₦airaland Forum

Traveler in chief

Article written by human rights activist, Inibehe Effiong.
Read below...
For the benefit of those that are still oblivious of
the continued incarceration of Mr. Odudu Ukpanah,
male, 31 (pictured above), an indigene of Ukanafun
Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State and a
B.Sc holder in Geophysics from the University of
Calabar and an M.Sc holder in Oil and Gas
Management from Coventry University, United
Kingdom, on the orders of the Governor of Akwa
Ibom State, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio JP?, I will
give a brief insight into the case.
Odudu Ukpanah is the only son of the late Engr.
Albert Jimmy Ukpanah that was assassinated on
March 12, 2014 in his residence. The senior
Ukpanah was an outspoken chieftain of the ruling
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom
State.
Notably, aside being a thorn in the flesh of some
prominent politicians and political office holders in his
area, the late Albert Ukpanah was a vociferous opponent
of the 2015 senatorial ambition of Chief Godswill Obot
Akpabio, the Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State. He
equally opposed the attempt by the governor to impose a
successor on the state. He supported the 2015
gubernatorial ambition of the erstwhile deputy governor of
the state, Mr. Nsima Ekere instead of the governor's
choice, Udom Emmanuel.
Like several other persons in his area that subscribe to
the PDP zoning policy, he believed that it was the turn of
his area (Abak Federal Constituency) to produce the next
senator to represent the Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District of
Akwa Ibom State in the Senate come 2015. He saw
Akpabio's Senate bid as a grave injustice to his people.
This informed his active involvement in the Abak District
Elders Forum (an organization that was formed to fight for
the political and economic rights of the people of the old
Abak in the state) where he served as the secretary.
On Wednesday March 12, 2014, he was brutally murdered
by dare-devil assassins at his Abak residence at about
9:40pm.
From the cogent, uncontradicted and plausible account
given by the immediate family of the slain politician, the
deceased asked his son, Odudu, who was the only person
with him at the material time to bring three (3) plastic
chairs and a stool for himself and yet to be identified
visitors that he was expecting.
After bringing out the chairs as directed, Odudu went
inside the living room and continued watching the
European Champions League between Manchester City
and Barcelona which he was enjoying prior to the arrival
of the visitors. His father later came into the living room
and took drinks (1 Remy martins and 1 can stout), which
he ostensibly offered his guests. On sensing that the
expected meeting had lasted for too long, Odudu checked
on his father only to meet him lying lifeless in the pool of
his blood.
An investigation into the incident was taken over by the
State Police Command which resulted in the production
of a Police Investigation Report. I have the report with
me. For clarity and benefit of doubt, the opinion/
recommendation part of the Police Investigation Report
dated 25th March, 2014 and signed by the IPO, Sgt. Ibediro
Nnamdi, is reproduced verbatim as follows:
"In view of the above findings, the following suggestions
are proffered. Since investigation into the case is still on,
it is wise to nose around for more information that may
reveal the REAL KILLERS of Hon. (Engr.), Albert Ukpanah,
AS THE KILLING MIGHT BE POLITICALLY MOTIVATED
ASSASSINS.
Above report is for your consideration and further
directive, please" (emphasis mine).
I need to also mention here that in furtherance of
investigation into this case, the police had seized the
GSM phone of the late Albert Ukpanah with an undertaking
that same would be forwarded to the State Security
Service (SSS) for forensic analysis since the deceased is
believed to had communicated on phone with his yet to
be identified guests before their arrival.
Till date, nothing has been heard of the result of the said
forensic analysis by the SSS. Nigerians should ask the
Akwa Ibom State Government, the SSS and the police of
the outcome of the forensic analysis. A check with
service providers would have revealed the call logs of the
deceased shortly before he was murdered.
Instead of identifying the 'REAL KILLERS' of Albert
Ukpanah as recommended by the IPO, the Akwa Ibom
State Government led by Gov. Godswill Akpabio who had
vowed during the burial of the slain politician that he
would "fished out" the "killers" of his friend? went on a
wild goose chase and had his only son, Odudu Ukpanah
framed-up, arrested and charged to court on a trump-up
charge of killing his own father.
Odudu Ukpanah has been in custody since 27th May,
2014. He is presently suffering from an illment which
developed while he was in the United Kingdom for his
masters degree. The condition is such that the prison
authorities had to write to the relevant quarters since
they lack the requisite facilities to cater for his illment.
The hospital that he was rushed to when he collapsed in
the UK had to send a report down here. He also collapsed
in the Ikot Ekpene Medium Prison where he is being held.
His mother and wife of the slain politician is critically
down with cancer, pakinson and stroke.
The three sisters of Odudu, including a lawyer, are close
to a state of bankruptcy owing to the high cost of their
mother's medical care and litigation. Initially, they were so
scared of telling the poor widow that her only son is being
accused of killing her husband. They kept giving her one
excuse or the other over the long absence of her only son
until they exhausted excuses. Ever since the news of her
only son's incarceration was broken to her, her condition
has worsen. Interestingly, the three sisters of Odudu are
currently the most vociferous champions of his
innocence. So why is Gov. Akpabio crying more than the
bereaved? Please why?
I have made spirited efforts to reach out to many of our
human rights crusaders that I have contacts and
relationship with on the need for the Nigerian human
rights community and civil society to rise to the defence
and rescue of Odudu Ukpanah before he dies (God forbid)
in custody but it is so heart breaking that most of our
comrades seems too busy to appreciate the historical
significance and the urgency of this case.
This was the same unfortunate experience that I had
when I took up the #FreeUniuyo44 Campaign, few of us
were left to shout and fight alone. In that case, students
of the University of Uyo had embarked on a very peaceful
protest on June 12, 2013 to ventilate their opposition to
the oppressive policies of the institution's management.
Instead of attending to the grievances of the students, the
management invited anti-riot police men to quell the
peaceful protest. The police fired live bullets which
resulted in the death of a student. This escalated the
protest into burning of the school's properties.
During his visit to the institution, the same Gov. Akpabio
ordered that those who damaged the properties be "fished
out" by the police. The police saw that order as a blank
cheque to swoop on innocent students who were in the off
campus male hostel of the school and on the road. They
arrested Innocent 44 students. The students were
detained for months (some spent up to a year) in prison
over crimes they knew nothing about.
One of them ran mad while the affected parents sold off
all they had to pay lawyers. I led a protests in Uyo and
also in Calabar in partnership with the Joint Action Front
(JAF) demanding that those students be released but the
needed solidarity never came from our seniors in the
struggle. In the end, it took the court to free those
students from captivity.
Now again, our activists are repeating the terrible mistake
of the past, they are closing their eyes to the Odudu
Ukpanah's detention. This case has made me heart
broken. It is as if real, non profit, populist and non
selective activism died with the Late Chief Gani
Fawehinmi, SAN SAM. Lately, I have been wondering if our
hero, Gani, went to the grave with the conscience of the
Nigeria. I shed tears when the news of Gani Fawehinmi 's
death was broken because I foresaw the vacuum that his
death will create in the world of real activism.
The case of Odudu Ukpanah and the ongoing cruel silence
of our activists has made me to cry once again for the
death of 'The Peoples Lawyer'. If Gani Fawehinmi did not
die, I am sure he would have rose to the occasion and
saved Odudu from the clutches of a heartless governor. I
urge all those who profess to be disciples and associates
of Gani to use Odudu’s case to honour his memory. Let
them prove me wrong that true activism did not die with
Gani Fawehinmi.
The time to act is now.
Inibehe Effiong is a Human Rights Activist based in
Lagos, Nigeria and the Convener of the Coalition of
Human Rights Defenders ( COHRD ).

