₦airaland Forum

President Barak Obama has applauded Nigeria for taking steps to restore confidence in the nation’s political system while adhering to democratic principles.  The United States leader was speaking at the White House on Monday while receiving Nigeria’s new ambassador, Professor Adebowale Ibidapo Adefuye, upon the presentation of his Letter of Credence.  Mr. Obama said the United States was encouraged by Acting President Jonathan’s public promises to strengthen democratic reforms, improve the economic environment, and address the ongoing violence and impunity seen in the Niger Delta and Jos.  “We look forward to supporting these efforts to improve the lives of all Nigeria’s citizens.”

He also commented on the upcoming US.-Nigeria Binational Commission, observing that it illustrated the desire of both nations to enhance their relationship on the basis of mutual commitment to development and peace.
In his statement, Professor Adefuye noted that the interest of the United States in Nigeria’s economic and political well-being has been one of the critical factors in the progress made in consolidating democracy in Nigeria and delivering its dividends to the people of the country.

He also acknowledged the tremendous supporting Nigeria in the achieving sustainable regional security in West Africa, as well as in the fight against corruption and economic crimes; public health development; infrastructural development; capacity building in the oil sector; strengthening democratic institutions and counter-terrorism initiatives.
“The Federal Republic of Nigeria requests that these initiatives be sustained and even increased in the following years,” the Ambassador said, as he looked forward to the successful implementation of the objectives of the Nigeria-United States Bi-National Commission, which will be launched
With reference to the Christmas Day 2009 Abdulmuttalab terror incident, Professor Adefuye said that it was condemnable, and that it has been severally condemned by Nigeria.  Without downplaying the seriousness of that event, he described it as a “one-off incident” which ought not to have warranted the classification of Nigeria as a country of interest in the fight against terrorism.

“I have been asked by His Excellency Goodluck Jonathan to again convey Nigeria’s shock at this and urge you to revisit this issue as soon as possible,” he said, reiterating Nigeria’s continued cooperation with United States institutions in the fight against terrorism.

http://www.saharareporters.com/news/5668-obama-praises-nigerias-progress-as-adefuye-presents-letter-of-credence.html

The acute transportation problem which staff and students of the 69 federal tertiary institutions in Nigeria have been facing in the last 30 years is already on the path of becoming history as the Federal Government has procured for them 138 buses worth N2 billion.

The buses, which are branded “Federal Government Mass Transit Support”, comprise of 91 Toyota 30-seater coastal buses, 27 Mercedes MBO 1721 Busscars and 20 Nissan Civilian 30-seater buses.

While speaking in Lagos at the launch of the buses, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Professor Olagoke Afolabi said the provision of the buses was made a reality through a special presidential initiative to reduce the suffering of the students and staff of the nation’s federal tertiary institutions.

This initiative, according to him, was informed by the serious challenges in mass transportation which the institutions have been contending with.

His words: “In the last three decades, the federal tertiary institutions have been plagued by a pool of unserviceable vehicles amidst the competing demands for funds. The demand for fund in the critical areas of provision of adequate physical infrastructure for these institutions has resulted in a near total neglect of mass transportation arrangements.

This hardship and the resultant loss of comfort and dignity for this social class has prompted Federal Government to decide to provide a palliative through the provision of buses for use on campuses.”

Afolabi stressed the need for all stakeholders,  including the Federal Government, private sector organisations, development partners and other public-spirited individuals to collaborate and improve the funding of tertiary education in the country, explaining that this is necessary because this sub-sector is capital intensive.

While the 27 federal universities would be given one Mercedes MBO 1721 Busscars and one 30-seater bus each, the 21 polytechnics would get two 30-seater buses each and the 21 Colleges of Education would also be given two 30-seater buses each.

The vehicles are provided with comprehensive insurance cover and motor tracking device. According to the Permanent Secretary, consideration was given to local assembly, popularity, strong after-sales back-up, good track record of performance in Nigeria environment, ease of maintenance and availability in selecting the vehicles.

The Director, Tertiary Education of the Federal Ministry of Education, Dr. Jamila Shu’ara said the special intervention of providing mass transit to tertiary institutions is timely, adding that the initiative speaks volume of the determination of the Federal Government to cater for the needs of its tertiary institutions.

Prof. Ignatius Uvah of the National Universities Commission said the intervention will go a long way in quality service delivery in the institutions, adding that quality can only be gotten through availability of resources.

Uvah urged the vice-chancellors, provosts and rectors of the federal tertiary institutions, many of whom were present at the launch, to ensure that the vehicles are put into good use, reiterating that the buses will contribute to the efficiency of the benefitting tertiary institutions.

Members of the National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) serving in Ogun State participated in a keen competition which took place last weekend at the state NYSC camp.

The event is the 2010 NYSC beauty contest which was preceded by “the Bold and Beautiful” contest, with each of the female contestants involved in cat walking the length and breath of the stage to flaunt their natural endowments.

While Miss Kelechi Precious emerged the overall winner of the beauty contest from among the 15 contestants, Abayomi Omotariogun came top among the male contestants, emerging Mr. Macho.

The Ogun State Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Bukola Ololade who presented the overall winner of the Miss NYSC Beauty contest with the star-prize of a Compaq Laptop, commended Fayrouz and Nigerian Breweries Plc for the initiative to make the camp a memorable experience for the corps members through the sponsorship of the beauty contest.

He however, urged the corps members to shun all forms of social vices and be of good behaviour as they prepare to go into the world as men and women who would become Nigerian leaders in the nearest future.

According to Ololade who was  the special guest of honour on the occasion, Nigeria is blessed not only with natural resources, but abundant human resources exemplified by the bundle of talents exhibited by the contestants at the various categories of the beauty contest.

He, however, pledged the continued support of the state government to the NYSC to enable the government achieve the objective of setting up the scheme in 1973.

Various other prizes ranging from Refrigerators to TV set with DVD players were won by the first and second runners-up, Miss Adeyelure Henrietta and Omolade Morenike Afonja, respectively.

Winner of the Mr. Macho competition, Ayobami Onotariogun went home with a giant TV set while both first and second runners-up, Earnest Onuigbo and Henry Agada won refrigerator and DVD player, respectively.

Dignitaries who witnessed the event include the Ogun State Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Bukola Ololade, Special Adviser to the Governor on Media Matters, Yemi Shodimu, Marketing Manager, Non-alcoholic Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mrs. Ifeoma Dozie as well as officials of the state NYSC and Ikenne Local Government Area.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/31/nysc-members-participate-in-contest-win-prizes/

BENIN CITY—ARMED bandits suspected to be hired assassins weekend shot dead a United States-based medical practitioner, Dr Charles Ndulue, opposite Benin Central Hospital, Sapele road, Benin City.

Also, a suspected armed robber was shot dead yesterday along Ugbowo Road, after a shootout between the police and a gang of robbers at about 11:45am.

The late Ndulue who, Vanguard learnt, just returned from the United States was driving home after church with a lady suspected to be a house maid and his little son when the dare-devil bandits struck.

The suspected assassins came in a Volkswagen Audi car and eventually escaped with it without any resistance from the security men attached to Sapele road prison, where the incident occurred.

Eye witness account said the bandits who were four in number, shot at the vehicle tyres which halted the movement of the jeep.

It was learnt that they now went for their target, pumped several bullets into him, collected his handsets and a necklace before they disappeared.

The Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, in the state, ASP Peter Peter Ogboi, who confirmed the incident, said a crack team of detectives had been assigned to unearth the killers.

“With the caliber of officers handling the case, we will get to the root of the matter. We are only appealing to people who were right there when it happened to come up and give us any information that may help us track the killers,” he said.

Ogboi, who also confirmed the shootout between his men and armed robbers who robbed some persons that went to withdraw money from the bank, said one of the robbers was shot dead while others escaped.

According to him, “the robbery suspects used Okada to trail people going to bank to cash money. So after attacking their victim along Ugbowo, we pursued the robbers and there was a shootout. One was killed, others escaped but we are on their trail. We recovered one AK7 rifle, 30 rounds of live ammunition and fire magazines and over N150,000 they stole from their victim.

“We had earlier warned that the people involved in such activities will soon meet their Waterloo. And we are very optimistic that those who escaped will be arrested soon.”

Narrating his ordeal, the victim, who craved anonymity, said  “while I was in the bank, I heard the cashier telling somebody on the phone that it is First Bank, Ugbowo. And he attended to me in less than ten minutes.”

“But I was shocked when I drove out with children, they trailed me and immediately demanded that I gave them the cash I went to collect. They collected it and ran away. But few minutes later, the police came after them and the one who collected the money from me was killed in the shoot out.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/30/gunmen-kill-us-based-doctor-in-benin/

….Offers One for Four bonus
The Zenith Bank Group has proposed a total dividend pay out of N11.3 billion and a bonus of one-for-four for the reporting period ended December 31, 2009; thus, delivering on its promise of continued enhancement of shareholders value.

The Bank’s much expected result which was released on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in Lagos Monday showed a pre-tax profit of N35 billion and a profit after tax of N20.6 billion out of which over N11 billion has been set aside for dividend payout.

During the period under review, the Zenith group recorded gross revenue of N277 billion, up from N211 billion in 2008, representing a 31% revenue growth and increasing dominance in its market share. In achieving this great feat, the group leveraged on its strong liquidity, capital base and more efficient ICT enabled service.

The result was commended by financial analysts and investors as an outstanding one, as it shows the ability of Zenith Bank to sustain its performance, raise the bar of competition and continuously meet the expectations of shareholders in the face of daunting economic challenges.

Equally impressive is the Capital Adequacy Ratio of the bank which stands at about 30%, three times the 10% regulatory minimum requirement under the Basel II framework and also above the industry average

The bank’s liquidity ratio stood at 60% and is more than double the 25% minimum regulatory requirement. This very strong liquidity position is the product of well articulated risk management policies and practices.

The shareholders’ fund of N337billion unimpaired by losses, equity to total asset ratio of 20% is a strong indication that Zenith Bank has sufficient liquidity to support its businesses and other expansion plans. No doubt, this strong capital base provides the stakeholders a high level of comfort that Zenith Bank is well placed to withstand any unexpected turbulence in the financial sector.

Analysts and investors were quick to hail the result, which enhances Zenith Bank’s reputation as a market leader especially with regard to return on investment. “This outstanding result again shows the ability of the Zenith Brand to sustain its place as the foremost bank in the country,” one analyst said.

