motivating articles, social issues & current news

Bankole denies buying 18 bulletproof cars

2009-11-09T05:02:00.001-08:00

Bankole denies buying 18 bulletproof cars

By Festus Owete

November 9, 2009 01:34PMT
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The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole and his deputy, Usman Nafada have denied purchasing fresh bulletproof vehicles. A national newspaper, at the weekend, reported that the two presiding officers bought bulletproof vehicles. However, in a statement on Sunday, the Speaker’s spokesperson, Ebomhiana Musa denied the report, saying the matter has been settled since last year.

“We wish to state unequivocally that there is no iota of truth in the story, rather it was a figment of imagination of the writers aimed at smearing the good reputation of the person and office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole,” the release said.

“The story was nothing but a rehash of a story published by two Lagos based newspapers on November 2, 2008 over a year ago and the House through Ita Enang, the chairman of the House Committee on Rules and Business on the same day address a press conference refuting the story as baseless.

Golden Eaglets battle Korea for semi final ticket

2009-11-09T04:47:00.001-08:00

Golden Eaglets battle Korea for semi final ticket

Touted to have been improving with each match they played, host and defending champions, Golden Eaglets will today confront their counterparts from Korea Republic in a quarter-final clash at the U.J. Esuene Stadium in Calabar.
Aware that there are no room for mistakes and a ticket into the semi finals also at stake, the encounter is bound to be an intriguing clash of styles and football cultures as the fast-moving and team-oriented Koreans take on the physical and somewhat technically gifted Golden Eaglets.
Confidence
Still brimming with confidence after drubbing the hapless New Zealanders 5-0 in their round-of-16 clash in Abuja, the Eaglets would have to be careful not to underrate the Koreans, whose resilience and team play has seen them thus far.
Not completely strangers to themselves as they both featured in a four nation tournament prior to the commencement of the championship, Jin Su Kim, Korea Republic captain is confident that his team can stun Nigeria and earn a place in the semi finals “We played Nigeria and we beat them a few months ago in Dubai. So we know them and we understand their way of playing. But things have changed since then, and the context is completely different in a World Cup, and playing against the host country. We’ll enter the pitch with respect for our opponent, but confident in our strength and our chances to win,” he said.
However the Nigeria coach, John Obuh is not losing any sleep against the Koreans as he remains confident in the ability of his boys to sail through.
“I’ve had faith in my team from the start even with the problems we had at the beginning. If we keep our concentration as a team, there is no telling how far we can go. We showed in our last game against New Zealand that we can get the job done and also enjoy our football at the same time,” he said.
The winner of this encounter battle with the winner of the other quarter final match involving Spain and Uruguay.
November 9, 2009 12:09AMT

Sanusi equipped for CBN job – Omale, City of London Consultant

2009-11-05T04:00:00.001-08:00

Sanusi equipped for CBN job – Omale, City of London Consultant
Business Nov 4, 2009 Dr. Sam Omale a London based financial consultant is the founder and CEO of Rock Global Training & Consultancy which focuses on exotics and structured financial products. Omale holds a doctorate from the Commonwealth University College Belize City. A graduate of Ahmadu Bello University ,he also holds an MBA (Banking & Finance) from the University of Nigeria Nsukka, an Msc ( International Capital Markets) from the prestigious University of Brighton Business School UK. A banker for more than 25 years in both Nigeria and the UK including board membership of two banks, Omale is also a fund manager and trainer in the City of London.

In this interview with Vanguard’s Emmanuel Aziken, Dr. Omale appraises the evolving reforms in the Nigerian financial sector and gives his verdict on history’s judgment on Mallam Sausi Lamido Sanusi, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

What is your perspective on the ongoing reforms in the Nigeria banking industry?

May be we should break it into two. First of all let me start with the obvious ones which is the banking reform that has been going on, that is been orchestrated by the new governor of the central bank. I will say it has brought a lot of hope to the system. Hope in the sense that someone who is a practitioner himself, who was in the system managing one of the biggest banks knows the in and out of banking must have also observed the practices that has been going on was well equipped for this job.

He was definitely equipped for this job and that is why when he came it didn’t take him time to know what was wrong in the system and decided to make these immediate changes which are really not changes, but really getting the banks to get the job they are supposed to be doing in the first place. That will indeed show that their oversight functions or supervisory functions were sleeping at the watch.

When he came in he woke them up and he is equipped for it because he is coming from the risk perspective which is superior to other forms of supervision because it goes beyond banks meeting the demands of regulatory reforms. So I will say that it has brought a lot of interest to the international market because people are now saying that for once we now know that banks are been reformed, banks are now going back to their original traditional practices.

Dr. Sam Omale

I feel that what has happened over the past few years is that banks left their traditional roles of money creation, of banking and went into a primordial form of trading, warehousing. Now they have also abandoned two key principles of the banking profession. The two pillars that guide the banking profession is prudence and conservatism. These core principles are traditional principles that if you violate them..…it has led to what has happened. As conservatives you don’t flaunt around, you don’t speak loud, you don’t join in the frivolities that was being orchestrated in the Nigerian capital market, these bogus awards and all the patronizing all over the place, you don’t do that.

