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PHOTONEWS: Former Minister Of The FCT Nasir ElRufai Launches Explosive Biography
Posted: February 7, 2013 - 13:21

SaharaReporters

Former minister of the federal capital territory, Nasir Elrufai today presented his explosive autobiography to the public in Abuja. The public presentation was attended by several opposition politicians and activists.

http://saharareporters.com/gallery/photonews-former-minister-fct-nasir-elrufai-launches-explosive-biography

Aregbesola inaugurates emergency response service

Posted by: Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo on February 5, 2013

Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola yesterday inaugurated the Special Ambulance and Emergency Response Service, O-Ambulance.

He said the 19 ambulances would be positioned at strategic locations to attend to accident victims, adding that the government would buy more ambulances to cover all accident flash- points.

The governor lamented the rising carnage on roads, adding that accidents have claimed many “promising lives”.

He said his administration has identified accident-prone roads in the state, such as the Ife/Ibadan Express road, Gbongan/Osogbo road, Ikirun/Offa road and Iwo/Ibadan road, and is working on measures to mininise accidents.

Decrying the poor response to emergencies, Aregbesola said many accident/disaster victims could have been saved, if health workers had responded promptly.

He said: “The health sector has suffered neglect by past administrations. As a responsive and responsible government, whose priority is the wellbeing of the people, we cannot fold our arms and watch our people die unnecessarily in road accidents and other emergencies.

“Our panacea to redress this ugly trend is the establishment of the O-Ambulance and improved healthcare services, which our administration has been striving to provide since we assumed office.”

The ambulances are equipped with state-of-the-art communication gadgets.

The public would be given special numbers to access the services free-of-charge.

Commissioner for Health Mrs. Temitope Ilori said the administration has upgraded state hospitals in the nine federal constituencies.

She said the government would employ volunteer workers for the O-Ambulance scheme and urged interested persons to apply.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/aregbesola-inaugurates-emergency-response-service/

Expo begins tomorrow
Posted by: Our Reporter on February 5, 2013

The Southwest Grassroots Business and Investment Forum for regional growth takes off tomorrow in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

The four-day programme will take place at the Centre for Black Culture and International Understanding on the hilltop behind the State Secretariat along Osogbo-Gbogan Road. Osun State Commissioner for Regional Integration and Special Duties, Alhaji Bashir Ajibola, decried the report of the shut down of the centre as an immoral effort by those attempting to appropriate government property.

He said it is not true that the centre is sealed up. According to him, “what the government has done is to sanitise the management of the centre in line with government policy.”

Pavilions have already been set up at the venue of the regional expo organised by Vintage Press Limited in collaboration with CEEDEE Resources.

The opening ceremony will be chaired by Former Justice Minister Prince Bola Ajibola. Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi will deliver the keynote address.

Governors Babatunde Fashola (Lagos) Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo) and Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun) are special guests of honour. Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola is the chief host.

The fair will feature the Southwest states and private investors exhibiting agriculture produce and products.

On Thursday, there will be an investment workshop to be facilitated by NERFUND, Federal Institute of Industrial Reseach, Oshodi (FIIRO), Cocoa Reseach Institute of Nigeria, Ibadan and the National Health Insurance Scheme, among others.

The Friday forum will engage commissioners and top officials of ministries of Agriculture, Regional Integration and Trade and Commerce. It will be co-ordinated by former Oyo State Commissioner for Agriculture, Prof. (Mrs.) Tomi Adekanye.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/uncategorized/expo-begins-tomorrow/

Petitions flood National Assembly over alleged lopsided promotions in the Army
Posted by: Yusuf Alli and Yomi Odunuga, Abuja on February 2, 2013 in Featured, News Leave a comment

