₦airaland Forum

demelza: I agree with your assertions but she is an American who still holds on to her Indian heritage. Infact she gave an interview where she talks of speaking with her grandmother and family who are still resident in India. Thats where the India angle comes in.
It is sad that she's being subjected to racial abuse but one cant help but think of her native country where girls like her are discriminated against and called ugly just because of the colour of thier skin.
Just like Obama, if her win can bring attention to the very racist nature of India then its all good.

liberty300: Nigerians are a funny bunch, they are not disgusted by the racism/tribalism/bigotry in Nigeria and they are looking at america lol. Remove the log of wood in your eyes first before seeing the speck of dust in someone else's.

demelza: My exact sentiments. I would love to see if Indians themselves would have any moral justification to rail against those racists especially when one considers their caste system.
Besides I dont think she would have won anything like this back at home because she's somewhat dark-skinned.

Rossikk: In a way it serves the girl right. Hope this news gets to India, where her people would similarly show their racist colours if a black girl was crowned Miss India.

After her victory in Atlantic City, the 24-year-old beauty queen, who was born in Syracuse, New York, and is believed to be a practising Hindu, said: "I'm so happy this organisation has embraced diversity.

bloggernaija: This aribisala is full of bull crap.
Poverty is not an excuse for lawlessness and lack of orderliness .

Miss America Faces Abuse Over Indian Descent
Some people on Twitter accused Nina Davuluri of not being American while others said she was an Arab and looked like a terrorist.12:03pm UK, Monday 16 September 2013


https://media.skynews.com/media/images/generated/2013/9/16/259575/default/v1/180669843-1-252x337.jpg
Miss America winner Nina Davuluri

By Sky News US Team
Nina Davuluri has been hit with Twitter abuse after becoming the first woman of Indian descent to be crowned Miss America.

After her victory in Atlantic City, the 24-year-old beauty queen, who was born in Syracuse, New York, and is believed to be a practising Hindu, said: "I'm so happy this organisation has embraced diversity.

"I'm thankful there are children watching at home who can finally relate to a new Miss America."

But others were not so happy with the success of the New Yorker, who wants to be a doctor and is applying to medical school with the help of a $50,000 (£31,000) scholarship she won as part of the pageant title.


Some people accused her of not being American, others said she was an Arab and looked like a terrorist.

One Twitter user, DallasRobinson8, wrote: "I am literally soo mad right now a ARAB won. #MissAmerica"

Jakeamick5 added: "How the **** does a foreigner win miss America? She is a Arab! #idiots"

Emi_adkins said: "It's called Miss America. Get outta here New York you look like a terrorist. #bye #americanforamerica"

And another user said: "Well they just picked a Muslim for Miss America. That must've made Obama happy. Maybe he had a vote."

Others took to Twitter to defend her, however.

TonySals93 said: "I can't believe people are tweeting racist things about our new crowned Miss America! People like that need to vanish. #MissAmerica"

Another user, Aashkey, tweeted: "A country full of racists. That is America. #MissAmerica"

CJlovebug said: "This world is so ignorant. #MissAmerica Indian or not had every right to gain the title of MissAmerica. This is why I want to leave America!"

And GucciMessiah tweeted: "So Indians and Arabs are the same now? O for sure.. #MissAmerica"

Ms Davuluri, whose talent routine was a Bollywood fusion dance, brushed aside the negative comments about her.

"I have to rise above that," she said. "I always viewed myself as first and foremost American."

Her grandmother said she cried with delight when she saw the news on television.

"I am very, very happy for the girl. It was her dream and it was fulfilled," said 89-year-old V Koteshwaramma, speaking by phone from her home in the city of Vijaywada in eastern India.

She said there were numerous doctors in the family, both in the US and India, and if her granddaughter wanted to become one "I am sure she will do it".

Ibeshe road infrastructure: New gateway to housing scheme, industrial development
September 17, 2013 | Filed under: Real Estate | Posted by: Editor

When the Lagos State government came up with the idea of a 17-kilometre road infrastructure for the Ibeshe community in Ikorodu area of the state, the government and its agents did not perhaps imagine the quantum of multiplier effect it would have.

Development analysts have always insisted that infrastructure provision is synonymous with economic growth, advising that any society that wants to grow must invest in infrastructure, especially roads which open up communities and link one region of scarcity to another of plenty.

Recently, the Lagos State governor, Babatunde Fashola, commissioned the Ibeshe road and for that singular project, there are already noticeable improvements in the economy of the area with a textile factory, new schools and even new filling stations sited in the axis.

The governor announced plans for Ikorodu area, disclosing that work would soon start on a new factory terminal/jetty and a 720 flat housing scheme, adding that the completion of the Mile 12-Ikorodu road would ensure an improvement in the travel time on the axis.

