The Nation Newspaper

Tag: job

  • Flour Mills mulls job creation, food production

    Flour Mills mulls job creation, food production

    Group Managing Director, Flour Mills of Nigeria Mr. Paul  Gbededo has said the company is planning to create  thousands of jobs and drive growth with the establishment of large-scale farms.

    He said the company is committed to driving productivity and innovation through opportunities offered by markets through the country.

    Gbededo, in a chat, spoke of the company’s performance and projections in the light of the award received from the Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) as ‘Award for Impactful Contribution to Economy through Backward Integration’ in the industrial space.

    Gbededo said the company acquired its 10,000ha Kaboji Farm in Niger State about 10 years ago which has grown to become the biggest mechanised maize farm in the country. It uses 4,000ha to grow maize. He added that soybean has been helpful in its vertical integration, which uses the produce at its feedmills in Ibadan and Calabar for feeds for poultry.

    He said the company is dedicated to sourcing its raw materials locally and further the development of the food industry.

    The award is in recognition of the company’s efforts spanning about a decade, when, in the organisation’s plan, backward integration was adjudged the only way to support its food business through local content addition as well as improve food security in Nigeria.

    On backward integration, he said the programme helps to support the group’s manufacturing and processing business.

    For this, the Group Managing Director said it has invested over a billion dollars in the last five years and projects that an equivalent sum would be spent in another five years in the agro-allied business. He added that the company is expanding its portfolio in the agro-allied space because that would grow the local content and help support the food business and strengthen the growth of agriculture, which would provide more jobs in Nigeria.

    On the fall of the naira and impact on the business, Gbededo said there are two sides to the issue of the devaluation of the naira. “In a way, it has put a lot of stress on our ability to bring machinery and spares. It increases the naira cost of those inputs and upsets our projections since we operate in a naira environment – it affects our ability to make profits,” he said.

    However, he pointed out that on the other hand, there is a positive side. According to him, using maize for instance, the commodity sells about N45,000 – N50,000 per metric ton, making locally produced maize to be competitive globally; importing the grain would be at about N60,000, thus making it a possibility to export surplus, if any.

    Gbededo revealed that it does not need to import maize now to run the operations of the processing plants. The company, he said, is now aggregating maize nationwide to help its 350,000 metric ton plants annually. “Except there is a shortfall in supply, we help boost the fortunes of Nigerian farmers in earning more,” he said.

  • Intervention funds, SMEs boost job creation

    Intervention funds, SMEs boost job creation

    Last week, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released its latest Job creation and employment generation survey. In second quarter of this year, according to the data, 141,400 jobs were created – 51,100 in the formal sector, 83,900 and 6,400 in the informal and public sectors. Analysts have attributed the jobs statistics to contributions from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) intervention funds in key sectors of the economy, and rising commitment of banks to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) funding, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

    The implementation of the N200 billion Commercial Agriculture Credit Guarantee Scheme (CACS), N300 billion Power and Airline Intervention Fund (PAIF) and N200 billion Small and Medium Enterprises Restructuring and Refinancing Facility (SMERRF) is boosting job opportunities.

    Also helping to create jobs is banks’ commitment to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) especially by giving loans to small businesses who remain the major employer of labour in the country.

    Head, Markets at FBN Capital, Olubunmi Ashaolu, said the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report indicated that the real sector is where the bulk of the jobs and that the intervention funds are the catalysts needed to boost job opportunities in the economy.

    He said the bureau’s report focuses on 18 sectors, of which education emerges again as the leading source of new formal-sector jobs in second quarter of this year accounting for 34 per cent. Manufacturing, agriculture, and accommodation and food services contributed 15.2 per cent, 15 per cent and 9.2 per cent to the total respectively. Business expansion, a new skill requirement and the filling of a vacancy emerge as the three principal reasons for hiring.

    “We see that senior management positions accounted for five per cent of formal-sector jobs generated. This trend was marked in the hospitality and retail industries. Blue-collar jobs accounted for over 30 per cent of the total,” Head of Markets at FBN Capital said.

    Ashaolu described the formal or real sector as consisting of establishments with 10 or more employees, and is based on a sample of 5,000 firms across the 36 states of the federation.

    The CBN under Godwin Emefiele believes that supporting key sectors of the economy via funding from the N700 billion intervention fund and other facilities extended to SMEs are critical in fixing Nigeria’s unemployment quagmire.

