The Nation Newspaper

Tag: More

  • Thirty and more

    Thirty and more

    • In spite of airstrikes on illegal refineries, it requires communal effort

    It was good news that the Nigerian Airforce recently knocked out about 30 illegal refineries in the Niger Delta in the Cawthorne Channel and Bille in the Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State.

    According to the Nigeria Armed Forces, those two areas mark the majority of illegal activities in the state. The operation that the NAF reported signify the use of aerial operations, and that indicates a new approach to those who bleed our patrimony with impunity.

    We encourage the intensification of air attacks because it is more clinical and boasts one of the time-honoured strategies of military assaults: surprise. It happened against the backdrop of a visit to the area by the National Security Adviser Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.

    The attacks revealed that what we have in the Niger Delta is a methodical and organized thievery that goes beyond refineries involving persons who show no respect for the law or the prosperity of the country. They are propelled only their own greed.

    The illegal refineries were propped with storage tanks, reservoirs and Cotonou boats. The boats siphon oil from the flow stations. All these were destroyed in the aerial strikes.

    “These efforts will be sustained in these locations and others until oil thieves and their accomplices desist from their illegal activities,” the NAF statement said.

    Oil strikes are not the only strategy, great as they are. They provide quick surgical operations while also utilizing land and marine components.

    Read Also: Demolition: APC will restore sanity to Kano, Ganduje tells business community

    We expect this in all the other states where these illegal activities thrive, including in Delta, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Imo states. Three terminals are known targets, and they are Bonny, Forcados and Brass.

    While the Tinubu administration has stepped up the search and destruction of these illegal refiners, the previous administration of Muhammadu Buhari also played a role in confronting the menace. The Defence department reported that 5,480 such refineries were discovered in eight years and their elimination led to savings of $158 billion. This encompassed over six million barrels of crude oil, 1.2 billion litres of Automotive Dual Purpose Kerosene and three million litres of petrol seized.

    Figures are difficult to determine, but getting accurate numbers is part of the fight for integrity in the oil industry. For instance, a Woods Mackenzie report in 2021 said we lost 200,000 barrels a day. When Ribadu visited the region, he put it at 400,000. Such discrepancies lead us to examine the position of the Nigeria Extractives Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) that recently warned about lack of statistical honesty in handling our most valued resource.

    NEITI suggested some measures. One, the use of advanced technologies, especially imagery and sophisticated ICT tools. The purpose is to enable the country to monitor real-time how the activities in the various centres of operation.

    It also suggested a cooperation between oil firms and the Federal Government to ensure all the tools are utilized in fulfilling the Petroleum Industry Act. This will help communal stake and ownership in the region. NEITI attributed 2021 losses to measurement errors, theft and sabotage.

    This shows that, while the illegal refiners are a major source of theft, it involves other areas including pipeline vandalism, vessels arrests, illegal connections, wooden boats arrests, vehicle-related arrests and oil spills.

    The Buhari administration had its National Security Adviser Babagana Monguno set up a special investigative panel on oil theft/losses and Major-General Barry Ndiomu. We expect that Ribadu and his team would examine that report and make it public and show us its grand plan to tackle oil theft in the country.

    If we lose so much a day, it shows that it is not the armed forces alone that will solve it. It is a communal effort.

  • MORE Academy set to recognise industry best practice

    As part of her commitment to foster rapid development in the housing sector, Mortgage and Real Estate Academy (MORE) Academy, a public private partnership between the Centre for Management Development, a parastatal under the Federal Ministry of Budget and National Planning and Western Atlantic Corporation Limited, is set to host her “First Award of Excellence” for practitioners and professionals in Nigerian Mortgage and Real Estate industry. The event will take place on October 19, 2018.

    The award, according to the Chairman of MORE Academy, Dr. Adejuwon Akinfolurin, is conceptualised to encourage healthy competition and drive for quality housing delivery to meet the huge shortfall in the country’s housing supply need.

    “The country has been facing serious residential housing deficit which is affecting the quality of life and living standard in Nigeria. The Buhari administration has been doing a lot to encourage stakeholders in the industry to enhance their capacity to produce more affordable housing for the populace in order to cut the shortfall. There has also been a lot of improvement in the recent years in the types, quality as well as innovative standards occasioned by technology to deliver better quality housing for Nigerians. As a  support service institution which has a major responsibility to provide the  needed capacity building for the industry, MORE ACADEMY has come up with the first award of excellence for the year to also encourage and promote healthy competition among stakeholders and provide a platform that will motivate  them to  do more for the industry,” Akinfolurin explained.

