Weekly Insight

Minerva Rewards

2012-01-30T02:53:00.000-08:00

Minerva Rewards: It's about time somebody came up with something like this! Brilliant idea. Totally awesome.

‎2015 Poll: Ibibio, Oro Locked in Secret Onslaught

2012-01-29T16:35:00.000-08:00

By Franklyn Isong

2015 governorship race in Akwa Ibom state seems to be a fight of the fittest between the two ethnic groups of Ibibio and Oro as several sponsored political groups have emerged from both tribes canvassing support for the zoning of the state top job to its zone, our checks show.
Akwa Ibom state is made up of three major ethnic groups of Ibibio, Annang and Oro. While the people of Oro nation are known to be gearing up towards occupying the governorship seat in 2015, the major ethnic group in the state, Ibibio has reportedly asked them to wait as, according to them, the seat was bound to return back to the Ibibios who ceded to Annang in 2007/2011.
It is established that Akwa Ibom State is made up of 31 local government areas, out of which Ibibio race has 14 local government areas spread across the three senatorial districts of Uyo and Eket and Ikot Ekpene, and Oro has 5 local government areas located along the coast line of Eket Senatorial District.
Already the area (Oron) has produced a deputy governor, several state chairmen of political parties including PDP, senators for Eket Senatorial District, and other top government officials, including ambassadors and ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, according to our checks.
However, bids by Oro nation to clinch the governorship position of the state have always remained a mirage because of its little political straight, and as an Ibibio elder who spoke with this paper on grounds of anonymity put it, “politics is a game of numbers, and so if they (Oro nation) must look for the state’s top job in 2015, it must be after 2015 because the seat is there for us in 2015. This is non-negotiable and not contestable.”
Weekly Insight spoke with some prominent Ibibio elders last week in Uyo on the 2015 power struggle between the two ethnic groups, and they maintained that Oro nation has always had its fair share in government of the day in the state. They observed that right from the administrations of late Obong Akpan Isemin, Obong Victor Attah and down to that of Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio the area has always been duly represented in the so-called tripod arrangement in the state.
They said, “it was the Ibibios that ceded power to Annangs in 2007/2011 because they lobbied the Ibibios for it, and sought their support and entered into an accord with the Ibibios. Oro nation has always felt that it could just jump into the race for governorship without due consultations with other major ethnic groups in the state.
“If they have consulted us, we would have advised them on the right time to look for the governorship seat of the state. As it stands, no elder in Ibibio land has been consulted by any Oro man for that office else they would have known our position on the 2015 governorship position.
“There is no how we can negotiate with the Oro nation for 2015. The power must first return back to Ibibio land in 2015 before we consider any other ethnic group for it; but in 2015, the power comes back to the Ibibios irrespective of the zone, whether Eket Sen. District, Uyo Sen. District or even Ibibios of Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District.”
However, a former commissioner in the state from Mbo LGA of Oro extraction, Hon. Chris AbasiEyo, has while fielding question on the matter in a telephone conversation from Abuja yesterday, told this paper that the governorship position of the state was a constitutional right of every Akwa Ibom citizen irrespective of ethnic group.
He argued that the Ibibios and Annangs have taken shots at the office and that they should support the Oro nation for the top job.
Chief Eyo who preferred to be addressed as the Crown Prince of Bakassi Peninsula, said that no Oro indigene would support any candidate to the office in 2015 from Eket Senatorial District if the candidate is not from the Oro nation, noting that if the office goes to either Ikot Abasi or Eket Federal Constituency, Oro people would further be marginalized in the state because as it stands, “we have been sidelined because the deputy governor is from Ikot Abasi in Eket Senatorial District.”
He contended that it would be better for Oro people to work for aspirants from Uyo Senatorial District than Eket Senatorial District.
He assured that there were ongoing consultations and dialogue with the Ibibios to step down for Oro nation so that the tripod can be said to be respected in the interest of equity and fair-play.
Meanwhile, a member of the Oro Union confided in this paper that some senior politicians from the area held a meeting in Abuja in the residence of one of theirs who is occupying a sensitive position in President Goodluck Jonathan’s government, disclosing that the meeting took a critical view of the state politics and the 2015 governorship seat. He hinted that out of about nine possible aspirants for the seat, three whom the meeting considered serious and fit were adopted to work with at the moment.
The source further added that these names were still subject to change as “in politics change is permanent,” noting that the three names would soon be presented to an enlarged meeting of Oro people before they are forwarded to the ruling PDP as candidates for the governorship position of the party.
At the moment, there are several groups working for one candidate or the other from both ethnic groups in the state.
Meanwhile, a prominent elder statesman in Ibibio politics, Elder Joe Udobia, has argued that “Oro people have jumped the gun”, saying that Akwa Ibom State was not created on ethnic basis.
The former Special Adviser to Obong Victor Attah on Political and Legislative Matters stressed that “what the Oro people should be asking for should be power shift to Eket Senatorial District,” noting that “thereafter, the district can sit on a round table to agree on which federal constituency to zone the position to.”
Further on the issue, the leader of an apex Ibibio socio-cultural organization in the state, the Akwa Esop Imaisong Ibibio, Ntisong Essien Udo Ekidem, has hinted that the body will summon a meeting of pan-Ibibio political leaders in the state to take a position on the matter this week.

One for Eight Initiative Ends Symposium, Identifies Means of Maintaining Ethnic Harmony

2012-01-29T16:34:00.000-08:00

A socio-political group in Akwa Ibom state, One For Eight Initiative has ended its Vox-pop and symposium on identifying and managing socio-political conflicts in Nigeria, held at the Amazing Grace Center Uyo. The group, which is principally concerned with the promotion of justice, equity, fair play, and accountability in the practice of governance, asserted that it went into the symposium as a result of the escalating incidents of violence across the country, especially the threat of the Boko Haram group in the north.
The guest speaker was Prof. Celestine Bassey of the University of Calabar, an international consultant, former Directing Staff/Sabbatical Fellow of National War College, Abuja and, visiting Fulbright Scholar at William Penn University, IOWA, USA.
In a communiqué issued after the event and signed by the group’s Prime Minister, Akparawa Godwin Ntuk Udeh and the National Secretary, Dr Martyns Udo Inyang, the group noted that the size of the country was a huge advantage that should be maintained by doing everything possible to retain the unity of the country. “In a multi-ethnic and culturally diverse country as Nigeria with a population of over 160 million, there will always be periodic conflicts and, management of the conflict has to do with the ability to control and contain the situation in such a way as not to impede the normal functioning of the Nigerian society”
On Boko Haram, the communiqué read, “For each conflict as typified by the Boko Haram insurgency, there is always a face or faces behind the shadow. Efforts should be intensified by trained security agencies through intelligence gathering mechanisms to penetrate the shadows by infiltration of the ranks of the gangsters.”
The group identified, “Increasing and pervasive hunger, widespread starvation and malnutrition; Growing destitution and begging on the streets by increasing number of old and young Nigerians; Massive and rising unemployment provoking the incidence of “checking out” and “brain drain”; Struggle for limited political space as well as ethnic and religious conflicts; Contest for access to resources and persistence in claims over territorial space; Large number of business closures; Collapsed and decaying educational and health facilities; Decay in infrastructure such as oil refineries, roads, railways, airways, etc; Diminishing power generation;
Environmental degradation; Policy inconsistency, lack of accountability, mismanagement and institutionalized corruption; Existence of private militias that were established, funded, used and dumped”, as causes of the crisis rocking the country.
They therefore, called “For the policy response of government to be effective in terms of preventing the intensification of spread of current or existing violent conflicts in Nigeria, it must be multi-dimensional, holistic and targeted. The concern of the Federal Government should not just be on enhancing the instrumental capacity of the security apparatus through a trillion naira budget, but also to address the fundamental sources of the generative factors (both structural and psycho-cultural) that cause and sustain the violent spectrum of conflict in Nigeria;
“The government, as a matter of urgency, should address the sources (social and political context) of terrorism and sectarian challenges to the Nigerian State: mass poverty, unemployment, alienation, “predatory, economic strategies, mal-development and the inequitable distribution of resources which generate and feed the spiral violence”

Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, BUSH HOUSE NIGERIA Is Grateful

2012-01-29T16:32:00.003-08:00

My Dear Int'l President

1.0 It is a crying shame it's taken me well over a month to send this thank you open letter. I hate procrastinating; I really do. But, sometimes, this vice grips me so viciously, and I almost-always wonder how and why I allow myself to it so easily. I don't find it funny at all that this thank you that I have been craving to register since your leading socio-cultural organisation honoured me on 17th December, last year, is only being attempted now. What on earth have I been doing, holding back a thank you for forty days and counting? It must be the devil. Who else can it be? However, since the devil never apologises whenever he puts a foot wrong, which is frequent; I must step in and do the needful. I am sorry, my Int'l Presido. And I 'm sure you know, it's never too late to say thank you. In fact, the later the thank you, the better it is. Don't mind me, Sir, that last statement is more political than it is commonsensical.
2.0 Preamble over, let me thank our Mboho for inducting me as member, of its own volition. Let me use this opportunity to tell you how much I longed to join Mboho, especially in the Godwin Ntuk Udeh heyday. I confess that was the first opportune time I was privileged to peep closely into the activities of the body. I loved the unbiquituousness of Akparawa Udeh's presidency; I was dazed by the legion of his stunts; I admired the unmistakable courage he displayed taking, even if sometimes controversial, sides on all Akwa Ibom-affecting and national issues. Above all, I was swayed by his macho-ness, and if you forgive me, his flamboyant and braggaddocio-laden Uruan-ness. The man's Mboho presidency was so robust that both those who loved to hate and those who hated to love him are agreed that his style not only thrusted but also imprinted the body in their subconscious. I am one of them. The difference, in my case, being that I loved to love him. It was in Akparawa Udeh's time, I think, that Mboho grew into a tree that formed a forest; what with his globe-trotting, to inaugurate international branches. By the way, the tree that forms a forest is called banyan. Just an aside, my Int'l Presido, please remember to tell those who insist that no tree can form a forest that banyan can! If they want another example, please add Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio. No exaggeration, Mboho is a banyan! But, why am I focusing on that era that's been gone for two Presidents now? One, to show when and how Mboho bought me wholesale. And, well, the second and more cogent reason will become clearer, presently.
3.0 Apart from my many private moments with Akparawa Udeh then, being in the media also afforded me even much more on-air encounters with him. I found him a willing talker; a frank discussant; and someone who spoke ho-ha, as our people say. And he will do so publicly and readily on anything under the sun. Woe betide you if he was against you on any matter. And, if he was for you? Ah, he would be such a darling; he could sell your brand even to your worst enemies, and they'd buy it smiling! I'm sad to say, though, that this style that I thought was very good drew too many private enemies. I had people coming or calling to tell me my media activities will soon run into bad weather, if I didn't stop handing over the platform to Akparawa Udeh as often as I did. Yet, I couldn't stop having him on air, online, or in print. For one, he wasn't using our platforms gratis. No matter how small, he always contributed something. Secondly, I loved him. I saw nothing wrong in his approach. And thirdly, even more importantly, there's something about him BUSH HOUSE NIGERIA shall treasure eternally. Akparawa Udeh never abandons you, especially at war when even those who stuck closer than brothers scamper sans looking behind. Unfortunately, as 'prophesied,' BUSH HOUSE NIGERIA eventually ran into a storm that threw it off air after the Uruan Prince came on our TV series to spread the Barr. (as he then was) Godswill Akpabio for Governor gospel. This was at that time when the top was still not very sure they couldn't stop him. It will seem we never fully recovered from that storm because, even though we came back on air after one whole quarter, the programme was later fully yanked off not only from TV, but also from Radio, this time with Gov. Akpabio in full bloom. Our consolation, though, remains that Akparawa Godwin Ntuk Udeh was by our side, empathising and assuring, all the way!
4.0 All this coaxed me to side with him throughout the storms he himself will later go through in the twilight of his Mboho helmsmanship. In addition, this urged me on to getting more and more interested in Mboho activities and personalities, past and present. Is that how I got involved with their, sorry, our Grand Patron, the retired Air Marshall Nsikak Eduok, who has become like my father today? I got to learn also about Past Presidents such as Sir Val Attah, Ph.D; Akparawa Udo Sam Umoatan; Akparawa Okon Imerh (I shall in the near future write about this one) and of course, the then-I.P.P., Dr. Okon Emah, etc. I envied Mboho members anytime I watched their colourful public outings, let alone their cult-like esprit de corps, which I hope still exists. I remember always teasing members, close to me, such as Akparawa James Edet and Akparawa Tony Effiong, both of AKBC TV, about when they'd invite me to join. I regret that neither the TV twosome nor Akparawa Udeh ever invited me to join Mboho. By the way, do Mboho members invite others to join? And if not, why not? So, that left you with the historic opportunity of just guiding a willing me who had been waiting at the fringes, straight into the Mboho Canaan. And, I am happy, my Int'l Presido. Let me confirm, Sir, that I was esctatic the day I got your letter of intent; that I went ga-ga on the D-Day when I walked into that hall which seemed like Red Sea; and that I reached orgasm all that moment you were struggling to squeeze my big head into the Mboho Cap. I treasure the cap, and the memory, and the honour. Considering I never solicited, I appreciate you for conceiving and achieving it. And I thank the Central Working Committee for endorsing my membership. It might seem as nothing but little gestures such as this confirm to me that our people are watching and taking note and waiting for the day of reckoning.
5.0 My dear Int'l President, let me also now salute the you I have known for a decade or so. Your dexterity and, what I call,your multi-positioning at one fell swoop impress me to no end. I'm glad you are never found wanting on any of those beats. I am also glad that you are never distracted by fierce criticisms from those who would always find something to say. For instance, I have had people wondering why I should join Mboho now when the Int'l President is an aide to Governor of our State. My reaction has always been and remains typically Nigerian: Would it have been better if he were an aide to Governor of another State? Is Mboho an opposition political party? What's even wrong with opposition parties working with those in power for the betterment of society? Can Mboho with its insider vantage position, in this administration, not better influence matters for our people? Which now reminds me of the second reason I kept in the cooler, earlier. If the go-go approach of Akparawa Udeh was as unappreciated as it was, I had thought critics will cherish the conservative style of his successor and your predecessor, Otuekong Sylvester Akpan. Rather, they found something else to point out, noisefully. And once that happened, I had told myself when you took over that it was game on for the critics. They have proved me right. While they keep busy, you must hold your side, you must stay focused as you have done hitherto. As you said during the induction, I joined Mboho to show clearly where I stand in the struggle to make Akwa Ibom great and a force, nationally. I shall go all the way with Mboho in the struggle. I believe I speak the mind of my co-industees of that Saturday on this! I regret the delay in making good my financial pledge. Soon, Sir. Let me end here so you can attend to other matters, one of which is the health of Ufan Mmi. Fret now, Sir, she shall be fine, very fine. We are praying for her, for you, for your family. Many thanks, my Int'l Presido. God bless MMI. Jesus is Lord!
Your member
Michael BUSH, mmi

