The Nation Newspaper

Tag: mushroom

  • Mushroom: a forgotten superfood

    Pax Herbal Clinic and Research Laboratories (PAXHERBALS) Director, Father Anselm Adodo answers the question.

    In April, last year, I had a meeting with about 200  farmers in Ewu village in Edo State. It was part of our community outreach at Paxherbals – getting the people to identify, discuss and analyse their challenges and then proffer solutions from within.

    The local people complained that cassava farming was no longer profitable. Many families cultivate cassava, which they harvest, eat and  sell the leftovers. This is subsistence farming. The people spend so much time and energy in the sun clearing the bush, planting and then waiting for the cassava to grow and mature. They are able to harvest a few bags of cassava, which is priced very cheaply in the local market. The government, to give a higher yield of cassava, shares thousands of fertiliser they claim help to improve soil yield. But the people know that fertiliser don’t provide the solution, and only deplete the soil. They know organic farming is best.

    At this meeting, the group agreed to invite the most elderly women in the communities to the next meeting. These grandmothers and great-grandmothers are custodians of knowledge in the local communities. The oldest among them was an energetic old mama, 120 years old, while the others were between 75  and 110.

    “Once upon a time,” the eldest woman in the community, Mama Ageless, as she is fondly called, said, “mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus) were growing all over the land, and we used to harvest them to cook. These mushrooms supplied us most of our nutrients. But these days, there are no mushrooms. Rather, we have bread and fries. Bring back mushrooms to the village,” said Mama Ageless.

    In the next meeting, the group of farmers decided to explore oyster mushroom farming. But all believed mushrooms only grow in the wild, and no one knew they could be cultivated. Within two months, I organised a training session on mushroom cultivation to a select group of the local farmers. The species cultivated was Pleurotus Ostreatus, popularly called the oyster mushroom.  Many of the people did not attend the training because they did not believe mushrooms could be cultivated. Those who attended were enthralled, surprised and excited. It was a eureka moment for the participants, and they all exclaimed, “So it is possible!”

    Since the initial training, hundreds of local farmers have applied to join in the next training. The goal is to move from subsistence farming to secure livelihoods, from food sufficiency to food security, from agriculture to agribusiness. While a 100-foot plot of land can only give a few cassavas worth N36,000, the same plot of land could produce bags of mushrooms worth N200,000. Unlike cassava cultivation, a mushroom is planted inside the house rather than in the open, and the waste from the mushroom soil is far more useful as fertiliser than the synthetic fertiliser provided by the government.

     How is mushroom cultivated?

     

    What we did was to culture the tissue cells of the mushroom from the wild, and carefully extract the seeds in the laboratory, through various processes of sterilisation and pasteurisation. The result is that we can now distribute the seeds in large quantities to farmers. Mushroom farming is often referred to as millionaires farming or executive farming because it is cultivated indoors rather than outdoors.  In fact, you can grow mushroom in your bedroom.

     

     What is a mushroom?

     

    Mushrooms are edible fungi with various names under the scientific name of ‘Agaricus’. The study of mushrooms is called mycology, and mushroom cultivation is technically called ‘fungiculture’. Mushrooms are saprophytes, the organism (plants that do not have chlorophyll), which feed on nutrients from dead and decaying plant and animal matter.

    Many people mistakenly refer to mushrooms as plants. The fact is that mushrooms are not plants, vegetables or animals. They are scientifically classified as fungi. Fungi have always been a puzzle for scientists. Mushrooms share a lot of attributes with plants and vegetables and animals, but they belong to a different kingdom of the organism which also contains yeast, mould and many other variations of fungus.  Mushrooms, like all fungi, occupy a place between plant and animals. They do not have a root system, and they do not make chlorophyll, the chemical in plants that makes them green. While plants thrive by transmuting sunlight into food, mushrooms ‘eat’ or absorb nutrients from by-products of rotting vegetation, which explains why they grow well in damp and dark conditions.

    There are about 140,000 species of mushroom-forming fungi in the world, but science is only familiar with about 10 percent, while only 100 species have so far been studied for their potential health benefits and medicinal applications.

    It will take volumes of books to describe the health benefits of mushrooms.  I will discuss just a few of them here.

