[b]The memo presented to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) yesterday by Information Minister Dora Akunyili asking Yar’Adua to present a letter of vacation to the Senate as required by section 145 of Nigeria’s 1999 constitution. The full text of the memo below:
STATE OF THE NATION

1. I want to start my humble submission by stating that I am a 100 per cent loyalist of President Yar’Adua. He appointed all of us because he trusts us and wants us to help him to run government effectively and efficiently. Mr. President has given all of us seated in this chamber the opportunity to serve our nation as members of this council.

I believe that in the choice of all of us, as individuals and group, Mr. President must have considered our ability to guide him aright to serve our people better, promote and protect the constitution in line with the oath of office taken before him in this chamber by each and every one of us. President Yar’Adua is very dear to me just as he is to all of you.

2. We are all aware of what has been happening in Nigeria, especially as it concerns the issue of making the Vice President an acting President. There have been debates for and against. 3. Some have argued that there is no vacuum and that it is okay for the Vice President to function as Vice President, not as Acting President pending the return and recovery of Mr. President. For the proponents of this theory, I want to remind them that Permanent Secretaries had been waiting to be sworn in for over two months now. Consequently, many ministries are without Permanent Secretaries including my ministry.

As it is today, the Vice President cannot take any document to National Assembly. In a very desperate situation like the recent Jos crisis, the Vice President deployed troops to Plateau, but many have openly said that he does not have the right because there cannot be two Commanders-in-Chief at a time.

4. Just recently, Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta, MEND, has opted out of the amnesty and resumed hostility. They argued that they have been kept in limbo since the President took ill and they appeared to have been abandoned since nobody could talk to them or keep the promise made to them. Our economy is once more being threatened.

5. The past Chief Justice of the Federation swore in his successor for the first time in the history of our nation. The power vacuum at that level has also compounded our ‘poor image’ at the international level because of our failure to rise to international expectations, commitments and engagements that require the presence of our President.

Many of those opportunities have existed in the past 70 days that I do not need to recount. I do not need to repeat the uncomplimentary statements made by United States, United Kingdom and EU concerning the current state of affairs in Nigeria .

6. There has been persistent agitation by the public for members of the Federal Executive Council to do something. Nigerians expect us to rise to this challenge on behalf of our President as the leader of this administration. Some eminent citizens have spoken. They include former Heads of State and others who have served our nation in various capacities.

The Senate has also taken a position of which we are all aware. The looming crisis in the system is over boiling. Our hard earned democracy is being threatened by the day.

7. What went wrong? We love our President but we should remember that he is not infallible. Before he left Nigeria he had a moral and constitutional obligation to officially inform the Senate and hand over the mantle of leadership to the Vice President pending his return and recovery. That did not happen. Yes, the mistake has been made by our Boss and our brother.

Mr. President is ill and did not choose to be sick. But while we continue to pray for his recovery, we should try to right the wrong.

8. Some have argued that he left the country in a hurry. This argument has been punctured by the fact that he signed the Appropriation Bill for National Assembly. If he could sign the Bill, why did he not sign a letter for Vice President to act on his behalf until he is well enough?

9. We have a local proverb that says that “A goat does not get strangulated by the rope used in tying it when an adult is present.” We are all in a better position to know that the polity is overheated to a frightening level. Posterity will judge us harshly if we do not positively intervene to resolve this logjam.

10. I wish to call on the Federal Executive Council to act now in the best interest of our dear President and our dear Nation.

We also need to save ourselves from shame because our stand is becoming very embarrassing. He has been away for about 70 days now, even if he returns tomorrow, is it not better for him to rest and recover before taking over from the Vice President?

11. We need to do what is morally right and constitutional for the President to officially hand over to the Vice President to function as Acting President. If he does not, we can evoke whichever aspect of the constitution that should make the Vice President an Acting President.