He noted that all over the state, his administration desired to get the people to work quickly, promising that over 200 roads would soon be delivered across the state.

The governor said that government’s effort was aimed at bringing prosperity, pointing out, however, that having good life lies in the hands of each community. He urged community leaders to assist government in protecting public utilities.

Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, the state commissioner for works and infrastructure, had stated earlier that the essence of constructing the road was to open up the communities, adding that additional 10 roads such as Ring Road Imota, Idiatu, Sulaimon, Irewunmi, Agunfoye and Awolowo roads would soon be handed over to the people of Ikorodu.

He stated that the road, which was awarded to Arab Contractors, had been built to international standard with all the modern features such as drainage, walkway, culvert, service ducts and street light provided.

By: Chuka Uroko

berem: LMAO!!

Dumb! Dumber!! Dumbest!!!!

Sincere 9gerian: @Gbawe.,Thank you for unconsciously creating this thread. It seems you do the RIGHT thing only when you'r unconscious. We may have to look for a way of making you permanently unconscious so that you'll be consistent in doing the RIGHT thing.

Segun Agbaje is Banker of the Year
Posted by: Collins Nweze in Money 6 hours ago

https://thenationonlineng.net/new/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Segun-Agbaje-600x346.jpg

The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Segun Agbaje has been announced the 2013 Banker of the Year – Africa by the World Finance Banking Awards.
In a statement, the bank said the World Finance Banker of the Year – Africa Award is conferred on outstanding bankers who have achieved the most with regards to innovation, profitability and sustainability of their organisation.
It said the award also takes into recognition an individual that has been an influential and inspirational leader, has overseen strong financial performance for his organisation and has successfully guided his institution to new heights in its industry.
According to World Finance, Segun Agbaje has won the coveted “Banker of the Year – Africa 2013”. It said the category was one of the most sought after categories in the 2013 Banking Awards, adding that someone has to win and the judging panel confirmed that Mr. Agbaje is at the vanguard of African Banking and has earned the reputation and recognition as a truly accomplished and highly respected Banker, locally and internationally.
It said his commitment to leading an efficient institution has ensured that GTBank maintains higher margins and the lowest cost to income ratio amongst its peers, despite a relatively smaller branch network when compared to its peers in the country.

talktimi: Please read this your post very well then pretend it makes sense in correlation to the topic at hand. Abeg

Multi-billion naira meter assembly plant to be set up in Lagos
September 13, 2013 | Filed under: Company News | Posted by: Editor

MOJEC International Nigeria Limited, in partnership with a Chinese meter manufacturing company, is setting up a multi-billion naira world-class SKD meter assembly plant in Lagos.

MOJEC International is one of the companies engaged by Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to sell and install meters under the newly introduced Credit Advance Payment Metering Implementation Scheme (CAPMI).

The factory to be sited along Oshodi/Isolo Expressway will be funded by the Bank of Industry (BoI).

According to Mojisola Abdul, the president/chief executive officer of MOJEC, all arrangements have been concluded with the partners to set up the company in Nigeria before the end of this year or latest first quarter of 2013. When the factory is fully operational, she said, it would serve the yawning Nigerian and African meter markets.

The meters, which are to be assembled in different categories, are expected to fill the gap in meter supply in Nigeria, especially with the introduction of CAPMI.

CAPMI, instituted by Nigerian Electricity Regulation Commission (NERC), is to address the ugly trend through the payment for meter in the country.

Abdul, however, told BusinessDay, that it was indeed a new dawn in the electricity industry in Nigeria. “We are assuring esteemed customers that we have put up a broad range of solutions to make electricity metering challenges a thing of the past in Nigeria,” she said.

Her company, she said, has taken into consideration the ease and conveniences of the various segments of customers in all solutions.

“Based on the anticipated large demand for various meters, we are poised to meet categories of customers’ demands, especially when the SKD meter assembly plant is in place,” she added.

But according to Bolaji Oyesiku, managing director/CEO of Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), CAPMI is meant to make electricity users accountable and happy over billing mechanism. The creation of CAPMI, he said, became necessary to address what he called the “ugly trend through the payment for meter, the fund of which is refundable over a period of three years with a 12 percent interest in which cost of meter and meter box will be refunded by the PHCN”.

Speaking at a recent forum organised by IBEDC, one of the 11 distribution companies of PHCN, to formally commence CAPMI in the zone, however, Abdul, who spoke on behalf of other CAPMI contractors, promised to deliver quality products and services to IBEDC.

By: Remi Feyisipo

Sincere 9gerian: Interstate is not the only company that benefited from the 21 days window. One other company ( I think northwest power company or so) could only manage part payment before deadline. The company paid the balance within the 21days window. So why all the noise about Interstate?

No rule bending for Interstate Electric
August 27, 2013 | Filed under: main story | Posted by: Editor


We are concerned that the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) plans to ask the National Council of Privatisation (NCP) to extend payment for the Enugu Distribution Company, while a reserve bidder is on stand-by.