it turns out anti corruption crusader was in fact serving in the administration with the most corruption crusade

AN ARTICLE BY FEMI FANI KAYODE
A WORD FOR OF ADVICE FOR YEMI OSIBANJO

I am glad that the APC eventually took my advice
and saw the wisdom in not fielding a muslim/
muslim ticket for the 2015 Presidential election
even though I hear that, right up till the last minute,
they almost did.
I congratulate my friend and brother Professor Yemi
Osinbajo on his nomination as the Vice Presidential
candidate of the APC and running mate to Gen.
Muhammadu Buhari.
I have known Yemi for a number of years and I must say
that he is not only a very pleasant and civilised person
with a warm and gentle disposition but he is also a
cerebal lawyer with a brilliant mind. I have immense
respect for him.
Yet sadly ever since I heard about his nomination and
announcement as Buhari's running mate I have felt
nothing but sheer pity for him and a deep sense of
pathos. My counsel and words for him are as follows:
Woe unto the children of light that secretly delight in
darkness and that seek to thwart the counsel of God for
their nation by joining hands with the sons of Boko and
the daughters of Haram.
The bible says ''what fellowship is there between light and
darkness?'' It says ''what does God have to do with
Belial?'' It says ''what profiteth a man to gain the world
and lose his soul?''.
A respected Pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of
God, a devout and committed Christian and an
intellectually-sound, well-bred and well educated
Professor of Law accepts to be running mate to a closet
fundamentalist, a bloodthirsty, cruel and murderous
military dictator and a die-hard believer in the philosophy
of ''born to rule''? This is serious.
A gifted servant of God who is a favored spiritual son of
Rev. Enoch Adeboye, the General Overseer of the
Redeemed Christian Church Of God has jumped into bed
with one of the most notorious troublers of the faith and
one of the most consistent enemies of democracy and
Nigeria? This is very sad.
Rev. Enoch Adeboye is undoubtedly one of God's greatest
and most respected generals on the planet and one of the
Church's most humble and best-loved precious gems, yet
one of his spiritual sons has surely let him, and indeed
the Kingdom of God, down by choosing to play ''man
Friday'' and second fiddle to an individual that represents
everything that is troubling, unsettling and repugnant to
the modern world and to the 21st century? What a
tragedy.
A learned Professor of Law and a senior member of the
Nigerian bar who is the leading authority on the law of
evidence and who has written numerous books on that
topic chooses to play number two to a man that failed all
his exams at military college and that never went to a
decent school or to any university? Jumping
Jehoshaphat.
It is only in Nigeria that this sort of thing can happen.
Poor Yemi. Look at what the Haramites have done to him
and look at what they have reduced him to. Is there
anything that these creatures from hell will not do? Is
there anyone that they will not use and is there any norm
that they will not defile, pervert, debase, violate and
corrupt in their ignoble quest for power and as a
consequence of their insatiable lusts and manifest greed?
The truth is that each and everyone one of us, including
my friend Yemi, will ultimately have to answer to God for
the choices that we make and we must live with the
consequences of those choices. It is no wonder that the
Redeemed Christian Church of God has disassociated
itself from a false claim that the Church and, by
implication, Rev. Adegboye himself, was supporting the
Buhari/Osinbajo ticket. Thankfully they have come out to
say clearly and categorically that this is not so. One can
always trust Adegboye to do and say the right thing
because he is a man that is truly ''after God's heart''.
Yet the denial of an endorsement and tacit support from
his Church is just the first of many shockers and
unwelcome surprises that Yemi will be served with in the
next few weeks. He will get shock after shock and
surprise after surprise until the battle is over and
circumstances compel him to go back to his very
lucrative legal practice.
Yet before he does that he should learn a thing or two
from one of his esteemed colleagues and yet another
Pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, the
courageous Pastor Bosun Emmanuel. Bosun said the
following words in his famous sermon titled 'The Nigerian
Church' which went viral just a few months ago.
He said, ''woe be unto any believer who joins hands with
the enemies of God in an attempt to bury the Church and
destroy the gospel''. This was a timely admonition and
these are strong and wise words from a true servant of
God who is under no illusion about what is going on in the
politics of Nigeria and who is brave enough to say it as it
is.
Yet whether we choose to heed Bosun's words or not I
am absolutely certain of one thing: those that have
aligned with the servants of satan and the children of
darkness and that seek to thwart God's counsel for our
nation shall not prevail.
Boko Haram abducted 185 women in Borno state on
December 18th and they killed no less than 52 innocent
people. Despite that some people are still supporting
Buhari and his army of desperate Haramites? What a
people, what a country.
Those that say that Buhari has changed simply because
he chose a Pastor as his running mate are ignorant. Did
he not have a Pastor as his running mate in his last
outing in 2011? Did he not still say that it was his
intention to ''spread sharia throughout the country'' and
that ''an attack on Boko Haram is an attack on the north''?
Did he not oppose a state of emergency in the north
eastern states and say that it was unfair for the military
to kill Boko Haram members? Did he not say that instead
of killing them they should forgive them, pamper them and
treat them in the same way that the Niger Delta militants
were treated?
Did the spokesman of his party Alhaji Lai Mohammed not
say that the proscription of Boko Haram by the Federal
Government was ‘’unjust’’ and ‘’unconstitutional’’? How
does the fact that Buhari has opted for a Christian running
mate change any of these things?
In any case he only opted for a Christian running mate
because he was compelled to do so as a consequence of
the hue and cry that the prospect of a muslim/muslim
ticket had already started to generate. Are those that cite
the fact that he has a Christian running mate as evidence
of his new-found love for Christians aware of the fact that
during the American civil war a small, ignorant, misguided
and deluded group of negro slaves actually fought on the
side of the southern confederate forces in an attempt to
keep slavery in place?
Did that suggest that the leaders of the southern
confederate ‘’secession’’ states suddenly changed their
minds and fell in love with the blacks that they had
enslaved and treated like animals? Is Buhari's claim of
not being partial to his own hausa-fulani tribe not a little
far-fetched? Did he not lead a northern delegation to
Alhaji Lam Adesina, the late Governor of Oyo state, just a
few years ago when some Fulani herdsmen were
slaughtering Yoruba farmers on their own land and ask
him ‘’why are YOUR people killing MY people?’’ Apparently
Buhari believed that the aggressors that had invaded the
land and farms of others and that killed all the occupants
had a right to do so simply because they were fulani. Yet
some people still claim that the man is not a tribalist.
Ignorance and lack of knowledge is a terrible affliction but
in this context it is not only terrible but also very
dangerous. Buhari’s choice of a Christian Pastor as his
running mate means nothing and changes nothing about
him or his entrenched views and ancient mindset.
It rather provides clear evidence of his sheer desperation
to win power at all costs and it is a reflection of his
obvious and deep-seated deceit. Let the truth be told
even though the heavens may fall: Christian Vice
President or no Christian Vice President, Buhari's heart
remains as dark as ever.
We shall meet him in the field: let God's will be done.