    Cholesterol: If you have been battling with high cholesterol, mushroom might be the best remedy for you. They are high in fibre and healthy enzymes, provide you with lean proteins, since they do not have cholesterol and fat, and have a low level of carbohydrates. The high level of lean protein in mushrooms helps to burn cholesterol when ingested and help maintain a balance between bad cholesterol or LDL and good cholesterol or HDL. Mushrooms are highly recommended for the prevention of heart disease, stroke and atherosclerosis.

    Cancer: My search for more effective medicine for cancer led me to carry out more research on cancer. The results so far are very encouraging. Mushrooms are effective in preventing breast and prostate cancer because of the presence of beta-glucans and conjugated linoleic acid. Beta-glucans stop the growth of cancerous cells in prostate cancer cases. Linoleic acid helps in suppressing the adverse effects of excessive estrogen production, which is one of the causes of breast cancer, especially after menopause.  Much scientific research has shown the antitumor properties of mushroom.

    Diabetes: There are many reasons mushrooms are excellent for diabetic patients. They are high in fibre, water, natural insulin, and enzymes which help in breaking down sugar in food. The enzymes in mushrooms also support proper functioning of the liver, pancreas and other endocrine glands.  This explains why they promote the formation of insulin and its effective regulation in the body. For people with diabetes, mushrooms are the ideal low-energy diet: they have no fats, no cholesterol, little carbohydrates, high proteins, vitamins and minerals.

    Are you interested in becoming a mushroom farmer? Get in touch for directions on how to get mushroom seeds and grow your own super-food.

     

    • Contact Father Adodo via email: ansosb@paxherbals.net

  • Mushroom: a forgotten superfood

    The Director of Pax Herbal Clinic and Research Laboratories (PAXHERBALS), Father Anselm Adodo answers the question.

    In April, last year, I had a meeting with about 200  farmers in Ewu village in Edo State. It was part of our community outreach at Paxherbals – getting the people to identify, discuss and analyse their challenges and then proffer solutions from within.

    The local people complained that cassava farming was no longer profitable. Many families cultivate cassava, which they harvest, eat and  sell the leftovers. This is subsistence farming. The people spend so much time and energy in the sun clearing the bush, planting and then waiting for the cassava to grow and mature. They are able to harvest a few bags of cassava, which is priced very cheaply in the local market. The government, to give a higher yield of cassava, shares thousands of fertiliser they claim help to improve soil yield. But the people know that fertiliser don’t provide the solution, and only deplete the soil. They know organic farming is best.

    At this meeting, the group agreed to invite the most elderly women in the communities to the next meeting. These grandmothers and great-grandmothers are custodians of knowledge in the local communities. The oldest among them was an energetic old mama, 120 years old, while the others were between 75  and 110.

    “Once upon a time,” the eldest woman in the community, Mama Ageless, as she is fondly called, said, “mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus) were growing all over the land, and we used to harvest them to cook. These mushrooms supplied us most of our nutrients. But these days, there are no mushrooms. Rather, we have bread and fries. Bring back mushrooms to the village,” said Mama Ageless.

    In the next meeting, the group of farmers decided to explore oyster mushroom farming. But all believed mushrooms only grow in the wild, and no one knew they could be cultivated. Within two months, I organised a training session on mushroom cultivation to a select group of the local farmers. The species cultivated was Pleurotus Ostreatus, popularly called the oyster mushroom.  Many of the people did not attend the training because they did not believe mushrooms could be cultivated. Those who attended were enthralled, surprised and excited. It was a eureka moment for the participants, and they all exclaimed, “So it is possible!”

    Since the initial training, hundreds of local farmers have applied to join in the next training. The goal is to move from subsistence farming to secure livelihoods, from food sufficiency to food security, from agriculture to agribusiness. While a 100-foot plot of land can only give a few cassavas worth N36,000, the same plot of land could produce bags of mushrooms worth N200,000. Unlike cassava cultivation, a mushroom is planted inside the house rather than in the open, and the waste from the mushroom soil is far more useful as fertiliser than the synthetic fertiliser provided by the government.

     

    How is mushroom cultivated?

     

    What we did was to culture the tissue cells of the mushroom from the wild, and carefully extract the seeds in the laboratory, through various processes of sterilisation and pasteurisation. The result is that we can now distribute the seeds in large quantities to farmers. Mushroom farming is often referred to as millionaires farming or executive farming because it is cultivated indoors rather than outdoors.  In fact, you can grow mushroom in your bedroom.

