The Nation Newspaper

Tag: product

  • Firm wins new product award

    Firm wins new product award

    Sosa Fruit Drink, a product of Rite Foods Limited, has won the “Outstanding New Product of the Year – Juice” at the Marketing Edge Brands & Advertising Excellence Awards.

    Introduced in 2022 as part of Rite Foods Limited’s product portfolio expansion, Sosa Fruit Drink, with its five variants, Apple, Orange, Cranberry, Passion, and Mango (OPM), and Mixed Berries, has become consumers’ favourite in the fruit drink beverage industry, setting a new standard for quality and taste.

    The Assistant Marketing Manager of the company, Adebola Adeyinka said that the award reflects the commitment the company to innovation and product excellence that defines Rite Foods Limited.

    This recognition, according to her underscores the brand’s impressive growth path, sterling performance in its competitive segment, outstanding equity rating, and its consistently rising profile over the past year.

    The 20th Anniversary Summit and Awards event hosted by agency brought together industry leaders and innovators.

    Read Also: How Africa can achieve prosperity, by Tinubu

    Adeyinka said that the editorial board of the magazine, in collaboration with the board of advertising agency decided to conduct the event both in person and virtually.

    She said that the culmination of the grand celebration will be the post-event special edition of the agency publication which will be out next month, featuring in-depth profiles of the distinguished awardees, including the fruit drink.

    The assistant marketing manager expressed appreciation for the remarkable feat attained by Sosa fruit drink.

    She said that the fruit drink will continue to provide consumers with top-quality; innovative fruit drink flavours that are second to none.

  • SON Act yielding product seizures, says DG

    SON Act yielding product seizures, says DG

    Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) Director General Osita Aboloma has described the SON Act as “a revolutionary document”, which has assisted the organisation in delivering on its mandate of sanitising the country of unwholesome products.

    Aboloma stated this at a stakeholders’ sensitisation workshop on SON Act 2015 in Yola, the Adamawa State capital.

    According to him, within the last few months, the standards body has confiscated fake and sub-standard products worth billions of naira across the country.

    He maintained that it had since embarked on arraignment and trial at the various courts of some of the suspects linked with the impounded goods.

    “We are not resting on our oars. We, therefore, appeal to all to be aware of the Act, comply with its provisions, particularly areas dealing with how operators should do the right thing for their businesses to grow,” he advised.

    He, however, stated that the work of standardisation was to grow Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs), promote agro-allied sector, as well as ensure industrial and economic development.

    This, according to Aboloma, became imperative to engage stakeholders in different sectors of the economy.

    “We need to use the instrumentality of SON Act NO.14 2015 to attain economic development. We are spreading our tentacles to the states and geo-political zones. Product counterfeiters have no place to hibernate. With the re-invigorated monitoring and enforcement strategies we are putting in place, our dragnet will get economic saboteurs anywhere, anytime,” he said.

    He noted that the theme of the workshop: “SON Act 2015: Catalyst for economic development”, was germane and quite in tune with the current efforts by the Federal Government to turn around the nation’s economy.

    “We decided to conduct nationwide stakeholders’ sensitisation workshops on the Act not only in order to enlighten people on the provisions of the Act but equally to strengthen stakeholders’ engagement and collaborations. The positive outcomes and impact of the sensitization exercises in places where they have been conducted so far have been so encouraging. This forum would therefore not be different in eliciting attention and challenging participants on the issues to be raised by our competent facilitators and resources persons,” he stressed.

    A Principal Partner, Agbonhese, Agbonhese & Co, Dr. James Agbonhese, in his presentation tagged “SON ACT 2015: Vehicle For Quality and Standard Products” explained that the new Act was a remarkable improvement on the old Act ,which gave SON extremely limited powers to pursue its mandate.

  • ’It’s tough battling product counterfeiters’

    ’It’s tough battling product counterfeiters’

    Aare Fatai Odesile, Managing Director/Chief Executive, Grand Oak Limited, in this interview with Daniel Adeleye, speaks on the challenges of the spirit and wine manufacturing companies in Nigeria, amongst other related issues. Excerpts:

