₦airaland Forum

simpleseyi:
Jbenue, it's like this issue is affecting you both psychologically and mentally. Why are you ranting and using all sorts of uncivilized words na? Na who you dey fight? You are calling yorubas, hausas and ibos all sort of unprintable names. Na wah for you oooooooo. Wetin we do you na? This frustration is leading you to desperation and depression.

You from Benue and other like minds like Kwara, Niger, Kogi e.t.c are called North central, so why are you denying your origina na? Late Sunday Awoniyi from Kogi state was chairman of ACF, Bukola Saraki was chairman of northern governors' forum before becoming chairman of governors' forum. If  yoruba men like Sunday Awoniyi and Bukola Saraki say they are hausas, am i the one that will say that they are not? So, why are you denying your origin?

I beg go sit down joooo. Make i give you one gallon of burukutu (local alcoholic drink) and ten raps of igbo(marijuana) to cool your temper.

Greet boko haram for me for the last job well done - suicide bombing of police head quaters . Na you people still dey lead, you don pass south-south militant own. the first attempt was also by your brother Abdulmutalab.

Well said, simpleseyi, Igbo's don't need Idoma or Igala or watever u lot call yourselves. U are all aboki as far as i am concerned. Congrats for alleviating your madness to suicidal level a first recorded suicider in Nigeria and Black Africa History.

U can never stop disgracing us. U people are [b]cruel [/b]and really shouldn't be in the same country with us. First u commit pogram on your Igbo Brothers and Sisters, then u are left alone, only for u to follow them to their encave to commit genocide.

your new level is now sucide bombing. To say SHAME ON U WILL BE A COMPLIMENT!  

Abuja blast hits Nigeria police headquarters
Smoke rising from bombing near Nigeria's Abuja police headquarters, 16 June 2011 The blast was heard across Nigeria's capital city
Continue reading the main story
Nigeria - Troubled Giant

Mapping the divides
Anxiety over poll fallout
Jos: Neighbours are enemies
Maiduguri: City of fear

A powerful explosion has hit the Nigerian police headquarters in the capital, Abuja, officials say.

"The police force headquarters has been bombed, everywhere is bombed," deputy police spokesman Yemi Ajayi told AFP.

An emergency official said a suspected suicide bomber had died in the blast.

A Red Cross worker told Reuters other bodies were being evacuated from the scene, from where a large plume of smoke can been seen rising. No-one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

However, Islamist group Boko Haram has recently been targeting police and government officials.

The BBC's Jonah Fisher in Lagos says for the Nigerian authorities, the attack is an embarrassing strike at the very heart of their security establishment.

Officials say the explosion took place in the car park of the police headquarters.

"A suspected suicide bomber died in the incident. Many vehicles were destroyed," Yushau Shuaib, a spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency told the AFP news agency.

Residents say the explosion was heard across the city.
Inauguration bombing

"My windows were shaking and I heard the loud noise. I saw smoke coming up," Reuters news agency quotes one witness as telling a local television station.

An eyewitness told the BBC Hausa Service that he heard two explosions and saw more than 30 dead bodies and about 40 vehicles destroyed.

A bus commuter who saw the blast told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme: "All of a sudden there was this loud explosion. Everybody was scared and people began to run around."
Map

He said police and Red Cross officials had rushed to the scene, and had moved people away from the area.

"We are evacuating the dead bodies, it is too early for us to judge how many. Our priority is to treat the living casualties right now," a Red Cross spokesman told Reuters.

Most of Boko Haram's attacks have been in the northern city of Maiduguri.

But the group said it was behind a series of bombings that took place hours after President Goodluck Jonathan's inauguration last month.

On Tuesday, Nigeria's police chief promised to decisively deal with the group by sending more troops and equipment to the north, declaring they would be finished within a few months.

The group accuses Nigeria's government of being corrupted by Western ideas and wants to overthrow the state and impose Islamic law on the country.

It has killed dozens of people, mostly shot by gunmen riding motorbikes, in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.

Last year, officials blamed two explosions in Abuja during celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of Nigeria's independence on militants from the oil-rich Niger Delta around Port Harcourt.

