Opinion Archives - Page 15 of 16

THAT THERE MAY BE JUSTICE FOR KEREN AKPAGHER By Ambrose Omoregie

Last week, the Nigerian Police conducted an autopsy on the body of the Late Sylvester Omoroni of Dowen College. The body was thereafter released to the family for burial while the Police would continue with its investigation.

The autopsy was said to have been witnessed by the family of the deceased, families of the students accused of the act of bullying as well as the police and State Ministry of Health officials. Autopsy, as is known all over the world, is the first and most basic legal pointer in investigating cause of death.

Remarkably all the parties in the Omoroni case are maintaining a commendable level of maturity and keen determination to cooperate and support the police investigation and ensure that the rule of law is allowed to operate unhindered, even as each party wants justice served.

It would be recalled that the Late Sylvester Omoroni was a JSS 2 student of Dowen College who was alleged to have been bullied by some fellow students in what later led to the death of the youngster. Thanks to the video released by the Omoroni family, the whole nation was able to listen to the disclosure by Sylvester on how he was bullied. Public sentiments was built on, at least, a foundation of verifiable disclosure.

Sadly, there is another case- the case of Keren Akpagher, the late student of Premiere Academy, Abuja- which also is being investigated by the police but appears to have become, of late, an agenda for serving a purpose beyond seeking justice for the dead.

As in the Omoroni case, the police had conducted an autopsy in July on the corpse of Keren Akpagher in the presence of all the parties involved in the case. Customarily, the result of the autopsy would have been read to the parties while police would continue its investigation.

Thankfully, the BBC has done a story – https://bbc.com/pidgin/tori-59453675 – in which it featured a screenshot of the said autopsy report. The cause of death is there for all to see.

Though the police has not publicly released the autopsy report and full report of its investigation, the BBC report has helped the public with a sneak preview of the autopsy report.

In spite of this public knowledge, the mother of Keren Akpagher, edged on by a fledgling body known as the Coalition of Gender Based Violence Responders, has continued to canvas a claim not supported by any autopsy report in a move that appears geared towards rousing public anger against the school and the entire police investigation process.

The matter is being investigated by the Inspector General of Police, at the request of Keren’s mother who requested that the investigation be transferred from the FCT Police to the IGP. That request was granted. The school was not known to have opposed it. The IGP table is the highest echelon of the police system. That is where the case is currently. It is, therefore, baffling that the same person that requested investigation to be transferred to a specific head of an institution would not allow the investigation to run its course but would rather seek to truncate it.

Could there have been two separate autopsy done on the corpse of the late Keren Akpagher? Was there another autopsy report known only to the mother and not to the other parties to the case, including the police?

Keren Akpagher’s mother and the NGO promoting her case in the court of public opinion need to be more forthcoming. To date, they have not shown the world the autopsy report upon which their claim of Keren’s death derives from. They have not shown the world a single audio or video recording of Keren’s confession or disclosure to them before she died to back the outlandish claims being pushed in the media. The Akpagher family, it should be stated, does not fit the profile of a rustic, illiterate and unintelligent family that would not understand how vital it is to get a weighty disclosure such as rape of their only daughter down on tape, audio or video.

There is also another baffling question of why Keren’s mother and the NGO would choose to rouse the social media against the school in what appears as seeking to build enough army of angry, misinformed people that could be mobilized to get the school shut down and/or vandalized at all cost? Why choose public incitement against another party in a case you are involved and that is under investigation? What is the Law Court for?

Curiously, throughout the various activities and undertakings of the group, there has been no single call on the police to speed up its investigation or release its reports. If truly, the aim is to get justice for the departed, why is the group not talking of occupying the Police Headquarters? Or, putting pressure on the public to get the IGP to act faster in the matter? Why, instead, is the talk about occupying the properties and residences of the owners of the school and their other businesses?

On the contrary, why is it only the school that has been calling on the police to publicly release the autopsy and investigation reports? To date, the school said, between August and December, it wrote the Police three times, pleading for the public release of the autopsy report and report of investigation in the case.

Why has Keren’s mother not made this her first demand, in the true spirit of seeking justice?

The advertising industry in Nigeria: Maximising the post-COVID reality – Seyi Tinubu

Since the launch of the first news outlet in Nigeria in 1859, Nigeria’s advertising industry has grown to become a flourishing self-sustaining ecosystem valued at a whopping 425 million U.S. dollars as of 2017 and a projected foreseeable exponential growth in the coming years as a result of the dominance of internet revenue. While many other industries are gradually recovering and working to bounce back from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, this economic powerhouse is set to remain on an upward trajectory Post-covid.

Amidst several months of grounded airplanes, closed churches and empty streets, several countries and global economies have experienced the shock waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. From real estate to finance and healthcare – especially healthcare – almost every sector of the economy has been touched in one way or another. One industry, however, has remained unshaken, resilient, withstanding all the knocks and shocks and continuing to thrive despite oppositions – advertising.

This is not to say that commercial advertising did not experience its fair share of economic downturn, even taking a significant plunge during the pandemic year. In fact, many brands reordered their priorities entirely, choosing to engage in COVID-19 awareness campaigns across social media. Some others took to leveraging collaborations with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as the government to consolidate efforts and flatten the curve of COVID-19 spread, and provide relief packages to vulnerable target groups within the society – although, in hindsight, this may have been a strategic move to ensure that brands are projected positively continuously.

In any case, the advertising industry globally is fast rising back to pre-pandemic levels and even experiencing exponential growth— a vast contrast from the diminishing returns that it had begun to experience a few years back — and the reason is not far-fetched. Several factors are responsible for this drastic turn of events. Firstly, it goes without saying that advertising thrives on consumer behavior. And if there’s one thing we can be certain about post-pandemic, it’s that consumer behavior has changed significantly. What thriving and innovative advertising companies did during the pandemic was to change with the times and seasons that consumers were in. This meant changing from regular TV and radio advertising to digital advertising. This switch was to align with the fact that consumers spent more time at home in front of screens. Commuting time was allocated to binge-watching videos online, and as a result, digital reigned supreme.