If you have not noticed it already, a new
season has dawned in Nigerian politics.
That season is one of carpet-crossing
back to the PDP. About a year ago, there
was a rash of defections from the PDP
to the APC. Nearly 40 legislators left the
ruling party for the opposition. Five PDP
governors also followed suit. But now
the movement is a one-way trajectory in
the opposite direction. APCmembers are
having buyers’ remorse and are making
their way back as prodigal sons to the
PDP.
There are two basic reasons behind this.
One year ago, the APC was the new
party on the block. A simplistic political
calculus led some to the hasty conclusion
we finally have the party that would
dislodge the PDP after 15 years of one-
party rule in Nigeria. So some
people quickly joined the APC
bandwagon. But the more cynical reason
was that the defections were designed
to discourage Goodluck Jonathan
from seeking re-election as president.
The vain hope and expectation was that
Jonathan would see the colossus ranged
against him and throw in the towel.
New realpolitik
One year is a lifetime in politics and
these prognoses have become bankrupt.
A new harsh reality has set in. The APC
is now a shadow of its hype. Since the
initial excitement, it lost Ekiti by a
landslide and scraped through in Osun;
two states presumed to be
APC strongholds. In spite of considerable
arm-twisting, including the nuisance
value of APC Trojan horse Sule Lamido’s
candidacy, Goodluck Jonathan is going to
run on the PDP’s 2015 presidential
ticket.
Short of the shenanigans of Attahiru
Jega and his fictitious 30,000 new polling
units, the APC does not stand a chance
of defeating the PDP in the coming
presidential election. The combination
of these two realities is provoking a no-
holds-barred migration back to the PDP.
As a matter of fact, once Jonathan finally
declares his candidacy and is endorsed
by the PDP, there will be a mass exodus
from the APC to the PDP. Even before
then, those who lose out in the APC
choice of its presidential candidate will
not waste time before making their
way to the PDP. The movement will be
massive all in one direction because in
Nigerian politics the winner takes all.
The one thing politicians are very good
at is in reading the signs of the times.
Timber and caliber
What has happened over the last few
months is that a procession of APC who-
is-who has defected to the PDP. This
includes Attahiru Bafawara, Brigadier-
General Buba Marwa (rtd.), Ibrahim
Shekarau, Femi Fani-Kayode, Ali Modu
Sherriff, Jimi Agbaje, Nuhu Ribadu and
Tom Ikimi. These people have read the
writing on the wall and have discovered
that, by hook or crook, the PDP is not
going to lose the coming presidential
election. Don’t be surprised if by next
year, even Atiku applies to be re-
admitted to the PDP, after he would
have been shut out of the APC.
There were a lot of raised eyebrows at
Nuhu Ribadu’s defection to the PDP. But
what exactly was he supposed to do?
There is no future in the APC for him.
Ribadu served for eight years under the
“hateful” PDP. As EFCC Chairman, he
indicted Tinubu of corruption and
called him a looter of public funds “of
international dimension.” But then he
ended up in Tinubu’s ACN where he was
even comically paraded as the party’s
2011 presidential candidate; only to be
traded off shamefully in a despicable act
of political treachery.
Clearly, Ribadu cannot be APC’s
presidential or vice-
presidential candidate. Neither can the
APC make him governor of Adamawa
State. Since he recognizes that the APC
is headed for defeat in 2015, that means
the offer of a ministerial position in
Abuja is out of the question. Neither can
the APC make him the Nigerian High
Commissioner to the Court of St. James
as a consolation prize.
However, the PDP can offer him all but
one of these juicy posts. So what would
be the point of staying in the APC? None
whatsoever! This kind of cold hard
calculus will become increasingly
evident to other APC politicians; the
closer we get to the 2015 election. Just
you wait; they will soon be jumping ship
to the PDP in droves.
One-party rule
There is still only one political party in
Nigeria at the federal level and that one
party is the party in power. What is
the difference between the PDP and the
APC? Only one; PDP is in power at the
centre: APC is not. Besides that, there is
no difference whatsoever! They are not
even yin and yang. They are Siamese
twins. They are children of the same
ugly mother. They are Jekyll and
Hyde. They are two peas in a pod.
When the APC first emerged, some were
excited that we would finally have a two-
party system. No such luck! For the
longest time, Nigeria will remain a one-
party state. When you truly have a two-
party system, you have two parties with
different world-views. They have two