Most observers noted that the outstanding result would further endear the bank to shareholders who have reaped excellent returns on their investment, especially since the bank went public in 2004.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/29/zenith-bank-pays-n11-3b-dividend/

The police at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, has arrested the kidnappers who abducted two female Nigerian students studying in Malaysia, while waiting for their flight.

It also arrested thieves who broke into the warehouse of the National Aviation Cargo Handling Company Plc (nahcoaviance) at the airport and made away with two plasma television sets, 21 expensive wristwatches, and seven automatic electric door handles/keys.

The commissioner in charge of airport police command, Mr. Danazumi Doma, who disclosed news of the kidnap in Lagos Today (Monday), said the two students were held for about five days before their release was secured.

He explained that the two students had gone out of the airport terminal building to buy some conveniences, when they were accosted by two men who bundled them to an unknown destination.

According to him, the kidnappers collected the mobile handsets of their victims to prevent them from getting across to anyone.

He said: “As soon as they took the girls to a safe place, they called their parents asking for a ransom of $15 million. Father of one of the girls is an engineer with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), while father of the second girl is a staff of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in Kaduna.

“It was the FAAN engineer who cried to us that his daughter and her friend had been kidnapped and we followed up the lead. From $15 million, the kidnappers came down to N1 million for the FAAN staff and N1.3 million from the NNPC staff.”

The commissioner said parents of the kidnapped girls were encouraged by his men to play along the kidnappers who asked that the ransom be paid into an account in Lagos, from where it would be transferred to Malaysia.

According to him, the kidnappers successfully collected the first N1 million that was paid into the designated account and it was at the point of collecting the N1.3 million that the suspects were arrested.

He said the command had, however, recovered the N1 million the kidnappers collected from the parents of one of the girls.

The police commissioner, who disclosed that the kidnap occurred last month, said the command was in touch with the International Police Organisation (Interpol) to track down their international collaborators in Malaysia, adding that those arrested here would soon be charged to court.

“We are in touch with Interpol and they have promised to help track down members of the kidnap syndicate in Malaysia, but the ones we have arrested here would soon appear in court. We have the N1 million ransom paid to the kidnappers and we intend to use it as exhibit in court,” he said.

Doma also said the command arrested thieves who connived with a NAHCO staff to break into the warehouse of NAHCo at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, stealing two plasma television sets, 100 packets of new Nokia 5300 handsets, 21 expensive wristwatches and seven automatic electric door handles/keys.

The commissioner, who displayed the stolen items before newsmen, said all the items were recovered by the police, adding that the suspects would soon be charged to court.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/29/police-arrest-kidnappers-of-two-nigerian-students-at-lagos-airport/

Twenty-Four illegal immigrants suspected to be mercenaries from Niger Republic were weekend nabbed by operatives of the Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, in Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State.

The illegal immigrants, according to Immigration sources, were discovered in a lorry in veiled clothes and when quizzed, it was revealed that they entered the country without the required travelling documents.

Vanguard further gathered from sources that the immigrants made up of mainly men, were suspected to be people of questionable characters.

Our source also hinted that after due interrogations, the immigrants were discovered to be suspected mercenaries whose destination was yet to be ascertained by the authorities.

But it was gathered that they were allegedly brought into the state by a yet-to-be identified group.

Meanwhile, the Immigration Service has said security and paramilitary agencies in the state were living no stone unturned to keep vigil over religious extremists who may want to cash in on the crisis in Jos to cause trouble in Benue State.

The Benue State Police Command had a month ago arrested over 80 persons around Tito Gate in Makurdi, suspected to be criminals imported to cause a breach of the peace in the state.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/29/suspected-mercenaries-from-niger-republic-nabbed-in-benue/

The Federal Government has declared Friday, 2 April (Good Friday) and Monday, 5 April (Easter Monday) as public holidays in accordance with the Christian calendar.

Interior Ministry’s permanent secretary, Dr.  Dere Awosika, who made the announcement on behalf of the Federal Government, enjoined all to reflect on the lessons of Easter.

She said Christ’s simple and sacrificial life and strict adherence to His teachings as enshrined in the Holy Book should be the guiding light for all Christians to emulate.

The permanent secretary tasked Nigerians to use this sober celebration to pray fervently for peace and progress for Nigeria

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/28/easter-fg-declares-april-2-5-as-holidays/

Kunmi Oluleye is one woman, who could best be described as an enigma. She is many things rolled into one. She is a prominent entertainment promoter, international consultant and motivational speaker.
Born in Lagos, Oluleye moved to the United States at the age of 14, where she went to school. She has over 15 years of experience in food technology, consulting and corporate event planning.
Oluleye spoke on her role as a rebranding consultant and the movie industry generally.

The government adopted the slogan, ‘Good people, Great nation,’ as catch phrase for Nigeria.

Do you think this is appropriate?
It is appropriate because we are good people. This is a great nation because we have so many resources that we are abusing or mismanaging. Believe it or not, the people are one of the greatest assets Nigeria has and I feel that criticism of where we are is not the solution to getting us to where we need to be. We have to be able to criticize, on one hand and offer a solution on the other hand.

What I would be doing with the ministry is finding innovative ways to engage Nigerians abroad in being proud of who they are. Given the financial constraints of our brothers and sisters, it is hard to find trustworthy people, who you could partner with in Nigerians. Rebranding, for me, is kind of a re-orientation. One of my slogans is rebranding starts with me. You and I have to take the power of our existence into our hands. We can’t wait for government. We see that the government has failed in many ways. We see the government does not pay attention where there is need.

How would Nollywood assist in the rebranding project?
I’m not sure Nollywood would assist because those stars, who are in a position to attract attention are not taking, in my opinion, the rebranding initiative seriously. I am hoping that we can develop new stars and new producers, who are going to produce movies that edify Nigeria. I think if Nollywood quit making movies about voodoo, infidelity and other vices it would go a long way in helping us. It does not speak well of us outside Nigeria. For me, those producers should start making movies that would portray Nigeria in a better light.
For example, we have the electricity issues. Let’s make a movie, where we deal with the issue of not having light.

On-line streaming
This is where people watch the movie and shows on line. They log onto their computers and go online. It is a membership-based system. On the supply side, you the producer can upload your content to me. My system will encode it appropriately, so that she can now log in and pay in whatever the price is; watch it for seven or so days and then download it. So therefore it stays protected now. On the other side I also have the piracy law enforcement on my side. The ministry has given me authority to lock down the pirates in the US only. So if I were to find that movie on a DVD anywhere in a store in the United States, that person would have to pay consequences, they are no good to me locked up. I will make them to pay for whatever the damages I come up with and make it public so that other people would not follow suit.

How is Nollywood viewed abroad?
Nollywood has many fans, in the Caribbean and among African-Americans. For the Nigerian, it’s a way to connect back home, because they are not home. For the African American, it’s a curiosity thing; they want to see what is happening in Africa. The Caribbean feel the same way. They see the movies as different from the other ones they’ve seen. Most of the script is surrounding voodoo, witchcraft, things that don’t do much good for us. For the educated ones, they are not watching it. How can you make a movie in one week, two weeks or one month?

Filmmaker’s frustration
My take is that even if the government does not lend its support, there are many in the private sector that can be engaged to achieve the desired goals. However, the Nollywood house is dysfunctional. People are not together; they are backbiting each other. There was a Nollywood tour I put together last September and October. They didn’t seem to be coherent. Things were just not working out the way they should and I actually gave up on that tour. There was actually a person, who did something to circumvent my effort by putting together an identical Nollywood tour for Uganda. Instead of us working together, we try to circumvent each other. That is the issue with the Nollywoood camp.

I think that until Nollywoood puts its house in order, I don’t see the filmmakers making much progress. I fear that Nollywood maybe non-existent in two years because of piracy. No bank would be willing to invest in any of the movie production and if the story line continues the way it is, corporate body would not want to be identified with it. No company will want its brand associated with such derogatory exposure.
Don’t get me wrong. There are many great movies that have come out of Nigeria. Kingsley Ogoro makes great movies, like Wisdom, Osuofia in London, among others. There are great movies, but then we need to get a system in place for the distribution channels. Let us not look at government for distribution channels. There are rules of engagements that we must establish.

What propelled you to go into entertainment?
In 2003, my husband lost his job, six digits job in the US and I had to figure out how to survive. People always say Kunmi, you are such an awesome cook and I have to say that it is definitely the grace of God. I sat down, wrote Wal-Mart a letter. I filled out this form and sent them empty packaging. Three weeks later, they came back and said they would give me 29 stores. The rest is history. When the food business was not selling as fast as I wanted it, I thought of how to boost sales. Somebody approached me and said since I had such a relation with Wal-Mart and this other US buyers, could I take Nigerian films into the market? At that point, I didn’t know anything about Nigerian films.

This was in 2006. I was born in Nigeria but sent to the US when I was 14. They sent me a number of Nigerian films, which I watched. They were interesting. I had put up what I called the African dinner and 70 to 100 people would show up. They paid $20 and watched films from Nigeria. It actually helped me sell my food. So it did help me to use entertainment to boost my food sales.
Now, am no longer in the supermarket. I am strictly online and my online subscribers are about 33,000. I wish they would buy food every month and I figured that that would be a market to expose quality African market.

Where would you be in five years from now?
I should own a number of theatres, which will focus strictly on African movies. I should have Google buying this site am about to launch, for like $20b dollars.

What would you do with that kind of money?
I would come back home. I would help rebuild our country. I would set up shelter for the homeless. I would encourage and invest in agriculture. I would set up factories here and produce food in the quality and standards the global world accepts.

While most Nigerians are dying to travel abroad, people like you want to come home. Could you explain this contradiction?
We don’t know what we have. Why do the white people, who come into this country stay? There are white people in this country, who have been here for over 30 years. We don’t appreciate what we have. Ghanaians are returning home in droves because they have a leader and people say home is the best. When we did the nutrition fact for my food, ewedu has 210 percent Vitamin C, 100 percent Vitamin A. They were shocked when they did it and they did it three times because they didn’t believe that African vegetables have such level of vitamins and minerals. Egusi that we eat with the spinach is an anti-cancer food. If you eat it three or four times a week you will reduce the risk of contracting cancer. We don’t understand that we are so blessed in this country.

