Delahoya News

President Buhari Got the Job of House Leader for Gbajabiamila

2015-07-30T08:51:00.001+01:00

Speaker Yakubu Dogara of the House of Reps succumbed to pressures from the APC and named Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila as House Majority Leader, and by that, drew the curtain on the lingering crisis that has trailed the chamber since its inauguration last June. According to reports, among those who put pressure on the Speaker was President Muhammadu Buhari who reportedly put in a phone call to Dogara following a last-minute meeting with APC national leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. But presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, denied knowledge of any interaction between the President and the Speaker prior to the pronouncement on the floor of the House. Following the resolution of the crisis, Speaker Dogara charged the legislators to proceed to discharge the issues that brought them to Abuja, saying they had wasted enough time on issues of aggrandizement.

Fear Grips President Jonathan's Camp Over Obasanjo's Latest Moves

2014-02-14T09:45:00.001+01:00

The disclosure by ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo that President Goodluck Jonathan promised to spend only one term in office has ignited a fresh anxiety in the President’s camp. The is fear that Obasanjo’s comments may be a pointer to a major coalition against Dr Jonathan’s second term bid, which is well known, but yet to be officially announced.

Obasanjo stirred the hornet’s nest on Tuesday in London in an interview in which he confirmed that Jonathan on several occasions asked for only one term in office.

“President Jonathan said, not only once but twice, publicly, not only inside Nigeria but also outside Nigeria, that he would have one term, and he said that to me.

“One of the things that is very important in the life of any man or any person is that he will be a man or a person of his word. If you decide your word should not be taken seriously, that’s entirely up to you.”

Obasanjo was quoted by Bloomberg on Thursday.

Obasanjo’s disclosure is causing serious disquiet in the camp of the President, leading to a review meeting in the night of Wednesday in Abuja.

It was learnt that at the session, it was suspected Obasanjo might be out for a spoiler’s game in 2015, with a move to expose Jonathan's lies to Nigerians if he decided to contest despite his promise to the contrary.

A key member of President Jonathan's strategist group said that Obasanjo “cannot intimidate Jonathan out of second term race”.

It is believed that Obasanjo's latest comments show that he is aware that Jonathan may not keep his words.

You may wish to know that Obasanjo and a lot of Norther leaders supported Jonathan because of his words on a single term after completing the later President Yar'Adua's tenure.

Things You Never Knew About St. Valentine's Day

2014-02-14T09:37:00.002+01:00

Happy Valentines day that's what almost what everyone is saying now and would continue saying until the day is over,but there are some things most of us don't know about today so lets check them out below.....

1. February 14th was also the day Romans honored Juno, goddess of marriage.

2. Medieval Europeans believed birds mated on February 14th.

3. 73% of U.S. men buy flowers on Valentine’s Day.

4. 15% of U.S. women send themselves flowers on Valentine’s Day.

5. During the nineteenth century, romantic Brits would simply pick the first person they saw on February 14th to be their Valentine.

6. St. Valentine was a Roman priest executed on February 14th, 270 A.D., for disobeying an imperial edict forbidding marriage ceremonies.

7. There are a few theories about the origins of Valentine’s Day, but one popular one dates back as far as the Roman Empire. Claudius II believed single men made better soldiers and forbid men to marry during wartime. Bishop Valentine went against his wishes, secretly performing wedding ceremonies for soldiers. His thank you? Getting jailed and executed—but not before he wrote a love note to the jailor’s daughter… signing it, “From your Valentine.”

8. Thinking of popping the question? February is the second most popular month (after December) to propose.

9. And don’t be afraid to go against tradition. According to a study by the Robbins Brothers, 30% of women and 40% of men think it’s okay for women to pop the question. And two-thirds of men are open to wearing an engagement ring.

10. Money can’t buy love, but it’s buying a whole lot of Valentine’s Day gifts this year. RetailMeNot reports that the average guy spends about $287 on a Valentine’s Day gift. Women spend an average of $164.

11. Don’t stress out too much about the gift—a recent survey found that about half of the 750 couples surveyed said they didn’t approve of the gift they got from their partner, but accepted it as a token of love. Socks it is!

12. The most disappointing gift? For men, it’s flowers. For women, a gym membership or exercise equipment. But you guys know better than that…right?

13. The romantic dinner will set us back too, to the tune of $139.

14. And we’re not forgetting our fluffier loved ones—20 percent of people plan to buy a Valentine’s Day gift for their pets this year. Heart-shaped kibble?

15. What was the Middle Ages equivalent of posting “Happy Valentine’s Day!” on your Valentine’s Facebook wall? Back then, men and women wore the names of their sweethearts pinned to their sleeves—in fact, that’s where the expression “wearing your heart on your sleeve” comes from!

16. What’s better than getting a sweet handmade Valentine’s Day card in the shape of a heart? In the 1920′s, it was a card shaped like a… tomato? Yep, back in the day, tomatoes were also known as “love apples.”

17. Valentine’s Day is banned in Some Countries

Not everyone has love for Valentine’s Day: In Pakistan, it's “a shameful day”; in India, a Hindu group built a massive bonfire fuelled by Valentine's Day cards; in Saudi Arabia, it's “a pagan feast” and for many years, that country's government-led Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vices (also known as the mutawwa), was said to carry out inspections of public places like gift shops and hotels looking to confiscate evidence of Muslim couples participating in Valentine's Day. Despite this, many people in the countries that officially shun the holiday as nothing more than Western immorality seem even more determined than ever to celebrate it. According to a young Iranian quoted in The New York Sun anxiously looking forward to Valentine's Day: "The crackdown only strengthens my position in rejecting the hard-line clerical rule."

The Real Story Behind This Day (St Valentines day)

2014-02-14T09:20:00.000+01:00

Happy Valentine's day to you reading this. Yes you..*smiles* all your special friends....How are you spending your day? Romantic dinner, work, at the orphanage, or in tears at home?...
Flowers, candy, red hearts and romance. That's what Valentine's day is all about, right? Well, maybe not...For those who don't know..this is the real story of how this day came about....

The origin of this holiday for the expression of love really isn't romantic at all -- at least not in the traditional sense. Father Frank O'Gara of Whitefriars Street Church in Dublin, Ireland, tells the real story of the man behind the holiday -- St. Valentine.

"He was a Roman Priest at a time when there was an emperor called Claudias who persecuted the church at that particular time. He also had an edict that prohibited the marriage of young people. This was based on the hypothesis that unmarried soldiers fought better than married soldiers because married soldiers might be afraid of what might happen to them or their wives or families if they died."

But obviously the church thought that marriage was very sacred between one man and one woman for their life and that it was to be encouraged.

And so it immediately presented the problem to the Christian church of what to do about this.The idea of encouraging them to marry within the Christian church was what Valentine was about. And he secretly married them because of the edict."

Valentine was eventually caught, imprisoned and tortured for performing marriage ceremonies against command of Emperor Claudius the second. There are legends surrounding Valentine's actions while in prison.

"One of the men who was to judge him in line with the Roman law at the time was a man called Asterius, whose daughter was blind. He was supposed to have prayed with and healed the young girl with such astonishing effect that Asterius himself became Christian as a result."

In the year 269 AD, Valentine was sentenced to a three part execution of a beating, stoning, and finally decapitation all because of his stand for Christian marriage. The story goes that the last words he wrote were in a note to Asterius' daughter. He inspired today's romantic missives by signing it, "from your Valentine."

Pastor Caught in Armed Robbery in Lagos Confesses; He Says "The Flesh Is Weak"

2014-02-14T08:46:00.001+01:00

Indeed, wonders shall never end! Operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Lagos State Police Command have arrested a pastor for over his involvement with notorious armed robbery gang that has been terrorising banks in major cities in the South-West of Nigeria. In his confession, Pastor Isaiah blamed the devil and greed that pushed him into armed robbery:

"The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. I am a man of God. I won’t tell you lies. I joined the gang when one Confidence ran to me for cover when he was declared wanted by the police. From assisting the man, he introduced me to their chairman, Fineboy.

"This Fineboy now told me to provide my Honda bullet car for an operation as their vehicle was faulty. After the operation, he gave me N400,000 and I still drove them to First Bank robbery, where I got N300,000. We did not succeed in the Access Bank robbery and I was very sad when I read in the papers that three policemen were killed.

"I am a man of God and I preach the word of God; the Bible condemns all the vices that I involved myself in but greed and the devil made me to do it. Again, I was afraid to quit as Fineboy had warned that he would wipe out my family if I tried to quit.

"I am very happy that I have been liberated from armed robbery by this arrest but my fear is that my arrest will affect Christiandom as those who reposed their trust on me as a pastor, will be discouraged. But it is better I face the shame and go to heaven than to die and go to hell fire."

Pastor Isaiah (surname withheld) and members of the gang were alleged to have killed three policemen last November during an attack on Access Bank, Ayobo in Lagos and others in Ondo and Ogun states.

Also arrested with the pastor are a medical practitioner and a musician.

The medical practitioner, Dr Tajudeen (surname withheld) said he joined the gang after he was sacked from the General Hospital in Lagos. His words: “The day I joined the armed robbery gang was when my younger brother introduced me to one Confidence, who in turn, took me to our leader, Fineboy.

“The first robbery operation was when I drove the gang to a filling station at the Okoko area of Lagos. The second was the First Bank robbery and the last one was the Access Bank robbery where we killed three policemen. We did not succeed because the police stormed the place and we fled but later laid ambush for the policemen.