    Banks have recognised that proper use of the intervention funds will create significant growth potential for the economy and trigger increased job opportunities for the youths. Both the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and banks now see the funds as a viable means of building sustainable wealth and keeping the unemployed off the streets.

    For Emefiele, the funds are seen as a game changer in tackling the Nigeria’s job challenges. The CBN had in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources to establish the CACS in 2009. The CACS was meant to finance agricultural value chain from input supply to marketing. The scheme commenced operations on April 23, 2009 with the approval of the Federal Government.

    The CACS was meant to fast-track the development of the agricultural value sector of the economy through the provision of credit facilities at a single digit interest rate to large-scale commercial farmers.

    The N300 PAIF was meant to facilitate intervention in the transport sector. It was meant to provide long term financing that would stimulate private sector participation in the sector.

    The CBN said the Fund provided the banks a window to finance power sector projects as well as restructure and refinance outstanding facilities in the aviation sector on a long-term basis of 10 to 15 years at a concessionary interest rate of seven per cent.

    It said the PAIF helped in relieving the banks of the burden of non-performing loans on their balance sheets and improved the credit rating of the beneficiary institutions, thereby providing them access to additional funds for their operations.

    As at  September 30, 2013, the sum of N109.3 billion was disbursed to 21 companies, by 11 banks. The fund, has among others, financed the construction of 125-kilometre gas to power pipeline and the generation of about 800 megawatt (Mw) of power mostly by manufacturing companies principally to guarantee stable and reliable power supply and to free the national grid to other users.

    These, it said, would help ensure a reduction in credit defaults in the sector and harness the entrepreneurial skills in the youth and young graduates. The CBN said, it shall through its Anchor-Lending Programme, provide grants and SMES loans to graduates who develop interest in agribusiness. The regulator pledged support for Federal Government’s national development agenda and the objective of growing the economy through new jobs and SMEs. “We affirm our commitment to financial deepening of the economy, improving financial access to key sectors of the economy, innovative solutions for the critical finance of generation, distribution and transmission in power sector, provide finance for SMEs, as well as the agriculture sector and jobs for the youths,” Emefiele said.

    Executive Director, Ovie Brume Foundation, Mrs. Iwalola Akin-Jimoh, said a lot of graduates that are being churned out are not suitable for the jobs that are currently available, adding that it is important that Nigeria’s educational systems are structured in a way that people that are coming out are able to fill spaces that are available.

    On entrepreneurship, Mrs. Akin-Jimoh said the available jobs are not enough to cater for the graduates churned out yearly. “So, it is even better, where people are not coming out and be looking for white collar jobs. They come out with skills that enable them start their own businesses. So, instead of looking for a job, one can be a job creator. We need people to think more along the line of creating jobs, rather than seeking jobs,” she said.

     

    Banks key into projects

    At Skye Bank, Access Bank, Diamond Bank, Ecobank Nigeria Limited, Bank of Industry (BoI), Heritage Bank, among others, there is a new drive to get SMEs off the ground and keep them running.

    The BoI recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Ecobank Nigeria to provide loans at low interest loan to the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sub-sector.

    The Managing Director/Chief Executive, BoI, Mr. Rasheed Olaoluwa, while speaking at the event in Lagos said Ecobank and nine other banks in the country were selected based on their support to the SMEs, adding that the low interest rate will heighten activities in the sub-sector.

    He said the BoI and SME-friendly banks will collaborate to provide long-term loans to qualified SMEs based on its risk acceptance criteria set by BoI.

    The Deputy Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Tony Okpanachi, explained that the selection of Ecobank by BoI was in recognition of the massive support the bank has offered the sub-sector overtime.  He observed that the support has won the Ecobank several awards and recognitions in recent times. Okpanachi further assured that Ecobank will continue to partner other agencies to develop the sub-sector.

    The Group Managing Director, Access Bank Plc, Herbert Wigwe has reiterated the bank’s commitment financial empowerment for SMEs and the youths in Africa.

    Speaking at the Africa Sustainable CEO Business Roundtable held in Lagos, the bank chief who discussed how the lender is financing youth entrepreneurs and SMEs in the continent, said traditional problems such as access to finance, environment and the right knowledge on the society where they operate are some of the factors affecting today’s youths.

    Wigwe, who was represented by the Executive Director, Personal Banking, Victor Etuokwu disclosed that the lender has a team that drives and adds value to SMEs in the country.