After about 30 years of service, Major General Saleh Maina, one of the finest Nigerian Army officer’s and the General Officer Commanding the 3rd Armoured Division of the Nigerian Army, was decorated with the enviable rank of Major General by the Chief of Army Chief, Lt. General Luka N Yusuf, on December 11, 2007 with the approval of the Commander in Chief. Recently, as GOC 3 Division, Maina has been in the eye of the storm.

He has not only come under fire of the Christians and Muslims in Jos, once reputed as the nation’s most peaceful city. The Beroms, who pride themselves as the original owners of Jos and the Hausa-Fulani settlers who feel they have invested their livelihood and made Jos what it is today, hence they should be seen as partners in the progress of the State.

Gen. Maina
Both feel General Maina is not protecting their interest. He has been called a killer, villain, supporter of Muslim against Christian, one who has asked soldiers to turn the other way when Fulani’s are killing Christians and one who has directed soldiers under his command to protect Muslims against Christians whenever Christians attack Muslims, thereby exposing Christians to Army gunfire.

In this revealing interview with Saturday Vanguard at the Maxwell Khobe headquarters barrack of the 3rd Armoured Division, the General who taught in all the military institutions in the Nigerian military at one point in his carrier, bares it all about the Jos crisis.

GOC, between January and this month, there have been two major crises first in Kurujenta where mostly Muslims lost their lives and Dogo Na Hauwa where Fulani herdsmen massacred mostly Christians and Berom indigenes. There are allegations that the Nigerian Army under your command, here in Jos, looked the other when the Fulanis were killing the Christians and Berom people. What is your response to this?

That is absolute nonsense. Who made the allegations in the first place? I have always been a professional soldier. I have taken all assignments sincerely and with all seriousness. I do my job without any sentiments or negative sentiments whatsoever and I have the credentials to prove that.

I took part in quelling the Maitatsine crises in 1983 in Maiduguri ; I oversaw the Boko Haram crises dispassionately in Maiduguri . 95 per cent or more of the victims of the Boko Haram crisis were Muslims and I am a Muslim and I did my job without any negative bias whatsoever. And same thing with the Kala-kato incident that took place in Bauchi last year. It’s the same thing with this one.

In fact, let me tell you, my Chief of Staff who is the over all planner of the operation is a Christian, the operations officer, who sectorize Jos, who divided Jos and environs into sectors, who selected the Commanders for each sector, who decides which troops from which unit or formation go to which sector is a Christian. So how or on wh

at ground would I have taken sides in the operation. How? It is not possible. I don’t go down to start carrying a particular soldier or soldiers or group of soldiers to any particular location. The officers that did the deployment are Christians.

If I may go further, I will tell you that my driver whom I have been with for the past three to four years, from Brigade Commander, Ilorin to Commander Armoured Corp in Bauchi to date, is a Christian and during this operation, we went to all the places together.

My cook is a Christian. The boy taking care of my house, in fact, my own bedroom who knows my bedroom much better than myself, who knows where I keep everything including my money, is not only a Christian, he is from Plateau state. In fact, I didn’t know he was from Plateau state until I went for the burial of a brother of the Deputy Governor of the state at Shendam.

My Personal assistant is a Christian. My Personal Secretary too, who handles my letters, open and reads my e-mail messages is a Christian. My orderly is also a Christian. So I don’t do my job based on or influenced by any form of bias or as you said taking sides. I am very, very disappointed by these allegations. Your religion is your personal business.

So why do you think that they are making these kinds of allegations against you

Well, let them say it or ask them because I wouldn’t say I know but perhaps if you do some little research or what you call investigative journalism, perhaps, you will get all the answers. You know that Jos crises didn’t start today. It didn’t start on the 17th of January, 2010. I will stop there for now.

GOC, Does it mean that they have no confidence in your leadership and are calling for your removal or your withdrawal of the military?

Calling for my removal as GOC does not mean not having confidence in the military. The military is the backbone of this country and I will say of any country. Personally, I am just an individual, so anybody asking for my removal, perhaps the person should answer why. But I will like to state that the present GOC, that is my humble self, did not cause the problem in Jos and I will not be the solution to the problem in Jos.

I am the 25th GOC since 1967 when 3rd division was created and headed first by Colonel Benjamin Adekunle. I am the 25th GOC in about 43 years, that’s an average of less than 2 years. In fact, there was a GOC that spent less than 3 months. So if you remove me as GOC, you will appoint somebody else as GOC. As I said, I am the 25th GOC in 43 years.

Jos or Plateau State is just one of the states under your area of responsibility as GOC 3rd Armoured Division and knowing the military, you must have done some research or underground work when you took over. Why do you think this crisis persists?

Well, I will answer you perhaps indirectly but most sincerely. I don’t want to be dragged into politics or making political statements. But the simple and true answer to your question is that those who should know, know exactly what the problems are or what the causes of the conflicts are. And nobody, I repeat, nobody has made any sincere effort to address any of the issues sincerely.

That is why many of the conflict keep recurring, that is why the crisis keeps occurring. I want to commend Acting President Goodluck Jonathan for setting up the Solomon Lar Committee in the sense that that committee is tasked, I understand, I have not read their terms of reference, to identify the problems, advise government on how to resolve the problems and further than that, advise the government on how each organ of government, each tier of government as well as related organizations will carry out their roles specifically in solving the problems.

If that Committee does its job properly and the government responds positively, by God’s grace, the problems will be solved once and for all. It requires sincerity of identifying the problems which I have said are known, sincerity in working out solutions which are very easy; because once you know the problems, you know the solutions and sincerity of purpose in working out the solutions, identifying which organization and which tier of government will carry out what role in solving the problem.

GOC after the attacks on Dogo Na Hauwa and neighbouring villages, the Governor, Jonah Jang told the media that he called you several times and sent you text messages informing you of the impending attack but you never responded to those messages until the mayhem was carried out. What do you have to say to these allegations

As I said during my press conference on Thursday 11th of March, the governor did not call me, did not send me any text message neither did any of the government officials on impending attack on Dogo Na Hauwa and surrounding villages. At the same conference, I stated very clearly that the Governor couldn’t have told journalists that he called me because he did not.

And I stated his credentials as to why I made that statement. That he was a former Governor of two states. He is my retired senior colleague and I am his subordinate and today he is the chief executive and chief security officer of a whole State in crisis. He knows he didn’t call me, he wouldn’t have said he called me and neither did any of his government officials.

And I did mention the text messages that were sent to my officers, not to me, and there contents. The Dogo Na Hauwa attacks took place between 1. 30 am to 2 am in the morning and the first message my officers received about Dogo Na Hauwa was about 3. 41 am on that Sunday morning. And I read that text message, the three text messages, word for word to journalists.

I was very disappointed that some part of the print media, misconstrued, misunderstood, misrepresented and misinformed the public and was apportioning blame on the military. As a matter of fact, on Monday 15th of March, I led a team of security officers to the Governor, and we discussed a lot of issues on how to go forward in solving the crisis and our operations, of which we are getting support from the government.

There, the Governor reconfirmed, that he never called me and never text me any message on Dogo Na Hauwa, Rasat, Natum and other villages and he said that in presence of the Police Commissioner, Mr. Ike Aduba, in presence of the new Director of State Security, my chief of staff, my operations officer, my intelligence officer, and even my ADC was there.

I don’t know why journalists keep either lying or misrepresenting or misquoting individuals. Perhaps, you guys are trying to put me on collision course with the Governor a
nd spoil the relationship that the Task Force is having with the State government in our collective efforts to enjoy peace in Plateau State.

What is your personal relationship with the Governor?

I have an official relationship with the governor and it is working well. We meet as often as possible. My officers are members of the State Security Council and where there is an issue that requires my being at the meeting, as happened in 19th of January, I attend. On the 17th February, I went to the Governor with my officers when the situation was about to degenerate, following attacks during burials.

And as I said, on Monday 15th of March, I went to visit him and we had a very cordial relationship. We discussed the way forward in resolving the ongoing crisis. I am enjoying very good relationship with him at both personal and official levels and I am pleading with journalists not to spoil it.

You said you were misquoted, misrepresented and misconstrued by journalists. Can you let us into the text messages you said your officers received?

What I said that day was that I did not receive any text message or phone calls from any government officials prior to the attack on Dogo Na Hauwa, Rasat, Foru and Natum and I still maintain that. However, I mentioned that my officers received 3 text messages that night to early morning and I read them out, word for word. The first one that ever mentioned Dogo Na Hauwa was received at 19 minutes to 4 am and it says, ‘Reports Coming in, Fulani’s operating at Dogo Na Hauwa, Please Check’, that is what my officer received and this was at 19 minutes to 4.
Meanwhile, our officers, on sighting a huge ball of fire on the horizon, shortly after 2 am, found there way with all difficulty at that night to trace Dogo Na Hauwa with troops.

The officer arrived there at about 10 minutes to 3 am. So you can see that the first text message was received by my officers on the attack, about 1 hour after my officers had got there and about 1 hour after the attacks had taken place. So what are they blaming us for? In fact, we are
supposed to be commended for our initiative for on sighting fire in the middle of the night, our men rushed to the scene to do our best to arrest the situation and prevent further carnage.

GOC We had information, that before the attack, the villagers were informed on three occasions through phones and text messages by the Fulani’s that they were coming to attack them. Was any of these report or threats made available to the security agencies

I am not aware of any at all. At the press conference that I had shortly after the military took over command of the operation, when we did the paper work on the 21st of January, I gave 3 telephone help lines through which anybody in distress, or with information should call us and these phone numbers were circulated and none of these phone lines received any calls, neither were calls received through any of the officers personal phone lines.

We gave MTN, ZAIN and GLO phone lines. No officer received any of the messages you are talking about either through voice or text messages. And let me tell you, all the text messages, all the phone calls, all the distress calls we received, we reacted to all, even though more than 90 per cent of them turned out to be hoax and false. I kept a mobile reserve of 200 officers and men to react to distress calls. 200 mobile reserve, ready to go out at any time round the clock, and we have been responding, even up till last night, when somebody called that armed robbers were attacking the place and we went there, it was all false.