Conservatism should also be in your credit assessment before giving out loans, you don’t give out loans without collaterals and that is why the key problems….over the past three years I have been saying to whoever wanted to hear that the rise in bank shares was fraudulent, because if the banks are doing well the question to ask is why is the share of a particular bank going up?

Now if you cannot answer that question intelligently then you are a gambler. Even if you look at their financial statements, as long that there is no transference of their performance on a macro level then you should know that there is a failure, it is at the macro level that capital formation takes place, capital formation is an obvious physical things you can see on ground, companies having smoke coming out from their chimney producing fumes, people buying things at the shop, new businesses springing up, new employment being generated and all that. That was not happening so the banks claims were bogus. What the CBN governor will be doing is to bring out the sensibility of risk and the core pillars of these will be prudence and conservatism. Secondly, there should be no emotion attached to this at all. This guy who has come is a professional banker he has the interest of the whole country at heart, and what he is doing is the sure way of integrating the Nigerian financial system into the international financial architecture.

What worries me is that despite the consolidation that took place a year or two ago and despite what is happening now that five of the biggest banks failed there is no impact of that action around our boundaries let alone in other African countries or in the world. That will mean that we are isolated from the international financial architecture and why are we not integrated? Number one, we are not integrated into the international financial capital architecture because our practices don’t meet international standard. One core standard that is operating in most developing or developed economies is what we call international financial reporting standards.

The international financial reporting standards has certain criteria that the company must report on. For example the Nigerian Accounting system except I am corrected still report on historical records basis. Historical accounting tells you this object was bought ten years ago at this value and you keep that value here today and that has ignored inflation, that has ignored the reality.

Modern accounting is based upon fair value , fair value will tell me that this is what should be the value now so all our accounting system have to be changed immediately and the reporting standard should be international financial reporting standard basis.

The Central Bank in its supervision should also go beyond the accounts of the banks they are supervising. That is when they come to a bank they should look at the subsidiaries and associates and other activities of the banks.

Another thing I would want to say is that there should be a collaborative effort among the various regulatory bodies in the country that will be the central bank for the banks, SEC for the brokers and the capital market, PENCOM for pensions and NICOM for insurance alongside with NDIC. There should be a collaborative system. People argue for one regulatory body and that is what we use in the UK.

Banks own insurance companies, or insurance companies own banks they own investment houses they own brokerage houses so supervision must be consolidated. Consolidation is a process where all accounts are in one sheet of paper in one place you see all the activities of the group, instead of having individual accounts, you have a group account where you have access to see the reality.

Despite your argument there is some perception that this banking reforms by Sanusi were rushed and premeditated to achieve some certain agenda do you agree?
Can you say some of these agenda

Well it is said that there was a personal agenda either from him or from certain people around him directed against some of the bank executives who he didn’t flow with?
Well, I don’t know him I have not met him in person.. I will say that it was not premeditated, I think that because he was in the system and understood what was wrong in the system nobody has brought that argument, because he was in the system and knew what was wrong, he knew the market place very well unlike the former governor who came from the classroom.

So the question to ask is that the facts that came out are they wrong? The fact that most of these banks were involved in not just mismanagement but involved in actual fraud are they proven wrong? What he is doing is a professional job that is very rare in a country like this and he should not even be distracted by such things at all, he should just be focussed, let him do something that will leave a legacy.

When consolidation was happening one section of the country was saying it was an agenda and consolidation was a natural thing to happen because most of the banks then didn’t have enough liquidity, they didn’t have enough capital base so consolidation was to firm up these loose one house banks into a more strong foundation.

What do you talk of the contractual agreement between banks and their customers which have now been called to question? These are essentially civil cases why are they making them criminal cases?

Don’t forget our background but I think that they are in court.

They are being charged to court for owing. Is it wrong to owe?
It is not wrong to owe but it is wrong for your debt not to perform, that is fraud.

Is there not supposed to be a collateral agreement?

That was the problem now you are going to the point. Most of these loans have no collateral that is where the fraud is. That is my own understanding, there were no collaterals.
What I am hearing is that some of these people who took these money they did what they wanted to do with it they brought oil, they sold and made profit and did not pay back.

You coming from outside the country, what opportunities exist for financial investors in the present situation?

Even before the present situation came on, Nigeria was a virgin land for investment. The opportunities are all there in the financial sector, in the manufacturing sector in the consultancy aspect, in capacity building especially so much but they are scared of coming. Investors are hunters they have tons of money they need their money to perform. They don’t like cash in their accounts, no good fund manager wants cash in the till so they are looking around for these opportunities, but these opportunity are based on a strong regulatory frame work of the financial system.

But, don’t you see the persistent flaws, the scandal arising from these malpractices as a barrier for foreign investors?

No, the premise is the rule of law and regulatory frame work being applied. Every economy has fraud, in the USA the volume of fraud there can’t compare with what obtains here. Even in the UK the banking failure that happened there was fraud where one person could defraud a whole system for years of $69billion. So let’s not put ourselves as if we are the dirtiest in the world, the difference between us and the outside world is information data. Fraud is an individual thing, it is not a corporate thing. I think he (CBN Governor) is a very focussed man who wants to do something and we should be grateful and should watch and should all collaborate with him and see how these changes can come about.
This is going to take about one year or two for whatever he is doing now to actually stabilize us. I can’t see any foreign person coming in now in the next one or two years.