Our expectation and that of other stakeholders is that the BPE should without hesitation invite the reserve bidder to make payment for the assets of the company following the inability of Interstate Electricity Limited to fulfil its assets acquisition bargain.

As at 5pm on August 21, Interstate Electric Limited (IEL), the preferred bidder for Enugu Distribution Company (Disco), did not pay a dollar of the 75 percent balance ($94.5m). Though six months earlier it paid 25 percent of the total bid sum ($31.5m).

IEL failure to pay raises questions about its commercial viability. Stakeholders cannot afford to ignore this. How this plays out will affect the future of Nigeria’s electricity supply industry.

We must recall that the major criterion for selling the Discos was not based on the highest bid. Rather, bidders’ capability to improve efficiency, that is, the bidder with the highest Aggregate Technical, Commercial and Collection (ATC&C) loss reduction projections.

We fear that the goal of the privatisation process is being ignored, either for pecuniary or politically expedient reasons. The goal to set up a modern, efficient and customer-focused, private-sector driven electricity supply industry will definitely be jeopardised once investors get the impression that connections trumps competence.


Weighed against legitimate expectation, clause 4 of each Share Sale Agreement provides that both the BPE and each preferred bidder may agree to extend agreed date for payment.

While we concede that BPE has the power, doing so now across board for Interstate, CMAC/Eurafic and North-South calls to question the intentions of BPE. Allowing CMAC/Eurafic and North-South an extra 20 days is like giving them “Fergie time”.

In the English Premiership League this tendency is called “Fergie time”. That is, the penchant of match officials refereeing a match involving Manchester United’s former manager Alex Ferguson to extend the regulated playing time.

Giving CMAC/Eurafic and North-South “Fergie time” is permissible – both made the effort to pay part of the balance and are reported to have called for an extension. Interstate on the other hand paid nothing.

Granting an extension without questioning the reason why Interstate failed where others succeeded is one of many unanswered questions. Why did Interstate have problems meeting the deadline – six months after paying for 25 percent – well aware of the consequence of not doing so?

To grant IEL an extension will be unfair, it will send wrong signals. It’ll be unfair to those that met the deadline as well as to the two other bidders: CMAC/Eurafic Energy Limited and North-South Power that scrambled to pay for Sapele and Shiroro power stations, respectively.

It will be unfair to several bidders who, at the onset of the privatisation process, were shut out. Then, the BPE bluntly refused all lobby to extend the deadline, though it had the power to extend it. Above all, it will be unfair to Nigerians. It is like watching a football match were the referee suddenly changes the rule of the game.

We don’t buy the idea that the extension is in national interest. Playing the “national interest” card is disturbing. Such a mind-set is redolent of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s incisive criticism of Nigeria’s paddy-paddy government. Why is it convenient for BPE to change the rules after setting the tone of no compliance no extension from the onset?

Nigerian consumers, as usual, will bear the brunt of this unpalatable precedent that is being set so early in the process of building an electricity market. And, as it is common in Nigeria, this precedent will be abused. This is because the explicit message BPE is sending to companies that bid for 80 percent of the 10 National Integrated Power Plants (NIPPs) is that they can stretch the deadline.

Consequently, charlatans will be attracted to the industry. Besides, IEL’s inability to meet a deadline it freely contracted, suggests the partners of the consortium have unresolved internal issues. It’s strange that they could not muster the balance from any of the Nigerian banks that financed most of the deals, deals that have been repeatedly said to be more profitable than the telecoms sector.

BPE should see IEL’s inability to pay as a red flag. In the electricity market distribution companies are monopolies without competitors that consumers can switch to (except their petrol and diesel generators). Enugu Distribution Company is licensed to distribute power to Aba, Abakaliki, Awka, Enugu, Onistha, Owerri, Umuahia, and their environs. Down the line if IEL cannot raise the funds for running and expanding the Disco, residents of South East will be burdened with problems that could have been averted much earlier. To still allow Enugu Disco a chance is to forget what happened to NITEL.

We thus call on NCP to put a halt to this unfair rule change that will set a bad precedent in the emerging electricity market.

take dat: We do not learn from past mistakes. I wonder why Ohaneze Ndigbo have remained silent. How can a company promoted by a shady and dubious business man be preferred than Eastern Electric promoted by the 5 SE state governments and Barth Nnaji's Geometrics?

http://thestreetjournal.org/2011/09/emeka-offors-multi-billion-naira-contract-scamwhy-efcc-looked-the-other-way/

Interstate Electrics may lose Enugu DISCO
POSTED ON THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12TH, 2013



By Efe Ebelo / Abuja

• Majority of committee members vote against hand-over

• To begin hand over to new owners Oct. 1

Strong indications emerged Wednesday that the bid for Enugu Distribution Company hitherto won by Interstate Electrics may be cancelled and awarded to the reserve bidder Eastern Electric.

