theAphiz

By Prince Osuagwu

The results of the  annual special edition of the telecoms polls released by NOIPolls Limited has revealed that most adult Nigerians who use more than one phone, actually find it inconveniencing. The choice however, according to the report, was to avoid the perennial poor quality of telecom services.

Further findings of the survey, was that a great majority of Nigerian phone users would want to see Network operators mandated to improve on their services in order to generally improve the quality of telecommunication services in Nigeria.

The survey also revealed that while about 60 percent of respondents demanded for such mandate, another 63 percent of adult mobile phone users in Nigerian were discovered to currently use two or more phone lines in order to escape bad QoS.

Although, with the report, it was not all negatives for the telecom operators as about 50 percent respondents rated the services of their network provider good while 55 percent affirmed they are getting value for money from their main network provider.

The report adduced that this 55 percent has remained constant over a two year period, but maintained that those that claim they are not getting value for money increased by 8-percent in 2013.

From statistics the survey used, the key factors that defined value for money for customers, included network/ service quality and low tariffs.

In its other top line results, only 2 percent of respondents have ported since the beginning of the Mobile Number portability drive while 26 percent do not believe the promotions of    mobile operators are real.

The Nigeria telecommunication sector has witnessed significant growth over the years and remains one of the best and fastest growing sectors of the Nigerian economy. The industry is ranked the largest and fastest growing telecom market in Africa and among the ten fastest telecommunication growth markets in the world.

As at September 2013 the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) estimated a total of 121,271,218 subscribers and a teledensity of 86.62 in Nigeria.

The industry which contributes about 8.53% to the GDP    as atMarch 2013 has recently experienced a slow growth rate and series of challenges ranging from poor quality of service to steep competition.

This implies that service providers rely heavily on price tariffs to gain market share and dominance leading to a perceived fall in the quality of service and an increasing rate of dissatisfaction amongst users.

Against this background NOIPolls said it conducted the special edition poll on the quality of telecommunication services in Nigeria to explore the mobile phone usage patterns, quality of services provide by telecommunications providers and at the end of the day, made recommendation to improve the quality of services.

LG Mobile, has deliberately targeted the Yuletide period to bring its G series smart gadgets, including the G Pro, G Pro-Lite, G2 as well as the G Pad to Nigeria.

With them, the company also flagged off a promo which will see customers who patronize its shops to buy these products, going home with gifts ranging from stylus pens, Bluetooth head sets, power banks and notebooks to Pocket Photos. The pocket photo is a new device that prints instantly after just taking a picture.

Announcing availability of the devices, General Manager, Mobile Communications, LG Electronics West Africa , Mr. JS Yoo said: “powerful performance, innovative cross-tasking and brilliant designs are the distinguishing marks of the LG G-Series smartphones. This game-changing smartphone range defies the limits of technology with breathtaking performance; As a result, users are able to seamlessly multitask across business and entertainment and we believe Nigerians deserve to them”

LG said it also introduced the G Pad 8.3 tablet to the Nigerian market, to further strengthen its G Series lineup of premium mobile devices. The G Pad boasts of Full HD display on an eight-inch class device, a unique user-experience and wide range of connectivity features.

The 16GB tablet features a slim and sleek form, equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 Processor with 1.7GHz Quad-Core CPU and a 1920 x 1200 widescreen and ultra-extended graphics array (WUXGA) display.

BY Innocent Anaba, Godwin Oritse, JIMITOTA ONOYUME, Abdulwahab  Abdulah,  JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU & CHRIS OCHAYI

LAGOS—The Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, yesterday, gave the Federal Government, through the National Security Adviser and the Inspector General of Police, a 30-day ultimatum to thoroughly investigate the bombing of the Rivers State High Court premises in Ahoada and Okehi.

Similarly, former President of the association, Mr. Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, supported the position of the NBA, saying that “it is high time the issue of threat and terrorism is controlled and curbed. I fully endorse the decision of the NBA.”

Prof Itse Sagay, SAN, on his part, said: “It is obvious that the people behind this are not just desperate, but they are also fascists, who have no respect for human lives and due process.

They want to intimidate the people, their political opposition turn them to onlookers, so that they can do whatever they want with our lives. They have gone further to also intimidate the judiciary, the third arm of government. For me, it is the height of irresponsibility. So, let them look for them (perpetrators) so that they can face justice.”

Another Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Mike Ozekhome also threw his weight behind the decision of NBA.

He expressed concern over the fact that politics has assumed a dangerous and murderous dimension in the country, culminating in the bombing of a court.