A final word?

Another thing of interest is the capital market; the capital market is unprofessionally practiced in Nigeria. We don’t really have an authentic capital market going on now around the country that is the truth. There is a lot of skill gap, what is being practised here is mundane warehousing trading going on. What I mean is that the operators are not skilled with international practices and services. As a stock broker what services are you rendering?

Then another thing that is wrong with the capital system is the paucity of products traded in the capital market. As far as my knowledge goes there are basically two instruments traded here, stocks and bonds and that limits the depth of available outlet for investment. I have read in papers the PENCOM DG saying they don’t know where to invest and I agree with them, because you either buy shares or you buy bonds and bonds are safe and are not high yielding investments.

So the Nigeria capital market can immediately develop products in the system and the products are all there with us. Derivatives, futures that our native people do naturally but have not been standardized so we need products development, we need skill development and we need a strong definable regulatory frame work.

4 Responses for “Sanusi equipped for CBN job – Omale, City of London Consultant”
Uyi Edo says:
November 5, 2009 at 9:17 am@ Edewor and Fitka, I understand what u are saying but I still have my reservation. I wont like to sound triabalistic or oclose to it. the truth is Sanusi has taken an approach which he is back trackiing on now. His recent decision shows that he was overzealous. The so called bankers are in court and lets see if they will be convicted of the so called many financial wrongs. These bankers in 25 yrs changed the face of the Nigerian economy not as politicians but as hard working men and women, not as political pararsite feeding on the resources of the people.
Do you believe without the intervention these banks will have collapsed by now. Do you think oceanic, intercontinental will be no longer in existence today no. Sanusi has created a problem of trust. did u read dangote is planning a listing in the UK, do u think it is becos it is cheap or beneficial to do, not at all as listed UK company he will have access to cheaper funds and dump the nigerian banks, Sanusi has made foriegn investors happy and made nigerian investors sad. He once said that marginal loans where in excess of 1trillion Naira now that is not the case we are looking at btw 250-400 billion so why did he say something he did not know. Mind u unemployment is set to rise in Nigeria. Most nigerian businesses that borrowed this money will go abraod for their loans. Secondly the banks will invest in short term interest bearing instrument since the fear of lending is the begining of wisdom.
Sanusi has created a problem that we will pay for

Tension heightens in Edo as AC, PDP battle for supremacy

2009-11-05T03:41:00.001-08:00

Tension heightens in Edo as AC, PDP battle for supremacy
Politics Nov 3, 2009 The battle for the soul of Edo State by two main parties, the ruling Action Congress and the opposition PDP is heightening political tension in the state, as skirmishes are afoot for the governorship, with Governor oshiomhole barely one year in office. SIMON EBEGBULEM reports
The political tension in Edo state is heating up every day and as expected there is bitterness between the ruling Action Congress (AC) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.

After the Appeal Court verdict on November 11, 2008, which declared Comrade Adams Oshiomhole the rightful occupant of the state’s Government House at Osadebey Avenue, GRA, Benin City, there was fragile peace in the state and people were wondering if it was true that the former chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih actually influenced the appeal court judgment to kick out his estranged political son, Professor Oserhiemen Osunbor.

Governor Adams Oshiomhole (left)
No opposition was coming for the PDP until recently; the only opposition then was the Coalition of Registered Political Parties (CRPP) in the state, whose chairman, Dr Samson Isibor vowed to continue to criticize the state government until he sees some thing different from it. The relationship was actually that of a father and son.

To buttress this fact, Chief Anenih described Oshiomhole as his son during a ceremony in Auchi, some time in June this year. He went on to declare that Oshiomhole meant well for the people and that he should be given the support to succeed.

Speaking at the same occasion, Oshiomhole described Chief Anenih as his father and asserted that he would continue to accord him respect as a “Leader” irrespective of the fact that they are not in the same political party.

Their open display of love for each other did not really go down well with their supporters, but the duo as it seems, asked them to go to hell.

Akoko-Edo re-run raises political ante

However, the relationship went sour after the August 22, 2009, Akoko-Edo re-run election, where the Action Congress (AC) overwhelmed the almighty PDP. The AC candidate, Mr Kabiru Adjoto defeated the PDP candidate, Anslem Agbabi.

Hell was let loose as the PDP cried foul in the election. But the faction of the party led by Dr Samuel Ogbemudia described Akoko-Edo election as “ battle between father and son, so it is a family affair. What do you want us to say,” Elder Sunny Uyugue told Vanguard.

Chief Antony Anenih
It was alleged that the AC used government apparatus to ferry thugs to Akoko-Edo and unleashed mayhem on the PDP members in the area. But the AC countered that claim, saying that the PDP lost the election because they never believed in the principle of “one man one vote” which was canvassed by Governor Oshiomhole before the election.