‎34 new Projects Spring up in Two Akwa Ibom Communities

2012-01-29T16:32:00.001-08:00

A new lease of life was injected in two local government areas of Akwa Ibom State as 34 new projects were inaugurated by Governor Godswill Akpabio within the week.
The projects inaugurated in Uruan and Etim Ekpo local government were 23 school blocks, five mini electricity, a solar powered-water project at Mbiaya Uruan, two health facilities at Nwaniba Uruan and Ibiaku Ishiet, and a civic center at Mbiaya Uruan
At Uruan, it was a joyous occasion Chief Akpabio inaugurated sixteen projects executed through the inter-ministerial direct labour co-ordinating committee.
At each project site in Uruan, the Governor, Chief Akpabio who was represented by his Special Adviser on Political and Legislative Affairs Mr. Samuel Frank said the projects were in fulfillment of his promise to the people of the state.
The Governor called the people of the area to use the projects judiciously and urged them to be vigilant and protect the facilities from vandals.
He thanked the people of Uruan for their warm reception and promised to execute more projects there.
The women and school children were not left out of the carnival of some sort as they turned up in large numbers welcoming the governor with songs of appreciation.
The transition Chairman of Uruan Local Government Area Mr. Anthony Akan presented a portrait to the Governor saying that the Uruan people commended his efforts in transforming the area, promising him that the inaugurated projects will be taken good care of
The Chairman Inter-ministerial Direct Labour Co-ordinating Committee and Commissioner for Finance Mr. Bassey Albert Akpan enumerated projects for Uruan in the last four years to include electrification, classroom blocks and mini-scheme water.
A chieftain from the area, Prince Obong Ekpe Atakpa noted that the Governor has made positive impact on the lives of Uruan people and called on them to continue to support the present administration.
The school children in Ekpene Ukim, the principal Mr. Adams, the paramount ruler of Uruan, Edidem Eba Ekanem expressed deep thanks to the Governor for his good deeds.
Similarly, the people of Etim Ekpo Local Government Area pledged total solidarity to the administration of chief Dr. Godswill Obot Akpabio for restoring the lost glory of Etim Ekpo.
They expressed their feeling during the occasion of the inter-ministerial direct labour commissioning of projects as the executive Governor commissioned 18 projects in the Local Government Area.
They transition Chairman Mr Uduot Jack on behalf of his people presented a portrait to his excellence saying it is a symbol of love and appreciation from the people of Etim Ekpo for his kept promises.
Also speaking, the Commissioner of Housing and Urban Renewal Barrister Emmanuel Enoidem said his people were happy with Gov Akpabio for bringing the dividends of democracy to Etim Ekpo Local Government Area.
Responding, the executive Governor who was represented by the Commissioner for Environment Prince Enobong Uwah said his administration places emphasis on the welfare of the people by giving adequate infrastructure, free compulsory and qualitative education.
Governor Akpabio gave kudos to people of Etim Ekpo and charged them to safeguard the projects, as it will please the government to do more.

A breach of trust… by Paul Inyang

2012-01-29T16:31:00.001-08:00

There is so much going on in our country that it is difficult to know where to start. Our country is in dire straits and it seems like the reckoning has come. I am hopeful that though loosely tethered this may not be our last gasp as a nation with our apparently compromised diversity. Unfortunately, it appears that the same conditions are applicable within many states of our federation including my own dear state Akwa Ibom. There are very few states that are protected from the upheaval, witness what is happening in the Northern States, South West and the problematic Niger Delta. In our zone only Cross Rivers State appears have relative peace. Such is the nature of our world today and my sense is that it is probably here to stay—at the very least for a while.
The common factor in all the unrest is rudderless governance and a restive electorate tired of being misled, lied to and whose resources have been so mismanaged by political elites that they remain impoverished amidst reports of plenty. Needless to say our country is so endowed with both material and human resources that it has become difficult to fathom the pervasive poverty, decline of the infrastructure and deteriorating security situation. It is interesting that a confluence of hardships has created a marriage of convenience, bringing together the indigent, middle class and some elites. Is this the beginning of much needed change or is it business as usual? Whatever the case, there is a nervousness and anxiety within and outside the country that suggest that something major may happen that is going to shake the very foundation of our union and change the country as we know it. Political pundits prognosticate that for Nigeria there are several possibilities, none which appears to be good—ranging from anarchy to a total disintegration of the country. Much of this is based on recent upheaval that has exposed the soft underbelly of our loose amalgamation. Unity would be a poor choice of words and in my opinion Nigeria has never really been united and has been held together with what appears to be soft glue. There are cracks in the armor of our union, like that of fatigued metal which has uncovered the failures and utter neglect perpetrated by our leaders. A friend recently wrote that the greatest myth is that government is the problem of Nigerians. This is mostly true but assumes that people are able to separate the reality of governance from the characters that lead us. I would agree that there is a problem with leadership which has accentuated the problems of government. It is true that the governmental structures have failed to keep up with or adapt to changing times. This is mostly due to the fact that no one has really attempted to look critically at our bureaucracy or attempted to reform it. Such an exercise is filled with angst and fear, and is accompanied by uncertainty and resistance from those who stand to lose the most. This is however a discussion for another day.
There are two issues that have dominated the headlines recently—the fight against the removal of subsidies and that of national security symbolized by “Boko Haram”. Recently the entire nation was shut down in protest of the removal of fuel subsidies. Interestingly, depending on the source, the meaning of subsidy is almost as varied as the number of tribes that comprise Nigeria. No one appears to be able to articulate clearly what it means to remove fuel subsidies. The financial impact on the economy is unclear and Nigerians being resourceful have toyed with it incessantly obscuring the issue. It is even more confounding to know who is for or against the idea. Those who benefit from it are embedded with those who the government reports are adversely affected by its existence. Protest and resistance are predicated on the immediate impact of this governmental action. Subsidy itself is not a new phenomenon as governments all over the world have utilized it for various reasons. In communist and socialist governments it is a way of life and is part of core belief. In capitalist governments it is utilized minimally in non-competitive areas of the economy and specialized critical areas where government cannot afford inconsistencies or failure and to allow for a level playing field. Agricultural subsidies for instance exist within the European Union and United States of America (USA) as well as many other countries in Africa. Although sometimes controversial, it is a tool utilized by many nations to enhance and/ or protect sectors of their economies. In the USA it predates the great depression and still exists today. They are “direct subsidies” paid to famers for “farm income stabilization”. Beneficiaries range from small farmers to corporate owned farms. It was designed as an income offset and meant to not only keep farmers in business but to also protect them from going out of business due to competition from conglomerates that could monopolize the sector. The small farmer is such an important part of the American agro economy that it must be protected and sustained.
Fuel subsidy in Nigeria is not as well defined as the above. The President never addressed the nation directly to explain the program, educate citizens on its benefit and prepare the nation for his decision. He allowed the issue to be muddied by his handlers without a careful articulation of its merits on substance. The average Nigerian keyed ultimately on the increase in fuel prices however temporary and the subsequent rise in the cost of living. This shaped the debate and fueled their view and negative response. As a result a vacuum was created and his opposition, detractors and opportunist capitalized on it. He failed to set the tone for the discussions and was not proactive in facilitating a response in any manner when there appeared to be problems with the perception that the program is froth with corruption or simply a myth. Much of this can be attributed to the fact that our leaders are still in a cocoon, failing to read the “tea leaves”. The populace has become better informed and almost totally distrusting of their leaders. In part because of our experience with previous military governments when decrees were simply promulgated and became law without healthy debate our leaders continue to believe that they can force decisions on the electorate. The result is that very few people can really articulate three basic things about subsidy; what, why, and how. It should not be that complicated. Consequently, government has resorted to attempting to suppress discourse and crush the opposition and dissenters as all totalitarian governments would. They fail to grasp important concepts in democracy such as freedom of speech, stimulation and persuasion. This would quite naturally engender public support while ensuring public participation and involvement.
The Nigerian electorate has become more informed, wiser and is beginning to realize that they have been bamboozled by many politicians masquerading as leaders. The goals of government may not necessarily coincide with theirs and consequently may not be mutually beneficial. There is an urgent need to separate the mystique of a leader from his or her accomplishments. They have to be held accountable for what they do with the people’s resources. The ending of the call to action—strike was predictable. It was led by the usual suspects and they were going to cave-in to familiar circumstances—money and/or intimidation. This is so in part due to the insatiable appetite for corruption of some of our leaders and the fact that as religious as most Nigerians are we are squeamish about death. Not many are interested in risking their life for a greater good. At the end of the day, there will be settlements and we all will return to life as usual and as we know it. My instincts however tell me that it is a little different this time. I am encouraged that Nigerians are slowly becoming aware of this breach of trust—engaged by not only government but our so-called leaders who are self serving and most certainly myopic. As much as this is a national issue it cannot but permeate to the local levels. It is said that all “politics is local”. All those who aspire to be leaders should understand that times are changing and that they will be treated far differently from their predecessors. As someone once said, “be careful what you wish for, you just might get it”.

Lawmaker fetes campaign team, cautions chairmanship aspirants.

