At a 3-day technical conference e-Health, top experts in medical practice and research agreed that getting smart in the use of data and information technology can bring about precision healthcare delivery in Lagos State, reports Associate Editor ADEKUNLE YUSUF

 

It was a gathering whose outcome could change everything in the health sector, especially the way healthcare services are henceforth delivered and accessed in Lagos State.

For three days last week, leading local and international experts in medical practice and research gathered at the popular Harbour Point in Victoria Island, Lagos.

The purpose: to fashion out ways Lagos can leverage on data and information technology to improve healthcare delivery in the state, with the state government has indicated its readiness to embrace latest advances in information technology to improve the quality of healthcare delivery to more than 20 million people resident in Nigeria’s economic capital.

With the theme, “Lagos State Smart Health Information Platform (SHIP),” the three-day technical conference was organised by the state Ministry of Health, in conjunction with the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Among other things, the conference focused on the future of healthcare delivery in Lagos and how the state could use opportunities in technology-driven health service to better the lot of residents.

In attendance were policymakers and seasoned experts in healthcare financing, data collection agencies and medical practitioners and researchers.

Participants at the conference examined the modalities of bringing more hospitals from the primary to secondary and tertiary healthcare facilities onboard the interactive health management information system software, otherwise known as e-health project which has run in 12 state-owned hospitals for some years ago.

While flagging off the conference, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the state government is ready to deploy technology to aid precision medicine as a way to improve healthcare outcomes, adding that his administration believes that rendering faster and smarter healthcare services in all public healthcare facilities will help in expanding the frontiers of quality health and environment services the people want. Besides expressing his administration’s readiness to leverage on technology to improve healthcare delivery in the state, Sanwo-Olu stated that the essence of the e-Health symposium was to enhance the existing e-Health platform to ensure Lagos reaps maximum benefits from embracing modern technology in its determination to deliver quality healthcare services to the people.

Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, explained that the development of e-Health would make possible to have a single source of a solid database, which in turn would make planning more effective.

“It is important for us to establish and strengthen our health information platform as this will positively impact on our various health care system, health financing through our universal health coverage, biosecurity, biosafety which will also lead to employment opportunities while opening doors for international collaboration,” he said.

While stressing the importance of accurate data in medicine and healthcare delivery, Sanwo-Olu described data as the currency of the future.

He stated further that data generated under the Lagos State One health strategy would enable his government to meet the needs of residents and implement policies that would impact future generations.

The Governor, who noted that e-Health platform is similar to the art of technology recently launched by the state government, enthused that the technology master plan will allow developers to develop a useful system in the state.

He disclosed further that his administration is currently working on a 3000km of fibre optic network, which will enable the access network to all hospitals and public agencies.

Also, while explaining the rationale for organising the conference, Prof. Akin Abayomi, Commissioner for Health, said that having a digital health platform will make the system run faster and more efficiently.

Part of the expected benefits of running the health sector on a digital template is that the platform would reduce wastage of scarce resources, improve income generation and, ultimately, prepare the country for the digital age of precision medicine, he stressed.

The Lagos State Smart Health Strategy (SHIP) is aimed at improving efficiency, reducing wastage of resources, improving income generation, driving the bi-economy, creating global virtual health hub, and preparing entry into the digital age of precision medicine, he stressed.

“A digital healthcare system makes room for accurate information, accountability, inventory management and training aid.

We are trying to manage the limited resources allocated to the health sector more efficiently which can only be done through the digital network,” Abayomi said.

Abayomi explained that the 3-day technical conference was meant to strengthen SHIP, which would further improve the state’s healthcare record policy.

He listed the advantages of SHIP to include precision medicine, accelerated human resource development, quality assurance, standardise the exchange of information and optimise operating procedures adding that SHIP is in furtherance of the efforts to ensure efficient and effective healthcare delivery in Lagos State.

“We are trying to up the game; it is a matter of making what we have to do more and cover more people. So a good and working digital health platform makes the health system run faster, makes it more efficient and removes the delay that may arise from patient referral and transfer between health facilities.”

The commissioner noted that one Lagos-One Health digital strategy, owned by Lagos and partners, will help deliver a road map, global benchmark standards, a business model, a technical working group, timelines to first prototype and income-generating strategies.

The Commissioner lamented that economies across West Africa were victims of a breakout of diseases and lack of good health, stating that thousands of lives would have been saved if there were countermeasures like data.

“We need to change the way we think to leapfrog because it is one thing to acquire technology and another thing is to know how to leverage it. It is also necessary for us to have robust data governance and protection,” he said.

Giving an overview of the health sector, Abayomi said 66 per cent of Lagosians stay in the shanty environment and need to be planned for. “We are experiencing importation of massive population in the state because it is an attraction due to its opportunities, but we have a severe shortage of human resources for facilities and our population is doubling.

Read Also: Tackling housing deficit with technology

 

We are far away from an international benchmark for health. We still lack infrastructure and inadequate power supply is quickly overwhelmed and no sustainable data,” he said. According to Abayomi, the world is going through the Fourth Industrial Revolution; the hallmark is data.

“We are converting issues to data and data to discovery,” he said, noting that genetic composition is based on data, which are to generate a discovery on effective healthcare.

For Lagos to improve healthcare delivery outcomes, Andrew S. Nevin, Partner and Chief Economist, PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Nigeria, has advised that the state should devote more attention to how to improve on Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs), not Gross Domestic Product (GDP). According to him, Lagos is doing well with GDP figure, but performing poorly in SDG metrics.

In a presentation as the keynote speaker on economy, human development index and big tech changes for deepening technology and impact healthcare ecosystems in Lagos and across Nigeria, Nevin said SDGs are 17 goals set by the United Nations to be achieved across the globe by year 2030, which are expected to aid the world’s search for real development, put an end to absolute poverty, and achieve eradication of hunger and equal education.

“The large economic size of Lagos is not applaudable if it does not reflect improved welfare of an average resident of the state, adjudging by the discrepancy between the prevailing level of human development and SDG,” Nevin said.

To turn the tide, the chief economist advised the state government to embrace the use of technology to improve its healthcare delivery system, stressing that the people of the state would be the better for it if.

He added that the challenge is the issue of access to quality healthcare services, but urged the state government to leverage information technology to revamp the health sector because precision medicine is the way to go. It is not possible to deliver healthcare effectively in Lagos without e-Health solution, which would combine the following technologies: blockchain, drones, artificial intelligence, and internet of things, virtual reality, robotics, animated reality, and 3D printing, he said.

PharmAccess Nigeria’s Country Director Njide Ndili said no state can go far in its healthcare delivery without embracing technology.

She added that focusing on e-Health, as Lagos State is doing, is a great strategy to use communication technology to create innovation in accessing healthcare. “Health system should implement technology in commitment towards improving health outcomes.

No matter the support you give to a State, if you are unable to implement technology, you won’t go far,” Ndili said.

As far as Dr. Peju Adenusi of the Lagos State Health Management Agency is concerned, every health institution must have the capacity to capture data. She stressed that the best way to deliver a more efficient healthcare system in Lagos is to go digital.

 

The Federal Government is working on 524 roads to link the country as well as intensifying efforts on road to connect the country with the rest of Africa. These projects are believed to hold the key to reversing the situation where the poor state of the road network is resulting in loss of billions of Naira in economic value and avoidable deaths, writes ROBERT EGBE

 

The 2017 World Bank Report was unflattering: only about 15 per cent of federal roads in Nigeria were in good condition.  Nigerians are unanimous in seeking an overhaul of the country’s infrastructure.

Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola is driving the presidential mandate of infrastructure renewal. No less than 524 road and bridge projects are ongoing nationwide. Fashola, in a presentation, named 80 of the projects on priority list to include the 27 financed with Sovereign SUKUK Fund, the 47 scheduled for substantial completion in 2020/2021, two roads leading to the ports and four major bridges.

The reason for the prioritisation of these projects, he explained, was to improve the ease of doing business in the country. He said the projects on completion would reduce travel time, lower vehicle operating costs and improve the comfort of road users. These federal roads and bridges are major arterial routes that connect all states in Nigeria, including the Federal Capital Territory. They also link cities with high economic activities and carry majority of heavy goods vehicles, which gradually disperse through the link routes to different parts of the country.

Roads on the priority list include Lagos-Ibadan-Ilorin-Jebba-Kotangora-Jega-Sokoto-Niger Border as A1, Warri-Benin-Lokoja-Abuja-Kaduna-Kano-Daura-Niger Border as A2, Port Harcourt-Aba-Umuahoia-Okigwe-)turkpo-Makurdi-Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi-Maiduguri-Gambori as A3 and Calabar-Ikom-Ogoja-Katsina Ala-Jalingo-Yola-Bama-Maiduguri as A4.

They also include Lagos-Otta-Abeokuta-Ibadan as A5, Onitsha-Ihiala-Owerri-A3 Junction at Umu Uyo as A6, Chikanda, Kosubosu-Kaiama Kioshi-Ilorin as A7, Mayo Belwa-Ganye-Serti-Mayo Selbe-Dambu as A8 and Jibiva-Katsina-Kano as A9.

Prioritised road projects being funded through the Sovereign SUKUK include Abuja-Abaji Road (Section 1, International Airport Link Road Junction-Sheda Village Junction), Abuja-Lokoja Road Section IV (Koton Karfi-Lokoja), Dualisation Of Obajana Junction-Benin Phase 2: Section 1 (ObajanaJunction To Okene) /C/, Construction Of Oju/Loko-Oweto Bridge to Link Loko and Oweto with approach roads, Reconstruction of Bida-Lambata Road in Niger State and Dualisation of Suleja-Minna Road Phase 11 in Niger State.

Theyalso include Kano-Maiduguri Road (Section ii, iii and iv), rehabilitation of outstanding section of Onitsha-Enugu Expressway: Amansea- Enugu State Border, Dualization Of Obajana Junction-Benin Phase 2: (Section ii, iii and iv), Rehabilitation Of Enugu-Port Harcourt Road Section iv: Aba-Port Harcourt, and Dualization of Yenegwe Road Junction-Kolo-Otuoke-Bayelsa Palm (20km).

