Dr Orji Uzor Kalu stormed the University of International Business and Economics, Beijing as her Guest Lecturer; addressing and engaging the university community on ‘Economic Diversification: The role of private sector Vs the Government sector’.
Coming from both divide, The business magnet cum politician held the audience spell bound as he eloquently reeled out statistics that indicated that government all over the world has no business to doing business. He called on African leaders to ask ‘What has China, United Arab Emirates done differently in the past few years that turned them into the economic tigers of the world today?’.
The Forbes-rated billionaire and former Governor of Abia State contended that what work in Asia can work in Africa if only there is a political will on the part of African political elites.
Dr Orji Uzor Kalu noted that Government need to provide the environment for private sector; particularly the SMEs to thrive. For him, the enablers which the Government must provide include security, power supply, good transportation network and investment in our telecommunications to boast technology-driven activities.
He stressed that globally, private sector drives economic diversification while the Government takes the regulatory role which is conducted in responsive, transparent and fair manner. Africa must get it Right and Diversify Now.
The African Students in Beijing warmly welcomed Dr Kalu to the University.
The reason I did not sound my trumpets about my performance as governor was that I had thought government was a continuum and, therefore, there was no need trying to create dichotomy between one administration and another. Again, I had reasoned that since the man who was to succeed me was a key player in our administration he would build on what we had done and carry on with the road map we had collectively designed. Sadly, that was not to be.
Though different books were published at different times in the course of our government, especially toward the end of my tenure as governor of Abia State from 1999 to 2007 documenting for posterity our achievements as an administration, there is still a need to make further clarifications and elucidations through this series.
None of the books in question, to the best of my knowledge, was launched in public and, therefore, might not have made the desired impact in terms of outreach and mileage. More so, I am sure it was not every person who should get the books got them for the reason I had given: Our administration was winding down and all attention focused on the hand-over process and the compelling need to get the governor (and my Chief of Staff then) released from prison.
Those who knew what really transpired would confirm that nothing else mattered to me then other than to get Chief Theodore Orji released from prison. The plot of our detractors was to keep him in prison until the date for his inauguration was over. Sensing this plot, we swung into action, pulling all available strings and, in the end (we give God the glory), we sailed through.
The day Theodore Orji was released from prison was my happiest day in life. Our joy almost turned sour when information filtered to us that our detractors planned to re-arrest him to make his inauguration an impossible mission. In our usual way, we devised a strategy to counter this latest plot.
To avoid any mistakes, I personally chartered a flight to take him from Lagos to Umuahia to prepare his inauguration – a few days away. Not only that, I accompanied him on that flight to the Owerri Airport and returned to Lagos on the same flight to ensure that all went well. The crowds we mobilised to receive him at the airport were such that any plot to re-arrest him was almost impracticable. I thank God the whole thing went as planned, making it possible for Theodore Orji to sit atop the affairs of Abia State as governor from 2007 to 2015.
Sincerely speaking, securing the release of Theodore Orji and ensuring his subsequent successful swearing-in remain one of the most exciting aspects of my stewardship in Abia State.
Prior to the Theodore-Orji-for-Governor project we had transformed Abia State in sync with a carefully-packaged developmental agenda. Let me quickly state at this juncture, that on assumption of office on May 29, 1999, Abia State was something in the neighbourhood of a pariah state – infrastructure was non-existent, workers’ morale was down, because of two-month unpaid salaries, with pensions and gratuities of retired workers running into several years in arrears. Added to this bag of liabilities we inherited was an N8 billion debt accumulated by past regimes, comprising arrears of salaries, pensions and gratuities, contractual obligations and other matters relating to the administration of government.
The foreign debt portfolio we inherited was 680 million United States dollars. The loan was secured during the NPP/NPN era for the building of Enyimba Hotel and Glass Industry – both in Aba, Ogwe Chicken Farm in Ukwa, and Metallurgical factory at Olokoro, Umuahia. Curiously, we were made to pay up the loan by then President Olusegun Obasanjo before the end of our administration. The former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, is there to confirm the veracity of this statement. Again, it is good to place it on record that our state’s share from the federation account reached the N1 billion mark for the first time in November 2004. After that, it oscillated between N1.2 and N1.6 billion. It never at any time hit the N2billion mark. Despite the paucity of funds we were still able to meet our statutory and contractual obligations.
Do I need to shy away from the fact that hundreds of communities had no electricity and pipe-borne water, school buildings were dilapidated and abandoned; facilities in existing health institutions were insufficient, while those available had no operable staff and equipment. The State Teaching Hospital was like a cottage hospital, not to talk of the palpable state of fear among the citizens, occasioned by frightening rates of crimes.
Enyimba Football Club of Aba faced relegation from the elite division to the second division. This was the situation on ground when we assumed office in May 1999.
That is not all: The Enyimba City – the biggest commercial centre in Africa, which is also called the Japan of Africa – was a shadow of its old self. In fact, it looked like a deserted city as its residents wallowed in self-pity and abandonment. There was also no single state-of-the-art conference centre anywhere in the state, except the Okpara Auditorium (which lacked the necessary facilities for conferences and other formal events).
It was in this state of hopelessness and despair that our ship of redemption berthed in Abia State. The few days I stayed in the state before my inauguration revealed the rot in the state and the urgent need to hit the ground running. So, from day one, it was business till the chapter of our administration closed formally in the midnight of May 28, 2007.
I must not fail to express deep gratitude to God for the vision and courage to achieve the much we did in spite of obvious impediments in our way. We thank the well-meaning people of Abia State that believed in us and voted us into power. It was their love and support for our government that made us go into covenant with them. The covenant was hinged on the fear of God and respect for human dignity and life.
In any case, every person who was resident in Abia State in the period I was governor would recall with little effort that we worked assiduously to reposition the state and make it the economic hub of Nigeria, nay Africa. Even a blind man could see the transformation of the state from obscurity to global pre-eminence. We took Abia State to every nook and cranny of the universe, attracting investors and other partners in development, who brought in their investments with confidence.
Aside the economic package for the development of Abia State, we paid serious attention to security of lives and properties. Our thinking was that no reasonable investor would come to a state that was unsecure. The plan we set in place for security was unparalleled. Kidnappers and other hoodlums scampered for safety. In fact, Abia State was adjudged one of the safest states in Nigeria. Security was such that no single case of kidnapping or political killing was recorded throughout the eight years we served. I could count about five brother-governors who approached us then to copy our security master plan.
The success we made of security was hinged on a simple formula: Design a strategy that would nip crimes in the bud. In short, we took the war to the criminals and made the state unsafe for them. We also considered the personnel that would execute the plan and had reasoned that the best way to get the best out of them was to motivate them. Apart from providing them vehicles and communication gadgets and occasional monetary rewards, we also put in place an insurance scheme that insured each of the 3000 policemen posted to our state. These incentives indubitably fired their morale and made them ready to sacrifice their lives in defence of the state and its people.
