51 TheNiche BUSINESS UNUSUAL FINANCIAL NICHE PERSONAL FINANCE MARKETING NICHE PRODUCT OF THE WEEK ICT May 15, 2016 BUSINESSwww.thenicheng.comINFLATION Inflation month March 2016 MONEY Broadmoney (M2) 18,718,193.11 OIL WTI BCrreundteRATE Inflation rate 12.8% SUPPLY Narrow Money (M1) 7,148,592.67 PRICE $43.93 $45.36 (Trillion) INDEX PER BARREL PER BARRELKelechi Mgboji SMTAORCKKET Tourism/AviationAssistant Business Editor0803 469 0996, 0811 181 3047 Sukuk bond Why the [email protected] may hit market is market in Q3 unlikely to crash » »PAGE 55 PAGE 58 Gold Silver PER OZ Platinum Copper GRADE A Lead Palladium Exchange RatesCOMMODITIES $1,234.18 $16.96 $1,011.10 $2.28 $0.81SUMMARY PER OZ TROY OZ Tin PER LB Nickel Wheat Cocoa $608.25 N-$ N-£ N-€ $7.93 $4.28 $467 PER OZT RATE RATE RATE $3, 132 197 283.4436 221.9205China wants Africa truly developed, says envoy Relations between China and Africa got a boost when Yale University through its Macmillan Center for International and Area Studies organised a conference at the Lagos Business School. The conference examined how tostrengthen economic co-operationsbetween China and Nigeria, as well as the entire continent. Chinese Special Representative on African Affairs, Zhong Jianhua, told journalists that China’s interest is to let the Africancontinent become truly developed. Assistant Business Editor, KELECHI MGBOJI, brings excerpts of the press conference.Challenges China faces win-lose or lose-lose? No one President Muhammadu Buhari Chinese President, Xi Jinpingin achieving targets in can guarantee results. That’sNigeria where the challenge lies. China’s interest in Afri- the world with the huge mand for our own products. and notorious. can aid Chinese market. This is what That is what we call win-win. I think every human being The co-operation and bi- You can have a target, a we want to replicate in this Would Chinese interestlateral relation is a good one. purpose, but how to fulfill China’s interest is eco- continent. in Africa not lead to re- should learn from that his-On the political front, it is it is the task. It involves nomic co-operation. By this colonisation? tory.good. On the economic front, wisdom, determination and co-operation, if the people So, with this economicin terms of trade, the coop- courage from every one of improve their living standard co-operation between China History of human beings Colonialism will never leaderation we get from Nigeria is us. on the African continent, and Africa, we see the future have been characterised by us to the bright future that wealso good. But the challenge their demand will increase. demand of this continent development and progress. desire. It may have benefitedis obvious. A Chinese philosophy says, This demand will provide op- increasing tremendously. other continents but it caused “If you think you can win portunity not only for China We engage in this process Our ancestors, I mean the a lot of damage to this conti- We set a pretty high target. and let the other party lose, but also for the world. by helping Africa to develop ancestors of all of us as hu- nent. It caused huge sacrificeFor example, the Chinese you will lose eventually.” even faster and become man beings, not only China, on the other side too.government sets aside $60 We did this to the world greater. may have been slow inbillion to be invested in Of course, if you lose and before. We provided a huge thinking, and eventually we The Chinese are not stupid.Africa either through loans let the opponent win, that is opportunity. We provided When this is achieved, they did have a colonial period in The best benefit for China,or investment in projects also not the solution. also reward us with greater history. It was ugly, bloody certainly, cannot come fromin three years’ time. At the opportunity and provide de- recolonising Africa.official level it is a huge chal- If you run to win, you must Continues on PAGE 52lenge. let your partner also win. This is the only way you can Everyone is talking about help maintain a long-termwin-win co-operation. But friendship and long-termwhat about the lose-win, relationship. We believe in long-term cooperation.
52 TheNiche www.thenicheng.com May 15, 2016 CoverDebt sustainabilityhinges on economicdiversification, saysDMO boss Debt sustainability is a matter for everybody should do his concern, with Nigeria’s debt standing at about N12 trillion as of December 31, 2015 best to make sure that the at a time government’s earnings dropped programme of the govern- ment towards diversifying the 60 per cent due to oil price slump. economy is achieved. Debt Management Office (DMO) If the economy is diversi- Director General, Abraham Nwankwo, fied and growing fast in a sustainable manner, then we says citizens need not worry because are in a position to mobilise Nigeria’s 13.02 per cent debt to Gross resources in both public and Domestic Product (GDP) ratio is low private sectors to support compared with 56 per cent in other continuous sustenance of the countries in the same group as Nigeria. economy. So, I can say that in the He spoke at a workshop for Capital medium to long term, debt Market Correspondent Association of sustainability in Nigeria hinges Nigeria (CAMCAN) in Lagos, attended on the over all economic by Assistant Business Editor, KELECHI sustainability. MGBOJI. And overall economic sustainability hinges on diver- sifying the economy in a sus-Nigeria's debt to GDP answer is no. tainable manner, which is theratio programme the government is Improved tax revenue to pursuing in agriculture, solidNigeria’s debt to Gross GDP ratio minerals, ICT (information NwankwoDomestic Product (GDP) ratio The new administration, communication technology), Taxable individuals and that in 2016, the country administration will borrow inwas 13 per cent as of Decem- under the Ministry of Finance manufacturing, et cetera. corporate organisations would borrow from external the fiscal year will be used tober 31, 2015. and the Federal Inland Rev- should support the govern- sources about N900 billion, fund capital projects. enue Service (FIRS), is doing To do that, we need a ment to widen the scope and and from domestic sources But Nigerians should be its best to make sure that tax strong infrastructure base, and ensure effective tax adminis- about N984 billion, making a Ours is to make sure themore conscious of debt administration is effective and that is why the government is tration compliance. total of N1.84 trillion. government raises the fundsservice revenue ratio. In that compliance is near 100 per laying emphasis on spending to implement the budget toregard, I am encouraging all cent. what it borrows on infrastruc- There must be effective tax The DMO is committed the last letter.Nigerians, particularly journal- ture. administration compliance to making sure we raise this Bonds so far raisedists, to continue mobilising the So, based on that, we in running the economy. All money from appropriatecitizens to make sure individ- expect that in the next couple Citizens need not worry over the world, government sources, in the appropriate The DMO is very proactive.uals and companies pay their of years, the country’s tax rev- about the current debt profile depends optimally on taxa- mix, and appropriate terms We're aware that the bud-tax fully, as and when due. enue to GDP ratio will rise. because Nigeria’s 13.02 per tion to run the economy. and conditions to make sure get was taking its due process, cent debt-to-GDP ratio is still that during the fiscal year the but we did not go to sleep. Our tax revenue to GDP And if it rises to about 18 very much low compared Going by our population, projects are funded. That’s why as the presidentratio is low, relative to tax per cent, which is the norm with 56 per cent in other Nigeria should not find it stated that now that the bud-revenue to GDP ratio of for countries in our peer countries in the same group difficult undertaking huge The government is very get has been signed into law,countries in our peer group. group, it means the govern- as Nigeria. projects. We should not have clear that every kobo it bor- he will immediately releaseSo, the real challenge of debt ment will have more resourc- problem reviving infrastruc- rows is going into funding N300 billion to start fundingsustainability in Nigeria goes es to fund capital projects. It Citizens should rather be ture. The minimum we should capital projects. And we as- capital projects.beyond public debt. It is also means it will have more concerned about the country’s do is 18 per cent like that of sure Nigerians that the DMO That shows he appreci-more of the resources than resources to service debts, very low comparative tax our peers. will raise the total amount ates the fact that based on hisanything else. revenue to GDP ratio. specified in the budget for the mandate, some money has As our economy grows, as and debts will become more purpose of funding the capital already been raised. We goGDP grows, the question is, sustainable. Nigeria’s tax revenue to projects in the budget. to the market every monthare we collecting enough in GDP ratio is less than 7 per to raise money to fund the Now, it is sustainable al- cent, far below its peer group Raising funds for the We cannot give any assur- budget. at 18 per cent, and 27 per budget ance stronger than that of the So, we have been proactive President Muhammadu Bu- in working towards the imple-tax resources from individuals right, but that does not mean cent of those of industrialised The DMO does not de- hari who assured the citizens mentation of the budget.and corporate organisations we don't have work to do. We countries. termine what to borrow to when he presented the bud-so that we will be able to fund have a lot of work to do in support the economy. The get to the National Assemblypublic projects? making sure that everybody The government requires president just signed the 2016 (NASS) that all the money his pays tax. average taxation of about 30 Appropriation Bill into law. This is the question every- per cent to create maximumone has to consider. And the But more importantly, value for the economy. In the budget, it is stated'China wants Africa truly developed' Continued from PAGE 51 as a result of colonialism. actually broke some people’s mo- for imported suit? You paid $500 We have suffered the same prob- And after its hundreds of years We offered to the world the best nopolised market. because the only supply is from lems Nigeria is suffering today. So Europe. we approach the problems basedof bloody history, this continent will opportunity. Most developed coun- You do remember when those on our experience.never allow anybody to colonise tries benefited hugely from Chinese who bought oil monopolised the How many barrels of oil did youit again. On both sides, we do not investment. We want to have the market and decided what the price have to export before you bought When I was still a junior employ-have that kind of opportunity to story repeated on the African con- of oil would be. They paid six a suit in the past? Today, when ee in the Foreign Ministry, inflationdo that, even if both countries are tinent. Let people enjoy from the pence per barrel. you buy a Chinese-made suit, how in China rose to about 80 per cent.stupid. development. much do you pay? Less than $3, the You know what that means. People But when the Chinese came into cheapest. worked harder. Workers were or- Now, what is the best result for This has already been proved a this market, we certainly broke up ganised to work 24 hours a day.China? I still return to the earlier success story. this monopolised system. We made Why do you complain about col-topic. The best result for China is let the producing countries enjoy $100 onisation from China? It is because When you have the crisis, it alsothe African continent become truly We have no reason to go back to per barrel. some people have been made very means you have opportunities theredeveloped. the old history of colonisation and angry in the market place. I think in. It is a time you are pushed to colonialism. That was stupid. The difference is that those we are doing something good for make positive changes. And this development will How China contributes to who enjoyed six pence in history the people who sell oil.actually bring the whole world the the wellbeing of developing became angry. They were angry be- Lessons Nigeria can learn More so, when you have chal-biggest opportunity, just like China countries cause the Chinese have put a stop from China about inflation, lenges and there are friends willingoffered to the world. to what they enjoyed. fallen revenue, insecurity, and to help, you just know that such One thing you should never for- more challenges can be overcome. We do not believe that the re- get is that we, the Chinese people, Look at it on the other side.forms that took place in China were When you sold oil for six pence per barrel, how much did you pay
