The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerians

  • Nigerians can learn more from India than others

    Rather than going to Europe or America, Chairman Banquaires-Sms University Gurgaon, Haryana, India, Felix Adeduro, has urged Nigerians seeking to study abroad to choose India.

    He said fast developing countries like India and China have more to offer Nigeria in terms of lessons than developed countries.

    Adeduro, who spoke at a press conference last week, said not only will Nigerian students learn more but they will also pay lesser than what is obtainable here in Nigeria if they study in India and China.

    “If I want my children to be successful, I would not send them to learn from a successful man.  Rather, I would send them to learn from a man who is developing gradually because they would learn the potentials of success from him,” Felix said.

    He pointed out that development is not a jigsaw puzzle but a coordinated and conscious process.

    “We need to learn from them how it is done.  Also the best destination for any country that desires economic development and growth is India,” he said.

    Adeduro added that the students can currently apply to the university to undergraduate and post graduate programmes for the 2014/2015 academic session.

    “The University is a global brand with recognition and accreditation.  It has various campuses in USA, Britain, Romania and various cities around the world. It is a multinational university with over 250 degree courses where different companies are in dire need of its products,” he said.

    The Managing Director of Banquaires-SMS Consultants, Mrs Okeke Peppy said Amity University is present in 11 countries of the world.

     

  • The cyber frontier in crime

    The cyber frontier in crime

    The advent of mobile phones in the early 2000 brought great relief to Nigerians. However, the revolution in communication also brought with it some pains as some unscrupulous Nigerians quickly cashed in to peddle their nefarious trade – fraud. This was followed by the e-mail, a communication system that has now relegated the old system of posting letters to the background. E-mail is faster; with the speed of electrical current you get your message across and also receive a response within minutes or even seconds. But, as it is, it is as if the more the growth recorded through technological advancement, the more sophisticated the criminals around becomes. Hardly will a day pass without you receiving five, 10 or more scam messages on your Blackberry phone, all designed to make you fall a “Mugu”, the underworld term for foolishness.

    On December 19, 2013, I had my first raw deal with these crooks. I was in my house in Lagos sleeping when, at about 1:30am, I opened my eyes and saw my blackberry beeping. I quickly reached out to it. What I saw jolted me. My bank in America had sent me a mail to the effect that there was an “unusual activity” on my small account. Apparently, some smart alecs had cloned my Debit Card and were on a spending spree that night in far away New York city. I quickly called their information desk, which immediately put a lien on the account. Though the bank promptly did a refund and changed my card within a week, I am sure the whole thing originated from Nigeria and I seriously suspect someone who is very close to me as the brain behind the scam.

    That was not all. Five months later, precisely on May 1, the crooks were at it again. This time, my e-mail account was hacked. This was purely a criminal act aimed at extorting money from people on my contact list, a commonplace occurrence in today’s digital world. Ordinary criminals with advanced to minimal computer know-how and time to spare can, in the comfort of their homes, rake in millions of other people’s hard earned money with the use of a simple computer and an internet connection. It is a reality of our world today.

    In this case, a generic message was sent to everyone on my contact list, explaining that I was stranded in Rome with financial difficulties that a thoughtful loan of 950 Euros can fix, if the recipient would only be so kind. These messages went out at around 2.00am while I was fast asleep, with no difficulty, at my home in Lagos, Nigeria. The following morning, I was woken up by endless calls from friends who had received the message, much to my surprise. Little did I know that more surprises awaited me from the cunning cyber-criminals.

    Promptly, the password was changed and the security questions reset, but it did not end there. Incoming mails had been cunningly re-routed to another email address set up solely for the purpose of this particular attack on my privacy, as I found out. My e-mail account is “dagekameh@yahoo.com” but mails had been set to be forwarded to “dagekarneh@yahoo.com” without even being retained by the original account. Attempts at signing into the compromised account proved abortive and may not have been possible but for the measures put in by Yahoo in such cases. It took answering security questions that were set back in 2009 to prove to the Yahoo mail service that the account was indeed mine, because it had been completely taken over by the criminals.

    It literally took hours to purge my account of the attackers’ imprint, and measures are still being taken to ensure that nothing else has been compromised. A large amount of mails in my inbox were lost however. It later became clear that this was the modus operandi of these cyber criminals who operate from multiple locations around the world and have syndicates spread across continents. The account activity log showed that the breach originated in Netherlands and the operation somehow shifted to South Africa in a matter of minutes where the larger part of it took place. For these people, it is obviously a full-time job considering the kind of delicate, victim-specific operations they carry out.

    Although Nigeria will make many lists of countries where most cyber frauds originate, there are worse countries on those lists like Egypt, Ukraine, Malaysia and even the United States (U.S.). It is a global phenomenon. The credit card rings are serious, and every financial institution in the world is a potential target. This, however, is a tip of the iceberg of cybercrimes, cyber-terrorism, espionage and cyber-conflicts in the modern world. Like in the physical world, where clandestine activities are not only carried out by criminals looking for ill-gotten proceeds, governments all over the world and other players are also involved in some of these activities on the internet.

    Indeed, modern warfare has expanded into cyberspace. A big example is the group known as the “Shanghai Group”, which is said to be an arm of the Chinese military that has targeted U.S trade and critical infrastructure, collecting data discreetly through electronic means. U.S gas pipelines access, its power grid and companies like Coca-Cola have been reported to have been victims of this group. The U.S itself has been involved in Cyber-warfare. In collaboration with Israel in 2010, it developed a malicious software called “Stuxnet” and launched an attack on Iran’s Uranium enrichment program. In 2013, the U.S also joined a cyber-terrorism group called “Anonymous”, in league with South Korea, to attack “critical websites” in North Korea, including the state-owned network station.