We kept faith with our covenant with the police – to cater to their welfare. This manifested when we lost a policeman on essential duty. His family was instantly handed his insurance benefit of N10 million. According to available records it was the first time any state in Nigeria could do such a thing.
As people went about their legitimate businesses without fear life started booming all over the state. In less than two months in office we had succeeded in clearing the two-month salary arrears owed the workers by the previous administration and established a system that ensured that workers got their entitlements every 25th of the month. We kept faith with this plan until our exit.
When we had achieved the plan for regular payment of salaries we then turned to pensions and gratuities. We were not deterred by the many years of arrears owed. We started somewhere, hoping to settle a reasonable percentage of the arrears before our tenure ran out. And so it happened. By the time we left office only an infinitesimal percentage of persons were yet to receive their gratuities.
It is important to state here that throughout our tenure there was no single industrial action by workers in the state. There was harmony between the workers and government. The only time workers went on strike was when the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) embarked on a national strike. I went to Abia State University and negotiated a deal with the state’s ASUU and they told me they would join their colleagues to commence the action and would back out after two days. And they kept to their words. And so, academic activities were never interrupted in any of the tertiary institutions in our state throughout the duration of our government, making our students graduate when they should.
Subventions to the Abia State University, Uturu; Abia State Polytechnic, Aba; and the College of Education (Technical), Arochukwu, were arithmetically increased. The same could be said of infrastructure and other facilities that enhanced cognitive capacity in the citadels of learning. I will still come to the rehabilitation of primary and secondary schools.
Next in line were roads. A visit to Aba would make one cry openly. Almost all the roads in the city were in a state of disuse. We sprang into action. Wait a minute! What was our monthly allocation from Abuja then? I think something in the neighbourhood of N150 million. Can you imagine what N150 million would do for a state with non-existent amenities? We were not dismayed. Rather we looked up to God, motivated by the fact that our emergence in the saddle of governance was not by accident.
Determined not to fail, I personally raised N500 million from Guaranty Trust Bank through the instrumentality of its Group Managing Director then, Tayo Aderinokun, who was also a close friend, to start five roads in Aba. Abia State will never forget his invaluable contributions to the development of the state. We pray God to grant his soul eternal rest in Heaven. By February 25, 2000 when then President Olusegun Obasanjo paid his first official visit to Abia State the roads were ready for commissioning. The President was moved to emotion by what he saw in Aba that he openly christened me “Action Governor of Nigeria”. Don’t mind we disagreed along the line and he started tormenting me. What I went through later in the hands of Obasanjo was horrifying. Thank God we survived.
After the initial five roads in Aba we embarked on massive reconstruction of the road networks in the city. We knew this would cost us enormous financial resources and so we were prepared for the task. The bulldozers and caterpillars rolled in. In less than two years the city was transformed. Those who deserted the city started coming back. Life gradually picked up. Aba started regaining its lost glory.
One of the ways we had planned to boost the new confidence in the residents of the city was to save Enyimba Football Club from relegation. The team was on the verge of relegation when we assumed office. Because I had deep knowledge and experience about football and club management I was able to set in motion a redemption plan for the club, which yielded immediate result. By the close of the 1999/2000 football season Enyimba had regained its winning power and evaded relegation. We did not stop at that; we started another project: This time to build a new Enyimba team that would win the elusive African Champions Cup.
By the time the new season of 2000/2001 started we had a brand new Enyimba team. At the end of the season the team won the National League. In 2001/2002 season it won the national League and Challenge Cup. In 2002/2003 it won the league back to back. The next target was the African Champions Cup, which we won for Nigeria for the first time in 38 years in 2003. All these achievements in sports would not have been possible without building the necessary infrastructure. So, we started expansion and upgrading facilities at the Umuahia and Enyimba Stadia.
In subsequent editions we will discuss other crucial issues, especially the finances of our administration from 1999-2007: How much we received and how much we spent and on what. In fact, I’m working toward publishing the financial account of our administration in a fully-paid 24-page pull-out in the Sun Newspaper very soon to put a lie to the culture of falsehood perpetrated by Chief Theodore Orji. I am doing this, despite the fact that our government published monthly report on its finances in the dailies.
Elder statesman and a chieftain of All Progressives Congress, Senator Chris Adighije today said that for the past eighteen years of Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) administration in Abia state, it has no tangible thing to show on ground as achievements.
This, he said has impeded the economic development of the state and boasted that APC will enthrone the needed change which the people of the state are yearning for, if elected into power in 2019 poll.
Senator Adighije stated this while speaking to selected journalists in his Okwu olokoro residence in Umuahia, the state capital, said APC is poised and determined to win the state in 2019 election.
He advised APC members in the state to put their acts together if there must win in Abia come 2019.
He said:”You know we are building the party and I don’t think that Abians has really had an option giving the fact that PDP past and present government in Abia state almost eighteen years has nothing to show. And Abians from what i see are hard-hit”.
“From what I have seen, people are determined for a change in Abia state. Because if we do not change, if Abia does not get better, then you will see that many Abians will move away from the state”.
“So if APC put their act together, I believe Abians will definitely vote for a change. Abians as much as possible should fight for their rights. Abia does not belong to any individual. Abia belong to all of us including the government”.
“For us to be prosperous and develop, all hands much be on deck. The government must listen to oppositions. Opposition should work hard to take power from the government”.
President Muhammadu Buhari, his vice, Professor Yemi Osibanjo and the National chairman of All Progressives Congress, John Oyegun will on November 11th storm Umuahia, the Abia state capital for a mega rally organized by the Abia chapter of APC.
Disclosing this to newsmen in a press conference shortly after a fund-raising ceremony organized by the state leadership of APC held in Umuahia yesterday, the chairman of APC in the state, Honourable Donatus Nwamkpa
explained that the mega rally would be the first of its kind in south east zone.
His words:”The leaders in Abia state APC have come together to plan for a mega rally. And that rally, we are excepting it not just to be a rally but to be a mega rally”.
“It will be the first of its kind in south east zone. And we have in our attendance, the President and the commander of Armed forces of federal republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, the vice President, Prof Yemi Osibanjo and the National chairman of the ruling party in Nigeria, His Excellency, John odigie-Oyegun”.
Also speaking during the press conference, The chairman of Abia APC mega rally committee and former member of Federal House of Representatives, Acho Obioma explained that “the rally will be for all Abians. And very sure that Abians are yearning to see what APC is made of. There had been this story APC not being on ground by enemies of Abians who doesn’t want any other party to exist”.
“So what we are going to do is to prove them wrong. That APC is the party to beat come 2019. And that’s exactly what is going to be”.
Governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, on Thursday stated that it was not his responsibility to produce Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
Ikpeazu spoke with State House correspondents, after meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
According to the Governor, it was the duty of those that were trained to track people, to give information about Kanu’s whereabouts.
He also insisted that the Abia state government does not know his whereabouts.
