Beverly Osu and best friend Charity Owoh fall out over BBA Bimp

Lol. The things I hear in this my gossip work. I'm going to tell you guys a bit of this story because the whole thing is too messy. So Beverly Osu and her best friend Charity Owoh are no longer friends. In fact I hear they are currently sworn enemies...and it all has to do with one gorgeous man, Big Brother Africa contestant Bimp Habesh from Ethiopia. Beverly and Charity fell out after Charity began to pursue Bimp who has been staying more in Nigeria since the reality show ended a few more months ago. Charity went as far as introducing Bimp to her mum and let everyone know she was interested in him. Then came Beverly, who also started showing interest in Bimp. Remember she confessed her feelings to Bimp in the Big Brother house but Bimp told her he had a girlfriend and Bev subsequently turned to Angelo.

Anyhoo, the two friends first fell out after Charity allegedly told Angelo (when he was in Nigeria) that Beverly still had a thing for Bimp, and after Angelo left, things became really heated between the former BFFs. Beverly felt betrayed that her best friend not only ratted her out but also went after Bimp knowing how she felt about him. I hear that one of them even went as far as opening a twitter account to attack the other, and the other one got so depressed about the situation (because all their friends supported the other) that she 'contemplated' suicide.

Bimp is currently not dating any of the girls. He might not even know that they are fighting over him.

Also, Beverly has edited her twitter account where she had charity's email address as her 'for booking contact' and has removed everything about charity in her biography.

Bimbo Thomas says she regrets sending nude photos to ex-lover

Actress Bimbo Thomas granted an interview recently to The Nollywood Reporter, where she admitted sending nude photos to a married ex-lover. Bimbo says it's one the big mistakes of her life.

“Yes, I have been in love before and I have been involved in relationships I thought was love but wasn’t.. There was this relationship I thought would lead to the altar. I was committed to it and the guy was committed too but it still didn’t work out. We are still friends though. When I came out of that relationship, I didn’t want to date again. I just wanted to be left alone but you know women and love; I found another guy, he was the kind of guy one will call a gentleman. I fell in love with him; I could do anything for him. I even made a mistake that still tugs at my conscience till date; I sent him my nude photos. 

Looking back now, it was one mistake too many especially when I realized the guy was deceiving me as he was married with children. I cried and cried! I almost gave up on everything thing but God kept me.”

On asking why she made such a stupid mistake, she replied, “Yes, it is a stupid mistake but you know celebrities are humans too.  We hurt, we laugh, we cry, we love, we grief and do everything every other human being does. We fall in love and make mistakes. Though we fall down like the Bible would say, but we can’t stay down, we get up and keep forging ahead. Many guys that approach femalecelebrities have evil intentions.”

Responding to questions on if she will gladly date again, the Omo Ghetto star said she will but will approach the subject cautiously. “Dating is now something I dread. I don’t think I will give up on love but the next guy might pay for the sins of others.” She said amidst laughter laced with vengeance. We can’t help but pray God helps the next guy.

Bimbo Thomas, a graduate of creative art from the University of Lagos, came into the industry a few years ago and after a series of small roles, became a household name, thanks to “Omo Ghetto”, a Yoruba movie produced by popular Actress cum Producer, FunkeAkindele.

It's the biggest most colourful concert of the year!

The biggest most colourful concert this year is finally here, it’s the Colourfulworldofmore Concert! They way it looks, line up, the preparations, seems like this is without a doubt the concert to be at. It's happening tomorrow November 3rd at Eko Expo Centre. Watch the video above to see what Wizkid has to say about what to expect at tomorrow's concert...

 

The event will feature a line-up of naija’s finest artistes including Wizkid, Ice-Prince, Olamide, Phyno, Davido, Burna-Boy, Dbanj, Psquare, Waje, Chidinma, Tiwa Savage, DJ Exclusive and MC Bovi welcome all to a colourfulworldofmore!

Wouldn’t miss this for anything at all!

To get tickets to this amazing experience, simply log on to www.colourfulworldofmore.com, register with your name, email and phone number and your will be sent your access/Ticket notification, it’s that simple and it’s absolutely free.

Remember, you have to be +18 to participate in the #colourfulworldofmore.

Hints:

·         Step out and rep your cool in your most comfortable concert gear,

·         Come and enjoy your Guinness responsibly.

Three men gang rape 15 year old girl in Lagos

Three men have allegedly gang-raped a 15-year old girl at the Ikorodu area of Lagos, as the police are alleged to be threatening the victim’s parents to settle the matter out of court.

The state government had earlier blamed the police for frustrating rape cases by threatening victims and their families to withdraw their cases. Two of the men have been arraigned at one of the newly established Family Courts in Ikeja for allegedly raping the girl.

The suspects are being tried by the Lagos State Office of the Public Defender, OPD, while the third suspect is still at large. It was learnt that the victim was lured to No 23, Fola Mustapha Street, in Ajegunle area of Ikorodu by her classmate (name withheld), a 16-year old girl, on the pretext that she wanted to return a text book which she had earlier borrowed from the victim.


