₦airaland Forum

Edo State governor, Comrade Adams
Oshiomhole granted an interview to selected
media houses where he spoke on his re-
election, the controversy over his
educational certificates & other affecting
issues, and he was like,I know where I am coming from.
“”I belong to the working class, so I cannot
ban okada.
www.gidileak.com/nn-oshiomhole-says-i-cannot-ban-okada/

Keffi – Pastor Enoch Adeboye, the
General Overseer, Redeemed
Christian Church of God (RCCG),
has urged Christians to
demonstrate God’s glory in their
affairs regardless of where they found themselves in Nigeria. Adeboye made the call in his
message at the 2012 Abuja
Special Holy Ghost Service on
Keffi Road, Nasarawa State, on
Saturday. The Abuja Special Holy Ghost
Service is an annual gathering of
the church in the FCT and
environs where prayers are
offered for the country and the
church in particular. Adeboye, who spoke on the
theme “Arise and Shine’’, stressed
the need for Christians to
replicate the teachings of the
church in all their endeavours as
examples for others to follow. According to him, to arise means
showing your light, your ability
and resources and it entails
getting out of sickness to health
and excelling on all counts. He said that there was no
situation that could not be
salvaged by God and called on
Nigerian Christians to unite in
prayers to enable to overcome
the challenges confronting their faith. The cleric, who took the day’s
lessons from Isaiah 60:1-2, said
Christians had the ability to
cause changes in their
environment and urged them to
take advantage of such opportunities. Many faithful within and outside
the church, including top
government functionaries
attended the service. The General Overseer and his
wife, Folu, offered special
prayers for members of the
church, peace in the country and
the world at large. The Holy Ghost service began in
2001 and the 2012 edition is the
11th in the series. Special prayers were offered
for President Jonathan and all
the leaders of our nation for a
more peaceful Nigeria
irrespective of the attack on
churches, especially in Northern Nigeria. (NAN)
www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/adeboye-urges-christians-to-demonstrate-gods-glory/

The police again? Quite frankly and to
have a better Nigeria this
disorganization called the Nigeria
Police needs be sent into
extinction.While they were busy looking for credibility in the case of
Oyerinde-the slained aide of Adam
Oshiomole,Boko Harram were
escaping from their custody.The day
the SSS handed the suspected killers
of the journalist to the police was the day the case came to a rubbish
close. Anyway,since what is good for
the geese is equally good for the
gander,let us also show the current
IG Red Card as did to his
predecessor.

k2039: Some people will just faint immediately after their exam(Ambulance should be made available at each centers immediately after the exam).


It's really a good news from jamb,this will eliminate result malpractices.

people will faint and even run mad.