contrasting and competing ideologies.
Not so in Nigeria. Like people, like
priest! The people are uneducated and
so are the polithiefcians. They have no
ideology, no policies and no vision. It is
all about getting into power to get a
piece of the national cake.
The APC touts Buhari as an anti-
corruption icon. It says PDP is a party of
thieves and robbers. But when did you
hear the APC require those PDP
governors and legislators it welcomed
into its ranks to account for the money
they stole while in the PDP? Never! It
relies on them to bring the money.
Murtala Nyako was impeached for
corruption. Did anybody hear APC
members say anything against his
corrupt practices?
Boko Haram politicians
Suddenly, the APC is making a lot of
song and dance about PDP’s
Bunu Sheriff being labeled by Stephen
Davis as a sponsor of the Boko
Haram. But the same Bunu Sheriff was
in APC for over a year until
recently. Even as APC member, he was
fingered as a possible Boko Harram
sponsor, and the party took no action
against him. Bunu Sheriff was not
kicked out of the APC: he resigned.
At a meeting in the British parliament,
chaired by John Glen, a close adviser to
Prime Minister David Cameron,
allegations were raised that key
members of the APC in Nigeria are
supporters and financiers of Boko
Haram “for ideological and political
means.” Early this year, British MP
Andrew Rosindell questioned Foreign
Secretary William Hague in parliament
specifically on the question of the United
Kingdom’s engagement with the APC
over the Boko Haram insurgency in
Nigeria.
No ideologies
Nigerian political parties are much of a
muchness. If you did not know this, the
rash of defections to and fro is eloquent
testimony. That is why Obasanjo can be
the so-called Baba of the PDP
yesterday, and today be invited by a
high-powered delegation to become
the Navigator of the APC. Kwankwaso
can be elected governor of Kano on the
platform of the PDP in 2011. But
midstream in his tenure in 2013, he
switches to the APC without any change
in policy or ideology.
How many prominent members of the
Labour Party in Britain have we
ever heard defecting to the
Conservatives? How many prominent
members of the Democratic Party in the
United States do we ever hear crossing
the
carpet suddenly to the Republican
Party? Virtually none! The reason is that
those parties stand for something and
their members believe in what they
stand for. However, Nigerian political
parties stand for nothing. They believe
in nothing. All they seek is to feather
their nests while in office.
The PDP makes few principled
pretensions. It is a party of thieves and
robbers. It is a party of “come and
chop!” That actually makes it endearing
in a way. What you see is what you get.
But lately, it has been trying to reform
itself. There is now more
internal democracy in the PDP, making
for fewer spats.
The APC, on the other hand is a party of
dissemblers. It calls itself a progressive
party. But how do you have a
progressive party that makes a point of
collecting the “non-progressives” rejects
of the PDP? How do you have a
progressive party led by certificate
forgers and insatiable land-grabbers
with dubious unexplained wealth?
Political prostitutes
Nigeria political parties are Twedledee
and Twedledum. They may go by the
acronym ECN, or NEPA or PHCN; but the
one constant is lack of electricity. As for
Nigerian politicians, they are nothing
but high-class prostitutes. The principled
and upright ones, like Senator Udo
Udoma of Akwa Ibom, are few and far
between. Neither do they survive for
long in politics. After eight years,
Senator Udoma voluntarily called it
quits. “The beautiful ones are not yet
born.”
But take, for example, the current
Governor of Imo State. He must hold
some kind of Nigerian record for carpet-
crossing. Okorocha was in PDP before he
was not. In 1999, he contested for
governor of Imo under the PDP. In 2003,
he ran for the ANPP presidential
ticket. When that came to grief, he
returned to the PDP as
President Obasanjo’s Special Adviser on
Inter-Party Affairs. In 2005, he was
a founding-member of the Action
Alliance. By 2007, he was back in
the PDP. In 2010, he defected to APGA
and ran for governor of Imo
State. Having become governor, he
decamped to the APC in 2013.
Men like Okorocha who cannot stay in
one place need to be placed under
arrest. Okorocha’s jumps from pillar to
post have one unchanging purpose: his
unending search for politically greener
pastures. If he does not secure the vice-
presidential ticket of the APC at
their coming convention, your guess is
as good as mine if he will remain
one day longer in the party. In short, at
this stage of Nigerian politics, virtually
all our politicians are self-serving. Far
more
than the people they misrule, they are
the ones always looking for stomach
infrastructure.