Today, COVID-19 has definitely expedited the process of transforming legacy marketing structures and practices for the digital economy. In Nigeria especially, the pandemic served as an exponential accelerator for connected TV and E-commerce marketing- which though were already in place, were struggling to gain widespread popularity. By dwelling more on social media and direct response selling, retailers were able to sell their goods to a wider audience due to shifting consumer behavior to online trade channels, thereby promoting the growth of Nigeria’s e-commerce industry.

This wasn’t the case in the last decade. Just a few years back, advertisers in Nigeria spent a large chunk of their time, effort and resources trying to encourage consumers to buy something they haven’t seen or tried on. Brands across all industries struggled to use the power of their online presence to engage potential customers and drive them down the marketing funnel through video adverts, blogs, email newsletters, or other types of digital lead generation activities. Even before the pandemic, converting that online presence to actual sales was a difficult feat.

However, COVID-19 has drastically altered the rules of the game.

With the pandemic keeping everyone at home, time spent on convincing was less, and many more consumers became more inclined to buy things and use services they needed online. As a result, several mega-companies across Nigeria took advantage of this, leaving advertisers no choice but to keep up with the times, spending about $350 million on advertising and marketing. Whilst there was no dominant sector, the likes of telecommunications giant MTN and beverage colossus, Nigerian Breweries led the table as the highest spenders in the year.

The influencer niche is one area that has been cemented fully into the world of advertising. If there’s one thing that took the internet by storm in 2020, it was influencers. With the rise of social media, apps like TikTok, Instagram and Facebook (Now Meta) became entertainment hotspots for millennials and Gen Zs, more and more people rose to the influencer status, making the position crucial to Nigeria’s advertising industry. In fact, a survey carried out by the Nigeria Influencer Marketing Report (NIMReport) revealed that over 30% of advertisers now value influencer marketing as part of their marketing strategy.

Although we are no longer in the heat of the pandemic, it is incontrovertible that the pandemic brought a lasting shift to Nigeria’s advertising ecosphere. We may have coined the term “post-covid era”, but in actual fact, the pandemic has ushered us into a new age, a new season that we may never return from. This means that the bar has permanently risen for advertising agencies and businesses across Nigeria as consumers are now holding them to higher standards. What they demand nowadays are tactful and mindful marketing strategies. They’re no longer asking if you have what they want but rather expect you to have what they want.

To navigate this new terrain, advertising in Nigeria will need to be more data and technology focused, with advertisers working to integrate some form of artificial intelligence or machine learning into the mix. With the right data, advertising companies will be fully equipped to create the right consumer experiences across one or more dimensions of the four Cs of marketing: Commerce, Community, Content, and Convenience. Rather than a one-size-fits-all approach to these four areas, consumers require a more personalized experience.

Experts such as PWC have predicted that Nigeria’s entertainment market is poised to reach $10.8 billion (N4.4 trillion) in 2023, having reached $4.5 billion in 2018. With the interconnectedness of advertising and entertainment and the recent tactic of presenting advertising as entertainment, it is imperative that relevant stakeholders properly harness the immense benefits available for the advertising sector. This can be done in several ways, with collaboration being paramount. Partnerships between sectoral groups in marketing and communications will expand the advertising landscape of the Nigerian market and will bring world-class advertising opportunities and a broader reach to the target audience, clients and agencies. Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN), Media Independent Practitioners of Nigeria (MIPAN), Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Broadcasting Organizations of Nigeria (BON) and other Industry leaders should consolidate their cooperations expertise on growth-focused activities that will cause the advertising industry to skyrocket in the coming years.

The pandemic has undoubtedly elevated the status of advertising and marketing, with both taking their rightful places as drivers of digital transformation, a key leader of the customer experience journey, and the voice of the consumer — all of which are of utmost importance to C-suite executives. This means that advertising now has the opportunity to seize an ongoing critical role in high-level dialogue and decision-making processes, thereby driving the company’s broader objectives and innovation agenda.

For brands willing to be creative and experimental with their advertising strategies, the post-COVID-19 reality is a unique moment to aim for higher market share.

Seyi Tinubu is a Nigerian entrepreneur. Seyi is the Chairman/CEO of Loatsad Promomedia and a member of the advertising practitioners council of Nigeria

Karen Akpagher And Premiere Academy: The “Truth” They Are Trying To Bury By Noah Christopher

Nearly six months ago, Premiere Academy entered media spotlight when news broke that one of its students, Karen Happuch Akpagher, had died in a hospital in Abuja. The news of the death of the 14-year old diabetics’ patient which occurred on 22nd June, 2021 soon became a hot issue as several media stories authoritatively claimed she was raped to death, sodomized and forced into an oath of secrecy to booth.

Expectedly, the Nigerian Police, first through the FCT Police Command and, later, the Office of the Inspector General of Police, promptly commenced investigations into the matter same June, leading to an autopsy conducted in July. Several other government agencies such as the Ministry of Education, the Directorate of Quality Assurance, National Human Rights Commission and a few other external bodies also waded into the case by conducting probes and investigations on diverse scales and to cover different angles. The Premiere Academy PTA and Board also conducted internal investigations. However, despite all the probes, answer to the key question of Who/What killed Karen has not been found. Interestingly, none of these probes has indicted the school or led to halting its operation.