    According to him, MORE ACADEMY is not just giving out awards, but will also produce for the industry a compendium to celebrate the entire industry. “Our efforts are geared towards providing more opportunities for industry stakeholders to excel and also take advantage of opportunities provided by the institution to train their employees as well as professionals in the Mortgage and Real Estate industry in order to avail themselves of the world class training modules offered by our academy,” he said.

    While assuring that the award will reflect excellence, Akinfolurin said,  “in order to get the best in each category of awards, we have our team of experts who have been working in the past nine months to identify the organisations and State Governments that could be penciled down for the various categories of awards. The list is undergoing extensive critical review by our corporate board before we finally pass them to the Award committee to decide the finalist as well as the runner-ups. Our award committee members are people of impeccable characters who possess deep knowledge of the industry. We can assure you of impartial selection in all categories.’’

    Dignitaries expected at the awards include captains of Mortgage and Real Estate industry players, Heads of Government Parastatals, State Governors, Chief Executive Officers of several Primary Mortgage Institutions, Minister of Housing and the Honorable Minister of Budget and Planning.

  • More like Onosode

    More like Onosode

    Reading comments by various people about the contributions of the late Deacon Gamaliel Onosode to the development of the education sector increased my respect for him.  I had covered him so many times in the course of my journalism career but knew so little of him.  I did not know he was so valued, especially by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), and the universities he served as pro-chancellor.

    I knew he was negotiator for the Federal Government for the drafting of the 2009 ASUU agreement but I did not know the immense value he brought into the process until he died and we sought the union’s comments.  I was really impressed by what they said of the role he played.  He acted with integrity on behalf of his principal, the Federal Government; yet he balanced it with genuine care for the concern of the union, which was for the universities to be able to operate properly with requisite facilities for teaching, learning and research activities.  Like the former ASUU President, Prof Ukachukwu Awuzie noted, Onosode laid a foundation for the revival of tertiary education in Nigeria.  If the agreement is followed to the letter, the underfunding of our tertiary institutions that resulted in infrastructural decay and brain drain, would become a thing of the past.

    For someone to be recognised as untainted in the world of business as well as education after handling so many delicate assignments is indeed rare in today’s Nigeria.

    Another thing I appreciate about the late Mr Integrity was how he relinquished his entitlements to the universities he served.  Onosode also attracted a lot of funds used to develop the institutions.  (Chief Afe Babalola was reputed to have done the same when he served as pro-chancellor of the University of Lagos).  Are there not some others like him remaining in Nigeria enough to go round all our public institutions? Many institutions do not have enough to adequately cater for running costs as well as capital project; yet we hear of governing council chairmen that demand for an arm and a leg.  I was told of one at a college of education who rejected the vehicle used to pick him because it was not new.  The institution had to cough out money to buy a new car to ferry him around.  It is also common knowledge that many fight for contracts as a way of siphoning funds.

    Onosode’s sterling character has provided a benchmark for the government – at Federal and state levels – to consider when choosing external people to serve on the governing council and boards of our public institutions.  They should be people who have earned their breakfasts; who would not mind committing personal funds for public good – not those seeking reward for political loyalty.  They should be disciplined professionals who would not, for instance, keep people waiting for hours because they would not arrive at meetings on time.  Given the way ethnicity, religion, and politics divide people, they should be patient, fair and detribalized, like Onosode, who the former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan said did not take a decision until had completely investigated an issue.  We need our council members, and even other public servants, to have his kind of maturity and not take sides without knowing the full story.

     

     

  • Buhari, one more thing

    Has anyone else, besides me, noticed the avalanche of persons, experts and groups telling, advising, imploring, mandating, demanding, and even begging of President Muhammadu Buhari what he must and should do to move Nigeria forward, carry everyone along or pacify given interests? If one were to be on the streets of the United States of America, one would say “It’s All Good” to see these calls and demands because it means that democracy is alive and at work in Nigeria. Some are even impatient, and upset, with President Buhari for “being slow” in sharing the dividends of democracy which recently got him to be christened “Baba Go Slow”. Again, “It’s All Good”, because democracy in Nigeria means that there is freedom of speech.