This, according to a sources knowledgeable about the privatisation process, followed the inability of the Sir Emeka Offor-led Interstate Electric to meet the initial payment deadline of August 21, 2013.

The Technical sub-Committee of the National Council for Privatisation (NCP), met Tuesday to deliberate on issues relating to Enugu DISCO, the last of the power firms to make payment after the expiration the deadline.

It was gathered that 10 out of the 11 members of the committee voted against handing over the DISCO to the Interstate Electric.


Their argument, the sources explained, was that the Enugu DISCO is too crucial to be left in the hand of a company that had to take advantage of the 21-day window before making payment.

They were also said to have expressed doubts in the capability or technical expertise of the bid winner to run the DISCO.

According to a source: “The members of the Technical Committee reasoned that if the company had to take advantage of an extension window to make payment, then it may not be able to manage the DISCO if handed over to them. If at this stage they are not able to meet payment deadline, the members reasoned, they may not be able to manage the infrastructure

“The DISCO is very crucial to the entire South East, and the members believe that it is only a credible company that can manage it and deliver.”

It was gathered that a meeting of the NCP would be convened as soon as the Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) returns from his trip abroad to deliberate on the outcome of the meeting of the Technical Committee and ratify it.

“The DG is the secretary of the NCP, and he is the one that has the powers to convene a meeting. He will do so as soon as he returns from his trip this Friday. And from all indications, the NCP may not go against the decisions of the Technical Committee.

Interstate Electrics, which won the bid for Enugu Electricity Distribution Plc, last Friday completed the payment of a balance $94 million for the DISCO, some few days after it took advantage of the available window for the completion of outstanding balance as spelt out in the Share Purchase Agreement (SPA).

There had been intense lobbying within government circles for the DISCO to be handed to the reserve bidder following the inability of Interstate to make full payment at the expiration of the deadline.

But another source told our correspondent that “some members of the Technical Committee wanted the bid cancelled and given to the reserve bidder, but since Interstate had the backing of powers within Aso Rock, it was very difficult to do so. This is especially given that the company had taken advantage of the 21 working days grace and made full payment

This is just as BPE DG, Benjamin Ezra Dikki, announced plans to hand over the various PHCN successor companies to new owners from October 1, 2013, thereby putting the power sector in private hands. Benefits to Nigeria, he said, would include increased power supply, boosting agricultural and industrial development among other positive developments.

kingoflag: Haha, definitely Nigeria will fight another Civil War soon cus of this greedy dunces and his advisers. This is the same GEJ that rejected an SNC at least twice earlier now thinking about it because of his own selfish reasons.

take dat: ^That is where the Patience Jonathan/Aso Rock connection comes in.



As a poster above rightly pointed out, just last week, members of the technical sub-committee voted against handing over the firm to Interstate. Their argument was that Enugu DISCO was too crucial to be left in the hands of a company that had to take advantage of the 18 or 21 days window to make payment after 10 other competitors had closed their deals. If a firm had to take advantage of an extended window to make payment, how are we sure it will be able to manage the DISCO? A firm that could not easily pay $93million, how will it ensure and fund the upgrade of the distribution network?

APC chieftain writes BPE, demands info on sale of Enugu Electricity Coy
Premium Times
Published: September 13,2013


https://media.premiumtimesng.com/dev/wp-content/files/osita_okechukwu_510106249.jpeg
Osita Okechukwu
The politician says he is relying on the FoI Act to make the demand.

The governorship candidate of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, in Enugu State in 2011, Osita Okechukwu, has written the Bureau of Public Enterprises, BPE requesting detailed information on the privatization of Enugu Electricity Company Plc, ENUDISCO.
In a letter dated September 12 and addressed to the Director General of BPE, Benjamin Dikki, Mr. Okechukwu said he was relying on the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act to make the request.

The sale of ENUGU DISCO has been enmeshed in controversy following allegations that BPE manipulated the bid guidelines in favour of some bidders with connections to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and the Presidency.

A firm, Interstate Electric, owned by Emeka Offor, a member of the PDP, was announced the preferred bidder for the company on August 29 while the Eastern Electric Company, sponsored by a consortium of investors, including Geometric Power Limited, led by former Power minister, Barth Nnaji, five South Eastern State governments; Nestoil, Aba Power Limited and others, was listed as reserved bidder.

Mr Okechukwu, an indigene of Enugu State, who is now a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, said he was concerned with the transaction because being a tax payer in the state.

The letter reads, “May I humbly request you to use your good office to furnish me with information regarding the privatisation of Enugu Electricity Company Plc (EnuguDisco).