2012-01-29T16:30:00.002-08:00

The House of Assembly member for Ibiono Ibom State Constituency, Obong Ime Okon held a get together party yesterday in Uyo to express appreciation to foot soldiers of his Restoration 2011 Campaign committee for their toils and sweats that saw him through the April 2011 House of Assembly polls. Explaining why the thank you party not as earlier as expected, the lawmaker stated that the delay was due to the various litigations instituted by his opponents that dragged from the election petition tribunal up to the Supreme Court intentionally to cause distraction.
Okon, who chairs the rules, business, ethics and privileges committee in the House, lauded the ‘Restoration Team’ for its maximum support and cooperation during and after the election and throughout the period the matter lasted in the court.
‘Many of you were wondering why this event had not taken place before now, but, I want to bring to your notice and I know most of you are aware that shortly after election, we had cases in the Courts, from the election tribunal to the Court of Appeal, up to the Supreme Court. And I want to announce to you that just in December last year, the matter at the Supreme Court was settled. So, I still remain your elected representative in the State House of Assembly’, Okon, said, ‘the right time to come and say thank you to all of you who stood by me throughout the period is now. And I want to tell you thank you really from the depth of my heart to members of the restoration team’. On the forthcoming local government elections, the lawmaker cautioned aspirants to the office of the Chairman of Ibiono Ibom local council to consider the aspirations of Ibiono Ibom people uppermost in their politicking. Noting that peace was vitally needed in the area in order to maximize the gains of democracy and good governance, he cautioned that the council leadership be carefully selected during the forth-coming Local Government elections to completely restore political dignity to the area.
Stressing that to maintain the existing peace and political stability in the area, the election of the next chairman of Ibiono Ibom must be devoid of any form of sentiment or favouritism to ensure that whoever emerges as the next chairman would complement the existing hierarchy of politicians who are determined to draw development to the area.
Reflecting on what Ibiono Ibom has suffered in the past, the lawmaker expressed appreciation to God, the political class, the elites and other stakeholders for rising against tyrannical leaders who injuriously exacted powers on the people without that genuine intention to deliver dividends of democracy to the very people who voted them to power.
”The local government area has experienced peace as i am not interested in power but in governance, I am always willing to compromise if that is necessary for peace to reign and for things to be done right.”
Okon who warned politicians against using and dumping supporters after achieving their aim of securing political offices, maintained that it was an act of ingratitude for any elected political office holder to ignore or shun supporters considering the fact that no politician can win election on his or her own without an unbreakable support from members of his constituency.
The lawmaker therefore pledged his continued commitment to the welfare of his constituents and development of Ibiono Ibom, pledged to operate an open door policy and to ensure that he carries everyone along.“Everyone is very free to come around me, my office has no protocol, if I cannot solve all your problems at once, I should at least be able to reduce them”. He assured

Let’s Play Down on 2015 Governorship

2012-01-29T16:30:00.000-08:00

Let’s Play Down on 2015 Governorship
-Umana Umana
The Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government, Mr. Umana Okon Umana has called on politicians in Akwa Ibom state to play down on the governorship contest in 2015 in the interest of the Gov Godswill Akpabio-led administration. Mr. Umana said the call has become imperative in the wake of wide spread political statements and permutations that have the tendency to distract the current administration from its commitment to meet the yearnings of the people of the state.
Mr. Umana made the call when Weekly Insight called him to make clarifications concerning his interest and ambition to contest the 2015 governorship election, which has been a major issue in the media in the state. He told our correspondent that he was yet to consult or even declare publicly of any such intentions, noting however, that at the appropriate time he would make his intentions known. He said he was aware that many well meaning Akwa Ibom citizens have either approached him to contest, or set up groups drumming support for him. He said that such show of support was a normal expression of such individuals or groups’ political preferences, maintaining that as a person, he had not at any time gone on any consultations, nor made any public pronouncements of any ambition.
“The people forming groups to support me for the 2015 governorship race mean well, but I am constrained to say that any wide spread campaigns and overt political moves now has the tendency to distract the government. I have a job at hand, and that job is to help my principal, the Akwa Ibom state governor, His Excellency, Chief Godswill Akpabio, succeed in his mission to provide excellent service to our people. For now, I think that is my major concern. I don’t want to be distracted from that task. I will continue to render my own measure of work towards the success of Gov Akpabio’s programmes in the state. To be drawn into the politics of 2015 at this stage is therefore, not really what I want”, he told Weekly Insight on telephone.
Asked to comment on the rumour that he was marked for sack on account of his 2015 ambition, the SSG said, “As we speak, I am still in government. I am even currently abroad on a state matter on the orders of the governor. I think you people in the media have a penchant to play up issues, some of which do not even exist. I have the best of working relationship with my boss and I will not deviate from the mission of supporting the governor to give our state the best governance we have ever seen. My appeal is for all to join hands with His Excellency to continue with the uncommon transformation of our state that he started in his first term in office. That is why I am worried that it is too early in his second term to talk about 2015 in the manner people are going about it as it has the potentiality to distract him and his administration.”
On what he has to say to individuals and groups already drumming support for him, the former Director of Budget, former Permanent Secretary, former Commissioner for Finance, now Secretary to the State Government said, “As a human being, I appreciate people who have stuck out their neck to urge me to run. I just want to tell them that it is certainly not time yet for campaigns for 2015 governorship. Let them play it cool. It is still too early in the day, as I don’t want to also get distracted from my present duties, which is very important to me and the state. Let’s join hands and support the governor, and when it is time for 2015 politics, we will all know.”

To Rt Hon. Eseme Sunday Eyiboh at 52

2012-01-29T16:29:00.001-08:00

To Rt Hon. Eseme Sunday Eyiboh at 52
Sir,
A columnist writing in Nigeria at this period of our national crisis is faced with the task of wading through the miasma of events of concurrent national importance. So no writer complains of the proverbial “writer’s block” now. What we have now is the “writer’s glut!” There is so much happening around you that one often gets confused sifting through to make an appropriate choice of what to tackle first. The north is still reeling under the sustained threat of Boko Haram bombs. Victims of the bombs are arriving their homes in body bags to the wailing and anguish of their loved ones and the rage of their communities. The country is at the lowest point in her patriotism quotient. Nigerians are now openly discussing how to break up. The nation’s institutions are still under lock and keys as a result of strike action by the academic staff union of universities. Nigerians are grappling with unimaginable hardship arising from the removal, albeit partial, of subsidy on petroleum products.
I had started writing on the highly provocative statements in recent media credited to Lamido Sanusi, Nigeria’s Central Bank governor that tended to justify the madness that we call Boko Haram. I was tempted to dwell on his once fixation on the introduction of Islamic banking, a policy that I had no problem with, but one I am beginning to read more meaning into due to his current posturing on a number of issues. I had to suspend my comments on Sanusi, when the news of the ruling of the Court of Appeal came tumbling in. To me, the case had to take precedence over every other matter, because you are involved.
It was in the process of proceeding with my comment on the ruling that I came to realize that Saturday, January 28, 2012 was your fifth-second birthday. Was it a coincidence that nature brought the two incidents almost at the same time? No! Things don’t just happen like that. The outcome of the court case came at the time of your birthday to remind you that God owns everything, including our lives. The juxtaposition of the seeming antithetical events draws a natural attention to the fact that we tend to look at mundane worldly things and attach more importance to them than they deserve.
But I know you well enough to realize that you accept things the way they are and look up to God for direction. It takes a man who anchors his entire life, political and social to the unseen hands of God, for you to have risen to the heights you are now. I still hear your voice the day you told me the story of your youth. I still choke with emotion to remember the touching story of the deprivation of your youth. Your story on how you raised the last examination fee that saw you through secondary school, is still fresh. In your life, I have seen the hands of God in the affairs of man.
I am sure that your state in life today has confounded some people. Some are still surprised and angry that you have risen beyond the bounds they set for you. They are obviously miffed that another from a less class has appropriated what should have been theirs by birth. But while they play God, they are not God. The Almighty has lifted you far beyond their blighted imaginations. And He has not even finished with you.
As a politician, you are light years ahead of the clan of rent politicians furiously seeking your fall. You have demonstrated a brand of politics that they have never witnessed and of course, it shouldn’t have been you. You have shown the superiority of mind power over their manipulative power. You have proved that with a little political power, the story can change for the less privileged.
I understand sir, when you face the undeserved vilifications and organized demonization of your person going on. I appreciate the turn of events when friends turn foes, for no reason other than following the herd. I, sometimes pity you when I see the grand conspiracy of the elite class, fighting so hard to dim a light they did not light. The very essence of the type of politics we play here thrives on blackmail and muckraking. If it were not so, how come that the same man our governor so publicly extolled his virtue at Ibom hall, calling on other representatives to take a cue from, would over night become a non performer? How come that the man the entire state rose in oneness to salute his sagacious presence in the National Assembly, would within a second become a nonstarter?
We all know what went wrong. The rent-taking political maggots waiting to scavenge on what rightly belongs to the people felt shortchanged. It was right that the various community based projects you either attracted to the communities in your constituency were forfeited and the baggy pockets of political godfathers are lined up with cheap cash. It would have been good representation for you to dole out undeserved cash to political louts and political pimps in place of the numerous life-changing empowerment projects you embarked upon. We understand that even those you sent abroad should not have gone anywhere so that you will be able to give car gifts to political contractors, who already had four or more ill-gotten cars packed in their garages.
If others don’t know why you have almost become a demon before these demagogues, some of us know. You did not give them cash to marry new wives and lodge girl friends in posh hotels each time they come to Abuja. Yes. You did not provide chuffer-driven cars to make their stay in Abuja cozy enough. You did not take care of their daughters’ wedding expenses. We know, because they tell us that you did not buy cows and hundreds of bags of rice to pay homage to those who own the party structures. You forgot to attend burials and even naming ceremonies. Those are your sins. It does not matter that you sent children of the poor to school. It is immaterial that many youths have had the benefit of a means of livelihood, thanks to your foresight in sending them to the Maritime Academy Oron to empower them to be useful to themselves. It does not make sense to those who are calling for your head that cooperative societies could be a veritable means of economic independence if effectively and efficiently managed, as you created some for your people. It is of no use to those waiting to hang you that you brought health facilities, libraries, ITC centers, water projects and supported many individuals that your being in the National Assembly had given the opportunity to become self reliant.
Sir, I have a friend here. He has a testimony that would mean nothing to your adversaries. He is not even from your constituency. But he has a story of Hon Eseme Eyiboh, who saw through his circumstances and asked him what he wanted for life. Sir, Linus said he chose education and ever since that life changing encounter with you, he has been a direct beneficiary of your education empowerment, which is today seeing him through the University of Uyo. I was with you in your hotel room some day in 2010. It was some days to the Asan Ibibio declaration for Governor Akpabio. They came in, spotting the cap of Akwa Ibom Democratic Voice, ADV. Both of them were Akwa Ibom youths you have never met. You brought them, a boy and a girl into the room and asked them what they were doing for a living. They both said they were supposed to be in school, but they did not have the wherewithal to continue. Even before you asked them their name, you had expressed your desire to assist. I can still remember the looks in their eyes. The boy sir, shed some tears. I did not hear you ask them where they came from. They could have been from the moon, but all you cared about was their future.
I have no time to sing your praise, but if I had sir, I would hymn you eternally. I also have my personal testimony. It was a rainy evening sometime after the election. I did not know you were even in the court trying to reclaim your seat in the National Assembly. I only knew you were yet another victim of Nigeria’s poverty of politics and politics of poverty, where the political vultures still subvert the will of the people through some unfortunate cooptation into positions. That evening a mail arrived. I was supposed to fill the form to attend a UK based public relations course. I was shocked. You said it was a full scholarship, to be paid in pounds sterling. I was touched. This was a man that has just lost an election, so it seemed then. You did not mind the state of things then; you were still seeking to make a better person out of a man that had nothing to offer you. I had to decline the offer because it would have conflicted with my law degree programme in Uyo.
Hon Eyiboh, your life has been a light for all those you have positively impacted on. The hounds may despise you; you may be vilified by those who are perpetually in search of the ways and means of dipping their hands into public purse, even if such purse is a personal purse made available to the community.
Note sir, that I have not said a word concerning the court of appeal and its verdict. I leave that to those involved and the likely historical place it will occupy in our jurisprudence. I have faith, just like you, that at the appointed time the true verdict of God would come. I am sure that the roadblock is just a signpost to make you savour the ultimate victory when it shall come.
I am sure I have not bored you with so much political talks on this season of your birthday. It is not easy to celebrate when a man seems to be on the valley of life or career. At such points, even friends take unceremonious leave, goodwill messages dry up and jolly good fellows move to where the sun still shines. But be rest assured that even if the whole world depart, those you have touched would still remember that a man once passed through their lives. Happy birthday sir. Your light will never dim, because you will never walk alone!

POLICE NABS CHILD-WITCH SELLER IN AKWA IBOM STATE.

