NAIJAFEED

Video - State of Emergency declared in Nigeria

2013-05-15T03:42:00.001-07:00

Goodluck Jonathan, the Nigerian president, has imposed a "state of emergency" in three states in an attempt to curb the increasingly violent attacks by armed group Boko Haram, saying the level of violence called for "extraordinary measures".

The decision comes after a spate of attacks on security forces and government targets by armed group Boko Haram in its northeast stronghold this month.

Nigerian Judge gives Iranian 17 years jail sentence for arms trafficking

2013-05-14T07:55:00.001-07:00

Justice Okechukwu Okeke of the Federal High Court in Lagos monday sentenced an Iranian national, Azim Aghajani, and his Nigerian counterpart, Ali Jega, to 17 years imprisonment each for their involvement in the importation of firearms into Nigeria.

Justice Okeke while delivering his judgment, held that he was not in doubt that the 13 containers loaded with arms were imported into the country, contrary to the claim by the accused persons that the containers contained building materials meant for construction in Banjul, the capital of The Gambia.

The judge, who will be retiring in five days, also declared that the federal government through its lawyer succeeded in tendering before the court emails of the transactions between the convicts.

According to him, "It is my opinion that the moment the security started closing in, the story started changing.

"I sympathise with the second accused person because of the role he played because he thought he was helping his friend.

"It is my view that the accused made a false declaration on the bill of lading. If the goods were truly construction materials, the accused persons should have stated so in the bill of lading.

"There is no doubt that the accused persons and their collaborators deal in the unlawful importation of arms."

The court also ordered that the jail terms would run concurrently from February 1, 2011 when they were first arraigned.

Justice Okeke also directed that the container loaded with firearms be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

But shortly before the sentencing, the counsel to the convicted Iranian, Chris Uche (SAN), had prayed the court to temper justice with mercy, explaining that the defence had cooperated to ensure the speedy disposal of the case.

The lawyer also prayed the judge to exercise his discretion in convicting the accused.

Uche also said: "It would serve no useful purpose in keeping the first accused in Nigerian prisons. I urge your lordship to order his immediate repatriation to his country."

While aligning himself with the submission of the senior advocate, the counsel to the second accused person, Aliyu Musa Yauri, said his client became a convict in his bid to make ends meet, adding that a sentence against the second accused was a sentence against his entire family.

This Day

Nigeria bans film exposing corruption in the oil industry

2013-05-08T03:57:00.000-07:00

A film documenting corruption in the management of oil profits has been banned in Nigeria.

"Fuelling Poverty" examines the mismanagement of Nigeria's oil wealth in the context of protests against fuel subsidy suspensions in 2012.

Produced in partnership with Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), filmmaker Ishaya Bako told Media Rights Agenda (MRA) that the film examines "real issues, on everyday life."

Issues, it seems, that are too real for the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) to want to share. In a letter dated 8 April 2013, the NFVCB states that "Fuelling Poverty" is not permitted to be distributed, aired or exhibited, due to contents that "are highly provocative and likely to incite or encourage public disorder and undermine national security", according to MRA.

The film was released in November 2012, but was only banned when Bako submitted a request to show the film publically, the Associated Press reported.

In NFVCB's letter to Bako, the young filmmaker was warned that "all relevant national security agencies are on the alert" to ensure that he does not exhibit or distribute the film, said the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

"Instead of banning the documentary 'Fuelling Poverty,' authorities should look into the important questions it raises about corruption and impunity in the country's oil sector and at the highest levels of government," said CPJ Africa Advocacy Coordinator Mohamed Keita from New York. "We urge Nigeria's National Film and Video Censors Board to overturn this censorship order."

Contrary to the NFVCB's intentions, however, the ban has only increased the popularity of the documentary. News reports cited by CPJ says that activists have been sharing the film on social media since the ban was issued; as of 24 April the video has over 57, 000 views on YouTube.

The film has also gained international recognition. CPJ notes that "Fuelling Poverty" was screened at the 20th New York African Film Festival this month. It also recently won "Best Documentary" at the 2013 African Movie Academy Awards.

Media Rights Agenda is still seeking to understand the reasoning behind the ban.

On 18 April, the group submitted a Freedom of Information request to the director-general of the NFVCB, asking for detailed information about the decision-making process that led to the ban.

Bako himself is also considering appealing the board's decision, says CPJ.

IFEX

About 1 million Nigerians live in London, England

2013-05-07T04:06:00.002-07:00

Mayor of Brent, London, Micheal Adeyeye, has disclosed that the population of Nigerian immigrants in London has hit over 1 million people.

Meantime, Governor Babtunde Fashola of Lagos and Mayor of London, Mr. Alderman Gifford stressed the need to strengthen bilateral ties between Lagos and London.

The duo who spoke during a courtesy visit by the Mayor at the State House, Alausa, Ikeja, said that the population of Nigerian and United Kingdom immigrants in both cities have showed that the bilateral ties between both countries was age-long.

Speaking in an interview with Saturday Vanguard, Adeyeye, one of the three councillors in London, said that "Lagos is like London because it is full of people with diverse ethnic background.

"That is why we all need to work together so that we can all gain effectively from each another. We have a large community of Nigerians in London, and the population of Nigerians living in the city is over 1 million. This was what we got from the high commission."

He noted that "this was the reason why there was need to foster business relation between the two nations particularly Lagos and London. And all our efforts would be geared towards ensuring that the partnership grows from strength to strength."

He expressed joy over the ties, saying "I am happy that this is happening between Nigeria and UK. We all know that there is an age long relation between the two countries."

Fashola, in his speech said that London and Lagos have made tremendous progress in various sectors of their economy, saying,"I believe that with this, we can learn from each other's success."

The governor said; "Today, Lagos is now dealing with challenges of becoming a global city state in the sense that there are several opportunities in the state. And it has become an attractive destination for the world.

"And as we move towards improving our economy in Lagos, there is need for us to strengthened our bilateral ties especially with United Kingdom," he said.

Speaking earlier, Mr. Gifford said "London is a very great city but we realised that London must strengthen its relation with other countries especially Nigeria because there are many Nigerians living in the city. "And this could be further explained by the five commercial banks out of the 250 commercial banks in the city owned by Nigerians," he said.