Personal Financewww.thenicheng.com 53TheNiche May 15, 2016Newly minted MBA? It's thebest job market in yearsT imes are good 2.4 per cent in 2014, at the Wis- the best year-over-year consin School growth since 2010, ac- of Business. cording to government In a posi- figures.tive sign for its newlyminted graduates, job And, the Consumer Con-postings in 2015 were up fidence Index, an indicator36 per cent from the year of optimism about the U.S.before. economy, in January 2015What’s more, the rose to 102.9 – its highestMadison, Wisconsin-based level since August, 2007.university hosted morethan 300 companies dur- To be sure, not all in-ing a career fair, where dustries are thriving, andrecruiters competed for some economists pointtop talent. to signs that the recoveryThe school’s master of may not be as robust asbusiness administration it appears. But businessprogramme expects the schools are nonethelessbest results in years in reporting a strong marketplacing graduating stu- for new graduates.dents in full-time jobs.Other business schools Schroeder said theare reporting similar up- hiring of Wisconsinswings. graduates is reachingWhy so much optimism? pre-2008-recession levels.A United States economic Better yet, he expects therecovery has boosted momentum to continueconsumer confidence and in the coming years ascompany profits. That companies scramble to fillmeans corporations feel gaps left by retiring baby If these Barnard College graduates go for an MBA, they may have good job prospects. (Timothy Clary/Getty) boomers.more comfortable about already have job offers, merce company Amazon. sity of California’s Haas Some companies arecreating jobs and filling “It’s going to be a (grad- said Pam Brown, senior com Inc, which hadn’t School of Business are launching programmes forheadcount left open during uating) students’ mar- director of the school’s ca- previously recruited at the feeling optimistic about incoming MBA studentsthe economic downturn. ket for the next 15-plus reer management centre. school. their job prospects, said as a strategy to identifyBusiness students are years,” Schroeder said. Julia Min Hwang, ex- talented candidates beforenow more hopeful about Job offers are flowing At the same time in “I think companies are ecutive director of career they even set foot ontheir employment pros- 2014, the number was at behind the eight ball, still management services and campus.pects – and earning po- Barbara Hewitt, senior 62 per cent. catching up from layoffs corporate engagement.tential – than at any time associate director of career and lower hiring years,” One such company isthe past decade, business services at the University The improvement was Brown said. Because the school is accounting and profes-school executives say. of Pennsylvania’s Wharton partly due to employers close to Silicon Valley, sional services firm PwC.“The bottom line is, as School, said only 4.2 per both starting their recruit- U.S. employers added technology accounts forthe economy gets stron- cent of graduating class of ing process earlier and 257,000 jobs in January more than 40 per cent of Ryan Rogers, PwC’sger, corporate recruiting seniors were still seeking extending offers earlier 2015, marking the 11th hiring. Hwang said more advisory MBA recruitinggets stronger,” said Steve employment four to six than they have in the past, straight month that more students are looking at op- leader, said the com-Schroeder, assistant dean months after graduation. Brown said. than 200,000 jobs were portunities with startups. pany in 2014 launched aof the Bachelor of Busi- created – the best such programme in which theyness Administration pro- That number was among In addition, some Goi- streak since 1994. The For Wisconsin gradu- selected four students forgramme at the Wisconsin the lowest she has seen in zueta students received private sector created 11.8 ates, the number of MBA a two-week internshipSchool of Business. 20 years at the school. offers from high-profile million jobs during a re- positions in internal prior to enrolling in theirThe U.S. economy grew employers such as invest- cord 59 straight months of strategy, health care and MBA programmes. At Emory University’s ment bank Goldman Sachs job growth, according to technology are all grow- Goizueta Business School, Group Inc and e-com- U.S. government figures. ing, said Joe Protopapa, Last year, PwC hired 20 in Georgia, 72 per cent of Where the jobs are director of MBA career per cent more MBAs and graduating seniors in 2015 management. 40 per cent more under- Demand is strong for graduates than 2014, Rog-(Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images) newly minted MBAs. Nine At Goizueta, jobs for ers said, driven by growth in 10 companies that graduates in technology, in its advisory practice intend to hire MBA can- consulting and financial and the recent acquisition didates said they would services are all seeing of the management con- bring on as many, or even strong growth, said Wen- sulting firm Strategy&. more people in 2015, than dy Tsung, associate dean they did the year before, for MBA career services. In order to compete according to a survey of with other hiring firms, 169 employers conducted Health care, pharmaceu- the company is estab- by the Graduate Manage- ticals and energy are also lishing its presence on ment Admission Council. expanding, she said. campus earlier in the school year and aiming to More than half planned Companies are ramping move more quickly in its to increase starting annual up their recruiting efforts interviewing and hiring salaries. earlier to target MBA stu- decisions. dents, Tsung said. The positive outlook “It remains a very was driven by the fact She added that more competitive marketplace,” that nearly two-thirds of companies are looking to Rogers said. “We’re seeing the employers surveyed retain former interns to fill talent with opportunities said their companies were full-time jobs – and com- in other industries. Stu- growing. panies that may not have dents have a lot of options hired interns in the past these days.” Students at the Univer- are building a programme • Culled from www.bbc. to avoid missing out on com potential hires.
54 TheNiche www.thenicheng.comBusiness ExtraMay15,2016Transforming NigComSat into a revenue earner The impending Alale Back home, NigComSat project manager, she was part of the provision of has helped the military in team that supervised the manu- The deal between NigComSat and Belintersat broadband services. facture and launch in May 2007 of satellite services … fits into the transnationalism of the United In September 2014, it signed a NigComSat-1, the first communica- by NigComSat to Nations Protocols and Conventions on global deal with PPtv to lease DTH (Direct tion satellite in Africa. Belarus signposts a sustainable development towards inclusive to Home) broadband capacity, quest to turn Nigeria multimedia, video streaming, and She has worked on national prior- from subscriber to growth around the world. hotspot event services. ity projects such as NigComSat-1, Nig- provider, the first by It will create jobs in unexplored sectors of It leases bandwidths, too. ComSat-1R, National Direct-to-Home any African country. the economy and help launch Nigeria’s space An amazon with focus Digital Transmission Centre, and Correspondent SAM technology and its opportunities on global Nigeria’s space programme has National Micro Electronics Centre. over the years gulped a lot of mon-INWOKORO reports. windows. ey and the country has not derived She serves on several national t comes out of the blue, much from the investment. committees that advance the utilisa- given Nigeria’s status in started this business before [others]. and its opportunities on global The business inclination of Alale tion of space applications in Nigeria. digital revolution, space We have the experience as we have windows. has heralded change in attitude to technology, and industriali- been here in the last 10 years. work in the business sphere, for in Alale’s interest also spans African sation. But this story is true. George Mfon, an electronic engi- today’s world, only those who dare development and utilisation of Nigeria’s Communication Sat- “In the next two weeks, we shall neer and consultant to an oil firm, succeed. space applications, and as suchellite (NigComSat) will soon provide also start the Carrier Spectrum Moni- said the contract \"means that Nigeria Alale holds a B.MR physiotherapy monitors and reports the activitiesservices in Belarus, Eastern Europe. toring which also involves monitor- will no longer be viewed as starters from Obafemi Awolowo University, of Euroafrica-ICT to her national ing the traffic in the payload without in space business. It will give Nig- Ile-Ife, and an MSc in space studies establishment. The satellite that will provide the sending any command since they ComSat confidence to negotiate for from the International Space Uni-service is one of the large antennae (Belintersat) have clients that are more deals in the future.” versity in Strasbourg, France. She has represented Nigeria atcommunication satellites Nigeria based on the African continent. For well over a decade, she has international gatherings such asbuilt around 2005. Belarus has the same KU and C pursued an active career in the United Nations General Assembly in “Within the next 15 years, we bands as NigComSat which will fur- space sector. New York, UN Committee in Peace- When juxtaposed with the recent shall be monitoring their payload ther help Nigeria attain 50 per cent It began at the National Space ful Uses of Outer Space in Vienna,launch of the pilot phase of Nige- and at the same time sending the fill up rate. Research and Development Agency and International Telecommunica-ria’s digital switch-over performed information on real time to Belarus (NASRDA) where, as assistant tion Union.by NigComSat, it is certain that as they have ground station there.” The agency has also been prepar-Abimbola Alale, the managing Seamless ing for NigComSat 2 and 3 in the To guarantee local Since she became NigComSatdirector, has brought her briefs in past four years. patronage, Alale boss, she has taken initiatives tobusiness administration and space The deal between NigComSat and has also ensured reposition it for greatness by fight-science to bear on her job since she Belintersat is one of the best inter- “Our due process certification the CBN no longer ing, along with the Central Bank ofreplaced Ahmed Rufai in February national business deals profitable to is ready and handy, remaining the approves requests Nigeria (CBN), against capital flight2015. both countries. counterpart funding,” Alale dis- for foreign exchange through the patronage of foreign closed. (forex) for bandwidth satellite firms. It is like the house-cleaning she It also fits into the transnational- procurement fromhas done has fast-tracked pending ism of the United Nations Protocols “Channel partners take the service To guarantee local patronage,deals the agency has with partners. and Conventions on global sustain- to the end users. NigComSat mostly foreign firms. Alale has also ensured the CBN no able development towards inclusive passes broadband services and longer approves requests for foreign One of them is with the Belarus growth around the world. other major satellite applications to exchange (forex) for bandwidthNational System of Satellite Commu- some television stations involved in procurement from foreign firms.nication and Broadcasting (Belinter- It will create jobs in unexplored broadcasting.”sat), whose delegation came to sectors of the economy and help The rise in demand for e-govern-Abuja to fine-tune the details of the launch Nigeria’s space technology The Belarusian contract was won ment services as well as for privatecontract. in December 2015 after a bidding sector goods and services requires a$6 million rake in that involved other countries’ satel- huge bandwidth, which NigComSat lite service providers. readily makes available, lowering Alale said the contract will fetch the cost of doing business.