    As cyber-criminals and terrorists are on the increase, countries around the world too are raising cyber-warriors to protect themselves and, it must be said, attack others. Even in the midst of this international cyber-warfare, there are yet groups of hackers whose scope of activities cannot be determined but have attained global fame for their successful activities against all levels of organisations and governments. An outstanding example is the Chaos Computer Club in western Germany that hacked into the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) network in the United States and remained undetected for three months. Its “Trojan Horse”, which is a malicious computer programme, was able to access over 135 computers across Europe. It is currently acting as a kind of non-governmental organization. In February, it filed a criminal complaint against the German government, accusing it of complicity with the U.S National Security Agency and British intelligence in spying on German citizens. The group also requested Edward Snowden, now famous (or infamous) U.S whistleblower, to be allowed a safe passage as a witness.

    In a world where countries now sponsor “Trojan Horses” and collect confidential information secretly, in addition to the activities of criminals looking to make a quick buck and non-state players like “Wiki-leaks”, one only wonders where African countries are positioned on this new frontier. Currently, Nigeria still imports 90% of software used in the country and the 100 plus IT companies in Nigeria mainly engage in integration, maintenance and customisation services for commercial packaged software for public institutions, banks, and energy and telecom companies. No recognizable government’s interest in developing an airtight cyber-security unit to protect government information and the privacy of citizens. Where are our cyber warriors?

    Nigerians who have picked up expertise and show promise in cyber security are picked up easily by foreign countries or have joined the criminals that have ensured inclusion of Nigeria on the least of countries with the most computer fraud cases. In saner climes, these individuals would be found, rehabilitated and drafted into the government efforts, where they exist, to protect the information of its citizens. On the new frontier of cybercrimes and terrorism, it appears that information is the currency, weapon and the target, and as such, its protection becomes the only concern. Now that banks, mobile communications companies and the government have stepped up efforts to collect information on users and citizens, the question is: Have they stepped up efforts to protect this data?

  • ‘Why Nigerians shop abroad’

    ‘Why Nigerians shop abroad’

    Many wealthy individuals prefer shopping abroad to patronising Nigerian malls. What is surprising to many is whether this trend results from better deals offered by such upscale malls in places such as the United Kingdom, Dubai and Paris or a manifestation of status symbol? TONIA ‘DIYAN writes.

    Undoubtedly, Nigerians, especially the wealthy ones, love shopping. However, they love doing their shopping abroad.

    Their penchance for shopping abroad does not indicate that the items they need are not available in local shops.  It also does not indicate that the prices of the items they desire are extremely exorbitant.

    Again, there is no indication that the products they need are of low quality. Perhaps, they prefer shopping abroad to prove their social standing or as  status symbol.

    This has been a source of worry to policy makers and economic planners who see such attitude as an act of sabotage to the growth and development of local industries that into the production of such goods that Nigerians go abroad to purchase.

    Worried by this demeaning attitude, economic experts maintain that the country’s economy will remain under-developed if Nigerians continue to patronise foreign goods to the detriment of the locally manufactured ones.

    One of the experts in the hospitality industry, John Obayuwana, insists that “the current consumption of luxury goods by Nigerians in shopping destinations such as Paris, Dubai, and UK shows the spending power of Nigerians in the luxury sector.”

    Obayuwana, who is the founder and Managing Director of Polo Luxury Group, disclosed that wealthy Nigerians have a huge appetite for luxury goods from shops abroad.

    He spoke at this year’s  ‘Financial Times Business of Luxury Summit’ held at the St. Regis Hotel in Mexico City. He explained that the preference Nigerians exhibit when consuming luxury goods abroad is because “in Nigeria, customers are not just looking for logos; they are looking for quality and great service.”

    Admitting that opportunities exist for international luxury brands in Africa, particularly in Nigeria, he said there are several challenges that have inhibited the luxury goods industry in Nigeria from expanding. He listed such challenges to include, but not limited to lack of power supply, high cost of operation, lack of human capital and lack of retail infrastructure.

    A report by Reuters corroborated his views about Nigerians’ penchant for shopping abroad. The reportrated Nigerians as the fourth biggest foreign spenders in UK, as they spend an average of £500 in each shop where they make purchases –four times the spending power of an average UK shopper.

    Reuters also stated that the widespread corruption and debilitating infrastructure that plague Nigeria–including daily power blackouts that are smoothed over by millions of generators – push up the costs of running businesses here, making most people to dependent on informal market-style retail.

    This is why holidaying or visiting relatives abroad is increasingly open to millions of middle-class Nigerians, with the number of visitors to the UK increasing by more than 50 per cent to 142,000 a year, according to the Office for National Statistics.

    Obayuwana, however, stressed the importance of paying attention to the middle-class in order to ensure the sustainable development of the luxury goods industry in Nigeria. He said despite the dearth of infrastructure, Lagos alone could generate $2-3 billion in luxury sales.