Also, United Progressive Party, UPP and Peoples Democratic Movement, PDM, faulted the bombing of the courts in Rivers State.

On his part, Senator Magnus Abe, representing Rivers South East senatorial district, described the security situation in the state as near anarchy.

Issuing the ultimatum through a statement signed by its President, Mr Okey Wali, SAN,  the NBA said: “We condemn these acts of brigandage and view them not only as sacrilegious, but also as a desecration of the temple of justice. On no account, will we ever, idly stand by and watch these acts of violence and impunity to our courts, which are tantamount to an affront to the rule of law and threat to our democracy.

“This underscores the need for government to take the security of lives and property more seriously. The lackadaisical attitude accorded to the security of our courts nationwide, is now brought to the fore. The need to secure the premises of the hallowed courts of justice across the nation should be taken more seriously.”

NBA called on the National Security Adviser and the Inspector General of Police to employ all security apparatuses at their disposal, to unearth the culprits and bring them to Justice, adding “we will not and cannot, be satisfied with the usual mantra of, ‘the Police investigation is continuing.’ We demand an immediate and thorough investigation and expect a report, even if, interim, within 30 days of the date of the incidents. Attacks on our courts will not be swept under the carpet.”

It’s dangerous —Ozekhome

Ozekhome said: “My worry is that politics in Nigeria is now assuming a dangerous and murderous dimension as never before seen in Nigeria.

“And to carry this politicking to the secred  chambers of the court of law is introducing a totally novel dimension calculated to intimidate the judiciary and its personnel. He added that if the matter was treated with kid gloves, Nigeria may never recover from such a macabre of dance of death.

He called on the Police to immediately swing into action and unearth the perpetrators of the heinous crime against Nigeria. “I support the NBA in its decision of issuing an ultimatum to the relevant security authorities to arrest the perpetrators and prosecute them.”

Meanwhile, the Godspower Ake faction of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Rivers State has also condemned the fire incident at the state High Court in Okehi on Monday, saying that the development would, however, not affect the ruling of an Appeal Court in Abuja on the authentic leadership of the party in the state by January 15.

Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr George Nwogba, in a statement accused the Felix Obuah faction of the party of being behind the incident, adding that they would have disrupted the ongoing court processes if they had set fire on documents at the Court of Appeal.

PDM in Rivers State on its part, described the development as a threat to democracy. The movement in a statement by its state Chairman, Mr George Ngbor, warned the political class in the state not to plunge the state into crisis.

He said:  “The current crisis rocking the state if not checked is capable of snowballing into an undesirable situation for indigenes and residents of the state.  Politicians in the state should shun politics of bitterness.”
He added that it was not true that its members in Ikwerre Local Government Area of the state had defected to the All Progressives Congress, APC, maintaining that they were intact.

United Progressive Party, UPP on its part, said that the bombing was judicial terrorism, arson and reckless action aimed at intimidating judicial officers in Nigeria.

Condemning the attack by yet to be identified persons in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Ogbuche Dike, the party charged security agents to act quickly to meet expectation of Nigerians as security of lives and property were the primary purpose of government.

The party said the judiciary was the last hope of all aggrieved people, adding that any attempt to harass, subdue and influence esteemed Justices of the court to pervert justice shall be resisted by all lovers of democracy, due process and rule of law.

He said:  “It is outrageous that some disgruntled elements should bomb the Rivers State High Court in Ahoada East Local Government Area, vandalise and set ablaze files and vital documents for adjudication at the state High Court Okehi, in Etche Local Government Area. It is absurd that these primitive actions could be taken in Nigeria at 100 years of existence.

“It is unfortunate that our beloved country is gradually sliding into a state of lawlessness fuelled by insurgency, militancy, kidnapping, armed robbery and terrorism.  Security agents should wake up and live up to expectation as security of lives and property is the primary purpose of government.

“The perpetrators of the recent Rivers State courts bombings should be fished out and punished in accordance with the laws of the land to serve as a deterrent to others who might contemplate such heinous crimes,” the party added.

The Ake-led PDP in Rivers State, continuing, said: “Afraid that justice would soon slap them in the face over their treacherous, deceitful and false claims to the offices of the Chairman and Secretary of PDP in Rivers State, the other faction  resorted to their latest option just to hold on to power no matter how illegitimate. We would prefer they allowed the Appeal Court decide their fate rather than engage in self-help of this magnitude, obviously couched in shame and opprobrium.

Near anarchy in Rivers — Abe

On his part, Senator Magnus Abe, representing Rivers South East senatorial district, described the security situation in the state as near anarchy and a total disobedience of the constitution of the country.