2012-01-29T16:28:00.001-08:00

A 28 year old woman (name withheld) has been arrested by a special police detective team in Eket for attempting to sell a seven year old boy. A police source said in Eket.
The youngster who is said to be her stepson was, however, living with his biological mother until the father requested to take full responsibility of him. Apparently angered by the child’s arrival, the stepmother contracted a pastor to screen the little boy to ascertain if he was possessed with witchcraft spell or not. On confirmation that the boy was possessed, he was reportedly disappeared from the house.
A dependable source said a lady who operates a local Hotel in Eket, had arranged with a Port-Harcourt based child trafficking syndicate to pick the boy in a location along Uqua Road, in heart of Eket, but the late arrival of the spoiled the show, as the detectives swooped the scene and arrested the lady on a tip-off.
The community source did not confirm whether the hotel was used as a conduit for the sales of other children; but stressed that she’s been notorious for dealing with suspicious elements coming to the community.
She confessed to the police that she was scared based on the prophet’s instruction that the boy will infect her children with his magical power. When the man of God told me that he will transfer the spell to my children, or kill them, I was really afraid…,” she said.
The a police inspector in the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), who did not want his name mentioned said that sales of children of Akwa Ibom origin to syndicates coming from Aba and Port-Harcourt was a common phenomenon. “They have a robust network, which keeps buying more and more children here in the State. It depends on the sex, the age of the child and the negotiation. A male child is said to be sold between N150, 000 to N170, 000 a female is between N130, 000 to N50, 000. But it varies on age.” The officer said. “Our team is monitoring them… We will get them all,” he added.
But the coordinator of a human right group, Freedom Impact International (FII), Mr. Jackson Bas, though commended the police for rescuing the child; he expressed skepticism over the willingness of the police to prosecute the culprit.
“This is not the first time they have arrested child traffickers. They have been doing so before; we know about this. How many of them have been taken to court. Police will keep them in the cell till their men will come and bail them out with money they called bond…” Bas noted.
He appealed to the government not to turn a blind eye to the torture and killing of children and elderly people who are accused of practicing witchcraft or sorcery.

Stakeholders seek FG intervention on Tinapa

2012-01-29T16:27:00.001-08:00

Joseph Kingston, Calabar

Tinapa Business and Leisure resort stakeholders have appealed to the
Federal Government to use its dispositions in ensuring that whatever
bottlenecks the resort may have had since inception are removed for it
to achieve its goals

Speaking in Calabar after the sitting of a special committee of the
Cross River State House of Assembly on Tinapa, Zonal Director of
Union Bank, Mrs Afiong William said the resort may not achieve its
predetermined goals if the Calabar channel is not dredged for bigger
ships to, through the waterways, access the resort.

According to her, it is not in the interest of the Cross River State
people, the business community and Nigerians in general for the resort
to be allowed to operate below average; stressing that federal
government’s intervention would inevitably be a masterstroke which
could turn around the fortune of the resort.

She added that although the resort owes Union Bank substantial amount,
the bank was interested in the viability of the premiere resort in
Africa, and expressed the determination of Union Bank to continue to
partner with Tinapa.

Also speaking, the Managing Director of Tinapa, Arch Bassey Ndem said
since the Resort is a pride to the country and Cross River State
people in particular, the Federal Government needs to remove all
obstacles on the resort and cause it to enjoy the benefits of a truly
free trade zone.

“The Federal Government is our father. We cannot die in wants when we
have the federal government through which all things are made
possible. If the father gives command to Tinapa to operate at full
capacity, it shall come to pass,” Ndem had predicted.

Ndem said infrastructural challenges which include good roads, the
shallow Calabar waterways amongst others are the bane of the resort,
but believed that with total commitment to the workability of project
Tinapa, the resort shall be repositioned for good.

In his remarks, Chiarman of the Special Committee on Tinapa, Hon. Jake
Enya emphasized that the responsibility of his committee was not to
indict anybody or to uncover fraud but to seek means of repositioning
the resort and mitigating its challenges.

Ndoma-Egba Proffers Solution to Boko Haram

2012-01-29T16:26:00.001-08:00

Joseph Kingston, Calabar

Senate Leader, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba has said the threat posed by
Boko Haram would become history if the uneducated in the society are
made to acquire formal education, stressing that no educated child of
an enlightened and educated ‘big’ man in the North would be easily
used against his own people.

In a chat with Journalists in Calabar at the weekend, Ndoma-Egba
reasoned that most of those used to perpetrate violence are the
uneducated who have been brainwashed by people who are bent on
destroying the country.

He said sponsors of Boko Haram sect are “just deliberately trying to
provoke a situation to achieve a political goal”,

His words: “The act of violence in the Northern part of the country
can not be justified by any right thinking person. Moslem and
Christian Clerics have equally condemned it. The two religions have
their roots in Abraham and they preached against violence.

“For me, it is a clear case of people being brainwashed under the
guise of religion and at the same time targeting and killing Moslems
also. When you begin to attack churches, it means the motives are
certainly not religious.

“I doubt if educated children of any big man in the North would be
involved in what we are currently experiencing. When you have large
uneducated, jobless and idle young men in the society, they become
veritable tools in the hands of people who have wrong motives”, he had
said.

The Senator frowned vehemently at the escape of the Boko Haram kingpin
and called on security agents to be more committed to their
responsibilities, and expressed fears that the police have given
Nigerians enough reasons to believe that security agents are
accomplice in the whole Boko Haram brouhaha.

“The key suspect escaping in a very hilarious circumstances calls for
reassessment of roles of the police in the whole scenario. The
circumstances of the escape as reported looks like an amateur drama
script written by a member of a dramatic club in a secondary school.

“Part of the solution is when the dimension and the dynamics of this
development are highlighted. Now we are beginning to know that some of
those we thought were protecting us may be part of the problem,” he
had submitted.

He believed that Nigeria was gradually getting to the end of the
undesirable nightmare “because everything is now in the open”, but
called on all Nigerians to be security conscious and to give
information to security agents in order to nib the Boko Haram threat
in the mud.

Mixed Reactions Greet Imoke’s Sack

2012-01-29T16:25:00.003-08:00

…PDP Loyalists Protest S’Court Ruling
Joseph Kingston, Calabar

The recent Supreme Court judgment which on Friday terminated tenures of Governors of Bayelsa, Sokoto, Adamawa, Cross River and Kogi has generated mixed reactions from a cross section of Cross Riverians.
While some rejoiced at the judgment describing it as good riddance to bad rubbish, others said the judgment is a temporal setback which shall help in strengthening PDP to work hard for the return of former Governor Imoke.
Reacting on the issue, Coordinator of Southern Senatorial District Councilors Forum, Hon Essien Ekpenyong said the Governor still has opportunity to come back, and emphasized that the judgment shall afford the PDP opportunity to re-strategize for exploits.
A PDP Supporter who gave his name as Ita Bassey described the Supreme Court judgment as biased, but submitted that “whether anyone likes it or not, Imoke shall come back”
But, in a swift reaction, State Chairman, Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Chief Cletus Obun said judiciary is trying to redeem its image, stressing “justice is being done gradually and we are happy but ACN is not waiting for any special advantage. We are ready for anybody.”
Our reporter who monitored unfolding events in Calabar immediately the Supreme Court judgment was made public observed that PDP supporters who had, as early as 7 am, thronged the Cultural Centre Complex, Calabar to kickstart the Governor’s campaign was forced to cut off the rally.
The supporters then proceeded to government house with placards some of which read,‘Judiciary, Don’t Confuse us’; ‘Imoke must Complete His Tenure’, ‘Judiciary, Don’t Destroy Cross River’.
Addressing the crowd, member representing Calabar South 1 in the Cross River State House of Assembly, Hon. Okon Ephraim said “the Governor is preparing for his elections in April. There is no going back because nothing has changed even with the judgment”.
As at the time of this report, the Speaker of Cross River State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Larry Odey was yet to be sworn-in, but our reporter authoritatively gathered that the former Governor had already vacated governor’s official residence for the in-coming acting Governor.

C’River Acting Governor Sworn-in, Imoke Calls for Calm

2012-01-29T16:25:00.001-08:00

Joseph Kingston, Calabar

It was a solemn moment at the Cross River State Executive Council Chamber as the State Chief Judge, Hon Justice Dorothy Eyamba-Idem swore in the erstwhile Speaker of Cross River State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Larry Odey as acting Governor, aftermath of the removal of Governor Liyel Imoke by the Supreme Court.
The EXCO chamber, which was filled to the brim with Imoke’s sympathizers and the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party wore a mournful look throughout the duration of the event.
In his remarks at the occasion, after the swearing in, acting Governor Odey said the scenario of his emergence to run the affairs of the State was not new to Cross River State since the State had similar experience in 2008.
He believed that considering the synergy which exists among the various arms of government, he was confident that the State shall come out un-scorched.
“This moment is a sober moment for us in Cross River State, but I hope that in a short time from today, INEC shall come up with a time table for us to re-elect our Governor to occupy his seat and continue with his programmes,” he had said.
Odey appealed to all Cross Riverians to put hands on deck to ensure the former Governor comes back and called on everyone to “remain at your duty post” to cause the machinery of government to run smoothly.
But in press statement made available to Journalists and signed by Imoke’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Omini Oden, former Governor Imoke said “we are undaunted in our determination to serve and prosecute our development agenda”, and appealed to Cross River State people to remain calm.
It would be recalled that the Supreme Court, Friday sacked Governors of Bayelsa, Sokoto, Cross River, Adamawa and Kogi, maintaining that their tenures expired in May 2011

2015 Guber: USM Supports Nsima Ekere

2012-01-29T16:24:00.001-08:00

- Urges PDP to Adopt him
By Franklyn Isong
As the build up to 2015 governorship race in Akwa Ibom State gathers momentum with the heated debates on zoning of the gubernatorial position polarizing the polity, a group under the auspices of Unity Successive Mandate (USM) has made a case for the position to be zoned to Eket Senatorial District (Akwa Ibom South) because, according to it, the area has never produced an elected governor for the state. The group also threw it weight behind the aspiration of the State Deputy Governor, Mr. Nsima Udo Ekere, to succeed his boss, the governor in 2015.
This was contained in a statement issued by the group at the weekend which was signed by its Youth Leader, Comrade Favour Edet and made available to Weekly Insight.
The statement said that the ultimate desire of every Akwa Ibom indigene home and abroad was for people of the state to have good governance in 2015, saying that, “it is unfortunate for the system to be heated up with the un-necessary debates of zoning of governorship position because it is very clear beyond every reasonable doubt that Eket Senatorial District has never produced an elected governor for the state in the history of the state, so, it is the turn of the zone to be supported for the position in 2015.”
USM condemned what it called “overheating of the system by splinter political groups in the state,” saying, “we advised that these interest groups should give the government a break and stop distracting it with 2015 politics which is three years ahead. What should be of paramount important to every Akwa Ibom person now, should be how to support the good works of His Excellencies, the governor and his deputy, so that they can completely transform the state.”
The group commended the Governor, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio, for what it called: “wonderful performance in the state,” urging him “not to give in to the detractors.”
The release went further to acknowledged the “supportive role of the state deputy governor, Obong Nsima Ekere, to Governor Godswill Akpabio’s transformation agenda in the state,” noting that it supports Ekere to succeed Akpabio in 2015 “so that the transformation agenda of Akpabio’s government will continue in the state.”
It called on the youths of the state to “rally round and support the deputy governor in his bid to succeed the governor in 2015,” promising that on its part, it has already commenced mass mobilization of youths across the state for Ekere’s governorship ambition.
USM said that it took the position to support Ekere after an enlarged meeting of several youth organizations last week in Uyo, the state’s capital and urged the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to “do what is right by adopting Obong Nsima Ekere for the 2015 governorship race, so that the political tempo in the state could be reduced and the unnecessary heated political debates on zoning would be laid to rest in the best interest of the state.”

Eseme Eyiboh Head to the Supreme Court

2012-01-29T16:23:00.000-08:00

Following the Court of Appeal ruling upturning the verdict of the Abuja High Court that gave the Eket Federal Constituency seat to him, Hon Eseme Eyiboh, member of the House of Representatives representing Eket Federal Constituency has approached the nation’s apex court, The Supreme Court asking it to invalidate the ruling of the Appeal Court.
The former chairman, house committee on media, is challenging the ruling on the appeal brought to the Appeal Court by Barr Dan Abia, challenging the ruling of Justice Abdul Kafarati, on points of law and jurisdiction.
The Appeal Court had in its ruling nullified the PDP re-run primary held in Uyo. The court agreed with the lower court that the re-run did not comply with the party’s guideline as well as the 2010 Electoral Act. The Appeal Court, however, in the wisdom of the honourable justices reactivated the earlier PDP primary that the party had cancelled to arrive at its order that Barr Abia should take the contentious Eket constituency seat.
Dissatisfied with the ruling Eyiboh the same day filed a motion for stay of execution as well as a injunction restraining the Assembly leadership from carrying out the court’s order pending the outcome of the Supreme Court appeal.
In a telephone reaction, Hon Eyiboh said, “I am, as usual, calm and leaving everything in God’s hands”
The Court of Appeal had in a judgment it delivered friday, ordered the leadership of the lower chamber to forthwith swear-in the declared winner of the constituency, Mr. Dan Bassey Abia as the authentic candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the election.