“Those who are looking for him may have a better knowledge and have the capacity to determine the location of anyone in Nigeria.
“There are people who are trained to track people and it is their responsibility, not mine,” Ikpeazu noted.
A South-East based group, the World Igbo Youth Congress, WIYC, Thursday, asked Abia State Governor, Chief Okezie Ikpeazu and Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe to produce the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
The youths said anything on the contrary, the duo should be made to face the music.
The group spoke in apparent response to Governor Ikpeazu, who had told State House correspondents, after meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, that it was not his duty to locate Kanu.
The WIYC in a statement made available to our correspondent , signed by its Deputy National President, Dr. Fidelis Ugwu insisted that Ikpeazu and Senator Abaribe had answers to Kanu’s whereabouts.
“We are still thrilled to the continuous denial by the Governor of Abia State and Senator Abaribe that they have no knowledge about Kanu’s whereabouts.
“We must say that such assertion is a far cry from the truth as they not only know Kanu’s location but aided his escape from Umuahia.
“Even though we are against the invasion of Nnamdi Kanu’s home by the Nigerian Army, it does not change the truth, which is that the Governor and Abaribe knows where Kanu is at the moment.
“The information available to us showed that the duo provided the logistics through which Kanu escaped. So, they should be made to face the music.
“We are mindful of the fact that the Governor has immunity but the Senator should be arrested without further delay to produce Kanu.
“This is the most finest hour and as a result, all those involved should face the consequences and the challenges of self-determination. As a true Igbo Senator, Abaribe should stand in for Kanu. If Kanu was their shoes, he would not shy away”, the group concluded.
Governor Ikpeazu had stated that “Those who are looking for him may have a better knowledge and have the capacity to determine the location of anyone in Nigeria.
“There are people who are trained to track people and it is their responsibility, not mine.”
Forbes rated billionaire business man, Pro nationalist and two term Ex-Governor of Abia state Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu in this special interview monitored recently in Abuja speaks majorly on challenges of doing business in Nigeria, his business travails under the administration former President Olusegun Obasanjo as well as the current unemployment situation of the country and his position on Nigeria exiting recession including other economic issues.
Excerpts:
Issues affecting Nigeria and Nigerians, the doubts on the news that Nigeria have gotten out of recession, the rate of unemployment most especially for the youths.
You are welcome your excellency, we start this way first of all knowing that you major player in the economy, with chains of businesses and so on what are actually your businesses?
We are into shipping, banking and insurance. We are also in trading which is my traditional profession as an Igbere man, while our other businesses that were thriving during the tenure of President Olusegun Obasanjo have been moved out of Nigeria.
happened when the licenses of Hallmark Bank and Slok Airline were cancelled. We had to move them to the sub region to join First International Bank which had been there since 1997, when it was opened in The Gambia and is spread to other West African countries and the international insurance company.
We also have investments in some banks and insurance companies in Nigeria. We are into shipping and we are the largest shipper in sub Saharan Africa and we also transportation and oil drilling support. We also export cocoa, cashew nuts and other major cash crops. We are also into manufacturing with about 9,000 workers on the payroll which makes us a fairly large group.
You told us you have some of your business outside the shores of Nigeria as a member of the ruling party and a very good friend of the President Muhammadu Buhari and you have your businesses outside the shores of Nigeria wouldn’t be a score for your party and yourself if you bring those businesses back here in Nigeria having 9000 on your payroll ?
(Cuts in ) The nine thousand workers I mentioned are all here in Nigeria and we could have been a larger group if Hallmark bank was not closed and if the license was not withdrawn , a bank with 5000 workers and 33 branches and someone cancelled the licenses in one day for political reasons and that takes us to where we are now in Africa. Somebody cancelled an airline with 14 aircrafts .
So how do you convince people to come and invest in your country when a President can wake up and order the CBN and the ministry of Aviation to cancel licenses without due process .I am in court with the federal Government so I won’t dwell more on the issue because the whole process was totally flawed. There was no offence committed ,just because we disagreed on third term and this is the price I am paying. It was uncalled for to take such action without consideration of the many families that would be affected that are being fed those families are Nigerians.
so these are the major issues that discourage investors from building long term businesses in the country .
When politicians quarrel in America they quarrel as politicians they don’t go about attacking each other’s businesses. They talk about politics face to face they agree and disagree they quarrel strictly on politics and they agree and disagree on issues .
These are what our political leaders are engaged in which is not fair at all. They should not channel their grievances to businesses which people make a living from.
We want you advice the youths and the old people in business what is your secret to your successful business?
To be honest mind you I have been in business for over 30 years , you should also note the I started very early and I have attained positions which anybody can think of. I was the chairman of your regional bank which was the largest bank in the late 80s which is the cooperative and commerce bank . I was the youngest chairman there .
When essential commodities where being produced in IMO state when Abia was yet to he created I was Chairman of the board which was also owned by the government in which we were doing business with that Nigerian National supply company so I am well experienced as an entrepreneur who used to import rice, sugar and most kind of all kinds of commodities .
People are no longer interested in working hard , they just want to make money hastily , people just want a miracle. Most people believe that you must make money by stealing when you are government such is not true and it’s not sustainable .You can see people who have worked in government before if you are not a business man you are not a business man, if you are an entrepreneur you are an entrepreneur there are no two ways about it on how you can go about your daily living.
So for me Nigerians have not put in the right attitude that money should be pursued .One of the greatest challenge I have is having a lot of request from people that they need help , these are one of the reasons some people no longer answer their phone calls. Nigerians are forgetting about hardwork some of them now believe in begging while some of these requests are purely out of greed.
Even families that can feed well still want to beg and beg people should be learn to make a living within what they earn and that is how a disciplined society can function . I am not saying that there aren’t exceptional or extreme cases when one can help but in case whereby able bodied men and women sending texts and asking for financial assistance it’s not a culture for people that what’s to move forward .Go to Togo, Benin, Conakry, DRC , Botswana and other small African countries that I visit you will see people are disciplined you find them pursuing Agriculture and other aspects .
But here in a situation which everybody wants to come and live in Abuja or Lagos this is absolutely not ideal. The Government is also the cause of the problem , they have not been committed in making provision for small incentives for people who want to start small businesses. They tell you Bank of Agriculture or Bank of Industry is doing this and that but some of them are just for the show some of their interventions are not practically done.
The Government have to change their attitude on how to finance these youths and how to provide seed funding because it is important this is a huge economy that should have no business with hunger and poverty if properly handled .Most of our leaders do not understand the difference between a Micro and Macro economy so you cannot do it because they don’t understand it .
If you don’t understand it how are you also going to make decision instead if fighting for fiscal policy they are using fiscal policy to fight for things that are not necessary like prices of fuel , food, etc . leaders should not have any business fighting for what prices of commodities should be that should be left for the macro forces . Leaders are supposed to checkmate the regulators and compel them to do what is right Government should introduce the best regulation which will make people work hard and earn money . There are still a lot of people in our economy who are on the lowest class. We want to see an economy where every year we can raise around 250 000 people from the very poor to the middle class because that is the only way we can sustain this economy .
