₦airaland Forum

[quote author=paddy_lo link=topic=377105.msg5263447#msg5263447 date=1262817062]mister no 1 UK defender,welcome to the thread. . .just dont freeze to death as u take off your gloves to type rubbish

i guarantee u that pound for pound,word for word i am more intelligent than u are . . [/quote]Even monkeys think they are smart.
Keep up with your preparation for your political ambitions. It is quite obvious that you are reserving a seat amongst thieves and scoundrels.

[quote author=paddy_lo link=topic=377105.msg5263135#msg5263135 date=1262814133]lol. . .so true

heres what it has to do with politics. . many of the so called diaspora or u.k dwellers come on here
abuse nigeria non-stop while making us believe they live in some kind of paradise. . .

i am just exposing the rot available in the u.k also,besides if people are dieing from this
and there is gas shortages,then it is a failure on the part of the UK govt

if this happened in naija u will be the first to blame naija govt
sorry i hurt your feeling about your beloved uk[/quote]Will this bring Yar Adua back or stop Boko Haram and Kala Kato? Are Nigerians in the UK the reason why the country is doing badly?
You really display a serious lack of intelligence. So Nigerians who live abroad can no longer criticise the rubbish going on there, or they have no right to contributing to making Nigeria a paradise?
Boy you are really st'upid.

[size=14pt]US charges Nigerian suspect over plane bomb plot[/size]

A US grand jury has indicted Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab on six counts over an alleged plot to bomb a plane over Detroit on Christmas Day.

The charges against the 23-year-old include attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted murder of 290 people on board the plane.

Mr Abdulmutallab allegedly tried to detonate a bomb on Northwest flight 253 from Amsterdam to Detroit.

The plane landed safely after crew and passengers overpowered him.

There were 279 passengers and 11 crew on board.

Mr Abudmutallab allegedly concealed two explosives - PETN and TATP - in his clothing with other ingredients to make a bomb, according to the court document.

The indictment said the bomb was designed for him to detonate at a time of his choosing.

The counts are:

* attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction
* attempted murder within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the US
* willful attempt to destroy and wreck an aircraft
* willfully placing a destructive device in or near an aircraft which was likely to endanger the safety of the aircraft
* two counts of possession of a firearm, ie the bomb, in furtherance of violent crime.

Mr Abdulmutallab's arraignment date had yet to be set, but could be on Friday, the US Attorney's office in Detroit said.

At the arraignment, the charges will be read to him and he will have the opportunity to enter a plea.

The alleged bombing attempt prompted airport screening changes in numerous countries, with some moving to introduce body scanners.

US President Barack has strongly criticised US intelligence officials for failing to do more to prevent the plot, saying they knew enough about it but failed "to connect the dots".

US intelligence officials had known that Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which claimed involvement in the plot, had been planning an attack against America.

Mr Obama also said they knew the group had been working with an individual - now known to be Mr Abdulmutallab.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8444694.stm

This has to be the most st'upid thread ever.
What does UK weather have to do with politics?

Daft.

Mbeki:
It's true he sent a bill to the national assembly on the said date.

Source: http://www.placng.org/hvpOct20.pdf

but that he called yesterday is a crude joke. Nigerians are being regarded as a docile fool by these magots

Hmmm, the terrorism bill seems to pan out, but I wonder if it was targetted at Boko Haram and Kala-Kato style terrorists, or if it was to "rebrand" MEND? Na wa!

I am afraid that Nigerians have proven to be docile to a fault.

edoyad:
The typos and grammatical errors in becomrich's posts are deliberate  . I'm trying to decode who he really is.

Believe me, they are not. We are actually dealing with somebody with mental cramp .

Mbeki:
Yar'adua actually sent a bill to the House of Reps on OCtober 12,2009. it was titled "A BILL FOR AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR MEASURES TO COMBAT TERRORISM"

it was read on the floor of the House on October 20, 2009 by the speaker

One day is one day, unu go kill pesin wit laugh o!

www.nairaland.com/attachments/180447_ROTFLMAO_gif3d0c775232c7f27cf80592785b9635b6

Demdem:
Please, i learnt there is going to be a FEC (fededral executive council) meeting today. To those who av access to ASO rock kindly print this article with the bolden parts to those bufoons that constitute the council

FEC? Recent court cases seem to deny that the FEC is even mentioned in our constitution. If ever our country was in trouble, it is now; there is no shortage of bar'stards willing to line their pockets at the expense of Nigeria.

As pastors say, "this too shall pass away" .
The other day, wasn't he watching football? And before that, wasn't he challenging everyone to a vigorous game of squash?

Abegi!

The failed terrorist attack by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab on Northwest Flight 253 highlights that Nigeria's power void is dangerous for the U.S. as well. The foundation of a counter-terrorism strategy is to build cooperative partnerships with friendly nations. This means sharing information and helping to build security capacity in places like Yemen, Afghanistan, and Nigeria.

But we cannot have a partnership if there is no one on the other end of the line. Nigeria cannot be a reliable ally if it is consumed by its own corruption and political machinations. In this way, Nigeria is rapidly becoming more like Somalia -- a failed state with no real government to cooperate with -- than a real partner.

I wonder if the national assembly read this assessment before rushing out with a 7 day ultimatum? This article is as close to the mind of the US govt on Nigeria as it gets.
Grouping us in the same sentence as Yemen, Afghanistan is shocking. Comparing us to Somalia is even worse.

