benizu:
The Nigerian Senate on Wednesday confirmed Musiliu Obanikoro as a federal minister, appointed by President Goodluck Jonathan, brushing aside allegations that Mr. Obanikoro played a key role in election fraud in Ekiti State.

Mr. Obanikoro was named recently in a leaked tape as a principal actor in the state’s governorship election rigging in 2014, sparking national outrage.

The Nigerian government has refused to investigate the claims.

The Senate approved Mr. Obanikoro’s nomination as a minister, Wednesday, after repeated deferments, despite protests from senators from Lagos State, Mr. Obanikoro’s home state, and other opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, who had vowed to stop the clearance over the Ekiti scandal.



As a former senator himself, the Senate allowed Mr. Obanikoro to “take a bow and go”, without answering questions, a privilege reserved for former federal lawmakers.

APC lawmakers responded by walking out of the session in protest.




source
https://twitter.com/pdpmediaroom247/status/575628208084815873

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/178286-breaking-senate-confirms-obanikoro-as-minister-despite-ekitigate-scandal.html

THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT EKITIGATE WAS NOT A SCANDAL.LETS NOT JUST SWEEP ISSUES LIKE THIS UNDER THE CARPET.WE SWEPT OPERATION FEED THE NATION UNDER THE CARPET,WE SWEPT THE ITT SAGA UNDER THE CARPET,NO ONE HAS TOLD US HOW RECOVERED ABACHA LOOT WAS MANAGED, WHAT OF THE GHANA MUST GO BAGS OF MONEY THAT WAS SHARED AMONGST MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE.WHAT OF THIRD TERM ISSUES. WHAT OF THE TURN AROUND MAINTENANCE OF NIGERIAN REFINERIES THAT STARTED MORE THAN 10YEARS AGO.OR HOW WE HONOR AND CELEBRATE CORRUPTION IN THIS NATION.FOR HOW LONG DO WE HAVE TURN OUR FACES FROM ISSUES THAT CAN DESTROY OUR NATION?....PLEASE WE ALL ARE AGAINST CORRUPTION...BTW IS OBANIKORO THE ONLY CAPABLE PDP PERSON FROM LAGOS?

lexyclasy:
at times is better to ignore some silly comments on nairaland.....FFK is saying the fact and all of us are aware of GMB comments and his romance to boko haram truth is bitter anyway....But God is not sleeping....he actually knows the sponsors and will frustrate all their effort to come in the 2nd time after 31yrs GMB is busy rubbishing Bloomberg report, IMF,CNN KMPG and other international institute that saw the economy prospect in Nigeria yet GMB who have no school cert is opposing Nigerians economy blindly.....time will tell...i wonder what he benefited in Chatham house chat.....very berating of him shows a high degree of cluelessness ... you cannot attend debate at home yet you spend money to london to buy face after your negativity in time past in London....umaro dikko's case is still fresh in our memories, all your statement about boko haram is still fresh in our memories....your aborted democracy of 1983 is still fresh...your human right abuses is still fresh....now you want to buy face at 72...a fool at 72 is a fool for ever....shame to you and all your blind followers

Statements like these are what makes me still glance through politics section of NL...truth must be told no matter whose OX is gored. ..all the partisans of the parties parties should please stand up and defend all these stories intelligently not by brushing off and using the big word propaganda. we need to know and be reminded of the truth. The electorate is tired of making same mistakes over and over again

I have gone through almost all the reasonable comments on this thread and my assertion is that 80% of the comments are from partisans who themselves don't have interest of non partisans at heart. Everyone is talking about what they gained from GEJ or what they did not gain and what they hope to gain from Buhari and what they did not gain from him. Must we all belong to a political party?.what have you as a citizen done for your nation?..Do you avoid your taxes?do you 'sort' to pass your course while in school?are you one of the people that always say "na naija way or na so we dey do am for naija?"do you threaten your child's teacher for failing your child in exams just because you think you are rich? did you pay someone to take your exams? THE JOB YOU ARE DOING NOW DID YOU GET ON MERIT OR THROUGH THE BACKDOOR?so check yourself before you wreck yourself... Corruption has eaten so deep in this country, now everyone is claiming to be a saint.charity begins at home lets all start teaching the younger ones that money can't buy you success..nobody here is a saint.and we should all start talking of the improvement of life in our great nation and stop blaming the leaders past and present or future for our problems,we all contributed one way or the other to get to this terrible situation.Lets be constructive in our criticisms and try to profer a positive way forward. please do us good favor here and access these politicians individually both based on past records and future plans.we are tired of "but he tried" or "he will try"..they have been trying since 1970 and see how far we have gone!!!!!. we need people that do their best!!!!
I want to assume that the majority of commentators on this thread are below 45 years, so are by United nations definition youths of this nation.BE POSITIVE BE CREATIVE. PLEASE LESS NEGATIVE TALKS AND MORE PRO ACTIVE DIRECTION...Muchas gracias

anonimi:


Yours is a case of MISPLACED aggression.
Read the news below, be informed and direct your whining and complaints to the 36 state governors and 774 LGAs under their tight control, okay





Can you imagine if the state governments did half as much as what the Jonathan/Sambo federal administration has done in the last five years on their own constitutional responsibilities:

- primary, vocational, technical & secondary schools classrooms, libraries, laboratories, even toilets and annual, regular RECRUITMENT of teachers, school administrators, gardeners, janitors etc.
- primary health clinics and general hospitals wards, beds, laboratories and annual, regular RECRUITMENT of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, lab. technicians, physiotherapists, hospital administrators etc.
- FEEDER roads in front of houses and business premises, rehabilitated, expanded, maintained and drains/gutters cleared regularly as well as bushes.


Let us start behaving like REASONABLE people and stop focusing only on the federal executive administration while others steal us blind with glee.

Bros,...you are on point!!!!!...tired of explaining this to many ignorant persons out there..but i wont give up till their scaly brains are smoothened

femi4:
Rossikk and his indomie brain....here we go again!

Like Okupe...like Rossikk

No need for all these childish comments if you dont believe in what he posted, when you get to any of the airports take your pix and post to counter his claims ..its that simple.

sorry am nt going to put any pix here if you are interested email me...we go from there

sniperr007:


U amaze me and with people like u, the white race will always see blacks as inferior. Nigeria is a sovereign nation and no leader needs approval from anoda nation before he leads his nation.

It's shows inferiority for buhari to seek acceptance from west before he runs for office. That move takes us back to colonial era and shows that we are still dependent on wat d west say about our future.

Did d PM of India seek us approval?instead d USA is d one mending ties with him afer their previous rift. We need to make our decisions in Nigeria for Nigerians not waiting for the west to help us.

