The Nation Newspaper

Tag: loss

  • Rivers Utd’s coach lowers target after Sunshine loss

    Rivers Utd’s coach lowers target after Sunshine loss

    Rivers United coach, Stanley Eguma has now said he will be happy to clinch a ticket to play international football for the Port Harcourt club after they lost 1-0 at Sunshine Stars.

    “We must work hard and try to win the title or at the very least, get a ticket to represent Nigeria on the continent next season,” Eguma said after the match in Akure.

    “It was a good game and we prepared very hard to win as a good result would have helped our position on the log.

    “We have lost now and must look ahead because the league is getting tougher now.

    The defeat left United in third place on the table with 44 points, three points behind Wikki Tourists and Enugu Rangers who have both played a game more (27 matches as opposed to 26 played by United).

    Dele Olorundare produced a moment of magic, four minutes before half time, to shoot Sunshine Stars past Rivers United.

    The implications of securing maximum points were not lost on  Sunshine Stars coach, Solomon Ogbeide, who lavished praise on the vanquished opponents.

    “We played a very good side. They are tactically very disciplined but we are also a very good side,” he said.

    “They are where they are today on the table not by fluke but proved that they deserve to be there but we are also a very good side.”

  • Trade deficit: More job loss likely in banks

    Trade deficit: More job loss likely in banks

    Twenty Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) are expected to fire at least 10,000 out of their estimated 110,000 workers before the year-ends, The Nation has learnt.

    This becomes exigent as the impact of trade balance deficit recorded in the first quarter of this year begins to hurt the economy.

    The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said foreign trade statistics for the first quarter showed that merchandise trade, the sum of visible import and export goods, plunged by 38 per cent year-on-year from N4.4 trillion last year to N2.7 trillion.

    The figure represents the latest in the series of negative economic indicators published by the Bureau in recent time. Total trade declined by N793.5 billion or 22.6 per cent on a quarter on quarter (Q-o-Q) basis compared to N3.5 trillion in December last year as import and export for the period touched the lowest in 13 quarters.

    Internal sources within the banks said the lenders are downsizing, following rising difficult operating environment, decline in operational output of most companies, which has led to the decline in their transaction turnover, rising cost of overheads and tough policies from regulators.

    The source said a large part of the workforce to be axed will come mid-tier lenders, which have been badly hit by the tough regulatory polices of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and losses incurred by overexposure to oil and gas loans.

    Already, Ecobank Nigeria Limited, last week fired 1,040 out of its over 9,000 workers over poor performance. First City Monument Bank Limited (FCMB) Limited and Diamond Bank Plc had earlier sacked combined 400 workers even as more banks are expected to follow suit in the coming weeks, or months. The massive workforce disengagement affected almost all cadres of the three lenders’ workforce.

    Regulatory pressures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) including the ongoing implementation of the zero Commission on Turnover (CoT) fees, increase in contribution to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) levies as well as high Cash Reserve Ratios (CRRs) are key policies depleting banks’ revenue bases.

    The 20 commercial banks are expected to lose over N100 billion annually to the zero COT policy; N140 billion to the AMCON levy, which has been increased from 0.3 per cent of banks’ total assets to 0.5 per cent and nearly N50 billion to the NDIC levy.

    Report from Afrinvest West Africa said more disturbing is the fact that the economy recorded the first negative trade balance since 2013 as crude oil export with average of  75.6 per cent contribution to total exports in the last three years slowed to 64.7 per cent. Oil export tumbled 50.9 per cent Y-o-Y and 46.6 e Q-o-Q to N821.9 billion in March this year. The weakening external sector performance as indicated in the numbers above is consistent with March 2016 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth and unemployment figures published by the NBS recently, indicating that the economy contracted by 0.4 per cent while unemployment rate increased to 12.1 per cent in the same period.

    Despite the government’s determination to diversify the revenue base of the economy, crude oil export continued to account for over 70 per cent of total merchandise export in the last 12 months.

    Within the first quarter, petroleum and oil related items accounted for 82.8 per cent of total export, followed by raw cocoa and cocoa related items with 3.6 per cent while other item accounted for 13.6 per cent.