In the face of this, we can only offer denials as if they will change observable facts or foreign perceptions.

[quote author=paddy_lo link=topic=376619.msg5257414#msg5257414 date=1262747472]u wish. . .u are just an ethnic jingoist beaf. . .this issue is not a somalia issue. .
this is a power struggle within the pdp. . .if they fail,they will be booted out of office in 2011

even if jonathan becomes president he can be booted out in the next election if he is not seen as being sincere to solve nigerias problem
what has mark and bankole got to do with this?
u forget they are all of the same ruling party

have u ever seen where members of the same ruling party be it in the uk or U.S actively work to oust their own party leader or president?
its not done,so u just misunderstand what is going on here[/quote]"Ethnic jingoist". . . How? Do you really know the meaning of that phrase?

As for the rest, it all seems confused. But like I said, there are many Nigerians that are blind to where we are currently headed.

ROSSIKE:
Those who think Nigeria can do nothing are thoroughly mistaken.

Nigeria could go the way of Venezuela if the political class are provoked enough. China is prepared to buy every last drop of oil we have, and their companies are knocking down our doors for drilling rights  AT BETTER TAX AND ROYALTY RATES THAN WESTERN MULTINATIONALS OFFER, while the western oil companies are trying to dig in their heels to protect their age-old unfair agreements.

Nigeria as a result of this will certainly accelerate her co-operation with CHINA, the country to which Americans owe their breakfast, lunch and dinner, since they produce nothing and live on debts.

The clock definitely is ticking for America.

Nigeria must not, and will not let this slide.

So easy to say. . . Especially when you have no president.

This is the US assesment of Nigeria situation in black and white.
How is the daft 7 day ultimatum the senate has given the US anything remotely resembling a cogent reply to the above?

I tire!

[size=14pt]After the Plane Bomber, Where in the World Is Nigeria's President?[/size]

Amid all the media frenzy around the Nigerian underwear bomber and how America should have stopped him before he tried to blow up a passenger plane on Christmas Day, a critical piece to the counter-terrorism puzzle seems to have been missed: where in the world is the Nigerian President?

Normally, after such a horrific incident, President Obama would be on the phone with his counterpart, discussing what went wrong and agreeing on ways to work better in the future to prevent such attacks. But this couldn't happen because Nigeria's President Umaru Yar'Adua left his country for medical treatment in Saudi Arabia on November 23rd and hasn't been seen or heard from since.

Yes, you read that right: the whereabouts of the leader of Nigeria -- America's most important strategic ally in Africa, the fifth largest source of U.S. oil imports, and home to 150 million people -- are unknown. It is also not clear if he is alive or dead.

The situation is so uncertain that Nigeria's parliament is openly considering sending a delegation to Saudi Arabia to find out the truth. A major opposition party yesterday demanded, quite reasonably, some "proof of life."

The mystery over Yar'Adua is so bizarre as to be comical -- if the consequences weren't so severe. His absence has thrust the country into an immediate constitutional crisis. The president failed to delegate authority to his deputy before traveling, effectively leaving no one in charge. This 43-days-and-counting power vacuum is being swiftly filled by an insular cabal bent on exploiting the situation for their own gain.

Complicating matters, the vice president -- ironically named Goodluck Jonathan -- is a Christian and an Ijaw, part of a minority group from the southern Niger Delta region and far from the power centers of the northern Muslim elites who expect one of their own to run the country. There is much speculation that insiders are scheming now of ways to keep Jonathan from ever assuming power. In an ominous sign, a new chief justice was quickly (and possibly illegally) sworn in last week.

These developments all put Nigeria's future at great risk. A decade of constitutional democracy is threatened by the specter of mass violence and a possible military coup.

The failed terrorist attack by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab on Northwest Flight 253 highlights that Nigeria's power void is dangerous for the U.S. as well. The foundation of a counter-terrorism strategy is to build cooperative partnerships with friendly nations. This means sharing information and helping to build security capacity in places like Yemen, Afghanistan, and Nigeria.

But we cannot have a partnership if there is no one on the other end of the line. Nigeria cannot be a reliable ally if it is consumed by its own corruption and political machinations. In this way, Nigeria is rapidly becoming more like Somalia -- a failed state with no real government to cooperate with -- than a real partner.

What can the United States do? First, it should insist on an immediate public declaration of President Yar'Adua's health and fitness to govern. If the president's staff refuse to oblige, then the U.S. should encourage the national assembly to assert its constitutional responsibilities when it reconvenes on January 12.

Second, if, as seems likely, Yar'Adua is in fact incapacitated, the U.S. must demand that the constitution be followed and power transferred to the vice president. The long-term security of Nigeria depends on entrenching the rule of law and this must supersede any palace intrigue or political bargaining.

Third, it is clear that whatever the outcome over the next few weeks, Nigeria will remain on a knife's edge until elections in 2011. Any hope for a more stable country hinges on a credible election next year. Yar'Adua came to power in a deeply flawed poll in April 2007 and almost no steps have since been taken to fix the broken system. The U.S. is in a unique position to push for and help deliver a better election that would strengthen the authority and legitimacy of the next government.

Last, the U.S. can support Nigeria's vibrant civil society that is clearly fed up and is increasingly demanding change.

The case of the missing Nigerian President is a wake up call to the United States about the vulnerability of many of our global partners. How we respond is not only crucial to the future of an important ally, but a critical test of our strategy for building partnerships in troubled places to combat the global ills of our time.