    Menace of product counterfeiting

    Counterfeiting is as old as human existence itself. And one of what we can call security items in the world is how people fake it. And what we look at is marketing opportunity because for people to attempt to imitate you, it means you are successful. We see that as a success prize that man has to pay. Therefore we take serious steps to tell consumers through packaging education. We have some clear identified signals. Take Seaman Schnapps as example, we have some holograms and massive cross examinations by way of poster, radio, television for people to identify the original one. Because if you look at distilleries industries, it’s more challenged as far as we’re concern, given the nature of the industry itself. And what do I mean, if you take a bottle of coke or a bottle of beer, you’ll need to return it as a retailer. You need to take your empty bottles to buy the new one. But in distilleries, it’s a single trade bottle, which means that if you buy Schnapps for instance, you take it to your house, you drink it and because of our people’s habits to throw things in the garbage, and some people are now specialised in picking those used bottles, recycling and sell to those who fake it. And because it’s alcohol, it’s stable, but it’s still not the right thing. So we do a lot of consumers’ education for people to identify the danger of consuming all those fake products. We’ve been taking steps to let people know how to identify the originals. There are people genuinely buying fake and they don’t know. To those categories, we have tried as much as possible to educate and use distribution, to ensure availability and communicate very well. And those who also know it is fake and they buy it and why because they probably want to use it as gifts, to those who may not know the difference. For those who are buying unknowingly, we are doing everything to educate them in collaboration with the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON). There are lots of collaborative efforts to safeguard our consumers from taking fake products unknowingly.

    Experience with the Nigerian market

    There are some categories of Nigerians, who are just genuine consumers, and therefore without knowing it, they go into it and they buy it. But there are some groups, deliberately buying even when they know it’s fake. My own experience with Nigerians is very simple, if you are able to convince a typical Nigerian about the danger, particularly what is going inside his system, average Nigerians still care about their health to a large extent. So my experience about this market is that typically, 70/80 percent of Nigerians do care about what goes into their mouth and if well convinced, they are willing to dump things that are likely to harm them.

    Success strategies

    Yes, you are right, Nigeria Distilleries Limited is one of the pioneer distilleries company in Nigeria. And this company has been in production and sales of wine for so many years. Some of us grew up to know about Seaman Schnapps. One of the successes of Nigeria and Grand Oak Limited is consistency of quality. In spite of all the economic challenges, we have stayed through the qualities of these brands. We have also been in a brand company, brand development, brand marketing, consumer focus and so on. For instance, if you look at schnapps market, Grand Oak Limited was the first to introduce a third class of the schnapps. Prior to that initiative in 1999/2000, when you want to do your cultural prayers, you want to pour libation; it was customary at that time to look for any available glass. It was initiative of Grand Oak Limited, Nigeria Distilleries we introduced a brand called Schnapps 2000. That Schnapps 2000 was done at the approach of 21st century. Since then, everybody keyed into that. We pioneered schnapps one litre. When you take a bottle of schnapps and pray into that bottle, everybody wants to take from it, and the former bottle posed a limitation. So that is what led to the birth of Schnapps one litre pack which is very successful. If you look around, we are the first person to introduce bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a lot of people are also using glass bottle 20cl. Some years ago we look at what the direction is and most of our brands like Regal 12cl, Dark Sailor, all went to PET and everybody followed us today. Even the sachet is also our initiative; we know that a lot of consumers desired the taste of good thing. They want the quality schnapps, they want the Lords gin, but the purchasing power was not there. So they are only to pay for a level, so when positioning the quality of the brand and equity of the brand, we also introduced a top quality sachet that’s consistent with the brand now affordable to the majority of Nigerians. So innovation is one of our key strength and we are also consumer-centric. We are doing quite a number of things based on consumer insight and of course, on the level of quality irrespective of the challenges in the environment. So I could attribute our success to all that and ultimately, our people. Because machine cannot operate itself, you need people to drive the brand and to drive the quality. This is a family environment where everybody sees themselves as a member of family unit. And we all work towards the consumers’ expectations.

    Using media to revive ailing business

    Bacchus tonic wine is still a formidable force in the market. I can simply say that in a tonic wine category today, it’s still the only brand. I mean we have some other brands come and go and don’t forget that consumers fashion trend also changes. With the advent of red wine which was not there before, it does give some challenge to the blend red wine which Bacchus is. But I can tell you that there are some layers of consumers that still enjoy the vitamins and nourishment of Bacchus tonic wine. And it’s still doing credibly well; it’s one of the brands that have survived decades. It’s still one of our targeted marketing, because of our positioning at wedding trains. If you attend marriage in the Registry today, you’ll see Bacchus there. It’s part of the requirements for those who want to get married in the court today. So we leave it there to keep on satisfying that market. Notwithstanding the emergence of red wine culture in Nigeria we still do not want to disappoint those who enjoy the vitamins, the tonic properties and the nourishment of Bacchus. So it’s still there and what we now do is a lot of experiential activities that meet the consumers at the point of their needs.