“Sir, I am a tax payer from Enugu State whose daily bread is tangential to the electricity supply.
“I make this request relying on the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act, 2011.
“For the avoidance of doubt, I request that you furnish me with information and documents covering the event ranging from Expression of Interest, Valuation and Technical Proposal, Emergence of Preferred Bidder, Share Purchase Agreement, Payment made so far (with dates) and all other relevant documents relating to that sale of Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (ENEDISCO).
“While waiting for your favourable responsible in accordance with FoI Act.
“Kindly accept my highest assurance and best regards.”

lateef4me: Gbawe ,Gbawe ,Gbawe ,I just hope ,for the sake of your parents and kids ,if any that the hatred of Jonathan and his family will not send you to early grave !

Olugbenger: RUBBISH!
since you can't disprove the message, this is the best you can up with.
you need a better orientation,bro.

ilugunboy: Simple....I've been trained never to believe the words from source I can't verify.....

Nigeria’s First Lady, Vice President Behind the Enugu Disco Sale Fiasco
Posted: September 14, 2013 - 23:22

https://saharareporters.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/news-page-images-480-wide/page_images/news/2013/emeka_offor_0.jpg
Emeka Offor

By SaharaReporters, New York
Nigeria’s First Lady, Patience Jonathan, as well as Vice President Namadi Sambo, are responsible for the ongoing sordid drama over the sale of the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC). In recent months, the sale has pitted Eastern Electric against Interstate Electrics in a fight to a finish, an investigation by SaharaReporters revealed.

A major source in the Presidency disclosed that Mrs. Jonathan is the unseen hand behind the constant bending of rules for Interstate by both the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and the National Council on Privatization (NCP). The reason for the First Lady’s meddling is that Emeka Offor, leader of the Interstate consortium, has convinced her he would protect her secret business interest in the consortium. Mr. Offor runs Interstate in partnership with the Metropolitan Electricity Authority of Thailand.

Of all 15 preferred bidders for the Power Holding of Nigeria (PHCN) generation and distribution companies for privatization, only Interstate failed to make any payment for the outstanding 75% of the reserved prices by the August 21, 2013, deadline. Yet, the firm managed to pay $93 million last Friday, more than two weeks late.

SaharaReporters learnt that the late payment has polarized the privatization officers. On the one hand, Atedo Peterside, chairman of the NCP technical committee who is also the chairman of the IBTC/Stanbic Bank, has been waging a spirited battle against, on the other hand, Vice President Namadi Sambo, who is chairman of the NCP, and the BPE director general, Benjamin Dikki, a protégé of the vice president. At issue is Mr. Peterside’s insistence on “upholding justice, equity, fairness and the rule of law” in the Enugu Disco sale.

Mr. Offor confided in associates early this week that he had advised Mrs. Jonathan, who hails from Rivers State as Peterside, to put pressure on the NCP technical committee chairman to “take it easy because this is Nigeria, and not America or London.”

Interstate had failed both technical and commercial tests when the consortium’s bids were evaluated, but Vice President Sambo and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim, a very close friend of Mr. Offor’s, compelled the BPE to change the rules for this bidder.

Sam Amadi, an erstwhile activist who now heads the Nigerian Electricity Commission (NERC), publicly defended allowing Interstate to alter their bid document. Mr. Amadi told the media, “we merely changed one decimal in the amount offered by Interstate.”

Both the public and the Eastern Electric, Interstate’s competitor, have been critical of Mr. Sambo and Mr. Dikki for their undue interference in the privatization of the Enugu Disco. But they have naively left out Mrs. Jonathan, failing to realize that she is perhaps Mr. Offor’s most potent tool and an interested party in the outcome.

As if to confirm reports of her interest in Interstate, Mrs. Jonathan’s agents are now working in cahoots with Mr. Offor’s media team unofficially led by a top editor at Thisday.

Since the late 1990s, Mr. Offor has consistently had a close relationship with top Nigerian government officials and their families, but often falls out with them when they leave office.

In the twilight days of its days in office, the Olusegun Obasanjo government in 2006 awarded oil blocs to Mr. Offor’s ERHC company on sweetheart terms, but the former president is now not on speaking terms with the businessman. Mr. Offor tells friends and associates he capitalized on “Obasanjo’s greed to deal with him full-time.”

Mr. Offor’s fight with erstwhile Vice President Atiku Abubakar was even more dramatic. In 2000, the former vice president helped Mr. Offor to win the contract for the Yola-Abuja electricity transmission line for an incredible 10 billion naira, in addition to a power project around Enugu executed under the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP). But two years ago, when Mr. Atiku visited Mr. Offor in his home in Abuja for “settlement” and mentioned specifically the oil blocs in Sao Tome and Principe, with which Nigeria has a Joint Development Zone (JDZ), Mr. Offor came close to physically attacking the ex-vice president with a weapon, according to reliable sources close to Mr. Atiku.