According to him, "We have a lot to explore but we believe that to achieve this, it must be done by allowing equal partnership. We believe that the economy that would grow in the next 50 years will be coming from an economy that has great base with a better financial market. If we are going to survive, we must work with these economies. And Lagos is among these economies that have been identified."

Nigerian couple arrested for child trafficking

2013-05-07T04:05:00.002-07:00

The Nigeria Police Special Fraud Unit, SFU, said it has apprehended two suspects who "stole" twin babies and planned to travel with them to the United States.

Adenuga and Elizabeth Soyibo were reported to the police by the U.S. Consulate where they had applied for American visa, the SFU said in a statement released Monday.

According to the statement, their application was deferred on the suspicion that their babies appeared not to belong to them.

The consulate ordered a DNA test to ascertain the biological relationship between the babies and the couple.

"The Consulate invited them when it received the result of the DNA which revealed that the babies do not belong to the couple as both lack the genetic marks that must be contributed to the child by the biological parents," said the statement, signed by Ngozi Isintume-Agu, SFU Public Relations Officer.

During investigation, police detectives travelled with the couple to Port Harcourt where Mrs. Soyibo claimed to have delivered the babies in a small, private house.

"On getting to Port Harcourt, the woman claimed she could no longer identify or locate the place. She also stated that she has no antenatal record anywhere as she did not attend any," the statement said.

The couple stated that they paid a woman N1.8 million to administer 'Agbo', a local herb, on the man to boost the sperm count and on the woman to produce the babies.

"Both suspects claimed they can no longer trace the woman whom they paid the sum of N1.8 million for the 'Agbo' and the delivery of the baby.

"They also could not produce anyone who knew about the conception and subsequent delivery of the babies," the statement added.

The police said that the suspects would appear in court soon.

James Ibori denied appeal for jail term reduction

2013-05-03T06:50:00.001-07:00

The former Delta State Governor, James Ibori, Thursday lost an appeal before a London court for a reduction in his jail term following his conviction for money laundering-related offences.
Justice Anthony Pitts of the Southwark Crown Court had sentenced Ibori last year to a 13-year jail term, after he had pleaded guilty to charges that he embezzled £50 million during his eight-year tenure as governor of the oil-rich state.

Ibori’s legal team had based its argument for a reduction in his 13-year jail term sentence on some purported promise by Justice Pitts that he could sentence Ibori to a jail term of not more than 10 years if he pleaded guilty to the charges filed against him.

However, the Court of Appeal dismissed the argument, saying the promise was not emphatic enough to support the plea.

There was a mild drama in the case as a team of the Court of Appeal justices previously empanelled to hear the appeal was changed at the last minute.

The justices, led by Lord Justice Brian Henry Leveson, who were previously scheduled to hear the appeal were replaced on Wednesday by a new panel of justices, which presided over the case yesterday.

Lord Justice Antony Edward-Stuart, who led Lord Justice Treacy and Peter Collier QC in the ruling, held that Justice Pitts’ promise of a lower sentence for Ibori could not be relied on for a successful appeal as it was not “emphatic enough”, according to agency reports of the court proceedings.

He said even though Ibori’s counsel had “legitimate expectations” based on Justice Pitts’ insinuations of a 10-year sentence, the Southwark Crown judge did not emphasise or commit to a 10-year jail term for Ibori if he entered a guilty plea.

He ruled that there would be no need for a long trial of the appeal as the justices had already familiarised themselves with the grounds of the appeal and had read the submissions of both sides.

After the counsel had addressed the court briefly, the judges retired into the chamber and came back some 15 minutes later to deliver their judgment.
Justice Edwards-Stuart, in rejecting the argument, said a money laundering offence should attract close to the maximum 14-year sentence.

Ibori in February 2012 had pleaded guilty to 10 charges of fraud and money-laundering offences.
His case was heard in London after prosecutors argued that although much of the fraud was perpetrated in Nigeria, some money passed through Britain and British banks.

During his trial, the London court was told how the proceeds of the fraud were used to buy six foreign properties and a fleet of cars, although the judge said the total amount stolen might in fact be “in excess of 200 million pounds”.

The biggest single fraud involved misappropriating $37 million in fees when under Ibori, Delta State’s stake in V-Mobile, the precursor to one of Nigeria’s telecoms companies, Airtel Nigeria Limited, was sold and the funds diverted.

Eligible for parole halfway through his jail term, Ibori is likely to be released from prison in three-and-a-half years, having served one year since his conviction, a year beforehand while awaiting trial in London, and a year in Dubai from where he was extradited to Britain.

Despite the court’s rejection of Ibori’s appeal, the former governor is still expected to appear in person at the Southwark Crown court for a three-week confiscation of assets hearing starting on September 16, 2013.

This Day

Video - Military denies death toll in Boko Haram fire fight

2013-05-02T06:14:00.002-07:00

Al Jazeera has obtained evidence that the number of people killed in recent fighting between Nigerian security forces and an armed group in the north could be far higher than officially reported. The Nigerian Army is standing by its claim that no more than 36 people died when its soldiers fought with Boko Haram fighters in Borno state. But locals and aid organisations say as many as 200 people were killed in the violence.

Boko Haram allegedly got paid N500 million to release French family kept hostage

2013-04-29T06:39:00.002-07:00

Boko Haram were paid N500 million ($3.15 million) to free seven French hostages kidnapped in February, a confidential document from the Nigerian government available to Reuters states.

The insurgent group kidnapped the French hostages in Cameroon on February 19 near Wasa National Park in Northern Cameroon, which borders North-Eastern Nigeria.

The hostages, a family of seven including four children, are believed to have been brought into Borno State after the kidnap. They were released two months after the kidnap on April 19.

The document, according to Reuters, did not state who paid the ransom although French and Cameroonian authorities denied that any ransom was paid.

The Negotiations

Apart from the money the insurgents were paid, the document states, Cameroonian authorities also released some Boko Haram suspects in detention as part of the deal.

The sect had threatened, in a video released on YouTube in March, to kill the hostages unless Nigeria and Cameroon release some of its members in custody.