Airport Road, Lagos: Still a nation’s shame
Tuesday, 14 June 2011 00:00 By Isaac Taiwo, David Ibemere, Kenechukwu Ezeonyejiaku and Oluwatosin Medessou News - Metro
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Lagosians still complain as the state of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Road worsens

FOR years, concerned well-meaning Nigerians had shouted themselves hoarse over the deplorable state of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport  (MMIA) Road, one of the nation’s major gateways.  Indeed, foreign diplomats have had cause to plead for mercy on this vital gateway, but to no avail.

They had drawn attention to the road where electric poles and street -lights never worked, the pot-holes and pools of water, the half-hearted attempts at rehabilitation and the virtual seizure of sections of the road by car dealers, furniture makers and commercial bus and motor-cycle operators.

The MMIA Road to Apapa and through Oshodi to the Lagos Island is almost in a permanent traffic snarl occasioned by its many potholes. The road is also narrow and has only two, though there is enough space to widen it to six lanes. The situation is compounded at night when long stretches of the road are in complete darkness.

When it rains, the hold-up is suffocating and hoodlums who hide in nearby bushes harass those whose vehicles break down.

When the relevant government agencies kept on making unfulfilled promises, people literally gave up.

It was as if there was no hope in sight towards making the MMIA Road anything similar to its counterparts anywhere else in the world.

But last week, the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN) paid an unscheduled visit to the road and as it were renewed attention to the many ills that have turned the gateway into the shame of a nation.

He was particularly upset by the encroachment on such an important road, of all manner of businesses including the ubiquitous car dealers and furniture makers.

But other Nigerians had for much longer raised alarm over the neglect the Federal Government has demonstrated towards the road.

“It is a shame that a nation that spends billions on things that do not matter can afford to neglect the road through which foreigners come in,” Funsho Ojelabi, a medical sales representative told The Guardian yesterday.

“Whether we like it or not, the state of the road is an indictment on the government and its agencies like the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) and Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN)”, he said.

A civil servant who works at Toyota, along Mile Two Express Road also complained about the condition of  the Airport Road at night.

“The carefree attitude of the government is illustrated in the absence of street lights on the road which has accounted for armed robbers having a field day along an International Airport road.

Indeed, hopes raised that FAAN and  Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) had decided to put the road into proper shape when last year what looked like serious rehabilitation work started.

“They began to plant ornamental plants on the road median closed down the illegal car and furniture sales points and began the much-awaited expansion of the road.

“But it did not last.

“The caterpillars and other road works equipment were soon withdrawn, the furniture and vehicles sales points soon re-opened for business the pot-holes reappeared and Murtala Muhammed Airport Road went back to square one”.

Indeed, the road may be in its worst state ever as the potholes on the edges have become wider and now head to flooding whenever it rains.

Again, the traffic jam for which the road has been known has become intractable particularly at night, and worse even if it rains.

“It is a big risk driving down from the Airport towards Oshodi in the night and when it is raining.

One has to be extra careful not to plunge into any of the pot-holes on the edge of the road.

“These holes have no business being there if such an important highway had been receiving proper attention each year” an airport taxi operator, Chris Anolu told The Guardian yesterday.

He said that he hoped that Fashola’s visit would herald a change for the better for the road.

“Let us hope the Lagos State government will intervene, and at least, get rid of those who have turned the road into one long market and also beautify it as it has done to many parts of the state,” he said.

Monday, June 13, 2011

President, Dangote Group and Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, Chairman, Globacom, Dr. Mike Adenuga and Mr. Tony Elumelu, Chairman, Heirs Holdings and 93 others, have appeared on the list of Top 100 Africans released by London-based New African magazine, in its June edition.



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Former CEO of the MTN Group, Mr. Phuthuma Nhleko, President, Africa Development Bank (AfDB), Mr. Donald Kaberuka and Egyptian billionaire, Naguib Sawris, also made the exclusive list from the business and finance category.

The listing, which was not in a particular order, featured “top influencers, opinion-shapers, agitators, groundbreakers and myth busters, who are shaping the face of Africa” and it was divided into categories such as Business and Finance, Poets, Media, Music, Science and Technology and Authors.