Leader of the House of Representatives, Col.Tunde Akogun, Senator Yisa Braimoh and other PDP leaders who were on ground on the day of that election, almost wept. They called for the cancellation of the election which Oshimhole described as the freest ever witnessed in the state. Oshiomhole who reacted to their outburst, stated that “the PDP is crying because they were not allowed to rig by Akoko-Edo people.

His words: “They have deprived the people of the area and the entire state opportunity to cast their votes for a long time, but this time around people were given the opportunity to vote because we insisted that it must be one man, one vote; no rigging. But I said it from day one that we must change the ways we do things in this state.

It is no longer business as usual”. A chieftain of the PDP in the state, Owere Dickson-Imasogie told Vanguard that “we are not happy because before the election, Chief Anenih called all the PDP leaders and told us that we must not be seen in Akoko-Edo unless you are from that area. He said he had agreed with Oshiomhole that everybody must stay out and allow those from the area handle it.

And we all abided by it. As you know, I am from Edo South, I decided not to go to Akoko-Edo on the day of the election based on the instruction from our leader. But surprisingly, we heard that the Governor’s ADC, Chief of Staff and AC leaders from the South and others invaded Akoko Edo. But we have resolved that this will not happen again”.

Thus, the battle line was drawn between the AC and the PDP in Edo after the election. Ever since then, supporters of both parties have engaged themselves in a war of words, making the political situation in the state very tense.

Tension heightens with Imasuagbon’s defection

The tension further heightened on earlier last month, on October 3, 2009, after the Ewohinmi rally of the PDP, where a former governorship aspirant of the AC, Mr Ken Imasuagbon dumped the party, and with his supporters, defected to the PDP.

At that rally Chief Anenih and other PDP leaders took the Governor Oshiomhole-led government in the state to the cleaners and described the Action Congress as “AC without compressor”.

Chief Anenih went on to say “who is even in the AC? Nobody! All the leaders are in the PDP”. He vowed that the party would take over government form the AC in the next governorship election. That was the first time Chief Anenih would criticize the government of Oshiomhole in the state.

But reacting few days after the rally, Special Adviser to the Governor on Political Matters, Mr Charles Idahosa, described the PDP rally as a charade, saying that though they have high regards for Chief Anenih, his statements against the governor was embarrassing and unacceptable.

Idahosa’s words: “ It is important to note that the people matter in the PDP when the despotic nature, the dictatorial tendency of Mr. Fix it and the rest of them led to the formation of AC. So, most of the people that left for the AC are the people that matter in the PDP and today, we were able to wrest power from the PDP.

Having suffered such a defeat after the massive rigging, through the appeal court , they are yet to recover from what hit them. For the past 10 years, the PDP held Edo State by the jugular, we are aware that those 10 years were sleepy years”.

He insisted that what Oshiomhile had been able to achieve in less than one year, the PDP did not achieve in ten years that it ruled the state, asserting that “ they will never win the state again.” He continued: “The people have rejected them so they will be out of job for so long”.

AC’s claims laughable, says Imasuen

Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia
But the former deputy governor of the state, Mr Lucky Imasuen countered his claims, describing as laughable the claims by the AC that the PDP misruled the state for ten years when majority of the AC leaders today were PDP members. His words, “Mind you, Charly Tempo was in the PDP until few months before the AC primaries.

First and foremost he was appointed by the Igbinedion administration as Director of Public Affairs. From there he became the Commissioner of Information, mouthpiece of the PDP. Then from there he became member of the NTA Board under a PDP administration.

The people in AC today are all PDP members. The Oshiomhole you are talking about was a PDP member; it was when it became clear that he was not going to get the nomination in PDP that he went to the AC from Labour.

Ize-Iyamu was secretary to government under Igbinedion for several years but today he is in the AC. Chief Tom Ikimi, a leader I respect was in the PDP, in fact he was the one who moderated the convention where Obasanjo emerged as PDP candidate. Then Omoaghe the state chairman of the AC was a leader of the PDP.

The Secretary of AC Gentleman Amegor was in PDP. So when they accuse the PDP I laugh, it is just the old wine in a new bottle”.

War of words

The war of words continued last Saturday, October 24, 2009, when the PDP held its unification rally at the NTA Pavillion in Benin City.

While Chief Anenih reiterated the readiness of the party to reclaim the state government house come 2012, while addressing party supporters, the new chairman of the party in the state, Chief Dan Orbih described the AC led administration as a “demolition government” that is not focused.(apparently referring to the on-going demolition exercise in the state). Chief Orbih asserted that “ I want to say that the present PDP executive in Edo State will not tolerate any intimidation from the AC.

All we have seen so far in the state is demolition and beautification of the ring road. But we are aware that when Osunbor was there, he tarred a lot of roads in the three senatorial districts of the state within the short period he stayed in office.

Let me say that the people of the state will not accept attributing failure to the PDP-led government in the past. We are in the present and it will be absurd for anybody to be saying that after all, the PDP ruled the state for ten years. We will continue to give constructive criticism to the government and we urge the state House of Assembly not to be intimidated with assault on them by the AC led government”.

Also speaking at the rally, Mr Ken Imasuagbon who defected to the PDP from the AC recently, described the AC-led government as a disappointment and declared that the PDP has all it takes to go back to state’s Government House in 2012”.