  • Investors face N18b loss as NSE delists eight companies

    nvestors in eight companies delisted last week by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) stand to lose about N18 billion as the delisting closed the regular window to unlock the values of their shareholdings.

    In a mass weeding that cut across many sectors, the NSE delisted eight companies including IPWA Plc, G.  Cappa Plc, West African Glass Industries Plc (WAGI), Investment & Allied Insurance Plc, ALUMACO Plc, Jos International Breweries Plc, Adswitch Plc and Rokanna Plc.

    The companies, valued at N17.8 billion, were delisted under the compulsory delisting mechanism of the Exchange. While the delisted companies could seek direct and indirect trading of their shares on the over-the-counter (OTC) market, NASD, the nascent OTC market lacks the comparative liquidity and regularity of the NSE.

    The Nation’s check indicated that at the point of delisting IPWA Plc was valued at N257.07 million; G.  Cappa Plc, N1.81 billion; West African Glass Industries Plc (WAGI), N131.43 million; Investment & Allied Insurance Plc, N14 billion; ALUMACO Plc, N557.20 million; Jos International Breweries Plc, N809.28 million; Adswitch Plc, N203.76 million while Rokanna Plc was valued at N30 million.

    It was exclusively reported by The Nation that quotation committee of the council of the NSE, which presides over listing and delisting, had approved the delisting of the companies.

    It was further reported that the national council of the NSE has approved the delisting of 17 companies. A total of 18 companies have been slated for delisting including 17 companies that have been earmarked for compulsory delisting and a company that had opted for voluntary delisting over its inability to comply with listing requirements.

    The Nation’s check had indicated that the delisting will shave of more than N33 billion from the market capitalisation of the Exchange, implying direct loss of similar value to investors who may not be able to unlock such value in the absence of a regular stock exchange.

    With the delisting, other companies on final delisting process included Navitus Energy Plc, formerly Union Ventures & Petroleum Plc; International Energy Insurance, Costain (West Africa) Plc, Lennards (Nigeria) Plc, Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc, Evans Medical Plc, P.S Mandrides & Company Plc, Nigerian Ropes Plc and Premier Breweries Plc.

     

  • Profit-taking pushes equities to N51b loss

    After three consecutive positive trading sessions, Nigerian equities suffered a relapse yesterday as investors sought to take profit on many highly capitalised stocks that had driven the recent rallies.

    While the underlying sentiments remained positive with more gainers than losers, losses suffered by the highly capitalised stocks coloured the overall market position. The two main common indices at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) indicated average decline of 0.58 per cent, equivalent to a loss of N51 billion after the close of trading.

    The All Share Index (ASI)-the common index that tracks prices of all quoted equities, declined from its opening index of 25,865.50 points to close at 25,715.42 points, representing a day-on-day decline of 0.58 per cent.

    Aggregate market capitalization of all quoted equities dropped from N8.897 trillion to close at N8.846 trillion, indicating a loss of N51 billion. Expectedly, the losses by the highly capitalised stocks also weighed on the sectoral indices. The NSE Banking Index dropped by 1.0 per cent. The NSE Oil & Gas Index also declined by 0.6 per cent while the NSE Industrial Goods Index and NSE Insurance Index slipped by 0.1 per cent each. However, the NSE Consumer Goods Index rose by 0.2 per cent.

    There were 26 gainers to 19 losers. Analysts at FSDH Securities, Cowry Asset Management and Afrinvest Securities agreed that the negative overall market position was due to profit-taking on the leading stocks. The major losers included Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, which dropped by 5.2 per cent; Forte Oil, which dropped by 1.8 per cent; Dangote Cement, which lost 1.5 per cent; PZ Cussons Nigeria, which declined by 5.0 per cent and Fidson Healthcare, which lost 4.9 per cent..

    Total turnover was above recent average with the exchange of 330.56 million shares valued at N2.26 billion in 4,053 deals. Banking stocks continued to dominate activities chart. The three most active stocks were FBN Holdings, with 117 million shares; United Bank for Africa, 33.19 million shares and Fidelity Bank, with 32.83 billion shares.