The National Assembly has been inundated with petitions arising from the recent promotion and retirement of senior officers in the Nigerian Army.
Most of the petitioners are accusing the Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, of favouring the South East where he comes from at the expense of the North and the South West.
The petitioners also claim the South East was heavily favoured ahead of the other five geo-political zones in the recruitment of soldiers into the Nigerian Army Depot, Zaria and particularly faulted the promotion of a military aide to the late President Umaru Yar’Adua who they accused of preventing President Goodluck Jonathan from becoming the acting President of the country.
They want the National Assembly to intervene in the matter and President Jonathan to review the alleged lopsidedness in the promotions.
According to the petitioners, the COAS overuled the Army Council by exceeding the number of officers recommended for promotion, while junior officers were being promoted above their seniors without any regard for the rules.
Alleged marginalization of some crack officers which began in 2010,they said, has now snowballed into tension within the Army.
They claimed that the discrimination is more pronounced in Ordinance Corps, Armoured Corps, Supply and Transport Corps, Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering and graduates of National Defence College, especially courses 19 and 20.
The petitioners,in one case,said: “There is a new dangerous trend in promotions and recruitment in the Nigerian Army which should be firmly and promptly checked before it destroys the military and the country.
“This trend is clearly visible in the manner in which the current Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Azubuike Ihejirika, is handling these two important aspects of running an effective army institution which is very critical to the survival of any state.
” It appears that the Chief of Army Staff is on a specific mission, most probably, sponsored by some sinister dark forces bent on destroying the army and setting the country on the path of serious conflagration.
Petitioners cited the promotion of a former military aide to the late President Umaru Yar’Adua which they said is causing disaffection within the Army.
They said: “Entrenchment of mediocrity and nepotism in the Nigerian Army becomes clearer when we consider the promotion and posting of a Brigadier. This officer was the ADC to the late President Umaru Yar’Adua who was central to the scheme to deploy soldiers in the airport when the late Yar’Adua was flown into the country from Saudi Arabia.
” He did so by disobeying the Chief of Defence Staff, National Security Adviser and the acting President. He prevented Acting President Goodluck Jonathan from functioning until the death of President Yar’Adua.
“Curiously after the death of President Yar ‘Adua, the Brigadier’s colleagues were summarily retired or denied promotions. However, not only was the Brigadier promoted, he has also been elevated above all his seniors
“The question that arises is, what explains the retention and the preferential treatment being given to this Brigadier? One plausible explanation for this elevation of mediocrity is that it is a calculated attempt to achieve a certain sinister or diabolical objective.”
The petitioners also faulted alleged disrespect for the decision of the Army Council on retirement of officers, saying: “The pursuit of General Ihejirika’s agenda also manifested itself clearly in his disregard for decisions of the Army Council. The Army Council approved the retirement of 11 Major Generals, but General Ihejirika retired 12. Similarly, 26 Brigadiers were retired instead 25 approved by the Council, while 13 Colonels were retired instead of the 12 approved.
“It should be mentioned that many Igbo officers who have an age problem were not presented with letters of retirement unlike others who have since been eased out without a chance to progress. A case in mind is that of a Brigadier General from Bauchi who was never presented to any promotion board since he was promoted in 2008. Nefariously, the officer was blocked from being presented three times so that age would catch up with him.”
On the recruitment into the Nigerian Army Depot, the petitioners queried why the South East was more favoured than the other five geo-political zones.
One of the petitions added: “This attempt to Igbonise the Nigerian Army becomes clearer when we look at the pattern of recruitment of soldiers into the Nigerian Army Depot, Zaria under General Ihejirika.
“There has been a massive recruitment of soldiers from his ethnic group to the disadvantage of others.
“For example, Abia State, the home state of General Ihejirika, with a population of only 2.8 million, has so far had the largest share of recruits, 450, far above Kano with a population of 9.3 million, Lagos with a population of just over 9 million and Kaduna with a population of just over 9 million. These states have so far had 259, 255 and 382 recruits respectively.
“The case of Ebonyi is also symptomatic of this glaring lopsidedness in the recruitment figures. Thus although 377 were recruited from Ebonyi with a population of just 2.2 million, Oyo State with a population of 5.6 million had only 282; Katsina with a population of 5.8 million had only 248; Lagos State with a population of just over 9 million had only 255 and only 271 was recruited from Plateau State with a population of of 3.2 million.
“When the same table is analysed on zonal basis, General Ihejirika’s bias in favour of his zone also becomes patently clear. The South East geo-political zone with a population of 16.3 million has so far had the highest recruits – 1925. The North West, which is the largest geo-political zone with a population of 35.8 million, double that of South East, has only 1949 recruits.
“Similarly, the South West geo-political zone with a population of 27.6 million, has only 1561 recruits. Thousands of qualified recruits from these states have had their applications turned down by a kangaroo selection group set up by General Ihejirika.”
The petitioners pleaded with the President and the National Assembly to check the challenge in the Army.
The petition said: “The President, the National Assembly, the Minister of Defence and the National Security Adviser should know that the actions and inactions of General Ihejirika portend great danger for the Army and the country at large.
“A disgruntled officer corps is a recipe for disaster. It means the Army will lack unity, cohesion and purpose. It will be pre- occupied with fighting itself, as our terrible experiences of 1966 -67 showed.
“President Jonathan needs to act and act now. He must not allow himself to be a pawn in a grand design to destroy his government by brewing the kind of discontent within the Nigerian Armed Forces which could become contagious and eventually engulf the entire society?”
A Senator, who spoke in confidence, said: “We have received some of these petitions, and we are looking into them. It borders on security matter; that is why we are quietly treating issues in these petitions.
“We will demand statistics and records from the Chief of Army Staff. But issues surrounding these petitions might be addressed with the Army leadership behind closed doors. We do not want any action which could aggravate the current security challenges facing the nation.”
The outgoing Director of Army Public Relations, Major General Bolaji Koleosho, who has been redeployed as the Chief of Civil-Military Affairs, could not be reached for comments.
Repeated calls to his mobile telephone lines indicated that his lines had been switched off. Sources at the Army Headquarters told our correspondent that he travelled out of his duty post.
Brigadier General Ibrahimn Attahiru who, replaces Koleoso as Army spokesman, is expected to assume responsibilities on Monday after the official hand-over ceremony.
http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/petitions-flood-national-assembly-over-alleged-lopsided-promotions-in-the-army/