    As a result of the increasing tendency of Nigerians to shop abroad,a Nigerian woman, for instance, would stock up everything she needs for the next six months on her twice-yearly visits to Dubai or any other country. She would basically carry out food shopping in Nigeria. One of such women who often does her shopping in Dubai is Ikeoluwa Adebayo, a Geologist with a Lagos-based firm. She believes that everything in Dubai is better both in terms of price and originality compared to what is sold in Nigeria markets or shops.  She said: “It’s not that you can’t get these things in Nigeria, but made in China goods have taken over and you can’t always vouch for their quality.”

    However, forAdebayo and other Nigerians who may have been driven by the search for quality and competitive prices to shop abroad, ongoing effort by relevant authorities to ensure the application of international standards in the retail luxury industry in Nigeria is certainly a welcome development.

    The ‘Financial Times Business of Luxury Summit’ is focused on the economies and the luxury industry of Turkey and Africa. The event attracted senior executives, industry leaders, brand experts, executives and decision makers in the luxury industry such as Designer and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of OBE, Stella McCartney; Founder of Christian Louboutin, Christian Louboutin; President of Carolina Herrera, Caroline Brown; CEO of Italia Independent, Lapo Elkann; and Executive Chairman of the Estée Lauder Companies.

    Others were William Lauder; President of Bottega Veneta, Marco Bizzarri and Fashion Director and Chief Fashion Critic of the New York Times, Vanessa Friedman, including Burak Celet and William Hutchings.

  • WESTFIELD: London’s luxury mall where Nigerians are biggest spenders

    WESTFIELD: London’s luxury mall where Nigerians are biggest spenders

    Victor Akande, Entertaainment Editor, reports about Westfield, London’s luxury mall where Nigerians are reputed to be the biggest spenders

    WINDOW-SHOPPING appears the best way to catch a glimpse of everything. Thus, I was wrapped in luxury looks recently at the Westfield, London, a mall touted by promoters to offer ultimate luxury shopping experience.

    Information about this visually stimulating shopping centre came handy, especially since I was being aided by an official of the British Airways (BA), Camilla Barrett, Deputy Head of International PR Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific and Middle East. She had taken Gwyn Davis, the mall’s Marketing Manager, Tourism, off his duty post to help play the tour guard, in a visit that soon turned out to be an excursion of a sort.

    The Westfield sight-seeing was an extension of the British Airways/Langham Hotel press trip, which had me and four other colleagues in a recreational adventure of London, recently. I was bowled over by the splashy surroundings, array of top-notch designer shops, boutiques, restaurants, and entertainment venues.

    There is no undermining any of the 315 shops in Westfield, London; and counting the number of its head-spinning fashion stores alone wouldn’t be in a day- I lost it, but Davis said there were 43 of them. From Louis Vuitton and Prada to Dior and Mulberry; and from Jo Malone London, Gucci, House of Fraser, Montblanc, Versace, Montblanc to OMEGA, all under one roof, The Village at Westfield London is, indeed, a place to discover the best in designer fashion and lifestyle.

     

    Nigerians passion for spending

    If there is anything that got me thinking afterwards, it is the discovery that Nigerians hold a significant record as the highest spenders in Westfield, dolling an average of £990 (equivalent of N265049. 6310) per visit.

    Next to this spending figure, according to Mavis, is by shoppers from China, with £909 per visit, and then people from Kuwait and the Middle East. These inventories are taken through tax refund, which makes the mall quite auditable.

    Now, what is the impression of the management of Westfield concerning Nigeria and Nigerians? Do they really think Nigerians are rich or are merely spendthrifts? Davis’ response was modest: “It’s about people who have real passion for shopping.”

    But Westfield is not just about shopping. It is a total recreational environment that provides all kinds of ambiance that a man desires. Although an enclosed environment, there is an outdoor aura, where the sun is thrown down through a glass roof. You can’t miss the exciting fountains splash and live music that serenades shoppers at the mall’s large foyer.

    Take the iconic sweeping staircase to the first floor, where the cascading chandeliers seem ever closer and enter another level of tempting food and fashion with Caffe Concerto and even more luxury fashion and accessory boutiques, you will almost be lost in wonderment.

    Also, the Searcy’s Champagne bar located in the heart of The Village creates an intimate focal point: a place to meet, relax and take in the panoramic views of the world’s leading fashion brands, including UK firsts and world- acclaimed names all in one space.

    What more? Westfield London is home to a state-of-the-art all-digital Vue cinema, offering the latest 3D technology across 15 large screens. The biggest category of fun seekers at the Vue are entertained in three exclusive screens, with luxurious reclining seats and private lounge and bar area.

    “The Village has played host to evenings of art and entertainment, including free exhibitions and celebrity performances. Fashion installations activate the space, whilst the latest fashion collections do same to life, putting a stamp on Westfield London as an avant-garde destination that fuses art and culture with retail and lifestyle,” noted Matthew Davis, Manager of The Village, who joined our group for lunch at The Village’s Caffe Concerco.

    Incidentally, right at a corner of the restaurant was a Nigerian, a top official of one of the telecommunications companies. We exchanged pleasantries; and in no time, he left. He was not pushing any large trolley of wares; he was as simple as a passer-by. But guess what, that could have been made possible by the mall’s introduction of hands-free shopping, which makes volume purchase so convenient for the customers who, at the end of their spending spree, are joined by their wares, all packed-waiting by the car.

    Service at Westfield is paramount with a dedicated and multi-lingual concierge team. Their high level of customer service also includes personal chauffeurs, concierge, UK and international home and hotel delivery, personal stylists, cloakroom and bag storage services, tax-free shopping and valet services.

