Lagos residents battle electricity distribution firm over illegal disconnection

Residents of 54, Rasheed Babatunde Street, Ajangbadi, Lagos have drawn a battle line with officials of Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC). The fight is over disconnection of cables and alleged tampering with meter.

Both parties, it was gathered, have been having a running battle over the same issue since April 2015, but it recently took a new dimension when the angry residents accused the power distribution company of unleashing on residents unbearable financial exploitation.

According to them, it was a case of financial demand too many, hence, they took the matter to Okoko Police Station.

Daily Sun was informed that on April 28, 2015, some officials from EKEDC, Ajangbadi, went to the house and disconnected electricity in the three flats. Those using the pre-paid metres were not spared. The power distribution company said it suspected some unscrupulous activities. The residents were accused to have illegally connected a water-pumping machine directly to the electric cable, to avoid the consumption from being captured by the metre.

One of the occupants of the house, Mr. Daniel Chukwudi, told the reporter that the EKEDC’s officials, from the supervising office at 4, Dotun Isijola Street, Kosoko, Ajangbadi, in one of their inspection routines raised the alarm and a letter was later sent to the house from the office.

Hear him: “We have three flats in the house. Two flats use pre-paid, while the last one uses analogue metre. Only one pumping machine serves the house, and the pumping machine is connected to the analogue metre, which was made known to EKEDC.”

Suspecting that the electricians who did the connection might have committed some blunder, the occupants took the letter to the company’s office at Iba new site; where they were asked to pay N50, 000 as fine.

He recalled that all their efforts to explain to the company that they had never tampered with the metre fell on deaf ears. In order for peace to reign and for power to get restored to the house, they finally coughed out N20, 000 having been left in total darkness from that April till September. However, he said no receipt was issued to them to acknowledge the payment.

“Tired of the whole issue and as law-abiding citizens, we went to the Ajangbadi office, and pleaded with them to reconnect us. One Mr. Obinna, a staff of EKEDC told us to raise N 20, 000, that they would come and rectify the problem and that it would not occur again.

“When they were through with the reconnection, we the tenants, contributed the N20, 000 and I gave it to Obinna and two of his colleagues. They told us that the problem had been solved.”

Another resident, Pastor Chukwudi Okoh told Daily Sun that the company told him and his co-tenants to pay all the outstanding bills even when they were already using pre-paid metres. While they were still in darkness, the two tenants paid N 50, 000.They lamented that they kept receiving bills for analogue metre which accumulated to more than N50, 000.

According to the pastor, the residents were subjected to double charges for many months, and were told that their conversion from analogue to pre-paid metering was not professionally handled by whoever that did the installations.

Said he: “Not too long, another manager was posted to our area and he sent his workers to disconnect our electricity over the same illegal connection to pumping machine. They also gave an excuse that the last people that worked on the metre might have handled it wrongly.”

He stated that for another two months, the occupants were in darkness again until they were forced to pay another N14, 000 to the officials to rectify the problem.

“For the third time when reconnection was to be done, I asked them to bring their trusted staff to rectify whatever was not properly done. The three of us living in the house are so busy that we don’t have the leisure to be going to their office every time. I think they capitalised on this to keep cheating us. We paid N10, 000 for the last job that they did. They separated the wires and told us that everything was now okay. One of my co-tenants secretly made a video recording while they were doing the last work.”

Daniel, who is the only person using analogue in the house, also complained that for the six months that the power was disconnected, the officials were sending estimated bills to him.

“We went and complained for more than ten times, but the marketing manager then told us that whether there was power or not, they must send bills to consumers. The bill amounted to N 59, 000. We sent a petition to them on November 24, 2015 asking the bills to be cancelled, but all our efforts met a brick wall.

Daniel said in March 2016, another marketing manager, one Mr. Olaniyan was brought to Ajangbadi branch and for the third time, over the same issue, the power was disconnected. This naturally got the occupants infuriated, but Daniel said they were calmed by the new manager’s display of professionalism.

“We were very angry this time. We went to their office and called the boy that did the last job there. He told Mr. Olaniyan that they had worked on the same metre and corrected the fault. The manager humbly attended to us. He explained that he recently resumed duty. He later sent another official, one Mr. Akeem to crosscheck the job did by the last person.

“We were shocked when Mr. Akeem, with three other staff, told us that the problem was still there. We told him that we had suffered on this same issue in their hands many times. He asked us to open our flats and they checked them, opened the metre and touched some things there. At the end, they collected N10, 000 cash from us without issuing any receipt, and promised us that such issue would not occur again. The manager asked them to reconnect the power,” Daniel said.

He added that Mr. Olaniyan also resolved the issue over estimated bills on the analogue over the period they were disconnected. He was asked to be paying N3, 000 monthly but with no more fresh charges until he cleared the arrears.

“We were satisfied with his approach,” he stated.

The residents thought the trouble was over. But they were wrong. On August 1, 2016, they were for the fourth time thrown into darkness by the same EKEDC, Ajangbadi branch. They got another letter signed by one Mr. Kingsley, telling them that there was illegal connection in the building.