The victim was deceived by her friend who had already arranged with the three suspected rapists to have sex with her forcefully. The three suspects; Yusuf Mohammed, Rasheed Oyedepo and Tunde were alleged to have inflicted bodily injury on the girl (name withheld).
It was gathered that the raped girl’s friend deliberately delayed her classmate for hours and enabled the heinous crime by putting on the generator set, on the pretext that she needed to charge her phone.
According to the OPD , the victim wanted to take her leave in annoyance when it was getting too late for the her to return home, but her friend told her to wait for a while before taking her to a new room where she was raped in turns by the gang.

While taking turns to rape the girl, the noise from the generator and the music they were playing prevented the people outside from hearing the screaming and wailing of the girl. On getting home in a bad condition, the girl’s mother took her to a private clinic for medical attention.

She was taken to Ikorodu General Hospital for proper medical treatment, where it was discovered that her womb had been tampered with at the private clinic.

The victim was in a critical condition as she was admitted in the hospital for three days while undergoing blood transfusion. A new twist has, however, been added to the story as the police has transferred the suspects, whose cases are already in court, to the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Panti for investigation, an act the OPD described as unlawful.

It was gathered that the police had gone to the girl’s family threatening the mother for taking the case to OPD, after which they transferred the suspects to SCID, Panti. It would be recalled that the government has established a clinic where DNA tests

Lagosians in highbrow areas may be drinking own faeces –Investigation

In a country where there is a wide gulf between the rich and the middle class, living in highbrow areas like Lekki, Ikoyi and Victoria Island in Lagos is a sign of better life.

The belief of many residents of the Lagos mainland is that those in these parts of the city are living large. This is more reinforced by the fact that the crème de la crème of the country have their homes in these places.

 If one is to suddenly relocate from the mainland to either Ikoyi or Lekki, the belief is that providence has suddenly smiled on such individual.

But living in these areas has its downside as Saturday PUNCH has learnt.

A new finding has revealed that residents who use water from boreholes constructed within their compounds in these areas might unknowingly be drinking or using water contaminated with their own human wastes.

Saturday PUNCH was on a finding mission on the impact of human waste disposal in the Lagos Lagoon when the fact came to light that the construction of septic tanks in these highbrow parts of Lagos was not a good idea.

The Coordinator of the Lagos State Wastewater Office, Mr. Lekan Shodeinde, told Saturday PUNCH that the water table in these areas was too shallow, which is why the construction of both septic and borehole in the same compound is a dangerous affair.

Shodeinde said, “A lot of houses in areas like Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Lekki are polluting the water table.

“Those areas are not supposed to put in place septic tanks. In some of these areas, before you dig five feet, you have reached the water table. Now, imagine going to such places to put in place septic tanks which are constructed in such a way that the waste seeps into the ground.

“They are simply soiling the water table. These areas are supposed to have a centralised wastewater treatment where the effluent emanating from households passes for treatment.”

This is the practice in many developed countries where centralised sewers are put in place to cater for the management of human wastes generated from each home.

According to Steven Burian, Stephan Nix and Robert Pitt in their study on Urban Wastewater Management in the US, the centralised system of management of wastewater has been in existence in the country since the middle of the 19th Century.

Saturday PUNCH spoke with a bricklayer, who explained that a standard septic tank could be as deep as 10 feet. Considering the fact that the water table in these coastal areas is comparatively shallow, it is possible that contamination occurs to groundwater sources in some of the places.

Experts say there may be considerable hazard for those who use water sourced from boreholes directly in these areas, or those who do not have water treatment facilities or filters in their homes.

Prof. Ebenezer Meshida of the Geoscience Department of the University of Lagos, who also teaches at the Civil Engineering Department of the Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State, said the type of water one can get in most parts of Lekki, Ikoyi, Ajah and Victoria Island, is highly contaminated.

He said, “The water in the region is not expected to be used as drinking water. That type of water can be used to clean your car or flush the toilets. Any water you get around five metres depth is highly dangerous.

“The type of water that is fit for consumption in that area should be obtained from boreholes that are very deep, deeper than third water level. Those who are experienced in drilling boreholes understand that at the third water level, you get fresh water. Sometimes you get to 200 metres or 300 metres before you can get drinkable water but some will say it is too expensive.

“Those who build houses in that zone of Lagos must be people with millions of naira in their pockets because it is not a zone that is good for extracting drinkable water.

“What is usually obtained there is salty or polluted water. Most of the diseases people fall prey to in Lagos are from polluted water consumption.”

But what can be done by those who already have shallow boreholes in these areas?

Prof. Meshida said boiling of the water is an age-old system that still works fine.

He said, “Boiling is the first stage of treatment. You can then filter after that. In those days, we made use of filters that used candles. If you boil water from whatever source it comes from and you filter it with a cloth and put it in the candle filters, you can be sure you are safe.

“I will suggest that anybody who wants to drink water sourced from shallow boreholes in such areas should go to environmental chemists. They are in university chemistry departments. They will help to analyse the water. They will be able to identify the chemical composition and determine the best way to treat the water.”