Others include dualisation of Ibadan-Ilorin Section ii in Oyo State, reconstruction of the outstanding Sections of Benin-Ofosu-Ore-Ajebandele-Shagamu Expressway Phase iii, pavement strengthening and asphalt overlay of Ajebandele- Ijebu Ode-Shagamu Road in Ogun State.

The minister listed some of the projects scheduled for substantial completion in 2020/2021 and other priority projects as the rehabilitation of Alesi-Ugep (Iyamoyung-Ugep) Section in Cross River State, construction of Yenegwe-Okaki-Kolo-Nembe-Brass Road and completion of rehabilitation of Ada-Okere-Ukoni-Amedokhiom Old Road, Uromi, Edo State. Also included are the rehabilitation of Odukpani-Itu-Ikot EkpeneRoad (Section i) and Odukpani-Itu Bridge Head in Cross River State, construction of Bodo-Bonny Road with a bridge across the Opobo Channel, in Rivers State, rehabilitation of Odukpani Junction-AkpetCentral Section of Calabar-Ikom-OgojaRoad in Cross River State, rehabilitation of Oshogbo-Ilesha Road in Osun State, dualisation of Abeokuta-Ibadan Road, and reconstruction of Apapa-Wharf Road in Lagos State, among others.

The four bridges under the priority projects are construction of Ibi Bridge, completion of construction of Chanchangi Bridge along Takum-Wukari Road in Taraba State, construction of Ikom Bridge in Cross River State and emergency rehabilitation/maintenance of Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos, while the two roads prioritize are the construction of Agaie-Katcha-Barro Road in Niger State and construction of Baro Port to Gulu Town in Niger State.

Record of ongoing road and bridge projects in states shows that Abia State has 12 ongoing projects, Adamawa nine, Akwa-Ibom nine, Anambra 19, Bauchi 12, Bayelsa six, Benue 17, Borno 17, Cross River 17, Delta 10, Ebonyi 4, Edo 22, Ekiti seven, Enugu 21 and Federal Capital Territory three. Also while Gombe has five ongoing projects, Imo has 11, Jigawa five, Kaduna 11, Kano 24, Katsina seven, Kebbi three, Kogi 13, Kwara 14, Lagos 23, Nassarawa seven, Niger 13, Ogun eight, Ondo seven, Ogun 12, Oyo 15, Plateau five, Rivers six, Sokoto eight, Taraba eight, Yobe 10 and Zamfara five.

The ministry is intervening at the University of Benin, where work is ongoing on the rehabilitation and asphalt overlay/construction of reinforced concrete drains and kerbs and asphaltic surfacing of three car parks of 1.1KM internal road. Similar work is also ongoing at the Bayero University, Kano State, Federal University Oye Ekiti, Ekiti State, University of Maiduguri, in Borno State, Federal University Lokoja, Kogi State, Federal College of Education, Katsina, Katsina State, Federal University of Technology, Owerri and the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State.

Others include Kaduna Polytechnic, Kaduna State, patching of potholes of 0.3KM Internal Road at Federal University Gashua, Yobe State and rehabilitation and asphalt overlay of 2.3 km Internal Road at Federal University Otuoke, Bayelsa State, among others.

To complete the prioritised projects, an additional N255.6 billion is needed to close the funding gap for the projects. The amount, said the minister, is the difference between the appropriation for the project in the 2020 Budget, which stands N157.05 billion and the actual estimate for the completion of the projects which stands at N412.64 billion.

 

Trans Saharan route

Fashola is driving the effort to link the country with other parts of the continent. He laid bare the details at the 70th session of the Trans Saharan Route Liaison Committee on Monday, November 11, 2019. Representatives of member countries-Nigeria, Mali, Chad, Algeria, Niger Republic and Tunisia-converged on the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria to review the progress made on the construction of the 1,131 kilometres of roads which constitute the Nigerian portion of the 9,895 kilometres of roads that make up the Trans Saharan Route. Nigeria comes fourth by the number of roads hosted by each of the six member countries along the route

While Algeria hosts the longest stretch of that Route with 3,320 kilometres of roads, Mali comes second with 2,180 kilometres, while Niger Republic and Nigeria take the third and fourth places with 1,985 km and 1,131 kilometres respectively. Tunisia and Chad host the least with 699 km in Tunisia and 570 km in Chad. These roads make up a total of nine highways across the six countries with Nigeria hosting three of the highways. The first is the Lagos-Dakar Highway which leads from Lagos to Seme Border all the way to Dakar Senegal. The Second is the Lagos-Mombasa Highway which links Nigeria through Yaoundé in Cameroun all the way to Tunisia while the third is the Lagos Algiers Highway.

The minister, who hosted the meeting on behalf of the Federal Government, restated Nigeria’s commitment to the completion of the Route, especially the portion that falls within the territory of Nigeria. That commitment is being demonstrated in several ways including the efforts and steady progress being made towards the completion of the 1131 kilometres of the road that passes through Nigeria, the placing of the major arterial roads – the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and the Abuja-Kano Road- under the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund thereby freeing them from any funding challenges and the recent approval by the Federal Executive Council for the ratification and domestication of the African Road Safety Charter. The Minister also cited the recent signing, by the President, of the African Continental Free Trade Zone, an endorsement which, according to him, shows “that we are on the right track”.

The historic significance of the Trans Saharan Trade Route, as an important part of Nigeria’s history, the Minister said, lay in its rich history as the ancient Trans Sahara Trade Route through which important African Personages, like Mansa Musa and Shehu of Bornu, travelled on camels and horses across the Continent. The Minister emphasized this point with delight, “This is how much Africa has progressed. With the partnership of all of the men sitting here and all of the experts, the road that used to be travelled by camels and horses, footpaths, is now motorable”.

He urged Nigerians to understand that as part of this Route, which traverses 37 regions in Africa, connecting 74 urban centres and 60 million people across six member countries, Nigeria “is part of a large urban network of opportunities”. Noting that 80 percent of the present roads has already been asphalted, the Minister wondered why member countries are not utilizing the advantage of the route to connect in trade and commerce as those ancient African Personages did.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who was represented by the Minister of Police Affairs, said Nigeria was committed to the establishment of quality infrastructure in the country to drive economic development and job creation. His administration, he said, was resolved to increase the nation’s stock of road infrastructure in order to ease the cost and time of doing business and to improve her economic competitiveness envisaged in the Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP). The President said it was in view of this that his administration shares the aspiration and the vision of the Trans Saharan Route Liaison Committee encouraging member countries to develop sections of Trans Saharan Route within their respective territories. One of the highlights of that event was the inspection of the progress of work on portions of the Route within the Federal Capital Territory by members of the Committee.

Language is not static. Over the years, the Oxford English Dictionary has added words, such as selfie into its glossary. This month it has extended this gesture, for the first time, to some uniquely Nigerian words and phrases, writes CHINAKA OKORO.

 

The late Chinua Achebe wrote Things Fall Apart, No Longer at Ease, Arrow of God and his other novels in English language. But there was something different about the way he deployed the language. There was something Nigerian or ‘Igboish’’ about it.

Chukwuemeka Ike’s The Bottled Leopard, Cyprian Ekwensi’s People of the City and Elechi Amadi’s The Concubine also used English language with local flavour.

Younger authors, such as Chimamanda Adichie, Okey Ndibe and Chigozie Obioma, have not abandoned the path laid out by the pioneers. If anything, they have stretched it and are unapologetic about it.  Like Achebe, they are doing unheard-of things with English language.

Outside the literary circle, everyday Nigerians also have a distinctive way of using the English language that its native speaker cannot readily understand.

This uniquely Nigerian use of the English language has caught the attention of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).  No, 29 Nigerian words and expressions were included in the January updates to its glossary.

OED’s World English Editor Danica Salazar announced this in a blog post last week. Before her announcement, the news of the latest addition had gone viral.

“The majority of these new additions are either borrowings from Nigerian languages or unique Nigerian coinages that have only begun to be used in English in the second half of the twentieth century, mostly in the 1970s and 1980s.

“Some of the words and expressions added to the updated edition of the dictionary include Buka, chop-chop, ember months, Guber, next tomorrow, and tokunbo, among others,” Salazar said.

Other words now in the dictionary are agric, barbing salon, buka, bukateria, chop, danfo, to eat money, flag-off, gist, Kannywood, K-leg, mama put, non-indigene, okada, to put to bed, qualitative, sef, send-forth, severally, zone and zoning.

The acceptance of the Nigerian usage of ‘severally’ to mean ‘several times’ end a ‘campaign’ by Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka to stop Nigerians from using the word and phrase interchangeably. Soyinka, at an edition of the Wole Soyinka for Investigative Journalism, took time to explain the difference and urged Nigerians to use appropriately.

OED, in its statement on the new glossary, quoted Adichie as saying: “My English-speaking is rooted in a Nigerian experience and not in a British or American or Australian one. I have taken ownership of English.”

The statement added that “by taking ownership of English and using it as their own medium of expression, Nigerians have made, and are continuing to make, a unique and distinctive contribution to English as a global language.”

The statement gave further insight: “One particularly interesting set of such loanwords and coinages has to do with Nigerian street food. The word buka, borrowed from Hausa and Yoruba and first attested in 1972, refers to a roadside restaurant or street stall that sells local fare at low prices. Another term for such eating places first evidenced in 1980 is bukateria, which adds to buka the -teria ending from the word cafeteria. An even more creative synonym is mama put, from 1979, which comes from the way that customers usually order food in a buka: they say ‘Mama, put…’ to the woman running the stall, and indicate the dish they want. The word later became a generic name for the female food vendors themselves – Nobel Prize-winning Nigerian playwright Wole Soyinka notably includes a Mama Put character in one of his works.

“The informal transport systems that emerged in Nigeria’s huge, densely populated cities have also necessitated lexical invention. Danfo, a borrowing from Yoruba whose earliest use in written English is dated 1973, denotes those yellow minibuses whizzing paying passengers through the busy streets of Lagos, the country’s largest city. Okada, on the other hand, is first attested twenty years later, and is the term for a motorcycle that passengers can use as a taxi service. It is a reference to Okada Air, an airline that operated in Nigeria from 1983 to 1997, and its reputation as a fast yet potentially dangerous form of transport, just like the motorcycle taxi.