We can’t sustain it by going to talk shows we can’t sustain the economy by the government planning things that are unrealistic and un implementable. We must sustain it through the collaboration and cohesion of the private sector , we can sustain it by the government and youths build a common ground , the youths also should be honestly willing to make themselves readily available to take up these jobs.
Some of them are not sincere they take this as a game by going to the bank of industry to lend money only to end up squandering it. We were financed in our initial business capital by a bank called (NBCI) that is the Nigerian Bank of Commerce and Industry can let’s ask ourselves will such bank be willing to give that kind of financing to young people of today ? They might misuse the funds . So we need a total overhaul in our system , we need political and business over haul , we also need a social overhaul.
The system is collapsing. In my opinion if we can bring back what President Buhari did before I’m just saying because that was under the military regime is to bring back war against indiscipline there is a lot of indiscipline in the society today ,people have refused to obey the courts , people have refused to obey common laws , even the traffic lights they have refused to obey. For you to excel in business you must be disciplined . Working in Government for a Governor or Minister that have security vote is different from Orji Kalu the governor and Orji Kalu the entrepreneur they are not the same.
As an entrepreneur you work and earn money as a Governor you can have access to security vote to give to the people. In fact I am preaching where security votes should be removed from governance let it just be few contingency funds to solve certain issues. So that people can focus on leadership and stop focusing on sharing money.
Ever since people started getting free money they left entrepreneurship . One of the problems I had when I was governor was that there were so many elites and I was never aware that the military usually give them money from the government purse and when I came to power I had to put a stop to it that the money belongs to the people.
I am one of the very few former governors that can give a complete account of my office and I am not afraid of saying that anywhere I never touched any penny as a governor. I spent the security votes when it was necessary because it was used for the Police, it was used for the army , likewise the SSS it was also used for some insurance companies to insure the police in the case of any loss or harm. You find out that these things go hand in hand with everyday business . If you are a governor and all the money are spent in the state it goes to show entrepreneurship the money trickles down from the one source.
Can we confidently say that we are out of recession ?
No we are not out of recession! We are not going to be fully out of recession until possibly the end of 2019 .
(Cuts in ) It’s that not discouraging ?
Well this is my opinion and it is an entitlement which God has given to everybody. It might not be that of President Buhari or that of his economic advisers opinion. In my opinion we are not going to exit recession until towards the end of 2019 . Because it’s not going to be easy to cover the loop holes, although the government is trying its best at bridging the gap but it cannot be totally bridged .
Phasing out recession means that growth will start up again , industrial capacity will be equal to full capacity , the banking industry will start growing at full rate and every business will be thriving and I do not see that coming until towards the middle of 2019.
So economist either from the government or private telling you we have exited recession is not true. We are gradually exiting recession in as matter of fact all Nigerians must commend the government for its effort because they are doing all they can through their various interventions in the economy else we shall not be able to exit recession.
We keep thinking what is the way out for businessmen , because there is hardly any businessman that does not need good roads , talking about the farmers and everybody . Presently there are no good roads all over Nigeria.
This is why when I see some of my brothers complaining I laugh until when they go all over Nigeria . I have taken it upon myself most times I take a long drive all over part of Nigeria to see and what I have seen is a decade of abandonment . But it was not started by this government you know that I am not speaking because I am a member of the APC. I am a man who tells myself the truth . You are from the South South and you know the situation of the East West road so it wasn’t caused by this government .
You also know the situation of Enugu – Awka express way it wasn’t caused by this government , you know the situation of Enugu- Okigwe – Umuahia – Aba- Port Harcourt expressway it wasn’t led by this government . This government has just started a reconstruction . So it’s not to say it is politics , because I know some of you journalists for every little issue you will put the blame on President Buhari on the claim that two years have passed . But it is in this same two years the minister of power , works and housing have started working very hard to see that these roads are fixed .
There is a portion of the express way between Aba and Port Harcourt last two years that place was impassable and that happens to be where the President comes from . People going to port-Harcourt had to pass through Owerri from Owerri to Elele then to Port Harcourt but today they can drive straight into Port Harcourt so it’s a plus , I’m not saying it’s anybody’s fault. It is a result of collapse of national interest , culture and social behaviour . We need total re-orientation of our minds .
We can do over a million types of restructuring if we don’t restructure our minds and attitude nothing meaningful will be achieved . We need to start loving each other and stop the hatred . I will also encourage the President to work with those who worked with him during the election. You can’t win an election and bring in most people who weren’t part of those who worked for your victory . It’s not possible it’s not going to work .
For example there are some leaders whom deserve to be asked to provide a minister. Such a minister would become Buhari’s minister not Orji Kalu’s minister .
You are also into air transportation so you can clear your view on this matter. Concession ingredients of the Airports to be or not to be?
It’s the right thing to do . Government should not have business in doing what some persons are already doing. The federal Government should not even have anything to do with the airports. They should hand it over back to the states where the airports are , even the local government authority are supposed to own these airports .
(cuts in) Not the federal government?
Yes of course ! If we are practicing true democracy . In America who do you think owns the John Kennedy Airport , it’s owned by the New York city it’s not owned by New York State. We should be ready to practice democracy the way it should be practiced .
Before we call it a day your excellency let’s talk about food sufficiency in Nigeria . We still import essential food items, as a matter of fact as reported by Central Bank and the National Bureau of Statistics and even the Agricultural Research Commission of Nigeria that we still import essential food items into Nigeria. Is this the best for the country?
It’s because people are lazy, a situation where our elderly men and women would rather come to Abuja and beg. There is a man from my village this I’m about to tell you happened four days ago, I was in my hometown Igbere he came from Aba , this is the honest truth I’m telling you . His whole stock of goods consisted of 3 dozens of women’s wears .
I asked him to sit down let’s both do some calculation and after the calculation I told him this is not even enough to be paying the house rent of where you live why do you still live there why don’t you return to the hometown. I brought another youngman to show him this young man is into cultivation and processing of vegetables , cucumber and he lives in my village. We started this project with him like 3-4 years ago with him currently this young man is purchasing new buses for transportation , employing new people and even training people that are in school.
I told him this is the same thing we asked you to come and do but you refused, you prefer to have the status of living in Aba than to say you live in Igbere my village . But this is the same person the same funds . The one into farming is worth almost 10 million naira today . It’s as a result of people not knowing what to do they don’t want to also listen to people who want to direct them . Attention has to paid for people to engage in cultivation of food.
If we want to move forward with the rapid growth of our population we must go the Chinese example in food sufficiency .
The Chinese government realized 30 years ago that going into technology wasn’t going to sustain them they found out that what would save them would be going back to produce a lot of food , process a lot of food and give to the people and when the people are sufficient with food then they can go into high tech .
So my advice is for both the young and old, everybody to go back to farming.