Governor Babatunde Fashola of
Lagos state, yesterday, blamed
the presidency over the delay in
the investigation of oil subsidy scandal, saying that the
investigation into the scandal
should have come earlier. Meantime, Nobel Laureate Prof.
Wole Soyinka and the Director of
the Centre for the Study of
African Economics, Oxford
University, Prof. Paul Collier
tasked the Federal Government to adopt the Rwanda system of
government administration. Fashola who made the remarks
at the two-day Kuramo
Conference, 2012 themed: ‘The
Global Common Wealth’ held in
Lagos, said that the executive
failed to do its job on the fuel subsidy scandal. He stressed that the legislature
should not have been the first to
look at the report but rather,
the executive has the
responsibility to conduct
investigation on the scandal. According to him, “This is because
the executive has the
responsibility for law
enforcement in Nigeria. And
anyone found to be implicated
during the investigation should have been dismissed immediately.
That was why I said that any
public office holder that abuses
his office should face severe
punishment that is available by
law.
The governor emphasised that
the oil sector was the most
vulnerable sector of the
country’s economy, adding, “it is
where the major source of
revenue of the country comes from.” On Trade, Fashola advised
African countries to engage
themselves more in trade in order
to fast track the development
and prosperity of the continent. He said that the continent
needed to look inwards for
answers to some of her economic
challenges. The governor observed that
most African countries preferred
doing business with the West and
Asia, saying the situation had not
really helped the economic
development of the continent. Speaking earlier, Collier said that
the Federal Government has a
huge challenge in managing the
country’s oil sector effectively,
adding “there are three features
lacking in the management of oil sector in the country.” Soyinka, who chaired the
conference, said the downturn in
the economies of a number of
developed countries should serve
as an opportunity for Africa to
develop her economy. He urged leaders address some
of the factors responsible for
the economic woes over the
years, and begin to reposition
the continent for greatness. Soyinka said if China was able to
transform her economy to the
second largest in the world in a
decade, it was possible for
Africa to do the same. Speaking earlier, Collier said that
the Federal Government has a
huge challenge in managing the
country’s oil sector effectively,
adding “there are three features
lacking in the management of oil sector in the country.” Collier explained that the three
features which would make the
management of the oil sector
effective in the country are its
rules, institutions and the
students. According to him, “It is the
responsibility of the Federal
Government to generate the
rules and the institution. The
rules and institutions are just
written on paper, without the critical mass, the citizens
understanding the issues, the
rules and institutions are dead.” Collier explained that the three
features which would make the
management of the oil sector
effective in the country are its
rules, institutions and the
students. According to him, “It is the
responsibility of the Federal
Government to generate the
rules and the institution. The
rules and institutions are just
written on paper, without the critical mass, the citizens
understanding the issues, the
rules and institutions are dead. “Why don`t we promote the
United States of Africa in Trade?
Why don`t we support the idea
of an Afro-zone? “The integration of Africa in
trade will no doubt impact
positively on the economies of
African countries. This is what
we should be thinking about. It is
good for our collective prosperity,” he said. Fashola said Africa was
strategic to global economic
development, saying the natural
and human resources had over
years been used to drive the
development of western economies. The governor said it was time for
Africa to exploit her resources
to develop herself, charging
leaders to create the right
atmosphere for development to
take place in the continent. Soyinka, who chaired the
conference, said the downturn in
the economies of a number of
developed countries should serve
as an opportunity for Africa to
develop her economy. He urged leaders address some
of the factors responsible for
the economic woes over the
years, and begin to reposition
the continent for greatness. Soyinka said if China was able to
transform her economy to the
second largest in the world in a
decade, it was possible for
Africa to do the same. Speaking earlier, Collier said that
the Federal Government has a
huge challenge in managing the
country’s oil sector effectively,
adding “there are three features
lacking in the management of oil sector in the country.” Collier explained that the three
features which would make the
management of the oil sector
effective in the country are its
rules, institutions and the
students. According to him, “It is the
responsibility of the Federal
Government to generate the
rules and the institution. The
rules and institutions are just
written on paper, without the critical mass, the citizens
understanding the issues, the
rules and institutions are dead.” “The country’s oil is a natural
resource that belongs not only
to this generation but also to
the future. If this generation
chooses to deplete, it has an
obligation to put in place other assets, hopefully more
productive than oil itself, which
the next generation can then use
to generate wealth.” “That is the responsibility of this
generation, particularly the
present decision makers. Past
generation of Nigerian decision
makers did not honour that
responsibility. That explains why you are not yet prosperous in
the oil market.”
www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/oil-subsidy-scam-fashola-slams-presidency/

The Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has criticized the proposed amendment of the bill which seeks to modernize and consolidate the laws governing the Nigerian Customs Service. The bill seeks to repeal the Customs and Excise
Management Act of 2004 and enact the
Nigeria Customs Service Act. According to the Minister, the proposed bill
would affect the powers of the Finance
Minister and the President in ensuring the
economic well-being of the country. Mrs Okonjo-Iweala, who appeared before
the Senate Committee on Finance in Abuja,
said: “We do not consider this a good bill at
the moment, in terms of the economic
development of the country and we think that
it would need significant amendments of some sections. “With the present bill, the policy making
powers from the executive powers are all
vested largely in the customs and are not
separate. “We believe that the bill should separate
policy making powers and executing powers,
so that they can be properly aligned. “Many of the powers of the president that
are granted in the former bill have now been
rescinded,” she said. However other people present at the hearing
were of the view that the proposed bill would
help the custom service carry out its function
as a major source of revenue for the country
and that the proposed bill is long overdue. The chairman of the Senate Committee on
Finance, Ahmed Markarfi, said this is one key
issue the public hearing seeks to address. He promised that the Senate will look at the
bill and come up with a bill they believe is in the
best interest of the country. The Senate President, David Mark, who was
represented at the hearing by the Senate
majority leader, Victor Ndoma-Egbe, said the
amendment of the Customs Management Act
was long overdue. He said: “the seventh senate is making history
by reforming the Nigeria Customs Service by
repealing existing laws to bring it in
conformity with international laws.
www.channelstv.com/home/2012/11/05/proposed-customs-bill-will-reduce-the-presidents-and-my-powers-okonjo-iweala-tells-senators/

*Van Victer
*Ramsey Nouah
*Joseph Banjamin
*John Dumelo
*Jim Iyke
*Majid Michel

Lagos — Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has said that two death row convicts in the state deserve to die, saying he owes no apology over his stance which he said was in exercise of his duty as governor.

In a robust defence of his position, Oshiomhole, in an interview, said that even though he had the choice of exercising the prerogative of mercy on the convicts, he had chosen not to do so, given the nature of the offence of the two men whose convictions were upheld by the Supreme Court.