GOC there is controversy over the number of persons killed. We like to hear from you, how many people were killed at Dogo Na Hauwa and surrounding villages. Government said 500 people were killed, and do you think it is a reprisal attack based on the January attack against the Fulani’s in Kurujenta

The Police Commissioner has addressed a world press conference where he gave the figures that were finally interred. He went there with the coroner; they did everything they were supposed to do and arrived at the figure. As I’ve said he did his job professionally by involving a coroner and taking full records of what they saw physically. Regarding reprisal, I don’t know; I don know whether it was a reprisal attack or not. My job is to stop the mayhem, stop killings, stop the destruction, stop the threats to lives and property, arrest perpetrators, using any legal means, if it means using my firearms I use it. If it means using other means, I use them. I don’t want to be dragged into politics.

In drawing out troops for Internal Security operations, like that of Jos for instance, was the proper procedure followed?

Yes the normal procedure was followed to the best of my knowledge. At the highest level, if you didn’t see the paper work, at least, we all saw the Acting President on television telling Nigerians that he has authorized the military to take over the entire security operations to restore law and order in Jos and other parts of Plateau state. That is at the highest level.

At my level, through the normal hierarchy, I got instructions, I got orders to take over and in taking over, the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abass who retired shortly after I took over Command of the operation, we did the necessary documentation, we discussed, we signed the papers in my office. We went to the Governor, we discussed with the Governor and his representatives signed the paper. So the normal procedure was followed to the letter. To the best of my knowledge, it was followed to the letter.

Can you let us into the challenges you have encountered in the course of your trying to contain the Jos crisis since you took over

Well, as I said. I am enjoying the logistics, administrative and moral support of my superiors, that is at Defence headquarters, Army headquarters as well as the Plateau state government, as far as the operation is concerned. However, we have four major challenges to our operation. . The first one is inflammatory or inciting statements by those who ought to preach peace especially in the prevailing circumstances. The second is the large number of unemployed youths who do not seem to be under any form of authority and who are very ready or willing manpower to cause mayhem.

The third one is rumour mongering especially the very inciting messages that are sent using mobile phones. The fourth one is the press. Sometimes, I wonder if you guys are Nigerians. If only you know the level of damage you are doing to your country in an apparent attempt to discredit your armed forces. You do not see American journalists criticizing their military. Perhaps they criticize government policy but not it’s military.

Okay GOC what in your opinion is the solution to this crisis and how do we move forward

I told you earlier that I would not be dragged into politics or making political statements. The indicators perhaps came out in 1964, 1974. The situation really got bad I think in the early 90’s, 2001, 2004, 2008 to date. So the causes of the conflict are known. As I said earlier, the Solomon Lar Committee is working on it and I am sure if they work sincerely, they will bring these things out including the solutions and how to implement the solutions. I wouldn’t want to be dragged into that.

How have your men been able to rise to the challenges the crisis posed.

Well, so far we are doing the best we can. I just want to ask for the patience of Nigerians to understand the situation, what maintenance of law and order or internal security operations mean. Because a lot of people don’t have an idea. They think when you call in the military, then it is automatic, everything stops.

It may not often be like that. The Kala Kato crisis finished within hours, the Boko Haram crisis took about 3 to 4 days. We thank God, when I arrived there ( Maiduguri ), within 30 hours, it was all over. That of Maitatsine took a few days. I am talking about the one that I participated. Well, this one has been recurring, that is why I said the problems are known and nobody has done anything, anything to address the issues.

Now going back to these antecedents you have enumerated, how do you feel when people say General Maina is a failure, General Maina is a killer or General Maina is a villain

I feel very, very sad. Because like I said, there are lots of ignorance. Part of the earlier question that I didn’t finish was that in internal security operations, sometimes or more often than not, those challenging law and order, tend to have the initiative and that is how it happens anywhere be it guerilla warfare or sabotage. So you find that in a lot of circumstances, a lot of situation, you are responding. No matter how proactive you tend to be, you find that to a large extent, you are responding.

So as I said, I am appealing to Nigerians to understand. Let’s take a look around the world, let’s not go too far. In Northern Ireland , the British forces have been there for more than 30 years. Even about 2 or 3 weeks ago, I think there was a bomb blast there.

America has over 100, 000 troops in Afghanistan, up to tomorrow, there are attacks. Same thing with Pakistan , even the Army headquarters was attacked; the military headquarters was attacked many times in the centre of the city or inside the capital ci
ty. So Nigerians should be patient, its not that you bring in the military and therefore everything stops, no.

At this juncture, can we know about the person, Major General Saleh Maina?

In one sentence, I am a patriotic Nigerian Army Armoured Corps Officer. Before I was appointed and took over as the General Officer Commanding 3rd Armoured Division of the Nigerian Army, I was the Commander Nigeria, Army Armoured Corps, which was the proudest moment in my career. But far back, I was an instructor at the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna.

I was a Directing Staff at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College , Jaji. From there I went to Ghana and I was a Directing Staff at Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College , Techie, Accra . When I came back in 1999/2000, I was made Chief Instructor at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College .

After my War College, a year or two later, I was recalled back to be a Directing Staff at the National War College, now NDC and later its Principal Staff Officer, Coordination. I was also Brigade Commander, 22 Brigade, Ilorin and I have also had Combat experience in the defence of this country when we had problems with a neighbouring country in 1983. I know

what it means to make the sacrifice in the defence of this country. I recall that there was a time that I and my colleague were even abandoned in one of the objectives. Let me not sound as if I am trying to blow my trumpet. Anyway I want to say that I know what it means to carry out instructions and command troops in the defence of my country. I know what it means to bury the enemy and my own dead. I also have a Masters degree from the University of Ibadan in Strategic Studies.

All together, I have put in more than 30 years of commissioned service without blemish for which I was awarded the Grand Service Star. I have other awards like Corps Medal of Honour and Foreign Training Assistance Medal. At the end of my meritorious service at the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College , they awarded me with the meritorious honour of Dagger (+).

GOC recently, there were some derogatory comments and insinuations made about your person following the outbreak of the attacks on villages. In one interview granted by General Bali, former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, he called you names. What is your response to this?

Well, as a military officer, we have ethics and as young officers, we were taught to respect and look up to our seniors. I was a very junior officer, a Captain, going to Major when Bali was a 3-star General, so I cannot exchange words with him; it would be against military ethics and disrespectful to a senior General. However, I would like to chip-in a word of advice to our officers while they are in service. They should endeavor to prepare for life in retirement.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/27/jos-crisis-goc-explodes/

Flying Eagles of Nigeria have drawn bye as CAF yesterday released the draws of the Under 20 Championship, Libya 2011, just as Nigerian referee, Ogunyamodi has earned his first international cap.

The preliminary round will see 48 teams in contention. However, due to the withdrawal of Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, Uganda and Namibia have qualified for the next round of the competition.

Nigeria and 17 other countries have drawn bye, including Ghana, Cameroun, Morocco, Zambia, Sudan, Egypt and Cote d’ Ivoire.

Nigeria will make her debut in the competition in the week end of July 23, 24, 25 when she will host the winner of the match between Togo and Guinea.

If Nigeria scales that hurdle, she will come face to face with Zambia, who are likely to triumph over either Mauritius or the Comoros.

Nigeria’s Bolaji Ojo-Oba will be the match commissioner when Togo host Guinea on April 17 2010.

Referee Ogunyamodi, 30, from Ondo State will lead compatriots, Baba Abel (Kogi) and Barau Auwala (Kaduna) to handle the match between Equitorial Guinea and Gabon on April 17.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/26/17th-orangecaf-u-20-championship-nigeria-draws-bye/

Preparations for the kick-off of the third edition of the Lagos/MTN Street Soccer Championship has reached advanced stage with the State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola expected to kick-off the championship today at the Campos Square Mini Stadium, with plans already concluded for the live broadcast of the opening ceremony.

This much was disclosed by Commissioner for Youth, Sport and Social Development, Prince Ademola Adeniji-Adele at the unveiling of “Live The Dream”, the State’s 2010 Sports programme at LTV, Ikeja, Combo Hall on Wednesday.

The championship that has over 1,000 streets registered to participate, will be played in over 57 pitches across the state will see Lagos Television boardcasting the opening match live not only on the local sation but also on SuperSports where LTV has a channel .
He stated that a Local organising committee, LOC has been set-up in all the Local Governments and the Local Council Development Area, LCDA’s for easy organisation of the championship, adding that after the preliminaries where two streets will emerge to represent the Local
government Area, the championship will go into the group stage to be played in eight centres across the state.

The Championship  will attract N5 million as price money for the winner, while the first and second runners-up will get N3 million and N2 million naira and consolation price for the 4th placed team.

He also revealed that as part of efforts to encourage the participating teams, all the first three teams will go a trip to South Africa for 12 days during the 2010 World Cup to watch the Super Eagles group matches.

CONTRARY to speculations that ailing President Umaru Yar’adua was going to pray at the Abuja National Mosque yesterday, Nigerians were once again thrown into a world of guessing and insinuations as he failed to show up for the Friday prayers.

News filtered round the nation’s capital city Abuja that he was billed to come to the National Mosque for the Friday prayers. The eagerness to see him was against the backdrop that Nigerians have not seen their President since he was said to have returned to the country in the early hours of 23, February, 2010 having spent solid ninety three days in far away Saudi Arabia on medical attention.

It would be recalled that President Yar’Adua sneaked out of the country November 23, 2009.

To buttress the fact that there was no sign that he was coming to the place on Friday when the correspondent visited the place was that the normal Friday market in and around the Mosque was not in any way affected as people who came with their wares went about with their businesses, no one stopped vehicles from moving and security was not beefed up at the place as against how it used to be when the President was coming to the place.

Even a Toyota car that caught fire and was put off with the intervention of the people was left at the centre of the road even till after the prayer session. From Sheraton Hotel road to Shehu Yar’Adua Centre down the Energy Commission of Nigeria road never witnessed police presence. Same applied to the road linking John Holt plc, Tofa House all located in the Central Area, Garki, Abuja and the entrance of the mosque where the President and top personalities take, did not witness heavy police presence except for three horses climbed by three policemen and a handful of policemen.

There were few policemen taking instructions from DSP I.A. Mohammed except for other uniformed men who came to pray. There was also the absence of anti-bomb vehicles, State security, Military men, all were indications that President Yar’Adua was not coming.