Former Governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, in this interview monitored in Abuja, speaks on the challenges of doing business in Nigeria, his business travails under the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the economic recession and the state of the nation. Excerpts:
You are a major player in the nation’s economy, what are actually your businesses?
We are into shipping, banking and insurance. We are also in trading which is my traditional profession as an Igbere man, while our other businesses that were thriving during the tenure of President Olusegun Obasanjo have been moved out of Nigeria. This happened when the licenses of Hallmark Bank and Slok Airline were cancelled. We had to move them to the sub region to join First International Bank which had been there since 1997, when it was opened in The Gambia and is spread to other West African countries and the international insurance company.
We also have investments in some banks and insurance companies in Nigeria. We are into shipping and we are the largest shipper in sub Saharan Africa and we also transportation and oil drilling support. We also export cocoa, cashew nuts and other major cash crops. We are also into manufacturing with about 9,000 workers on the payroll which makes us a fairly large group.
As a member of the ruling party and a very good friend of President Muhammadu Buhari, don’t you think that bringing back those businesses back to Nigeria would be a plus to your party and yourself given the number of jobs involved?
The nine thousand workers I mentioned are all here in Nigeria and we could have been a larger group if Hallmark bank was not closed and its license withdrawn. A bank with 5,000 workers and 33 branches and someone cancelled the license in one day for political reasons and that takes us to where we are now in Africa. Somebody cancelled the license of an airline with 14 aircraft in a day and nobody asked questions.
How do you convince people to come and invest in your country when a president can wake up and order the Central Bank and the Ministry of Aviation to cancel licenses without due process? I am in court with the Federal Government, so I won’t dwell more on the issue because the whole process was totally flawed. There was no offence committed, just because we disagreed on third term and that was the price I paid. It was uncalled for to take such action without considering the many families that would be affected.
So, these are the major factors that discourage investors from having long term businesses in the country. When politicians quarrel in America, they quarrel as politicians, they don’t go about attacking each other’s businesses. They talk about politics face to face; they agree and disagree; they quarrel based on politics and they agree and disagree on issues. These are what our political leaders engaged in which is not fair at all. They should not channel their grievances to businesses which people make their living from.
What is the secret of your success in business?
I have been in business for over 30 years and you should note that I started very early and I have attained positions, which anybody can think of. I was the chairman of a regional bank which was the largest bank in the late 80s – Cooperative and Commerce Bank. I was the youngest chairman of the bank. When essential commodities where being produced in Imo State, when Abia was yet to he created, I was the chairman of the board, which was also owned by the government and we were doing business with that Nigerian National Supply Company. So, I am well experienced as an entrepreneur as well as someone who used to import rice, sugar and other kinds of commodities.
People are no longer interested in working hard; they just want to make money hastily. Most people believe that you must make money by stealing when you are in government. Such is not true and it is not sustainable. One of the greatest challenges I have is having a lot of request from people who need help. This is one of the reasons why some people no longer answer their calls. Nigerians are forgetting about hardwork; some of them now believe in begging while some of these requests are purely out of greed. Even families that can feed well still want to beg. People should learn to make a living within what they earn and that is how a disciplined society functions.
I am not saying that there aren’t exceptional or extreme cases when one can help, but in cases where able bodied men and women are sending texts and asking for financial assistance is not a culture for people who want to move forward. Go to Togo, Benin, Guinea, Botswana and other small African countries, you will see people who are disciplined and they way they pursue agriculture. But here, the situation is different; everybody wants to live in Abuja or Lagos. This is absolutely not ideal. Governments at the various levels are also part of the problem. They have not been committed in making provision for small incentives for people who want to start small businesses like farming. They tell you Bank of Agriculture or Bank of Industry is doing this and that, but some of them are just for the show. Some of their interventions are not practically done.
What is the way forward?
Government has to change its attitude on how to empower the youth and how to provide seed funding because it is important. This is a huge economy that shouldn’t have business with hunger and poverty if properly handled. Most of our leaders do not understand the difference between a micro and macro economy. If you don’t understand the difference between the two, how are you also going to make decisions? That is why they are using fiscal policies to fight for things that are not necessary like prices of fuel, food and others. Leaders should not have any business fighting for what prices of commodities should be. That should be left for the market forces.
Leaders are supposed to monitor the regulators and compel them to do what is right. Government should introduce the best regulations which will make people work hard and earn money. There are still a lot of people in our economy who are on the lowest class. We want to see an economy in which we can raise about 250, 000 people from the very poor to the middle class every year because that is the only way we can sustain this economy. We can’t sustain it by going to talk shows. We can’t sustain the economy with government planning for things that are unrealistic and unimplementable.
We will sustain it through collaboration with the private sector. So, we need a total overhaul of our system; we need political and business overhaul; we also need a social overhaul. The system is collapsing, there is a lot of indiscipline in the society today, people have refused to obey the courts, people have refused to obey common laws, even the traffic lights, they have refused to obey. For you to excel in business, you must be disciplined. Working for a governor or minister who is entitled to security vote is different from working for Orji Kalu the entrepreneur.
As an entrepreneur, you work and earn money, but as a governor, you have access to security vote from which you can give to people. This is why I am preaching that security votes should be removed from governance. Let’s just have a contingency fund to solve certain issues, so that people can focus on leadership and not sharing of money. Since people started getting free money, they left entrepreneurship. One of the problems I had when I was governor was that there were so many elite, and I was never aware that the military usually give them money from the government’s purse, but when I came to power, I had to put a stop to it as the money belongs to the people.
I am one of the very few former governors, who can give account of my office and I am not afraid of saying that I never touched a penny as governor. I spent the security vote when it was necessary because it was used for the police, army and Department of State Security (DSS). It was also used to insure policemen against loss of live or injury.
Can we confidently say that Nigeria is out of recession?
No, we are not out of recession. We are not going to be fully out of recession until possibly the end of 2019.
Is that not discouraging?
In my opinion, we are not going to exit recession until towards the end of 2019. Getting out of recession means that growth will start again, industrial capacity will be equal to full capacity, the banking industry will start growing at full rate and businesses will start thriving and I do not see that coming until towards the middle of 2019. So, economists, either from the government or private sector telling you that we have exited recession is not true. However, I must say that we are gradually exiting recession as matter of fact and all Nigerians must commend the government for its effort because it is doing all it can through various interventions in the economy.
We keep thinking of the way out for businessmen, because there is hardly any businessman, even a farmer, who doesn’t need good roads, but presently there are no good roads across Nigeria…
That is why I laugh when I see some of my brothers complaining. I have taken it upon myself most times to take long drive across part of Nigeria and what I have seen is decades of abandonment. But it was not started by this government. I am not speaking because I am a member of the APC. I am a man who tells myself the truth. You know the situation of the East-West road and wasn’t caused by this government. You also know the situation of Enugu-Onitsha expressway and it wasn’t caused by this government. You know the situation of Enugu-Okigwe-Umuahia-Aba-Port Harcourt expressway and it wasn’t caused by this government.
