjournment in view of the nature of the case”.

OyoPDPPrimary: ‘a mockery of justice’ – says Makinde

Seyi Makinde

A governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party in Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, has said that the party’s governorship primary that produced former Senate Leader, Teslim Folarin, in Ibadan on Monday, was against the party’s guidelines and that it was an attempt to circumvent a court ruling. Makinde also warned that the party risked not producing candidates for the 2015 elections if the leaders refused to do what is right.

A Federal High Court in Abuja last Friday gave a ruling which said only delegates presented by three of the five members of the Aliyu Idi-Hong ad hoc ward congress panel should be used by the party for its primary elections in Oyo State.

Reacting to the primary on Tuesday in Ibadan, Makinde, who stayed away from the exercise, said the primary was a breach of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended and the party’s electoral guidelines, stressing that his non-participation was because he could not be part of lawlessness.

He said, “I did not participate in the election simply because there is a court judgement which was unequivocal on who and who should be the participants in the PDP primary. PDP electoral guideline said, ‘For the purposes of nominating the party’s candidates, the party shall elect three ad-hoc ward delegates’. The court had already told us who the delegates are but if the leadership of the party decided to circumvent the court judgement by using statutory delegates only for the primary election, it is a breach of PDP electoral guidelines and consequently, it is a breach of Electoral Act 2010 as amended.

Adeleke, Adeyeye, Omoworare emerge APC senatorial candidates

Osun State chapter of the All Progreessives Congress (APC), on Tuesday evening, concluded its primary elections into the Senate, House of Representatives and House of Assembly, with the emergence of candidates for the party ahead the 2015 general election.

Adeleke

In a press statement signed by the APC’s director of publicity, research and strategy in Osun State, Mr Kunle Oyatomi, former governor of the state, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, clinched the party’s ticket for Osun West senatorial district.

The incumbent senator, representing Osun Central senatorial district, Professor Sola Adeyeye, secured the party’s ticket for a return to the upper chamber, while his counterpart in Osun East, Senator Babajide Omoworare, also won the primaries.

According to the release, “in the House of Representatives category, Honourable Lasun Yusuf, emerged in Orolu/Ifelodun Federal Constituency, while in Ifelodun/Boripe, Honourable Yinka Ajayi won. In Ila/Ifedayo/Boluwaduro Federal Constituency, Honourable Fakeye Femi won, just as Mr Akintayo Amusu emrged the winner in Boripe Federal Constituency”.

“For Irewole/Ayedaade/Isokan, Ayo omidiran emerged the winner, while Ajibola Famurewa won in Atakumosa East and West/Ilesa East and West.

In Obokun/Oriade, Nathaniel Agunbiade emerged as the candidate of the APC.

Southern Kaduna PDP Votes Out "Pastor" Senator Esther Nenadi Usman

Dissatisfied with the performance of their senator, delegates of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in troubled Southern Kaduna region in Kaduna this evening voted out Senator Nenadi Esther Usman.

A top member of National Working Committee in Abuja who was monitoring the primaries election held in Kafanchan, Kaduna state confirmed to SaharaReporters.

   

Senator Esther Nenadi Usman

He said the defeat came to them as a shock despite the backing received by the senator within the party at both national and state levels.

The senator, the source said is on her way to Abuja after conceding defeat to a barely known local politician, Danjuma Tela La’ah. The incumbent senator was said to have spent huge amount of money to induce delegates, but the majority of the delegates insisted on voting her out because she failed to represent their interests at the Nigerian senate. Mrs. Usman despite her well documented poor performance at the Senate uses religion to bamboozle the people. In September she spend millions in an ordination ceremony as a pastor. 

SaharaReporters.

Upsets, Parallel Elections Rock PDP NASS Primaries Nationwide

Dramatic upsets and a gale of parallel elections rocked the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primaries held yesterday to elect candidates to contest for countrywide senatorial seats in the 2015 elections.

Parallel primaries were held in different locations in Anambra, Bayelsa, Ebonyi and Enugu states.

Also, Senate Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN) and Uche Chukwumerije, both three-term senators, led the pack of high profile incumbents that lost out in the primaries. In another, Aloysius Akpan Etok lost his bid to return to the Senate after his dramatic last minute withdrawal to pave the way for Akwa Ibom State governor Godswill Akpabio. Another senator losing out is Nenadi Usman who also lost her seat to represent Kaduna South in the Senate.

However, it was a sweeter tale for other Senate bigwigs: Senate President David Mark, his deputy Ike Ekweremmadu and deputy Senate Leader Abdul Ningi all won their respective primaries.