The report also states that Abubakar Shekau, the sect's leader had asked for N1 billion to free the hostages but finally accepted half of the money, after agreeing to the release of his members in Cameroonian jails as part of the deal.

French President, Francois Hollande, denied that any ransom was paid when the hostages were released, same as Cameroonian authorities. No one has, however, said what got the insurgents to release the hostages.

Boko Haram is blamed for killings of several hundreds of people in Northern Nigeria and has claimed responsibility for several attacks.

Efforts to get the federal government to react to the report were unsuccessful. The Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, and his spokesperson, Joseph Mutah, could not be reached as their telephone numbers were not reachable on Friday evening.

The spokespersons to the Nigerian President, Reuben Abati and Doyin Okupe, did not pick or return calls to their phone as at press time.

According to Reuters, the report suggests that the ransom was paid because officials did not want to endanger the lives of the hostages in a rescue attempt; after a rescue attempt last year March to save a Briton and an Italian hostage kidnapped by another Nigerian sect, Ansaru, led to the death of the hostages.

A rich Boko Haram

Apart from waging a war against the Nigerian Government, Christians and Muslims opposed to his terrorist acts, Boko Haram has also delved into kidnapping for ransom, largely to finance its operations. Apart from kidnapping for ransom, the group also robs banks in Northern Nigeria to finance its operations.

PREMIUM TIMES had also exclusively reported how a security report sent to the Nigerian Presidency last year showed that Boko Haram got N40 million from an Algerian terrorist sect as part of a long term international terrorism collaboration.

Premium Times

Related stories: Kidnapped French family freed in Nigeria

Video - Manhunt in Nigeria for kidnappers of French family

Traditional medicine hurting fight against malaria in Nigeria

2013-04-25T08:46:00.003-07:00

Malaria accounts for 30 percent of childhood deaths in Nigeria. It is one of the highest figures in Africa. Yet despite efforts to tackle the disease, huge challenges remain.

Video - Meth labs cropping up in Nigeria

2013-04-24T06:10:00.002-07:00

Authorities in Lagos have discovered the fifth illegal methamphetamine production centre in just one year, deepening fears Nigeria is a narcotics hub and part of a worldwide network.
The anti-drugs agency says the West African country is producing meth on a large scale.
The highly addictive drug is known by several names, including meth, ice and crystal. It is usually injected, but it can also be smoked or inhaled.
Mild doses can increase alertness and concentration, but high doses can cause psychological problems including paranoia and hallucinations.
Nigeria used to be a transit point through which illegal drugs from Mexico passed on their way to Europe.
Mitchell Ofojeyu, a spokesman for the Nigerian Drug Law Enforcement Agency, said: "They have an international network because they're bringing in Bolivians into West Africa to produce Methamphetamine; [it] shows the synergy the drug cells in West Africa have with their counterparts in other regions of the world."

In an exclusive report, Al Jazeera's Mohammed Adow visits the lab where the methods of concealment for the drug dealers are as diverse as the narcotics they traffic.
Reporting from Lagos, Adow said: "While manufacturing drugs is a new phenomenon in Nigeria using it as a trafficking hub is not."

English couple caught smuggling Nigerian baby into the UK

2013-04-24T06:07:00.005-07:00

An English couple – Simon and Gladys Heap from Oxford – have been convicted by a UK court for attempting to pass off a Nigerian baby as their biological child in a bid to smuggle it into the UK.

The couple was sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for 12 months, and 250 hours of community service after pleading guilty on April 16, 2013.

Gladys aged 52 and her husband, 47, had entered Nigeria in July 2010 and had gone to the British High Commission in Lagos to apply for a British passport for the baby girl claiming Gladys had a baby just a few days after entering the country.
According to the British High Commission in Abuja, the staff at the High Commission were however suspicious.

"...DNA tests later confirmed that neither adult was related to the child. A birth certificate they had presented was also found to be fraudulent. They flew home without the baby," the statement issued in Abuja yesterday said.
Although the statement was silent on how the couple came about the child, it implied that the child may have been purchased.

Following an investigation by a joint Border Force and Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), the couple was arrested and charged with facilitating a breach of immigration law. They were sentenced by the Isleworth Crown Court.

The head of the Border Force at Heathrow, Mr. Marc Owen, described the case as shocking. “Thanks to the close co-operation between Border Force, the Metropolitan Police and staff at the British High Commission they were stopped and we were able to bring them to justice,” he said.

The leader of the investigation team, Detective Inspector Kate Bridger, said the couple tried to circumvent the adoption system and deceive the authorities.

“A child should not be treated as a commodity to be bought and sold," she said, adding that the system is in place to protect children. The child has remained in Nigeria.
Heap, an expert on Nigeria, works with companies trying to forge international trade links. His wife is a nurse.

Heap has a BA in History from Cambridge University, an MA in African Studies from the University of London and a PhD in History from the University of Ibadan in Nigeria. He also studied History at Oxford University.

He has previously worked as a researcher for child rights organisation, Plan International; a fellow at the University of Ibadan and is currently a senior researcher at the development agency Japan International Cooperation Agency.

This Day

Video - scores killed in Northern Nigeria

2013-04-22T05:58:00.002-07:00

Al Jazeera's Ahmed Idris reports on fighting in northern Nigeria that left nearly 200 people dead.

Nigerian doctor wins World Environment Day Blogging Contest

2013-04-22T05:56:00.001-07:00

A 24-year-old doctor and environmentalist from Nigeria has won the 2013 World Environment Day blogging competition after picking up almost half of close to 70,000 votes cast in an online vote organized by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Charles Immanuel Akhimien was one of ten short-listed bloggers whose entries were posted on the World Environment Day website (www.unep.org/wed) where WED followers could choose their favourite entry. After securing first place with over 31,000 votes, Charles will travel to Mongolia in June 2013 to report on World Environment Day (WED) 2013.

"As a doctor, I have found that the state of our environment is directly related to our personal health, so I have decided to champion environmental issues," said Mr. Akhimien

"I look forward to seeing some of the two million trees planted across Mongolia's vast desert regions since 2011, and to observe how Mongolia is using renewable energy by exploiting its huge solar power potential," he added.