He noted with dismay that the foundation of ensuring peace in the state was being flagrantly abused by the police, contrary to the constitutional provision that makes the governor the Chief Security Officer where the state Commissioner of Police takes lawful directives from the governor.

“What is happening in the state is that some people are undermining the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The constitution clearly provides that the governor shall be the Chief Security Officer of a state and that the Commissioner of Police should take lawful directives from the governor.

“Once you destroy that foundation for the security of a state, you have nothing but near anarchy and that is what we are now witnessing in River State,” he said.

By AbdulSalam  Muhammad

KANO-Unknown Gunmen, Tuesday night, attacked the country home of Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of Kano State, leaving scores injured.

An eyewitness told Vanguard that the incident occurred shortly after hundreds of Muslim worshipers rounded up their late evening prayers when  gunmen disrupted the serenity of the village with sporadic gunshots.

Governor Kwankwaso’s father, Musa Kwankwaso, who is also the District head of the village  was said to be in the mosque attached to his palace during the attack.

The account stated that Kwankwaso’s father  escaped unhurt, as one of his palace guards led him to safety during the shooting.

Security sources told Vanguard that “troops have been mobilized to the village, 28 kilometres south of Kano to contain the situation.”

When contacted, the Police Public Relation Officer, Kano command, Magaji Musa Majia said that “yes, there is a problem in Kwankwaso village but details are very sketchy now.”

He however assured to get across to our Correspondent as soon as details of the incident are made available to him.

As strike enters seventh month

BY  JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU

ABUJA—Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP, has alleged abandonment by the Federal Government as the strike declared by lecturers in the sub-sector enters its seventh month.
ASUP had gone on strike April 17, 2013, to press home demands for government’s proper funding of polytechnic education as well as address the disparity between the polytechnics and university graduates in the country.

ASUP president laments
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Vanguard, National President of ASUP, Mr. Chibuzor Asomugha, lamented that the government was killing polytechnic education in Nigeria as several meetings held with government to ensure re-opening of polytechnics yielded no fruits.

Asomugha argued that the lack of interest by government to implement its promises for polytechnics to be re-opened was a deliberate ploy to deny students of Polytechnics access to education.
Expressing concern that efforts to draw the attention of the Nigerian public might be given political colouration and union leaders branded as working for opposition political parties against the government, Asomugha appealed to all relevant stakeholders to intervene on behalf of the poor students who might not have somebody in government to speak for them.

Lack of interest from FG
On why government has not shown interest in the lingering strike, the ASUP boss appealed to relevant stakeholders to prevail on the government, Minister of Education, Permanent Secretary and Minister of Labour to do the needful.
He said: “I am not going to be talking for government, we have been in this, they have given us promises, they have not been fulfilling them.

“The promises were simple things, we even had the understanding where they promised to implement within one week and it is more than four months now, everybody should reach government and let them tell Nigerians what are the problems. I cannot be speaking for government, what I know is that government is not doing any thing.

“We met them yesterday (Monday), the same promises and I don’t know why they find it difficult to fulfil the promises. Okay tell me yourself, what is the problem in releasing the White Paper that is ready? It is the government that should tells us that. The SGF should tell us why he is withholding the White Paper.”

Way out of logjam
On the way out of the long strike, he said: “The way out is that we are still on strike until the members tell us whatever they decide with the strike.
“Government has been giving assurances in the past six months, the assurance of government does not amount to anything, that is why ASUU insisted on things concrete and people didn’t understand it.

“We agreed with government that they were going to take up four things out of the 13 that we had listed. Government has been able to meet one and half of those issues that we had listed. Even the NEEDS Assessment government constituted Committee is not working at the pace it should work, we are supposed to submit the report in February, up till now, we have not done much.

Waiting on government’s White Paper
“Government said it was going to release the White Paper on the visitation to Federal Polytechnics, they were going to complete the lower cader of CONTISS 16 which was the thing that happened in 2009 and up till now, it hadn’t been implemented and then, that they were going to complete the appointment of six Governing Councils of six Federal Polytechnics which they have done.

“To constitute the NEEDS Assessment Committee to do the NEEDS assessments of the Polytechnics, which they have constituted and the Committee is more or less not working the way it should work. These are the four issues that we extracted out of the 13.

“There is a director in the Ministry of Education who is the Chairman of the Committee but the problem is that the Committee complains all the time of lack of funding from TETFund which is supposed to fund it.”

