It is obvious that these are not the best of times for Nigeria. Sadly, the leadership and the led are pretending that all is well. Do we wait for the inferno to get out of hand before we take steps to stop the fire? Are we hoping that we will survive the coming crisis? When you turn left, the economy is in shambles and it seems there are no easy answers for recovery. On the right turn, the politicians are stoking the fires of genocide and impatience, displaying gross incapacity, enmeshed in corruption while pretending to be fighting the same and manifesting a devil-may-care attitude towards the welfare of the bulk of the population.

Are we on the road to Rwanda and genocide? We pay it does not come true but the dance steps, the body language and spoken words of the dancers are surely pointing in that direction. There is Nnamdi Kanu leading a secessionist movement to revive the defunct Biafra Republic. His words and action were considered by the authorities as treasonable and for which he faced charges in court. On the other side are the Arewa youths who feel agitated by the call for secession and their response is a “quit notice” to all persons of Igbo extraction living in the North to leave on or before October 1, 2017. There is a further threat of killings in the name of alleged mop-up operations should there be some who fail to obey the “quit notice”.  But the chorus emanating from the federal and state authorities is: It is well!

The first reaction of the authorities was an order for the arrest and prosecution of the leaders of the coalition of Arewa youths issuing the “quit notice”. This did not happen. Thereafter, several meetings were held with the Federal Government and some  states, reassuring that the “quit notice” was given in vain. Indeed, the media has reported the issuers of the “quit notice” reaffirming that they had not withdrawn the notice and taunting those against whom they had moved with their proverbial powers to take life and property with impunity. The latest, however, are media reports that the promoters of the “quit notice” allegedly wrote a song and recorded the same using the most vile of language to describe persons of Igbo extraction, reminding persons of Northern extraction of all the imagined wrongs done to them by Igbo and urging action against the former.  And the chorus emanating from the federal and state authorities is: It is well.

Many posers flood my mind. Is the Federal Government waiting for October 1 for loss of lives and property, for the breakdown of law and order, before it takes action?  What is hate speech and what are the contours of its parameters? If some group of people pronounce a threat and for whatever reasons, some negatives happen around their threatened action date, would anyone look far for the offenders? Does the Federal Government believe it can open a second theatre of operations when the fight against the renewed Boko Haram insurgency is still on? Maybe, the government is waiting for blood to flow and thereafter set up a panel to determine the immediate and remote causes and as usual, bury the report in the archives. And the relatives of the victims will simply nurse their losses and life will go on. This may not be the situation this time round as any victim, survivor or relative would not be assuaged by mere speeches because they understand that it was premeditated, planned whilst the authorities failed, refused and neglected to act.

May I remind the federal authorities that the state is obligated to prevent, investigate and punish any human rights violation carried out in its territory not only by the acts of public officers but also directly resulting from acts not directly imputable to officers of the state. This has been aptly captured in the Velasques Rodrigues case in the following words:”…to take reasonable steps to prevent human rights violations and to use the means at its disposal to carry out investigations of violations committed within its jurisdiction; to identify those responsible, to impose the appropriate punishment and to ensure the victims adequate compensation.”

We are at the first stage where preventive action can be taken and prevention has been stated to better than seeking a cure.

We have a situation where there is no peace in the ruling All progressives Congress in Kaduna State. Miscreants were mobilised to disperse a peaceful press conference of two serving senators and in the process inflicting serious bodily harm on journalists and other attendees and media equipment was destroyed. Up till date, the police have made no arrests whilst the issue of generating delegates for a convention through a democratic process remains unresolved in the same state. And the chorus emanating from the state and all and sundry is; it is well.

Go a little further into the North-West, the Sokoto State Government was reported to have invested N700million to purchase a house for the Sultan of Sokoto. This is an impoverished state whose health and education indicators are one of the worst in the federation. And this is the priority of the state government? Again, the Governor of Katsina State last week claimed that that the state government subsidises Hajj trips with about N1billion annually. This is another state with poor social indicators. Turn down the South-East and Ebonyi State, literally, the poorest of the states in the region; the state House of Assembly is reported to have approved borrowing in the sum of N2.5bn for the government to build an ecumenical centre. And the chorus emanating from the three states and sundry others is: It is well.

In the South-South, the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, is revoking the Certificate of Occupancy of a hotel used by the All Progressives Congress for a function! And the state is keen on attracting investors. And virtually all the governors are keen on having control of the police under the euphoria of a state police in the name of decentralisation and a more functional federation. And the chorus emanating from the state and all and sundry is: It is well.

At the last count, the President has been away for almost three months; high level state officials have taken turns to visit him in a London hospital and brought back still pictures. No videos, no speeches, only reports that he appreciated the “patience” of Nigerians and their prayers for him. Buhari is treated at taxpayers’ expense but the taxpayers do not know what is wrong with their President. The National Assembly asks no questions and certain components of the critical media suddenly lost their voice. The taxpayers have not been told the nature of the President’s ailment and what they are paying for. Then, we heard the metaphor of the Lion King, the jackals and hyaena, etc., and the imminent return of the Lion King, all to no avail. And the chorus emanating from the deafening silence across the federation is: It is well.

In the final analysis, government at all levels must take action to ensure that lives and property are secure; the rule of law is mainstreamed and the security and welfare of the people becomes the basis for state action. Otherwise, we shall continue groping in the dark while other nations make progress.

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Olalekan Adetayo, Abuja

The Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, has dropped two persons nominated to the board of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission. They were dropped for reportedly being under investigation by the same commission.

Osinbajo had last week named a new chairman and board members for the commission.

The Senior Special Assistant to the Acting President on Media and Publicity, Mr Laolu Akande, disclosed on his Twitter handle on Sunday that the nomination of the affected persons had been stepped down.

Akande wrote, “We are stepping down two of the new ICPC board nominees who have ongoing investigation issues with the commission as this presents a conflict.

“While existence of allegations or petitions against someone shouldn’t necessarily disqualify them from considerations for appointments, this case presents a peculiarity as we have confirmed that the agency in which they are to serve is indeed investigating the two of them.

“A basic check showed no court convictions against them; but when weighty petitions come up, this administration will always do the right thing.”

Akande had on Friday told our correspondent that the allegation against the two nominees would be thoroughly investigated.

“These claims would be promptly investigated. The Presidency will surely do only what is right, proper and seen to be so,” Akande had said.

Osinbajo had on Tuesday redeployed the Chairman of the ICPC, Ekpo Nta, to the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission. In his place, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye was appointed as chairman with a renewable tenure of five years.

Owasanoye was part of the Prof. Itse Sagay-led Presidential Committee on Anti-Corruption.

Also appointed as members of the ICPC board are Dr Grace Chinda, Okolo Titus, Obiora Igwedebia, Mrs Olubukola Balogun, Group Capt. Sam Ewang (retd.), Justice Adamu Bello, Hannatu Mohammed and Abdullahi Maikano Saidu.

Others are Dr. Sa’ad Alanamu, Yahaya Umar Daud, Khamis Ahmed Mailantarki, Maimuna Aliyu while Prof. Musa Usman Abubakar would serve as secretary.

