Nairaland Forum

GenBuhari: News photo inserted 15th March 1976 (on first page(0) of this thread)

GenBuhari: News photo inserted 15th March 1976 (on first page(0) of this thread)

GenBuhari: News photo inserted 15th March 1976 (on first page(0) of this thread)

GenBuhari: News story and photo inserted 28th May 1997 (go to page 7 of this thread)

GenBuhari: 9th December 2003 - BBC News
Obasanjo begins giving away oil-rich Nigerian land to Cameroon

Nigeria has handed over a village to Cameroon, to start the process of redrawing their disputed border.

The two countries are due to exchange another 32 villages along their north-eastern border in the next month.

The exchanges follow a ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) defining their border last year.

However, the two sides have not yet reached an agreement on what to do with the oil-rich Bakassi peninsular, which the court awarded to Cameroon.

The secretary of the Nigeria/Cameroon Mixed Border Commission, Alhaji Dahiru Bobbo, confirmed to the BBC that the first Nigerian village, called Nada, was handed over to Cameroon on Monday.

He said two more villages would be handed over on 16 December, when Nigeria and Cameroon will each give up one village. The process will be completed two days later when the remaining 30 villages are swapped.

Changing citizenship

Asked why the process seemed rather slow, Alhaji Bobbo said it must be understood that a lot of emotions were involved.

After living their entire lives as citizens of one country, people could find themselves being citizens of a completely different country overnight, although they have been given the option of staying put under the new authorities or relocating.

Bakassi fishing village
Nigeria says 90% of people in Bakassi are Nigerian fishers
There is also the bureaucratic process of winding down the administrative structures of one country and replacing them with those of another, as well as replacing customs and immigration authorities, security agencies and the like.

The ceremony has been hailed by some observers as a step forward in the efforts being made to resolve the long-standing border dispute between Nigeria and Cameroon.

There still however remains the thorny issue of the oil-rich Bakassi peninsula, which is yet to be addressed by the border commission, and which has led to the two countries going to war in the past.

Both now say they are committed to a peaceful resolution of the issue, and the Mixed Border Commission says it hopes to start addressing the matter within the coming months.

But although the International Court of Justice ruling handed the peninsula over to Cameroon, many of its Nigerian residents have recently stepped up their campaign, vehemently protesting against being made Cameroonian citizens.

GenBuhari: News video clip inserted 6th August 1975(first page of thread)

GenBuhari: News video clip inserted 6th August 1975(first page of thread)

GenBuhari: News video clip inserted 6th August 1975(first page of thread)

GenBuhari: 23rd January 2004 - BBC News
Former ministers in Obasanjo's government on trial for $2m bribery scam

The charges relate to an identity card business contract
The trial of three former Nigerian ministers on corruption charges has been postponed until next month.

The ministers and two officials are alleged to have accepted bribes totalling more than $2m over a contract to produce national identity cards.

Correspondents say the case is being seen as a test of the Nigerian Government's pledge to stamp out corruption in the country.

Nigeria is regularly named as one of the world most corrupt countries.

The men charged include former Internal Affairs Ministers Sunday Afolabi and Mahammed Shatta and former Labour Minister Hussain Akwanga.

All five suspects served in the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo during his first term in office.

They all appeared in court alongside an agent from the French firm, Sagem, but the judge delayed the trial until 25 February, because he is involved in an electoral tribunal probing allegations of ballot-rigging.

Corruption 'challenge'

Sagem, a technology firm based in Paris, was awarded the $214m contract to produce national identity cards for Nigeria's adult population in 2001.

However, after a year, only a handful of people had actually received their cards.

After his re-election in 2003 President Obasanjo described the fight against corruption as one of the biggest challenges facing Nigeria.

Nigerian Information Minister Chukwuemeka Chikelu told the Associated Press news agency that the case "demonstrates the resolve of the government that there is no hiding place for corruption in Nigeria".

The Sagem charges are the highest-profile case yet brought by the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), set up by the Nigerian president three years ago.

It has yet to secure the conviction of a senior Nigerian official.

GenBuhari: News story inserted , 2nd September 1995 ( page 6 )

GenBuhari: News story inserted , 2nd September 1995 ( page 6 )

GenBuhari: News story inserted , 2nd September 1995 ( page 6 )

GenBuhari: News story inserted 28th January 1983 page(1)

GenBuhari: ^
I really appreciate your comment.
Did you read the entire thread?