    Although the mall started about five and a half years ago, its growth has been quite rapid, with an expansion plan of 50 percent by 2016, including a 15, 000-flat of houses targeted for 2018.

    The centre, apart from a high number of active brand stores, is also noted for its size: it has a retail floor area of 150,000 m² (1.615m ft²), the equivalent of about 30 football pitches. At the time of its opening, it was reported to be the second largest commercial centre in the UK (after Metro Centre near Newcastle).

    But perhaps Westfield’s record, as it stands today, has beaten that of South China Mall, Dongguan, which opened two years earlier on a total area of 892,000 m² (9.6 million sq ft) with 2,350 stores, but which remains 98 percent vacant with only 47 open stores. Although the mall was classified as a “dead mall” by Emporis, a global building data firm, by 2013, the vacancy rate had fallen to 36 percent.

  • Missing: How Nigerians are disappearing without trace

    Missing: How Nigerians are disappearing without trace

    Over the years, many Nigerians have disappeared without any trace. Assistant Editors Dare Odufowokan, Yetunde Oladeinde and Joke Kujenya examine this worrying phenomenon.

    LOSING a relative or a loved one to death can be traumatic. It is, however, worse when such people are missing and you are not sure whether they are dead or alive. This is what happens to people who learn that those they treasure so much have vanished.

    All over the world, frantic efforts have been made by friends, relatives and loved ones of missing people in the past. Reported and known cases are taken seriously and followed up to ensure that they are found. A few weeks back, protesters took over streets in Islamabad, Pakistan over the case of some missing persons.

    In the developed countries, experts and forensic anthropologists put in so much effort to unravel such cases. Painstakingly, the efforts are seen by cataloguing skeletal remains, putting bone and skull samples together to confirm the status of those who have disappeared in different circumstances. Even when the answer is negative the next stage would be to store the evidence in a data of national missing persons system where medical examiners and the police can have access to continue the investigations from time to time.

    This is only possible where proper records of missing persons are kept. On the Interpol website, pictures, age, country, colour of hair, eye and sex of missing persons are clearly displayed. When the search is consistent, it is likely that the missing folks are found, most times in locations far away from home.

    According to John Amadi, 48, “I went for a vigil in church one night and I had barely spent two hours when my wife called to tell me that our first son was missing. He stepped out to buy something in the neighbourhood and to her amazement he did not return home.” He continued, “We combed the neighbourhood for three days and we had almost lost hope when somebody called to say they had found a boy somewhere on the expressway. We rushed there and found my son. He had been picked by ritualists but somehow they abandoned him on the express for some reasons known to them. We thank God for sparing his life because not everybody is that lucky.”

     

    Missing in action

    Like the Amadi, Gbolahan recalls how his friend and classmate who was missing some years back came back home two weeks later. “He was my close friend and we did a lot of things together. One night his mother came to our house in tears, she told my parents that they had been looking for him all day and wondered if he was in our house. They realised he was not with me and everyone was very sad. They travelled to their town to see if he ran away to his grandfather but they just could not find him anywhere. Then one day he came home with half of the hair on his head shaved off and he looked really awful. His mind was blank and just could not remember anything, but from his appearance, everyone knew that he must have been kidnapped.”

    A large number of those who got missing in the country are never found, or better still, to use the ever optimistic parlance of the police authorities, are yet to be found. Even eminent and famous personalities have been on the missing list for years now with little or no progress made in locating them in spite of efforts by agencies, friends and families.

    The puzzling disappearance of James Bolarinwa Olomo, a professor of Nuclear Physics at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, since last year is one of such troubling high profile “missing person” cases. He reportedly left home on October 17, 2013, and flew to Calabar on an Arik Air flight from where he travelled by road to Eket, Akwa Ibom State. In Eket, he reportedly lodged at Hotel Farlem. His mission was to fulfil a scheduled obligation with Mobil Oil Unlimited, a multinational oil company where he was its Radiation Safety Adviser. He reportedly left his hotel room on October 20 without taking any of his belongings and has not been found since then.

    Efforts to locate him have been futile. Led by the Olomo family of Risawe Anlerin Compound in Otan Ayegbaju area of Osun State, relatives, friends and colleagues are unrelenting in their quest to find out what happened to him. His family has consistently addressed the media alongside the family lawyer to express their grave concerns over the disappearance of their illustrious son and breadwinner. The ASUU chapter of OAU led by Prof. Akinola Adegbola has not been left out. The union equally organised a media parley in Lagos to sensitise the public and call government’s attention to the perceived lacklustre handling of the plight of Olomo. But in spite of all these efforts, nothing concrete has been heard about the missing egg-head.

    Nearly two years after popular television presenter Alhaji Razaq Gawat went missing, the Lagos State Police Command still describes his disappearance as a mystery. Gawat, anchorman of an Islamic TV programme during Ramadan, E didè e ji sari, which is broadcast on Nigerian Television Authority, Channel 10, reportedly went missing around Apongbon end of Eko Bridge, Lagos Island on July 10, 2012.

    The Lagos State Police Commissioner, Mr. Umaru Manko, recently said the Command had worked on Gawat’s case for months without any success as to how or where to find him. He said, “The case is a mystery. There’s nothing that we didn’t do to find Gawat. For months, we worked on Gawat’s case up till the end of last year; the State Director of the SSS and I were on it. At every Security Council meeting, we discussed Gawat. Even the governor was so concerned that every lead he got on the case, he communicated to us.”