    Game plan for the future

    We remain focus on drinks, and like I was talking about red wine, as long as it’s drinks that would be our focus. It could be alcoholic and non-alcoholic. But we want to be playing in drinks market substantially. We have more than enough segments to remain on these different strata within drink business.

    Operating environment

    It’s challenging because the bulk of our materials on alcohol are still imported. There are still some imported companies that run in this economy, they know what effort has been made but then they know there is no alternative returning. Knowing that forex is still high, although there seems to be stability today unlike when the rate was fluctuating. Of course, that has also given rise to salary agitation by staff, because everything has gone up, your staff spend more as such they have to fall back at you. And unfortunately, at the end of the day, the consumers out there will not be able to buy at that price. So while there are pressures internally, there is limitation externally affected by the purchasing power of consumers. But we are remaining truthful to our words; we will not compromise in all aspects. Well margins are becoming very slim, and that is one major impact on business because we don’t want to compromise on our quality. But as long as the business is going and the consumers are happy, we’ll remain in this business.

    Battling economic crunch

    Well that is a perception. But if it is true at all, it would be mainly among the low earned products. Because those who have no money, yes they still want to get high, and some of them do find solace in all this regional local brands. There’s a lot of movement towards fraternising where instead of going to buy a bottle of beer, and before you can satisfy yourself you have to take like three bottles, but you can come together and buy a bottle of Lords dry gin for instance and by the time they finish it, they are already high. So there is this convergence among friends who go out and have fun. So that movement is happening. However, that’s not to eliminate the low-earned of the market. So to some extent, yes, but then it depends on your target and the kind of people you go after, and the reason for consumption.

    Toughest business decision

    One of the toughest business decisions is convincing my colleagues on the board that we have to remain true to our vision and mission, which is to offer quality brands at a good money proposition to the consumers. And that has led to some decisions that I look inward and discontinue some imported input materials. It was a tough call because you also need to carry out a lot of extensive research to be sure that what the locals are offering will not compromise your brands or will not let consumers down. It was a tough call because some of those materials were imported but to come back and be using locally-sourced materials was a decision that we have to take collectively early 2016. It posed a lot of challenges because only the quality differences are there but kudos to the local industries because they’re also rapidly mopping up and improving on their ability and also business suffered a lot of contractions in 2016. Nigeria was in recession and the turnover crashed and of course some jobs, because of the luxurious ways of our lives, when things are going on well, there are so many jobs that could outsource, but because things are rosy they find their way. So we have to do a review of what are priority jobs, and what are the jobs that could be outsourced. And that was also a very tough call. But outside of that, I think we are getting back.

    Managing workforce

    Yes, there is laid down disciplinarian procedures. There is what we called, Employee Handbook. At the resumption you are taken through the handbook to familiar with dos and don’ts of the company and the punishment attracted if you do the don’ts. Don’t forget we are also a unionised company, one of those very few companies in Nigeria that is fully subscribed to union both at the national union and that. We are always engaging with the union, so they know what we are doing. They know the rules and they know when you go against the rules, the handbook has already signed all of that. So it could be a warning letter, it could be suspension. But to be honest, we have few of those cases, because there are forum periodically where staff are collectively gather together and we discuss. Every member of staff is free to ask the Managing Director whatever you think you need to know and there is no consequence for that. There are few of that but administrative procedures take care of that.

  • SON, manufacturers collaborate on product authentication

    SON, manufacturers collaborate on product authentication

    The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has partnered the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) to introduce SON’s Product Authentication Mark (PAM) to the market.

    PAM is a mark of quality fixed on  finished products to demonstrate their conformity to approved standards. It is issued as a sticker with security features and QR code, which can be scanned by a smart phone.

    It is applied on each product to ensure traceability and tracking of imported and local products.

    According to the SON’s Director-General, Mr. Osita Aboloma, PAM will reduce product’s counterfeiting, which had become a clog in the wheel of manufacturers.

    He added that it was one of the Federal Government’s initiatives targeted at improving the business environment.

    The SON DG, who spoke at the SON Stakeholders’ Forum on PAM in Lagos, said the agency’s new PAM would raise the patronage of made-in-Nigeria products and boost the country’s economic diversification drive from oil to non-oil sector.

    “We started it because counterfeiting is an age-long menace that has burdened us, leading to the influx of substandard goods in Nigeria. It also makes it difficult for local manufacturers to be competitive,” the DG said.

    He added that it was the agency’s opportunity to deploy technology and authenticate products shipped into the Nigerian market.

    However, certain items, such as food products, drugs, and machi-neries of manufacturers, among others, are exempted from PAM, which will take effect on February 1, 2018.