He said: "God can have mercy on them, but I am unable having regard to the overall circumstances of the case, namely, killing and dismembering the body of your victim and wanting to sell some of the parts and you ask me in the name of human rights, let him live."

The two death row convicts, Daniel Nsofor and Osayinwinde Agbomien, are presently at the centre of an international human rights campaign to be freed from execution following the governor's assent to their execution following the affirmation of their guilt by the Supreme Court.

Nsofor was convicted on June 19, 1996 for torturing his female victim and killing her while Agbomien was found guilty of robbing, killing and dismembering the body parts of his own victim.

Oshiomhole noted: "I am convinced that those people need to die. In the interest of society they need to die under the law. The rule of law is different from resolutions by some NGOs and nations are not governed by NGO resolutions.

"As a governor, I subscribed to an oath of office which says that I shall obey the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, including all laws without fear or favour. I cannot be afraid to sign the death warrant of a man who has been found guilty of murder.

"I have no apologies, I didn't sentence them to death. I am not the one who accused them, they were accused by those they harassed. They have been tried, they have taken advantage of the appellate courts all the way to the Supreme Court of the land and they were found guilty. The law also says that having been found guilty and sentenced to death, the governor could exercise prerogative of mercy, but I say that I have no mercy on those who kill. Why should you compel me to have mercy on those who kill?"
[b]
"We must have a balanced view of human rights in which the rights, not only of the man they killed, but the right of his relations and much more importantly, to send a clear message to would be murderers, that when you kill a human being and you are caught, you are likely to die. If you don't want to die, then abstain from killing. If criminals abstain from killing, fewer people would be killed by robbers and other murderers and that is the truth.

"If you tell me that the man killed and has a right to life, I refuse that. Amnesty should not be hypocritical about it, we have the records worldwide. Nations are governed by their national values and it is debatable whether those who excuse murderers in the eyes of God whether they are better human beings than those who insist that 'if you kill that you too should be killed if found guilty of killing'.

"The second person was a man who killed a woman. He robbed the woman, raped the woman and killed her. And then he was found guilty of this offence by the Supreme Court of Nigeria and you tell me, though he has killed, let him live. I say no. If he has killed, let him die too. I am not the one who says he should die, it is the law.
[/b]
All I have done is that the law says I should sign and I have obeyed the law by signing because even the government is under the law."

Governor Oshiomhole, however, said that he had in the recent past also exercised the prerogative of mercy on some other convicts who did not kill in the course of their activities.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201211050266.html/?maneref=http%253A%252F%252Fnews.google.com%252Fnews%252Fi%252Fsection%253Fpz%253D1%2526cf%253Dall%2526ned%253Den_ng%2526topic%253Dn

Abuja – The Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) is set to reduce the number of adverts and promotions which telephone service providers send to subscribers to enable them to improve on service delivery.

Minister of Communications and Technology, Mrs. Omobola Johnson, made this known in Abuja on Sunday when she fielded questions at an organised forum.

She told reporters that the promotions carried out by the operators affected the quality of service provided because when they embarked on promos, the number of subscribers on the networks increases and there’s pressure on the network.

The minister who admitted that GSM service delivery had been poor in recent times, said because of the growth of the sector, operators had been facing demand challenge.

She said the advertisements and promotions on telephones did not necessarily worsen service delivery, but that natural and man-made disasters that befell the country in the past few months also contributed.

www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/ncc-to-curtail-number-of-promos-on-gsm-networks-minister/

I strongly suggest that the
President should look into the
report with all sincerity to acertain
the truth and bring those indicted
to book, this will help to reassure
Nigerians that his anticorruption campaign is real.

The Action Congress of Nigeria
(ACN) has accused the Federal
Government of deliberately
sabotaging the Petroleum
Revenue Special Task Force,
headed by Mr. Nuhu Ribadu, following the controversy that
marred the presentation of the
task force’s report last Friday. In a statement in Lagos, Sunday,
ACN’s National Publicity
Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed,
said the decision to appoint two
members of the committee, Mr.
Steve Oronsaye and Mr. Bernard Otti, to positions in the NNPC
while the task force was still
working on its assignment is a
deliberate booby trap. It said if the Federal Government
did not have any ulterior motive,
it would have waited for the
task force to complete its
assignment before naming Mr.
Oronsaye into the board of the NNPC and Otti as the Director of
Finance of the same body. ”Alternatively, both men should
have resigned their membership
of the committee the moment
they were given the plum jobs to
avoid the apparent conflict of
interest. The fact that they stayed on, only to disparage the
report of the task force so
openly and ferociously at the
end, is the clearest indication yet
that they were meant to play
that exact role of spoilers,” ACN said. The party said the temerity with
which the duo sought to
denigrate the report of the task
force in the presence of the
President of the Federal Republic
showed that they must have been acting a well-prepared
script. ”All that these two men needed
to have done, if indeed they did
not agree with the report of the
task force, was to write a
minority report and present such
to the President, instead of engaging in theatrics as they did
at the presentation,
right in front of the whole world. ”Unfortunately, the President’s
efforts to downplay the whole
disagreement and give the
dissenters a soft landing did
more to accentuate the damage
done to the report by the two men. The President’s statement,
that becoming board
members of NNPC does not
disqualify them from being
members of the task force, is an
indication of his innermost thoughts on this issue,” it said. ACN however said it was not
surprised at how things turned
out with the task force, having
previously warned, in a
statement it issued on February
8th 2012, that naming credible people like Mr. Nuhu Ribadu to
head the task force
might just be part of
government’s ploy to poach
credible personalities from the
opposition just so it can decimate it (opposition) and also
tarnish the well-earned
credibility of such personalities. ”Among our observations in that
press statement, we had said:
‘There is also the possibility that
booby-traps will be deliberately
set for such credible
personalities to guarantee their failure in their stated
assignment, after which they will
be ridiculed and dumped like an
ordinary chump’.” the party said,
adding: ”We hate to say our
fears have been justified.”
www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/327768/