“When my gang was firing at the police, I could not stand the noise of the gunshots; so, I took to my heels. I swear to God, as a medical doctor, I have never handled guns, it was because I had no money to renew my medical licence. I was looking for N250,000 to do the registration and I could not opt out as I was afraid of ‘Fineboy’ though he was later killed during a gun battle with the police.”

Lagos Commissioner of Police, Umar Manko, who paraded the suspects praised the officer in SARS for their good work. The Pastor, the Doctor and others will be charged to court.

Amaechi Meets New Rivers Police Commissioner: Warns Him Against Partisanship

2014-02-14T08:22:00.000+01:00

Newly appointed Rivers State Commissioner, Tunde Ogunsakin has promised to manage the state’s security affairs without bias to either the All Progressives Congress, which Governor Rotimi Amaechi is a member of, or the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) agents loyal to President Goodluck Jonathan.

Speaking in Port Harcourt during an official visit to Governor Amaechi, Mr. Ogunsakin assured that he would police the state without bias, as both the president and the governor have their respective roles in ridding the state and Nigeria at large of crimes and criminality.

CP Ogunsakin said: "The President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces is the Chief Security Officer of the Federation while the Inspector General of Police is the Chief Law Enforcement Officer of the Federation.

"Also, in a state, the Executive Governor is the Chief Security Officer and the Commissioner of Police is the Chief Law Enforcement Officer of the State. This relationship is definitely best appreciated when it is harnessed to ensure peace and tranquillity in the state."

On his part, Governor Amaechi stated the readiness of the state government to cooperate with the Police in restoring law and order. But he noted that this would be impossible if the Police support either of both parties battling for the reins of the state in 2015.

Amaechi said: “We are willing to cooperate with the Police to restore law and order. The only thing we need is for the Police to have the courage to restore law and order.

"The Police must do whatever it takes to restore law and order. Don’t support PDP, and don’t also support APC; just support Rivers people. Please don’t obey any illegal order from the Rivers State Government. What we want is a neutral police commissioner who is firm and understands that the state needs to accommodate everybody — not one that loves to be in any of the political parties."

Shocker: Bamanga Tukur’s Wife Dumps PDP, Registers In APC

2014-02-14T08:16:00.000+01:00

Hajiya Asiya Mohammed Bello, wife of the sacked PDP Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, dumped the party which disgraced her husband and registered as a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Gabasawa Ward in Kaduna North Local Government area of Kaduna State.

Tukur's wife registration card number is 0623374.

"It is true that our registration officer registered Tukur’s wife and issued her a registration card. This is one of the developments of democracy in Nigeria where you see an immediate past PDP chairman’s wife registering for APC.

"As far as I am concerned, they might be united as husband and wife but may have different opinions as the far as the political scenario is concerned, it is to show you that it is a falling period for the PDP."

The supervising officer for APC registration in the Kaduna north area Kaduna State, Shaibu Lilly, confirmed.

Efforts to speak with Tukur's wife at the former PDP Chairman's residence was not successful. The house is a duplex with several boys quarters located at a sharp bend on a large expanse of land at Gwari Crescent GRA of Unguwan Rimi, Kaduna.

In the words of Malam Yahaya Gambo, who is Asiya Bello’s driver:

"It is true that Hajiya Asiya registered today with of the APC” while showing her registration card which was still in his possession. He, however, said, “You will not be able to speak with her because she fasted today and she is preparing to break the fast and pray, you may wish to come and see her at about 9 or 10am."

When contacted, APC chieftain in Kaduna, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed said:

“I do know that Bamagar’s wife has been a supporter of the APC. She has been a progressive person.”

President Jonathan is Still Learning, He'll Do More if Re-elected –Bafarawa

2014-02-14T08:05:00.002+01:00

Former governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa, who left APC, a party he formed with others just because the governor of Sokoto State, who humbled him in the last election decided to join APC, has been singing a different song since joining the PDP.

Because he has been criticising President Goodluck Jonathan strongly in recent times, he still could not praise him comfortably now. Below are the thoughts he shared with journalists on Jonathan.

What prompted your defection to the PDP?

Joining PDP was not my decision it was the decision of my people. In joining PDP, we are looking for change for the better. I was in the opposition to protest against injustices being done to my people and ensure that justice is done. I was not in the opposition just for the sake of being in the opposition. All I was trying to do was to make sure that things were done the right way because in the constitution of any party, there must be internal democracy.

On whether the enlarged PDP will welcome his ideas.
Yes! The PDP is a national party. In the last 16 years I have been opposing the party but when I decided with my people to join PDP, automatically, they started giving us the same treatment like those that founded the party unlike other political parties that will meet the owner and take it away and give it to a new member. So, when you sit down and compare the two, you can see that PDP is more national than any other political party in the country.

On the day I joined the PDP, I went to Abuja with my people to see the national chairman and he told us that we were all equal. And look at what has been happening since then — there have been signs of togetherness, unity and brotherliness. Look at the caliber of people that came to Sokoto to celebrate with me and my people and accept us into the party. The president, vice president, senate president, national chairman and members of the NEC, serving governors, and even former chairmen of the party were all here to welcome us into the party. So, you can see the difference within two weeks.

On allegations that he left the APC, which he helped to form because the leadership took the party structure from him and gave it to Governor Wamakko. We are not quarreling with anybody in APC. All we are saying is, let us follow the rules of the game. If you are playing a game and there is no rule to guide it, then there is a problem. And as a leader, I cannot just be dragging myself when I know that I am leading millions of people. If I know that things are not being done well and I continue to be dragged into the ship and I know that the ship is going to sink on us, then there is a problem. Therefore, my people decided that we have to change and we changed. That is what is expected of a leader and that is why we joined the PDP. I only hearkened to the wish of my people.

His assessment of President Jonathan’s performance in the last four years.
My assessment of President Jonathan’s performance will be different from anybody’s assessment because I was once in office as governor. Sometimes it is not the leader that is weak but those who are giving him support. If someone had people who are not qualified to help him in the running of affairs, he will not succeed even if he has a great vision.

The leadership of our great country is not a one-man show; it is a collective responsibility. So, for anybody in government to succeed, you must have people who are capable and knowledgeable to help you do the job.

So, I don’t assess Jonathan as a failure because he needs to be assisted. Nigeria’s problems are not for one person to tackle; it’s a collective responsibility.

Jonathan is still in the process of learning; he had experience as deputy governor, governor and vice president. Being a governor of Bayelsa is different from being the president of the country. Within the last four years, he has gained a lot of experience. If he goes for a second term, I believe he will do better than he did in the last four years.

So, experience people like Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Diezani Allison-Madueke are not helping him enough?

PDP’s Many Lies and The Truth About Obasanjo’s Visit to Rivers

2014-02-14T08:00:00.003+01:00

The Rivers State Chapter of All Progressives Congress says it is shocked by the shameful lies being spewed out by the PDP in the State, particularly on the working visit of former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, that is scheduled for next week Monday, 17th February, 2014.

The APC in a statement by Chief Eze Chukwemeka Eze said:

“It is not in our character to join issues with a group whose stock-in-trade is falsehood and the dishing out of lies upon lies against a performing Governor just because he decided to dump the visionless Peoples Democratic Party and join his soul mates in APC, where he truly belongs. Even so, we are constrained to respond and set the records straight because lies, when told many times without being challenged, could be accepted as fact by the unsuspecting public.

"In this regard, we wish to respond as follows regarding some of the malicious lies by the PDP leadership in Rivers State as contained in a statement issued by the propagandist Jerry Needam alias ‘Jerry the Liar’ on behalf of the PDP’s factional State Chairman, Mr. Felix Obuah...

1. On PDP’s ex-President Obasanjo is coming to commission schools built by ex-Gov Peter Odili:

To put it mildly, this is a senseless lie that calls to question the mental state of those making the allegation, for there is no way any sane Governor would wake up and decide to commission projects executed eight years back by his predecessor. It is very unfortunate and sad that Mr. Felix Obuah is allowing a fellow like Jerry Needam to continue to ridicule him in this manner. The truth of the matter is that Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has in his six years of being in the saddle surpassed the achievements of all previous administrations since the creation of Rivers State in 1967 put together. He therefore has more than enough completed projects for General Obasanjo to commission during his forthcoming working visit to the State.

This is a fact well known to Mr Jerry Needam, whose newspaper, the Port Harcourt-based local tabloid, National Network, in its edition of Vol. 9 N0 45, Nov.14th - 20th, 2012 published an article titled “Amaechi: Five Years Of Education Revolution In Rivers State” (http://www.nationalnetworkonline.com/VOL7/vol9n45/education.html) in which Governor Amaechi’s efforts in education in Rivers State were described as revolutionary.

The article pointed to the 24 Model Secondary Schools that are better than some universities in Nigeria being built in each Local Government Area of the State, well-structured and fully equipped with modern-day educational, recreation and boarding facilities with standard housing for teachers. These secondary schools, according to Jerry Needam’s own National Network, have grossly been referred to by observers as universities.

In the same edition, it was stated that the Rivers State Government is targeting building 700 Model Primary Schools with 500 already completed, each with 20 classrooms, costing N3.1 billion each and equipped with ICT facilities, modern library, science laboratory, football field, basketball pitch, volleyball pitch and nursery playground. The paper reported that these Model Primary Schools are built to the standard of the United Nations as obtainable in developed parts of the world.

It is necessary to point out that the Rivers State Government is currently running free primary education with free books and uniforms, provisions of library and internet facilities for the primary schools. The government has acquired 150 hectares of land to relocate the premier University of Science & Technology in Nigeria, the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), to a bigger and better permanent site. The new site is expected to have facilities that will accommodate no fewer than 50,000 students.