     

    Stakeholders speak

    Michael Obi, an entrepreneur based in Lagos, stated that SMEs subsector has the capacity to create two-thirds of the jobs needed to tackle unemployment, making the subsector more significant. He said the subsector holds the ace to taming unemployment in the country and, as such, must be made active if the unemployment rate, which is put at 28 per cent of adults between the ages of 18 and 60, is to drop.

    But he put a caveat: “Nigeria must tackle the challenges of infrastructure, especially power and roads, to create new SMEs or keep existing ones in business. There is also the need to create access to market and provide capacity, especially in keeping company financial records.

    The CBN defines SMEs according to asset base and number of employees. The criteria are an asset base of between N5 million and N500 million, and a staff strength of 11 to 300 employees.

    The Director, Enterprise Development Centre (EDC), Pan Atlantic University, Peter Bankole, said if a country wants to develop, it must start taking SMEs’ lending seriously. He said the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) survey conducted last year showed that the SMEs sector will continue to play a dominant role in job creation in the economy.

    Bankole said the challenge remains that the majority of SMEs are micro, stressing that the government was trying to move as many as possible from micro to small businesses because that will give better multiplier effects for the economy and create jobs.

    The  General Manager, IBM Africa, Taiwo Otiti, said the SMEs tools help entrepreneurs manage their businesses properly, and in the process, making it attractive for banks to grant them loans and subsequently create jobs. He said SMEs remain the engine of growth for the economy, adding that they are the largest employer of labour within the economy. He said that when the SMEs businesses are run well, they will have the capacity to employ more people. “Part of the SMEs teaching is how to package their businesses to attract bank loans making it easier for them to create jobs,” he said.

     

  • MOTHER TO OLISEH: Eagles job na fire, my son

    MOTHER TO OLISEH: Eagles job na fire, my son

    •If to say he easy, na everybody for dey do am
    •Gives son consent to take Nigeria job

    Nigeria’s senior team chief coach Sunday Oliseh shocked his audience last week Monday at the Onikan Stadium’s conference centre when he revealed what his mother told him before accepting to take the Super Eagles job.

    Disclosing this to newsmen at a jaw-jaw session, Oliseh said: “Let me share this with you. When I was to take the job, I told my dad and my mother. I will share what my mum told me with you.

    “I called my father and mother that they are offering me this job, but my mother told me ‘Na fire my son’. But she told me something that I really loved, she said “If to say he easy, na everybody for dey do am” But if I want to succeed, I should work hard to do it well that was what she said.

    ” I don’t have the base to work on but I try to look at it that in the past one year, we have played 62 players and that is practically six teams. I don’t mean those who played regularly but those who were invited to camp. In the national

    teams we have over 11 to 12 games and for now I don’t have a base of six regular players that I can build the team around.

    To tell me now to start performing miracles by winning matches otherwise you resign if you don’t win this. I don’t think Guardiola or Morinho will do that? My job is cut out for me and it is a lot of work. I look at it as a difficult task but I cannot succeed if we are antagonising ourselves.”

  • Job creation beyond lip service

    Speaking at the 11th Benson Idahosa University convocation in July, former president Olusegun Obasanjo advised that the nation has to reverse the trend of unemployment by “empowering the youth with skills and taking them off the yoke of the unemployed.”

    Interestingly, it was exactly a week after President Muhammadu Buhari was quoted as saying: “We will no longer allow our markets to be flooded with things we can produce ourselves. We must believe in our system. Whenever you need my intervention at anytime, please come to me.” President Buhari was speaking to the Permanent Secretary, Abdulkadir Musa, and senior officials of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment. Also, Buhari said with its focus on job creation, his government was ready to do whatever it considers necessary to boost domestic manufacturing and industrialisation.  Buhari said: “So, we will shun all anti-development policies, and make the climate more suitable for entrepreneurs. We will create the environment for them to thrive. Generating employment was one of our key campaign promises and we will keep that promise”.

    While there seems to be a consensus on the need to teach Entrepreneurship in the formal schools as one of the strategies to create employment, little is done to practically and effectively achieve this. While there seems to be more emphasis and energy on the ‘hardware’ of infrastructure needs by entrepreneurial endeavour, the actual ‘software’ that will make more Nigerians willingly (my emphasis on ‘actual willingness’) embrace entrepreneurship with their heart and soul seems to remain unaddressed –  or is, at best, not yielding noticeable result.