Todd Moss is vice president and senior fellow at the Center for Global Development in Washington DC. He served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs during the Bush administration.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/todd-moss/after-the-plane-bomber-wh_b_411818.html

[size=14pt]Revealed: Why US Blacklisted Nigeria[/size]
By Constance Ikokwu, 01.06.2010

Nigeria’s weakening diplomatic ties with the United States may have largely contributed to the blacklisting of the country along with others long suspected of habouring potential terrorists.

Angry reactions have continued to trail the decision of US to place Nigeria on the list of “countries of interest” in its fight against terrorism, with the National Assembly yesterday rejecting the US classification in the wake of the failed terrorist attack on an American airliner by a Nigerian suspect, Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab.

Investigations by THISDAY revealed that the relationship between the two countries has been weakened in the last three years – a development that is said to have made it “very easy” for the US to blacklist Nigeria.
The situation is further compounded by the lack of high-level diplomatic contact between Aso Rock and the White House after the failed suicide-bombing incident.


Todd Moss, vice president and senior fellow at the Center for Global Development in Washington DC who served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs during the Bush administration, highlighted this fact in a widely circulated article entitled "Where in the World is the Nigerian President?" posted on the web yesterday.


He wrote: "Amid all the media frenzy around the Nigerian underwear bomber and how America should have stopped him before he tried to blow up a passenger plane on Christmas Day, a critical piece to the counter-terrorism puzzle seems to have been missed:  where in the world is the Nigerian President? Normally, after such a horrific incident, President Obama would be on the phone with his counterpart, discussing what went wrong and agreeing on ways to work better in the future to prevent such attacks.  But this couldn’t happen because Nigeria’s President Umaru Yar’Adua left his country for medical treatment in Saudi Arabia on November 23rd and hasn’t been seen or heard from since."


He further wrote: "The failed terrorist attack by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab on Northwest Flight 253 highlights that Nigeria’s power void is dangerous for the U.S. as well.  The foundation of a counter-terrorism strategy is to build cooperative partnerships with friendly nations.  This means sharing information and helping to build security capacity in places like Yemen, Afghanistan, and Nigeria. But we cannot have a partnership if there is no one on the other end of the line."


To compound matters, Nigeria currently does not have a substantive ambassador to the US.
The manner of recall of the former Ambassador to the country, Brigadier-General Oluwole Rotimi (rtd), who made an ethnically offensive statement, was considered to be highly untidy.

His proposed replacement, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, was rejected on grounds that his son allegedly gang-despoiled three women in the US city of Baltimore.

Adeniran had already been screened and confirmed by the Senate before his credentials were thrown out.
That rejection was unprecedented in the country’s diplomatic history and might have further thawed relations with the US.
The new ambassador-designate, Professor Ade Adefuye, is yet to be screened by the Nigerian Senate.


A source in the diplomatic community, who spoke under condition of anonymity, stated that “the inclusion of Nigeria in the list of unfriendly countries is a climax or crescendo. It’s been cumulative. It may not have happened if we had very good relations”.
It was gathered that the Presidency as an institution has not engaged with the White House “as much as necessary”.


President Yar’Adua has been absent from all United Nations General Assembly meetings in New York except in 2007 when he addressed the Assembly for the first time. Nigeria was represented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Ojo Maduekwe in subsequent meetings.


On the day AbdulMutallab allegedly embarked on the suicide mission that would have claimed the lives of some 300 people, Nigeria was not in a position to embark on a high-level diplomatic engagement with the US because Yar’Adua was in Saudi Arabia for medical reasons and Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan had not been officially empowered to act as President.
Yar’Adua has been out of the country for more than a month because of ill health.


“President Barrack Obama could not have been discussing with Nigeria’s security adviser or Mike Aondoakaa (the Attorney-General),” the source added. “He had nobody to discuss with.”
Also, Nigeria lacks a strong lobbying group in the US, which sources say, might have been useful immediately after AbdulMutallab was arrested.


“The lobbying group would have swung into action immediately AbdulMutallab was arrested to sensitise the American authorities,” the source said.
During the President Olusegun Obasanjo administration, Goodworks International, an American lobbying firm, was hired for Nigeria. But the contract was discontinued when Yar’Adua came into power.


THISDAY gathered that another company, Patton Boggs, was secured to do the same job. However, it is not certain if the group is active.
Another source argued that if Nigeria had a substantive Head of Mission or Ambassador in the US, he would have sought audience with State Department officials such as the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, to intervene on Nigeria’s behalf.
“International relations is a matter of positive engagement. Any damage done could have been averted by active engagement. Simply put, we have not been positively engaging the US,” said the source.

Last Monday, the US included Nigeria in a list of “countries of interest” whose citizens would face thorough screening before entering the country. Other nations on that list are Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Algeria, Pakistan, Libya and Somalia.


There are yet others such as Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria that are regarded as “state sponsors of terrorism”.
Nigerians would now be subjected to pat-downs, scans, restriction on the use of electronic equipment such as iPods, laptops etc and restricted movement one hour to landing.AbdulMutallab is currently awaiting trial in the US.


Meanwhile, the Senate and House of Representatives have unanimously rejected the latest move by the US.
Chairman of the Committee on Information and Media, Senator Ayogu Eze, said at a press briefing in Abuja that the Upper House was unhappy about the classification and would take up the matter when it resumes.