if you have not noticed it already,a new season has dawned in nigerian politics.
That season is one of carpet-crossing
back to the PDP. About a year ago, there
was a rash of defections from the PDP
to the APC. Nearly 40 legislators left the
ruling party for the opposition. Five PDP
governors also followed suit. But now
the movement is a one-way trajectory in
the opposite direction. APCmembers are
having buyers’ remorse and are making
their way back as prodigal sons to the
PDP.
There are two basic reasons behind this.
One year ago, the APC was the new
party on the block. A simplistic political
calculus led some to the hasty conclusion
we finally have the party that would
dislodge the PDP after 15 years of one-
party rule in Nigeria. So some
people quickly joined the APC
bandwagon. But the more cynical reason
was that the defections were designed
to discourage Goodluck Jonathan
from seeking re-election as president.
The vain hope and expectation was that
Jonathan would see the colossus ranged
against him and throw in the towel.
New realpolitik
One year is a lifetime in politics and
these prognoses have become bankrupt.
A new harsh reality has set in. The APC
is now a shadow of its hype. Since the
initial excitement, it lost Ekiti by a
landslide and scraped through in Osun;
two states presumed to be
APC strongholds. In spite of considerable
arm-twisting, including the nuisance
value of APC Trojan horse Sule Lamido’s
candidacy, Goodluck Jonathan is going to
run on the PDP’s 2015 presidential
ticket.
Short of the shenanigans of Attahiru
Jega and his fictitious 30,000 new polling
units, the APC does not stand a chance
of defeating the PDP in the coming
presidential election. The combination
of these two realities is provoking a no-
holds-barred migration back to the PDP.
As a matter of fact, once Jonathan finally
declares his candidacy and is endorsed
by the PDP, there will be a mass exodus
from the APC to the PDP. Even before
then, those who lose out in the APC
choice of its presidential candidate will
not waste time before making their
way to the PDP. The movement will be
massive all in one direction because in
Nigerian politics the winner takes all.
The one thing politicians are very good
at is in reading the signs of the times.
Timber and caliber
What has happened over the last few
months is that a procession of APC who-
is-who has defected to the PDP. This
includes Attahiru Bafawara, Brigadier-
General Buba Marwa (rtd.), Ibrahim
Shekarau, Femi Fani-Kayode, Ali Modu
Sherriff, Jimi Agbaje, Nuhu Ribadu and
Tom Ikimi. These people have read the
writing on the wall and have discovered
that, by hook or crook, the PDP is not
going to lose the coming presidential
election. Don’t be surprised if by next
year, even Atiku applies to be re-
admitted to the PDP, after he would
have been shut out of the APC.
There were a lot of raised eyebrows at
Nuhu Ribadu’s defection to the PDP. But
what exactly was he supposed to do?
There is no future in the APC for him.
Ribadu served for eight years under the
“hateful” PDP. As EFCC Chairman, he
indicted Tinubu of corruption and
called him a looter of public funds “of
international dimension.” But then he
ended up in Tinubu’s ACN where he was
even comically paraded as the party’s
2011 presidential candidate; only to be
traded off shamefully in a despicable act
of political treachery.
Clearly, Ribadu cannot be APC’s
presidential or vice-
presidential candidate. Neither can the
APC make him governor of Adamawa
State. Since he recognizes that the APC
is headed for defeat in 2015, that means
the offer of a ministerial position in
Abuja is out of the question. Neither can
the APC make him the Nigerian High
Commissioner to the Court of St. James
as a consolation prize.
However, the PDP can offer him all but
one of these juicy posts. So what would
be the point of staying in the APC? None
whatsoever! This kind of cold hard
calculus will become increasingly
evident to other APC politicians; the
closer we get to the 2015 election. Just
you wait; they will soon be jumping ship
to the PDP in droves.
One-party rule
There is still only one political party in
Nigeria at the federal level and that one
party is the party in power. What is
the difference between the PDP and the
APC? Only one; PDP is in power at the
centre: APC is not. Besides that, there is
no difference whatsoever! They are not
even yin and yang. They are Siamese
twins. They are children of the same
ugly mother. They are Jekyll and
Hyde. They are two peas in a pod.
When the APC first emerged, some were
excited that we would finally have a two-
party system. No such luck! For the
longest time, Nigeria will remain a one-
party state. When you truly have a two-
party system, you have two parties with
different world-views. They have two