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Femi Makinde, Osogbo

The Osun State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Adelani Baderinwa, has accused the pensioners under the aegis of the 2011/2012 Forum of Pensioners of constituting themselves into nuisance to the people of the state and blackmailing the state government at the same time.

The commissioner said this statement in reaction to last Thursday’s protest organised by the pensioners to press home the demand for the payment of their pension arrears and gratuities.

Baderinwa said the constant protest by the group of pensioners was a public disturbance, describing their conduct as misleading and unbecoming of senior citizens.

The state government explained that the N6.314bn second tranche of the Paris Club loan refund  was used to pay the July and August 2015 salary arrears, balance of 2015 leave bonus and the July 2017 salaries and pensions which amounted to a total of N5, 131,680,567.59.

He added that this was done in line with the recommendation of  the Hassan Sunmonu-led Revenue Allocation Committee.

Baderinwa also said that the state’s internally generated revenue was not up to N1.5bn, yet the pensioners,  who he said had  chosen  to be a  tool in the hands of the opposition, allegedly lied that the IGR and PAYE was N9.5bn.

He said the gratuities of pensioners in the state were over N9bn and the state could not   afford that now.

The statement read, “It is crystal clear that the so-called 2011/2012 pensioners group are obvious liars with their incessant political protests, and unbecoming of a retired civil servant who ought to be placed and respected as a senior citizen.

“The 2011/2012 pensioners group are a fraction of those who retired from service in 2012 to avoid being part of the Contributory Pension Scheme.

“It is disturbing and unfortunate that the acclaimed 2011/2012 retires have chosen to be blackmailing the Osun State Government and persistently constituting nuisance on the streets of Osogbo to the detriment of the peace-loving citizens through sponsored protest on the payment of gratuity and not pension.”

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Oyetunji Abioye

The naira closed at 365 per United States dollar at the parallel market on Sunday, reversing the gain it recorded in the past week.

The local unit had closed last week at 363/dollar.

The naira, which initially traded at 365/dollar, recorded slight after the Central Bank of Nigeria sold $462m to players in the foreign exchange market last Monday.

Specifically, the regulator sold the total sum of $462,336,426.74.

A breakdown showed that the Retail Secondary Market Intervention Sales received the largest allocation of $267.3m, while the sum of $100m was offered for wholesale interventions; the sum of $50m was allocated to the Small and Medium Enterprises forex window.

Those requiring foreign exchange for Business/Personal Travel Allowances, tuition and medical fees, among others, got a total allocation of $45m.

The naira is forecast to trade in a narrow range this week, and is expected to get support due to dollar inflows from CBN.

At the official interbank market, the naira has stuck around 305.90/dollar since August 2016.

On the CBN Investor and Exporters FX window, the local currency was quoted at 367 to the dollar, Reuters reported.

Economic and financial analysts said the continued intervention by the CBN was helping the regulator to keep the local currency from depreciating beyond the current state.

They said if the central bank failed to sell the greenback, the naira could begin to slide further.

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1 – Back-up your files and data

Apple introduced its hassle-free Time Machine back-up solution alongside OS X Leopard back in October 2007.

And nine years on, nothing on Windows comes close.

The effortless in-built app launches the first time you plug an external drive into your MacBook or iMac and checks whether you want to create a back-up. Time Machine saves hourly back-ups for the last 24 hours, daily backups for the past month, and weekly back-ups for everything else.

These back-ups can be used to restore your computer to a specific date after a fresh operating system installation, or import all of your documents, music, files, saved settings and in-app preferences to a new computer.

But it’s not simply a case of all-or-nothing.

You can also delve into your back-ups via the stunning user interface, and shuffle through saved snapshots to retrieve a single file from a folder you deleted months ago. Once you’ve located the file in your back-up, you just drag-and-drop to a chosen folder on your current machine.

2 – Quickly preview the contents of a file

This incredibly simple feature – once you start using it – will leave you wondering how you ever lived without it.

Dubbed Quick Look, the system-wide functionality lets you peek into the contents of almost any file on your machine – without having to open it.

Apple users can quickly select a file within their Finder window and hit the space bar to launch a large preview window showcasing the contents of the file. Quick Look will let you scroll through a lengthy word document, zoom into a photograph, and will even play a movie file.

It’s incredibly convenient, and lets you double-check you have the right file before you commit to launching a fully-featured application like Photoshop, or Final Cut Pro.

It also means you no longer have an excuse for attaching the wrong file to an email.

3 – Defragging your hard drive

Any Windows users reading this will likely be familiar with the process of defragging their machine – rebranded to Optimise Disk in the most recent software updates – but Mac owners might be a little more confused.

Defragmenting the hard drive is something Windows users have to do at regular intervals to speed up their machines. It reorganises the data written to your hard drive and fills in any holes that have appeared, minimising how far the heads have to travel across the drive to load files or apps.

Apple’s desktop operating system, OS X, is designed differently to Windows and will quietly defragment your files in the background whenever you install new software. That means the system is always up-to-date.

4 – Uninstalling apps

On Windows and Apple desktop machines, users are asked to drag a file into the Recycling Bin or Trash to delete it from the system.

When OS X users want to delete an installed app, the same principle applies, meaning all they have to do is drag the offending software into the Trash.

Confusingly, Windows users cannot uninstall software using the same technique they use to remove unwanted files. Instead, Microsoft wants its users to launch a standalone app from the Control Panel dubbed Uninstall a Programme.

You then have to find the software you want to uninstall, select it, and then click Uninstall.

5 – Retrieve something you’ve deleted from your file

Apple introduced Versions alongside OS X Lion in October 2011.

This staggeringly useful feature catalogues a history of the document you are working on, as you save any changes. You can then browse through the different iterations of the document, comparing it side-by-side with the latest draft.

You can restore entire past versions, or bring single elements from past drafts – like an image you deleted three hours ago, or a line of text you drafted last year – back into your working document.

It’s essentially a super-charged version of Undo, and when it’s combined with Apple’s in-built Auto Save feature (which saves during pauses in your work, or should you work continuously, saves every five minutes) means you will never lose a detail you’ve overwritten or deleted from your file.

Granted, Windows users can retrieve entire files.

But you’ll struggle to dig-out a conclusion you penned in the same Word Document six months ago.

6 – Move and rename a file, even when it’s open in another app

This is another entry that could baffle life-long Mac users, but Microsoft’s almost-universal desktop operating system kicks up an almighty fuss whenever you try to rename or relocate a file that’s open in another app.

“The action can’t be completed because the file is open in another programme,” the prompt warns users.

OS X users do not experience the same restrictions and can drag-and-drop files around the system without breaking a sweat.

Files can be renamed from the Finder, or from the open app.

And while we’re on the subject, Apple users have much more freedom when it comes to naming files. You may have noticed Microsoft throws its toys out of the pram whenever you try to the following characters in a filename / ?<> : * | “ . Granted, Apple has restrictions on characters, too. But this is limited to only one – the colon. And if try to type one by mistake, the OS automatically replaces it with a dash.

7 – Multi-touch gestures

As Apple has evolved the multi-touch display on its best-selling iPhone, many of the biggest innovations have emigrated across to the Mac range too.