$6 million into Nigeria’s coffers forthe 15 years it will last. She inaugurated the in-orbit testservice for Belintersat recently whenits delegation, led by Andrei Yanov-ich, came to Abuja accompanied bya delegation of China Great WallCorporation (CGWC), manufactur-ers of the satellite. With the commencement ofservice from the Abuja Centre ofNigComSat, the jinx that Nigeria hasnot attained the capacity to deliversatellite services off-shore has beenbroken. Alale recounted that “NigComSatYou can’t generate 7,000mw in 18 months, Labour tells govtBy Kelechi Mgboji “We are going to generate 7,000 transmission. It is in our plan not man of Nigerian Union of Electricity must we politicise such an im- megawatts of power in 18 months. only to produce more gas, but also Workers (NUEW), explained that portant aspect of our nation andAAssistant Business Editor But the problem is pipeline vandal- that we are able to pipe the gas to the failure of government's privati- economy?\" blast of cold water ism. The president has, however, appropriate stations.\" sation policy is the bane of power has been poured by ordered a full-scale protection of generation. Labour also called for a national the Nigeria Labour the pipelines by the military,” Osin- However, former factional NLC summit to discuss socioeconomic Congress (NLC) on bajo said. President, Joe Ajaero, insisted that He said those who took over problems and proffer solutions. Abuja’s promise to de- to generate 7,000mw, power sta- privatised public entities are not liver 7,000 mega watts Nigerians deserve the best from tions must first be built. professionals. Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior(mw) of electricity in 18 months, the government, he added, and this Staff Association of Nigeria (PEN-saying it lacks the capacity because year’s budget will solve some of the \"The average number of years to \"Most of these so-called individual GASSAN) President, Igwe Achese,it must first build power stations. problems in the power value chain. complete a power station is four investors and private companies were bemoaned power generation which years. I am not aware of any power not even in business. They are now he said has plummeted to about The NLC was reacting to Vice “Power is a major factor in nation station to be commissioned in the using infrastructure built years ago 2,000mw because of the failure ofPresident Yemi Osinbajo’s an- building. The most important part next four years. with tax payers’money to learn how privatisation.nouncement that the government of this is power generation that is to generate and distribute power.targets 7,000mw, with serious at- weak at the moment but will be “Even when you have 10,000mw, He asked the government totention being given to gas supply to quickly restored. you must have a transmission \"That's why we are in this sorry review and reverse privatisationspower plants and other problems. network that will convey the pass in the name of local content. not properly done, which have “The most important aspect in 10,000mw,\" he said. What's local content if you don't enslaved Nigerians to exploitation power generation is gas and its have the capacity to deliver? Why and suffering. Ajaero, who is a former chair-
SMtaorckketwww.thenicheng.com 55TheNiche May 15, 2016Sukuk bond may hit market in Q3SStories by Kelechi Mgboji Sukuk bond is structured to turns to investors without infringing Islamic Nwankwo generate returns to investors law that prohibits interest on loans. A Sukuk investor has a common shareAssistant Business Editor without infringing Islamic law overeign Sukuk Bond, an Is- that prohibits interest on loans. It represents undivided shares in the own- in the ownership of the assets linked to the lamic interest-free instrument It represents undivided shares in ership of tangible assets relating to particular investment although this does not represent a for raising funds, may be issued the ownership of tangible assets projects or special investment activity. by the federal government as relating to particular projects or debt owed to the issuer of the bond. part of efforts to diversify the special investment activity. A Sukuk investor has a common share in investor base of the capital able in the market. It will also ensure financial the ownership of the assets linked to the in- inclusiveness. vestment although this does not represent amarket from conventional products. “More people will be ready to participate debt owed to the issuer of the bond. Debt Management Office (DMO) Director in the financial system. There are people who will not participate in conventional products, In the case of conventional bonds the issuerGeneral, Abraham Nwankwo, said work has and there are also people who will participate has a contractual obligation to pay to bondreached advanced stages on the framework, in conventional products and will also want to holders, on specified dates, interest and prin-and a timeline for the issuance would be re- participate in non conventional products. cipal.leased by third quarter of the year (Q3). “So, I assure Nigerians that the DMO, work- ing in collaboration with the CBN, SEC, and In contrast, Sukuk holders each hold an He explained at a workshop organised by ICRC, under the supervision of the Ministry of undivided beneficial ownership in the under-the DMO for Capital Market Correspondents Finance, will eventually issue a Sukuk bond. lying assets, and are entitled to a share in theAssociation of Nigeria (CAMCAN) in Lagos We're working on it. revenues generated by the Sukuk assets. Thethat the DMO is working with other agencies He disclosed that the team had commenced sale of Sukuk relates to the sale of a propor-of government to prepare the framework. work, but found out that it needed to widen its tionate share in the assets. scope to include the CBN and the ICRC, and Said Nwankwo: “We're working not only in the third quarter the DMO would be able to Since the beginning of 2000, Sukuk haswith the Securities and Exchange Commission come up with timeline. become an important Islamic financial instru-(SEC) but also with the Central Bank of Nigeria Sukuk bond is structured to generate re- ment in raising funds for long-term project fi-(CBN) and Infrastructure Concession Regula- nancing.tory Commission (ICRC). The first Sukuk was issued by Malaysia in “Certainly, we are committed to making 2000, followed by Bahrain in 2001, and hassure that we do a Sovereign Sukuk in the Ni- since been used by both the corporate sectorgerian market. That will enable us diversify and states for raising alternative financing.investor base, diversify the instruments avail- It has been growing in popularity since 2011.NASD handled NT50b transactions in 2015ransactions on largely due to the registration of the Nigerian As- new participating institutions, while sociation of Se- the increase in interest income was curities Dealers due to the increase in cash holdings (NASD) platform available for investment as a result “We expect to see more activ- erations closed the year in a posi- ity on the market as more inves- tive position. tors (local and foreign) tap into “The company earned N242.8 the transparency and value which million as trading commission in NASD offers,”he said. the year under review, compared as of December Also in 2015, the company with N11.6 million achieved in ofrevenuegrowth. 31, 2015 were worth over N50 crossed the twenties mark in the the preceding year. Direct trading expenses billion, gleaned from the figures number of securities on its plat- “This substantial increase is amounted to N85 million com- in its annual reports and financial form, ending the year with a total principally due to the publica- pared with N35.2 million in 2014, statements. 24 securities. tion of the new Securities and an increase of 141 per cent. The number of participating in- Mobolurin described 2015 as Exchange Commission (SEC) “This is as a result of the second stitutions was 107 and authorised a challenging, noting that the rule on trading of unlisted shares, year lease payment to the Nigeri- traders 170. change to a new government also which make it obligatory for un- an Stock Exchange (NSE) for the The market also witnessed an brought on the fear of possible listed public companies to trans- use of its trading platform which extraordinary trade in excess of renewed militancy in the Niger act their securities on the SEC’s is substantially higher than the N40 billion, the first of its kind Delta that might disrupt oil pro- registered trading platforms. first year lease payment, in line since inception, and over 140 duction and export. “From membership fees, the with agreed payment schedule.” days of continuous trading until “I had forecast that 2015 would company earned N16.1 million, NASD Managing Director/ the end of 2015. be a year in which the company and N52.4 million from interest Chief Executive Officer, Bola This followed the release of the would take a new and exciting on bank placements represent- Ajomale, said the company will rules on trading in unlisted public turn. ing 30 per cent and 11 per cent continue to build structures to securities. “Even in the face of the many increase respectively over the support economic growth in NASD Board Chairman, Olu- challenges, which befell the glob- previous year’s revenue of N12.4 West Africa and support capital tola Mobolurin, made the disclo- al economies including Nigeria, million and N47.4 million.” mobilisation through liquidity and sures at the annual general meet- the company for the first time Mobolurin said the increase in transparency.Ajomale Mobolurin ing (AGM) in Lagos. since the commencement of op- membership fees for 2015 wasLafarge acquires additional 50% equity in UnicemLafarge Africa says it has concluded plans holders' resolution at the 55th an- indirect interest of 100 per cent dominated by Dangote Cement. from N8.819 trillion. of efforts to improve market trans- to acquire additional nual general meeting (AGM) on of the issued share capital of Uni- But the share price of Lafarge The NSE All-Share Index, parency and integrity, provide 50 per cent equity in July 9, 2014. cem. timely information for investment declined on the same day the which measures performance of decisions as well as enhance the The AGM also approved the The company had previously board approved the additional 50 the stocks traded on the market, United Cement Com- issue of 413,175,709 ordinary acquired 35 per cent stake in Uni- per cent acquisition of Unicem. also appreciated to 25,865.06 ba- protection of investors in the capi-pany of Nigeria (Unicem). shares of the company as full con- cem. The additional 50 per cent Lafarge Africa, along with 10 sis points from 25,630.62 basis tal market.A notice filed to the Nigerian sideration for acquisition. will be on the same terms as the other stocks, traded at losses on a points. It will tag all listed companiesStock Exchange (NSE ) said the A statement signed by Lafarge 35 per cent. bullish trading day 37 firms made The NSE has commenced the with a three character code thatboard of directors approved the Company Secretary, Uzoma Uja, Lafarge has been expanding its the gainers’ list and added N81 use of enhanced Compliance Sta- indicates their compliance statusacquisition at a meeting on Thurs- said at the conclusion of the trans- hold on the cement manufacturing billion gain to market capitalisa- tus Indicator codes on the ticker at any point in time, to enable in- luwaseyi Abe has been electedCIS gets new president and chairman of the Governing Coun-officials O cil of the Char- tered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS).day, May 12 in line with share- action, Lafarge Africa will own industry to match the competition tion which closed at N8.9 trillion tape for listed companies, as part vestors make informed decisions. first vice president and Olatunde and had served in several capacities creation, and pension management. Amolegbe second vice president. in the institute. He explained at the AGM that The election of the principal of- Abe, a financial market operator, the CIS embarked on cost cutting in ficers was announced during the brings into the saddle an experi- view of the financial squeeze that af- council’s meeting after the annual ence spanning over two decades fected its operations. general meeting (AGM). in investment banking, money and capital markets, treasury asset man- He thanked those who served in Prior to his election, Abe, a fellow various capacities in the review pe- Adedapo Adekoje was elected of the CIS, was the acting president agement, corporate finance, wealth riod.