Dokubo-Asari attacks Amaechi, Orubebe •Says they are Siamese twins

Saturday, 02 February 2013 00:00

The former leader of the Niger Delta People’s Volunteer Force (NDPVF), Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, has attacked the Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi; and the Minister of Niger Delta, Godswill Orubebe, saying there is no difference between the two.

“Amaechi and Orubebe are Siamese twins; there is no difference between them,” he said.

Apparently peeved by an earlier post by an unnamed person comparing him with the Rivers State governor, Dokubo-Asari said in one of several posts on his Facebook wall on Thursday, that it would be insane for anyone to compare him with Amaechi who, according to him, should submit himself to legal scrutiny.

“How on earth can any sane person compare me to Amaechi who is running from legal scrutiny, while I subjected myself to a very brutal treason trial for 22 months up to the Supreme Court without conviction? Let Amaechi and Orubebe subject themselves to the same level of legal scrutiny.”

Unimpressed with Amaechi’s touted achievements as governor, Dokubo-Asari insisted that it was an insult on the sensibility of residents of Rivers State to trumpet Amaechi’s modest achievements given the monumental financial resources at his disposal.

“This Nigeria is indeed a paradox. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi with $3 billion yearly budget—which is the combined budget of three sovereign countries of Benin, Togo and Ghana, with an excess of over $100 million....is working. What an insult on the sensibility of the people of Rivers State! Amaechi and Orubebe are Siamese twins; there is no difference between them.”

Yet in another post, Dokubo-Asari wrote what looked like a flaunt of his immense wealth: “The rented apartment I live in at Kings Avenue, Tombia extension in Port Harcourt, is a public place and anybody can walk in. You can walk in and see the grandeur; ditto for my rented apartment in Abuja.

“Also please visit my hut in Buguma, which is attached to my grandmother’s house in King Abbi Polo. You can also take time to visit my unending construction in my mother’s town, Obuama.

“Furthermore, you should visit my home in Warri which was bought by my wife, Mama Aluta, on my behalf when I was in detention and see the exquisite grandeur.

“You can come to my adopted home in Cotonou to see the beauty of my houses which are integral part of my school, the King Amachree Arts Academy. When you come to Cotonou, you will appreciate the freedom and dignity I fought for myself, my children, my families and those who believe in me and still believe in me,” he said.

http://www.tribune.com.ng/news2013/index.php/en/component/k2/item/4380-dokubo-asari-attacks-amaechi-orubebe-•says-they-are-siamese-twins

How to avoid Nigeria’s breakaway in 2015 – IBB
On February 1, 2013 · In News 12:56 am

By HUGO ODIOGOR & CHARLES KUMOLU

Former Military president, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (rtd), yesterday undertook a critical view of the predictions made by soothsayers, including the United States of America that Nigeria will disintegrate in 2015 and suggested ways to ensure the predictions do not become a reality.

General Babangida spoke where he was the chairman of the public presentation of two books in honour of former External Affairs Minister, Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Said he: “As Nigerians, we are aware of the great doubts that have been cast about what 2015 portends for the continuing existence of our nation. I am aware that Nigerians have taken great umbrage at these predictions. Even Lord Lugard who founded what has been called Nigeria gave it a life-span of 100 years.

“I regard it as a challenge to our intelligence to ensure that these portends and prophesies do not become self-fulfilling. We should engage these predictions on an intellectual level, testing whether the facts justify the conclusions.