Abeokuta — A part-time student of The Polytechnic, Ibadan, Oyo State, Timilehin Ayobami Ogundare, has been found dead in his room in Ilupeju area, Baasala, Asero, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

He was believed to have committed suicide by hanging himself.

According to PM News, the deceased was also a computer operator with a firm in Abeokuta before his death.

A family source who pleaded anonymity said the deceased tried to kill himself last year but was stopped by some people.

The relation revealed that the deceased was arrested by some security guards and handed over to men of the state vigilance service when he attempted to jump into River Ogun. He was later released.

He attempted to jump into River Ogun

“The whole issue is still like a drama because I don’t know what could have made him decide to take his life. We have been looking for him since January 1. Later, we heard that he went to Lagos. He boarded a train from Lagos back to Abeokuta on Saturday and came down at Lafenwa. He trekked from the station through Enu Gada area to Ajitaadun down to Arakanga area with the aim of jumping into the river.

“He was arrested by the security men in the area when they saw him wandering with only his boxer pant on. They handed him over to the vigilante men at Oke Ilewo for further investigation.

“We went there to collect him and we were told to come back with him yesterday. On getting to his room, we found out that he had hanged himself. He left a short note, apologising that he disappointed us,” the source narrated in tears.

When the spokesman of the Ogun State Vigilante Service, Mr. Soji Ganzallo, was contacted, he confirmed the incident and expressed shock at the boy’s death.

The family was careless

“It is unfortunate that what we tried to prevent eventually happened. They (family) were careless with the way they handled the boy. If the boy had been properly monitored, this sad incident wouldn’t have happened. We got a distress call on Saturday by local security men around Arakanga that a boy was trying to commit suicide by trying to jump into the river. Our men rushed to the area and took the boy to our office.

“In the course of questioning him, he confirmed to us that he left home for Lagos on New Year day but did not tell us where and who he went to meet in Lagos. When we asked about his phone, he said he had no phone but only his SIM card was with him.

“Sensing that his parents will be looking for him, I directed that his SIM card be inserted into a phone, hoping that someone will call his line,” Ganzallo said.

The vigilante spokesman revealed further that not long after the SIM card was inserted into the phone, several calls came in.

Ganzallo said: “We discovered that those calls were from his mother, sister and a pastor. The pastor later called back and demanded to stand as surety for his bail. We agreed.

“The man of God arrived with the boy’s mother and some relatives. The pastor’s name is Wole Oyenekan and he gave his address as Egba Inner Circle Building, Abiola Way, Abeokuta.

“We questioned the boy but from what I was able to gather, the boy was determined not to tell anybody his problem. The pastor pleaded with me to hand him over to him. I initially disagreed but after much persuasions and assurance that they will monitor him, I released him to them and asked them to come back on Sunday.

“I was shocked when I heard the news that the boy eventually carried out his mission.”

He refused to go to church on Sunday

Another source disclosed that the teenager perfected his suicide by refusing to go to church on Sunday, feigning illness.

According to the source, “I remember that he told the pastor while coming from the vigilante’s office that he needed some money to pay for his school fees and the pastor told him to see him on Sunday after church service. After the breakfast, he said he was not feeling well and begged to be allowed to stay back, which was granted.

“After the church service, he joined other family members to eat the lunch around 4 p.m. After the food, he went into his room and no one bothered to know what he was doing until around 8p.m. when we were looking for him.

“When we forced his door opened, we met his lifeless body. He hanged himself with his belt. We went to the Obantoko Police Station to report the matter and the police arrived around 11.45 p.m. and removed his corpse to the mortuary,” he stated.

Abuja – Cruiserweight boxer Bash Ali on Tuesday in Abuja said his seven years of struggle to enter his name in the Guinness Book of World Records was almost becoming a reality.

The boxer expressed this excitement after the Minister of Sports, Bolaji Abdullahi, inaugurated the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the Bash Ali Guinness Book of World Records Title Fight Project.

Ali had since 2006 been appealing to the Federal Government to stage the fight.

He had said the fight would take him and his country Nigeria into the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest boxer to feature in a world title fight.

“I feel great. My struggle for seven years has come to reality.

“Sometimes, a disappointment can be a blessing in disguise. Because, if I had fought seven years ago, it is possible that somebody by now may have broken the record.

“So, I will be fighting at the age of 58, which means in this century or in the next, whoever that will have to break the record must be at least 60 years.

“But, I am not happy about the delay,’’ Ali said.

He also assured that he would defeat his opponent, adding that his opponent was no match.

“I am reassuring Nigerians that on the day of the fight, Bash Ali will shock the boxing world.