In the unanimous judgment read by Justice Ayo Bada, the appellate court, maintained that “the primary election of the PDP held on the 7th and 8th January through which Dan Bassey Abia emerged as the party’s candidate for the April elections is hereby upheld as it was the primary that was monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC and annexed in the suit.”
According to the court, “The trial judge erred by saying that the name of Abia be removed and replaced with that of Eyibo.
The party primary is the exclusive right of a political party as the party determines who its candidate in an election should.

Ojukwu, 1967 versus Jonathan 2012: Is it déjà all over again?

2012-01-28T17:00:00.000-08:00

Ojukwu, 1967 versus Jonathan 2012: Is it déjà all over again?

By Ekerete Udoh

In the next few weeks, the remains of General Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu-the Ikemba Nnewi will be committed to mother earth-thus ending in a physical sense the life of man who will remain forever a colossus in the annals of Nigerian history and our struggles to form a prefect or mutually respectful union. Given what has happened in our polity lately- the drum beat of war and internal anxieties, given the concerns of safety that has been manufactured and nurtured by Boko Haram and given the inflammatory rhetoric that are being spewed by certain ethno-cultural organizations, one is left with no choice but to wonder whether it is déjà all over again!
In 1966, Nigeria was on a precipice-and its corporate soul and essence were dangling precariously on the edge. Six years after independence, the chasm and zero sum tendencies of the ruling elite had alienated and poisoned the fountain of unity. Hard ball political tactics were employed by those who commanded the instrument of power and coercion. Those who legally constituted themselves into viable voices of opposition were hounded, traumatized and eventually jailed. Thousands of innocent lives were wasted at the altar of depraved political gods and as the military watched and squirmed at the wanton level of corruption and carnage, they stepped in and cleaned the Augean stable.

The January 15 coup- led by Major Kaduna Nzeogwu had disproportionately killed the cream of the northern political and military class. The spirit of revenge on the part of northern soldiers was thick and palpable. Whether by design or by accident, the leaders of the January coup had been mostly Igbo speaking officers mostly from today’s Delta state. The northern soldiers had concluded that the coup was executed to foist Igbo hegemony over the rest of the country. It didn’t help matters that the man who succeeded the rump of the Balewa administration was the highest rankling military officer in the land-the Igbo-Umuahia Ibeku born General Thomas Umunakwe Johnson Aguiyi Ironsi. To the northern military and political establishment, the Igbo hegemonic thrust that the late Northern Region Premier-Ahmadu Bello had warned in 1952, was now a clear and present danger.

In the counter coup that ensued, Major General Aquiyi Ironsi-the highest ranking officer who in the order of military tradition, had stepped in and assumed the leadership of the county, was brutally murdered by the northern coupists. Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon-the Chief of Army Staff-not easily the most senior officer, but the one ordained by the coupists was named the Head of State and Commander- in -Chief of the Armed Forces. The Eastern Region Military Governor-Lt.Col. Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu- being a stickler for military tradition and order, refused to accept the leadership of Gowon-insisting first to know what had happened to the substantive Head of State-Aguiyi Ironsi and second, why Brigadier Ogundipe-the next most senior army officer did not automatically take over the reins of the country.

The blood-letting that was going on in the military-targeting the Igbos and other easterners soon devolved into other levels of the society, as Igbos were hounded in the north and slaughtered like rams. Easterners were advised to come back to their regions by Ojukwu, many of whom were attacked and killed on their way back to the east. After series of talks and meetings aimed at resolving some of the knotty issues of our existence as one nation- issues that were unfortunately not resolved, the country was plunged into a 30- month long civil war that cost billions of dollars and millions of lives.

The war ended in 1970 with the “No Victor no Vanquished policy “. Ojukwu who had led that secessionist bid was offered asylum by Houphouet Boigney-then the President of Cote’d’Ivoire. He was later pardoned by the Second Republic administration of Alhaji Shehu Shagari, from where he plunged into the political waters and ran for a senate seat in the then Anambra state, losing to a little known medical doctor-Edwin Onwudiwe- a move many had felt was orchestrated by his own party, fearing that he would dwarf and take center stage were he to be elected into the senate.

Until he died last November, Emeka Ojukwu has always asserted that we should come together at a national conference and talk things over about our corporate existence. He has always asked for the implementation of a true federalism-fiscal and political and that the issues that led us to war in 1967 were still prevalent with us. Sweeping them under the carpet while thinking all is well with the polity is akin to postponing the evil day he has always cautioned.

Now fast forward to the present. In 2010, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan-an ijaw academic from the Niger Delta state of Bayelsa was thrust into the presidency by the National Assembly legal construct called-“Doctrine of Necessity”. The country had been almost plunged into constitutional crises following the refusal on the part of then President-Umaru Y’ardua to hand over power to his deputy as the constitution stipulates following his illness which had rendered him incapable of executing the office of the president of the republic. The machinations and despicable subterfuge that was pulled by those who came to be known as “The Cabal” had rubbished the spirit and letter of the constitution and had pitied the south against the north. The underlying reason for the lack of proper handover of power to Jonathan many had observed was the morbid fear by the northern establishment that President Jonathan will interpret a different script were he to be allowed to succeed Ya’rdua- a script that may write or pare down their power and influence. For such narrow and parochial instincts, the nation in their reasoning should plunge into an ungovernable pit. The Doctrine of Necessity rescued the nation from that near constitutional crises.

President Jonathan, in the full exercise of his constitutional rights, offered himself as a candidate for the presidency of the republic-setting himself and the south on collision course over the principle of zoning which the north had claimed was reserved for them to produce the president, even if Y’Ardua succumbed to death through natural means. The resultant fight over who would become the presidential candidate of the PDP had seen the Adamu Ciroma led northern group selecting former Vice President-Atiku Abubakar as the Northern Consensus Candidate. Needles to repeat here, Atiku Abubakar lost at the primaries and was routed by President Jonathan who went on to campaign and win the presidential election in April last year.

The election of Goodluck Jonathan-Nigeria’s first Niger Delta born president appeared not to have been accepted by a cross section of the people-especially some from the northern part of the country. There has been talk-largely unsubstantiated- but clearly not without foundation, that certain elements in the north had promised to make the country ungovernable in the aftermath of Jonathan’s election. To these people, the new political alignment represents an affront-an assault on their hitherto stranglehold on power.

The step-up efforts of the Islamic sect-Boko Haram to sow fear and mayhem through the novel idea of suicide bombing to some analysts represent the upping of the ante on the part of those who are determined to derail the Jonathan administration. The spate of bombings-first at the Police Headquarters in Abuja, the UN Building also in Abuja and the sickening slaughter of innocent Christians who had gone to church to celebrate the birth of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ in Niger state on Christmas day, the senselessly slaughter of Igbo traders in Mubi-Adamawa state and the drum beat of war that has been going on all over the country present s clear and present danger to the corporate existence of the nation.

Like 1967, southerners based in the northern states have started heading back to their states of origin and vice versa for the northern in the south. The chord of unity appears to be dangling dangerously and is held together by a very tiny thread that could snap if mature handling is not expended.

As preparations get under way to commit the body of the late Head of State of the defunct Republic of Biafra-General Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, perhaps we should ask ourselves this question: Can we all get along at least for the sake of our children? Must we, for narrow reasons attempt to plunge the nation into another needless ethnic conflagration? Is the nation not bigger than a sectional interest or should we sacrifice all we have archived since 1970 at the altar of political tin gods who must always exercise power, failure of which the nation must go down in flames?

In the middle of this, it was heartening to read the thoughts ascribed to former military President-General Ibrahim Babangida where he canvassed for true federalism and asked Jonathan to seize this moment to restructure and institute a regime of social and political engineering aimed at devolving power form a highly centralized one at the center to those of the federating units. That was what Ikemba fought for and died, still believing the moment would come. Making power at the center less attractive will lessen the zero-sum tendencies and parochial impulses that our political class exhibits. Mr. President, this is a moment to do just that: Please seize it! And kudos to General Babangida for initiating this conversation.

WHY BOKO HARAM IS My 2011 MAN OF THE YEAR

2012-01-28T16:52:00.001-08:00

WHY BOKO HARAM IS My 2011 MAN OF THE YEAR
By Manasseh Umoette
The year 2011 finally came to an end while a new year began with great hope, anxiety for a robust and peaceful new year.
In the year under review, Nigeria as a country had recorded some level of achievements and failures in some aspects of her national life. One outstanding achievement the nation had recorded in 2011 was the successful elections it conducted. While I don’t agree that the election was free and fair as some people want us to believe, the 2011 election was an improvement on the previous ones of 1999, 2003 and 2007. One can say that the election of 2011 was “free”. Free in the sense that for the first time in many years, Nigerian were allowed to vote, people saw the colours and design of the ballot papers. Consequently, we had a smooth transition in the country.
Of a truth, I find it difficult to identify any sector aside the election that Nigeria did well in 2011. If you have such areas or sectors please don’t hesitate to call my attention for I stand to be corrected.
The year ended was a very bad one for Nigeria in terms of sport. We had so much infighting in the Glass house and even had parallel Executives of the Nigerian Football Federation. Consequently, the nations sport collapsed and the country could not qualify for any continental or international sporting competition. Nigerian sport lovers will live with the stark reality in 2012 as the country would not take part in any sporting competition organized by FIFA; the world’s football governing body.
In the power sector, the story remains the same, ours is a nation in darkness. If you need electricity then you must be ready to buy your generating set. Whether NEPA or PHCN, it made no difference. Nigerians are still forced to pay for darkness even when the government keeps promising improved electricity supply.
Our economy did not fare any better as our naira was still prostrating before the dollar. Needless to stress that we hard serious economic hardship with prices of commodities flying to the sky even as civil servants complained that minimum wage amounted to nothing. This, perhaps, informed Mr. President’s intention to remove subsidy on petroleum product which has generated very serious debate among Nigerians. While some Nigerians support the decision to remove the subsidy, majority of Nigerians view it as a way of adding to their sufferings. Whatever the case, the debate rages on as Mr. President insist on doing away with it.
In terms of infrastructure, we have not done well. Just take a look at our federal roads, they are in very bad shape that Nigerians doubt if the re-introduced toll gate on the highways can remedy the problem. Inwardly, some state governments have done much in terms of road construction and development of other infrastructures. Topping the list of such state is Akwa Ibom state.
In the area of education, agriculture, arts culture and other sectors, nothing significant happened during the year.
We witnessed the traditional donation of fertilizers to farmer, the usual ASUU strikes even as 2011 senior school certificate examination result released by both the West African Examination Council and the National Examination Council is said to be the worst in the history for the examination bodies.
How about security? The year 2011 ended, not without a sore point and a great shocker to Nigerians and even the International Community. This is on account of a deadly tidal wave rocking the Northern part of the country in the name of BOKO HARAM. If you ask me, our ever porous security network was demystified and disgraced by the Boko Haram, a controversial militant Islamist group said to be against Western Education, culture and modern science. To say the least, the group held Nigeria to ransom in the year 2011. Security wise, the history of Nigeria in 2011 is a chequered one. During the year, we went through the most painful national trauma of Boko Haram whose emotional scars will remain for a long time.
The sect had within the year proven to Nigerians that they, (not the police) were on top of the situation. They shocked Nigeria with a bombing jamboree which spared no one and no place. Everybody and place was equal before Boko Haram. Don’t forget that the sect bombed the police Headquarters and the Inspector General narrowly escaped them, they attacked military formations, they proved to the United Nations that they were fearless by bombing the UN house, not even the mosque and churches were spared as they also unleashed terror on these places of holy worship.
The Christmas day bombing experience is still fresh on the minds of Nigerians. In all these, the security machinery becomes very helpless and handicapped while Boko Haram held sway.
Mr Umoette is a journalist in Uyo, Aks

NLC, strike and Akwa Ibom’s future

2012-01-28T16:50:00.001-08:00

By Joe Peter
The leadership of Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) in Akwa Ibom State recently called off its two week-old struck, which many saw as an attempt to arm-twist government into taking wrong decisions. Labours demand included the implemention of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) and review the Consolidated Judiciary Salary Structure. On the minimum way which Governor Godswill Akpabio recently released N16billion for the clearance of the backlog from April, 2011, the workers demanded that the increment table must be across board.
When the Federal Government promulgated the law establishing N18,000.00 as minimum wage, many states raised concerns most of which pointedly accused the government at the centre of undemocratic behaviour stating that it cannot from Abuja impose a heavy burden on states as it was not in an appreciable position to know the states’ financial obligations and priorities. Many states were categorical about its inability to pay, citing lean financial purses . Up till now, a lot of dust is still in the air. But Akpabio had since started paying the minimum wage, bringing to rest an issue that has remained contentious in many other states.

