We have been promised uninterrupted power supply by December 2013. Has that promise been fulfilled? There was promise to generate 5000MW by December 2012 but it never happened. There was also the promise to generate 6000MW by June 2013 but never happened. All we have been hearing is complain about witches and wizards attacking gas pipelines.

#‎COMPARE A SICK YAR'ADUA & A #‎HEALTHY JONATHAN. In 3 years a sick YAR'ADUA; created Ministry of Niger-delta, amnesty restored peace in the Niger-delta, he did not blame militancy on
anybody, he withdrew the refineries sold to cronies (Otedola, Dangote etc), he reduced fuel from N70 to N65, he uphold rule of law by not influencing judiciary, he set the machinery for a credible elections.
In 4 years a healthy JONATHAN; increase fuel from N65 to N97, bye-bye to rule of law, INEC getting worse, He blamed people for Boko haram, refineries on sale.
A sick Yar'adua and a healthy Jonathan
which one is better?

@BUKOLASARAKI’S DEFECTION KILLS PDP IN KWARA — FORMER CPC BOSS

Alhaji Sulaiman Buhari is the former chairman of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and a chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State. In this interview with our correspondent in Ilorin, he argues that the defections of Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed and former Governor Bukola Saraki to APC have ended the supremacy of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state. Excerpt:

How will you describe the recent political development in the country as regards the defection of five PDP governors to APC?

It is a very good development and it is good for our democracy. This is the time that Nigeria is practicing democracy. What is happening now would challenge the government in power to sit up. The merger has created a veritable alternative for the ruling party. So it is a good development for our country.

As a chieftain of APC in Kwara State, how do you see the defection of the state governor and his predecessor to your party?

It is also a very good development as far as I am concerned. It is good for Kwara democracy. It is a good development for my party to receive new PDP members. What we are struggling for is to be in power and God has just done it without going to the poll and made the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state the ruling party. It is a good development for the party and the people of Kwara state in general.

How do you plan to manage this success? Do you think it would be possible for APC to retain power in 2015?

It is very possible. I think 2015 election is not going to be very difficult anymore. We are the main opposition party in the state and for them coming to APC, what should be paramount to all of us is the interest of Kwara. So whatever be the struggle, the interest of Kwarans remains sacrosanct and we must not compromise that. Now that the governor and his predecessor have seen themselves as part of progressives, definitely Kwara is going to benefit from it because this is a party that has agenda, you can see what is going on in other APC states: the rapid development taking place. So the merger is going to be beneficial to the people of Kwara.

What of those who remain in PDP, don’t you see them as a threat to APC’s continuous ruling of Kwara, or are you saying there is no PDP again in the state?

Who is the PDP in the state? Is it not the governor and Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki? Those are the PDP. Once they left the party, the PDP is no more in the state. Those who are saying PDP still remains are only deceiving themselves. It is normal as a politician, as a political party, even if you are dying, you would continue to tell people that you are not dying.
Besides, those who remain in PDP, most of them are not sincere. Everybody is struggling, “OK, PDP is in government at the national level, let me remain in PDP to have appointment”.
If they really have the interest of Kwarans at mind, they should let us come together and see how things can be done, how things can be put in a very good shape in Kwara.

But some APC members are not happy with the merger; they are saying that they are not adequately consulted by the national leadership before accepting the new entrants. What is your reaction to that?

Who is that in the APC of today that is greater than we, the legacy chairmen? And as a former CPC chairman, we are satisfied; we are well consulted, well updated, the same thing with ANPP chairman. We passed the message to all our followers. As far as we are concerned, as far as our members are concerned, we are happy with what the leadership of APC is doing. For me I know that I would lose my position as party chairman, but it is not about being a party chairman, we are doing it for the common interest of the masses. So we were well consulted, we were informed. They called us for a meeting in Abuja, we went and we called our national leaders who updated us and gave us necessary information.

Some APC members are said to be planning to join PDP, are you aware of that?