    Gawat’s car was parked neatly on the bridge, giving the impression that he had gone somewhere and was coming back. The vehicle, a 4Runner black Toyota SUV with number plate RE 77 AAA, was found on the Eko Bridge by officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority. The General Manager of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, Mr. Babatunde Edu, had said Gawat’s vehicle was parked very close to the kerb, while its hazard light was on.

    His wife, Fatimat, who is still hoping he would be found, said efforts towards locating him appear fruitless so far. In most cases, relatives and friends of the missing persons are left to bear the frustration of seeming endless searches until they get fagged out and lose all hopes of ever being re-united with their loved ones. And once that happens and they stop asking the security agencies questions about the case, the issue is soon forgotten; what with scores of fresh cases happening on a daily basis?

    Some of the frustrating efforts can be found in newspaper advertisement, public announcements on radio, televisions and posters while relatives throng police stations to report just to find a clue. Dead or alive? Sadly for many, there are no words on the status of these missing persons or their whereabouts, leaving friends, guardians and loved ones frustrated and depressed.

    One of such is a newspaper advert dated Monday, March 4, 2013. It reads: “The management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp (NNPC) regrets to announce the mysterious disappearance of its staff, Mr. Sylvester Emefiele. He is suspected to have been abducted by unknown persons at Gwagwalada Area Council on Sunday, 23rd September, 2012. Mr. Sylvester Emefiele is 38 years of age, average height; dark in complexion. The NNPC is soliciting the cooperation of the general public with useful information that could lead to the whereabouts of Sylvester to contact Mr. Best Dulagha, Manager Security, Information and Investigations.”

    Also searching for a loved one are the siblings and relatives of Maria Mawulapo, 15. Painstakingly, they have been combing the nooks and crannies for the whereabouts of the four feet tall teenager who speaks Yoruba and English fluently. Any information about the girl who is dark skinned should therefore be directed to: “Asisat Soremekun of No 64, old Abeokuta Road, Agege or Isokoko Police Station.” Each time there is a knock on the door at No 26, Abbey Street, Egbe, Ikotun Lagos, Uchechi Nkoro’s heart leaps, praying and believing that a lost loved one would saunter in.

     

    Still searching

    Would she come back home again? These and so many other questions are being asked by her friends and family members. Like Nkoro, everyone is enthusiastically waiting to be told that 16-year-old Mary Gift Onyebuchi has been found. Sadly, the truth is that this dark complexioned girl, who also stands at four feet tall, has joined the long list of missing persons in the country. Abibu Orisanmi, 20 and Tunde Fidelis, 24, who are both deaf and dumb are also missing.

    Another is a 38-year-old printer, Olaide Shittu. He lived at No 13, Alfa Aminu Street, Shomolu, Lagos. He disappeared on April 24.

    Speaking to The Nation at the weekend, Shittu’s wife, Rukayat, 29, a mother of three and a ticket vendor with LAGBUS, said: “Since my husband got missing four months ago, life has been difficult for me and my children. He is our breadwinner. Our three children are in school and it has not been easy giving them basic needs. He told me he was going to the office on the fateful day. He gave us money to buy materials we needed in the house but he never came back to see those things. I called his number immediately after the football match was concluded but it was switched off. Since then, we have been searching for him. If he was kidnapped, I beg the kidnappers to release him because of our children. Life has been difficult without my husband. Though Olaide’s family members have been trying for me and my children, nothing is sweeter than seeing my husband at home. Please, help us.”

    Shittu’s aged aunt, Alhaja Ramotallahi Odekunle, who has a partial stroke on her right hand, said: “His aged father, who is my younger brother, is seriously sick now because of the sudden disappearance of his son. Olaide came in to greet me on the morning of Tuesday, April 24. We chatted for a while before he left for work. He was a printer in Magodo area. According to what his boss later told us, Olaide left his place of work with other staff after office hours. Then, because he is a football lover, we were told, he stopped at a football viewing centre in the area to watch a match between Chelsea and Barcelona. That was the last time his colleagues at his work place said they saw of him. When we discovered that he didn’t come back to the house, we called his boss to ask if our son was still at work. The boss said Olaide left for house and other people in the press office confirmed that they left the place with Olaide the previous night.

    “We later heard that policemen raided the area after the match because of the fracas between fans of the football clubs but we could not say if he was among the people arrested. We visited all the police stations around Magodo, but Olaide’s name was not registered among those detained. We also visited various hospitals in Lagos, but never saw anyone that looked like him. Since then, we have been going from one television station to another, all to no avail. As we were crying over our missing son, we also heard that Alhaji Gawat of NTA was also declared missing. At this point, I was shocked. How could people get lost like that and, months after, nothing would be heard of the person again? Yet they told us that there is government and security. Olaide was our breadwinner. If his was a case of kidnap, nobody has contacted us to bring money. You press people should please help us to find our son and appeal to the government to strengthen security before everybody in Nigeria is declared missing.”

    There are also cases of those who have been missing for years. One of such is Olumide Adelogba. For five years, his mother, Mrs. Olayinka Adelogba, 68, has waited for his return to their Federal Housing Estate, Ipaja, Lagos suburb home. She told The Nation that only death could make her get over Olumide’s disappearance.

    The statistics of missing persons, where available, are scary. In Lagos, about 40 people have been declared missing this year already. In 2010, about 258 persons were declared missing after several fruitless searches by their families and the police. About 156 of those missing were male. Females make up 102. A police source said a large percentage of the missing persons comprised mostly young people between ages 12 and 27. Those within the 40s and above are very few. He also said contrary to the notion that more people get missing in December, the 2010 record of the last months of the year showed a decrease in the number of missing people.