“A few of the Nigerian words in this update were created by shortening existing English words. One example is the adjective guber (earliest quotation dated 1989), which is short for ‘gubernatorial’-so Nigerians, for instance, would call a person running for governor a ‘guber candidate’. Another frequently used clipping with a longer history in English is agric. It was originally used in American English around 1812 as a graphic abbreviation for the adjective agricultural, but is now used chiefly in this sense in West Africa. In the early 1990s, agric began to be used in Nigeria to designate improved or genetically modified varieties of crops or breeds of livestock, especially a type of commercially reared chicken that is frequently contrasted with ‘native’ (i.e. traditionally reared) chicken. Two decades later, Nigerian students also started to use the word as a noun meaning agricultural science as an academic subject or course.

“Also originating in the 19th century is K-leg, first attested in 1842 in British English, but now used mostly in Nigerian English. It is another term for the condition of knock knees, as well as a depreciative name for a person affected with this condition, whose inward-turning knees often resemble the shape of the letter K. It is of such widespread use in Nigeria that by the early 1980s, it had acquired a figurative meaning – a K-leg can now also be any sort of problem, flaw, setback, or obstacle.

“The term ember months was first used in an American publication in 1898 to signify the final four months of the calendar year. Almost a century later, this expression was taken up again in Nigeria, where the months from September to December are usually considered together as a period of heightened or intense activity.

“The oldest of our new additions that are originally from Nigeria is next tomorrow, which is the Nigerian way of saying ‘the day after tomorrow’. It was first used in written English as a noun in 1953, and as an adverb in 1964. The youngest of the words in this batch is Kannywood, first used in 2002, which is the name for the Hausa-language film industry based in the city of Kano. It is a play on Hollywood, following the model of Nollywood, the more general term for the Nigerian film industry that was added to the OED in 2018.

“Nigerian Pidgin is another rich source of new words for Nigerian English. Sef, first evidenced in Nigerian author Ben Okri’s novel Flowers and Shadows, published in 1980, is an adverb borrowed from Pidgin, which itself could have been an adverbial use of either the English adjective safe or the pronoun self. It is an emphatic marker added to the end of statements or rhetorical questions, often to express irritation or impatience, as in this quotation from Adichie’s 2013 novel Americanah: ‘He could have given you reduced rent in one of his properties, even a free flat sef.’

“Also coming from pidgin contexts is the verb chop, which is a common colloquial word in Ghana and Nigeria meaning ‘to eat’. However, beginning in the 1970s, chop also developed the sense of acquiring money quickly and easily, and often dishonestly. The negative sense of misappropriating, extorting, or embezzling funds is also in the earlier reduplicative noun chop-chop (earliest quotation dated 1966), which refers to bribery and corruption in public life. This likening of stealing money to actually devouring it is also reflected in the even earlier synonymous phrase to eat money (1960), as in the following quotation from Nigeria’s News Chronicle in 2016:’Our roads were not done. By the end of this year, you will know who ate the money of these roads.’

“A few other expressions in this update would require some explanation for non-Nigerians: a barbing salon (earliest quotation dated 1979) is a barber’s shop; a gist (1990) is a rumour, and to gist (1992) is to gossip; when a woman is said to have put to bed (1973), it means that she has given birth; something described as qualitative (1976) is excellent or of high quality.

“By focusing on contemporary language in this update, and adding words and phrases that form part of the everyday vocabulary of today’s Nigerians, we hope to give a flavour of English-speaking which, as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie put it, is rooted in a Nigerian experience.”

Full list of the new words and meanings

• Agric, adj. and n.: “Of, relating to, or used in agriculture; = agricultural adj. Now chiefly West African.”
• Barbing salon, n.: “A barber’s shop.”
• Buka, n.: “A roadside restaurant or street stall with a seating area, selling cooked food at low prices. Cf. bukateria n., mama put n. Frequently as a modifier…”
• Bukateria, n.: “A roadside restaurant or street stall with a seating area, selling cooked food at low prices. Cf. buka n., mama put n.”
• Chop, v.6, Additions: “transitive. Ghanaian English and Nigerian English. To acquire (money) quickly and easily. Frequently in negative sense: to misappropriate, extort, or…”
• Chop-chop, n.2: “Bribery and corruption in public life; misappropriation or embezzlement of funds. Also as a modifier.”
• Danfo, n.: “A yellow minibus that carries passengers for a fare as part of an informal transport system in Lagos, the largest city in Nigeria. Also as a…”
• To eat money, in eat, v., Additions: “Now chiefly Nigerian English and East African. to eat money: to acquire money dishonestly; to misappropriate, extort, or embezzle funds. Cf. chop v.6…”
• Ember months, n.: “The final four months of the calendar year (September to December), esp. considered together as a period of heightened or intense activity.”
• Flag-off, n.: “The moment at which a race, esp. a motor race, is flagged off (see flag v.4 additions a); the start of a race. Now chiefly Indian English and…”
• Flag, v.4, Additions: “to flag off. transitive (usually in passive). To direct (a driver) to start a motor race, esp. one in which the competitors start at intervals, by…”
• flag, v.4, Additions: “to flag off. transitive. Indian English and Nigerian English. In extended use: to start (an event or undertaking).”
• Gist, n.3, Additions: “Nigerian English. Idle chat, gossip. Also: an instance of this, a rumour or piece of gossip.”
• Gist, v.2: “transitive. To reduce (a text, document, etc.) to its essence or gist; to condense, summarize, or précis.”
• Guber, adj.: “Of or relating to a governor or governorship; = gubernatorial adj.”
• Kannywood, n.: “The Nigerian Hausa-language film industry, based in Kano; Kano regarded as the centre of this industry. Cf. Nollywood n.”
• K-leg, n.: “In singular and plural. A condition in which one or both of a person’s knees are turned inwards, resulting in a noticeable gap between the feet when…”
• Mama put, n.: “A street vendor, typically a woman, selling cooked food at low prices from a handcart or stall. Also: a street stall or roadside restaurant run by…”
• Next tomorrow, n. and adv.: “The day after tomorrow.”
• Non-indigene, adj. and n.: “Not native. In later use chiefly West African: belonging to an ethnic group considered not to be indigenous to a particular area.”
• Okada, n.: “In Nigeria: a motorcycle which passengers can use as a taxi service.”
• To put to bed , v.: “West African. to put to bed: to give birth. Also: to give birth to (a child).”
• Qualitative, adj., sense 3: “West African. Of high quality; excellent.”
• To rub minds in rub, v.1: “to rub minds (together): (of two or more people) to consider a matter jointly; to consult and work together; to confer. Similarly to rub our (also…”
• Sef, adv.: “Used for emphasis after a statement or rhetorical question, often expressing irritation or impatience.”
• Send-forth, n.: “A celebration or event to mark a person’s departure; a send-off. Frequently as a modifier, as send-forth ceremony, send-forth party, etc.”
• Severally, adv., Additions: “East African and West African. On several occasions; repeatedly.”
• Tokunbo, adj.: “Denoting an imported second-hand product, esp. a car.”
• zone, v.
• Zoning, n., Additions: “Nigerian English. The system or practice of allocating nominations for certain political offices to candidates from particular regions, as part of an…”

The fact that education is central to development is universal, but Nigeria is yet to find an answer to its army of illiterates. Aside the about 10.2 million out-of-school children, the National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-Formal Education (NMEC) says the country has over 60 million illiterate youth and adults, which the Federal Government plans to reverse by 2025, writes FRANK IKPEFAN.

How to address Nigeria’s growing illiterate population took centre stage at the Nigeria Air Force Conference Centre at the weekend in Abuja. The subject was the talking point among government officials, experts, professionals and other stakeholders in the education sector.

This renewed push is aimed at ensuring that more Nigerians, especially women and youth become literate. The Federal Government, in its Education for Change: A Ministerial Strategic Plan (2018-22) roadmap document for the sector is pushing to reduce the number of Nigerians that are illiterate this year and eradicate it by 2025.

Literacy is the ability to read and write in any language and recently, it includes the ability to operate a computer. There is a need to improve the literacy skills of Nigerian youth and adult population to prepare them for the challenges of the modern knowledge-based society.

According to the National Commission for Mass Literacy, Adult and Non-Formal Education (NMEC), Nigeria has over 60 million illiterate youth and adults with women accounting for 60 per cent of this figure of Nigeria’s illiterate population.

NMEC is the Federal Government agency responsible for developing programmes, coordinating and implementing policies in the country’s non-formal education sector.

Youth and adult illiteracy remain one of the social issues in the path of development of the country. To address this, the country must adopt adult education awareness as a necessary tool to enlighten every part of the country.

Also, adult and formal education programmes constitute useful tools for achieving universal basic education, promoting gender equality and women empowerment and improving the health status of Nigerians.

A literate and educated society is the first major step for moving out of poverty-related challenges of insecurity and economic backwardness.

Literacy is at the heart of basic education for all and creating literate environments and societies is essential for achieving the goals of eradicating poverty and ensuring sustainable development, peace and democracy.

As the country desires to resolve its development challenges and compete in today’s fast-changing society, every citizen needs to have a wide set of knowledge, skills and competences, including literacy, numeracy and digital competency at a proficiency level in other to learn, adapt and participate in a social, economic, cultural and civic life.

Nigeria’s growing illiterate population bane of development

The over 60 million illiterate Nigerians are unable to read and write in any language. This has become a source of concern for the federal government.

NMEC’s Executive Secretary Prof. Abba Haladu noted that in addition to the challenge of out-of-school children of which Nigeria has about 10.2 million, the country was also faced with high illiteracy rate amongst its adults and youth population.

Prof. Haladu noted that this has remained a major impediment to the country’s developmental aspirations, given the millions of adults and youths affected.

The executive secretary explained that for Nigeria to achieve self -sustained development, all its people, men and women, the youth and the aged irrespective of gender, age, location and conditions of life should be able to read, write and calculate.

He said: “In addition to the problem of out – of – school children, Nigeria is being confronted by the challenge of high illiteracy rate amongst its adult and youth population and which remained a major impediment to the country’s development aspirations, given the millions of adults and youth that are affected by this disabling condition.

“According to the current estimates, more than 60 million Nigerians are unable to read and write in any language. For Nigeria to achieve self-sustained development, all its people, men and women, the youth and the aged, irrespective of gender, age, location and conditions of life should be able to read, write and calculate.