Perhaps, tired of waiting for official police reports on the autopsy and investigation and seeking to prevent the issue from being swept into silence, Lemmy Ughegbe, an Abuja based journalist, human rights activist and school proprietor instantly activated his NGO, Coalition of Gender Based Violence Responders, to promote the cause of championing justice for Karen Akpagher. With Karen’s mother by his side, Lemmy Ughegbe and GBV Responders have launched a coordinated multi-pronged advocacy spanning media and political institutions, with the aim of getting the death of Karen hanged on Premiere Academy. The evidence, according to the media interventions by the group, is a report allegedly issued to the Akpagher family by Queen’s Hospital, Abuja that said decomposed condom particles were found in the late teenager’s genital, in addition to dead spermatozoa. No audio or video recording of the victim accusing the school or any staff of raping or sexually molesting her; no notation on rape or sexual molestation in the victim’s diary (from which a few media stories have lifted entries); no conclusive report from the autopsy witnessed by all parties and supervised by the police; no report from the police or any private investigator has surfaced to back the claim of rape to date.

Perverting Cause of Justice…

In what appears like frustration by failure of the coordinated campaign to nudge the relevant state and non-state institutions into a mob-styled condemnation of the school, the GBV Responders has further accused the school of blocking the Akpagher family from getting justice. The coordinated social media campaign to push this viewpoint claimed because the owner of the school is a highly connected Nigerian, he was using his connection to obstruct justice for Karen. However, to accuse a school that has opened its doors to and provided its officials for not less than sixteen (16) investigations, invitations, probes and interviews on this Karen matter by several interested bodies from June 25th to December 9th of persecuting the cause of justice seems unfair. Curiously, a check at the school revealed that the GBV Responders that has been championing this claim was one of the NGOs that visited the school on July 3rd to conduct an investigation. Others that have also visited the school, apart from the Police, include the Federal Competition & Consumer Protection Council (2nd July), Directorate of Quality Assurance, FCT Headquarters (2nd July), NAPPS, FCT Chapter (9th July), Abuja Municipal Area Council (9th July), Federal Ministry of Education (8th October), Association of Nigerian Female Students, FCT Chapter (22nd July), NANS, FCT Chapter (22nd July) and FCIID (Severally between 9th November and 9th December).

None of the visitors has accused the school of non-cooperation or obstructing investigation. This may be what has prompted the school to continue to declare that it has nothing to hide and would always welcome every noble effort made to get to the bottom of this sad event.

In trying to prove its innocence and disprove the charge of perverting the cause of justice, the school said it has written three letters to the police pleading for the public release of the autopsy report and report of investigation in the case. From copies sighted, the first letter dated 27th August, 2021 was addressed to the FCT Police Command while two other letters dated 1st December, 2021 and 6th December, 2021 respectively were addressed to the Inspector General of Police. While the police acknowledged receipt of the three letters, it has not responded to any of them or granted the school’s prayer. It is doubtful if the school’s action fits the charge of obstructing the cause of justice

Twisting The Story To Fit A Purpose…

It appears in order to get the school hanged for the allegation of rape, efforts had to be made to show that Karen left the school premises on the 19th June in “serious pains and barely able to walk” (to quote a respected columnist and social commentator who has weighed in on the matter) when she went home, never to return to the school.

Facts are sacred. So, here are a few incontrovertible facts our investigation turned up on how Karen left the school campus on the fateful day.

First, she was picked from school by her mother in person (together with an uncle of hers who had always been coming to pick and drop her on the mother’s instruction). She walked out of the school gate unaided, carrying her luggage to meet her mother. Her mother received her; they rode in the same vehicle and was taken home by her mother. It is doubtful that if she was in pains and unable to walk or manifesting any sign of unwell, the mother would not make immediate contact with the school and/or take her straight to the hospital. But, the mother drove with her from the school without any complaint and they went home together.

Moreover, she was at home with the mother from 19th to 21st when the mother said she developed a health crisis that made her to be taken to the hospital IMMEDIATELY on the 21st.

School’s CCTV clips on You Tube (https://youtu.be/hqOa2jg_Ym8) shows Karen in school from 17th June to the moment she exited school on the 19th. Before leaving school, she went to see an ophthalmologist outside the school, on the mother’s instruction, same 19th June. School’s academic record also shows she wrote CA tests on Friday, 18th June.

Could a 14-year old have been so super human to hide her pains effortlessly and appear bubbly while undertaking all the multiple tasks that filled her day in the manner the late Karen did?

The late Karen, it should be recalled, was a Diabetics’ patient constantly under strict health watch. She had been diagnosed to be diabetic since age nine years.

DNA As A Way Pointer…

The House of Representatives has directed that DNA test be conducted on all male staff of Premiere Academy, to fish out the alleged rape culprit. While the directive is commendable, our investigation shows that there is need to even cast the net wider in view of certain peculiarities uncovered about the Akpagher family environment.

For instance, it was discovered that Karen has two elder brothers who were also students of same Premiere Academy with her. While one graduated in 2020, the other was still a student in the school until after the unfortunate event.

She also has a custodian uncle who, it was discovered, was always going to pick and drop her in school. Unconfirmed report said this uncle organised a birthday party for Karen and some of her friends in a restaurant in town on April 10th to mark her 14th birthday. The uncle, it was further learnt, took her to the party.

It was also learnt that the same uncle picked only Karen from school during the id-el-fitri break on 12th May while leaving his brother behind to observe the break in school. This, from investigation, was found to be a departure from the regular practice of picking and dropping both students together.

Upon further probe, it was discovered that while the said Salah break was meant to end on 16th May, Karen was only returned to the school by her uncle on 23rd May, clear 7 days after resumption.

She was to die one month later; allegedly from a rape incident whose features, according to her mother and GBV Responders, left decayed condom particles in her genitals.

With the late Karen surrounded by two brothers who have their other male friends visiting the Akpagher home as well as an uncle who was found to have been mostly responsible for picking and dropping her in school, it is only fair and commonsensical to look way beyond the school in order to unravel the question of who could have raped the teenager, if indeed she was raped.