Mac users can swipe between full-screen apps, scroll, launch Mission Control, pinch to zoom and rotate photographs by circling two fingertips on the trackpad. Apple has included a dozen or so more gestures, as well as a number of slickly-produced tutorial videos, enabled from within system preferences.

Expanding your thumb and three fingers apart across the trackpad, like you are miming brushing away the virtual windows on-screen, shuffles all of your open apps out of the way to reveal the desktop – a personal favourite.

Apple’s latest laptops include a Force Touch trackpad, which uses haptic feedback to imitate a physical click with accuracy.

Force Touch also brings variable levels of sensitivity, driven through software, which lets users control the speed as they fast-forward through a QuickTime video simply by the amount of pressure applied to the trackpad.

You can also Force click on a name to quickly preview their contact details, Force click a tracking number in Safari or Mail to see shipping details in a popover, and more.

Granted, many Windows 10 PCs now ships with touchscreen displays, which solves some of the same problems as the multi-touch trackpad on OS X, but for our money, these often feel less intuitive on a desktop machine.

And as Apple continues to advance its Force Touch capabilities with macOS Sierra, Windows users could find themselves being left further and further behind.

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The International Monetary Fund concluded its review of Nigeria’s economic policies, in line with its Article IV Consultations, by July 30, 2017, and warned that although Nigeria’s economy might just grow marginally this year, the threat to full recovery still remained elevated, while the economy was also unlikely to grow sufficiently, to reduce unemployment and poverty. The IMF consequently advised government to increase its sources of revenue apart from crude oil, and reduce further debt accretion in view of the already bloated and oppressive service charges.

These measures, according to IMF, should be simultaneously accompanied by a monetary policy that “avoids CBN’s direct financing of government, outside the fiscal plan. Furthermore, monetary policy should be kept sufficiently tight, with a unified and market based exchange rate with rapid implementation of structural reforms.”

 Nevertheless, despite these IMF prescriptions, unemployment and poverty will still clearly deepen, if tight monetary policies drive cost of funds, well above 20 per cent, while excess liquidity remains a perennial burden fuelling inflation.

 The above title and the following excerpts are from The Guardian newspaper’s expanded editorial of July 31, 2017. Please read on.

“This newspaper hereby reaffirms its position, earlier canvassed in its editorial of 18/7/2017 titled, “Economy: Lend to rather than borrow from IMF”, that the economy has the stamina to dispense with external budgetary support and to still out-perform the ERGP (Economic Recovery & Growth Plan), if (and only if) the four decades-long business-as-usual economic sabotage through implementation of inappropriate fiscal and monetary measures, does stop. That editorial also indicated sources of revenue being diverted elsewhere to the neglect of delivering essential services. Notably, however, Nigeria has a mixed enterprise economic system. Consequently, government does not require gigantic budgets to create the conducive environment that facilitates participation by the much larger, private sector, in delivering basic projects and essential services.

Nonetheless, it is pertinent that Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun, should explain why government’s ‘small-sized budgets’ omit the gargantuan proceeds that accrue from the difference between the FAAC (budget) exchange rate and the depreciated exchange rate, from auctions of withheld Federation Account dollar allocations. The following questions therefore need urgent answers: (1) Are all such proceeds looted? (2) Is such wholesale looting the reason for the perpetuation of dollar auctions? (3) Does the Federal Ministry of Finance not breach the annual Appropriation Act when it devalues the naira and thereby bleeds the economy? The auctions sabotage the national currency and prevent efficient working of the economy. This baneful practice should therefore stop.

However, at an Executive Business Forum, in Abuja, in July 2017, the finance minister soft-pedalled the need ‘to plug all the stealing and all the waste’ but blamed tax evasion for the low tax/GDP ratio, which was in turn, responsible for increasing public debt, small size national budgets and government’s incapacity to deliver basic projects.

 Indeed, for the purpose of comparison between two countries, tax/GDP ratios need to be adjusted, mainly because the level of tax takings depends on earned incomes and individual country tax policies. There are economically prosperous tax havens and oil-rich countries that impose very little or no tax at all on citizens. Moreover, tax holiday and low tax level are part of package of incentives for luring and retaining investors to promote economic prosperity. In advanced countries, one strategy for combating economic recession is to reduce and refund taxes to enable businesses to produce and for consumers to go on a spending spree. Thus, while tax evasion should not be condoned, the FGN is sabotaging full blast economic recovery by embarking on intense tax collection drive, at a time Nigeria’s economy is in recession or when exit from recession may be imminent.

 However, a useful indicator for gauging economic prosperity is the volume of bank credit as a proportion of the GDP. This indicator points to the intensity of economic activity, that is in turn dependent on the tripodal factors of low interest rate, low inflation and a realistic and stable exchange rate. Does the actual accessed volume of credit matter? Yes! For instance, after several years, Nigeria’s over 17 million MSM enterprises have yet to fully utilise the CBN’s N220bn Development Fund, owing to unattractive interest rate of nine per cent, excluding ‘padding’. Such a meagre loan volume would not lift economic activity. And it has no tax value.

 Thus, over the years, the greatest form of economic sabotage committed by the Federal Government, which is the exclusive monetary authority and biggest public spender, is the refusal to discard withholding of Federation Account dollar allocations and thereby blocking the road to the tripodal factors. The FGN jettisoned the realisation of the CBN’s statutory object of guaranteeing price and monetary stability, which alone would prompt cheap bank credit and extensive private sector investment to raise domestic bank credit/GDP ratio. The result? In 2014, the full year before crude oil prices began to dive, the World Bank data show domestic credit provided by the financial sector, as a proportion of GDP, stood at Nigeria (22), Malaysia (140), Japan (374) and U.S.A. (253).

 Apart from frustrating the tripodal factors, the deliberate withholding of federation’s dollar allocations, since 1971, has created other abuses that have thoroughly sabotaged and distorted the economy. Real production has ceased to be the goal of profitable business undertaking. The poisoned harvest includes multiple currency practices (with deep-rooted dollarisation as offshoot) and custom-made fragmented forex windows, for palming off the bulk of the withheld FA foreign exchange. Implication? One, there is absence of a single forex market to coalesce a realistic and stable exchange rate centred on the Appropriation Act exchange rate. The lack of a realistic and stable exchange rate breeds persistently under-performing economy and idiomatically sabotages and unfortunately shoots the country in the foot.

 Two, the Buhari administration’s expressed intention to borrow $4bn from the local debt market evidences the multiple currency practices. Shamefully, it connotes the co-existence of two monetary bodies. One body, governed under the 1999 Constitution, has naira as a national currency. Another body, comprising cheats and haters of Nigeria, adopts as its currency the alien US dollar and wangles its stock of dollars largely from withheld Federal Allocation dollar allocations against Nigeria’s interest. This unwholesome origin of the domestic dollar debt market makes it an integral part of ‘all the stealing and all the waste’ which the finance minister conveniently (or is it collusively?) downplayed at the recent Abuja business forum. Thus, in place of real production that boosts overall economic prosperity, the manifest avenues of making easy money have become multiple rate currency practices, dollarisation and domestic dollar debt market. These are unproductive practices that sabotage the economy, they should be stamped out.

