Jonathan bans ministers from seeking hike in budgets

 Dr. Goodluck Jonathan

Dr. Goodluck Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan has banned ministers from canvassing increased budgets from the National Assembly.

Different ministries have made it a habit of asking for more money from the various National Assembly committees supervising them during the defence of their budget proposals.

The problem stems from the Federal Ministry of Finance’s practice of slashing their budget proposals before they are submitted to the National Assembly for approval. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Senator Bala Mohammed, was at the Senate last week to seek more funds for some capital projects.

He said while he proposed N81.8bn in 2011, the ministry slashed it to N44.1bn. He, therefore, asked the Senate Committee on FCT to provide more money for the ministry to execute its developmental projects.

But the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Adoke (SAN), told the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Legal Matters that Jonathan had directed all cabinet members to desis from asking for more funds from the National Assembly.

He was responding to questions from members of the committee on the reasons why the ministry’s capital project was only N313m whereas its total recurrent was put at N11.68bn.

The committee had suggested an increase in the capital votes but Adoke declined, saying that he would rather make do with N313m, in line with the directive of the President. Adoke put the total budget of the ministry and its agencies at N11.99bn, with the personnel cost fixed at N5.53bn and the overhead at N6.15bn.
Source:Punch



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‘Nigeria should learn from Egypt revolution'

Nigerians should draw the right lessons from the 18-day revolt which saw the end of former Egyptian leader, Hosni Mubarak after 30 years and do the needful to effect a regime change in Nigeria at the April polls, presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd) said .


Mr. Buhari who praised the resilience of Egyptians who made exceptional sacrifices to assert their collective will, said their tenacity has again confirmed the truism that no force on earth can stop a united people." He also said Nigerians must gird their loins and insist on free and fair elections that will usher in accountable leadership in April polls.
"Unlike the Egyptians who went through self-denial for 18 unbroken days to achieve their aspiration for leadership change, Nigerians just have to take their voter cards, and ensure that their votes count and are properly counted. It is time to demonstrate people's power to free our country from those who have held it hostage for the last 12 years and are threatening to keep it for the next 60 years," he said.
Peaceful doggedness
In a statement signed by his media aide, Yinka Odumakin, Mr. Buhari equally commended the organisational zeal of the Egypt demonstrators, their peaceful conduct and doggedness even in the face of intimidation and provocation.
"Christians formed rings round Muslims as they observed their Jumat prayers during the demonstrations. For us as a people, we need to also move from balance of hate to balance of faith as the Egyptians practically demonstrated on the field of battle for change. Rather than allow ourselves to be divided by our faith, we must emphasise what binds us together and collectively fight against that hydra headed monster of corruption . With all sense of modesty, this is part of what the Buhari-Bakare candidacy represents," he said.
Source:234next

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Party leaders distance selves from Nwodo's resignation

Former PDP chairman, Ezekwezili Nwodo

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party has denied complicity in the last month's resignation of the party's former chairman, Okwesilieze Nwodo.

It, however, refused to state clearly if the former chairman left N7 billion in the coffers of the party when he was leaving office, as claimed.
Mr Nwodo's political adviser, Buhari Bala had in a recent media interview accused the Working Committee members of complicity in the resignation of his principal last month. He also claimed that Mr Nwodo left N7 billion in the party's account at the time he resigned.
The NWC, in a statement by PDP national publicity secretary, Ahmed Alkali on Sunday in Abuja, said that Mr Bala's comment was jaundiced, ill-timed, uninformed and in bad taste. "When we first heard of the story, we could not believe that an aide to a former chairman of our party could make such allegations. We therefore waited, thought that he must have been quoted out of context. But having waited up to this time without him retracting the statement, we have reasons to believe that the action was deliberately taken," Mr Alkali said.
"It is not the tradition of the leadership to join issues with our past leaders or those who worked with them. There is however need for us to make some clarifications in this case in order to put the record straight and avoid a situation where party members and especially Nigerians will be led to believe a lie." he said.
Intentional attack
The PDP spokesman said the committee finds it strange that Mr Bala could choose this period when the party had just concluded its presidential campaign at the zonal level and about to commence the door to door campaigns in the states, "to throw spanner on our collective efforts and determination to achieve success for our party in the forthcoming general elections." Stating that the committee will not go into the details of the circumstances that led to the resignation of Mr Nwodo, Mr Alkali, however, recalled that the former chairman himself said he was quitting based on the need to "maintain cohesion in the overall interest of the party." He added, "For an aide to the former chairman to turn around and make unfounded and unsubstantiated allegations against the NWC of the party speak of mischief and indeed a deliberate attempt to create bad blood, hatred and odium between members of the NWC and the former national chairman whom we hold in high esteem. "We want to put it on record that since June 2010 when Okwesilieze Nwodo was elected the national chairman of the PDP, he enjoyed the highest level of cooperation from members of the National Working Committee who supported every single programme that he introduced.
Mr Alkali dismissed Mr Bala's claim that Mr Nwodo left N7 billion in the PDP's purse, saying that he (Bala) was never in a position to know the state of the party's finances and therefore not qualified to speak on the matter.
The PDP spokesman asked Mr Bala to give clarification on the allegations he raised, adding that this will determine the committee's next line of action.
Source:234next

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Atiku, Ribadu lament Port Harcourt tragedy

Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar yesterday demanded investigation into the death of some Nigerians at the PDP presidential rally in Port Harcourt on Saturday.

In a message of condolence issued by his media office in Abuja on Sunday, Mr Abubakar, who lost to President Goodluck Jonathan at last month's presidential primaries of the party, described the death of the Nigerians as a tragedy.
No fewer than 16 people lost their lives during a stampede at the Liberation Stadium, Port Harcourt where the PDP held its presidential campaign rally at the weekend.The former vice president, however, implored the ruling party and the government not to desert the families of the deceased as they are ‘heroes of democracy'.
The campaign organisation of the presidential candidate of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Nuhu Ribadu also described the deaths as avoidable and tragic loss. In a statement by its Director of Media and Communications, Ibrahim Modibbo, the organisation said it sympathises with the family of the deceased and prays that "God will grant them the fortitude to bear the loss."
The organisation however asked all political parties to ensure that adequate security measures are taken before, during and after campaign rallies and programmes. The organisation also called for the police to be more efficient in their duties, particularly during this campaign season as "more political rallies will definitely take place."
Medical assistance
In the wake of the tragic incident ,the governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Obot Akpabio, has set up a team of medical experts to assist some of the victims of the stampede.
The governor, in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Usoro I. Usoro, said that "a delegation headed by the Commissioner for Health, of the state, Louisa Ukpe, left Uyo for Port Harcourt, immediately after the incident, to offer medical assistance towards fore-stalling further loss of lives.
"The team is also expected to search all hospitals and other health facilities with a view to identifying all Akwa Ibom indigenes who might have been involved in the incident and offer immediate help to them." Mr. Akpabio said that the victims of the stampede were part of the teaming crowd of supporters that thronged the Liberation Stadium to show overwhelming solidarity to their son, Mr Jonathan.
The governor however urged Nigerians to vote overwhelmingly for Mr Jonathan as a mark of honour in memory of those who died in the incident. "Today and always, we will always remember their loyalty and support which they carried to the end. Our heart goes out to them. We mourn with the families of those mourning and pray with a deep sense of sorrow that the Almighty God should console them over this unexpected calamity", the governor said.
Source:234next

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Agency makes case for passage of Biosafety Bill

Despite the signing and ratification of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, Nigeria cannot participate in the global biotech industry due to the absence of a biosafety law.