It was also gathered that if the President was coming, the sitting arrangement would have been adjusted to accommodate him. Other Nigerians who were ready to see the President were at the National Mosque including the high and mighty all in a bid to see him. The Almajiris, Kolanut sellers, those involved in pedicure (local nail cutters), a colony of Lepers, and other beggars were not left out on Friday and they left disappointed as the President never came.

This correspondent who was right inside the premises of the mosque, infact the gate of the entrance to the main hall of the Mosque before the prayer time and after, never saw a resemblance of the President come out of the Mosque nor the President himself after the prayer session.

Those who walked out at the close of the Friday prayer were the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mallam Yayale Ahmed, Speaker House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole who came out at 2.36pm, former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), Amadu Ali, former Minister of Solid Minerals, Sarafa Ishola, Deputy National Chairman, PDP, Bello Haliru Mohammed and the Chief Imam of Abuja National Mosque, Alhaji Musa Mohammed who came out at exactly 2.45pm.

Answering questions from some Journalists who were at the place, the Chief Imam, Musa Mohammed who disclosed that the sermon he had centered round the issue of leadership and that leaders must have the fear of God, said our leaders must use their money to build houses as well as enjoy with their wives and not the government’s money.

It would be recalled that since Nigerians were shocked on reading in the pages of newspapers of President Yar’dua’s return to the country after 93 days in Saudi Arabia, there have been series of rumours surrounding him, infact it has become the myth of Yar’adua akin to ‘the Myth of Sisyphus’. Nigerians wake up everyday with one insinuation after the other just like people were made to almost believe that nothing was going to stop him from having his Friday prayers at the National Mosque.

Before yesterday, there were reports about him that looked real, first, he was said to be playing Squash, seen riding a horse as well as jogging in his house. Three weeks ago, President Yar’adua was also billed to host members of the Executive Council to a dinner which never happened.

Last week Monday, it was reported that he was going to have a nationwide broadcast to signal his resumption of work as early as Monday on Wednesday next week, Nigerians waited for the broadcast like the characters in Samuel Beckett’s ‘Waiting for Godott’ and the days came to pass without the broadcast the same way the rumour of his coming to Mosque on Friday also did not hold waters.

Also last week, it was reported in one of the newspapers(not Vanguard) that President Yar’Adua would resume office next week, adding that he will be fit to resume work by the end of next month.

The Supreme Court has confirmed the death sentences passed on Samuel Attah, Vincent Friday, Ikechukwu Sunday and Hyginus Oformata for armed robbery by the Federal High Court Kano.

Justice Olufunke Adekeye, who delivered the judgment prepared by Justice Dahiru Musdapher, said that the trial court exercised its discretion based on the evidence placed before it.

“Having considered all the identical issues in the appeals with numbers SC/44/2009 and SC/45/2009, we collectively resolved them against the appellants. The two identical appeals are therefore dismissed by me and I affirm the decisions of the lower courts,’’ Musdapher said.

Samuel Attah and Vincent Friday yesterday, convicted for the same offence, filed two separate appeals against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Kaduna, on January 6, 2009, confirming the death sentences passed on them.

At the hearing of the appeals, the appellate court had directed the appellants to consolidate their issues since the briefs were identical.

The appellants had sought to know whether the discretion of the trial judge who granted a leave to prefer charges against them was exercised in accordance with the law.

They also sought a declaration on whether there was enough credible and admissible evidence before the Court of Appeal, Kaduna, that affirmed their sentences.

The appellants sought a further clarification on whether the non-compliance of the judgment of the trial court with the mandatory provisions of section 269 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Code did not vitiate the entire proceedings.

The appeal sought further answer to whether the appellants’ defence of “alibi” were adequately considered and rightly rejected by the lower courts.

The appellants had prayed the apex court to verify whether the Court of Appeal was right to hold that an identification parade was unnecessary.

The appellants in their briefs contended that the leave granted to prefer the charge before the trial court ran contrary to the provisions of Section 185 (b) of the Criminal Procedure Code of Kano State.

They submitted that the action also violated the Criminal Procedure Application for leave to prefer a charge in the High Court Rules 1970 because the proofs of evidence of the witnesses were not accompanied with the application.

The Supreme Court has confirmed the death sentences passed on Samuel Attah, Vincent Friday, Ikechukwu Sunday and Hyginus Oformata for armed robbery by the Federal High Court Kano.

Justice Olufunke Adekeye, who delivered the judgment prepared by Justice Dahiru Musdapher, said that the trial court exercised its discretion based on the evidence placed before it.

“Having considered all the identical issues in the appeals with numbers SC/44/2009 and SC/45/2009, we collectively resolved them against the appellants. The two identical appeals are therefore dismissed by me and I affirm the decisions of the lower courts,’’ Musdapher said.

Samuel Attah and Vincent Friday yesterday, convicted for the same offence, filed two separate appeals against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Kaduna, on January 6, 2009, confirming the death sentences passed on them.

At the hearing of the appeals, the appellate court had directed the appellants to consolidate their issues since the briefs were identical.

The appellants had sought to know whether the discretion of the trial judge who granted a leave to prefer charges against them was exercised in accordance with the law.

They also sought a declaration on whether there was enough credible and admissible evidence before the Court of Appeal, Kaduna, that affirmed their sentences.

The appellants sought a further clarification on whether the non-compliance of the judgment of the trial court with the mandatory provisions of section 269 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Code did not vitiate the entire proceedings.

The appeal sought further answer to whether the appellants’ defence of “alibi” were adequately considered and rightly rejected by the lower courts.

The appellants had prayed the apex court to verify whether the Court of Appeal was right to hold that an identification parade was unnecessary.

The appellants in their briefs contended that the leave granted to prefer the charge before the trial court ran contrary to the provisions of Section 185 (b) of the Criminal Procedure Code of Kano State.

They submitted that the action also violated the Criminal Procedure Application for leave to prefer a charge in the High Court Rules 1970 because the proofs of evidence of the witnesses were not accompanied with the application.

LAGOS—THERE was palpable panic in some areas of Lagos including Ogba/Ikeja axis, yesterday afternoon as the heavens opened its bowels, releasing what people feared was the rumoured acid rain.

The heavy rain left cream-coloured dusty deposits on vehicles.

Vanguard’s Entertainment editor, Mr. Ogbonnaya Amadi, who witnessed the downpour, said the rainwater smelled like a disinfectant, and whitish in colour. Amadi had the cream-coloured deposits on his car to prove his point.

Assistant General Manager, Central Forecast Office of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency, NIMET, Mr. Cyprian Okoloye, in a telephone conversation with Vanguard, said the agency had not received the report but stressed that there was absolutely no need to fear as the milk colour of the rainwater could be attributed to the heavy dust the nation has been witnessing for some days now.

Earlier, the Director, Research and Training, of NIMET, Mrs. Modupe Ogunwale had told Vanguard in an interview in Lagos, that for now, people should not expect rainwater to be clean as a result of the heavy dust in the atmosphere, noting the water would only be good for agricultural purposes and not for domestic use.

Reports from Port Harcourt

Similar reports from Port Harcourt, Wednesday, said people took to their heels as soon as the rain started. According to the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, the rain which lasted for about 20 minutes left salty particles on vehicles with which it came in contact.

It would be recalled that text messages sent to people last week had warned of the impending acid rain to be expected between March 20 and 28.
Reacting to the text message, Tuesday, NIMET’s Acting Director, Weather Forecasting Services, Mr. Ifeanyi Nnodu, while speaking at the World Meteorological Day celebration in Lagos, said the acid rain which would be expected in Lagos and Port Harcourt because of the industrial nature of the two cities, would not be acidic enough to cause cancer or any other debilitating health problem.

NASA official dispels acid rain rumour

Meantime, a meteorologist at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA, an independent agency of the United States government responsible for aviation and spaceflight, earlier in the week described reports that acid rains are due to fall from March 20 to 28 as inaccurate and false.

A Jet Propulsion Laboratory, JPL, expert with NASA, Bill Patzert in his response to an inquiry on Monday said a black or dark circle around the moon is a common occurrence in space and has no relationship whatsoever with acid rain.

He noted: “Dark circles around the moon are more common than you realize. Basically it’s an optical illusion when you get very clear skies and fine ice particles in the upper atmosphere.

“What you get is the moon, a dark circle round it, then a sky lit up with diffracted moonlight. It looks pretty, that is all. Nothing mystical or para-normal at all.”

Many persons at home and abroad have been receiving messages on their phones, emails and blogs warning of the possibility of acid rain allegedly emanating from NASA, which could not be verified.

One message said: “There is a possibility of acid rain. The dark circle appeared around the moon on March 17 and this was an indication of an acid rain. Apparently, this happens once in 750 years. It rains like normal rain, but it may cause skin cancer if you expose yourself to it. This is coming from NASA, warn your family and friends.”

Bill said the dark circles, which he referred to as a ‘halo’ were not unusual but might cause rain or bad weather. He, however, completely ruled out the possibility of acid rain.

He said: “I have seen one before that encircled the moon with a very clear gap (thus, the black circle). Each occurrence will not look exactly like the last one, each will be a bit different….not that unusual.

“Also, weather folklore says that a ring around the moon signifies bad weather is coming, and in many cases this may be true. The ice crystals that cover the halo signify high altitude, thin cirrus clouds that normally precede a front by one or two days. There is no connection to acid rain … but a possible rain connection.”

A rift is currently brewing between the Nigeria Football Federation and the Super Eagles over planned deductions in the team’s World Cup allowances, which if not resolved may affect the performance of the team in South Africa.

The infraction follows the declaration by the NFF that players’ allowances during the World Cup will be deducted to provide for taxes to be paid to the authorities.

Peoples Daily Sports learnt from sources within the Glasshouse, that the football body is acting on a recent directive from FIFA which wanted allowances of players during the World Cup in South Africa to be taxed.

But the Eagles were expectedly not in favour of such move and have warned that nobody should touch their World Cup allowances. They were said to have also told the NFF management to look for alternative means of raising money to settle FIFA.

New Eagles Technical Adviser, Lars Lagerback may have to quickly wade into the infraction and settle frayed nerves before it blew into a storm, as money issues have on several occasions caused imbroglio between the Glasshouse and the Eagles to the extent of affecting the performance of the team in such competitions.

Our reporter further gathered that the NFF management is not hoping to source for alternative source of funds to settle FIFA in that regard as they claimed that the inadequate budget for the team’s participation at the World Cup is already a major issue for them.