That is political propaganda. Few days ago, we held series of meetings and I am telling you that none of our members is planning to leave the party. They are all committed to the struggle and they are ready to remain in the party. It is a lie that some people are not comfortable with what is happening in APC and they want to leave, it is all rumour. We are all comfortable with the merger of new PDP with APC in Kwara State.
Let’s assume there are those who want to leave, would you say from your own point of view that it is in their best interest to leave?
This is a political party, this is not religion. You can be in APC today and tomorrow you find yourself in PDP. The G5 governors were in one party before. Buhari was in ANPP, he left ANPP to CPC. That is just it. Those who want to leave may have one or two reasons or the other or they might think they would have opportunity in PDP. That is politics. It cannot be because some people are coming to join. If they have the interest of this state in mind, I don’t think they have any reason to leave.

So what prospect do you envisage for the merger?

I hope good things are going to happen because this is a progressive party. We have agenda. You can see what the progressive governors are doing. There is rapid development in APC states and we are going to replicate the same thing in Kwara State. You can see that the new PDP merged with APC because they fell in love with what is happening in our states and they want to share in the ideology of the progressive governors. I am assuring the people of Kwara State that they are going to witness a lot of development with this merger. He (Kwara state governor) is going to embark on massive developmental projects.

What advice do you have for your members?

My advice for our members, especially those of us in APC before the merger, is that they should remain in the party, see themselves as landlords and they should believe that this is a Kwara project, not Saraki’s project, not former CPC project. If truly we believe in making Kwara better, we should remain and join hand with the present government.

Senator @BukolaSaraki salutes patriotic Nigerians and calls for more accountability in 2014

Today, I wish to extend my best wishes to all Nigerians, home and abroad, as we usher in the Year 2014 - the start of a new horizon filled with hope.

As we reflect upon the passing of the old year, we ponder on the innumerable challenges our dear country Nigeria has faced, and the sadness of lives needlessly lost as a result of tragic incidents, religious, ethnic or political unrest. We mourn with those who too mourn the loss of a dear brother, mother, sister, father, friend or neighbor who has paid the supreme sacrifice for our existence as one nation, tolerating and accepting one another despite our differences.

I salute the Nigerian military and other security forces, who despite facing daunting odds have worked tirelessly to preserve the security of our beloved region.

I salute all patriotic Nigerians who have not lost hope and who are still inspired to continue in the sacrifice to keep us democratic and indivisible.

In retrospect, the year 2013 was a defining period in the life of our Nation. From the religious, ethnic and political uprisings that have led to wanton loss of lives and properties, kidnapping and extra judicial killings to the degrading oil spillages and oil theft across the Niger-Delta region particularly the Ogoniland, the shutdown of tertiary institutions by Academic Staff Union of Universities which paralyzed academic activities and it's resultant effect academically and socially on our children. All these tragic incidents threatened to challenge our peaceful co-existence, security of lives and property.

However despite these challenges, in many ways, 2013 reminded us once again of the unique potential our country has for global greatness. Leading global economist Jim O’Neil has identified Nigeria’s potential, as part of the MINT group, the next fastest growing economies globally. However he also identified a substantial weakness in our current leadership. Indeed, every Nigerian is acutely aware of the potential of our nation, but we all remain incredibly frustrated by our day to day experiences of life in Nigeria, from the lack of security to a lack of electricity; from the lack of the rule of law to corruption at the highest levels.

More than ever before, the majority of our people believe that our government and its systems do not work to improve citizens' lives but rather have become a cog in the wheel of change. In fact, there is a growing perception that government neither promotes fairness nor the culture of merit. This frustration has led many to lose hope.

However, I believe that all this too can be a thing of the past and a point of reference of how we as a nation can turn our adversity into strength.

Today, more than ever before, I bring you a message of hope, and by the grace of God I believe that it will lead us to a brighter tomorrow.