RIP

If the bomb ferrying man’s
mission was to kill, an
unsuspecting commercial
motorcyclist popularly called
okada helped seal the fate of
those present at the St. Rita Catholic Church, Badarwa,
Kaduna last Sunday, a Sabbath
day. That was the day a man of
fiendish disposition, determined
to end his life and those of other
innocent people in a macabre
manner, loaded explosives into a
Mercedes Benz SUV, black in colour, and headed for the
Church. Badarwa is a rather rundown
suburb of Kaduna, where
Christians and Muslims live side-
by-side in an uneasy relationship
that has continued to oscillate
between cold, warm and hot. According to accounts, it would
appear that the man was a
stranger to Badarwa, because
he had driven past a crossing
leading to the fortified church
and had had cause to stop an okada operator for direction,
promising to pay handsomely if
he would lead him to the Church. It was an innocuous demand with
the prospect of a good return,
the bike man must have reasoned.
And in less than a minute he led
the stranger in the tinted four-
wheel Benz to the barricaded gate of the Church, where Rev,
Father Mike Bonni was offering
Communion Prayers. It was about
8: 45 am, and there was no sign of
the usual two, armed policemen
and two members of the Civil Defence Corps there. Sunday
Vanguard was able to confirm
this. Now a drama ensued between
the driver of the vehicle and the
okada operator. Instead of
paying the bike man, the man in
the jeep started arguing with
the people at the gate to allow him in. But the three lads in
brown khaki and brown boots
(church cadets) brandishing
metal detectors refused him
entry, saying only the parish
priest was allowed to park his car within the church premises
during Mass. Heavy metal bars stood between
the man and the Church. It was obvious that the cadets
were bent on refusing him entry.
His escort on bike sat on his
machine thinking his service
would be paid for soon as the
“big” man found space to park. But strangely, as recalled by
those who claimed to have
witnessed what happened, the
driver hastily reversed some few
metres; he then surged forward
in full speed, heading directly for the fence of the church. With mouths agape, the okada
rider and the cadets watched
him as he rammed the luxury car
into the fence and drove
through. A few metres ahead laid the
Catholic shrine where the Virgin
Mary is usually venerated. He
took it down too. But that shrine
slowed his pace. Then, suddenly,
just before he could burst into the Church, packed with over
1000 worshippers, the jeep
became a mobile bomb. The
explosion that resulted could be
heard within a five kilometre
radius from the blast. And it created a rattling tremor too.
It brought down the wall of the
church, sending shrapnels and
projectiles into the
congregation. Though the vehicle never made it
into the church building, its
effect was felt by the building.
Adjoining buildings were
damaged including parked cars,
as part of the exploded car bust into flames. Survivors recalled a scene
of chaos. Burnt human flesh and
the effluvium of the explosives
created an offensive gas. “The
okada man was shouting
in shock, reciting la’Ila Illahu in Arabic, an eyewitness recounted
to Sunday Vanguard some hours
after the explosion. “He was saying, ‘if I had known
that this man was evil, I would
not have directed him here. Oh
Allah, what has become of this
world’ ”, the eye witness told
Sunday Vanguard. In Bardarwa, as in most parts of
Kaduna town where Muslims and
Christians have defined
boundaries, there are two kinds
of people that respond to such
emergencies: Those that go for the rescue, and those that maim,
kill and destroy property as a
means of vengeance. Unfortunately for the Hausa
okada rider, those that first
heard his lamentation were of
the second category. “He is with the bomber! He
brought the bomber! Kill him! Burn
him!” rented the air. Sunday
Vanguard was told by eye
witnesses that the crowd
ostensibly Christian youths, descended on him, and set him
ablaze, along with his bike. His murder may have averted a
bigger calamity, as events were
to later show. But, just as the mob began to
swell, with youths trooping out
from different directions, the
Army arrived and stamped out
the emerging revolt. But the arrival of the military men
did not stop the pandemonium
that was to take over the city. The body of the suicide bomber,
(likely a member of the Islamic
Terrorist Boko Haram) was cut
into two – his lower and upper
torso. His upper torso was flung
from the jeep onto the fence where it dangled, with the
suicide bomber still showing signs
of live. “Some one came with a stick and
started hitting it”, said another
eye witness, “but soldiers chased
him away”. At the end of the whole gory
event, the National Emergency
Management Agency (NEMA) put
the death toll at 8, with 135
injured. It would however appear that
the collateral damage was the
painfully slow rate of
reconciliation between Muslims
and Christians in Kaduna that
was again shattered.
Catholic Arch-Bishop of Kaduna
diocese, Mathew Man Oso
Ndagos, when he spoke to the
press after visiting and praying
with some 14 injured members of
the Church at St. Gerard’s Catholic Hospital, Kakuri, said:
“What happened was
unfortunate, being the second
time that the Catholic Church,
and the third time Churches were
bombed in Kaduna State. Once again, as Christians and as
Catholics, we are challenged to
deliver our own faith to witness
for us. I think we are even
called to witness our faith as
more credible and to bear the message of the Bible to those
who hate us. “In the five hospitals we have
visited so far, most of the victims
are children. And therefore you
begin to wonder if a human being
in his full senses could do such a
thing. Honestly, as a person, I believe that the person who
could carry out such wickedness,
deserve our pity and mercy. He
has only tested the integrity of
our faith; these kinds of people
are not in their right senses. “How could a human being, who
claims to be working for any kind
of god, go to a place where
people are worshiping God with
a bomb and do this kind of harm
to them? I know we are in difficult times, but my advice to
Christians and my fellow
Catholics in Kaduna State is that
difficult situations do not make
us less Christians. In the same
vein, difficult situations do not make us less human. No matter
how difficult the situation is. My
appeal to Catholic youths and all
our Christian brethren is ‘never,
never retaliate’! Two wrongs can
never, and will never make a right”, he said. But, not many Christians in
Kaduna town have such grace
and magnanimity towards the
Muslim camps. In Sabo, Television Village, Narayi,
Maraban Rido and most Christian
strong holds, the youths
mobilised for a show-down but
discovered that the Muslim
minority had fled as soon as they heard about the carnage at St.
Rita. But, as news filtered that
the Christian youths in Badarawa
had taken their pound of flesh
and that the harm was not of
unforgivable proportion, added to the pleas of local elders and
church leaders, what would have
been a headache for the Army
and police subsided.
www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/kaduna-bombing-okada-please-lead-me-to-st-rita-catholic-church-suicide-bomber/