God bless you, well said....ever seeking permission from people that dont give a hoot if our nation collapses, as long as they have access to our natural resources...Ignorance .......useless complex...

agabusta:


Why cant you use your head. So anybody that you see in a foreign airport has now gone to the country for treatment right? The way some of you guys think is an embarrassment.

my friend how can you be talking like that?..who travels out of his country secretly at the peak of election of an election his vying for a sit in... this your excuse not good enuf...think of another one...if there is no muchu muchu moves lai mohammed or who ever is his press sec. would have announced his trip...like they announce all other things....

ronald4lif:


No form holy here biko

Nobody holy pass, what satisfies A may not be same for B.

GBAM!!!!..ON POINT...

PLEASE NIGERIA COMPANIES SHOULD TAKE CUSTOMER SERVICE VERY SERIOUS...MERRYBET HAS THE WORST AND MOST RUDE BUNCH SAD

I need to have ideas on businesses one can do with 100-200k...in Nigeria

biozy:
EIGHTY PERSONS, foreigners and Nigerians, the living and the dead, among them four former Heads of State and two of their wives, as well as former Governors and Ministers – indeed the top echelons of the country’s political and military establishments, including technocrats – have been indicted by the United States law enforcement officials over the N27 billion Halliburton bribery scandal.
Among the foreigners are Jack Chagoury, Gilbert Chagoury, and T.W. Oerlemans, an Australian; but they are rather small fish compared with indicted former Nigerian Heads of State Ibrahim Babangida, Sani Abacha, Ernest Shonekan, and Abdulsalami Abubakar.
Maryam, the late wife of Babangida; Mariam, the wife of the late Abacha, and his son, the late Ibrahim, are included; likewise Mike Akhigbe, the second in command in the Abdulsalami junta; former Abia State Governor, Orji Kalu; and former military Governors of Rivers State, Anthony Ukpo and Samuel Ewang.
Also among the dead are Abdulkadir Ahmed, former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor; and renowned economist, Pius Okigbo, who headed the probe panel on the Gulf Crude Oil Excess sales set up by the CBN in 1994.
But among those alive are former Petroleum Minister, Rilwanu Lukman, and newly re-appointed National Security Adviser, Aliyu Gusau. (See full list).
According to the report of the investigators, the 80 persons received part of the N27 billion bribe facilitated by foreign contractors for Halliburton to get the contract to build the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) plant, Africa’s first, in Bonny, Rivers State.
The scandal dates back to 1994 when some foreign companies put up bids for the construction of the plant that was to cost $6 billion.
To win the contract, a joint venture company, named TSKJ, was set up – comprising equal holdings between some companies, Technip (French), Sanmprogetti (Italian), KBR (U.S.), and part of the Halliburton group and Japanese engineering and construction company, JGC.
The investigators said the consortium bribed political leaders and top government functionaries through Tri-Star Investment Limited and Marubeni Inc.
They also recruited British lawyer, Jeffery Tesler, to co-ordinate the affairs of Tri-Star, as well as Wojciech Chodan, an American, to co-ordinate the affairs of Marubeni.
TSKJ mandated Tri-Star to solely take charge of bribing Nigerian officials at senior level, Marubeni was restricted to bribing junior level officials.
Tesler disclosed in a court deposition that TSKJ mandated both companies to bribe the officials.
As part of the investigation, the Swiss Justice Department followed the steps of the Police Judiciare of France, which in 2003, started an investigation that revealed fraudulent Halliburton payments to Tesler.
In the U.S., KBR and Halliburton have admitted to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by engaging in a decade-long bribing scheme to secure contracts in Nigeria.
Both agreed to pay a combined fine of $579 million to settle criminal and civil charges brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice.

Those Indicted


1. Ibrahim Babangida
2. Maryam Babangida
3 Ernest Shonekan
4. Abubakar
Abdulsalami
5. M. D. Yusufu
6. T.W. Oerlemans
7. Pius Okigbo
8. Aminu Saleh
9. Don Etiebet
10. Aliyu Mohammed
Gusau
11. Edmund Daukoru
12. Victoria Ihonde
13. Toyin Olakunrin
14. Gilbert Temisan
Grant
15. Gabriel
Abolade Soyoye
16. Patrick Dele-Cole
17. E. Ihetu
18. Onya (NNPC
personnel)
19. Sani Abacha
20. Joshua Dogonyaro
21. John Shagaya
22. U. J. Itsueli
23. Ombu Isokariari
24. G.O. Ejiga
25. Babagana Kingibe
26. Hakeem
Bello-Osagie
27. J.O. Maduka
28. Sena Anthony
29. Dalhatu A. Bayero
30. Ogenyi (NNPC
official)
31. I. Dapchi
32. M.A. Olorunfemi
33. Wilfred C. Eze
34. Umar Baba
35. Orji Kalu
36. Jeremiah Useni
37. Abba Gana
38. Ibrahim Abacha
39. Oladipo Diya
40. Chamberlain O.
Oyibo
41. Judith Attah
42. Abdulkadir
Ahmed
43. Anthony Ani
44. O.O. Okwara
45. Philip Asiodu
46. Endo (Marubeni
Nigeria)
47. Hamman Tukur
48. S.J. Ollerearnshaw
49. Dan Etete
50. B. Soyode
51. Akin Ogunleye
52. Tom Ikimi
53. Gidado Idris
54. Sola Alabi
55. Ismaila Gwarzo
56. Mariam Abacha
57. Halilu Akilu
58. Abdullahi
Mohammed
59. Hamza
El-Mustapha
60. Ibrahim Aliyu
61. Edmund Ayoola
62. Anthony Ukpo
63. Samuel Ewang
64. Ismaila Usman
65. Tunde Soleye
66. Christ Akerele
67. Umaru Shinkafi
68. Philip Chukwu
69. Bunu Sherrif Musa
70. Rilwan Lukman
71. Aret Adams
72. Mike Akhigbe
73. Faruk Iya
74. Hassan Adamu
75. Prince Nzekwe
76. Gen. Adeyosun
77. Jasper Jumbo
78. Jack Chagoury
79. Gilbert Chagoury
80. Mohammed Atiku
15th April 2010 daily independent

good to know

Sierraloaded:




http://www.punchng.com/news/obasanjos-supportll-give-us-more-votes-buhari/

Do you need his endorsement?...is he the owner of nigeria. you need the vote of the masses not anyones endorsement, but God....or do you want to sign agreement with him on how to mess the economy up as usual?

I no fit shout..@oyinboPrincess...i de follow shaperly....correct

viczing:
Yesterday, Bola Tinubu's media aide,SundayDare claimed army officers were stationed in front of the Lagos home of APC Chieftain, Bola Tinubu. (readhere) Well, reporter Ben Ezeamalu shared the pics above on twitter this morning. No soldiers around the vicinity... now moving on!




http://lindaikeji..com/2015/02/what-soldiers-reporter-snaps-photos-of.html?m=1

that is my problem...LIES ON LIES ON LIES....CHEAP LIES...second base jari....