Over 100 international bloggers submitted entries to this year's UNEP competition on the theme of food waste. The competition was held in support of the 'Think.Eat.Save. Reduce Your Foodprint! campaign launched by UNEP,the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and other partners earlier this year. Food waste and food loss is also the theme of WED 2013.

For the final phase of the competition, Mr. Akhimien wrote a blog on the role of social media in encouraging sustainable consumption.

His winning entry is available on the WED website: http://www.unep.org/wed/blog-competition/bloggers/blog/?blogger=charles

Previous winners of the WED Blogging Competition have reported from Rwanda, India and Brazil.

World Environment Day - organized by UNEP - is the single biggest day for positive action on the environment worldwide. It is celebrated each year on 5 June. Organizations and individuals across the world are encouraged to carry out an environmental activity in support of WED.

More information is available at: www.unep.org/wed/

Updates on WED 2013 are also available on UNEP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Look out for the hashtags #WED2013 and #ThinkEatSave .

UNEP

6,000 children in Nigerian prisons

2013-04-22T05:47:00.003-07:00

Nigeria's notorious jails and detention centres hold an estimated 6,000 children and minors, many of whom were born there and now serve terms with their parents despite a government's order to effect their release, the United States country human rights report on Nigeria says.

Although Nigerian law forbids the imprisonment of children, by the end of 2012, the government has taken no clear step to implement its order to release and rehabilitate the children, the report, quoting an African Union study, says.

"A report by the African Union on the rights and welfare of the Nigerian child found an estimated 6,000 children lived in prisons and detention centers," the report says. "Despite a government order to identify and release such children and their mothers, authorities had not done so by year's end."

Published by the US state department on country-by-country basis, the document catalogues a range of abuses and rights violations the Nigerian government is guilty of; and particularly delivered a stinging indictment of the government's record on corruption, extrajudicial killings, disappearances and impunity in 2012.

"Impunity remained widespread at all levels of government. The government brought few persons to justice for abuses and corruption," the report says.

"Police and security forces generally operated with impunity. Authorities did not investigate the majority of cases of police abuse or punish perpetrators. Authorities generally did not hold police accountable for the use of excessive or deadly force or for the deaths of persons in custody."

For all, the most serious human rights problem for the nation during the year, the U.S. department said, were abuses committed by the militant sect, Boko Haram, which conducted killings, bombings, kidnappings, and other attacks mainly in northern states.

While the extremist group killed and maimed, the nation also witnessed serious rights violations with illegal killings by security forces, including summary executions, torture, rape, and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment of prisoners, detainees, and criminal suspects, the report said.

The U.S. verdict for 2012 is similar to that delivered on Nigeria in 2011. The 2011 report highlighted Boko Haram and Nigeria's security forces involved in a brutal crackdown on the extremists as the gravest human rights abusers. It also noted the rocketing corruption level in the country.

A year later, the report says, the situation only deteriorated. While impunity flourished, and corruption escalated, the government did nothing to check abuses.

Also, for 2012, the report notes the dramatic clampdown on the media, seen in the arrest of several journalists, and censorship of news reports.

With recent escalation of government onslaught on the media, the 2013 report can only be predictably worse.

The document is compiled from news report, researches, publications by independent organizations and direct interviews with government officials as well as citizens.

On prisons, the report notes the brutal conditions of Nigerian prisons, reputed amongst the world's harshest and most crowded.

The report said prison and detention centres' conditions remained "harsh and life threatening" as prisoners, a majority of whom had not been tried, were subject to gross overcrowding, food shortages, inadequate medical treatment, and infrastructure deficiencies that led to wholly inadequate sanitary conditions.

In many of the holding facilities, the report states, female prisoners were held in same units with the males, and those pregnant at the time of incarceration gave birth to, and raised their babies in prison.

The extensive use of unofficial military prisons, including the Giwa military barracks in Maiduguri, Borno State, and the Special-Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) detention centre, also known as the "abattoir," in Abuja, was also mentioned.

As of March, Nigerian prison authorities said total inmates stood at 50,920 with slightly less than two percent of those being females, and one per cent juveniles.

But overcrowding was a problem as shown in prisons such as Owerri federal prison which held 1,784 against a capacity of 548, the report states.

Ogwuashi-Uku prison in Delta State, with a capacity of 64 prisoners, housed 541, while Port Harcourt prison, with a capacity of 804 prisoners, held 2,955. Ijebi-Ode prison in Lagos, with a capacity of 49 prisoners, held 309.

Most of the country's 234 prisons, built 70 to 80 years back, lack basic facilities. Lack of potable water, inadequate sewage facilities, and severe overcrowding have resulted in dangerous and unsanitary conditions in the prisons.

"The government did not make widespread improvements to prisons during the year, but individual prison administrations attempted to collect donations from religious organizations, NGOs, and the National Youth Service Corps to benefit inmates," the report says.

Premium Times

WEAC to cancel results of cheaters

2013-04-22T05:43:00.002-07:00

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) will henceforth cancel the entire results of any candidates who cheat in more than one subject.

In a communiqué it issued at the end of the council's 55th Nigeria Examinations Committee (NEC) meeting, the council said it had become necessary to review its rules on examination malpractice.

The communiqué was signed by the WAEC Deputy Director (Public Affairs), Mr Yusuf Ari, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Lagos.

The meeting held from April 15 to April 17 in Lagos.

The council said that it observed with concerns the indictment of some candidates for malpractice in more than one subject in the November/December, 2012 West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSCE).

"In order to check the ugly trend, the committee subsequently decided that the sanction in the council's rules and regulations should be reviewed.

"It is clear that there is an urgent need to review the rule on such cases from cancellation of subject result to cancellation of entire results," it said.

It noted that collusion and irregular activities, inside and outside the examination hall, were the most prevalent forms of examination malpractice.

It said that monitoring by members of staff of the council and other stakeholders and recent innovations were exposing examination cheats.

"Members believed that if the principal of a school decides that examination malpractice should not be allowed in his or her school, incidences of malpractice will be very minimal," it said.