“But on a practical and public policy level, we must import honesty into our public policy assessments. Firstly, we must identify the problems that need to be addressed. Secondly we must address these problems honestly.

“Thirdly we must identify the most current and the most appropriate mechanism for addressing these issues.

“Let me make this clear. My position is not dictated by the fact that foreigners are making these predictions. We don’t even need foreign sources as a reference point. The Nigerian media is awash with alarming news about our problems. My position is dictated by my conviction that Nigeria is precious enough to be saved.

It deserves an investment of our time and resources to make Project Nigeria a success. But the starting point has to be an admission that we need to fix things. We need a new mindset about the Nigerian project. Let us start off by admitting the mistakes of the past. Right policies have at times been wrongly implemented. Temporary solutions have often been turned into permanent policies, even though the problems they were designed to address have long been solved”.

Making suggestions on how to ensure the continued existence of Nigeria beyond the predicted 2015, General Babangida said, “the issue of the principle of federal character needs to be revisited. In a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-religious nation, the principle of Federal Character is a sensible one and there is no alternative to it. Each national group must be given a feeling of belonging.

What needs to be refined is the question of standards. Federal character can go hand in hand with merit. 50 years after independence and over 50 years after the establishment of universities in Nigeria, there should be no national groups, no states, no zones, no hamlets without qualified citizens. Therefore there should be no question of employing unqualified people in the name of federal character, just as there should be no question of abandoning the principle of federal character in a Federation.

Principle of federal character

“We must admit that sacrifices have been made and sacrifices will continue to be made for the survival of this Nigerian project. In the past, maybe there has not been sufficient recognition of the fact that those making these sacrifices have grievances which should have been addressed.

“Maybe in the past, there had not been sufficient recognition of the fact that each national group has legitimate fears and grievances. Some of the mistakes of the past have now come to haunt us. But let me make one thing clear. Not all these mistakes were made out of callousness or bad faith or malice.

Most people in office do their best. They act to the best of their ability. Unless we think that our leaders have divine ability, we have to admit that even with all the best of their abilities and even with the best faith and with the best of all intentions, human beings will still make mistakes.

“That after nearly 100 years of existence, people and national groups still have grievances provide us with an opportunity to address these grievances. That these grievances are of sufficient magnitude for them to demand a dissolution of the nation show the extent of the grievances and therefore it should point to the magnitude of the seriousness with which we should address the grievances.

From the creeks in the Niger Delta to the Sahelian areas of the North, Nigeria is under pressure. Now is the time for us to regard the rescue effort as a joint enterprise to secure maximum benefits for all and not an enterprise to secure temporary advantage for one group over another. We need to arrive at a grand consensus that will move this nation forward rather than a panel-beaten system that satisfies no one except the temporary holders of power.

“We can face the challenges together, united in the spirit of a joint enterprise and propelled by the belief in the greatness of this country and a commitment to make Nigeria a source of pride and inspiration to the black race”.

Centenary celebration

Speaking on the forthcoming centenary celebrations General Babangida said, “in less than a year, in about 11 months and a few days, we as Nigerians will be celebrating 100 years of our existence as a legal united entity. We have cause to rejoice. During these 100 years, Europe has endured two world wars, Russia had gone through a revolution, a civil war and finally gone from being Russia to Soviet Union and back to Russia.

During this time, Spain and Yugoslavia have gone through horrendous civil wars. During this time, several countries in Asia, including China went through civil wars that almost brought them to their knees.

“Yet today, Europe is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. China is destined in a few years to become the biggest economy in the world. Yes, during the past 100 years of our existence, we also have gone through a horrendous civil war. The events that led to the war and the war itself have left lasting effects on all of us, including those who were not even born during those events.

“As other countries have overcome the mistakes in their history and moved on, so we Nigerians also have cause to rejoice that even though in our history we have met with obstacles, we have experienced ups and downs, each generation had sought to the best of its ability to tackle these obstacles. That we are still a united nation is sufficient cause for congratulation.

Our problems are not over. Nation building is not like an electric switch which you turn on and off. It is a continuous process which makes a heavy demand on government and the people”.

Eulogising Prof. Akinyemi, in whose honour the books were being launched, he said “let me say a word or two about the man we are all here to honour today. That he was my first External Affairs Minister is an established fact. That before then he was the Director-General of this Institute, the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs for eight years is also an established fact.