     

     What is a mushroom?

     

    Mushrooms are edible fungi with various names under the scientific name of ‘Agaricus’. The study of mushrooms is called mycology, and mushroom cultivation is technically called ‘fungiculture’. Mushrooms are saprophytes, the organism (plants that do not have chlorophyll), which feed on nutrients from dead and decaying plant and animal matter.

    Many people mistakenly refer to mushrooms as plants. The fact is that mushrooms are not plants, vegetables or animals. They are scientifically classified as fungi. Fungi have always been a puzzle for scientists. Mushrooms share a lot of attributes with plants and vegetables and animals, but they belong to a different kingdom of the organism which also contains yeast, mould and many other variations of fungus.  Mushrooms, like all fungi, occupy a place between plant and animals. They do not have a root system, and they do not make chlorophyll, the chemical in plants that makes them green. While plants thrive by transmuting sunlight into food, mushrooms ‘eat’ or absorb nutrients from by-products of rotting vegetation, which explains why they grow well in damp and dark conditions.

    There are about 140,000 species of mushroom-forming fungi in the world, but science is only familiar with about 10 percent, while only 100 species have so far been studied for their potential health benefits and medicinal applications.

    It will take volumes of books to describe the health benefits of mushrooms.  I will discuss just a few of them here.

    Cholesterol: If you have been battling with high cholesterol, mushroom might be the best remedy for you. They are high in fibre and healthy enzymes, provide you with lean proteins, since they do not have cholesterol and fat, and have a low level of carbohydrates. The high level of lean protein in mushrooms helps to burn cholesterol when ingested and help maintain a balance between bad cholesterol or LDL and good cholesterol or HDL. Mushrooms are highly recommended for the prevention of heart disease, stroke and atherosclerosis.

    Anemia: With One Note, you can have personal notes and sharred notes.  The teacher’s notes can be projected for students on their tablets and they can make their own notes on it.In the contents library, students can access past papers or past classes.  Teachers can write, type or record video or audio feedback for students to review.

    Cancer: My search for more effective medicine for cancer led me to carry out more research on cancer. The results so far are very encouraging. Mushrooms are effective in preventing breast and prostate cancer because of the presence of beta-glucans and conjugated linoleic acid. Beta-glucans stop the growth of cancerous cells in prostate cancer cases. Linoleic acid helps in suppressing the adverse effects of excessive estrogen production, which is one of the causes of breast cancer, especially after menopause.  Much scientific research has shown the antitumor properties of mushroom.

    Diabetes: There are many reasons mushrooms are excellent for diabetic patients. They are high in fibre, water, natural insulin, and enzymes which help in breaking down sugar in food. The enzymes in mushrooms also support proper functioning of the liver, pancreas and other endocrine glands.  This explains why they promote the formation of insulin and its effective regulation in the body. For people with diabetes, mushrooms are the ideal low-energy diet: they have no fats, no cholesterol, little carbohydrates, high proteins, vitamins and minerals.

    Are you interested in becoming a mushroom farmer? Get in touch for directions on how to get mushroom seeds and grow your own super-food.

     

    • Contact Father Adodo via email: ansosb@paxherbals.net

  • ‘Nigeria can earn forex from mushroom’

    Mushroom cultivation can boostfarmers’ income, the Acting Executive Director National Horticultural Research Institute (NIHORT), Ibadan, Dr Abayomi Olaniyan, has said.

    He spoke during a three- day training dubbed Skill Acquisition and Capacity Buildingfor Value Chain on Mango and Mushroom, jointly organised byNIHORT and Hague Logistics Limited in Ilorin,Kwara State.

    Represented by the Institute’s Head of Research, Dr Stephen Afolayan, Olaniyan said: “it is worthy of note that Nigeria has comparative advantage in the production of mangoes and mushrooms.

    “Mango is among the important tropical fruits and is greatly relished for its succulence, exotic flavour and delicious taste in most countries of the world. Nigeria ranks ninth in world mango production. He added that mushroom enjoys both domestic and international acceptance as a food item, saying that “it is a veritable cash crop with potential to generate foreign exchange.”