    “Today’s performance was broadly driven by profit taking which may be sustained tomorrow in the absence of any market moving news flow, however we expect a positive close for the week,” Afrinvest Securities stated.

     

  • How to deal with weight loss

    HELLO Harriet, I am really impressed with your column. Please, I want you to counsel me on what to do on an important matter. I am 42 years old, married with children.

    Here is my issue: My relationship with my husband is deteriorating by the day because of my weight. He has made this clear to me. I have been consoling myself with one excuse or the other.

     I am tired of my weight-loss programme. I love my husband, and I don’t want my weight to be an issue in our relationship. Help me.

    Mrs  Adewale, Lagos.

     

    Thanks for sharing your problem with us. The issue of weight is a very sensitive one.  Some people look at it and do something about it, while others do not want it mentioned at all. The fact that you are aware of your weight and have made up your mind to do something about it is a good step.

    I must commend you on that. You are very lucky to have a husband who is sincere about what he wants in his wife because some men will not discuss it. Instead, they will start acting in different ways. Others go as far as picking up quarrels all the time, even when there is nothing to quarrel about. Don’t forget that one man’s meat is another man’s poison  some men like their wives big, while some like their wives slim.

    However, healthy living is the solution to the problem stated above. Therefore, you will have to change your diet not for a period of time, but for life. So, you need to see this process as a lifestyle change. It is important to have a planned meal, knowing what to eat, how to eat and when to eat.

    Healthy diet doesn’t seem to make as much impact on us as the habits we’ve grown up with. For example, how many of us ate yoghurt when we were children? Probably the only spaghetti most of us ate in the past came out of tins.

    A meal wasn’t a meal, if it didn’t have a centrepiece of meat followed by chilled drinks. Today, it is different. We have broadened our taste buds in the last few years- so the next step should be to make further changes to our eating habit in order to change the proportions of different nutrients, giving us healthier balance. Healthy eating should not be difficult to achieve, especially as there are now many nutritious meals to choose from. There are some helpful guidelines you can follow with confidence.

    Set realistic goals and targets: Let your goals and targets be realistic. Remember you did not gain the weight in one day, so it’s going to take a while for you to shed off the weight.

    Major overhaul to your meals which involves drastic cutbacks or punishing regimes will not work. You are more likely to stick to gradual changes.  Frankly, highly restricted diets which involve you going without certain groups of foods can even be harmful, unless you do so under the supervision of a professional.

    Moreover, stick to two or three moderately sized meals each day, rather than semi-starving yourself for much of the day and having one mega-sized meal to compensate. This is because your digestive system works better on a regular supply of food.

    Snacking in between meals is fine provided you make your snack healthy. For example, a piece of fruit or raw vegetable which provides proportionate vitamins, minerals and fibre will do.

    Furthermore, increase your intake of unrefined cereals (whole meal bread, pasta and rice)

    Don’t forget to reduce your intake of saturated fats (the fats mainly found in animal-origin products)

    Aim to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables each day.

    Your programme is incomplete if you don’t add exercise to it. One of the best ways to keep healthy and keep your weight down is to get regular exercise. You need activity to make it work. Remember you don’t have to do anything too difficult.

    A lot of things you do for fun are great exercise, like dancing, swimming or going for brisk walks.  Short periods of exercise several times a week will do you better than a fortnight’s inactivity punctuated by a single exhausting afternoon. Aim to get to the stage where you miss exercising, if you’re prevented from doing it for more than a few days.

    You can actually exercise on your own or register with a gym. If it helps, have a fixed time and date marked in your diary. Remember you are what you eat, so good luck, as you turn to a healthy lifestyle for yourself and for your marriage.

     

    Harriet Ogbobine is a counsellor and a motivational speaker. Send your questions and suggestions to her on bineharriet@gmail.com or txt message only 08054682598. You can also follow her on twitter: @bineharrietj

  • Reps to probe NNPC over N350b revenue loss

    Reps to probe NNPC over N350b revenue loss

    The House of Representatives is  to investigate a N350billion revenue loss incurred by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) within eight months last year.

    The Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), has also been mandated to audit oil and gas infrastructure in Nigeria to ascertain the status of the equipment and techniques.