56 TheNiche www.thenicheng.com May 15, 2016Stock MarketShares on Consumer Index to N115.89; Cadbury Nigeria risk as many firms run out ofworst hit in past four months by almost 10 per cent from stock of their critical inputs for N17.15 to N15.50 and Dan- production. Okezie Remi-Bello, President of LCCI. Remi Bello gote Sugar Refinery by 5 perStories by Kelechi Mgboji cent from N6.03 to N5.73. Progressive Shareholders mance of the consumer goods at the end of April just as the N860 at which it had opened Association of Nigeria (PSAN)EAssistant Business Editor sector of the NSE, the index NSE benchmark All-Share in January 2016 to N615.26 Forex scarcity and CBN blamed the decline in price quities on the comprises highly capitalised Index declined 12.5 per cent end of April. restrictions on access to forex value of consumer goods Consumer and liquid companies in food, to 25,062.41 basis points. market have encouraged shares on the global fall in Index of the beverage, and tobacco. Poor financial performance speculative activities on the commodities prices, particu- Nigerian Stock The manufacturing sec- combined to weaken the dollar which impacted nega- larly crude oil, Nigeria’s major Exchange Companies in the index tor has suffered numerous price value of Guinness Ni- tively on investor confidence, revenue earner. (NSE) have are largely high value stocks, challenges after the Central geria, which depreciated 24.2 giving rise to massive offload-suffered the highest decline including Nestle Nigeria, Bank of Nigeria (CBN) policy per cent to N91.28 from the ing of shares on the NSE. PSAN Chairman, Bonifaceof about 18.1 per cent in the Cadbury Nigeria, Nigerian excluded 41 items from access N120.4 it opened the year. Okezie, stressed that“the fallpast four months, implying Breweries, Flour Mills Nigeria, to foreign exchange (forex), The Lagos Chamber of in global oil prices has been athat investors have suffered and Honeywell Flour Mill Plc. and stopped the sale of forex Honeywell Flour Mill also Commerce and Industry major factor affecting Nigeriansignificant losses. to bureaux de change (BDCs). dropped 24 per cent from (LCCI) has criticised the economy. So our market has Following massive sell off N2.05 to N1.56. CBN on its forex policy, and been resilient, though there Designed to provide a witnessed across the board on Investors in Nestle Nigeria advised that excessive regula- are issues the regulators in ourbenchmark to gauge perfor- the NSE, the consumer index lost 29 per cent of their invest- Other equities that signifi- tion and documentation be market need to address. depreciated from 746.19 basis ment in four months as price cantly depreciated in value avoided as it could under- points to 611.05 basis points value of the stock fell from are Nigerian Breweries, which mine the growth of a robust “When a finger of an inves- shed 14.8 per cent from N136 autonomous forex market. tor is burnt, he or she will be careful not to put forward It warned that currency other fingers in order not to controls and regulations be burnt as well. That is what of forex inflows into the is really affecting the market. economy should be relaxed, without necessarily compro- “The decline we are expe- mising the money laundering riencing in our market now prevention measures of the is somehow normal as some authorities. investors are selling their shares to meet up with other The LCCI argued that over- expectations. regulation would consider- ably hurt the economy, and “But there is hope that the it is more paramount for the market will rebound once regulator to articulate policies investors see a clearer picture to stimulate and unlock the of the federal government’s huge potentials in diaspora policy direction. The Buhari remittances and other capital administration has started inflows rather than resorting to fighting corruption and tack- currency supply management. ling insecurity. It added that the restrictions “These are some of have caused considerable loss the things that will attract of jobs and many more are at investors to invest into our economy.”Diamond Bank, three others default on 5% NPL ratioFDozie FBN Holdings Managing Director, U.K .Eke Ecobank Group CEO, Albert Essien Union Bank CEO, Emeka Emuwa our banks have ported NPLs and advances Bank in a better position February as agreed under the in the financial sector has discuss it. We spoke about Non-Performing of N56.68 billion, up from to achieve better results terms between both parties. risen following the national things like debt factoring; Loan (NPL) ratio N42.4 billion in 2014. and strong earnings for the economic challenges. it is not something that has exceeding the shareholders in the current The CBN had raised an been done yet, but there Central Bank of Diamond Bank Chief Exec- business year. alarm over increase in NPL Her words: “We have were some discussions Nigeria (CBN’s) utive Officer, Uzoma Dozie, in the financial sector due to spoken about the falling oil about it.threshold of 5 per cent, explained that 2015 “was un- FBN Holdings has had the exposure of banks to the prices. So, non-performingthereby breaching the risk doubtedly a challenging year over N317 billion in new oil and gas sector. loans going up is not un- “The most important thingprevention policy. for us owing to a mixture of NPLs since the third quarter expected, it is normal. If is that banks are consciousDiamond Bank, First Bank external factors not limited of 2015 (3Q15). Its impair- The sharp increase in bad people are finding it difficult of it; they are preservingof Nigeria Holdings (FBN to regulatory headwinds and ment provisions cover only loans, according to the CBN, to get paid their salaries and capital; they have enoughHoldings), Ecobank, and a difficult macroeconomic about 18 per cent of the was due to a host of external are not able to pay their capital as we speak and theyUnion Bank all defaulted as environment. amount. and internal factors. loans, it is not unexpected. are not distributing as muchof December 31, 2015. of their capital as they wouldAudited financial state- “Whilst this led to addi- Renaissance Capital stated These include low and “If corporates are not have in the past, in antici-ment of Diamond Bank tional impairment charges in its report that the bank’s volatile oil prices; uncer- doing well as they used to pation of this risk that mayshowed NPL at 6.9 per following a prudent review, NPL ratio rose to 22 per cent tainty about severe fiscal do and they are not able crystallise.cent by December 31, 2015 we have further tightened in 1Q16. imbalance at the sub-nation- to pay their loans, it is notagainst 5.2 per cent in 2014, the criteria for loan origina- al level of the government; something unusual to see “This is because theymeaning the bank failed in tions in order to better align FBN attributed the rise to weak output growth; and the NPLs rising. The average know that they need to haveprudential risk management our loan portfolio with the two large portfolios which had eroding investor confidence. figure of 5 per cent NPL is enough capital to absorb thein two consecutive years. macroeconomic conditions.” fairly low provisions, Atlantic not out of this world. risk that may happen.”In the 2015 financial Energy, last estimated at be- CBN Director of Bankingstatement, the bank re- Dozie said actions are tween $400 and $450 million. Supervision, Tokunbo Mar- “But then, on the other Martins said banks are being taken to drastically tins, confirmed at the end hand, it is not really that we adequately capitalised to reduce these challenges, The payment of 55 per of the recent 326th meeting are resting on our laurels; withstand the shock of the thereby putting Diamond cent of the bank’s exposure of the Bankers’ Commit- the Bankers’ Committee did increase in NPLs. did not come through in tee that the volume of NPL
M toringwww.thenicheng.com 57TheNiche May 15, 2016 Carmagedeon By Jonas Agwu 0805 316 6400 [email protected] Martin dazzles bFReSltCeannfodrcreeamresneat t(2)K•The DB11 is the most important model in the British carmaker's 103-year history. nowing what significant down-force at • Continued from last edition. doubting Thomases. we know speed without requiring Nigeria, like most other I have also had the testimo- about car a ungainly fixed wing. So writers, we clever. African countries, is witnessing ny of others who believed they can safely population explosion with its were spared because of seat The DB11 uses a new attendant vehicular increase belt use, including the story of assume that twin-turbo 5.2-litre V12. The and activity on the roads. my friend and classmate, Toye,at least four out of every engine, designed in-house, who now lives in Houston.five of them in attendance produces 600 horsepower Juxtaposed against this isat the Geneva motor show and 516 pound-feet of the skyrocketing technology As a manager in one of theplanned – probably well in torque – which is, yes, advancements. High-tech ve- popular auto dealers in Nigeriaadvance – to evoke a tired more than the naturally hicles, high tech gadgets (with then, Toye was often teased bybit from This Is Spinal Tap aspirated 6-litre V12 in the high-tech distractions). friends, family and colleaguesin their coverage of the de- flagship Vanquish. For now, as a“poser”because of hisbut of Aston Martin DB11. at least. While the FRSC is totally strict use of seat belt longAnd yet, as unimaginative Aston promises the DB11 focused on reducing road ac- before the thought of enlist-as such a reference surely will run from zero to 62mph cidents to the barest minimum, ing into the FRSC crossed myis (and it is), there is some in 3.9 seconds, which is Aston Martin DB11 even in the face of distraction, mind or the thought of its it must put in place machinery enforcement crept into FRSCtruth to it. In creating its brisk if not world-beating, to ensure minimum injuries dictionary.successor to the 13-year-old and keep moving until and fatalities in the event of aDB9, Aston Martin pushed, the speedometer needle crash. He was driving from thequite boldly, into new ter- touches the 200mph mark. East to Lagos when aroundritory. The 2+2 interior is as That is the all-encompassing Ore in Ondo State an articu-The new DB is more enticing as the exterior, and mandate. lated vehicle lost control assophisticated, more user- entirely more habitable by a result of brake failure on afriendly, more capable, humans – two plus two Part 2, Section 10 (4) (ee) slope and rammed onto hismore comfortable and, of them, in fact. And the of the Federal Road Safety official Peugeot 504 car.though it hardly seems pos- boot, claims Aston, is \"large Commission Establishment Actsible, more beautiful than enough to accommodate 2007 mandates the FRSC to ar- Toye, whose size wouldthe car it replaces. Aston's two large holdalls plus rest and prosecute persons rea- make a professional Ameri-DB11 was, stated plainly, carry-on baggage\". sonably suspected of having can football player envious,Geneva's Best in Show. The cabin materials, committed any traffic offence, survived with a minor waistThe DB11 is the first colours and textures – par- including driving a vehicle not fracture that healed in no time.new Aston to leverage the ticularly the brogue-detailed fitted with seat belt or wherecompany's budding rela- leather surfaces – are sump- Aston Martin DB11 fitted, not wearing same while The reverse was the casetionship with Daimler – an tuous and daring, highly the vehicle is in motion. for the other occupants of theagreement that eventually evolved from the DB9 yet vehicle who received majorwill beget a bespoke Aston- unmistakably Aston. Part XII 126(1) of the Na- injuries that kept them onAMG V8 engine – and it Gone, alas, is the crystal- tional Road Transport Regula- hospital bed for months.does so with impressive topped Emotional Control tion (NRTR) 2012 stipulatesfinesse. Unit, a conversation-piece that every vehicle shall have One of the victims stillThat's a good thing, be- key that slotted into the fitted in the front and rear seat, limps, and has for over 20cause this is an important car centre console and served seat belt and child safety seat years since the accident thatfor Aston Martin – probably as a glowing engine-start which shall be securely won almost claimed their livesthe most important model in button. by the driver and the other become a road safety ambas-its 103-year history. Aston prudently leaned occupants of the vehicle while sador.It the first to follow Chief on Daimler to help develop the vehicle is in motion.Executive Officer Andy the DB11's instrumentation