WAEC said that the NEC endorsed posting of WASSCE irregularities, special and clemency cases on the council's website.

It said that it had been alerted of the existence of a rogue website where false questions and answers were posted daily to defraud candidates during examinations, adding that it had neutralised the activities of those operators.

Leadership

Teachers strike in 19 states across Nigeria

2013-04-22T05:38:00.000-07:00

Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has directed teachers in 19 states of the country to commence an indefinite strike following the refusal of the states to implement an agreement on payment of 27.5 percent Teachers Enhanced Allowance.

The National Executive Council (NEC) of the NUT which met in Asaba, Delta State Thursday, lamented that interventions by critical stakeholders have not yielded the needed result.

A communiqué jointly signed by NUT President Comrade Michael Alogba, Secretary General Obong Obong and National Publicity Secretary Suleiman Gambari said the strike would be indefinite until affected states commence payment.

The states affected are Benue, Cross River, Abia, Ebonyi, Enugu, Ekiti, Osun, Ogun, Oyo, Edo, Nasarawa, Zamfara, Plateau, Taraba, Borno, Kogi, Niger and Sokoto.

The communiqué observed with "dismay and increasing frustration, reluctance and foolhardiness of some state governments to pay the 27.5 percent Teachers Enhance Allowance and in some cases refusal to pay the N18,000 minimum wage discriminately against teachers. "The NEC-in-session therefore called on its state wings where state governments have continued to dishonour the union and higher authorities in the country by refusing to pay 27.5 percent Teachers Enhance Allowance and N18,000 minimum wage to the teachers, to commence a stay-at-home strike with effect from the 1st of June 2013. Where such strike is allowed to take place, such state wings are not allowed to suspend the strike until the demands are met or at the instance of the national headquarters of the union."

Daily Trust

Nollywood actress Omotola Jolade-Ekeinde is in Forbes 100 most influential people in the world

2013-04-19T04:21:00.001-07:00

Nollywood actress, Omotola Jolade-Ekeinde, has been named amongst the 100 most influential people in the world, describing the 34 year old as "Africa's most renowned leading lady." The TIME Magazine made the announcement yesterday.

Jolade-Ekeinde was named in the 2013 icons category of the list alongside young Pakistani activist; Malala Yousafzai, US first lady Michelle Obama, Burmese pro-democracy activist; Aung San Sun Kyi, RnB diva; Beyonce, Justin Timberlake and controversial Italian footballer; Mario Balloteli.

LEADERSHIP Columnist, Fethullah Gulen also made the list under the leaders category.

Others in the category are Duchess of Cambridge; Kate Middleton, Chinese tennis champion; Li Na, three times Oscar award winner; Daniel Day-Lewis.

Writing a profile on the actress who recently launched a reality show about her life on M-NET; TIME's movie critic, Richard Corliss, described Omotola as the "Queen of Nollywood."

Fondly called OmoSexy by her fans, she has made 300 or so movies, from the 1996 Mortal Inheritance to the 2010 super production Ijé, shot partly on location in Los Angeles.

Married to an airline pilot she met on a flight from Lagos to Benin, Jalade-Ekeinde brings a juggler's grace to her roles as actress, singer, reality-show star, mother of four and philanthropist (the Omotola Youth Empowerment Programme)" the profile reads.

Corliss said of Omotola's recent claim in an interview that she will never go to Hollywood, saying that "success hasn't spoiled Africa's most renowned leading lady. Rather than going Hollywood, Omotola wants to stay Nollywood."

According to Collins, Nollywood is the world's most productive English-language film industry not Hollywood. "The world's most productive English-language film industry is not Hollywood but Nollywood. The teeming Nigerian cinema grinds out some 2,500 movies a year, mostly direct-to-DVD quickies mixing melodrama, music and an evangelical Christian spin. (Think Bollywood via Tyler Perry.)" he said.

Jolade-Ekeinde is the only Nigerian on this year's list same way President Goodluck Jonathan solely represented Nigerian face in 2012.

Others on the current list selected under different categories include US president Barrack Obama, newly-stalled Pope Francis I, Somalian president Hassan Sheik Mohamud, US Senator Rand Paul, Malawain president Joyce Banda, Jay-Z, Jennifer Lawrence, Joe Biden, Abdullah Ocalan, Aamir Kan, Tadashi Yanai, among several others.

Leadership

Kidnapped French family freed in Nigeria

2013-04-19T04:11:00.001-07:00

The French family kidnapped in Cameroon in February have been freed in Nigeria, where they had been taken by members of the Boko Haram Islamist sect, Cameroon's President Paul Biya announced on Friday.

The three adults and four children of the Moulin-Fermier family, who were kidnapped near Cameroon's Waza nature reserve on 19 February, were handed over to Cameroonian authorities overnight, Biya said.

They are in good health, according to reports.

The Nigerian and French governments played an important role in the release, officials have said, without giving more details.

France in February said it would not hold direct talks with the kidnappers and President François Hollande later said that no ransoms would be paid for any French hostages now being held.

Nigeria took the same line.

Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the kidnapping, not far from the Nigerian border, some time after it took place.

Seven other French citizens are being held hostage in the Sahel region and Al Qaida has threatened reprisals against France because of its role in the anti-Islamist offensive in Mali.

Film exposing corruption in Nigeria's oil sector banned

2013-04-18T07:32:00.000-07:00

The Committee to Project Journalists condemns a recent decision by the Nigerian government to ban the exhibition and distribution of a documentary film on corruption in the state's management of oil wealth, "Fuelling Poverty."

In an April 8 ruling reviewed by CPJ, the federal government-run National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) called the contents of the 30-minute film by Ishaya Bako, "highly provocative and likely to incite or encourage public disorder and undermine national security." The board, whose members are all appointed by President Goodluck Jonathan, warned Bako that "all relevant national security agencies are on the alert" to ensure that he does not exhibit or distribute the film.

Bako told CPJ that the board's refusal to grant his application, which he said he filed in November 2012, means no Nigerian cinemas or TV stations are allowed to air the film. He said he is contemplating appealing the board's decision. "I am so disappointed because all the information in the film is actually available on the Internet," Bako said.