A borehole contractor, Mr. Elijah Idowu, who runs Noble Fourstar Hydro Resources, explained to Saturday PUNCH the process it takes to reach a depth where drinkable water can be extracted in the Ikoyi-Victoria Island-Lekki zone.

He said, “Digging borehole is never a child’s play in that zone because you will be talking of about 500 or 700 metres before one can reach a drinkable water depth.

“If an average depth borehole is about N500,000 in another place, you will be looking at about N7m to dig a borehole in a place like Lekki or Ajah.

“What we do usually is that we screen and case the contaminated water part of the hole so that this does not affect the fresh water we reach at the deeper part. Even with that, it is still advisable if the residents install facilities which they can use to filter the water before consumption.”

The Lagos Water Corporation has always discouraged the sinking of boreholes in the Lagos metropolis but in a city where a large percentage of the residents do not have easy access to pipe borne water, this may be a futile plea.

The Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, has also expressed concern over the proliferation of boreholes in the state, saying they constituted long term environmental problem.

In a publication by PUNCH in February 2012, the governor said the residents of the state were better off with more water works than more boreholes in their different houses.

He urged the residents to make use of domestic connections to their homes wherever there is a waterworks, saying government would continue to build waterworks to bring water close to various homes in the state.

When Saturday PUNCH spoke with some residents of these upscale areas, it turned out that the situation was more pathetic than most people would imagine.

Those who spoke with Saturday PUNCH at Victoria Island, explained that the water they get from their boreholes is so bad that it is sometimes totally unusable without being treated.

At Idejo Street, Victoria Island, a house guard, Henry Okoro, went inside his compound and brought out a bowl of water. It looked like one in which brown clay had been dissolved.

“This is the kind of water you get from the borehole here,” he said.

He said a tanker supplies the house with water from another part of Lagos every week.

“Some of these tankers collect N10,000 per supply, some N8,000,” Okoro said.

At Osapa London area of Jakande, Lekki, a resident, Oyebola Ogunsanya, said even though she did not know that septic tanks pollute the water table, she and other residents were not bothered because the water in their borehole is not usable.

She said, “The water in the borehole is like the colour of salt and it is very salty.  Even after treatment, it is still not usable. We pay tankers to fill our overhead tanks.

“Apart from the N7,000 I pay to fill the tank which I share with another neighbour in my boys’ quarters, I spend as much as N5,000 weekly on bottled and sachet water. The water from our borehole is just unusable.

“Where I was living before, the water was brownish in colour. You dare not even think about using it to wash, not to think of drinking. What we do is that we treat the water so that it could at least be used to wash clothes and toilets.

“We have a water treatment plant in the house. After treating the water, we wait for about three hours. Then it turns whitish. Only then can we use it to bathe or wash toilets. Even at that, one still has to pour disinfectants in it.

“My sister in Lekki Phase I lives in a six-bedroom duplex and they have to get two tankers of water every week.”

But Mrs. Stella Billy-Ashogbon, who lives in Ajah said the water in that side of the coast is cleaner than the one obtained around VI.

She said, “Most people who live here are those who would not spare cost in anything they do in their houses. Most people know that the deeper you go, the cleaner the water becomes. People who live here hire professionals to dig boreholes in such a way that they would not worry about contamination.

“Most of those who dig shallow wells or boreholes don’t use them for domestic purposes. They use it for construction or to wet flower. To get a sustained supply, you will have to go very deep.

“Those who build septic tanks around here take it far away from boreholes and they can afford to make their boreholes very deep, no matter the cost.

“All my friends living between Victoria Island and Chevron area of Lekki have a similar problem though. No matter how deep their boreholes are, the water they get from there is always brown. They buy water all the time. Sometimes they even buy water to wash clothes.

“Saying this place is supposed to have a centralized sewage system instead of individual septic tanks is just being idealistic. We like to be idealistic in the country instead of addressing our own peculiarity.”

Robbers drove us to bank at night, forced us to withdraw cash with ATM cards –Robbery victim

Julius Adegun had on Saturday, September 21, 2013, boarded a commercial bus from Abule-Egba, on the Lagos-Abeokuta Expresssway, around 10.30pm.

He was heading to Iyana-Ipaja but had no idea he had boarded the bus with a three-man gang of robbers. The events that unfolded later were to confound him because it was one he had never heard of.

“I had heard of robbers waylaying people after they had used the ATM before. I had even heard of people being ambushed immediately they were about to use the ATM and forced to withdraw certain amount of money by robbers. But I never imagined I would be a victim of this kind of robbery,” he said.

He told Saturday PUNCH there were already nine passengers in the 14-seater bus apart from the driver as at the time he boarded.

The bus had moved about 10 minutes when it got to a bank on the expressway towards Iyana Ipaja and the robbers promptly swung into action, he said.

“One of the robbers, who had posed as the conductor all along turned towards us and asked, ‘Hope you all have your ATM cards?’ He spoke in pidgin. Nobody seemed to be listening to him because we did not realise what was happening at first.