Bamidele Solomon, director general of National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), who brought this anomaly to the fore, solicited the cooperation of Nigerians to ensure that a biosafety law is enacted.
Addressing the media at the weekend in his office, he recalled that "a draft biosafety Bill which was presented to the House of Representatives as a privately sponsored bill in 2009, after having waited so long for it to be submitted as an executive bill, was passed on 20th July, 2010, and just transmitted to the Senate where it hopefully will undergo concurrence and accelerated passage."
He prayed that the legislators at the upper Chamber would accord the bill all the attention it deserves and get it passed quickly for the assent of the president before the expiration of the life of the present administration.
According to him, "the giant strides already recorded in the research institutes in the country in the area of crop improvement like the BT cowpea and Biocassava Plus with all the promises of remedying the prevalent micronutrient malnutrition in the country will never make it to commercialisation without a biosafety regulation and would only end up on the shelves."
Mr. Solomon warned that failure to have the bill passed now would mean starting the whole process of legislation all over again, while the biotech foreign investors and other interested parties wait to know the direction of government regulation and requirement for product approval. This, he said, may further erode their confidence in the system.
On the steps being taken to facilitate speedy passage of the biosafety bill in the Senate, the director general said the senators, as statesmen, would be expected to do what is best for the citizenry.
He, however, disclosed that another workshop is being organised towards the end of the month, as part of the overall sensitisation programme, to demonstrate to the lawmakers the imperatives of biosafety law and modern biotechnology as an alternative tool for national development.
Source:234next

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The man who saw Lagos

For three months, Dayo Adedayo traversed the length and breadth of Lagos with a camera, one mission uppermost in his mind - to erase the negative stereotypes usually associated with the city by capturing her scenic beauty like it has never been done before.

“I want people to see the other side of Lagos. I’ve seen the gutters, I’ve seen all the thrash, but nobody has seen the beauty. So from the businessman point of view, if you can show the good parts of Lagos state, one cannot dispute it, they are there and are not made up,” said Mr. Adedayo, a United Kingdom-trained photographer.

Rebranding Lagos

In showing the good parts of Lagos in his photo album, the sights that Mr. Adedayo tried to capture both at night and during the day were as breathtaking as they were enlightening; each photograph in the collection came with a brief history of the picture.

“We don’t value the beauty around us,” he said. “There are too many beautiful things and all I want people to see is my city the way I see it. Those are the things I want to see because at the end of the day, you cannot satisfy the whole world,” he added. The 279 page photo album, the first part in a two volume series hopes to ignore every other facet of the city and accentuate only the beauty.

“If you google Lagos on the internet today, the images that will be thrown up will all be complete thrash whereas it is not a thrash place, and that is what I’m trying to do,” he said. “Fingers are not equal, and there is no way we are all going to be put on an equal footing.” “It’s like I’m fighting back. Don’t tell me this is my city when I know it’s not mine. You don’t go out to get things like this in Europe and North America and you will be seeing junk. It just doesn’t happen. They don’t do it. I’ve never seen one. They might do it for exhibition, but not for print. So why are we doing ourselves damages and saying this is us. You see people fighting...” he added.

“Basically, it’s just to change perception that, yes, we are coming from there but this is where we are now and tomorrow it’s going to be better.”

Meeting the city

Mr. Adedayo’s quest to capture the beauty of Lagos, including the historical elements, took him across the entire five divisions and 57 local councils of the state. “Logistically, it was quite difficult for me to get from one point to the other because of traffic,” said Mr. Adedayo, who is in his late 40s.

“But I was there (the five divisions) to see what they have on ground. Lagos is actually very small. From the sea, land, and the air, that was what I did on Lagos state. When you are in the air, Lagos is beautiful.” Incidentally, getting around the city formed the most difficult part of his three month project and he spent extra seven months on editing, printing, and putting finishing touches on album.

“The people of Lagos are very friendly,” Mr. Adedayo said of the different people he encountered in the course of his project. “Once they see you with your camera, boys will come out because a lot of people are jobless. They will come out, ‘Oga I can take you there, I can do this I can do that.’ You give them some money, everybody is happy and that’s it.”

Having spent his early years of his childhood in Mushin after returning from the UK in the 60s, the photogragher said that the beauty that was associated with the Lagos of those days, which was comparable with anywhere else is what he hoped to recreate. “I grew up in Mushin, it wasn’t this bad. Idi Oro, 30 years ago was lot better than the VI (Victoria Island) of today. VI and Ikoyi, 30 years ago were better than Hyde Park, the most expensive area in London today. But one way or the other, we’ve lost it but we can get these things back,” he said.

“I just want people to see the good side of where I am from. They know we have our challenges, they even know more than us. And we tend not to believe in ourselves anymore. So that’s what I’m trying to do, the good, the better, the best. That’s what I’m looking for.”

For one who fell in love with photography at 18 and whose works have managed to adorn the presidential lounge at the Abuja International airport as well as the country’s electronic passports; Mr. Adedayo said he hopes to achieve immortality through photography. “It’s not about the money. It’s about outliving your work. You hear my name, and the next thing you will hear is photography.”

Source:234next

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Presidential aide claims amnesty has helped economy

 Gov. Timipre Sylva (L) of Bayelsa, leading security chiefs and others to inspect arms surrendered by militants during the disarmament exercise in Yenagoa.

The special adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on Niger Delta affairs, Kingsley Kuku, has praised the federal government's amnesty programme for militants in the region, saying this has helped to improve the country's economy.