    “Mushroom is particularly attractive to a broad spectrum of stakeholders because it can be produced indoors in large quantity within a short period of time at great profitability. Mushroom cultivation provides opportunities for improving the sustainability of small farming systems through recycling of organic matter, which can be used as a growing substrate and the returned to the land as fertiliser.”

    To this end, he said the Federal Government has commenced the training of over 60 persons on mango and mushroom production.

    Olaniyan described horticulture as one of the most viable and sustainable sources ofhousehold income, employment generation, enhanced gross domesticproduct and government revenue.

    Earlier, the Coordinator of the programme and Director of Research, NIHORT, Dr Lawrence Taiwo said that the institute has devised a means of converting plantain and pineapple wastes to wealth.

    Said he: “We are targeting more than 500 participants this year for mangoes and mushrooms training. We just finished training about 35in Ibadan, Oyo state. We are going to Delta state to train about 400people on plantains and pineapples production. We have developed a technology to use plantains waste for soap making. “With that we believe that a lot of people will be empowered in wealth and job creation. We want to train them to be job creators. So we are concentrating on waste to wealth in Delta state. In the next fourweeks, we will hit Ebonyi State to train some youths on scent-leaf and Ogbona.

    On the current training programme in Kwara state, he said: “We are going to empower the participants with kits that they can start up business with.

    We are talking about wealth creation here and we know that if you want to create wealth there are some things you have to start with.

     

  • Eating mushrooms can avert diseases, says Nutritionist

    Eating mushrooms can avert diseases, says Nutritionist

    An Ibadan-based nutritionist, Ms Dayo Olawunmi, said eating mushrooms regularly could help to lower risk of contracting diseases, including diabetes, cancer and obesity.

    Olawunmi told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Ibadan that mushrooms were rich in antioxidants and many disease fighting nutrients like vitamin D known to inhibit the growth of cancer cells.

    “Studies have shown that mushrooms are naturally low in sodium, fat, cholesterol and calories. In addition to providing basic nutrition, they help prevent chronic diseases due to the presence of antioxidants.”

    She said that mushrooms were also rich in potassium and sodium which worked together to regulate blood pressure to promote a healthy heart.

    “Consuming mushrooms, which are rich in potassium and low in sodium helps to lower blood pressure and decrease the risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases.

    “Mushrooms also contain choline, an important nutrient that helps with sleep, muscle movement, learning and memory,” she said.

    Olawunmi, however, cautioned that not all mushrooms were edible and that eating some could lead to serious illness and even death.

    “It is best to consume mushrooms that have been cultivated under appropriate conditions; not all the varieties of the plant are edible.

    “Eating wild mushrooms that are toxic to humans can cause severe illness, and sometimes, even death,” she stated.

    Edible mushrooms, like the cauliflower mushrooms, are the fleshy and edible fruit bodies of several species of macro fungi (fungi which bear fruiting structures that are large enough to be seen with the naked eye).

    They can appear either below ground or above ground where they may be picked by hand.

  • Mushroom expert sensitises youths, women

    Mushroom expert sensitises youths, women

    An horticulturist and Senior Lecturer in the Department of Crop and Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Port Harcourt, Mrs Olutayo Modupeola Adedokun, has revealed the multi-million dollar benefits of mushroom.

    Mrs Adedokun, who has won awards on account of her efforts in the study and production of mushrooms, said Nigeria could actually make billions in foreign earnings as well as arrested the national food lag by effectively encouraging the production of mushrooms.

    Addressing an audience made up of students and other guests, Adedokun, said she got to know about mushroom cultivation during her Master’s Degree at University of Ibadan, when she was asked to pick mushroom as a case research study. She also did her research in applied mycology- mushroom science technology, cultivation and medicinal mushrooms. She further noted that everything looked really strange and difficult initially, but with the encouragement of her husband, she was able to take on the research with ease.

    She said at the end of the research she realised that it would have been a great mistake if she had refused to accept to research on mushroom. “Today I have a very big farm on mushroom, I supply to some of the hotels in Port Harcourt and outside the state. With the role I played in Agriculture I have been recognized beyond African continent. I was honoured by African Women in Agriculture Research and Development (AWARD). But when I started mushroom cultivation I converted two rooms from our three bedrooms flat.”