President Goodluck Jonathan, Mr. Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Dr. Nelson Mandela, are included in the list of political leaders that have influenced the course of history of the continent. Dangote, who made history in March this year, when he emerged the richest man in Africa in a ranking by Forbes magazine, is one of the continent’s foremost industrialists. Currently, Dangote Group, which he founded over three decades ago, has operations in about 14 African countries including Ghana, Senegal and South Africa.

Dangote Cement Plc, one of the four subsidiaries of Dangote Group that are listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), also emerged the biggest quoted company in West Africa in April in a report released by African Business magazine. Only last month, Dangote Cement was listed among Forbes Global 2000 Companies. This is the first time that a Nigerian company would appear on the prestigious list of top companies in the world.

Commenting on the rating, Mr. Baffour Ankomah, Editor of New African said: “Our continent has produced, and continues to produce some impressive individuals from all walks of life who are having a profound impact not only on Africa but on the international community.

“The names on the list I am sure will be discussed the length and breadth of the continent. And the list in itself is not necessarily an endorsement as such, but what it does show is the diversity of skills, talents and personalities amongst Northern and Sub-Saharan Africans in contemporary times, and who are driving change across the continent and beyond.”

News Monday, June 13, 2011

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

ABUJA-DETAILS emerged, yesterday, that it was a mobile policeman who was hitherto loyal to the embattled former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, that sold him into the hands of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFFC.



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Vanguard equally gathered that Bankole would have been in the United Kingdom by now had the police officer who was one of his trusted aide and confidant, refrained from divulging his secret plans to the anti-graft agency.

Despite the fact that the EFCC managed to infiltrate his residence and planted undercover agents to monitor the whereabouts of the former speaker, following his alleged refusal to honour several invitations, it was learnt, however, that it was the mobile police man that revealed his plans to escape from Abuja to the United Kingdom by 7:00 a.m on Monday, June 6.

The officer further told EFCC's undercover operatives that Bankole had already booked his flight ticket via British Airline, even as he promptly squealed, immediately he got wind that the former speaker later rescheduled his departure time till 10 am same day.

Undercover surveillance

One of the operatives of the agency, Mr. Oriogun Folajimi, who was placed on undercover surveillance at both the official residence of the former Speaker at the National Assembly Legislative quarters in Apo and a Guest House located at Asokoro, Abuja, where he was eventually arrested on Sunday, June 5, told Vanguard: "I quickly forwarded this information to the commission and other members of my team immediately joined me. We made several attempts to arrest him but he repeatedly evaded, seeking to escape."

Giving a graphic detail of how the former Speaker was arrested, Folajimi, through a 32-paragraphed counter-affidavit he deposed to before a Federal High Court in Abuja, averred that "on Wednesday June 1, we were detailed by the complainant to personally invite the accused/applicant to the commission's office for interview with my team.”

"In carrying out the instruction, we visited the official residence of the accused located at the National Assembly Legislative quarters in Apo, Abuja, on Thursday, June 2, to invite him, but all members of my team were prevented from seeing him by security men attached to him, on his instruction.

"Because all members of my team were not allowed to see the accused/ applicant, some members of my team left but I was, however, put in undercover surveillance to monitor his movement.

"On Friday June 3, I gathered that the accused has left his Apo official residence for a Guest House located at Asokoro, Abuja, in order to evade our invitation and I promptly informed other members of my team and together we visited the place to personally invite him to the commission's office for interview but were again on his instruction prevented from entering the premises by his security aides on the ground that he will only appear at the commission's office on Monday, June 6.

"Other members of my team left but I was again placed on undercover surveillance of the movement of the accused/ applicant. Around 8 am on Sunday, June 5, while carrying out my undercover assignments at the Guest House, I was informed by a mobile police officer attached to the applicant that the accused had concluded plans to escape from Abuja to United Kingdom by 7:00am on Monday, June 7, flight through Lagos by a British Airline. This flight was later rescheduled for 10 am.

"I quickly forwarded this information to the commission and other members of the team immediately joined me at the accused/applicants Guest House at Asokoro.

"We made several attempts to arrest him but he repeatedly evaded arrest continuously seeking to escape but we finally entered the premises at about 8:00pm the same Sunday and promptly arrested him for interview at our office.

"The accused upon interrogation, refused to respond to all questions put to him by me or any member of my team only seeking ways to escape. My team is equally investigating other allegations of financial impropriety against the accused/ applicant and I know that other charges will be filed against him.

