The Nation Newspaper

Category: Saturday Magazine

  • ‘Why our mission to extort money from school proprietress by threatening her with assassination failed’

    ‘Why our mission to extort money from school proprietress by threatening her with assassination failed’

    A THREE-man gang of suspected assassins who claimed that they were paid N150,000 to kill a school proprietress, Mrs. Veronica Okonido (65), has been arrested by operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Lagos State Police Command. The suspected assassins were arrested penultimate Friday.

    A police source said the gang’s suspected leader, Jude Ekpenisi (25) claimed that the gang was paid by a certain individual to assassinate Mrs. Okonido, but he had compassion for the woman and decided to reject the sum offered for her head. Instead, he requested Okonido to pay the gang the same sum of money or it would carry out Okondo’s assassination.

    The two other suspected members of the gang are David Ekpenisi (22) and Philemon Uwadi (22).

    As soon as the case was transferred to SARS for investigation, the officer in-charge, Mr. Abba Kyari, a Superintendent of Police, swung into action and tracked down the gang leader through David Ekpenisi’s SIM card, which they used to tell him that the pastor of a big church had told him to come for a lucrative job. The pastor turned out to be a SARS operative and Jude Ekpenisi was immediately arrested.

    The third suspect, Philemon, reported at SARS’ headquarters by himself, not knowing that Jude was arrested in connection with the assassination attempt case which they had abandoned when it became clear that Okonido was not willing to cooperate with them.

    Okonido is the proprietress of Crownfield Nursery and Primary School in Ijegun, Ikotun area of Lagos, and resides and resides within the school premises. The police source said the suspects stopped troubling her when it dawned on them that she was not willing to do their bidding.

    Confessing his involvement in the assassination saga, Jude said: “I was the one that accommodated the two other suspects in my room. One day, we sat down and discussed how we could squeeze out money from the woman, who we thought was a millionaire. We first sent her a threat message. The text reads: ‘Somebody has paid us to eliminate you. But we are God-fearing. That is why we decided not to kill you.’ The first text message was sent on June 24, 2013.”

    Having threatened the woman, they asked her to send the said sum through Jude’s account. They sent the account number to her but she would not bulge. But in their desperation to collect the money from her, Jude sent a threat letter to her three days later, saying that they would kill her if she remained adamant.

    “We pasted the threat letter at the gates of the school, the body of the school bus and other places within the school compound,” he said.

    After waiting for four days without a response, they came up with another threat: to kidnap her and two of her pupils. “When the plan did not work, we decided to look for legitimate employment. I secured an employment in an air freshner factory.

    “After working there for one week, I received a call from a church that there were job vacancies. I quickly ironed my trouser and shirt to attend the interview in the church premises. But when I got there, I was arrested by SARS operatives.

    “I led them to my house where my younger brother who gave us his SIM card to use for the deal was arrested. David later came to SARS to see us and he was nabbed.

    “I came to Lagos in 2007 and stayed with my grandmother at Ikotun. It was unemployment and the money to pay for accommodation that made to form an assassination gang.

    “I was initially living alone at Ramat Ajike Street, Ijegun, where the woman’s school, Crownfield Nursery and Primary School, is situated. My house has a common fence with her school. She drives a Toyota Camry car and she knows me. But she did not know that I was the one who planned the attempted assassination and the kidnapping of two of her pupils.

    “She is always kind and friendly. She was surprised when SARS operatives arrested us.

    “My brother David and Philemon were not living with me before. They joined me from Ajegunle (Lagos) in April to look for jobs. I was living with one Solomon and my wife Precious who works with a Laboratory in Lagos. She is the one that feeds us and pays the house rent. She was not aware of the plan otherwise she would have driven us away. We demanded for N150,000 only.”

    He gave further details of the threats they issued to the woman, saying: “In the first week, we called her on her mobile phone after getting the number from her school’s sign board. When I called her, she asked who I was and I tried to use a name that would scare her. I told her my name was Jack.

    “I said somebody was working against her and she should call back if she wanted to know. She did not call back. After waiting for 30 minutes, I called again and told her that somebody had paid us to kill her.

    “She then said I should talk to her; that she is a child of God. I then told her that I am also a child of God and that was why I called her. I told her that she should try to cooperate with us, that the person behind it would die if she cooperated.

    “She then asked what we wanted and I told her to give us N150,000. She said okay and asked us to send our account number. I can’t remember the account number. It belongs to my brother and he did not know that we wanted to use it. I was using to use it to send money to him before.

    “I called his wife and told her that somebody wanted to send me money through her husband’s account number. She obliged, knowing that the number was always with me. When the proprietress did not send the money after two days, we called and asked her why, and she said the money was not yet complete.

    “We gave her one more day to send it. When she failed, we sent the threat letter. We told her that we were good boys but she wanted to turn us into bad boys. We asked how she would feel if we kidnapped two of her pupils or if they got missing. We asked her to call us with our phone number that was with her, but for three days she did not call.