contrasting and competing ideologies.
Not so in Nigeria. Like people, like
priest! The people are uneducated and
so are the polithiefcians. They have no
ideology, no policies and no vision. It is
all about getting into power to get a
piece of the national cake.
The APC touts Buhari as an anti-
corruption icon. It says PDP is a party of
thieves and robbers. But when did you
hear the APC require those PDP
governors and legislators it welcomed
into its ranks to account for the money
they stole while in the PDP? Never! It
relies on them to bring the money.
Murtala Nyako was impeached for
corruption. Did anybody hear APC
members say anything against his
corrupt practices?
Boko Haram politicians
Suddenly, the APC is making a lot of
song and dance about PDP’s
Bunu Sheriff being labeled by Stephen
Davis as a sponsor of the Boko
Haram. But the same Bunu Sheriff was
in APC for over a year until
recently. Even as APC member, he was
fingered as a possible Boko Harram
sponsor, and the party took no action
against him. Bunu Sheriff was not
kicked out of the APC: he resigned.
At a meeting in the British parliament,
chaired by John Glen, a close adviser to
Prime Minister David Cameron,
allegations were raised that key
members of the APC in Nigeria are
supporters and financiers of Boko
Haram “for ideological and political
means.” Early this year, British MP
Andrew Rosindell questioned Foreign
Secretary William Hague in parliament
specifically on the question of the United
Kingdom’s engagement with the APC
over the Boko Haram insurgency in
Nigeria.
No ideologies
Nigerian political parties are much of a
muchness. If you did not know this, the
rash of defections to and fro is eloquent
testimony. That is why Obasanjo can be
the so-called Baba of the PDP
yesterday, and today be invited by a
high-powered delegation to become
the Navigator of the APC. Kwankwaso
can be elected governor of Kano on the
platform of the PDP in 2011. But
midstream in his tenure in 2013, he
switches to the APC without any change
in policy or ideology.
How many prominent members of the
Labour Party in Britain have we
ever heard defecting to the
Conservatives? How many prominent
members of the Democratic Party in the
United States do we ever hear crossing
the
carpet suddenly to the Republican
Party? Virtually none! The reason is that
those parties stand for something and
their members believe in what they
stand for. However, Nigerian political
parties stand for nothing. They believe
in nothing. All they seek is to feather
their nests while in office.
The PDP makes few principled
pretensions. It is a party of thieves and
robbers. It is a party of “come and
chop!” That actually makes it endearing
in a way. What you see is what you get.
But lately, it has been trying to reform
itself. There is now more
internal democracy in the PDP, making
for fewer spats.
The APC, on the other hand is a party of
dissemblers. It calls itself a progressive
party. But how do you have a
progressive party that makes a point of
collecting the “non-progressives” rejects
of the PDP? How do you have a
progressive party led by certificate
forgers and insatiable land-grabbers
with dubious unexplained wealth?
Political prostitutes
Nigeria political parties are Twedledee
and Twedledum. They may go by the
acronym ECN, or NEPA or PHCN; but the
one constant is lack of electricity. As for
Nigerian politicians, they are nothing
but high-class prostitutes. The principled
and upright ones, like Senator Udo
Udoma of Akwa Ibom, are few and far
between. Neither do they survive for
long in politics. After eight years,
Senator Udoma voluntarily called it
quits. “The beautiful ones are not yet
born.”
But take, for example, the current
Governor of Imo State. He must hold
some kind of Nigerian record for carpet-
crossing. Okorocha was in PDP before he
was not. In 1999, he contested for
governor of Imo under the PDP. In 2003,
he ran for the ANPP presidential
ticket. When that came to grief, he
returned to the PDP as
President Obasanjo’s Special Adviser on
Inter-Party Affairs. In 2005, he was
a founding-member of the Action
Alliance. By 2007, he was back in
the PDP. In 2010, he defected to APGA
and ran for governor of Imo
State. Having become governor, he
decamped to the APC in 2013.
Men like Okorocha who cannot stay in
one place need to be placed under
arrest. Okorocha’s jumps from pillar to
post have one unchanging purpose: his
unending search for politically greener
pastures. If he does not secure the vice-
presidential ticket of the APC at
their coming convention, your guess is
as good as mine if he will remain
one day longer in the party. In short, at
this stage of Nigerian politics, virtually
all our politicians are self-serving. Far
more
than the people they misrule, they are
the ones always looking for stomach
infrastructure