As expected, all PDP governors eyeing Senate seats won at yesterday’s primaries. They are: Gabriel Suswam (Benue), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom), Theodore Orji (Abia) and Jonah Jang (Plateau).

Recall that the governors of Delta and Enugu states, Emmanuel Uduaghan and Sullivan Chime, dropped their bids to come to the Senate in 2015.



ENUGU

The deputy Senate president Ike Ekweremadu yesterday emerged the PDP candidate for Enugu West senatorial district for the 2015 election.

He was returned unopposed after polling a total of 294 out of the 299 votes cast by the accredited delegates.

Ekweremadu became PDP’s sole aspirant after the state governor, Sullivan Chime, withdrew from the race. In his acceptance speech, the deputy Senate president dedicated the victory to Governor Chime, describing his victory as an act of God.

Meanwhile, three parallel primaries were yesterday held in Enugu East senatorial district.

While Gilbert Nnaji, the senator currently representing Enugu East, emerged victorious in the primary conducted at Nkwo Nike in Enugu East local government area, the former chief of staff, Enugu Government House, Mrs Ifeoma Nwobodo, emerged victorious in the primary election held at Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium.

Former minister of information Mr Frank Nweke jnr emerged victorious in another primary conducted at a different location in the state.

The result of the primary held to elect the senatorial candidate in Enugu North was still being awaited at press time yesterday.



BAYELSA

In President Goodluck Jonathan’s home state, Bayelsa, drama played out with parallel PDP Senate primaries taking place.

The chairman, Senate Committee on Oil and Gas, Downstream Sector, Senator Emmanuel Paulker, and former director-general, Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Mr Ben Murray Bruce, emerged PDP flag bearers for Bayelsa Central and Bayelsa East senatorial districts in the 2015 general election.

Senator Heneiken Lokpobiri and Dr Foster Oguola emerged in separate primaries at the Bayelsa West senatorial district.

Ekweremadu wins, others emerge in Enugu PDP parallel primaries

The crisis in the Enugu State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party worsened on Sunday as several senatorial candidates emerged in parallel primaries in the state.

Three separate primaries in the Enugu East Senatorial Zone saw the emergence of three senatorial candidates, namely the incumbent Senator, Senator Gil Nnaji, former Chief of Staff to Governor Sullivan Chime, Mrs. Ifeoma Nwobodo; and a former Minister of Information, Mr. Frank Nweke Jnr.

The primary election, which produced Nwobodo, held amid tight security at the Rangers International Stadium, Enugu, while the primaries that were won by Nnaji and Nweke Jnr. took place at Nkwo Nike and Ozalla, respectively.

There were also unconfirmed reports that another aspirant, the chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, Nwabueze Okoye, emerged from another primary in the senatorial zone.

A similar scenario played out in Enugu North Senatorial Zone, where parallel primaries were contested by aspirants including the former Commissioner for Transport, Chuka Utazi, who is said to enjoy Chime’s backing, and a former national chairman of the PDP, Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo.

Although, results from the primaries in the zone were being awaited, it was gathered that Utazi won the primary he participated in, while Nwodo is expected to win the other exercise.

Ekweremadu duly picked up the party’s ticket for the Enugu West Senatorial Zone after emerging unopposed following Chime’s withdrawal from the race.

Even though, he was the sole candidate, voting still took place, with Ekweremadu receiving 294 vote out of the 299 delegates accredited for the exercise.

The votes of the five remaining delegates were declared invalid as a result of irregularities.

Bad blood generated from the battle between Chime and Ekweremadu over the ticket for the Enugu West Senatorial Zone was threatening to destroy the PDP in Enugu State until Chime surprisingly withdrew at the last minute.
 

Interestingly, Ekweremadu surprised everybody by dedicating his victory to Chime.
 

The deputy Senate President said the governor made sacrifices for peace to return to the PDP in Enugu State.
 

“I want to dedicate this victory to Governor Sullivan Chime of Enugu State; he equally made personal sacrifices to pave the way for the peace we have today,” Ekweremadu said.

Obanikoro not a saleable candidate —Ogunlewe

Former Minister of Works, Adeseye Ogunlewe

A former Minister of Works, Mr. Adeseye Ogunlewe, says a former Minister of State for Defence, Mr. Musiliu Obanikoro, cannot emerge as the Lagos State governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party because he (Obanikoro) is too controversial.

He, therefore, urged delegates to vote for the person that could deliver Lagos to the PDP.

Ogunlewe said this during an interview with our correspondent on Sunday.