Justice Begins With Disclosures…

For justice to be done and seen to be done in the case of Karen Akpagher, the police needs to release the autopsy and investigations reports. So many questions begging for answers may remain unresolved until the Police reports are released. According to a cross section of analysts’ opinion, all parties in the case – the Akpagher family, GBV Responders and Premiere Academy – should jointly and individually put pressure on the police to do the needful rather than continue to throw mud around and promote wild, unfounded accusations. Unless the mud throwing is designed to achieve an end that the larger public does not yet know.

Viewpoint: Emefiele And The Not So Exclusive Audio Tapes

Nigeria, must we always kill our illustrious sons? It is a question that several persons of repute, including activist, had asked in the past and the question again took on relevance in recent days as the hyenas hemmed in what they thought was their prey and tried to snuff life out of his career. The intended dinner of the human hyenas was the Governor of the Central Bank, Mr Godwin Emefiele.

The hunting ground of choice was the web pages of Sahara Reporters, which went to town with the screamer, “CAUGHT ON TAPE: How Central Bank Governor Emefiele, Deputy Adamu And Top Officials Discussed How To Cover-Up N500bn Which They Stole From The CBN”. But it turned out the hyenas were not meant to have Emefiele for dinner, they went hungry. Contrary to the envisaged endgame, President Muhammadu Buhari handed him another five years in office. And who would not, considering the superlative outing he had in his first term? It must be this performance that made his confirmation by the Senate to be as fast as lightning.

Beyond being re-appointed and being expeditiously confirmed to continue leading Nigeria’s apex bank, it turned out that the report carried by Sahara Reporters was the usual hatchet job. The best the report was able to do was to twist a routine telephone conversation out of context to allege a theft that never took place while further exposing the shallowness of the folks behind the news blog and those who contracted them to do the hit job.

The story they put out has been spectacularly rubbished by the statement issued by Mr. Isaac Okoroafor, CBN’s Director of Corporate Communications. There is no need to rehash the explanation offered in that statement but suffice to say the statement exposed the lack of understanding on the part of those who thought they had caught Mr Emefiele in a compromised position worthy of breaking news and embarrassing enough to the government to not reappoint him. The reality, however, is that they only succeeded in convincing the rest of us how ignorant they are about the way reserve banks work.

There is the outside chance that these hyenas are not so ignorant; they know there is no substance in their claim but they were deluded to expect that Nigerians and their leaders are naïve to the point where they will rush to crucify Emefiele without first weighing the substance of the supposed allegations implied by leaking the tape.

Three things stand out in this ugly saga of a failed blackmail attempt. The first is that the recording points to the existence of deeply political operatives in all branches and agencies of government. Those who made the audio went to great length to procure their tainted produce

Whether they bugged or hacked the telephone sets in the CBN Governor’s office, compromise the internal switch at the apex bank, or deployed eavesdropping technology to intercept the calls, this is a red flag that public officials are now persistently under threat from political operatives that are out to garner information for their own end.

To the extent that Mr Emefiele’s telephone conversation was in pursuit of legitimate duty, as we now know, the perpetrators of this act have breached several of the laws of the land and their action can be likened to an attack on the country.

A second observation is that the kind of concern one can surmise from the CBN Governor’s discomfort and expressions in the course of the call showed a man that is passionate about getting his country out of an economic mess that took long in making. That people connected with the making of the mess are the ones now trying to make its resolution appear like a crime in progress is the height of travesty.

Mr Emefiele could have simply act indifferently and cited the approvals from the Ministry of Finance as a basis to be unconcerned. But true to his credential as a man that has done much to reduce and now on the verge of eradicating the famed black hole that swallows national resources at the CBN, the audio depicted him as greatly agitated about recovery of the funds that were released to bail out states that failed to be fiscally prudent to the point of becoming insolvent.

A note must be made of the fact that the irresponsible behaviour on the part of state governors, which led to this situation, was the hallmark of the governments that preceded that of President Buhari. State governors of now, even those that do not belong to the ruling party at the centre, have learned that there is no longer room for kleptocratic frivolity.

Furthermore, it is one thing to criminally breach the security of an institution as pivotal as the CBN, publishing the proceeds of that crime amounts to daring the state. It is like someone stealing clothes from a neighbourhood and then parading the streets dressed in the stolen items. Such arrogance comes from the erroneous impression that the state is incapable of visiting the requisite sanction on the offenders or that the criminal in this instance is above the law.

With these observations come the steps that must be taken to prevent blackmailers and criminals from arrogating legitimacy to themselves should they wrongly surmise that society condones their wrong-doings. It is, therefore, necessary to clearly define what constitutes desirable whistleblowing and what amounts to espionage against the interests of the Nigerian state.

A situation where Chief Executives of government agencies and other government functionaries are illegitimately wiretapped cannot be allowed to continue unabated. Today, it is Emefiele, what happens when these criminally minded people turn to bug the Inspector General of Police and his key staff while making the recordings available to bandits and kidnappers? Or how much of this wiretapping have been deployed for insider trading or machination towards the collapse of the banks regulated by the CBN?

Also, the government must make it a priority to get to the bottom of this breach at the CBN. The breach and other actions carried out in its aftermath should be subjected to review by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation such that those found culpable – individual or corporate – would be made to face the law, of which there are adequate provisions.

This piece will conclude on the note of urging Mr Emefiele not to be daunted by the antics of those that feel pained that the CBN is no longer the ATM pool for corruption because of the reforms he has instituted there. Nigerians, who are his actual employers, are happy with his work, which made them greet his re-appointment with accolades. It’s the views of these employers that matter and not the perverted indulgence of a criminal few.