The House acknowledged the right of the US or any other country to set out measures it considers fit to protect its citizenry and sovereignty but faulted the timing and circumstances leading to Nigeria’s inclusion on the terror list.
Also yesterday, Maduekwe said the US move is “unacceptable and unprofitable”. He made the statement after a closed-door meeting with the US Ambassador Robin Renee Sanders.

http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=163538

SEFAGO:
The US gets 11% of its oil from Nigeria. They would survive without it I can assure you. Nigeria cannot put them in an economic stalemate. No be the politician who dey enjoy oil money- you think they would let that go to prevent the "masses" from getting a pat down. If they could deal with other countries who prduce a larger share of their oil, they can deal with naija

They can indeed, deal with Naija, but that 11% they get from us is the highest quality crude in the World. It is by far the cheapest and least polluting to refine; in short, it is worth dying for.
So yes, they can deal with us, but judging from what we have to offer, it will either be with kid gloves or the full monty. There will be no grey areas, sadly putting us on the concerned countries list (a very harsh and alarming action) looks very much like the first steps toward the full monty.

The US is acting in their best interest (which coincides neatly with ours), so that Nigeria does not become the next Somalia. What pains me most, is that there are many Nigerians who cannot fathom just how close we are to becoming the next Somalia; we could be there in 5 years.

Lets hope that this US pressure will bring a strong and constitutional resolution to the ugly matters in the presidency.
When Jonathan takes over, guess the first names of those to be booted out? I'll try;

[list]
[li]Michael Aondoakaa[/li]
[li]Rilwan Lukman[/li]
[li]David Mark[/li]
[li]Dimeji Bankole[/li]
[li]Every member of the FEC[/li]
[li]Every member of Yar Adua's kitchen cabinet[/li]
[/list]

[size=14pt]Yar’Adua: US sanction divides presidency on power transfer to Jonathan[/size]
Wednesday, 06 January 2010 01:38 Pius Mordi & Max Amuchie

•Moderates emboldened, deepen consultation on filling power vacuum •Maduekwe summons Sanders, seeks review of decision

For moderates in the presidency who hold the view that power ought to have been temporarily handed over to Vice resident Good luck Jonathan, the US classification of Nigeria alongside Afghanistan, Somalia and Iran as terrorist countries has turned out to be a shot in the arm as they are now emboldened to up the ante in their bid to end the power vacuum in the presidency. This comes as the executive council of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) meets with all governors elected on the party’s platform today. Also, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) holds its weekly meeting today. And on Tuesday, the Federal Government summoned Robin Renee Sanders, US ambassador to Nigeria, to urge a reconsideration of the decision to require tighter security for Nigerian air travellers in the wake of the botched bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner.

Ojo Maduekwe
Ojo Maduekwe, foreign affairs minister, in a meeting with Sanders, said “I used diplomatic means to convey our message that listing Nigeria as a high risk on the radar of security measure to US is an unacceptable New Year gift to a friendly nation; we do not accept it because Nigeria is not listed as a training ground nor the country accused as sponsoring terrorism.” Although BusinessDay could not get any PDP official to confirm the agenda of the meeting, sources within the hierarchy said the US move On the other hand, the hawks which have Michael Aondoakaa, attorney general of the federation, as their spearhead have also been forced to rethink their strategy in staving off the emergence of Jonathan as acting president. BusinessDay gathered that the moderates are now more vigorous in seeking options towards checkmating the hawks by reaching out to prominent members of the National Assembly, including its leadership. It is generally acknowledged within the two groups that the American action was largely due to failed leadership accentuated by Yar’Adua’s November 23, 2009 medical trip to Saudi Arabia without handing over power albeit temporarily to Vice President Jonathan. A source close to the seat of power said the hawks seem to still have upper hand. “We learnt Yar’Adua is recovering and will return but that is what we have been told several times,” said a source close to the PDP top hierarchy. The national executive of the PDP is meeting with PDP governors tomorrow (today). The meeting could not hold earlier because of the burial of former First Lady, Maryam Babangida. Many governors and PDP big wigs are expected to attend. Another source said the moderates, that is those who want power transferred are in majority but they have not been able to assert their position.

“Everybody is concerned about Yar’Adua’s continued absence. Privately they express their worries but are circumspect about speaking openly. The PDP does not tolerate dissenting views and the Atiku experience is still fresh in every politician’s mind. The lesson is that no one dares challenge a sitting president. “That may be the reason why Vice President Jonathan has been lying low. He has largely comported himself with maturity, dignity and decency. Although the FEC meets tomorrow (Wednesday) for the first time after the Christmas break, no one expects a fundamental shift in position from what they have always told us,” the source stated. When BusinessDay asked Vincent Ogbulafor, PDP national chairman, if the US sanction on Nigeria will make Yar’Adua transfer power to Jonathan temporarily pending his full recovery, he said he had “no idea.” Prodded further, he said “I don’t talk to press men on the phone.” BusinessDay sought to know from Ayogu Eze, Senate committee chairman on information if the US sanction could make the upper legislative chamber ask the FEC to raise a medical team to inquire into the president’s fitness to continue in office as enshrined in the constitution, he said the constitution does not require the Senate to mandate FEC to do so. In effect, only FEC can initiate it whenever it deems fit. Effort made to reach Segun Adeniyi failed as he did not pick his phone when BusinessDay called repeatedly.

http://www.businessdayonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7339:yaradua-us-sanction-divides-presidency-on-power-transfer-to-jonathan-&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=18