“I will beat my opponent like a bad child, because I am old enough to be his father,’’ the boxer said.

Bash Ali will take on Rick Camlin, a 32-year-old International Boxing Union (IBU) champion.(NAN)

BY PETER DURU

MAKURDI — A 21-year-old final year female student of the Benue State University, BSU, Joan Adaaku, has been reportedly found dead in a hotel room located in the heart of Makurdi, the Benue State capital.

Vanguard gathered from sources who preferred anonymity that the Economics undergraduate  had checked into Savannah Guest House at about 7 a.m after paying N2,000 for a room

According to the source, “She actually  arrived the hotel alone and after underaking some check-in formalities she entered the room and locked herself up.

“She never came out of her room again either to ask for food or any other things. So, at exactly 6 p.m, a room attendant knocked on her door to find out if she was interest in being attended to by room service.

“Her silence aroused suspicion and the room  attendant, who repeated his call to the room at 8pm without reply, alerted the manager on duty.

“It was at that point that the management alerted the Police who moved in and broke into the room and discovered the lifeless body of the lady in a position that suggested she was making a call before her death.

Vanguard gathered that the deceased had on her a small purse which contained a Bible, rosary and N8,200. A bottle of water and a bottle of soft drink were also discovered in the room.

Contacted, the Benue State Police Public Relations Officer, Deputy Superintendent, DSP, Daniel Ezeala who confirmed the incident said investigation into the matter had commenced.

This guys is obviously not happy with Maheeda with the was she is disgracing womanhood…

*You don’t have to pose nude before you become great or before you actualize your dreams. Upcoming Acts take note of that.

STOP presenting yourself has a born again Christian. Chai! Satan Punish Devil. My dear you are very much far from it. I wonder if you know the meaning of been a born again. It about having total submission to God. Been spiritually and morally okay which I don’t think you are.I can’t still believed that you were once a gospel singer. It is never to late for you to change your heart and your ways.

You claimed that your mum and husband supports you. Who cares if they support you or not ? What matters most is for you to get back to your senses. Funny enough I can’t masturbate to your nude pictures not to talk of deriving pleasure from staring at it. You want attention, you are an attention seeker.

That’s cool but get your attention using another means. You put nude pics because you claimed that you are into what you call ‘showbiz’ but I call it ‘showkey’.

BE WISE SISTER MAHEEDA. ENOUGH OF THE DIRTY YANSH WEY WE DEY SEE. A WORD IS ENOUGH FOR THE WISE. PEOPLE ARE WATCHING YOU. BE A GOOD ROLE MODEL.

By Akinremi Abdul Raheem Ayo

Acid attack victim Naomi Oni’s alleged attacker has been identified as her friend Mary Konye who was jealous of her.

DailyMail reports that 21 years old Mary Konye, who stood trial today, had disguised herself in an Islamic veil showing only her eyes, and followed Naomi Oni home in East London before allegedly dousing her in the corrosive acid.
Ms Oni, 21, who worked at Victoria’s Secret lingerie shop, suffered horrific burns on her face and chest, lost her hair and eyelashes and was left scarred for life in the alleged attack on December 30 2012.

during her trial, Snaresbrook Crown Court heard that Konye, who was studying business and finance at Hertfordshire University, had been close friends with Ms Oni since secondary school.
But she was envious of the shop worker’s good looks, and the pair had rowed in the past leading Konye to attack her with acid previously, it is alleged.

Konye knew Ms Oni had been deeply ‘moved’ by Katie Piper’s story – Katie is a model and TV presenter who was badly scarred and left blind in one eye after she was attacked with acid in an ambush arranged by her ex-boyfriend, Daniel Lynch.

Knowing this, Konye decided to launch the copycat attack on Naomi Oni that fateful day, jurors were told.

The court heard Ms Oni left work at the Westfield Shopping Centre in Stratford, East London, at around 11.30pm with several colleagues. But she was oblivious to the fact she was being closely followed by Konye wearing a full niqab, a hooded black coat, gloves and a grey bag.

CCTV showed the university student had ‘lingered waiting to see the victim’ at Stratford and ‘tailed’ her home always making sure to keep a few steps behind her.

On the phone to her boyfriend throughout the journey, Naomi stopped off at takeaway to pick up some food and got the 368 bus to her house.
Unaware she was being followed, she got off the bus at Lodge Avenue, a few hundred yards away from her house.

But she suddenly became aware of a presence behind her and spun around to see someone in a niqab who lobbed a glass of acid at her.