Ogunlewe, who is supporting one of the party’s governorship aspirants, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, ahead of the primary which is set to hold on Monday (today), said Obanikoro was too controversial and the people of Lagos would only vote for someone with a clear track record.

He said, “In 2015, people will not vote for party but the candidate. That is our fear in the PDP. Perception is very important in politics. We must do what is expedient, what people will be happy about. Party will play a very little role in who will win the election.

“It is the candidate that will be able to convince the people and they must be able to appreciate the candidate. The time is too short and the aspirant will not have time to be answering questions about allegations.

“Questions like what happened in City Hall. What happened to the pilgrimage funds, what is your date of birth? Is it 1960 or 1954? Where is your school certificate? What is your proper name, is it Obanikoro or Onikoro? All those things we don’t have time to be answering them anymore and this was what we did in 2007 that took so much of our energy because Obanikoro is from the stable of the Alliance of Democracy.

Lagos PDP crisis deepens

Agbaje, Bode George and Obanikoro

In this piece, ENIOLA AKINKUOTU examines the crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos State ahead the party’s governorship primary

The Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party has told all aggrieved governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress that its doors are open to them if they are truly dissatisfied with how the APC conducted its primaries last week. Ironically, however, all is not well in the buildup to the PDP governorship primary in the state. The governorship ambitions of a former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, and that of another top contender for the ticket, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, appear to be too big for the ‘umbrella’ to shelter.

Other aspirants who will take part in the contest are Nigeria’s immediate past High Commissioner to Jamaica, Ambassador Tokunbo Kamson; Mr. Babatunde Gbadamosi, Mr. Adebayo Doherty and Mrs. Modupe Chukwuneke, the only female in the contest.

Obanikoro was instrumental to the victory of Mr. Ayodele Fayose, who emerged winner of the June 21 governorship election in Ekiti State. Prior to the election, Obanikoro, who was still a minister, not only campaigned rigorously for Fayose but also defended the deployment of soldiers for the election. The deployment of soldiers, no doubt, gave Fayose the upper hand in the election. It was while Obanikoro was in Ekiti that leaders of the APC were barred by soldiers from entering the state to campaign for former Governor Kayode Fayemi, who later lost the election.

During the Osun State election, Obanikoro was also on the ground, where he campaigned for the PDP candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore, who lost to Governor Rauf Aregbesola on August 9.

While Obanikoro was on duty for the PDP, Agbaje was in Lagos where he embarked on a tour of all the 20 local government councils in the state to consult with PDP leaders. Agbaje, who has the backing of the PDP leader in the state, Chief Olabode George; as well as a former Minister of Works, Chief Adeseye Ogunlewe, shot into an early popularity lead in the buildup as he was able to acquaint himself with the party’s leaders in the state and used the party structure put in place by George to gain the advantage.

The APC had zoned the party’s ticket to Lagos-East senatorial district comprising Ikorodu, Epe, Kosofe, Somolu and adjoining communities. Also, the APC had also hinted that it was searching for a Christian to be the next governor and to this end, a former Accountant General of the state, Akinwunmi Ambode, who hails from Epe, was favoured by the leadership of the party.

The decision of the APC became a reference point for the PDP and Agbaje was favoured.

Agbaje, who also hails from Lagos-East, is a prince from Ikorodu, a densely populated division of Lagos State which has never produced a governor in the state before. Like Ambode, Agbaje is also a Christian.

Apart from being favoured by the PDP leadership, several political parties in the state, including the state leadership of the Labour Party, Citizen Peoples Party and People for Democratic Change, all endorsed Agbaje as their consensus candidate. As the PDP leadership in the state believed that it would finally be able to wrest power from the APC through the candidature of Agbaje, the unexpected occurred in October when Obanikoro formally resigned his appointment and declared his intention to contest the governorship election.

The political atmosphere became charged upon Obanikoro’s entry but this has also come with its attendant issues as the party became factionalised. George, who is the state leader of the party, reportedly tried to push out Obanikoro from the race but many South-West PDP leaders quickly rallied round Obanikoro who had helped the party to gain some ground in the South-West.

Court stops Obasanjo from publishing autobiography

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo

A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Wuse Zone II, Abuja, has granted an order restraining former President Olusegun Obasanjo from going on with plans to publish or have someone publish on his behalf, his new autobiography titled, ‘My Watch.’

Request for the order was made by a member of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State, Buruji Kashamu, in an ex parte application.

Justice Valentine Ashi made the order on Friday as he agreed with Kashamu’s lawyer, Alex Iziyon (SAN), that part of the content of the book related to the subject matter of the N20bn libel suit instituted by the PDP chief against former President Obasanjo.

