On March 8, 2013, Nigeria joined the rest of the world to celebrate the International Women’s Day. As usual, the day was commemorated with walks, demonstrations, protests as well as symposiums and exhibitions among others. Vanguard Newspapers in collaboration with the Centre for Black African Arts and Civilization organized a Round Table discussion for women. It was a forum where selected women from various disciplines came together to discuss some of the challenges facing the Nigerian woman, her journey so far and also fashion out the way forward. The two hour jaw-jaw touched on issues such as parenting, culture and traditions, health, business, politics as well as building confidence and self esteem in the work place. Today, we bring you excerpts from the conference.

Will the drone be used in the Sahel? Put differently, will the United States order drone strikes on terrorist cells in West African states? That is the big question that confronts states and non-state actors in the on-going war against Al-Qaeda and its local affiliates in the Maghreb and Sahel regions.

PARAMOUNT ruler of Siembiri Kingdom in Delta State, Pere Charles Ayemi-Botu, aka Lion of the Niger, is one-time national chairman of the Traditional Rulers of Oil Mineral Producing Communities of Nigeria, TROMPCON. He had once called on President Goodluck Jonathan to review the allocation of oil blocs in the country. In this interview, he reiterates why Jonathan must urgently heed the call, saying Niger-Deltans and, indeed, Nigerians, would not forgive him if he failed to act decisively. He also argues that northern leaders are not doing enough to stamp out Boko Haram and challenges former heads of state and leaders from the North to end the insurgency by the sect.

Last week, Sunday Vanguard published documented evidence as obtained from Nigeria’s Election Management Body, EMB, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, that Registration Area Officers, ROAs, would be expected to manually and comprehensively register voters from house to house. In this report, you will read details of the type of PERMANENT VOTER’S CARD that INEC has decided to use for the 2015 elections, a card that cannot satisfy the yearnings of Nigerians for a free and fair election. Yet, Professor Attahiru Jega, Chairman of INEC, is going about his job with messianic alacrity which suggests an agenda that is at once unclear to other national electoral commissioners, Resident Electoral Commissioners, RECs, as well as some very senior officials of the Commission. This report merely attempts to clear the fog of misinformation that a permanent voter’s card, especially the one INEC has awarded its contract, would solve Nigeria’s age-old problem of election rigging. The prognoses are very dangerous.

THE once imposing building housing the NITEL office headquarters in Asaba Delta State Capital some years back has become a shadow of itself.

TIME was when the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited, NITEL, used to be the alpha and omega in the communications industry as it enjoyed unfettered monopoly.

THE multi-million naira 090 analogue cellular gateway built by the defunct General Ibrahim Babangida administration for the South Eastern region in the early 90s is now rotting away.

Since 2002 when the Federal Government began the process of privatisingNigerian Telecommunications, NITEL, things have not remained the same in the organisation. Across the states in the Nigerian federation, NITEL facilities are wasting away.

A visit to NITEL offices in Lagos including the ones located at Race-Course, Kingsway Road, Ikoyi and Marina revealed shock findings. At the NITEL Headquarters, Tafawa Balewa Square, Race-Course, the building has been occupied by Lagosians.

DESPITE the controversies generated over the fiscal regime, in terms of tax and royalty being proposed in the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, currently undergoing legislative scrutiny at the National Assembly, the technical team that prepared the bill insists that proposals are still very highly competitive.