    Following on the heels of these persons and groups, I want to add my own “request, demand, and urging” of President Buhari. Mr. President, please, you must find innovative ways to deal with ‘our teeming unemployed youths’ because conventional ways would not be enough to solve this problem. To paraphrase my hometown’s man, Professor Chinua Achebe, of blessed memory, “when a game animal starts to run in unusual ways, then the hunter must devise unusual ways to shoot at it.”

    The issue of unemployment among the youths of Nigeria, given Nigeria’s economic realities, on the backs of corruption, incompetence, inefficiency and prolonged bad leaderships, would not be solved by applying only known economic models. Mr. President, you must find out-of-the-box ways to tackle this monster because it is primed gunpowder waiting to explode in our faces. If we do not move urgently to solve this problem, and the unemployed youths unleash their energy, in their numbers, in bad ways, then the safety of lives and property in Nigeria would never be guaranteed despite the provisions of the Constitution to that effect, and in spite of whatever law enforcement or military efforts we make. The lessons of the Niger Delta militants and the Northeast Boko Haram insurgents ought to be educative enough for us.

    As a candidate in the just concluded 2015 elections, I was one of those, as was then candidate General Muhammadu Buhari, who went around and talked about “the teeming population of our unemployed youths”. Although the phrase means different things to different persons, the concept of “teeming population of our unemployed youths” needs to be universally described and better understood by Nigerians and our policy makers, for the issue can be properly addressed. Otherwise, it would be another electioneering slogan that fails and adds to the general failure of our leaders and the cynicism of the youths themselves.

    Some of these “teeming population of our unemployed youths” are educated, employable, but unemployed. To have such assets wasting away is not only foolish on our collective part, it is dangerous because they are educated, young and energetic and have plenty of time in their hands.  It is only better imagined what they could do if their educated minds, young and energetic bodies veer towards ill rather than good. Some of the youths are educated, but unemployable; which is a verdict on our education standards. Others are uneducated, employable, but unemployed. Finally, there are some that are uneducated, unskilled and unemployable. It is equally dangerous to ignore the last two groups because they are ready tools capable of doing anything with their plentiful idle time along with their young and energetic bodies.

    One of the reasons why “normal” economic models alone would not suffice in the approach to solving the unemployment among the youths in Nigeria is that each group of unemployed youths, as described above, needs different approach. The solution cannot be a one-size-fits-all; otherwise, our efforts at solving the problem would yield incomplete results. President Buhari should, therefore, seek unusual and innovative approaches to this issue.

    Rather than have these human capital assets of Nigeria continue to waste away and pose potential dangers to our collective being, we could take advantage of their youth in nation building by designing specific programmes targeted at specific segments of the unemployed youths. Opportunities abound for them in education, agriculture, manufacturing and environmental work. For example, the educated and employable group could be used to revive our falling educational standards. The educated and employable, and the educated and unemployable youths could become “Graduate Farmers” that would employ not just themselves, but would create employment opportunities for others. Our moribund manufacturing sector could be revived with targeted programmes that can employ these young bodies.

    Several numbers are bandied around about the unemployment of the youths of Nigeria. What cannot be debated is that in the proper context, youth unemployment confers economic and psychological states most worrisome, and which speak directly to “The Promise of Nigeria” to them as the future of our nation. But is there a “Nigerian Promise” as there is “The American Dream”?

    Although this question is better left for a bigger space of discussion, if there were to be a Nigerian Dream, what would it entail for any Nigerian young person? To enable them to compete in the global village, that dream must include “Stay in school. Get an Education. Play by the rules. Get ahead”. However, under the prevailing circumstances, what is the motivation for any young Nigerian to stay in school to get an education if he or she would end up being “educated and unemployed”? Rather than have these Human Capital assets go to waste, we ought to use them to make Nigeria better for our overall good. Such is the Change we need.