The fact that as part of today’s programme, there is a symposium on the Technical Aid Corps scheme, one of Prof. Akinyemi’s enduring legacy in government, is ample demonstration of the relevance of Prof. Akinyemi to Nigeria’s Foreign Policy.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/02/how-to-avoid-nigerias-breakaway-in-2015-ibb/

Subsidy fraud: ICPC arraigns Farouk, Emenalo tomorrow
On January 31, 2013 · In News 7:38 pm

…to face 7-count criminal charge

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

ABUJA – The Federal Government has finally succumbed to pressure and entered a 7-count criminal charge against the erstwhile Chairman of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on fuel subsidy probe, Farouk Lawal.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, will tomorrow, dock the embattled lawmaker alongside the former Secretary of the fuel subsidy probe Committee, Mr Boniface Emenalo.

The duo will appear before an Abuja High Court to enter their plea to the charge which accused them of demanding and collecting bribe from the Chairman of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd, oil mogul, Femi Otedola, as an inducement to remove the name of his company from the report of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc committee on Monitoring of fuel subsidy regime.

The accused lawmakers were said to have committed an offence contrary to section 17 (1) of the Corrupt practices and other Related Offences Act, 2000 and punishable under section 17 (1) of the same Act.


Rep. Farouk Lawan

Justice Mudashiru Oniyangi who okayed the accused persons for trial, Thursday, maintained that “Upon a careful consideration of the application and attached documents in support of same filed by the Complainant’s Counsel…Leave is hereby granted to the Complainant/Applicant to prefer criminal charge under section 185 (b) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC).”

Further attached to the charge sheet marked FCT/HC/CR/76/2013, which was signed on behalf of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN, by one Mrs. O.O. Fatunde, a Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, were names and addresses of witnesses, proof of evidence as well as a list of exhibits against the lawmakers.

Already the federal government has contracted a private prosecutor who is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, to conduct the trial.

Specifically, some of the charge against them read: “That you Hon. Farouk Lawan (M) while being a member of the House of Representatives and chairman of Ad-hoc committee on Monitoring of fuel subsidy regime sometimes in April 2012 or thereabout at Abuja within the Federal Capital Territory under the jurisdiction of this honourable court did while acting in the course of your official duty corruptly obtained the sum of $500,000 (five hundred thousand dollars) for yourself from Mr. Femi Otedola Chairman Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd as an inducement to remove the name of Zenon petroleum gas ltd from the report of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc committee on Monitoring of fuel subsidy regime and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 17 (1) of the Corrupt practices and other Related Offences Act, 2000 and punishable under section 17 (1) of the same Act.”

“That you Mr. Emenalo Boniface (M) while being a public officer, an Assistant Director and Secretary of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc committee on Monitoring of Fuel Subsidy Regime sometimes in April 2012 or thereabout at Abuja within the Federal capital territory under the jurisdiction of this honourable court did while acting in the course of your official duty as Secretary…corruptly asked for the sum of $3,000,000 (three million US dollars) for yourself from Mr. Femi Otedola, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 8 (1) (b) (ii) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000 and punishable under section 23 (3) of the same Act.”

It will be recalled that a Lagos based lawyer, Mr. Festus Keyamo had earlier given the AGF a six days ultimatum to charge the accused persons to court or okay a 4-count criminal charge he personally drafted against them.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/01/subsidy-fraud-icpc-arraigns-farouk-emenalo-tomorrow/

Osun pays N340m WAEC bill for 33, 000 students

On January 29, 2013 · In News 12:00 am

BY GNENGA OLARINOYE

OSOGBO —OSUN State Government has paid N340 million as West Africa Examination Council, WAEC, fees for 33,000 final year students in all the public secondary schools in the state.

The fees were paid for all the SS3 students, without subjecting them to another qualifying examination which used to be the practice.

Addressing journalists after the 66th Executive Council meeting, Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Sunday Akere, said the payment involved examination fees, registration for laboratories and other charges.

Meanwhile, the Osun State Executive Council has approved the award of a N91,616,681 contract for the supply of medical consumables to all the health facilities in the state.

It equally awarded a N1,059,427,861 contracts for the electrification projects of 24 rural and sub-rural communities across the state.

Three of the electrification projects, costing N83,669,378 would be handled through direct labour, while the remaining 21, costing N975,758,482 would be handled by different contractors.

After the payment of the fees, he said the state government had received complaints from some parents of exclusion of their wards from among the beneficiaries, saying that the Deputy Governor, Otunba Titilayo Laoye-

Tomori who is Commissioner for Education, had been mandated to ensure a review of the payment to accommodate genuine complaints. On the new school uniform introduced by the present administration, Akere said

“We have received complaints about students being given sizes that are either too big or too small. Teachers should allow the students to test the uniforms before taking them away. If it is not of their sizes, the students have the right to return them and take their sizes.