Here’s a known list of Tinubu’s wealth and businesses, acquired through fraud and stealing. You decide when you finish reading this “Not so long” list!
Remember he has 15 foreign bank account including in US & UK
1. Oriental Hotel
2. Falomo Shopping Complex
3. First Nation Airline
4. Lekki Concession Company
5. Apapa Amusement Park
6. Maiyegun Land Project
7. The Nation Newspaper
8. Renaissance Hotel
9. Tejuoso Market (Joint ownership)
10. Ikeja Shopping Mall
11. TV Continental
12. Converted Lagos Poly land for TVC
13. Owned NNPC Office building in Lagos
14. Radio Continental
15. Owned School of Nursing building in Lagos
16. Tax Collector of Lagos State (owns Alpha Beta, a company Prof. Osinbajo is a director)
17. Wife is a member of the National Assembly
18. Son-in-law is a member of the National Assembly
19. Daughter is the President-General of Market Women Association in Lagos (After Tinubu's mother)
20. Two of his nephews given tickets to Lagos State House of Assembly
21. N4 billion government financed property for self
at Queens Drive, Lagos.
22. Owned Royal Gardens Estate, Lekki and a host of others including choice Lagos State Lands he connered to himself, family members and cronies.
23. He is supporting and Financing Buhari not because he loves him or Democracy but because he wants to expand his resource grabbing to the Federal level including oil blocs of the Niger Delta.

Paul Orajiaka, a 37 year-old Nigerian entrepreneur, is the founder of Auldon Limited, a manufacturer of African-themed toys. Auldon manufactures dolls and other toys which depict, promote and teach Africa’s cultural heritage to children. Orajiaka founded the company 17 years ago with less than $100; it now has annual revenues of more than $10 million.

Apart from Nigeria, Auldon’s toys are now sought after in countries like South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, and some parts of Europe. Last year, Auldon launched the Unity Girl Dolls, a set of multi-cultural dolls clad in the traditional attires of Nigeria’s major ethnic groups. It has been a runaway success and a tremendous hit among Nigerian parents and their daughters.

Orajiaka is currently studying for a Doctorate in Business Administration [DBA] at Henley Business School of the University of Readin, majoring in Entrepreneurship. I recently had a chat with him where he recounted his journey and spoke about his future plans.

Why did you decide to venture into manufacturing African-themed toys?

I grew up in Warri in Southern Nigeria, and I did my secondary school education in Benin state. I recall that immediately after my secondary school education at Igbinedion Secondary School, Benin City, my sole ambition was to travel to the United States to seek the proverbial greener pastures. I never exactly planned to venture into the toy business. I was 18 at the time and determined to leave Nigerian at all costs. So, along with my friends, I made countless unfruitful trips to the American embassy in pursuit of an American visa. Eventually, all my friends were given visas, except me.

Naturally, I became dejected and ashamed. I had no clue as to what my next line of action was going to be. So I decided to stay back in Lagos and not return to my hometown where I would be mocked by my friends. You see, a lot of shame was attached to my disappointment at that time, being the only one out of all my friends who was denied an opportunity to go the U.S. So I decided that the only way out for me was to stay back in Lagos and work with my in-law in Idumota market and that is how that reluctant step taken out of frustration ended up becoming my glorious journey to success and fulfillment.
Idumota is a very saturated business hub and it’s not exactly the classiest place. Very few young men I know would like to start out in a place like that? How demanding was it building a business from Idumota?

I look back now and smile because it was indeed a difficult decision to make at that time. Idumota is largely congested and is a hustle-driven environment. It wasn’t fun at all. I felt like a fish thrown into a sea, filled with sharks and there I was trying hard not to be eaten up. All these factors emboldened me to strive in making a mark. With this in mind, I had no choice but to get used to it.

Not long after settling in, the lid on my eyes were taken off after I came across young men who were doing extremely well in their different spheres of business.

Just before, I got too carried away I realized it was equally imperative, that I go back to school and get educated. So while I was working for my in-law, I enrolled as an accounting student at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), after which I proceeded to getting a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from Lagos Business School, Pan-African University (PAN). Expectedly, after graduating from school, I became better equipped for the journey ahead, which saw me take the management and administration of my business to a greater scale.

Today, I can confidently beat my chest and say, a humble beginning which started about 17 years ago as a small venture, is now a leading company, importing and supplying top quality range of educational toys to wholesalers and retailers in Nigeria. Going back, 1997, when we started, our capital base was just $30, but as at 2014, the company’s turnover has surged to over a $7 million. We have also metamorphosed into a Limited Liability company, status, which we attained in 2002 employing well over 400 people, inclusive of direct and indirect.

Nigeria is not known to be a conducive environment that enables small businesses to thrive. What gave you the drive to forge on amid challenges you must have encountered, especially funding?

You are not far from the truth; I almost gave up because initially, it was an uphill task building this business from scratch, especially without funding from banks. It was near impossible to continue, but my frustration and anger at

at the banking system coupled with lack of support, only made me further persevere, be more passionate and determined to ensure that the business grew. I tell you, it would be unfair to blame or criticize some Nigerian entrepreneurs who fail to surmount the numerous challenges which stifle their growth. That said, I have come to realize- despite the myriad of challenges bedeviling them, which range from power, lack of funds, wickedly high bank interest, lack of infrastructure e.t.c. An entrepreneur can still attain success, if he/she can recapture the passion and emotions of its beginning likewise inculcate same in its staff.

What led to the Unity Doll Project?

Over the years, my attention got drawn to the painful fact that our cultural values is fast eroding, because most parents this days, shy away from teaching their children about their culture but instead allow them imbibe foreign cultures which robs them off their identity and very existence as Nigerians.

I was saddened to see that most toys in Nigeria have no social and cultural relevance to children.

For me that was a vacuum, I needed to feel urgently, so I swung into action in order to make that important change, and that change gave birth to the Unity Girl Doll Project, a collection of 14-inch child developmental dolls that represent Nigeria’s three major tribes – Hausa, Ibo and Yoruba – delivering a social message to infants across the country and by extension the world at large, enlightening them about the Nigerian culture, allowing them have a sense of ownership early in life which puts them in good stead to making a positive impact when they are grown.

For me my passion is educating them before time with positive Nigerian values and that’s why all the dolls have contents which teach them all the positive stories and values they need to inculcate as they grow.

With all the challenges threatening to tear us apart coupled with the tribal sentiments causing division among us, we have asked ourselves what will unify us as a country. Although we have diverse cultures, our strength comes from our diversity that is why we did our research and decided to inculcate in our infants the need to embrace their indigenous culture and that of others early on. By so doing, it becomes easy to love others, because the message that we are one is passed to them from the beginning, also we are mindful of the fact that the girl child is a future mother, and would be home a keeper someday that would keep the home and by extension the nation together. So you would agree with me that it is only wise to give them the needed positive start that would make them great mothers, with their very first doll.

We have created a doll that is bound to inculcate in them the following, moral values, social values, social relevance and natural uniqueness which distinguishes us from foreign cultures alien from ours.