    In the data provided, 16 people went missing in December of 2010 and 15 in October. He also noted that besides the 258 police recorded in their data base, the actual number could be more because some families did not report such disappearances to the police for lack of confidence.

    Cases of missing persons are not limited to Lagos. In Abia State, 16 persons were declared missing between January and May. According to the police, of the 16 persons declared missing, six persons were found alive. One person, Miss Peace Udeala, a trainee nurse and a native of Uratha in Isiala Ngwa Local Government Area of Abia State, was discovered dead. The ages of the victims are between two and 28 years. The police said cases of missing persons were rampant in areas such as Umuahia North and South and Isiala North and South local government.

    “The unique thing about these incidents is that most of the victims are house-helps. The information we have is that a majority of them run away from home over any little provocation. One of the victims just felt like running away to an unknown destination and did not inform the people he was living with. The nurse that was found dead was said to have received a call that invited her somewhere to treat a patient,” police said.

    In Ondo State, 30 persons were declared missing between 2010 and August 2012. Data from the state’s Police Command stated that in 2010, nine persons were declared missing. There was one case in February, two in March, one in May, one each in July and August. The other three were declared missing between October, November and December. In 2011, eleven persons were declared missing. Between January and August 2012, three persons were declared missing. The first case was in March. Two were recorded in April. June and July had two persons reportedly missing. In 2013, the figure rose to 23 while this year so far, eight people entered the missing, not found list in the state.

    And in one single frightening swoop, about 200 girls joined the gory list from the troubled Borno State in the north eastern zone of the country when militant Islamic sect fighters made away with them from their hostel in a secondary school premises. The Nigerian military has admitted that most of the 129 girls abducted by Boko Haram Islamists from their school in the country’s restive northeast remained missing.

    A week after they were abducted, the military announced that all but eight of the girls snatched from their school managed to escape, contrary to the position of the state government and the school principal.

    “The defence headquarters wishes to defer to the school principal and governor’s statement on the number of students still missing,” Defence Ministry spokesman, Chris Olukolade, said in a statement on Friday. He said that vigilance groups and hunters were assisting the authorities in the frantic search for the girls, who were grabbed from the Government Girls Secondary School in the Chibok area of Borno State. Till the time of filing this report, the “efforts” are yet to yield any fruit as the girls’ names continue to occupy spaces on the “missing people” list.

    There are so many stories but the most important thing is that the government needs to put in a better strategy to guarantee the safety of people and a data base that would make it easy to trace those who are missing.

     

    An endlessly growing list

    Sadly, the list of missing and not found persons continues to grow on a daily basis. And at the end of each year, the police authorities are forced to compile as “keep in view”, scores and scores of unresolved missing cases. The Nation was able to get a list of Missing Persons between Jan and Aug 2013.

    On the gory list is Ayobami Jaiyeola, 29, former National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member with the Lagos State government, last seen leaving her elder sister’s house at Dideolu Estate, Lekki, Lagos Island, since 2013. Somto Orji, 18, and dumb, is also on the list. He has been missing since the afternoon of November 29, was last seen leaving his 14, Akin Osiyemi Street, off Allen Avenue, Lagos mainland, home. According to the mother, he was not born dumb but he suddenly lost his ability to speak at the age of seven after convulsing. He was hyperactive and had to leave school because he couldn’t write and understand sign language but could hear.

    Miss Augustina Ilevbare, a 14-year-old student of Command Children Primary School, Ikeja Military Cantonment, Lagos mainland, was last seen on Monday, August 5. She had lived with her father, Peter Ilevbare, a lance corporal with the Nigerian Army at 9, Brigade Garrison, Ikeja Cantonment, CBQ 75, Room 14, since 1999. He said the girl left home without telling anyone where she was going. Also, Ayomide Omope, 19, and autistic, was reported missing in January 2013. He was last seen on Thursday, January 31.

    But according to the Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Frank Mba, “Not everyone that is not immediately found or whose whereabouts are still in doubt, for a particular number of hours or days, can be said to be a missing person.” He gave instances of many who maltreat their house helps and report at police stations immediately such helps disappear so as not to be on the foul side of the law. Under the law, no one can be declared missing until such a person is not found after twenty-four hours.

    Is the police adequately equipped to find missing persons? That is the question many are asking today.

  • ‘We need Nigerians to donate their organs’

    The Rotary Club of Nigeria has urged Nigerians to donate some of their organs to save the lives of other people.

    The club noted that though such donations were individual’s choice, they would save money, anxiety and lives.

    Rotary said there was nothing wrong with such donations since there were Nigerians who went abroad and benefitted from donated organs.

    The club spoke yesterday through the District Governor of Rotary 9110, Mr Gbemiga Olowu, who was on tour of booths where people were receiving free treatments in Lagos.

    The tour was part of activities marking the 3rd edition of the Rotary Family Week. It will run till Saturday.

    During the three-day programme, the club will conduct free HIV tests and counselling on the family.

  • ‘I don’t shop where Nigerians shop abroad’

    ‘I don’t shop where Nigerians shop abroad’

    Kenny Ogungbe with his partner Dayo Adeneye changed the face of entertainment in Nigeria. Keke, as he is fondly called worked with the Ogun State Broadcasting Corporation (OGBC).

    He also worked with Africa Independent Television (AIT) before co-founding Primetime Entertainment, Kennis Music and Afrisat with his partner Dayo.