Speaking at a forum for stakeholders of the Niger Delta held in Lagos over the weekend, Mr. Kuku disclosed that the amnesty would go down in the history as the "sincerest effort by the federal government of Nigeria to holistically address the Niger Delta question", as he noted that prior to the proclamation of the official pardon, militancy and general insecurity in the region virtually crippled Nigeria's economy.
Mr. Kuku said that investment inflow to the upstream subsector of the oil industry had dwindled remarkably, threatening the country's crude oil reserves.
"Nigeria had targeted 40 billion barrels proven reserve by the end of 2010 but insecurity in Niger Delta led to the exodus of investors from our country to more stable business opportunities in Africa. For example, due to militants' activities in the Niger Delta, Shell Petroleum Development Company, by early 2009, had declared force majeure on its operations, which caused a drop in its production capacity from one million bpd to about 259,000 bpd.
"Worse still, citing insecurity, union officials all too often called strikes to protest insecure working environment. It got to a point where Nigeria's export dwindled to as low as 700,000 bpd, compared with a targeted 2.2milion bpd for the first quarter of 2009. In 2008 alone, it was estimated that Nigeria lost over N3trillion as a result of militancy in the Niger Delta," he said.
The special adviser said that with the proclamation of amnesty for the militants agitators, reasonable disarmament took place and relative peace was restored in the Nigeria Delta, adding that oil companies reopened shut-in wells and under four months, Nigeria's oil production increased from 700,000 barrels per day to 2.3milion barrels per day.
"With cessation of hostilities, government began giving assurances that Nigeria once again fill its OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) quota and be trusted by major consumer nations to meet its contractual obligations," he said.
Disappointment from oil companies
Mr. Kuku disclosed that oil companies operating in the Niger Delta have not being helping the region in terms of enhancing the lives of residents of the area, adding that the companies have remained indifferent when it comes to recruiting ex-combatants.
"The oil and gas companies have not done enough and they must do enough because it is a problem they caused this country. They said they are putting together $30m and they can only support te training of 3,000 out of 26,358 ex-combatants. We demanded if they were going to employ them? But they said they cannot guarantee that.
"We reject that completely, because from that point of view, the people they want those to be trained by them to be just artisans, but we are saying that they must train our people in employable fields that some of them can stand the chance of being qualified to be chairman in the SPDC (Shell Petroleum Development Company)one day," he said.
Sustainable development Dennis Ogwaro, a participant at the forum called for sustainable developments in the Niger Delta, as he explained that this could be achieved by the construction and establishment of institutions and higher education centres in the region.
"With this kind of development, our youth will have their minds taken away from the high demand for money and this will increase the number of increase the number of entrepreneurs in our Niger Delta," he said.
Source:234next

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British-Born Nigerian Claudia Aderotimi dies after butt enhancement surgery.

Claudia was a 20 year old student and dancer who thought enhancing her butt would make her more attractive and get her into more music videos.

She traveled to the US to do the surgery and developed chest pains and struggled for breath for 12 hours after she had the illegal silicone injections at a budget hotel. She was taken to hospital but could not be saved.

A preliminary examination found the silicone filler had leaked into her bloodstream, leading to heart failure.

American detectives are investigating whether she was treated with cheap ‘industrial’ silicone, normally used as a sealant, rather than medical-grade material used in breast implant surgery.

It was not the first time Miss Aderotimi had had the procedure. She is believed to have been treated in November and the latest injection on Monday may have been a ‘top-up’ procedure.
Source:Daily Mail
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God will frustrate selfish politicians — Adeboye

Pastor Enoch Adeboye
The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has urged political leaders to implement welfare-oriented programmes and policies that will move the nation forward instead of pursuing personal gains.

He added that God would frustrate politicians and candidates that were planning to use public office for self-aggrandisement, saying that they would not succeed.

The cleric said that those who aspire for political offices or are currently occupying them should improve the lot of the society in order to succeed and receive God’s help.

He spoke during a special prayer service for the political class in Lagos on Sunday.

Adeboye said, “If anybody is going to be in office because of his pocket, such will not succeed. Those who want to be in office for their own sake, God will frustrate them. But those who want to help the poor, will succeed.

“All those who are seeking political offices to embezzle money or do evil, one way or the other, God will frustrate them. But those people who are seeking political office to be able to rebrand the name of Nigeria, to cater for the poor, to see to it that the name of Nigeria comes to the peak again, God of Heaven will support them.

“We must all join and hands to seek the face of God for the progress of Nigeria and also pray against the people who just want to use the political process to fuel their selfish motives.”

The general overseer urged Nigerians and the Independent National Electoral Commission to ensure credible elections in April, adding that INEC tried its best during the voter registration.

He urged politicians and their followers to avoid violence during the electioneering campaign and the election, saying Nigerians should continue to pray so that peace would reign in the nation.

He advised Nigerians to be actively involved in the political process, elect leaders of their choice and avoid succumbing to inducements or selling their votes.

The revered cleric used the occasion to pray for peace in the nation during the elections.

Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko urged all stakeholders to ensure credible election. He said failure of leadership was responsible for the crisis witnessed in some parts of the country. He added that good governance would improve the welfare of Nigerians and stop violence.

He called on religious leaders to continue to pray for peace, good governance, credible and violent-free elections in Nigeria. He added that Nigeria would be truly great through good governance.
Source:punchng.com

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Again, N’ Assembly, CBN disagree over N35.3bn budget

The National Assembly has raised eyebrows over the N35.3bn budgetted by the Central Bank of Nigeria for ‘capacity building and development expenses’ this year.

The fund has already been approved by the Board of the apex bank but the legislature is asking for details of the expenditure as a pre-condition for considering the 2011 Appropraition Bill.
Read more:http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art20110207435134

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From Philadelphia to Lagos, rich are his aqua notes

Aquadragon

Lagos-based all-round artiste and entrepreneur, Jidonu Amusu, spreads his tentacles through performances, music promotion and leisure business, writes AKEEM LASISI
From far away Philadelphia to Lagos, the home of multi-culture, Jidonu Amusu has left none of the stones of his artistic talents unturned. The throat of the artiste otherwise called Aquadragon secrets music. His tongue fondles poetry while his lips are not averse to public speaking. But just as one might begin to wonder how he escapes being a jack-of-all, he crowned the entrepreneurial aspect of entertainment last December when he opened the Aquarbar in Elegushi, Lekki area of the highly commercial city.

And it is difficult to establish which aspects of the sector is his favourite as he says he had been involved in all since his formative years.

“My personal interests lie primarily in the art and act of delivering entertaining and educative audio-visual and otherwise tactile experiences to whoever may be touched, excited, stimulated, enlightened, encouraged by my music, visuals, actions, personal presentation and words,” he explains. “My business interest is currently manifesting as active personal investment in some aspects and seeking investors in other aspects of the industry that supports the performing arts.”

Amusu does not believe that it is a big deal to be a singer, dancer, songwriter and fine artiste simultaneously. Together with debating and sports, these were things he did regularly while in school. As a result, he feels there is no need to reconcile the different acts as they are all necessary elements in the delivery of high quality entertainment.

He adds, “I actually think they aid one another – especially on business side because I basically have less middlemen to consult. As an artiste, I believe it also aids one who plans and executes from more than one angle at a time. So, I may plan and choreograph and visually interpret and construct as well as orchestrate a whole production to top quality tastes even with added elements for mass market if the particular artistic endeavour required such. I do have to restate the business focus of things.”