The dolls come in 14-inch sizes and are dressed in local attires likewise posses the following characters; Amaka (Ibo), Ronke (Yoruba) and Aisha (Hausa). The three dolls contain booklets that tell you about the rich culture, robust background, language and all other important detail of the three main tribe; Hausa, Ibo and Yoruba. One other thing worthy of mentioning is to present the Nigerian girl in looks peculiar to her, not the kind of looks that do not really represent Africa. What we have done is to create dolls that have relevance to us, look like us and portray our image in the right manner.

As it concerns the age bracket, we try to create a doll that a child as young as one year can use. The dolls have other features that older kids can use also. The Unity Doll also possesses beads, which children can customise and wear on the dolls, or on themselves. We tried to make the dolls fit for any young girl to use so that at every stage of her life, she finds something relevant to her age in the dolls. But our target, are children between the ages of 1- 10 years.

PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA—I stepped into the elevator to head down for dinner. It jerked to a stop and went silent, leaving me in darkness. The finest hotel in Nigeria’s Houston, the hub of the country’s large and profitable oil industry, could not escape periodic power outages. A few very long seconds later brightness returned as the hotel’s emergency generator kicked in and the elevator continued its journey.

My experience in the capital of Abuja was no different. I interviewed Orji Uzor Kalu, a former governor and wealthy businessman, at his home in an exclusive neighborhood next to the president’s residence. Public power went out while I was there. More than once.

The electricity came back on immediately since Kalu also has a generator. As do other well-off Nigerians, top officials, major hotels, and large businesses. But most people are not so lucky. Africa’s most populous nation with massive oil reserves cannot keep the lights on for its citizens.

Nigeria, with a population of 177 million, is a potential powerhouse. People speak English and universities are full of students hoping for jobs. Its streets pulse with energy. People are busy and entrepreneurial.

Yet modern office buildings shadow shanty-towns. Luxury hotels abut overgrown lots. The countryside is a sea of poverty: deteriorating roads with rusted wrecks at the side, rutted side streets of dirt and mud, subsistence farms providing marginal livelihoods, shacks and lean-tos for homes and businesses.

Nearly a hundred million people live in poverty, earning less than a dollar a day. The 60 percent poverty rate of 2010 was up from 52 percent six years before. Illiteracy and chronic nutrition are pervasive, and highest in the Islamic north. A quarter of the population and one-third of adults under 25 are out of work.

In mid-March the government announced 5,000 openings in the immigration department. Some 65,000 people turned up to apply at Abuja’s sports stadium, creating a traffic jam which snared passing vehicles, including mine. Inside seven job hopefuls died in a human stampede. Tens of thousands more applied around the country, where another eight people died in similar human crushes.

Even optimistic Nigerians who see progress admit much more must be done. Kalu, who is considering a second presidential run, emphasized that the “potential of the country is very high” but acknowledged the enormous challenges.

When asked about his priorities he pointed to electricity: “Without energy we are not going to develop.” The entire country has about as much electricity as the Washington, D.C. metro area. Barely 80 million people have access even to intermittent power. The government has begun to privatize the industry, which Kalu supports, but in his view both the private and public sectors need to improve. He would look to America and Europe for guidance: “We should tackle it head on with the help of those who have done it before.”

Even more serious is the problem of security. When I arrived in Nigeria with several journalists for a tour arranged by Kalu’s SLOK Holding Co., we were met by a guide, driver, and two national policemen armed with AK-47s. When we convoyed with Kalu the guard multiplied. He acknowledged that “without a police escort you cannot move.” A few areas, such as the capital of Abuja, were safe, “but you cannot move elsewhere.”

My hotels were surrounded by high walls and gates manned by armed security personnel, who checked cars for bombs. The entrances employed metal detectors. Security guards wandered the grounds and even sat by the elevators on each floor overnight. In Port Harcourt, where foreign expatriates have been targeted by local militants, my hotel designated emergency “muster points” for gathering in an emergency. Guests were reminded that their “escorts” could not bring firearms into the hotel.

In fact, the Niger Delta, host to manifold energy and maritime operations, is particularly risky. Christopher Odili of Brawal Oil Services said residents resent northern domination and “see money coming out of the water and the land and not getting much of it.” As a result, employees are kidnapped, ships are hijacked, and facilities are attacked.

In response, businesses routinely employ armed guards. The government created a Joint Task Force to coordinate security strategies and provided payments to militants accepting an amnesty. Companies commonly engage in “social responsibility,” that is, underwrite local programs. One businessman said that “we do projects since we want them to be happy to see us.” He privately acknowledged that his firm spread cash locally to buy protection. He said you’ve got “to go to every community” or else face attack.

The potential for violence hinders economic growth. Security is costly and diverts resources from other investments. An editor at The New Telegraph newspaper complained that it was dangerous to send trucks out at night to deliver the next day’s edition.

Kalu said “internal security is critical,” since otherwise “I don’t know how we can develop. We need internal security so citizens and non-citizens can move more freely.” He advocated security measures so “that violence is deterred at all costs.”

Moreover, in places like the Delta, where people “feel that their homes, their environments have been the victims of unjust degradation,” said Kalu, grievances must be addressed. For instance, “measures must be taken to ensure that business operations are more accountably mutually-beneficial.” In his view “A greater understanding of the needs and wants of average citizens” was necessary to reduce violence.
Even worse has been communal violence and burgeoning Islamic terrorism, which together have cost more than 18,000 lives since 1999. “We have not made any progress in this area,” worried Kalu, who viewed current violence as a natural continuation of the past. “In 1966 they just were killing Igbos and other southerners. Now there is no limit. They are killing everybody.”

The country is almost evenly divided between Christian (south) and Muslim (north), leading to complicated political accommodations. A dozen Islamic-majority states have imposed sharia, sparking protests by Christians. There and elsewhere mob violence occasionally has broken out against minority religious communities, often triggering tit-for-tat retaliation.

Even more worrisome is the rise of the terrorist group Boko Haram—the full name translates into “People Committed to the Propagation of the Prophet’s Teachings and Jihad”—which has spear-headed a growing insurgency costing more than 3,000 lives since 2009. The group originally made its name slaughtering Christians and moderate Muslims, but today kills more indiscriminately. Observed Human Rights Watch, Boko Haram “has committed horrific crimes against Nigeria’s citizens.” The U.S. State Department blamed the organization for Nigeria’s “most serious human rights abuses.”

Boko Haram’s operations in the three northeastern states of Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe have affected more than three million people, driving many from their homes. The organization is responsible for at least 600 deaths so far this year. More than 150 Christians were killed in an attack on three villages in central Nigeria two weeks ago.

The government has responded with greater brutality than accuracy at times. HRW pointed to security forces engaging “in excessive use of force, physical abuse, secret detentions, extortion, burning of houses, stealing money during raids, and extrajudicial killings of suspects.” Unfortunately, these activities bolster Boko Haram’s anti-government narrative, encourage terrorist recruitment, and discourage community support against the militants.