"Instead of banning the documentary 'Fuelling Poverty,' authorities should look into the important questions it raises about corruption and impunity in the country's oil sector and at the highest levels of government," said CPJ Africa Advocacy Coordinator Mohamed Keita from New York. "We urge Nigeria's National Film and Video Censors Board to overturn this censorship order."

Neither Patricia Bala, the NFVCB's acting director-general, nor spokesman Tanko Yunusa Abdullahi responded to CPJ's inquiries on how the board made its determination.

Bako, in partnership with the Open Society for West Africa (OSIWA), premiered the documentary in Nigeria in November 2012. It was screened at the 20th New York African Film Festival this month and has been nominated for Best Documentary at the 2013 African Movie Academy Awards to be held April 20.

Since the ban was issued, activists have been assertively sharing the film on social media, according to news reports. As of today it has more than 43,000 views on YouTube.

The film investigates the siphoning of Nigeria's oil wealth in the context of nationwide anti-government protests that swept the country in January 2012 after fuel subsidies were suspended. Its introduction is narrated by Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka.

The National Film and Video Censors Board censored 4,600 films between 1994 and 2005, and outlawed films with themes involving cannibalism, lesbianism, and indecent, obscene, or explicit sexual scenes, according to a joint report on Nigeria submitted last month by CPJ, PEN Nigeria, PEN International, and the International Publishers Association to the United Nations Human Rights Council. Censorship in Nigeria is administered by the National Film and Video Censors Board, the Nigerian Broadcast Commission, and state censorship boards.

CPJ

U.S. reduced oil import affects Nigeria's oil export

Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote plans to build oil refinery in Nigeria

2013-04-18T07:24:00.001-07:00

Africa's richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, plans to invest up to $8 billion to build a Nigerian oil refinery with a capacity of around 400,000 barrels a day by late 2016, the tycoon told Reuters on Tuesday, almost doubling Nigeria's refining capacity.

"This will really help not only Nigeria but sub-Saharan Africa. There has not been a new refinery for a long time in sub-Saharan Africa," Dangote said in a telephone interview.

The country currently has the capacity to produce some 445,000 barrels per day among four refineries, but they operate well below that owing to decades of mismanagement and corruption in Africa's leading energy producer.

Nigeria, the continent's second-biggest economy, relies on subsidized imports for 80 percent of its fuel needs. A surge in domestic capacity would be welcomed by investors in Nigeria, but it would cut into profits made by European refiners and oil traders who would lose part of that lucrative market.

Dangote said the country's ability to import fuel would soon be challenged. "In five years, when our population is over 200 million, we won't have the infrastructure to receive the amount of fuel we use. It has to be done," he said.

Past efforts to build refineries have often been delayed or cancelled, but analysts have said Dangote should be able to build a profitable Nigerian refinery, owing to his past successes in industry and his strong government connections.

The Dangote Group's cement manufacturing, basic food processing and other industries have helped lift his personal fortune to $16.1 billion from $2.1 billion in 2010, according to the latest Forbes estimate.

Nigeria has two refineries in its main Port Harcourt oil hub, one in Warri, and one in Kaduna that serve 170 million people. Not one of them functions at full capacity.

Analysts have said previous attempts to get refineries going have been held back by vested interests such as fuel importers profiting from the status quo. Dangote said this concerned him.

"The people who were supposed to invest in refineries, who understand the market, are benefiting from there being no refineries because of the fuel import business," he said. "Some ... are going to try to ... interfere."

Nigeria's government subsidizes fuel imports to keep pump prices well below the market rate at a cost of billions of dollars a year. Fuel subsidies are the single biggest item on the country's budget.

Dangote said making a new refinery run at a profit would work even if the government failed to scrap the subsidized fuel price that has deterred others from investing.

"We've done our numbers and the numbers are okay."

This Day

Aliko Dangote is now 43rd richest man in the world

Video - Spreading the wealth in Nigeria

2013-04-17T04:12:00.000-07:00

N's Christiane Amanpour talks to Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala about her country's uphill struggle.

Video - Housing shortage in Nigeria

2013-04-17T04:07:00.002-07:00

Millions of Nigerians want to own the homes they live in, but they cannot afford to pay 30% of the asking price up front. They also have to pay as much as 25% interest on the loan they take. In many cases, the money has to be paid back as soon as 5 to 10 years. Cheaper houses are not being built, because banks won't finance them. That means 16 million homes need to be built in Nigeria just to meet demand. But only 50,000 are being constructed each year.

Africa's richest man speaks about the future of Nigeria

2013-04-15T04:17:00.002-07:00

He could pass for just any other guest. But he is unmistakably familiar. Charming but humble! Stupendously wealthy, yet radiates simplicity. Strolling in, unassuming, was Africa’s richest man. It was his birthday.

Dressed in a black suite with a black shinny cock shoe to match, Aliko Mohammed Dangote kept his appointment for 9am.
Unlike the rambunctious entry of Nigeria’s men of means and power, Dangote walked in with just a few of his executives. After the informal handshake and introduction, he grabbed the microphone to make some opening remarks which turned out not to be mere remarks. He made earth-shaking revelations about his person, the conglomerate he runs (Dangote Group), the Nigerian economy and how things can get better in a very competitive environment of clashing political and socio-economic interests.

At first, the tempo was cool – the usual compliments of not having time to rub minds, examine developments in the country with a view to proffering solutions – and the usual pleasantries, until Dangote explained that the real danger confronting the Nigerian state is the infrastructure deficit in a country where the population growth has choked existing facilities. He made it clear that the problems confronting Nigeria today did not just start – they are a cummulation of many years of misgovernance and lack of vision. Shall we blame President Goodluck Jonathan? No!

On the Economic Management Team of President Jonathan, Dangote explained that the team is working hard to ensure that good policy frameworks are put in place with a view to building a more prosperous nation. The EMT is as bothered as President Jonathan to bequeath a better economy to Nigerians.

But, at the point when Dangote said the danger posed by infrastructure deficit is far graver than the Boko Haram threat, all heads turned in his direction.
Mind you, his audience was a group of select senior journalists in Nigeria.
“Why should we in Nigeria, blessed with many mineral resources, be where we are”, he asked? “The mineral resources we have can replace and be better than the crude oil. “Some ask where the minerals are but they are there.

