₦airaland Forum

Pakistan offers to train Nigerian soldiers
NOVEMBER 22, 2012 BY OLALEKAN ADETAYO, ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN

A team of military officers from Pakistan will soon visit Nigeria to help assess the needs of their Nigerian counterparts and assist in training them.

Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Pakistan, Ambassador Dauda Danladi, made this known to The PUNCH on Wednesday at the sideline of the ongoing D-8 summit in Islamabad, Pakistan.

Danladi said the two countries were working together to see how officials of the Pakistani Air Force could help build the Nigerian Air Force Industrial Complex that could maintain its fleet.

He said, “On the military aspect, we have made quite a significant achievement. The Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Air Staff were here. We went round all the Air Force formations. We went to the Air Force Industrial Complex and we saw that they have the capacity to recover and maintain their aircraft fleet.

“We have initiated a programme whereby a team of experts from the Air Force industry here in Pakistan will visit Nigeria. They will carry out needs assessment and survey of the requirement of the Air Force in Nigeria.

“They will also look at the training deficiencies, especially in respect of flying modern combat aircraft. We will then see how we can cooperate to build the Nigerian Air Force Industrial Complex that can maintain the aircraft fleet and also provide civil services to other airlines in Nigeria. This will go a long way in conserving our foreign exchange.”

The envoy said seven Nigerian officers above the rank of colonel were currently undergoing training at the Pakistan National University.

He added that five other officers were undergoing pilot training while 10 ordinance officers were undergoing training on the provision of minor logistic equipment for the armed forces.

He said the nation also had five Naval officers who were undergoing naval course in Pakistan.

Danladi, who said Nigerians living in Pakistan are over 800 expressed joy that the Nigerian community in the country had not suffered any casualty despite the terrorists’ attacks being recorded there.

He said the mission was collaborating with the Pakistani authorities to explore the abundant natural resources that are available in Nigeria.

He said President Goodluck Jonathan’s visit to Pakistan was a great opportunity for the leaders of the two countries to meet and discuss further on areas of cooperation that would be beneficial to both countries.

Danladi added that the mission was working towards the establishment of the Nigeria-Pakistan Joint Commission.

He expressed the hope that this commission would be on board towards the second quarter of next year.

The envoy identified areas of cooperation between the two countries to include economic and scientific.

He recalled that there are agreements for the export of rubber, cocoa and cotton.

He said some state governments were in Pakistan and had placed orders for agricultural equipment.

For instance, he said Borno State had placed order for 500 tractors from Pakistani while Kano and Edo States were planning to do so.

Yomieluv: do we have enough parking space in Lagos? Or is it my fault,none of ur generation owns a tyre,muchless a car.

Media chat: Opposition parties accuse Jonathan of doublespeak
NOVEMBER 20, 2012 BY NIYI ODEBODE AND OLUSOLA FABIYI


Three main opposition parties in the country on Monday gave a damning verdict of the President Goodluck Jonathan’s performance during his Sunday media chat and termed the administration as confused and lacking in credibility.

The Action Congress of Nigeria, Congress for Progressive Change and the All Nigeria Peoples Party in separate statements accused the President and his aides of sending conflicting messages to Nigerians.

The ACN, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said that it was concerned about conflicting statements emanating from the President and his spokespersons.

The opposition party said the presidency was suffering from a credibility deficiency syndrome.

The ACN said it was worried because of the frequency with which the President contradicted those he appointed as spokespersons, adding that the credibility of his administration was at stake.

It stated, ‘’Credibility is a key issue in governance, and lack of it renders a government impotent.

“Perhaps this worsening credibility gap in the Jonathan administration is one of the reasons that it had so far failed to perform to expectation.”

It said Jonathan during his media chat denied that his government had revoked the power contract awarded to Canadian firm, Manitoba, and recalled that the President’s spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, had earlier been widely quoted as saying that the President had cancelled the contract.

The party said the same Abati had been widely quoted as saying, in August and this month that the government was engaged in ‘’backroom channel’’ talks with Boko Haram but that the President during the media chat said there was no dialogue with the sect because members of the sect had no face.

According to the ACN, Jonathan has finally confirmed the reported illness of his wife, Patience, although spokespersons for the President and the First Lady said she was hale and hearty.

“We also recall that this flip-flopping and deliberate disinformation or both did not just start on Sunday, and that it has been the hallmark of the Jonathan presidency.

“For instance, while some spokespersons at the Presidency once described the report of the probe of the oil sector by the House of Representatives as merely of ‘advisory’ value to the presidency, others said the presidency has indeed started its implementation.”

‘’Also, shortly after Dr. Doyin Okupe rubbished the Petroleum Revenue Special Task Force Report as inconclusive and therefore not implementable, the President announced the setting up of a White Paper Committee on the report, indicating that Okupe, in his usual exuberant disposition, may have been speaking for no one but himself.”

The ANPP, in a statement by its spokesman, Chief Emma Eneukwu, said the President was confused, saying Jonathan was interested in contesting the 2015 presidency.