I know that some people have put the blame on President Buhari, saying that he has already spent two years, but it is within this same two years that the Minister of Power, Works and Housing has started work to see that these roads are fixed. There is a portion on the Aba-Port Harcourt expressway that was impassable in the last two years. This made people going to port-Harcourt to pass through Owerri then Elele before they can get to Port Harcourt, but today, they can drive straight into Port Harcourt. So, it is a plus for the present government.
I am not saying that it is anybody’s fault. It is a result of collapse of national interest, culture and social behaviour. So, we need total re-orientation of our minds. We can do over a million types of restructuring, but if we don’t restructure our minds and attitude, nothing meaningful would be achieved. We need to start loving each other and shun hatred. I will also encourage the President to work with those who worked with him during the election. You can’t win an election and bring in most people who weren’t part of your victory. There are some leaders, who deserve to be asked to nominate ministers. Such ministers will be Buhari’s ministers and not Orji Kalu’s ministers.
How would you react to the move by the Federal Government to concession some major airports?
It is the right thing to do. Government should not have business in doing what some persons are already doing. The Federal Government should not even have anything to do with the airports. It should hand them over to the states where they are. Even the local governments are supposed to own these airports.
Not the Federal Government?
Of course, if we are practicing true federalism. In America, who do you think owns the John Kennedy Airport? It is owned by the New York City, not the New York State. We should be ready to practice federalism the way it should be practiced. The Federal Government has a lot of tasks on its hands and it should go into business because such business will not move forward.
Let’s talk about food sufficiency in Nigeria. We still import essential food items as reported by Central Bank, National Bureau of Statistics and even the Agricultural Research Commission of Nigeria. Is this the best for the country?
It is because people are lazy. If we want to move forward with the rapid growth of our population, we must go the Chinese example in food sufficiency. The Chinese government realized 30 years ago that going into technology wasn’t going to sustain them. They found out that what would save them would be going back to produce food, process them and give to the people because when there is sufficient food for the people, they can go into high tech. So, my advice is for both the young and old to go back to farming.
In the build up to the 2019 general elections, political gladiators have commenced high level discussions and political realignment in a bid to actualize their ambitions.
Recently, when former Abia State Governor, Dr. Orji Kalu, visited the Minna Hilltop mansion of former President Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB), political observers who had besieged IBB’s residence could not get a clue to what transpired at the one-hour closed door meeting between the former military ruler and Kalu.
However, an inside source in the Babangida camp has leaked details of the meeting between the two political heavy weights.
According to the close ally and trusted aide of the former military ruler, who craved anonymity, Kalu, who was accompanied by a member of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Sam Nkire and a former Director-General of National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr. Idi Farouk, was in Minna to seek IBB’s support for the second term bid of incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari.
Kalu had during his stint as Governor of Abia State settled the differences between Buhari and Babangida, after being at loggerheads for many years.
The former governor also facilitated the conferment of chieftaincy titles and honourary doctorate degrees on the two retired generals by Igbere Council of Ndi-Eze and Abia State University, Uturu respectively.
The source further disclosed that the former governor urged the former military ruler to throw his weight behind Buhari’s administration, emphasizing that the North should be allowed to complete their eight years while paving the way for the South East to produce the President in 2023.
It was also gathered that Kalu, who is a regular visitor to the Minna mansion of the former President, did not hide his unflinching support for Buhari all through the closed door meeting with his host.
According to the source, Babangida agreed to look into Kalu’s request, while promising to discuss further with the former governor “at a later date”.
Former governor of Abia State and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu in an interview on AIT recently declared that the South- east was marginalised saying that ‘since the end of the civil war, the treatment meted on the south-east is different.’ Read the interview below
You said Biafra is not possible why did you say so?
Let me correct you I said there is no need for it now. Because dividing the country would be a mistake. What matters is for people to live under the rule of law, social justice, and under true federalism. I don’t think the clamour to separate the country is anything that would help anybody. What majority of Nigerians not only the Igbo people need is to obey the law. If a court in Abia gives an order that order must be obeyed if another court in Benin gives an order that order must be obeyed.
If I Orji Kalu drives against traffic light and I am caught I should be punished. What the country is looking for is one rule for everybody.
Is the South East truly marginalized?
Yes! The South- east is marginalized. I can tell you this. I am trained by Hausa/Fulani people, but I am not afraid of speaking the truth.
Since the end of the civil war, the treatment meted on the south-east is different. The amenities given to people from the south-east are different. If anyone says anything contrary bring him on to this your programme and I will tell him why we are marginalized.
What can the present government do about this?
The present government should look at appointments; they should look at who gets what and balance it. It doesn’t sound good that you have service chiefs with none from the south-east. No matter who is the president, vice president or senate president and you should have at least one Igbo among the service chiefs. Whatever is worth doing is worth doing well.
As a member of the APC, have you been making some moves to achieve what you just said?
Yes, of course I’ve been making various moves.
A school of thought suggests that you are already selling Igbo because you are in APC now?
What do you mean I don’t understand.
Any issue that comes up regarding the Igbo, your opinion usually aligns with that of the federal government.
It’s not true, I have never agreed with anybody. I speak what I know is the truth. Would any Igbo man with integrity like a court order to be disobeyed? Would you like the orders of a court to be flouted? Would you like that?
No I would not When you refuse listen to a court of justice the only thing you should expect is chaos. I can never be bought by anybody, money cannot buy me.
I was governor for eight years with Obasanjo as president; if I wanted to be bought over I could have been bought over to support the third term agenda.
So my loyalty and everything lies solely to the Nigerian people. It’s not ethnic. Remember I was a students’ union president. I was voted by over 99 and half percent of Muslim students, they were not Igbo people.
They saw the truth in me and that truth is what I am still holding on to till date. The cross I am carrying is the truth. I mean, sell who for what?
What are they going to give me? Truth is, most of the Igbo leaders are afraid of speaking the truth. They cannot continue to keep quiet .Yes I believe we are marginalised I don’t hide it, but I also believe that we can build a better country.
FG and IPOB face off, you are a member of the ruling party and you are an Igbo leader, do you see yourself brokering truce between them?
To correct you I am an Igbo man from Igbo land not an Igbo leader.
Really ?
Yes . We have been doing a lot to broker truce between them , we have done a lot underground , we have been talking to both parties that is why you can see some level of peace now in Abia and Onitsha axis where the IPOB have a stronghold . I believe all parties are interested in finding a common ground .
The people that said that they want to separate are not very strong they are very weak. My only concern is that they are endangering the lives of a lot of Igbo because when they go to confront the military or when they are confronted by the military the goods been damaged are owned by Igbo and the people being killed are Igbo. I am a trader and I trade on cash crops and all the rest, so I know what I have suffered in the last nine months or there about due to this issue .
You were the first Igbo leader or Igbo man to visit Nnamdi Kanu in prison?