The court restrained the former President from publishing the book, pending the determination of the libel suit instituted against him.

The content of the book was said to be related to a letter dated December 2, 2013, written by Obasanjo to President Goodluck Jonathan, claiming that Kashamu was wanted for drug-related crime in the United States of America.

Iziyon had argued on Friday that since part of the content of the autobiography related to the December 2, 2013 letter, which is the subject matter of the libel suit, it was wrong for Obasanjo to be allowed to proceed to comment on, write books about or make publications on the issue yet to be decided by the court.

Justice Ashi, in his ruling, restrained Obasanjo from either publishing the book or have it published on his behalf by anybody, pending the determination of the main suit.

The court order read in part, “The defendant, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, whether by himself, his agents, servants, privies or any other person by whatever name called and howsoever described, is hereby restrained from publishing or caused to be published in the yet to be published book, ‘My Watch’ or any autobiography or biography and any extracts of same, by whatever name called or howsoever titled, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice hereof.”

The judge further restrained Obasanjo and his agents “from further writing, printing, publishing or causing to be published or printed or circulated, or otherwise, publishing of and concerning the plaintiff, the statement contained in the Daily Sun (pages 47-49) and The Leadership (pages 3 to 8) newspapers of December 12, 2013, and which statements are alleged to have reproduced the letter written by the defendant to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, titled: ‘Before it is too late’ or similar statements pending the determination of the motion on notice.”

But the judge also directed Kashamu to enter into a bond with the Chief Registrar of the court for damages he would pay should the order restraining Obasanjo from publishing the book turned out to be something the court ought not to have been granted.

The judge asked the applicant to “execute a bond with the Registrar of the court to pay such damages as shall be assessed should it turn out that the order ought not to have been granted in the first place.”

The court adjourned hearing in the main suit till December 10.

Kashamu had, shortly after the content of the letter was widely published in electronic and print media, sued Obasanjo for alleged defamation of his character.

He argued that Obasanjo “maliciously and recklessly published a letter, titled, ‘Before it is too late,’ which contained words which he (Obasanjo) knew to be false.”

In his writ of summons, Kashamu stated that the criminal imputation made against him by Obasanjo in his letter, had injured him (Kashamu).

He is praying the court to award in his favour, and against the ex-President, N20bn for the damage he had suffered as a result of the allegation. 

 PUNCH.

Primaries: Chukwumerije, Ndoma-Egba lose, Mark wins

Ndoma Egba, David Mark and Uche Chukwumerije

The Peoples Democratic Party primaries held in various states of the federation on Sunday produced some surprises as a number of incumbents lost their bids to return to the National Assembly.

Prominent among those who lost were a three-term senator and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Education, Uche Chukwumerije and the Senate Majority Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba.

The Chairman, Mobilisation and Organisation committee of the PDP in the South-West, Buruji Kashamu, however, won in the Ogun East Senatorial District.

Violence rocks PDP, APC primaries in Ogun

There were pockets of crises during the PDP senatorial and All Progressives Congress House of Representatives primaries in various parts of the state.

Kashamu defeated Mrs Temidayo Oriola and Daisi Akintan.

His main rival and a former governor of the state, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, was said have earlier withdrawn from the race. But his name was still mentioned at the venue of the primary election by the electoral officers as one of the contestants.

In Ogun-West, Waliu Taiwo emerged winner with 191 votes, having defeated four other contestants.

Voting by delegates in Ogun-East and Ogun-West was peaceful but it was different in Ogun Central where it was postponed till Tuesday because of tension.

Trouble began when some hoodlums were said to have invaded the PDP secretariat in Abeokuta, the venue of the Ogun Central primary. This made some politicians to allege malpractice by their rivals.

One of our correspondents gathered that the loyalists of the two contestants – a former member of the House of Representatives, Lanre Laoshe and wife of Chief Edwin Clark, Dr. Bisola Sodipo-Clark – almost had a direct confrontation.

According to the state secretary of PDP, Mr. Semiu Sodipo, the two contestants were ‘uncooperative.’

Dasuki to replace Tambuwal

Speaker, House of Representatives, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal

A member of the Sokoto State House of Assembly, Abdussamad Dasuki, on Sunday picked the ticket of the All Progressives Congress for the Kebbe-Tambuwal Federal Constituency.

If Dasuki wins the February 2015 election, he will succeed the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, who has been on the seat for the past eight years.