“Given the enormity of the mass literacy challenge, the federal government needs to take a lead and plan and execute a national mass literacy program. The goal should be to develop in the population the ability to use literacy to enhance their knowledge and understanding of the social and physical environment to improve on their modes of living, develop the right attitudes and commitment towards active participation in nation-building.

“This worthy effort will undoubtedly open up opportunities for the underprivileged and the future generations to acquire the essential skills they need to live a healthy, prosperous and productive life in a democratic life free from all forms of discrimination, extremism, violence and abuse.”

The executive secretary said the commission has developed an operational plan in anticipation of a national mass literacy campaign programme that he hoped the federal government will champion.

“We are very hopeful that the Federal Ministry of Education would soon review and take the plan to the next level in line with the goals of the Ministerial Strategic Plan. However, given the important role of states and local governments in the implementation of such a mass-oriented intervention, we urge the state governors to demonstrate the needed political will by generously allocating resources for the adult and non-formal education sector in their respective states.

“Stakeholders in this sub-sector are now beginning to see the light at the end of a tunnel. This, then means more commitment and sacrifice from all non-formal education stakeholders, as we struggle to re-position this important sector and implement achievable agenda for adult and lifelong learning in Nigeria.

“I am confident that with the combined efforts of all stakeholders, illiteracy will be reduced to the barest minimum in a few years to come and we can then take to the path of progress and sustainable development as a nation,” Prof. Haladu added.

A new drive for mass education

The commission’s Board Chairman, Alhaji. Gidado Akko noted that the agency was championing a new push for the rejuvenation of mass education agenda of the 1980s.

To achieve this, Akko said that the commission has built and sustained community learning centres (CLC) to provide skills for women and girls.

This, he explained, illustrates the agency’s efforts at creating facilities for skills acquisition which are aimed at promoting women/girls empowerment in selected skills designed to reduce poverty and enhance social and financial literacy among the populace

He said: “It is evident that there is an ongoing rejuvenation of mass education agenda of the 1980s as can be seen from the tremendous efforts of both the board and management of NMEC to introduce new measures and new strategies in minimising illiteracy among the Nigerian population and at the same time advance the cause of adult and non-formal education.

“There are clear and promising signs that the task of eradicating illiteracy and expanding the prospects and fortunes of adult and non-formal education would succeed especially in the face of the concerted efforts of the commission and stakeholders across the nation.”

Fed Govt calls for more action

Minister of Education Adamu Adamu rallied the support of stakeholders to quickly change the unsatisfactory education indicators of the country which boast of 10.2 million out-of-school children, a high illiteracy rate among youth and adult population as well inadequate access to basic education.

The minister noted that youth and adult literacy, being a major component of the government’s MSP, deserved the necessary attention to drive the programme.

The minister, who was represented by the Minister of State, Emeka Nwajiuba, at the roundtable discussion, called for more support and interventions to strength the adult and youth literacy goal of the government.

He said: “It is necessary that the federal government, working with the states and local governments, should take urgent steps towards a national programme to address the needs of youth, adults, girls and women and out-of-school children and those displaced by conflicts and other crisis.

“It is imperative that we act quickly to change the unsatisfactory education performance indicators which show a large number of out-of-school children, a high illiteracy level among youth and adults, infrastructural deficit and decay, inadequate access at the basic education level and low quality of learning among other problems.”

The Federal Government, in its MSP roadmap, noted that previous efforts at providing mass education in the country suffered significant setbacks due to many problems. The document identified lack of political will on the part of previous governments, inadequate or poor planning and coordination as well as serious funding deficits as part of what contributed to the failure of past efforts to encourage mass literacy.

The government noted in the document that a new course of action was needed for the implementation of a proposed mass literacy programme by the federal government to drastically reduce the mass illiteracy in the country by 2020 and eradicate it by 2025.

According to the government, to cater for about 12.7 million illiterate Nigerians each, there is a need to employ 170, 000 facilitators nationwide.

“This is on the assumption that each literacy instructor will handle two groups (classes) of 30 adults each of the duration of the programme,” the document said.

The document also called for the establishment of 167, 000 literacy centres yearly for three years.

Experts advocate the use of local languages

Prof. Michael Omolewa, in his paper titled: “Literacy and Multilingualism: A Bedrock for Sustainable National Development” argued that the adoption of more languages for teaching has helped in meeting the needs of the learners.

According to him, investing in the development of languages is an important duty which he said NMEC has done successfully.

Prof. Omolewa’s position on the use of local language was supported by a former Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, Prof Modupe Adelabu, who said the use of local languages in Nigeria was necessary to have a more literate and sustainable society.

Prof. Adelabu, who is the National Matron of Non-Governmental Association for Literacy Support Services (NOGALSS), urged Nigerians to embrace the use of local languages in education and literacy.

She said: “I am an advocate of the mother tongue. I have done a lot on it. I pilot-studied the mother tongue study with the World Bank. If you learn in your language, in your mother tongue, you will understand better and does not stop you from learning English as a second language.

“When we are talking about literacy, it doesn’t have to be in English. It can be in your mother tongue. Our old people can learn and understand better using their mother tongue.”

Home advantage is a factor common in football. It gives a home team some edge over the visiting one, but in Nollywood, foreign films still rake in more of the revenues at the cinemas, writes ANITA EGBOIGBE.

Nollywood has an audience and all year long, it moves in circles around that audience.

The filmmakers set their targets on that audience and from afar, it paints the picture that only those numbers of people visit the cinemas.

This audience is on the average 20,000 people who watch Nollywood weekly during the stable peak periods.

In the really bad periods, the number drops to 4, 000 people weekly. These figures are the analysis of box office data provided by the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN).

At least 70, 000 people visit the cinemas on a stable week and Nollywood has not been able to favourably compete for audience in its own space.

 

This is because 70 percent of this number will settle for a foreign film – Hollywood, Spanish or Bollywood.

Interestingly, these films do not have to be from big studios or heavily marketed, the audience will pick them first. Sometimes, it gets more interesting as Nollywood could have seven movies in the cinemas and just one big Hollywood film takes almost all the cash.

For instance, everything Nollywood made in the second week of December was 57.8 million naira. ‘Jumanji’ alone pulled in 55.9 million naira. On the average, a Nollywood film makes two million naira weekly while the average Hollywood film makes 20 million naira weekly in the same time frame.

Apart from the fact that the industry is currently being bootstrapped and trying to find balance, one would expect the audience to display loyalty.

The question is why is it not? First, out of the seven to 10 Nollywood films available in the cinema, only one or two gets the audience seals of approval. The others are largely unknown or have poor marketing, stories and lack of spotlight.

It is not as though the top one or two are the best, they just seem to have more marketing at the time. It seems like the industry choses one flagship movie per time and goes all out to promote that movie.

Still, it does not guarantee that the film will draw more than 10, 000 people weekly with the remaining 10, 000 shared among the six not-so-popular films.

Second, some movie buffs who spoke with  News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) revealed that they allocated cash for one Nollywood film per time but are open to more foreign choices especially Hollywood.

Top of the reasons given were similarity in genre by Nollywood films. Some respondents said that the films in the dominant genre, comedy, were too cliché and not far in between. So, if one saw a comedy film from Nollywood the week before, the quota has been filled till the next set of films come out.

Interestingly, it might also appear that foreign films have the same cluster genre problem sometimes. However, it is already seen as an industry that has proved itself to deliver across board. Conversely, the average Nollywood cinema audience battles trust issues with the industry.

This distrust is beyond camera quality but rather the quality of the story. They argued that while they laughed hard in some movies, it was clear that the stories did not add up and not much thought had gone into plot development.

One respondent said, “You watch Nollywood for the relaxation and humour and not because you can actually debate or think about the story later.”

However, few films were exempted from this loop but they fell short in other production areas. The third reason that is often overlooked is that the audience understands what a good film is. Before the rush of Nollywood in cinemas, Hollywood and others have most times, served premium content.

Some respondents revealed that they find ways to reduce expectations when watching Nollywood films and have developed a new metric for measuring them.

“It was really good for a Nollywood film” according to respondents mean – it was okay but not great but when compared to other Nollywood film, it had a pass mark.

This thought process will continuously keep the industry on its 4, 000 to 20, 000 audience loop if it does not do better. To better understand the beauty of Nollywood taking the lion share of the box office earnings, take a look at performances in December.

In the last week of December, a record high of 165, 307 people watched Nollywood films that week while 79, 314 people saw foreign films. Nollywood won that week and the week before where 118, 808 went in to see ‘Sugar Rush’ ‘Your Excellency’ and ‘Merry Men 2’.

Still, this is worrisome as it took three large budget movies, heavy marketing and clearing out the playground for the industry to win their biggest moment of the year. That is, for Nollywood movies to shine, the audience must be left technically without choice.

All the good foreign films are ebbing out and no more is taken in, then the Nollywood films are given the best time slots and there is not-so-stiff competition. This way, most people who come to the cinema must see the Nollywood films.

It is a strong formula and it seems to be the industry’s only working formula. The downside is that it works only at the end of the year.

How can better formulas be created to work all year round? Again, emphasis on good stories and better productions and marketing has been made by the audience.

Once these are settled, the industry needs to craft better ways to sell itself to the audience. It must be a collective effort to push Nollywood to the top of the minds of the audience.

There is a market waiting for the industry to get its acts right and once this is done, more windows of opportunity will open. Of course, more money will be made.

• Eboigbe is of the News Agency of Nigeria.

The Siamese twins born in Bayelsa State need help to lead normal lives. As MIKE ODIEGWU reports, the Federal Medical Centre, Yola will separate them.

Raphael Ayebaenaemi, who hails from Nembe, Nembe Local Government Area, had a sweet painful experience on December 12 last year. His 24-year-old wife, Ebiyefa, was delivered of twins at about 11 am. They were, however, not normal twins and their birth was also through an unnatural means.

Through a surgical procedure, commonly known as a caesarean operation, Ebiyefa gave birth to Siamese twins, perhaps, the first-ever conjoined twins in Niger Delta and Bayelsa State. They were glued in their abdomen. The combined weight of the babies, first children of the family, was 5.8kg at birth. The Nembe General Hospital built and equipped by an oil company conducted the surgery that led to the birth of the twins.