“This time, we became very furious and rushed down to their office to query Mr. Olaniyan, but we noticed that he had been removed and replaced with one Mrs. Eze Iloh. As we were about to enter the office, we saw the boys that did the last job. We complained to them, and they told us that they had already told Mrs. Eze that there was no by-pass in the compound but that she refused to listen to them. We took the letter to her, she collected it from us and told us to go, that she would come and rectify the problem that same day. We waited till night but we did not see her.

“The next day, my neighbour who is a pastor went to remind Mrs. Eze of her promise but she said he was disturbing her peace. When the pastor demanded the letter she collected from us, she refused to release it.

“The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) at Okoko invited her but she refused to show up. The next day, August 5, before 9.00am, two of her staff came to our compound and was begging us to forget the matter. One of them was among those that did the second reconnection. They asked us follow them to the office so that we could resolve the matter; we refused and told them that the case was already with the police.

“Thirty minutes after they left, about 15 other officials came to the house. They said they were sent from the head office. Fortunately, the people that did both the second and last reconnection came with them. They asked Mr. Akeem if he was the one that did the job; he said yes. They asked him if the metre had been tampered with after he did the job, he said no. At a point, they started arguing among one another. There is a video recording showing when they were begging us,” Daniel narrated.

As at the time of filling this report, the house is still in darkness. The pastor and his co-tenants said all they needed is justice and adequate compensation for their ordeal in the hands of EKEDC since 2015. They revealed that they had contacted their lawyers and were ready to drag the power distribution company to court.

When the Marketing Manager, Mrs. Eze Iloh was contacted on telephone, she told the reporter that she had no knowledge of the issue.

Having listened to the caller, she simply said: “I don’t know what you are talking about.” She then cut the line.

In a chat with Daily Sun, the DPO of Okoko Police Station, Mr. Aliyu Lukman said the woman at EKDC office, who collected the letter from the consumers, might have realised the implication of the letter, forcing her to quickly seize it.

“The residents reported the matter here at the station. It is unfortunate that they didn’t make photocopies of the letter before the pastor took it to EKDC office to protest against it. I invited the woman who seized the letter but l heard she contacted some staff from their head office to beg the angry residents.

“They told me that the company had disconnected and reconnected the power three times using their own staff over illegal connection. The residents couldn’t take it any longer and they took up the issue,” he said.

FG committed to anti-tobacco campaign— Osinbajo

ABUJA—Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) has reiterated Federal Government’s commitment to the reduction of tobacco use among citizens, particularly exposure of underage children to smoking.

Osinbajo, who spoke at the Presidential Villa yesterday, while receiving leaders of anti-tobacco NGO groups in the country, lamented inadequate information about the dangers of smoking “which has made it difficult to convince many to quit the dangerous habit.” According to the Vice President, “we need the public behind us in this engagement. We need to change the public perception that smoking is a matter of choice. We also need to be more creative in passing our messages and in developing policies.” While lamenting tobacco products “proliferation” in the country, Professor Osinbajo hinted that government would be exploring strategies on how to reduce tobacco consumption. “The Presidency will give every support that is needed to ensure that tobacco control laws and policies are effectively implemented in Nigeria,” he assured. He charged the NGOs to work closely with youths to ensure that under-age initiation into smoking was reduced in the country. Earlier, leader of the delegation, Mr. Akinbode Oluwafemi, Deputy Director of Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria, ERA/FoEN, urged Federal Government to provide all the necessary support for the effective implementation of the National Tobacco Control Act, NTCA, 2015. “We want the Federal Government to demonstrate that the era of impunity is over by bringing all tobacco companies, flouting our laws, to justice,” he said. Mrs. Hilda Ochefu of the Washington-based Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, CTFK, expressed the readiness of her agency and other international NGOs to support Nigeria in implementing effective tax policy for the tobacco industry.

DELSU recommends dismissal of 5 lecturers for sexual assault, abuse of office

ABRAKA—FIVE lecturers of Delta State University, DELSU, Abraka, have been recommended for sack by a disciplinary committee of the institution set up to investigate various offences, including sexual harassment of female students and financial extortion for marks.

The recommendation of the committee is coming 13 months after the institution dismissed three lecturers for alleged professional misconduct, including a lecturer in the Department of Theatre Arts, who was caught pants down with examination scripts in the room of a 400 level female student in the same department. Vanguard gathered that one of the lecturers (name withheld) of the Department of Primary/ Nursery Education was caught pants down in a hotel room within Abraka and detained for two days at the Abraka police station while trying to have his way with a female student, who had pretended to have succumbed to his sexual advances but to find out she had reported to the police. A former Head of Basic Medical Sciences Department and traditional chief (name withheld) was also recommended for dismissal over alleged sexual harassment and collection of various sums of money from his students in a bid to pass them in their exams. Though management of the institution is yet to issue a statement on the matter, the university’s Public Relations Officer, Mr. Edward Agbure, when contacted said that the fate of the lecturers would be determined by the DELSU Governing Council.

Gleaned: Vanguard

Wimbledon Player 'Poisoning' Investigated

Police are investigating allegations a British tennis player was deliberately poisoned during this year's Wimbledon tournament.  