I do not pray for you to waitPalmer's ambitious strategy and infotainment setup. A Is Nigeria running ahead until this experience beforeto catch the eye – and win 12-inch TFT LCD screen of other countries? Are we you do the right thing.the loyalty – of his ideal provides a virtual gauge leaving substance to pursuecustomer: a wealthy Ameri- cluster, with infotainment shadows? I do not think so. A seat belt is designedcan woman in her 30s. functions handled on an (Credit: Aston Martin Lagonda) The United Kingdom is not to protect the occupant of a enforcing back occupant seat vehicle against any dangerous He's even given his 8-inch screen atop the cen- Simply stated, this is the the Lamborghini Centenario belt? And how has this affected movement in the event of afictional dream girl a name: tre console. way a DB11 sounds – and are faster, more tech-laden crash fatalities? crash or sudden stop.Charlotte. \"She's a cool lady, not just the exhaust note, and more dramatic than theshe's an attractive lady,\" A rotary knob controller but traits like the fasten- DB11 (though not necessar- A study shows that while It reduces the severity orPalmer told BBC News in is standard, but buyers can seatbelt warning tone and ily in a good way), but the drivers’fatality fell 21 per cent even the possibility of anan interview. opt for a clever touchpad the click of a turn-indicator Aston comes off as more and front passengers’fatality injury in a crash by preventing (from the Mercedes S-Class) stalk or the creak of the original, surprising and 28 per cent, fatalities for non the occupants from colliding And the svelte DB11, that incorporates character leather on the driver's seat. important. seat belt wearing rear passen- with interior elements of thewhich is fearsome without recognition, multi-touch gers rose 16 per cent. vehicle or other passengers.being frightening, happens and gesture support. Says Aston, \"Each [sound] Even working within Gay-to be a very cool car. has been paid close atten- don's well-known DB bound- Countries all over the A seat belt keeps occu- Now, the DB11 again tion so they have harmony aries – 12 cylinders, long world are looking for ways to pants positioned correctly for The shape is an artful highlights a small problem and a proportionate context bonnet, et cetera – Aston's entrench safety in all facets of maximum safety, and preventsmash-up of DB9 and Van- for Aston Martin: model to one another. Nothing has stylists managed to create a community living, and traffic them from being ejected fromquish cues, with a helping overlap. The company been left to chance.\" car that feels absolutely fresh. safety is one that every country the vehicle.of the made-for-Spectre makes several rather similar is giving optimum attention to.DB10 thrown in, as well sporting cars. This kind of psycho- Unlike most of the Global data attest to this. Seat belts have been ad-(the wheels, for instance, acoustic fine-tuning – the performance-car debuts in judged the most single trafficare straight from the DB10, The V12-powered DB9 conscious decision to make Geneva this week, the DB11 In the UK, out of the 1,432 safety device for preventingand are even fitted with served alongside the V12- a warning chime sound exists not for the sake of car occupants killed in 2007, death and injuries.bespoke Bridgestone \"S007\" powered DBS and the V12- \"suggestive\" rather than simple one-upsmanship or 34 per cent had not belted up.tyres). powered Vanquish, and for \"demanding\" – is quite braggadocio. It exists for An estimated 565 were not Our roads are getting bet- a short time a V12-powered cutting-edge, and further something better, something using seat belt when killed in ter. Anyone who has recently A vast forward-opening DB9 lookalike called Virage highlights the DB11's im- more lasting: progress. 2005. done a long distance journeyclamshell bonnet defines joined the mix. portance, both to Aston and by road can attest to this.the front end, and the rear the industry at large, where Aston Martin kindly in- Some 370 would have prob- Mobile phone craze is onfeatures a dazzling bit of Aston will be quick to vehicles are increasingly cluded pricing in its debut ably survived if they had been the rampage. Built-in vehicleairflow-management magic note that each model is created through corporate announcement: The DB11, properly restrained in Canada, video screen is competingcalled AeroBlade (that's a meaningfully different, but partnerships (the mechani- deliveries of which com- the insignificant 7 per cent of with it.trademarked term, mind). there's no denying that cally similar Mercedes-Benz mence late this year, will people not wearing seat belt Gaydon builds more than GLA and Infiniti QX30 come command £154,900 in the account for almost 40 per cent All these, while good, cre- Aft of the C-pillars, subtle its share of long-bonnet- to mind). United Kingdom, €204,900 of fatalities in crashes. ate a large room for drivers’openings channel air into two-door-12-cylinder grand in Germany and $211,995 in distraction and recklessness re-the rear body work and out tourers. This year's Geneva motor the United States. In the United States, seat sulting mostly in road crashes.through a narrow slot on show was surely not with- belt saved almost 13,000 livestrailing edge of the boot lid. One clever way the com- out its heavy hitters. • Culled from www.bbc. in 2009. Over speeding is the major pany is differentiating its com/autos cause of accidents. A crash Aston calls it a \"virtual models is by shaping their The Bugatti Chiron and What is the data in Nigeria? resulting from speed usu-spoiler\", and it generates \"sonic identities.\" I personally have lost quite a ally throws the occupants number of people who could off a vehicle in a somersault, have lived if they had used apart from its other haywire their seat belt. The story of attributes. the father whose daughter’s death I referred to is a more A properly restrained oc- recent reminder to all the cupant of a vehicle stands a better chance of survival than an unrestrained passenger.
58 TheNiche www.thenicheng.comTourism/AviationMay15,2016Why the plane market is unlikely to crash billion. leasing companies planning ing to use the windfall profits to CAPA, an aviation-consult- As a result, some investors to add capacity, with the from cheaper fuel to upgrade ing firm. replacement of their older jets their fleet while they can afford are worried that the aviation But even if the two big cycle may have started to take accounting for just 30 per cent. to do so. planemakers do enjoy more a sharp downwards turn, and But since then, demand Competition from rivals predictable demand than in that it will hit Airbus and Boe- from customers seeking to introducing newer and more the past, it may become more ing's future profits. replace old planes has risen to comfortable planes is also volatile on a year-to-year basis. Although Boeing and Airbus more than half of deliveries. propping up demand from Much of the order backlog recently revealed record pro- That makes the state of the airlines keen to keep up with comes from relatively new duction figures, for 2015 new economy less of a factor. the latest trends. airlines in the emerging world. orders net of cancellations fell The airlines are busy swap- Another reason why theT wo years ago at the from Boeing and Airbus, the by almost half at Boeing and a ping old jets for new ones aircraft market has become Some of these carriers will Dubai Air Show, world's two biggest planemak- third at Airbus compared with because the planemakers have less cyclical – and now less inevitably retreat, and some- things were looking ers, in one day. the previous year. brought out more fuel-efficient likely to crash – is the advent times fail, due to rising com- rosy for planemak- versions of the Boeing 737 of no-frills airlines. petition from more efficient ers. Two years later, at the But most analysts do not and Airbus A320, their short- upstarts. The four big Gulf carri- most recent Dubai show, in think that the demand for new haul models; and introduced Because they are prepareders alone, Emirates, Etihad, November 2015, things looked planes will fall as much as in new long-haul models, the to vary prices to ride out the Although this may meanFlyDubai and Qatar Airlines, more worrying for them. There previous cycles, even if there is Boeing 787 Dreamliner and ups and downs of demand for more cancelled orders in thebought planes worth more was only one big airline order a global economic slowdown. Airbus A350, which are also flights, their demand for planes future, analysts and executivesthan $170 billion, at list prices, of note, by Vietjet of Vietnam, Why not? more economical than older is smoother. The rise of budget currently expect the upstarts to for Airbus planes worth $3.6 equivalents. carriers in emerging markets is fill the gaps in the order books. In part, it is because airlines also helping. and leasing companies are It is only if this stops hap- buying planes for slightly dif- Although the slump in oil Budget airlines account for pening – and there is no sign ferent reasons. prices means that jet fuel is a around 60 per cent of seat ca- of it yet – that investors in Before 2008, around 70 lot cheaper than it used to be, pacity in India and South-East Airbus and Boeing should start per cent of demand for new most airline executives do not Asia; in Europe, the figure is worrying. planes was from airlines and think this will last, and are try- around 40 per cent, according • Culled from www.econo- mist.com A fuelish endeavourBritish Airways is the least fuel-efficient transatlantic carrierA new study of the 20 big- On average, a nonstop transatlantic flight and back spews out about a gest transatlantic carri- tonne of CO2 emissions per passenger. But that figure hides a big spread in ers by the International the fuel efficiency measures of different airlines. Council of Clean Transpor- tation (ICCT) found that more likely to run old, carbon-spewing That still does not excuse BA’s woe- Given that it is responsible for 10 perthere was a 51 per cent difference jumbos. ful showing, though. It performed badly cent of transatlantic air capacity – it fliesbetween the fuel efficiency of the even when compared with other legacy across the Atlantic 6,121 times a year ac-best-performing airline, Norwegian Nearly half of BA’s transatlantic capac- airlines, such as Virgin, United and cording to ICCT – that should make a bigAir Shuttle, and the worst, British ity, for example, is accounted for by 747s. American. difference to the greenness of flying overAirways (BA). Many also have large business- and first- the big blue ocean. class cabins (24 per cent of seats in BA’s Britain's flag carrier is in the process Norwegian, on average, flies at case). This means they fly fewer passen- of overhauling its fleet, and should have • Culled from www.economist.com40 passenger-kilometres per litre of gers pound-for-pound. replaced all of its 747s by 2023.jet fuel (pax-km/l, see table). Onereason for its impressive performanceis that it predominately runs a fleet ofmodern, efficient Boeing 787-8s. Norwegian only began flying thetransatlantic route in 2013. The planesit uses are, on average, also only twoyears old. Its high pax-km/l is also downto the fact that it squeezes in morepassengers. Its planes typically haveno business-class seats, and are insteadconfigured with 259 seats in the economycabin and 32 seats in a premium-econo-my one. It also does not carry as much freight inthe belly of its aircraft. Legacy airlines, on the other hand, areChina unveils passenger aircraft to challenge Boeing and Airbus China has unveiled its first large leasing company, GE Capital demand for civilian aircraft over The C919 is due to enter commercialpassenger aircraft in decades, in Aviation Services. the next two decades at 5,580 service in 2019. Getty Imagesan effort to mount a challenge to planes worth a total of $780planemakers Boeing and Airbus. The development of the new billion. aircraft has been hit by delaysT he C919, with 168 seats imports,\" he told the ceremony since the project was conceived The C919 will compete in Canada's Bombardier. the United States. and range of 3,444 at a hangar near Shanghai's in 2008. Assuming the test the market for single-aisle jets The first two ARJ-21s were The aircraft's engines are miles, was displayed at Pudong International Airport. flights are successful, the C919 dominated by Airbus A320 and a ceremony attended is due to enter commercial Boeing's 737. But the Chinese delivered in 2014 to a Chinese made by CFM International,by 4,000 guests. The BBC's economics cor- service in about 2019. aircraft is just the start of a airline. a joint venture between respondent AndrewWalker Airbus-Boeing duopoly strategy to eat into the Airbus- America's General Electric and The C919's first test flight is says the aircraft represents Boeing duopoly. Foreign firms are key suppli- France's Safran.not until 2016, but the unveil- \"an important step in China's China has had ambitions ers to the C919, including Hon-ing was seen as having huge economy moving beyond low- to build its own civil aircraft Comac also plans a wide- eywell and Rockwell Collins in • Culled from www.bbc.comindustrial significance. cost manufacturing\". industry since the 1970s, when body plane, the C929, in co- leader Mao Zedong's wife, operation with Russia's United \"A great nation must have its The C919's manufacturer, Jiang Qing, personally backed Aircraft Corp, and the companyown large commercial aircraft,\" Commercial Aircraft Corp of a project. But theY-10's heavy is also expected to create anthe country's civil aviation chief China (Comac), says it has weight made it impractical and aero-engine operation.Li Jiaxiang said. orders for 517 aircraft from only three were ever made. 21 customers, most of them A separate state-owned \"China's air transport industry Chinese airlines, but also from Boeing's latestWorld Market company has developed acannot completely rely on Outlook puts China's total smaller regional jet, the ARJ-21, to compete in the market domi- nated by Brazil's Embraer and