"If granted bail, he may likely not present himself for trial and the accused/applicant, if free, will interfere with other investigations involving him.

"The other petitions against him bothers on fraudulent misappropriation of the sum of N10 billion and N2.4 billion respectively", he added.

Meanwhile, frantic efforts by counsel that represented the embattled former speaker in court on Friday, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, to prod the prosecuting counsel, Mr. Festus Keyamo to disclose the identity of the said security aide that allegedly betrayed his client (Bankole), met brick walls.

Keyamo insisted that section 160 of the Evidence Act and section 41 of the EFCC Act excluded investigative officers and Magistrates from disclosing the source of their information.

It would be recalled that Bankole had raised an alarm over plans by the EFCC to re-arrest him immediately he is released on bail.

In a letter that was forwarded to the Commission by his counsel, Chief Awomolo, Bankole said he heard from competent sources that the EFCC has perfected plans to re-arrest him immediately he is admitted to bail by the court.

Excerpts from the letter reads: "We were further informed that the Commission's operatives will re-arrest our client immediately he is admitted to bail on the ground that the Commission requires him in respect of investigations of other allegations made against him not related to the charges before the court.

"We wish to bring your notice that the Commission as a public authority should not misuse the statutory power of arrest and detention. Our client has no intention to run away from this country or avoid justice", it read. Bankole is answering to a 16-count criminal charge bothering on corruption.

EFCC had maintained that the former speaker connived with other persons at large, to inflate the costs of several contracts that was awarded by the House in 2008, to the tune of about N894 million, contrary to section 58(4) (a) of the Public Procurement Act No. 14 of 2007 and punishable under section 58(5) of the same Act.

Some of the alleged illicit deals that formed the conduit pipes through which the said monies were pilfered by the accused person, includes the purchase of 400 units of 40-inch Samsung (LNS. 341) television sets, 800 units of Desktop Computers (HP Compaq dc 5700), 100 units of Sharp Digital Copier 5316, 400 units of HP LaserJet 2600N, among others.

The EFCC equally alleged that he rigged the bid for the purchase of 3 units of Mercedes Benz S_600 cars, 2 units of Range Rover vehicles (without bullet proofs) and 400 units of DSTV systems, by refusing to follow all the procedures prescribed for public procurements in Sections 17 to 56 of the Public Procurement Act No.14 of 2007, leading to a loss of value to the national treasury and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 58(4)(e) of the Public Procurement Act, No.14 of 2007 and punishable under Section 58(5) of the same Act.

Too late to cry once the head is off, OBJ can leave.

Well, In my opinion giving up on zoning is more to do with talk than action. After the recent elections in Nigeria, offices were distributed based on zoning and as usual certain zones were left out because of political bureaucracy in the system. These groups as GEJ has said will be compensated, so zoning is alive and well. The North should not start with any noise because they dominate GEJ government based to zoning.    

Militancy in Nigeria is just getting started, with all the issues government of the day and past government would like to pretend don't exist. Sooner or later militancy will be a big business in Nigeria.

On June 12, 2011 · In News

By Henry Umoru

FOLLOWING the defeat of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, by the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, in the South West during the April elections, there are strong indications that some members of the party are rooting for the removal of former President Olusegun Obasanjo as the chairman, Board of Trustees, BoT, of the party.

It is alleged that his domineering posture in the South West politics, especially within the fold of the party where he disagreed with some party members led to the fall of the party with ACN capturing his own state, Ogun and Oyo, in addition to its holding sway in Lagos, Ekiti and Osun states with Labour Party, LP, having Ondo.

Also recall that the South West, last week, lost out in the political game of PDP zoning when the position of speakership the PDP zoned to the region was taken by Aminu Waziri Tambuwal from Sokoto State, North West, the same zone with Vice President Namadi Sambo who hails from Kaduna and the same zone with the acting national chairman of the PDP, Dr. Bello Haliru Mohammed, from Kebbi State.

Meanwhile, a former senatorial aspirant on the platform of PDP, Chief Adenigba Fadahunsi, yesterday, said that any plan to remove former President Olusegun Obasanjo as BoT chairman would fail.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja, Fadahunsi, who berated the moves by some party leaders in the Ssouth-West to instigate the removal of Obasanjo as the chairman of PDP BoT, vowed that committed members of PDP in the south-west zone would resist the move to save the PDP in the zone from being ridiculed.