    On one of the social media platforms, Kenny spoke about his uniqueness in shopping.

    He said: “I have never shopped in Nigeria because I buy for the future. I am a Boy Scout. That does not mean I disrespect Nigerian shops though. I like unique things. Even when I shop abroad, I don’t go to places where Nigerians go to buy. What I buy might look the same with other people’s own, but it is not that same texture.”

  • It is not over yet for Nigerians

    Sir, This message is for all Nigerians and the leaders. We need to be commited to God, which remains a way of showing gratitude for his provisions, despite the nation’s tragedies. In view of the myriad problems confronting Nigerians in the present day Nigeria, which make survival a herculean task for them, especially as it relates to insecurity, joblessness, poverty and uncertainty that they face daily, the miracle of life ought to be appreciated by Nigerians.

    It is highly regretting the irresponsible manner the country is being run, in which essential developmental amenities are denied the citizenry, with brazen corruption and embezzlement as the order of the day, as it has and will create a psyche of abandonment and uselessness in the minds of the younger generation of Nigerians, which in turn, have made many of them to become easy tools of exploitation for evil-minded people in the country, to foment trouble and become agents of destabilization in their own country.

    The situation of the country has got to the point where despair and recklessness has become the mindset of the youths, emanating from repressed aggression. It poses danger for the very survival of the country, moreso, as we gradually move towards another general elections.

    The government should do more to make life more meaningful to the citizenry, insisting that Nigeria is blessed with enough to take care of it people. The government need to resuscitate ailing industries and provide the enabling environment for entrepreneurial growth to guarantee job creation.

    I need to emphasis that the church is relevant in every facet of human endeavour. So religious leaders can no longer bury their heads in the sand and turn their face to the challenges facing the country. We need to wake-up to our responsibilities as the salt of the earth and the light of this world.

    The church is always able to change the nation. It follows therefore that the church must become whatever it wants the nation to be; in other words, we must become the change we desire.

    Prophet Oladipupo Funmilade-Joel

    The General Overseer, The Way of Reconciliation Evangelistic Ministries (TWOREM) Int’l, Lagos, Nigeria

  • Nigerians are extremely hospitable people -British don on a visit

    Nigerians are extremely hospitable people -British don on a visit

    Dr Heidi Ashton is a lecturer at the University of Leicester, United Kingdom, where she takes charge of distance learning for masters degree students in Human Resource Management and Occupational Psychology. As a trained dancer, she functioned for one month as an assistant choreographer at the Miss World pageant about two years ago. She was on a faculty visit to Leadmode Resource Centre in Nigeria when GBENGA ADERANTI met her and she spoke about her experience as a visitor to the country.

    PRIOR to coming to Nigeria, what was your impression of Nigerian students?
    I organise the Distance Learning Summer School at the University, so I had already met some of our Nigerian students. My impression was that Nigerian students were a diverse group with interesting and varied lives and backgrounds.

    What is your assessment of the students you met at Leadmode?
    The course members that I have met have been very committed, extremely hard working and intelligent. They are willing to challenge and be challenged, which is essential for a truly productive learning environment.

    What areas of education do you think the Nigerian government should improve on?
    Having not been educated in Nigeria nor studied the provision, it is difficult to say but it is my impression that an improvement in primary education and provision for all citizens to attend secondary education and where appropriate tertiary education could help to improve the economy if strategically implemented. A focus on particular areas of expertise and training linked to accreditation and enforced regulation would also benefit industry growth in various sectors but again, as part of a wider strategic plan for development.
    Foreign degrees are now a fad in Nigeria. Why do you think Nigerian students are crazy about foreign degrees?
    I imagine that this has something to do with the likelihood that a particular degree from a particular university will increase job or promotional prospects and as such has become enmeshed in the processes of the labour market as a whole. When jobs are scarce, individuals need to find ways to distinguish themselves from others with whom they are competing on a global scale. The University of Leicester is a high-ranking one with a good reputation and it is always the case that a good quality degree speaks to the quality of the candidate.
    From your interactions with Nigerian students so far, do you think they should go abroad for studies?
    It depends a great deal on their aspirations, resources and opportunities. One of the advantages of the distance learning courses that we offer is that they provide students with the opportunity to study with a leading educational institution without having to leave Nigeria so they no longer have to go abroad for their studies.

    Why do you think distance learning is better?
    I don’t think that distance learning is better. I think both modes of learning have their challenges and opportunities and it is up to the individual to capitalise on opportunities as they arise. One of the advantages to distance learning is that one can study whilst working and we encourage our course members to use their experience to reflect on their studies and their studies to reflect on their practice. The challenge of course is juggling work and family life with studying at a very high level but this also develops and demonstrates to employers the important skills of time management and self-discipline. We also work hard to ensure that course members are supported through faculty visits and summer school which is an opportunity to study intensely with other distance learners from around the world on campus.

    What is your relationship with Leadmode Resource Centre?
    We work in partnership with Leadmode to provide fully supported distance learning courses. Students can apply to the University via Leadmode who are experienced in the application and delivery procedures of our courses and guide students through these processes. Students also have access to Leadmode’s facilities, which give them the opportunity to study together, or independently in a quiet environment. Faculty members from the university visit these centres twice per year and give lectures and one to one tutorials to students these are organised and administered by Leadmode in collaboration with the university.
    Our joint aim is to provide a supportive environment for effective learning and we are united in our passion for distance learning and the opportunities that this can bring for career and professional development. Together Leadmode and the University of Leicester give students access to world-class, internationally recognised qualifications and the opportunity to become a part of a top ranking university without having to leave their jobs, families or home.