Today, the consequences of the retrogressive and repressive policies of this PDP government by commission or omission has inadvertently, created a broader space for the emergence of an effective opposition - a key ingredient of a vibrant democracy. A pointer to this is the conditions that have lead to the near tsunami-like exodus from PDP to APC.

I have always believed that our democracy must be built on a party politics of inclusiveness, politics that is embraced by all Nigerians- not some Nigerians. For some of us, it is non-negotiable that our politics must be one based on the rule of law, morality, the principles of public trust and fairness, and most importantly delivering policies that transform the lives of the people we serve.

For most of us, it was no longer viable to expect the barest minimum for the people of Nigeria under the PDP. It became inexplicable to promote democracy within a party where these principles and issues must be entrenched, hence, the resolve of the tectonic shift in our political base.

This is the premise on which some of us in 2013 left PDP and have since joined APC. This decision though hard was made inevitable by what we saw as the irreconcilable division in the PDP - a party that lacked any semblance of internal democracy; a party that acted without impunity; a party that did not deliver for the people and the country; and a party that threatened to return our country to authoritarianism. Our decision to leave was one borne out of the desire to say no to military democracy and say yes to representative democracy.

As a result I believe the dream of an effective opposition has now been born and the hope of a new dawn of a better, fairer, and more prosperous Nigeria where the wealth of our nation is shared equitably with and for all, now has the potential to become a reality.

My hope is that we will have a vibrant opposition party capable of keeping the party in government accountable on behalf of the people of Nigeria. This I believe is the yearning of every well-meaning Nigerian; and I join them in the belief that Nigeria will be better in 2014 and beyond.

However, I am also convinced that change will only happen if we collectively say no to leadership by selection, leadership by ethnic divide, authority by clannish identity and religious divide. This is what we must stand for. This must be the foundation on which a strong vibrant and fair democratic Nigeria can be realized.

In 2013 we witnessed incidences that collectively shook us. Incidences that were designed to change our way of life and deny us our well won liberty and freedom. But from the ashes of the despair posed by these events, especially the recent religious, ethnic and political uprisings, we will emerge in 2014 more resilient and determined that this country will never die!

Let's all come together and work harder to reinvent our Nigeria and make it great again. Let's re-dedicate ourselves to the work that lies ahead of us. Let's in our areas of influence continue to play our part to move our country in the right direction, even in the face of political intimidation and harassment.

I especially call on you to join hands with us at the senate, and the Senate Committee on Environment and Ecology in particular, to push for a better Nigerian environment and economy in 2014. Remarkable achievement has been made by introducing some important bills on the floor of the National Assembly; chiefly among them is the NOSDRA BILL now in its 3rd reading on the floor of the Senate and ultimately, in the previous year the motion on the fuel subsidy scam that exposed the shady dealings in the downstream sector, which was one of the driving forces of the Federal Governments transformation in 2013.

Today, by virtue of that singular act there has been a reduction in public spending on oil subsidy payments from N2.2 trillion in 2011 to N971 billion last year, saving country an additional N1.2 trillion that can be injected into the economy to provide basic infrastructure and other amenities.

In 2013, the ‪#‎SaveBagega‬ Campaign is arguably one of the biggest social media advocacies i have witnessed in recent times. People from different ethnic and political affiliation came together in unison to prevail on government to secure fund for the remediation exercise in Bagega Zamfara State where 1500 Children neglected two years ago were screened and admitted into the lead poisoning programme. This initiative has brought many other spirited campaigns to limelight in order to ease the sufferings of the masses.

All we need as a people is to focus on the things that bind us together in unity. I urge those fanning the embers of disunity and rancour within the country to the detriment of a larger majority for their selfish reasons to desist from such acts.

As we prepare to celebrate our 100-year centenary anniversary of Nigeria’s existence as a nation, I have no doubt, the year 2014 will undoubtedly bring in new promises as well as challenges. However I am confident that our tolerance, strength, and good spirit will give us the necessary momentum to triumph and achieve greater success for our country and our people.