[quote author=paddy_lo link=topic=376589.msg5257167#msg5257167 date=1262741264]this is quite true. . .terrorism is alien to nigerians
there is no word for it in my language

the israelis and arabs invented this suicide bombing nonsense. . .
i even read somewhere that the first known suicide bomber in the middle east was an israeli. . .
but thats a different matter

a lot of u guys on here are living in fantasy. . .perhaps u dont travel
the u.s must rescind its racist and unnecesarry decision immediately

if not i suggest the nigerian govt should move closer to china and if possible
help the chinese gain a foothold in nigerias oil industry at the expense of western companies
companies like CNOOC and petro-china are ready to come in with better deals for us
in terms of refineries and other infrastructure

thats the only thing the west understands. .hit them in the pockets
and play one superpower over another
nonsense[/quote]Who ever heard of a mouse playing two elephants against each other? In any event, there is only one superpower right now and its the US, China has a few decades to catch up in both military and economic terms; there can only be one winner in any face off.
Much worse for Nigeria if we attempt such a foolhardy policy, any country making itself a superpower battleground will be shredded beyond recognition (learn from Afghanistan vs USSR, which was really a proxy for USSR vs US).

BLACKLISTING: Senate gives US 7-day ultimatum - Maduekwe meets US Envoy, says action unacceptable - Experts urge FG to seek AU, UN intervention - US must respect Nigeria - Ogwu - This is uncalled for - AC - Sever relations with US - Afe
From Taiwo Adisa, Bola Badmus, Kunle Oderemi, Adewale Ajayi, Muda Oyeniran, Ayodele Adesanmi, with Agency Reports - 06.01.2010
THE Senate, on Tuesday, issued a seven-day ultimatum to the United States of America (USA), within which it should remove Nigeria from its list of countries sponsoring terrorists or risk a diplomatic row.

The President of the Senate, David Mark, who issued the one-week ultimatum said that the Senate would meet in a closed session on January 12 to deliberate further on the situation.

Talk about digging deeper when you are in trouble.
By placing us on the concerned countries list, the US has already signified in bold letters that they prepared to move things any level of notches higher. It is better to be diplomatic than issue ultimatums to a lion. David Mark is leading us down the wrong path in one of the surest signs of a leaderless country drifting in the wind.
This is the time that we need someone to pick the phone up and speak directly to Obama, but Yar Adua is missing and the North wouldn’t have a Southerner in Jonathan.

For decades now, we have had all sorts of horrible religious crisis in which lives and properties are lost. Very little (if anything) has ever been done, then by strange "coincidence" a suicide bomber turns out to be a Nigerian; at the time he fails at his suicide / mass murder bid, the president of the country is missing and there is nobody to take charge; the Attorney General actions seem to be pushing the nation toward a precipice; even worse, as the suicide bomber is failing, a religious upheaval (Kala-Kato) is claiming 70 lives in Bauchi.

Let us stop projecting our failings on the World. Diplomacy is better at this time, we need to get our problems in the presidency sorted and offer to work hand in hand with the US.

The Senate's reaction is another sign of a country, slipping needlessly and pointlessly at war with itself.

The list shows that we are even more "failed" than Yemen. What a disgrace!

If the US had a white president, we wouldn't be on any terror list. Obama is black like us.
We need to get our act together instead of disgracefully pointing fingers at the US.

Abagworo:
@becomerich.i dont get why you are scared of rotational presidency.you faulted Benin being capital too.Could it be that you suffer from superiority complex.if this is your belief,i wonder how the edo,delta,bayelsa,ilajes and ijaws in ondo would accept joining your benin republic.

Join wetin! Only becomerich and his family will relocate to Cotonou.

Mekusxyz: An ideal workable option:

Republic of southern Nigeria with capital in Benin (reasonably central and devoid of domination by the two major ethnic groups in the south)

Regional capitals in Enugu, Ibadan and Calabar
Regional economic capitals in Lagos, Onitsha/Nnewi and Port Harcourt

Rotational presidency after 2 terms of 3 years. To be constitutionalized
Dead or incapacitated president to be replaced by person from same region (to be contitutionalized)
No states: three regions only-SW,SS and SE (or whetever)
Each region can divide their region as they deem fit. No federal allocation to sub-divisions, however.
50%-75% resource control; 50%-25% to the fed govt.
no quota system in employment and educational opportunities

What is the criteria for choosing regional and economic capitals? You have left a huge swathe from Yenegoa, Ughelli, through Warri and Benin without any capitals.
In my opinion, it would be best to have a capital and let business flow like water to find its level. Let each area be autonomous to an agreed degree, but never the unitary crap we have in Nigeria. The concept of autonomy will be useful to keep minorities interested in the union.

Rotational presidency should also be thrown out the window, all we need do is practice true federalism; let the centre be useful for policy standards, foreign engagements and the power to declare war. Everything should be done by merit.
The policy standards that the centre can deal with will need to be mutually agreeable, but they must not act to stunt or hold back any region.

[size=14pt]Nigeria and its hijackers[/size]
Written by Okey Ndibe
Monday, 04 January 2010 18:24

Okey Ndibe
Nigeria is in danger of entering an unprecedented stage as a hijacked entity. In fact, the polity is in the throes of what ought to be called its proper name, a coup-in-progress. A small but desperate cabal is surreptitiously consolidating its illegitimate power grab. Nigeria has been reduced to Umaru Yar’Adua’s private toy, a plaything reserved for the sole pleasure of the man and his cronies.