Rivers State under Governor Amaechi’s watch has been adjudged the Best Performing State in the Education Sector within the South-South zone. In recognition of this the Federal Ministry of Education has rewarded the state with the sum of N70 million for its performance. The State has offered scholarships to over 2,000 students in Nigerian Higher Institutions and has spent about N5bn on her students in foreign academic intuitions. The State is building a world-class university which when completed will turn out well equipped graduates that will hold their own in any field and compete with the best in the world.

Indeed, detailing the efforts of Gov. Amaechi in the education sector in Rivers State is attempting to write a book. For Jerry Needam to claim that General Obasanjo is coming to commission schools built by Sir Peter Odili therefore raises questions about Jerry Needam’s mental state and emphasises the need for him to immediately seek medical help before he starts to pick papers on the well tarred and clean roads built by Gov Amaechi thinking that there are flats of houses.

Knowing that Mr. Felix Obuah maybe a bit handicapped to assist Jerry the Liar in this regard, we wish to appeal to Mr Sampson Parker, the Commissioner of Health to come to his aid as a matter of urgency as Dr Ikanya the APC State Chairman has accepted to foot his medical bill.

2. On PDP’s claim that Amaechi is the cause of unemployment in Rivers State:
This, again, is a very unfortunate statement. Rivers State Government has one of the biggest workforces in Nigeria with 65,000 civil servants, yet the Governor has exploited other avenues to create more jobs for our teeming youths. It is on record that in one fell swoop, Governor Amaechi employed about 13,000 teachers, a feat no other government in Nigeria has achieved both past and present. About 400 medical doctors have been employed by this administration while efforts are made on a daily basis to create more jobs for our people through countless projects going on in the State though construction of schools, roads, health centres agriculture, etc. The fact remains that the menace of unemployment in Nigeria would have been greatly reduced if the Federal Government had pursued job creation with the same zeal showed by the administration of Governor Amaechi. Read my article titled “Unemployment In Rivers And Amaechi's Magic Wand” and published by Vibe Ghana on Aug 29, 2013 (http://vibeghana.com/2013/08/29/unemployment-in-rivers-and-amaechis-magic-wand/) to appreciate the magical touch by this unassuming leader of our time to understand the sorrow state people like Jerry Needam through unguided leaders like Felix Obuah have placed Rivers State as if we are people without brains.

3. On why Obasanjo should be invited to commission projects in Rivers State after declaring Amaechi’s ambition as having K-Leg in 2007:This demonstrates how myopic Jerry Needam and Felix Obuah could be. That an incident that happened since 2007 should becloud the sense of reasoning of Jerry Needam and his likes shows that they are still living in the past. It also exposes them as hypocrites because Christianity, to which they profess, teaches us to be forgiven and not to dwell on the past. To us in Rivers State APC, Gov. Amaechi should be congratulated and commended for fishing such a big personality like ex-President Obasanjo to visit our State to commission some of the people-oriented projects so far executed by his administration. To us in APC, General Obasanjo is a leader with pedigree and should not be insulted by the injudicious people in PDP in the State as the planned visit of the former President is historical as we urge our people to come out enmasse to welcome this great African Leader.

On PDP’s claim that Senator Magnus Abe and Hon Chief Dakuku Peterside’s alleged gubernatorial ambition warranted the hiring of hoodlums by their supporters to disrupt the just-concluded APC Registration in the State:

This illustrates why Mr Jerry Needam is well known in Rivers State as Jerry the Liar. How could distinguished Senator Magnus Abe and Hon. Chief Dakuku Peterside’s alleged ambition warrant their supporters to attack and disrupt the registration exercise of a party that will enhance the said ambition? This just does not make sense! For the avoidance of doubt, let us reiterate that contrary to insinuations by the sinking PDP, Governor Amaechi has not anointed any politician or zone the gubernatorial ticket of the party to any zone or tribe even though we have over 35 political heavyweights who are well qualified to govern Rivers State come 2015.

Gov. Amaechi had during a stakeholders meeting recently told all and sundry to keep their ambition at bay to enable us build APC to a party we all can be proud of. He made it clear that we have a process of electing our flag-bearers when the time comes. The fact remains that any serious minded politician who wants to vie for any elective post in Rivers State come 2015 must look for the APC ticket, if such a politician actually wants to be taken serious as PDP is firmly dead in the State and we thank the people of Rivers State for this feat.

“Finally, the good people of Rivers State should, therefore, disregard the senseless lies of Jerry Needam, Felix Obuah and the sinking PDP”, the party enjoined.

Missing funds: Forensic auditors to probe NNPC, others

2014-02-14T07:57:00.000+01:00

The Federal Government on Thursday said it would appoint independent forensic auditors to investigate transactions carried out in the oil and gas sector.

The auditors, according to the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, will examine the books of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Nigerian Petroleum Development Corporation as well as other government agencies operating in the oil and gas sector.

The move, she stated, would help to unravel the controversies surrounding the alleged unremitted $20bn oil revenue by the NNPC.

After she appeared before the Senate committee investigating the non-remittance of oil proceeds to the Federation Account, Okonjo-Iweala told journalists that since the $10.8bn had been accepted by all parties as the outstanding amount, an independent body would be appointed to investigate the financial transactions involving oil exports.

She said the technicalities involved in the audit of the sector as well as the special expertise needed to carry out the investigation informed the decision.

The minister said since conflicting figures were being mentioned by the Central Bank of Nigeria and the NNPC, the only way to establish the truth and reassure Nigerians was to set up an independent body to verify all claims made by the parties.

She said just like it was done during the fuel subsidy scam, the forensic audit would help to bring an end to the ongoing controversy.

The minister said going by the urgency involved in unravelling everything about the missing revenue, the auditors would be required to submit an interim report within one month.

Okonjo-Iweala said, “It should be emphasised that the issue of unremitted funds by the NNPC is not new; it has been an ongoing issue at every Federation Accounts Allocation Committee meeting chaired by the Ministry of Finance, as evidenced by reports from the monthly meetings.

“As of December 2013, the cumulative un-reconciled figure of shortfalls from NNPC payments stood at N1.792tn, or about $11bn.

“On the original $10.8bn, which was the shortfall we had as of July 2013, another reconciliation meeting was held at which NNPC presented data of how it utilised the balance of $10.8bn, namely: amount withheld for subsidy, $8.766bn; holding cost of strategic reserves, $0.4599bn; crude oil and product losses, $0.761bn; and pipeline management cost, $0.905bn, for a total of $10.89bn.

“The data presented were all certified by the PPPRA as being accepted. We asked to see the backup documentation to enable verification.

“Our judgment is that a proper examination of these documents requires technical expertise beyond the capacity of the reconciliation team, and, therefore, we believe we should have an independent forensic audit managed independently of these submissions.”

The CBN Governor, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, had insisted while appearing before the Senate Committee on Finance that the NNPC had yet to account for $20bn in oil sale proceeds and that the subsidy the corporation was removing on kerosene was illegal, null and void.

He said, “We established that the NNPC shipped about $67bn worth of crude and about $47bn came back to the Federation Account; so, there is $20bn unremitted. The finance minister had explained that there was $6bn that the NNPC said it shipped on behalf of the NPDC.

“There is the $2bn third party finance and the balance of $12bn from our books, and even from the NNPC submissions, it is what is outstanding from the domestic crude of $28bn that was exported by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company.

“As far as the CBN is concerned, the most important point to establish is that there is a difference of $20bn between what the NNPC shipped and what it repatriated.

“We have presented documents from the PPPRA and the Presidency that, in our view, there is no subsidy on kerosene first of all, and that the payment of kerosene subsidy is a violation of a written presidential directive.”

Sanusi insisted that apart from the legal opinion being sought on the issue by the finance minister, he would also bring the CBN lawyers to come and defend its legal position in order to establish that what was paid to the federation was inaccurate.

He said the CBN made no comments on the $2bn third party documentation because it had been given no documents and that the $6bn for the NPDC did not come to any account in the CBN, but that the agency had taken the words of the NNPC.

However, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Deizani Alison-Madueke, defended the legality of the kerosene subsidy and maintained that there was no official gazette to stop its removal.

She said, “For years, the issue of the directive given by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua had been brought up over and over again. At the time, an inter-ministerial meeting was held with both the ministers of Finance and that of Petroleum and a decision was taken to stay action on the memo because kerosene was very crucial to Nigerians.

“The masses of Nigerians deal with it today. The landing cost is N150, but it was being subsidised and sold at N50.

“Because we cannot effectively move the products around the country because of the damage done to our facilities, the marketers took advantage of that more than others; so, bridging cost is added since the product is being moved around by road.”

She clarified that the GMD of NNPC at that time wrote two memos to the finance minister for clarification despite a presidential directive but no clarification came, hence the subsidy remained.

The Group Managing Director, NNPC, Mr. Andrew Yakubu, insisted that no money was missing and that the corporation had not received any subsidy payment for petroleum products supplied to the domestic market since 2012.

He said the N888.101bn and N971.138bn appropriated for that purpose in 2012 and 2013 were grossly inadequate to meet the payment obligations to both the NNPC and other marketers.

“This development led to the accumulation of $8.76bn as unpaid subsidy due to the NNPC for petroleum products supplied during the period under review. This amount comprised $5.25bn for PMS (petrol) and $3.51bn for DPK (kerosene),” he said.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Fincance, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, said the committee would study the documents and submissions by the NNPC and that “our own forensic examination of the document will make us take a decision as to whether the documents support the expenses incurred.”

He said, “We have also received certification for kerosene subsidy but the key issue is the appropriation to it and we have all agreed here that no appropriation has been made for it.