Aquadragon’s stubborn persistence is paying off in terms of the volume of works he has produced now. Apart from having three singles on air currently, he has 30 tracks he has yet to release. On air are Microphone Daydream, Put Iyanga and She No Care. While Microphone Daydreams, which mixes hip hop with poetic elements, is a statement about Amusu’s frustrations with his past experience in the Nigerian and American hip hop music market, Put Iyanga is a playful depiction of a first time meeting between a boy and a girl. She No Care is a warning to young men to literally pay much closer attention to their girlfriends.

On why he has continued to amass the tracks, he says, “Creation of the songs and pushing them to the market appropriately are two different processes. So, knowing how busy one gets with all the things I’m trying to do on the business side, it pays to have a buffer of quality works prepared from the get go. Now, I can take my time and show growth in my work as I let fans enjoy this and try to catch up with my music and my other businesses hopefully.”

In the Aquadragon’s profile that easily opens like the lips of a model confident about the colour of her teeth, Amusu notes that he started performance by turning political activism into music. First, he is interested in offering alternative imagery to the picture of Africa depicted in western platforms. Yet, as much as he would not want to become a career politician, and without being too antagonistic of governments, he liked to lend his voice to principles that could guarantee functional governance.

“I became interested in the examination of political systems and governmental systems and how they affect one another especially in a place like Africa, where areas and regions remain so affected by each other, ” Amusu explains, adding that he does not have faith in politics because of the unpredictable character of most politicians.

“So without becoming an enemy to the government, I approach politics in my entertainment products mostly as statements pleading for change lightly wrapped in satire or jokes or otherwise hard-lined direct questions stuffed in between lines of poetry,” he says.

As a student in the US city of Philadelphia, he participated very actively in poetry slam. According to him, this hugely contributed to his development as well as his artistic development.

He recalls, “I lived in Philadelphia around the turn of the century. This could be considered the height of the neo-soul music’s popularity. Philadelphia, as some may know, is the birthplace of neo-soul and of Motown Records. I got to witness and participate in Afrocentric poetry and music and dance at an amazingly high level for a sustained period that honed my skills. I saw several musicians such as Floetry, Music Soul Child, Bilal and many more go from neighbourhood heroes and cult favourites to becoming US and worldwide musical phenomena.

“I realised that fora such as open mic and poetry slams are perfect opportunities to test out new material and also to bond with people who may become fans or even other musicians, poets and Industry executives.”

In the course of growing as an artiste and music entrepreneur, Awusu has, however, also been forced to learn some bitter lessons. One of such came on the wings of Living Proof, a project on which he spent all his savings and ‘bet’ his entire business – but which earned him a woeful disappointment at the end.”

Amusu narrates the story, “In 2003, I had started a promotions company in Philadelphia and hosted parties in nightclubs in the city as well as around area campuses. We quickly expanded into doing small video work. Then a huge opportunity presented itself. An artiste formerly signed to Motown/ Universal wanted to work with us on a joint brainchild - a documentary about ghetto life but conducted by ghetto people to ask the right questions about change, simply because black people worldwide need change.

“It was meant to explain the conditions that create the violence and gangsterism that has been overly glorified in media at times. With the project, misled people across cultures might understand better the manifestation that may be mistaken for behavioural trends and lifestyles. It was meant for Africa and we intended to extend the series to Africa so we could show new dimensions of Africa to the ghetto people in the US, the African American community in particular. We had already finished the documentary and a 14-song soundtrack before we decided on two more songs. Then, in-fighting on percentages amongst directors in the company began.”

Unfortunately, Amusu and his co-sojourners did not have any signed agreement that could help see them through the confusion that eventually enveloped the project. The gentlemen’s agreement they thought they had fell flat when the chips were down.

“That was the original and ultimate lesson,” he concedes. “But other lessons learnt include the fact that the soundtrack/documentary was of a larger capacity than one could normally handle effortlessly.”

Aquardragon’s record promotion outfit, Aquamusic, is grooming a bunch of fresh talents. Such include Yung Play, Jahman, Ms. Moz and Fountain of Music. He says they have a lot of promise for the industry.

And what is the origin of his nickname, Aquadragon? “Aqua is a Latin expression for water or water-based things, while ‘dragon’ is an expression used to describe a seasoned businessman,” he explains. “I’m from Badagry in Lagos State. Badagry is very aquatic. Also, I grew most of my formative years in an area of Apapa named Waterside, which is linked to Ajegunle via a creek. I attended the Nigerian Navy Secondary School for my secondary education and afterwards, schooled in the coastal city of Cardiff and eventually Philadelphia, which itself is a coastal city. In other words, my heritage and most of my personal experience is aquatic.”

Interestingly, too, his last job was also aquatic. He was involved in running the shipping department of a major Nigerian oil trading and delivery firm.


 Source:Punch

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Soyinka asks Jonathan to intervene in Ogun

Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka has announced plans to retire from public life soon, saying he is concluding arrangements towards this and the decision is final.

The 76-year-old literary giant told NEXT during the week in an exclusive interview which he said would be his last formal interview with any media organisation that, "Let me add this, I am withdrawing from public life. I have being announcing it serially. I am withdrawing from public life. I have to concentrate on a number of other things. It is something that has been going on in my mind for years."

Mr Soyinka, whose recent attempt to intervene in the political crisis rocking Ogun State was disrupted by thugs in Abeokuta, said that was also likely to be his last public political event. He, however, called on President Goodluck Jonathan, with whom he read books to school children at an event in Lagos last Monday, to intervene by facilitating the reopening of the state House of Assembly that was shut in September.

"I sat with the President in camera, I said what is happening in Ogun State is a disgrace. It brings shame to any pretence to democratic governance. Get the House of Assembly to re-open and make sure those who go there are protected," he said.

Although he did not reveal the president's response, Mr Soyinka said he told Mr Jonathan that, "an individual or cabal cannot shut down House of Assembly, it means democracy had been terminated in Ogun State." He said the interview was another final opportunity for him to announce his semi-retirement to the world.

"When Desmond Tutu did that, I say I have people to point to, to say they have shown the way. So, my date to retire from public life is coming very soon. This interview will be my last interview," he said.

Open to all

Mr Soyinka also said he has nothing against religious people, so long as they don't oppress those who don't practice the same faith with them because he believes that religion is a personal thing.

"I have nothing against the churches, I have nothing against mosques, I have nothing against temples, against shrines. I am a very different person," he said. "I like to go deep inside myself and carry out certain... and that satisfies me. So, I don't worry myself going to church on Sundays, going to Mosque on Fridays or going to Seventh Day Adventist."

On the type of burial he wanted, Mr Soyinka said he would prefer to be buried in Abeokuta, but with a proviso that, "if I died before democracy is restored in Ogun State, I think I might add to my will that I should either be kept on ice or temporarily buried somewhere else in Nigeria".