     

    • Obiakor was All Progressives Congress (APC) 2015 Candidate for Federal House of Representatives, Idemili North/South Federal Constituency, Anambra State

  • You can have more

    I want a better job. I am tired of receiving paltry sum as salary. Look at people that I am even older than, they have made it yet I am still a pauper. I am totally fed up with this job. It is as if I am not a graduate. I wonder when it will be my time.” These were the words of a young graduate who was unable to secure a befitting job. He exploded when he was spitting his vituperation on fate for being unkind to him.I suppose these are just his words, rather the words of countless of us who want better things in life; more of almost everything. We tend to complain of not getting the type of job or lifestyle we want. At times we become weary of our quagmires because we want more.

    I have had series of discussion with people and most times, when I inquire on what they do for a living, what I hear is ‘I am managing, ‘we are surviving’ and the host of other nauseating phrases. This suggests that many are uncontended with their lives; what they do for a living or what they are getting out of life. Well, it is not a crime to feel that way.Iused to have a colleague and all what he complained about is his job; the pay is small, it is too stressful. He wants to live in a better apartment, own a car, among other good things. At times I just have to change the topic of discussion whenever he startedreeling the litany of wanting more.

    Everybody, including this writer wants more. We all want better health, more wealth, more assets, more influence, more knowledge, and so on. In fact, to some extent, we are all Oliver Twist. A peep into the lives of our politicians lends credence to this. After amassing ill-gotten wealth, they are never satisfied. So, it is no surprise that Economics believe that “human wants are insatiable”. It is not an anomaly to want more or desire better income but one thing that is unsavory about most people thatwant more is that they do little or nothing to have more. They only bemoan their plight instead of thinking of how to salvage their pitiable condition.

    It is one thing to complain and it is another to take decisive action. Those of us that want more seldom take time to find out why we are where we are;what it takes place to have more. According to Brian Tracy, to have more, you need to be more. The law of motion states that “for every action, there is an equal or opposite reaction”. That is to say you get what you gave. You cannot have a different result if you continue doing the same thing in the same manner.

    Life itself is give and take. Even the Bible recognizes this when it says that “you reap what you saw”. This applies to other aspects of our lives. Whatever you are not comfortable with, do something new about it rather than wallowing in self-pity and degradation as it will only compound your problems. This may account for Nigeria’s dire state as we continue to recycle our leaders. In other words, be solution oriented other than problem oriented.   See every problem as a challenge or opportunity by being an optimist. An optimist is one that seesopportunity in every difficulty while a pessimist is one that sees difficulty in every opportunity. The route to greatness is never devoid of hurdles.

    Do not be afraid of taking risk. As Ben Carson would say “the biggest risk is not taking risk at all.” He believes that the world belongs to risk takers not risk evaders.  A pastor said something that got my mind racing while addressing young graduates. That one interesting thing about the youths is that if we fail in a venture, we can always start all over again. It is no surprise that the Bible posits that the glory of the youths is in their strength. That is to say we are resilient. So if we are truly resilient, why should we be scared of trying something new?

    Remember, Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb tried 999 times before getting it right and when he was asked why he had failed up to 999 times, he said he didn’t fail, arguing that he only tried different ways of doing it right. Back home, the president-elect, General Buhari,didn’t  find it easy as it was his fourth time (after changing tactics) that fetched him what he wanted.

    As you desire more today, I implore you to be more by adding value to yourself or by changing the way you do things as not doing something new is tantamount to being comfortable with the status quo. Don’t forget, he that takes the same route all the time will continue to be seeing the same people. You can have more of whatever you want if only you can be more.

    By Emmanuel Onoja,

    Ibadan

  • Obi: why president needs four more years

    Obi: why president needs four more years

    Former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi has urged the citizenry, for the sake of the nation’s unity and progress, to re-elect President Goodluck Jonathan.

    Saying besides the facts that Jonathan had done well to merit a re-election, he added that the socio economic dynamics of the nation demanded that the South-South should be allowed to exhaust their eight years.

    Obi, who is the deputy director-general (South) of the Jonathan’s Campaign Organisation, spoke at the meeting of the laity of Nigeria at the Pope John Paul 11 Centre, Abuja.

    The former governor said the wisdom among the country’s elderly men allowed a Southwest man to become the president after the death of Chief Moshood Abiola, arguing that the same wisdom was needed for four more years for Jonathan, a Southsouth man.