Bello-Koko: A Vision That Turned Around NPA By Olatunbosun Olupitan

Though the acting Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mr. Mohammed Bello-Koko is yet to reel off his plan of action after his appointment weeks back, sources close to the new boss atthe Nigerian sector regulator have hinted on some aspects of his job that he hopes to put in the front burner.

Basically, with his appointment, Bello-Koko is saddled with the sole responsibility of overseeing operations at the NPA, which include, administration of land and water within port limits, planning and development of port operational infrastructure, leasing and concession of port infrastructure and setting benchmark for tariff structure, carrying out nautical/harbour operations and hydrographic survey, handling marine incidents, avoiding pollution, maintaining safety and security, enacting port regulations and byelaws as well as monitor and enforce while superintending the day-to-day operations and enforcement of relevant sections of respective agreements.

A stickler to rules and regulation himself, paramount on Bello-Koko’s agenda is the need to embark on stricter regulatory re-enforcement. He hopes to ensure that every operator in any of the Nigerian ports play by the rule, believing that it is only by so doing that the ports could be optimally utilised and more funds remitted to government’s coffers. There will also be firm regulatory oversight for sea vessels cargo movement.

The acting MD is familiar with the problems of maritime insecurity and during a recent visit to him by members of the Support for West African Maritime Security (SWAIMS), an affiliate of the European Union, at the NPA head office in Marina, Lagos, he reckoned that maritime insecurity had heightened hence the need to tackle the matter frontally. Urging the SWAIMS team to diligently concentrate on the theme of their operation, he assured them that the NPA would always identify with.

Successive NPA leaderships have made efforts to address the issue, but it has remained a recurring decimal, making the Nigerian seaports rank among the most dangerous maritime zones, where pirates, kidnappers and other sea robbers freely operate. This has denied Nigeria its membership of category C of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) during its elections in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Apart from the surcharges and high insurance premiums that this problem brings about, some foreign vessels have opted to divert their cargoes to much safer neighbouring countries or limit their voyages to the Lagos ports, which is relatively safer than most other ports in the East and South-south.

Before his emergence as acting MD, Koko-Bello always harped on the need for a safer maritime environment. One of such examples was during a visit of the federal government’s team for the implementation of the Harmonised Standard Operating Procedure on the arrest, detention, and prosecution of offenders in the maritime environment, to the NPA corporate headquarters in Marina, Lagos, where he spoke on behalf of his former boss. On that occasion, he noted that a safe and secure environment as well as restored sanity at the anchorage were factors that could help generate more funds for Nigeria.

The Bello-Koko leadership hopes to ensure vigilance at the ports, train and retrain its security personnel and ensure that terminal operators/concessionaires remain complaint to dictates of the International Ships and Port Security (ISPS) code and there will be regular monitoring and supervision to ensure compliance.

Another vision of the NPA boss is to facilitate inter-agency and stakeholders’ collaboration, especially,relevant security agencies and host communities to engender safe and customer-friendly operating environment. These include the Nigerian Customs Services (NCS), which facilitates legitimate trade, the Port Health Services, which implements the WHO International Health Regulations, the International Maritime Organiastions (IMO) laws on health matters, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) laws, the Nigeria Quarantine Act (aircraft and ship), the Public Health Laws of Nigeria and any other relevant laws and the Nigerian Police, which responsibility is to maintain law and order in the ports.

One other agency that must work in synergy with others are the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), established to oversee maritime safety, seafarers’ standards and security, maritime labour, shipping regulation, promotion of commercial shipping and cobatage activities, pollution prevention and ensure control in the marine environment. The agency is also responsible for the implementation of domesticated International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions.

The Department of State Services (DSS), responsible for intelligence gathering and protection of government concerns, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), with a mandate to regulate and control the manufacture, importation, exportation, distribution, advertisement, sale and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, chemicals, detergents, medical devices, and other regulated products and the Nigeria Immigration Services (NIS), charged with detecting fraudulent travel documents, border patrol and control of the seaports, are expected to explore more innovative techniques to work together to make the seaports safer.

One problem that operators have had to contend with is the menace of illegal barge operators. Barge operators under the aegis of Barge Operators Association of Nigeria (BOAN), have called on successive administrations at the port to get to the nitty gritty of quack barge operators on the waterways. So, expectedly, the new leadership plans to address how they get access to the ports to load their cargoes and how they get jetty approvals to operate, with the hope to regulate their activities.

There are so many other sundry issues that will top the agenda of the new NPA MD, and this will include, but not limited to cleaning up the system and ensuring transparency in port operations, dredging of the channels and removal of wrecks for safe navigation of vessels to make channels navigable, completion and full deployment of functional information and communication technology to drive the operations at all locations, continued automation of port authority operations to facilitate speedier processes, reliability and trust in the system, and very importantly, closing the gap between funds generated and remitted to government coffers.

The Lekki and Ibaka deep seaports are projects started by former managing directors of NPA. The $1.6bn project is already at 50 per cent completion, so Bello-Koko is determined to continue from where previous MDs stopped. He obviously would muster the needed political support and work with government to see them become operational. This will also give him the opportunity to take the credit for their commissioning as Nigeria begins to take advantage of the world-class port complex and welcome deep-sea vessels.

Talk of the Lagos ports and what quickly comes to mind is the horrendous traffic gridlock that usually spills over to the major arterial roads in the metropolis, affecting the economy of the state and the country at large. Therefore, Bello-Koko’s plan is to see to the full implementation of the Eto, the Electronic Truck call-up system designed for the management of truck movement and access to and from the Lagos ports complex and the Tin Can Island ports, Apapa, Lagos.

Therefore, all trucks doing business at the ports would have to stay at the approved truck parks until they are called up into the port through the Eto app, which is being used for the scheduling, entry and exit of all trucks since February 27, 2021.

Coming into office from his position as the former ED Finance, a position that puts the welfare of NPA employees and pensioners under his control, port workers and pensioners can rest assured that top on his agenda is to ensure smooth and cordial relationship that would be founded on ensuring that their welfare is priority.