However, Konye, who was arrested on February 22 last year, denied carrying out the attack or ever threatening to throw acid at Naomi.

She said they had had quite a few fallings out, including one very big one, however she said she did not remember ever saying she was going to attack Naomi with acid.
She denied being in any way jealous of the victim’s looks.

Everyday, it is becoming clear that thieves and criminals are holding top positions in Nigeria…

US College Says It Did Not Award MBA To Stella Oduah As It Has No Masters Programme
Stella Oduah, Nigeria’s Aviation Minister who is embroiled in a scandal of towering proportions in the ministry, faces new integrity questions as her Masters’ degree has been challenged by the United States school which she claimed awarded the degree to her.

Her resume, presented to Senate as a ministerial nominee in 2011, indicated she obtained a Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from St. Paul’s College Lawrenceville, Virginia, United States.

Sahara Reporters has learned from the President of the college that it has never in its 125-year history had a graduate school or graduate program.

Similarly, the school’s website states: “Saint Paul’s College is accredited by the Commission of Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate [bachelor’s] degrees.” There is no mention of graduate degrees.

If Mrs. Oduah deliberately deceived the Senate, it remains to be seen if the Upper Legislative House will be sufficiently motivated to take up the matter appropriately.

Afterall, Jonathan is yet to reveal the findings of the panel he set up to investigate Stella Oduah’s cars scandal.

By Sam Eyoboka and Gladys Abugoh

Archbishop Christian Aggrey Ovwoma Apena of Bethseda Church International, close to tears, tells the story of how he parted ways with the late Archbishop of Church of God Mission, Benson Idahosa, and the Anglican Church. Apena’s  father was the first pastor in Isoko land, having been ordained on December 31, 1931.  Following in his father’s footsteps, he was close to being ordained an Anglican Church pastor before he was enmeshed in a crisis that led to his exit from the church. “I left the Anglican Church because I had the Pentecostal spirit that they didn’t have. I don’t blame them. I was the first Pentecostal reverend in Delta Province, I was the first Pentecostal bishop in Delta and I’m the first Pentecostal archbishop. I’m the one making bishops now,” said the retired school principal.

How old are you?
I was born May 16, 1931. That makes me 82 years.

How did you come about the name Bethesda Gospel Mission?
In the late 60s, when I returned from the university, full of the grace of God, this place you are seeing, we used to pray here, it was from here that we moved out. As we were praying, the power of God was working mysteriously in this house. When you come, whether you are prayed for or not, you will get well. So people now said this was our Bethesda. We prayed night and day. We had vigils. I was a teacher then, teaching at St. Michael’s College, Oleh. People will come here to wait for me. Those who were sick, before I returned, they would get well.

Isoko was essentially Anglican. Why did you leave the church?
It’s not that I was rebellious, but my activities went against their own doctrines. You may be religiously rebellious. I told them they should pray and fast and they said there should be no fasting; that I was misleading the people to fast. They said I was bringing a new doctrine to the church. Another point of disagreement was the way of giving. We were not giving well. The Lord made me to look round and I discovered that the Isoko man was the poorest among all the communities around. He said they should pay tithe; so I was introducing tithe in different ways, and they said that was not their way of life.

Thirdly, they prayed the same prayer from their prayer book in the morning and in the evening; whether it’s ordinary morning service, evening service; Sunday service, the same prayers will be read. I told them people should be allowed to say prayers from their mind as the Lord leads them to, especially according to the needs of the people and of the area. Some of the pastors were annoyed with me, asking: ‘Have we prayed all the prayers in the prayer book, why are we going to other things?’ Then I told them that the English people who brought this religion to us had a lot of prayer books now with different types of prayers. So they said I am not an Anglican. So, I started organizing prayers, having vigils on Fridays for miracles, and Sunday nights for praises unto God. They said all those things were un-Anglican.

Then I went to do revival, because I was in charge of Sunday school in the whole of Benin Diocese then, which covers Delta and Edo states. I was establishing Sunday school in all the churches, because I discovered that the children come to church and just play around. I didn’t know it was annoying some people. If you look round today, the children ministry is strongly established; people don’t even know who started it. I had a group that was helping me to go round to establish the children ministry in different places.

I remember in August 1968, we had 320 people baptized in Aboh and Ukwani. I sent them to my father, who was the archdeacon, for baptism.