On June 12, 2011 · In Headlines

* North no longer interested in zoning – Kaita

BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE

The North’s patience with zoning seems exhausted after  a prominent northern leader Alhaji Lawal Kaita,declared weekend, that they were no longer interested in the arrangement that sees Nigeria’s top six offices shared among the six geo-political zones.

Kaita spoke on the controversial zoning arrangement, just as the leadership of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, navigate its way out of the cul-de-sac the power sharing arrangement has run into following the emergence of the Aminu Tambuwal as speaker of the House of Representatives.

The party had zoned the House of Representatives speaker to the South-West geo-political zone, which could only return six Reps at the 2011 polls, an alibi for most Reps and some stakeholders to oppose the zoning formula, which translated into the election of Tambuwal (from North-West) as speaker and Rep Emeka Ihedioha (South-East) as deputy speaker.

Consequently, the PDP zoning formula is now distorted as the South-West has no post in the power equation except chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees held by former President Olusegun Obasanjo. The North-East is worse off without any post.

Currently, the South-South has the President; North-West has Vice President, Speaker of the House of Representatives and acting national chairman of the PDP; North-Central has Senate President and Chief Justice of the Federation; and South-East has Deputy Senate President, Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Notable PDP top shots, who shared their perspective apart from Kaita,inlude Chief Guy Ikokwu and Chief Ebenezer Babatope. Others are third Republic Governor of Anambra State, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife; former National Vice Chairman of the PDP (South-East), Chief Nze Ozichukwu; veteran presidential candidate, Mrs Sarah Jubril; former national chairmanship candidate of the party, Chief Sonny Iroche; and chieftain of the PDP in the South-West, Chief Oladipo Jimilehin.
Let every zone find its way – Kaita

Speaking on the issue, Kaita said the country would not have been on the cliff-hanger if President Goodluck Jonathan did not go against the PDP’s zoning arrangement by running for the presidency.

Stating that founders of the PDP advocated for zoning to cater for the interests of all parts of the country, he queried: “Without zoning, who would imagine that somebody from Bayelsa State will rule this country?”

The Second Republic politician said what jettisoning of zoning portended for the country was palpable with what had panned out so far: North-West has Vice President and Speaker of the House of Representatives; South-West and North-East have nothing.

“We advocated zoning but Obasanjo, President Jonathan and others because of their interests jettisoned zoning. Now they want zoning. They can’t eat their cake and have it. It is a shame for the party, PDP,” he said.

Asked the way out, Kaita said the solution lied in stakeholders sitting down to re-think but for now, he said “We (North) are not interested in zoning, let every zone find its way.”

Equity, meritocracy, the way out – Iroche

To Sonny Iroche, recent events in the polity indicated the death of zoning. He called for entrenchment of equity and meritocracy. For a start, he wants the PDP to throw open the race for its national chairmanship, to get the best hands for the job of repositioning the party.

His words: “The recent development in our polity, whereby the will of the people and not a few was victorious, played out in the House of Representatives in electing a Speaker for the House in defiance of zoning. The emergence of Hon Tambuwal has put the final nail in the coffin of zoning. I am an advocate of equity, good governance and for the emergence of the available best candidate for any political or economic office in the land, as long as the person is a Nigerian in good standing.

“It is not equitable to have the office of the speaker zoned to a political region with only five members in the House. This is against a zone like the South-East, which overwhelmingly voted for the Peoples Democratic Party. It is gratifying that the South-East produced the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, but is this enough political compensation for the region that voted massively for the PDP? If you look at the composition of government today, you will see an inequitable distribution of office, Vice President, Senate President and Speaker all from the old Northern bloc. And from current PDP zoning structure, if allowed to stay, the North -West zone is to produce the National Chairman of the party, this will be most unfair and inequitable to the rest of Nigeria.

“As an advocate of non-zoning, but equity and merit, I am therefore suggesting that the context for the next National Chairman of PDP should be thrown open to all party members, irrespective of their zone of origin. PDP must as a matter of urgency hold its national convention to elect new officers in the current dispensation, in which all interested members are allowed to contest any office of their choice.