*Olupitan, a public commentator, lives Abeokuta, Ogun State

Charles Odibo’s Statement on Imo State Government; False and Misleading- Concerned Imolites

Banker turned Blogger; Charles Odibo, is an erstwhile Marketing Communication Manager of Fidelity Bank and two other banks, who was notoriously known for running several rackets while he was in active service. February this year, he launched a website aimed at promoting the Igbo people, which was well applauded by all sundry for his interest in moving the South East region forward. Not many knew his motive was for selfish financial gains and not for the interest of the Ndigbo’s. In other to achieve his motive, he organized and unleashed media attacks on Imo State Government under the leadership of our hardworking and indefatigable Governor; Hope Uzodinma. It came as a shock to many on the obvious lies he posted on his blog, but those who know him attest to the fact that; he is a pig who will always return to the dirt no matter how clean you wash it. He has a double-faced personality, who is thirsty for government appointments and financial gains.

Some said; “he is so shameless that he would sell his dignity for monetary gains. More reason he was denied a juicy government appointment by former Governor Emeka Ihedioha, whom he always lobbied for appointment by sponsoring media campaign and opinion piece for. Iheodiah rebuffed his appointment due to his unprofessional conduct.”

Last week, he published a piece of false and concocted information embedded with lies from the pit of hell to create unrest between the Imo State Government, Governor Hope Uzodinma and Imolites, who are currently battling the issues of insecurity. Sources said; ever since the Supreme Court sent his benefactor packing as Governor of Imo, he has vowed to use the media to peddle and sponsor fake news to create unrest in the state. “Imolites are wise enough to stand by their hardworking Governor who is also recovering from an attack on his country home recently. Employing a campaign of calumny by pitching the Imo state government and its indigenes against itself, is an act unworthy of a patriot.” A senior political appointee said.

From a thorough investigation carried out by Concerned Imolites, Charles Odibo, the co-founder of a failed mobile app, Tomachy, also threatened the Government of Imo State by vowing to continue posting fake news about them in the guise of exposing them. He was even said to have demanded for funds from Imo State Government in other to ceasefire from the cheap blackmail and media attack. A government appointee who claimed anonymity averred that; “He has sent several messages soliciting for funds to stop the bad press and also threatened that if his demands are not met, he will keep on attacking Imo State Government and Governor Uzodinma. He said there are more stories about Governor Hope-led administration stored in his kitty, to be release soon.”

According to the code of conduct of the noble pen-pushing profession, Charles has contravened some section in the constitution, which frowns at blackmail, defamation and threat. If found guilty of the above crimes, it’s outright suspension from the profession and can also be tried in the court of law for cyberbullying and other related crimes. Imo State will give no room for such media practitioner, who would only use their platform to promote dichotomy instead of celebrating the good works the Governor has been doing to restore the lost glory of Imo State. ”Governor Hope loves the media and he has always supported them at every slightest opportunity nobody will hold us to ransom at the point. Our state will never fall for such threat from that filthy attention seeker. It’s against our ideology, we don’t negotiate with blackmailers and scammers like Charles, knowing where his allegiance belongs. “Imo State has zero-tolerance for quacks like him hiding under the guise of a media practitioner, who loves interviewing the keyboard. Such practices are part of the menace tearing apart the journalism profession.”

People like Charles Odibo are the reason Federal Government has raised plans to regulate the online media space to curb blackmailers and fake news peddlers like him from misleading the general public with untrue information. Another Government source said; using an hammer to kill a fly in this situation is not necessary, we know his background during his days as a marketing head in the banking sector, he was never straightforward, he was not dependable and trusted. He was even alleged to have been involved in several shady deals. “People like this should not make way into government. He should be ignored. Since he launched the media platform earlier this year, we have heard several complaints of character assassination and defamation of character. That’s not what Journalism is all about. People like him should not be encouraged. Imolite are behind our Governor and we stand by him in solidarity. Any attempt to cause further unrest, the fangs of the law will strike him.”

ROCHAS OKOROCHA: THE TRIAL OF A SAGE

The unsavoury incidents being sponsored by some unscrupulous state actors involving the former Governor of Imo State, Sen. Rochas Okorocha in recent times show a hint at some parties’ thought who see him as a threat to their supposed caliphate. Indeed, it has proven right the Elders’ words which postulate that ‘uneasy lies the head that wears the crown’.

However, the Sage’s head still feels uneasy despite leaving office.

Does that still mean Okorocha wears the crown, holds the ace or the nitwits are scared of losing their hegemony to who God has chosen to make Imo prosper again?

This unwarranted battle began after the current Administration was sworn in on 15th January, 2020. It was a public knowledge that the Sage was a constant emotional backup when Uzodinma was struggling for his mandate after the 9^th March, 2019 governorship election. Okorocha was among the foremost political figures to congratulate him when he finally triumphed at the Supreme Court. It is now bemusing that this same Governor is having no one to pick as a foe apart from Rochas Okorocha, the man who has been in his shoes and can offer him Fatherly counsel considering how well he fared after occupying the seat for eight years.

Prior to this, there have been silent battles fought underneath but the latest showed how low the current administration’s moral has sunk. In my part of the world, the prince does not fight like slaves. You can’t be at the helms of affair and still be ‘terrorising’ your subjects. As a child of necessity, Imolites expect more lease of life from Uzodinma than the current drama that is playing out.

Sen. Rochas Okorocha went to Royal Spring Palm Hotel in the company of his two sons-in-law on 19^th February after Governor Hope Uzodinma illegally sealed the hotel.