‘Then he said to the driver, ‘Alaye, enter that bank.’ That was when I started to connect the dots in my head. We started protesting, asking why they would be stopping in front of a bank at that time of the night.

“Clearly, the driver was a part of the gang. One of the robbers who had sat quietly at the back of the bus with one other passenger shouted at us. He said, ‘Shut up! Just cooperate peacefully and you will be on your way. He pointed a locally made pistol at us.”

Adegun said after the robbers had told them to bring out their ATM cards or risk being shot, some of them promptly did. But two passengers – a young man and a woman – who said they had no ATM card on them were slapped many times as they were being searched.

 Eventually, five of them had ATM cards on them at the time.

“One of the robbers took us in turn to the ATM and asked us to put in our Personal Identification Numbers. They withdrew everything that each of us had in the account.

“I had N43,000 in my account. They first checked the account balance and withdrew N40,000. I was initially praying that the ATM would not work that day but unfortunately it did.

“The other victims too were robbed of almost all they had in each of their accounts. A young man with us actually said he was supposed to use the N80,000 in his account to buy tyres for his boss the following morning. But everything was withdrawn. He was the one they robbed of the highest amount.”

He said they could not raise the alarm because the robber with the gun threatened to shoot anyone that attempted to make any noise.

Asked if they reported to the police after the robbery, he said after the robbers took them into a street off the major road and asked them to disembark, he immediately called a police distress line he had on his phone.

“The details of the robbery, the number of victims, and the description of the vehicle were taken by the person who answered the call. The police promised to alert the patrol team in the area but I don’t know what happened after that,” he said.

Asked if he was able to get the vehicle’s number plate, he said it was too dark for him to be able to make out the number.

This method of using commercial buses seems to make it easier for the robbers to rob a higher number of people at once rather than staking out ATM terminals.

Robberies at ATM are not new in Lagos. There have been many reports of ambush at ATM terminals where customers are asked to withdraw money at gun points.

A victim, Mr. Funso Aina, told of how he was once robbed at gun point at the ATM terminal of a bank on Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, Ikeja around 9.30pm on September 23, 2013 when he was coming back from work.

Aina told Saturday PUNCH, “That night, I parked and got out but I noticed a young man at one of the four terminals at the bank. I actually thought he was also trying to withdraw money.

“But as soon as I withdrew money, he pulled out his phone and spoke into it. He turned to me and put a gun to my head. He said, ‘Give me the money’ and grabbed it even before I handed it to him.

“As that was taking place, another young man had approached, who must have been the one the first one was speaking to on the phone. The second man put a gun to my side and asked me to withdraw some money. ‘N50,000! N50,000!’ he told me.

“But I calmly explained that I would withdraw the money but they should understand that I could not withdraw N50,000 at once. But as I pressed the buttons on the ATM, one of them quickly pressed it himself and withdrew N10,000. As he attempted to withdraw more money, the ATM stopped working.”

Aina said the robbers got N20,000 from him in total. He said they also took away his BlackBerry phone.

He did not report to the police.

“You know how the police would ask you to come back everyday; I did not want such stress. If the robbers took something sensitive like my identity card or something of that nature for example, I would have reported,” he said.

He said his experience had since made him wary of using ATM at night.

Spokesperson of the Lagos State Police Command, Ngozi Braide, said she had not got a report to indicate if this trend is on the rise in Lagos.

She said it does not help the police when victims of crimes do not report them to the police.

Braide said, “Making reports at the nearest police station when something like that happens allows us to have a record. It also gives us leads to go on with in our investigation.

“It is always important for victims of robberies like those in the commercial bus to try and get the number plates of the vehicles used by the robbers. Armed security men are supposed to be at the banks where these ATMs are sited.

“Banks should try and put adequate lighting around their ATMs to discourage robbers.”

But Aina said he was robbed in a well lit open ATM gallery.

Day I blasted Obasanjo to his face –Atiku

Former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar

Former Vice-President of Nigeria,  Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has revealed that he “blasted” his then boss, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, over his bid to run for a  second term.

Abubakar made the disclosure during an interview with a newspaper published in Hausa.

In the interview published by an online publication on Friday, Abubakar also disclosed that he and Obasanjo argued over his failed third term bid. Atiku said during one of their arguments, Obasanjo gave him a Quran to swear loyalty to him.

He said, “At first we started arguing, and then he (Obasanjo) opened his drawer and brought out a copy of the Quran and asked me to swear that I will not be disloyal to him. There was nothing I did not tell him in that room. The first thing I told him was that I swore with the Quran to defend the Constitution of Nigeria. Why are you now giving me the Quran to swear for you again?  What if I swear for you and you go against the constitution?

“Secondly, I looked at him and told him that if I don’t like you or don’t support you, would I have called 19 northern governors to meet for three days in my House in Kaduna only for us to turn our back on you?

“Thirdly, I asked him, what are you even doing with the Quran? Are you a Muslim that you would even administer an oath on me with the Quran? I was angry, and I really blasted him. He asked me to forgive him and he returned the Quran back to the drawer, and we came out.”