As I write, Mr. Yar’Adua (whose self-appellation as servant-leader has become the cruel joke it was designed to be) has been away from Nigeria for more than forty days. Apart from his wife, and a tiny circle of associates, few Nigerians can swear that they know for certain where Yar’Adua is. All we know for sure is that he’s not in Aso Rock, the official residence of the Nigerian president. Most Nigerians imagine, of course, that the man is in a hospital in Saudi Arabia – not because it’s proven fact, but it’s simply the official line. It’s impossible to vouch for any information that comes from a government that’s raised duplicity and deception to the level of art.

Forget, for a moment, that Yar’Adua’s “presidency” still reeks – despite the shameful verdict of the Supreme Court – of illegality. Worse, before our very eyes, a cabal hitched to Yar’Adua is usurping the sovereign will of Nigerians. That group is acting in the name of an enfeebled man who (at this writing) has absconded from his post.

Michael Aondoakaa, Yar’Adua’s Attorney General, may not be at the center of this usurpation, but he strikes me as chief coordinator of this orchestrated conquest of Nigeria. Yar’Adua’s wife, Turai – who’s perhaps the most ambitious “presidential” spouse in Nigeria’s history – appears to be the chief engineer.

It no longer startles Nigerians to hear it said that Aondoakaa is the worst attorney general in his country’s history. Nigeria has had some pretty unimpressive attorney generals, but Aondoakaa stands in a class all his own for mediocrity and crassness. Now he’s adding something even more dangerous and troubling to his resume: a facility for defending the degradation of the Nigerian constitution.

It is a constitutional anomaly when a man who presumes to be Nigeria’s president disappears indefinitely to a foreign address without handing over the instruments of governance. If an American president has to be sedated briefly for a medical procedure, he usually hands over to the vice president for as long as he is under sedation. The business of a nation-state demands adherence to such scrupulous standards. But this is not the case in Yar’Adua’s notion of statecraft. He and his handlers appear contemptuous of the idea that the nation’s interests are paramount. Here is a “president” who seeks, above all, to subordinate Nigeria’s interests to his desire for self-aggrandizement. That’s why he routinely bottles the “presidential” seal and steals away with it to any hospital he visits, usually for prolonged treatment.

If Yar’Adua doesn’t know better, it’s Aondoakaa’s job to tell him that it’s not permissible to proceed on open-ended medical trips without inviting his deputy to act in his absence. Yet, it’s either that Aondoakaa knows just as much as Yar’Adua does, which is little, or – scary as it is – knows even less than the man he’s supposed to be advising on legal and constitutional matters. That, or Aondoakaa’s personal interests are served by encouraging Yar’Adua to affect disdain for the Nigerian people and their constitution.

At any rate, when Nigerians began to bemoan the vacuum created by Yar’Adua’s absence (a vacuum, by the way, that is just as pronounced even when Yar’Adua is embedded in Abuja), Aondoakaa remained nonchalant. When he stirred at all, it was to tell Nigerians that Yar’Adua remained able to govern from any location in the world. That’s how little the attorney general thinks of governance; if it pleases Yar’Adua and his cohorts, he may govern from a hospital where, for all we know, he may be on life support.

Then, in a curious twist, the attorney general reportedly forwarded a letter to Goodluck Jonathan asking him to act as “president” under a rather shady, even illegal, arrangement. Several Nigerian newspapers reported that Jonathan suspected a nefarious plot, and refused to be entrapped.

It appeared that the concession that Jonathan rejected was necessitated by two looming crises. One had to do with the signing of N353.6 billion supplementary budget; the other with the swearing-in of Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu as chief justice of the Supreme Court.

Those who mistake Nigeria for Yar’Adua’s private possession soon discovered that they didn’t need to cede control to Jonathan, however briefly, in order to avert what appeared to be imminent constitutional perils.

In a stunning maneuver, the cabal that’s gradually perfecting its hijack of Nigeria caused it to be announced that Yar’Adua had “signed” the budget from his hospital bed. Pronto, one constitutional headache was erased by that signature stunt performed by a political magician who once threatened to thrash those doubting the vibrancy of his health in rounds of squash. In another act of dubiety, Yar’Adua’s resourceful cabal persuaded outgoing Chief Justice Legbo Kutigi to break with convention and swear in his successor.

Here, then, is how things stand. It’s looking good – very good, even if temporarily – for the cabal that’s bent on stealing and then ruining Nigeria. With the supplementary budget “signed,” they have secured the cash to operate as they wish – for the next two or three months. If anybody needs to be bought or intimidated, there’s the cash to do it. They have also established a precedent, namely, that future budgetary requests could be sent from Yar’Adua’s unknown hospital address and “signed” in the same manner, in perfect secrecy.

In effect, a physically and morally sickly Yar’Adua and his cartel have morphed into a foreign power, with Nigeria as their conquered outpost. No Nigerian need set eye on Yar’Adua any time soon; his inner circle has proven that the man can govern with the same effectiveness quotient as when the man was ensconced in Aso Rock. Since he has always been a disaster even when resident in Abuja, odds are that he would continue to rule with the same aptitude for ineptitude from his secret foreign fortress.

The new arrangement will permanently silence those (disgruntled) elements demanding that Yar’Adua pass the baton to Jonathan. Aondoakaa and his sponsors need never break a sweat from now on. Even if Yar’Adua becomes incapacitated, that fact would be conveniently withheld from Nigerians. He would continue to rule – that’s the operative word, rule – by the say-so of his trusted confidantes who best understand Yar’Adua’s seven-point agenda and who know what’s good for the subjugated colony called Nigeria.