    This followed the adoption of a motion  by Abubakar Amuda-Kannike (APC, Kwara), who regretted that oil spillages have led to  health issues, including breathing problems and skin diseases for people in the affected areas.

    Besides,  a major reason for the spillages in Nigeria is that many of the country’s oil firms used obsolete and inadequate infrastructure to channel and distribute petroleum products in the country, he noted.

    Amuda-Kannike said it should be of great concern to Nigerians the report of the Institute for Global Energy Research that the oil exploration equipment of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in Nigeria was over 40 years old as against the permissible life span of 25 years.

    In addition, he explained that a percentage analysis of causes of oil spills established by the same institute showed that corrosion of pipes and tankers accounted for 50 per cent of oil spills.

    While sabotage accounts for 28 per cent, oil production operations account for 21 per cent and inadequate or non functional production equipment is put as one per cent, he added.

    He said: “One is concerned that most of the government’s efforts to address these issues were curative rather than preventive, such as establishment of regulatory agencies like the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA), all of which have resulted in addressing the effects while doing little to be proactive enough in preventing the causes of oil spillages.

    He said: “As part of the strategy of reducing the adverse effects of the activities of the oil majors in Nigeria, old and obsolete infrastructure as well as old habits of doing things must give way to modern techniques and procedure.”

    On the investigation of the N350billion loss, the House said  87 per cent  of the loss was incurred by Pipeline Products Marketing Company (PPMC), the distribution arm of NNPC.

    Sponsor of the motion, Toby Okechukwu (PDP, Enugu), while justifying the need for the investigation said NNPC crude oil and products distribution pipeline network covers 5,120 kilometers, 21 distribution depots, 9 liquified petroleum gas (LPG) depots, pump stations/houses and other ancillary  facilities.

    He said the pipeline distribution network transports crude oil and refined products to and from the refineries, depots and jetties and as a national grid pipeline which transverses over 25 cities including Port Harcourt, Aba, Enugu, Makurdi, Warri, Benin, Auchi, Lokoja, Mosimi, Atlascove, Ejigbo, Ibadan, Ore, Abaji, Suleja, Kaduna, Kano, Gusau, Jos, Gombe, Yola, Maiduguri among others.

    He lamented that non utilisation of the distribution pipelines led to transportation of products through roads, thus resulting in countless incidence of petrol tanker explosions in various parts of the country and heavy tolls on road network.

  • Book lover mourns loss of bookshops

    Book lover mourns loss of bookshops

    A lover of books, Mr Kolawole Oyeyemi, has lamented the gradual disappearance of bookshops in Nigeria.

    Oyeyemi, who is the founder of the Ignite Africa Leadership Foundation, expressed concern over the closure of many bookshops as well as poor reading culture of young Nigerians.

    He spoke at the launch of a multi-level library by the foundation in Lagos.

    The library, which occupies four floors within the Zaeed Mall in Oregun, Ikeja, caters to various categories of readers – from pre-schoolers to professionals.

    The first level, in the basement of the building, stocks books for pre-schoolers, children and teenagers; the second level houses the executive library for the working class; the third level serves as the reading lounge for the young ones during the day, and older readers in the evenings; while the fourth level is a resource centre which boasts of an e-library and a conference room.

    Oyeyemi said he was inspired to start the foundation to stimulate young people’s interest in reading.  He said his father introduced him to books early, which he credited for contributing to his success in life.  Unfortunately, he said not many youths get such opportunity today.

    “My father was a reader and he introduced me to books.  I read Chinua Achebe, Cyprian Ekwensi, many others.  Reading brought me to the same level as people that attended Harvard and other Ivy League schools. I am aware that there are children and young adults in our communities with dreams and aspirations.  The truth is that many of these people are not so sure of the realisation of their dreams for lack of opportunities.  The seeds of these dreams are often found in books,” he said.

    Oyeyemi’s dream is to establish a library in each Local Government Area (LGA).  However, he has faced challenges fulfilling that dream as it is difficult to find enough books locally for the library.