    To SON’s Acting Director, Product Certification, PAM is important as it would enable manufacturers to sell their products and easily trace them.

    He said the agency’s initiative would reduce the cost of changing logos while ensuring that consumers buy products that give them value for their money.

    “I know of some companies that change their logos every quarter. With PAM, the companies should be able to reduce that cost and put the money elsewhere,” Orngudwem said.

    He stated that the N3 cost per stamp could be negotiated and that the initiative would be a win-win situation for all stakeholders.

    On his part, the Director General/Chief Executive of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Mr. Babatunde Irukera, said his agency supported the PAM as it would protect consumers from buying counterfeits and cloned products.

    He said people were dying as result of substandard products , adding that the new initiative of SON would help reduce that.

    “I believe that the Federal Government should declare a state of emergency on counterfeiting,” Irukera said.

    MAN President Dr. Frank Jacobs commended SON for the initiative. Underlining some of the benefits manufacturers would derive from it, he said: “We are aware that this mark will further improve patronage of made-in-Nigeria products and clearly identify original products.”

    He added that it would further safeguard the health of consumers, provide unambiguous means of authentication and heavily reduce grey trade activities such as smuggling and counterfeiting.

    Jacobs, however, said manufacturers were worried and  concerned about the cost implication of the PAM initiative on manufactured products, prices, patent, logistics, packaging lines, sales, and employment.

    The forum was aimed at  ensuring that SON and MAN sought ways on how the new initiative would impact positively on manufacturers without causing burden on the real sector.

  • Equity Assurance launches mobile insurance product

    Equity Assurance Plc., a member of SUNU Group, has announced the launch of its innovative mobile (USSD) insurance solution.

    The company Chairman, Abba Kyari Bukar, while speaking at the launch in Lagos, said Equity mobile insurance solution is not just innovative for the sake of it, but designed to address existential challenges that have faced insurance customers in Nigeria over the past 100 years.

    The product, he said, is a simple, first-of-its kind, self-service solution, which enables car owners to  purchase authentic 3rd Party Auto Insurance with the use of their mobile phones in less than five minutes.

    Kyari Bukar pointed out that the company was aware of the government’s drive towards achieving financial inclusion across the country hence the development of the product to further the objective.

    He stressed that the product is available to everyone, regardless of their GSM network, type of phone or whether or not they have access to the internet..

    He further stated that the company’s decision to develop this ground-breaking mobile insurance solution is aimed at ensuring excellent customer experience at all times and affordable cost.

    He added that it guarantees customers’ convenience, easy and secure access, real-time interaction and speedy service, noting that it serves as a platform for customers’ engagement, claims payment and other after-purchase services.

    The company Managing Director, Moruf Apampa, said the  mobile (USSD)  application also serves as a platform for customers’ engagement, claims payment and other after-purchase services.

    He said:“The company’s decision to develop this ground-breaking mobile insurance solution is aimed at ensuring excellent customer experience at all times for its existing and prospective customers at affordable cost.

    “The application will be available to all customers, regardless of their GSM network or type of phone they use, whether they have internet access or not, effective December 8, 2017.

    “Furthermore, Demo and animated illustrations can be viewed by prospective customers and general public on the firm’s website in order to better understand how to purchase/use the product as well as its different service features and functionalities,” he noted.

    SUNU  Group is a leading Insurance Group that operates in 14 countries in Africa.

  • SON reduces product registration time to 60 days

    SON reduces product registration time to 60 days

    • Group denies cloned electrical parts

    The Director-General, Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Mr. Osita Aboloma, has said 60 days will, henceforth, be the deadline for product registration, adding that it aligns with the government policy on ease of doing business.

    Speaking during a sensitisation forum between SON and Alaba Electrical Dealers Association of Nigeria (EDAN) in Lagos, at the weekend, he said the standards agency had come out with simplified processes to encourage more businessmen to register their products.

    He discouraged them from copying other people’s brands, adding that it was an economic crime to counterfeit genuine products. While urging the traders to desist from cloning successful products and importing counterfeited products into the country, Aboloma promised that SON will automate the process of product registration and reduce human interference.

    According to him when the agency destroyed substandard goods, it indirectly affects the economy because it is billions of naira that was destroyed. He warned that any importer that is apprehended will face the full wrath of the law as the Attorney-General’s office is  partnering with SON to ensure that such people are prosecuted  to serve as example to would-be offenders.

    Meanwhile, EDAN has stepped up its game by coming under the Standard Organisation Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP) for locally manufactured cables and wires and SON Mandatory Assessment Programmes (SONCAP) for imported cables.

    A patron of the market, Mr. Okolo Benjamin, said the allegation of the presence of fake and substandard electrical goods in the market was exaggerated.