“We were given $1 million by FIFA for the team’s preparation and the cost of accommodation sent to us by FIFA alone is about $1.2 million. This is apart from other things that we are going to pay for during the World Cup. So the players would have to understand,” An NFF management staff confided in Peoples Daily Sports. 

Except something is urgently done to resolve the problem, it may affect the performance of the players and the semi final mandate given to Lagerback by the football federation.

http://www.peoplesdaily-online.com/index.php/sport-mainmenu-28/sport-news/88-sport-news/11767-eagles-nff-at-war-over-world-cup-allowances-

United States (US) yesterday disclosed its intention to help train officers of the Nigerian Police on how to combat terrorism and other violent crimes.

The Ambassador of United States of America to Nigeria Ms. Robin Sander, disclosed this when she led five members of the U.S Commission on International Religious Freedom on a courtesy visit to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Ogbonna Onovo.

Speaking on the occasion, she expressed the desire of her government to assist the Nigerian Police Force in the training of its personnel in community policing and combat training to contain civil disturbances experienced in certain parts of the country in recent times.

Sanders told the IGP that the US government was "ready to provide equipment/logistics as a way of supporting the Force in combating crime in Nigeria" .

Though she did not give details and the form the assistance would look like, she however said that her home government was unhappy with the level of senseless killings in parts of the country, particularly the north, where she said Nigeria witnessed more violent crimes.

Expressing serious worry with the development, Sanders said she would personally do all within her capacity to bring in other forms of assistance to the police, stressing that effective policing remains one of the core ingredients of democracy.

In his response, Onovo expressed his appreciation to the Ambassador for finding time to visit him in spite of her tight schedules.

Onovo, told the US envoy of the willingness of the Police and the country as a whole to collaborate with the US government in any area of training which is aimed at building the capacity of the officers and men of the Nigerian Police with a view to advancing proactive policing.

He said that with the deep interest shown by US in the areas of crime prevention and control, it will equally help to protect investments by US citizens in the country.

The London Metropolitan Police was the first to offer assistance to the Nigerian Police and had also trained some of its personnel in community Policing, though the policy seem not to be working in the country due to corruption in the force.

http://www.champion.com.ng/index.php?news=29856

chosen04:
Jimoh Ibrahim no dey tire to owe debt?

na he hobby

The Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) on Wednesday released a fresh debtors’ list, revealing that customers owe the latest five banks, whose audit reports were recently released, about N400 billion.

Bank PHB tops the list of the debt-ridden banks with N170 billion non-performing loans.Its subsidiary, Spring Bank,follows with N95.5 billion loan.Equitorial Trust Bank(ETB) has N46 billion loan in its portfolio, while Unity Bank and Wema Bank are owed N36.5 billion and N36 billion respectively.

It would be recalled that three of the five bank chief executive officers were recently sacked.They are Mr Ike Oraekwuotu of ETB; Mr Francis Atuche of Bank PHB Plc and Mr Charles Ojo of Spring Bank Plc. They were replaced by CBN-appointed management.Among notable Nigerians whose names or companies were listed are Alhaji Muhammed Buba Marwa, Nigeria’ s Ambassador to South Africa, whose defunct airline, Albarka Airline owes over N1 billion ; Mr Jimoh Ibrahim, N3.3 billion; Transcorp, N16.6 billion; Conoil,N19.86 billion; Dangote Industries Plc, N1.96 billion; Premium Seafoods Limited, N3.32 billon; Globe Motors, N3.03 billion; Baywood Limited owned by Chief Chris Ibe and Professor Pat Utomi, N2.74 billion among others.

A total of N95, 594,989,430.06 is the outstanding balance owed by 221 customers of Spring Bank as at September30, 2009.

Among the dignitaries that owe substantial amount include, Otunba Oyewole Fasawe, a director of the Bank who owes a total of N9, 284,331,037.52 in three accounts. Fasawe, through Netlink Digital Television with Account No 1601001010341 owe N4, 821,168,438.27; Mofas Shipping Nig-A/C2, 1601001010688 owe N3, 053,633,054.57 and through Transvari Services limited with A/C No 1601001010387, N1, 409,529,544.68.

The chairman of the Bank, Kola Daisi also owes a total of N4, 121,200,911.36 through two accounts. He owes the bank through National Sports Lottery with A/C Nos 0721001006025 and 1441801000046. Chief Tony Anenih and Osahon Asemota through Mettle Energy and Gas limited owe N2, 065,661,421.09 with A/C No 0161601000897.

Chris Baywood Ibe and Prof Pat Utomi are owing N2, 743,349,386.22 through Baywood Continental limited with A/C No 0011001024030. Also Segun Osinuga, director of the bank owes N2, 556,930,297.06 through WATYEM-DKS Enterprises with A/C No 1511001000102.

http://www.newsbreaksnow.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=93:cbn-releases-fresh-debtors-list-&catid=36:economy

HAIR, they say is the beauty of a woman;  and any woman who is blessed with rich hair texture is not only a pride to herself,  but flaunts it jealously anywhere.  However, some like Ms Vivian Chioma Metu, a 39-year-old self -acclaimed economics graduate of Lagos State University and single mother, do not necessarily see anything spectacular about this work of nature and so, threw decency to the dogs and went ahead to criminalize it.

Recently, a bewildered female operative of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos discovered a large chunk of powdery substances which tested for heroine tucked in -between her hair.  The hard stuff which weighed 1.500kg was masterly concealed on the scalp of her head!

Ms. Vivian who was on her way to Guangzhou, China has successfully beaten all the security apparatus at the airport but luck ran against her after a female narcotic operative who admired her richly fixed hair approached her to know where she made it only to discover the strange substance.

On that fateful day, she had arrived the airport full of life;  having checked in her luggages earlier.  At the departure lounge and on an Ethiopian airline queue, Vivian radiated an uncommon glee and confidence, occasionally flogging around her neck and pampering her richly made hair with her long manicured nail.

What preoccupied her mind at the time was the $5,000.00 US that would grease her palm at the successful delivery of the substance unmindful of the fact that the worst moment of life was soon to take place.  At the end of the rigorous search of her luggage, she was given the green light to proceed for boarding and happily she cart-walked, passed some fierce- looking security operatives, smiled lustfully at them, waved bye to her friends who saw her to the airport and moved on.

Moments after, a female narcotic operative approached her and having exchanged pleasantries, casually requested to know the saloon on which the eye-catching hair was made.   As the operative got closer, Vivian became uncomfortable and simply said she made it in one of the salons on Allen Avenue, Ikeja.

The operative admirably  went further to feel the hair and in the process felt a hard portion.  She stopped and became curious.  Asked what was the bump on her scalp, Vivian simply muttered that she had burns on her scalp while fixing the hair and therefore, decided to cover the portion with a black cellophane.   Dissatisfied, the operative excused her to a corner and of course, the bubble got burst.  The bumps had in them,  hard stuff which later tested positive for heroine.  She was promptly arrested and she broke down in tears.

At the airport office of the anti-drug agency, Vivian in an emotion- laden voice confessed that she could not have taken to such criminality but for her ill-health adding that she needed some money to undergo a cancer operation.  She claimed that she had spent so much on her health and that she was tired of borrowing.  “I know that my friends and family members will be disappointed at this but life has to go on.  I need money to pay for a cancer operation abroad.  He who is down need fear no fall.

I am an international business woman but I have been suffering from this terminal disease for a long time now and doctors said it could be operated on overseas.  I need money for this and since that huge sums can not be sourced easily, I have to use what I have to get what I want.  The hair belongs to me, but my health is much more important.  The man I met for assistance told me to deliver this to somebody in China and make good money for myself; and that was it.  I have spent so much money that I no longer have any saving but as it is now, I think I have to resign to fate,.” she lamented.
The Airport Commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Alhaji Hamza Umar who described the discovery as shocking however, said this was not the first time women were concealing hard drugs in their hair.

He said this attest to the fact that drug traffickers are running out of tricks following the agency’s efforts at fighting trackers and barons alike to a stand still.   “This is not the first time drug traffickers and their sponsors are concealing drugs in their hair.  They are definitely running out of tricks due to our counter efforts.  This is good for the country because it clearly shows that no drug trafficker will go unpunished.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/25/woman-39-conceals-1-5kg-of-heroine-inside-hair/

[quote author=nice-guy10 link=topic=416937.msg5738042#msg5738042 date=1269194867]There are lot of Turkey meat to eat over there.[/quote]@nice-guy,how about chickens?

A judge of the Court of Appeal, Calabar Division, Justice Jean Omokri died today in Calabar following a brief illness. Justice Omokri, who was described by family as a good christian, served on a number of recent electoral cases that were controversial.  They include the 2003 electoral petition cases in Abia State, which were all won by the People Democratic Party.  He was also on the panel that unseated former governor of Anambra State, Chris Ngige, and the contentious Election Appeal panel that nullified Andy Uba's claim to the governorship of that state.

Judge Omokri, who turned in January, is survived by his wife and children.

http://www.saharareporters.com/real-news/newsflash/5593-jean-omokri-appeal-court-judge-60-is-dead.html

As it searches for credibility at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the presidency has shortlisted four candidates to replace Maurice Iwu as chairman, Saharareporters has learned. Of great interest, consideration is reportedly being given to candidates with strong civil society credentials, and three of the four shortlisted candidates were members of the Uwais Committee, which is responsible for the recommendations by which the National Assembly is considering electoral reform. They include Olisa Agbakoba, a former president of the Nigeria Bar Association, Dr. Attahiru Jega, a former president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Dr. Jibrin Ibrahim, and Major General Ishola Williams, a former army general who is president of Transparency Nigeria.

Our sources indicated the list could be extended as Nigerians in the Diaspora have nominated Professor Bolaji Aluko, a professor of engineering at Howard University in Washington DC., for the position.