On the other hand we can take advantage of the 14 days ultimatum by the court which will expire on Friday. When the President resumes duty as soon as he recovers, by the grace of God, he takes over his position.

12. I am not saying that President Yar’Adua should resign or condemn him for being sick. He did not choose to be sick. We will continue to pray for him, but all I am saying is, let us encourage him do the right thing so that our hard earned democracy will not be truncated. Anybody who feels otherwise is unfair to our President (who has been preaching the rule of law), and utterly unfair to our country.

13. The name of our President and all his achievements are being rubbished by this unfortunate debacle. The President and his family are also being put under undue pressure which will not help his recovery.

14. If we fail to act now, history will not forgive us. I rest my case.[/b]

FOLKS TAKE A STEP BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

IS YAR'ADUA STILL ALIVE?

WHAT DID THE KUWAITI AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA COME TO DO AT THE STATE HOUSE IN A MEETING WITH YAR'ADUA.

SURE YARDUA IS NOT DEAD? ANYBODY WHO UNDERSTAND HOW THE ARAB LEAGUE OPERATE WILL UNDERSTAND THE THIS MEETING COULD AS WELL BE AT THE INSTANCE OF SAUDI ARABIA.

REMEMEBER KIND ABDALLAH IS CLOSE TO US GOVERNMENT AND VALUES HIS RELATION WITH THE US. US COULD LOBBY HIM TO FIND OUT THE TRUTH IN SAUDI AND INFLUENCE HIM TO ACT.

Bleep the hawks

" We were going to  sacrifice a Biafran for Nigeria's cause, but she brought it upon herself.

adconline:

" We were going to sacrifice a Biafran for Nigeria's cause, but she brought it upon herself.

Sorry!

adconline:

" We were going to  sacrifice a Biafran for Nigeria's cause, but she brought it upon herself.

If you are not intelligent enough to contribute to this topic, why don't put thoese lazy hands of yours in the pockets where they belong instead of using them to type senseless comments like the one above ok? Thanks.

I'm begining to doubt the guts of Jonathan.
I have mixed feelings regarding what he (Jonathan) will do with power if Yar'Adua finally hands over to him as his lame duck attitude over this issue does not portray him as one with a strong will and direction.

^^^^^ Its possible he will make a good leader. He may be treading softly for now so as not to be seen as over ambitious.

The honorable thing for Dora to do is to resign. That is the only way to redeem her image.

^^^^^ I don't think she should resign, you have to be there to effect a change. She just needs to be careful not forgetting she barely escaped assassination when in NAFDAC

If you are not intelligent enough to contribute to this topic, why don't put thoese lazy hands of yours in the pockets where they belong instead of using them to type senseless comments like the one above ok? It's only a passive watcher of Naija politics thinks like you. Yar'dua's army of supporters are already calling for her head. Go ask Ex-Ambassador to the US- Mr Rotimi why he would play such card over a simple issue of Obama's inauguration? The cabals who are holding Nigeria to hostage will use this to say do not to entrust Nyamiri with any sensitive position. This woman is a small fry and can be wasted any time by CABALS who have thirst for destruction ever since Naija was coined.

at last this woman is coming out of her shadows.

i hail her if not for anything but for summoring courage to batter those so called kitchen cabinet.

dora shouldn't resign.

For Dora that's one real bold step she's taken and if others could follow suite that would be nice rather than giving handshakes behind closes doors.
And as for Jonathan I wouldnt blame him for his passiveness remember he swore an oath and he's not to betray the big boss else he would be charged for treason. Don't hold me for it but I strongly believe that Jonathan has his plans and would act at the right time. The Northerners are just trying to play with time waiting for Yar'Adua to die and raise fuse about him not handing over so therefore another election should be held for the number one seat, More Nigerian backwardness!!!!!!!!

if this story is true i.e if Dora actually did what she was said to have done, then she has succeeded in winning back all the respect she lost from me for being a stooge fto Yar' adua clueless Govt.