59 TheNiche FOOTBALL ATHLETICS BASKETBALL TENNIS FLASHBACK May 15, 2016 SPORTSwww.thenicheng.com [email protected] FFOoOotTbBaAll LL FOOTBALLAyo Bada »PAGE 61 »PAGE 63Senior Correspondent0805 410 3980, 0803 332 2615 Iyaye wants West Ham [email protected] NPFL title issue life [email protected] badly over attack on Man United’s busDenial of visas Super Eagles’ Mohammed Sanusi, said the firmed that about 60 per centmay scuttle Super friendly matches development is not good of the passports taken to theEagles’ friendlies in Europe at the for the team as it could embassy on Friday, April 29in Europe end of this month demoralise the players and were returned without visas. are being threat- officials. ened by denial The Super Eagles play of visas to one home-based “We are appealing to the Mali’s Les Aiglons in Rouen, player, two coaches, and embassy of France in Nigeria France on Friday, May 27 administrative officials. to reconsider its stance and before engaging the national issue visas to these officials. team of Luxembourg in The Nigeria Football Fed- Luxembourg on Wednesday, eration (NFF) has appealed “They are going to Europe June 1. to the French embassy for very important assign- in Nigeria to approve the ments as the two matches Arrangements for the two visas for two international are key to the preparation matches, including payments friendlies against Mali and of the Super Eagles for for stadia use, training facili- Luxembourg. future engagements,” Sanusi ties, and hotel accommoda- added. tion have been concluded NFF General Secretary, by the organisers. NFF protocol officials con-
60 TheNiche www.thenicheng.com May 15, 2016Table TennisWe can break the jinx thisyear, Toriola assuresN igerians may the final in 2015. Apart from clinch the 2016 this, Nigerian players have ITTF Premier always been making it to the Lotto Nigeria semifinal stage. Open to break “I believe we can win the the jinx of not title this year because most ofwinning the competition since the foreign-based players haveinception. been doing very well in theirAfrica’s most decorated table various clubs and the skills andtennis player, Segun Toriola, talents of the local players can-says there is a possibility of Ni- not be underestimated.gerian players dominating this Toriola, who is also formeryear’s tournament. Commonwealth champion,Twice they have made it to will be at his seventh Olympicthe final of the ITTF Premier Games in Rio, Brazil.Lotto but lost. And with just a He expressed delight at thefew days to the latest kick off, turnout of players, particularlyToriola, former African cham- from Europe, for the ITTF Pre-pion, believes the title will not mier Lotto, saying this wouldbe beyond the reach of his help raise the standard of thecompatriots. sport in Nigeria.Toriola, a finalist at the 2013 “I believe the presence ofedition, said Nigerian players players across the globe par-have the wherewithal to claim ticularly the ones from Europethe laurel, stressing that Egypt’s will surely help our playersOmar Assar has been “extra- who have not been playingordinarily lucky” to have won against Europeans.the title three times. “The eyes of the world are“I think Nigerian players have now on Nigeria with the giantalways been capable of winning stride the country has made inthe title in all the three editions the last four years by hostingof the competition. It was just such quality competition.that we were unlucky not to “I am hopeful that our playershave won the title having made will surely gain from taking partit to the final twice,” he added. in the tournament and the pro- “I played in the final in 2013 file of the sport will continue toand Aruna Quadri made it to improve in the country. Toriola, one of Africa's most respected players, will compete in the 2016 ITTF Premier Lotto Nigeria OpenPolo Access Bank UNICEF CharityT Shield polo tourney gets dates his year’s the faces of the less privi- in this partnership for 10 edition of leged and this year will years running and we will the Access not be an exception. continue to support UNI- Bank/UNI- CEF and Fifth Chukker for CEF Char- “We are expecting the betterment of the lives participating teams from ity Shield across the country as well of internally displacedpolo tournament will hold as outside, with a team persons (IDP).in Kangimi Resort, Kadu- coming from Johannes- “We will extend ourna, from May 25 to June 5. burg, South Africa. sponsorship to more IDPsThe tournament, the “All arrangements have to see how we can sup-biggest charity polo event been concluded with the port in areas of health,in Africa, will feature 15 teams and players, and education, and sports.teams vying for honours some of them have al- Etuokwu disclosedin three categories, ac- ready started sending their that some of the projectscording to the organisers. horses to Kaduna.” implemented through theFifth Chukker Polo Cap- Three teams each will tournament have beentain, Babangida Katsina, compete for the Access yielding results.who unfolded plans for Bank Cup and the High “We are really monitor-the event, the 10th in the Goal Charity Shield. Oth- ing the projects and I amseries, said the UNICEF ers will compete for the happy that we are gettingCup will run from May 25 UNICEF Cup. positive results from theto 29 and both the Access Access Bank Executive areas that we’ve touchedBank Cup and High Goal Director (Personal Bank- and this continue to en-Charity Shield will run ing), Victor Etuokwu, courage us to do more for Action from last year's tournamentfrom June 1 to 5. pledged that the bank will the IDPs.” the tournament is to unite and help them have ac- been playing in the past He added: “The future continue to sponsor the UNICEF Communica- children and bring succor cess to education, health 10 years, and like Oliver tournament as long it is to IDPs. and sports. Twist, we will be happyof our children is very part of its corporate social tion Officer (Advocacy, if the bank can increasebright with this tourna- responsibility (CSR). Media and External Rela- “We are actually using “We appreciate the its sponsorship largess forment as it has helped in tions), Blessing Ejiofor, the tournament to create management of Access the tournament.”the past to put smiles on His words: “We’ve been said the main purpose of opportunity for children Bank for the roles it has
www.thenicheng.com 61TheNicheFootball May 15, 2016Iyaye R ivers State Sports ensuring that your priority iswants Commissioner, placed at the top burner. I amNPFL title Borma Iyaye, has urging you all to reciprocatebadly charged players this commendable gesture by and officials of ensuring that you go all out to Rivers United to win this season’s NPFL title. gun for this season’s Nigeria Professional Football League “If this feat is achieved, it (NPFL) title. will go a long way in putting smiles on the faces of all Riv- The club has been in ers people and also justify the impressive form in recent huge investment in the club.” weeks, dispatching the log leaders, Enugu Rangers, 3-1 Rivers United is sixth in the in Port Harcourt on May 1 NPFL standings with 25 points before following it up with a from 15 matches, three points 1-0 victory over Warri Wolves adrift of the leaders, Enugu last Sunday. Rangers. Addressing the players Wike has approved the and officials after their return immediate payment of the from Warri, Iyaye urged them sign on fees for the 2013/2014 to reciprocate the gesture of season owed the players by Governor Nyesom Wike by the previous administration, winning the 2015/16 title. in recognition of their recent upsurge, especially their away He said Wike“has shown win against Warri Wolves. he is a man of action byIt’s fight to finishAfor BoboyebiaWarriorstacti- enced players like John Ghaddi, Iyaye cian, Kennedy Bob- Valentine Nwabil and Stanley Okoro oye, says he will be is one factor, but most importantly Yobo testimonial disappointed if the we are a team that works so hard underway team does not win and that is why we keep getting the NPFL title having good results. F ormer Nigeria captain, Joseph Yobo, is missed out of the Federation Cup. “Apart from this, we all nurse the pleased to have secured the services of With a game in hand, the Umuahia same ambition of winning the NPFL major international players to take part in based outfit is a point behind lead- title and also playing in the Con- his testimonial game later this month in ers, Enugu Rangers, after defeating federation of Africa Football (CAF) Port Harcourt. Giwa FC 1-0 and losing just once in Champions League. Yobo, 35, has been in Europe visiting his 14 games. “And in achieving this, that means old stomping grounds and speaking to players expected The Super Eagles’ interim assistant we have to be very solid in defence at the game and is happy with the response. coach said he will regret it if Aba and brilliant in attack, not forgetting \"It has been amazing. Almost everybody wants to Warriors fails to keep up its recent other departments of the game; but come and play,\" he said. \"My only regret is that I can't form. most importantly we must be able to invite everybody.\" “We give thanks to God for the convert our chances and avoid being At Everton where Yobo spent nearly a decade of his victory [against Giwa] and our focus complacent. playing career, he was warmly received by the club and is how to get a result against Makur- “It will be a massive disappointed presented to a stadium-wide ovation by the fans at half di and against Nasarawa United,” if we do not win the league because time of the Premier League game against Bournemouth. Boboye enthused. that is our target this season. Besides, \"That was an emotional moment for me. And I would “I think the presence of experi- we are not in the Federation Cup. like to thank Evertonians for the love.\"Boboye The testimonial on May 27 will be hosted by the Riv-Afelokhai hails Enyimba’s defenders ers State government at the new Adokiye Amiesimaka E nyimba’s goalkeeper, Stadium, Port Harcourt.Afelokhai Theophilus Afelokhai, has praised his defend- Yobo ers for putting in their best during the goalless draw with MFM last Wednesday. The former Kano Pillars first choice goalkeeper was in fantastic form as he stood between the Ni- gerian Professional Football League (NPFL) debutants and goal while centre backs, Chinedu Udoji and Ike ThankGod, made key intercep- tions. Afelokhai made point blank saves from Stephen Odey and Musa New- man's efforts. The most spectacular was his save in the six-yard when pint- sized Onuwa opened up the Aba Elephants' backline from a cut back from Olatunbosun Sikiru from the left but a final tap in by Stephen Odey was denied by the goal- keeper. \"Like you all know too well, Eny- imba FC has experienced players. The defenders protected me very well. \"Football is basically about scor- ing goals and it's important I also do my job very well as a goalkeeper,\" Afelokhai stressed. He joined Enyimba this season from Kano Pillars and has held down the starting shirt both in the domestic league and on the continent.