Scotland Yard is investigating whether the 18-year-old - named in reports as Gabriella Taylor - was targeted in early July.

The teenager was forced to withdraw from the girl's junior tournament midway through her quarter-final match. 

Police launched a criminal investigation amid fears that she had been deliberately poisoned in an attempt to wreck her tournament chances.

The Daily Telegraph reports that it was initially thought Taylor had contracted a virus while playing overseas.

But after spending four days in intensive care, doctors diagnosed her with a rare strain of leptospirois, a bacterial disease that can be transmitted through rat urine.

Rio Olympics: Another Golden Day For Team GB

Team GB has won two more gold medals at the Rio Games, taking the total to three.

Chris Mears, 23, and Jack Laugher, 21, claimed Britain's first-ever Olympic diving gold when they triumphed in the men's synchronised 3m springboard final.

Their feat comes despite Mears suffering a ruptured spleen as a teenager which left him on life support with just a one in 20 chance of survival.

The Rio final took place in a pool which was controversially still a murky green colour.

It turned from light blue on Tuesday, with officials saying tanks had run out of chemicals used to treat the water.

Earlier, kayaker Joe Clarke won the final of the K1 canoe slalom - a day after the heartache of his GB teammate David Florence's last-placed finish.

It was Britain's first Olympic medal in the men's event since Campbell Walsh at Athens 2004.

The 23-year-old said he was stunned by his success and hailed it as a "dream come true".

He said: "I just can't really put it into words. I'm just so made up. I have so many amazing memories of this sport and this just tops all of them in one day."

Clarke's victory in the Whitewater Stadium follows that of swimmer Adam Peaty who triumphed in the 100m breaststroke earlier in the week.

British competitors also won four bronze medals on Wednesday, starting with cyclist Chris Froome in the men's individual time trial event.

Steven Scott won bronze in the men's double trap shooting after beating GB teammate Tim Kneale in a head-to-head third-place contest. Later, Sally Conway took bronze in the women's -70kg judo category.

And gymnast Max Whitlock finished third in the men's individual all-around final.

For Froome, it is the same position he finished in London four years ago and comes just over a couple of weeks after the Team Sky rider won the Tour de France for a third time.

The 54.5km-long course in the Brazilian city was won by Swiss cyclist Fabian Cancellara in a time of 1 hour 12 minutes and 15.42 seconds.

Froome was a minute behind, finishing in 1:13:17.54, while Dutchman Tom Dumoulin took silver in 1:13:02.83.

The Briton, 31, told Sky News that taking bronze for a second time felt "amazing" and "pretty special".

He added: "I tried to pace myself and hold back a little bit in the first lap and try to save something for the second lap but Fabian was the strongest rider today.

"I've got no regrets. I definitely laid it all down on the road and did the best I could but the legs weren't the same as they were in the tour."

The other British hope, Geraint Thomas, was ninth in 1:14:52.85.

In the women's competition, Britain's Emma Pooley finished 14th as US cyclist Kristin Armstrong won the event.

:: Team GB's medal tally at Rio 2016: Gold: 3, Silver: 3, Bronze: 6

Syria: Suspected Chlorine Gas Attack In Aleppo

At least four people are dead after a suspected chlorine gas attack on the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo.

The gas is believed to have been dropped alongside barrel bombs on the Zubdiya neighbourhood, which is in the rebel-held part of the city.

Hamza Khatib, manager of Al Quds hospital, told Reuters that he had recorded four deaths and 55 injuries.

Mr Khatib said he was saving pieces of patients' clothing and pieces of the bombs as evidence.

Syria Civil Defence, a rescue service operating in rebel-held parts of Syria, said they had recorded three deaths and 22 injured.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a woman and her child were among the dead.

A video was posted online by the Aleppo Media Centre, an opposition news portal, which showed a child and adults wearing breathing apparatus.

Two men reported a strong smell of gas and said they saw barrel bombs before people began to suffer breathing and eye problems.

Both sides deny using chemical weapons but United Nations investigators say that sarin gas was used in Eastern Ghouta three years ago.

This killed an estimated 1,429 people, including at least 426 children.

In late 2015, mustard gas was used in the conflict, confirmed by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

It is not clear in either case which side was to blame.

Aleppo is in the north of Syria and is the subject of a bitter fight between the rebel forces and those under the command of Syrian President Bashar al Assad.

Last week, rebels broke through a month-long government siege in the city's east, where an estimated 250,000 are living.

A safe corridor for civilians and aid has not yet been created.

Turkish NBA star ‘disowned by family’ over Gulen support

The family of one of the most prominent Turkish basketball players in the NBA on Tuesday publicly disowned him after he openly supported the US-based preacher who Ankara blames for last month’s failed coup.

Enes Kanter, 24, a centre for the NBA outfit Oklahoma City Thunder, has backed exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen in Twitter postings after the attempted putsch aimed at ousting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Since the coup, Turkey has embarked on a massive purge of all elements linked to Gulen from a range of institutions, detaining or sacking of tens of thousands of people.