His intent was simply to inquire the reason behind the sealing and take due protocol as a law-abiding, serving Senator of Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Unfortunately, Chinansa Nwaneri, the Special Adviser to Governor Hope Uzodinma on Special Duties and Eric Uwakwe saw no need for peace as they led a pool of miscreants and abused public office by using the state’s police for their personal gain. The gadgets and equipment necessary for the smooth running of the Resorts were all carted away by the opposing forces. They also attacked Okorocha and his crew violently without provocation

As at now, Uzo Anwuka, one of Okorocha’s sons-in-law is currently receiving treatment after being shot at on the spot where the state sponsored violence took place while Okorocha, a serving Senator representing Imo West is currently apprehended, detained and was only released on the order of the Presidency. Just wondering, if the hired thugs had murdered the distinguished senator in the process of that needless fracas, what side of history would Governor Hope Uzodinma be?

Prior to this, Okorocha has silently suffered series of blackmail and name-calling along with destruction of properties belonging to him and his family. This hostility is not unconnected to the influence which he can pull in the state when the 2023 Presidential election come knocking.

However, a threat to life is totally uncalled for as Okorocha’s Camp can never engage in do-or-die politics. Destroying the legacy you have built with your sweat is not an option in modern democracy.

It must be mentioned that armed thugs attacked Okorocha’s residence at Akachi three days before he went to the sealed hotel belonging to his wife, Nneoma Rochas in Owerri.

It should further be stated here that before this ugly incident, the demolition of the hospital complex belonging to the Okorocha’s family had sent many Imolites to the unemployment market and this is quite disheartening in view of the current state of the nation’s economy.

Irrespective of what anyone may think, it is highly condemnable that a former Governor and sitting Senator could be treated this way by those who see political power as the beginning and end of life.

It is therefore important to call on the general public and Mr. President to ensure the safety of all citizens and curb the abuse of office. The safety of Okorocha is very crucial to political stability of Imo State and any further attack will be regarded as a deliberate assassination attempt upon which proper actions will be taken.

By Smart Oluwole Apejoye- Public Affairs Commentator and Advocate of Good Governance

“NIGERIAN FUNERAL DIRECTORS NEED A UNIFIED VOICE TO MAKE HEADWAY ON FUNERAL INSURANCE POLICY” – MO

The director of MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL has advocated for creation of a unified voice in the funeral industry which can push a united cause that is favourable to Nigerian government and all stakeholders on funeral insurance policy.

In an interview with the London-certified funeral director, he stated that creating an association for funeral directors in Nigeria will result in a win-win situation for the government, insurance brokers, Nigerians and the directors.

Olumuyiwa Onikoyi emphasised the importance of funeral insurance policy to include less financial and logistics burdens on the relatives of deceased; ease of doing funeral business; cutting the red tape to give way to modern approaches and reduce risks amongst other benefits.

He said, ” To create an enabling environment for funeral directors, the main issue is identifying the strategies which the government will push out. In Nigeria currently, we don’t have a unified funeral directing association which is very important if we want to have a headway and gain the government’s attention. All funeral directors need to have one unified voice that will stand and push the cause of the industry across to the government”.

He also stated that livestream coverage during funeral services is gaining prominence considering the impacts of the pandemic lockdown amidst other changes, an encouragement for MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL who have prior plans to venture into broadcasting on radio transmitters as a means of contributing to social distancing.

However, the reluctance of some clients in Nigeria to foot all bills relating to effective delivery of the services which is seldom encountered with overseas clients, is proving to be a challenge. In his words, “MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL have received a lot of success in the areas of livestreams during funeral services. We intend getting into broadcasting burial services on AM/FM transmitters so people don’t have to get out of their cars”.

“At MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL, we have been doing drive-by funerals. We once had a young woman that passed away and the family really wanted to have a service, so we did a set up in our parking lot, and more than 10 cars drove by and paid their last respects to the deceased”, he added.

Onikoyi, a Master’s Degree holder in Information Security and Computer Forensics from University of East London, MPhil in Cyber security and BSc in Computing Information System from Goldsmith College, University of London revealed that Covid-19 has effected diverse changes in the industry.
With the availability of the webpage www.mofuneral.com, it has become easy to engage clients and complete all pre-arrangements virtually. He further expressed surprise at African system not embracing cremation, especially considering the changes which the Covid-19 pandemic has brought to funeral services.

“One surprise we had at MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL is that the pandemic has not increased demand for cremations. Notably, As African we are not really into Cremation but the shutdown/Lockdown may also be reversing the trend toward traditional funerals.”

According to him, “…the key reasons why many people are choosing cremation are: separation of family across the U.S. (non-traditional family nucleus); increasing acceptance of the cremation process in our culture; eco-consciousness tendencies in consumers (don’t want to take up precious land space with a traditional burial in a cemetery; etc.”

“Pre-planning arrangements culture is also on the rise. The percentage of the population that feels it’s important to pre-plan funeral and cemetery/vaults purchases has jumped up. MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL pre-need appointments have really picked up. We can send you all you need for the planning of your loved ones funeral electronically”, he said.

With offices in UK and South Africa, he revealed that most of the MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL committed employees had to work from home in compliance with Covid-19 regulations to ensure efficient delivery of services.

He added that Covid-19 played a significant role in the recent upsurge witnessed in the funereal industry.

“Senior managing partners at MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL have continued to come into the office with strict Covid-19 regulations adherence — even as many employees work from home — to show solidarity with the workers who have to go into houses and hospitals to retrieve the remains of those who have died.”

“MO FUNERALS INTERNATIONAL view ourselves as ‘final responders’, which is a play on the words ‘first responder’. When the pandemic hit, it gave a chance for the industry to thrive, because we were going to be there, no matter what we had to go through to be able to serve our communities”, he added.

He further added that the idea to venture into the industry came to form when he travelled abroad, though he grew up as a member of Boy’s Brigade. As a Senior Project Manager at Ministry of Defence in UK where he was the focal point for bereaved fallen officers, the experience gained and moments shared propelled him to engage in the funereal industry.