    Consequently, I suggest the following steps must be urgently implemented: Firstly, public office holders must identify with fledgling business owners/entrepreneurs in their constituencies and tacitly endorse made-in-Nigeria service/product through visits to the entrepreneurs’ business premises. This will serve as a form of motivation to these entrepreneurs grabbling with a lot of discouraging factors and help stimulate patronage for such businesses as people will love to patronise such businesses on the strength of such endorsements. In turn, business owners will work hard not to lower quality of service in order to live up to such endorsements. I commend and recommend to other political leaders, the personal example set by the current governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, who has personally attended the launch of a few startups like a new school recently set up in Lekki and a hotel on the mainland. He should keep it up and extend such visits to other sectors like the printer in Shomolu, the fish farmer in Epe, the Cane village in Mende etc.

    Secondly, most Nigerian formal educational institutions are presently teaching entrepreneurship without a comprehensive business opportunity handbook that adequately compiles the thousands of local and international business opportunities like it is done in most nations that have successfully got more of their citizens to start and run their own businesses. The scope of entrepreneurial education for most Nigerian undergraduates  is restricted to the knowledge of the few popular business ideas commonly executed in Nigeria and most of them are not even aware that there is a Nigerian-published comprehensive business opportunity handbook that contains thousands of business ideas, summary of how to execute each idea, contacts of credible local and international funding sources, sample business plans and business plan templates, marketing tips and so much more valuable practical business information. Consequently, most undergraduates are not sufficiently exposed to the limitless benefit of a business opportunity handbook. To reverse this trend, schools should take a cue from what’s being done in Covenant University, Ota, which has integrated entrepreneurship education into its academic programme and gone an extra length to provide its students access to the mobile app of a popular business opportunity handbook. The uniqueness is that this mobile application is regularly updated with new business ideas, funding sources, business contacts etc. at no extra cost even after leaving the university.  Such a laudable programme and initiative should be extended to all schools all over the federation.

    Thirdly, the media has a critical role in giving enough exposure to Nigerian entrepreneurs to serve as motivation for aspiring entrepreneurs. Most Nigerian media houses, especially those in the online, print and electronic categories are guilty of a discouraging practice of having the same advert cost regime for large corporate organisations and small/ medium scale business owners and startups. Perhaps, by no fault of the media organisations, the cost of acquiring media leverage by Nigerian startups for their goods and services is presently to the disadvantage of such category of Nigerian entrepreneurs’ potential marketing gains and brand penetration. The ultimate loser is the society in terms of job creation and the media itself, which in the long run may lose patronage from struggling entrepreneurs who eventually turn out successful.

    To address this concern, media organisations should provide special advertising price packages for the Nigerian small or medium business owners either through individual or trade group mutual partnership arrangement or outright discount incentives.  Influential organisations like National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Nigerian Guild of Editors(NGE), Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON),Nigeria Union of Journalists(NUJ) and Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria(NPAN) can facilitate such partnerships. Furthermore, the media should do more to extol the merits of self-employment and the small firm as a vehicle for self-fulfillment, economic rejuvenation and employment generation.

    Finally, the small and medium enterprise economy relates to the large corporations and public sector sub-economies in a variety of ways. The real economic implications of the present Forex squeeze and tactical banning of 40 imported items by the Federal Government are yet to be fully understood even by most stakeholders and the government. The general theoretical assumption that these policies will automatically benefit the Nigerian entrepreneur as it is expected that more indigenous made-in-Nigeria products will be patronised will prove to be unrealistic unless the new government chooses to act differently.   The immediate beneficiaries of this policy are the smugglers and corrupt customs/immigration officers because the demand for such imported products will result in their scarcity and fuel increase in such commodities’ prices which will in turn serve as incentives to the smugglers. Within a week of this policy, the unofficial price of forex in the parallel market has spiralled out of control, further increasing the pressure on the depreciating naira. Also, within a week, the price of frozen chicken (one of the 40 items removed from the import list) has surged from N750 per kilogram to N1100 per kilogram, an equivalent of approximately 50 per cent increase.

    Yet these are the same imported poultry products, not those supplied by the Nigerian poultry farmer-entrepreneur. Except the government moves in immediately, this policy will not translate into economic benefits for the Nigerian entrepreneur. Government should immediately meet with the large corporations, wholesale importers, mega superstores and trade associations to track the sourcing of these ‘banned’ items by the big players, address their genuine fears and give incentives to large corporations that will genuinely abide by this policy by patronising local producers and suppliers of these items. The media should also help to report progress made in this regard. No doubt, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will need to investigate and possibly prosecute corporate players that may want to support smuggling or sabotage this policy.