I gave the report to the bishop, he was excited. Before this time, in 1968, when Bishop Agori Iwe went to Lambert Conference in London, he said God told him to come back home to ordain me as a priest. When he returned on August 26 of that year, he asked me to come and I went to Benin to see him. He told me all that God spoke to him concerning me, saying I should be ordained and he asked me to write an application for ordination. At that time, I was a student at the University of Ife and, had my reservations, arguing that I was satisfied with what God was using me to do, but, for fear, I agreed to write, but I didn’t write. He himself sent a notice to parishes to ask them whether they’ll like this person to be ordained as a priest or not. After 21 days, the parishes sent him good reports concerning me. So I was being made ready for ordination on December 20, 1968, but a week to the time, a few members of Adam Preaching Society came forward to oppose my ordination, threatening to pull out of the church if I was ordained. The bishop called me and said I should be patient, that at God’s own time, he would ordain me.
When I gave my report, somebody got up and asked a question. He said ‘who gave you authority to preach outside; who licensed you?’ I expected Bishop Agori Iwe to say something; but he did not. The attacks were so many! Archdeacon Adam Igbudu said I was disturbing his ministry, that he was the only one licensed to preach the gospel outside. At the end of the meeting, Urhobo and Isoko people agreed to work closely with Adam and Apena; but the Isoko people, because they felt that I was going against Adam, came back and held a meeting in early June 1972 and said I should leave the church.

Did they give any specific reasons for their action?
No real charge; that we were doing things they weren’t doing. So we left the church. After six months, there was a British missionary, Rev. S.G. Elton, who was living in Ilesha. He was organizing all those who had problems with their various churches. He invited us to a meeting at Benson Idahosa’s church in Benin City. He talked to us and showed us what to do; asking us not be annoyed because they pushed us out of the church. As he was talking, he looked at me and asked me rise up. I stood up, and he said God has asked him to ordain me as pastor for the work of God in Delta Province of then Mid West State. Benson Idahosa had just been ordained then. So that brought me and Idahosa fairly close. On January 5, 1973, I was ordained a pastor by Rev. Elton. So you can now see how we started the ministry. This was how dogged I was, or rebellious  to the church. But my joy is that I have never been angry with them.

Under what platform did Elton ordain you? Was Church of God Mission already in existence?
We were already having services here since 1969. From that time, every weekend, we will have vigils on Fridays and Sundays as I said before. Friday was for healing, Sunday was for thanksgiving and praying to God. I was running that without a name. The Church of God Mission had already started in a way; but it was not registered. It was just like a fellowship. Idahosa and Ekhubor were the leaders. I was ordained, not for Church of God Mission. I was ordained for the ministry of God, without a name. I had been in Delta, I was asked to continue working there. This is my house; I have never left here since that time.

So how did the Church of God Mission thing start?
That’s another thing, it’s controversial. From their own story, Reuben Ekubor plus a few others were having a fellowship. Benson Idahosa was a member of Assemblies of God Church. When Idahosa was about to marry, Assemblies of God didn’t want him to marry Margaret, but he had to marry her. So, he left Assemblies and joined this fellowship which was later called Church of God Mission. Later, we joined them, not as members per se, but joint fellowship. The whole thing was a little clumsy; but I have to say it for the benefit of doubts. Ekubor was not a viral person; he was a little bit elderly. Idahosa was full of life and young. When Idahosa  joined them; they were all running this thing together. When we came to meet them, because of the problem they had, Elton advised that they should have a structure in the form of a Mission. So they decided to have The Church of God Mission. We prepared a constitution for them, and made Benson Idahosa President and Ekubor Secretary.

In 1979/80, I had some people from Evangels Temple, Washington DC, they wanted the upliftment of members of this Mission. They gave us lectures for one week about Christian offices and they said it was needful for us to have a bishop or an archbishop. I rose up and nominated Idahosa to be our bishop. It was accepted by all. Before then, Bishop Idahosa was called General Superintendent. He went to America for a meeting, when he returned in September 1979, he said he would like to be the President and that presidency should be revolving on a yearly basis. Every year there should be an election and that the General Superintendent should be Reuben Ekubor. We all agreed. Later, I told him it was not a healthy thing for us to be having election for church offices because it would generate bad blood and quarrel. He agreed, but that did not go down well with Ekubor because Idahosa was getting more evangelistic day in day out. He said Ekubor should be the General Superintendent and he himself would have no name. Later, when he came back from another travel, he put the name President on his door. This did not go down well with Ekubor. So we sought the advice of lawyers who told him as General Superintendent, he was the owner of the church, stressing that the name Idahosa was carrying was unconstitutional.