I look forward to a rewarding 2014 and beyond for all Nigerians at home and in the Disapora.

On behalf of my family and the good people of Kwara Central, I wish you all a happy and prosperous New Year.

TAMBUWAL, SARAKI OTHERS SHUN DAIVID MARK’S PEACE TALK, INSIST ON DEFECTION TO APC

Speaker of house of representative, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, SENATOR BUKOLA SARAKI and some other lawmakers shunned the entreaties by the senate president, David Mark, insisting that there was no going back in their decision to move into APC.
Tambuwal and SARAKI were reported to have stated that they had gone too deep with APC to backpedal at this point in time while Abbe was quoted to have said that any attempt for him to remain in PDP henceforth would be tantamount to betrayal of Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, his political benefactor.
The Senate President, Davis Mark has been hired by President Goodluck Jonathan to help plead with aggrieved federal lawmakers of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP who where bent on defecting to the Opposition All Progressives Congress, APC.
It was gathered that despite obvious frustrations in handling the assignment from the Presidency, Mark continued consultation with the aggrieved members of the National Assembly even on the first day of the New Year yesterday.
One of the lawmakers from the South/South geopolitical zone confirmed to National Mirror in a telephone interview yesterday that Mark is meeting with his colleagues on behalf of the Presidency on the way forward over the protracted crisis bedevilling the ruling party.

@OP

I can see you are very interested in Kwara affairs. Hence, your continuous updating on Kwara politics.

My question to you, goes thus:

If Nigeria separates, which republic will Kwara go with?

Arewa or Odua.

"When we met with the President, as Northern governors, he told us that the former US Secretary of State, Lady Clinton, told him that as President he had to look at the issue of the North very critically. She noted that there was an imbalance in terms of patronage, appointments and sharing of resources. He assured that he was looking at those comments and that was why he was delaying appointments into boards and so on. Since that meeting, we have not seen anything or changes so it is my conclusion that the President lacks the capacity and courage to do the right thing. We have had enough crises in this country and it is not right to plant seeds of crisis in the future. Look at the North-East that was allocated N2bn in the current budget, N2bn is what Mr. President allocated to non-APC states for supporting him, while N111bn was allocated to the South-East and South-South. This is not close to fairness.” - Kano State Governor Rabi’u Kwankwaso.

Islamic Group Lambastes Metuh For Calling APC Islamic Party

An Islamic group, Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has lambasted the Spokesperson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for claiming that the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) is an agenda for the Islamisation of Nigeria.

MURIC's position is contained in a statement issued on Thursday by its Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola.

Akintola said Metuh's comments were "unguarded, unprofessional, parochial and myopic," adding that "such a statement can only be heard from a man running diarrhoea of the mouth."

The group stated that it was not parochial and that its members belong to various parties, including (PDP, APC, Labour, PDM, APGA, etc, for which they voted "without being prompted from the minbar (mosque's pulpit)."

However, the group said, they "cannot keep quiet in the face of the unwarranted, unprovoked, unsolicited, irrational and inexplicable statement credited to the PDP spokesman."

MURIC challenged PDP's spokesperson to present evidence to back his accusation.
"MURIC appeals to PDP mainstream to call its spokesperson to order. Religion is a very sensitive issue in this country and no political party should attempt to turn Islam into a pawn in its political chess game. We warn that any political party which attempts to drag the name of Islam into the murky waters of Nigerian politics will have the Muslims to contend with," warned the statement.

The groups also advised the PDP leadership to withdraw the statement credited to Metuh, apologise to Nigerian Muslims in particular and all Nigerians in general, and seek Allah's forgiveness.

It will be recalled, that on January 8, Metuh said in a statement: "Now that an Islamic cleric, Ambassador Yusuf Garba and the Religious Equity Promotion Council, REPC, have exposed the evil plot by the APC to balkanize our nation along religious lines by imposing an Islamic agenda just like the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, the PDP wishes to make it manifest to all Nigerians to stand up and resist this evil machination by enemies of our dear country."