It stated, “On 2015, the President is confused. He wants to run in 2015 but he does not have anything to show for it.

“He does not want other candidates who are interested to start their campaign or mobilisation. He wants to catch them unawares. But he knows Nigerians won’t give him their votes.”

The party noted that the media chat was meant to present the President’s ideas with the utmost frankness and simplicity but that he only succeeded in “obfuscating the minds of Nigerians.”

It stated, “When asked about the ongoing constitution amendment, the President declined to take any position on the myriad of issues being raised for amendment in the constitution, with the self-serving explanation that it would be in the best interest of Nigerians to suggest areas in the constitution to be amended.”

“However, we believe that it is the sign of a leader with ideas and direction to have a clear-cut legislative agenda, as a signature of his policy philosophy.”

“We in the ANPP believe that President Goodluck Jonathan needs more than a media chat to communicate to the disillusioned masses his government’s vaunted vision, progress and plans. Action speaks louder than word,” it said.

The CPC spokesman, Rotimi Fashakin, in a text message sent to our correspondent said, “The chest-beating by the president is based on nothing.

“Where are the verifiable facts of prosecutions that this regime saw to conclusive end? Anybody can get enmeshed in empty grandstanding when given the stage but not all can deal truthfully.”

ypzilanti: Funny guy, 'on the mainland' i guess means that other parts of Lagos do not count?

Let Oga Jona point at the one he has constructed in the whole Nigeria.

But let me humor you. I have not gone to the whole nooks and crannies in Lagos, but i can attest to the fact that a fly over was constructed in Cele bustop. Do you know the last time a flyover was constructed in Lagos? Do you know the impact that flyover has had for residents of Ikota and Isolo who link to surulere. What of the retarring of adeniran ogunsanya and co in surulere, all done now with side walks? Go inside Gbagada and see correct road construction with CONCRETE...I saw it and marvelled that things could be done so correctly in Nigeria.

Have you seen the suspension bridge linking lekki to ikoyi? Even the controversial tolled road in Lekki is world standard. Meanwhile the badagry express road is ongoing and train lines are even scheduled to run on that axis.

I don't agree with everything he does but at least he is doing something. Your President appears to be doing nothing.

Condescension As Instrument of State Policy By Sonala Olumhense
Posted: November 18, 2012 - 04:02

It is not strange, to me, that there is a loud argument over the report of the Petroleum Revenue Task Force chaired by Malam Nuhu Ribadu.
What is new, to me, is that the government is angry. Actually, anger is hardly the emotion: the government seems to be outraged that there would be Nigerians, anywhere, who fail to see its good nature and achievements.

The government is so disappointed that the presidential spokesman Reuben Abati employed rather uncouth language last week in an article, Jonathan and the Ribadu Report. I will not repeat his choice of metaphor.

Of the main issue, Abati explained: “The committees in question and the probe into the Petroleum sector were initiated by President Goodluck Jonathan to ensure transparency and accountability in the extractive industry; the goal was to transform the sector and raise levels of integrity accordingly. Every step that has been taken by this administration in this regard has been in fulfillment of this well-stated principle. This includes the decision to completely deregulate the downstream sector, which has now resulted in the exposure of oily deals in that sector, with consequences for the indicted persons.”

The spokesman then went off to reaffirm his worship of Jonathan, listing a batch of praises that include political will; mature response; clear directives; and leadership.

Evidently, Abati has grown in the mischief industry. Otherwise, it was a conscious choice to chase the smoke rather than the fire.
In the real world, outside the magnificent gates of Aso Rock, none of the current rancor and clamor and rabble-rousing is really about the Ribadu Committee report. It is not about oil or the committee or the petroleum sector.

That part is the smoke. The fire is much deeper. It is about character and leadership. When Nigerians doubt Jonathan’s motives and question his methods, it is because they know he wants them to accept a reality other than what they are witnessing with their eyes. It is because they know he wants them to accept the portrait of his praise-singers and sundry assault dogs hired for the purpose.

Thus, when a government official says, repeats or regurgitates such drivel as “President Goodluck Jonathan [wants to] to ensure transparency and accountability,” it sharply contradicts what Nigerians know.

What do Nigerians know? To begin with, that their President, in his own words, does not give a damn.

Before the whole world—and with the immediacy, pungency and urgency of the Internet and the social media networks—Mr. Jonathan declared that he does not give a damn about declaration of assets; that is: about leading the way, in practice, on transparency and accountability.

In case anyone has forgotten, Mr. Jonathan went further to explain that when he declared his assets in 2007, it was because President Umaru Yar’Adua compelled him to do so. In his magnanimity, he stated that he does not want to declare his assets and impose on federal officials the obligation to do so.

“The Federal Government has not done anything to stop or discourage the prosecution of indicted persons,” Abati wrote. “We have made the point, again and again, that in this on-going fight against corruption, there will be no “cover ups”; and no “sacred cows,” and that President Jonathan’s only interest is the people’s interest.”