Come to think of it, of all those in the FEC, only a woman could stand up to say what is right. A real shame on our leaders ( or rather rulers).

I repeat, if this is true then she has obviously taken this soap opera of Yaradua's health and the Nigerian presidency to another level

well, politics or not, someone has got to start telling those thieves in aso rock the home truth for once!

Those who are hailing Dora for speaking out now,

Will you also support SEGUN ADENIYI if he shld present a memo 2worom for Yar'adua to step down?

Why cant we think? Dora shld remain silent forever cos she has supported this illegailty for more than 70 days b/4 waking up.

^^^ So we shld all celebrate if our AGF starts his own image redeeming agenda tomorrow? Why are we so SHORT SIGHTED?

It is possible she is been playing along all this while, that happens a lot in government, companies and organizations where upper echelon put individual preferences aside to pursue collectively agreed stand. However, if it got to a point she decided to speak for herself, she should be encouraged so others like her could come out boldly.


Sunday Adeniyi, is a reporter he says whatever told to say, lol, no political power, so if he comes out to say something good out of his own volition it should be considered on that merit.

There is no point telling her to resign. This is what she was reported to have said and I agree with her!

In the meantime, some hawks (the powerful members of President Yar’Adua’s kitchen cabinet) have begun piling pressure on Professor Akunyili to resign but the minister is said to be unyielding insisting that the position she took is in the best interest of the country. A source said she believes that it would be better to continue the struggle from within rather than quit the stage.
“Although, the Honourable Minister has come under intense pressure from powerful bootlickers to throw in the towel on account of her principled position, but she is resisting all the moves to intimidate or cajole her because she has her mind set on the wider interest of the country and her 150 million citizen rather than the interest of a few privileged elite. It is her firm belief that the country belongs to all Nigerians and that the future of the country and the younger generation is at risk because of the continuing uncertainty regarding the presidency. So, she is fighting on despite all the intrigues, blackmail and threats believing that posterity will vindicate her,” a source, who was present at the Cabinet Secretariat where Akunyili retabled her memo told Daily Sun yesterday. He quoted Akunyili as being sickened by the charade and hypocrisy by many of her colleagues in FEC.

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2010/feb/05/national-05-02-2010-02.htm

she has done well.

abdul mutallab really made a mistake. the enemy is not america, the enemy is the fec and senate. The guy for take that bomb enter them office and blow them up. shameless ppl and for dora there is still time to rebuild dat which u are building by sitting in that fec group of children tht think of only their pockets and not the well being of the nation.

if we still have nigerians in yemen, naija leaders be the true enemy of ur homeland; leave america alone face naija leaders.

Let every Minister who is dissatisfied with the status quo resign and see what will happen.

I wonder why some people are just so dumb, myopic and biased. Its so pathetic!! Ah! When nobody was bold to speaking up you guys cursed them. Now someone has been bold to follow her conviction, you crucify her and doubt her motives. What a sorry set of individuals Nigerians are- very hard to please. I wonder if these people calling for her to resign would have spoken up if they are in her shoes. Its easy to criticise but do you think of how difficult it is to be a lone voice? Did you guys ask yourself what it would have meant for Dora to have voiced her opinion too early when nobody had any information on Yar'adua's health?

They call for Jonathan to speak up!, Dumb fellows!!!!. So you want him to speak for himself and be seen as a traitor? He does not need to fight for himself. The right thing for a man who is the subject of a controversial issue like this is to allow people fight for him. This does not mean he is too docile or inactive. He is just watching his head and he is brilliant for this.

maskuraid:

I wonder why some people are just so dumb, myopic and biased. Its so pathetic!! Ah! When nobody was bold to speaking up you guys cursed them. Now someone has been bold to follow her conviction, you crucify her and doubt her motives. What a sorry set of individuals Nigerians are- very hard to please. I wonder if these people calling for her to resign would have spoken up if they are in her shoes. Its easy to criticise but do you think of how difficult it is to be a lone voice? Did you guys ask yourself what it would have meant for Dora to have voiced her opinion too early when nobody had any information on Yar'adua's health?