Yes I was the first Nigerian man to visit him because it was the right thing to do. Because nobody wanted to see him, everybody was afraid to see him. They were scared to identify with him. As for me I am not afraid of death I am not afraid of anybody.
He was remanded in prison by court of competent jurisdiction and a court of record. Even the UN charter recognises that anyone remanded in prison by an official court can be visited by anybody so I applied that wisdom to myself. I want to guess that part of the things you would have told Kanu while in prison was to drop the idea of IPOB. Maybe you did not sound convincing enough.
No! I spent two hours 10 minutes with Nnamdi Kanu and I sounded very convincing, at some point he was here and there and then later on he said ‘we can’t drop this fight we have gone very far,’ and I reminded him that a good general is a general that fights and goes back to fight another day, while a worse one is the one that dies in the battle . I not only visited him I went out of my way and to go as far as visiting his both parents.
I talked to them I gave them reasons why they should not encourage him to continue in this manner but he (Kanu) refused. When he came out of prison he didn’t make any attempt to visit those who wished him well he went for those who wanted to play politics with him and that is where we are.
They have been shouting Biafra nobody touched them, but because the issue went beyond where it was supposed to be, government had to respond. People who wanted to use them to play politics were telling them that everything is possible and they got him into trouble.
I have nothing against those clamouring that they want Biafra; in fact it is their constitutional right. I can never tell anybody not to agitate. But the question is; is it possible? Is it within the norms of our constitution?
The constitution is very clear, there is nowhere in the constitution where we have provisions on how to divide the country. The constitution has chapters on how to unite the country, but nowhere can you find referendum or restructuring.
To me all these calls and the people making the calls could go back to the 2014 conference report . Since that conference was bipartisan and headed by a very good jurist, Justice Idris Kutugi , we should find a way of getting the recommendations implemented as a starting point and giving the South- East one more state, as was recommended
There is this story that Kanu’s whereabouts is unknown can I quote you that he is in London, since you said so?
I didn’t say categorically that he was in London, go and read what I told The Punch newspaper. When I returned from the United States of America on the 14th of September and on the 15th I went straight to Abia because the thing was escalating then. I consulted some of them (IPOB) I consulted the security agencies, the army, the police, SSS and the rest of them and I tried to douse the tension.
I started looking for Kanu himself to talk to him. So somebody told me he went to a hotel and I sent people to the hotel and I called one of his relations who came to my house and I asked him where Kanu was, that I really want to talk to him.
He said that I should not bother myself and I told The Punch all that transpired including the fact that I was not sure whether the fellow was telling me lies or truth. I said it and it’s in the paper. I didn’t say I discussed with Kanu and he told me he had left for London. His relation told me I should not bother about his safety because I told him that what matters to me is the safety of the man.
I wanted to bring the man to my house in Igbere and make arrangements with the federal authorities and persuade them for us to find a common ground. I never wanted the security agents to bundle him and rough handle him, I only wanted to bring him to my house and wade into the matter, which was what I did when he was in prison.
I am suprised at the attitude of Kanu because he knew all the things we discussed; he neglected them because he wanted to play politics.
Let me ask you; is it fair on the court that gave him bail?
Is it fair on the federal government of Nigeria that the orders of court were being disobeyed?
That order was not that of Justice Nyako at all, it was the law of Nigeria. These are things I reminded him that he must obey our laws. In 2007 the same court gave me a condition to gain my freedom, it’s not a criminal case but I accepted those conditions and if I wanted to challenge those conditions I would move to an appellate court where justices of the court of appeal will look at and review the conditions.
So I will continue to blame our elders, our friends and my people who are saying his human rights have been tampered with, I disagree because the court is of competent jurisdiction that order was not that of Buhari, it was not that of chief of army staff, neither was it of the director of the SSS or anybody it was the order of a court of competent jurisdiction. So he could have mellowed down and obeyed that order and allow his members to continue carrying their flag rather than disobeying that order.
But when you set off to molest people on the road , people are afraid to say the truth I’m not afraid of death or a anybody you know me from my university days I’m still the same person, I don’t care what anybody says what matters most to me is justice being applied where it is supposed to be applied .
If Kanu had gone ahead to obey that court order-he was asked not to appear in a public of more than10 persons and the 2nd in command would be the one carrying their Biafra flag nobody would touch him because he was not given any order by the court.
If Kanu wanted to see people then they should come to his house and see him but what he did which you saw all over social media was mounting a Guard of Honour, insulting everybody, he insulted The Sun newspapers, he insulted the owner of Sun newspapers, he insulted me personally that some were writing against him and that they were been bought over by Hausa/Fulani people and Yoruba people.
How can you run a republic when you are not in good terms with the Yoruba? You’re not in good terms with Hausa, the Ijaws and other tribes, so who will you be in good terms with? The issue is that he should purge himself of those needless biases and come to terms with the realities of today.
In the game of love, it is given so that it wouldn’t be returned. But those who share in the love rendered return same to the giver most times. This is why people say that somebody is loved by history. In this clime, we have seen people rewarded with chieftaincy titles in their different villages, because of their act of benevolence to their kinsmen and women. At the national level, many have been rewarded with national prizes, because of their contributions. In like manner, we have to honour and appreciate one of our own in the person of Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu (OUK), former Governor of Abia State. The Emetu Mba, Ahu Mba Ndigbo.
What has spurred this treatise was Kalu’s comment in an interview recently that all his harangues about Ndigbo to be the president in 2015, are not borne out of self-seeking purpose. This shows that he is in love with Ndigbo, not for selfish reasons, but for justice to prevail. Kalu derives no pleasure in watching Ndigbo suffering in a country that their forebears sprinkled their bloods for. This is not flatter, but a compliment to self-sacrifice, not for self-need, but for the needs of Ndigbo, who know no other tribute in Nigeria, than the third fiddle they are placed as, by those who do not mean well to them.
Known as a politician and business mogul, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu is more than this. These titles were ascribed to him due to the distinguished part of his social or public life that people know. But the dude is more than what people think he is. In the cause of penning this tract, some persons that were interviewed, said that Kalu is a humanist to the heart and a secret donor to the needy and the downtrodden that cut across the country, and does not like to amplify this area of his life. One of the persons was, however, pleading that Kalu should forgive all the persons that forced him to pull most of his businesses out of the country, which made over 20, 000 people lose their jobs. It may offend him discussing this in the media; but like Ndigbo would say, there is nothing hidden under the sun.
This is a man who has left the comfort of his zone to champion for the security and peace of Nigeria and by extension, for the emancipation of Ndigbo in the political progress of the country by 2015, with his pet project called and known as Njiko Igbo. This organisation now cuts across all divides of Europe, Asia, Africa and America. Kalu sees the emergence of an Igbo presidency in 2015 as his last plan. What a man with meek, practical and humane heart!