Ripples over composition of Kwara PDP caretaker C’ttee

The emergence of non-indigenes, Hon Soloman Edoja and Alhaji Jubril Bala as Chairman and Secretary of the 14-member Caretaker Committee for the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) in Kwara State, is causing serious ripples within the party structure in the state.
The composition, The Herald reliably gathered, was polarizing the party as many members were not comfortable with the choice of non-indigenes as the Chairman and Secretary.
Both the Chairman and Secretary, The Herald gathered, were Delta and Plateau indigenes respectively.
Credible sources within the party condemned the composition in its entirety, stressing that “it showed that the national leadership of the party has no confidence in the remnants of the party after the defection of Senator Bukola Saraki and Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed to the All Progressives Congress.
Some party members who did not want their names in print confided in The Herald that they had lost confidence in the leadership of the party in the state.
They further claimed that the composition pointed to the fact that the national leadership of the party did not have confidence on the crop of people that were laying claim to the party leadership in the state any longer.
According to them, “We are not happy at the development; it is a slap on our faces particularly our leaders that are claiming to be on ground.
“The problem now is how will those non-indigenes understand Kwara politics because our politics here in Kwara is different from any other state”.
The aggrieved individuals who further expressed reservations over the development emphasized that “this is not our expectation at this critical period, all we need is indigenes with credibility”.
The aggrieved members threatened to pull out of the party if the national leadership of the PDP failed to address the composition they considered as” imposition”.
They further attributed the problem to the greediness of some PDP leaders in the state who were head bent on using the opportunity offered by the defection of Senator Bukola Saraki and the state governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed to the APC to enrich themselves.
Only this week,the national leadership of the PDP announced the composition of the state caretaker committee which include the suspended member of the State House of Assembly Hon Iliasu Ibrahim, former member of House of Representatives, Hon Ladi Edun and former state PDP Director of Publicity; Hon Mariam Al-Hassan.
Others are; Former Special Adviser on Chieftaincy Affairs to Governor Ahmed; Prince Mahmud Haliru Datsoho, Rex Kola Olawoye, Alhaji Bola Rauf Raji, Isaac Gbenle Adeyemi, Mrs AbdulMumini Ogele, Hon Abdulganiyu Sa’adu,Hon Adebayo Jimoh and Sule Amusa.
Prior to the latest development, The Herald reliably gathered that about three or four factions had emerged within the state PDP which made it difficult for the party members to compose the caretaker committee.
The factions which include, Professor Oba Abdulraheem, Hon Bio Ibrahim, Mr. John Dara, Mr Kunle Sulyman and Senator Gbemi Saraki had been battling tooth and nail over the composition.
They expressed disappointment that people like Hon. Kunle Sulyman and Folorunsho Ayinla who were expected to emerge could not scale through the hurdle

Islam has been part of Nigeria culture before you were born Mr Fani Kayode, and it will continue to be part of Nigeria society regardless if the people stays together or cease to exist as one nation. Inserting political Islamophobia into a society struggling with sectarian conflicts will never resolve any problem. Enough of conspiracy theories!

Interesting! Kwara PDP Elders Are Traitors

Special Report
Hajiya Bola Shagaya, can she deliver Kwara State to the PDP?
By Salman Abdulraheem

It is very obvious that the freedom Kwarans are yearning for through our great party, the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, may not be forthcoming due to the emergence of another ‘political god’ in the Kwara Political stage. Unlike the late political sage, Senator Olusola Saraki and his son, who is also the acclaimed leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the State, the newly emerged ‘Maradona’ is a woman. She is Hajia Bola Shagaya.

As generally known, Hajia Shagaya is a successful business woman across the African globe and ally of successive administration in Nigeria, a rear privilege which paved ways for her within the nation’s fast growing economy. She came into political limelight having warmed her way into the mind of Nigeria’s First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan on the corridor of social outings among others and was hurriedly approached by some major Stakeholders in the Kwara PDP on the way forward following the exit of Bukola Saraki and his stooges from the party some months ago. Unfortunately, Hajia Shagaya who has been desperate of power, coupled with her selfish capitalist ideology approached the presidency and declared herself the leader of our party even though, she has no atom of good/clear records within her family, let alone within the controversial Ajikobi ward where strong political gladiators exist.