    “Uwadi Philemon then wrote another letter which we pasted at the gates and on the school bus. It reads: ‘Since you have refused to send the money, you do not like the finger that is pointing at you to return back to the sender. Send the money now or we carry out our threat.’ Still, she did not answer until we started receiving calls from somebody else who claimed to be her brother.

    “He said he was a policeman and that he would trace us. She asked why we should demand money from his sister. From that day, he was the one calling and telling us that we would be arrested.

    “When they started threatening us with arrest, I called Jude and told him that we should stop disturbing the woman. That was how we stopped and decided to seek employment. I got an employment as a waiter in a hotel situated in Ikotun on a monthly salary of N11,000 before we were arrested. Jude and his brother, David, secured employment as marketers in a company that produces air freshner in Lagos.”

    Asked how they were arrested, he said: “They called David that a church had a vacancy for a drummer, a keyboard player and one security man. When I got there, I saw the lady and the police officer who was introduced to me as the pastor of the church. I asked if the work would be daily or weekly and he said we should go to the church.

    “The next thing I saw was a SARS’ car loaded with SARS operatives reversing to meet us. The SARS operatives alighted with guns and handcuffs. It was then that it dawn on me that we were in police net.”

    The third suspect, David Ekpenisi, Jude’s younger brother, said: “I was the one who gave them my mobile phone’s SIM card as contact. I was there always when Jude and Philemon communicated with the woman.

    “It was also my number that the police used to deceive us that a church wanted to give us employment.

    “It was because of poverty that I joined the gang. I found it difficult to feed because my sister said she hadn’t enough money to feed three big mouths. It was a big temptation because we were over stretching our sister.

    The spokesperson of the Lagos Command of the Nigeria Police Force, Mrs. Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) could not be reached for comment at press time. She was said to have travelled for the burial of her father who died a few days ago.

  • ‘Biofuel is Nigeria’s best energy option’

    ‘Biofuel is Nigeria’s best energy option’

    Felix Obada,  Group Managing Director  and Chief Executive Officer at Global Biofuels Limited, is credited with inspiring and leading the race for Nigeria’s entrance into space by facilitating the design and launch of the country’s first satellite (NigeriaSat-1). He started his professional engineering career at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in 1977 and retired in 1995 as a chief engineer. He later became the pioneer Director-General and Chief Executive of the Materials Management Institute of Nigeria between 1996 and 1998 and served as a consultant to the University of Surrey Space Centre, United Kingdom, between 2000 and 2003. Dr. Obada also pioneered the creation of the National eGovernment initiative. In this interview with Olayinka Oyegbile (Deputy Editor) and Seun Akioye, he speaks on why Nigeria should embrace cleaner energy using the biofuels technology.

    Let us lay this background first, in simple terms explain what is biofuel?

    BIOFUEL is simply ethanol; that is one definition. It can also be biodiesel or biofuels. They are fuels that are generally derived from agricultural products. They are grown and they are not mined or drilled that’s why they call them renewable energy. For as long as you continue to grow your crops you will be producing, whereas if it is something that occurs naturally the moment you drill and you extract you cannot replace it. But for biofuels, you grow the crops you harvest you process it and then you grow again you harvest again and you process again continuously on the same piece of land. And you can continue to do that, that’s why they say its sustainable, renewable. It is an interesting area which Nigeria should embrace aggressively.

    One of the arguments against biofuels all over the world is land grab, there are human right groups who say over 100,000 hectares have already been seized by companies like yours. So why should Nigerians support your project if it is going to displace the local farmers

    Our own initiative does not result into land grab. What it does is to enhance land utilisation. You are able to optimally utilise the land that you have. Land grab is for certain aspects of bio-fuel production. You may say yes, but in the kind of initiative that we are implementing there is no such thing in the sense that the raw material that we are using will be produced by the farmers themselves, the land will still belong to them. We have an out grower’s scheme that the farmers are part of. They produce the feedstock and sell to us. We’ve been taking a large portion of what we use in processing our biofuel from the out growers that is why we have to work directly with state governments and local governments wherever we go. The state government will organise the farmers into co-operatives, then we sign what is called the out growers’ agreement with them so there will be no question of displacing any farmer, instead it enhances their take home pay.

    There are other more fundamental issues that have been raised about biofuels. One is that it competes with the food chain,

    Yes we are coming to that. It is true with some kind of feed stocks. In every country they have feed stocks that are well suited for their own biofuel products. Brazil uses sugarcane. The whole country is full of sugarcane; they have an abundance of sugarcane. Also, surrounding countries like Uruguay produce and export to Brazil. Their climate is good through the year for cultivation so it’s okay for them to use it for biofuel. It’s economical for them. They are in the Amazon region where the climate is wet throughout the year. But for us in Nigeria, sugarcane itself is food and then we don’t even produce enough of that. Plus not every part of Nigeria is suitable for sugarcane cultivation. From plant to life it takes between 12 – 18months, so you cannot plant and harvest within the same cropping season. So really if you say someone who wants to plant sugarcane that they will do land grabbing I would support that idea because someone who wants to plant yam and other things you would deprive of doing that because the way sugarcane is grown it does not permit intercropping. In the United States they use corn, yes, I mean real corn. That is actual food that can be consumed, unlike sugar which is to a large extent not considered as real food; the Americans use actual corn to produce biofuel and it is encouraged vigorously by the government.