“Even in the Economic Management Team, EMT, we ask and look for ways to make it possible to clear goods from the ports within 48 hours.
“But I say it would not be possible and the cost adds to everything. “To clear a container in Lagos it would take about $1000 but in Brazil where they are not even efficient, it costs less than $100 to clear the same container.

“The issue which people seem to forget is that the last port we built in Nigeria, the Tin Can Island Port, was built in 1978 – look at the population of Nigeria at that time, the size of the economy, crude oil was being sold for about $9 and compare with the expansion of the economy and the population and people think we should still manage with the same facility?
“God forbid, some people were expressing fears about Third Mainland Bridge; God forbid I say, should something happen to that bridge, how would people move around in Lagos? Look at how difficult it is for people to move around now and it is being said that by 2020 Nigeria’s population would be about 200 million”.

Our Investments, Our Vision
“Before we were making money from our other businesses like sugar, salt, flour and putting the money in cement but by 2010 we were able to pay all the banks.
“I don’t have any issue with government raising money, that is, loan, so long as it is spent well. Beyond the issue of Boko Haram and insecurity, the greatest threat that confronts us is the threat of decaying and decayed infrastructure. And this is not just in Nigeria but in all of Africa, the greatest threat is infrastructure”.

Decayed Infrastructure, The Greatest Threat
“Somebody was asked how he would operate in government and the person said he would face only two things – infrastructure and education. And he was asked what about the rest. He said with infrastructure, other things would follow. “This is what I think confronts us as the greatest danger even beyond Boko Haram”.
His audience laughs but he charges back with bluntness: “No! It is true.
“The biggest problem of anybody is when you taste money; you were once rich and then you become poor. It is very bad. Nothing can be worse than that.
“It is when that money goes that you’ll see the true colour of everybody – your wife, your children (a round of raucous laughter)

Alternative To Crude Oil
“If today oil prices collapse, do we have alternatives?
“I tell people that we do. Some of us may be manufacturing in our own little way, but in a very big country like Nigeria with its population, that is simply not enough.
“We are heavily into cement – meanwhile limestone is the cheapest of all the mineral resources we have. There are other minerals that are even more lucrative and more profitable that government is looking to exploring.
“The problem is that even when you begin to explore, how do you move the goods around.
“We’ve also been talking about new ports but there are challenges”.

Scavengers On The Loose
“Look, let me tell you what we have in Nigeria: We have scavengers who hold licenses but wait and do nothing. People just grab opportunities and wait to see what happens rather than operate with the licenses “Government has issued 19 licenses for refineries and everybody is holding the licenses and claim that they are waiting for foreign investors. Mind you, the foreign investors are not fools”.
The Role of Foreign Investors
“Foreign investors did not build South Korea – South Koreans developed their country; the Germans built their economy, an economy that was once in ruins. The Germans suffered a lot but now they are the best.

“What foreign investments are we getting?
“Meanwhile, Sanusi Lamido has done his best by holding inflation down, holding exchange and interest rates down; because in an economy that does not export much, the best you can do is to have a strong currency so that life would be a bit easy. Though interest rates may be high but that should not stop a business from operating.

“When we were building Obajana Cement factory, we were paying as high as 42% interest rate at some point in 2004/2005 – some banks charged that much and we didn’t pay dividends for some eight or nine years; but after sorting out our loans we paid the accumulated dividends. “The foreign investor I would prefer is the one that goes to Ekiti for instance and sets up a factory because even if the investor wants to leave Nigeria, he would sell off his investment but the ones investing in our bonds can just wake up one day, re-discount it and just leave because our rates are fine”.

Concessioning
“If you concession, it is not a bad idea because government can not do everything. In Dubai and some other more developed economies, that is what is happening. I was reading some paper in Dubai during the week and the leader of the country was thanking the transport authority for saving the government $60 billion over a period of five years – meanwhile, the savings was calculated in form of man hours.
“If you look at those who work with us for example, the drivers, they bear so much. Imagine someone who leaves his house by 4 or 4:30 am and does not return home until 10 or 11pm! How would he have time for himself and the children – and these things come round to create an environment that is not overall conducive for upbringing of a child. “There is hope if we do the right things. “It does not matter who provides the service; the people would be willing to pay”.

The Future Is Brighter
“If you ask me whether the future is brighter than today, I would say yes; but the people must be ready to pay for services and pay their taxes. A simple example! At Obajana where we are producing at a current capacity of 10 million tonnes per year, which is $1.7 billion, we can continue to produce cement for the next 100years with the same capacity but you do not rest – mind you, limestone is the cheapest mineral resource in Nigeria, so if people look inward they would see the opportunities for greatness”.

An Example From Lula of Brazil
“Look at the example of Lula Da Silva of Brazil, the country used to be heavily indebted. “By the time he left he cleared the debt. But the policies he put in place for education and housing engendered serious development. He said people in government were bringing proposals which were lies to him but he was resolute and he stood his ground. “By the time he left office, he had built 18 standard universities. Before he left office, Brazil had $467 billion in reserves. “These things can only be possible when people pay their taxes.

“Nobody is perfect. “We need to come out and pay our taxes. “Today I’m conscious about the concerns of other shareholders.
“If where there were no shareholders, the people in the office may allow me some leverage because I am the boss and owner but when there are shareholders, those who would have to process the papers that would grant me undue privilege but who are now shareholders would raise questions because that act would not be in line with best practices so the company is quarantined from such indulgences and fraud. Once the people know that you’re cheating, they too will begin to cheat. Listed companies are more open to transparency”.

The Negative Paradigm Shift
“There is a world of difference between our parents and this generation. “Our parents were more caring within the capacity they could muster because they cared for the children, the wife, their own parents, their farms and uncles and even neighbours; but this generation is more self-centred and cares only about themselves, the ‘me’. If people really care about their children they would work to make the future better. “Without good infrastructure, the future is bleak”.