Ordinarily, the country’s public and private sector forex earnings should flow directly to fund eligible imports, while surplus forex is kept as the Federal Government-owned external reserves by the CBN. But in Nigeria’s upside-down forex arrangement, the external reserves are confiscated by the CBN. They are called the CBN’s external reserves. The CBN acquires its external reserves, through printing by fiat, purported naira equivalent figures that catch the apex bank’s fancy.

The presence of two monetary entities technically means government unwittingly shares Nigeria’s sovereign responsibilities and independence with imposters. Therefore, the National Assembly should urgently draw the attention of the President to the unconstitutional development, which has thoroughly undermined national economic advancement.

 In conclusion, the numerous policies and measures, acts and practices of economic sabotage by the Federal Government (a few which are highlighted above) should now cease. The cabinet and Economic Management Team should therefore, immediately, direct both the FAAC to share the Federal Allocation receipts in the very currencies the amounts accrue and the CBN to operate a single forex market system, in the manner repeatedly outlined by this newspaper.”

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As mortgage loans to homeowners under the National Housing Fund scheme rise, experts are of the opinion that a lot more needs to be done, MAUREEN IHUA-MADUENYI writes

Loan disbursement to homeowners under the National Housing Fund being administered by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria has risen to N72.47bn.

According to findings by The PUNCH, the sum, recorded in July 2017, is the total loan given to about 17,260 individual contributors since the NHF scheme commenced in 1992.

Findings also indicate that about 20,435 housing units have been funded under the NHF scheme to date.

The NHF is a scheme established by the Federal Government to support Nigerians in all sectors of the economy, particularly those in the low and medium income levels who cannot afford commercial housing loans, in their quest to own their houses.

The fund, which was established by the NHF Act No.3 of 1992, was created to mobilise funds for the provision of affordable residential houses for employed Nigerians who are above the age of 18 for the purpose of erecting, purchasing or renovating houses, and also provide long-term loans to mortgage institutions for lending to contributors, among other benefits.

The scheme is funded through a mandatory contribution of 2.5 per cent of monthly incomes of Nigerians earning N3,000 and above; 10 per cent of loans and advances portfolio of commercial and merchant banks; and insurance companies are mandated to invest 20 per cent of their non-life and 40 per cent of life funds in the housing sector, with 50 per cent of these directly in the NHF; while the Federal Government is also to make financial contributions.

Contributions to the scheme had grown from N13bn to N43bn early this year, with total mortgages created rising to 17,000 from less than 16,000 previously.

Experts are, however, of the opinion that all the efforts made towards providing housing finance so far, have barely scratched the surface.

The Chairman, Sparklight Property Development Company, Chief Toyin Adeyinka, said the N72bn so far given as loans to homeowners was too little compared to the actual housing finance need of Nigerians.

He stated, “It is like a drop in the ocean compared to what we need. The housing deficit in the country is so huge that we need a lot of resources. If we divide N72bn by the number of states we have in the country, that is nothing.

“Apart from the NHF, there is a need to create other funding windows at single-digit interest rates, especially for real estate developers to build more houses like the Estate Developers Loan scheme also administered by the FMBN.

“On the other hand, the awareness of the NHF is very low; a lot of people do not know how to access the fund. There is a need for the FMBN to also streamline the process so that within a space of six to nine months, people can access loans. That will also help in this period of recession, because jobs will be created.”

Following calls by housing finance professionals, the FMBN was recently recapitalised to the tune of N500bn, which according to the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, will reposition it to efficiently carry out its mandate under the Federal Government’s National Housing Programme, widen the country’s mortgage space and also deepen the housing finance market through mortgage creation.

The FMBN had in a document obtained by our correspondent stated that the country needed over N40tn in mortgage finance to address the present housing shortage, adding that while the housing deficit had been put in the region of 14 million to 17 million units, with 72 million to 102 million Nigerians without access to decent housing, mortgage loans and advances by banks were still insignificant due to their long-term nature compared to the short-term nature of the banks’ liabilities.

The immediate past Managing Director of the FMBN, Dr. Richard Esin, sometime ago, noted that the country’s mortgage system was still underdeveloped and could not effectively drive homeownership, as more than 90 per cent of new homes were still being built with funds from personal savings.

The Second Vice-President, Nigerian Institute of Building, Mr. Kunle Awobodu, said the NHF had not made the required impact in the housing sector due to difficulties in accessing the fund, adding that a lot of people did not know about its existence.

“It is not easy to access mortgage for those who aspire to build with it. Many people make contributions to the NHF but are not even aware of it. It is also near impossible to get the loan,” he said.

The President, Mortgage Banking Association of Nigeria and Managing Director, TrustBond Mortgage Bank Plc, Mr. Niyi Akinlusi, however, noted that the solution to the challenges of the NHF would be to widen collection like the pension fund.

He said, “If you compare the NHF with the pension fund, which is in excess of N6tn, you will find that the contribution to the housing fund is low and so is compliance. Under the pension fund, it is eight per cent contribution by employee and 10 per cent by the employer, and almost all organisations comply.

“But under the NHF, only 2.5 per cent of the basic salary is contributed by the employer only. The total collection so far is less than N100bn. There is also more effective compliance to pension fund; meanwhile, the value chain for the NHF is better for the economy with its multiplier effect. For each house that is constructed, at least 35 people are employed.”

Akinlusi suggested that the FMBN should improve on awareness and compliance, and also consider reviewing the percentage of contribution to the NHF.

“There are a lot of states and companies that are not complying with the NHF contribution, but pension fund is obligatory; so beyond education, compliance should be made obligatory, because the NHF is important for economic empowerment,” he added.

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Okechukwu Nnodim, Abuja

The total quantum of electricity on the nation’s power grid crashed by 1,835.6 megawatts within a period of three days.

After reaching a peak of 4,282.6MW on August 2, 2017, power generation dropped to as low as 2,447MW on August 5, according to the latest data on the performance of the grid obtained in Abuja on Sunday.

Power generation has continued to fluctuate for several months now, as operators blame the development on gas and frequency constraints.

The recent power briefing from the Transmission Company of Nigeria stated that 1,651MW of electricity could not be generated as a result of frequency management constraint on Friday alone, which was due to loss of feeders of power distribution companies.

It also stated that the reported gas constraint resulted in the inability to generate 505MW on the same day.

However, further findings showed that electricity generation since the beginning of August had continue to hover between 2,387MW and 4,280MW.

On Wednesday, data indicated that gas-fired electricity-generating turbines in seven stations across the country were dormant, a development that adversely affected power generation.

The industry data showed that on August 2, all the hydro and steam power stations had at least one hydro or steam turbine that was functional. It highlighted three hydro power stations as well as three steam stations.

But out of the 22 gas power generating stations that were captured in the report, seven had dormant turbines, and they were Afam IV-V, Alaoji NIPP, Olorunsogo NIPP, A.E.S, ASCO, Rivers IPP and Gbarain NIPP.

It was also gathered that increased gas constraints to power-producing turbines was another reason why some of the machines were left dormant.