“The implication of spending money that is not appropriated is well known to everybody and the whole world is hearing this. I don’t want us to joke or play with this. It is the most central issue.

“All agencies that have spoken have confirmed to the whole world that this money was not appropriated and I want people to absorb the import of this confirmation.

“We will deliberate on how to deal with the past, how we will deal with the future is critically important and this is the best time to deal with the issue to avoid further contravention.”

PUNCH

Oduah, others still under EFCC investigation

2014-02-14T07:50:00.001+01:00

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has said that all those involved in the controversial purchase of N255m bulletproof cars by the Nigerian Aviation Civil Authority, including the sacked Minister of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah, were still being investigated.

A source at the EFCC, who made this known to The PUNCH on Thursday in Abuja, said the outcome of the investigation would determine those to be prosecuted.

“We are progressing in the investigation into the scandal and I can assure you that anyone who is found culpable will be prosecuted; just wait and see,” he stated....

The source spoke just as the Trade Union Congress, the Campaign for Democracy, the Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, the Nigerian Voters’ Assembly, Civil Society Network Against Corruption and human rights lawyer, Bamidele Aturu,insisted that Oduah must be made to face trial for corruption.

The EFCC had late last year interrogated the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Mr. George Uriesi; the Director General of the Nigeria Airspace Management Agency, Mr. Nnamdi Udoh, and the Director General, NCAA, Capt. Fola Akinkuotu, over the scandal.

The Managing Director of Coscharis Motors Limited, Josiah Samuel, whose firm supplied the bulletproof cars, and officers of First Bank Plc were also quizzed.

When contacted on Thursday, the Head of Media and Publicity of the EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, confirmed that the commission was still investigating the scandal.

Uwujaren faulted claims that the agency had stopped investigation into the scandal which many believed was responsible for Oduah’s removal by President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday.

“We have been on the matter. The investigation is going on. At the end of the investigation, the commission will do the appropriate thing. “ he told one of our correspondents in Abuja.

The EFCC spokesman had last month dismissed a 14-day ultimatum given to the commission by a civil rights group, Say No Campaign.

He had said, “The investigation into the issue is going on; Who is stopping it? Look, there is nothing like delay. There is no delay.”

Say No Campaign had issued a 14-day ultimatum to the anti-graft agency to arrest and prosecute Oduah because of the car scandal.

But on Thursday, the TUC, CD, CACOL, NVA and Aturu lauded Odual’s removal but noted however that it was long overdue.

The President of TUC, Bobboi Kaigama, in an interview with one of our correspondents, said Oduah’s removal was “democracy in action.”

Kaigama said, “ The President has the power to hire and fire. Nigerians are now watchdogs. All appointees should know that if they misbehave and don’t work in accordance with the oath of their office, nemesis will catch up with them.”

The President of the CD, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, said Oduah’s removal was a welcome development.

She added, “It is a welcome development, although belated. At last, the right thing has been done by dropping her as a minister following her indictment over the car purchase. Her sacking should communicate some messages to public officials.

“The EFCC must do the needful so as to halt impunity that has become a recurring decimal in our polity.”

The Executive Chairman, CACOL, Debo Adeniran, said Jonathan should do “more purging” of his cabinet.

He advised “the anti-graft agencies to prosecute Oduah for the corrupt practices perpetrated while she was in office.”

Also, the President of the NVA , Mr. Moshood Erubami, said that Oduah’s removal was not an end but a means to achieving an end that would correct noticeable wrongs in government.

Erubami stated, “The President knows why he moved swiftly against Dr. Bamanga Tukur, who was the PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) Chairman in order not to rock the boat of his second term desire.

“He also understands why he was relunctant on Stella Oduah despite her alleged indictment in the purchase of the bulletproof vehicles. He was just not forgetting the roles she played in his election in 2011 when she used the ‘Neighbour to Neighbour’ political slogan to mobilise people.”

He said that Oduah’s removal showed that the President could challenge those taking Nigeria backward.

Aturu, who described the delay in sacking Oduah as “exasperating”, said the anti-corruption agencies, especially the EFCC, must act fast on the former minister.

He said that Oduah’s belated sacking was not an indication that Jonathan and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party were averse to corruption.

The rights activist said, “There is a need for the President during campaigns to say he has done one or two things about corruption. The delay in sacking Oduah was exasperating; it shows the President is not responsive to the people of this country.

“I think that the EFCC and other anti-corruption agencies, especially the EFCC, will also see if she has to be prosecuted. The allegations against her should not be swept under the carpet.”

The Chairman, CSNAC , Mr. Lanre Suraj, shared Aturu’s view, saying the sacking of Oduah was not an indication that the President was ready to fight corruption.

“I think it is a welcome development even though it is belated. It also goes to show that the president is not committed to the fight against corruption,” he said.

He urged the EFCC to prosecute the sacked minister, as her sacking was calculated to give her a soft landing.

Suraj said, “The next thing is for the anti-corruption institutions, the EFCC especially to act, to prove to Nigeria that they are working.”

PUNCH

Drama as Reps refer 2014 budget to committees

2014-02-14T07:42:00.003+01:00

The 2014 budget passed second reading in the House of Representatives on Thursday after it went through three days of debate by lawmakers.

The budget of N4.6tn was later referred to the committee stage where the various standing committees of the House would invite agencies to defend their proposals.

However, the session was not devoid of drama, as the Peoples Democratic Party members and the Minority Leader, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, exchanged words several times.

The PDP members made efforts to distract Gbajabiamila as he contributed to the debate, by interjecting with shouts of “point of order”, “point of order”, “point of order.”

The All Progressives Congress lawmaker from Lagos State came under a barrage of attacks when he described the Appropriation Bill as a document of “voodoo economics.”

“What we have here is not a budget but a document of voodoo economics and make-belief”, he said in his opening remarks.

His choice of words immediately drew angry reactions.

The Majority Leader, Mrs. Mulikat Akande-Adeola, rose to say that Gbajabiamila was using abusive language.

“He is not addressing the House in the language of the rules book. He is telling us that this is not a budget but voodoo economics; what we are discussing here is the budget”, Akande-Adeola said.

The Deputy Leader, Mr. Leo Ogor; the Chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Mr. John Enoh; the Chairman, House Committee on Power, Mr. Patrick Ikharaile; and Mr. Robison Uwak, also kicked against the Minority leader’s choice of words.

They pointed out that under the House rules, debate on the general principles of the budget should be confined to “ the financial state of the country and the economic policy of government.”

Although Gbajabiamila modified his language after the Speaker, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, intervened, the APC lawmaker went ahead to explain why he called the budget a budget of “voodoo economics.”

He argued that only a budget of “voodoo economics” would allocate 23 per cent of funds (N1.1tn) to capital projects and vote 15 per cent (N712bn) to debt service.

Gbajabiamila said, “Mr. Speaker, it is voodoo economics when you have a deficit of N912bn. By this, you are saying that much of your capital is going to be borrowed.

“You put N21bn in the Service Wide Vote for election monitoring in the Ministry of Finance. What is that?”

Gbajabiamila added that the government earmarked only 5.6 per cent for the health sector, against the 16 per cent recommended globally.

He also faulted the “paltry budget of the education sector” for falling way behind the 26 per cent recommended by UNESCO as the minimum for all countries.

Ikhariale, a PDP member, in his contribution to the budget, described it as “comprehensive” and enough to improve the lot of Nigerians.

He called on members not to politicise the budget by reducing it to an APC/PDP affair.

“The government has taken bold steps in this budget by making very comprehensive proposals to key sectors of the economy. In my view, this is a good budget and it should be allowed to pass for second reading”, he said.

Before ruling on the debate, Tambuwal observed that members had debated the budget exhaustively for three days. He noted that some speakers were repeating what others had already said.

In spite of his observation, more members were raising their heads to speak. Members decided to vote on whether to continue with the debate or call it off.

A vote was taken and the speaker ruled in favour of discontinuing with the debate.

The budget was later passed for second reading in a majority voice vote.

A group, the Nigerian Unity Group, a coalition of lawmakers across parties in the House, commended members for passing the budget as a call to national service.

The group, which is led by a PDP member from Plateau State, Mr. Bitrus Kaze, claimed that the APC did not place the interest of the country first when it sought to block the passage of the budget.

The group noted that the decision of the APC caucus to support the passage of only the recurrent component of the budget also showed that the members did not want the budget to impact on the lives of the majority of Nigerians.

Part of a statement by the group reads, “Whereas the recurrent expenditure component of the annual Appropriation Act is for salaries and overheads, it is the capital component that actually stimulates economic growth, generates employment and propels development in the real sector, the benefits of which trickle down to the common man.

“By attempting to block the budget selectively in favour of recurrent instead of the capital component, the APC Caucus further demonstrated that they do not have the interest of the common man at heart.”

PUNCH

JAMB fixes UTME for April 12, May 17

2014-02-14T07:37:00.002+01:00

THE Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has scheduled this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination for April 12 and May 17.

The Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, said on Thursday that paper-pencil test would hold on April 12 while computer-based test would hold on May 17,2014, across 2,000 centres.

Ojerinde stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Bwari, Federal Capital Territory.

According to him, the examination will be paper- pencil-based as well as computer-based.

“We are ready for the examination even now; however we will give them time until April 12.

“We are going to do the PPT on April 12 all over the country, but the CBT will start on May 17, and it will continue for 12 days.

“In any case, we are prepared; we have 300 centres for CBT while we have 2000 centres for PPT.

“This is the last time we are going to do PPT; it will be all CBT next year, we want education to move forward, one of the ways of moving it forward is to eradicate examination malpractices.