Dasuki, from Dogon Daji in the Tambuwal Local Governemnt Area, was affirmed as the candidate of the constituency by 176 delegates from 21 wards in Kebbe and Tambuwal local government areas of Sokoto State.

Political office holders from the constituency serving at both the state and the federal levels witnessed the election, which took place at the Tambuwal Stadium.

Dasuki is presently the chairman of finance and appropriation committee of the Sokoto State House of Assembly. 

PUNCH.

FG to reduce home registration cost to 3%

Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

The Federal Government has announced plans to slash the home registration cost in Nigeria from 16 per cent of the value of the property to three per cent.

It described the 16 per cent cost as unaffordable, adding that the Nigeria Mortgage Refinancing Company in conjunction with other mortgage institutions was working to increase home ownership in the country.

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, gave the hint in Abuja while speaking on the challenges being faced in the full commencement of the first phase of the Federal Government’s 10,000 housing units under the Affordable Home Ownership Scheme.

The scheme, which was inaugurated in July this year and spearheaded by the NMRC, is to enable the citizens own their houses at affordable rates.

Okonjo-Iweala, who spoke at a housing stakeholder’s consultative workshop, noted that it was imperative to cut the cost required for land titling, governor’s consent and property registration processes in order to enable the government to build these homes.

She said, “The NMRC is working to enhance the enabling environment for mortgage market growth and increase home ownership by partnering state governments through a pilot state scheme. So far, 18 states have signed off, all accenting to review extant land titling, governor’s consent and property registration processes to make this home ownership possible.

“It is very onerous that the present processes result in a cost that could be up to 16 per cent of the value of the accessed property in question. That is not affordable for our people. And this is what we are trying to work on because if we don’t work on it, we may have all the mortgage finance but we will not have the demand. So the plan is to scale it down from 16 per cent to about three per cent.”

The minister noted that through a Memorandum of Understanding, the Lagos State governor and the minister of the Federal Capital Territory had signed to review existing governor’s consent, titling and property registration processes.

This, she said, was with a view to reducing the cost and fast-tracking steps to perfection of titles at the land registries so as to benefit those who had indicated interest in the scheme.

“And this is the proposal we presented to these two governors to work with us on, and I am very hopeful that they will accent to it because we are actively talking to them. If we get that then it becomes a template that all other states hopefully will follow,” Okonjo-Iweala added.

Lafarge invests N26.7bn in yearly product development

Lafarge Cement

Lafarge Plc says it is investing about N26. 727bn (€120m) in research and development to improve the quality of its products annually.

The General Manager, ReadyMix, Lafarge Nigeria, Mr. Chris Lobel, stated this at a stakeholders’ meeting on building a durable concrete for West Africa construction in Lagos.

Lobel, who spoke on ‘Commercial ReadyMix concrete as a project enabler-benefits for owners and contractors’, said the company had a clear strategy as a project enabler, driving quality and innovation and promoting a sustainable environment.

According to him, the company aims to achieve the development by working closely with its customers and partners.

He said, “As a member of the Lafarge Group, we have a unique opportunity to draw on the expertise of our employees worldwide to bring innovative value to our Nigerian customers.

“Our technical expertise, state-of-the-art plants and commitment to innovation enable us to make a concrete that can assist our customers with all their construction needs. Our portfolio includes products ranging from standard concrete used in everyday driveways and sidewalks to customised mixes used in complex high-rises that must meet strict design specifications to our proprietary technology.”

The Managing Director, ReadyMix/Aggregates & Country Key Accounts Director, Lafarge Nigeria Limited, Mr. Loren Zanin, said Lafarge enjoyed doing business in the country and would continually invest in the Nigerian economy.

“We take pride in producing and safely delivering quality concrete that meets the specifications ordered. Our quality culture encompasses on-site quality control personnel, laboratory technicians who stay behind the scenes testing and improving the performance of our mixes, and trained plant managers and batchers who watch each load to ensure that the right concrete leaves our plant,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ashaka Cement Plc, a subsidiary of the Lafarge Group, said normalcy had returned to its plant, located in Gombe State, after the recent attack in a community within its vicinity.

In a statement signed by the Country Communications Director of Lafarge Africa Plc, Mrs. Viola Graham-Douglas, the company said insurgents had attacked a community close to its plant, but they were faced by men of the Nigerian security forces who were able to successfully repel the attack.

“The insurgents have since retreated. There was no injury to employees or damage to the plant. We remain vigilant to ensure the security of our employees and facility,” the statement added.  

PUNCH.