The Executive Secretary, Association of Power Generation Companies, Dr. Joy Ogaji, recently announced that electricity producers were owed over N500bn by the market, adding that this had made it tough for some of the Gencos to pay their gas suppliers.

Ogaji had said, “For us to be able to procure gas, we need money. Gas companies are owed several billions by us. We are being owed nearly N600bn and we are owing gas companies nearly N200bn.

“Most of them now say they cannot supply anymore until we pay. In fact, most of the companies like Shell and Total now do what we call pay-before-service. And since the market is paying us 29 per cent out of the expected 100 per cent, how do we pay for the gas?

“Some of these power companies that you’ve heard about cannot put all their machines on, they will just select from maybe out of five machines; they will just put on two or one, depending on what you can pay for with respect to gas. That’s the situation and it is a precarious and pitiable state.”

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Ozioma Ubabukoh

Surfwella, a free Wi-Fi facility, will be made available in Nigerian universities, from this week, to give a boost to Stertiary education in the country.

The Chief Marketing Officer, Surfwella, Olusola Bankole, said on Sunday that the firm would make available the free Wi-Fi in all university campuses in the country.

Surfwella is a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative of an indigenous 4G operator, Cyberspace Network Limited, and a platform for social and cognitive computing.

“The University of Abuja will be the first beneficiary, with the service scheduled for launch on the institution’s campus this week Wednesday,” Bankole said.

According to him, while the firm is unveiling the service at the University of Abuja and other institutions, it is still building and adding more features on the Internet infrastructure.

“The usage is totally free. No payment, no subscription, no data purchase, and no need for modems. It is free Internet in the most useable form on the Wi-Fi,” he said.

He said, “The Lagos State University will be next, followed in quick succession by the College of Agric, Lafiaji, and the University of Lagos.”

Bankole said that Surfwella was doing this as a way to give back to the society.

“It is our own form of Corporate Social Responsibility. It is all about empowering the students to be globally competitive, and access to free Internet is the best way to empower the budding oncoming Generation-Z.

“The whole idea of this project is to ensure that future graduates from universities across the country will compete with their contemporaries from other countries of the globe. More so, the surest way to be an entrepreneur is to acquiring Information and Communications Technology skills,” he added.

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Olaleye Aluko, Abuja

The Academic Staff Union of Universities has said talks are still ongoing with the Federal Government to secure the release of the  University of Maiduguri lecturers abducted by the Boko Haram terrorists.

The ASUU President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, who confirmed this to our correspondent in an interview, said the union had been assured of “ongoing efforts” by the government, noting that he could not divulge further details for security reasons.

The lecturers were abducted during an oil exploration trip in Barno Yasu area of the Magumeri Local Government Area of Borno State near the Lake Chad region.

Ogunyemi said, “The government has asked us to give them some time. Our members are working with them. We have also given them our suggestions, and they have told us to give them time.

“We are monitoring the efforts. The government did not give us the full details. But you recall that the service chiefs were also asked to relocate to Borno. So efforts are on.”

Meanwhile, troops of the Nigerian Army under Operation Lafiya Dole have killed two Boko Haram terrorists during an ambush in Alargano area.

The Director, Army Public Relations, Brig. Gen. Sani Usman, who confirmed this, said, “The troops of the Forward Operation Base Mainok, in the early hours of Sunday laid ambush for the terrorists. We recovered their weapons, two motorcycles, jerry cans and grounded guinea corn.

“Similarly, troops of 151 Battalion, 21 Brigade, discovered multiple Improvised Explosive Devices, connected together planted on the road at a suspected terrorist ambush site around Banki Junction in Bama. The troops successfully disconnected and recovered them.”

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Olalekan Adetayo, Abuja

The Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, says Nigeria’s problem is not about lack of resources as being believed in many quarters but about the management of the scarce resources.

According to a statement on Sunday by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, the Acting President spoke on Thursday evening while receiving Dr. Oluyinka Olutoye, a Houston, US-based Nigerian doctor who led a medical team that successfully operated on a foetus.

Osinbajo described Olutoye’s achievement as remarkable in every sense, saying Nigerians continued to shine in various ways.

He said he had learnt from his over two years’ experience in the Presidency that the country could be well run because the country produces the best in every sector.

He noted that the Federal Government “is  doing more when funds are scarce than in the days when oil was selling at over $100 per barrel.”

Osinbajo said, “This country can be well run because we produce the best in every way, but it will take a lot of work by good men and women. This is what I have learnt in the past over two years here. If we do the right things, day by day, we will change and improve the Nigerian situation significantly.

“The problem is not about the availability of resources, but it is the management. When we were making over a $100 per barrel, we were owing oil JVC cash calls, not able to pay salaries and owing contractors.

“Now that we are down in earnings by 60 per cent, we have sorted out the problem of cash calls and are able to support states to pay salaries.”

Speaking earlier, Olutoye attributed his medical successes in the US to his Nigerian training and education up till university level having graduated from the then University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife).

“All we have achieved from primary to university is from Nigeria, and I believe that Nigeria will surpass what we have achieved out there,” he said.

Olutoye had also been an active member of another medical team that had separated a set of conjoined twins successfully in the US.

That team included two other Nigerian female doctors including his wife, Toyin, an anesthesiologist, and Dr. Oluyemisi Adeyemi-Fowode, a pediatric gynaecology fellow.

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Oyetunji Abioye and Ramon Oladimeji

A Lagos lawyer and human rights activist, Mr. Femi Falana, has thrown his weight behind the calls for the country to return to the 1963 Constitution.

Falana argued that returning the country to the “1963 Constitution with necessary modifications” would put an end to the needless arguments over what kind of restructuring the country actually needs.

Falana, who described the 1963 Constitution as the only constitution “ever written and enacted by the Nigerian people through their representatives in the parliament,” said all other constitutions were enacted and imposed on Nigerians by either the colonial rulers or military dictators.

READ: Nigeria won’t progress with 1999 Constitution, says Bisi Akande

The Lagos lawyer also accused the All Progressives Congress and some principal officers of the National Assembly of working against the wish of Nigerians to get the country restructured.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria spoke at an exclusive interview with our correspondents in Lagos.

He said, “What is required is a restructuring that will return the country to the status quo ante bellum. The country has to return to the 1963 Constitution with necessary modifications. In the first place, that was the constitution suspended by the military dictators in January 1966. Secondly, that remains the only constitution that was ever written and enacted by the Nigerian people through their representatives in the parliament. All other constitutions were enacted and imposed on Nigerians by either colonial rulers or military dictators.

“In its manifesto, the All Progressives Congress had promised to restructure the country in order to restore federalism and the federal spirit. Restructuring means the devolution of powers in line with the principles of federalism. In the Nigerian context, devolution of powers means that the Federal Government will be in charge of defence, foreign affairs, immigration, inter-state commerce, fiscal and monetary policy e.t.c. while the states will manage their own affairs and develop at their own pace. But federalism in the first republic was anchored on an effective welfare policy.”