    Corn is food that is dangerous it is like making food for vehicles. In Canada, they use wheat which is also food. In Nigeria, the Obasanjo regime attempted to use cassava, there is hardly any household that don’t depend on cassava. It will be unfair for Nigerians to use food. That is why we decided to use raw materials that do not compete with food chain. We use sweet sorghum, we don’t even use the grain or the leave, we use the stem that is useless. We harvest the grain for food, the leaf we feed to the cattle and then the stem is what we crush, extract sugar and use to make fuel. Our initiative is waste to wealth; it does not compete with the food chain at all. Nigeria is one of the largest producers of sorghum in the world, we have over eight million hectares under cultivation as we speak. Those are green sorghum; all we need to do is to switch from green to sweet sorghum.

    What is the difference between the two?

    They are the same. But the stem in green sorghum has no juice and it is not sweet. The sweet sorghum has a juicy stem and it is sweet.

    How do you source seed for the sweet sorghum?

    It is available. In a huge plantation of green sorghum, you may find just one stick that will be sweet, it’s an error of creation those ones have been isolated by our scientists and developed into a large plantation of sweet sorghum. They produce grain just like the green sorghum, so rather than use grain or cassava or wheat we use sweet sorghum.

    Coming back to land grab, when your project becomes profitable, is it not possible that some big capitalist would exert influence to grab land from small farmers to plant sweet sorghum?

    For somebody to grab someone else’s land, the man has to agree to be bought over isn’t it? And if someone has grabbed a land, we are in a civilian regime; the court is there to give justice.

    From your experiment of switching to sweet from green sorghum, how easy has it been for the farmers to do this switch?

    Very easy. It is just a question of giving them our seeds, we have developed our own seed. The farmers that we are going to be working with, we will help them to cultivate their land, fertilize and put pesticides. During harvest time, whatever they harvest will be brought to us, we will weigh it and buy from them. That is the kind of agreement we have signed with many of the farmers. Every part of sweet sorghum is useful, the leaves, the grain of course is food and even the stalk, we crush, extract the juice.

    How will that work and how much will it add to Nigeria’s power generation?

    It will add tremendous amount. For instance we are trying to develop our pilot scheme in Ekiti State. It is going to generate 15 megawatts of electricity and all of that we will utilise about nine megawatts for our production and the remaining six megawatts we will distribute to the surrounding locality because it is too small to go into the national grid. In the fully developed plant, we will be producing 30 megawatts, which gives you additional money. So from waste, we are making money and the leaves also you will feed to the cattle because it is very nutritious. In 90 days, the cow becomes huge. Feed them with sorghum leaves and in 90 days you will have huge cows. So if you buy the cows for N30,000, feed them with sorghum leaves, in 90 days you are ready to sell for N120,000. Every part of a sorghum plant is useable, even after the process, the waste water is also fertilizer; you mix the effluent water with animal drop and pump it back into the land.

    So this is not only about producing clean energy, it is also about agriculture?

    It is an agro allied industrial complex where so many things are linked together. The farmer produces the grain, leaves and stem. That’s his own job, and then moves to the man who crushes, moves the juice to the one who will ferment, the bargass moves to electricity generation and part of it is used for the national grid and produces more electricity for more Nigerians. Then your cow is dropping for you every time because you feed it with the leaves. After your refining process the water that is left is mixed with the droppings and then pumped back to the land. So what you take from the land you return to it, that ensures sustainability, it is a foolproof sustainable production process.

    The Ekiti pilot project, tell us about it.

    We are working with the state government because of the share quantity of what we need. But the details are not for public consumption yet, we are developing in other states as well, it is such an important programme that Nigeria cannot afford not to develop. We have the potential to surpass Brazil in biofuel production. Presently, Brazil produces about 70 percent of the biofuel that is consumed in the world, we can surpass Brazil and this is what the Brazilians themselves told us. We have the land and the people to cultivate.

    We are learning from everybody, we learnt from the Brazilians, we know that the Brazilian method will not work in Nigeria; we only have spots in Nigeria where you can grow sugarcane. We have also learnt from the Americans, the Canadians. There has never been any record of them failing. We heard about that from the Chinese themselves.

    You speak about biofuel and the need for Nigeria to move away from the current system. What is wrong with the present system with fossil fuel, after all we are not the largest contributor to climate change.

    Fossil fuel destroys our environment, on daily basis it throws up millions of carbon in the atmosphere. We have about 2.5 million cars in Lagos; you imagine how much carbon they are throwing in the atmosphere, which sticks together and can stay for up to 120 years. This is the greenhouse effect which excessively warms the planet earth. There is excessive heat on one place and the other it is flooding. In Nigeria, are suffering from the worst effect of climate change. For almost 20 years now, but people are not paying attention, in school in the old times did you ever hear of sand dunes inside Nigerian territory? Never, in those days when you are travelling abroad, you would have left Nigeria before you see sand dunes. But today it is only about 35 nautical miles from Kano. It has eaten up a large chunk of the north.