     

    • Vaughan is the host of Biz Lifelines on Lagos-based Inspiration FM and Radio Continental.
  • In need of a job? Try soap making

    In need of a job? Try soap making

     

    Have you been thinking about getting a job? There are opportunities in soap making. OLUWAKEMI DAUDA, in this report, provides an insight into them.


    D    ISH washing liquid soap business is very lucra-tive and re-quires little start-up capital. So, for those looking for jobs it is an option. Findings revealed that liquid soap making does not require special skills or huge capital to start. It can be started on a small scale. There are lots of ways to market your products to earn an income.

     

    How to tap into the

    opportunity

    Owning (running) a soap business (liquid or bar) needs courage and perseverance.You have to  be resilient and possess‘I can do it’ spirit, resistance to failure, undying enthusiasm for your products and a driving passion. You must be ready to dedicate most of your time to the job to get the business off the ground.

     

    Liquid soap making

    Liquid soap is on high demand in the country as many prefer to use it to wash cloth and kitchen utensils. This is because it requires less energy. It is a good job one  can venture into with less capital and start making huge money within a few months.

     

    The process

    The process of making  liquid soap is the same as that of solid soap. The only difference is that it comes out  in liquid form. One essential raw material  is water. The quantity of water required for production of a given volume of detergent is high. It is necessary to have a good source of water supply when you want to venture into liquid soap production. The requirements for liquid soap production include a mixing bowl, buckets, hand glove, wooden spoon, container and good quantity of water.

    Also, you need some money to buy some components such as Nitrosol/Antisol, sulphonic acid, caustic soda, soda ash, texapon, formaline (optional),  perfume (fragrance) as desired. Sodium laurite sulphate (SLS), tripoyphosphate (S.T.P.P) and you will need to put colourant of choice to make it look attractive after mixing the elements required.

     

    Preparation

    A liquid soap producer, Mrs. Kikelomo Olufowobi, said you need to get Nitrosol, which has already  dissolved in water or the C.M.C that has been dissolved for two days to the preparation of the liquid soap. Add the dissolved sulphuric acid, texapon and perfume to either Nitrosol or C.M.C, depending on the one chosen and stir very well. Add the already dissolved caustic soda and stir very well. Add the already dissolved soda ash and stir  properly. Add formalin to the content and stir properly, then add the dissolved S.T.P.P,  stir and add the dissolved SLS to the content.

    Thereafter, dissolve the colourant in water and ensure that it is completely done, then add it to the solution and stir thoroughly. Add some quantity of water  to the mixture, depending on the thickness of the mixture. Leave the mixture for some hours or the following day and then package it for use and sale.

    “Most of the raw materials for bar soap are like that of liquid soap and are chemical in nature. Some of the basic raw materials needed include caustic soda, soda ash, silicate, calcium, palm kernel oil (PKO) and perfume,” she said.

    Another liquid soap producer, Mrs. Medinat Abiodun, said a prospective soap maker can start the business with N50,000. “You can start in your house; you can do it in your kitchen pending when you will get a place. There is nothing as good as having a job to do, especially one that does not cost much to begin in terms of initial capital,” she said.

    She continued: “I learnt the art of liquid soap making from a friend. It took me less than two months. Having understood the art of making a good liquid soap that can meet people’s needs and the requisite marketing skills, I decided to raise N30,000 to start my own job that will give me money almost every day. Today, I am doing very fine, and I am happy doing it. I’m making money to take care of myself and my children.

    “I started my soap business about four years ago. After much hard work, we now sell in many of the markets in Lagos and Ogun States. I made big mistakes along the way, especially at the beginning stages, which I have since overcome through dedication and prayers. One of the mistakes I made  was to take advice from too many people.

    “When you seek advice from too many people, before you know it, you lose focus. The best advice I can give for starting out is to slow down, do your research, and plan  very well. When you have your focus, then you can start buying more supplies and ingredients.

    “Some of the key qualities for a great entrepreneur are creativity, vision, confidence, can-do attitude, fearlessness, business savvies, and the ability to be a multi-tasker.”

    Running a soap business is not for the faint of heart. You will need a fire in your belly, resistance to failure, undying enthusiasm for your products and business, and a driving passion. Again, you must be ready to dedicate most of your free time to the business to get it off ground.

