The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has crashed Dollar from N380 to N360 as it directed all banks to immediately comply with the new order.
According to information coming from the apex bank, the new order has been taken to alleviate the pains of retail foreign exchange (forex) by consumers especially on the forex for BTA, PTA, tuition and medical fees..
In a statement today, the CBN said that it will sell to banks at N357 per dollar and that banks are expected to post the new rates in the banking halls of their branches immediately.
The Bank’s Acting Director in charge of Corporate Communications, Isaac Okorafor announced that CBN released the sum of $85 million for sale to Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) at the rate of N 357/$1 for onward sale to retail end-users at not more than N360/$1, for invisibles such as Basic Travel Allowance(BTAs), medicals, school fees, etc.
He said that the rates in the interbank window for wholesale transactions would still be determined by activities in the interbank market.
He confirmed that all banks have also been directed to immediately post the new N360/$1 rate on electronic display boards in the banking halls of their branches, adding that examiners from the CBN would visit banks to ensure the new rates are implemented.
The CBN spokesmen said the Bank’s directive to all banks to process and meet the demand for Travel Allowances (PTA/BTA) by end-users within 24 hours of such application, while applications for school fees and medical bills are to be met within 48 hours of such application.
Okorafor warned that the new move, aimed at further easing access of genuine end-users to forex, prohibited banks from selling foreign exchange funds meant for invisibles to Bureau De Change.
He said that all banks would receive amounts commensurate with their demand per week, which would be sold to customers who meet usual basic documentary requirements.
He asked customers to report any erring bank to the CBN for investigation and appropriate sanction. [myad]
Though the processes of growing, maturing and dying are natural phenomena, yet, the fear of managing old age marks the beginning of wisdom for many mortals. And the fear is not misplaced. Growing old is indeed scary. With my experience seeing my beloved parents growing old, and with me also climbing the age ladder gradually, I can confidently attest to the fact the process is very scary. In fact, to enjoy old age, one needs the grace of the Creator; God. First, you wake up one day and you suddenly realise that you are 50; and you begin to notice funny changes in your physiognomy, as well as your internally structure. The changes may begin with some twitting pains at your joints, knees and waist. At first, you may be thinking it is as a result of those long hours at work or stressful activities you subjected your body to. Then, you resort to self-medication, swallowing all sorts of pains-relieving tablets. Yes, they worked but just for a brief period. And, pronto, the pains are back! You may be lucky to manage off and on pains in your 50s; but when you hit 60, it becomes a different ball game. At this age, the bones are becoming weaker by the day; the eyes are getting dimmer and giving you all kinds of problems. You may either not be seeing well or you start seeing cobwebs. A check at eye clinic may reveal early symptoms of glaucoma or cataracts. If you are lucky, you may get the reprieve of recommendation for reading and sight glasses. If you are not, it may be the beginning of a life-long treatment for glaucoma; a degenerative eye disease dreadfully termed the ‘Big G’. It is dreadful because glaucoma is a silent thief of the sight. Again, from 60, you may be finding it difficult to flush urine out of your bladder. A check may reveal what your doctor may diagnose as prostate problem; either the benign form or beginning of prostate cancer. Unknown to many, especially men, no one is immune to prostate problems. In fact, from age 40, doctors recommend periodic checks of the bladder. From 70, you are on your own. If you fall into the category of those with rough life styles, your bones may start getting brittle, your movement may begin to wobble; and you may begin to feel as if you are railing against gravity. Then, if you are unlucky, something may happen and you are confined to wheelchair. But for those who manage aging with regular exercises and periodic medical checks, those who manage to keep their elements intact, there may be not much to fear. Indeed, this special breed are usually still healthy and mentally alert enough to hold public offices and perform well. The most damaging and frustrating aging problem is dementia -a severe impairment or loss of intellectual capacity and personality integration due to the loss or damage to neurons in the brain. It’s so devastating that it often makes its victims vegetable and deletes their memories. The victim neither remembers anything nor recognizes even his or her children and grandchildren. Though he can see, his brain is blank. I have gone this far in my narrative so that you, my dear readers, can understand what lies ahead even as we pray for long life. I can tell you that it is not cheap to manage an aging body. Old age comes with a heavy price. You may be lucky to have health insurance but those who do not often pay through their noses. Those who are lucky to have children abroad who help them to cope with and manage old age-related issues still have some problems to contend with. They complain of feeling homesick and, in some cases, not getting the right treatment. At a point in my life, I could no longer afford the soaring cost of medical checks abroad. It was at this point that someone introduced me to Chief Tony Anenih Geriatric Centre at the University College Hospital, UCH, Ibadan. I was driven to the centre by my niece, Dr. Atinuke Akinmoladun. Behold, it was a sight to behold. I started seeing familiar faces of retired Vice Chancellors, Professors drawn from virtually every part of the country, aged politicians, businessmen, clergymen and aged peasants of all sorts. Some could barely walk and were in wheelchairs. The environment was sparkling, made beautiful with well- manicured gardens, gardens brimming with aromatic flowers. Everything the aged needed was provided. It is optional to bring your aides for assistance. The centre provides for uniformed aides to move you around and attend to all your needs for a token. It has an electronic record system . From the beginning till the time the patient leaves you don’t have to carry notes around. Everything is electronically done. Professor Ben Humphrey could not hold his