    He appealed to SON to continuously engage the traders on the negative effects of fake and sub-standard goods rather than vilification.

    Earlier, EDAN Chairman, Mr. Fabian Ezereadi Ezeorjika, commended the collaborative effort between the association and SON and said before now, many of his members were driven by profit rather than the safety of lives, property and nationalism and imported life threatening products into the country.

    He lamented that many EDAN members who refused to do the right things lost millions of naira to either confiscation or outright destruction by SON.

    He urged his members to key into the standardisation policy of the Federal Government.

    He said to check the infiltration of cloned electrical materials into the market, the association introduced SON market desk while encouraging their members to ensure that all products are properly registered.

    “We constituted an ad hoc committee named standard and anti-adulteration committees, vested with the statutory responsibilities of standardising and regulating quality of imported products,’’ he added.

  • Manufacturers hail introduction of product authentication scheme

    Manufacturers hail introduction of product authentication scheme

    The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has thrown its weight behind Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON)’s plan to introduce a product authentication scheme, saying it is in the interest of manufacturers and consumers.

    MAN President Dr. Franks Udemba Jacobs made manufacturers’ position known during a consultative meeting with SON Director-General Mr. Osita Aboloma, in Lagos.

    According to him, the introduction of such scheme to assure the quality of products on offer to consumers in  the country is long overdue, given the negative economic effect of faking, cloning and counterfeiting, particularly on certified local products.

    Jacobs decried the situation where a product is supposedly doing so well in the market without its manufacturer reaping the benefits of his investment due to faking, cloning and counterfeiting, while consumers also get short changed in the process.

    The MAN President acknowledged the huge responsibility that the mandate of SON confers on the organisation, particularly the need to assist local manufacturers excel on a continual basis in order to grow the nation’s economy and provide gainful employment to its youths.

    He alluded to the need for all relevant agencies of government to harmonise their activities at the country’s entry points in order to effectively fight the influx of substandard products into the country.

    The MAN chief stressed that the continuous influx of substandard products into the country was negatively affecting manufacturers in particular.

    This, according to him, underscored the need for SON’s active involvement in the execution of the  Presidential Executive Orders, to assure the quality of all imports.

    MAN Director-General, Mr. Segun Ajayi, said the association’s members across the nation look up to SON for the provision of relevant and up to date standards.

    According to him, availing the expertise of SON personnel to manufacturers will ensure continual improvement in the competitiveness of their products for local consumption and export.

    He commended the existing robust collaboration between the two organisations, which according to him, has always provided avenues for clarifying issues of mutual concern.

    Earlier, Aboloma described MAN members as strategic to standardisation and quality assurance in Nigeria. He said this necessitated the consultative meeting  by SON.

    The SON DG said a product authentication scheme would be introduced to assist consumers confirm the genuineness of products before purchase to have value for their money.

    Other advantages of the scheme, according to him, include assurance to genuine manufacturers and importers of their products on sale.

    Abaloma said the product authentication scheme would effectively fight the cloning, faking and counterfeiting of genuine products by providing necessary information to guide consumers’ purchase decisions in the market.

    “Without patronage, the purveyors of substandard, faked, cloned and counterfeited products would have no market for their products” he said.

    Aboloma said SON had engaged an international security printing outfit on the implementation of the scheme, leveraging its vast experience.

    The SON DG announced that the organisation will soon embark on stakeholders’ sensitisation on the product authentication scheme across the country to ensure that stakeholders were carried along in the implementation in line with World Trade Organisation (WTO) requirements.

    Aboloma enumerated several initiatives of SON to provide level playing field for local manufacturers and importers in line with WTO’s requirements of which Nigeria is a signatory.

    Some of them include the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Program (MANCAP) to assure the quality and competitiveness of all locally- manufactured products and the off-shore Conformity Assessment Program (SONCAP) for imported products.

    He also said the electronic product registration scheme was aimed at products traceability and confirmation of quality status.

  • ‘I am not product of gang up against Obiano’

    ‘I am not product of gang up against Obiano’

    Ochudo Martin Agbaso of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) spoke to reporters in Lagos on the party’s crisis. He claimed that Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, entered into an agreement to do just one term in office. Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu reports

    A lot has been said about recent developments in APGA, but is it true that after 2007 governorship election, you abdicated and abandoned your stakes in APGA?

    You don’t have your records right. After 2007, I was in court for four years fighting the injustice that was meted to me. And when the case finally came to an end at the Supreme Court, I helped APGA win election in 2011, when we won two seats to the National Assembly, both at the senate and congressional levels and won the governorship by defeating an incumbent. So, it is not true that I left in 2007, and abdication is not the right word because it is not a throne.