According to a statement by his father Mehmet published in Turkish media, Kanter had been “hypnotised and used by the terror organisation” of Gulen.

“I reject Enes… as our son. I apologise to the our president and the Turkish people for the shame of having such a child,” said Mehmet Kanter.

The Hurriyet daily said he had confirmed the authenticity of the rejection letter.

The letter prompted a swift response from Kanter, who posted a missive of his own from his Twitter handle @Enes_Kanter.

“Today, at the age of 24, I have lost my mother, father, brother and all my family. My relatives do not want to see me again.”

Referring to Gulen, he added: “On the road to my teacher, I have sacrificed my mother, my father, my brother and entire family.”

Kanter has made no secret on Twitter and elsewhere of his loyalty to Gulen and his Hizmet (Service) movement which the Pennsylvania-based preacher insists is entirely peaceful.

“For this Hizmet not just one Enes but 1,000 Eneses would sacrifice themselves,” he wrote. “May my God take from my life and give every second of it to my teacher (Gulen).”

Appearing to signal that he had changed his name as a sign of loyalty, he signed the letter “Enes (Kanter) Gulen”.

In the wake of the coup, Kanter repeatedly retweeted articles containing denials by Gulen that he was behind the putsch.

A hugely successful basketball career has seen Kanter play for Utah Jazz from 2011-2015 before joining Oklahoma City Thunder as well as turning out for the Turkish national side.

Kanter is not the only Turkish sports star caught up in the controversy. Former international football striker Hakan Sukur — now based in the US — has been accused by state media of links to Gulen and is also on trial in absentia on charges of insulting Erdogan.

A fire at a hospital in the Iraqi capital has killed 11 babies, officials have said.

The blaze started late on Tuesday night inside the maternity wing of the Yarmouk hospital, situated in western Baghdad.

Seven other children and 29 women were rescued from the blaze. One doctor said some of the babies killed were born prematurely.

Three other newborns survived and were treated for smoke inhalation.

The blaze was extinguished by firefighters and those brought out to safety transferred to other hospitals.

Ahmed al-Roudaini, a spokesman for the country's health ministry, said initial findings of an investigation into the cause of the fire suggested an electrical short circuit was to blame.

One grief-stricken father, Hussein Omar, a 30-year-old construction worker, said his week-old twins were killed in the fire.

"I want my baby boy and girl back. The government must give them back to me," he said, in tears.

Shaima Hassan, who conceived after years, trembled in shock as she mourned the loss of her two-day-old son.

"I waited for ages to have this baby, and when I finally had him it took only a second to lose him," said the 36-year-old.

She also she was still in shock but felt very bitter.

"It's a corrupt government that doesn't care about its citizens and lets this happen," she said.

Electrical fires are common in Baghdad - and elsewhere across the country - because of poor maintenance and wiring.

A lack of fire escapes in buildings also reportedly contributes to the dangers of a blaze.

‘No More PTA Fees In Government Schools’ – Minister Of Education, Adamu Adamu

Nigeria’s Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, has announced the cancellation of development and Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) fees in federal government colleges.

According to reports, the minister approved the cancellation following complaints by parents about an increase in school fees from N20, 000 to N75, 000.

It was gathered that henceforth, all development projects in schools would be done with the approval of the ministry, while PTA fees must not exceed N5,000.

Meanwhile, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Folashade Yemi-Esan, yesterday at the launch of the National Education Quality Assurance Handbook for basic secondary education in Abuja said there was a small increase in boarding fees.

She explained that the increase was due to economic situation and would enable proper upkeep of boarding facilities and provide top quality meals.

We Will Sue Jonathan Within 60 Days For saying We Want To Assassinate Him – Okah Brothers

Henry and Charles Okah, leaders of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), have sounded a note of warning to former President Goodluck Jonathan over the allegation of assassination levelled against them.

The Okah brothers, who are standing trial for alleged terrorism in Nigeria and South Africa, said they had asked their lawyers to commence legal proceedings against the ex-president within 60 days.

While responding to the allegation that he is one of the sponsors of the Niger Delta Avengers, Jonathan had accused the Okahs of being bent on taking his life.

The ex-president said having failed to achieve their plot, which they had hatched in 2007, the brothers through MEND, are trying to instigate the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to go after him.

“It is no secret that following that incident (independence day bombing), Okah, the leader of MEND was arrested, tried, convicted and jailed in South Africa over terrorism charges by the security authorities of that country. He remains in a South African prison till date while his associates in Nigeria are still being held in Kuje prison, Abuja,” read a statement issued on Jonathan’s behalf by Ikechukwu Eze, his media aide.

“We, therefore, have no doubt in our mind that MEND, as a group contracted to go after Jonathan with the mind of assassinating him, is yet to abandon this criminal and ignominious craving. It is in this light that we view the purported statement issued by ‘Cynthia White’ as not only a sadistic continuation of this sick desire, but also a futile attempt to instigate the federal government to needlessly go after the former president.”

But denying the allegations, MEND wondered why Jonathan would comment on a matter that is before the court of law.