Yet, the leadership of Labour’s decision to down tools, smacked of bad taste. It showed a lack of appreciation of an act of good faith with goodwill. In the process to whip public sentiment, Labour contrived inane claims nuanced with spurious statistics in a despicable bid to bring the State Government into disrepute. In doing so, they forgot in a hurry that a few months ago, they had given Akpabio an award for the third consecutive times, as the most Labour-friendly governor in the country. The awards came from both the local NLC as well as the national body! The said awards were reportedly based on verifiable records which established and affirmed the administration’s many gestures to workers ranging from “Akpabiomba” being the 13th month salary always paid to workers, restoration of many perquisites to workers, an across board addition of N100,000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira) to the earnings of all retired permanent secretaries, an across board addition of 20% to the earnings of all pensioners. For the minimum wage, as soon as it was announced, the State Government indicated interest that it would pay. Such robust record made Governor Akpabio the darling of Labou,r making the recent postulation of the leadership of Labour that the governor is hostile to workers untenable and suspect.
For the leadership of Labour that has at different fora made public pronouncements on the exceptional nature of the administration in the area of Labour relations and sensitivity to the yearnings of workers to so suddenly alter its position for reasons that are not validly adduceable to adopt an adversarial role smacks of an execution of a written script that has the signature of the opposition. One is constrained to see it as the metaphorical hand of Esau and voice of Jacob. Unfortunately, the innocent and uninformed workers became the cannon fodders for this incendiary politics denominated by hatred patented by a few enemies of the state of which the leadership of Labour unwittingly joined.

How does one reconcile the adversarial posture of Labour against a government that has alleviated public burden through intervention in health sector, free and compulsory education, enduring public infrastructure complemented with robust welfare package; all of which workers are direct beneficiaries except to see such action from the prism of hatred and parochialism. Akpabio’s administration last year earmarked N52 billion for recurrent expenditure. This year, it has again budgeted N66 billion for recurrent expenditure. What this means in succinct terms is that Akpabio’s administration always provides enough funds for the operations of the civil service which is the hub of government. As a matter of fact, the sums provided for the operations of the civil service bureaucracy alone are more than the budgets of most states.
Agreed there could have been a few misgivings, misunderstanding or communication lull here and there, but should they have foreclosed dialogue? We learn that while the thought of strike was brewing in whispers with the spurious claims that other states were paying higher than Akwa Ibom State, the governor graciously gave the leadership of Labour a charge to authenticate the claims and revert to him for discussions. But because the leadership of Labour was set for mischief and blackmail with strike uppermost in their minds, they refused to tow the honourable path of dialogue which would have peacefully resolved the matter. Conscious of the high premium any responsible government places on workers, the leadership of Labour initiated an ambush tactics using the weapon of strike to seek the crippling of activities of government. As Henry Ward Beecher noted “greatness lies not in being strong but in the right use of strength”. This is one instance where strength was roundly abused. No thanks to the leadership of NLC in the state.

The Akwa Ibom drama compeled a recollection of Shakespeare’s comment in Hamlet: “Be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shall not escape calumny”. At no time has Akwa Ibom State been so celebrated even by outsiders, not because of the face that occupies Hill-Top mansion but the verifiable indices of actions and activities that have corralled into what is called uncommon transformation. The breath-taking changes are there for all to see and for the blinds to feel. People throng the state everyday to behold the wonder that has been wrought in just 4½ years. The concept of destination which was initially a casual refrain has now acquired a life of its own as it is serving out the true meaning of the concept.

But in Akwa Ibom State, cynicism is still being patented by a few who are bent on imploding the state. Labour Union by its very nature and engagement is a discerning enterprise that should insulate itself from pedestrian influences. Labour is often well underscored by the exhaustiveness and profoundness of its leaders who must persist in steering the people only in the right direction. Workers look up to their leaders and the leaders work at earning their trust. The future for Akwa Ibom workers, therefore, depend on how fast the leaders to work to earn the trust of the workers. Already, they have implicit confidence in the government of Chief Akpabio. That was why some workers argued with the leadership of NLC in the State that the strike was unnecessary because Akpabio has proven to be a man of his words. In other words, they urged that the action be called off as the governor has over the years earned their trust both in action and words!

Akwa Ibom 2015: Who’s afraid of Merit? (Back page)

2012-01-28T16:43:00.001-08:00

Akwa Ibom 2015: Who’s afraid of Merit? (Back page)
By Ini-Abasi Mboho
The question of where the next Governor of Akwa Ibom State, and the likely successor of Chief Godswill Akpabio in 2015 would come from has dominated political discourse in recent times. Expectedly, many commentators and interest groups have joined the fray to push their positions through. That is how it should be. Democracy allows for debates and plurality of opinions.
The disappointment however is that partisan groups have left the substance to focus on the mundane. Instead of emphasis on the intrinsic qualities of the next Governor and what he would have to offer, we are being assailed by where he should come from. For most people such considerations would amount to sacrificing merit on the altar of mediocrity and this should be strongly discouraged.
For instance in a recent press release, a group which goes by the name: “Eket Senatorial District Forum” stood history on the head through revisionism by attempting to justify (albeit unsuccessfully) why the next governorship contest in Akwa Ibom State should be the exclusive preserve of only aspirants from Eket Senatorial District.
In the release titled “Why Eket Senatorial District Must Produce Akwa Ibom Governor in 2015” the nebulous group went to great length to distort facts and our recent history and seeking to foist its retrogressive position on the rest of the state. The fulcrum of its argument is that “zoning of the office of the Governor has always been part of our political life in Akwa Ibom State,” as if they were all suffering from selective amnesia.
It has already been established before now that at no time since the inception of this democratic dispensation has the position of the governorship of the state been exclusively zoned to any senatorial district. Otherwise the modern day advocates of zoning in Akwa Ibom State would be hard put to explain why the present Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Obong Nsima Ekere, a distinguished son of Eket Senatorial District had contested against Chief Godswill Akpabio for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ticket in 2006.
The position of the Eket Senatorial District Forum, absurd as it is, would be like changing the goal post in the middle of a football game. This is because never in the history of electioneering in Akwa Ibom State had persons from any particular senatorial district been unconstitutionally barred from contesting for the governorship position, while it is donated as a trophy to another.
One may be inclined to ask: where were members of Eket Senatorial District Forum when their sons, in exercise of their democratic right, contested the governorship of the state against aspirants from other senatorial districts? Or are they telling us that if for instance any of their sons (and they were many) had won the PDP primaries in 2006 against Chief Akpabio, they would have annulled the election and dashed the ticket to someone from Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District because it was not their turn?
The members of Eket Senatorial District Forum and other such groups agitating for the unconstitutional and undemocratic barring of aspirants from other senatorial districts should listen to the wise counsel of one of their own and a distinguished son of the zone with strong democratic credentials: Mr Larry Esin. In a recent post in his facebook wall, Mr Esin said: “The question of our role in the governance of our State in 2015, a responsibility we welcome with open arms, will occupy and engage our thoughts and actions for the next three years. And rightfully so!
“But let us not be consumed, blinded and misled by the fledgling believe that it is "our turn" now. It has always been our turn. For as long as we have been a part of Akwa Ibom State, it has always been our turn and responsibility to vie for any political office and offer solutions to meet the development challenges of our State.
“The Ibibio's, Anangs, Ekid's, and all other ethnic groups will express their fundamental right to serve their State in 2015, and we cannot fault them for doing so. Oro will win the governorship not by evoking "Zoning", but by presenting the best marketable Oro candidate in the race and giving 100% of our support to that candidate period,” he said.
Mr Esin should know better and he cannot be faulted for having this democratic disposition and not joining in undemocratic agitations even when he may be a beneficiary. In 2006 Mr Esin (as already noted, from Eket Senatorial District) had a shot at the governorship in the state and indeed put up a credible performance by coming third in the PDP primaries which Chief Godswill Akpabio won. In the 2011 governorship election in Akwa Ibom State, he was the candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC).
In none of these instances had the Eket Senatorial District Forum been on record as having asked aspirants from their zone not to contest against a candidate from Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District. In any case, as always been the case, there were candidates also from Uyo Senatorial District because electoral contests in Akwa Ibom State have always been open for all. It therefore smacks of political mischief for the Eket Forum to suddenly wake up from a deep slumber and attempt to rewrite the political history of Akwa Ibom State through crude revisionism.
The interest of most progressive Akwa Ibom people is not where the next Governor will come from but what he would be bringing to the table. There is no doubt that Governor Godswill Akpabio has greatly transformed the state from a largely pedestrian civil service state to a destination of choice in Nigeria through the provision of world class infrastructural facilities. The people desire a Governor who would take the state to the next level.
Let me concede that it is the democratic right of people of Eket Senatorial District to vie for the Governorship of the state, just as it is the right of any other Akwa Ibomite, as guaranteed by the constitution. In the process, they have to put their best materials forward, and there are many of them. The campaign on who will govern Akwa Ibom State in 2015 should be hinged on the agenda of the aspirants and not their ethnicity.
Any aspirant who is sure of what he has to offer would not be afraid to compete with others. Rather than dissipate their energy on zoning and attempting to rewrite our recent political history, those agitating for the so-called zoning should channel such energy towards producing a marketable candidate that can hold his own. Seeking to close the democratic space even before the election could only foist a mediocre on a State with many intelligent people.
Many people desire a Governor in the mould of Chief Akpabio who will approach governance with a liberal disposition in appointments and execution of projects, a Governor whose constituency would be Akwa Ibom State and not his Senatorial District alone. The campaign by Eket Senatorial District Forum is suspicious and has the potential in alienating a large segment of Akwa Ibom people. It gives the unfortunate impression that whoever should emerge from such an undemocratic process of shutting the democratic space would come with a baggage and an ethnic agenda to execute.
Mr Mboho, a Public Affairs Analyst writes from Uyo.