The SAN said successive democratic regimes had failed to amend the country’s constitution, adding that an attempt by the David Mark-led National Assembly to amend the constitution was aborted due to the inclusion of undemocratic sections like conferring immunity on legislators and life pension for leaders of legislative houses.

According to Falana, some principal officers in the National Assembly are eyeing the Presidency and, as such, the legislators are not ready to restructure the country.

He also argued that the establishment of the APC Meaning of Restructuring Committee led by Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State was needless.

READ ALSO: Discard 1999 Constitution, revisit 2014 confab resolutions – YCE

Falana said, “The APC was convinced that the country ought to be restructured. Hence it campaigned and won the election partly on account of its commitment to restructure the country. So, the ruling party cannot turn round and say it does not know what restructuring means. Incidentally, the Chairman of the Meaning of Restructuring Committee of the APC is Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State. Under the Olusegun Obasanjo administration, Mr. El-Rufai was in charge of the Bureau of Public Enterprises which restructured the economy of Nigeria through privatisation. In selling our commonwealth to a few business interests, Mr. El-Rufai perfectly understood the meaning of restructuring.”

Asked why the Senate rejected devolution of power to states in its proposed amendment to the 1999 Constitution, Falana said, “The National Assembly under the leadership of Senator Bukola Saraki is controlled by the APC. Since the APC wants to retain the status quo at all costs, the National Assembly was encouraged to kick against devolution of powers from the centre to the states. Not only was power devolution rejected, the National Assembly also resolved to concentrate more powers in the centre.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: The constitution that Nigeria needs

“This should not surprise the Nigerian people since some of the principal officers of the National Assembly are eyeing the Presidency. They are anxious to exercise the enormous powers of the President of the republic.”

Speaking on other constitutions, the human rights activist said, “The Independence constitution was enacted by the British colonial regime. Hence Queen Elizabeth remained our titular head of state. But the 1963 Constitution which was enacted by the Nigerian people turned Nigeria into a federal republic. The 1979 Constitution was a schedule to Decree 102 of 1979 enacted and signed by General Olusegun Obasanjo. The 1999 Constitution was enacted and signed by General Abdulsalami Abubakar. The document is a schedule to Decree No 24 of 1999. When we demanded for a popular and democratic constitution produced by a Sovereign National Conference, the Abubakar junta said that it had no time to convene the conference.  It was agreed on all hands that a new constitution would be produced upon the restoration of democratic rule.”

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South Korean prosecutors on Monday demanded the heir to the Samsung empire be jailed for 12 years over his role in the corruption scandal that brought down the country’s last president.

At the final hearing in the trial of Lee Jae-Yong, the vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, prosecutors called him the “ultimate beneficiary” of crimes committed in the scandal, which culminated in the impeachment and dismissal of president Park Geun-Hye.

Lee and four other executives are accused of bribing Park’s powerful confidante with millions of dollars to win presidential favours and ease a controversial 2015 merger deal.

“The defendants were closely tied to power and sought personal gains,” the prosecutors said.

They sought a 12-year sentence for Lee, and terms ranging from seven to 10 years for three of his co-accused.

Lee, 49, has effectively been at helm of the vast Samsung group, the world’s biggest smartphone maker and a sprawling business empire, since his father suffered a heart attack in 2014.

Taking the stand for the first time in his defence last week, Lee claimed that he had no role in decision-making at the wider Samsung group and “mostly listened to other executives”.

His lawyers say the allegations were unjustified and the defendants never sought anything in return for the money that was donated.

The verdicts are expected later this month.

AFP

Oladimeji Ramon

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that age should not be a barrier for anyone to lead the country, as long as the person has been chosen by the citizens.

He argued that it was not right to stipulate minimum age for a presidential candidate without also specifying the maximum age beyond which one would no longer be able to contest.

According to him, capability and competence rather than age should be qualifications for leadership, recalling that Gen. Yakubu Gowon became military Head of State at the age of 33.

Obasanjo said this while commenting on the proposition by the Senate to reduce the age of presidential candidates from 40 to 35.

The former President featured on Sunday as the guest speaker at an exposition series tagged, “God in my life,” organised by the Touchbearer Society of the Archbishop Vining Memorial Church Cathedral, Ikeja, Lagos.

“Quite frankly, if we put minimum age, why are we not putting maximum age? If they put minimum age and then say that even if you are 90, you can be President, because there is no maximum age limit to being President. To me, there should be no age limit. Gen. Gowon became the Head of State at the age of 33, I became the Head of State at 39…I believe there should be no age limit; let the people decide,” Obasanjo said.

Taking the audience through his experiences in the military and politics, Obasanjo said he was of the firm belief that the military should not be involved in politics.

He said at best, the military could provide security during elections but “military should not be directly involved in any election.”

He attributed his achievements to God’s grace, saying that God had been partial to him.

Commenting on Obasanjo’s exposition, a former Commonwealth Secretary General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, said the fact that Obasanjo escaped being killed by the late Gen. Sani Abacha, was a testimony of God’s grace in his life.

Anyaoku said, “There have not been many people who were saved from the jaws of death as our distinguished speaker (Obasanjo). And as he rightly acknowledged, he was saved by the grace of God.

“I happened to be in a position, where I was one of those very concerned at the time about his fate. I believe, your Excellency, that the first sentence that (the late Gen. Sani) Abacha’s so-called military tribunal passed on you was death. And Abacha commuted it only after he was visited by two heads of state that I had joined in appealing to, to come and see Abacha. They were the President of Zimbabwe and the President of Uganda.

“Before then, I had persuaded Mr. Nelson Mandela to send his Deputy President, Thabo Mbeki. Thabo Mbeki came and spent about three hours with Abacha, returned home and Nelson Mandela called me to say that the mission had not succeeded. But it was not until these two presidents came and spent three hours and 15 minutes with Abacha, and when they left Nigeria and returned to their countries, one of them then phoned me to say that all that Abacha showed them was a video, alleging that our very distinguished speaker was part of a phantom coup. But these presidents said to me that there was no evidence.

“I must say my last telephone conversation with Gen. Abacha was the day he detained you (Obasanjo). I called him to say that that act in itself was the greatest disservice to our country. And Gen. Abacha said to me, ‘Your Excellency, but you know I love this country and I am prepared to die for this country.’ And I said, rather jokingly, to him, ‘Your Excellency, you know that I am older than you, I have loved the country longer than you have.’ He then said, ‘We’ll, if I can’t convince you, there’s no point anymore in this telephone conversation.’ And then he dropped the telephone. That was my last conversation with Gen. Abacha. But I can tell you that the release of our honourable speaker of today gave the whole world immense pleasure. Because at one time, no less than 60 heads of state including a former American President wrote a letter to Gen. Abacha, calling for his release.”

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Olufemi Atoyebi,  Ibadan

A university graduate, Segun Aderibigbe, 27, has been arrested by the Oyo State Police Command for allegedly breaking into the house of his former boss in Lagos and making away with a Jeep, jewellery, money, among other valuables.

The suspect was said to have been arrested with an accomplice, Issah Rafiu, 28.

The Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Abiodun Odude, said Aderibigbe and Rafiu attempted to cover their tracks at the scene of the robbery by destroying a Closed Circuit Television camera installed on the premises before heading to a hideout in the Apete area of Ibadan, Oyo State.