Obasanjo’s third term bid failed following public outcry over what many saw as unconstitutional.

Speaking further about the controversial bid, which could have taken Obasanjo to a record 12 years as the country’s president, Atiku said he vehemently told Obasanjo to leave after the completion of his second term in office.

He said, “In fact we had the same kind of altercation when he was gunning for third term, he informed me that “ I left power twenty years ago, I left Mubarak in office, I left Mugabe in office, I left Eyadema in office, I left Umar Bongo, and even Paul Biya and I came back and they are still in power; and I just did eight years and you are asking me to go; why?” And I responded to him by telling him that Nigeria is not Libya, not Egypt, not Cameroun, and not Togo; I said you must leave; even if it means both of us lose out, but you cannot stay.”

Obasanjo and Atiku fell out at some point during their administration, with reports that the two did not see eye to eye.

There were also unconfirmed reports that the two of them fell out because Obasanjo went back on his promise to use one term in office and support Atiku’s candidacy for the presidency after his four years. Some reports claimed that Obasanjo had to go on his knees to seek Atiku’s support for his second term.

Atiku denied that his former boss went on his knees to plead for his support. He, however, said that Obasanjo visited his residence to plead for his support.

He said, “Honestly, he did not kneel down for me. But he did come to my house and I refused to see him. And he knocked my door continuously and asked me in the name of God to come out, so I came out, and we went downstairs, and he asked me to join him in his car and I said, no, because of security reasons, but he insisted. So when we entered his car, I never knew that he had gone round states pavilions and asking for the support of governors and delegates and they refused to listen to him because they have not seen us together. So that was why he came and picked me up so that we would go round together. There is something that many people did not know before, which I will tell you now.

“We sat with party elders and discussed the issue of Presidency and there was debate as to whether the South will have eight or four years? If the South had eight years, so the north too should have eight years subsequently. After lots of debates, it was finally agreed that the South should have eight years. And when power returns to the north, they should also have it for eight years.

“However, governors objected to this arrangement. I was then in a dilemma; is the governors’ objection genuine or just a political gimmick. What if I followed them to run against the president and they later on turn their back on me and align with the president? At the end of the day, one would neither be a vice president or a president because politics is a slippery game.”

Concerning his role in the recent breakup of the Peoples Democratic Party, where Abubakar led a number of PDP governors out of the party’s convention, Abubakar said they had spent four months plotting the move.

He said, “We have been planning for some time because we have spent almost four months planning how to split the PDP.

“At first I didn’t know the arrowhead, but they eventually came and met me and I joined them because their reasons are the same with the ones I have been fighting against within the party; lack of fairness, honesty and tyranny. If I can fight the military to restore democracy, why can’t I fight fellow politicians?”

Abubakar added that the breakaway faction of the party had appealed a court judgment declaring its association illegal.

“We have appealed; and we are planning seriously, you will see what will happen,” he said.

Imo PDP accuses Okorocha of mortgaging state, governor fires back

Owerri – The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Imo has accused Gov. Rochas Okorocha of mortgaging the state through loans collected from banks.

The chairman of the party in the state, Chief Eze Duruiheoma, made the accusation on Friday at a news conference.

Duruiheoma said the governor had collected N47 billion from a bank and diverted it to an unknown account.

He also said the governor had taken an additional N15 billion loan from the same bank through the help of sole administrators of local governments.

The chairman called on the governor to let the public know the exact amount the state owed banks and other creditors.

He also accused the governor of awarding contracts without regard to due process, describing it as “another attempt to fleece the state treasury.”

The chairman condemned the sack of local government officials by the governor, saying the local government system had lost more than N100 billion as a result.

He also decried the outsourcing of artisan jobs to foreigners by the governor, citing the importation of school uniforms from China, which he said could have been carried out by local tailors.

“It is on record that this governor has outsourced to his international partners such artisan jobs as tailoring, bricklaying and carpentry thereby starving this crucial segment of the economy of funds.

“Local artisans would have greatly benefited from these jobs he insists on outsourcing to artisans from China and Lebanon. ”

He lamented that the governor was in the habit of abandoning projects initiated by his predecessor and also complained about the poor quality of the projects carried out by him.

“Abandoned projects litter the streets of Owerri and local government areas; the few completed ones awarded to non-professionals were done with little respect to quality.

“The consequences are that the roads so poorly constructed have gone bad in less than six months of completion.”

Reacting to the allegations, the Senior Special Assistant on Media to the governor, Mr Sam Onwuamaodo, said the governor never took any loan from any bank.

Onwuamaodo said the governor had challenged politicians in the state to show proof that he obtained any loan from any bank. (NAN)

When Stella Oduah touched the untouchables in Aviation sector

When the unconventional happens, the aftermath is the undesirable. However, there are a few exceptions to the rule of getting punished for challenging the status quo, and as rare as these exceptions are, they still exist in the face of unyielding opposition to change. Most spared change agents obtained their legitimacy from the masses whose cause they fight and cross they bear.