Masari Defeats Yar’adua's Brother, Emerges APC Guber Candidate In Katsina

A former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Masari, was on Saturday declared the gubernatorial candidate of All Progressives Congress, APC, for the 2015 elections. The Chairman, Katsina Primaries Elections Committee, Adesina Aderibigbe, who announced the result in Katsina, said Mr. Masari scored 2,470 votes to defeat his rivals.
 
Former Speaker Bello Masari

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 5,266 delegates from the 34 local government areas were screened for the gubernatorial primary election in the state.

Mr. Aderibigbe said Kanti Bello, a former senator, polled 1,327 votes; Sada Ilu scored 468 votes; and Abdulaziz Yar’adua, a retired colonel, and late President Umar Yar’adua younger brother, had 243 votes.

He said that the election was free, fair and credible, adding that it was conducted in accordance with the party’s rule and regulation.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the election was conducted under tight security. (NAN)

Don’t blame me for naira devaluation –Okonjo-Iweala

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has distanced her office from the devaluation of the naira from N155 to N168 to the US dollar.

The Monetary Policy Committee had on Tuesday devalued the naira, citing constraints in the ability of the bank to continually defend the naira and sustain the stability of the exchange rate occasioned by the falling oil price.

The minister, while fending off criticisms of the government’s action by some angry Nigerians, stated that she did not give any marching orders to the CBN to devalue the naira following the decline in the price of crude oil.

Writing on Twitter, Okonjo-Iweala, through her Special Adviser on Media, Paul Nwabuikwu, argued that although the roles and responsibilities of the CBN and the Federal Ministry of Finance were complementary, the apex financial regulatory institution took the decision on the naira devaluation independently.

“Why don’t you (critics) read up on the autonomy of central banks and global best practices? It (naira devaluation) was not a political or ideological issue.

“Don’t misquote me: I said the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Finance have complementary roles but the CBN is independent. But of course there is coordination.

“Since monetary and fiscal policies are complementary, the best practice is to keep them separate in the interest of the economy. As I have said, devaluation is part of the monetary policy which is CBN’s duty. The institution is independent,” Okonjo-Iweala stated.

She added that the Federal Government had the wherewithal to “manage its way through” the expected impact of the decline in the price of crude oil on the Nigerian economy.

According to her, some of the initiatives aimed at cushioning the effect of the development on the economy and, by extension, Nigerians, were the austerity measures unveiled by the Federal Government recently.

“Nigeria has what it takes to manage its way through. Benchmark for budget 2015 has been lowered to more realistic $73 per barrel. Besides, we are pushing for more non-oil revenues and there would be surcharge on luxury items.

“We are protecting investments important to ordinary Nigerians,” the minister added in a message posted on her personal Twitter page.

But a former Vice-President of the World Bank, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, described as unfortunate the Federal Government’s belated response to oil price fall, naira devaluation and austerity measures it introduced.

Ezekwesili stated that despite raising the alarm on the management of the country’s foreign reserve during her 2013 convocation lecture of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka the Federal Government failed to address the issues raised.

The ex-World Bank VP had during the lecture said that the late President Umaru Yar’Adua and the President Goodluck Jonathan administrations squandered the foreign reserve of $67bn left by the Olusegun Obasanjo-led Federal government.

She argued that despite the fact that oil was sold above $100 for years the government appeared to be struggling to meet up with its obligation within a month of oil drop to $80.

“The public debate that is unfortunately and painfully happening now on the economy is what I hoped for as a healthy response to my UNN speech in 2013,” she added on Twitter.

Describing the current state of the Nigerian economy as parlous, she counselled Nigerians not to despair, adding that those still apprehensive of the negative effect of the naira devaluation on their personal finance should avail themselves of academic blogs that would break down the economic implications to them.

A social commentator, Ali George, lamented that the recent devaluation of the naira was a penalty that the common man has to pay for the failure of Nigerian leaders who had no vision and failed to save for a rainy day.

Stating that Nigeria had over the years failed to diversify its revenue base, he stated that it was unfortunate that after 54 years of independence “the only thing we export is crude oil.”

“I don’t need to go to Harvard to know that the main reason for devaluation of the naira is to avoid a budget deficit. Sadly, the budget we are trying to fund by devaluing our naira is over 75 per cent recurrent, meaning we devalued just to fund consumption.

“Devaluation of the naira will make exports more competitive and appear cheaper to foreigners but Nigeria does not produce: we are a consuming nation. Devaluation of the naira means imports will become more expensive and hence Nigerians should prepare for inflation,” George argued.   

PUNCH.

Audit Report On Missing $10.8bn Oil Money Will Be Ready In November -Okonjo-Iweala

Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, coordinating Minister for Economy and Finance has announced that the report of the audit into the unaccounted $10.8 billion oil money will be in ready in November.