Kalu said the organization “is undoubtedly the biggest security threat challenging Nigeria.” In his view its objectives go well beyond imposing Islamic beliefs: the group is “trying to challenge the very territorial integrity of Nigeria and build an Islamic state within its borders.” He advocated seeking assistance from the West, establishing a “high-capacity operational base in Borno State,” where the group is most active, and improving “intelligence gathering and covert operations.”

At the same time, he warned against “often extreme retaliatory action” by security forces, acknowledging “instances of unjust arrest, prolonged detention and even torture undertaken by our security forces.” Kalu argued that the government must fight “a battle for the hearts and minds of the friends and families of the fallen.” That requires remedying such problems as poverty and other perceived injustices.

One of which is rampant corruption. Nigeria has “taken corruption to another level,” complained one foreign businessman. Kalu said that “The entire society from A to Z is corrupt.” An expatriate worker observed: “Nigeria is not a country. It is an opportunity.” Transparency International rated Nigeria among the world’s most corrupt nations, ranking 144 out of 177.

State enterprises, especially the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, assessed as the world’s least transparent energy company, are founts of abuse. In February President Goodluck Jonathan removed the central bank president after the latter charged that billions of dollars in oil revenues were missing from the national treasury. Even the NNPC acknowledged being unable to account for some $11 billion.

Headquarters of the Central Bank of Nigeria in...
Headquarters of the Central Bank of Nigeria in Abuja, Nigeria (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Pay-offs are a way of life, including to the police. The human rights group Freedom House noted that “Corrupt officers are often supported by a chain of command that encourages and institutionalizes graft.” Such corruption facilitates violence. Boko Haram publicly celebrated its ability to buy off security forces when launching attacks.

The system also undermines economic productivity. Declared one foreign businessman: “I’ve bribed a lot of people. If someone cannot be bribed, your competition has paid them more. It is endemic, cultural corruption. You can’t get anything done without greasing a hand.” There are various official anti-corruption initiatives, but the State Department’s latest human rights report noted that “The government brought few persons to justice for abuses and corruption.” One frustrated executive told me he saw “no difference” as a result of such efforts.

Ending or even limiting corruption would be a tremendous undertaking. Kalu argued that “we need to go for reorientation in values.” He added: “You only get what you sow. The sooner you start sowing good seed, the sooner you will reap a good harvest.” He believed that it is necessary to transform government, which “is broken.” As governor he said he attempted to lead by example and challenged those under him. Citizens need to be educated about what public service means. It “is difficult when people hear stories that those keeping the treasury are looting it.” Yet budgets for the anti-crime agencies have been falling. Indeed, some former officials known to have stolen are free and walking around. “Only in this society,” he lamented.

Finally, the country suffers from the usual Third World maladies of an over-politicized state and dirigiste, state-dominated economic policies. The NNPC, which accounts for 80 percent of the government’s budget, “functions well as an instrument of patronage,” noted a 2010 Stanford University study. With oil responsible for 40 percent of the country’s GDP, Nigeria desperately needs to diversify. But “anybody telling you that it will be easy to move away from oil is lying to you,” said Kalu.

To create jobs the government has imposed local hiring requirements on foreign firms. However, Firas Bechara Abboud of SLOK Nigeria Limited said it will take time to develop sufficient trained personnel to fill many technical and professional positions. “Day in and day out it remains a problem.”

Enterprises like SLOK nevertheless create new economic opportunities. Kalu was well-received when he told a university audience that “I want to spend the rest of my life creating wealth for people to work.” But doing so isn’t easy. Odili, a Nigerian educated overseas who worked in America before returning to help manage his family’s business, argued that the state should provide an “enabling environment” for private enterprise.
In this the government today fails miserably. The World Bank ranks Nigeria at 147, near the bottom of nations in its Doing Business report. This was, noted The New Telegraph, “only marginally better than Iraq and Sudan.” Adewale Okunrinboye of ARM Asset Management in Lagos argued that the government needed “to undertake economic reforms, infrastructure, job creation.”

Some look to Kalu, a billionaire who understands entrepreneurship and promotes political reform. As a teen he started trading palm oil. SLOK Holding, which he chairs, has interests in energy, shipping, finance, journalism, real estate, and more. Kalu succeeded without using his government office, unusual in Nigeria. Noted my Cato Institute colleague Marian Tupy: Nigerian politicians usually “become wealthy during their time in the governor’s mansion.”

Kalu urged adopting market-oriented policies: “The more the economy goes out of government to the private sector the better it will be for the economy.” Kalu denounced restrictive licensing and said he “would like to see small government and big enterprise.” He spoke with admiration of Ronald Reagan who, Kalu said, “is the kind of person people in Nigeria should be looking at.”

He advocated privatizing NNPC and the state-owned coal and power companies as well. He even suggested getting the government out of more traditional areas, such as education, which he views as necessary to achieve Nigeria’s moral reformation. Let the state instead subsidize education for poor Nigerians.

Kalu may run for president in 2015, which would test his message of market liberalization nationally. His chances are complicated by being an Igbo; his tribe last held the presidency a half century ago. Still, Nigeria’s fragile democratic system is strengthening. When he ran unsuccessfully in 2007 the poll was marred by rampant intimidation and vote rigging. In contrast, the 2011 presidential election was considered to be generally free, despite some “violence, fraud, and irregularities,” according to the State Department. Moreover, one of Kalu’s priorities has been electoral integrity—he helped found the non-partisan NGO G37, focused on ensuring honest polls.

The bigger question is whether he could implement his message of freer markets if elected. Noted Tupy, Nigeria “has never had a president committed to small government, privatization and liberalization.” But Kalu forcefully argued that committed leadership could make the difference. “If a strong person wants this to be done, it would be done.”

Whoever becomes president, any reform agenda will be long and its implementation difficult. And only Nigerians can make change happen. “We need friendship with other nations, but we need to do it ourselves. We don’t require any assistance,” argued Kalu. “We don’t need anyone to build us roads. Those days are over.”

Nigeria’s people know what to do. Nigeria’s people need to liberate themselves.

Nigeria needs reform, but implementing any change agenda will be hard. Only Nigerians can make change happen.

read more here:http://www.forbes.com/sites/dougbandow/2014/03/31/nigerias-tragic-political-failure-but-greater-economic-potential-nigerian-people-must-liberate-their-land/

Orji Uzor Kalu, a Nigerian millionaire businessman and politician, is set to launch a chain of boutique hotels across Nigeria.

According to a report by Sun News Nigeria, the hotel chain is called ‘Sun Heavens Hotels and Resort, and will target business visitors and tourists. The first hotel is situated in Victoria Island, Lagos, and will open for business before the end of February. Kalu is also reportedly currently building other hotels in locations such as Lekki, Ikoyi, Asokoro, Gudu, Umuahia and Enugu.The hotels will be managed by Turkish veteran hotelier Elis Seval.

Kalu, 54, is the founder of Slok Holding, a Nigerian conglomerate with interests in shipping, media, commodity trading and banking. He debuted on the November 2014 Forbes’ ranking of Africa’s 50 Richest List with a fortune estimated at $1 billion, but his net-worth has since dropped significantly to below $500 million on new information regarding his businesses and debt levels.