But in a reaction, AC spokesman in the state, Retti Uzzi lampooned the unity rally of the PDP, saying “Ogbemudia and other respected leaders of the party were not there, so how come you call it a unity rally,” he queried.

Uzzi went on “ at that rally we will be receiving the top leaders and elected officers of the PDP, which included about five local government chairmen, House of Assembly members and some leaders of the PDP from the 18 local government councils of the state. It is tagged political earthquake because of the magnitude of PDP members that will be dumping the party that day. This is going to be mother of all rallies and after that it will be bye-bye to PDP in Edo.”

According to Uzzi, the rally was being organized in honour of top leaders and elected political office holders on the platform of the PDP in the state, who were expected to use the occasion to formalize their cross-over to the AC.

Addressing newsmen in Benin City yesterday, Uzzi, who said the rally scheduled to hold at the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium, would draw people away from the PDP to the extent that only a few persons would remain in the PDP after the rally. Majority of them said they are tired of the tyranny, injustice, high-handedness of the leaders of the party.

The rally is historic because it marks the final burial rites of the PDP in Edo state. The cross over of PDP members in the state to the Action Congress is unprecedented. We are practically harvesting members of the PDP from the 18 local government areas,”adding that “our National chairman, and other leaders of the party will come to assist out action governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole in receiving them.

PDP raises alarm

But the PDP raised alarm, alleging that the AC had imported thugs from neighporing states to parade at the rally as PDP decampees. The PDP statement said “millions of naira of Edo State money has been geared to mobilize and finance this unnecessary evil agenda, which is nothing but a politically miscalculated endeavour to create the wrong impression that the Action Congress is gaining ground in Edo State.

It should be noted that the government is about a year in office with most of the roads in Benin City not motorable, hospitals turned into mere consulting centers and schools non functional and lacking in necessary facilities” .

The party further urged the Police and other law enforcement agencies to “take prompt action to stop these thugs and criminals and thereby prevent their invasion of the state and the possible dangerous outcome their evil activities may spark off against the peace loving people of Edo State. Again we have sounded the warning”.

And from all indications, this is just a tip of the iceberg because there are still three House of Assembly elections that are yet to be decided by the appeal court and if a re-run is declared, the state would definitely experience fierce political warfare.

Oshiomhole had earlier promised to see to the final burial rites of the PDP in Edo but how Chief Anenih, Chief Orbih and other leaders of the party rise to his challenge would determine the fate of the PDP in future elections in the state.

No Age Cheats At FIFA Under-17 World Cup - Officials

2009-11-05T03:39:00.001-08:00

No Age Cheats At FIFA Under-17 World Cup - Officials
FIFA have so far given the teams a clean bill of health as regards lining up players within the age limit. World football's governing body are also pleased with the way the tournament has been run thus far...
Nov 3, 2009 10:35:05 AM

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FIFA vice-president Jack Warner has announced that organisers are yet to detect any player who is above the allowed age at this year's Under-17 World Cup in Nigeria.
An MRI scan was introduced at this year's competition to fish out age cheats, but Warner disclosed at a press briefing in Abuja that thus far no negative report has been turned in from the random testing conducted on teams at the tournament.
"There is no negative report so far. As soon as other reports are available, we shall release them," Warner said.
The FIFA chief also commended the general organisation of the tournament.
"I am very happy at this stage of this competition. [There have been] no major problems as such," Warner remarked.
"I must commend the workers at the Abuja, Calabar and Enugu. I have read some negative comments in the local media. The fact is that rain is an act of God. In England and other countries, they have similar weather disruptions.
"In Abuja, for instance, when the rain fell, we were told in 30 minutes play can resume and it happened like that, the same thing in Calabar and Enugu."
Samm Audu, Goal.com

How To Build Credibility And Known As A Village Hero

2009-11-05T03:24:00.001-08:00

How To Build Credibility And Known As A Village Hero
1. Practice Self-Discipline. Do you ever wonder why some have too much and others are barely surviving? The answer - discipline and self-sacrifice. Success, however you define it, is easy. But you gotta be consistent. My guess is there are a few things you could do to achieve more results in your life. Although you know what they are, you still neglect them. But listen: to be successful, you must do the uncomfortable now in order to be comfortable later.
2. Lift Up Others. Think of yourself as a pebble, and those you know as ponds. Give a little encouragement and you become a pebble in the pond. The ripples are endless. Someone you know is silently struggling and needs some uplifting words. It may be a minor detail to you, but to them, it’s a big boost. You can’t lift anyone up while lying on the ground. Say something nice and observe how you feel. Encouragement and feel-good words are FREE. Why not give them generously? Be a village hero, lift somebody up!
3. Be A Go-Getter & A Go-Giver. Maintain a balance. Take, but ask yourself, “What do I have to give?” Give a little encouragement, a little time, a little attention, and the gift of truly listening. When you can afford it, give a little money, too – maybe by dropping a quarter in that cup or sending flowers. Everyone has something to give. Avoid being called a user. Give a little and you shall receive a lot.
4. Take Responsibility. When we mess up, we need to fess up, fix it up and move on! Stop blaming! Some of us blame past circumstances for our failure. Big deal! My childhood was very depressing and the outlook dim, but I couldn't let that determine my future. Here’s what I read recently, “our background and circumstances may influence who we are, but we are responsible for what we become.”
5. Be Humble. Never be too big that you can’t identify with those in the lower rung of the ladder. We are all made of the same stuff regardless of our rank or position. It is said that you can always tell a big person by the way he or she treats little people. If there is a chip on your shoulder, send it to Silicon Valley. Remember, in God’s eyes, we are all the same. In the end, we will all leave this world without titles.
There you have it. Develop and strengthen those five attributes. The people in your village, be it from work or family, will begin to draw unto you. And soon, they will call