Stella Oduah in her capacity as the Aviation minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is saddled with the responsibility of transforming a dying sector that would support economic growth and national development. The tasks before her are very clear and the routes to accomplishing them are equally visible but not without making enemies and crossing established paths in the aviation sector except she would just go and be remembered as a minister like many who had passed through the sector.

Stella would rather not be a number but a person of impact. This choice threw into the battle field peopled by individuals and institutions with capacity to fight in the murky water of Nigerian politics.The delectable feline-eyed lady of accomplishment certainly could not guess how dirty the battle could get until a fortnight ago. Perhaps she might have been warned and given insights into what could happen if she rolls the wheel of change that will move the tide against the perceived untouchables in the Aviation sector but her resolve for would not allow warnings to deter her.

Before Stella, there were no perishable agro-cargo terminals that could enhance farm-to-market distribution chain, guarantee food security and facilitate economic development in the rural areas through easy exchange of farm produce for foreign exchange. Then, these services were within the remit of a group of individuals charging exorbitantly for facilitating trade between rural farmers and the international market.

Analysts with deep knowledge of the sector had opined that she would not go without any bruise because her achievements which are receiving resounding commendations home and abroad are detested by the ‘special class’ whose monopoly her transformation has broken.

In her Aviation Road Map, Stella Oduah highlighted the need for rural farmers who may not have the opportunity of flying on a plane to reap the benefits of existence of facilities such as airports in our country. Consequently, she aggressively designated Perishable Agro-Cargo Terminals in Jos, Yola, Asaba, Enugu, Akure, Makurdi and Lagos. The spread of these terminals will continue to Akure, Bauchi, Ibadan,Jalingo, Kano and Owerri.

Stella Oduah is resolute in her resolve to transform the aviation sector in Nigeria. Notwithstanding the clogs on her path to achieving the highlighted agenda, Stella had bent-backwards and surpassed herself in driving the developmental initiatives which sap as much energy as brain. In the pipeline are schemes that would support the establishment of free trade and export processing zones at the four major airports in Nigeria namely Lagos, Abuja, Portharcourt and Kano.

She executes the initiative  effortlessly,and she has achieved so much within a short period in the  sector in a manner fans the embers of envy. Still, her determination and body language are unequivocal on the fact that there are greater days ahead for the sector under her continued watch.

She envisioned the need for nine Pilgrims Terminal Buidlings at Minna, Ilorin, Ibadan, Sokoto, Maiduguri, Katsina, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Lagos as well as the relocation of the domestic passenger airport terminal in Abuja to the B&D wings of the NAIA international airport for greater convenience and service. These initiatives are not without their oppositions, individuals who are affected by the simplification of the Nigerian aviation processes are at daggers’ drawn with the Aviation Minister framed for her seeming disregard for the untouchables in her revolutionary development of the sector.

Under Stella’s watch, there are have been remodeling of 19 airports and reconstruction of control towers, runways resurfacing and installation of new weather systems, with the activation of the Aerotropolis in the waiting for the use of Nigerians. Expectedly, there must be a fight back by the  untouchables have waged a vindictive war against the Minister. Her efforts appear to have angered the self-loving group but  Stella Oduah, does not seem worried by the ploys of this aggrieved cabal to scuttle her developmental agenda for the Aviation sector. The pace at which she recreates most of the facilities in the aviation sector which have almost become artifacts signals her firm believe in the pronouncement of posterity and divine reward for change agents.

Harold Sonibare,a public commentator writes from Kano

Ignore ASUU’s demands, NASU, NAAT, SSANU tell FG

NON Teaching staff in tertiary institutions in Nigeria, have advised the Federal Government to ignore the Memorandum of Understanding it entered into with the striking lecturers on the aegis of Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, saying its implementation would lead to another round of crisis.

The Non Teaching Staff comprising Non-Academic Staff Union of Education and Associated Institutions, NASU, National Association of Academic Technologists, NAAT, and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities,SSANU rather advised government to implement the 2009 agreements it entered with the unions in tertiary institutions.

In a statement signed by Samson Ugwoke, President of SSANU and spokesperson of NAAT, SSANU and NASU tited, ‘Our stand on the on-going ASUU strike’, the unions sympathised with ASUU but noted that the MoU was not in the best interest of the education sector.

Cross section of stakeholders at a meeting to review the ongoing strike by ASUU held at the Trenchard Hall of the University of Ibadan on Monday. Photo by Dare Fasube

It stated “We sympathise and solidarise with our sister union, ASUU over their long drawn struggle for the welfare of their members. We urged the government to build more confidence in governance, at all times, by respecting agreements it freely enters into with unions.

”However, we caution that any settlement of the current dispute must take into account the interests of all the university-based unions (NAAT, SSANU, NASU and ASUU). The three Non-Teaching Staff Unions of NAAT, SSANU and NASU are opposed to any extraneous demands by either ASUU or any group in the university which are prejudicial to the welfare of our members.

”Our stand is that government should jettison the so called ASUU’s Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and concentrate on full implementation of the 2009 FGN/Unions agreements which border on staff conditions of service and welfare, and increased funding to universities.