“That is our ambition and Nigeria will join the comity of nations in terms of technological development.”

Ojerinde enjoined candidates to study hard to be able to pass.

He, therefore, expressed the organisation’s resolve to eliminate examination malpractices.

The registrar explained that the choice of the CBT was to curb exam malpractices, release results at the same time and encourage candidates to prepare adequately.

“Our experience last year showed that the CBT candidates passed better than the PPT ones; there was no single examination malpractice, there was no missing result and answer script,” he said.

The registrar said further that the reasons for limiting the choice of candidates to one university was the outcome of a meeting held sometime at the National Universities Commission.

He commended the decision as it would help to tackle problems about cost and delay experienced by candidates seeking admission through post-JAMB tests.

He said that candidates were limited to four institutions as against six to achieve the target goal.

“We limited them to four institutions; one university, one College of education, one polytechnic and one Institute for entrepreneurship, because of the actions of our institutions.

“They will call both first and second choice candidates for Post UTME, collect money from them and when the second choice candidate even scores higher than the first choice; they will prefer first choice candidates.

“So, we are saying ‘take a university, let that university finish’.

“When it finishes, we will send the rest of the material to the Polytechnic, instead of waiting for two Universities.

“Let us make it one choice. It also will reduce cost of candidates going from one institution to another, doing post UTME.

He cautioned candidates against registering for both PPT and CBT; saying “it is not possible for somebody to register for the two, you register for only one.”

The registrar, however, warned that there would be cancellation of registration for anyone caught registering for both exams.

He urged candidates wishing to change their choices of university, to do so on or before the close of the registration or stand the risk of paying the sum of N1,000 as fine.

Ojerinde said that the sale of UTME form would end on March 14, adding that sites would close on March 25.

Obasanjo Agrees To Commission Amaechi's Projects In Rivers; PDP Is Very Angry

2014-02-13T09:46:00.003+01:00

President Olusegun Obasanjo is one man you just can't put in a box, he operates out of the box at all times and there is nothing anyone can do to change that. He said Nigeria is now his constituency, not just PDP.

But the Peoples Democratic Party in Rivers State has been crying since they learnt of the invitation the former President got from Governor Rotimi Amaechi with a view to showcase his wonderful works in the state.

"Who in this world would say he does not know that Governor Amaechi built over 350 primary and secondary schools? But the truth is that Obasanjo is coming to Rivers State to see and inauguration what some blind leaders refused to see."

But the opposition PDP is seeing Obasanjo's invitation to Rivers State differently.

PDP on Wednesday described the ex-President’s invitation to the state to commission the Amaechi projects as a display of hypocrisy and pretence. It said the governor invited the ex-President to create the impression that both of them (Obasanjo and Amaechi) had overcome their resentment for each other.

But is anything wrong if Obasanjo and Amaechi reconcile? Is PDP expecting them to be enemies for life?

Reacting to PDP's criticism, Special Assistant to the Interim Chairman of the All Progressives Congress in the state, Chukwuemeka Eze, described Obasanjo as a leader with pedigree and should not be insulted by PDP.

Eze described the planned visit of the former President as historical, adding that the people of the state would come out en mass to welcome him.

In his words, “For the PDP to say that former President Obasanjo was coming to Rivers State to inauguration schools and roads built by former Governor Peter Odili shows that they are misguided in their thoughts.

“That Obasanjo said Amaechi’s governorship ambition had K-leg; that was seven years ago and the issue must have been rectified. Why is the PDP still dwelling on the issue?”

Obasanjo is expected in Rivers State on February 17, 2014.

Update On Stella Oduah's Controversial Sack

2014-02-13T09:30:00.002+01:00

The active online community was jolted back to political reality on Wednesday afternoon, when the news of the sacking of controversial Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, filtered in. Although the consensus of several Nigerians on Twitter and Facebook is that her resignation came late, many still consider it as good news.

Writer, social commentator, Tolu Ogunlesi, tweeted: “So BMW Queen @stellaoduah is no longer a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?”

Former lawmaker, Dino Melaye, also joined the unending debate on Twitter. His tweet read:

“Well-done, Mr President, for sacking Orubebe and Stella Oduah. Though belated, kudos, GEJ. Deziani is next on line. The people are winning.”

Dino Melaye later wrote, “We will re-file our cases against Stella Oduah and Orubebe at the EFCC and in court. No public thief will go unpunished. Power is transient.”

Another group of persons blame her for refusing to step aside honorably at the peak of the crisis.

Stella Oduah first came under fire and public scrutiny last October after the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority purchased two bulletproof BMW cars at an inflated rate of N255m.

Like the proverbial cat with nine lives, the ex-minister had survived criticism and probes in the past months. Also, most recently, she allegedly lied about her qualifications in the resume she presented to the Senate for her confirmation hearing. The university she claimed say they don't even offer an MBA.

It is thus not surprising that her sack appears to have overshadowed that of the other affected ministers, as all commentators made little or no mention of them in their tweets or posts.

Although the news flying round is that they (affected ministers) resigned, a cabinet source told The Punch that: "They were dropped, they did not resign.”

One of the Nigerians who reacted to the belated sack of Stella Oduah by Jonathan, said:

“After almost four months after the news broke? I’m sure her bank account is now full and she doesn’t need the job anymore. This Jonathan is always late and behind in decision making? I guess the question is: Why now?

“Imagine the kind of President we have. Just waking up from stupor? This is the kind of leader that allows his followers to slaughter others before making a decisions.”

President Jonathan Holds Secret Meeting with PDP Senators in Aso Rock

2014-02-13T09:27:00.000+01:00

After their dollars bribe to some APC lawmakers was exposed by one of the lawmaker they gave money to but refused, the PDP leadership in the Senate met with President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday night in the Aso Rock presidential villa to plot a fresh move against the fast-growing opposition ahead of 2015.

Senate President, David Mark, had announced at the end of the senate proceedings on Wednesday that PDP members should assemble in his residence, they all moved together to the meeting from Apo quarters.

The agenda of the meeting was how the senators can work for Jonathan's 2015 ambition...

All the PDP senators who announced on the floor of the senate that the have decamped to the APC refused to be part of meeting. So, it was about 50 Senators that met with Jonathan and his strategist late in the night.

A source told OluFamous.Com that President Jonathan pleaded with David Mark to find a way to bring back all the PDP senators that shunned the meeting. He said money may still be used, but more discretely.

New Rivers State Police Commissioner Reads The Riot Act

2014-02-13T09:24:00.001+01:00

The new commissioner of police in Rivers State, Tunde Ogunsakin on Wednesday took over from the former controversial commissioner, Joseph Mbu, with a warning that he would not tolerate any forms of indiscipline and corruption among officers and men of the command.

“I will not tolerate acts of indiscipline from you, the officers and your men; everyone is expected to do his or her job. I expect everyone to be committed to his or her job. I expect total loyalty to the Nigeria Police Force.

“If you don’t perform your duties, or if you are found wanting in your duty posts, you will be summarily dealt with. I will be going out on patrol to check how officers and men of this command are doing in their duty posts."

The commissioner of police disclosed that things have changed and assured that he will pay a courtesy visit on Governor Rotimi Amaechi at Government House as the chief security officer of the state...

Anyway, the new CP Ogunsakin, who addressed senior officers of the state command after taking over, urged them to continue to be loyal to the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigerian constitution.

“I will not condone corruption at all. You know all these years, I have had the opportunity of working with anti-corruption agencies, which have strengthened me in the fight against corruption. Therefore, I have zero tolerance for corruption. While I am here as commissioner of police, corruption will not be tolerated."

Funny enough, there was a mild drama at the police headquarters in Port Harcourt as a group police officers, especially women shed tears when Mbu inspected a guard of honour mounted for him. They are believed to be those close to CP Mbu who have benefited for all that went down during his tenure.

Tinubu Wades Into Osun School Crisis

2014-02-13T09:22:00.000+01:00

National leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu, arrived Osogbo on Wednesday morning to intervene in the school classification crisis in Osun state. He had Bishop Magnus Atilade and Bishop Ayo Opadokun in tow to attend the meeting with the governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN Osun Branch.

Tinubu enjoined the leaders to be careful not to turn their children to canon fodder for political battle. "We must be weary of those exploiting this situation for political ends," he implored. "Our children will be exposed to danger. Their education will suffer unless we settle down and deal with these issues."

At the meeting, Tinubu - who spoke first - sued for peace. He pleaded with both sides to be understanding and see this meeting as a sincere attempt to deal with the issues and get everyone on the same page.

Tinubu was direct and lucid as he drew on his experience as Lagos governor and warned that politicizing this issue will not do anyone any good.

"I want the best for Osun. We have sacrificed too much for Osun and the Southwest politically to now allow an issue like this tear us apart. A stich in time saves nine," the APC leader said.

The meeting ended on a reasonable note as all the parties agree to work together for an amicable resolution.

Here's President Jonathan's Legacy

2014-02-13T09:19:00.002+01:00

The president of the federal republic of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan said at the launch of two new programs in Abuja, February 11th, 2014, that his legacies will outlive his administration. Many Nigerians are delighted as it appears the Nigeria’s president since February 2010 is making such statements as he wraps up his reign and prepares to hand over in 2015 at the end of his current tenure and 8 years in Aso rock.

Nigeria’s president, Goodluck Jonathan promised Nigerians that he will not be contesting re-election.

It is true that the legacy of Goodluck Jonathan and his administration will long outlive him and be talked of, written of and studied in Nigerian schools for generations to come.

Below we tried to summarize 20 of his most notable legacies...

1. World Cup 2010: Goodluck Jonathan banned Nigeria’s football team from all international competitions for two years for their failure in the world cup.