Given the new set-up, it would be possible, if not easy, for Yar’Adua to blitz the competition and win a second term without making one appearance at a campaign rally. All that’s needed to secure him a victory is to exercise his right, under his notorious electoral “deform” plan, to appoint the new chairman and commissioners of the electoral commission. Then the coast would be clear for staging another electoral “moon-slide.”

[b]With the cloud hanging over Katsina-Alu’s investiture as chief justice, the Yar’Adua cabal may well have paved the way for the entrenchment of a spineless judiciary, one willing to rubber stamp any electoral verdicts, however disreputable in the eyes of domestic and international observers.

It’s safe to say that Nigerians have never had it quite as bleak as under the Yar’Adua dispensation. Until now, we’ve had a succession of rotten rulers, but never one surrounded by a coterie of such primitive mindset, animated by a determination to hold on to power even from a hospital’s intensive care unit.

It’s heartening that many Nigerians are speaking up, and taking legal action, against this imposition. Yet, one worries that Nigerians are, on the whole, still far from recognizing the nature of the challenge before them. We are, it seems to me, witnesses to a coup-in-progress. The choice before Nigerians is a simple one: decide whether to let a small bunch complete its hijack of a nation, or stand ready to resist the cabal intent on designing a peculiar hell for the rest of us.[/b]

http://saharareporters.com/okey-ndibe/4735-nigeria-and-its-hijackers.html

Akindolu:
have you heard of BLENDERS?

I think you mean "Blender".

Onlytruth:
I don't think it matters much how many states on the northern boarder under current configuration ultimately joins the southern Nigeria republic. In the US, only 13 states (then called colonies) formed the union: New York, New Hampshire, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Today, the US has 50 states.

I have always harped on the fact that Nigeria was not properly founded hence all these problems we face today. Let us first restrict the founding membership to the three southern geopolitical regions. When we complete the founding negotiation and have established a sustainable progressive constitution, any northern state that wants to join will only need to ratify the constitution on a take it or leave it basis. I believe that the key to the success of the whole project lies in the ingenuity of the constitution itself. We must not be in a hurry and it must be an exhaustive and sophisticated constitution worthy of a 21 century country.

Sounds like a brilliant way forward.

Onlytruth:
I think it is time to start a "tea party" movement in the south. I bet you we can have a country of our dreams in about 2 or 3 years time.

Amin!

I hope things don‘t go wrong, but it depends on how those who are managing the system are doing it. The truth of the matter is that the anger in the country today is that we have shown to the people the way the government has managed things. We have shown that what matters is that the armoured force takes care of things, not what your rights are. For a long time, the people of the region kept crying about these injustices and they were ignored, until their young men decided to pick up arms and suddenly they were listened to. What it more or less indicates is that the only way to get justice in this environment is to fight. So, if the agreement suffers some setback, you will see that the natural process is to go back to fighting. This is why those who manage the process need to be very careful.

Your destiny is in your hands.

[size=14pt]Nigeria is drifting towards anarchy[/size]
By MUDIAGA AFFE, Published: Tuesday, 5 Jan 2010
Prof. Pat Utomi

Presidential candidate of African Democratic Congress in the 2007 election, Prof. Pat Utomi, speaks on the need to address critical areas as the review of the 1999 Constitution continues. In this interview with MUDIAGA AFFE, he also talked about the drift resulting from President Umaru Yar‘Adua‘s absence. Excerpts:

The review of the 1999 Constitution continues in new year. How well do you think it will go?

The point I will like to make on constitution review is that since there had been debate over it, it is important to get it right this time. But more important than the words we chose to speak together, is the ability of the people to agree to come together in one spirit. I do know that there are fundamental questions about the Nigerian constitution and you will recall that a lot of people have gone to court challenging the legitimacy of the constitution. But I think what is more important is the consensus on how the country can make progress. I do not believe that the elite class have given enough thought to the country‘s historical mission or their generation‘s historical mission to the country. Because they have not given enough thought to it, and because they have always been scrambling for power or want to be around power, we now have a culture of those who would always want to take advantage of the system. Many of them scramble for power because of pecuniary or financial benefit, but there are others who do not belong to this class. It is not just the money, because you may not even get so much money, but they will just be satisfied with the title on their names, like governor, minister, senators, honourable, and others. That gives me a preponderance frame of the political elite, and that system cannot help to have that transforming role that generations play. In Nigeria, we have to bear in mind that the spirit is much more important than the physical form of crafted words. There should be the extra constitutional means for solving problems. It will help address some of the critical issues that drive engagements in Nigeria.

What are those critical issues?

There are real issues; one of it is the issue of residence. For instance, I was born in Lagos, but have to keep saying I am from Delta. I spent all my life in Lagos, pay taxes there, but when one fills a form, one will identify Delta as the state. Those are issues we should address. There are issues around state rights, resource control and the rest. One thing about this derivation that should also be addressed is that it is not just all about percentage allocation, but the structure. There should be the connection between what is collected, and what is on ground. We have moved to a pretender culture of sharing the cake that nobody is making efforts to really bake. Again if you follow the history of creation of local governments in the country, you will see the sadness of it all. At the time of the creation of 12 states in Nigeria, there were only twice as many local governments in what was in southern Nigeria, than they were in what was northern Nigeria. But by the time the military came in, with officers from the north creating local government from their towns, what we have today is nearly 800 local government areas, with about 500 from the North. It showed that it was such fundamentally problematic on how the process was unfolded, how did we come out with the kind of ratio we had in 1967 compared to what we have today? All these things about increasing the sharing ability, to me, I have contempt for them. Because the more you collect from sharing, the less progress you are likely to make.