Large crowd gathered outside BBC Scotland's Glasgow
HQ to protest about coverage of the referendum.
Police said up to 1,000 people took part although other
observers suggested a much higher figure for the crowd.
The protesters said BBC coverage had been biased against
independence.
A BBC spokesperson said: "We believe our coverage has
been fair and impartial and has adhered fully to the
requirements of our Editorial and Referendum Guidelines."
Protesters gathered outside the BBC's Pacific Quay offices
at about 14:00.
They draped a banner over the entrance to the building
calling for the BBC's political editor Nick Robinson to be
sacked.
Earlier this week, Mr Robinson clashed with First Minister
Alex Salmond at a media conference.
Mr Salmond accused Mr Robinson of "heckling" him at a
press conference in Edinburgh for international journalists
Mr Robinson was later accused by "Yes" campaigners of
producing a report that wrongly claimed Mr Salmond had
ignored his question.
A BBC response said it considered Mr Robinson's
questions were valid and the overall report balanced and
impartial, in line with editorial guidelines.
The exchange came after the BBC reported that the Royal
Bank of Scotland (RBS) would move its registered
headquarters to London if Scots voted for independence.
Mr Salmond said the Treasury had leaked details of an
RBS notice to markets in breach of financial regulations.
source: WWW.BBC.com/Scotland
no be only us the complain