They call for Jonathan to speak up!, Dumb fellows!!!!. So you want him to speak for himself and be seen as a traitor? He does not need to fight for himself. The right thing for a man who is the subject of a controversial issue like this is to allow people fight for him. This does not mean he is too docile or inactive. He is just watching his head and he is brilliant for this.

Gbosa! Gbosa!! Gbosa!!!

Guys, where is Segun Adeniyi? That Yaradua's tall baboon. The runaway guy with Turai left the poor Dora to face the wahala they created. Nigerians are no fools. Not again!! .

Thank you Dora for making nigerian women proud. When will all these fat cowards learn any lesson. NIGERIA CAN ONLY GET TO THE PROMISE LAND IF ONLY WE CAN SPEAK THE TRUTH ALWAYS,

there are so many people looking for jobs back home.

If Dora doesnt like the way Nigeria is she should step down.

I'm happy for her bravery but she should step aside if the country is making her depressed. And if her convictions are at conflict with her office.

besides, she'll make a bigger impact if she resigns then joins the opposition rallies all over the country.

She can get a job with one of the international organizations I'm sure. After all she has impressive credentials.

Ari Fleisher


Scott McClellan



both were White house press secretaries.

Both fell out with their bosses, criticized them (the bosses), then resigned honorably.

so, nothing new under the sun.

there is somebody who seems to have problems with Dora and that person is @chosen04. am at loss as to what sin this woman committed towards this terrorist with a church name. so her sin is that she took a job that she was given.i guess that u are bitter cos someone in ur family would have been given the job? tony blair used his minister and george bush used a credible army general to pursue falsehood in iraq.these things hapeens.why is Doras case different? u criticised her for not talking,now u criticise her for talking late and wants her to resign. how i wish that u can keep that unwanted opinion to urself instead of making a damned idiot of urself here. someone needs to talk and the lady did. or were u expecting her to have spoken before she knew the true state of things?

Dora is simply playing the obasanjo card, she is simply tryin to realign herself on this issue. but then to succeed she must go back in time to repair her DAMAGED reputation. alot of water has gone under the bridge since she started her job as image maker to this govt. maybe she needs some reminding,

maskuraid:

I wonder why some people are just so dumb, myopic and biased. Its so pathetic!! Ah! When nobody was bold to speaking up you guys cursed them. Now someone has been bold to follow her conviction, you crucify her and doubt her motives. What a sorry set of individuals Nigerians are- very hard to please. I wonder if these people calling for her to resign would have spoken up if they are in her shoes. Its easy to criticise but do you think of how difficult it is to be a lone voice? Did you guys ask yourself what it would have meant for Dora to have voiced her opinion too early when nobody had any information on Yar'adua's health?

They call for Jonathan to speak up!, Dumb fellows!!!!. So you want him to speak for himself and be seen as a traitor? He does not need to fight for himself. The right thing for a man who is the subject of a controversial issue like this is to allow people fight for him. This does not mean he is too docile or inactive. He is just watching his head and he is brilliant for this.

GBAM, you're too much. Based on this post alone, I nominate you as Jonathan's VP

chosen04:

Those who are hailing Dora for speaking out now,

Will you also support SEGUN ADENIYI if he shld present a memo 2worom for Yar'adua to step down?

Why cant we think? Dora shld remain silent forever cos she has supported this illegailty for more than 70 days b/4 waking up.

^^^ So we shld all celebrate if our AGF starts his own image redeeming agenda tomorrow? Why are we so SHORT SIGHTED?

@Chosen, what happened to you today ( one drink too many ) ? You were uncharacteristically waaay off the mark in your take on Dora's purpoted action.

It should be obvious you are a lone dissenting voice on the thread or do you have a personal grouse with the woman, so we can know where to start from.