2. 2011 covenant to be elected: Dear Nigerians, if you vote me in this 2011, I promise I will not seek re-election in 2015. (This achievement is on hold as Nigerians believe he is a man of honor and he did not trick and defraud them.)

3. September 2011 on Boko Haram: Let me use this occasion to reassure Nigerians and members of the international communities that we now have strong links as to those involved in this terror war on Nigeria and Nigerians. I have directed security operatives to go after them, no matter where they may be hiding. –As at February 12th, 2014, he is yet to accost a single terror mastermind and thousands of civilians and soldiers have died from the sponsored terror.

4. Again in January of 2012 the president said of Boko Haram: Some of them are in the executive arm of government, some of them are in the parliamentary/legislative arm of government, while some of them are even in the judiciary, some are also in the armed forces, the police and other security agencies. Some continue to dip their hands and eat with you and you won’t even know the person who will point a gun at you or plant a bomb behind your house…

5. Fuel Subsidy: For his January 2012 New Year’s gift to Nigerians by attempting to remove the entire “fuel subsidy” in one swoop to introduce the year.

6. Fuel Subsidy 2: Conceding to Nigerians that a cabal existed which robbed the nation and this cabal was beyond his power as executive president to curtail and prosecute.

7. Fuel Subsidy 3: For wasting Nigerians time by investigating the fuel subsidy thieves only to never prosecute them.

8. Jonathan Vs CNN’s Amanpour: The electricity is improving it is only the opposition that say it is not. (Inferring that CNN’s anchor, Christine Amanpour must be the opposition.)

9. Words to Obama: For you to fix the world, you must fix Africa. For you to fix Africa, you must fix Nigeria.

10. On Corruption he is remembered for saying: Corruption is not the cause of all the problems confronting Africa. (This is a reversal of his earlier statement to Christian Amanpour at the beginning of his tenure, that corruption and power are two of Nigeria’s top problems.)

11. On theft of Nigeria’s crude oil: Stolen crude is refined abroad, not in Nigeria so abroad is to blame for the theft of our oil.

12. On winning elections: 16 > 19

13. Internationally: For missing his speaking slot in May 2013 at the AU 50th anniversary occasion in Ethiopia.

14. Internationally 2: For again missing the investment summit meeting in UK, November 2013, where he allegedly checked in to the hospital for “hang-over.”

15. @ World Bank: Nigeria does not have 100 million destitute—Presidency. But Jonathan government’s National Bureau of Statistics, NBS: Sorry sir, but we do have 100 million destitute, that’s data from our office, Sir.

16. NNPC scams under his administration to the tune of$10.8b, $12b, $20b, $49.8b

17. $7bn Berne declaration expose on sweet Swiss oil baron deals, labeled as the “Greatest fraud Africa has ever known.”

18. Forgetting the EFCC and ICPC and setting up a Kangaroo panel on BMW millions robbery scam Oduahgate. The panel delivered a decision to sack her which he again forgot.

19. For presenting a strong accusation of political assassination but failing to execute justice for murder. He said to Obasanjo: There have certainly been cases of political assassination since the advent of our Fourth Republic, but as you well know, none of them occurred under my leadership.

20. For keeping Bamanga Tukur who publicly declared support for Boko Haram terrorists with the words, “Boko Haram is fighting for justice; Boko Haram is another name for justice” as PDP chairman and then quickly appointing him chairman of Nigerian Railway.

Others include, Private jets, Dokubo, Al Mustapha, the gay rapist released, Eloping with Diezani, begging three times failed NSA Gusau, keeping Facrook in office and on payroll, selling and non-selling refineries, Tokunbo ban, road-use tax, national debt and reserves, broke nation, naira depreciation, and more and more…

The Goodluck Jonathan administration which is an extension of the Obasanjo administration has a little over a year to complete its tenure. It is hoped that the president will in this end period try to do some bold and strong, remarkable things, especially in the line of top official impunity and corruption, and terror sponsorship, that will be remembered in positive light when Jonathan’s legacy is written and read.

Dr. Peregrino Brimah
http://ENDS.ng/ [Every Nigerian Do Something]
Email: drbrimah@ends.ng Twitter: @EveryNigerian

Some of my critics are very corrupt –President Jonathan

2014-02-13T09:17:00.005+01:00

President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday took on critics of his government’s posture in the fight against corruption, saying some of the critics were very corrupt individuals. The President has been under severe criticisms from Nigerians over his attitude towards the fight against corruption, especially among top officials of government.

In fact, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, in a scathing remark recently, said the ‘body language’ of the President showed that he was not interested in fighting the scourge of corruption. The Speaker spoke at an event organised by the Nigerian Bar Association to mark the 2013 International Anti-corruption Day in Abuja on December 9, 2013.

But Jonathan in Abuja replied the critics, saying some of them criticised his government over corruption only to earn undeserved credibility.

He spoke shortly after swearing in the chairman and two members of the National Population Commission; a member of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission; and two special advisers at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The new special advisers are Senator Suleiman Ajadi (National Assembly) and Ambassador Fidelia Njeze (New Partnership for African Development).

The President said, “The society is so funny that these days, anybody who wants to claim any element of credibility at all will go to the television and accuse government of corruption, that the President’s body language shows that he is not fighting corruption or that he is not ready to fight corruption.

“Sometimes, even the very corrupt people are those making these statements because if you attack government you are insulated, you become an angel.

“If you want to be an angel, just attack the government, whatever you have done is covered.”

The President said he was convinced that the ICPC and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission were working hard to tackle corruption but that the agencies must prove to Nigerians that they were performing.

He said while the anti-graft agencies should naturally work without undue publicity, the negative comments by Nigerians on the anti-corruption efforts had made it imperative for the outfits to always flaunt their achievements.

He wondered why people would accuse his government of not fighting corruption even when the EFCC recently made a publication indicating that the commission had so far convicted 250 corrupt persons.

Jonathan said he did not subscribe to the idea of people being convicted on the television before court trial but that the agencies should be able to present their scorecards before Nigerians regularly so that people would appreciate their efforts.

The President also warned public officials to be mindful of their statements.

He told the new NPC chairman, Chief Eze Iheoma (SAN) that he sacked his predecessor, Chief Festus Odimegwu, because of a certain statement that he made that brought credibility problem to the commission.

Odimegwu had said that the country had not had any credible census since 1816, blaming the irregularity on the alleged distortion and falsification of figures for selfish and political reasons.

The President said, “You have to be mindful of the statements you make and that is not limited to the National Population Commission alone but to all of us who are holding offices.

“You must be very mindful and not make statements that will create problem for the society. I dropped your predecessor because of certain statements he made and brought credibility problem to the commission.

“He is a fine gentleman, everybody knows him, very cerebral. But an institution like the National Population Commission must be one that people will believe in whatever you do.

“And if you make pronouncements that will create credibility problem to that institution, the best thing is for you to step aside for some other persons to step in because the credibility of that institution is critical.

“Perception in most cases is stronger than real; no matter what you do, if the perception is wrong then society will not follow you.”

Jonathan sacks Oduah, three other ministers

2014-02-13T09:12:00.002+01:00

Less than 48 hours after ordering his Chief of Staff, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe, to resign, President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday sacked four ministers from the Federal Executive Council.

The affected persons are the ministers of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah; Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Godsday Orubebe; Police Affairs, Navy Cpt. Caleb Olubolade; and the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Ngama.

All the ministers, except Oduah, attended the FEC meeting on Wednesday at which Jonathan announced their exit.

Oduah had been in the eye of the storm since last year over the purchase of two bulletproof BMW cars for N255m on her behalf by a parastatal under the ministry, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority.

Apart from the amount spent on the cars, which was found to be grossly above the market value, Nigerians also queried the propriety of the purchase by a parastatal that was finding it difficult to train key personnel responsible for aviation safety.

The House of Representatives, based on the report of a committee it set up to investigate the matter, had asked Jonathan to review Oduah’s appointment.

Following public outcry that greeted the news of the car purchase, Jonathan had set up a three-man administrative panel headed by a former Head of Service of the Federation, Alhaji Isa Bello, to investigate the matter.

Although he had on November 24, 2013 publicly acknowledged receipt of the panel’s report, the President did not disclose the content of the report nor take any decision based on the report for many weeks.

Briefing State House correspondents on the outcome of the weekly FEC meeting on Wednesday, the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, said the President informed the council that he had asked the affected ministers to step out of his cabinet to enable them to pursue other political and private interests.

He said, “Today, the President announced further changes in the Federal Executive Council. He said a number of ministers have been asked to step out of the council to further their own interests; some in politics, others in their own private focus.

“Clearly, what the President did today (Wednesday) was to allow the ministers who have indicated interest in pursuing further goals in the polity, in the economy and in the life of the country, to go.

“Those asked by the President to go include the following: Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Ngama; Minister of Police Affairs, Navy-Capt. Caleb Olubolade (retd.); Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe; and Minister of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah.”

Maku added, “In announcing the acceptance of their decision to participate in the polity, the President thanked them very sincerely for the great job they have done in helping the government realise the goals that have been achieved under the transformation agenda.

“The President believes that they have done so well for this administration and is generally happy with what they have done, particularly in their various sectors, to help the administration realise the goals we have seen today in the results we have arrived at under the transformation programme of the government.”

When asked to clarify if the ministers resigned their appointments or were asked to step down, Maku said, “The President said he had asked them to go because of their interests. They have indicated interests in pursuing higher and deeper interests in the polity; and so, he has decided to allow them to go and pursue those interests. You have to get that correctly so that you won’t go and say something like what was said in the case of the former Chief of Staff (to the President).”