“The attention of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has been drawn to a statement issued by one Ikechukwu Eze, on behalf of former President Goodluck Jonathan purporting to dissociate the former President from the allegation leveled against him by the Reformed Niger Delta Avengers (RNDA) that, the former president is the Grand Patron of the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA),” the statement read.

“With all due respect, the entire statement was deeply provocative and embarrassingly misconceived as it woefully failed to address the core issue of whether or not the former president is indeed the grand patron of the NDA.

“Any follower of events in Nigeria and the Niger Delta who was privileged to read the statement released by Mr. Jonathan, would immediately observe that the former President had a score to settle with the Okah brothers as well as with MEND.

“A substantial portion of Mr. Jonathan’s statement unfortunately dwelt on judicial matters, which are pending in various courts in Nigeria and South Africa.

“The former president’s statement is therefore, most highly contemptuous, injurious to the credit of MEND and the Okah brothers; and, above all, prejudicial to the eventual outcome of the ongoing trials in South African and Nigerian courts, respectively.

“Consequently, both brothers shall, on account of the former President’s prejudicial statement, institute legal action against him in South Africa and Nigeria within 60 days, commencing from today, August 9, 2016.

“Accordingly, they have briefed their respective Solicitors to formally engage the former president in litigation.”

MEND, which said it was at the forefront of the “struggle” that led to the emergence of Jonathan, added that the Niger Delta may not produce another president in 100 years.

News Blogger, Sidiq Usman, Regains Freedom, Nigerians Outraged over His Arrest

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Tuesday released prominent news blogger, Mr. Abubakar Sidiq Usman, after detaining him for more than 24 hours.

But this did not stop Nigerians from reacting angrily to his arrest for what the commission alleged were “offences bordering on cyber-stalking”.
The EFCC said Monday it had arrested and granted administrative bail to Usman for what it termed “cyber-stalking”.

Usman, it added, was offered administrative bail and was to be released to his elected sureties.Usman, who is the publisher of Abusidiqu.com, was picked up at his Kubwa, Abuja residence by EFCC officials and was quizzed over the alleged offence, which it said contravened the Cyber Crime Act.

Usman was the third blogger to be arrested since the Cyber Crime Act came into force in 2015.

However, Nigerians reacted angrily to his arrest by the EFCC with the youth wing of the All Progressives Congress (APC), stating that the anti-graft agency had abused its powers with the arrest, reported the BBC yesterday. His followers launched a #FreeAbusidiq campaign on Twitter.
Last week, Usman published allegations that EFCC acting chairman Ibrahim Magu was bullying his staff.

Usman is an extremely popular blogger and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also said it was deeply concerned about his arrest, reported the BBC.
He is a strong backer of President Muhammadu Buhari, and a founding member of the youth wing of the APC.

In a statement posted on its Facebook account, the APC youth wing said he was being held on “spurious charges”.

The EFCC was formed to investigate financial crimes and had overstepped its jurisdiction by detaining him, it said.

Also, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), a civil society organisation, and the Guild of Professional Bloggers of Nigeria (GPBN), the umbrella group of bloggers in Nigeria, condemned the arrest of the Abuja based blogger.

The two groups demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the blogger, stating that Usman was arrested for exercising his constitutional and internationally-recognised right to freedom of expression.

SERAP’s Executive Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, said: “This action by the EFCC is unequivocally contrary to both Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Nigeria is a state party. The EFCC must now immediately and unconditionally release Usman and drop all charges against him.”

The statement read in part: “Nigeria’s constitution guarantees freedom of expression. Under international law, everyone has the right to freedom of expression, including freedom to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice.

“SERAP believes that no one should be arrested simply for criticising public institution or public figures.

“The EFCC and indeed all public institutions should proactively encourage freedom of expression to enhance their ability to fight corruption and maintain the sanctity of the constitution and Nigeria’s international obligations and commitments.

“There are many whistle-blowers out there that can be of immense support to anti-corruption agencies and contribute to the effective discharge of their statutory mandates to prevent and combat corruption.”

On its part, GPBN in a statement signed by its acting President, Chris Kehinde Nwandu, queried the action of the anti-graft agency which it said had usurped the functions of the police.

According to the body, the appropriate action to be taken by the agency, if aggrieved, was to report the matter to the police which will then carry out an investigation.

It stated that while it won’t condone the excesses of any member, the manner in which the agency arrested Usman was condemnable and did not follow global practice.
It asked EFCC to focus its attention on its core mandate, which is financial and other economic-related offences.