Uyo — The Akwa Ibom State House of
Assembly yesterday ratified the
nomination of Mrs. Valerie Ebe, as the
Deputy Governor of the state. Mrs
Ebe, was nominated by Governor
Akpabio, to replace Mr Nsima Ekere who resigned from the office three
days ago. The lawmakers confirmed the
nomination of Ebe, after accepting a
letter sent in by Governor Godswill
Akpabio, urging the House to
nominate her as the first female
Deputy Governor in the state in 25 years. Speaking during the session, the
Speaker of the Assembly, Elder Sam
Ikon, acknowledged the
contributions of the Deputy Governor
designate since the beginning of
Akpabio's administration in 2007, and urged her to live up expectations. Mrs Ebe, a lawyer by profession hails
from Mkpat Enim local government
area of the state in the same
senatorial district with the former
deputy governor. The Deputy Governor's designate was
the legal adviser of the Peoples
Democratic Party PDP in the state,
and one time Commissioner of Women
Affairs during Governor Attah's
regime. She was also variously appointed
Commissioner of Environment and
Commissioner of Tourism and Culture
in Governor Akpabio's administration
before her Nomination to serve in the
capacity as deputy Governor in the same government. She is married with children.
www.allafrica.com/stories/201211030556.html

God help you all.

Power Sector...The Journey So Far! -
Illustration by budgiT
source(channels Television)

Power Distribution Zones, Set Prices
and Winners!-Illustration by budgiT

RAGING WAR AGAINST COMMERCIAL MOTORCYCLE OPERATORS
BY CHARLES ADINGUPU

https://vml1.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/OKADA-KIDS.jpg?9d7bd4

For sometime now, commercial motorcycle operators are being hacked down by a special task force raised by the government to enforce the “no Okada on Lagos Highways’ Law. However, some of the riders narrated their ordeals to Saturday Vanguard

In the struggles of this life, man is not discouraged because he clings to the hope the Lord has in store for him at the end of the conflict. A trust without boundary. But this may not apply to Udeme Efiong who is left under the merciless whip of fate. His anguish lies on the far side of the world as his only means of livelihood, motorcycle, otherwise known as okada was recently impounded by policemen and Lagos State security agents.