62 TheNiche www.thenicheng.comFootballMay15,2016Corvaro, FIFA man who fixeseverything Nigeria Corvaro letters from FIFA that arm football. news.net out of annoyance. al interests and focus on for the second time. twist the nation. www.gongnews.net The documents showed the elections. Don’t hesitate That process was alleg-ABy Olajide Fashikun to contact me for whatever s the tussle FIFA is facing a massive possesses a long string that Corvaro allegedly was reasons.” edly midwived by Amos grinds corruption scandal being of private mail spanning a key player in the scheme Adamu as the director gen- deeper over investigated by the Ameri- almost a decade exchanged to manipulate the NFF 2014 Corvaro, an Italian who eral of the National Sports the authen- can Federal Bureau of between Corvaro and his Electoral Committee Chair- allegedly has a record of Commission (NSC). tic leader- Investigation (FBI). Nigerian friends where man, Amoni Biambo. making good money ma- ship of the they allegedly discussed nipulating football officials The very high decibelNigeria Football Federation Besides, documents ob- and exchanged mail, terms, Plans were allegedly in Africa (he was attacked corrupt in Nigerian foot-(NFF) we can reveal the tained by www.gongnews. and confirmed monetary hatched as to how they in Sierra Leone) may have ball has been a veritableFIFA official, Primo Cor- net point to allegedly exchanges. would use the instrumen- brought to his stable acting ground of cheap funds forvaro, who is like the desk damning evidence against tality of FIFA to arm twist FIFA Secretary General, FIFA officials.officer for Nigeria and is al- FIFA officials who alleged- An ostracised member of Baimbo to create room for Markus Kattner.legedly behind all the fake ly make a colossal fortune the clique forwarded the Aminu Maigari to run in the Last week, there were re- manipulating Nigerian documents to www.gong- election. Kattner’s predecessor, ports that FIFA would write Urs Linsi, lost his FIFA job to suspend Nigeria if the Corvaro wrote in one on account of Nigeria’s Chris Giwa group acting on letter: “Please find enclosed electoral turns. the orders of a court dare the FIFA letter I mentioned step into the Glass House. to you on the phone. For Corvaro and his allies, They did on Friday, May 6. your information, the chair- James Johnson and Thi- man of the electoral com- erry Regenass, who are However, the FIFA letter mittee, Mr. Biambo, called also FIFA officials, alleg- is not coming because of me to explain the reasons edly work hand in hand to fears that the no nonsense of yesterday’s disqualifica- ensure their friends in the President Muhammadu tions. NFF get exactly what they Buhari administration may want. accept the ban and keep “I told him that FIFA was the NFF at bay or even going to send a letter advis- Most times, they alleg- pick up the facilitators of ing for a reunification of edly ask their Nigerian the letter. the NFF Executive Commit- friends to write a letter of tee and that the electoral threat the way they want it; Alleged corruption that process should be restarted they then copy the letter to has dogged the NFF leader- and open to everybody. a FIFA letterhead and send ship is monumental, in- I added that you (the reuni- it to the NFF. cluding awarding contracts fied ExCo) would contact to personal companies. him. This probably explains why boastful Nigerian of- We shall take Corvaro, “We therefore expect ficials can predict, even on Kattner, Regenass, and that the Exco, as it was social media, the exact date Johnson to the FIFA Ethics before the World Cup FIFA letters would arrive. Committee, and if they also (meaning 13 members) cover up the scandal – as meets soon and defines the FIFA officials have been the committee did in the new roadmap which will at the centre of the bad 2014 election round of be communicated to FIFA. leadership and faulted elec- sleaze – we shall proceed tions in the NFF since the to the policing agencies. “We hope that every- 2006 vote which was used body will set aside person- to eject Ibrahim Galadima • Fashikun is managing editor, www.gongnews.netNeil laments letting down Norwich fansorwichwas relegated to the Championship despite a thump- ing a 4-2 victoryN over Watford atWednesday. Carrow Road lastAnd Sunderland's 3-0 win overEverton consigned the Canaries to thesecond tier, as it is now four pointsfrom safety with today’s last matchagainst Everton.Manager, Alex Neil, however feelsthat he let the team and its teemingsupporters down during the season.He said: “It is severe disappoint-ment. The story for us is that, as aclub, we have dropped short for avariety of reasons.“We have made vital errors ingames at crucial times and the re-cruitment has not been as good tostrengthen the squad.\"I am here to do a job, the club willbe bigger than me, and I am not fear-ing for my job.\" Norwich players after the victory over Watford
Footballwww.thenicheng.com 63TheNiche May 15, 2016West Ham to issue life W est during the match, while an- Twitter to condemn the at-bans over attack on Ham other fan invaded the pitch tack on Manchester United'sMan United’s bus will to confront him. bus, saying: \"The events in issue the stadium last night were life West Ham eventually incredible and it would be won 3-2 in what was its bans final game at the ground a shame if the actions of a to fans found responsible before moving to the Olym- mindless few outside over- for attacking the Manches- pic Stadium. shadowed them. ter United team bus before \"It was an extraordinary \"Their behaviour was last Tuesday's game at night full of extraordinary unacceptable and won't be Upton Park. moments in front of ex- stood for. But my overrid- A window on the bus was traordinary fans, 99 per cent ing memory will not be of smashed and the kick-off of whom behaved impec- them but of a fitting fare- delayed by 45 minutes as a cably and were a credit to well to the Boleyn.\" result of the trouble. the club. Footage filmed on the \"We are aware that there \"We have already had coach by Manchester Unit- were some supporters thousands of tweets and ed winger, Jesse Lingard, outside the Boleyn Ground emails from fans to say how showed the players shout- who didn't act in an appro- proud they were to be a ing, screaming, laughing, priate way,\" a club state- part of such a special eve- and hiding on the floor as ment read. ning in West Ham's history,\" the coach was hit by objects The Football Association the club statement said. thrown outside the ground. (FA) also condemned the But the club stressed that \"It wasn't nice, the coach \"unsavoury incidents\" and the behaviour of some fans got smashed up,\" Manches- said it “will work closely was \"not acceptable\" and ter United captain, Wayne with both clubs and the promised to \"work with Rooney, told Sky Sports. Metropolitan Police to fully the police to identify those \"I'm sure West Ham as a investigate these matters.\" responsible and ban them club will be disappointed Bottles were also thrown for life.” with what the fans haveManchester United's coach was attacked on the way into Upton Park at Manchester United West Ham Vice Chair- done.\" goalkeeper, David de Gea, man, Karren Brady, usedCity, United battle for Top Four slotW ith the last English could see it slip out of the Arsenal is currently is Premier Top Four cadre if Man- in third position with 68 League chester United sees off points; Tottenham is sec- Bournemouth at the Old ond with 70. (EPL) Trafford. Still smarting from itsmatches holding today at City is in fourth position, away 1-1 draw with Liv-different venues, pressures and United is fifth position erpool last Wednesday atwould be on players and with 63 points from the Anfield Stadium, Chelsea’sofficials of Manchester City same number of matches. match against Leicester Cityand Manchester United as Arsenal may end the may have little or no effectthe battle for the Top Four season second in the table on the champions.slot hots up. if Arsene Wenger’s young Win or lose againstCity, with 65 points from lads beat Aston Villa, which Chelsea, Leicester City has37 matches, has an uphill is already relegated as it already won the EPL fortask as it visits Swansea sits in the rear and hopes the first time.City and a defeat for the Tottenham loses against Pellegrini Manchester United Manager, Louis Van GaalManuel Pellegirini side Newcastle United. EPL fixtures todayPochettino agrees new contract Vs Aston Villa Arsenal Vs Leicester 15:00 Chelsea 15:00 Everton Vs Norwich 15:00 powerful side with a backbone of Man Utd Vs Bournemouth 15:00 young English players such as striker Newcastle Vs Tottenham 15:00 Harry Kane, defender Eric Dier and Southampton Vs Crystal Palace 15:00 midfielder Dele Alli, who have all Stoke City Vs West Ham 15:00 received their first international caps Swansea Vs Man City 15:00 during the Argentine's tenure. Watford Vs Sunderland 15:00 West Brom Vs Liverpool 15:00 He was photographed having lunch with former Manchester United Manager, Alex Ferguson this week, prompting rumours he could be a target for the Old Trafford team this Barclays Premier League Table summer. Team P W D L F A GD Pts 1. Leicester 37 23 11 3 67 35 32 80 However, the former Paris St- 2. Tottenham 37 19 13 5 68 30 38 70 Germain player believes he can bring 3. Arsenal 37 19 11 7 61 36 25 68 trophies to Spurs. 4. Man City 37 19 8 10 70 40 30 65 5. Man Utd 37 18 9 10 46 34 12 63 \"We have a long-term project and 6. West Ham 37 16 14 7 64 49 15 62 huge belief that we can achieve 7. Southampton 37 17 9 11 55 40 15 60 something big here for the future,\" 8. Liverpool 37 16 11 10 62 49 13 59 TPochettino Pochettino added. 9. Chelsea 37 12 3 12 58 52 6 49 10. Stoke City 37 13 9 15 39 54 -15 48 ottenham Manager, With one game to go, Spurs is \"This club has all the ingredients to 11. Swansea 37 12 10 15 41 51 -10 46 Mauricio Pochettino, guaranteed a top-three Premier continue to challenge at the very top 12. Everton 37 10 14 13 56 55 1 44 has signed a contract League finish this season. in both the Premier League and in 13. Watford 37 12 8 17 38 48 -10 44 extension which com- Europe. 14. C' Palace 37 11 9 17 38 47 -9 42 mits him to the club \"We believe this is just the begin- 15. West Brom 37 10 12 15 33 47 -14 42 until 2021. ning,\" Pochettino said. \"We want to be here to be a part 42 The Argentine, 44, was appointed of what I believe will be a special 16. B'mouth 37 11 9 17 44 64 -20 38 Spurs was challenging for the period in the club's history.\" 17. Sunderland 37 9 11 17 46 60 -14 34 in May 2014 on a five-year deal and Premier League title until a bad-tem- 18. Newcastle 37 8 10 19 39 64 -25 34 guided Spurs to a fifth-place finish pered 2-2 draw at Chelsea last week Assistant Head Coach, Jesus Perez, 17in the Premier League and a League ensured Leicester City was crowned first team Coach, Miguel D'Agostino, 19. Norwich 37 9 7 21 39 64 -25 champions of England. and first team goalkeeping Coach, Toni Jimenez, have also agreed ex- Pochettino has created a fast and tensions to their contracts.Cup final in his first season in charge. 20. Aston Villa 37 3 8 26 27 72 -45