CBN sets new limit for sale of foreign exchange cash to BDC

By Peter Egwuatu LAGOS — The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, yesterday, set a new limit  of $30, 000.00 per week for the sale of foreign exchange cash from the Authorised Dealers, ADs  to  Bureaux de Change, BDCs, just as the Naira depreciated to N350 per dollar. CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele The apex bank also warned Authorised Dealers to refrain from accessing its Discount Window on the settlement date for government securities’ auctions. The securities are CBN Bills, Nigerian Treasury Bills and Federal Government of Nigeria Bonds. The warning, according to the CBN Circular Ref: FMD/DIR/GEN/CIR/07/005 to all authorised Dealers titled “Access to the CBN Discount Window” signed by Director, Financial Market Department, CBN, Dr. Alvan E. Ikoku  is coming in view of the observed abuse of access to the CBN Standing Lending Facility by authorised dealers.The CBN warned the authorised dealers to comply as any violation will result in their denial of access to its Standing Lending Facility.“You are reminded that authorised dealers who come to any of the CBN’s windows are prohibited from interbank foreign exchange market on the same day”  Ikoku stated. Naira falls to N350 per dollar Naira traded at an all-time low of 350 to the dollar  in a single interbank market trade of $100,000. The currency was offered at N313 naira to the dollar and a total of $3.11 million had been traded Meanwhile, in another circular Ref:  TED/FEM/FPC/GEN/01/006   titled “Re: Sales of Foreign Currency Proceeds of International Money Transfers to Bureaux De Change Operators” signed by the CBN’s Acting Director, Trade & Exchange Department, W.D. Gotring  stated “ Authorised Dealers shall sell foreign exchange cash to BDCs subject to a maximum of $30,000.00 per week.  A  BDC shall nominate its preferred Authorised Dealer (DMB) and can only procure the said amount from only that bank of its choice in a week. Any breach of this condition will attract appropriate sanction.” The circular further stated that “the selling rate by the Authorised Dealers to BDCs shall be the buying rate from International Money Transfers Operators, IMTSOs  plus a margin not exceeding 1.5 per cent;  Foreign exchange cash purchased by BDCs from Authorised Dealers (Ads) shall be sold to foreign exchange end-users at a rate not exceeding two per cent margin above the buying rate;  For the avoidance of doubt, the two per cent margin stated shall be applicable to all funds to be retailed by BDCs regardless of source of fund;  Authorised Dealers shall continue to render weekly returns on sales to BDCs and the BDCs shall also continue to render weekly returns on purchases from ADs as specified in the attached excel format to Trade & Exchange Department, CBN , Abuja.” Other requirements in the circular include:  “Funds purchased by BDCs shall be disbursed for the following eligible transactions only. In all cases, the maximum disbursement per transaction shall not exceed $5,000.00 for  (a) Business Travel Allowance/ Personal Travel Allowance (b)  Overseas School fees and  (c) Overseas Medical fees.” The CBN in the circular said “Record shall be maintained for all transactions by the BDCs showing the BVN of the end-user, including endorsement of the amount disbursed in the International Passport of the beneficiary; International Money Transfer Service Operators shall continue to render weekly returns on their operations with agent banks directly to the CBN as specified in the attached format.; All BDCS are required to render weekly returns on foreign exchange purchases from Autgorised Dealers and other sources as well sales to the Director, Trade and Exchange Department as specified in the attached excel format. CBN to allow banks write-off bad loans this year Meanwhile, the CBN  also yesterday said it will this year allow banks to write off bad loans for which they have already made provisions to help them to clean up their balance sheets. Pressure has been building on the country’s banks, whose loan books have been hit by Nigeria’s shrinking economy, plunging currency and foreign exchange shortages following the slump in oil prices. Banks had asked the central bank to amend its rule requiring them to keep non-performing loans on their books for one year even after they have been fully provided for. The Central Bank has granted them permission to write off these bad loans but this will be a one-off that will only apply until the end of this year. “In view of the current macro-economic challenges … the CBN hereby grants a one-off forbearance, this year 2016, to banks, to write-off fully provided NPLs without waiting for the mandatory one year,” the bank said in a circular dated July 28 and published on its website on Tuesday. Non-performing loans are expected to jump to 12.5 percent of total loans this year, up from the central bank’s target of 5 percent at the end of last year, as banks suffer a hangover from an oil industry credit boom that ended abruptly in 2015, according to Augusto & Co, Nigeria’s main rating agency. Last week, Diamond Bank said its non-performing loan ratio rose to 8.9 percent by the first half, but expects it to fall to 7.5 percent by year end. Rival FCMB expects to restructure 25 percent of oil and gas loans in the third quarter after it restructured 50 percent of those loans last year.

The Niger Delta Crusaders, the Muslim pilgrims and the United States of Nigeria (2)

Being conclusion of article by Femi Fani-Kayode, which was first published in the Daily Sun, yesterday.

Sadly many in the conservative core North remain unconvinced. For example, the Arewa Consultative Forum issued a statement on the 7th of August in which they stated their total opposition to restructuring and instead of offering an olive branch of peace and understanding to its advocates, who are predominantly in the South, they issued the usual warnings of dire consequences if the matter is pushed too far.

Worst still, a few days ago, the Emir of Katsina publicly admonished all northerners to support the government of President Buhari, insisting that they had a duty to do so.

His words: “President Muhammadu Buhari is trying his best to rectify the situation and we must support and encourage him. During this trying period, we as northerners are expected to support President Buhari and his team instead of joining others to criticise them” (The Sun Newspaper, 7th of August, 2016).

There are no prizes for guessing who the “others” that he is referring to are because it is self-evident.