Source:234next.com

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Delta community accuses task force of war crimes

Residents of Ayakoromo claim their lives and property were deliberately destroyed by troops
Residents of Ayakoromo Community, Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State have accused the military Joint Task Force (JTF) of war crimes and looting of N500 Million from the war-ravaged community during the recent operation of the military in the area.
Read more:234next.com

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Jos commuters grapple with fare hike

Passengers travelling from Jos to southern parts of the country are facing a hard time as transport fares have gone up by about 75 per cent.

A survey conducted by the News Agency of Nigeria on Thursday in four commercial motor parks in Jos showed that the hike in fares was not in any way caused by fuel scarcity.
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FRSC advises drivers on safety

The Federal Road Safety Commission Zonal Commander, Zone 2, Lagos, Mr. Danjuma Garba, has urged drivers of articulated vehicles to be safety conscious and avoid obstructing the roads, especially the Lagos-Abeokuta Road.

He lamented the high accident rate recorded on the Lagos-Abeokuta Road, saying that the agency had evolved strategies to reduce the carnages on the road.
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Ojukwu flown to UK in German air ambulance

Ojukwu
Ikemba Nnewi, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, who is down with Cerebral Vascular Accident (stroke), was on Thursday flown to the United Kingdom on board a German air ambulance for further treatment.

The national leader of the All Progressives Grand Alliance was taken to the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu at 11.10 am in one of the three state of the art ambulances provided by the Anambra and Enugu state governments.

The ambulances, which were followed by other vehicles drove into the airport through the Air Force wing , apparently to avoid the prying eyes of anxious passers-by, sympathisers and journalists.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s wife, Bianca; the National Chairman of APGA , Chief Victor Umeh; the Anambra State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Linus Ilika; the leader of the Movement for the Survival of Sovereign State of Biafra, Chief Ralph Uwazurike; Prof. Augustine Nwabueze; Prof. Vincent Ike; Dr. C.C. Amah; and Dr. Paul Ufoegbunam, were in the convoy of vehicles that followed the ambulances.

Others were the children of the elder statesman, some of whom flew into the country from the United States and the UK. The convoy was received by the commander of the Airforce Wing, Air Commodore Jacob Gbamwuaw, and the Commander of the Flying School, A.B. Esuara.

The air ambulance marked D-CSIX arrived at the airport at about 11.30am and departed around 1. 52pm for the UK.

Before the convoy arrived, Anambra State Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, had visited the airport where he conferred with the air ambulance crew.

Obi, who looked pensive, thanked Nigerians for their concern. He specifically mentioned President Goodluck Jonathan, whom he said called him on a daily basis to find out about the condition of the elder statesman.

Expressing confidence that Odumegwu-Ojukwu would return to Nigeria in good health, the governor enjoined Nigerians to continue to pray for him.

Asked what the ex-Biafran warlord’s ill-health was costing the state, Obi replied, “Who cares what it costs the state than our beloved father getting well?”

Umeh had earlier on Thursday visited UNTH where he coordinated the movement of the Ikemba to the airport .

“Dim (Odumegwu-Ojukwu’s other title) is being moved abroad for further treatment. We do not want interference in the movement,” the News Agency of Nigeria quoted him as saying.

Umeh, who appeared agitated while chasing away journalists, officials of UNTH and other people, who trooped out to see what was happening, repeatedly said, “We are flying him abroad.’’

Odumegwu-Ojukwu was rushed to the Accident and Emergency Unit of the UNTH on Sunday morning but was later moved to the ICU in the afternoon after he was diagnosed with Cerebral Vascular Accident.

CVA, according to seniorhealth.about.com, is “another name for a stroke. It is damage to the brain caused by a disruption of the blood supply to a part of the brain.

“This disruption of blood supply can be caused by a blood clot, or by a ruptured artery.

The website also states that “symptoms of a CVA depend on which part of the brain is affected. Common symptoms may include paralysis of a part of the body, loss of all or part of the vision, or loss of the ability to speak or to understand speech.”

Odumegwu-Ojukwu was born on November 4, 1933 at Zungeru, Niger State, to Nigeria’s first millionaire businessman and pioneer President of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Sir. Louis Phillippe Odumegwu-Ojukwu.

He began his educational career in Lagos.

At 13, his father sent him to the UK to study at Epsom College, England. He left Epsom at 18 for Lincoln College, Oxford.

At Oxford University, he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Modern History. He later earned a Master’s degree in history at Lincoln College, Oxford University, before he returned to the country in 1956.

At 11, Odumegwu-Ojukwu was briefly imprisoned for assaulting a white British colonial teacher, who was humiliating a black woman at King’s College, Lagos. The incident generated widespread coverage in local newspapers.

The ex-Biafran warlord joined the civil service in Eastern Nigeria as an Administrative Officer for Udi District in Enugu State on his return to the country in 1956.

In 1957, within months of working with the colonial civil service, he left and joined the military as one of the first and few university graduates to join the army as a recruit.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu rose to the rank of a Lt.-Col. in the Nigerian Army, before he was appointed the Military Governor of the then Eastern Region by the regime of the late Maj.-Gen. Johnson Aguyi-Ironsi.

He proclaimed the former Eastern Region as the Peoples Republic of Biafra on May 30, 1967 and became its Head of State and Commander-in-Chief. His action led to the outbreak of the Nigerian civil war the same year.
Source:http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art2010122323183845


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Why Nasarawa can’t pay N18,000 minimum wage –Info Commissioner

Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Nasarawa State, Mr. Mamman Alakayi has said that Governor Akwai Doma should be allowed to negotiate the N18, 000 minimum wage with the workers. He argued that since what accrues to the state is only comparable to states like Ekiti and Ebonyi.

The commissioner, who represented the governor at the 2010 NUJ, Kaduna Press Week also stated that while others are receiving N18 billion, in a month, the state collects only N2.5 billion. He said this makes it impossible for the state to pay workers salary.

He explained that the civil service re-organization in the state was not meant to witch-hunt the civil servants, “rather, it is intended to bring the civil service back to its lost glory.” He spoke more. Excerpts:

The journey so far
We have credibly touched the lives of our people. One is security, we also have education, rural development, water supply, health, urban development, civil service re-organization, solid mineral exportation housing and cultural re-orientation. Aach of these areas, I have always enjoined our colleagues that, each time we tell you that we have done this much in agriculture, you should endeavor to take the pains. We are there to assist you, take you to go and see these projects physically.

Sometime this year, Governor of Kaduna State, Mr. Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa, was the special guest of honour at one of our agricultural progarmmes launched in Akwanga Local Government area. It was a programme packaged under the theme “Koshi Agricultural Scheme.” It is a five-year programme. It is a scheme that we grant soft loans to farmers and other farm inputs like fertilizer, herbicide, and insecticides to enable farmers concentrate more on the land.

Today the entire country is talking about oil. Before the discovery of oil, Nigeria’s main stream was agriculture. Everybody has left that aspect and we are even importing food. We decided to come up with the programme on agriculture. That is why you hear so much about Nasarawa State in the area of agriculture, through the Koshi Agricultural Scheme.