    But there is this report that Governor Rochas Okorocha bargained with you in 2011 to contest the governorship on APGA ticket?

    He did not approach me to cede whatever rights. In fact, what people don’t know, but which I have started discussing in the last few days, is that my battle with Rochas (Governor Okorocha) for the heart and soul of APGA in Imo State, our governorship tussle at the primary, were the fiercest political battle I had ever overcome in my career; because, it was violent, it was just crazy.

    It was towards the end of that tussle that we now relied on the National Working Committee to decide on whose list of delegates should be upheld. Because, basically, he came into APGA and had some people compromised against me; I am synonymous with APGA. He came in from Action Alliance or whatever party; they gave him a line up. So, the issue was whose list of delegates was NWC going to approve? The only time I accepted to work with him was when Victor Umeh told me that Rochas has compromised all the members of the NWC from Imo North, and we have twelve local government councils in Orlu zone out of the 27. Umeh said all the 12 chairmen from Orlu had been compromised, in addition to a few other key people that (Umaru) Shinkafi brought, had been compromised; that the best bet was for me to make peace with him (Okorocha). I told him I wanted us to fight all the way, but he (Umeh) said it was not necessary. Of course, at that time a lot of water had gone under the bridge. Umeh now brokered “the peace” that put Rochas on the slot for four years. He (Okorocha) was to be governor for four years and hand over to me after the first four years. I was to provide the deputy and in my turn, he would provide the deputy. Again, I was to use my structure; this is in an agreement and I can avail you a copy; and also provide funding. That after four years, he also would provide the structure and funding to help me become governor.

    That was the agreement. And we had just two hours to decide on that because at that point we were speaking at about 1.00pm and the NWC meeting that was going to determine our fate was holding by 4pm. So, by the time we had finished the preliminary discussions, I had two hours. I consulted with two or three stakeholders within my (campaign) organisation and people that I knew very well, as well as, my family. Everybody’s attitude was, leave this whole thing and just walk away; it is not worth it, you can see that people you relied on have betrayed you. That Umeh in particular has betrayed you, because what he is telling you that others were compromised, he was the key person that was compromised. As National Chairman, he would have over-ruled those other persons. But, in any case, I have deep-rooted affection for APGA. I said if I walk away, APGA will lose the election, rather let us go and fight. That was what happened. And of course, there was no pecuniary considerations, no money exchanged hands. If anything, I was the one that spent money; I brought the money that was invested in the campaign and the structure.

    Are you suggesting that Governor Okorocha left APGA just to dishonour the agreement he entered into with you?

    I cannot speak for Rochas, but all I know is that from the day one that we reached that agreement, his motives were less than honorable. I don’t think he wanted to keep that agreement.

    Was that also why he caused the impeachment of your younger brother as his former deputy?

    Absolutely! My younger brother worked very well with him, never did anything wrong; they were best of friends. But, because of the agreements that we had, he needed to find a reason to walk away from the agreement.

    What happened to the money in question at that time?

    Well by my training I don’t chase shadows. What was important for me then was to prove to the world that as an Agbaso, my brother will not take bribe, an Agbaso stands firm. I needed to prove that to the world that my brother had nothing to do with the (alleged) bribe money. Of course, I hired forensic auditors who investigated the matter and the money was traced to another person and in Lebanon and Dubai. The records are still there and I can avail you of a copy. It is in the public domain, all over the place and on the internet. The issue should have been how come the authorities never did anything about Imo State money they discovered in Dubai and Lebanon in HSBC bank accounts?

    Is the current crisis in APGA not related to your nomination? 

    What happened in 2004 between Victor Umeh and Chekwas Okorie was completely different. Umeh took two members of NWC and concocted a meeting that they had sacked Chekwas and took over. APGA constitution is that when you suspend a National Chairman, the next in line from the same zone automatically takes over. Umeh was the National Treasurer and Maxi Okwu, the Deputy National Chairman (South). He (Okwu) would have been the next in command, but they out-maneuvered him. Of course, he was not from Anambra State, that was the reason given at that time and he played into their hands. It is a totally different thing. In my case, Oye convened a meeting of the NWC on his own and members of the NWC- I was not a member of NWC- tendered a 13-point charge against him, some of them bordering on criminality, selling nomination forms on cash basis and never reported it to the party. Those issues are being investigated now. So, those are the things his fellow NWC members raised and he could not defend himself. A seven man disciplinary committee was set up to find out from him why he did what was alleged and they affirmed the charges, saying that his answers were not satisfactory. And they suspended him from office, alongside his two deputies, who were his cohorts in that case, because he was running the party as a personal enterprise. So, when he was not leaving the office and still parading himself as national chairman, the NWC, under the leadership of Ozo Nwabueze Okafor, took him to court. They asked the High Court in Abuja, incidentally same Court, where Chekwas and Umeh’s case was thrashed; to order Oye to stop parading himself as chairman and vacate the office. He refused to do that on the grounds that the court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the matter. The court ruled that it had jurisdiction and he appealed against that ruling. The appeal has been adjourned to December 14, 2017. Now it was at that point that these gentlemen started exerting pressures in search of someone with enough muscle, character and capacity to turn APGA into a national party, because APGA as a national party cannot be controlled by a small cabal who are just using it as a meal ticket led by Victor Umeh. So they pleaded with me to join the battle to save APGA.