THE SECRET TO SUCCESS IS PREPARATION

2009-11-05T03:21:00.001-08:00

THE SECRET TO SUCCESS IS PREPARATION
Most of us have, deep at the center of our hearts, some things we would like to accomplish. But few of us dare to start on the

journey. We sit around blaming our circumstances on others and making excuses for our shortsightedness, then we go to our graves with unfulfilled dreams. Underneath it all, the real reason we don’t get the promotion, succeed in the business, or raise a happy, self-confident family is that we fail to prepare. We leave it to chance, hoping somehow things will turn out all right. We float on the ocean of life until we run aground and wreck ourselves.

Five Ways to Prepare Yourself for Success
1) Become an Avid Reader
"Good leaders are good readers" —Jim Rohn
Abraham Lincoln once said that if he were given eight hours to chop down a tree, he would spend six hours sharpening his ax and two hours chopping down the tree. That is one of the true characteristics of a leader. We all should take time to sharpen our axes — by reading! Believe it or not, the average American reads just one book a year. What that means to you and me is that if we only read one book a month in our field, we will be twelve years ahead of the average person!
The late Earl Nightingale, in his book, The Strangest Secret, said that if we read for two hours every day on any subject, in five years, we would become national experts on that particular subject. And in ten years, we would have the equivalent of a Ph.D! To me, reading quality books is the ultimate joy in life. It rekindles my hope and takes me to new heights. It rejuvenates me and gives me a boost. We can no longer make excuses about not having time to read. Today we can even buy most books on tape, thereby turning our cars into a university on wheels while commuting to and from work! On the road to success, we must gather a lot of information through quality reading.
2) Network with Successful People
In America, there is an association for continuing education in every line of business. If we want to meet the movers and shakers directly, we have to become joiners. It’s amazing how accessible the "big dogs" are when we attend the networking events. It’s like being a small fish in a big pond. It allows us to bypass the gatekeepers — the assistants — and go straight to the decision-makers.
The best way to find out which associations you can join is to go to the library and ask for the Encyclopedia of Associations. Another great way to network is to join the local Chamber of Commerce. First, however, you must learn how to network and build strong referral systems. There are many books on the subject. One of them is by Harvey Mackay: Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty.
3) Find a Mentor
Every great athlete, celebrity, and business executive can point to a mentor — a coach. They each had people who helped them to get where they are. One of the best methods of preparation is to find a mentor — a person who has been there, done that, and has gotten the T-shirt — to guide you along the way.
Whether you want to move up in your company or establish a solid business of your own, a mentor can make a significant difference. And you don’t necessarily have to have just one mentor; you can have many. This may sound simple, but it is powerful! No matter what line of business you are in, you need a coach — someone you talk with about your failures and successes, someone who can advise you. How do you find a mentor? Just ASK!
People normally love to talk about their successes and how they accomplished them. They are eager to help us if we courteously ask them. For many years I failed to put into practice the old advice in the Bible: "Ask and ye shall receive." Don’t let that happen to you — ASK!
4) Attend Continuing Education Classes
Our minds are like leaky buckets; what we know is constantly dripping out. I read a story about a man who was working for a company for about twenty years. It seems like they always passed over him for promotions. Ironically, he had trained new hires who would eventually become his boss! One day he confronted the president of the company about the situation. He told his boss that he was being treated unfairly, especially since he had had twenty years of experience with the company. The president sat the man down and told him, "No! You only have one year of experience repeated for twenty years."
How long have you been in your line of business? Are you getting new knowledge, or are you applying old knowledge? If we are going to thrive and survive in these turbulent times, we must expand our minds. And one of the best ways of expanding is to attend adult learning classes at the local colleges, universities, and technical schools. They are very affordable, and they also have flexible schedules. There are no excuses: IT’S UP TO YOU!
5) Find Time for a Quiet Reflection
The great philosophers, thinkers, scientists, and business gurus always find quiet time to be alone — to ponder, recharge, and flood their minds with images of their future goals. We should never be so busy chasing a dream that we are no longer able to visualize it in our minds. There are times when the burdens are heavy, but this is when we need to enter our inner world and examine our lives. Socrates once said to his students, "An unexamined life is not worth living." Quiet reflection is a time to get to know the invisible power that sustains our lives. Starting today, take a few moments every day to reflect.
A Final Note
I would love to meet you personally to find out what you are doing to prepare yourself for success. The old adage says that the road to success is always under construction. It is the same for our self-improvement. If you are not constantly adding new tools to your toolbox, you will always be where you are today. I urge you to read, find a mentor, network with other leaders, and find
time for a quiet reflection.
I wish you incredible success!