Civil service re-organization
Re-organization of the civil service does not necessarily mean ghost workers. The re-organization means bringing the civil service to the level of its lost glory. Before we came in, the structures were not in place. The governor restructured the ministry like my ministry for instance. Before now, it used to be called Ministry of Information and Internal Affairs. Because of his firm belief in reorientation, it was renamed Ministry of Information and Orientation.

The civil servants have also embraced the glory of training and retraining. The training is both local and abroad. Seminars and workshops have been organized, so as to upgrade their knowledge. These are all parts of the re-organization. It is not necessary meant to witch-hunt the civil servants. We do not have any ghost worker in our state.

N18,000 minimum wage
We as journalists are supposed to tell the country and the whole world that what the Minister of State for Information was asking for is true federalism. If you go to America for instance, the salary that federal civil servant is taking in Washington D.C is not the same salary that a civil servant is asking for in California. If you are living in a federal system, you pay the salary allowed by your status that is what I am saying.

We also believe that we don’t take the same revenue. What Bayelsa, Rivers or Cross River states are collecting in a month is what Nasarawa collects in seven months. If you look at the table of revenue accruing to states, Nasarawa comes from the bottom comparable to only few states like Ekiti and Ebonyi.

While others are receiving N18 billion in a month, we are only taking N2.5 billion how do you pay salary? You allow states to negotiate with the workers how to pay their salaries and better their welfare.
 Source:http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2010/dec/23/national-23-12-2010-005.htm

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EFCC should be involved in recovering debt owed FAAN – Anyim Ude

Anyim Ude
As the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) battles various airlines, agencies and concessionaires that owe it billions of naira, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Elder Anyim Ude has called for the involvement of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the debt recovery to make it a huge success.

He said the EFCC’s inclusion in the banks debt recovery efforts made the debtors cough out billions of naira within days. Ude also called for the revocation of the contract FAAN has with Maevis, its concessionaire in charge of aeronautical revenue collection, explaining that FAAN is now poorer since the company came onboard.

“We recommended to the executives to fire the Maevis man and relieve him of whatever position he is holding with FAAN. He should also be prosecuted because the debt profile of FAAN has worsened since he came in to help FAAN recover its money. When FAAN was doing it itself, it was recovering more money than when this man came”, Ude explained.
He expressed joy over the successful designation of the Akanu Ibiam Airport, Enugu to an International airport, describing it as a realization of a 40-year old dream.

He said the fortunes of the South East would soon experience a quantum leap, assuring that all the facilities needed to encourage international flights will soon be put in place.
He speaks more on the airport and other issues.
Excerpts
Upgrade of AIA to international gateway
I feel very fulfilled against the background that my committee came onboard on the 7th of September 2007 and as somebody from this part of Nigeria, the South East, naturally I was interested to know why this part does not have an international airport, I also recall that there was once a Minister from this area and I also recall that my predecessor in office, was from Ebonyi State; so I wanted to know what the problem is and through memos and interactions, it was clear to us that this thing was traceable to the civil war and the effects thereafter.

They believe that people from this area for whatever ethnic reason, should not be given an outlet to the rest of the world, rather, they should continue using Port Harcourt, Lagos and Abuja. For me, I felt that was a challenge.

We started shouting and I thank God our voice became so loud that people could no longer ignore us. Bureaucracy is something that is not easy to overcome, we had to make proposals, we had to see those proposals stated in the budget until they started materialising and so from 2007 we were inching in gradually, through either Internal Generated Revenues (IGR) from the parastatals in the aviation sector or from the national budget and a few things were being done at least to rehabilitate Enugu Airport. But there were certain basic issues that needed to be addressed and that was quite a large amount of money. One, we needed to extend the runway, this was, at that point in time, 2.4 kilometres and for you to talk of internationalising it, it must have not less than 3 kilometres and that required a lot of money.

Again, you had to expand it and you had to resurface and all these things fall into billions of naira. At that point, we were not able to inject more than 3.5 billion. Even at that, apart from the 2008 budget, the N2 billion was from our distinguished Senators from Enugu State and they decided to pour it into the project and our leader, the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu was of course at the helm of this struggle to get things improved and so while we were doing all that, we had a fine lady from this part of Nigeria appointed as Minister. God when He wants to establish Himself locates the right people in the right place at the right time and that helped to hasten things and so our voices became louder and therefore with all the approaches we had made to the late president, that is the Senators from the south East, it was only when Dr. Goodluck Jonathan came on board that these promises became actualised and you can now find the word approved in government records; approved for upgrading to international standards.

And the governors from the south east got together in spite their different political parties and started singing the same song and so with all these shouting from different areas, it became imperative that something must be done and that is what has led to where we are today that Enugu has now been upgraded and in terms of facilities, a Boeing 747 can land here today. The other issues about terminal to accommodate Immigrations, security and all that will come as phase 2. But you don’t need that building to take off and land in London from here, the most important thing is the runway and we have got the required International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) specification. And we expect, in fact there is no reason why, the next batch of pilgrims to Israel will not take off from here.

Assessment of the aviation industry
First of all when we came in we had to go round the entire 22 airports and that was in 2007. In the process, we saw that the equipment was in deplorable state and they required rehabilitation; whether you are talking of service equipment or landing facilities and these were the things that led to the unfortunate crashes of 2005 and 2006 involving Sosoliso, Bellview and ADC. You also recall that at that time, the former President Olusegun Obasanjo released a N19.5 billion intervention fund to cure those effect and you will also recall that it was as a result of our intervention as the Senate Committee that we discovered that the money was not properly utilised, the rest is history.

We found some former ministers guilty and they are still trying to get themselves out of the courts. If that money was properly utilised, definitely there would have been a lot of improvements in all our airports but we couldn’t go on dwelling in pain when grace abound, we then looked forward and made some recommendations with some contributions from various ministers and now we have one more international airport added to the four existing ones and that is a lot of improvement, you will also recall that at the time these crashes happened the victims’ relations had not been paid compensation contrary to international regulation. We waded in and you are aware that most of them have been settled. We also tackled the issue of passenger comfort, you recall the four-hour blackout on the 9th of May, you also have seen what has come out of it.

In the process of finding out what happened during our visit to Lagos, we found out that FAAN was being owed over N17 billion by different organisations, airlines even government organisations etcetera and by implication they were trying to strangulate FAAN. The organisation is dying because they can no longer pay salaries when they are being owed N17 billion. With that kind of money, FAAN doesn’t need government and by the way all of you know that Heathrow Airport, JFK Airport and a lot of others are not run by government and they generate enough funds to sustain their existence.