It is not true that there is an “on-going fight against corruption.” Nor is it true that there are no cover ups (in quotation marks), and no sacred cows (wink-wink).

Let me cite just five examples, in addition to Mr. Jonathan’s refusal to declare his assets, to debunk this propaganda.

First: the corruption-related reports that include two Halliburton reports and of several presidential commissions which have remained unimplemented. You cannot have better examples of cover-ups or sacred cows.

Second: the several Ministers in Mr. Jonathan’s cabinet that have been accused of corruption and excessive spending, including the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Allison-Madueke. It is one of the mysteries of official hypocrisy that the same Minister is the one that set up the committee the report of which is setting the country on fire. Mrs. Allison-Madueke may well be innocent, but from where does she obtain her credibility? Certainly not from the people of Nigeria, who are wondering whether they are supposed to laugh when someone says the same Minister is rooting out corruption and deepening reforms.

Third: federal officials are quick to point to the oil subsidy scam as “proof” that Mr. Jonathan’s government is combating corruption. It is not true. The oil subsidy revelations were forced by the people through last January’s protests when the government found itself on the verge of being unseated. Even then, everyone has seen how the prosecution of the scammers has been hampered by the government’s lack of interest in putting them in jail. Only last week, the EFCC was reported to be negotiating a plea deal with some of them, including the son of the chairman of the ruling party, Bamanga Tukur. Surely, that decision was not the EFCC’s to make, unless the commission also carries a PDP card.

Fourth: Let us remember that long before the oil subsidy protests of January 2012 and their aftermath, there was the KPMG audit report of the NNPC which exposed widespread financial and managerial malfeasance in the NNPC. And let us not forget that for over one year, until demanded by a Senate subcommittee, this “transparency and accountability” government had kept it hidden.

Fifth: Transparency and accountability? First Lady Patience Jonathan, a Bayelsa State civil servant by choice, this year disappeared abroad for nearly two months at public expense. The President did not say one word to the nation about her disappearance, although there were credible reports of hospitalization. That is exploitation, not only of public expenditure, but also of the democratic process. That is not how to spell accountability.
But there is another critical level at which the propaganda about the character of the current government must be calibrated: the quality of Jonathan’s word.

Last year, one week before Mr. Jonathan took office, I detailed hundreds of his electoral promises. Today, nearly two years later, only one of those pledges has been redeemed: ONE. Mr. Jonathan does not even refer to them any longer.

Similarly, while he describes his government as a government of transformation, I have repeatedly observed that he has not published his transformation plan. That leaves the transformation talk in the precincts of propaganda.

Let us also remember Jonathan’s many promises on jobs, which I have also detailed in this column, as well as his many vows to the public, one of them being to defeat Boko Haram last June. None of these promises has been redeemed, and the geography of Nigeria continues to shrink around Abuja, while the quality of life plummets.

Regrettably, the government cites Jonathan’s committeeing practice as demonstration of his goodwill and evidence of his success, State House officials condescendingly trying to force-feed the propaganda to the public.

It is clear that the people are not buying it. Committees may be good for Mr. Jonathan’s ego, but their effect has always been to Delay, Defer, Discourage and then Discontinue.

The condescension emerging from Aso Rock, which recently found new sharpness in connection with the Ribadu report, is a sad turn. It is this government which has dug for itself the credibility canyon in which it lives, and it is only the government—through courageous decision-making and dogged implementation—which can redeem itself.

To be clear, Jonathan cannot achieve such an objective by claiming the ethical mountain-top his aides are pointing at. He cannot achieve it by placing in charge of the storehouse Nigerians of dubious or doubtful records.

What Nigerians are asking is someone who will inspire them through character and consistency. Unfortunately, they continue to have thrown at them champions of compromise and accomplices to the crime.

That road is guaranteed to lead back, to January 2012, not the future.

• sonala.olumhense@gmail.com

helixmanager: You write logically 2day.

Maxymilliano: Can you repeat some of the questions he failed to answer if you can be sincere with yourself?

Prof Corruption: I will be more generous, I rate him 11.3%

Maxymilliano: Sorry, Jonathan came into the saddle in 2010, and the project has witnesses a different impetus from what it used to be, i will advise you to ply that route any moment from now

Maxymilliano: Why are you trying hard to pick hole in the President response or is power not below the require expectation?

Maxymilliano: Please forget about forecast and projections, what matter is what is the reality of things to come, Mitt Romney was projected and forecast-ed to be the winner of the just concluded American election.

ANALIST: Benin-Ore is undergoing construction. Enugu-PH has been awarded to 5 companies. He even said it during budget presentation.

ANALIST: Ignoramus. Civil service reforms is not the same thing as cutting down and scrapping agencies MUMU!

Maxymilliano: I doubt if you know the real meaning of poverty

ANALIST: GEJ u're on point. You are the first president to initiate a committee on cutting down on the number of parastals in Nigeria. #OROSANYE REPORT

ANALIST: Yes he talks about wealth creation. That's the ish.