    Desert encroachment has greatly affected those living in that area and they are cattle rearers with thousands of cattle. One day they wake up and see their land has been taken over by sand so what do they do? They take their cattle and move on, in their thousands. Now the sand dunes move at the rate of 380 meters per annum, it is very gradual but it goes on steadily. Now the farmers who moved their cattle will move into other people’s land. You wake up one day and find thousands of cattle on your farm. Then we have clashes as far south as Anambra, Ogun, Oyo, Ondo. There is social unrest, 15 million people have been displaced, where will they find work? This is the effect of climate change. Lake Chad had a volume of 24,000 square kilometres of water in 1963; today it is less than 10 percent of that volume. There is no more Lake Chad in Nigeria, it is now in Cameroon. All the 15 million Nigerians who depend on it are now jobless. This is caused by excessive consumption of fossil fuel. Look at soil erosion in the East, the flood of last year. Climate change is a subject that has to be addressed.

    What has been government’s response to this project?

    We have been on it for five years. Government is sympathetic. We have signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding), with the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment to develop our project in 15 states of the federation. But it has not been easy because the banks will not touch anything green. We have shown them everything and even taken them to China but they still ask can this work in Nigeria? It is not easy for an individual or a group of people to develop a project of this magnitude, we require government support and I have a firm believe that the present administration will do something. The multiplier effect is huge, the job creation, our infrastructure will develop. A state with 20 megawatts of power is okay, that means you are self sufficient.

    Talking of job creation, you said the project will create 8000 direct employment and 50,000 indirect. How do we measure this?

    This is very simple, we have done the calculations. A standard biofuel farm needs about 7,000 hectares of farmland, one farmer is able to manage five hectares, you divide 7,000 by five and know the number of people you need. There is the supervisor and the superintendent then the boss. That is the farming. Then you need massive number of people to do your cattle rearing, and other things. You have the housing estate because we are going to house all our staff, the plant employs about 230 people. For direct employment we are looking at 8,000 and indirect is 50,000

    When is this going to start?

    Soon. I will not be able to give you the exact month but the pilot will start this year.

    But when you start what will be the initial capacity

    The first plant will be producing like 103,000 litres per day that is like a drop in the ocean, we will blend up to E-5. That is five percent ethanol mixed with 95 percent gasoline. Ethanol is cheaper than petrol. It will help to force down a bit the price of petrol. In China, they introduced the blending city by city. Nigeria can do something similar, we can start from Ado- Ekiti, whatever we produce, and they blend in Ado- Ekiti and get designated station to sell it. The beauty of this is that we can easily replicate the model.

    If I am using fossil fuel in my car, and I want to switch to bio fuels, do I need to drastically change the mechanical and electrical components of my car in order to accommodate bio fuels.

    Up to the point of E-20, that is 20 percent ethanol and 80 percent gasoline, you don’t need any special switch. But above E-20, you will need to change the rubberized components of your vehicle. It is a simple operation, you change it to Vitol, ethanol will dissolve rubber in high concentration. It has happened in Lagos before, when some marketers brought in E-22 because it is cheaper and it destroyed many cars.

    Will importation not affect your business?

    Government ideally must not allow importation, because it will stifle the local industry. The government will not encourage it. The NNPC tried to do that before, we fought them to a standstill and the importation never happened. So we are looking forward to starting this industry in Nigeria.

    Would that not lead to monopoly by your company?

    There is no monopoly, for instance our raw material is patented, we have been franchising with other people. I cannot go to Oyo State without bringing people from there who would like to be part of it. They will own the plant but we have the technology and we are happy to share, we will work together. It’s better we franchise with like minds. The rate of unemployment in Nigeria is massive; all the people that have been displaced by global warming must be re-engaged. If we start planting sorghum in those places we have desert encroachment, it will be checked and it will prevent farmers from moving south with their cattle. The cattle will be fed sorghum leaves and they will be fine. So, it will reduce the level of tension nationwide.

    You are passionate about most of the things you do. You have been credited with pioneering a number of things in Nigeria. You spearheaded Nigeria’s entry into space, you are pushing cleaner energy and a number of others. What drives you to become the first?

    It is not about me trying to become the first but God that pushes me into all these things. At the time we went to space, we faced a lot of challenges, but we had a president that listened to us. World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) worked against it even Britain that collaborated with us on the project challenged us. But thank God space industry in Nigeria is now well developed; we are no push-over. If America can hear us from space we can also hear them. We are equal in that aspect. Some of the spin-off industry attached to the space is broadband. That was how E-government came to be. In those days when you want to check your WAEC result it is a whole day affair. Today, you can check it on the phone. When we said this is possible, thank God we had a government that believed in us. You can move money in your bank today without going to the bank, I don’t go to the bank anymore, I do my transactions online. It has made life very easy for us. I believe the biofuel project will succeed. It may suffer like the others but it will not die.