When Mr. Atiku heard this year that Mr. Offor was experiencing a profound business crisis following dry holes which his firm struck in four oil blocs in Sao Tome and Principe at the cost of almost $500 million, he reportedly expressed joy, attributing Mr. Offor’s problem to “nemesis.”

There are other instances of Nigerian businessmen refusing to part with funds kept in trust for government officials when they leave office. Navy Captain Adekunle Lawal died heartbroken shortly after retirement because Clarkson Majomi, the late flamboyant public relations practitioner and publisher of The Mail newspaper, blatantly refused to bring out any money out of the millions of naira he got from Adekunle which the latter looted as a state military governor.

Mr. Offor habitually breaches his shady agreements with serving top government officials offering huge shares of his companies to them. A source close to him stated that Mrs. Jonathan is in for a rude shock if she expects Mr. Offor to honor his financial pledges to her once she and her husband cease to be Nigeria’s First Couple.

ilugunboy: Because I know GEJ want to play the usual desperate politics that have come to define his desperation towards 2015.

Why is he now contemplating on the idea....the same idea he once totally rubbished at a meeting with some Southerners.

Kanwulia: I LOVE NORTHERNERS!

Defi-'NAT'-ly(inserts OSHOGBO YINGRISH HIA) a most superior breed of NIGERIANS! Lord Lugard was not wrong!

I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THIS WRITE UP!

I really hope these NORTHERNERS WILL CHOP HIS MONEY LIKE THEY CHOPPED OBJ'S DURING HIS THIRD TERM AGENDA MESS!

My belle go sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!

He will be looking and feeling like an OVER-PHOCKED, UNDERPAID ASHAWO WEY NOR FIT CLEAN NYANSH FOR SURE!!!

Mu che che che che che che

KEYAMO’S PROFILE

[img]http://deltaforcesunited.files./2013/08/header.jpg[/img]

Festus Egwarewa Adeniyi Keyamo, Esq., lawyer, social crusader, critic and columnist is an intriguing personality. Born in Ughelli, Delta State of Nigeria on Wednesday, January 21, 1970 by a father who hails from Effurun, Warri, in Delta State and a mother from Ilaro in Ogun State, Festus Keyamo attended OHARISI (Model) Primary School, Ughelli, 1975 to 1981, Government College, Ughelli, 1981 to 1986 and received his Higher School Certificate (HSC) course in the same school. Armed with these certificates, he gained admission into Bendel State University, (now Ambrose Alli University (AAU)) Ekpoma, in Edo State, and obtained his LL.B degree (Second Class Upper) in 1992. He was called to the Nigerian Bar on December 15,1993 setting the stage for a colourful career in law.

Keyamo, as he is widely known, started his legal practice in Gani Fawehinmi Chambers in Lagos at the height of the agitation for the revalidation of the June 2, 1993 election. Even as a young lawyer, he was on the front row of legal activism representing icons like Dr. BEko Ransome-Kuti, Chief Frank Kokori and Ken Saro Wiwa as well as the duo of Chief M.K.O. Abiola and Anthony Enahoro who were arrested in 1994 and other NADECO leaders. These challenging responsibilities helped to build Keyamo’s confidence in trenchant advocacy emerging with the award of BEST LAWYER IN GANI FAWEHINMI CHAMBERS IN 1994.

He left Gani Fawehinmi Chambers in 1995, to establish his own law firm, FESTUS Keyamo CHAMBERS, which has since grown rapidly with the Head Office at No. 1 Festus Keyamo Lane, Anthony Village, Lagos State with branches in Abuja and Warri (Delta State), and liaison office in many states.

[b]Keyamo has handled several controversial and landmark cases. He was counsel to the leader of the Niger-Delta Peoples’ Volunteer Force, Mujaheed Dokubo-Asari in his trial for treasonable felony, lead counsel in the treason trial of the leader of the Movement For The Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), Chief Ralph Uwazuruike and other MASSOB leaders as well as counsel in the brutal murder of Elder Statesman, Chief Bola Ige. As one of the prosecutors for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), he has secured the conviction of six public officers by full and complete trial (not plea-bargain). Recently, he went to court to challenge the power of the Nigerian President to unilaterally appoint Service Chiefs without the approval of the National Assembly. In a landmark judgment, the court agreed with him and declared the appointments of the nation’s Service Chiefs without the concurrence of the National Assembly as null and void.

During the Abacha regime, Keyamo formed against Misguided Youths (YAMY) set up to challenge the Youth Earnestly Ask for Abacha (YEAA) of Daniel Kanu in 1997. He was mobilizing Nigerians on the streets to sign petitions to international bodies when Abacha died.

Recently, he initiated a probe of the leadership of the House of Representatives over alleged profligacy and mismanagement of public funds in the purchase of 380 units of 407 Peugeot Cars.