excitement. He said: “This is the best thing to have happened in Nigeria. I have spent all my life savings abroad for yearly medical check-ups, some of them routine, before I learnt of this centre two years ago. I am getting, here, twice the attention I was getting abroad.” Mama Adewole , mother of Nigeria’s current Minister of Health, was full of praises for the doctors and nurses: “They are just wonderful,” she enthused. “I am getting the best of treatments here. I’m tired of exposing myself to the biting cold abroad, and the fact that you are always by yourself whenever my siblings go to work. You are home alone.” Chief Anike Agbaje-Williams, veteran newscaster, jokingly said: “You can see I’m regaining my youthfulness. Knowing this place is a big blessing. It saves me the millions of naira usually expended traveling abroad for medicare.” Pa Joseph Adebara, a 90-year-old grandpa, has this to say: “May the Lord bless the founder of this centre. I gave up hope of living a year ago when I asked my children to start preparing for my funeral. But they said, No way! And, they wheeled me to this centre. Now, I’m on my two legs, walking unaided! Not only that, the founder of this centre gives me a yearly gift of new dresses. He gives not only me but to all the patients.” Upon investigation, I learnt that the centre is the brainchild of the politician popularly known as “Mr. Fix It”; Chief Tony Anenih. The man had hitherto been fixing virtually every political jigsaw in Nigeria’s current democracy but at some point, he decided to fix better life for the aged. I give him kudos. He deserves a big applause from all well-meaning Nigerians. I equally learnt that he started ploughing back the seeds realized in politics to build this centre to cater for the aged way back in 2012;and from then, he has never looked back as he keeps the centre going with regular funding; and he does so single-handedly. Chief Anenih picks the bills on anything and everything that has to do with the centre. He sets up a Social Health Insurance Scheme for all the clients at N18,000 annually, which gives the beneficiaries access to health care of up to N500,000 yearly. Here, fees payable for clinical services are pegged at 50% of normal hospital fees. What is more, the centre is the first and only training hub for geriatric medicine under the Faculty of Family Medicine, and the first purpose built geriatric centre in Africa, and has become a model for Africa and parts of Europe. The services offered include: general clinical services, surgical services, ophthalmic services, geriatric psychiatric services, memory loss clinic, family life style, dental services, rheumatology services, medical school services and physiotherapy.
Folu Olamiti Media Consultant writes from Abuja. [myad]
I learnt an enduring lesson on the day General Sani Abacha died. It was June 8, 1998, and death had laid its icy hands on the maximum ruler, and the scepter had fallen from the grip of the king. I was deputy editor of National Concord, the newspaper owned by Basorun M.K. O Abiola, the man Abacha not only inveigled out of his mandate as democratically elected President, but whom he had also locked up in military gulag for five years. Mr Dele Alake, who was to become Commissioner for Information and Strategy in Lagos State for eight years, was editor, but he had travelled on the fateful day. So, the lot fell on me to produce the newspaper, as the deputy editor. Dr (Mrs) Doyin Abiola was Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief. Naturally, on a great news day like that, an editor would leave his office, and be on the shop floor, ensuring that the newspaper was swiftly produced. Time was of the essence, if you would partake in the harvest of sales the next day. So, I was in the computer room downstairs, editing the news stories as they were typed at the speed of light. It was there that Dr Abiola met me, as she prepared to go home about 7 p.m. She said something that both baffled and amazed me: “Editor, no gloating. We have every reason to rejoice that Abacha is dead, but no gloating. Just present the news as professionally as possible. Don’t gloat!” I thanked her, and she left. Her instruction continued to ring in my ears, and was followed to the letter. Those who read National Concord the next day would recall that there was no sense of triumphalism, no newsman’s orgasm of any kind, in the treatment of the story. Just professionally done. “Don’t gloat!” Did Doyin Abiola have reasons to instruct her newspaper to preen and gloat about Abacha’s death? Every. He had given the impression that he would take over power, and hand over to Abiola, who had won the June 12, 1993, presidential election, which the military annulled. Instead, he locked the man up in solitary confinement. Doyin did not see her husband for five years. Also, Abacha had shut down Concord Press for about two years, causing the company grave economic afflictions. Under him, Kudirat Abiola, one of Doyin’s mates, had been murdered, shot down in the streets, allegedly on the orders of the state. And many more evil deeds. Dr Doyin Abiola had every cause to waltz, and do a jig, at the death of Sani Abacha. But she did not. She even told her editor: “Don’t gloat!” I never forgot, and will never forget that lesson. It is human, and it is also divine. Between January 19 and March 10, of this year, President Muhammadu Buhari was away in London, first on routine holiday where he would do normal medical check-ups, and then, it became a medical vacation, in which he had to ask for an indeterminate number of days. Yes, who is he or she that never falls sick, let that person cast the first stone. As the President frankly confessed on his return, he had never been that sick in his life. Human, just human. Presidents, kings, queens, potentates, wealthy people, are also human, aren’t they? They itch as well, and scratch as hard. Sickness, not only death, is often a leveler among all mortals, young, old, poor, rich, dull, brilliant, ugly, beautiful, everybody. And we know what attended the President’s medical sojourn from certain quarters in the country. Wild news. Hate news. Rumour. Evil thinking. Even, gloating. They did all kinds of photoshops, and spewed all kinds of evil stories. They passed round outright wickedness on WhatsApp, and those of us who debunked their evil tales became enemies. They tried to tag us with all kind of labels, saying we were liars and deceivers. But wise was the man who said: “The truth is incontrovertible. Panic may resent it, ignorance may deride it, malice may distort it, but there it is.” Or our own Professor Tam David-West, in his book, Philosophical Essays, also