www.thenicheng.com FREE SPEECH15:05:2016Fix fuel supply problem;don’t dump it on NigeriansTBy Moses Ochonu wants to kill three birds with and corruption that the pro- 1. Wherever you stand on secured even if it takes subsi- he astronomi- one stone. tests mapped onto and de- the fuel price increase, at least dy to do so. Nigerians are not cal hike in the But the main problem still rived oxygen from. we can all agree on one thing: opposed to subsidy per se. price of fuel remains the absence of signif- the root of the problem is Ni- has nothing icant local refining capacity. In 2012, the Save Nigeria geria’s embarrassing reliance Rather, they are opposed to do with the Along with President Muham- Group (SNG), a motley crowd on imported fuel. No other to its corruption and abuse. “cost of pro- madu Buhari, the NNPC boss, of ambitious politicians and major oil-producing country Nigerians expect Buhari to sa-duction” argument we have Ibe Kachikwu, promised to activists struck a convenient to my knowledge has this nitise the subsidy regime withbecome accustomed to hear- fix the local refineries to en- activist marriage consummat- shameful profile; a combination of courage anding. able them meet domestic fuel ed on their common opposi- personal moral capital until demand for petrol. tion to Jonathan. 2. The Buhari administra- domestic refining fully recov- There is some cost involved Had the government been tion has broken a key elec- ers and makes importationin refining crude oil abroad able to turn the refineries The activists had a differ- toral promise to revamp the and subsidy unnecessary;and transporting it to Nige- around, the questions of fuel ent motive from that of politi- refineries and wean Nigeriaria, but with crude being so scarcity, pricing, and forex cians but, lacking resources of off this destructive reliance 5. Deregulation is only acheap, the previous price of restrictions would not have their own, they welcomed the on fuel imports. This deregu- short term, knee-jerk half-N86 a litre had already ac- arisen in the first place, let sponsorship of the politicians, lation/fuel price increase is solution. The real, permanentcounted for all the cost, give alone forcing the government some of them (Nasir el-Rufai effectively a declaration that solution for providing afford-or take a few naira. to take this drastic measure. and Bola Tinubu) neoliberal they’ve given up on restoring able petrol to Nigerians is to Buhari will get a pass on fanatics and supporters of fuel our refining capacity; revamp our domestic refining With the price of crude this policy because most Ni- price increase who are now, in capacity so that 100 per centinching up slightly in the last gerian’s still trust his inten- 2016, vehement supporters of 3. With crude oil being so of Nigerian fuel consumptionfew weeks, it should add no tions if not his policies, and the announced deregulation. cheap, Nigerians should be is supplied from domesticmore than a few naira to the because he is still seen as a paying dirt cheap prices for refineries, as used to be theprice if indeed we want to let man of integrity who does not #OccupyNigeria was bank- petrol, not having to pay al- case.market fluctuations modulate waste or steal public money rolled mostly by El-Rufai, Ti- most twice what they hadthe pump price. and is not beholden to a cabal nubu, and other opposition been paying pre-scarcity. Unlike in the past, this will of subsidy fraudsters like his politicians who provided Falling crude prices should now be achieved through a This increase has every- predecessor was. organisational and logisti- not result in rising petrol pric- symbiotic mix of state andthing to do with government’s However, if the scarcity cal leadership to the protests es. This defies the law of the private refineries. Takinglast ditch effort to end the does not abate and/or mar- in an opportunistic quest to market, and it is because we easy shortcuts will not solvescarcity, which is caused by keters find dubious ways to discredit Jonathan and give import petrol. the problem at its root. Onthe inability of fuel importers further mark up the price, this themselves political leverage. this score, one thing that mayto secure foreign exchange, trust will quickly vanish. As things stand, the only come to the government’sa problem that was in turn Many of those who The movement and its op- people benefiting from our rescue is Dangote’s refinery,caused by the government’s participated in the 2012 position supporters also had cheap crude are foreign buy- which will begin operation inrigid restrictions on access to #OccupyNigeria move- the Lagos-Ibadan press, the ers, not Nigerians; two years;foreign exchange (forex). ment to protest the hike in primary agenda-setting organ fuel price are now on the de- of Nigerian politics, behind 4. Subsidy has become a 6. The loss of refining ca- It was unrealistic to expect fensive, spewing both valid them. bad word in our neoliberal pacity is a 20-year old prob-fuel importers without access and unconvincing alibis for world, but it is not subsidy lem, so Buhari should not beto forex at the official rate to their present indifference. Today, many members of per se that is the problem but blamed for it. However, hecontinue to import fuel with There is no need to be too the SNG have been co-opted rather how it is administered, promised to reverse it and Ni-forex sourced from the par- defensive. I agree that the into the ruling APC govern- what product is being subsi- gerians voted for him on thatallel market ($1=N320) and times are different. ment, and the Lagos-Ibadan dised, how much the subsidy premise.then sell the same fuel at N86. Buhari’s personal integrity press is still upholding the Ti- costs, whether it is sustainableThey would have lost money. and the public trust that it en- nubu-led South West elite po- and for how long, and its mul- Not only that, Kachikwu genders have erected a wall litical consensus that brought tiplier effect on the economy. has been running upandan The government wittingly of difference between 2016 Buhari to power. (I like that Nigerian word!)or unwittingly created a prob- and 2012. If you can afford it, you can excitedly telling the countrylem, which caused many fuel Moreover, in 2012, the mas- So, even if Nigerians are use a temporary, transparent that domestic refining was be-importers to quit the business, sive subsidy fraud had just as angry today as they were subsidy regime to support the ing restored only to basicallyand the same government is been exposed, along with in 2012 over the hike in the affordable supply of a stra- throw in the towel;now deregulating the sector other corruption scandals, price of petrol, they lack the tegic national product whilefully so that it does not have eroding public trust in the financial, media, and organ- you work on a permanent so- 7. The government has es-to (1) pay subsidy, and (2) Goodluck Jonathan adminis- isational leverage necessary lution. If there is any product sentially fobbed off the sub-subsidise forex for fuel im- tration. to coalesce into a coher- worth subsidising in Nigeria it sidy to Nigerians. It is a pat-porters. In other words, there was ent protest movement in the is oil. tern. If the government can’t an ongoing narrative of waste mould of OccupyNigeria2012. fix a problem, it dumps it on The government also des- Oil, pardon the pun, fuels Nigerians.perately wants to end fuel When you strip away the the Nigerian economy and • Ochonu, a professor ofscarcity, which has eroded big grammar and the esoteric connects to all facets of our history based in the Unitedits political goodwill. In plain explanations, a few impor- national life, so making it af- States, can be reached at meo-language, the government tant issues remain and can be fordable and available is a na- [email protected] distilled into fairly straightfor- tional priority that should be ward points and questions.Printed and published by Acclaim Communications Limited. Corporate office: 1A Agbareh Close, behind Best Western Hotel, off Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos. P.O. Box: 6824, Ikeja, Lagos.Telephone: Switch board: 01-454 3951, 01-454 3952. Editor: 0805 306 9019. Marketing: 0802 351 5775, Website: www.thenicheng.com e-mail: [email protected] ISSN: 2384-6100.Editor: Oguwike Nwachuku.
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