“No teachers must force students to take the uniform that is not of their sizes. We want to appeal to teachers to cooperate with the government to make success of this project.

“Any teacher found given out uniform indiscriminately without considering the sizes would be punished for it.”


http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/01/osun-pays-n340m-waec-bill-for-33-000-students/

Dana Air crash: Senate seeks sack of NCAA DG, revocation of airline’s licence

Posted by: Onyedi Ojiabor, Assistant Editor and Sanni Onogu, Abuja on January 30, 2013

The Senate yesterday asked the Federal Government to sack the Director-General (DG) of Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr. Harold Demuren.

This followed the consideration of the report of its Committee on Aviation, which investigated the June 3, last year’s crash of Dana and Allied Airlines.

The Dana Airline crash killed 153 passengers and crew members. Others around the scene of the crash also died.

Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, Senator Hope Uzodinma, presented the report of the Senate and House of Representatives Investigative Committee shortly before the Senate went for the Christmas break.

The lawmakers said Demuren should be sacked for negligence of duty.

Besides seeking the sack of the NCAA DG, the Senate also accepted a recommendation that Mr. Suleiman Akwuh, an engineer, who handled the pre-arrival inspection on the ill-fated Dana aircraft allegedly without prerequisite professional qualification should also be kicked out.

The Senate said findings showed that Akwuh was not licensed and type-rated on MD83 Aircraft.

It said Dana’s current Air Operating Certificate (AOC) should be revoked because it was not issued in full compliance with the NCAA regulations 2009.

The lawmakers said: “The appointments of NCAA inspector, Suleiman Akwuh, who did pre-arrival inspection on the ill-fated Dana Aircraft without the prerequisite professional qualification and the Director-General of NCAA, who employed and deployed the officer should be terminated.”

The staff strength of the NCAA, the Senate said, should be overhauled with a view to injecting technical and professional qualified personnel to enhance its regulatory role in accordance with international best practices.

It also said henceforth, the management and operations of NCAA should remain autonomous to avoid undue interference by the Ministry of Aviation.

The Senate said all air accident investigation reports should be made public.

It said NCAA should compel all airlines involved in accidents to settle outstanding insurance obligations and ensure that current operating AOCs have a reliable insurance cover as required by the Civil Aviation Regulations.

It said the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) should be equipped with modern laboratory facilities to enable it discharge its responsibilities, while the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) should be equipped with well-trained workers and equipment for the purpose of responding to air accidents in the country.

The lawmakers urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to recover the N35.5 billion Aviation Intervention Fund, which was extended to Air Nigeria, guaranteed and disbursed by United Bank for Africa (UBA), but was allegedly diverted to other uses.

They said the Federal Government should put in place a hangar of international standard through public private partnership (PPP) to reduce cost of aircraft maintenance by airline operators in Nigeria.

The Senate added that the Air Field Lighting System should be returned to FAAN without further delay.

It ignored the recommendation that the MD 83 aircraft should be phased out of the country pending further investigations, while the request that the Federal Government should create an incentive for indigenous airlines through special intervention fund was rejected.

Also, the recommendation that an age limit of 15 years be placed for new acquisition for passenger aircraft and 20 years for cargo aircraft was rejected.

The recommendation that NCAA should carry out a post-accident regulatory oversight on Allied Air immediately after the conclusion of investigation by Ghana Accident Investigation Department was ignored.

On findings, the committee said: “Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) did not comply with the procedure for the issuance of Airlines Operators Certificate (AOC) to Dana Airlines as it is stipulated in NCAA 2009 Civil Aviation Regulations.

“The NCAA inspector, Suleiman Akwuh, who inspected and cleared the ill-fated Dana crashed MD83 aircraft No. 5N-RAM is not licensed and type-rated on that aircraft.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/dana-air-crash-senate-seeks-sack-of-ncaa-dg-revocation-of-airlines-licence/

Labaran Maku and his tours

Posted by: gabriel amalu on January 29, 2013

The recent assertion by Information Minister, Labaran Maku that President Jonathan’s administration has delivered on an Inland port for the commercial city of Onitsha leaves a sour taste in the mouth. This tainted claim was made by the Minister during his so called good governance tour to Anambra state. With a nearby sagging River Niger bridge that may yet collapse into the same waterway, it is a double whammy for the city of Onitsha from a President they gave so much at the last presidential polls. For the avoidance of doubt, the inland port in Onitsha is a ruse, as there is no waterway for a sizeable ferry to pass through, not to talk of a trans-loaded ship.