MOTIVATION AND YOUR CAREER

2009-10-22T07:01:00.001-07:00

Motivation and your career

Career motivation is a great thing to have and if you do not have it, you should work on getting it. You need motivation to get what you want in life and to have the best career that you can have. If you think that you are lacking in motivation, you need to work on it. There are a few tips that will help you get to where you need to be in your career motivation skills. There are a few simple things that you can do to make it a little easier to get where you want to be in life.

Think about a few different things. Are you happy with your career? Are you looking forward to going to work everyday or do you wish that you could just stay home all day? These are things that can help you decide if you are on the right track for career motivation or not. When you are serious about getting on track with your career, you will have a better shot at being happy with what you do and how you earn a paycheck.

If you have low career motivation, you should think about why you are not more excited about going to work. You should think about these things seriously so that you can fix anything that is not working out right. Did you have a bad experience at work to make you not like your career path anymore? If so, maybe you can find a way to fix a problem so that you can get your motivation back. If not, you may have to think about a career change so that you can be happy again, in what you do everyday.

You need to work on your career motivation because this has a big impact on the rest of how your life goes. Your attitude in life is going to depend on how happy you are with everything that you do and this will include your career. You need to be serious about what you do and how you handle your career. Having a positive attitude is very important. You have to make sure that you are doing what you have to so that you can keep going on the right track and be happy with what you have succeeded with in life.

Think about your reflection on life and how you feel about your career. Are you happy with everything that you are doing? Does your career make you unhappy in the other things that you do in life? If so, you have to think about what you can do to change it and move past the hard times and get to the good things that make you happy with what you do. Using your skills to make your career motivation better is going to get you further in the job and make you more successful as you go.

You should never do anything that makes you unhappy. If you are working at doing something because you only need a paycheck, you have to think about long-term goals. Think about the long-term things that you want to do and go after your dreams. If you have goals set for yourself later on down the road, you will see that you can work hard to get the job done. You can use your career motivation for getting to where you want to be in life and in the career that you want to achieve. You can have the career that you have always wanted even if you think that you it is impossible right now. There is always time to make it happen and all you have to have is career motivation and determination.

FORMER MILITANTS TO UNDERGO ORIENTATION IN PLATEAU STATE

2009-10-22T06:38:00.000-07:00

The former militants are expected to contribute positively to their communities and the country after their training. Photo: REUTERS

Former militants to undergo orientation in Plateau State

Some of the militants who accepted the amnesty deal and surrendered their arms to the Federal Government will be taken to the Citizenship and Leadership Training Centre, Jos, for reorientation and training, the director general of the centre, Yusuf Adamu has said.

Mr Adamu said in Jos on Monday that the centre is ready to train more militants and impart leadership qualities in them to make them more useful to the country.

He said the training offered by the institute affords participants the opportunity to improve themselves as responsible citizens of the country.

"The people that are leading us today started like you and I. Have no doubt in mind that you are going to perform better than what we are seeing today when you are given the opportunity as leaders of our great country," he said.

Over 8,000 repentant militants who have been registered by the Federal Government are currently undergoing biometric documentation, following which they will undergo reorientation.

In Akure, the Deputy Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Mayowa Akinfolarin on Wednesday, warned President Umaru Yar'Adua about the danger of not fulfilling promises made to the ex-militants.

"The sincerity on the part of government would bring everlasting peace to the region, but only God will save the area if government fails to keep its promises," he said.

Don't neglect the militants

Commenting on the recent protest by a group of former militants in Edo State, which led to the death of four people, Mr Akinfolarin warned that said if the Federal Government does not take proper care of the men, Nigeria may experience a long military crisis in the Niger Delta and beyond.

"If the boys are not properly taken care of, it might later have negative effects on society as they might later form robbery squads that would be tormenting people's lives," the lawmaker said.

He also appealed to politicians not to engage in thuggery during and after elections. He said that after the polls, the ammunitions handed out to thugs to rig election might be difficult to recover from them.

By Ugar Ukandi Odey October 22, 2009 02:52AMT

WORLD CUP STEWARDS STAGE PROTEST IN LAGOS

2009-10-22T06:36:00.000-07:00

These youths trained to make guests comfortable but they will not do so unless the organisers of the championship pay them what they ask. Photo: FEMI ADEBESIN-KUTI

World Cup stewards stage protest in Lagos

The ability of the Local Organising Committee of the 2009 U-17 World Cup to host a successful tournament in Nigeria was put to the test yesterday as intending stewards for the soccer fiesta staged a protest in front of the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos after being told that they would be paid the sum of N15,000 for the duration of the tournament at the Lagos centre.

“They said FIFA has approved $100 per day for us, why have they now reduced it to just N15,000 for five days? This is unfair. Let them just return our CVs and passports as we are no longer interested in their job,” said one of the protesters who simply identified himself as Kingsley.

For most of the protesters, the amount being proposed for the five days is too small compared to other centres where they claim higher amounts will be paid.

Drama

Over 300 of them had earlier gathered at the National Stadium, just opposite the venue of the World Cup event, where the names of the selected stewards and the amounts to be paid them were to be announced.