said: “Truth like the cork cannot sink. It cannot be sunk. It always floats.” When President Buhari spoke with me on phone from London on February 25, I was elated, and issued a press statement, detailing our conversation. Many Nigerians, good people from a great nation, who could get hold of my phone number, called. They would ask if truly we had spoken. Once I confirmed, they broke into tears of joy, crying like babies. They brought tears to my eyes many times. Till this son of hate, a purveyor of evil and tragedy, called. He identified himself as Jude (I decide to withhold his other name for now). He said: “Mr Adesina, you claim to have spoken with President Buhari. When are you going to stop this political deceit? How can you speak with a man who is long dead, and you are deceiving the public that he’s still alive?” I didn’t argue with the man (though I was tempted to call him sonofagun, the son of a gun). I held my peace, let him finish his orgy of evil, and calmly cut off the phone. Doomsday prophets. Evil thinkers. Peddlers of mischief. Then, on March 10, the President returned. Ecstasy and pure rapture from good Nigerians, who had been praying and supplicating unto God. Mai Gaskiya was back. The honest man had returned. Ramrod straight, man of integrity. He had been spared by God, and restored to us. Oh, glory! Did you listen to that short speech that President Buhari read on his return? Did you listen to his off the cuff remarks? Was there any gloating? None. Did he rub it in on those who had peddled evil news, fake news, hate news? No. That is maturity. That is how to be the father of a country. And I remembered Dr Doyin Abiola: “Don’t gloat!” Do you know what some other people would have done in the same circumstance? They would have taken evil minded people to the cleaners. But not President Buhari. They would have made snide remarks about peddlers of hate news, calling fire and brimstone to fall upon them. But not our President. He would have been justified if he did so. The Good Book says, “He that digs a pit shall fall into it. He that rolls a stone, a stone will roll back at him. He that breaks the hedge, a serpent shall bite him.” So, President Buhari would have been justified, if he gave evil people some jabs. But he did not. What a heart! Father forgive them, for they know not what they do. How did that Jude Somebody feel when the President returned? He even bears Jude, a Christian name. How embarrassing! But he was full of bile, in the gall and throes of bitterness. May God forgive him. Amen. With President Buhari’s health saga, some truths have been brought to bold relief once again. Anybody can be sick. Big or small man. A man of power, or a man of no consequence. Let us therefore be conscious of our mortality at all times. I can testify, from my many private discussions with him, that President Buhari is a man keenly aware of his own mortality at all times. A worthy example to follow. Another lesson. Life and death are the sole preserves of God Almighty. Despite all those concoctions and contraptions, fake pictures, false stories on WhatsApp, mendacious newspaper reports, President Buhari came back alive. Who says anything that God has not said? There are many devices in the heart of man, but it is the counsel of God that shall stand. The counsel of God has prevailed concerning Nigeria, and concerning our President. Let us learn the eternal truth. No matter the devices in the heart of man, the counsel of God stands. It is not me that says so. It is straight from the Good Book. From March 10, when President Buhari returned, purveyors of evil have disappeared. Vanished! Utterly transmuted, like Brother Jero, in that work by Wole Soyinka. Even on social media, where they had held sway for many weeks, they evaporated. Like a beaten dog, they had their tails between their feet, and ran for cover. But should we rejoice? “Don’t gloat!” There is nothing we have, that we did not receive from above. So, why boast? Why gloat? Rather, we should be thankful to God. The President has thanked millions of people who prayed. And they continue to pray. Olorun da Baba si fun wa. God, please, spare Baba for us. Let him take us to the Promised Land. A land that is secure, free completely of Boko Haram, flowing with milk and honey. A land where corrupt people get their just desserts, ending behind bars. A land where human life has value, where wanton killings stop, where justice and equity covers the space, like the waters cover the sea. A land where mischief makers repent, and turn to God. Where is that Jude Somebody? I kept his number. I feel like calling him, saying “Son of a gun, how now?” But I shouldn’t do it. And I won’t do it. Because I remember Dr Abiola’s instruction: “Don’t gloat!” Adesina is Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has pledged to provide members of the public with up-to-date information on the ongoing effort by the Corporation to sanitize the record books through the reconciliation of the transactions executed during the defunct crude for product swap regime. The NNPC, in a statement by its Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Ndu Ughamadu said that in line with the ongoing reforms in the industry, the Management of the Corporation under the leadership of Dr. Maikanti Baru is committed to ensuring transparency and adequate public information on the ongoing recovery effort. The NNPC affirmed that so far, two of the companies involved in the reconciliation exercise namely: AITEO Energy Resources and Televaras Group of Companies have registered their commitment to settle all outstanding obligations. The Corporation said that already Televeras has agreed to make a tranche payment of $17.2 million. It however noted that unlike AITEO and Televaras which have made firm commitment to the recovery process, the NNPC is yet to obtain any such commitment from Ontario Oil & Gas Limited. The NNPC said that negotiation with Ontario remains in progress even as it emphasized the determination of the Management to achieve full recovery of the outstanding $184 million crude-swap-product under-deliveries as well as the full value of stock of its missing petrol in Capital Oil depot which currently stands at 82 million litres amounting to over N11 billion. Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, had earlier commended Taleveras for cooperating with the Corporation in the ongoing reconciliation of transactions in the defunct crude for products arrangement. Dr. Baru, who was unveiling the NNPC’s strategies to recover over $184 million in product under-deliveries that were recorded against three oil companies in the course of reconciliation of transactions executed during the defunct crude for product swap regime, said: “in the case of Televaras, they have agreed to make tranche payment of $10 million.” The GMD said that the recovery “exercise is a product of ongoing extensive reconciliation process with the companies involved namely: AITEO Energy Resource Limited, Ontario Oil and Gas Limited and Televaras Group of Companies. “We have engaged them and positively too, so far AITEO has been very cooperative and we had extensive reconciliation across all our chains of businesses where they are involved. Ontario has also agreed to come to the table with our team and present their repayment schedule.” Dr. Baru said that Ontario has already pledged to repay $17m and thanked the company for their cooperation so far. The GMD said the ongoing recovery process is geared towards ensuring probity and accountability in the operations of the Corporation in line with current reforms in the industry. He emphasized the determination of the NNPC under his leadership to recover the outstanding stock of its missing petrol in Capital oil depot noting that MRS had complied. Only last week, the NNPC announced aggressive measures to achieve full recovery of over 130 million litres of petrol stored in the facilities of two indigenous downstream operators, MRS Limited and Capital Oil & Gas Limited, under a throughput arrangement to ensure a robust strategic reserve. Providing details of the infraction by the companies, Mr. Henry Ikem Obih, NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Downstream explained that the violation was discovered earlier in the year when the Corporation had need to access the over 100 million litres of petrol stored at the Capital Oil & Gas depot for NNPC Retail and just over 30 million litres in MRS Limited depot all in Apapa area of Lagos. He said though MRS had fully complied by returning the 30 million litres of petrol it expropriated, the Corporation was working assiduously to recover from Capital Oil & Gas the 82 million litres of petrol, valued at N11b, out of over 100 million litres. [myad]
Some powerful traditional rulers in Nigeria, the ministers of finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun; minister of trade and investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelama; embattled comptroller general (CG), Nigeria Customs Service retired Colonel Hameed Ali, have been fingered in the push for the sack of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Mr. Godwin Emefiele for his refusal to bow to pressure to lift ban on the 41 items removed by the CBN from receiving foreign exchange support. Information reaching us indicated that the refusal by the governor to buckle under pressure and rescind the decision has led to pressure on President Muhammad Buhari to relieve Mr. Emefiele of his job as the apex bank boss. Investigations showed that CBN has insisted that the ban on the items will help conserve foreign reserves as well as facilitate the resuscitation of domestic industries and improve employment generation. It was gathered that the trio of Adeosun; Enelama and Ali have been pushing for the floating of the naira and have been opposed the continuous exclusion of the 41 items from benefitting from forex citing the present economic hardship on the masses as reasons why they want the items unbanned by the apex bank. It was learnt that if Emefiele bows to pressure and lifts the ban on the 41 items, the nation’s economy would be doomed and that the farmers and stakeholders in the small and medium scale sector who are gradually finding their feet in the country would be unable to function thus fast-tracking the nation’s journey to total economic collapse. The source who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity argued that those urging the CBN boss to let the ban on the prohibited items are “selfish and self serving,” adding that an attempt to lift the order on the 41 items would help to compound Nigeria’s economic problems. “Their argument is that since Nigerians are facing difficult times now, these 41 items should be removed from the prohibited lists. They are embarking on campaign of blackmail to convince Mr. President to compel Mr. Emefiele to rescind the ban order. They are employing every means to achieve their selfish aims but I can tell you that the president would not agree to this temporary relief measure. “The president strongly supports the CBN anchor borrowing program designed to grow the agricultural sector and we are having positive results. Kebbi and Lagos are growing rice. Other states are following suite. And from statistics available, Thai rice Farmers were only able to import about 58,000 metric tons of rice to Nigeria in 2016 because we are gradually becoming self sufficient in rice production. This is the direction we should be looking and not going back to urban the 41 items that we can produce locally,” the source said. Lamenting the roles of the three Buhari appointees in undermine the president’s economic recovery programme, the source said: “It is sad that Adeosun, Enelama, Ali and these unnamed traditional rulers are calling for this reversal. Who are they really working for? For the Nigerian people or for a few cabals serving their interests? This is the tragedy of our country. I can’t imagine a minister or any political appointee of this government calling for the unbanning of the 41 items under the prohibition list? This is really sad.” The 41 items banned from benefitting from foreign exchange at the Nigeria foreign exchange window are rice; cement; margarine; palm kernel/palm oil produce/vegetable oil; meat and processed meat products; vegetables and processed vegetable products; poultry-chicken, eggs, turkey; private airplanes/jets; indian incense; tinned fish in sauce (Geisha)/sardines; cold rolled steel sheets; galvanized steel sheets; roofing sheets and wheelbarrows. Others are head pans; enamelwares; steel drums; steel pipes; wire rods deformed and not deformed); iron rods and reinforcing bars; wire mesh; steel nails; security and razor wire; wood particles boards and panels; wood fiber boards and panels; plywood boards and panels; wooden doors; furnitures; toothpicks; glass and glassware; kitchen utensils; tableware; tiles-vitrified and ceramic; textiles; woven fabrics; clothes; plastic and rubber products, cellophane wrappers; soaps and cosmetics; tomatoes/tomato pastes; and euro bonds/foreign currency bond/share purchase. [myad]
Abdussobur Salaam, who was classmate to Kogi West Senator, Senator Dino Melaye, has said that he has no sympathy for the Senator over his current certificate scandal because he too had been doing it to others in the past.