    “A good rule of thumb in your initial months of  operation is to buy only what you are going to use for one or few months. You must also note that if you are going to be wholesaling your soaps, that price will be half of your retail cost.

    “Note that marketing and sales initiatives rank just as high as your soap making efforts. They work hand-in-hand. Successful marketing and sales results, allow you to make more soap for your customers,” she said.

     

    Usage

    “It can be used as a souvenir at weddings and birthday parties. You can drop it at supermarkets and grocery stores around you. You can supply  restaurants and eateries. You can also supply bars and cool joint owners. You can even supply  guest houses and hotels around you,” Abiodun said.

    “To boost your income, you can organise training workshops for people, who might be interested in learning the skills,” she added.

    Findings revealed that liquid soap is fast gaining grounds for laundry and dish washing. It has several advantages over soaps and detergents hence, its preference for laundry and dish washing.

     

    The market

    This business is viable because many people now use liquid soap on a daily basis. Also, findings revealed that the market is not yet saturated and can never be saturated. This is because of the simple fact that people will never stop washing their dishes and doing their laundry. In other words, the demand for the liquid soap or any other type of washing detergent can only increase and never decrease because people  must  wash.

     

    Challenges

    A  beginner, who chooses to use a domestic location must be very vigilant and cautious, particularly where he keeps the chemicals as “most of them are corrosive.”

     

  • 12 jostle for Ekiti varsity VC job

    12 jostle for Ekiti varsity VC job

    No fewer than 12 candidates have applied for the post of the Vice Chancellor of the Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado Ekiti which becomes vacant in four months time.

    Incumbent Vice Chancellor, Prof. Patrick Oladipo Aina, is expected to vacate office on December 2 when he would have completed a five-year non-renewable term.

    Aina, a professor of Soil Physics, is credited with massive infrastructural development, execution of reforms which has repositioned the university and better welfare for staff and students, among others.

    He was a senior academic at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile- Ife before he became EKSU Vice Chancellor.

    EKSU Registrar, Emmanuel Ogunyemi, confirmed to The Nation yesterday that 12 candidates were interested in the office of the Vice Chancellor, but he declined to give their names.

    Ogunyemi, who is also the Secretary to the Senate and the Governing Council, disclosed that filing of applications has since closed while candidates will be interviewed in October.

    Inside sources told our correspondent that out of the 12 candidates who beat the deadline for submission, six are senior academics in the university while the rest six are from other universities around the country.

    The Nation gathered that candidates have been lobbying powerful individuals, including politicians, council members and other people that matter in pushing their case.

    Expected to play key roles in the emergence of a new VC are the Visitor, Governor Ayo Fayose and Chairman of the Governing Council who is also the immediate past Minister of State (Works), Prince Dayo Adeyeye.

    In the race for the EKSU VC job are former Vice Chancellor of the defunct University of Science and Technology, Ifaki (USTI), Prof. Oye Bandele; Prof. Joel Adegun, former EKSU Deputy Vice Chancellor (Development) and Prof. Gbenga Aribisala; former EKSU Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic).

    Other EKSU senior academics gunning for the plum job are Prof. Samuel Ashaolu, former Dean of Faculty of Science; Prof. Adeolu Ibijola of Mathematical Sciences Department and Prof. Joshua Kayode.

    The identity of the six applicants from other universities could not be ascertained at press time, but a strong lobby was being intensified to ensure that one of the ‘insiders’ got the job.

    A source said: “The candidates are expected to face the interview panel in October and it will involve the Governing Council, the Senate and members of the congregation.

    “The papers of the applicants are being scrutinised while for the outsiders, visits are being paid to the universities where they had worked in the past.

    “The search party is already on the field and this is one of the measures to ensure that the process is credible and transparent.”

  • COTE D’ IVOIRE JOB: Keshi faces axe

    COTE D’ IVOIRE JOB: Keshi faces axe

    •To get query today
    •Meets with disciplinary body on Wednesday
    •NFF bigwigs laugh off agent’s excuse

    The biggest test for the termination clauses in Stephen Keshi’s new contract with Nigeria will occur from today when the Big Boss is expected to receive a query from his employers over the vacant Cote d’ Ivoire job.

    SportingLife gathered from those who should know at The Glass House in Abuja, that Keshi will meet with members of the body’s disciplinary committee to explain how his name was listed among those angling for the vacant Cote d’ Ivoire job, in spite of the fact that he has a subsisting contract with the federation which he sealed in April.