While speaking to NEXTSports, most of the aspiring stewards recounted how tedious it was for them to get to this stage in the screening programme in which only able-bodied people are meant to be selected.

“I don’t understand this kind of country. You won’t give people social security, now we want to work and you want to shortchange us. We were here training and running in the sun and rain, see the amount they now want to pay us,” a protester identified as Babalola fumed.

Clarification

The presence of heavily armed policemen at the gate of the Teslim Balogun Stadium prevented the aggrieved stewards from entering the mainbowl of the stadium as they demanded to see the chief security officer of the venue, Dotun Aderibigbe.

After being addressed by a high-ranking officer whose name tag identified him as B. Abudulahi, Aderibigbe later came out to address the protesters:

“We sent a budget of N10,000 per day to FIFA and the LOC for payment for stewards that would complement the efforts of uniform men, but it was not approved. That was when we approached the Lagos State governor for assistance. He offered to help because he wanted the youths of the state to be carried along hence we can only pay N20,000. Anybody that is still interested can make their intentions known and if considered not good enough, can back out,” he said.

The activities of the protesters hindered the free flow of traffic on the expressway for a while, with passersby saying the incident was shameful on the eve of the commencement of such an important tournament.

By Tunde Eludini

October 22, 2009 01:52AMT

SUSPENSION OF ASUU STRIKE ENDS TOMORROW

2009-10-22T06:34:00.000-07:00

Suspension of ASUU strike ends tomorrow

As the two-week suspension of the Academic Staff Union of Universities' (ASUU) strike ends tomorrow, Ukachukwu Awuzie, National President of the Union said: "We are working and not resting. We hope the government will meet the deadline."

The union had gone on an indefinite strike to press for the signing and implementation of the agreement it reached with the government in 2008, which included increased funding of the education sector. On Friday October 09, following the intervention of the governor of Edo Sate, Adams Oshiomhole, ASUU announced a temporary suspension of its strike which lasted for over three months.

This was to allow for further negotiations between the lecturers and the Federal Government.

Speaking with NEXT on telephone yesterday, Mr. Awuzie implied a conclusion to the matter was in sight.

"We need to meet the deadline on Friday. That is what we are working towards. Negotiation is ongoing and we are almost finishing. I am only hopeful and prayerful that I will be able to have something to tell them (the students) before the deadline expires," he said.

Mr. Awuzie declined to state categorically if students of Nigeria's tertiary institutions, many of whom had staged demonstrations over the continued industrial action, would wake up to a pleasant news regarding the issue tomorrow.

"I don't know if it will be pleasant or not, all I know is that I will tell them something. Whether or not it is going to be pleasant, all depends on who is looking at it and what you consider as pleasant or unpleasant," he said.

In another development, the university don reacted to news of a recent advertorial by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry of education which sought applications for teaching jobs in South Africa from Nigerian science teachers not gainfully employed in the country.

"If they have properly staffed our secondary schools with Maths and English or science teachers and we have excess to export, I have no problem with that. There is nothing wrong with Pan-African co-operation. I do not have statistics, but my own understanding is that most of our secondary schools do not have adequate numbers of mathematics teachers which may create more problems for our educational system," Mr. Awuzie explained.

NIGERIA GETS SEVEN ADDITIONAL UNIVERSITIES

2009-10-22T06:24:00.000-07:00

The Federal Executive Council on Wednesday in Abuja approved the issuance of provisional licences for the establishment of seven new private universities in the country. Nigeria currently has 96 universities, comprising 27 federal, 35 state and 34 private universities.

The seven private universities are Wellspring University, Evbuobanosa, Edo State; Paul University, Awka, Anambra State; Rhema University, Obeama-Asa, Rivers State; Oduduwa University, Ipetumodu, Osun State; Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State; Godfrey Okoye University,

Ugwuomu-Nike, Enugu State, and Nigerian Turkish Nile University, Abuja.

Speaking at the post FEC briefing, which was chaired by Nigerian president, Umaru Yar'Adua, the Minister of Information, Dora Akunyili, and her Minister of State counterpart, Ikra Bilbis, said the Minister of Education, Sam Egwu, presented a memo to the council seeking the approval for the issuance of provisional licences for the establishment of the new private universities.

Mrs. Akunyili said FEC approved the memo after considering the country's rising population. "Considering our rising population and this administration's desire to improve skills and enhance standards as one of the seven-point agenda Council, therefore, considered and approved the issuance of provisional licences for the establishment of the seven (7) private universities," she said.

The Minister of State for Education, Aisha Duku, who also spoke at the briefing, said the universities had to undergo rigorous screening before getting the provisional licences.

Ms Dukku added that currently, out of the 96 universities in the country, only 34 are privately owned, and that more universities are needed to take care of the millions who need admission. She said that over one million candidates applied for university admission this year through the Joint Matriculation Examination and only about 220,000 could be accommodated.

She also said contrary to popular opinion that private universities are concentrated in one part of the country, the seven approved private universities are evenly distributed. Two of them are situated in each of the three zones in the South, while one is in the Federal Capital Territory.

By Elizabeth Archibong

October 22, 2009 02:51AMT