When further asked whether the President, in sacking the ministers, made any reference to the report of the committee he set up to probe Oduah or preferred to confine the report to the dustbin of history, Maku paused for a few minutes before saying, “I have just reported exactly what the President said. Also, don’t forget that an allegation doesn’t necessarily mean guilt, and I think the press should always take some time to be patient.

“But the truth of the matter is that they left because they indicated interest in playing deeper roles in the politics of the country and the President has decided to let them go.”

Pending when substantive ministers would be named, Maku said the President had directed some members of his cabinet to take over at the affected ministries in acting capacity.

Under the arrangement, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Samuel Ortom, will be supervising the Aviation ministry; the Minister of State, Federal Capital Territory, Ms. Olajumoke Akinjide, will supervise the Police Affairs ministry; the Minister of State, Niger Delta, Mr. Dairus Ishaku, will assume control over the ministry; while the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, will take over Ngama’s duties.

Olubolade and Orubebe left the Presidential Villa shortly after the FEC meeting before the news of their removal filtered to journalists.

Ngama, on his part, declined granting an interview to journalists covering the State House, insisting that he would only talk to Hausa correspondents, whom he engaged in discussion for several minutes before walking out of the Villa.

The last time Jonathan sacked ministers was on September 11, 2013 when he showed nine members of his cabinet the way out.

The ministers who were then affected included that of Education, Prof Ruqayyatu Rufai; Science and Technology, Prof. Ita Ewa; Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru; Environment, Mrs. Hadiza Mailafia; National Planning, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman; and Housing, Lands and Urban Development, Ms. Amal Pepple.

Others were the ministers of State for Defence, Mrs. Olusola Obada; Agriculture, Alhaji Bukar Tijani; and Power, Mrs. Zainab Kuchi.

Reacting to the sacking of Oduah, the President, Aviation Roundtable, Capt. Dele Ore, said, “Whether it is sacking or resignation is immaterial. The important thing is that she is off the back of the ministry; and now, the Ministry of Aviation can move forward. During her tenure, I would say the aviation industry was moved 60 years backwards.

“On the issue of whether she should be prosecuted or not, I can’t comment on that; I am only interested in aviation safety and things to do with the industry.”

The Chief Executive Officer, Centurion Security and Safety Consult, Group Captain John Ojikutu, said, “Well, I think the resignation or removal is long overdue. Her cup was full.

“I think she has given some of us in this industry the last laugh, which lent some credence to what we have been saying since; forget all the talk about remodelling, that one was just an ambience thing. I should have expected people to look beyond all that. In my opinion, she messed up the entire aviation ministry.”

Defection: PDP regains House majority status

2014-02-12T09:38:00.000+01:00

The Peoples Democratic Party on Tuesday regained its majority status in the House of Representatives following the defection of five members of the All Progressives Congress to the PDP.

The PDP, which had earlier lost the majority status in the House to the APC, now has 178 lawmakers to APC’s 168.

Although the APC also gained one member from the PDP on Tuesday, the latter is now in the majority.

The APC had moved to 172 members on December 19, 2013 after 37 PDP lawmakers defected to the party.

The APC lawmaker who defected to the PDP on Tuesday were, Mr. Lawan Shehu-Bichi (Kano); Mr. Abdulsalam Asamu (Kano); Mr. Sani Dangaladima (Zamfara); Mr. Ibrahim Shehu-Gusua (Zamfara); and Mr. Umar Bature (Sokoto).

The member who defected to the APC from PDP was Isa Ashiru from Kaduna State.

Speaker of the House, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, read letters the lawmakers wrote individually, informing their colleagues of their decision to change political parties.

Members of the PDP reacted to the development with wild jubilation.

Some members of the party were so excited that they rushed to Shehu-Gusua and carried him up.

For a few minutes, there was disorderliness on the floor of the lower chamber as members ran to the Majority Leader, Mrs. Mulikat Akande-Adeola, scrambling to shake hands with her.

They were also seen congratulating the Deputy Majority Leader, Mr. Leo Ogor.

Akande-Adeola’s seat was most threatened when the APC had a slim majority control over the House

until the latest development.

The APC came short of effecting a leadership change in the House three weeks ago but were restrained by the court injunction obtained by the PDP against change in the leadership of the House.

How The APC Can Emerge Victorious In 2015

2014-02-12T08:43:00.000+01:00

The All Progressives Congress started with a momentum as a radical opposition party in Nigeria. Relatively, it seems to have achieved visibility nationwide, especially in the media. It has also succeeded in antagonising the ruling Peoples Democratic Party on many issues and has attracted many prominent politicians from the ruling party including five governors and a former Vice-President recently.

The party has also caused sizeable apprehension in the National Assembly and in the process “harvested” many senators and members of the House of Representatives into its fold. As a political party that had only recently commenced formal membership registration, this is no mean feat.

However, the fast-growing party must go beyond all these if it intends to successfully displace the PDP and form government at the centre in 2015.

Below are three steps APC must take urgently if its desire to upstage the PDP will be realised...

The first step it must take towards rebranding the party will be to allow the big wigs to retreat to the background.Politicians like Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Gen. Muhamadu Buhari, Chief Tom Ikimi, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, Chief Bisi Akande, Chief Timipre Sylva, Dr.Ogbonnaya Onu, Aminu Bello Masari, among others are enormous assets to the party. In fact, they are the party’s backbone and can be said to be the sources for the initial impressive take-off velocity that the party has got. Though they bring on the table considerable strength and following, they cannot be the face of change that Nigerians need at this time.

And I say this for every politician that falls into their category; they are considered as part and parcel of the country’s problem and so it will be difficult for Nigerians to trust these same people to provide the solutions to the problems. Some of them have tainted political past and are currently carrying one baggage or another. The APC must get these men to willingly withdraw to the background and allow new faces to market the party to Nigerians. This does not mean that the powers these men wield in their various constituencies will not be useful at this time, but the fact remains that the alternative party that Nigerians will have confidence in must not be driven overtly by those who are believed to have contributed to the current impoverishment that the people are suffering.

The second step will be to rid the party of anything tribal or religious in their ranks. It may be pure propaganda but the fact remains that many Nigerians feel strongly that the APC or some elements within its fold may be promoters of ethnicity and religious politics. That toga still hangs over the party rightly or wrongly. In Nigeria, such issues matter. Other political parties might have started using these two points as frontline reasons for their negative publicity against the APC and they will likely convince many people. Considering that no political party can form government at the national level by winning votes from any one region only, the APC must remodel itself along the lines of religious neutrality and inter-ethnic inclusivity.

More so, there have been several events over the last few years that have made tribal and especially religious issues very sensitive. The “deportation” of some “destitute” South-Easterners by the Lagos State Government was interpreted by many as a targeted aggression against a particular ethnic group. It was an avoidable gaffe linked to an APC run state government. That feeling contributed partly to the poor outing of the APC candidate in the recent governorship elections in Anambra State. [Anyway, Governor Babatunde Fashola has apologized, since some mischief politicians tried to blow the issue out of proportion].

On a related note, the seriousness of the party’s condemnation of the Boko Haram insurgency in parts of Northern Nigeria is fairly unclear. As the insurgents continue to target worship centres among others, they inadvertently provide potent opportunities for outreach. To attract widespread support, the APC must be seen as a tribally and religiously inclusive platform. As a party that expects to contest elections and win by popular votes from the masses, one would have expected it to rise and condemn every attack by insurgents and even provide relief materials, by so doing come clean of some of the accusations from its political opponents.

The third step the APC must take is to articulate an alternative programme and market such aggressively to the Nigerian people beyond its resort to criticising the PDP at will. The promise of a progressive state and the doctrine of a social contract anchored on a social democracy, all sound good but they are a bit vague for an ordinary Nigerian to connect to. A greater part of the preamble on its website re-echoed the daily frustrations and lamentations of an ordinary citizen.

However, this will not be the basis for the mass mobilisation for an opposition party that is preparing to take over power. There needs to be very concrete strategies on how the promise of change it promises will be actualised and operationalised. In the “manifesto” on its website, the party promised seven cardinal programmes though it listed eight items below the statement. How could such error escape its vigilance?

The best way to sell the APC quickly is to show the performance of governors currently serving under the party’s platform. If it can show convincingly that its elected officials are already delivering “change”, then it will be easier for Nigerians to believe that it will do more at the federal level. Furthermore, it could start test-running some of its policy proposals in the various states so that it can get concrete feedback for improvement.

This is a time to deploy superior political tactics to woo the electorate. To confront a party in power and hope to displace it is not a kettle of fish. The incumbent government may appear incompetent in a way that has made many Nigerians angry. However, to harness that anger into a positive electoral outcome will require a lot of work. The APC must manage to pull off a less cantankerous convention and free and fair primary elections to gain the confidence of Nigerians. Its leaders must embrace the outcome of such elections with unity of purpose and equanimity. That way, it will present Nigerians with a crop of untainted leaders on the APC platform whose reputation and appeal will cut across a wider spectrum of citizens beyond ethnic and religious boundaries. We are all anxious to see them climb the podium.

Henceforth, every action or inaction of the APC will count to support or disrupt its probability of capturing power in 2015.

APC should get one thing clear – that it is possible does not mean that it will be an easy one.

Written by UCHE IGWE

2015 will be better than 2011 elections – Jega

2014-02-12T08:39:00.001+01:00

ABUJA — Contrary to criticisms that have trailed the recently released time-table for the 2015 general elections by the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC, chairman of the commission, Professor Attahiru Jega has avowed that the exercise would be much better than the previous ones.