    SportingLife scooped that Keshi contacted Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President, Pinnick Amaju, to prove his innocence on the matter, but the President informed the coach that the matter would be dealt with by the appropriate body, insisting that the Big Boss should present his alibi to the committee when it sits on Wednesday, in Abuja.

    When SportingLife contacted another NFF top brass (name witheld) with the excuse by the coach that his agent could have been responsible for the submission of his Curriculum Vitae (CV) which the Ivoiren FA released to the world’s press on Friday evening, the NFF chief said: “Hahaha. Does his manager not know that he has a two-year contract with Nigeria? Or did he not manage him at the time he was entering the contract with Nigeria? Make we hear word jare!”

    It remains to be seen how Keshi wriggles out of this mess with his defence. Words were rife that the verdict on the matter could be made public on Thursday, but that seems farfetched since the disciplinary body must submit its decsions to the executive board before any decsion can be taken.

    Keshi has been named amongst the 59 candidates hoping to succeed Herve Renard, who departed the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations champions last month to return to club management with Lille.

  • APC governorship candidate urged to allow tribunal do its job

    A group, the Southern Taraba Forum for a Just Society (STFJS), yesterday urged the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Taraba State, Senator Aisha Jummai Alhassan, to allow the election petitions tribunal do its job.

    Its Coordinator, Mr. Caleb Agyu and Secretary, Hajiya Talatu Ibrahim, a lawyer, accused Senator Alhassan of “talking too much” on the election result, “instead of allowing the tribunal to do its job.”

    Darius Dickson Ishaku of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) defeated Alhassan, the only woman candidate in the governorship election, in 10 local governments, with 369,318 votes.

    The APC standard-bearer trailed the former Niger Delta Affairs minister with 275,984 votes, got from six councils.

    She petitioned the tribunal, suing Ishaku, the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for rigging. She accused security agents of being partisan.

    Senator Alhassan has been calling for the cancellation of the election. She said a fresh poll should be held.

    Agyu and Ibrahim at a news conference in Jalingo said: “Alhassan’s utterances in public portend disrespect for lawyers and law, her profession.”

    The forum reminded her that she once won the Northern Taraba Senatorial Election on the platform of the PDP when she defeated her political godfather, former Governor Jolly Nyame, who later challenged, without success, her victory in  court.

    Agyu said: “In 2011 Alhassan won a senatorial election on PDP’s platform because the party was accepted by the people. Today, Ishaku is governor because of PDP’s popularity in Taraba.”

    The body urged Governor Ishaku not to be distracted, but should remain focused in the discharge of his duties.

     

  • Need job? Try haulage supply chain

    Are you an employee or retiree, who needs a business that will give you steady income? Do you know how to drive or how to efficiently manage goods transportation from one point to the other? It doesn’t matter whether you own a vehicle or not, try the haulage and logistics supply job. It is lucrative reports Oluwakemi Dauda.

    In every state of the country, bulk goods (raw and finished goods) are al-ways transported from the ports to the industries,  markets and end-users. No matter the situation, the activity of moving raw or refined goods from one location to the other will continue. In Nigeria, transportation by road is common and this has made the haulage job very lucrative.

    If you have just left school or you are looking for what to do, you may go into this business to start life by offering to transport goods for people from one area to the other. You can start by hiring someone’s truck if you don’t own one.

    Some of the products that can be transported through haulage services are containers from the seaport to their final destinations or vice versa. You can also deal in petroleum products such as kerosene, liquefied natural gas (LNG), premium motor spirit (PMS) or petrol, engine oil, diesel, and other related petroleum products.

    Others are consumable goods such as foods and drinks from their manufacturers to distributors or retailers. Sand and stones from dredging and quarry sites can also be moved to construction sites.

    Other items that you can use your vehicle to move include building materials such as cement, woods, irons, ceiling boards, corrugated iron sheets and every other construction materials. Raw materials including agro produce can also be moved from plantations and farms to manufacturing firms for production of various consumables.

    The returns on haulage business are enormous, but the return depends on what you use your truck to haul.

    Haulage means the transportation of goods from one location to the other by a competent driver.

    Road haulage is clearly a big job with many and varied opportunities for whoever is interested in it.

    How to start

    Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) President, Prince Olayiwola Shittu, said if you choose to move containers out of the ports or petroleum products, what you need is a trailer or petroleum tanker.