For a long while, Udeme who hails from Akwa Ibom, stared at the empty sky. Perhaps, searching for words to convey his anguish. His tattered clothes, unkempt hair both combined to describe his predicament. But at last, he broke the unusual rhythm of his silence to Saturday Vanguard.

“After my ordinary national diploma (OND) way back in 1996, my parents were too poor to enable continue with my education. I searched endlessly for a job without success. But in 2007, I got employment as a security officer in a pharmaceutical firm. Eight years afterwards, the firm went underground and since then, I’ve been riding okada to maintain my family as well as cater for the immediate needs of my aged parents. Today, the Lagos State government seized my motorcycle for not obeying their laws,” he lamented.

Yet, another okada operator, Jude Ebube whose motorcycle was impounded at the ever busy Ikorodu road was left in an embittered and pessimistic world. This father of four who was left in horrid pit lamented to Saturday Vanguard. “How can I pay school the fees of my children, house rent, as well as provide feeding allowance?,” he queries rhetorically.

Jude who admitted raking in a whooping sum of eight thousand naira on daily basis from his okada business, threatened to go into armed robbery since all his struggle for survival has come to nut.

For Toafik who plies his trade at Ketu-Alapere, the okada business has become very boring. On each passing day, Toafik and his colleagues were harassed by men of the Nigeria police. “The government banned us from plying the express way. Yet, policemen from Ketu police station would not let us be. By 7 pm, they waylaid our colleagues and demand N5,000 ransom from us otherwise, your motorcycle will be taken to Alausa. I’ve fallen prey on three separate occasions, and I’ve decided to search for something else to do,” he said.

Just a year after he lost his job with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Yusuf Haruna Olademeji resorted to join the foray of commercial motorcycle operators. For the literary study graduate and secretary general of ANACOWA, Lagos State branch, the recent law on okada riders, has left him with a heart of bitterness.

“The restriction of our operations has widen my predicament. Already, I’ve five children, two of them are in the university while others are still in primary secondary school. Now how do I pay their school fees talk less of the house rent and feeding,” he said.

ThankGod, Umanah last Tuesday, flew off his motorcycle to escape arrest and subsequent seizure of his commercial motor bike at the Ikorodu expressway, Ojota. Yet, he was not lucky enough, as that bold adventure left him with a fractured knee and broken arm.

Again, the ruthless task force officials made away with his bike to an undisclosed destination.

For 29-year old Ahmed who operates at Owode Onirin, Ajegunle, his commercial motorcycle bike was impounded by some unknown policemen at the Ikorodu police station.

“I went to buy fuel and on my way, a police officer accosted me and bundled my bike to the station. He demanded for N30,000 as condition for the release of my bike. Otherwise, it will be moved to Alausa for onward destruction,” he said, I’ve to borrow the requested amount of money to reclaim my motorcycle.”

At Mile 12, Yusuf lost his finger to the rampaging okada task force officials in addition to his motor bike.

According to an eye witness account, Yusuf was only cruising on his brand new okada when a member of the task force used an iron rod to hit his hand. He fell off his motorcycle, whimpering in the pool of his blood on the concrete floor but the task force officials ignored him, and bundled his motorcycle into waiting Toyota Hilux truck and sped away.

Also at the Island, no fewer than two thousand motorcycles have been impounded by the dreaded task force officials.

Again, at Ebute Metta, about eight okada riders are currently receiving treatment at different hospitals in the metropolis.

A commercial motorcycle operator domiciled at Iddo, Oyingbo, disclosed that police and task force officials harassed them on daily basis even when they keep to the rules.

“Once it is 7pm, the police rushed to our park to impound our motorcycle bikes. Those whose bikes were seized were asked to pay N5,000 before they would be released to them,” he said.

At Irawo, Saheed’s motorcycle was battered with the butt of the police gun when he attempted to escape arrest for operating at 7.15p.m.

“The head lamp of my motorcycle was smashed and the right side of the traffic light shattered. I was lucky not to have sustained any injury even though I successfully escaped,” he said.

Commercial motorcycle operators at Okota still have their tale of woes as not less than 2,000 motorcycles had been impounded by both the police and task force officials of the Lagos State government.

An investigation by Saturday Vanguard revealed that five okada operators are currently recuperating at different private hospitals in the area.

At Ejigbo and Ikotun, two okada operators who now move about with fractured arms, courtesy of task force officials and policemen, vowed to quit the okada business upon recovery.