One source told Saharareporters that regardless of Maurice Iwu’s antics to stay relevant, his dirty chapter in Nigeria’s history will come to a final close shortly.

http://www.saharareporters.com/real-news/sr-headlines/5588-attahiru-jega-ishola-williams-jibo-ibrahim-olisa-agbakoba-listed-to-replace-iwu-at-inec.html

It was in late 2008 and the mood inside the British Airways flight from London to Lagos was solemn as most of the passengers on flight were fast asleep. But two passengers attracted attention as they were discussing a major issue, which has remained in the front burner of discussion back home in Nigeria. One of them, Victor Nwajeh, spoke unequivocally about the imminent changes in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He told his friend that two major redeployments would take place in the commission in the next two weeks. To rub in his assertion, this gentleman specifically told his bemused friend that two principal staff of the commission, who had hitherto become a pain in the neck of its chairman, Farida Waziri, would be redeployed out of the commission in a matter of days. For someone who is based in London, one is tempted to wave off Nwajeh's declaration but indeed he was speaking as an insider in the anti-graft agency. He boasted about his acquaintance with the EFCC boss and the grand plan to ease out the then Director of Operations of the commission, Tokunbo Ogunshakin, and the Secretary, Emmanuel Akumayi respectively. Both had been in intense power play with the EFCC boss. Investigation revealed that Nwajeh is not just an acquaintance of the commission boss; he was also alleged to be a business partner and agent, who had allegedly acted as front for the former police officer in many sordid deals. To close friends, Nwajeh is alleged to be a greedy blackmailer, who never missed the opportunity at reaping unduly from those who have run foul of the law, especially corrupt government officials and he was alleged to found a willing.

In the corruption pit called the Nigeria Police, Farida lived comfortably when she was in charge of the Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Alagbon. She was alleged to be what honey is to bees to the 419 clan when she held sway as the unit boss. Her alleged corrupt tendencies found expression in her alleged closeness to419 kingpin, Fred Ajudua. At Alagbon, the notorious fraudster was Farida's regular visitor. In one of his numerous visits to the SFU building, the Delta State-born fraudster allegedly parked his car at the parking lot allotted to senior police officers to the chagrin of retired AIG Ojomo, who ordered the deflation of the car tyre. Though Ajudua later apologized, he had succeeded in nonetheless demonstrating his closeness to the police high authority. An informed police source told The Premier that Farida's stint as the officer in charge of the anti-fraud unit was not too impressive. Her reign cannot be said to have improved the image of the police. It, therefore, did not come as a surprise when she allegedly cleared another notorious fraudster, Late Maurice Ibekwe, of the 419 charges levied against him by one of his foreign victims. Ibekwe would later die in prison while undergoing prosecution when his 419 case was revived by Farida's predecessor at the EFCC, Mallam

Two years ago, shortly before she assumed duty as the commission boss, she equally stood as surety for the former governor of Benue State, George Akume, who was hauled before the anti-graft agency on allegation of corruption and embezzlement of the state resources. Akume's case file was among the numerous files on corrupt former governors allegedly handed over to her on assumption of duty. Interestingly, no action has been taken on Akume's file with many suspecting that the case may have died a natural death.

For those who know her too well, Farida has been alleged not to be short of patronage from those who had fell on the wrong side of the law and she was alleged to be ever willing to help even if it means staking her reputation. She is also gold merchant whose clients include wives of state governors, senators, ministers and top government functionaries. But none of these could be compared to her present job. In her new post, it has become business as usual for the anti-corruption czar. She allegedly recruited many personnel of questionable characters as agents whose brief is to negotiate for soft landing for corrupt individuals, allegedly, on her behalf. The Premier's findings, Farida hobnobbed with notorious moneybag, Terry Waya, allegedly as her coordinator in some of her alleged dirty deals in the commission. Her association with Waya snapped when he (Waya) reportedly tried a fast one on her. Waya's subsequent arrest was seen as playing to the gallery, at least to tell the public that she had nothing to do with him. Indeed, the arrest was a hoax as the Benue-born controversial business man regained freedom 40 minutes after his arrest on Farida's order whom the former claimed had knowledge of his activities. It is believed that the appointment of one Yisa Terya Moses, her blood brother, as a special assistant, was aimed at continuing alleged corruption rites allegedly perpetrated by her while in the Nigeria Police. The fear of corrupt tendencies wrought by her while in the police service was confirmed when she curiously created an information fund which she mandated Moses to coordinate. Moses has not disappointed in his mission at the EFCC which allegedly is helping his sister to cover track of any sleaze trailing her as the boss of the commission. Moses competence in fraud management loudly found expression in the controversy trailing his withdrawal of N75 million allegedly on behalf of his sister for the information fund. The Premier checks revealed that the commission has no such provision for such fund. In order not to leave any trace on the spending of the information fund which runs into millions of Naira, Farida allegedly recruited one James Uandefan Tersuah, a police officer from her home town, to take charge of the accounts department of the commission. Information has it that the breakdown of the withdrawal spent on information goes thus: On August 2, 2008, a cash withdrawal of N2 million followed by another withdrawal of N3 million on August 14, 2008. On September 20 and October 4, 2008, N20 million was withdrawn. In June 26, 2008, a withdrawal of N15 million was effected, three days later another N15 million was withdrawn. July 22, 2008, witnessed the withdrawal of N15 million.

The Premier checks revealed that the money withdrawn was never spent on information management as claimed. Worst still, those withdrawals were nowhere reflected in the accounts books of the commission. If the above is to be branded by her spin doctors as mere speculation, that surely cannot be said of the land deal in which she was allegedly involved in Abuja. When she took over from Ribadu, she had the mandate of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to probe the activities of Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and make recommendati ons. It was gathered that it was in the process of probing El-Rufai that she stumbled on alleged dirty files of Modibbo Aliyu Muhammad, predecessor of Adamu Aliero, current Minister of FCT. Negotiation allegedly triggered off between Modibbo and Waziri. The alleged product of that negotiation was a parcel of land in Abuja. The Premier learnt that Farida was allegedly bribed with a parcel of land in order to erase any track of corruption linking Modibbo when he was FCT Minister. Being a smart alec, Waziri allegedly prompted the revocation of the certificate of occupancy (C of O) issued her to wipe out her link to the ownership of the land. After the revocation of the C of O, she allegedly used her daughter's name to re-purchase the land. The
parcel of land in question is located at Plot 1460, 25 Trent River Street, Maitama, Abuja, with the number 60219 in Cadastral Zone B06 of MABUSAI. The letter revoking the earlier C of O given to Waziri reads: “Notice of withdrawal of right of occupancy. Your right of occupancy to Plot1460 within B06 Mabushi was revoked by discretion of the
authority.” At press time, her daughter, Zainab Naomi Salawu, had the C of O of the land in her kitty.
Farida's alleged sins are legion. Despite the parade of one Chief Egbe Akparakwu by the anti-graft agency on television for purportedly using the agency to extort money from members of the public, the way and manner the case was handled by the agency smacks of cover up. The commission told the general public that Akparakwu would be arraigned in court. But on the appointed day, he was not arraigned in any court either in Lagos or Abuja. Lawyer to Akparakwu told The Premier that he was surprised to see his client a free man without being charged to court even when he was paraded on the national television as a common criminal. However, Femi Babafemi, the commission's spokesperson, told The Premier that Akaparakwu was given administrative bail. Said he: “Akparakwu is not the only Nigerian that has been granted such bail by the commission.” What failed to add up in Babafemi's response is that Akaparakwu, a suspect, should not have been paraded if there was no concrete evidence against him. Worse still, not a few were amazed penultimate week when the EFCC again paraded Nwajeh, Farida's ally on charges bothering on fraud. In EFCC's account, Nwajeh was arrested following an intelligence report on his past criminal activities. In the usual tradition of the antigraft agency, Babafemi said Nwajeh was arrested at his Wuse, Abuja residence after a peep into his past. An informed source revealed Nwajeh's parade was a direct fall out of an alleged extortion of US$2 million from an influential bank executive being investigated by the commission. Sources said that the prompt manner in which Nwajeh was paraded was a smart way of silencing him from leaking the name of the influential figure behind him, adding that Waziri could not claim ignorance of Nwajeh's activities. It was gathered that Nwajeh, who was earlier based in London, relocated to the country due to the arrangement he allegedly had with Waziri. Investigation revealed that the relationship between Farida and Nwajeh was reportedly struck when the latter blew the lid on monumental fraud allegedly perpetrated by River State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi and some of his aides. Nwajeh was the architect of the petition which the EFCC acted upon to arrest and detain three top functionaries of the state in 2008. Since then, Nwajeh was said to have become an agent to the commission while also compiling dossiers on corrupt government officials. A shocked Nwajeh had told the commission that if he was pushed to the wall he would spill the bin. His threat was said to have forced the commission to handle his case the way Akparakwu's case was handled. Although Babafemi told The Premier that he would be charged to court this week, information emanating from the commission revealed that much would not be achieved in the case because Waziri could not totally deny knowledge of Nwajeh's activities.

The Premier's investigation also revealed that one Godwin Obla, an external solicitor to the commission, allegedly collected N7 million from the Nigerian Energy and Regulatory Commission (NERC) for a job he allegedly never delivered. Since the case was reported, the commission is yet
to summon enough courage to prosecute Obla. When Babafemi was contacted for comment on the matter, he told The Premier that he is not “the spokesperson to Obla. That question should be directed to the man in question not the commission.”

Shockingly, since Waziri's assumption of duty as EFCC boss, mysterious things have allegedly been happening in the commission. A few weeks after she took over, the case files of former governors who have corruption cases to answer disappeared. Even some of the governors' cases grudgingly handled by Waziri ended up in controversy. How the case of former governor of Delta State, James Ibori, was handled baffled not a few Nigerians. The Premier was told that part of the assignment of Waziri in up the commission's credibility problem which started as a result of her headship of the commission. Reports have it that much will not be achieved in the trial of the bank executives which may likely go the way of the former governors. Amongst the alleged many sins of the EFCC boss are the many failed promises to bring to book prominent politicians who were alleged to have been involved in massive looting of public fund. In the era of the immediate past chairman of the commission, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, the former governor of Rivers State, Dr. Peter Odili, was accused of monumental fraud running into billions of naira. The commission in fact published its findings on its website where it alleged that about N89 billion may have gone down the drain. But due to the fact that the governor enjoyed immunity from prosecution at the time, the commission under Ribadu could not prosecute Odili. But shortly before Mallam Ribadu was removed from office, Odili approached a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, on 13th September 2007, for an order restraining the commission from either arresting or prosecuting him based on the report by the EFCC.