    Obi, who lauded late President Umaru Yar’Adua for the wisdom in packaging the amnesty deal, said before the deal, Nigeria produced about 700,000 barrels of oil per day and had been producing about 2.2 million barrels since after the deal.

    On qualities that endeared Jonathan to Nigerians, the former governor said: “President Jonathan has characteristics required among leaders. He is patient and infinitely ready to listen; he is tolerant; he is humble, and above all he has untainted patriotic credentials.

    “He also has age going for him. You know that being a president involves a lot of mental energy and we must accept that at certain age, no matter one’s personal integrity, he is limited in his mental and physical capabilities.”

    He argued that what Nigeria needed now was not the type of change witnessed in Egypt, Libya or Iraq, but the sustenance of the change already begun in many sectors.

    He said in education, Jonathan built 14 new universities and had through commitment to the sector, improved the country’s performance in West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council (NECO) from 25 per cent to over 50 per cent.

    He also reeled out list of roads rehabilitated by Jonathan government, adding that no past government in Nigeria did what Jonathan has done in four years.

    On the fall of the naira, Obi said it was a global phenomenon caused by the fall in the price of petroleum.

  • ‘Nigeria needs more startups to grow economy’

    ‘Nigeria needs more startups to grow economy’

    Ibifuro Tatua, CEO, Boss Pan Africa Limited, a company involved in packaging and sourcing building materials is helping others to take their business to the next level and connecting with their contemporaries in other parts of the world. In this interview with Rita Enosegbe, she shares her passion for business and other related issues. Excerpts:

    How did your journey into business start?

    My journey into business started from an early age, without really realising it. I was groomed to be a business woman by my grandmother who herself was a trader and a farmer. Every holiday when we went to the village to visit her, she would make me sell her farm produce and she let me sell it as I pleased and she would sing my praise to all who cared to listen. I did it then just for the praise, I enjoyed the drama and attention I got as she would use my name to sing different songs. She would dance and she was loud about it, so selling and doing chores, for me, became my goal every holiday, even though my dad who was a pilot and my mum a contractor with shell.

    My other siblings hated the idea but I did it as if my life depended on it. I did it with so much joy, and today I am that girl; that happy, hardworking grandma’s girl, now a woman.

    Which was your first job?

    When I graduated, the first job I got was with a construction company. They built mostly churches, universities and did big projects only. I was the site clerk.

    I resigned as the site clerk, registered a company name and called my mum and my brother and I started this supply business of building materials. I relocated to Lagos and ventured into other line of businesses, and realised there is so much potential in Africa; there is so much to learn and so much to do.

    I have always had an independent mindset. I have too many ideas running through my mind and I know that doing a white collar job would limit me to a certain extent and I would be required to work within my job description, job group and the company scope. I do white collar jobs only to gain knowledge and the technical knowhow of certain operations and to add to my CV. But once the knowledge is tested and proved, I like to expand and maximise it in my business world.

    How do you compete with others in the market?

    Ideas and opportunities kept presenting themselves to me. I just don’t know how to be idle; I like to work, even if it is for charity. I just like to be productive and multiply in productivity. I am the kind of person who would sell water to fish. If I find myself in a bad place, I like to think of what good can be sold there. So, basically, ideas present themselves to me and I take a chance on them.

    What do you consider as inspiration on the job?

    The very first people I share my business ideas with, the ones who support and give approval. Those I need the most are the first to say no, don’t do it, you can’t do it, forget about it or some just go silent on you. Without moral support, it becomes four times more difficult to proceed, but now I have decided to try things out on my own or with like minds that may not necessarily be close to you but who believe it can be done. That is no longer a challenge for me, however. Every business has its own challenges; for some it is cash, for me it is to understand the business, the nitty-gritty of the business. It takes time to grasp the basics of a business, we see the beautiful aspect of a finished product, we project in our mind and calculate the expected turn out of the business, but most times those tiny factors we overlook can set us back and frustrate a well planned and heavily funded venture.

    As much as it is good to hire professionals to handle every area of your business, there is need for you to have an idea of what to do to save your business until help surfaces. I call it business first aid; there is also need to have an understudy for every professional.

    What inspires what you do?