    Beyond all these how do you relax?

    I play golf (laughs). Unfortunately, when you are doing a serious project like this you don’t have time for anything; every other thing is a distraction, even to listen to music. Look at me I used to love music so much but now you are disturbing me playing music. It’s work and home and my life has been really boring. My children complain, I don’t go out with friends, but I do that once in a while.

    Relaxation is good; I go to church, read my Bible and exercise in my room. I try to eat well, and take a lot of rest. So I am not stressed.

  • This season’s essentials

    This season’s essentials

    THERE are some style items you shouldn’t be without this season, they are must-have fashion items:

    Envelope clutch purse, oversized handbag, patent leather bag, floral print, animal print, baby doll ankara dress, skinny belt, flat strap sandal, chandelier earrings, strand cuff, wooden bangles, big rock, LBD, patent shoes, pink and blue dress.

    Blue: All shades of blue and pink are this season’s queen of colours. It looks cool and peaceful. Mix with other colours to make you look glamorous

    Floral: The influx of this vibrant dress is still strikingly evident, it adds a sexy, and the same time, feminine appeal to one’s look

    Little black dress (LBD): A little black dress is an evening or cocktail dress and it is chic and versatile. Black is always in season and no matter where you are in the world, whether you are going to a dinner, luncheon, or going on a tour, you can always wear a LBD. You can dress it up or down.

    Ankara baby doll dress: Ankara baby doll is very unique and simple

    Envelope clutch purse: Makes the ultimate red carpet statement in gold and silver accessories garnished with sequins and diamond.

    A white shirt: A white dress shirt is a must-have for suits and also for trousers and pants.

    Jeans: Jeans have always been there to complement our looks. You just need to get a couple of denim jeans, either blue or black.

    Sneakers: Also know that sneakers are a very important part of our casual outfit especially when you are putting on jeans trousers. So, go get it!

    Chandelier earrings

    Flat and pumps shoes

    Monochrome (black & white) dress

    Chiffon shirt

  • Tiwa Savage Copy her look

    Tiwa Savage Copy her look

    THIS season has been a busy one on the red carpet. The R&B songstress star Tiwa Savage looks hot in these cute pieces.

    Wearing a white mesh designed top, pleated pink skirt and off white pumps, the A-list diva proves that you don’t need to be head-to-toe in designer to make a fashion statement and she proves that the days of pleated skirt are still much around.

    She completes the red carpet-worthy look with a slick of tinted lippy and gliding wavy hair-do.

    What do you think of Tiwa Savage’s charming look? Steal her look!

     

    Basic pieces to style with a pleated skirt

    Tank tops and camisoles

    These tops serve as the perfect foundation for any look and work well with pleated skirts. Choose tops that fit closely to the body rather than loose-fitting ones.

     

    Mix different fabrics

    For an individualised and stylish look, mix different fabrics that complement one another, such as a jacket/plain shirt over sequined camisole or tank top. Then, choose a pleated skirt that complements the fabrics worn up top. Consider experimenting with prints.

     

    Scarves

    Scarves have been making a comeback in the fashion scene in a big way. And it is a good thing because scarves can be worn many different ways depending on the look desired. An important factor to consider, however, is the length of the scarf. If it is too long, it may be too much of a contrast. Tie the scarf in such a style so that it looks appropriate and attractive with the pleated skirt and the rest of the outfit.

     

    Belts

    Belts are popular accessories today, and their purpose is not limited to simply holding pants or skirts up. Rather, belts are used as accompaniments to an outfit. Skinny or thick, belts of all widths can be combined with an outfit to pull off a variety of looks. Choosing coloured belts can also add a splash of flair to a muted pleated skirt and top. The size of the pleats will determine the most appropriate belt design.

     

    Shoes

    When sporting the pleated skirt outfit, pay close attention to the shoes worn because they really bring the entire outfit together.

  • Eva’s Top 10

    Eva’s Top 10

    Chic and stunning rap sensation, Eva Alordiah, reveals her top favourite things to Kehinde Oluleye

    Favourite shoe

    I pretty much wear any shoe  that kicks my mojo, regardless  of the designer. I think the  favourite in my shoes’ collection  now would be a pair of boots by Jeffery Campbell

    Favourite bag designer

    I’m sincerely not a huge  bags collector. I think my  go-to bag is one from ‘Kooba’

    Favourite car

    No favourite. But anything that’s got speed and looks sexy  from behind. Mostar coupes, and they have to be black.

    Favourite wrist watch designer

    I have not worn a wristwatch in years! Maybe 10 years now. Not a fan. But I did buy one as a gift for a special friend  sometime ago. It was from “Police”

    Favourite perfume

    Paco Robanne -Lady Million

    Favourite sunglasses

    Perso

    Favourite neck accessory

    Steel

    Favourite drink

    Water. Haha! Sorry I’m weird I know. I don’t drink. But my grandfather gave me sips and some of ‘kai kai’ back in the day. As a true Delta babe of the Isoko tribe, a  sit-down with ogogoro and kolanuts is always a good time.