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The team held a launch event in Madrid on Wednesday morning to show off an altered colour scheme including more prominence for title sponsor Movistar.

Yamaha's riders have lost the title to Honda man Marc Marquez for the past two seasons, and were left reeling when Marquez won 10 straight grands prix at the start of 2014.

Kouichi Tsuji, group leader of Yamaha's MotoGP programme, said the margin between the two teams was smaller than results suggested, and that though there was limited scope for big steps, his team had made significant progress.

"We had second on the podium 10 times, and eight times the difference from the winner was two seconds after a 120km [75-mile] race," he said.

"The development room with the bike is very small, but we did many things to try to find those two seconds in the races because we want a champion at the end of the season."

Team boss Lin Jarvis said Yamaha had the riders and technical package it required to take on Marquez and Honda this year.

"You have to learn from your mistakes and to continue to develop and evolve," he said.

"We have to get everything right. Everything has to be perfect from the first race.

"That's a difficult call, but I think our riders are well prepared and our team are well organised. We're ready to go.

"I think both Valentino and Jorge are in great shape physically and mentally.

"Last year Marquez had a phenomenal year, so we know the level of competition will be super-super-strong, but we have the riders we want.

"I'm totally confident they will go out there and be competitive and win many, many races."

LORENZO HAS ADDRESSED FITNESS

After running Marquez close for the 2013 title, Lorenzo had an awful start to the '14 campaign with a series of early mistakes quickly dropping him out of championship contention.

He admitted during the year that he had not been in proper physical condition for the start of the year following winter surgery to address 2013 injuries, but is adamant he is now in much better shape.

"Maybe last year I took a little too much holiday and made a few mistakes in planning pre-competition," said Lorenzo.

"This year I'm not going to make this mistake and I'm going to be in better shape.

"I feel very good - I'm thin, just like when I was 20. There's no way to measure one's physical capacity, but you get certain feelings and I've never trained so hard or for so many hours.

"Everything was very well planned. I'm working on those weak points from last year."

ABUJA—Former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has pooh-poohed allegations by the former Central Bank governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo that N30 trillion was stolen under the watch of the coordinating Minister of the economy Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
Ribadu spoke yesterday, in an interview in Abuja, pointing out that he was not only baffled but amused over the allegation, as he knew that Okonjo-Iweala was ‘’honest, reliable and of impeccable character.’’
His words: “I was baffled and got deluded for anyone to say that N30 trillion got lost, I think we just have to look at what we earn as a country and what our budget had been in these few years.
“And see how possible is it and if everything we earned is not up to that within the period she has ben the minister which is about three to four years.
“And for somebody to say that N30 trillion is missing is baffling, especially if you know what our budget has been these years.
“We need to be careful to avoid more damage to our nation because there are certain things that when it comes out, it will never go back again.
“I challenge anybody to say that she stole N1 at that time, we were all there, I was in charge of EFCC and I want to hear anybody say that she did this and that.
“And I followed her up till now, I think it is somehow uncharitable for someone to come out to say that such an amount of money was missing under her watch.”
He said that while working under President Olusegun Obasanjo; Okonjo-Iweala was the economic team leader and she coordinated the economic policy of the then administration effectively.
He warned Nigerians to be careful with their utterances and shun the habit of pulling down their people who have climbed to such a high level of international repute in the name of politics.
Ribadu who is also, the governorship candidate of the PDP in Adamawa State said that it was described as unfortunate, the avoidable controversies but noted that Okonjo-Iweala was one of the most respected public officers with high integrity.
According to him, the minister exhibited a nationalistic attitude when they worked together in the economic team under Obasanjo, and believed in any policy that could take Nigeria and its people to higher levels.
“Am a little bit disturbed with what I have been hearing in the last couple of days where, many things are being said and some are totally out of place with some of the result we have achieved in the economy.
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/02/missing-n30trn-story-difficult-believe-ribadu/#sthash.dgZTwRdB.dpuf

BY UdumaKalu


The 2015 election is about why President Goodluck Jonathan should be given another 4 years. Can anyone honestly say that he has done well over his past 6 years at the helm of our affairs?

Over the past 6 years, we have seen a meteoric rise in corruption. subsidy scams, billions of missing dollars, criminals pardoned and celebrated, immigration recruitment scam Killing our youths, a strange definition for common stealing, police corruption on the rise, running the biggest presidential fleet in the world! Etc

We do need change. However, is the opposition candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari better than Goodluck Jonathan Phd? Will Buhari be better at managing Nigeria’s economy, for example?

I invite my readers to consider below enlightening piece from my friend, Joe Atueyi:

Excerpts: My good friend Abba Gumel has challenged me to back up with evidence my assertions that Buhari does not have the skills set to manage a modern economy, does not have the leadership skills to assemble a team that has these skills and does not have the temperament or interpersonal skills required to manage a diverse multi ethnic multi-religious country like Nigeria. I have stated these variously but Abba is a dear friend who despite being a Buharimite is one of the few Buhari supporters I know who would engage you in a debate without descending to the banal. I will oblige him.

Leadership is about staking out a future and marshaling resources-human and otherwise -to make that future a reality. In my younger days I saw leadership as people ‘who took charge’ in the mold of folks like Murtala Mohammed or former GE CEO Jack Welch. As I have worked for and with different kinds of leaders in business, religion, politics and academia I have come to realize that there are different types of leadership styles and one is not better than the other. What is important is the capacity to deliver results. Jim Collins’ article in the Harvard Business Review encapsulates this point:

/hbr.org/2005/07/level-5-leadership-the-triumph-of-humility-and-fierce-resolve
Level 5 Leadership: The Triumph of Humility and Fierce Resolve

So we can put away the issue of leadership style and focus on Buhari’s knowledge of how to run a modern economy. For someone who has been a governor, minister, head of state, executive chairman of PTF, founder and presidential candidate of political parties etc over a period of more than 30 years one expects –not economic expertise–but at least a specific view of how the economy of Nigeria should be organised. Are you in support of the Government holding the commanding heights of the economy — takeover MTN and Etisalat? Build more refineries? start a new ‘national airline’? shipping line? Takeover federal palace hotel and Ikoyi hotel? start another daily times? terminate the power privatisation and build more power plants?

Or are you in support of Government acting as a regulator and provider of an enabling environment for business to do commercial stuff.

For someone that has been in the public eye for more than 30 years and has sought the presidency of Nigeria Buhari’s views should not be a conjecture.

Lets see records of Buhari’s views on the economy:

TheCable: A lot of people are saying the problems of Nigeria are so many now, more than what you met in 1983 as military head of state. If you were elected president, what would you do differently from President Jonathan on power supply, for instance? How can we tackle this problem?