    You have been in Nigeria for a while now, how would you describe the country?
    I have only been in Nigeria for two weeks and I have only been to Lagos and Abuja; so I’m not really in a position to describe the country or make any generalisations. I would say that the people that I have met have been extremely hospitable, friendly and hard working. There is a great deal of potential here; you can feel it bubbling under the surface and that’s exciting.

    What were those things on your mind when you first knew you were coming to Nigeria?
    I had already met some Nigerian course members, so I was looking forward to meeting them again. I was slightly apprehensive though, as I had heard that it is a dangerous place where corruption is rife.

    You must have heard stories about Nigeria. Are you disappointed now that you are here?
    Unfortunately the stories that I had heard were not very positive so I really didn’t know what to expect. However, far from being disappointed, I have always found it a very enjoyable and positive experience and as I mentioned, I am particularly fond of the Nigerian people.
    Tell me those things you are not likely to forget about Nigeria.
    I will not forget the kindness and hospitality of the people I’ve met. I am also struck by how hard working the people are here. I have been impressed by the people’s desire to build and develop their nation which they are so proud to be a part of. In addition, I am taken aback by the extremes of vast wealth and desperate poverty; there is so much untapped potential in the people and resources here but with good leadership, I am sure that Nigeria’s time will come.

    How do you combine your job as a lecturer and Assistant Choreographer at Miss World?
    I don’t! That was a freelance job that I did once for one month two years ago.

    What was growing up like for you?
    I was very fortunate to grow up in a country with open access to education and healthcare. I started dancing age nine and within a year, I was training every night after school, weekends and holidays. It was tough at times to juggle my training with my school work and maintain my grades but I lived to dance so I didn’t feel that it was a sacrifice. I was so lucky to have the opportunity to train and to have such supportive parents.
    The job of lecturing and showbiz are two different jobs that are not related, why did you choose to combine the two?
    They are more related than you might think. When you are performing, you are trying to communicate something. When you are lecturing, you are doing the same. To be a good performer (dancer), you have to have an analytical and curious mind to research and develop your roles. These are the same skills that a researcher uses when researching and developing ideas.
    I didn’t really choose to combine the two. I was a dancer first and completed both my BSc and MSc by distance learning whilst working in shows. I knew that like an athlete, a dancer’s career was short and I gained my degrees because I knew I would one day have to find an alternative career. Academia was something that I continued out of a thirst for knowledge but then, it developed into a career opportunity that I took.
    I do still perform and choreograph when I can, usually during my leave, but I also have an ethnographic approach to studying professions so the two jobs combine well in relation to my research. I also work as a sports psychologist for British fencing and I work as a freelance business consultant, so I manage to juggle a number of roles all of which complement one another. Maybe that’s why I get along well with the Nigerian people; we have a similar work ethic and a desire to make the most of every opportunity that comes our way.
    What is that experience you are not likely to forget while participating in the Miss World competition?
    The camaraderie of the team and the girls and their commitment to and belief in the ethos of the event to promote charitable causes and raise awareness and money to promote a better life for the very least fortunate in the world.

    Did you at any time attempt to compete in a beauty pageant?
    No. I was completely focused on dance; I’m not sure if I even knew they existed!
    African perspective of beauty is quite different from foreign perspective. ….

    Don’t you think something should be done about this?
    As you suggest, the valued aesthetics of beauty are different for different cultures, it is also something that is temporally located. As such, a globally valued aesthetic of beauty can never be a truly universally held representation. The current global aesthetic ideal is created by the fashion industry and capitalism more generally. If I had some influence over it, I would probably vote for the ideal beauty to be short, fair, redheads with freckles! As for Miss World, each country selects their own candidate and the competition is judged following the contestant’s performance on a number of categories, including talent, contribution to the awareness of charitable causes in their country, swimwear, sports, modelling and the use of social media to raise awareness.
    Tell me your most embarrassing moment.
    Fortunately, I am well humoured enough to be able to laugh at myself, so nothing much embarrasses me.

  • 6, 000 Nigerians issued Indonesian visas – Envoy

    The Indonesian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Sudirman Haseng, on Thursday said that about 6,000 Nigerians had  been issued visas to  Indonesia in the last three years.

    Sudirman told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that Indonesia  would soon increase the number  of visas being  given to Nigerians.

    This, according  to him, is because the number was small when compared with  the number of visas issued to Nigerians by other countries of the world.

    “Every year, we issued 2,000 visas to Nigerians. So, in the last three years, about 6,000 Nigerians have been issued visas to visit Indonesia.

    “But, we must say that this number is very small when compared to visas issued to Nigerians by other countries.

    “The low number of visas to Nigerians is due to the lack of understanding between the people of Nigeria and Indonesia.

    “And this is due to negative western media reports about unfounded situations in Nigeria and Indonesia,’’ he said.

    He said that the Indonesian Government was worried at the low number of Nigerians visiting the country, and was working hard at encouraging more Nigerians to come.

    The envoy said that the two governments were jointly working at promoting people-to-people interaction between both countries.

    “We want more Nigerians to visit Indonesia, just as we want more Indonesians and their companies to come into Nigeria.

    “We are, therefore, having talks with the Nigerian Government to see how fast and best we can create better understanding between us,’’ he said.