”The MOU being referred to by ASUU is for their selfish end and it is bound to generate more crises in the university sub-sector.

The Non-Teaching Staff Unions in the universities will stoutly resist any attemp t to ‘sell’ the universities to ASUU.

”All university based unions signed agreements in 2009 with the government, it is therefore advised that all contentious issues in all the agreements be settled holistically to avoid a ‘relay race’ in strike actions in the universities.

”The implementation of any union’s MOU should not come in between the period of implementation of signed agreements rather, such items in the MOU should wait to be re-negotiated in another agreement(s).”

Movie marketers threaten to blacklist Mercy Johnson

There is an underground plans by the movie marketers under the aegis of Film and Video Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria, FVPMAN, to blacklist Mercy Johnson Okojie,, in what they call, “ Withdrawing of service from her.”

A highly placed source  who disclosed this latest move against the Actress  to HVP, said, the association decided to take this action, following the ‘unbecoming attitude of the actress as it affects  her work.”

*Mercy Johnson

According to our source, members of the association met last Monday, in Onitsha, Anambra State,  to fine-tune plans  to blacklist the actress who recently returned to Nollywood after months of being away in the United States, where she gave birth to her first child.

Shedding more light on the reason for blacklisting the Actress, our source disclosed that the marketers  accused Mercy Johnson of forming the habit of  disappearing while on location after she has been  paid for  the job.  She was also accused of given them difficult conditions.

However, the source  further hinted that the marketers have vowed to sanction any member  who disregard the decision to blacklist the actress. He  also revealed that the leadership of the association has advised its members to release all the films that  Mercy Johnson featured in, on or before January, 2014.

Meanwhile, efforts to contact Mercy to react to the allegations proved abortive as her cell-phone was permanently switched-off. Recall, however, that upon her return to Nollywood,Mercy  was  bombarded with several scripts from different marketers and producers who wanted to get her on their movies.

FG dissolves PHCN, pays workers N360bn

The Federal Government yesterday handed over the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, and the 14 successor companies created following the unbundling of the PHCN to their individual new owners across the country in spite of threats by the former workers to cause crises during the ceremony across the country. The handover ceremonies took place in Abuja, Enugu, Egbin, Eko, Ikeja, Benin, Kaduna and Jos simultaneously.

The Vice President, Mohammed Namadi Sambo, said that yesterday’s handover marked the concluding stage of the transaction for the four generation and 10 distribution companies.

Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, who performed the official physical handover of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company to its new owner, Kann Utility Consortium Nigeria Limited, at a ceremony in Abuja noted that the government had successfully paid most of the former PHCN workers their severance and pension packages.

“Already, N360 billion has been paid out. The remaining N30 billion or so is in the pipeline and all the issues of certification, biometric capture and making sure that clearance is done are being completed,’’ he said.

Nebo explained that the Federal Government and the two key workers’ union leaders in the sector reached an agreement on Thursday to peacefully handover the power firms to their new owners.

According to him, “agreements have been reached. Please never in the history of this country has a government kept its word in issues like this as has been demonstrated by the present administration.

“Government is on it and the date has been fixed for some as November 15, while November 30 is for others. I have given my word and I am saying that no worker will be short-changed.”

Earlier in his address, Vice President Sambo, had said that the handover marked the concluding stage of the transaction for both the four generation and 10 distribution companies.

Sambo who was represented on the occasion by Professor Nebo said the participation of the private sector would bring about higher generation capacities through the provision of more efficient and cost effective power stations as well as improvements in distribution in the areas of billing, collection and transmission networks among others.

In Jos, the planned protest to disrupt the handing over of the PHCN facilities to investors could not hold as there was a successful handing over of the Jos Distribution company comprising Plateau, Benue, Gombe and Bauchi States to its new owner, Aura Energy limited amidst tight security.

Speaking at the handing over ceremony held at the Electricity House in Jos yesterday, the Vice-President, Arch Namadi Sambo who is the Chairman of the National Council on Privatization said the exercise is the roadmap to move the economic growth of the nation.

Sambo  who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Information, Mrs. Folashade Esan said the successful privatization of PHCN indicates that where there is a will, there is a way as the event is “a culmination of 14 years painstaking efforts to liberalize Nigeria’s electricity industry”.

His words, “The reform is a necessary tool for laying a solid foundation for sustainable power generation and service efficiency in the sector and a precondition for the start up of a competitive electricity market in Nigeria.

”The reform and privatization program are rightly focused on the big picture which will impact on the economy as a whole and ultimately, the greatest good for the greatest number of Nigerians as it will open up the government dominated sectors of the economy to the private sector as well as divestiture of government interest in such sectors”.

Though acknowledging the challenges the sector is going through, Sambo assured the creation of an enabling environment and urged the new owners to ensure that the sector is “transformed to a world class company of reference in terms of quality of service delivery, social corporate responsibility, customers’ satisfaction and profitability” as appropriate agencies will “continually monitor the operations of the successor companies and would not hesitate to sanction any core investor that does not deliver on the performance agreement that was executed with government”.