Between Vision And Planning
“You must have a vision and not just a vision but you must have a plan that would make you fulfill that vision. For us at Dangote, for instance, just conception and planning alone sometimes takes two years. You must also put in place processes of how to execute the plans. Our vision in the next fives years is to be a company that has about $75billion in market capitalization, be number one in Africa and one of the first 100 in the world”.

The Scourge of Subsidy
On the issue of subsidy and the education that Nigerians really need, Dangote became very passionate. He said as Nigerians, there is need for an understanding of the issues and a proper place for government policies and the commitment of Nigerians too.

At lunch with one African president, “he told me how his country dealt with the issue of subsidy and how people resisted. When they had subsidy on diesel, some people changed their cars to cars that ran on diesel; that when they removed subsidy on diesel, the bills went down but kerosene which still enjoyed subsidy had its bills going up. He said it was not easy but he prayed over it and went ahead to do it in a systematic way such that funds which would have gone into subsidy were dedicated for some specific projects. Now that president even charges 10% on PMS and diesel”.

When President Jonathan tried removing the subsidy on petrol, Nigerians went wild in anger.
Dangote continues: “Would you believe that in 2011 and 2012, Nigeria paid $30 billion in subsidy, money which would have been used to build at least 20 refineries – that was the finding of a report! How can we say that people are stealing crude and we are running about, going to night clubs and we are happy as a people?

“The total tax collected in Nigeria is just about $10 billion. How much is that in a country as big as Nigeria”.
In response to a question on the building of refineries even in a regulated environment like Nigeria, he said “may be we at Dangote now would be referred to as being insane because we are going ahead to build a refinery very soon in Nigeria.”

To this, a question was immediately thrown at him: “What are you going to do with it”?
“We would sell”, Dangote immediately responded.
“If you build the refinery alone you might not make so much money but you’ll need to build a petro-chemical plant because of the by-products. “The investment is going to be about $8billion. “Meanwhile the fuel they import for us is the worst and we pay them for the best. “When we have our refinery, we would sell to them here and we can even cut the cost – no shipping, no demurrage. “We cannot continue to behave the way we are behaving now.

“Look, by 2020, Nigeria’s population is expected to hit 200million. So, how would you handle cargo or shipping of products for 200million people with the existing facilities that we have today? How would you distribute?

The pipelines are not functioning; the roads are not good. The ports are not there. We should make up our minds on what we want to do. Something drastic needs to be done.
“What I think we should do is that we should attain self-sufficiency instead of this 20:2020 thing.
“Government should encourage Nigerians as it is doing to invest in Nigeria but some times we are the architect of our problems.

Part of the problems we had about Benue Cement was that the people said Obasanjo hated them that was why he sold the other cement companies to foreigners and sold BCC to a Nigerian. When you go to deal with some officials the first thing they ask for is technical partner and we tell them we do not have because we have the technical know how – this is what we do. “We’ve already commissioned a company to help us build a factory for the production of Urea and Ammonia and it would not only provide employment but in the area of fertilizer production it would serve some purpose.

Vanguard

Related story: Aliko Dangote is now 43rd richest man in the world

Video - Nigeria's mega churches

2013-04-15T03:51:00.000-07:00

In Nigeria, faith-healing Pentecostal Churches promising instant miracles are drawing in more worshippers than more traditional institutions. The Redeemed Christian Church of God prides itself on holding what it calls the largest gathering of Christians in the world. And its pastor, Enock Adeboye, has become one of the richest people in Nigeria.

MEND threatens to wage anti-islam attack

2013-04-15T03:45:00.000-07:00

MEND, operating from Nigeria's south, says it will attack Muslims to protect Christians in Nigeria.

Starting May 31, Nigeria's oil militant group, Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta said it will target mosques and Islamic institutions, in a new terror campaign, "in defence of Christianity."

Operating from oil rich Niger Delta creeks, MEND is Nigeria's foremost collection of terror gangs united by a struggle to control the region's oil wealth, and criminality.

The group issued its newest threat just a week after it claimed responsibility for the killing of 12 police officers in the southern Bayelsa state.

"The bombings of mosques, haj camps, Islamic institutions, large congregations in Islamic events and assassinations of clerics that propagate doctrines of hate will form the core mission of this crusade," MEND spokesman Jomo Gbomo said in an e-mailed statement on Sunday.

The campaign is codenamed "Operation Barbarossa," Mr Gbomo, thought to be pseudonym, said.

MEND says Barbarossa will not in any way interfere with the ongoing "Hurricane Exodus" - which killed the police officers and "on Saturday, April 13, 2013, at about 01:00 Hrs, swept through the Ewellesuo community, Nembe, Bayelsa State, leaving the destruction of Well 62, belonging to Shell Petroleum in its wake."

Precious Okolobo, a Lagos-based spokesman for Shell's Nigerian unit, told Bloomberg he couldn't confirm the Saturday attack Well 62.

MEND announced early this month it resumed attacks in Nigeria after Henry Okah, its leader, was sentenced last month to 24 years in prison in South Africa. Mr. Okah was found guilty of 13 counts of terrorism, including a bombing claimed by MEND in which 12 people died in Abuja on Oct. 1, 2010.

Ceasefire

MEND agrees with Boko Haram's attacks targeted at Nigerian security agents - "including the prisons, for their role in extrajudicial killings, torture, deceit and corruption" - but said Boko Haram's attacks on Christians are not acceptable.

MEND says it will consider abandoning the operation if the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the Catholic Church and Henry Okah, "one of the few leaders in the Niger Delta region we respect for his integrity", intervenes.

"Also the assurance for a cessation of hostilities targeted at Christians in their places of worship, made privately or publicly by the real Boko Haram leadership will make us call off this crusade," Mr. Gbomo added.

While MEND operates as the major terror gang in Nigeria's south - especially oil rich Niger Delta areas, including Lagos - Boko Haram operates largely in NIgeria's north, targeting security agencies, Christians, opposition Islamic clerics, foreigners and other perceived enemies.

Both groups are Nigeria's largest terror gangs. While MEND - triggered by fight for economic justice - partially accepted amnesty in 2009, the government is currently persuading Boko Haram - a terror gang whose self-professed motive is the islamization of northern Nigeria, to do same.

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