jmoore: Jehovah is the only true God. He sent his only begotten son Jesus Christ to die for the salvation of everyone.

am smelling jehova witness

wise man osama

solomons wealth was measured in gold.wat were the doing wit the gold dat made him rich

plz stop crucifying her.she is beta than sum of our politicans dat cant knw their name

the jux feel lyk talking

i think say na free browsing.mtcheew

oops.am nt gonna say my mind 2 avoid get being evicted.

if the wants to piss everybody off.the should just name him jeoffrey. and secondly,plz the shouldnt name him after a direction(northwest).hit like if u grab

thank God some guys at abuja hv been listening 2 my calls lately

all those bills hv nt been implemented except 4 yerima

proactive dnt involve refusing bribe

the want 2 destroy lagos lyk the did 2 those poor communities in niger delta

Any striker spain features today will double his career goal tally.spain 40-0 tahiti.Ball possession spain 95-5 tahiti.the will only touch ball wen the pass it after spain must hv scored

Monimatic: Greatest UNIBEN, my Alma mater, and the city of benin should all cease fire.All soldiers on both sides should cease fire, down your tools, enough soldiers are already fallen, we don't want more soldiers going down six feet deep.
Ekosodin cease fire
BDPA cease fire
Isihor cease fire
Osasoghe cease fire
Oluku Cease Fire
Adolor cease fire
Uwasota cease fire
Junior staff quarters cease fire
Senior Staff Quarters cease fire
Ogbe cease fire
Ikpoba hill cease fire
New Benin cease fire
Uselu cease fire
Ring road Cease fire
Aduwawa cease fire
GRA cease fire
Sapele Road cease fire
Hall 4 cease fire
Hall 3 cease fire
Hall 5(Male) cease fire
Dentistry Quarters cease fire
Post Graduates Hall(Male) cease fire
Mission Road Cease fire
Uwelu cease fire
Oliha cease fire
Oba market cease fire
Ekehuan cease fire
Erediawa cease fire
Textile mill Road cease fire
Auchi cease fire
Afuze cease fire
Ekpoma cease fire
Fuga cease fire
Igeduma cease fire
Okada town cease fire
Ekiadolor cease fire
Usen cease fire
Siluko Road cease fire
Okhoro Cease Fire
Medical store road cease fire
Members of Edo Stae House of Assembly(EDHA)cease fire.
Edo State ACN cease fire
Edo State PDP cease Fire
Edo State Local Government Chairmen and Councillors Ceasefire
Officials of Edo State Government Cease fire
Upper Lawani cease fire
Upper Mission cease fire
igbe road auchi cease fire
Mushin Auchi cease fire
Sabo Auchi cease fire
Powerline auchi cease fire
End of the road Ekosodin cease fire
19th Street BDPA cease fire
Uzebba cease fire
Members of Oba Palace cease fire
Members of Edo State Traditional Council Cease fire
Iyeki Auchi Cease fire
Sabongida Ora cease fire
Uhonmora cease fire
Ozall ora cease fire
Afuze cease fire
Ewu cease fire
Emer Ora cease fire
Aviele Cease fire
Agbede cease fire
Uromi cease fire
Iruekpen cease fire
1st East Circular road cease fire

It's pains me so much, that Edo state is now polarized with cult activities, at least 37% of the male population in Edo state including the youths, adults and old ones all have affiliation with cult groups.
Edo was peaceful back then but since cultism spread from the schools to the streets, it's now a war zone because of the quest for power, fame and money by politicians,traditional rulers,land speculators(omo oni ile), Students, Youths, taxi drivers, G(19) boys, Union members, carpenters, conductors, okada men, government officials. Every sectors, cities,towns,villages, quarters, and almost very families in Edo State have all be infiltrated by Cultists.
#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!#CEASE FIRE!!!
Jungle don Mature!

oga go find work abeg

new song,same dance

we needs kids forum on nairaland

just give the thing custard and peak milk

if u wanna be a strong woman.just get castrated

we dnt nid pple dat assasinate people with drones in the name of terror and we dnt nid people dat accuse other nations of developing WMD wen the spend billions of dollars upgrading their own

we dnt pple dat assasinate people with drones in the name of terror and we dnt nid people dat accuse other nations of developing WMD wen the spend billions of dollars upgrading their own

the must hv watched prison break

this set of rules is a blow to free speech.

disect ur chest,bring out your heart and give 2 her.