While this was going on, the church leadership seminar which appointed Idahosa as bishop was on. And before we knew it, he had invited people from all parts of the world to come for his consecration, and Ekubor was unhappy and turned round to say it could not happen. He approached a lawyer to stay the action and the court granted his prayer. People had come from all over the world, how could we allow these people go like that? It would be a big shame. Some of the invitees calmed us down, saying that church work is not like that. We went ahead with the consecration and, thereafter, Ekubor took us to court for contempt which was the first case against Idahosa. The old constitution was all we had, and Ekubor was the General Superintendent of the church. So, we constituted small committee, with me as the chairman, to draw up another constitution.

We drew up a new constitution which made the church head to be a bishop or an archbishop. We didn’t mention General Superintendent. Everything was drawn up in the new constitution and, when we went to court, we presented the new one. The judge adjourned for two weeks and, after studying the new constitution, compared it with the old, he came back and said there was nothing wrong with the new constitution and he upheld it. That is the story of Church of God Mission.

You now became part of Church of God Mission. You were in charge of the Delta area. At what point did you leave and why?
Sometimes some of these  things  I don’t want to talk about…I don’t want to show that I quarreled with this person because of this or that. I don’t want to prove myself to be a saint and the other a bad person. Frankly speaking, as Idahosa was growing in greatness, he began to do things which I didn’t like.

When I discovered these things, I wrote a letter, I also went ton radio in Delta to say I was no longer in the church, but I still love the man. But as a member of the Church of God Mission, I cut off. I also published it in Port Harcourt. So he came after me. But we didn’t meet again till he died.

Can you recount what happened, what did he accuse you of?
He didn’t accuse me of anything. They came to take a car from me. Which car? He said it was an official car.  When I was in Church of God Mission, at that time, I was also a principal and a government worker. I was able to stand on my own. I was not taking any kobo from the church, rather I gave. I had voluntary retirement on February 1, 1983. I still had seven years more, but I decided to retire. The Lord said I should come out and do His work. When I came out of retirement and they paid me, I used part of it to buy a car, a fairly expensive Peagout 504 SR. I drove it just for one week, and when I went to Umunede for a meeting, I slept in the pastor’s house. I parked this car inside the compound. At 1.00 a.m., they woke me up to say my car has been stolen. Imagine a poor teacher, who had just retired. We spent up to four months looking for this car, no way! I decided not to worry about it. I complained to the police commissioner. He said I should not worry. Later at the convention of 1985 when T.L. Osborne was invited to preach, he told Osborne about my predicament. Osborne and his wife were seriously touched and they called me and my wife and gave us the key of the car they bought for their son whom they sent to Calabar to minister. This car was kept in the custody of Idahosa. Then Osborne told Idahosa to release the car to me. In 1988, Idahosa was now saying that that car was on official car  (laughs).  Is that not funny? And that is what he sent four people to come and claim.

When will you retire?
Who will retire me? (laughs). When you retire me, I won’t preach or pray again? I’m just asking. In Anglican, they retire at 70,  Catholic too. I’m still strong. You saw people who came in your presence. If I was not still doing what I should do, they won’t come.

By Soni Daniel, Regional Editor, North

The Supreme Court is set to meet on the cases of the 23 judges, who are being investigated over large scale corruption.

This is just as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, moves in to take over the matter from where the council stops.

Saturday Vanguard learnt that that already the commission’s operatives had established enough evidence of corruption against seven of the affected judges and was ready to charge them to court any moment from now.

The Chairman of the Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, is reported to have visited the Chief Justice of Nigeria and given the assurance that the judges would be charged as soon as the NJC concluded its findings on them.

Saturday Vanguard learnt yesterday that the CJN had however asked the panels probing the judges to give them ‘fair hearing’ in the discharge of their assignment.
It was gathered that the directive by the CJN to the panels to ensure that each of the suspects were heard out, was responsible for the delay in the meeting of the NJC to ratify the verdict of the panels.

It was learnt that the Supreme Court would first meet on the matter before an enlarged meeting of the NJC to take a final decision on the fate of the affected judicial officers.

Findings by Saturday Vanguard showed that the panels, which sat on the petitions raised against the judges found almost all of them culpable and accordingly recommended that they be reprimanded by the judiciary to serve as a deterrent to others in the system.

A top judiciary source told Saturday Vanguard that the CJN was eager to see an end to the matter, which has impinged negatively on the image of the judiciary.
“But what is clear is that the CJ also wants to call the bluff of the affected judicial officers and see to the end of the matter before her retirement towards the end of the year.

The suspected judges are from the State and Federal High courts as well as the Court of Appeal.