“Seeking to promote one-stop funeral directing business in Nigeria, my role as a managing partner is to provide a memorable experience for the deceased’s family to reflect the celebration of their life style even in death via phone or face to face, as well as to build customer loyalty by leveraging interpersonal skills and offering top customer service to our numerous client during the most difficult time of losing their love ones.”

“With over 10 years of professional experience in dealing with bereavement across multi-cultural ethnicity around the globe and Nigeria in particular, these tasks often entail the embalming and burial or cremation of the dead, as well as the arrangements for the funeral ceremony (although not the directing and conducting of the funeral itself unless clergies are not present)”.

“Funeral directors may at times be asked to perform tasks such as dressing (in garments usually suitable for daily wear), casketing, motor hearse, music, and pall bearing who are the professionals that carry the casket before being interred.”

Angry Nigerian Youth Blast Bode George Says…You Can’t Use our Head again

While we are mourning our departed comrades and strategizing on how to make sure their effort will never be in vain it will be wise to open our eyes so that those who have their own sinister agenda will not be playing on our emotions to use us to fight their perceived enemies.

I have listen to and read the recent outburst of former military Governor of Ondo State who is also a chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode Ibiyinka George, who is tapping into the recent happenings to attract cheap publicity and try to resuscitate his moribund political voice.

There is a popular saying that “he who comes into equity must come with clean hands”. This and many more is the reason I have decided to list some of the things he ignored in the struggle before his diatribe on his perceived enemy and to this we will appreciate answers to the following burning questions;

• Where is Bode George when the protest lasted for 2 weeks and he did not make a sound about it?
• Why has he not condemned the decision of the President a fellow General who chose not to talk to us when we are demanding it?
• Why is he not condemning the military’s use of live ammunition around helpless protesters or is it an issue of once a military always a military?
• Why is he showing little or no concern about the lost lives?
• Is it true you made “Eko e ree” a term that means ‘you’ve been dupe’, popular in Ondo State when you empty their treasury as their military Governor between 1988 to 1990?

It is sacrilegious for Bode George who was a major part of the ruling PDP for 16 years to now jump on the train of numerous of the Nigerian youths he has over the years turned blind eye to their plight to campaign against that has made sure he’s not close to showing the good people of Lagos the hoodoo that comes with his administration of things.

#ENDSARS: A WAKEUP CALL FOR NIGERIAN MEDIA (THE FOURTH ESTATE OR FOURTH POWER OF THE REALM)

I woke up this morning after my morning devotion; I dabbled into a mind boggling report on my WhatsApp platform.

I told myself: The TRUTH be told, what are the roles of the MEDIA obligated and bestowed with the sole ethical responsibilities of being the watchdog of the society; must have PLAYED in the long aged corruptions that have infested and given birth to loss of lives, heinous carnage, wanton destruction of our personal and national wealth over the years in Nigeria???!!!

After reading through this long revealing poetic but mind boggling report on my WhatsApp platform, calls for concerns.

I was forced to cull the below excerpts of the old historic but recent report and adaptation of the events that pluck up, and pull down many great African countries today.

“…Nigeria is fast ascending to the very path that Freetown took. The path that ruined Congo and Libya. The expressway to Rwanda, that is the path Nigeria is fast speeding into. Yet, this path is not a new path to us. It’s a familiar terrain that we have taken before. In 1966, long before even the Rwandan path was paved. We wasted over 3 million people as hundreds of innocent souls were slaughtered before even the war started.

Long before the Rwandan path was paved, religious differences and ethnic intolerance as being repeated today, led to a civil war that took our best, took our leaders, took innocent souls and took us backward.

The backwardness is still hunting and hurting us till day. And, it’s the wounds of the war that was not treated in a round table talk, talk, that is leading to another war. Yet, the leader of the nation insists that he’s comfortable exactly the way things are.

So, it’s either history is unfair to us or our leaders are blind to it. Indeed, the death meant to kill a dog does not allow her to smell faeces. And, like the saying goes, those who do not understand history are bound to repeat it.

Even if we hadn’t experienced a civil war before, what happened in Free Town, Monrovia, Abidjan in recent history ought to have taught us a lesson. The way Tripoli was turned from a fast developing city into a slave town where war lords reign should serve as a lesson.

But no, we learnt nothing. Just “over” 50 years after, when those that played major role to the last civil war are still alive, here the snowball of war goes rolling down from the snow mountain of stupid arrogance, gathering with it all the ethnic intolerance and religious divide that paved the path of Rwandan.”

Now, the key QUESTIONS:

1. What roles will the Nigerian MEDIA (the Fourth Estate or Fourth Power of the Realm) are known for to have played in the history of NIGERIA OF TODAY & NIGERIA OF THE FUTURE?

2. How can the MEDIA forthwith contribute greatly and use as tools for unbiased dispersion of information to show the dark side of every human lives and distribute truth?

Posterity will surely catch up with every genuine and qualified professional in this world of journalism, hence whilst, there is urgent need and call to create that sense of balance and transparency in our society, in Nigeria.

I can’t say it all here. We all know the role of the Rwandan Media in the historic 1994 genocide amongst the Hutu and Tutsi of the Republic of Rwanda.

Amongst others, #ENDSAR Protest would pass as a litmus test for the Nigerian Media if they truly stand for the TRUTH and want to be identified for SHAPING PUBLIC OPINIONS/REACTIONS for PEACEFUL and PROGRESSIVE NATION.

LET’S CHANGE THE NARRATIVES, AS A FORCE FOR PEACE, BE THE AGENT OF SOCIETAL CHANGE; AS THE WATCHDOG OF OUR SOCIETY, OUR OWN COUNTRY!!!

—BLAISE UDUNZE