But in Ketu, the arbitrary clamp down on okada riders by men and officers of the Nigerian police from the Ketu police station has made them to be more alert.

“Once it is 7pm, the police will lay ambush and started picking our members for no reason. We pay N5,000 to the police before the okada is released to the owner. So far, about 25 members had fallen prey to their traps. We don’t ply the expressway, yet, they (police) won’t let us to work in order to feed our family,” one of them ventured to say.

The modus operandi of task force officials

Just like the Mau Mau of pre-colonial Kenya, the Lagos task force officials and men of the Nigerian police force ambushed unsuspecting okada riders at street corners to impound their motorcycles.

Ketu – At Alapere, police officers unleashed terror on okada riders. The high headiness they displayed during arrest of commercial motorcycle operators, spoke volume of the horror they, okada riders were exposed to.

From Demurin to Alapere, plain clothes policemen positioned themselves at strategic corners in the street waiting patiently like a dog to hack down okada riders.

“The union, Okada Riders’ Welfare Association watched haplessly as their members were hurled into prison and their bikes confiscated arbitrarily.

Ojota – Plain clothed policemen stood at ease at the ever busy Ojota expressway to hack down okada riders on motion.

The same scenario was replicated at Irawo, Owode. But this time, uniformed policemen stood at the end of Ondo Street by 7pm everyday extorting money from okada riders. This unpleasant experience has become the rule applied virtually in the entire Lagos city.

Commuters groan

When two elephants fights, it is the grass that suffers. The lingering fiasco between okada riders and Lagos State government has left over 90% Lagos commuters stranded at various bus-stops across the city. The perennial fuel crisis in Lagos has further compounded the transport situation.

A stranded commuter at Owode said he paid N400 to an okada operator to get to Ojota as against N150.

“Okada riders are necessary evil. Government cannot just do away with their services. I paid N500 as okada fare from Awolowo Way at Ikoyi to Adeola Hopewell,” said Mike Ofor.

The restriction of okada riders’ operation has proved once again that commercial buses in Lagos were grossly inadequate as on daily basis, stranded commuters wait for several hours for buses to get to their destinations.

Okada unions in disarray

Investigations by Saturday Vanguard during the week, showed that the nine okada riders’ union associations in Lagos are in disarray. It was alleged in some quarters, that the present state of affairs in the unions was an orchestrated plan by the Lagos State government to create confusion in their respective camps. The Lagos State Chairman of ANACOWA, Aliu Wembe told Saturday Vanguard that two of the unions are currently partnering with the Lagos State government to hoard okada riders.

According to him, this unholy arrangement precipitated the recent riot at Fadeyi as okada riders who went on rampage resorted to vandalised BRT buses and other Lagos State government’s properties.

“Members of MOALS, Motorcycle Operators’ Association of Lagos State felt betrayed by their chairman when the government started impounding their bikes contrary to what their leaders told them earlier on,” he said.

At the Ojota axis, okada operators accused union officials of under-hand dealings.

“They (union officials) are only interested in collecting the daily N400 ticket fee but not in our welfare. No union officials can claim being of help to any okada rider whose bike was impounded,” a commercial motorcycle operator made bold to declare.

Okada new style of operation

“Since man has learnt to shoot without missing, the bird has also learn to fly without perching.”

For okada riders in Lagos, they now ply their trade with different tricks. At Igodo, some of the commercial bike operators now dressed like corporate dispatch riders. They are decked in complete suit and tactically canvassing for passengers.

It is not possible to make ends meet by operating within the ambit of government mapped areas. Hence, our fare is very high,” an okada rider told the Vanguard.

“These days, we operate our business with the fear of being arrested or losing your motorcycle to ruthless task force officials. It takes a lion’s heart to remain on the express,” said Adeleke, an okada operator.

Used and dumped

It is a common knowledge that politicians employ the services of commercial motorcycle operators during campaigns. But they served as canon folders only to be dumped at the end of their political campaigns.

“Another election will still come and Governor Fashola cannot use us again as he did in his last campaign for votes,” Adeleke said.

Ironically, most government poverty elevation programme centred primarily on the purchase and distribution of motorcycles to indigent Nigerians. Yet, this group of persons have become albatross in government developmental programmes.