He has never extolled himself for this selfless task, but keep on saying that Ndigbo have men and women of honour that the cap of president would fit. He would tell whoever, that he has no political aspirations for now, but to show love to Nigerians and, by large extent Ndigbo, in producing president of this country. He is calling on the Igbo to be very determined than ever.
The ex-Governor is not only talking about the Igbo to produce president, but that the marginalisation against his people has reached even to the Local Government Areas, whereas some surrogates of the current presidency are mistaking appointments of some persons from the Igbo extraction to mean that Ndigbo have been included in the things of governance in the country. The later persons do not realise that the LGAs in places like Kano and Gigawa States, are more than the whole LGAs in the whole of the five states of the South-East. This is the bane that Kalu has been tackling and making sure that they are redressed headlong.
Who could believe that the South-East is the only region in Nigeria that has only five states, whereas other five political regions have six states? What about just 15 senators that the South-east has out of 109-member Senate? Kalu sees these pitfalls in the political equation in the country as biased ensconce against Ndigbo. He sees the authorities undermining Ndigbo as hypocrisy of the highest order.
As a man who loves Ndigbo, he would say that Ndigbo love themselves. This is contrary to the hypocrisy in the country that Ndigbo do not love themselves. He would challenge this surrounding-substance by asking if all the tribes in the country love themselves. Why single out Ndigbo that they do not love themselves? Kalu sees this as hypocrisy and propaganda of the un-imaginable measure. Kalu has said that Igbo traders in the market love themselves, Igbo market men and women love themselves.
OUK does not only talk, but offers solution to solving the problems he sees in the country. He has told the authorities to stop any act of hypocrisy or system that makes a region to feel superior against the other; he has told the authorities to create avenues that would make Nigerians to love one another; he has advised the authorities to allow Ndigbo to be president and not a select of persons from other regions, because of fake regional population; he has said that the authorities should address the marginalisation in the Constitution for democracy in this country to reconcile.
It Is None My Business If The Military Abducted Or Killed Nnamdi Kanu- Judge Tells Kanu’s Lawyer
Mrs Binta Nyako, the judge presiding over the trial of the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu has rebuffed claims by the IPOB leader’s lawyer that the military are in possession of his client who has been missing after a bloody raid at his residence in Umuahia last month.
Nnamdi Kanu’s lawyer, Barr. Ifeanyi Ejiofor had during the proceedings disclosed reasons behind his client’s absence in court, in response to the question tabled by the presiding judge, demanding the whereabouts of the first defendant, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. Barr. Ejiofor narrated all the inconveniences as concern how the Nigeria Armed Forces invaded his client’s house, massacred at least 28 persons and since then, his client’s way about is not yet known as Nigeria Army are in a better position to provide him before the court.
But while narrating the ordeal, Justice Binta Nyako angrily responded, and told Ejiofor that all the stories is none of her business, and, asked if those who stood as sureties to the first defendant are in the court.
Also making progress, a lawyer representing Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe stood up, telling the honorable court that his client knows nothing about the way about of Nnamdi Kanu. He therefore prayed that his client is asking for the withdrawal of his surety, of which the judge hurriedly said that she cannot listen to that plea unless Nnamdi Kanu is available with his sureties in the court.
The presiding judge stated that she is going to invite the sureties and ask them why Nnamdi Kanu is not present in the court. She further said that what makes them his sureties is to give any account of his whereabouts if the need arises.
Finally, the judge ordered the prison authorities to allow the third defendant’s doctor to always check on him anytime, any moment. She therefore adjourned the case to 20th of November 2017 for the commencement of the trial.
Businessman and politician, Dr. Orji Kalu will on Friday, October 27 deliver a paper onEconomic Diversification- “The Role of the Private Sector vs The Government at the University of International Business and Economics, Beijing, China. The Forbes-rated billionaire with business interests around the globe is expected to share his experience as an entrepreneur and a public servant while educating students and other members of the university community on wealth creation in a competitive business environment.
The former Abia State governor, who is also the Chairman of China based IT company, Slok Toro Technologies Ltd, will identify the role of the organized private sector in economic growth and development.
He will also x-ray the impact of government policies and other regulations on the promotion of a diversified economy. The event which is expected to kick-off at 10am at the Chengxin Building of the institution will attract the academia, top Nigerian government officials and their Chinese counterparts, the diplomatic community, the organized private sector, the Nigerian community in China, will also provide a platform for the participants to network and build new business relationships.
The Senator representing Abia South Senatorial District, Enyinaya Abaribe, has applied to the court to be discharged from the suretyship, bond and recognizance of the bail of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
In an application filed against the Federal Government, Nnamdi Kanu, and his co-defendants, Senator Abaribe is asking the court to make an order discharging him as surety to Abaribe prayed the court to discharge him entirely from the incidence of bail of Kanu.
He is also asking for a discharge of the bond used for Kanu’s bail and a refund of N100 million or any other bond paid to the court sequel to the bail.
The grounds upon which Senator Abaribe sought the reliefs include that the Nigerian army during a raid at the residence of the IPOB leader engaged in a fracas with members of the group which has been proscribed by the federal government.
Abaribe said since the raid by the Nigerian Army, the first defendant has not been seen or reached.
He also said Kanu is yet to make any public appearance or any statement since the raid.
The Lagos High Court has moved to Wednesday 18th of October 2017 the hearing of the case of fraud between Phrenemos International Ltd Vs UBA PLC.
Recall that the CEO of Phrenemos International Ltd Engr Emma Uche Adimoha on behalf of the company, had last year September filed a case against UBA PLC, Emuchay Glory (UBA STAFF), Onyemaechi chukwuemeka Evuka (SEEDC CEO) Okechukwu Austin Emeh (Petmobel hotel, Umuahia) in the Lagos High Court.
The case is that of alleged Forgery, Falsification, Impersonation, Fraudulent and Unlawful Withdrawal from the company account with UBA Plc.
Those alleged to have commited the fraud are; Mr Nnabu N. Evuka(late)-SSA to Gov Ikpeazu on One Stop Shop and Team Leader Abia CBN/SEEDC committee, Mr Okechukwu Austin Emeh of Pet mobel hotel Umuahia, Mr Onyemaechi Chukwuemeka Evuka – CEO SEEDC, Miss Emuchay Glory of UBA plc factory road branch Umuahia who was the Phrenemos account officer at that time, Dr Eme Okoro – SSG Abia State Government, Chief Chijioke Nwakodo (late)- Chief of Staff to gov Ikpeazu, and others.
Recall that investigations are still going on in the DSS, ICPC, and EFCC, with several Arrests made by the agencies, and the Area command of the Nigerian Police in Umuahia had also concluded their investigations and issued arraignnment notice to the suspects since February 2016.
A source from the govt house also revealed that there’s panic in the govt house over the recent invitations by the EFCC, and the ICPC’s moves to commence prosecution of the south-east Entrepreneurship Development Center (SEEDC) Contract Fraud involving some high profile Abia State govt officials and UBA PLC.
Eastwind Newsonline 
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