    Favourite colour for hair

    White, orange, pink and red. I don’t know really; I have had so many on, and I love them all.

    Favourite nail polish

    O.P.I

     

     

  • I always take some pregnancy control pills, would it affect my womb?

    Good morning ma. I’m Gold from Abia State. Ma, I’be been reading your articles in The Nation newspaper, it’s nice and encouraging. Ma, pls, I’m worried about something – I got pregnant for a guy that I loved so much. I took some drugs and flushed it out. After that, whenever I’m having sex with him, I always take some pregnancy control pills. Please ma, would it affect my womb? Please I need a reply. Thanks and God bless.

    Many women are not aware of the serious health implications of birth control pills. First, let’s understand how birth control pills work in your body. Typically, your body ovulates once a month, ripening a new egg that will then journey down a fallopian tube. Eventually it reaches the uterus, where it would implant, if fertilized. If not fertilized by a sperm, then the lining of the uterus that had built up in preparation for the fertilized egg is unnecessary. Both egg and uterine lining leave your body, cleansing your system and preparing for a new month.

    When you take birth control pills, you impose synthetic hormones on your natural cycle. Many birth control pills contain high levels of estrogen that effectively convince your pituitary gland that you are pregnant (this explains some of the side effects of the drugs) and that you don’t need to ovulate. Because your body thinks you are pregnant, the uterine lining thickens. Once you start the placebo pills, however, your estrogen level drops suddenly, and your body menstruates “normally.” This abnormal cycle is what millions of women experience every month, and yet few doctors discuss the consequences of taking these prescriptions for year after year.

    Many of these changes occur as your body’s response to synthetic estrogen. These changes include: larger breasts, weight gain or loss, reduced or increased acne, slight nausea, emotional sensitivity right before your period, mood swings throughout your cycle, irregular bleeding or spotting, breast tenderness and decreased libido. Sometimes birth control methods are very necessary for preventing unwanted pregnancies, but I urge you to learn more about other natural options that do not damage your health. Condoms (both male and female), the diaphragm and cervical cap are all reasonable options for birth control.

  • Tourism at the Crossroad

    Last Friday was fortuitous in the history of the tourism and the Nigerian hospitality industry. It was the day the Supreme Court put to rest the question of whose responsibility it was to register, grade and classify hospitality and tourism outfits in the country.

    According to the Supreme Court judgment, this responsibility falls within the purview of the states. Hitherto, there had been a lingering face-off between the Federal Government and the Lagos State government on the issue. It all started with the law passed by the Lagos State House of Assembly and signed into law by the state governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola. The law is the Lagos State Hotel Licensing Law.

    The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that only state houses of assemblies can make laws on tourism by licensing and grading hotels, restaurants, fast food outlets and other hospitality establishments.

    The apex court presided over by Justice Suleiman Galadima held that the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, only empowers the National Assembly to regulate tourist traffic, a term which does not extend to hotel registration and licensing.

    The court also validated both the Hotel Licensing Law of Lagos State (as amended) and the Hotel Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption Law of Lagos State and annulled the offending sections of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) Act.

    The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Justice, approached the Supreme Court for the interpretation of the constitution on that. Lagos State position was that hotels and other tourism outfits registration was a residual matter on which the Federal Government of Nigeria has no Constitutional authority to legislate or pass laws.

    According to the state, the only reference to tourism on the exclusive legislative list of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) is in item 60(d) which relates “to regulate tourist traffic” and that the intention here was to control immigration and monitor border formalities which was the exclusive preserver of the Federal Government.

    On the strength of this, Lagos said the only valid legislation that regulates the licensing of hotels and other tourism or hospitality establishments operating in Lagos State is the Lagos State Hotel Licensing Law as amended in 2010.

    If this was allowed to stand, it would rob the Federal Government the control of a very important part of the tourism industry, most especially the hospitality industry. Before the ruling, the NTDC had issued guidelines for both the hospitality industry and the other arms of the tourism operations. The NTDC believed that, according to the statutory law establishing it, it was part of its responsibilities to register, classify and grade all hospitality and tourism establishments, travel agencies and tour operators in Nigeria. Consequently, all owners of hospitality and tourism outfits were mandatorily required to register its business with the NTDC within 60 days of its commencement of operations. Every certificate of registration issued by the NTDC expires on the 31st day of December in the year of the issue of such a certificate, with renewals required on a year-to-year basis upon the payment of such renewal fees as may be prescribed by the NTDC.

    The registration certificate issued by the NTDC must be conspicuously displayed on its business premises. There were fines and criminal penalties for individual owners and corporate bodies who failed to register their outfits with the NTDC.

    That was the situation between 1992, when the decree establishing the NTDC was enacted, and July 12, when the Supreme Court ruled. Many states like Lagos, Edo, kano and Cross River kicked against the law, but the NTDC had the upper hands. The former NTDC boss, Mrs. Omotayo Omotosho, during her tenure embarked on the closure of some hotels in Lagos and Abuja in a bid to force them to comply, but not much was achieved. The same with the past regime at the NTDC headed by Otunba Segun Runsewe.