Keyamo’s brush with the authorities has been audacious. He has been detained several times in prisons and cells across Nigeria on account of his crusades for justice, human rights and against corruption.

He has helped many youths of Delta State unjustly arrested and detained by the authorities free of charge and has been working closely with his Uvwie community for some years now on several issues. For instance, he recently won a case for his community in which the inadequate census figures allocated to it in the last census exercise was cancelled by the Census Tribunal and he is also in court to reclaim their vast expanse of land compulsorily acquired by the Army in 1975, purportedly for public purpose, but now converted to private use. These matters are prosecuted free of charge for the community. He was decorated with the ‘Uvwie Son of the Year’ in 2010.
[/b]

A man of amazing gusto and dogged spirit, his honours include, Best Single Advocate of Nigeria Law Students, (Taslim Elias Moot Trial Competition) 1992; Honorary Alumni, of various Students’ Associations; Activist of the year (2001) by the Students Union, University of Jos; Listed in the New Who is Who in Nigeria, 2003; and nominated for the World Medal of Honour, 2003, by the American Biographical institute, in 2005. He was conferred with the chieftaincy titles of Ogba-uri of Ogor Kingdom (Strong man of the law) 2005 and Omorokaro of Uvwie Kingdom (The child who leads the way) 2011 in Delta State but prefers to be called ‘Mr.’

chukwudi44: Anything is possible with an Yoruba media as source.

ilugunboy: Speak for yourself.....

Some of us will never allow you to turn the next election into a North vs South or Christian vs Muslim election....

It will be an election to vote out incompetent leaders...

President rules out sovereign national conference.
Thursday, 21 October 2010 09:11 Web Team 0 Comments

President Goodluck Jonathan has rejected calls for the convocation of a Sovereign National Conference.

This is contrary to the calls by some groups and individuals that an SNC will give ethnic nationalities the opportunity to choose how to relate or associate with one another.

Jonathan, who spoke at the Dialogue with the President at the 16th Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja on Tuesday, said the nation had gone beyond the call for the SNC and should be concerned about how to build a prosperous country.

The President also blamed kidnapping on government’s failure to address the problem when it was evolving.
He also stated that corruption was prevalent in the private sector as it had been in the public sector, adding that what should be done to check the menace was to strengthen law enforcement agencies.


According to the President, the constitution has already prescribed how the fundamental law can be changed; adding that any attempt to change the law by any other method would be an illegality.
The President said, “We have the 1999 Constitution which clearly prescribes how the constitution can be changed. We have the National Assembly that makes laws for the nation.

“Sometimes we get carried away by some jargons. It is not the number of conferences that we hold that can solve our problems. The countries that we cite as examples in development, it is not conference that solved their problems.

“We have gone beyond asking how ethnic groups can live together. We will not allow history to hold us down. It was in 1914 that the Southern and Northern Protectorates were amalgamated. In four years now, we shall be celebrating 100 years of our existence as a nation. So we have gone beyond the agitation for Sovereign National Conference.

Based on current happenings in the country, what is your assessment of the Jonathan administration compared to the previous military dictators?

There is no basis for comparison. Jonathan is by law the constitutional and democratically elected president of the country. He has his tyrannical tendencies the way he was manipulating his party and using the police to go after his party associates who have opposed him. He has imposed a state of emergency that has led to all sorts of atrocities. Despite these, he cannot be equated to a military dictator. He is still a democratically elected president; there is the constitution and the National Assembly, but he has the tendencies of a dictator which is common to all African leaders.

With your posters pasted all over Kaduna State, what is your intention in 2015?

The last time I stood up, I wanted to contest for the senatorial seat but I was denied the opportunity. There was no primary election and the candidate was imposed, who is now a senator. My supporters in Kaduna central senatorial zone have decided on their own to print posters and paste around but my supporters who are not from this zone who are in Southern Kaduna Christian area and Northern Kaduna, Zaria area have also printed posters and pasted round and said they want me to contest for governorship. I know very well that we will settle it out in the primaries and present ourselves to the masses. I am part of those that will contest in 2015 election.

Now that there is a merger, if the APC denies General Muhammadu Buhari the presidential ticket, what would be your steps knowing that the North is his stronghold?

As a democrat, you offered yourself in an election. If you lose and the process was fair, you accept the result; simple. If Buhari offers to contest and he beloses, then whoever wins will carry the ticket of the party. He has said it himself, but if there is manipulation, that is where we will have problems. If there is imposition, we’ll have problem. We had manipulations in the last CPC primaries; that is why CPC has not been able to make any strong presence in terms of wining states and I think they have learnt their lessons. They know that imposing an unpopular candidate will not work. What we should know is that Buhari is a rallying point to most people in the North. I know he has a strong followership but if anybody will win he will do a harder work to convince the people. If he loses election on a fair platform, he has the capacity to calm people not to constitute violence because some of his supporters are also fanatical about him.