He said, “The suspects broke into the house at night and carted away several valuable property, including the victim’s Sorenzo Kia Jeep, with number plate, MUS 809 DA, in which the stolen valuables were taken away. To cover their tracks, the suspects vandalised a CCTV camera installed in the house and made away with the PVR decoder.

“Other items recovered from the suspects are one Samsung iPad, a Samsung S4, itel mobile telephones, expensive perfumes, and four pieces of fabric.”

The leader of the two-man gang, Aderibigbe, said he was familiar with the security system in the house having worked with the owner while on industrial training at her company.

He said, “During my industrial training programme with the owner four years ago, she allowed me to live in the house.

“When she travelled out of the country, I thought it was an opportunity for me to loot the house. I knew where the keys were kept and because I studied mechanical engineering, I know how to work on CCTVs to evade being caught.

“I called a friend and we both went to the house to steal the items. I would not have stolen the car, but I needed it to transport the items we stole. I intended to sell the jewellery and other items, but I did not know what to do with the car.”

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Friday Olokor, Jos

Apprehension has taken over the National Headquarters of Evangelical Church Winning All (International) following the abduction of its Christian Education Director, Rev. Jen Moses, by gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.

Although the details of the incident were still sketchy, Northern City News learnt that he was kidnapped on Friday evening between Jere and Bwari on the outskirts of the Federal Capital Territory while on an official meeting.

During the attack, his driver was shot and has been reportedly receiving treatment in Bwari hospital in Abuja, while the kidnappers have placed a call on the church and family members demanding N100m ransom.

The spokesperson of the FCT Police Command, Anjuguri Manzah, said he had yet to receive any report on the kidnap.

“We have not received any report of such an incident. Yes, at that end, Bwari is a very big point and the biggest town. So, oftentimes, people describe everywhere as Bwari which shares boundary with different states”, he stated.

But when contacted, the General Secretary of ECWA, Yunusa Nmadu, confirmed the abduction to Northern City News, saying the bandits had made a demand of N100m ransom.

He said, “The kidnappers were seven Fulani boys; they were below 20 years. The incident happened on Friday night between 8 and 9pm. Reverend Jen Moses was on his way from Jos to Abuja around Jere-Bwari Road. The kidnappers are demanding N100m ransom.

“The vehicle in which he was traveling was also seen on the checkpoint because his driver had a gunshot. The driver was advised to obtain police report before he was treated. I am aware that the incident was reported in a police station somewhere in Bwari Area Council.

“We will rather keep what we have been doing now to ourselves so that we don’t jeopardise investigation and efforts being made to secure his release. We will speak to the press after securing his release.”

Northern City News had reported that on May 10, armed robbers suspected to be Fulani herdsmen had attacked travellers on the ever-busy Jos-Keffi Expressway, carting away mobile phones and money from them.

The robbery took place at about 10am on the Expressway close to a village called Barde, after Gidan Waya in Kaduna State, a few kilometres from Jos, Plateau state capital.

The robbers, numbering about ten, with five of them wielding dangerous weapons, including guns and machetes, came from the bush, stopped vehicles and ordered passengers to lie face-down.

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Olaide Oyelude, Katsina

A 39-year-old man was on Friday remanded in prison custody for allegedly spying for a gang of armed robbers who recently invaded a village in Katsina State.

The hoodlums reportedly made away with about N500,000 cash, foodstuff and women apparels.

Sani Usman a.k.a Nahauwa of Shirwa village in the Charanchi Local Government Area of Katsina State will be in prison custody till September 25, 2017 when his case would come up before Chief Magistrate Falile Dikko for mention.

Usman is facing various charges including criminal conspiracy and armed robbery, which the police said are contrary to Section 6B(10(a)(6)of the robbery  and firearm Act; Special provision Cap .R11 of LFN,2004.

Two members of the robbery gang,  Nafiu Bello and Baballe Hazo, who were also charged alongside Usman, are  however at large.

The First Information Report revealed that the armed robbers numbering about 20 had on July 23 invaded Giaza village in the Kankia Local Government Area of the state around 2 am and robbed one Mallam Saidu Sada and Shaiabu Abdulrasheed, in their house and shops respectively.

The armed robbers were said to be armed with dangerous weapons including AK47 rifles, machetes and sticks, among others.

 Sada told the police he was robbed of N120,000 while his wife, Fatimah, was robbed of N80,000, foodstuff and women wears.

Abdulrasheed, on his part, said the robbers made away with his N255,000 and various provision items in his shop.

The police said that it carried out thorough investigation immediately after the incident was reported at the Kankia police station, noting that the footprints of the robbers were traced to the residence of Nafiu Bello and Baballe Hazo who are now at large.

The prosecutor, Insp. Sani Ado, added that Usman was allegedly seen spying on the village just before the armed robbers struck.

He informed the court that investigation into the case was still in progress and requested for adjournment.

Chief Magistrate Falile subsequently adjourned the case till September 25 and directed that the accused be remanded in prison custody.

She declared, “This court will not take your plea as the offence of armed robbery is only triable by the High Court. After police investigation, your case file will be duplicated and sent to the Ministry of Justice for legal advice.

“If prima facie case is established against you, you will be charged accordingly. If not, you will be discharged in pursuant of appropriate sections of law. You are before this court for cognizance.”

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Festus Abu

Nigeria were dealt a huge blow at the 2017 World Athletics Championships after their  best hope for a metal disk  at the athletics showpiece  Blessing Okagbare crashed out in the semifinal of the  women’s 100m in London on Sunday.

The 28-year-old Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games  double sprint champion, who competed in the third heat, placed fourth.

Okagbare, who arrived in London with a season’s  best of 10.99, was tipped to make it to the final but   the United States-based sprinter ran a disappointing 11.08.

USA’s Tori Bowie (10.91), Ivory Coast’s Murielle Ahoure (10.99) and  Trinidad and Tobago’sMichelle-Lee Ahye (11.04) made it to the final from the group. Bowie progressed to win the title after running 10.85 ahead of Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou (10.86). Okagbare failed to reach the final of the  Rio 2016 Olympic Games after running 11.09 in the semifinal.

The  Beijing 2008 Olympics long jump  bronze medallist, who  won silver  in long jump and bronze in  200m  in her second appearance at the worlds in Moscow in 2013,  will now shift  her attention to the long jump, which begins on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, three Nigerians –  Patience Okon-George, Yinka Ajayi  and Margaret Bamigbose – will attempt to crack the women’s 400m  final  when they compete in the semis at the Olympic Stadium  on Monday.

But each of the women must run  inside 50  seconds to  realise her dreams  of reaching the final at the global championship  for the first time.

Okon-George, Ajayi and Bamgbose  are the second Nigerian  quartermiler trio to qualify for the semifinal of the  worlds after  Folasade Abugan, Sorina Nwachukwu and Amaka Ogoegbunam in  Berlin in 2009.

Okon-George came second in Heat 5 behind USA’s Quanera Hayes in 51.83  while  Ajayi  (51.58) and Bamgbose (51.57) came third in their respective heats.