Ayebaenaemi received the news with mixed feelings. He is a commercial motorcyclist based in Nembe. He could barely feed his family much less foot the bills for such surgical procedure. While he was still confused in thought, Ayebaenaemi received his first help.

The story of the unusual birth saturated the Nembe community and got the attention of Gabriel Jonah, a popular political and youth leader in the community. Jonah, who is the younger brother to the Bayelsa Deputy Governor, Rear Admiral John Jonah (retd), is the founder of the Otita Force, a notable youth movement in the area.

The father of the conjoined twins leaped in joy when Jonah accepted to offset the Nembe hospital bills. He further volunteered to lead the financial process that would ensure the separation of the children.

The next day, through assistance from Jonah, the twins and their ailing mother were transferred to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Yenagoa for further medical attention and treatments.

When they got to the FMC at about 5pm on December 13, Ayebaenaemi wanted all medical procedures for the separation of his twins to begin immediately. He wanted to know the financial implications of the procedure. He was also worried about where the money would come from.

He said: “I have no money, not even a dime. I am happy that my wife gave birth to twins but when I discovered that the twins were conjoined and they were born through a Caesarean operation, my heart skipped.

“But a youth leader, Gabriel Jonah, from our community came to my aid. He paid the money for all the hospital bills at Nembe and even gave us money to take the twins to FMC Yenagoa.

“We came to FMC on Friday, a day after the birth of the twins. The hospital placed them on drips and said they would carry out some tests. Nothing has been said about the surgery to separate them.

“We want the hospital to be fast about the whole thing so that the twins can get their freedom. We thank Jonah for coming to our aid and for volunteering to assist us more. But we are appealing to all our leaders and non-governmental organisations to intervene and help us to get through this.”

The FMC management said it showed a lot of commitment immediately the twins and their mother were brought to the hospital. First, the hospital placed all its experts, consultants and doctors on the matter.

The Head Clinical Services, FMC, Dr. James Enimi Omietimi, said the hospital ensured that the twins were in stable conditions throughout the period. Omietimi, who is a gynaecologist and obstetrician, added that a Siamese case requires proper planning and assemblage of a team of experts.

Explaining the situation, he said: “The children are stable as we speak. Our doctors and our consultant paediatrician, a professor of paediatrics, Prof. Kunle Olowu, has gone to look at the children. Even our consultant surgeon is working on the case.

“They are joined at the abdominal level. It is possible they are sharing intra-abdominal organ. This is not the kind of surgery that people jump in and start operating.

“The surgery is usually planned. It takes planning and a team of doctors and nurses are assembled to carry out this kind of surgery. So, it is not something to rush and start doing.

“It is not likely that we are going to do this surgery here in FMC because of the amount of expertise involved in planning and doing the surgery. We need government, NGOs and people who have experience locally and internationally to come into the matter, it is also capital intensive.

“Our basic problem right now is to ensure that the children are stable medically before we do anything. If it is something we can handle in our facilities and we need people to join us to handle it we will invite people to do it. If it is something that we need to refer to another facility whether in Nigeria or outside the country, we will do that too.”

Reports on the twins attracted the attention of the Federal Government. Omietimi explained what happened later. He said the FMC ensured the stability of the children and also treated their mother of advanced High Blood Pressure. He said the hospital rendered all its services free to the children and their mother, adding that the special ward where their mother was admitted cost N11,000 per day.

He said the hospital contacted its sister hospital in Yola, where a similar case of separation was handled last year. Omietimi said the requested that the Yola FMC should send its experts to Yenagoa to coordinate the separation surgery.

Omietimi said: “They stayed with us from the 14th of December 2019 to January 2 this year when we referred them. Within that period, we looked after them in our special care baby unit. We also looked after the mother in our private ward because she was having elevated blood pressure. That ward cost N11000 daily.

“We waived her bill. We also waved the bills for the children that were in the special care baby units where our specialists looked after them for that period. We reached out to FMC Yola that separated a set last year. We invited them to come to our hospital so that the surgery will be done here so that our paediatricians and our people will share in the experience.

“We were willing to buy equipment needed for all that and to accommodate and take care of the specialists that were supposed to come and join us. But the people in Yola said since we had not done it before, it was better to refer them to Yola. And the parents of the twins and the Nembe community involved in the issue wanted the surgery to be done as soon as possible.

“We explained to them that no matter where they go, the surgery will not be done when the children are less than three months. They still mounted pressure for us to do the operation immediately. We had no choice after discussing with Yola, especially when they offered to do everything free of charge. They also said that our people can join them over there for the surgery.”

Omietimi said the FMC Yenagoa coordinated all the activities to move the twins and their mother to Yola. He further said the Nigerian Air Force got involved and volunteered to fly them to Yola. He said initially Jonah wanted to pay for a private aircraft that would take them to Yola. According to him, the hospital refunded Jonah his money when the Air Force undertook the task.

He said: “We coordinated all that exercise and the Nigerian Air Force, which heard about it agreed to fly them free of charge. So, apart from referring them, we coordinated the movement. They brought their helicopter to fly them to Port Harcourt Airport.

“We moved them in our ambulance with all our medical experts to Igbogene helipad where they were moved to the Port Harcourt Airport. Another Nigerian Air Force plane moved them and our medical experts to Yola where we physically handed over the patients to them at FMC.

“We had discussions there and agreed that a month to the surgery, our team will go back there and join in the preparations for the surgery. They have not picked a date yet because just as we told all the stakeholders, the FMC in Yola also informed them that the surgery will not be done until the children are about four months.”

Ayebaenaemi thanked the Federal Government and other stakeholders, including Jonah and the FMC, for their prompt interventions. He said the twins were still under observations in Yola as part of the preparations for surgery.

He said though all the medical expenses were being taken care of by the hospital, he was the one bearing all the feeding expenses. He said he had run out of cash and could no longer cope with the feeding.

He said: “I don’t know what I would have done without the interventions of the Federal Government, Jonah and the FMC. I have been jobless and have been managing my family as a commercial motorcyclist.

“In Yola here, they are taking care of all the medical expenses. I am taking care of their feeding. But I don’t have money again because things are costly here. I am still soliciting the help of other spirited and philanthropic Nigerians. I am calling on the Minister of Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, to support me.”

The third edition of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) annual Corporate Dinner and Merit Awards will remain indelible in the minds of employees and industry players for some time to come, especially the Employee of the Year, who walked away with N1 million, writes MUYIWA LUCAS.

It was a night of glory for employees of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA). The third edition of the annual Corporate Dinner and Merit Awards held on Saturday at the Convention Centre of the Eko Hotels and Suite. Awards were given to 181 employees who have served for between fifteen and thirty years. The Employee of the Year, Mrs. Constance Omagbemi, got a cash prize of one million naira, which was presented to her by Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Boss Mustapha, who chaired the occasion.

The occasion also witnessed the conferment of awards to outstanding maritime industry players. GAC Shipping Company won the Overall Shipping Company of the Year, among eight awardees of the Industry Stakeholders Merit Award. They were Total Exploration and Production Company, AP Miller Terminal, Tin Can Island Container Terminal (TICT), and the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron. Other awardees were West African Ventures, Awaritse Nigeria Limited, and Sea Navigation International Limited.

Six state governors graced the occasion, including Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who came with his deputy, Dr. Femi Hamzat, Plateau State Governor Simon Lalong, Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun, Niger State Governor Abubakar Sani Bello and Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki. Gombe State Governor Inuwa Yahaya was represented by his deputy, Manassah Daniel Jatau.

Other dignitaries included Chairman, Senate Committee on Marine Transport, Senator Danjuma Goje, who represented Senate President Ahmad Lawan; Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Maritime Safety, Education and Administration, Lynda Ikpeazu; Minister of State for Health Senator Olorunnimbe Mamora; Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Managing Director Hadiza Bala Usman and National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) Managing Director George Moghalu.

Mustapha said the Federal Government was targeting placing Nigeria among the first 70 countries in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business index, a most sought-after economic feat globally, by 2023. The SGF said recent improvements in the Nigerian maritime industry had positioned it as a viable guarantee of economic growth and wealth creation. He disclosed with delight that Nigeria had moved from 170 to 131 in the global ease of doing business table since Buhari established the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) in July 2016.

The council was set up to remove bureaucratic constraints to doing business in Nigeria and make the country an increasingly easier place to start and grow a business.

Mustapha said the PEBEC initiative, coupled with significant developments in ports and maritime, had engendered great improvements in ease of doing business in the country.

“In our bid to improve efficiency and productivity in the maritime industry and the country at large, the PEBEC was created to ensure an enabling environment for port efficiency. Government will continue to support the maritime sector because on it rests opportunities for wealth creation and economic growth,” he said.

Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi said the transportation sector was being developed as a strategic driver of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s economic diversification and growth agenda. Amaechi said the government was focused on the establishment of a strong intermodal transport system that would facilitate seamless movement of goods and people and drastically reduce the cost of transportation and business, generally.

Amaechi added that with a developed transport sector, “there will be increased productivity, which comes with creation of more jobs and production of more goods and services. All these will make the economy more competitive, reduce dependence on oil, and usher in economic growth. This is our target.”

He continued: “We are aware that transportation is key in any economic development plan. The major elements of production – raw materials, machines, people, finished products, etc. – have to be seamlessly moved from one point to the other as the need arises.

“The President Muhammadu Buhari government is implementing a transport policy, which entails linking all seaports in the country by rail, in line with global best practices. All over the world, the most efficient way to transport heavy cargo is by water and rail.

“We have a 25-year rail modernisation programme, involving the development of a comprehensive intermodal system. We are taking the rail from where the past governments stopped to the seaports. The Lagos-Kano rail line, which began from Ebute Metta, is being taken from Ebute Metta to Apapa seaport.

“We will take it from Tin Can and Apapa to connect the new Lekki port. The rail line from Lagos to Calabar links Port Harcourt, Onne, and Warri seaports. Our goal is to have a system where importers would bring in their goods and load them on the rail that takes them to the hinterland, thus, easing the pressure on the roads and increasing their longevity.