POLITICIANS AND POSTERS (2) by Precious Udoinyang

2012-01-28T16:42:00.000-08:00

POLITICIANS AND POSTERS (2) by Precious Udoinyang

Last week we considered the poster in terms of its quality. We tried to diagnose the politician based on how his poster looked. But then, since deception is the name of the game, as far as politics is concerned, even the posters are meant to deceive the gullible and unsuspecting. So in effect, you can not really tell everything about the politician by one cursory look at a poster quality. But, one thing that usually gives the politician away is his or her posture on the poster .And so today we dare to browse through the many postures we usually see in our political posters and what they mean.
To start with, when a politician appears too smooth and made up in his or her poster, something is wrong somewhere. Either the photograph used for the poster had been taken many years ago or there are things the politician is trying desperately to conceal, age or current state of physical health for example. Take late President Yaradua’s posters in 2007 for instance. Anyone who saw how polished his face looked in those posters would have instantly given him a clean bill of health. Yet at the time he was contesting that election, he had already undergone kidney transplant, was on dialysis and had many health complications which allegedly even caused him to slump at one of his campaign venues. Yet, looking at the posters, you wouldn’t know all these. See how posters are meant to deceive?
Again, the actual pose of the politician effortlessly betrays the politician’s intentions for the people. There is usually the “straight-face” pose. Here the politician looks straight into the camera with his or her face squared up, eyes not blinking. His aim of taking this kind of pose is to deceive you, the unsuspecting electorate into believing that this particular politician is a straight-forward person. You are to hold the very dangerously-erroneous position that this politician can be trusted. Normally, this can lead the untutored to support this politician in the false belief that good governance will be their reward. How wrong.
In another case, the politician appears relaxed on the posters. For this kind of posture, there is nothing tight or formal about this politician. He or She appears quite calm and genteel. And guess what?, This is supposed to be a picture of confidence meant first to scare the opponents and also to deceive the electorate that this politician is friendly and accessible. But, all these is deception because the aim of this relaxed and confident posture is simply to confuse you into the electorate in to believing that this your representative will be accessible and approachable, People actually seeking re-election into various offices are very fond of this kind of pose. This is usually a fall-out of the fact that after being “given” the mandate that first time, this your representative “turned tiger”. Armed Policemen and overzealous security details made it impossible to have access to him or her. The phone number you were used to communicating with this politician was now permanently in “voicemail” mode. But now that another election is around the corner, there is the need to deceive you with a new posture starting right from the poster. If you fall for it, then you are most unfortunate because as far as this politician is concerned, the relaxed, friendly posture also ends on the poster. He or She still remains the same mean, ruthless, self-serving and thugs-paying politician who will not mind spilling a few drops of blood, including yours, if the occasion demands, Posters are truly meant to deceive.
Even so, the fact that some people do not know how to pretend even spills over unto their political posters, Take a situation where a politician takes a picture for his or here poster backing the camera just managing to show the face from an angle. It is a classic “guyman” pose. But for a political poster it is actually rubbish. Yet, this arrangement is meant to show the electorate that this politician has style and also does things in a unique way. The aim of this kind of poster is to confuse the electorate into believing that this politician will bring innovations into governance. And, this can eventually prove to be true as this politician may come up with new ways of stealing public funds. However, when you see a politician with this kind of posture on a poster, just know that there is vital information being passed to you, namely, the politician should not be trusted. This is because, this kind of pose is meant to show the electorate very clearly that this politician will simply turn his or her back on them once “given” the mandate.
But, perhaps, the most embarrassing of all the postures on posters is the one where the politician comes out laughing. It does not matter whether it is a grin or a smack or actual laughter, whenever a politician has cause to come out laughing on a poster there is trouble, big trouble. And, these kinds of politicians are rare, very rare. But, just in case you happen to see them, try to decode the salient tones behind that laughter and your blood may run cold.
Actually, the laughter by a politician on a poster is supposed to make the politician seem friendly, uncomplicated and easy-going. It is supposed to make you, the electorate, believe that this is one person who will give everything to protect your interest. The idea of this politician hurting you is completely out of the question. The laughing posture is supposed to give you the impression that this is not only a politician but also an ally. Indeed, you have never “had it so good.” Ha..Ha..Ha.. But, what does this politician actually say via that posture on the campaign poster? Well, this politician is actually wondering how gullible and easily-deceivable you, the electorate, have managed to remain all through the years. The joke, therefore, is on you. Before this politician burst out laughing so profusely, there must be things tickling him or her. Maybe, the whole idea of you, the electorate thinking that power is in your hands is laughable because the politician knows that this is not true. How can it be true when the votes are shared in the confines of INEC offices while you, the electorate, goes about with a worthless paper called Voter’s Card? Maybe, the politician is tickled by the fact that you, the electorate, continue to eat the crumbs and drink the dregs when in fact, it is the politician and his immediate family and close friends who eat the Lion share of everything in the name of dividends of democracy. See?
The bottom-line of the whole thing is that politicians, the world over, are politicians and will ever remain politicians. The game is eternally garnished with treachery, trickery and deception, and, it is the man in the street that usually is the worse for it. Every time, they come against us, the common people with everything in their arsenal. At times you may even find them go against each other with feigned ferocity as if the whole political class wants to self-destruct. Yet, soon after, you see these same sworn enemies winning and dinning together and plotting the next onslaught on the long-suffering public. In the words of Robert Nesta Marley, “you can fool some people sometime, but you can not fool all the people all the time”. Meaning, by their posters, you shall know them.

Mboho USA Fights Back, Insist on Autonomy

2012-01-28T16:40:00.000-08:00

- Fingers MMI Nigeria in Okuibom crisis
By Franklyn Isong
It is not yet uhuru in Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio (MMI), the umbrella socio-cultural youths organization in Ibibio land as a faction of its members in the United States of America has dismissed with levity the disclaimers placed on them by its headquarters in Nigeria, insisting that Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio USA, Inc. is autonomous and remains separated from the Nigeria headquarters of the organization.
Trouble started in Mboho when some members of the body in the united States of America wrote to letter to its headquarters in Nigeria declaring autonomy of its chapter from the Nigeria headquarters. The group had alleged amongst other things that the leadership of the Nigeria MMI got itself involved in politics and had not communicated with it on issues affecting the growth of the body.
The USA MMI action was countered by the Use Ubeh-led Nigeria headquarters of the body. The headquarters was to later expel those involved in the action and published their disclaimers in some newspapers in Nigeria.
But unrelenting, the USA group has written another letter to MMI Nigeria where they proffered more reasons for their actions and maintained that they remained a separate entity from the MMI Nigeria.
The three-paragraph letter which was signed by Akparawa Joseph Ibokette, the General- Secretary of MMI, USA, Inc. and made available to Weekend Insight, further accused the leaders of Mboho in Nigeria of getting involved in Nigeria politics, noting that it has elected its national officers with Akparawa Sylvanus Okon as their National President.
The letter read part: “Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio USA, Inc. is an autonomous non-profit and non-political organization, which was started in 2005 and is duly registered in the United States of America.
“On October 16, 2011, Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio USA, Inc. separated itself from Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio in Nigeria because of serious irreconcilable differences, including inappropriate communication, lack of information and respect, involvement of leaders of MMI-Nigeria in politics, which hinders its proper representation of the Ibibio community and its citizens in Akwa Ibom State. This separation will allow Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio USA, Inc. to conduct its business, elect its leaders, and remain a voice for its community without seeking political clearance from Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio in Nigeria.
“Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio USA, Inc. has elected Akparawa Sylvanus Okon as its interim National President. All appointments and directives from Mboho’s headquarters in Nigeria are therefore void and non-binding on Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio USA, Inc.”
When this paper contacted some of the aggrieved members of MMI USA, Inc. through their telephone lines on the crisis, though, they however pleaded anonymity, because, according to them, they had already spoken as a body through the press release, but, they pointedly said that, “the crisis rocking Ibibio land in Akwa Ibom State today as it concerns Ifim Ibom Ibibio and Okuibom Ibibio stool is politically-engineered by the leaders of Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio Nigeria because of their selfish interest in the 2015 general elections in the state. The leadership of Mboho Nigeria has been infiltrated by Akwa Ibom State Government who uses them to perpetrate crisis in Ibibio land so that Ibibio people cannot unite and speak in one voice while other ethnic groups in the state are united and speak in one voice.
The aggrieved members contended that, “The leadership of Mboho Nigeria are politicians and some of them are holding political offices in Akwa Ibom State Government as compensations given to them for using Mboho to fight against their own brothers and sisters in the 2011 elections in favour of their pay-masters who are from other tribes in the state. They are not speaking for Ibibio people but for their political interests. None of them has ever supported the cause of Ibibio people. They are only eating fat from the state government in the name of speaking for Ibibio people while they are actually deceiving and betraying Ibibio people.
“They are only using Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio in Nigeria as a platform for their selfish and self-seeking political interests in the state. They were sponsored and installed in leadership positions of Mboho by those in government authority today, so, they rather work against Ibibio interest, than work against their masters and sponsors in government.”
Meanwhile, the International President of Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, Akparawa Nse Ubeh has dismissed all the allegations leveled against as leadership as cheap blackmail. He also made the assertion when Weekend Insight contacted him on his telephone on Wednesday, January 25, 2012.
Akparawa Ubeh said, “there is no crisis in Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio both in Nigeria and in USA chapter or any chapter for that matter to the best of my knowledge. Messer Sylvanus Okon, Joseph Ibokette and their cohorts are not members of Mboho because they were expelled from the organization for insubordination and lack of respect to constituted authority.”
“Sylvanus Okon is not the chairman of Mboho in USA chapter; the chairman of the USA chapter is Prof. Ekwo. Mr. Sylvanus was angry that he was removed from office of the USA High Commissioner of Mboho Mkparawa. That office is my prerogative as the President of Mboho to appoint someone to fill it. Sylvanus Okon has served under several other president of Mboho as the High Commissioner before I came into office, and we said he should give another person the opportunity to also contribute to the development of Mboho in USA chapter and he became annoyed and wanted to split Mboho so during one of our congresses in our international headquarters in Uyo, Sylvanus Okon, Joseph Ibokette and their cohorts were expelled from Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio on adoption of the recommendations of the USA chapter of Mboho.
“The matter as I speak to you now is in a court in USA. They cannot split an organization they did not form. They joined Mboho just five years ago while Mboho has been in existence for over 20 years. Prof. Ekwo is the chairman of Mboho in USA so call him and also hear from him too.”
On the involvement of Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio in the crisis of succession rocking Okuibom stool in Ibibio land, Ubeh explained; “I am the President of Mboho, I am not Mboho. Mboho has its organs and structures that takes decision on any issue. The decision to support the Paramount Ruler of ONNA Local Government Area, Akwa Edidem (Dr.) Akpabio Udo Ukpa to ascend the Okuibom throne was unanimously taken three years ago when I was not even the President of Mboho.
“When the decision to install Akpabio Ukpa came up few years ago at the State Council of Chiefs, it was Mboho that opposed it on grounds that the Okuibom II, late Usonyin Okon Ekpo was yet to be buried. We told our monarchs then, to wait until the bury the Okuibom II. We also told them to count Mboho out if they still want to go ahead with Ukpa’s installation. That was why His Excellency, Governor Godswill Akpabio, asked us to be involved in the settlement of the conflict that had existed between the family of Okuibom II, Ifim Ibom and the state government.
“The paramount rulers cannot now say they want to follow Ifim Ibom Ibibio constitution after Ukpa had been selected and presented to Ibibio people. We took the decision to support Ukpa because, we want our Paramount Rulers to learn to also stick to their words no matter the situation. They are the ones playing politics with the Okuibom stool and not Mboho because we stand for the truth and we have no regret whatsoever supporting Akwa Edidem Akpabio Ukpa as the Okuibom Ibibio III. In fact, if we have another opportunity, we will still support Ukpa for the stool.”

Okuibom Stool: Ifim Ibom slams Itai Afe Annang

2012-01-28T16:38:00.001-08:00

- Warns him to Steer Clear
By Franklyn Isong
The rosy relationship enjoyed between the people of Ibibio ethnic group and their Annang counterpart in Akwa Ibom State may be severed as a fallout of comments credited to the clan head of Ikpe Annang in Essien Udim LGA who is also the Itai Afe Annang IV, Okuku Pius Effiong Esideh III, in a local tabloid in the state concerning the crisis rocking the Okuibom Ibibio stool.
Ifim Ibom Ibibio has been engulfed in a prolonged crisis over who ascend the highest traditional stool of Okuibom Ibibio. The crisis has splits Ibibio Paramount Rulers into two groups led by Edidems Akpabio Udo Ukpa and Ime Dickson Umoette, monarchs of ONNA and Etinan LGAs respectively. While, Ukpa insists on ascending the stool as the Okuibom III, Umoette-led group which has 10 Ibibio Paramount Rulers are saying that Okuibom III was the slain paramount ruler of Nsit Ubium LGA, Edidem Robert James Obot and so, the stool would be occupied by Okuibom IV that would be a paramount ruler selected by them based on alphabetical arrangement of Ibibio LGAs as enshrined in Ifim Ibom constitution.
While the debates however ranges on by both camps of Ibibio monarchs, a twist has been introduced as Edidem Umoette-led Supreme Council of Ibibio Traditional Rulers has issued what is called “a stern warning” to the clan head of Ikpe Annang, Okuku Pius Esideh, to steer clear of Ibibio traditional matters and desist from further commenting on the Okuibom matter which, according to them, was strictly Ibibio people’s affair, saying that Esideh has no locus standi to comment on the matter under whatever capacity because it was not an issue for the Annangs.
Okuku Esideh incurred Ifim Ibom wrath when he granted an interview to a local tabloid in the state which was titled; “Ifim Ibom Ibibio Cracks: OkuIbom III is Dead - Edidem Umoette; No! He’s Alive - Itai Afe Annang.”
He was reported in the interview to amongst other things said that the Umoette -led Paramount Rulers were not being truthful on the Okuibom issue.
The Newspaper report further quoted him as saying, “they were there when they introduced Edidem Ukpa to Obong Victor Attah, former Governor of Akwa Ibom state, and I was an eye witness. So, for them to stay away today (referring to the day of Ukpa’s coronation) or to have created a problem in Ibibio land is not fair, these paramount rulers are no truthful to themselves.”
Esideh was also quoted as saying, “when the Annang (people) wanted to consult them, we consulted them at Akpabio Udo Ukpa’s palace, and all of them attended. Nobody made any agitation whatsoever that this man shouldn’t be the Oku Ibom Ibibio III by then.”
The clan head from the state governor’s local government was said to have urged Umoette’s group to, “join hands with Akpabio Ukpa as he has been crowned today as Okuibom Ibibio. They should join hands with him to build the race, so they can keep Ibibio race as one.”
According to the publication, Esideh went further to assert that, “I have told them to sheath their sword and join hands with him (Ukpa) and make Ibibio great because they elected him. He is a paramount ruler of Ibibio land and those who were alive elected him,” saying, “he (Ukpa) must forgive and accept them as a peaceful man and continue with his good works.”
But, in what appears to be a swift reaction, the Paramount Ruler of Etinan LGA, and the President of Ifim Ibom Ibibio, Edidem Ime Dickson Umoette, has described Okuku Esideh’s interview as an insult to Ifim Ibom Ibibio and the entire people of Ibibio land, saying that the Itai Afa Annang has no right whatsoever to speak for Ibibio people or to comment on matters affecting Ibibio Paramount Rulers in the state.
The Etinan monarch observed that Esideh’s comments in the said interview was meant to further spit on the people of Ibibio nation as, according to him, it has never been heard in Akwa Ibom state that “an Ibibio clan head or even a paramount ruler ever made comment on Annang traditional matters,” warning that “Esideh should confine himself to traditional matters affecting his clan in Annang land, rather than engaging in frivolous comments and actions that could further provoke any ethnic group in the state to anger.
“I am advising him to stay away and or stay clear from Ifim Ibom Ibibio affairs and any other matter concerning Ibibio traditional institution. He is a clan head in Annang land and Okuibom issue is a matter that concerns Ibibio paramount rulers, so, where does he come in. His comments, I think, is the height of insult to us, which we cannot allow to go without warning him in order to avoid a repeat.
“Be that as it may, I still want to believe that Pius Esideh did not grant this interview and say all these words because, if actually he did, then, it is the very height of irresponsibility on his part to attempt to spit on Ibibio people by wanting to speak for Ibibio nation or comment on Ibibio traditional issue that is far above his scope.”
Umoette called on Esideh to “render an unreserved apology to Ifim Ibom Ibibio and to the people of Ibibio nation for making such unwarranted derogatory remarks in order to demean the status of Ibibio people in the state.”
The President of the Supreme Council of Ibibio Traditional Rulers in the state also called on his Annang counterpart, the Afe Nkuku Annang which is made up of Paramount Rulers in Annang land to immediately call the Ikpe Annang clan head to order before he set the state on fire. Edidem Umoette made these reactions in an interview with Weekend Insight in Uyo on Tuesday, January 24, 2012.