Ajayi, who is making her debut in the London championships, will run  in the second semis against  defending champion USA’s Allyson Felix, the Jamaican Shericka Jackson and  Novlene Williams-Mills, as well as 2015 World Youth Championships winner Salwa Eid Naser of Bahrain.

Bamgbose faces  USA’S  Phyllis Francis, the only athlete in her heat who has run inside 50 seconds (49.96) this season, Great Britain’s  Zoey Clark, Zambia’s  Kabange Mupopo  and former world champion Amantle Monthso of Botswana.

Falilat Ogunkoya and Fatimah Yusuf  are the only Nigerians  who have reached the final of the event.

Also, Glory Onome  and triple jumper Tosin Oke will  be in action  on Monday.

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Stanley Opara

Dangote Cement Plc, Access Bank Plc and Zenith International Bank Plc emerged as the top three equities (measured by volume) traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange last week.

The companies accounted for 833.966 million shares worth N95.969bn in 3,203 deals, contributing 33.12 per cent and 84.10 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

A total turnover of 2.518 billion shares worth N114.117bn in 23,546 deals were traded last week by investors on the floor of the Exchange in contrast to a total of 2.211 billion shares valued at N30.636bn that exchanged hands penultimate week in 26,287 deals.

The financial services industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 1.507 billion shares valued at N16.354bn traded in 12,511 deals; thus contributing 59.85 per cent and 14.33 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

The industrial goods industry followed with 441.914 million shares worth N89.356m in 1,282 deals. The third place was occupied by the conglomerates industry with a turnover of 184.608 million shares worth N701.665m in 929 deals.

Exchange-traded products during the week stood at 1.166 million units of ETPs valued at N16.169m executed in 17 deals compared with a total of 1.732 million units valued at N13.711m transacted the penultimate  week in 19 deals.

A total of 5,850 units of  Federal Government bonds valued at N5.702m were traded last week in seven deals, compared with a total of 750 units valued at N695,229.29 transacted in the penultimate week in eight deals.

The NSE All-Share Index and market capitalisation appreciated by 1.52 per cent and 1.53 per cent to close the week at37,425.15  and N12.899tn, respectively.

Similarly, all other indices finished higher during last week with the exception of the NSE banking and the NSE oil/gas index that depreciated by 1.64 per cent and 3.05 per cent, respectively, while the NSE ASeM index closed flat.

Thirty-eight equities appreciated in price during last week, lower than 51 equities of the previous week. Twenty-eight equities depreciated in price, higher than 23 equities of the previous week, while 105 equities remained unchanged higher  than 97 equities recorded in the preceding week.

The market remained awash with buy sentiments as investors continued to take positions in companies that released impressive financial scorecards in the past weeks. In the coming week, “we expect market’s performance to be dictated by activities of banking sector stocks as investors anticipate the release of the half-year results and interim dividend declaration by the Tier 1 banks,” analysts at Meristem Securities said.

The naira appreciated by 0.36 per cent week-on-week in the interbank forex market to close at N305.55/dollar. However, in the parallel FX market, it traded flat closing the week at N365/dollar. On Wednesday, the Central Bank of Nigeria held a Treasury Bills Primary Market Auction where instruments worth N229.143bn were issued.

All instruments offered were oversubscribed, and were issued at stop rates of 13.4220 per cent (91-day), 17.4000 per cent (182-day) and 18.5300 per cent(364-day). B

Bearish sentiments prevailed in the Treasury bills secondary market as the average yield advanced by 0.11 per cent to close the week at 18.87 per cent.

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A two-year-old boy had been experiencing persistent catarrh for six months. He had a running nose and fever, which often sent him to the hospital. His parents said they had taken protective measures, such as bathing him with warm water and ensuring that he wore sweaters all the while, but there was no relief.

Also, they made sure that he completed his immunisation schedules. A chest x-ray that was recommended by their family physician showed that the little boy was fine. When the cough would not go away, his mother decided to see a specialist who eventually came up with a proper diagnosis.

It turned out that boy had been experiencing the symptoms of a congenital enlarged adenoid and tonsils, which was responsible for the fever, catarrh and the occasional cough.

Tonsils and adenoids are similar to the lymph nodes or glands found in the neck, groin and armpits. Tonsils are the two round lumps in the back of the throat.

Adenoids are high in the throat behind the nose and the roof of the mouth (soft palate) and are not visible through the mouth or nose without special instruments. Tonsils and adenoids are the body’s first line of defence as part of the immune system.

Signs /symptoms

The patient’s tonsils will be reddish. There may be a white or yellow coating on the tonsils and a slight voice change due to swelling, sore throat, sometimes accompanied by ear pain.

Others are uncomfortable or painful swallowing, swollen lymph nodes in the neck, fever, bad breath, breathing through the mouth (instead of the nose) most of the time, chronic runny nose, noisy breathing during the day, recurrent ear infections.

Diagnosis

For proper diagnosis, the doctor will examine the back of the throat. He may have to use a special scope with a mirror to get a better look at the patient’s adenoids. The scope is made of a thin and flexible material. It is inserted through the nose and down the back of the throat. It may be uncomfortable, but not painful. If the doctor suspects an infection, he or she may order a blood test and X-rays to show how enlarged the adenoid is.

Some doctors may order a sleep study to determine whether enlarged adenoids are the reason for your difficulty in sleeping or if it’s a more serious issue, such as sleep apnea.

Treatment

Bacterial infection of the tonsils, especially those caused by streptococcus, are first treated with antibiotics. The doctor may also prescribe a nasal spray to reduce swelling.

The removal of the tonsils (tonsillectomy) and/or adenoids (adenoidectomy) may be recommended, if there are recurrent infections – despite antibiotic therapy – and/or difficulty in breathing due to enlarged tonsils and/or adenoids.

Such obstruction to breathing causes snoring and disturbed sleep that leads to daytime sleepiness. It may also cause behavioural or school performance problems in some children.

Chronic infection of the adenoids can affect other areas, such as the passage between the back of the nose and the inside of the ear. This can lead to frequent ear infections and a build-up of fluid in the middle ear that may cause temporary hearing loss. Removal of the adenoids may help some children with chronic ear aches accompanied by fluid in the middle ear.

Living with enlarged adenoids

Having enlarged adenoids is a common condition for children and becomes less of an issue as people age. There is nothing that can be done to prevent it.

However, seeking early medical attention for a sore throat or ear infection can help your doctor monitor the size of your adenoids and potentially reduce your discomfort.

If your child has enlarged adenoids that do not require surgery, it may be because they respond well to medication. If this is the case, know that the problem won’t last forever. In kids, it is common for adenoids to shrink as they get older (usually by the time they are in kindergarten).

Indications for surgery

An adenoidectomy is a surgical operation for the removal of adenoids. If the child also has a problem with his tonsils, he will probably have them removed through another surgery called tonsillectomy.

Surgery is useful for some reasons. If the child has a repeated infection of the adenoids, sometimes the infection can spread to the ears and cause a fluid build-up in the middle ear. You should consider surgery when antibiotics can’t get rid of the bacterial infection and when the enlarged adenoids block the airways.

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