It can be done here but because of the endemic corruption and incompetence in FAAN, I have said it over again and till the executive cleans up FAAN, the problem will remain, and we have told them how to do it and we have done our own beat. We even recommended that EFCC should be involved in recovering those debts and if you recall EFCC was involved when banking had its own problem. There were a lot of debts owed to banks and it was only when they got involved that billions started rolling into the banks’ accounts. That is what we expect should happen in this industry if FAAN is to survive or else one day you will find out that FAAN ceased to exist.

What is the committee doing about the FAAN concessionaires that seem to be stronger than FAAN?
I know what you are saying and one of them if I must mention it is Maevis. We also recommended to the executives to fire the man and relieve him of whatever position he is holding with FAAN. He should also be prosecuted because the debt profile of FAAN has worsened since he came in to help FAAN recover its money. When FAAN was doing it itself, it was recovering more money than when this man came. We have also heard of big men in high places telling them not to collect this or that debt. It’s time we unmask these so called big men. Are they Nigerians?

If they are stopping FAAN from collecting their debt either through concessionaires or not, are they doing that at the interest of the country? If not they should be unmasked, we want to know who those beg men are. I keep hearing this. Airlines owe FAAN it is only in this country that they do that if you owe abroad they will ground you for faltering in your payment. The only day that they ground them, within 48 hours one of them paid N50 million. If we do that constantly everyday without interference from the people that they call big men FAAN will have a leeway to survive.

What will happen to the agreements signed that are inconclusive?
We reviewed the entire situation and we found out that in those agreements there were tendencies of corruption along the line, we reviewed all that and found out that even when a onetime minister, Femi Fani-Kayode requested to the former president that the agreement should be moved from 12 to 36 years, the President said No! Do a memo to the Federal Executive Council (FEC), that memo has never gone there. We have formally requested that the present Minister of Aviation, take the agreement to the Federal Executive Council to decide whether it is 12 years or 36 years. Whichever way they go, it must be in the interest of Nigeria. So that is the beginning of the solution to that problem, the FEC will look at it and say whether somebody will run that place for 12 or 36 years.

What are the projections for 2011?
Well, with what you are seeing from Enugu, we are in a joyous mood and you find out that this portends good tidings and with this development I only wish that Nigeria can do what they do I other countries, keep our ministers for two, three or four years so they can have short term, medium term and long term plans and they can see it through not to keep a minister for one year and throw him or her out and make the place unstable, the same thing goes for the aviation industry, between 2005 and 2007 there has been no less than four chief executives in one of the parastatals, that is not good, I am not saying to retain corrupt people but there are people doing well either at the administration level or the chief executive level keep them there for four five years and the place will stabilise, anyway we are hoping that by 2011 we will be looking at these long term plans to stabilise things and organisations in the country.

Privatisation You can’t use a single incident and become pessimistic; there are very many good fellows, very many honest Nigerians and it is a matter of well if you bump something during a journey, you retreat and re-strategise and improve the mechanism in which you use to identify the honest ones, there are many honest contractors, concessionaires setting aside self because most of the problem in this industry is that people first of all think about themselves instead of service, put service first and after that other things will come.

I believe we will get the right people and I still believe privatisation is the answer because as I said all the airports outside this country they are not run by government and I think there is too much in government hands, there is so much demand but sectors like aviation that can generate its own income and fund itself should be allowed to do so using the right people and honest people.
Source:http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/features/money/2010/dec/23/Money-12-23-2010-001.htm

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Ojukwu’s trip abroad stalled

Ojukwu

Doctors at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Ituku Ozalla where the sick former Biafran warlord, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu was rushed to on Sunday said yesterday that they are waiting for the arrival of an air ambulance before they will carry out a Computerized Tomography (CT) scan on him preparatory to his being flown abroad for further medical attention.

According to the doctors, the CT scan will determine the level of damage done to the brain of the Igbo leader so as to guide them on how to move him into an ambulance.
The doctors told Daily Sun that the scan would have been carried out yesterday, but for the non-arrival of the air ambulance, insisting that the CT scan is very crucial so as not to cause further damage to the national leader of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) when moving him into the air ambulance.

The doctors said the Ojukwu family is making frantic efforts to get the ambulance. But when one of his close associates was contacted yesterday he claimed that Ojukwu’s health was beginning to stabilize, adding that they may have to leave him to recover fully at the UNTH. Ojukwu was taken to the hospital in an unconscious state last Sunday and placed on life support machine at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) to stabilize his failing health.

Though the Chief Medical Director of the UNTH, Enugu, Dr Anthony Mbah, had said the Ikemba Nnewi was regaining consciousness, an impeccable source at the hospital confided in Daily Sun that the case would be better handled abroad.

Already, there were strong indications that the Eze Igbo Gburugburu would be flown to either Egypt or South Africa immediately the result of the CT scan is out. According to Dr Mbah, a team of consultants led by Prof Vincent Ike, a consultant cardiologist, has been working very hard to save the life of Ojukwu.

“He was brought to the accident and emergency department of this hospital in an unconscious state last Sunday. The blood pressure was quite low and he was not making enough urine. Upon his arrival, all consultants started work on him immediately; diagnostic procedures were immediately administered on him and right now I can say, the blood pressure has stabilized and he is making enough urine, though his level of consciousness has not improved greatly, but efforts are in top gear to fly him abroad.

“As a hospital, we have already provided transport oxygen and we are updating his medical certificate every moment in order to get ready for his rapid evacuation.
“The opinion of the medical team working on him is that he has stroke attack and as I’m speaking, he is on a ventilator, which is an artificial breathing machine just to help his breadth because he was breathing excessively when he was brought here. For now, we have evidence that the oxygen saturation is okay. I also have it on good authority that the family is thinking of getting a flying ambulance to take him away,” Mba disclosed.

An Igbo socio-cultural organization, Aka Ikenga in a statement issued signed by its leader Dr. Sylva Ebigwei, has expressed gratitude to Ojukwu’s “family, doctors and all the authorities who have worked hard to stabilize his condition and are arranging whatever treatment that will be needed to nurse him back to full health.”
The group described Ikemba as national icon, the voice and rallying point of the hope and aspiration of millions of people, stating that it joins millions of Nigerians across the world and his numerous admirers to wish him full recovery.

Meanwhile, the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign States of Biafra, MASOB has declared prayer for the quick recovery of the elder statesman. In a statement signed by its National Director of Publicity, Mr. Uchenna Madu, the group said that the Biafra Clergy Parliament, (MASSOB Religious Affairs Department) has declared prayer for the sick Ojukwu.
He stated the members would also continue to offer series of intercession for the quick recovery of their leader whom he said had done so much for the Igbo race.

Mr. Madu also in the statement said that notable men of God have been assembled to offer fervent payers to God for healing on Ojukwu, adding “our assistance to him is prayers, Bishop C.J Okeke, National Coordinator, Biafra Clergy Parliament will lead other clergymen in the prayers.”