Buhari: It cannot be done overnight. The hearings conducted by the National Assembly on NEPA or Power Holding Company of Nigeria, of blessed memory, pension fund and petroleum industry show the extreme mismanagement of what Nigeria stands for… because if you remove petroleum industry, if you remove the organisation of pension funds and power, Nigeria will collapse.

TheCable: Part of the key recommendations in the PIB is deregulation that will lead to the removal of petrol subsidy. Removal of subsidy is sensitive issue. How do you hope to handle that if you are elected president?

Buhari: When we came into power, technically in December 1983 but we started in 1984, I had been part of Obasanjo’s government in petroleum. Nigeria handed over to the second republic government a relatively physically-secure and economically-safe country. I can’t recall exactly how much foreign reserve we had, but there was physical security and the economy was good. That is what the military handed over to the second republic.

Read more at: http://www.thecable.ng/exclusive-interview-im-opposed-muslim-muslim-ticket-says-buhari/2 | TheCable

Another example :

VANGUARD: Looking at the economy today, what are those things you would point at that are fundamental to making the economy prosperous?

BUHARI: I am not an economist but with my experience, it is about the indiscipline and lack of probity of the PDP government because they have been the government in charge in the last 12 years and so let nobody come out and blame others for the woes of their party which they have foisted on the nation.

VANGUARD: You have spoken in general terms but were you to make a presentation to the business community, what are those things you would be telling them about your economic agenda – in specific terms?

BUHARI: Firstly, let us secure our country.It means anything that comes to this country should be secure, but with people being kidnapped, armed robbery, bombings here and there, bad roads, fraudulent practices, nobody would come in and invest in quantum, nobody would bring substantial investment into this country, we are all joking.

Now in fairness to Buhari, every leader does not have to be an economist. But every leader builds around himself a team capable of addressing his weaknesses and advising him appropriately. If someone who has run for president 3 times and running for a 4th does not have a team that can have in place an economic blueprint of what he will do differently and how he will do it then I refuse to take such a candidate seriously.

Abba says Buhari has EL Rufai and Kwankwaso et al to advise. Raises a few questions: Shouldn't this advice have been provided as part of preparation for office? Are EL Rufai’s views on economic management in tandem with Buhari? What are Kwankwaso’s views?

In conclusion Abba asked that I compare Buhari with Jonathan on the economic side. That will be akin to comparing light with darkness.

Jonathan, like Buhari, does not personally have a sound background in economics. Unlike Buhari he went out as a first call of business to get sound professionals to focus on the economy: Okonjo Iweala, Aganga, Adesina, first Nnaji and now Nebo, Omobola Johnson, Shamsudeen Usman et al. Whether you agree with them or not they are singing from the same page—their policy thrust is that Govt has to be the regulator and creator of an enabling environment to allow business concentrate on growing the economy. That is why even though all Governments since IBB had tried to privatise none could break the cabal of generator importers, diesel importers and their enhancers in govt that made it impossible until this Govt privatised NEPA.
Read more here: https://udumakalu./2014/12/24/hear-buhari-on-the-economy-you-go-laff/

EXCERPTS FROM ARTICLE BY A. H. Ekpo & 0. J. Umoh..

INTRODUCTION
This article overviews the growth and development of the Nigerian economy from independence to present times. Specifically, the following periods are discussed: the pro-oil boom decade (1960-70); the period of the oil boom (1971 1977); the period of stabilisation and structural adjustment (1986 - 1993) and the period of guided deregulation (1994 -1998).

GENERAL PERFORMANCE OF THE ECONOMY
The Nigerian economy has had a truncated history. In the period 1960-70, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) recorded 3.1 per cent growth annually. During the oil boom era, roughly 1970-78, QDP grew positively by 6.2 per cent annually - a remarkable growth. However, in the 1980s, GDP had negative growth rates. In the period 1988-1997 which con stitutes the period of structural adjustment and economic liberalisation, the QDP responded to economic adjustment policies and grew at a positive rate of 4.0. In the years after independence, industry and manufacturing sectors had positive growth rates except for the period 1980-1988 where indus try and manufacturing grew negatively by - 3.2 per cent and - 2.9 per cent respectively. The growth of agriculture for the periods 1960-70 and 1970-78 was unsatisfactory. In the early 1960s, the agricul tural sector suffered from low commodity prices while the oil boom contributed to the negative growth of agriculture in the 1970s. The boom in the oil sector lured labour away from the rural sector to urban centres.

The contribution of agriculture to GDP, which was 63 percent in 1960, declined to 34 per cent in 1988, not because the industrial sector increased its share but due to neglect of the agricultural sec tor. It was therefore not surprising that by 1975, the economy had become a net importer of basic food items. The apparent increase in industry and man ufacturing from 1978 to 1988, was due to activities in the mining sub-sector, especially petroleum. Capital formation in the economy has not been satisfactory. Gross domestic investment as a per centage of GDP, which was 16.3 per cent and 22.8 per cent in the periods 1965-73 and 1973-80 respectively, decreased to almost 14 per cent in 1980-88 and increased to 18.2 per cent in 1991 -98. Gross National Saving has been low and consists mostly of public savings especially during the period 1973-80. The current account bal ances before official transfers are negative for 1965-73,1980-88 and 1991-98.

The economy never experienced double-digit inflation during the 1960s. By 1976, however, the inflation rate stood at 23 per cent. It decreased to 11.8 per cent in 1979 and jumped to 41 percent and 72.8 per cent in 1989 and 1995, respectively. By 1998, the inflation rate had, however, reduced to 9.5 per cent from 29.0 per cent in 1996.

Unemployment rates averaged almost 5 per cent for the period 1976-1998. However, the statistics especially on unemployment, must be interpreted with caution. Most job seekers do not use the labour exchanges, apart from the inherent distortions in the country's labour market. Based on some basic indicators, it appears that the economy performed well during the years immediately after independence and into the oil boom years. However, in the 1980s the economy was in a recession. The on-going economic reform programme is an attempt to put the economy on a recovery path with minimal inflation. The analysis that follows tries to discuss the developments in the economy for different periods.



Read more: http://www.onlinenigeria.com/economics/#ixzz3Qm577sQR

The information is provided by the Public Library of United States Diplomacy through Wikileaks.
BuhariWikileaks2
Like President Obasanjo before the 1999 election, General Buhari’s political experience is limited to that of military Head of State. Buhari came to power as a result of a 1983 New Year’s Eve coup against the democratically elected Shehu Shagari. The eviction of Shagari came as a welcome relief as did Buhari’s promise to root out corruption. That relief, however, was short-lived as Nigerians watched despairingly as the Buhari regime’s promises to revive the economy and wipe out rampant corruption withered during 20 months of heavy-handed, largely ineffective rule.
In May 1984, Buhari ordered the brutal expulsion of 700,000 illegal immigrants from neighboring African states, jailed hundreds of political opponents and muzzled a once aggressive press. His loyalty to the military also came into question as he dismissed 30,000 soldiers as a cost-cutting measure. Buhari also soured Nigeria’s relations with Britain, when he was accused of masterminding a clumsy and unsuccessful attempt in July 1984 to kidnap President Shagari’s brother-in-law, former Transport Minister Umaru Dikko. Moreover, Buhari undermined traditional rulers throughout Nigeria, slashing their benefits and questioning their authority.
WikiLeaks is an international, online, non-profit, journalistic organisation which publishes secret information, news leaks and classified media from anonymous sources. Its website, initiated in 2006 in Iceland by the organization Sunshine Press, claimed a database of more than 1.2 million documents within a year of its launch.