    Runsewe was keen on registering, classifying and grading hospitality outfits in the country, but the legal challenges made these difficult. The ruling has put the fight to rest.

    But the Supreme Court’s ruling has created a bigger problem for the tourism industry, especially the ability of the Federal Government in the past to co-ordinate tourism activities in the country. The Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN) President, Chief Samuel Alabi, who said he said it far back in 2002 that the NTDC has no basis in a democratic setting.

    He said in the past the Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation could summon the state commissioners for a meeting and the commissioners could decide not to go. And that with the ruling, the NTDC was now like a mere department in the Federal Capital Development Authority.

    Reacting to the judgement, Commissioner for Tourism and Intergovernmental Relations, Mr. Disun Holloway, commended the Supreme Court for upholding the tenets of federalism, adding that the judgement would eradicate multiplicity of taxations and regulations, thereby enabling states to take charge and properly plan for the hospitality industry in their respective territories.

    The question in the minds of many tourism and hospitality operators in the country is that with the legal interpretation by the Supreme Court that puts finality as to whose purview the registration, grading and classifying of tourism establishments falls , where does that leave them?

    The biggest problem of hospitality outfits is that due to their visibility, the different arms of government see them as a ready source of revenue. Every day, the tourism outfits are faced with multiple taxation. For example, the hotels pay the value added tax in Lagos, and there is the additional consumption tax on the same product that the value added tax has been paid on. Both the states and council areas have a long list of taxes that the hospitality outfits are expected to settle. The fear is that with the new development, if no efforts are made to harmonise and streamline taxes payable by these outfits, they are going to face tough times in meeting with these multiple tax obligations.

    Many believe that since the Supreme Court has declared the NTDC’s activities as regards registration, classification and grading of hospitality outfits as illegal, it is important that the states and local government areas dialogue with the hospitality and tourism outfits on the issue of taxes so that they would not be taxed out of business.

    The positive thing from the ruling is that it is now easier for states to embark on the registration, classification and grading of these hospitality establishments. The days of self-rating by hotels is now a thing of the past. It will help the hospitality to grow and further boost the confidence of international hospitality chains to come to Nigeria.

    For the NTDC, with the removal of the hotels from its control and supervision, the agency would now concentrate more on its co-mandate of developing tourist sites, promotion of the country as a tourism destination and marketing of country.

    The recent report released by the United Nations’ World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has shown that tourism is making positive impact all over the world. However, apart from the area of religious tourism where Nigeria is witnessing steady growth in the inbound tourist arrival, in other sectors like leisure and so on, no progress has so far been made. It is important that the NTDC do more.

  • The problem is my vagina

    Good evening Aunty Adeola. My name is Joy and I’m 20 years old. Aunty, the problem I have is with my vagina, anytime I want to have sex with a man, it is always so painful that I can’t bear it. This has caused many problems between me and the young man I’m dating. Please I need your help. What can I use to treat this?

    In many cases, a woman can experience painful sex if there is not sufficient vaginal lubrication. When this occurs, the pain can be resolved if the female becomes more relaxed, if the amount of foreplay is increased, or if the couple uses a sexual lubricant.

    In some cases, a woman can experience painful intercourse if one of the following conditions is present:

    Vaginismus -This is a common condition in which there is a spasm in the vaginal muscles, mainly caused by the fear of being hurt.

    Vaginal infections -These conditions are common and include yeast infections.

    Problems with the cervix (opening to the uterus) – In this case, the penis can reach the cervix at maximum penetration, so problems with the cervix (such as infections) can cause pain during deep penetration.

    Problems with the uterus These problems may include fibroids that can cause deep intercourse pain.

    Endometriosis – A condition in which the endometrium (tissue lining the uterus) grows outside the uterus.

    Problems with the ovaries. Such problems might include cysts on the ovaries.

    Pelvic inflammatory disease The tissues deep inside become badly inflamed and the pressure of intercourse causes deep pain.

    Ectopic pregnancy- A pregnancy in which a fertilized egg develops outside of the uterus.

    Menopause – The vaginal lining can lose its normal moisture and become dry.

    Intercourse too soon after surgery or childbirth

    Sexually transmitted diseases. These may include genital warts, herpes sores, or other STDs.

    Injury to the vulva or vagina. These injuries may include a tear from childbirth or from a cut (episiotomy) in the perenium (area of skin between the vagina and the anus) that is made during labor.

  • Govt urged to assist the physically challenged

    A call has been

    made to the Gov

    ernment to assist the physically challenged people in the society as is being done in other parts of the world.

    This call was made by a concerned parent,Mrs Tola Koledoye during a national cerebral palsy family forum organized by Benola Initiative in Lagos.

    Koledoye,the mother of 20-year old Titilayo Gbalajobi,a third year psychology student in the United States,said children with disability are the eye of the government abroad.