    Mrs. Adedokun said mushrooms are macro fungi with characteristics fruiting bodies, which can be picked by hands “Indigenous mushrooms are diverse and found mostly growing on dead woods. They are nutritious, having protein which contains all the essential amino acids. They contain essential vitamins and minerals. They are low in calories, low in sugar, and low in cholesterol and contain good dietary fibers. They are suitable for individuals with disease conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity etc.”

     

  • Can mushroom parties escape INEC’s axe?

    Can mushroom parties escape INEC’s axe?

       The decision by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to de-register some parties has generated controversy. In this report, AUGUSTINE AVWODE examines the powers behind other mushroom parties and how far they can hold on.

    The Independent National Electoral Commission,(INEC) has wielded the big stick again. It de-registered three more political parties at the weekend. It was the third time the commission would apply the sledge hammer. The action brought the total number of political parties delisted to 38, since the exercise began.

    According to a statement by INEC Secretary Abdullahi Kaugama, the electoral umpire’s decision to de-register the parties was based on the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended).

    Political parties delisted, according to the statement were African Renaissance Party (ARP); National Democratic Party (NDP) and the National Transformation Party (NTP).

    The statement gave reasons for INEC’s de-registration of the ARP and NDP, which it said, was based on their inability to meet the requirements of Section 223(1) and (2) of the 1999 Constitution(as amended). The section deals with the composition of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of political parties.

    INEC also alleged that the parties have “no verifiable headquarters office contrary to Section 222(f) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended)” and have “not won a seat in the National and State Assemblies.”

    On the NTP, the commission said it was deregistered because the composition of its national executive committee (NEC) has failed to meet the requirements of Section 223(1) and (2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) in addition to its inability to win a seat in the National and state assemblies.

    The commission has refused to bulge even in the face of severe criticisms and threats of legal actions against it by the affected parties.

    As at the last general election in April 2011, there were 63 political parties in the country. Out of the lot, only six have governors in various states of the federation today. These are the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the All Nigeria People Party (ANPP), the Congress for Positive Change (CPC), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and the Labour Party (LP). These have come to be known as the big players. But few parties have managed to cling on to life by virtue of the powers behind them, and, of course, satisfying the all important provision of winning at least one elective seat at the federal or state level of either legislative or executive posts. Prominent among these concert of medium parties are the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP), Accord, Peoples Party of Nigeria (PPN) and Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN).

    While they have not been able to win the governorship position in any state, these parties managed to remain a force to be reckoned with in some states across the country where they are quite visible.

    The DPP for instance has transformed itself over the few years to be the leading opposition party in Delta State. It actually snatched one senatorial slot from the PDP in the 2011 general election. The PDP in Delta State had ruled with little or no opposition to it until the coming of the DPP to the state. It used to be a thing of pride among stalwarts of the PDP in the state to announce with glee, that the only opposition to the party in the state is the party itself.

    DPP’s highest electoral success remains its winning of the Delta Senatorial District election, which has been described in some quarters as “the minority of minorities”. But in addition, it also won a sizeable number of the Delta State House of Assembly seats.

    In Oyo State, the Accord cannot lay claim to the governorship seat or winning any senatorial seat but in the state House of Assembly, it has a reasonable presence that can only be disregarded at one’s political peril.

     

    Circumstantial birth

     

    These parties came into being as a result of the prevailing circumstances in some of the big parties as at the time they emerged. For the record, most of the parties under discussion are splinter groups from the PDP. And they are often led by an individual who feels strong enough politically to call the bluff of his former party or his inability to stomach much of what was going on in it.

    In Ogun State for example, the irreconcilable differences that engulfed the PDP led to the emergence of the PPN led by then outgoing governor Gbenga Daniel. But his aides and top members of the PPN denied then that Daniel was leaving the PDP.

    But former governorship aspirant of the PDP in Ogun State, Mr. Gboyega Nasir Isiaka who lost to Gen. Tunji Olurin through a court judgment, blamed the “raw power” being used by some members of the PDP in the state then for the mass defection to the PPN. He later contested that election on the platform of the PPN. The defection of Isiaka and other influential members of the PDP into PPN immediately boosted the party ’s profile in the state while depleting the chances of the PDP.

    For the record, all the candidates of the Gbenga Daniel faction running for House of Representatives and House of Assembly seats, who were excluded by the court from running on the ticket of the PDP, were allowed to run on the platform of the PPN.