    “It is a tragedy. Bookshops are disappearing.  Bookshops will not take local authors because they said Nigerians don’t read local authors.  A lot of publishers have shut down.  To get Chinua Achebe’s books, we had to buy them from the U.S,” he said.

    Winnie Aduayi, Project Director of the foundation, said the problem of book supply forces them to depend on imports to run the foundation’s ‘Readers ‘R’ Leaders Destiny Project’.

    The project is implemented in some 50 public schools in Lagos and Port Harcourt through book clubs that provide access to literature books for the pupils to read and review.

    Ms Aduayi said that the foundation could not get 10 copies of Achebe’s Things Fall Apart to purchase for the book clubs.

    “Ninety-five per cent of the books stocked in the library are imported.  The books we get from the U.S. are much cheaper than buying in Nigeria,” she said.

    This challenge notwithstanding, Ms Aduayi said the book club project is transforming many pupils who couldn’t read into confident readers.

    “We have seen kids go from nothing to great because we are committed to what we do.  I believe that every club is influencing learning,” she said.

    While access to the library is free for young learners, adults pay to use the executive library, which stocks books on request.

    Ms Aduayi said the library would organise regular programmes to engage various categories of learners.

    “There will be days we will have authors come in to read to young children, aged four and five.  For adults, it will be an evening thing with jazz music in the background.  The resource centre will be available for rent so the library can generate funds,” she said.

    Oyeyemi appealed for financial and material support to help the vision grow and reach more underprivileged Nigerians.

    “I am looking for support.  I need a projector here.  We need books, materials.  Two oranisations are offering us 65,000 books but we need $25,000 to clear them.  If I have 65,000 books, I can get books into every local government area.  If we have more books, we can touch more people,” he said.

     

  • Coping with loss of a loved ones

    HELLO Harriet, I sent you a mail at a time last year which you promised to publish, so that others in similar conditions might learn from your wise counsel. The mail in question was about losing a life partner that was my wife, and since then, I have lost interest in women. Should I start another relationship? Please, help me. Thanks.

    Name withheld, Uyo

     

    Kindly accept our sympathy about the death of your wife; we must commend you for sharing your story so that people who are in the same situation will know how to deal with the challenges of losing a loved one.

    The death of a loved one is very painful and devastating, a lot of difficult emotions come to play. These are normal reactions to a significant loss. Dealing effectively and positively with grief caused by such a loss is based on your recovery process and your ability to continue with, fulfil your own life for the better.  However, there is no right or wrong way to grieve. There are healthy ways to cope with the pain that, in time can renew you and allow you to move on.

    Grief is a natural response to loss, it is basically the emotional suffering you experience when someone close to you dies which is more than your feelings; it will show up in the way you reason. You may be in denial that the person is no more, you might be in a confused state of mind, your thinking muddled. Unable to concentrate on anything might pose as a challenge because all attention is on the beloved that is no more, how he or she died and the life that was shared before the loss.   The more significant the loss, the more intense the grief will be. People grieve differently, and this is simply because our personalities and the way we manage issues differs, for example, some people might mourn their loved one for months, while others take  years.

    The grieving process takes time, while healing is a gradual process. It cannot be forced or hurried, it must take its natural course.  Therefore, whatever emotion you are experiencing, try to understand that it is only natural. So, express yourself the way you feel, provided you don’t harm yourself. If you feel like crying, please do, because crying is a therapy on its own. So don’t hold back. Before we proceed on ways to deal with the loss of a loved one, it will be nice to explain the stages of grief that are common with most people.

    Denial is the first form of emotion that hits the person, refusing to the fact of the loss, with some expectation that the person might just walk in. Slowly the person moves into anger, the feeling of why me, then the blaming attitude. May be if I have done this or that she or he would have lived, or if only I have treated him or her better, and so on.

    Depression, the feeling of sadness and shutting down on the world is also another stage of grief. The bargaining feeling for some people is not left out; a way of trying to strike a deal that will reduce the pain of the grief.