Professor Jega made the promise, yesterday, in Abuja at the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC/INEC forum with broadcast operators on media coverage of elections.

Jega said INEC had learnt its lessons from Anambra election conducted last year, which was dogged by logistic lapses, but was quick to say that INEC would not allow a repeat of such mistakes in the coming elections.

On the preparations for the 2015 general elections and release of time-table, Jega said: “The countdown towards those dates has begun in earnest. I am aware that the dates we announced have been challenged by some politicians. INEC choice of dates was informed by purely rational and logical considerations.

“We have scheduled the elections for February 2015 to allow ample time for litigations, which are inevitable in our Nigerian context, before the commencement of new tenures on May 29 2015.”

He debunked the allegation that INEC changed the sequence of elections in 2015, when compared with 2011, and advised those calling for one-day elections to have a re-think.

Jega insisted that the challenge of holding one-day elections were too daunting for Nigeria’s nascent democracy at this time.

“All we have done is to combine the national elections – namely for National Assembly seats and presidential in one day; and state elections for governorship offices and State Assembly seats on a separate day. This for us, is rational and a defensible thing to do. But we also know that partisan criticism of whatever move we make is inevitable. We will just stay focused.

“Our preparation for the 2015 general elections began almost immediately after the 2011 general elections.

“The principle underlying our preparations for the 2015 elections has been to consolidate on the gains of 2011 and prevent a re-currence of its weakness,” he added.

To achieve this, he said INEC identified three focal points, including structure, policy and planning, and had taken steps to address them.

Challenges

He said it was not possible to predict all the challenges that could face the management of an election, but pointed out that INEC had learnt from the past challenges and introduced measures to prevent their recurrence, while anticipating new ones and devising measures to contain them.

Among four major challenges identified by the INEC boss are: insecurity, funding, attitude of the political class and inactive citizenry, which, he said, could be surmounted if every stakeholder performed his duty as stipulated by the law.

Besides the key challenges identified, Jega also listed pending amendment to the legal framework; review of electoral constituencies and prosecution of electoral offenders as residual challenges facing the electoral body.

Media

He said the media had a crucial role to play in enlightening the electorate and sustainability of democracy and charged Nigerian media to be thorough, fair, non-sensational and balanced in their reporting of the coming elections.

“Our democracy in Nigeria is hard won, after repeated intrusions by the military in governance and long years of authoritarian rule that resulted. Despite the relative stability that we have enjoyed since the advent of the present Fourth Republic, we are still in the process of weaning our political culture away from authoritarian tendencies fostered by decades of military rule.

“The media has a crucial role to play in the efforts to truly democratise our political culture,” Jega added.

Pre-emptive electioneering

The INEC henchman identified the growing tendency by political parties towards pre-emptive electioneering as one of the issues that give INEC concern.

Citing section 99, sub section 1 of the Electoral Act, Jega accused some political parties and politicians of engaging in premature electioneering, which he said “often heat up the polity unnecessarily and break the established laws of the country.

While calling on the media to discourage such tendencies, the INEC boss advised the political actors to always play by the rule of the game to safe-guide the nascent democracy.

In his address, the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku said, election has been a problem in Nigeria since independence in 1960, saying that there is need for Nigeria to conduct free and fair elections in 2015 better than the previous editions to prove to the world that they can do it.

The Minister said the Present administration is committed to free and fair elections, as demonstrated in the 2011 general elections, which was declared as the most freest and fairest in the history of the country.

“Since 2007, this country has been committed to free and fair elections. Since the advent of this administration, there has been a commitment to free and fair election. 2011 elections were adjudged the freest in the history of Nigeria and litigation cases came down to 50 per cent,” Maku said.

The Minister also said that the President had freed the media by signing the Freedom of Information bill into law and as such, the media should reciprocate the gesture by ensuring free and fair election in the forthcoming elections by making sure that their reports are balanced, credible and accurate.

He therefore, urged every Nigerian citizen to ensure they create enabling environment for free and fair elections to take place in 2015.

Read Professor Pat Utomi's Exposé On PDP versus APC

2014-02-12T08:25:00.001+01:00

Clichés have a way of reinforcing stereotypes and shielding either the truth or an understanding of trends that result in more than the narrow visions of the point. There is perhaps no better example of this than frequently repeated view that there is no difference between the major political parties in Nigeria today. It is a cliché that needs discerning exploration.

It may be true that no clear set of ideas defined engagement of parties in the wake of the hurried departure of the military in 1999 but, lessons from history suggest that the kind of groaning and travails that currently mark the system have had a way of giving birth to something new and more desirable. It is this history that leads me to being more cautious in judgement.

It is in fact my expectation that the more carefully observed signs pointing to an All Progressives Congress (APC) that will be ideologically left of centre, and very peoples-oriented, a kind of people sensitive and responsive enterprise economy, that is justice focused. Also that even the PDP will come out of this process less prone to impunity, even if conservative, and may become more disciplined.

Why do I think so?

On this matter, I like often to point to the history of how the Republican and Democratic Parties in the United States have evolved in relation to African Americans.

Many young people, who presume the Democrats have always been the more liberal of the Parties with higher sensitivity to the minority groups, are shocked to learn that the Republican Party was once the Party opposed to dehumanizing slavery, and that Abraham Lincoln - who fought to end it, as state policy, and who put the people at the centre of the purpose of government - was a Republican. In the nature of how political party traditions emerge, as I indicated at the keynote I gave at the Leadership Newspapers annual lectures two years ago, referring liberally to Reberto Michels and his 1911 study of political parties, trends of how parties thrive, abound, and of Michels Iron's Law of Oligarchy, informs of anything, it is the important place of the political parties structure in evolution.

This is why I think a close look at the political history of Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, General Muhammadu Buhari, Chief Bisi Akande and some workroom people in APC do a better job of revealing where APC may be going than the excitable pundit on television points to or that the journalist seeking sensation is likely to see.

Let us take Tinubu. I can speak with a fair amount of authority to some of his strengths that I see leaving an imprimatur on the APC, which the pundits miss. This is because I spent a fair amount of time being part of or facilitating retreats of the-would be cabinet from when he was Governor-elect until some time into his first term. The first of the strengths is captured in his passion for competence and his comfort level with having the best around him. A U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria once said to me that he wished the Federal cabinet were half as good as the Lagos State Cabinet.

That disposition and the courage of the lion in taking on daunting obstacles is a flavor I see clearly affecting the course of the APC.

With General Buhari, his austere and ascetic ways with a clear following by the people at the bottom of the pyramid, who are looking for people of integrity with a monomaniacal focus on the needs of the downtrodden mark him out and show the imprint his preference will leave on how the party is shaped after all the building of critical mass settles. Then there is Chief Bisi Akande.

As I have indicated before, when The Concerned Professionals wanted a speaker for an event many years ago and decided it wanted someone who had been in government and had shown uncommon touch, for the common good while living integrity, it settled for Chief Bisi Akande.

Mesh this with the intellectual wing of APC, which includes elements from the Restoration Group that emanated from the Concerned Professionals and people like Nasir El-Rufai, who has unusual capacity for faithful execution, and the kinds of conversations quietly going on with the principals mentioned here that I have been involved with and you see that the APC will crystallize into a peoples' party that is left of centre with programmes of free education, decentralization of authority and large scale small business support for massive job-creation, based on value-chains derived from the factor endowment of local development areas.

At a discussion I participated in on instructions of Chief Akande, to shape party policy, one professor summed up the nature of the vision of the party that emerged as “Ijoba mekunu” or "Party Umu Obenye", in the spirit of the Talakawa focused thrust of Aminu Kano. To see the cross carpets as coming to party in the party, and think there is no ideology in Nigerian politics or that there is no difference between PDP and APC is to miss the point of parties in evolution and watch a test of analytic power on the part of commentators.

The parties are clearly in evolution and the future of Nigeria depends on the expectation that power can swing back and forth between parties. Nigeria is richer for the fact that the alternative is not now only much bigger than those who were previously in opposition, to but it is developing an ideological bent.

There are, in one orientation, or tendency in APC, people like myself who are more interested in principles, systems, values and institutions that shape human progress. Our path to the APC began with escalating roles in social enterprise and civil society, to trying to set the agenda for the political arena in 2007. On that track I was matched in the top traunch of the Presidential debates with candidates Umaru Yar’Adua and Muhammadu Buhari.

Mallam Yar’Adua was either unwilling or unable to come, so I debated General Buhari on that fateful nationally televised debate. As permanent video records indicate, my last words at the end of the debates as we shook hands was: "This country can be fixed, General; we can work together to change this country for our children. We must fix Nigeria!" In that spirit, I ended up in his hotel suite for dinner that night.

From that moment forward, the main role I have played has been to try to pull together a formidable opposition and help build a value platform on which it could rest.

After the terribly rigged elections that brought Yar’Adua to office, I worked with General Buhari, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and others to show how flawed those elections were. In 2010 and 2011 I worked, first with the late Chief Anthony Enahoro and Chief Olu Falae in pursuit of the same goal.

When Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu invited me to accompany him on a similar mission a year ago, I confessed that I was near exhaustion on that track but will work with him where necessary. He succeeded where we had failed and I have praised that accomplishment and been working, as promised, to help with future content and structure.

I have no doubt that this is not perfection on day one but it is a strong head start in what may be one of the biggest left of centre, people-centred political movements in the world since Fabian socialism gripped the soul of Europe after World War II and catapulted the Labour Party into prominence in the United Kingdom.

This is an article of faith and statement of hope on one hand as it is a rigorous reading of trends on the other.

- By Prof Pat Utomi