    I learn from those who have gone through the mile I want to go. I read books, watch documentaries on the businesses I am interested in. I keep an open mind, I take risk, and I make friends and find mentors or role models in the chosen line of business. I don’t mind running errands for them just to stay close. I tell them my mission and most often than not, they are happy and willing to put you through, but you must always remember to give them due credit at every chance you get, and you must be focused.

    What challenge did you face at the beginning?

    I trust easily. I give people benefit of doubt and I like to give room to my workers to create. I do not box them and they do excellently well, but not checking on them, not checking on their final delivery has cost me time, money and a few opportunities. So, now, no matter how brilliant an idea, I see to it that it is reviewed critically. I still make mistakes; I am still a work in progress, but I try to see how best to improve on production and services.

    I am inspired by a lot of factors pending on what angle I look at it. I like change, I like to make a difference, I like to feel secured, I like to just go out there and come back with favourable results or at least make an attempt.

    If you don’t utilise your full potential in your youth, when you are strong and active, is it when you are old weak and feeble that you will begin to think and work? In my first year at the university I came across a phrase: procrastination is the thief of time. I liked it so much and used it often, as so as I knew what it meant, if you don’t do it now, you might as well forget it because every second that clicks is time being spent, burnt, lost, and it is you getting older by the seconds. Some people tell me they don’t have the platform or opportunity to prove themselves. Some say they have ideas but don’t have the resources, well how long will you wait? What if the platform or resources you are waiting for never comes; will you just wait and do nothing? Why not get busy while you expect that big break. Trust me, nothing is too small, it was one Otunba in Lagos who said: ‘shit business is big business’. What can be low as that if you look at it from a layman view?

    How did you raise your start-up capital?

    No matter how quietly you make it, your responsibility increases, the demand on you is high and there is the need to give back to the society. You just have to set your priorities straight; you must set aside money for business, money for pleasure and money for emergencies. You must learn to be financially disciplined or else you end up worse than where you started. I have made several financial mistakes. I love to shop and I love to help people, but I realised that moderation is the key word. In everything you do, set a limit.

    It was Mahatma Gandhi who said: “Never test the depth of a river with both feet,” so I make sure I don’t get carried away with expenditures. As for human resources, some people see me and their first reaction is, this small girl? Well, by the time they sit down to discuss business with me and realise that I know what I am doing, they begin to say, ‘yes ma’, ‘ok madam’ or ‘yes boss.’

    What do you hope to gain from the international summit?

    When I got an award as the young performing personality of the year at the Niger Delta Achievers Merit award in 2012, I was surprised to see many young entrepreneurs like myself at the event. I was really impressed to see that the young people have decided to take control of the economic situation around them. Then at the African Achievers Award held in Ghana, I met much more youths across Africa taking giant strides; some of us came together and decided that there was need for us to meet, inspire, empower and support the next generation of emerging global business leaders who are committed to use the power of business to change some of Africa’s most challenging economic, social and environmental problems. The summit will feature the top business leaders like Mrs. Divine Ndhlukula, Forbes most successful business woman in Africa 2012.  Others include Maha k.Al-Ghunaim Chairperson & Group Chief Executive Officer of the Global Investment House, Justina Mutale (Founder Positive Runway), with presence across 54 countries globally and Richard Branson, founder and Chairman of Virgin Group.

    The summit is designed to support young people on their ongoing journey of business excellence as renowned business leaders, industry giants and entrepreneur expects have been lined up to give them extensive training, while stimulating real life business challenges in the 21st century with pragmatic solutions for society benefit and business success. It would also help to match individuals with the best in the industries or sector will be our own strategic mechanism to guarantee value.

    What are the other benefits?

    Participants would gain perspective on their own current leadership challenges, looking both at their personal styles and global strategic context of their industries. The business sessions, trade collaborations, seminars, expert business tour, networking opportunities and political exposure will surely define the crescendo of the summit and make it an experience unforgettable for all participants.

  • Sarki wants more goals for Wisla Krakow

    Sarki wants more goals for Wisla Krakow

    Wisla Krakow of Poland forward Emmanuel Sarki has promised to score plenty of goals this season for his club in the Polish Ekstraklasa.

    The 2014/2015 Polish league season is two games gone already, with Wisla not having the best of starts, with just 2 points in the 2 games played so far, but Sarki is looking forward to having a lot goals for the club this season.