Why is that so?

In economics, there is what we refer to as a lottery effect. If you win a lottery, there is the attitude for you to say ‘let me just squander this thing.’ Many people who have won lottery ended up being poor again. What I am saying is that the area that is getting more and more allocations, through the creation of local governments, can become the poorest areas in the country, people do not realise that. From my point of view, I do not care about that perception that they have denied some people; what they ought to have got and giving others more because I know, from my understanding of how the world runs on economic condition, that those kind of people who get more from this kind of manipulation, end up being poorer.

Do you think they can situate all these structures, processes and come out with the amended constitution by the end of this year?

Yes, they can. But, I do not think that they are in the mood to work. They did not do any work in the last three years, so, is it 2010 they will do work? However, if something comes out at all, we are going to have a wishy-washy stuff.

If we are likely to expect this situation, then what do you think will happen to the reform in the electoral system which Nigerians believe should be in place before the 2011 general election?

I think the matter is that many of the people who Nigerians are waiting on to make these reforms, seriously, they do not believe in it. They were not elected in the first place and they know that if there is an election, many of them will not be in those positions. So, why do you think they would be wonderful and charitable and want to correct these flaws? They may do it because they do not have the choice, but not a labour of law, and when it is not a labour of law we are going to have this kind of tentativeness.

So, you are optimistic that pressure from Nigerians will do the magic?

Yes, pressure from Nigerians will do it. I have already argued several times that the only thing that will save the country is the peoples‘ revolution. And when I say peoples‘ revolution, I do not want it misinterpreted. What I mean is that Nigerians should come out in the millions, say one million for instance, gather at the secretariat in Alausa, for instance, same population in front of the National Assembly, everyday for two weeks, like they did in Ukraine, Philippines and see if this country will not change for the better.

I am very willing and ready and I have spoken with a lot of civil society groups that the only way they can have a historical value, for people to recognise them, is to be able to bring out the Nigerian people, educate them about the Nigerian condition, their rights, and the fact that they are the change that they are craving for. If they come out to say, we can‘t take this nonsense anymore, continuously for a few weeks, the country will change.

It appears the inability of President Umaru Yar‘Adua to properly handover to his vice before proceeding to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment will cause more problems in the governance of the country. What do you think this country will be like if he does not come back on time?

It is a drift to anarchy. Right now Nigeria has escaped the boundaries of constitutional contempt, we are functioning in extra constitutional territory. The truth of the matter is that unless the elders quickly stand up, Nigeria is on its way through the dangerous drive to anarchy. People are being so selfish, so obsessed in their self interest, rather than looking at the country and allowing us to begin to drift to that aisle. I think they have a duty to their children to rethink.

People have said the outcome of the forthcoming Anambra State governorship election will determine the shape of 2011. Do you agree with that?

The Anambra election is already setting itself up. I do not think that any person with conscience and decent background would imagine that the PDP is sincere. The point is that the people of Anambra would not be seen as responsible if they give it to the PDP. How the election will go, with the man whose identity is in doubt as an umpire in the whole system, is another matter.

Two and half years after the last general election was conducted, we still have cases dotting election petition tribunals, what signal are they sending?

The fact that there are some election petitions cases still hanging, shows why the Nigerian people have lost interest in the process. Their apathy is so deep that you keep wondering what the final output will become. People do not want to be registered voters and they do not want to vote because they are not sure what the outcome is. We have celebrated the judiciary a couple of times because of some rulings, but if we are really honest, the whole thing wouldn‘t have got this far. How can you be having another round of elections when you are still having pending cases? Justice delayed, they say, is justice denied, and it is unfortunate that the Nigerian judiciary has denied justice to the Nigerian political actors and the public because they have prevented the people from benefiting from the wealth of experience of those they legitimately voted for.

There was renewed hostility in the Niger Delta recently and Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta blamed the Federal Government for the slow process of implementing certain agreement, do you see it continuing this year?

I hope things don‘t go wrong, but it depends on how those who are managing the system are doing it. The truth of the matter is that the anger in the country today is that we have shown to the people the way the government has managed things. We have shown that what matters is that the armoured force takes care of things, not what your rights are. For a long time, the people of the region kept crying about these injustices and they were ignored, until their young men decided to pick up arms and suddenly they were listened to. What it more or less indicates is that the only way to get justice in this environment is to fight. So, if the agreement suffers some setback, you will see that the natural process is to go back to fighting. This is why those who manage the process need to be very careful.

http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art2010010510595082

asha 80:
I do not think it will work.I mean how will you categorize a kogi yoruba?Southern nigeria or northern nigerian?

Where will the capital be?Certainly not in the yoruba or igbo dominated areas.

States that categorise themselves as Northern can only be described as Northern. Also, any place with an Emir will fall under the North.

The tricky areas I see are Benue, Plateau and Taraba; these areas are very unlikely to want to hang out with a Northern country. So, I think we should possibly be looking at Benue, Plateau and Taraba; perhaps, Southern Kaduna and the Abuja area.