At the old market road, Onitsha, opposite the post office, some commercial motorcycle operators popularly called Okada were seen in very solemn mode yesterday discussing in groups while others were praying that Ojukwu should not die. However, some of them told Daily Sun that if anything happens to Ojukwu, it may spell doom for the people of the South East who, according to tham are at a crossroad over Igbo Presidency in 2015.
Source:http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2010/dec/23/national-23-12-2010-001.htm
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Facebook may raise cancer risk— Study

Facebook may raise cancer risk
Studies indicate that making more friends on social networking sites and less in real life may lead to serious health issues, NNAEMEKA MERIBE writes.

This will certainly be an unpleasant piece of news, especially for the younger generation who now literally live in social networking sites like Facebook.

A United Kingdom-based American psychologist cum biologist, Dr. Aric Sigman, claims that social networking sites can raise risk of serious health problems because it reduces face-to-face contact.

He argues in Biologist, the journal of the Institute of Biology, that emailing people, rather than meeting up with them, may have wide-ranging biological effects.

According to him, increased isolation can alter the way genes work and upset immune responses, hormone levels and the function of arteries. It can also impair mental performance.

This, he says, can increase the risk of problems as serious as cancer, strokes, heart disease and dementia.

Social networking sites such as twitter, MySpace, Facebook and Flickr, allow people to keep in touch with friends over the web. They can swap pictures, play games and leave messages which explain how their day has been.

But even though they are designed to bring people together, Sigman, according to the Mail of London, says they are actually playing a significant role in people becoming more isolated.

Sigman’s claims tend to be consistent with the 2009 study by a University of Chicago researcher, Dr. John Cacioppo, which warns that being lonely is as bad for the health as smoking or obesity.

Also, several studies, according to the Mail of London suggested that the number of hours people spend speaking to others face-to-face had fallen dramatically since 1987 as the use of electronic media increased.

But a consultant psychiatrist at the Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital, Osogbo, Dr. Adeoye Oyewole, doubts that the findings of Sigman’s study will make much sense in the African environment.

However, researchers from the University of Texas, United States, argue to the contrary. According a Reuters report published on November 20, the researchers aver that social networking site do not weaken personal ties, they strengthen them in unique ways for different age groups.

Sigman claims that interacting ‘in person’ has effects on the body not seen when writing emails, noting that levels of hormones such as the ‘cuddle chemical‘ oxytocin, which promotes bonding, alter according to whether people are in close contact or not.

“There does seem to be a difference between ‘real presence’ and the virtual variety,” Sigman adds.

In Sigman’s research, some genes, including ones involved with the immune system and responses to stress, acted differently according to how much social interaction a person had with others.

Sigman notes, “Social networking sites should allow us to embellish our social lives, but what we find is very different.

”It‘s not that I‘m old fashioned in terms of new technology, but its purpose should be to provide a tool that enhances our lives.”

“Social networking is the Internet’s biggest growth area, particular among young children,” the Mail of London quotes Sigman as telling the Press Association.

“A quarter of British children have a laptop or computer in their room by the age of five and they have their own social networking sites, like the BBC’s myCBBC. It‘s causing huge changes.”

Sigman says 209 ‘socially regulated‘ genes have been identified, including ones involved in the immune system, cell proliferation and responses to stress.

Their activity, he argues, may account for higher rates of inflammatory disease and other health problems seen in socially isolated individuals.

Electronic media, he adds, are also undermining the ability of children and young people to learn vital social skills and read body language.

He says, “Parents spend less time with their children than they did only a decade ago. Britain has the lowest proportion of children in all of Europe who eat with their parents at the table. The proportion of people who work at home alone continues to rise.

“I am worried about where this is all leading. “Social networking sites should allow us to embellish our social lives, but what we find is very different. The tail is wagging the dog. These are not tools that enhance, they are tools that displace.”

Cacioppo argues that being cut off from friends and family can raise blood pressure and weaken the immune system, adding that that it can also make it harder to sleep and even speed the progression of dementia, he adds.

The psychologist insists that loneliness raises levels of the hormone, cortisol, and can push blood pressure up into the danger zone for heart attacks and strokes.

His study which was presented at 2009 edition of the annual American Association for the Advancement of Science‘s conference reveals that the difference in health between the lonely and the most socially active can be as great as that between smokers and non-smokers and the obese and those of normal weight.

Cacioppo says, “When time takes its toll on the body, loneliness steepens that slope of descent.”

In his study, the loneliest people had blood pressure readings up to 30 points higher than those with the most active social lives, making them three times more likely to develop heart disease and stroke and twice as likely to die from them as people with normal blood pressure.

When Cacioppo and his team compared the health of people who shut themselves away from the world with gregarious types they found the difference as great as that between smokers and non-smokers, the obese and the normal weight or those who exercised and those who didn‘t.

Cacioppo says the phenomenon is hugely relevant in today’s fragmented society, where many people communicate through the Internet rather than face-to-face

He says, “We are increasingly living in isolation. Partly because we are ageing, also because we are marrying later and having fewer children there are fewer confidantes and levels of loneliness are going up.”

He advises the lonely to try making friends through charity work and says it is better to have a few strong friendships than lots of acquaintances.

But Oyewole says that people in Western countries immerse themselves in social networking sites because they lack the rich culture of social relationship which Africans have.

He says, “The study may not be replicated in Africa because there are ways our culture makes it mandatory for us to relate face-to-face with our relatives, friends and neighbours whether we use Facebook heavily or not.

“But in places like the UK or US, they lack such intervening social networks; hence relationship is gradually being relegated.

“So while I agree with the study in relation to the Western environment, I believe it may not be replicated in Africa.”

However, according to the University of Texas researchers, “Our findings suggest that Facebook is not supplanting face-to-face interactions between friends, family and colleagues.

An associate professor of radio, TV and film, Dr. Craig Watkins, who led the research team says, “In fact, we believe there is sufficient evidence that social media afford opportunities for new expressions of friendship, intimacy and community.”

More than 60 per cent of the 900 Facebook users questioned by the researchers said posting status updates was among the most popular activities, followed by 60 per cent who wrote comments on their profile and 49 per cent who posted messages and comments to friends.

But the British national health care provider, National Health Service, says Sigman’s claims shouldn‘t worry users of social networking sites

NHS in its review of Sigman’s claims, published on its website, www.nhs.co.uk, notes that his study is not a systematic review.

“It is an article that expresses the opinion of the author, who cites various studies that have informed this opinion. As this was not a systematic review, there may be other relevant studies that the author has not included. Some of these studies may not support the author‘s opinions,” the body argues.

“None of the studies described found that loneliness, social isolation or social networking affected the risk of developing cancer. It is possible that in at least some of the studies adverse health led to greater social isolation rather than the other way round. It is also possible that using social networking sites may lead to reduced social isolation and loneliness, although this possibility is not addressed by the article.”

It concludes that the study does not provide proof of an adverse effect of social networking or other technology on people‘s health. People who use social networking sites should not be bothered by this article.
Source:http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201012210563862

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