Saying that the certificate scandal is as a result of his past sins, Salaam, who was Chairman of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities at FUNAAB, said: “I dare say he is the architect of his problems. I do not have any sympathy for him because he is also a master in the art of subterfuge, blackmail and crude propaganda. Today, he is a victim of the same method he has adopted over the years and I am happy to see the tables turn!”
Salaam, who now works at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, FUNAAB, said on social media platform, Pen Pushing: “Dino and I are supposed to be ‘friends’ but differences never permitted while we were in school. Till date, we communicate once in a while, but I dare say he is the architect of his problems.
Salaam’s comments came on the heels of report by an online medium, alleging that Senator Melaye did not graduate from Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Kaduna State.
Salaam wrote: “Permit me to make an intervention on the issue of Dino and ABU, having been admitted and ‘graduated’ from ABU same year as Dino. I use the word ‘graduated’, very guardedly and with caution. Permit me to say that as at the time we were admitted, Geography Department was under the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, FASS.
“On his status as a graduate, only the records can tell. For all you know, he may have had a few unresolved carry-overs. Knowing Dino, he may have bluffed, paid or manipulated the system to ensure those records are obliterated.
“If not, recall that given the circumstances of our year set, many concessions/ waivers were given to ensure that we graduated, having spent almost double the statutory length of years we should spend. Dino may just have been such a beneficiary of waivers. It is however not our place to tell, but the truth will unfold itself.
“In our 200 level, the Faculty was split and Geography Department had issues of where to fit in. It was initially placed under Faculty of Arts and later shifted to Faculty of Sciences where it is presently domiciled. The narrative on his certificate could be correct.
“I have spent all yesterday responding to enquiries on different platforms about Dino’s status as a graduate. My take? We were admitted the same year, initially into the same faculty of FASS, and given that our courses were four years, we ought to have graduated same year.
“However, recalling how studentship in ABU was that period, you could never be too sure of the academic status of any ‘student’.
“What do I mean? We had ‘students’ who were always around, attended lectures, participated in all student activities, were allocated hostel space, were always holding files and feigning academic seriousness, only for an issue to come up and you would find out that despite your having known them for years, they were never students but just lived pseudo student lives!”
According to him, such attitudes of the fake students might make it difficult for any of their colleagues to believe that they were not authentic students.
He continued, “If they were never discovered, 20 years’ time, if a controversy arose as to their status, one would swear confidently that the person graduated.
“While this is not exactly the same with Dino, you cannot be too sure until facts are unearthed. I know for a fact that we were admitted together. I am aware that he was very active in student political circles, though he has attempted to insinuate that he was SUG president to shore up his political profile.
“As President of Geography students, I am aware that he was impeached. I also know that he had fraud related issues with the Kogi State Students Association and Segun Halilu personally had lamented to me about this, then.
“I remember that he wanted to join the OAU students club then, and we blocked his membership, knowing his tendencies to cause confusion and take over the structure of the club for personal ends.
“As a political scientist, what I see is a class fragmentation struggle. An in-house struggle within the elite class. Saraki and Dino are the subjects of attack today for a takeover of the National Assembly. They may get over it or it may consume them.
“Unfortunately, issues like this have led to the results they were meant to produce – public hysteria! Everyone is now caught up in debates about the Dino certificate scandal, or is it Dinogate?
“Everyone includes me! Last two weeks, it was Apostle Suleiman. This week, it is Dino. Who knows who next week will throw up? While we dwell on personalities and are distracted by their shenanigans, we continue to remain victims of the plots and scheming.
“While the elite class continues to regale us with entertainment, the real problems of underdevelopment, poverty, poor infrastructure, bad governance, corruption, and other malaise remain!
“At the end of the day, things like this die off, others take their place in an endless cycle of politics of personality.