“Adequate investment in transport infrastructure will enhance the efficiency, reliability, and capacity of the transportation system, which will, in turn, lead to lower transport costs, shorter transit times, increased business efficiency, and business expansion, as money previously spent on transport is ploughed back into business.”

NIMASA Director-General Dr. Dakuku Peterside noted the significant change in the reputation of the agency in the last few years. Dakuku said the burnished image was part of the fruits of the Management’s deliberate effort to change the old ways of doing things in the industry and the Agency, for the overall good of the economy.

He highlighted some of the achievements of the agency in the last three years to include the final billing regime, which has significantly reduced turnaround time for all vessel billing transactions from reduced turnaround time for all vessel billing transactions from between five and 10 years to two weeks of the ship’s departure; increased tonnage, with Nigeria currently placing second in Africa, after Liberia; and reduction of turnaround time for issuance of Sailing Clearance from about one year to 14 days.

Peterside also listed other achievements as: digital transformation; improved maritime safety, security, and domain awareness; the tripartite agreement by maritime stakeholders, which has ensured harmonious labour relations in the industry; renewed capacity building drive through implementation of a five-year Cabotage cessation plan; and enhancement of the Nigerian Ship Registry.

Peterside also said that the agency has made major strides in the drive for improved maritime domain awareness.

“With the use of satellite surveillance technologies, in combination with intelligence systems, we are able to identify, with a consistent 365 days and a five-year profile, all vessels that visit our Exclusive Economic Zone. We are further able to identify vessels that are believed to be engaging in suspicious activities and take appropriate actions,” he said.

He added: “Currently, a portal is being created on the agency’s website where the list of all categories of maritime operators and services provided would be hosted for match-making and direct contact by business interests around the world. This brings visibility and credibility to indigenous operators being projected by the Maritime Administration in Nigeria.”

The agency commenced moves to ensure that Nigeria has a registry that can meet international certification standards and compete favourably with the best in the global maritime community.

Since the creation of the ISPS Code Unit of NIMASA, it has recorded achievements, which include: passage of the ISPS Code Implementation Regulations in December 2014, appointment of Lead Recognised Security Organisation (RSO) and other RSOs to fill the capacity gaps in physical assessment of port facilities, discovery of new ISPS Code applicable port facilities, creating awareness and fostering collaboration among stakeholders in ISPS implementation, and training of personnel.

Other achievements include the fact that over 20 Nigerian port facilities were exempted from imposition of United States Coast Guard (USCG) special Conditions of Entry (CoE) on vessels that had called at the facilities; successful completion of PFSA and PFSP for a substantial number of facilities; more than 90 per cent compliance within the country’s facilities; and issuance of Documents of Compliance to compliant facilities.

Today the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will ‘top’ discussions at the UK-Africa summit convened by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG), in a study, says AfCTA represents one of the most ambitious attempts of the African Union Heads of States and Governments to economically unite African peoples and economies. Excerpts:

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) represents one of the most ambitious attempts of the African Union Heads of States and Governments to economically unite African peoples and economies. It also represents a bold attempt by the African Union Heads of States and Governments to provide or at the least, experiment with an “African solution” to “an African” problem. The AfCFTA is the first step in the implementation of African Union (AU) Agenda 2063: the “Vision” for an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa.

The proponents of the Continental Free Trade Area project, who interestingly are in the majority, are deeply convinced of the potential of the AfCFTA to broaden and strengthen the scope for intra-African trade as well as improve the well-being of African people. The antagonists of the drive towards the establishment of a continental free trade area in Africa, unfortunately, do not agree with the proponents. The antagonists believe the AfCFTA will be damaging to participating countries’ economies. This group specifically argues that the AfCFTA will severely decrease government revenue, thereby worsen the fiscal stance of many African countries. They also argue that it will exacerbate firm losses and that the exposure of domestic firms to foreign competition will reduce demand and profitability, which in turn will have an adverse effect on productivity.

Given the huge market potential in Africa, there is a tremendous possibility that AfCFTA will become an African success story. However, the amount of success that is achievable in this “African Project” will depend to a large extent on the quality of preparation that is infused to the negotiation and implementation of the AfCFTA agreement by African countries. Although Nigeria signed the AfCFTA framework agreement in July 2019, the initial reluctance of the Nigerian Government to sign the agreement was borne out of the concern of different segments of the Nigerian economy regarding the possible harmful consequences of joining the AfCFTA. There is the underlying fear among policymakers in Nigeria that AfCFTA could easily be transformed from a free trade area into a free transfer of resources arrangement from one economy to the other.

It is against this background that the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) commissioned the Centre for Petroleum Energy Economics and Law (CPEEL) at the University of Ibadan, Ibadan in conjunction with Equilibria Consult, to conduct an evidence-based study that has the overarching objective of assessing the potential impact of AfCFTA on the Nigerian economy.

The NESG commissioned study is specifically aimed at determining the potential impact of the AfCFTA on key macroeconomic variables such as aggregate output, aggregate export, aggregate import, government revenue, investment, and composite prices. In addition, the study also aims specifically at determining if government intervention, by way of an increase in its infrastructure spending will help improve any potential gains or minimise losses associated with AfCFTA implementation. Besides, the objective also includes; quantifying the welfare impacts of the AfCFTA on Nigerian households; ascertaining which sectors would gain/lose as well as factors reallocations resulting from the free trade agreement.

The study adopts the Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) methodology to achieve its objectives. The analysis was done under six policy simulation scenarios including – linear cut in tariff over the ten-year AfCFTA implementation period; front-loading tariff liberalisation, backloading tariff liberalisation, linear cuts in tariff combined with 10 percent of locally produced substitutes categorized as sensitive goods and protected from liberalization, linear cuts in tariff combined with 10 percent exogenous increase in government investment; linear cut in tariff combined with 5 percent increase in labour supply and 5 percent increase in foreign capital inflow.

The study has some interesting findings with wide-ranging implications for the Nigerian economy.

For instance, the results indicate that the AfCFTA will be trade-diverting as Nigeria’s imports from non-African countries will be substituted by imports from African countries. Government revenue will decline in all but one of the scenarios of the AfCFTA when foreign investment inflow and increased labour supply is assumed. Government revenue declined by 0.21 percent when linear cut to the tariff is applied and when the tariff cut is back-loaded. The decline in government revenue is only marginally lower (0.20%) when the tariff cut is front-loaded. However, during the first period of five years, when the government is assumed to increase its investment by 10 percent, government revenue increased by 0.42 percent before declining by 0.13 percent.

The losses in government revenue are more likely to have resulted from the decrease in tariff revenue – as taxes on imports constitutes a major source of government non-oil revenue. It was noted, however, that government revenue was positive in both the first and second period of the AfCFTA implementation when foreign investment inflow and an increase in labour supply was assumed.

The African Continental Free Trade Area implementation in Nigeria is expected to create the phenomenon of trade-diversion and this will be more prominent in Nigeria’s imports from West African countries and South Africa. Investment is expected to decline in all simulations.

The decline in investment is lowest when considerations are made for sensitive products during the implementation of the AfCFTA. With the exclusion of sensitive products (SIM 3), the total investment is expected to decline by -0.15 percent compared with -0.16 percent when there are no considerations for the exclusive list.

The implementation of the AfCFTA has positive impacts on Nigeria’s exports. If linear cuts are applied to tariff elimination, aggregate export will increase by 0.02 percent in both the first and second five-year implementation periods respectively. If the tariff elimination is back-loaded, aggregate export is expected to increase by 0.01 percent and 0.03 percent in the first and second implementation periods respectively. Even when tariff elimination is front-loaded, aggregate export will still increase by 0.02 percent in both the first and second five-year implementation periods respectively. When sensitive products are protected from tariff cuts, aggregate export will also increase by 0.02 percent in both the first and second five-year implementation periods respectively.

The simulation results indicate that the AfCFTA tariff liberalization will cause a negligible decline in the household’s income. The decline in household’s income will be more severe for rural rich households and urban-rich households. The poor households in both urban and rural households will only experience a marginal decrease in income (averaging about 0.01 percent for both rural and urban poor households). The expected decrease in income of rural and urban rich households will be an average of about 0.02 percent for each household type. However, when government intervention and inflow of foreign investment, as well as the increase in labour supply, are simulated, the tide of negative household income changes is reversed. The above results strongly suggest the existence of opportunities and potential risks associated with the AfCFTA agreement. The results also informed some key policy recommendations that include the following:

• In view of the findings that Nigeria’s GDP will be negatively impacted when the AfCFTA agreement comes into force, and in view of the need to make the economy more competitive; it was recognised that relying on the inflow of foreign saving to grow the economy may not readily pay-off. The study, therefore, recommends that the country should embark on massive infrastructure upgrade and institutional reforms to improve her business environment. The infrastructure upgrade could be realised through the concession of major infrastructural projects (electricity, roads, bridges, airports, seaports, etc.) to the private sector. The concessions must, however, be complemented by strong institutional reforms to effectively regulate the operations of the private sector.
• Producing highly competitive products in the foreign market also require strengthening government regulations and internal quality control of products produced in the country. The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the Nigerian Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) have a crucial role to play in this respect.

These regulatory institutions must be reformed to effectively perform their constitutional regulatory functions.

• Nigeria needs to maximise the opportunities that are available to it in the AfCFTA agreement by enhancing the space for both domestic and foreign investments. Thus, there is the need to create a more business-friendly environment and reduce existing binding trade constraints in the country that has so far deterred the growth of foreign investment in different sectors of the economy. In addition to providing a reliable transportation system and power supply, the country can restore a business-friendly environment by substantially addressing all major security challenges that have in recent time inundated the country and discouraged foreign investors from doing business in Nigeria.
• There is a need for measures to counter the expected negative impact of AfCFTA on government revenue. The recommended policy measure here is to combine trade liberalisation with increased drive for the inflow of foreign saving/investment into the Nigerian economy. The government can complement this with a programme of diversification of the Nigerian economy. If successfully pursued, diversification of the Nigerian economy will, in turn, boost the tax revenue base of the Nigerian Government.
• The Government may begin to undertake deliberate measures that will strengthen sectors including health, education, electricity, transportation, textile, apparel and footwear to maximise the benefits that are likely to accrue to them when the AfCFTA agreement comes into force. This can be done by recognising these sectors as AfCFTA priority sectors for immediate government support. The government support may include tax breaks/rebate, government-backed preferential loan arrangements from commercial banks, etc. For sectors that are expected to suffer the greatest losses (including the chemical, chemical products and electrical; wood and wood products; cement and construction sectors), Government needs to create safeguards or incentives for such sectors. These incentives could come in the form of including the sectors in the sensitive list. This will help delay liberalisation of these sectors to a later period and allow for the adjustment of the sectors to realities of the AfCFTA agreement.
• Implementation of the AfCFTA is also expected to trigger a surge in imports across sectors of the Nigerian economy. The major concern here is the issue of dumping. Strict enforcement of the Rules of Origin (RoO) should be enshrined as is, in AfCFTA framework document. The relatively large market size of Nigeria makes the economy a target for dumping. To protect the economy from the dumping of inferior and substandard products, the RoO needs to be well strengthened and tightened. This may require the country using the five-year transitional period to negotiate and adjust within the economy. There is also a need to negotiate an effective dispute resolution mechanism that allows for sanctioning of erring parties within the AfCFTA. This mechanism may include a trade court solely for trade dispute resolution within the region.