What the Emir appears to have forgotten is that had it not been for a sizeable number of votes from the south west, the president would not have had a hope in hell of being elected.

Simply put, what he is saying is that Buhari is effecting a clear and simple northern agenda, which must be supported by all true sons and daughters of the North.

He is also suggesting that the feelings and sensibilities of those that oppose him from the South do not matter.

Meanwhile, the tension that is being generated by the sectional nature of President Buhari’s policies and government continues to escalate and a face-off is imminent.

Nothing reflects this fact better than the words and obvious concerns of the Ohanaeze Youth Wing, who condemned the fact that whilst the Buhari administration continues to keep Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of IPOB in prison, they are releasing hundreds of murderous Boko Haram terrorists from detention.

Their words: “Buhari’s Federal Government continues to jail Nnamdi Kanu and other Biafrans while Boko Haram terrorists are being released from prisons. It beats the imagination that terrorists, who have been responsible for the death of innocent Nigerians are being released while unarmed freedom fighters are kept behind bars against court orders” (Vanguard Newspaper, August 8, 2016).

They also went as far as to suggest that Mr. Kanu’s continued detention may “trigger a crisis in the south-east”.

Not to be left out, the northern youths, under the auspices of the Northern Youths Leaders Assembly, issued a statement on the 8th of August, threatening to deal with anyone or any group of people, who continue to criticise or try to “tarnish the image” of President Buhari.

Their words: “We will no longer tolerate any insults to the family and members of the president’s cabinet and we will mobilise all our resources to take on anyone, who thinks they can use their image as a chess pawn in the game playing out in the media. We hereby warn that the North will no longer tolerate any further attack on the image, family and character of President Muhammadu Buhari in his quest to make Nigeria a better place for all” (Vanguard Newspaper, August 8, 2016).

Yet the most chilling warning of all came from yet another militant group in the Niger Delta Area known as the Adaka Boro Avengers. They went a step further than their brothers in arms, the Niger Delta Crusaders, by saying, “On the threat by Boko Haram to kill Christians, we are also sending this message to those Northerners who want to burn and kill Christians in North in the name of the Islamic religion to commence immediately but they must know that one Niger Delta soul will be exchanged for 100 northern souls” (Vanguard Newspaper, August 8, 2016).

These are dangerous words from dangerous people. We ignore them at our own peril. It is clear to the discerning that now, possibly more than at any other time in the beleagured history of our country, we need prayers to ensure a peaceful resolution to what is essentially an extreemly complicated problem that presents us with an existential threat.

Only a fool would disregard the fact that the ethnic and religious polarisation that we are faced with today is real and that the drums of war are beating in our country.

When one considers all of the above, is it any wonder that yours truly wrote the following words in my column a couple of weeks ago? I said:

“The prayer is no longer ‘God bless Nigeria’ but rather ‘God break Nigeria’.

“It is no longer ‘God defend Nigeria’ but rather ‘God restructure Nigeria’.

“It is no longer ‘God deliver Nigeria’ but rather ‘God deliver US FROM Nigeria’.

“It is no longer ‘God preserve Nigeria’ but rather ‘God redefine Nigeria’.

“It is no longer ‘God remember Nigeria’ but rather ‘God dismember Nigeria’ “-  (‘Nigeria’s Third Mahdi and the last of the Amalekite kings,” – The Sun Newspaper, New Telegraph Newspaper, 25th of July, 2016).

Clearly things are falling apart. Yet if the Buhari administration continues to ignore our concerns and admonitions and if they continue to insist on arresring and locking us up and attempting to intimidate us simply for our timely counsel and interventions, perhaps, they will listen to one of their own.

If they do not wish to hear the truth about the way forward from us, perhaps, they would be ready to hear it from someone, who openly supported them and helped them to come to power last year.

That person is none other than the distinguished and highly respected General Alani Akinrinade, a war-hero, an elder-statesman, a reverrred and respected Yoruba elder and a leading supporter of President Buhari and the APC during the 2015 presidential electuons.

In July, he said the following to The Sun Newspaper: “First, the APC must be told, in no uncertain terms, that it is fraudulent. They led us down the garden path, lying to us about what is in the end of the tunnel.

What was in the end of the tunnel was restructuring and each one of them, the party chairman, the president, his vice, and in that order, are all talking from the other side of their mouths now. In other words, they lied to us in 2015 before the election.

My message to them is, they should embark on a very major exercise now to restructure the country, otherwise, how do they propose to settle the crisis in the South-South because it is becoming embarrassing.

A man whose land you went to tap resources and then he couldn’t farm or fish, because you bastardised his farmland and you then send back to him stipends from what you took away from his land, such a man can never be happy”.

“Is the APC thinking that the matter of religion, ethnicity and other crises across the country are just going to go away? Even the late Sardauna of Sokoto said so, that we are a disparate people and we must recognise that fact and use it to our advantage.

Nobody is going to build Nigeria the way APC is going about it. I’m not too sure how many people sing our National Anthem again because they don’t even believe in it.

“There is nothing like unity in this country. Unity can only exist when we all understand one another and there are some mutual relationships.