Earlier in his address, the Acting Managing Director of Jos Electricity Distribution Company, Engr. Fidelis Obishai urged the investors to engage in training and re-training of staff to change their orientation from the public sector to private sector driven entity as well as involve in investment in metering.

Obishai further called on the former PHCN staff to “make the best out of the circumstance in which we find ourselves and understand that either in or out, it is a win-win situation for us”.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of Aura Energy Ltd, Alh. Tukur Modibbo assured the staff not to panic as “staff of PHCN have worked under terrible conditions for long due to lack of investment in the power sector” hence, “adequate investment through privatization will ensure improved power supply and conducive working environment for staff”.

”We welcome you on board and assure you that in this new environment, hardwork and initiative will be rewarded and Nigerians will no more suffer from the pollution from generators”, he added.

It was gathered that only about 15 out of the over 200 staff working in the zonal office were able to get their entitlements paid before the handing over.

Also, in Enugu, the Inter State Electrics, took over the management of Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, EEDC,with a promise to tackle the problems militating against power supply to the people of the South East states.

Two certificates transferring the control of the 18 business units that make up the EEDC to the new investors .were signed by the Chief Executive Officer of EEDC,  Suleiman Yahaya and the Managing Director/CEO of Interstate Electrics Limited , Robert Dickerman.

The new Chief Executive Officer of the EEDC, Dickerman, said that through the change in ownership, “there will be some reshaping of the company’s strategy, goals and objectives.”

Said Dickerman: “We will use integrity to make sure that all information we report internally and externally is correct and accurate. We will manage our operations and financial processes with integrity so that we can and do account for every naira, every piece of equipment and every asset that we are responsible for to the standard of an external audit”

He also assured members of staff that they would be considered as share holders of the company as a way of creating in them a sense of belonging, while calling on all to support the new vision of the company.

Vice President Namadi Sambo, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Alhaji Danladi Kefasi, urged the new investors to stick to the rules of engagement.

Outgoing Chief Executive Officer of the EEDC, Suleiman Yahaya, said that the Enugu Distribution Company was made up of 18 business units covering Imo, Anambra, Enugu, Abia and Ebonyi states and have resourceful workforce that if given the right infrastructure would grow into sustainable and profitable company.

Chairman of the Interstate Electrics, Offor, said, “We want to turn around the place so that the people start getting light, start getting value for their money. It is not our duty to determine tariff. But we will provide good and qualitative services for them”, Offor stated.

In another ceremony in Benin, the Federal Government also formally handed over the Benin Electricity Distribution Company to core investors, Vigeo Power Limited. Vigeo Power Ltd with 60 per cent interest, is core investor in the BEDC.

Speaking during the ceremony, Chairman, Presidential Taskforce on Power, Mr Beks Dagogo Jack who represented the Vice President Sambo, described the occasion as a milestone, that would not have been possible without the commitment of President Goodluck Jonathan as the process of power reform in Nigeria was well-thought out and had been painstakingly pursued.

Chairman of Vigeo Power Limited, Mr. Victor Osibodu, in his address said that history would  “forever remember President Jonathan for this bold step.’’

Speaking at a similar event in Lagos Vice President Sambo, said the Federal Government would  monitor as well as punish any of the private core investors that failed to operate in accordance with the agreement signed with it.

Speaking through the Director, Bureau of Public Enterprise, BPE Mr. Benjamin Dikki, Sambo said, “Let me state clearly here that both the Nigerian Electricity Regulation Commission and the BPE will continually monitor the operations of the successor companies and would not hesitate to sanction any core investor that does not deliver on the performance agreement that was executed with the government.

“The participation of the private sector would bring about higher generation capacities through the provision of more efficient and cost effective power stations and improvements in electric power distribution, in the areas of billing and collection and transmission networks. Such capital injection and efficiency have been inadequate in PHCN over the years, resulting in gross inadequate power supply with the attendant negative effects on the citizenry and the economy at large.

In his address, Abiodun Ajifowobaje, Managing Director, Ikeja Distribution Company, commended  the Federal Government for the feat, describing it also as a watershed in the history of development of electricity industry in Nigeria.

Ajifowobaje commended the new owners of Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company, NEDC/KEPCO consortium for taking over the largest electricity distribution network in the country,”

West Power and Gas, WPG, the new owner of Eko Distribution Company, said it will spend over $250 million (about N40 billion) in the next few years to re-position the company.

Chairman of the company,  Mr. Charles Momoh, made this known, and explained that the amount would be invested in metering and cleaning up the cables, transformers and making sure that everything was in line with what have been specified.

“We have the responsibility to light up Lagos and keep it lit. This is a task before us which we must do and do it profitably.

“Our homes and businesses deserve the chance to thrive without the added expenses on generators and constant threat of outages. It will take time. It will take solitude. It will take commitment. It will take collaboration. But as with most things, the only difficulty that could arise is within ourselves. We know that this will not happen overnight, but we are optimistic that only success will follow,” he added.