    The stage of acceptance is another that must be mentioned in this aspect, it is the point when the person works through the feelings and conflicts that have arisen and he or she is ready to accept the fact of death. The general effect can be physical and emotional, so the way forward is to take certain steps that might help the healing process; talking about your feelings is a good way to start, you can talk to your support group which can be you family members who are there for you or good friends who are ready to listen to you or a trained counsellor whose job is listen and guide you through the necessary healing process in confidence. Talking will make you feel better as time goes on. Next is to get busy once you are strong enough to handle the death, trust me, the pain of losing a loved one cannot disappear overnight from time to time you will remember the person. There will be flashbacks, but you must learn to occupy yourself. Most importantly, turn to God for solace because he is the only one that can give you inner peace and he knows the reason why he allows it to happen. If you are questioning your faith in the wake of the loss, talk to a clergy member or others in your religious community.  Start reading inspirational books or journals. They will help your healing process. Change of environment might also help some people during the process of recovery in order to move on.  Take up activity of your choice, something you enjoy doing could be sport for example. If there are children involved, you must try to be there for them and the only way you can achieve that is by staying healthy because they look up to you for strength. The aspect of not finding interest in women for now is expected for some people because of what happened to them and their present state of mind which is natural, but with time everything will be fine.  Now, going into a relationship at this time might cut across in two ways; first, if you have not gone through the grieving process, you might not really be going into a relationship for the right reason. Secondly, the issue of comparison will be a great challenge, if not handle properly. Relationship will come. You will find happiness and joy again, if you give yourself time. So, learn to take every day as it comes, trusting God to give you a person that will understand where you have been and where you are going.

    Harriet Ogbobine is a counsellor and a motivational speaker. Send your questions and suggestions to her on bineharriet@gmail.com or txt message only 08054682598. You can also follow her on twitter: @bineharrietj

  • Emir’s death a great loss, says Amosun

    Emir’s death a great loss, says Amosun

    Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun has expressed sadness at the death of the Emir of Borgu Kingdom,  Alhaji Haliru Dantoro, Kitoro III.

    Amosun described the death of the first class emir, one-time senator and former minister as “a great loss not just to Borgu kingdom and Niger State, but to the nation”.

    He said the wise counsel and wealth of experience of the late emir would be greatly missed.

    The governor described the late emir as a thoroughbred politician and seasoned administrator with a pan-Nigerian disposition.

    Amosun said Dantoro was a bridge-builder across the different ethnic groups in Nigeria and a successful businessman as well.

    He commiserated with the Niger State Council of Traditional Rulers, the people of Borgu Emirate Council, members of the family of the late monarch, the people and government of Niger State, praying that “Allah grants the late Emir Aljana Fidau”.

  • One more loss

    Port Harcourt: Present day

    I opened the newspaper and the first headline that screamed at me was: “Senators set for battle over Ihceama”. It was the lead of The Country. The main actor of the story was a good friend of mine. We were close and did so many things together. All that ended as soon as I became a minister. I changed my boss and soon had to change loyalty too. My old boss and the immediate past one quarreled soon after I changed job.

    Madam, my immediate past boss’s wife, was not happy with my old boss. I found myself in a deep blue sea and pitched my tent with my immediate past boss. Call it the game of survival and I had no qualms with that.

    Reading through the story about the dilemma the whole Senate was thrown into over Ihceama, my old boss, made my heart skip. The whole drama was orchestrated by me and was I regretting it? Not really. The petition, the White Paper and other things that made his journey to becoming a minister difficult were all games; of course championed by me.

    He was mean to me at some point; so, I saw nothing wrong in being mean to him too. He was always describing me as corrupt and not refined. He even called me a thug and said I was the commander of the cultists and other bad elements around. He was really mean to me and I had no choice but to give it back to him.

    As I thought through how our relationship went from sweet to sour, the sun peeped in announcing its presence.

    The time was 8:00 a.m. and I was not prepared to go to the office yet; an office I was not sure of not being kicked out of soon.

    My daughter soon walked into the living room where I was reading The Country. We exchanged pleasantries. In no time, she grabbed a novel she had read part of the day before and continued reading. I looked at her and wondered if she was proud of me.

    My mind soon wandered away. With mixed feeling, I floated to the past letting the present take care of itself.