According to NIGERIAN TRIBUNE, Okonjo-Iweala made the disclosure while speaking at the Financial Times Africa Summit 2014.

She said, "Initially, it was $48 billion, then $20 billion, but the figure we have always had is $10.8 billion. I am minister of finance, if money is missing, I want to use it for good things for the country and that was why when we went to the Senate, we demanded for forensic audit, the president supported it and asked for it to be done

"We engaged PwC with the Auditor General taking the lead. They initially asked for 16 weeks to complete the work, already, 11or12 weeks had gone so far and they will be done in a couple of weeks.

#Okonjo-Iweala #NigerianTribune

40m Nigerians Can Afford Cars Under Jonathan – Okonjo-Iweala

The federal government says it has done so well that in the last three years 40 million Nigerians are comfortable enough to own cars.

Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala made this disclosure yesterday in Abuja. According to her, “the improvement in the economic situation of Nigerians based on concrete steps has led to a situation where about 40 million Nigerians are comfortable to have cars.”

She then argued that if the tempo at which the country is performing is sustained in the nearest future, Nigeria will become one of the biggest 20 economies in the world.

The finance minister also disclosed that the federal government has so far mobilized over N2.4 trillion from external sources in the last three years to execute key projects.

The monies, according to the minister, were sourced from multilateral agencies with long gestation repayment period and zero percent interest charges.

She spoke on yesterday in Abuja at the Presidential Public Affairs Forum organised by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs where she emphasized that government is determined to be very prudent in the area of expenditure finance and has chosen to keep borrowing to a tolerable limit while concerted effort will be made to broaden sources of revenue outside of oil.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala also stated that the Goodluck Jonathan administration has reformed the import waiver system but emphasized that the policy was selective.

She said prior to the advent of Jonathan as president, the import waiver system was characterized by sharp practices. According to her, “before President Jonathan came on board, the import waiver system was bad. They were either issued arbitrarily, were lopsided and not good for any economic environment.”

She added that three years ago, when she came on board as minister the first issue the president put before the first meeting of the National Economic Management team was the import waiver which he felt was selective, lopsided and led to the midnight visits. “We are happy to announce that the policy has since been reversed and the import waiver system reformed.”

She stated that the reform of the waiver system was not the only significant achievement of the Federal Government under President Jonathan. She noted that another key indicator of the positive transformation in the economy was the rebasing of Nigeria’s economy, which she said has come after just three years of the present administration.

According to her the positive transformation agenda as championed by the administration has led local and international investors to find the business environment in Nigeria healthy thereby leading into massive investments as exemplified by the likes of Alhaji Aliko Dangote whom she said has invested $16 billion.

She also disclosed that housing refinancing has also been put in place and many Nigerians have already benefitted from it with more to key into it in the near future where young Nigerians will be able to owe houses with payment spread across 20 years.

Leadership 

US-Based Gallup Poll Denies Involvement In Fraudulent Okonjo Iweala's Opinion Polls On Jonathan

Gallup, the internationally respected pollster, has denied that it is in any way behind NOI Polls or the group’s recent “research” stories about President Goodluck Jonathan’s approval rating in Nigeria.

repeatedly characterizes itself on the web and on social media as working in partnership with Gallup USA. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is Nigeria's minister of Finance and founder of NOIpolls Limited

“NOIPolls is the “No. 1 for country-specific polling services in the West African region,” it says in its profile. “We partner with Gallup USA to develop opinion research in Nigeria. We deliver forward-thinking research and relevant data on public opinion and consumer markets on a range of topics. We enhance the activities of decision makers across all the vibrant sectors of the Nigerian economy. We partner with policy makers, governments, donor agencies, civil societies, corporate organisations and the media to enhance their data set of information, ultimately adding value to their output.”

By so heavily leaning on Gallup, NOIPolls, which is owned by Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (NOI), Nigeria’s Minister of Finance/Coordinating Minister of the Economy, has published a series of “research” reports that are predictably favourable to a government in which she holds two cabinet posts and is generally regarded as “Prime Minister.”

In its 11th “survey,” published this week, NOIPolls declared Mr. Jonathan to enjoy a 60% approval rating in November 2014 among adult Nigerians surveyed, “consistent with the 60% job approval rating recorded in October 2014.”

At a time Mr. Jonathan’s public perception is known to have taken a big hit on account of various scandals, including Nigeria’s phantom ceasefire with Boko Haram, the unrealized announcement of the release of the Chibok girls, and the embarrassing seizure of Nigerian towns and villages by Islamic militants, NOIPolls said only 27% of Nigerians disapproved of the President’s performance while 13% neither approved nor disapproved.