Overall, one thing that is certain is that AfCFTA would turn out in one of two outcomes; a winwin outcome for all African countries, or a zero-sum game in which case the gain of one country becomes the loss of another, or the loss of one country becomes the gain of another.

• Nigeria needs to maximise the opportunities that are available to it in the AfCFTA agreement by enhancing the space for both domestic and foreign investment. Thus, there is the need to create a more business-friendly environment and reduce existing binding trade constraints in the country that has so far deterred the growth of foreign investment in different sectors of the economy. In addition to providing a reliable transportation system and power supply, the country can restore a business-friendly environment by substantially addressing all major security challenges that have in recent time inundated the country and discouraged foreign investors from doing business in Nigeria.
• There is a need for measures to counter the expected negative impact of AfCFTA on government revenue. The recommended policy measure here is to combine trade liberalization with increased drive for the inflow of foreign saving/investment into the Nigerian economy.

The government can complement this with a programme of diversification of the Nigerian economy. If successfully pursued, diversification of the Nigerian economy will, in turn, boost the tax revenue base of the Nigerian Government.

• The government may begin to undertake deliberate measures that will strengthen various sectors including health, education, electricity, transportation, textile, apparel and footwear to maximise the benefits that are likely to accrue to them. This can be done by recognising these sectors as AfCFTA priority sectors for immediate government support. The government support may include: tax breaks/rebate, government-backed preferential loan arrangements from commercial banks, etc. For sectors that are expected to suffer the greatest losses (including the chemical, chemical products and electrical; wood and wood products; cement and construction sectors) if the agreement comes into force, the government needs to create safeguards or incentives for such sectors. These incentives could come in the form of including the sectors in the sensitive list. This will help delay liberalisation of these sectors to a later period and allow for the adjustment of the sectors to realities of the AfCFTA agreement.
• Implementation of the AfCFTA is also expected to trigger a surge in imports across sectors of the Nigerian economy. The major concern here is the issue of dumping. Strict enforcement of the Rules of Origin (RoO) as enshrined in AfCFTA framework document. The relatively large market size of Nigeria makes the economy a target for dumping. To protect the economy from the dumping of inferior and substandard products, the RoO needs to be well strengthened and tightened. This may require the country using the five-year transitional period to negotiate and adjust within the economy. There is also a need to negotiate an effective dispute resolution mechanism that allows for sanctioning of erring parties within the AfCFTA. This mechanism may include a trade court solely for trade dispute resolution within the region.

Why did the Supreme Court declare Senator Hope Uzodinma winner of the Imo State governorship election held last March 9 despite coming fourth? ERIC IKHILAE analyses the verdict.

When the Supreme Court on Tuesday declared Senator Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the March 9, 2019 governorship election in Imo State, not a few Nigerians wondered how someone who came fourth could replace the person who came first.

The election of Emeka Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was nullified and Uzodinma was ordered to be sworn in immediately.

In the unanimous judgment of the seven-member panel, read by Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, the Supreme Court held that results in 388 polling units were unlawfully excluded during result collation.

According to her, when the excluded results were added, it meant that Uzodinma polled a majority of the lawful votes cast and ought to have been declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Supreme Court, therefore, voided lhedioha’s declaration and ordered that the certificate of return wrongly issued to him be immediately withdrawn and a fresh one issued to Uzodinma.

“It is thereby ordered that the appellant’s votes from 388 polling units unlawfully excluded from the appellant vote declared shall be added and that the first respondent, Emeka Ihedioha, was not duly elected by a majority of lawful votes cast at the said election,” the Supreme Court said.

The Court of Appeal had last November 19 affirmed Ihedioha’s victory.

It disagreed with the appellants, who had argued that he did not obtain the constitutionally required one-quarter of the votes cast in at least two-thirds of the 27 Local Government Areas (LGAs) as provided under Section 179 of the 1999 Constitution.

The beginning

Last March 11, the Returning Officer, Vice-Chancellor, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State, Prof Francis Otunta, said Ihedioha scored the highest number of votes (273,404).

He declared him the winner “having satisfied all the requirements of the law and scored the highest number of votes”.

Action Alliance (AA) candidate Uche Nwosu polled 190,364 votes; All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate Ifeanyi Ararume scored 114,676 votes.

Uzodinma, who came fourth, polled 96,458, while Ikedi Ohakim of the Accord Party (AP) got 6,846 votes.

Dissatisfied, Nwosu, Ararume and Uzodinma petitioned the Election Tribunal.

Uzodinma’s case

In his petition, Uzodinma sought to be declared the winner because he scored the majority of lawful votes cast.

He argued that he satisfied the mandatory constitutional requirement of LGA spread.

He stated that the election was heavily manipulated by collation officers of Mbaise extraction allegedly recruited hurriedly by INEC.

Uzodinma claimed that the collation officers deliberately omitted to collate the results from 388 polling units that were his stronghold.

He claimed that by the results declared at the polling unit level by the presiding officers, he got 213, 695 votes in the 388 polling units.

Uzodinma prayed the tribunal to retrieve the excluded votes, add them to the figures declared by INEC, which will make him the candidate with the highest votes.

In the main, Uzodinma’s petition was predicated on his claim that INEC unlawfully cancelled results in most polling units where he scored majority votes.

He contended that INEC lacked the power to nullify the election of a polling unit after the presiding officer had declared the result.

Uzodinma contended that when the votes in the polling units unlawfully cancelled by INEC are added to the 96,458 allocated to him, he would have the highest number of valid votes cast.

A police officer’s testimony

During the hearing of Uzodinma’s petition, the Tribunal allowed a Deputy Commissioner of Police, Rabiu Huseini, who was in charge of operations on the day of the election, to give evidence.

The petitioners subpoenaed him.

Huseini tendered copies of Form EC8A from the affected polling units as part of his evidence.

The tribunal, in a ruling, disregarded Ihedioha’s lawyer’s contention that the witness, who was PW54, was not the maker of the result sheets.

It agreed with Uzodinma’s lawyer’s position that the evidence by the police officer was relevant because security agents were part of those who conducted the election.

While the Tribunal allowed the tendering of result sheets by the policeman, which content tallied with the copies already tendered by the petitioner’s party agents, the respondents, including INEC could not tender any result sheets to counter what the petitioners and PW54 tendered.

Tribunal’s verdict

In its September 21 verdict, the tribunal, led by Justice Umar Malami Dogondaji, dismissed the three petitions.

It held that Nwosu, Ararume and Uzodinma failed to prove their cases.

The Tribunal held that the evidence supplied was mainly based on hearsay and that the unlawful exclusion allegation was not proven.

Dismissing Uzodinma’s petition, the Tribunal held that the results he presented were not recognised by law as they neither emanated from, nor were authenticated by, the INEC.

The Tribunal said the results were not signed by polling agents, who were essential elements in the polling process.

“Failure to discharge the heavy burden of proof makes the petition liable for dismissal and it is accordingly dismissed,” the tribunal held.

Appeal Court’s verdict

A five-man panel of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, led by Justice Oyebisi Omoyele unanimously dismissed the appeals.

But, in respect of the appeal by Uzodinma, one of the Justices of the Court of Appeal upheld the case of the appellant and dissented from the majority decision of the other four members of the panel, which upheld the tribunal’s verdict.

Uzodinma and APC’s appeal were decided by a four-to-one verdict.

The Court of Appeal upheld the Tribunal’s findings and conclusions.

It found that Uzodinma, who came fourth, called no witness from the polling units, ward or local government level to prove that Ihedioha did not score 25 per cent of the votes cast in 18 out of the 27 LGAs.

The Court of Appeal discountenanced a set of documents in which he claimed to have scored substantial votes from 386 polling units, but which he alleged were excluded by INEC.

The appellate court allowed a cross-appeal to the effect that with respect to Section 179 (3) (4) and (5) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), only the person who came second in an election can make a case regarding Section 179 (2).

The big verdict

Dissatisfied, Ihedioha’s opponents headed for the Supreme Court.

In its first decision, the Supreme Court struck out the appeal by Nwosu, after it was withdrawn by his lawyer on the ground that it was overtaken by events given the court’s earlier judgment on his candidacy.

The apex court voided Nwosu’s candidacy on the ground of double nomination.

The Supreme Court struck out Ararume’s appeal because its position in the appeal by Uzodinma rendered it irrelevant.

The court, in a preliminary finding on a motion by Ihedioha and the PDP, disagreed with them that its decision in the Nwosu case (numbered SC/1384/2019) affected Uzodinma’s candidacy.

The Supreme Court was of the view that Uzodinma could not have been affected by the December judgment because he was not a party in the appeal.

It held that the case was a pre-election matter, while the appeal that was being decided was a post-election case.

Justice Kekere-Ekun said: “The judgment in SC/1384/2019 relates to the valid nomination of a candidate in a party’s primary, which is a pre-election matter.

“The validity of the first appellant’s (Uzodinma’s) nomination cannot be inquired into by this court in a post-election appeal.”

In deciding the main appeal, Justice Kekere-Ekun said: “In the substantive appeal, I am of the view that the two main issues that can resolve this appeal are appellants’ issues one and two.