With the current Jonathan dispensation, we have the golden opportunity to do away with parochial zoning, but to entrench a system of putting our best foot forward- our First Eleven and not to place a premium on mediocrity at the expense of meritocracy in what we call zoning without equity. Only the best should be allowed to emerge, if we are to build a great nation.”

PDP erred in zoning speaker to South-West – Ikokwu

Second Republic Chairman of  the defunct Nigerian Peoples Party (NPP) in Anambra State and one of the founders of PDP, Chief Guy Ikokwu, attributed the brewing controversy to the party’s wrong interpretation of political currents in the country by zoning the speakership to the South-West zone.

He said: “The election of the Speaker of the House of Representatives is a reflection of the almost total loss of confidence by the electorate of the South-West zone and ability of the PDP to effectively represent the zone in the National Assembly. The performance of South-West Representatives at the National Assembly with particular reference to the speakership, which was zoned to the South-West does not show that the zone has risen up to the responsibility of their assignment. The first speaker, Patricia Etteh, was disgraced out of office because of contract scandal in the House and in quick procession, the Integrity Group in the House replaced her with Dimeji Bankole, whose tenure was characterised by worse scandals leading to his arrest and arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

“With only five Reps in the House, the PDP national headquarters was clearly insensitive to the feeling of the people of the South-West and National Assembly. If the PDP headquarters had read the political pendulum correctly, they would not have tried foisting a speaker on the South-West and National Assembly, a situation, which does not give them any choice. Sokoto State returned a virtual 100 per cent for PDP. Same for Imo State. So, it is not surprising that the party loyalists in the House and in the two states refused to be bullied into an undemocratic and unrepresentative choice of speakership.

“The ACN, which has almost 100 per cent going by South-West representation refused the offer of speakership. The position of the House showed that there is clear difference between Parliamentary democracy and Presidential democracy. The Party whip is stronger in a parliamentary democracy than in a presidential democracy. A lack of confidence in a parliamentary democracy topples the government and leads to a general election before the end of tenure. But it is not so in the case of Presidential democracy. This is the reason for persistent calls for a return to a parliamentary democracy because the presidential system, which we have now, was foisted on this country by the military regimes of the past.

“Party discipline and democracy would be better enhanced by our return to parliamentary system. It is not surprising that under our present presidential system, candidates who lose primaries in their parties automatically decamp to other parties to contest the same election without let or hindrance and if they succeed in the elections under a different party banner, they automatically revert to their former party without qualms or remorse. Party discipline and democracy would be strengthened when we reject the system of carpet-crossing. Those who want to change their party affiliation should go back to the electorate to seek a new mandate instead of the political harlotry reminiscent of the present system, which is highly undemocratic.”

PDP ‘ll resolve the logjam – Babatope, Jimilehin, Sarah Jubril

Babatope, Jimilehin and Sarah Jubril, were optimistic the PDP would overcome the challenge posed by zoning.

Babatope said the zoning controversy did not portend any problem for the PDP or the country, insisting that the party’s zoning policy was alive. “What happened at the House of Representatives is that a gentleman, Tambuwal went against the decision of the party, he kicked against party supremacy and discipline. And the party has said it does not condone what the boy has done. The National Working Committee and the presidency will meet and decide what posts to give to the South-West, to assuage the zone.”

Babatope has a soul mate in Jimilehin, who countered that the PDP did not err in zoning the speakership to the South-West.

Said Jimilehin: “The zoning formula is another way of complying with the Federal Character Principle. That is what PDP has done by zoning the Speakership to the South-West. What happened last Monday was against the Federal Character Principle. I expected that Akande-Adeola would have been unanimously elected.

“Many reasons have been adduced for voting Tambuwal. One is they did because PDP did not win in the South-West. Another reason is, it is a ploy by opposition to weaken PDP and paint it in bad light that PDP is unable to control its members. But we will resolve the matter. President Jonathan is the leader of our party. The BOT chairman is from the South-West. I am sure they would put heads together and correct the imbalance.”

Relatedly, Jubril said the challenge was not “too much of a turmoil,” adding that the leadership of the party and National Assembly had met and was moving towards resolving it.