Armed soldiers were yesterday drafted to take over the Rivers State Government-owned Adokiye Amiesimaka Sports Complex in Igwuruta, Port Harcourt in readiness for Wednesday’s rally of President Goodluck Jonathan.



Report has it that hoodlums earlier yesterday lobbed explosives unto the sports field of National School, Okrika in the state, which the All Progressive Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Mr. Dakuku Peterside ,had planned to use later in the day for his campaign.

The attack, APC blamed on the PDP.

The soldiers sealed off the two main entrances of the uncompleted stadium near the Port Harcourt International Airport at about 2am yesterday.



The Rivers State governorship candidate of the PDP, Nyesom Wike, accompanied by several party leaders, was however let in yesterday to inspect the facility.

About 20 soldiers and two Hilux vans were spotted at the complex.

The Rivers State government accused President Jonathan and Wike of engineering the soldiers’ forceful seizure of the stadium and planning to create chaos in the state while the APC called the soldiers action a disgraceful show of force.

Former Petroleum Resources Minister,Professor David Tam-West asked that the soldiers leave immediately.



The Information and Communications Commissioner in Rivers State, Ibim Semenitari, said President Jonathan and Police Inspector General Suleiman Abba should rein in their people.

Semenitari said: “The matter of the Adokiye Amiesimaka Sports Complex is a simple one. The complex is still under construction. As a work site, it is an unsafe environment for use at this time.

“The PDP makes reference to the fact that the APC had held its rally at the same venue. What they failed to mention is that the contractor was moved out of site during the time the APC’s rally held and re-mobilised to site right after that rally.

“With less than five months to the end of its tenure, the Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi’s administration is working on ensuring the completion of all its projects before the handover date of May 29th. With that being the case, the River State Government cannot move its contractors out of site at this time.

“Unlike the PDP that has consistently refused the APC the use of stadia and other facilities in Abuja and other states where it is in control, the Rivers State Government has magnanimously offered the PDP the use of the Liberation Stadium Elekahia, which is also a state facility.”

The Rivers government said that the resolve of the PDP leaders to unlawfully break into the Adokiye Amiesimaka sports complex was to fulfill the threat issued by some members of the party (PDP) that they would burn it down.

The PDP chairman in the State Felix Obuah had earlier accused Governor Amaechi of refusing to allow the party to use the stadium.

“We dare him, because it is not his personal property. On January 28, we are going to use that place. We have made official reports to the police, the DSS (Department of State Services) and all the other law-enforcement agencies,” Obuah said.

Also reacting, the APC National Publicity Secretary,Alhaji Lai Mohammed condemned the stadium seizure and called for an end to impunity.

However, Former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Prof. Tam David-West, has asked President Goodluck Jonathan to withdraw soldiers from the Adokiye Amasieamaka Stadium, immediately.

The former minister described the forceful occupationof the stadium as a worrisome and dangerous trend.

He said it is an impunity that can cause a lot of trouble, adding that it is a plot to cause crisis that will justify calls for shift of date for the next month election.

“I strongly advise President Jonathan to withdraw soldiers from the stadium immediately to avoid confrontation and problem. We need peace in Nigeria, not war.

“What PDP is doing is a plot to cause confusion to justify change of date of the election,” David-West said.

Amaechi had on Tuesday asked the PDP to use the state-owned Liberation Stadium if it had no ulterior motive.

Two vehicles including a Toyota Highlander and Nissan Primera, were burnt by the hoodlums who lobbed a bomb in a staged canopy while a Ford cooling truck was also vandalised.

APC chairman in Okrika, Christian Asifamaka, said “In the wee hours of the morning of Saturday 24, 2015 at about 3:45am some armed youth started shooting at the venue of the APC governorship rally National school field Okrika.

“Those setting up the sound system and the podium were forced to flee for their lives. At about 4am they started shooting explosives into the arena and destroyed the podium, sound equipment and some canopies.

“Okrika is the home of Nigeria’s First Lady Mrs. Patience Jonathan. She was present and held the PDP governorship rally at the same venue on Thursday January 22, 2015.

“The boys came in a white Hiace bus and allegedly came in from Igbiri a community that shares borders with Mrs. Jonathan’s Oba Ama community.”

Peterside’s campaign organisation’s director of communications said: “Dr. Dakuku Adol Peterside, the APC’s governorship candidate, was expected to have unveiled his Roadmap to Prosperity, a revolutionary economic blue-print for the massive development of Rivers State to the Okrika electorate as well as highlight the choice space the area holds in the plan.

“The cancellation was necessitated by the massive Friday overnight and early Saturday gun violence unleashed on members and supporters of APC in Okrika by suspected thugs hired and commissioned by the opposition PDP. Heavily armed thugs had in the wee hours of the morning of Saturday 24, 2015 at about 3:45am, besieged the National School Field, Okrika, venue of the APC governorship rally and opened fire.

“Workers setting up equipment and canopies were forced to flee, as bullets poured down like rainfall. By divine intervention, nobody died in the attack. The injured were rushed to different hospitals in Port Harcourt.”

Soldiers were later deployed to the scene.

An army officer said: “We are here to ensure that the situation does not escalate. Please, do not take any photograph for security reason.”

The Rivers Police command confirmed the attack but vowed to enforce law and order and provide adequate security for all political parties and their members.

That2:
Then why the fuss about these "poor people" that owns oil blocks? The oil blocks is owned by individuals not tribes, they can use their money for whatever they like. If they decide to use the money solely to developed the North you would still be angry. What difference does it makes? Just admits you hate Hausas and don't want them to touch your resources but you want to touch theirs.

...out of point...after you say naija politics now no tribalism..see how fast you have rushed to defend criminals just because they from your tribe. #SAIMYBALLS

usual ...political misyarning...empty promises....you don start your own too...as an individual...what have you done to ease life in your community...

el-rufai, stop looking for cheap popularity....

xklucvG:

Sharaap idiot! Where were you when Abacha, IBB, Abdulsalam, OBJ and Yar'Adua was looting the treasury. We should kill GEJ because he is a minority. You motherfuckers are so afraid of the north that for mere seeing them you shiver. Gej brought all the problems you have been having since 1960. You can have your Nigeria but Niger Delta will have nothing to do with its enemies again.

...@xklucvG you know some statements are not worthy of reply. allow them to wallow in their ignorance or hear-say belief...if Abacha was alive honestly this psychophants will still beg him to come back. they are all greedy and selfish bunch.bet this child you are asking about Abacha IBB etc...was an infant then.