“Issue one is in respect of the concurrent findings of the two lower courts to the effect that PW54 was not the proper person to tender Exhibits PPP1 to PPP366.

“Having given careful consideration to the arguments of the respective learned counsel, there was clear evidence before the court that PW54, a police officer, was subpoenaed to testify and produce the documents in question.

“Having produced the documents handed over to the police in obedience to the subpoena issued by the court, the lower courts were wrong to have held that he was not the proper person to tender them because he was not present at the polling units, where the results emanated from.

“I agree with the learned counsel for the appellants that the lower courts misconstrued their case. The issue in contention was whether the results for 318 polling units were unlawfully excluded from the collated results.

“The documents were tendered to prove the exclusion as pleaded by the appellants and not whether election held in the polling units, in which case, the polling agents would have been called.”

The Supreme Court held that Uzodinma successfully proved that his results were unlawfully excluded.

Justice Kekere-Ekun held: “Having resolved these two issues in the appellants’ favour, I am of the view that it is not necessary to consider the remaining issues.

“In the circumstances, I hold that there is merit in this appeal. It is hereby allowed.

“The majority judgment of the lower court, affirming the judgment of the governorship election tribunal, is hereby set aside.

“It is hereby declared that votes due to the appellants, that is, Senator Hope Uzodinma and the All Progressives Congress, from the 388 polling units, were wrongly excluded from the scores ascribed to the appellants.

“It is hereby ordered that the appellants’ votes from the 388 polling units, unlawfully excluded from the appellants’ scores declare, shall be added to the results earlier declared by the third respondent (INEC).

“It is hereby declared that the first respondent, Right Honourable Emeka Ihedioha, was not duly elected by a majority of lawful votes cast at the said election. His return as the elected governor of Imo State is hereby declared null and void and is accordingly set aside.

“It is hereby declared that the first appellant, Senator Hoe Uzodinma, polled the majority lawful votes cast at the governorship election held in Imo State on 9th March 2019 and satisfied the mandatory constitutional threshold and spread across the state.

“It is hereby declared that the first appellant, Senator Hope Uzodinma, is the winner of the governorship election of Imo State held on 9th March 2019 and declared on 11th March 2019.

“The certificate of return issued to the first respondent, Right Honourable Emeka Ihedioha, is hereby withdrawn.

“It is hereby ordered that a certificate of return shall be issued to the first appellant, Senator Hope Uzodinma, forthwith and should be sworn in as the governor of Imo State immediately.

“In the circumstance, appeals numbers SC/1461 of 2019 and SC/1470 of 2019 have become academic and are hereby struck out.”

Other members: Justices Ibrahim Muhammad (the Chief Justice of Nigeria and head of the panel), Sylvester Ngwuta, Olukayode Ariwoola, Amiru Sanusi, Amina Augie and Uwani Abba-Aji agreed with the lead judgment.

An expert’s view

A lawyer, Kenneth Ikonne, in an article entitled “The Imo gubernatorial judgment – a painful but legally correct verdict!” said the Supreme Court, based on the facts, was right in declaring Uzodinma the winner in law.

According to him, Ihedioha’s legal team made a “fatal” error.

He recalled that results from more than 350 polling units, signed by INEC presiding officers, which gave Uzodinma an unassailable lead, were rejected by ward collation officers, who had no power in law to cancel or reject them.

Ikonne said the law was settled that neither collation officers nor a returning officer has the power in law to exclude a polling unit result duly signed by the presiding officer; except the tribunal.

“The backbreaking and fatal error made by Ihedioha’s legal team was in not filing a cross-petition fiercely challenging the integrity of the suspect polling units results upon which Uzodinma was relying and praying the election tribunal to formally nullify the said results.

“Without a cross-petition, none of the grounds under section 138 (1) of the Electoral Act for questioning the elections conducted in those polling units in which Uzodinma ‘won’ could have been competently raised by Governor Ihedioha in his defence to Uzodinma’s petition.

“This was the ratio decidendi of the old Court of Appeal decision in IDRIS V. A.N.P.P.(2008)8 NWLR(PT.1088) Page 1.”

Citing several legal authorities, Ikonne said without a cross-petition praying for the nullification of those results, the law forbade Ihedioha as respondent from raising the issue of the alleged serial corrupt practices and irregularities marring the results, in a mere statement of defence.

“Ihedioha, being a respondent, could only have competently raised them via a cross-petition, being a new issue not nominated by Uzodinma, the petitioner.

“Tragically, Ihedioha’s legal team forgot to include the pivotal cross-petition.

“And in the absence of a cross-petition, the Supreme Court was right in law, painfully though it may seem, to rely on the presumption of regularity and correctness enshrined by both the Electoral Act and Evidence Act in favour of the said results, and to reckon with them and add them up to the final result, since Ihedioha’s legal team had woefully failed to effectively attack the results and rebut that presumption.

“For the Supreme Court, this was the legally correct conclusion to come to, having found that INEC had no power in law to exclude polling units results duly affirmed by the various polling units presiding officers!”a

There is excitement in the medical community in the United States over a new treatment for sickle cell. When it becomes available to all who want it, Nigeria’s chances of benefiting are clogged by challenges, writes CHINAKA OKORO

Until the harmattan eased some days back, several medical doctors had one major worry: the effect of the severe weather on sickle cell patients. A Senior Registrar, Pulmonology Unit, Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Dr Chung-Gyang Shedrack, advised sickle cell patients to keep themselves warm during the harmattan cold.

Dr Shedrack said patients, who suffered from sickle cell and were anaemic, were likely to experience worsening of their condition during the unfriendly weather.

He said: “Sickle cell patients are prone to a crisis in this period of cold; they will have to stay very warm, take a lot of fluid, go for medical checks with their doctor and take medications adequately so that they do not have to worsen of the crisis.”

Dr. Shedrack’s advice should become useless if only Nigeria can benefit from a gene therapy that scientists hope will cure the disease.

A New York Times’ report at the weekend shows that the therapy has successfully worked on Helen Obando, a 16-year-old American girl. It is believed that soon the therapy will be available to more Americans.

For Nigerians, the wait will be longer. The best the country has now is stem cell transplant, whose first recipient in Nigeria is Matthew Ndik. He benefitted from the treatment in 2011 when he was seven years old. The Obando family also considered the bone marrow transplant before they heard about a “complex procedure to flip a genetic switch so the body produces healthy blood”. Helen’s elder sister, Haylee, got a bone marrow transplant. The donor was a sibling who luckily was not anaemic.

A 2011 report by Ms Joke Kujenya, then of The Nation, indicated that the cost of bone marrow transplant is killing. Ndik’s parents could only afford it because they did not have to pay for it. The transplant was done at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin, Edo State.

Haematologist Dr. Nosakhare Bazuaye, who operated on Ndik, said the journey to achieving the feat began in 2009.

“Now, let me go to how the story started in 2009,” Dr. Bazuaye said. “We went for the training at the Basel University in Switzerland about two years ago. On returning to Nigeria, we met the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Professor Michael Ibadin, and then, the process of setting up, a temporary Stem Cell Transplant (SCT) unit, a four-bedded isolation room, began in earnest. The essence is to prove to Nigerians that we can do Stem Cell Transplant in our country.

“Let me quickly tell us the parameters with which young Matthew Ndik, 7, became the first SCT recipient. He was a seven years old child who has a previous history of Cerebrovascular Accident (CVA) that is, stroke, of which he already had three severe episodes. The first episode left him with a one-sided paralysis. And the second episode took his speech. And he was able to survive because if he had had the third stroke, he would have died. By then, his Stable Porcine Circovirus (PCV), at which he operates, was 20per cent. And we had to knock off his bone marrow. But we don’t have to crush his bone like some medical colleagues have asked me.

“But if there had been no donor for Matthew, forget it, none of us would be gathered here today. So, please permit me to ask us all to recognise someone very unique to the success of this experiment. That is the donor, the elder brother Matthew, Emmanuel Ndik. I don’t think that without his cooperation and willingness to donate his bone marrow, we can be here celebrating the 100days success at all.

“I do this because the donor for a transplant recipient is very important in this whole process. I must tell you that the day we were to take him to the theatre, I asked him how scared he was for the operation. He said that this was something he had to do as a last resort to save his brother’s life. And in about five minutes we were done. And so, for those who are scared, by the time were done Emmanuel, he went back to school the third day. His own is to show us that donors are safe and the complications are less. So they have nothing to worry about.”

Significantly, not many Nigerian patients have taken advantage of this treatment, whose cost is unfriendly.

The gene therapy

With Nigerians still unable to fully take advantage of the stem cell transplant, a better treatment is taking shape in the United States.

Dr. Francis S. Collins, the director of the National Institutes of Health described the breakthrough as “an exhilarating success story for those of us who have waited and hoped for this day”.

The New York Times’ report said: “For more than a half-century, scientists have known the cause of sickle cell disease: A single mutation in a gene turns red blood cells into a rigid crescent or sickle shapes instead of soft discs. These misshapen cells get stuck in veins and arteries, blocking the flow of blood that carries life-giving oxygen to the body and causing the disease’s horrifying hallmark: episodes of agony that begin in babyhood.

“Millions of people globally, a vast majority of them Africans, suffer from sickle cell disease. Researchers have worked for decades on improving treatment and finding a cure, but experts say the effort has been hindered by chronic underfunding, in part because most of the estimated 100,000 people in the United States who have the disease are African-American, often poor or of modest means.

“The disease also affects people with southern European, Middle Eastern or Asian backgrounds, or those who are Hispanic, like Helen.”

Behind the new therapy is a scientist at Boston Children’s Hospital, Dr. Stuart Orkin, 73, who has laboured against the disease since he was a medical resident in the 1970s. A federal grant has made the trial possible.

If the therapy shuts down the disease in her and another teenager in the same clinical trial at Boston Children’s, The New York Times said, scientists will soon begin testing it in even younger children. Two other gene therapy trials for the sickle cell are also underway in the United States. One aims to flip the genetic switch; the other is to add a new gene. Such cures are expected to cost $1 million or more, raising questions about affordability.

Verdict

As the world awaits the final verdict from the Food and Drug Administration, there is excitement in the medical community but as usual, it will take ages for it to make sense to Nigerian patients, who are first disadvantaged by the huge cost.