Screenshot of NOIpolls showing 60% job approval for President Jonathan

Of its methodology, NOI said it used telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample of 1,000 phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical zones in the country.

It was unclear whether the sample included people in several States under the Boko Haram menace or without power to charge their phones, particularly the three under a state of emergency. Still, NOIPolls claimed “confidence.”

“With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise - within a range of plus or minus 3%, NOIPolls said, reasserting that it undertook the exercise “in technical partnership with the Gallup Organisation (USA).”

SaharaReporters contacted Gallup to find out if its expertise and credibility supports the claims by NOI Polls.

Johnathan Tozer, Gallup’s Global Communications Director, said in response: “NOI polls has been a client of Gallup in the past but we are not part of the data collection or methodology related to the President Goodluck Jonathan approval rating poll.”

The response is reproduced here.


Many thanks for your email to Gallup. I looked into the below and I can confirm from Joe Daly, with Gallup that “NOI polls has been a client of Gallup in the past but we are not part of the data collection or methodology related to the President Goodluck Jonathan approval rating poll.”

Many thanks – Johnathan

JOHNATHAN TOZER

Global Communications Director

The implication of the denial by Gallup is that the hard-earned name of that company has been used as a front in Nigeria to attempt to build the image of the government and advance the re-election ambitions of Mr. Jonathan.

“Okonjo-Iweala setting up a polling outfit to burnish the image of a government of which she is a key part is like Senator John Kerry setting up a similar outfit in Washington to advance the work of the Barack Obama government and push the re-election bid of Mr. Obama,” a political analyst said on Friday. “It is a sad, cynical effort at public opinion manipulation that ought never to have begun. It means that rather than focus on the work of the government, she was focusing on its propaganda to make it look better than it really is.”

Added a newspaper editor: “All they have to do [to come up with their survey] is sit in front of a computer and manufacture the numbers. Come to think of it, that is probably what they have been doing, and I hope Gallup sues them!”

Coincidentally, in Gallup’s Inaugural State of Global Well-Being Report 2013, Nigeria did not do so well in the areas that the Minister of Finance/Economy ought to be focusing on. In it, the Gallup-Healthways Global Well-Being Index (Global Well-Being Index) demonstrates a global barometer of individuals’ perceptions of their own well-being — “those aspects that define how we think about and experience our daily lives.”

The foreword to the project argues that measurements of national performance have for too long focused on income — gross domestic product (GDP) and its components — but such measures are much too narrow. Income is certainly important to people — and the growth of incomes over the last 250 years has been one of the greatest achievements of humankind — but it is not the only thing that matters.

“People can have low well-being and high income, and conversely high well-being and low income. Income is not worth much without health to enjoy it, and good health is a blessing in and of itself, allowing people to live a full and worthwhile life. A good education is not only a vital requirement to do well in life, but it brings its own joys and a richer life in many dimensions. People enjoy contributing meaningfully to the betterment of civil society. The absence of the fear of war and violence, something that was rarely enjoyed by people’s ancestors, also contributes to high well-being.

“When we ask people to think about how their lives are going, to report on their daily emotions, and to tell us about their health, we gain a much broader picture of their well-being than can be inferred from traditional economic surveys.”

With that in mind, the report observes as follows on Nigeria:

About one in eight Nigerians (12%) are thriving in financial well-being, similar to the regional figure for sub-Saharan Africa (9%) but half the global figure (25%). Nearly half of Nigerians are suffering in financial well-being (48%), underscoring the prevalence of financial insecurity among the millions of Nigerians living in poverty.

Sixteen percent of Nigerians are thriving in community well-being — again, similar to the regional total (18%) but lower than the global percentage (26%). Boko Haram’s frequent attacks on civilians in the north and east of the country since 2010 have likely taken a heavy toll on Nigerians’ perceptions of their communities, with many questioning their own safety. In 2013, nearly half of Nigerians (47%) said they do not feel safe walking alone at night in their own neighborhoods.

Nigeria’s vast natural resources and growing labor force offer no shortage of opportunities to further the country’s economic and social development if the government can more effectively address the domestic issues of instability, violence, and poor infrastructure. Economic diversification is also critical to improving Nigerians’ well-being; though the government continues to rely heavily on oil revenues, reforms aimed at promoting business development and other forms of broad-based economic opportunity are needed to boost job growth and community cohesion.

 SAHARAREPORTERS,