The misrepresentation of facts by the Honourable Minister on the Onitsha port confirms clearly that the good governance tour is a jamboree. As correctly seen by many, it is an ill conceived public relations job aimed at readying President Jonathan for the 2015 presidential election. Having passed through the Niger Bridge early this January, which is within sight of the so called port, I am astounded that the Minister could make his assertion, when a massive mound of earth is left standing as a complement to the quayside. Again the Minster knows for certain that no dredging has been done in the Niger Delta area up to Onitsha, and none is likely to be done in the life of this administration.

Annoyingly just like the National Party of Nigeria gamed with the Igbos close to elections during the government of former President Shehu Shagari, the Peoples Democratic Party has learnt to use the provision of a port and a new bridge in Onitsha to tantalize the people for votes. We recall that former President Olusegun Obasanjo sometime in 2007, also engaged in what can be termed advanced political fraud when he lead the then Governor-elect, Andy Uba and other power elites to a false ground breaking ceremony for a second Niger Bridge. Just like in the previous era, the promise of a new bridge and a river port is about to be used again as a bait for Igbo votes in 2015.

Unfortunately the Governors of the Southeast states have acquiesced to this perennial fraud. During the reign of President Obasanjo, most of the Governors except perhaps Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia state lacked the courage to demand for their peoples’ entitlement in a democracy. In this era, unfortunately again, all the Governors have shown that they are cheer leaders for a non-performing President Jonathan, and none has shown the courage to demand on behalf of the people, a functional inland port and a deserved new Niger Bridge. Leading the vanguard of uncritical supporters of the President among the Governors is Peter Obi of Anambra state.

Considering that Governor Peter Obi is always hanging around the presidency serving in one committee or another, it is a shame that his almost eight years of groveling has not earned his state and Ndigbo, perhaps their two most important demands from the federal government in the current era. But for the recent rehabilitation of one side of the Onistha-end of the dual carriage way to Enugu, Obi’s famed unflinching support for the President and his policies would have been termed a total disaster. Unfortunately despite the President’s shortcoming in delivery of benefits to Anambra state and Ndigbo, the Governor like his colleagues, keep celebrating the several wasteful visits of the President to his state.

And now that the President is becoming paranoid about criticisms it will be more difficult to impress on him the urgent need to deliver on his promises to the Igbos. Anybody who read the President’s blame game of his political opponents for the well commended Channels Television expose of the rot in the Police College, Ikeja, would know that the country is in big trouble, as the President gets worked up over fears for a second term. As the President’s comment showed, he has his two eyes now permanently fixed on 2015 elections, with scanting side glance for governance. The President’s reaction showed that he is more worried about his political reputation than the inconceivable humiliation the police trainees go through at the training college. I digress.

To show how contemptuous Maku’s wandering has become; the government of Bornu state, last week, through their information Commissioner asked the Minister not to bother to come to their state. The grouse of the state is that there is no on-going or completed federal government project in the state for the Minister and his fellow wanderers to show case. But for the Minister’s insistence on exploiting the mass media opportunities at his command, the President had last year commissioned the same bogus Onitsha port. I recall that that first ruse was to stem the peoples’ anger after the President contemptuously relived Professor Barth Nnaji of his Ministry, following pressure from his duplicitous lieutenants.

No doubt, other high ranking officials from the Southeast will share the blame if this Maku’s advertisement is allowed to remain a mirage. These of course include the deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, whom I criticized on this issue among others on this page, two years ago. The result was severe tirades from his media handlers. Of course the claim by his supporters and my critics published in Thisday Newspaper in reaction was that contrary to my claims, a new Niger Bridge was budgeted for. There are others like the Minister for Finance and coordinating Minister for the economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and the Secretary to the Federal Government, Anyim Pius Anyim. These high ranking Igbo officials must insist that Mr. President and his Minister, Labaran Maku, must walk their talk without further delay.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/law/labaran-maku-and-his-tours/

20,000 OYES cadets graduate
Posted by: Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo on January 30, 2013

Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola yesterday thanked God for the success of the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (OYES).

He spoke at the passing-out of the first batch of the scheme.

Twenty thousand cadets passed out after two years of service. The colourful ceremony was held at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) camp in Ede. Aregbesola said: “It is most pleasing for me to be here today. We are gathered here today to witness another culmination of our progressive effort and development policies.