    “You need to register with the company you intend to work with or work as a sub-contractor with an already registered company. But if you want to go into building materials haulage such as sand, cement and granite from quarries to construction sites, what you would need is a tipper or a lorry,” he said.

    Your start-up capital, Shittu said, depends on your savings and the size of the fleet you intend to own. But a vehicle, Shittu said, is enough for you to key into the job.

    “Are you going to buy new trucks or used trucks? There are two ways with which you can get your trucks; you can either purchase them outright or get them on lease. Another option is to look for sub-contractors.

    “The trucking job is very wide and to succeed in it, you must carve a niche for yourself. There are different niches in haulage business and the niche you choose would determine the type of vehicles you would need and your start-up costs.

    “For instance, will you be engaged in transporting bulk goods or would you be leasing trucks to industries in the transport sector?

    “You also need to be sure if you are going to outsource your truck to a trucking company or decide to put your truck on hired purchase.

    “Other questions you need to ask yourself is whether you are going to haul short or long distance. Are you going to haul solid or liquid goods?

    “If you need the job, these are the questions you must provide answers to before setting out to start your own trucking business,” Shittu said.

    A good driver plays an important role in the distribution of goods and services. Efficient driver is also essential in the supply chain logistics.

    One interesting fact about the job is that if you have a functional vehicle and you embark on haulage, all you need to do is sit back and wait for your monthly earning, which can be up to N100,000 depending on the type, age and tonnage of your truck and the number of vehicles you have in your fleet.

    As a driver, you must know the type of goods you are planning to transport? Are you going to haul durable goods or perishable goods? Eevery type of freighting business has its set of requirements, so it would be best that you decide on this before you can do the job. The type of cargo you will be able to carry will determine the type of clients you will work with.

    Mr. Tayo Arogundade, who ventured into the haulage business, said the job is profitable, but filled with a lot of risks and challenges.

    “You need a strong mind and determination to do the job successfully. You must be prepared to deal with dishonest drivers if you are not going to do the driving yourself. Shady mechanics, accidents and all sorts of challenges that certainly will come up at some points while doing the job.

    “Haulage is filled with  risks. You would be carrying expensive merchandise, which do not belong to you and would have to be conveyed to its destination safely. “Considering the fact that you would be traveling over long distances to deliver these goods; it is impossible to predict the things that may or may not happen along the way.

    “Sometimes accidents may occur, cases of theft may arise, dishonest drivers may even divert the goods elsewhere and this will give the owner of the truck problem,”  Arogundade said.

     

  • SUPER EAGLES JOB: Plot to stop Keshi thickens

    SUPER EAGLES JOB: Plot to stop Keshi thickens

    • Some members vow to announce Big Boss’ replacement if…
    • Monday or Tuesday meeting cancelled
    • No further discussion with out-of-contract coach

    The last has not been heard about the quest of former Mali and Togo senior teams’ chief coach, Stephen Keshi to retain his job as the Super Eagles’ tactician for another two years.

    SportingLife gathered from those who should know at the Glass House on Sunday that some Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) members are miffed that the federation’s president, Melvin Amaju Pinnick could constitute a three-man panel to negotiate a deal with Keshi, despite his abysmal failure with the Eagles at the qualification matches for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which the Elephants  of Cote d’ Ivoire won in Equatorial Guinea.

    SportingLife scooped that many members are waiting for the board’s next executive meeting – tentatively slated for Thursday – to tell the president their views on the matter, with words rife that they would outrightly reject Keshi’s return to the Super Eagles on grounds of a controversial interview where he described Pinnick as a liar for mis-informing Nigerians about the purported unpaid two months’ salaries.

    Besides, the members would draw the president’s attention to the unannimous verdicts by the members of the Sports Committee in the House of Representatives and the Senate urging the NFF not to renew Keshi’s contract having failed to qualify Nigeria for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

    These members have vowed to announce a new Super Eagles coach if the NFF is cajoled by anyone to keep Keshi on the job, having witnessed how Siasia was sacked for not qualifying Nigeria for the 2012 AFCON amongst other failed coaches who lost their jobs in the past.

    Interestingly, the earlier slated Monday (today) or Tuesday’s meeting with Keshi, his manager and lawyer in Abuja, has been cancelled forthwith.

    Instead, a source close to the three-man panel revealed that Keshi would be presented with another contractual terms where he either takes it or rejects it. In fact, a member of the panel appealed to the media not to heat up the polity with the Keshi saga, insisting that the NFF would announce a new Super Eagles chief coach at the appropriate time.