As a member of the party, we are sure that Hajia Bola Shagaya is not in any way committed to the growth of PDP but rather interested in making her son, Mr. Sheriff, who is also a son-in-law to the former PDP National Chairman, Dr. Bamanga Tukur, as well as boosting her business interest within the corridors of power. She has demonstrated this by picking a minister for Kwara State without due consultation and advice from party faithful, but rather using her instinct instead of the political direction of the state, most especially as it regards 2015 electioneering process. She behaved like a typical selfish, ignorant and nonchalant individual whose personal interests supersede collective interest.

Her moves in connivance with some party members who claimed to be stakeholders and were eventually used as rubber stamp that endorsed Dr. Suleiman Abubakar to represent Kwara State in the federal executive council is not only dubious, but it is also condemnable, frivolous, vexatious and uncharitable to the feelings of members of the PDP family in the state. What the rubber stamp members relied on is cheap and unrealistic promises made by Hajia Shagaya who cannot even deliver her family or ward during elections.

She met with seven of them at different times and promised them the same thing (i.e governorship ticket) at least to have her way of making Dr. Abubakar a Minister so that she can closely monitor what is coming in and out of the party from the presidency as well as corner all contracts from Dr. Abubakar’s ministry when sworn-in.

Is Dr. Abubakar better qualified than any of the candidates nominated at the party level? What has been his contribution to the soul of Kwara PDP? What is his agenda for the people of Kwara? Can he and his ‘godmother’ pose any challenge on the current political leadership in the state? Is there any pride in being a teacher at the University of Abuja, a school which is yet to find it feet?

While we bow our heads in shame for Bola Shagaya and her ‘rubber stamp stakeholders’ cliques, we are certain that they will all live to regret ever parading themselves as our representatives when we truly know that they are not. They are all over-ambitious politicians who believe in self-centered moves towards feeding fat from other people’s labour. We are afraid that Hajia Shagaya will be worse than Bukola Saraki if she dares continue like this.

If things therefore continue this way, then President Goodluck Jonathan should expect protest vote from our members and Hajia Shagaya and her allies should expect high level of humiliation from the peace loving people of Kwara State because such acts of irresponsibility will not be tolerated during our party’s primaries.

I muse the world turning to a global village through the internet media has brought along some nightmares. To be very frank, the most alarming thing to Nigerians after the civil war was the assassination of a few highly placed individuals in different capacities, government or otherwise around the country. (Of course coup de tat was the norm we lived with then). Money laundering and oil bunkering was and still is, purely business. There was no internet then. Nothing to write home about.
Then, with the advent of light speed communication and learning through search engines and social media revolution on the internet came a wave of straight-out-of-a-movie happenings in the Niger Delta wit kidnapping and sabotaging. Though quelled through amnesty, Nigerians faced yet another nightmarish saga with the introduction of the sporadic bombings of Boko Haram where the innocent are not spared and doesn't seem to have an end presently. Now the deadly Ebola Virus has crept into Lagos of all places, with a population of over 20 million people, poor health care and infrastructure. The international media and Internet is having a news feast with Nigeria in recent times. Let us not panic.

Let us Pray! Pray that the Virus has been quarantined from that lone case in Lagos. Pray that there can be a stop to the Boko Haram menace. Pray that there should be a peaceful 2015 elections. And mostly, to avoid the next nightmare,pray that Nigeria should not be divided as some people are clamouring for now because that will take us to the debate of why there shouldn't have been a civil war in the first place. Say NO to division because:
WE ARE UNITY.
WE ARE PEACE.
WE ARE NIGERIA. #NAIJA4LIFE
THIS IS AFRICA.