13 Years Old AK Girl Forced Into Prostitution, Pays Madam N150,000 Monthly

2012-01-28T16:37:00.001-08:00

Men of the Nigeria Police Force, Lagos State Command, have rescued a 13-year old girl in a hotel room where she was forced to sleep with different men daily and thereafter paid N150,000 as monthly returns to her employer, identified as Rosemary Udoh.
Rosemary, 33, and the hotel manager, Fatai Ahmed, 46, have been…
arrested and charged to Ikeja magistrates’ court sitting in Ojokoro for abducting and forcing the little girl into prostitution.
The victim confessed to the police that she slept with at least 10 men daily in order to raise the N150,000 for her employer and payment for the hotel accommodation.
She said that men paid her N500 for a round of sex and the hotel collects all the money, deducts some for the hotel room and keeps the rest for her madam who usually comes in the morning to collect it.
She was rescued after spending six months in the hotel at Otta where her madam, who lives at No.16 Aderupoko street, Ahmadiya, on the outskirts of Lagos, took her for prostitution.
It was gathered that Rosemary had gone to her home town in Akwa Ibom State and brought the girl to Lagos under the false pretence of sending her to school. She had told the girl’s parents that she wanted to help them train the girl and send her to school in Lagos.
But not quite long after she brought her to Lagos, Rosemary started preparing her for prostitution. She reportedly bought her sexy wears and body cream before taking her to the hotel and handing her over to Ahmed, the manager.
While she was in the hotel, the ‘small’ girl was not allowed to have contact with any of her relations.
Luck ran out on them when police raided the hotel and discovered that she was under aged. The girl told the police what happened.

Consequently, Rosemary and the manager were arrested and charged to court for abducting and forcing an under aged girl into prostitution. At the court, they pleaded not guilty.
The presiding magistrate, Mr. K. O. Ogundare granted them bail in the sum of N100,000 with two responsible sureties in like sum. The matter was adjourned for further hearing.

Boko Haram: The End of All Things? By David Augustine

2012-01-22T21:29:00.003-08:00

The sad end of a once promising nation has come, more swiftly than American expertise could predict, more quickly than any beginning of the year political prophet could prophesy. Nigeria, I can safely say, has come to an end. The requiem mass is being diligently conducted by hooded Mullahs, playing the orchestra of booming bombs, raising a cascade of smoke and bonfire, producing an incense from charred remains of infidels. Darkness is descending so fast on us that even the elders have lost their voices and the youths their strength. Our leaders are caught in a morass of confused hopelessness. Every day frightened citizens look up to a leadership that can no longer offer any hope or provide soothing excuse that we could hang our optimism on.
The Mullahs know our fears, yet they have conquered theirs. They offer death and accept death, provided we die. They bomb the infidels to hell and gladly join the chariot of fire in a cheap flight to a paradise of seventy-two virgins. Who can save the country from the Mullahs? Uncle Jonathan? Ah! What agony to ask a man to catch the wind! Uncle Jona has removed the big hat and replaced it with a smaller, smatter type, perhaps to see if he could see clearer. But as he is looking towards Damaturu, the Mullah would sneak into Portiskum. When Jona sends his rag-tag men to Yobe, the Mullah answers him from Adamawa, dispensing deaths, blood and tears.
The Mullah is bold and un-Nigerianly more organized and efficient. In a country where nothing is run efficiently, the Mullah has thought us that things could be well planned, and efficiently and effectively implemented. They daily mock our inefficiency, targeting our most hallowed security shrines. The Mullah sent a strong signal when he first made a bonfire and a sacrifice of their martyr inside the nation’s most visible symbol of security, the Police Headquarters in Abuja. Typical of us we explained their audacity as nothing unusual; after all, terrorism exists, even in America. We went back to our sweet song; “Goodluck to everybody, Goodluck Nigeria…hee!”
The Mullah went to the United Nations building, disuniting souls from their loved ones, announcing our ignoble arrival as a terror nation. We shrugged it off; after all, it happens every day in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Lebanon. The Mullah became more daring, throwing his lethal stones at churches, dispatching reluctant worshippers to early meeting with their God. We said it would fizzle away, as if kidnapping we said the same about had been exterminated. The Mullah has shaken our faith and fear has gotten the better of us. Today we hesitate to go to church. We put off nightly worships and avoid large congregations. We soon forget our prayers and that soothing song that the lord that answereth by fire would always answer. Panic has become a second nature in a country we had hoped would one day forge into one.
The pathetic silence of our elders, especially those who should speak to the ruffians in the north, now signposts a muted acquiescence to the reign of terror fast consuming the world’s largest black nation. As the clouds gather around what we knew as Nigeria, the Mullah got bolder. He scoffed at our inept security aperitif, poked his crooked fingers at our security and in one fell swoop, sent sacrificial bomb smokes to Allah in whatever goes by the name of security in Kano. The AIG’s office received them, and so did eight other police formations. The State Security Service was not spared, the Immigration service, all received the rampaging Mullah. The nation quaked and as at the last count, 162 souls had gone the way of all mortals, but theirs, was in a chariot of burning furry.
But is the Mullah a servant of God? Not necessarily. He is a politician in a religious turban. He is a hooded political terror, clutching at volatile religion to achieve a most despicable political end. For the Mullah, it is a battle to reclaim a lost political heritage, now sacrilegiously held by an infidel from the watery fringes of the country, where it is only right to take from and never right to give to. The Mullah is a demanding demi-god, one not ready for any compromise. How can you get a compromise from a man who leaves you with no choice? He leaves no room for negotiations. Take a teaser from our Mullah. He says he wants all his men released. It does not matter what crime they have committed. He sought for and got compensations for his murderous leader wasted in the wee hours of this struggle. A hefty N100m was paid that may most likely go into procuring more weapons.
The Mullah says he has a score to settle with Christians. “Why”, we asked anxiously. He said Christians and the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, had killed, and in most cases eaten the flesh of Muslims. You begin to scratch your head. When did Ayo Oritsejafor and his men kill and share this sacred meat without remembering us here? Or are we no longer Christians? However, when you look deeper you discover that it was just another impossible barrier to peace. Nigeria has always had the history of Muslims, fighting for Allah, killing Christians and innocent southerners. You begin to look for a way to placate the Mullah.
What do you say to him? Would you just tell him that we have eaten before, and we hope not to kill and eat Muslims again? Another impossible proposal, wrought to ensure that there was no meeting of minds. How do you negotiate with a man in hoods? How do you make peace with a man sworn to exterminate you? The Mullah is fast achieving his aims. Cause panic, destabilize the government; make the country ungovernable as was threatened and then achieve the result of a band of political soldiers waiting in the wings, seizing power and returning it to where it rightfully belonged and then, Allahuakbah!
Southerners are negotiating with their legs, running back to their roots. The alluring music of one Nigeria is fast becoming a dirge no one wants to sing. The Mullah is a tactician. He knows his military strategy. He knows that the two most effective means of provoking a war is religion and ethnicity. He combines the two to achieve maximum result. Allah needs some blood and it must be the blood of southerners and Christians. Leave our region and don’t come back, the Mullah orders. Like frightened chickens, we flee. But who would have stayed to be roasted? Who would have dared them when they have the reputation for doing what they threaten to do? Who would depend on a government that can hardly defend her institutions? Then, the exodus begins. Hungry helpless men and their crying women and children embark on the hazardous journey back to a root they hardly know. They encounter ambushes and are killed. When they succeed in getting “home”, they become strangers, because they had fled from where they called home that no longer wants them.
The conspiracy of silence is deafening. Those who are ready to occupy Nigeria are not interested in a Nigeria that has no oil. It is always the oily world that needs to be occupied. Who wants to occupy a Boko Haram-infested Nigeria? So, silence became heard over the dint of the boisterous carnival of Ojota subsidy dance. Silence ruled in the land of the rising sun, where the Ohaneze and the southeast governors simply went to sleep because the Mullah had no offices to share; he had death. In the north, silence resonated, drowning the noise of evening prayers. Emirs, Elders, governors, spoke only to their pillows. No one wanted a visit from the Mullah, who had sure death to dispense. Yet all of us wanted a Zakari Bui, a police commissioner to be a superman. He had a choice between releasing a Boko Haram suspect and risking his life and the lives of every member of his family and his extended family. The choice was easy. Release the Mullah. The Nigerian state is more amenable. You could even live long enough to be decorated one day with the National Honour of the Commander of the Order of the Niger.
The Mullah has defied everything thrown at him. He ridiculed us with scorn when we imposed an emergency. He is the wind, going wherever he wanted, spreading his terror beyond the bounds we created for him. He has no native. Today he is in Damaturu, tomorrow he is Birnim Kebbi. The fire is growing and very soon, there will be nowhere to run to. After all, did we not hear that he went to Port Harcourt? Uncle Jona knows him better than all of us do. Uncle Jona says the Mullah is a spirit; he is everywhere, including Aso Rock. So, we have no idea where we are headed. Can we survive this onslaught? Can the nation come out of this, and still remain the same? The answer, my brother, is still blowing in the wind.
I think we should listen to the Mullah. Can he be allowed to wave his Koran around his territory, while the children of the infidels trace their final roots down south? Is it possible to share this formless cow without further blood let? Do we continue playing the ostrich, burying our head in the sand, while the cow bleeds to death? How many more souls are required to let the Mullah be? Believe it or not, the end is here. Or do we still hope to maintain our one Nigeria when Uncle Jona is finally driven out for the preferred to take over? We should remember that the watery infidels still have their own weapons, concealed under the cover of an amnesty. In the very likely event that Jona is chased away, can anybody reasonably expect that the black gold will still be available to all.
The Mullah has changed the course of the history of Nigeria. We can never remain the same. While terror continues to grow, and the blood of both infidels and the righteous are daily wasted to bombs that hardly know religion and tribe, let us come together and talk. The Holy Scripture asked a question that is very pertinent at this point in our distress. The Holy Bible asks; “Can two walk together unless they agree?” Lets reason together, the Niger and Benue rivers are fast turning red with the blood of Nigerian Christians, Muslims, Igbos, Yoruba, Hausa, Ibibio, Angas, Birom and the rest. The time to act is now!