If Buhari finally picks the ticket, do you think he can beat Jonathan?

Jonathan could have simply had the chance to win without the crisis that has come now. The crisis in his party, the fact that APC is waxing stronger and that he has not been able to do his home work very well, he would not be able to win in 2015 general election. The simple arithmetic is: 11 states are opposing Jonathan and seven governors are opposing him. Even in those states he seems to have support, the masses might not likely vote him. So Buhari will win the 2015 presidential election and would be sworn in as the democratically elected president.

Would the Yoruba vote Buhari this time because in 2011 election, they voted for Jonathan?

This time round, the initiation comes from them and the merger is beyond the control of one section of the country. The political equation that will bring a Yoruba man as a vicepresident will favour the Yoruba race very well and the feature of the APC is with them and not the PDP. If you look at this, you will believe that they will certainly vote for Buhari. APC will definitely win the 2015 election by God’s grace.

Apart from General Buhari in the North, have you seen any other candidate else?

Balarabe Musa is a good candidate. I believe Col Dangiwa Umar is also a good candidate to also contest and we have so many of them. Among the seven governors, you have credible personalities that can still win. The governor of Niger State is there; Sule Lamido also has progressive credentials and Musa Kwankwaso has also performed creditably. He can as well contest the 2015 elections. On the side of the APC, all of them can perform very well.

There are speculations that Major al-Mustapha or Malam Nasir el-Rufai would contest if Buhari is not keen, what is your view on this?

I do not believe in that speculation and I do not think it is true for him to simply come out from nowhere and go in APC and contest elections. I do not think it is technically possible.

Considering the crises rocking the PDP now, what is your view on APC?

I think what the All Progressives Congress, APC should do is to learn from the crises in the PDP. It should avoid those mistakes. What divided PDP are absence of internal democracy, which is the politics of imposition and manipulation; dictatorship; politics without principles; politics without the people, and corruption, so APC needs to look at all these factors so that it will clearly avoid them and exploit the situation. APC should reach out to the seven governors with a view to accommodating them and reforming the alliance to take over governance in Nigeria because these seven governors are the key to whoever is going to win the 2015 election. If we allow them to go back to PDP, they will emerge stronger but if APC wins them over, we have added to the number and strength. We will simply take over government. These are the issues, so these few days are very critical, not just for PDP but the seven governors in deciding the fate of PDP and APC.

Do you see Alhaji Atiku Abubakar fight to finish or backing out half way?

Atiku belongs to the rich political class. He so much believes in the existing system and he is not different from those who are in power… the ideas of free market, capitalism, but I think that he is a bit different. He holds some principles and views for the very fact that he is a man who likes social issues. I do not see the possibility of his backing out because he has not been known to be someone who can go back on his views. Once he throws a dice he throws his heart on the ring. In this sense, I can tell you very well that Jonathan has wasted the goodwill of Nigerians. Northerners came out en-masse to vote for him even when some of us said they should not vote for him. To be fair to him, no government in Nigeria has appointed so many northerners into government than that of Jonathan but appointment is one thing and performance is another. Jonathan has appeased northerners more than even the South-South but those people he thought he has appointed to cover his inefficiency and failures have not been able to help matters. His vice-president he selected to help has not been able to douse the tension even within his state as far as opposition to Jonathan is concerned. I am conducting this interview with you in my house here in Kaduna but I want you to go round this part of Kaduna city.

Here in Kaduna, we have Kaduna North, Kaduna South, Chikun and Igabi. Show me any house where you will see the picture of Goodluck Jonathan. You will never see his poster even in election period. In the Christian side of Kaduna State, there are more of my pictures than his. I can tell you that this is the city where I was born. There is no family here that we do not know and will say ‘we are for Jonathan’. This is where the vice-president comes from, so he cannot even win over the city for Jonathan. You can see that Jonathan’s strategy of appointing northerners in top positions has not helped matters beloses cause those people are part of the rich class who cling to any person as far as they can be appointed in top positions. He would have been a honourable man if he had limited his quest for power. I would advise that he should not contest than for him to be defeated because Niger Delta problem will not be solved even if he remains president for the next eight years. The way Jonathan is going about it, he will lose election and then his people will lose the respect and sympathy they have with other Nigerians.

You spoke about the inability of the Vice-President to garner support for the President; what do you mean by that?

For Jonathan to choose Namadi, he must have gone for loyalty but loyalty is one thing and having the command, respect, control and capacity to mobilise is another thing. Namadi is a loyal Vice- President to Jonathan because anything he says he will accept. I am not asking Jonathan to drop him and pick another Vice-President because whoever he picks as running mate, he is not going to win. What I will ask Jonathan to do as a young president is to go back and rest. What we need right now is fresh government with fresh ideas and good policies to deliver Nigeria from bad governance, corruption, deceit and violence.