www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/tears-of-okada-riders/

Jonathan receives Ribadu’s report amidst
controversy as committee members flaw the
report President Goodluck Jonathan has declared that anyone accused of corruption in the report submitted by the Special Task Force on the petroleum sector will be handed over to the Economic and Financial crimes Commission (EFCC) for prosecution.
But the presentation of the report was
marred by controversy as some members of
the committee urged the President to reject
the report, claiming it is flawed. The Petroleum Revenue Special Task Force,
headed by former EFCC chairman, Mr Nuhu
Ribadu submitted its report to the president
condemning the use of what he called
“traders in the sale of oil, oil theft and
corruption” and he was yet to conclude his presentation when a member of his committee
interrupted his presentation and asked the
president to reject the report . A member of the committee and former Head
of Service, Mr Steve Oransanye described the
report, which was earlier in the week leaked
to the media, as flawed and he urged the
president to reject the report. Other members of the Ribadu led Petroleum
Revenue Task Force that joined the
controversy were Mr Benard Oti and Ismaila
Zubeiru. The claim was however immediately opposed
by Mr Ribadu, affirming that the report he
submitted cannot be faulted by anyone and
that he stands by the truth at all times. The president nonetheless received the report
with a promise to take a critical look at the
document and maintained that the
disagreement amongst members of the
committee would not deter him from doing the
right thing. The President told them not to quarrel about
it, adding that “no one found guilty will be
spared.” The Ribadu committee was among three other
committees set up following the week long
nationwide strike and protest against the
removal of fuel subsidy in January. Other committees that presented their
reports, during the presentation that lasted
two hours, were the committees on
Governance and Control Task Force and
National Refineries Task Force.
The chairman of National Refineries Task
Force, Yusuf Ali in his presentation decried the
current state of the nation’s refineries and
urged the federal government to build three
new refineries as soon as possible. The president however promised that he will
do all in his powers to ensure that the
submitted reports are fully implemented.
www.channelstv.com/home/2012/11/02/jonathan-receives-ribadus-report-amidst-controversy-as-committee-member-flaws-the-report/

Very funny

I think yahoo deserved to be ranked no 1, because of there large numbers of users.

Yenagoa – The NYSC has
postponed the orientation date
for the 2012 Batch ‘C’ corps
members deployed to Bayelsa to
enable the state fix structures
affected by the recent flood disaster. The state NYSC coordinator, Mr
Abiodun Sanusi, on Friday in
Yenagoa, said that the exercise
scheduled to hold on Monday
had been moved to Wednesday. “Generally, the date for the
orientation course for the 2012
batch `C’ service year is Monday,
Nov. 5, but because of the
situation of the structures
affected by the flooding in the state, the state government
approached the management of
the NYSC to extend the date,’’ he
said. Sanusi said that the NYSC had in
recent times considered crises
situations in some states by
allowing for shift in dates and in
some situations, a movement of
the orientation camps to safer places for the security and
wellbeing of the corps members. “We have been doing it in some of
the crises states like in Yobe and
Borno where we have the Boko
Haram issues. “In those areas, we have had to
move the orientation camps to
other areas for security reasons,
and it had to commence at
another date. That has been the
practise of the NYSC in addressing issues in crises
areas,’’ Sanusi said. He explained that in the case of
Bayelsa, the NYSC was not moving
the camp to another location,
adding that the floods did not
affect the orientation camp at
Kaiama in the Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of the
state. “Rather, the orientation camp
has been used to house many of
the victims of the floods, as well
as affected corps members in
Kaiama,’’ he said. Meanwhile, a statement by the
state NYSC directorate signed by
its Public Relations Officer, Mr
Pius Iyamah, stated that
registration of corps members
would commence at 8 a.m. on Wednesday and end at midnight
on Thursday. It explained that the venue of
the orientation remained the
state NYSC temporary
orientation camp, Kaiama
Grammar School, Kaiama, adding
that the swearing-in ceremony would hold on Friday at the same
venue. (NAN)
www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/nysc-shifts-orientation-course-date-in-bayelsa-from-monday-to-wednesday/

Lagos – The Local Organising
Committee of the 18th National
Sports Festival said on Thursday
that President Goodluck
Jonathan had been scheduled to
lead the flag hoisting ceremony for the festival on Nov. 3 in
Lagos. The festival, tagged Eko 2012, is
scheduled for Nov. 27 to Dec. 9 at
the Teslim Balogun Stadium. according to a statement signed
by Kweku Tandoh, the Secretary
of the committee, in Lagos,
Jonathan will be joined by the 36
state governors and the FCT
minister. ‘’The event symbolises the
participation of all the
federating units that make up
Nigeria in the forthcoming
festival. “On Saturday, Nov 3, Gov.
Babatunde Fashola of Lagos
State would be hosting Mr.
President and all the other state
governors at the flag hoisting
ceremony. ‘’The importance of this is to
confirm the participation of all
the states and to show that the
festival is about the unity of
Nigeria as one entity.” The statement said that 11,000
athletes were expected to
participate in the fiesta. Based on initial registration
figures, the LOC envisaged a
maximum of 11,500 athletes, but
the number is expected to drop
after the zonal elimination,
where some state teams failed to qualify, the statement said.
(NAN)
www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/fashola-jonathan-ready-for-eko-2012-flag-hoisting/