With the decision of Justice Reginald Nwodo not to grant the reliefs sought by the ex-governor, Odili quickly headed for the Rivers State High Court presided over by Justice Ibrahim Buba. What he couldn't get at the Federal High Court, he got at the state high court. On assumption of office, Farida Waziri, was quoted to have said that the commission was going to appeal the decision of the court. But almost two years into her tenure at the commission, nothing has been done. Odili still walks the streets of the country a free man in spite of the existence of the damning EFCC report. There is no doubting the fact that Nigeria is a classical case of corruption in high places. What has, however, continued to baffle many is that having acquired this ill-gotten wealth, those who should otherwise cover their faces in shame don't give a damn about flaunting their wealth before the very eyes of ordinary Nigerians. Chief James Onanafe Ibori, immediate past governor of Delta State falls into this category. Ibori, who allegedly played prominent role in the nomination and election of the ailing President Umar Musa Yar'Adua, has assumed a somewhat larger than life status. Actively aided by the nation's Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Chief Michael Aondoakaa, Ibori has continued to evade prosecution both home and abroad. Only a few weeks ago, he was discharged and acquitted by a Federal High Court in Asaba. This was after questionable transfer his case from Kaduna State to Delta State. The court absolved him of any complicity in the alleged financial misappropriation leveled against him by the EFCC. Again, the EFCC promised to appeal that decision, but weeks after the judgment was delivered, the commission is yet to take any step on the issue.         

The case of Chief Lucky Igbinedion, former Governor of Edo State, is perhaps the most preposterous of all the cases of corruption handled by the Farida Waziri- led EFCC. Son of the defunct Okada Air boss, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, enjoyed the most outstanding accolade as one of the worst performing chief executives of a state during his eight years sojourn in the Big Heart State. As a demonstration of his nonperformance, his father was said to have rhetorically asked Edo indigenes who were clamouring for his non-return in 2003 whether if their son failed in an examination, they would not be disposed to having him retake the examination? Indeed, while the state groaned under lack of infrastructural development, the media was awash with stories of how the governor continued to siphon resources of the state for personal use. Many were, therefore, happy when Lucky Igbinedion was arrested by the EFCC and charged to court. However, before one could say Jack Robinson, news filtered out that the erstwhile governor was negotiating with the commission for a plea bargaining agreement. What later turned out was mockery of the arraignment and subsequent trial of the erstwhile governor. Despite being accused of siphoning millions of naira, Igbinedion was left off the hook with a paltry fine of few millions of naira which was paid in a jiffy. Madam Farida, of course, came out to denounce the judgment and promised to appeal, but years on, nothing has been done. The cases of other ex-governors such Jolly Nyame (Taraba), Boni Haruna (Adamawa), Joshua Dariye (Plateau), Saminu Turaki (Jigawa), Orji Uzor Kalu (Abia), Chimaroke Nnamani (Enugu), Rasheed Ladoja (Oyo) and Ayodele Fayose (Ekiti) are not different. These cases have been on for about two years and there are fears that they may ended up like those before them.

http://www.saharareporters.com/component/content/article/139-sr-bloggers/5414-dirty-deals-of-farida-waziri-of-efcc.html

The 8th of March every year is celebrated all over the world as International Women’s Day. Women in Nigeria have always made enermous contributions to our national life pre and post colonially and it is worth rembering the likes of Chief (Mrs.) Olufunmilayo Ransome Kuti; Chief (Mrs.) Margaret Ekpo, Chief (Mrs.) Janet Mokelu and Chief (Mrs.) Awolowo. Internationally, many countries’ legislators have marked out the day and debated on the political, economic and social impact of women on their country. I wonder what our legislators will do in the current dispensation.

My thinking is that the day should give us the oppportunity to discuss how we can proritise girls’ education, challenge gender sterotypes and increase vocational training for women in the country. It is also an opportunity to redefine the role of our women in the political direction of our country.  The day should give us the opportunity for our political parties to discuss how more women can be represented in the various aspects of our political life including the legislative houses and cabinets.  I understand that in Rwanda, women make up 57% of the parliament. This has been helped by a constitutional gurantee as well as quota system entrenched. If a country like Rwanda can see how advantageous it is to have such a high number of women in their parliament, I wonder what big brother Nigeria is doing.  If we do not do it constitutionally, then the women will do it unconstitutionally. So, I look forward to a day when a woman can become the President of our country Nigeria. 

Or do we already have one? The wife of Umaru Ya’Adua (Hajia Turai) has shown that she could do what a lot of women and even some men can not do. She has shown that behind any man perpetuating himself in power there is a woman. I must give her kudos for her brilliance, intelligence and political sagacity in caging a nation of about 150 million people. Her qualities should not be overlooked. First and foremost, she has shown she is s good wife. The Bible says a man who finded a wife finded a good thing and obtains favour from the Lord. Thank God for Yar’Adua, he defintinely found a wife who will stay by him when he appears to be down.  Many women will ditch their husbands when they fall this ill. I do not care whatever anybody thinks her reasons for staying by her husband during these difficult times for their family. Yes her wifey qualities should not be overlooked. And for politicians with eyes to pick out individuals who will make good political tacticians, I believe she can not be off you radar. She has shown she is an Amazon.  Like Queen Amina of Zaria did for the cities she conquered, Turai has been able to build fortifications around her husband. Also, like Queen Amina, Turai has shown that she owns many eunuchs who are ready to do her bidding. I am sure that when all is over, she will be well rewarded.  Coming to the International Women’s Day, I believe that but for her husband’s illness, Hajia Turai would have been at the fore front of this year’s celebration of International Women’s Day.

I have also been very thrilled and fascinated about Prof Dora Akunyili’s role in the present political logjam in Nigeria. I have been waiting for her to rediscover herself of the NAFDAC fame ever since she took over the Information Ministry as a Minister. Many of us wondered whether, she was not able to convince her political masters to leave her in NAFDAC to continue and do the good work she was undertaking which has brought her international recognition. Never the less, she has tried to rebrand the country since she took over. Have we been rebranded? This I am not sure but she certainly has rebranded her self in recent times with her utterances and memos. She definitely has behaved like some powerful precolonial female Ndigbo title holders who owned war canoes and sometimes exercised political authority and influenced state decisions more than male council members and men who held similar titles.

I must say that no matter what anybody says about Dora’s style and reason for the actions she had taken out so far, one thing is clear and evident; she has made herself larger than life in a cabinet dominated by men. She has become the conscience of that cabinet. Her actions should be applauded at least that she has behaved like a mother whose children are going astray. This is worthy to be acknowledged especially as we celebrate this year’s International Women’s Day.  However, like a good mother, Dora should know when to keep quiet and listen to the voice of reason and wisdom. I believe that there is a need to maintain peace within the polity at certain times. This is not to say that Dora should not talk out when neccessary.  I wondered whether Goodluck Jonathan decided to send her to New York for a few days to cool things.

In this entire confusion that has been going on in the country, one woman who has not spoken but who may likely be the real Amazon is Mrs Patience Goodluck Jonathan. She has kept a dignified silence and is patiently waiting for the outcome. As the saying goes; the patient dog eats the fatttest bone. I must commend her for her stance so far. I will however hope that she will use wisdom in her acting capacity (Acting First Lady) to manage the situation. She should realise that at the end of the day, for the sake of the future of our great country, there is no victor nor vanquished. If and when she becomes the real Mc Coy, she should be magnanimous and bring all her womenfolk together.

In as much as there are men at the helm of affairs in the country, we can see that these appear to have broken the relative silence of the polity; each in her own way doing what she feels is right and based on the position she occupies. There are obvious tensions resulting from the conflict between a moral sentiment on one side and a pragmatic assumption on the other. It must however be clearly understood that Nation-building and the prevention of conflict, are arguably too complex and too important to be conducted on the basis of either sentiment or assumptions. These women must remember that as mothers, they must act to safeguard the future of the children of Nigeria and not just for their own personal benefits. Their actions must also be in a peaceful and dignified manner.

The United Nations recognises the key role of women in peace keeping in nations hence the United Nations Security Council resolution 1325 passed in October 2000. This resolution is in relation to women and peace keeping, for women to participate in peace negotiations, women to be involved in conflict resolution as well as sustainable peace. This resolution some people may consider only as in times of war, but it also covers other times when there are political conflicts as we have now in Nigeria.  I will therefore appeal to our National Council of Women Society that, as we celebrate this year’s International Women’s Day in Nigeria, I hope our women will do what is neccessary; taking into consideration the future of the children of Nigeria. My belief is that we shall come out with positives and learn to move our country forward peacefully. For it is said that societies placed on the path of equity and the rule of law are more peaceful and more prosperous, and the status of women is not merely a litmus test, but also an active agent in bringing about such an outcome.

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/anyanate-ephraim/international-womens-day-2010-a-tale-of-three-amazons-in-nigeria.html

A BRITISH Chinook helicopter pilot was shot between the eyes by a Taliban bullet - but flew on and saved all 20 aboard, The Sun reported.
The Sun reports that Flight Lieutenant Ian Fortune, 28, had flown in to pick up casualties as a firefight raged between American and Afghan forces and heavily-armed rebels near Garmsir in Helmand Province.
Flt-Lt Fortune - who had TV presenter Mike Brewer on the aircraft filming a documentary - was advised to hold off on approach to the battle as it was "too hot" on the ground. He circled until troops reported incoming fire had calmed down.
But as he flew in the helicopter came under attack - which continued as casualties were being loaded.
Then, as he lifted off, Flt-Lt Fortune was shot. A bullet hit a metal rail on the front of his helmet which is used to attach night vision goggles.The round then penetrated his helmet hitting him between the eyes. It knocked his head back and caused severe bleeding.
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More bullets followed, hitting the Chinook's controls and shutting down the stabilisation system.
But with blood pouring into his eyes, Flt-Lt Fortune battled with the controls to stop the chopper from spiraling out of control
Then with the aircraft lurching from side to side he continued flying for eight minutes before landing at Camp Bastion.
He was taken to the field hospital and treated for his wound.
It is the first time in the nine-year war in Afghanistan a pilot has been shot while in the air.
One senior RAF source said: "This could have become one of the worst incidents of the conflict.
"If the bullet had hit the pilot a millimetre lower, those on board wouldn't have stood a chance.
"And had it not been for the skill of the pilot the result would have been the same."
Brewer, 41, who was with a crew from the Discovery Channel, said: "The courage and heroism of the pilot was beyond belief."