Zoning has no benefits – Ezeife

To Ezeife, who saw the issue as a crisis, noted that it was being managed and would be resolved.

The former governor, who regretted that his South-East zone had been dragged into the mire, said contrary to speculations, zoning had no benefits.

“The matter is simply a crisis. But it is being managed. Contrary to some speculations, it has no benefits. It also bothers me that South-East was somehow brought into it. These transient problems will rear their heads and may appear to threaten long term project but we can handle them,” he said.

We must not confuse zoning with rotation – Ozichukwu

On his part, Ozichukwu said many people were confusing zoning and power rotation, which he said meant different things in the PDP. “Zoning and rotation mean different things in PDP lexicon and cannot be used interchangeably. Rotation is moving from one zone to another. Zoning is when the President, Governor, Chairman and their deputies have emerged, you share other offices to reflect equity.”

He said the prevailing problems, which he said were normal, would be surmounted by the party. “PDP is a fast growing organisation beset by teem fantasies, peer jealousy and sibling rivalry. These are birth pains. Hon. Tambuwal’s challenge is one of its symptoms. It is just a consequence. PDP will get over them. These things will happen for sometime. PDP is a growing party. I think it will be resolved before 2015. I think good conscience will prevail. We are almost into full blown democracy. Shocks here and there will strengthen the party. PDP has shown some restraints. We are going through a weeding process. Various legislatures are coming of age. It is the most vulnerable and youngest of the three arms of government. The Judiciary and Executive have matured more than the legislature. I hope things will turn out well,” he said.

Asked if President Jonathan’s emergence had not killed zoning, Ozichukwu said to the contrary because “the Jonathan thing is a one off thing, an accident. It was not premeditated. It was an act of God. You don’t query God. His emergence was an exigency through the Doctrine of Necessity. Nobody is saying what happened is fine. But given the circumstances of what happened, Jonathan had to emerge. We thank the North for sacrificing and allowing one Nigeria to continue. Nobody knew President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was going to die. We pray such things don’t happen again. It was an act of God.”

Olisa Agbakoba

The hullabaloo about abolishing zoning is completely misconceived. The call to abolish zoning seriously underestimates and ignores the complex political character of Nigeria. Nigeria is not a federation by accident. It is a Federation because it is composed of diverse peoples from different ethnic, religious and linguistic backgrounds. Nigeria is a divided society. Federalism is the only known political system that accommodates divisions and diversity. This is why federalism is increasingly important in the world. Twenty eight countries in the world constituting, 40 per cent of the world's people, have adopted the federal system.



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Unity is a key challenge in many federations. It is a key challenge in Nigeria with major divisions along class, linguistic, religious and ethnic lines. In the case of Nigeria, a sense of belonging or inclusion is vital to the country's survival. This is why the Constitution prescribes the Federal Character principle at Section 14. Federal Character is about inclusion of the six geopolitical zones in the allocation of political and public sector appointments including the office of President. Strikingly, Federal Character has, however, assumed a negative connotation in recent times, as there is a strong perception that people gain offices at the sacrifice of merit. Zoning, it must be stressed, is the political name for the constitutional principle of federal character.

The call to abolish zoning, therefore, is misconceived. All public institutions in Nigeria are zoned to include the six zones. This is why Subsection (3) of Section 14 of the Constitution stipulates that, "The composition of the government of the federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the Federal Character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity and all to command national loyalty thereby ensuring that there is no pre-dominant of persons from few states or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that government or any of its agencies."

This shows clearly that zoning is a constitutional principle. It is important to ask why the drafters of the Constitution prescribed zoning or its constitutional name - Federal Character. The reason is quite simple. There are, broadly speaking, two types of federations: Homogeneous federations, where citizens have a strong sense of national unity, and diverse or divided federations. In homogeneous federations, unity is not a major issue and the social forces allow a strong central government. The second is the diverse or divided federation like Nigeria.

Here, citizens identify with very distinct groups; sometimes members of a particular group may see their identity as incompatible with the national identity, thus creating tension around the issue of national unity. Nigeria is a perfect illustration of a diverse or divided federation.