A fast-growing Nigerian free online classifieds with advanced security system, Jiji.ng, has slated series of trainings for managers on webinars, with founder and Chief Executive Officer of Selling Power, Gerhard Gschwandtner taking charge. According to information released by Jiji.ng from its headquarters at No. 12 South Bridge, Suit 1, Edinburgh, Scotland, Great Britain, the trainings are being conducted with the realization that no successful modern company can do without this qualified specialist. “Some people say that you need to be born a talented manager, others say that you can successfully become one.” Given its website for those looking for a decent job as a manager as https://jiji.ng/jobs/manager, the company made it clear that it has the largest selection of current vacancies from real employers and HRs across Nigeria, only from verified site users! “At the largest online-marketplace in Nigeria you can always find any product you need quickly and easily! The only things you’ll never be able to find on JiJi are scammers, because we have a reliable protection system against them!” The programmes for the trainings are given below:
Applying Analytics To Boost Sales Behavior And Hit Quota
To be held: March 21, 2017 When: 1:00-2:00 pm EDT Presenters: Gerhard Gschwandtner, Founder & CEO, Selling Power Eric Wong, Vice President of Marketing, Conga. Join us to learn about the most effective techniques of using analytics to drive buying behavior and hit quota. You will explore the following:
How to use analytics in order to significantly boost and control sales behaviors to increase your income.
How to analyze the effectiveness of your programs;
How to timely detect signs of draining pipeline to make quarter
How to drive the pipeline informing about your team wants and what tools will facilitate this process.
How To Take Control And Improve The Performance Of Your Sales Team
When: April 5, 2017 Time: 1:00-2:00 pm EDT Presenters: Gerhard Gschwandtner, Founder & CEO, Selling Power Krishna Mulukutla, Senior Director of Product Management, Oracle Francis Chang, Senior Director of Product Management, Oracle Simply join to study principles of controlling your sales performance management efforts. We are going to discuss the following:
What processes are disruptive for the sales and sales rep performance.
How your company can quickly adapt to meet your clients’ needs by managing sales and operations.
How managers can control the sales, exclude any unwanted results, and make correct strategic choices.
The transformational advantages of a full end-to-end SPM solution.
6 Must-Haves For A Sales Sustainable Training Program
When: March 8, 2016 Presenters: Gerhard Gschwandtner, Founder & CEO, Selling Power Rick Lloyd, Vice President, Sales, Unboxed Technology David Williamson, Manager of Content Strategy, Unboxed Technology Join to get a glimpse of successful sales training program principles and learn how to make it to the top with your investment. We are going to cover the following topics:
Strategy of training to aid your reps and your company to achieve your aims.
How to determine what your salesmen must be able to do after the training as well as how to teach them to do it on a permanent basis.
Evaluating the result by more than rep feedback.
How engaged leaders throughout the training program enhance the outcomes of sales significantly.
How To Create & Sustain Relationships Of Value Date: May 10, 2016 Presenters: Gerhard Gschwandtner, Founder & CEO, Selling Power Anthony Iannarino, Bestselling Author and Sales Leader Join the experts at this free webinar in order to teach your salesmen how to:
Make the entire sales process more valuable
Find and make more opportunities at a higher margin
Boost your income with your existing clients.
The statement assured that participants will see with how their professional level will increase after watching at least one of these webinars! [myad]
“The last time I had an STD (Sexually Transmitted Disease) was when I was in secondary school.”
Oladunni Churchill, the estranged husband of Nollywood actress, Tonto Dikeh, admitted this fact when denying that he infected his wife with STD.
In a recent interview with Media Room Hub TV, Churchill, that Dikeh is usually uncontrollable whenever she is under the influence of marijuana or alcohol, adding that in one of her violent fits while she was under the influence, she destroyed his properties and was locked up by police in Ghana where she also spat on one of the officers.
He said that he had to write a letter of withdrawal to the police in order to secure her bail.
‘She’s damaged N66 million worth of properties till date,’ he said.
Tonto Dikeh in her interview had accused her husband of hitting her as well as their baby, King.
Churchill denied this in his interview, saying that the bruises she showed the world were entirely made up and that he could never hit a boy who was barely a year old and could not talk.
Churchill, who said he currently owns six businesses, said that he met her at Club Escape, Lagos just over two years ago before they went ahead to get married. [myad]
Media Trust Limited, publisher of Daily Trust, Sunday Trust and the Hausa version: Aminiya, has been thrown into deep crisis by an Indian national who was employed by a section of the company’s Board of Directors on a monthly salary of N3 Million, to head the business side of the company.
Information reaching Greenbarge Reporters said that the Indian national, instead of raising the income of the company for which he was employed and brought from India, has embarked on mass sack of the workers, even as the sales and general revenue of the company continue to drop on daily basis.
It was gathered that 38 workers were sacked in November last year while another 46 have been penciled down for sack any moment from now.
It was gathered that at least, four members of the Board of Directors, including the former Managing Director/Chief Operating Officer, Alhaji Is’aq Ajibola, have resigned from the Board in protest against the huge salary being paid to the Indian national without any justification.
It was learnt that the Indian national, supported by the Chairman of the company who brought him, Malam Kabiru Abdullahi Yusuf, has abolished the “thirteenth Month” salary, which the company used to pay to workers at the end of the financial year either in November or December.