    “I just want to score plenty of goals for my club this season and do a lot better. It’s a new season and everybody is optimistic and really looking forward to it because we believe it holds a lot of promise for us,” he told Brila fm.

    Sarki, 26, is currently playing in his second season for Wisla in the Ekstraklasa, says despite it not being the very best of starts to a season, it also hasn’t been a very bad start.

    “Well we have drawn the two games we have played so far this season, so yes you can’t say it is a very good start. But I wouldn’t say it has been very bad either.

    “We lost some good players at the end of last season but we hope to replace them with some better ones. Like I said, the season has just started and we’re looking at having a very good time in the league.”

    Wisla Krakow are presently 11th on the log, and will play 3rd placed Lech Poznan this weekend in what potentially could be a tough encounter, but Sarki is remaining bullish and positive his club will get the desired result.

    “I’m looking forward to the game against Lech, first because we need to get all three points, and secondly because Wisla and Lech Poznan are big rivals when it comes to Polish football, so you see why it’s a big deal for me.

    “I’ve been training hard, and I’ve looking after myself so I’ll say I’m quite ready for the game against Lech; not just me, but the whole club. We’re ready and looking forward to it,” he said.

    The former junior and youth international has struggled to fulfil the expectations that was had of him, after he broke unto the scene in 2003 with Nigeria’s U17 national team, the Golden Eaglets. He played alongside Chelsea’s John Obi Mikel and Shalke 04’s Chinedu Obasi on that team, but has struggled to replicate that initial potential into real success.

    He signed a four-year contract with Chelsea in 2006, but spent the whole time out on loan at Belgian side, KVC Westerlo and never played a single game for the former English champions.

  • Dike seeks more away wins

    Dike seeks more away wins

    Nasawara United Technical Adviser, Alphonsus Dike has stressed that their away win in Ilorin against Kwara United is the beginning of their leap to the summit of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

    Nasawara stunned the Afonja Warriors 1-0 at the upgraded Kwara State International Stadium through a last-minute goal from Leonard Ugochukwu, and the Lafia-based team held on to the victory for their first road win of the season.

    Dike, in a chat with SportingLife, said that he was happy that his boys rose up to the occasion but that he has warned the players not to over celebrate the important victory.

    “We won and we are grateful to God. We are gradually coming up the league table and we shall get there. We are happy but we don’t need to go to the extremes because of the other matches we have this season, most especially our home game against Gombe United,” Dike said.

    Dike, a former handler of Rangers FC and the Golden Eaglets, however, praised the conduct of the Ilorin fans during and after the game for being law-abiding throughout the course of the game, in spite of the home loss suffered by Kwara United.

    Nasarawa United are in the top half bracket having garnered 11 points from 6 games. They have scored 6 goals and conceded 3 in those matches.

  • Celtic seek more from Ambrose, others

    Celtic seek more from Ambrose, others

    Celtic Manager Neil Lennon has told his wards including Nigeria’s Efe Ambrose to take the remaining games of the season like a Cup final.

    The Hoops played Wednesday night against Motherwell in a Scot tish Premier League game and Lennon has stated that there will be no complacency as he wants his team to win the remaining 10 games.

    “We want to finish the season strongly.,” Lennon told the club’s official club website.

    “We’ll see what the rest of the fixtures bring up in terms of teams beating other teams as, if and when we do win the league, I think the points total is important.

    “We’ve had 92 and 93 in the past two seasons and we’d like to get up around 90 again so we still have a bit of work to do to reach that target.

    “And obviously we’ve places up for grabs for cup games and Champions League games so there’s been no sign of taking the foot of the pedal.”

    The ambitious Scottish Coach also reveled his intention to see the Hoops net in more goals as that is the name of the game.

    “We’ve got targets, we’ve scored 100 goals already this season so can we get close to 100 league goals? Can we get to 90+ points? Can Gary make 30+? Can Fraser keep clean sheets? Can the midfield pitch in with more goals?

    “There is so much still to play for and it’s a great time to be involved with Celtic. I look at my time as a player and I look at these players now, they’re playing in the Champion League and they’re going for the second title.”

    Celtic with 62 points in the kitty have a comfortable 21 points lead in the SPL and are indeed looking more like Champions in the waiting.