    She revealed that the government pay the School fees of such children from start to finish.She further said any parent of guardian who keep a child with disability locked up at home will go to jail.

    Koledoye,a specialist in mental retardation,based in US,said though her Titi attend a regular school, children with CP need to be at a special education school where they can be taught how to read,write,speak and move based on their cognitive.

    She said Titi,her third child who was diagnosed as having CP,has only one hand,which she uses in writing,tying shoes and even driving.

    The US based CP and autism expert,called on parents to care for their Children,be it able or disable,give them quality education and assist them discover their skills by turning their disability into an ability.

    During the forum,various people living with CP and their caregivers all shared their experience.

    A consultant with specialty in neuro-development problems and paediatrics at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital,Prof. Afolabi

    Lesi described cerebral palsy as a group of disorders of the development of movement and posture,causing activity limitation that are attributed to non-progressive disturbances that occured in the developing or infant child.

    The founder of Benola,Mr Femi Gbadebo revealed that the birth of their 17 year old Olaoluwa,born with CP led to the establishment of Benola.

    He said the initiative was established to become the lead supportive agency on CP in Africa and a leading advocate for those living with the condition.

  • Two months after losing two children to kerosene explosion:

    Two months after losing two children to kerosene explosion:

    Since a pall of grief fell on the household of Emmanuel Olisakwe and his wife, Jane, about eight months ago, the couple has continued to drench their couch with tears.

    The Nation newspaper had reported about a month ago how the couple lost their two children to a fire outbreak on December 26, 2012, following a kerosene explosion that rocked their two-room apartment at No 14, Ikire Street, off Akeredolu Street, Olambe, Ogun State.

    The fireballs had first landed on the couple’s five-year-old son, Miracle, burning him beyond recognition. He died the next day. Their eight-year-old daughter, Ebube, would have escaped unhurt, but the fire balls landed on her newly-fixed hair and she was severely burnt. She battled death for 17 days before she died in the hospital.

    Emmanuel was severely burnt while trying to light a lantern shortly after he loaded its tank with kerosene. He was taken to the Burns Unit of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) for treatment.

    He escaped death by a whisker due to the prompt treatment he received at the hospital. He would have been discharged from the hospital about three weeks ago, but he has not been able to go home because he cannot defray his medical bill which, according to his wife, is about N700, 000. “He is removed from the bed whenever there is a new patient who cannot get a bed space,” she added.

    She spoke further on the family’s plight and how she had been running from pillar to post in search of money.

    She said: “Until the unfortunate incident, my husband was a tricycle operator and breadwinner of the family. I have practically been living on charity since then and I don’t know where else to run to for assistance.

    “Although some people had forwarded some money to us shortly after your paper published the story, it was not enough to clear the hospital bill. We have been told to settle the bill or my husband would not be allowed to go home or sleep on the bed anymore.

    “I don’t know what to do. That is why I’m asking for help from the members of the public.”

    Speaking with our correspondent, Emmanuel said: ”I was discharged about a month ago, but I cannot go home because I have not been able to pay my medical bill. I have been asked to pay or forget about going home for now.”

    Emmanuel, a native of Umunuko-Upkor community in Nnewi South Local Government Area of Anambra State, further shared his plight with our reporter, saying: ”My condition has improved and I can now walk with the aid of a walker. But my greatest problem is the unpaid bill because I have been told to pay up by this weekend or face the risk of being asked to vacate my bed for other patients. At the moment, doctors have stopped attending to me except I pay for my treatment. Life has turned nightmarish. I don’t know what to do because my wife has fruitlessly been looking for money to settle the bill. It’s almost a hopeless situation and I just hope that kind-hearted Nigerians would come to my rescue.”

    Jane, recalled the incident, saying: “The incident happened on December 26, 2012, at about 7 pm. My husband had asked me to prepare yam and fried egg for dinner, but I told him that there was no kerosene at home.

    “While returning home, he bought kerosene at a filling station in Akute. I was trying to slice some yam when I heard my 10-month -old baby’s cry. I quickly left the yam to attend to the baby.

    “Since it was in the night, my husband was about lighting the lantern after putting Kerosene into it, but the lantern exploded and burnt him and my kids.

    “We just moved into the house about six months before the fire incident. Our 10-year-old son, Victor, is about entering secondary school, and it has not been easy coping with other domestic responsibilities.

    “In fact, my son’s education would have been truncated but for the intervention of the proprietress of his school and some of her teaching staff who offered him a lifeline.

    “I have been married to my husband since 2001 and we had four children. But we have lost two of them now. I have since been squatting with one of my friends because I cannot cope with living in the same house where the fire had killed my son and daughter and rendered my husband incapacitated.

    “He is a native of Nnewi, Anambra State and a former employee of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). He lost his job after a major shake-up in the firm and has since been operating a commercial tricycle to earn living.”

    Anyone who is willing to offer financial assistance can forward money to Mrs. Jane Nkechi Olisakwe’s First Bank account-3069048378. She can also be reached on 08139234474