This is in addition to reducing the retirement benefit from 10 year gross pay to just three years, besides casualising some of the workers.
Greenbarge Reporters was told that because of the frustrative policies that reduced workers to beggars, the company has been recording unusual number of sudden death, including the recent one involving one of the company’s longest serving reporters, Mr. Hir Joseph as well as two staff in audit department.
Information had it that already, bad blood is generating between the Indian national who is designated as Chief Operating Officer (COO), and the Editor-In-Chief, Mannir Dan Ali on one hand and on the other, between the COO and the personnel manager, Alhassan Yusuf, over the anti workers’ policies which the Indian national has been churning out.
The frustrated workers, most of who are not sure if they would be pushed out of the company in the next mass sack, are grumbling but have no body to help them.
The chairman of the Board of Directors, Kabiru Yusuf had continually made it clear that any staff who is not comfortable with the company’s policies, is free to take his exit. [myad]
No fewer than 373 premises and another 15 illegal pharmacies have been shut down in Ogun state by the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria.
The Council’s Director of Inspection and Monitoring, Mrs. Anthonia Aruya told news men in Abeokuta, the state capital today, Sunday, that closure of the illegal pharmaceutical stores was meant to safeguard the public health and reduce numbers of avoidable deaths through unwholesome practices, by illegal practitioners.
She said that the council is more determined and committed to ensuring rational distribution and dispensing of medicines that are safe, effective and of good quality to the public even as she warned members of the general public to always purchase their medicines from licensed pharmacies
”What we observed in Ogun state is that so many premises commenced operations without fulfilling minimum requirement for registration while others failed to renew their license to operate such shops. some of these premises store products in environment where the quality, safety and efficacy of pharmaceutical cannot be guaranteed”
”This exposes the public to serious danger, others do not have requisite knowledge or know how to handle the highly ethical drugs in their facilities.this exercise is part of efforts by the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria to reverse this ugly trends and improve on the level of pharmaceutical services delivery to the general public”
”At the end of the enforcement exercise, a total of 435 premises comprising 44 pharmacies and 391 patent medicine shops were visited, a total of 373 premises made up of 15 illegal pharmacies and 358 patent medicines stores were sealed for various offenses, some of which are operating without registration with Pharmacists Council of Nigeria, failure to renew premises license, dispensing ethical products without the supervision of a pharmacist” she said
”The Pharmacists Council of Nigeria can not guarantee that drugs sold in unregistered outlets are of the same integrity as specified by the manufacturers, since they have not submitted to regulation that ensures maintenance of minimum standards for handling such products.
”Members of the public are advised to purchase their medicines from licensed pharmacies and simple household remedies from licensed patent and propriety medicines vendor shops, while those intending to start pharmaceutical business should get in touch with the PCN head office located at plot 7/9 Idu industrial layout, Abuja or any of our state and zonal offices for proper guidance.” [myad]
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I learnt an enduring lesson on the day General Sani Abacha died. It was June 8, 1998, and death had laid its icy hands on the maximum ruler, and the scepter had fallen from the grip of the king. I was deputy editor of National Concord, the newspaper owned by Basorun M.K. O Abiola, the man Abacha not only inveigled out of his mandate as democratically elected President, but whom he had also locked up in military gulag for five years.
Some powerful traditional rulers in Nigeria, the ministers of finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun; minister of trade and investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelama; embattled comptroller general (CG), Nigeria Customs Service retired Colonel Hameed Ali, have been fingered in the push for the sack of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Mr. Godwin Emefiele for his refusal to bow to pressure to lift ban on the 41 items removed by the CBN from receiving foreign exchange support.
Abdussobur Salaam, who was classmate to Kogi West Senator, Senator Dino Melaye, has said that he has no sympathy for the Senator over his current certificate scandal because he too had been doing it to others in the past.
A fast-growing Nigerian free online classifieds with advanced security system, Jiji.ng, has slated series of trainings for managers on webinars, with founder and Chief Executive Officer of Selling Power, Gerhard Gschwandtner taking charge.
The Wonder Of UCH Ibadan…..It Is Scary To Be Old, By Folu Olamiti
Though the processes of growing, maturing and dying are natural phenomena, yet, the fear of managing old age marks the beginning of wisdom for many mortals. And the fear is not misplaced. Growing old is indeed scary. With my experience seeing my beloved parents growing old, and with me also climbing the age ladder gradually, I can confidently attest to the fact the process is very scary.
In fact, to enjoy old age, one needs the grace of the Creator; God.
First, you wake up one day and you suddenly realise that you are 50; and you begin to notice funny changes in your physiognomy, as well as your internally structure. The changes may begin with some twitting pains at your joints, knees and waist. At first, you may be thinking it is as a result of those long hours at work or stressful activities you subjected your body to. Then, you resort to self-medication, swallowing all sorts of pains-relieving tablets. Yes, they worked but just for a brief period. And, pronto, the pains are back!