    When they suspended Oye, Ozo Nwabueze Okafor, who was National Vice Chairman, from Enugu State, took over and nominated me as Acting Deputy National Chairman. Unfortunately, on January 8, 2017, Ozo Nwabueze died. We buried him. After his funeral and all that, naturally, as nature abhors a vacuum, on January 30, 2017, I accepted the position of Acting National Chairman. We compiled all these records and sent to INEC. Having waited one week, two weeks, one month and INEC was not reacting, APGA and all its chieftains in Enugu, where this thing happened, went to court, asking the honourable court to determine if due process was followed to arrive at the point where Agbaso is now our Acting National Chairman, and if we acted according to the guidelines and constitution of APGA? We went back and forth and the court, on May 22, 2017, issued an order of mandamus, which is a mandatory order, compelling INEC to recognise me as the authentic Acting National Chairman of APGA.

    INEC and police appealed the matter naturally, and Oye applied to join as an interested party. At the second sitting, INEC withdrew, followed by police through a motion that being a party affair, they had no interest in the matter. Oye now prayed the court to vacate or stay that order. When you stay an order, it means stop the execution. The court weighed the merits of the application and aligned with the decision of the lower court, by affirming that the court took very competent action. That is where we are.

    Are you not a product of gang up against Governor Willie Obiano’s second term?

    If you know my antecedents, I have no time for that kind of thing. I am a beneficiary of God’s mercies; why should I go plotting for another person’s downfall? All I am looking forward to is a way to ensure that APGA becomes a truly national party that will observe internal democracy and run the party the way it should be run, so that it becomes an all-inclusive party and all those who were aggrieved could return. We have lost about 90 percent of our membership and I want to bring them back. People like Peter Obi, Senator Uche Ekwunife; we lost four members of House of Representatives in one day, because of poor leadership. We need to bring all those people back. And we cannot keep running around Anambra. We have to win positions in South-East, South-South and we need to get into the North and Western Nigeria and win positions. In each of the 774 local government councils, if you remove the indigenes, the next in population are Igbo. So, there is no way we cannot take advantage of that mass of people, for the benefit of the party. That is what we are trying to do. I have no interest in vilifying anybody.

    What do you want to do differently in APGA? 

    First of all, all these arguments, skirmishes, law cases and all, I believe will come to an end very soon because there is nothing that has beginning that doesn’t end. APGA has history. These are all strangers. This Oye only got his party membership card the day he was nominated for chairmanship. That day, Victor Umeh wrote it. His party card was not signed by his ward chairman or secretary. It was signed by Victor Umeh, who issued him with the card at the convention ground. There are many people who witnessed that, not just two or three persons. They are living witnesses. So, technically, he (Oye) has only been in APGA for fourteen months before he was suspended. The day he became National Chairman was the day they issued him membership card. So when a character like that talks about Martin Agbaso being a stranger in APGA, it is laughable: a man that has contributed immense financial and human resource into APGA, a man who is synonymous with APGA and won the first congressional seat for APGA in 2003. In 2007, I got elected in the freest and fairest governorship election in this country, but it was canceled and I suffered because of APGA for four years. In 2011, I won for APGA through a proxy, when Okorocha came in, one senatorial seat, through Chris Anyanwu and others. Then here is a man who has never brought one vote for APGA so far, talking about Martin Agbaso being a stranger. Look at Labaran Maku, a character from nowhere, whose tenure in APGA is less than two years. So, technically, apart from these strangers who don’t have the DNA of APGA, who don’t even know how APGA was founded, who don’t know the vision of APGA, we would have closed ranks already, in the old APGA fashion. But, going forward, my assignment when we are through with Anambra election is to carry our message of hope to Nigerians. Look for Nigerians that are completely disenchanted; and there are quite a lot of people you find in that category, who are looking for good governance, who want due process, access to infrastructure, good education, good health; who want windows of opportunities to be opened for their children. Those are the people, who are naturally APGA. And it doesn’t matter what part of this country you are coming from, once you are in that category, you are an APGA. That is the platform we are bringing so that we can have a healthy country, a robust country, where opportunities abound, where it wouldn’t matter where you come from, as long as, you are a Nigerian, you enjoy clear equal opportunity whether you are man or woman. That is the vision of APGA and that is the message we would be taking throughout the country in the coming months.