The Federal Character principle or zoning or inclusion is designed to manage this. So Nigeria must embrace its diversity by promoting a positive political nationality. This is the reason for Section 14 of the Constitution. We must build a constructive approach to diversity that responds to the demands of a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-linguistic society. India is a very good example of how to manage diversity. Nigeria, Malaysia and Ethiopia are still grappling with this difficult issue. Thus, it will not be out of place to stress that Nigeria's survival depends on a full understanding of Section 14 of the Constitution.

Now, to the point about the misconception about zoning and power rotation. The debate about zoning the presidency either to the South-South or the North within the Peoples Democratic Party is not the concept of zoning referred to in the Constitution. The PDP is not one of the entities described in the context of the federal character principle contained in Section 14 of the Constitution. Zoning in the PDP is about the notion of power rotation between the North and the South, according to the rules of the party. The PDP abolishing zoning or power rotation should have no impact on the Federal Character principle laid out in the Constitution.

It is very important to keep this in mind as it would appear that if the PDP abolishes power rotation, it necessarily means that the Constitutional prescription of zoning is also affected. What the PDP decides to make of their principle of power rotation between north and south is an internal affair of the party. It will not affect the constitutional prescription of inclusion and participation in the affairs of government by Nigerians from all the zones as this has helped to keep the country together.

But it is also suggested that non public entities should take a bearing from the inclusion policy laid out in our Constitution. The Nigerian Bar Association is not a public institution but developed a working model to rotate the office of the President in an inclusive process. I think the challenge for the PDP is to understand that there is a world of difference between the concept of power rotation and the rules of rotation. It is possible to retain power rotation but change the rules according to circumstances.

We need therefore to clarify the debate so that we do not throw the baby out simply because the bath water is dirty.

Agbakoba SAN, a maritime lawyer based in Lagos, can be reached on charles@agbakoba-associates.com.

(AFP) – 2 hours ago

YENAGOA, Nigeria — Unknown gunmen on Saturday shot dead a former militant leader and his driver on the outskirts of Yenagoa, capital of Nigeria's oil-rich Bayelsa State, the state police boss said.

"I can confirm that Ebi Albert and his driver were shot dead today in their car by the gunmen who we think were trailing him from Port Harcourt," Aliyu Musa told AFP on telephone.

The oil city Port Harcourt is about 100 kilometres (60 miles) from Yenagoa.

The policeman in their company in the car escaped with bullet wounds, he said.

The motive for the killing is still unknown.

"No arrests have been made yet. We are investigating the killing and why he was travelling in company of a policeman," added Musa.

Albert is believed to be among the first set of ex-militants who embraced the federal government's unconditional amnesty deal in 2009 under which more than 20,000 former oil "rebels" gave up arms in exchange for money, training and reintegration.

Militant activity in the region, which included kidnappings of mostly foreign oil workers and attacks on oil installations, lowered the country's oil production from 2.6 million barrels a day to about one million at the peak of the unrest.

The amnesty deal led to a sharp decline in attacks, but some observers fear a return of unrest if the programme is not followed through.

Nigeria is among the world's largest oil producers, but its government has been unable to provide basic services to millions living in dire poverty.

Copyright © 2011 AFP. All rights reserved. More »
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[quote author=tpia@ link=topic=687885.msg8498642#msg8498642 date=1307786387]so it's not obvious to you those kids are from different parents? [/quote]look i have heard far more stranger things than this in my life time. Strange and abnormal things happen in this world. The news paper don't make it any easy when they fail to do thier work properly.

Yes oooooo. Twins are not always identical.

mydreamz:
yea they detected and the baby started coming monthly kind of, which means she was still conceiving even while pregnant. Scientifically abnormal.
Except if her body system and hormones are not functioning properly

I should think so, if it took her 11 years to have babies after marriage then body system and hormones are not functioning normal. This story is possible because people are known to have eight babies and carry pregnancy for over a year and still have healthy babies. Besides a simple DNA test would have been done to confirm the babies were hers and the hospital investigated with statement from Doctors before this story went public.

Flyboy Zee:
This is really hard to believe, Even if Our healthcare system is wack, There is One thing I know for sure, Nigerian Doctors are very smart and would have detected whatever is left in the womb after delivery of the first baby. @Seun, am sure U don't believe this yourself.

“immediately after putting to bed the first baby, the doctor told me that there was another baby in my womb.”

Please let us try to read the story before commenting.