    But PPN has only managed a distant third in the hierarchy of parties in the state. In the last local government election in the state, the ruling ACN won 19 chairmanship seats out of the 20 in the state; 217 councillorship seats, while the PDP and the PPN won eight and one councillorship seats respectively.

    In Kwara State, the late Dr. Olusola Saraki led his loyalists to dump the PDP. They embraced the ACPN.

    It was learnt then that the strong man of Kwara politics decided to use ACPN to reach out to all the existing political parties in Kwara to forge a coalition, with sufficient strength to dislodge PDP in the state. The resolve by the senior Saraki to enthrone Senator Gbemisola as the next governor of Kwara in the governorship election was the reason he dumped the PDP. The Kwara political icon said he was never a card-carrying member of PDP but had since 2003 remained the major pillar behind the party in the state. But the ACPN could not dislodge the PDP in the state. And, soon after the election, a reconciliation meeting between the PDP and ACPN took place.

    In Oyo State former governor Rasheed Ladoja also dumped the PDP for the Accord. He latter explained that: “a party that does not believe in people will fail. Since 2007, I have been advising the PDP to try and reconcile with the people of the southwest. They have refused to do that. Instead, they believe that force , which they used in 2007 elections, will see them through again . We have seen the effects of their inaction. Since that time, they have lost Edo, Ondo, Ekiti, and Osun. So, PDP will be swept off in Oyo state and I am not bothered because I know my party will win because the people of Oyo state are ready for us. They have tested me and they have found me worthy and they are going to vote for me again”.

    Unfortunately for Ladoja, the people of Oyo State preferred Governor Abiola Ajimobi of the ACN to be their governor. But the Accord did relatively well in the state House of Assembly.

     

    For how long will INEC’s hammer dangle?

     

    All the medium parties are personality driven. In Delta State, the personality of Great Ogboru looms large. He is loved by the people and his association with the party has been the sustaining influence of the party in the state. It is indeed doubtful if DPP has any other visible image across the country apart from what it is doing in Delta State.

    It is a fact that the former governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa, who flew the party’s flag as its presidential candidate in 2007 has since returned to the ANPP from where he came. In fact, but for the Delta State chapter of the party, it probably would have been deregistered along with others.

    Accord is tied to Senator Ladoja. And he is the personality that has been giving it some life. Apart form Ladoja, it is hard to associate the Accord with any other renowned politician in the country. The PPN is also closely connected to Daniel. In fact, there is hardly any other state in the country, apart from Ogun, where PPN is visible.

    Herein lie the problems of these parties. With the removal of party subventions by the federal government, funding becomes a problem. It is increasingly becoming a tough task financing political parties these days. But the greatest problem to these parties is the possibility of the personality behind them “moving on to another platform”. In the event of such a development, it will be a matter of time before INEC’s hammer falls.

    In Oyo State, Ladoja is courted by seriously by his former party – the PDP. It has never hidden the desire to see that Ladoja returns to the party with his supporters. In fact, to a section of the PDP, Ladoja’s defection to Accord was responsible in part, for its defeat in the state.

    In a bid to ensuring that the party wins him back to its fold, several meetings have been held to reconcile all aggrieved factions. Most intriguing, political watchers in the state say, was the visit of former President Olusegun Obasanjo to Ladoja’s Bodija residence in Ibadan not long ago. Obasanjo allegedly told newsmen that , “Ladoja belongs here. As you can see, he is on his way back to the party. As you c see, it is condition that makes the crayfish bend and we are making efforts to straighten the crayfish. I am sure that the PDP in the state and the entire South-West will bounce back and reclaim power.” That should be enough warning to those who want Accord to continue to exist as an independent party.

    In Delta, there is an alleged plan to by Ogboru to defect to the ACN. If that happens, it will be the end of DPP. And should the PDP succeed in effecting a lasting reconciliation in Ogun State, Daniel and his supporters will be back and PPN would vanish from the political horizon.

    In Kwara, with the reconciliation of the ACPN and PDP, and even now that Baba Oloye has passed to the great beyond, the chances of the continued existence of ACPN are slim.

    Should this happen to these parties, the axe man may be nearer than anticipated. At the end of the day, may be only 10 parties will be available to face the electorate in 2015.