    *********************

    Accra, Ghana: 2007

    The breeze from the poolside of the Labadi Royal Beach that Saturday afternoon was refreshing. There were ladies in different levels of nakedness. Many of them were white who had come to enjoy the sun in mother Africa. The sun was good for tanning.

    I noticed a couple at a corner. Their countenance showed they were not having it good. Perhaps, they were in the beach hotel to see if they could work things out. They reminded me of a film about a couple who returned to the hotel where they met as a way of bringing back the spark. Were they here for the same reason? I had no way of knowing.

    I had just come into Accra to meet Ihceama, a man I believed so much in and was pushing his quest to become governor with all of my heart. He was hibernating in Accra to escape possible attempt on his life. We did not want to give anything to chance while we were in court trying to straighten the ‘k-leg’ that stalled his mission to the Government House.

    It was one of my frequent visits to Accra to brief him on happenings back home. Sitting on a camp bed beside me was Ihceama. After hours of debriefing in the room, we decided to come and savour the breeze by the poolside.

    “Your leadership quality is amazing and it remains the reason I am with you and will remain with you. It matters not that we are age mates; but you are height above many of us when it comes to leadership qualities. You are just amazing and will come out victorious at the Supreme Court,” I told Ihceama.

    The usual humble man that he was, he simply said: “Thank you, thank you.”

    I was quick to add: “I am not saying this because you are here. No, I say this because I believe it, because I have seen you demonstrate leadership qualities I may never be able to demonstrate. I have tried to emulate you, but I have given up because I am simply not built that way. So, to make up for my shortcomings, I will stay around you to give me direction.”

    *********************

    Port Harcourt: Present day

    My daughter soon brought me back to the present when she called my attention to the live transmission of the screening of Ihceama on the television.

    At last, my efforts to stop it had failed. As I was trying to make sense out of my failure this time around, Ihceama’s voice boomed in my ears.

    “The President of the Senate, distinguished senators, I stand here before you with all sense of responsibility to tell you that I am not the man Ekiw is painting me to be. I certainly am not that and he knows. He is just playing politics, dirty politics, and the sort that should be consigned to the dustbin of history.

    “I am a man who believes in the rule of law and that explains why I am always in and out of the courts. Let him allow the court to indict me and I will accept that. But indicting me through the backdoor is not the type I will just accept.

    “As governor, I never fixed contract prices. It was an institutional process. I didn’t award contracts because there was a tenders’ board in place. They did market survey to get the price benchmark for these things. There was a process and we had consultants who checked these things periodically.

    “I am not saying mistakes could not have been made. But, there was no deliberate attempt to shortchange our state as being insinuated. I will be the first to stand with the governor to correct mistakes if discovered. But I repeat, I did nothing to shortchange our people. I am not someone who is interested in rat race. I never was and will never be.”

    I found myself muting the volume of the television at a point. My daughter, who had, by then abandoned the novel she was reading, looked at me and smiled; the sort that suggested she felt I was uncomfortable with Ihceama’s line of thought.

    She soon walked out of the living room without saying a word. I guessed she was retiring to her room to go and continue listening to Ihceama’s submissions before the Senate.

    Seeing him on television irritated me. As he spoke, my mind evoked a vision: I saw fire take over the green chamber, with people running helter and skelter. Some succeeded in getting out but Ihceama was consumed.

    *********************

    Of course, there was no fire in the green chamber and Ihceama was confirmed a minister. I soon switched off the television and found myself wondering why this man always found his way out of tough situations. His confirmation whether I continued to deny it in the public or not, was a setback for me. It had added salt to my injury, especially with the tribunal set to rule on the petition against my election.

    I thought of forgiveness on both parts and moving on, but the situation was so bad and we had both gone too far to call a truce. Things were really so bad, and in my view beyond repair because of several under-currents. But in view of the saying that when you go after someone always and he keeps getting out unscathed, then beat a retreat, reconciliation would have been the best thing. But how?

    I had no answer. So, I smiled, looked up as if expecting God to provide an answer. I got none and simply walked out of the living room, headed to the office and hoping my political end was not here. I was prepared to give it everything it required to ensure there would be no more loss.