  • US firm unveils product

    The Foreign Commercial Service of the United States Diplomatic Mission to Nigeria, in collaboration with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) Nigeria, and its leading local partner, Manifold Computers, has introduced an innovative technology  – Synergy and Aruba – into the oil and gas industry.

    Synergy and Aruba will help companies to increase their efficiency, monitor people, manage resources, make real-time decisions, reduce risks, save costs, and increase flexibility, productivity and company bottom line.

    Speaking at the public presentation of the product in Lagos, the United States Consul-General, John Bray, renewed his government’s commitment to supporting trade and investment in Nigeria.

    He advised the oil and gas players to avail themselves of the innovative technology to harness Nigeria’s abundant resources, improve their bottom line and grow the economy.

    Bray said: “Nigeria presents tremendous long-term growth opportunities and the United States government remains committed to supporting American companies and local partners in deploying U.S. technology to help tackle some of the challenges the country is facing.’’

    Acting Commercial Counsellor of the U.S. Mission, Paul Bergman, highlighted Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s long-term partnership with the American Commercial Service.

    According to him, the U.S. Commercial Service will continue to be at the forefront of promoting trade and investment between America and Nigeria through the development and execution of mutually beneficial international trade policies and promotion strategies.

    Country Managing Director, HPE Nigeria, Chukwuma Okpaka, noted the high performance of the computing technology, saying it meets the modern exigencies of industry in Nigeria.

    It added that modelling and simulation applications would accelerate breakthroughs in the oil and gas, science, medicine, technology, as well as energy sector.

  • Herbal product to berth in South Africa

    Herbal product to berth in South Africa

    A Herbal weight loss product Ezslim will soon berth in South Africa, Managing Director, Herbal Pro, producers of Ezslim, Mr Kishore Uttamchandani, has said.

    Produced by Herbal Pro, Ezslim was in Ghana before coming into the country. Since then, it has experienced growth of 80 percent sales.

    Commedienne Lepacious Bose is the brand’s ambassador.

    Speaking at a briefing on EZslim’s anniversary at Ikeja, Lagos, Uttamchandani: ”It is our belief that we can conquer anything using what nature has provided. EZslim since it entered the market two years ago has redefined the need for weight loss.

    ‘’The product helps to lose weight without side effects. I will like to appreciate our brand ambassador, Ms Lepacious Bose who is a source of inspiration to many and whose success story has contributed greatly to our own success.”

    The last two years of the company’s existence has seen a 70percent direct sale from its website and on social media. The company, which preaches healthy living ensures that it reflects in the content on its website and social media pages where weight loss tips, healthy recipes and other weight loss or healthy living related information are shared.

    Nigeria recorded a 41percent internet penetration in the last quarter of last year and this number was pumped up to 54 percent in the first quarter this year.This increase has reflected in the trend observed at Herbal Pro, a company that uses the online space for advertising and sharing of useful information.

    The company’s Public Relations Officer and Digital Marketing Manager, Miss Vivian Iweha, said: “We receive over 200 new inquiries daily. We have also recorded increase in sales which has doubled in the last 3 months due to the various promos by Herbal Pro which offer customers more. Seventy percent of this figure is from direct sales from the Herbal Pro website as well as our social media pages and via emails, while the rest are sales by EZ Distributors and registered pharmacies and walk-ins.

    “Herbal Pro is always on the lookout for more ways to promote healthy living hence one of the reasons we celebrate today. Herbal Pro is proud to present Nigeria’s first health focused news letter which will contain information on healthy living, including tips on weight loss, healthy life style, videos, feedbacks, customers testimonials, news from around the world, as well as from the Herbal Pro blog. Access to the newsletter is free

    Bose added: “EZslim is the cheapest weight loss pill I have used. It costs only N9, 000 per pack and comes in easy to take capsules. It has no side effects. I have used it so it is tasted and trust.”

    She emphasised the importance of weight loss and healthy living. “Being obese or overweight exposes people to a lot of health-related issues. I advise every Nigerian to take healthy living seriously,” he added.