“If I know you are always cheating me by giving 44 local councils to Kano and giving Lagos 20, which is not in the same parameter with Kano in terms of population, production and name it, how can I be happy?”

“However rickety Nigeria has become, if there is a wholesome reconstruction and re-engineering of the system, it can work.

“That was the major reason the Southwest went along with the APC and Buhari, as the presidential candidate in 2015….To tell us that he didn’t read the recommendations (of the 2014 National Conference) and that it is best for the archives and that, in fact, restructuring is unnecessary and according to his Vice, what we needed is diversification and whatsoever, I remain baffled.

“They were just saying we would diversify into agriculture and solid minerals, as if the items will come from heaven… If the APC fails to do something in that direction, I’m not talking about the 2014 conference report alone, but all others, preceding it that have similar recommendations to restructure this country, then President Buhari may forget it and I’m saying he is likely to be the last president of this country. It is as bad as that” ( ‘A Reality Check From General Alani Akinrinnade’ – Thisday Newspaper, 5 August, 2016).

It took courage for Akinrinade to speak up in this way and I commend him for it. His words and counsel are timely and I hope that those that are in power today are humble enough to accept them and retrace their steps.

Of all the heroes in both history and mythology, the greatest were King David of Israel, William Wallace of Scotland, King Leonides of Sparta, Hector of Troy, Alexander the Great of Macedonia, King Jehu, the son of Nimshi, and Achilles of the Mermidans.

They all stood for the truth. They all loved their God. They all had faith and the courage of their convictions. They all refused to bow before the enemy. They all fought till the end.

O that we had just a handful of such gallant men in Nigeria: We would have restructured long ago and made waves in the comity of nations.

O that we had more men, who have the courage of their convictions and who are prepared to risk all and speak truth to power.

Permit me to end this contribution with the words of Minister Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam in the United States of America.

On August 7, he said: “Anarchy may await America due to the daily injustices suffered by the people. There really can be no peace without justice. There can be no justice without truth. And there can be no truth unless someone rises up to tell you the truth.”

I concur. And this applies in the Nigerian context and to the Nigerian situation more than any other. There can and will be no peace in this country without justice.

That justice begins with “restructuring” and it ends with “separation” and the birth of two or more new nations out of one.

Why? Because the Bible says “there is no fellowship between light and darkness”. It says “there can be no love or friendship between the children of God and the servants of Belial”. It says “we must not be unequally yoked”.

Olympic Basketball: Lithuania cage Nigeria’s D’Tigers

Mantas Kalnietis and Jonas Maciulis each scored 21 points and Lithuania held off a late fightback Tuesday to defeat Nigeria 89-80 and stay unbeaten in Rio Olympics men’s basketball.

Kalnietis also passed out 12 assists as Lithuania shut down a late rally for the second game in a row, having withstood a late charge to beat Brazil 82-76.

This time, Nigerian captain Ige Diogu, a former NBA player, scored five points in an 11-5 run that pulled the African squad within 84-79 with 47 seconds remaining.

Maciulis, who had seven points in a 12-0 third-quarter run that gave Lithuania the lead for good, and Kalnietis each sank late free throws to squash the comeback bid.

Diogu led Nigeria with 19 points and seven rebounds while Michael Umeh added 17.

Lithuania, 2-0, next faces Argentina while Nigeria meet fellow winless side Spain, the Group B preliminary round favourites before stumbling against Croatia and Brazil.

Edo 2016: PDP says APC wants to rig election

Ahead of September 10, Edo state governorship election, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu Campaign Organisation, has warned against rigging, saying it was prepared to defend its votes by all means.

It advised that those plotting and boasting to use the security agencies and some agents of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to rig the election should do a rethink as Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members, across the wards are prepared and ready to defend their votes by ‘any means necessary.’

Ize-Iyamu Campaign Organisation said this while responding to a meeting held by the All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders, with their Unit Heads during the weekend at former Leventis House, Sokponba Road, Benin City.

It alleged that the APC had instructed the Unit Heads to disrupt any polling unit where the PDP candidate wins during voting and counting of ballots papers.

Part of the statement reads, “We have been informed by an insider at the meeting that APC leaders further warned their members that the election results must not be allowed to be declared by INEC Presiding Officers should PDP wins in any unit in the state.

‘’The insider further informed us that APC had finally given up any hope of winning the election, and they are now planning crude measures to rig the election, including making their members as INEC ad-hoc staff members.”

The campaign organisation then said that if indeed the APC actually had such evil intentions, “they have failed,
because, our members have been instructed to defend their votes by all means necessary.’’

It also claimed that huge sums of money had been deployed to induce APC members in the state in order to prevail on them to help in their evil plot, adding that the Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs), of the electorate in various wards
across the state, “are being collected by APC leaders daily, and in some cases the serial numbers copied out for cloning.”

Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu Organisation, then called on President Muhammadu Buhari, the international community, non-governmental organisations and other well-meaning Nigerians to prevail on INEC and security agencies to avoid any
act that is capable of causing violence and plunging the state into unmanageable crisis.

‘’Election is not a do or die affair; we must allow the will of the Edo people to prevail in the election,” it said.