You may be lucky to manage off and on pains in your 50s; but when you hit 60, it becomes a different ball game. At this age, the bones are becoming weaker by the day; the eyes are getting dimmer and giving you all kinds of problems. You may either not be seeing well or you start seeing cobwebs. A check at eye clinic may reveal early symptoms of glaucoma or cataracts. If you are lucky, you may get the reprieve of recommendation for reading and sight glasses. If you are not, it may be the beginning of a life-long treatment for glaucoma; a degenerative eye disease dreadfully termed the ‘Big G’. It is dreadful because glaucoma is a silent thief of the sight.
Again, from 60, you may be finding it difficult to flush urine out of your bladder. A check may reveal what your doctor may diagnose as prostate problem; either the benign form or beginning of prostate cancer. Unknown to many, especially men, no one is immune to prostate problems. In fact, from age 40, doctors recommend periodic checks of the bladder.
From 70, you are on your own. If you fall into the category of those with rough life styles, your bones may start getting brittle, your movement may begin to wobble; and you may begin to feel as if you are railing against gravity. Then, if you are unlucky, something may happen and you are confined to wheelchair. But for those who manage aging with regular exercises and periodic medical checks, those who manage to keep their elements intact, there may be not much to fear. Indeed, this special breed are usually still healthy and mentally alert enough to hold public offices and perform well.
The most damaging and frustrating aging problem is dementia -a severe impairment or loss of intellectual capacity and personality integration due to the loss or damage to neurons in the brain. It’s so devastating that it often makes its victims vegetable and deletes their memories. The victim neither remembers anything nor recognizes even his or her children and grandchildren. Though he can see, his brain is blank.
I have gone this far in my narrative so that you, my dear readers, can understand what lies ahead even as we pray for long life. I can tell you that it is not cheap to manage an aging body. Old age comes with a heavy price. You may be lucky to have health insurance but those who do not often pay through their noses. Those who are lucky to have children abroad who help them to cope with and manage old age-related issues still have some problems to contend with. They complain of feeling homesick and, in some cases, not getting the right treatment.
At a point in my life, I could no longer afford the soaring cost of medical checks abroad. It was at this point that someone introduced me to Chief Tony Anenih Geriatric Centre at the University College Hospital, UCH, Ibadan.
I was driven to the centre by my niece, Dr. Atinuke Akinmoladun. Behold, it was a sight to behold. I started seeing familiar faces of retired Vice Chancellors, Professors drawn from virtually every part of the country, aged politicians, businessmen, clergymen and aged peasants of all sorts. Some could barely walk and were in wheelchairs.
The environment was sparkling, made beautiful with well- manicured gardens, gardens brimming with aromatic flowers. Everything the aged needed was provided. It is optional to bring your aides for assistance. The centre provides for uniformed aides to move you around and attend to all your needs for a token. It has an electronic record system . From the beginning till the time the patient leaves you don’t have to carry notes around. Everything is electronically done.
Professor Ben Humphrey could not hold his excitement. He said: “This is the best thing to have happened in Nigeria. I have spent all my life savings abroad for yearly medical check-ups, some of them routine, before I learnt of this centre two years ago. I am getting, here, twice the attention I was getting abroad.”
Mama Adewole , mother of Nigeria’s current Minister of Health, was full of praises for the doctors and nurses: “They are just wonderful,” she enthused. “I am getting the best of treatments here. I’m tired of exposing myself to the biting cold abroad, and the fact that you are always by yourself whenever my siblings go to work. You are home alone.” Chief Anike Agbaje-Williams, veteran newscaster, jokingly said: “You can see I’m regaining my youthfulness. Knowing this place is a big blessing. It saves me the millions of naira usually expended traveling abroad for medicare.”
Pa Joseph Adebara, a 90-year-old grandpa, has this to say:
“May the Lord bless the founder of this centre. I gave up hope of living a year ago when I asked my children to start preparing for my funeral. But they said, No way! And, they wheeled me to this centre. Now, I’m on my two legs, walking unaided! Not only that, the founder of this centre gives me a yearly gift of new dresses. He gives not only me but to all the patients.”
Upon investigation, I learnt that the centre is the brainchild of the politician popularly known as “Mr. Fix It”; Chief Tony Anenih. The man had hitherto been fixing virtually every political jigsaw in Nigeria’s current democracy but at some point, he decided to fix better life for the aged. I give him kudos. He deserves a big applause from all well-meaning Nigerians.
I equally learnt that he started ploughing back the seeds realized in politics to build this centre to cater for the aged way back in 2012;and from then, he has never looked back as he keeps the centre going with regular funding; and he does so single-handedly. Chief Anenih picks the bills on anything and everything that has to do with the centre. He sets up a Social Health Insurance Scheme for all the clients at N18,000 annually, which gives the beneficiaries access to health care of up to N500,000 yearly. Here, fees payable for clinical services are pegged at 50% of normal hospital fees.
What is more, the centre is the first and only training hub for geriatric medicine under the Faculty of Family Medicine, and the first purpose built geriatric centre in Africa, and has become a model for Africa and parts of Europe. The services offered include: general clinical services, surgical services, ophthalmic services, geriatric psychiatric services, memory loss clinic, family life style, dental services, rheumatology services, medical school services and physiotherapy.
Folu Olamiti Media Consultant writes from Abuja. [myad]