“When I assumed office, I realised that the greatest challenge was unemployment and we swung into action. In less than 100 days in office, we established OYES and engaged 20,000 youths.

“Two years on, we thank God for the success of the programme. The World Bank recommended the scheme for study and adoption by other states. OYES is a programme like no other. Rather than being a white-collar or blue-collar job scheme, it was uniquely designed to, among other things, take the youths off the streets; orientate them on public service and make them see the need to contribute to the development of their society.

“It is a stop-gap scheme to train youths and imbue them with positive work orientation and ethics, such as self-sustenance, resourcefulness, character and competence, and to give them the self-confidence to forge ahead and overcome life’s numerous challenges after they must have spent two years and are disengaged.

“OYES is not about youth employment alone. It is also about re-inflating the state’s economy. The N200 million allowance paid to the cadets monthly sinks into the state’s economy. Our integration policy states that all uniforms, kits and equipment used by OYES should be obtained from markets spread round all local governments in the state. This has created a value chain, improved the economy, empowered families and created wealth.

“Two years after, we can proudly say that our dream has been realised. After their orientation, the cadets were deployed in various areas of public need, such as public works, sanitation monitoring, paramedics, sheriff corps and traffic marshalls.

“Along the line, they were also trained in entrepreneurship and various vocations, so as to be the masters of their destinies. Additional skill training was incorporated, which involve partnerships and collaborations with the private sector and academic institutions, such as the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Osun State University, Joseph Ayo Babalola University, Fountain University, Adeleke University and other private training organisations.

“The cadets were encouraged to form co-operative societies, through which soft loans were guaranteed by the government to facilitate the success of the volunteers in their chosen vocation or area of entrepreneurship.

“I am happy to announce that this administration’s effort is already yielding positive fruit. About 18,000 of the cadets who passed out have found permanent jobs.

“At the newly established Oloba Farm, OYES volunteers are engaged in cattle and ram fattening and in the broiler out-grower scheme. Besides, 74 cadets are undergoing training in modern agricultural practices in Leventis Foundation School and 610 others are being tutored in the Osun Rural Enterprise and Agriculture Programme (OREAP), where they are already cultivating farms under a profit-sharing arrangement.

“Another 500 in the O’dua Farmers Academy are also being trained in modern farming techniques. Under a public-private partnership arrangement, 100 OYES volunteers are engaged in fish farming in Okuku and other farms. Some are engaged in honey-bee production.

“In the OYESTECH, another initiative of our administration, 2,100 OYES cadets were trained in mobile phone and computer assembly by an electronics company planning to set up a factory here. The cadets will provide after-sales support and services for these products.

“There are other areas of successes. For instance, 600 volunteers are currently engaged in the production of red bricks. One hundred and seventy-three of the paramedics trained under the OYES programme have been deployed in the O-Ambulance scheme and two others are call-tracking personnel in the Ministry of Health.

“The State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) has engaged 1,501 cadets with teaching qualifications, who will be posted to primary schools in a short time. Over 600 cadets are to be trained and engaged as call operators by the State Emergency Call Service.

“More than 300 are being supported to set up Farmers’ Input Supply Shops, which is also a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement. Over 5,000 are also being prepared to provide mobile money, e-payment and allied services through various schemes.”

Recalling how the scheme was critiised by the opposition at its inception, the governor said: “When we set out, we only had hope and a grim determination to change our society for good. We were buffeted on every side by detractors who derided the scheme and predicted its failure within the shortest possible time. I am happy that they have been disappointed. “When their prediction of failure failed, they started to fabricate lies against the scheme. They alleged we were training the cadets as political thugs to be used to rig elections. They derided the cadets in the most uncomplimentary terms, including calling them ‘agbale oja’. I am most pleased that the cadets have imbibed, like true Omoluabi, the virtues of hardwork, dignity in labour and the leadership spirit that comes with public service.

“I have it on record that no cadet has been indicted for criminal behaviour or wrongdoing. Like I charged you at your inauguration, you have shamed the critics. I assure you that we will never leave you or forsake you. You are the foundation of the development and revolution that have begun in our state. You have done marvellously well and I am so proud of you.

“Today’s passing-out parade is a defining moment in our inexorable trot towards development. As our first batch of OYES volunteer cadets file out, we are certain that they are marching onto greatness, self-fulfilment and self-actualisation.

“They are another testimony to the fact that the march of progress we embarked upon at the inception of our administration is unstoppable because it is undergirded by vision, passion and action.”

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/20000-oyes-cadets-graduate/

Another Boko Haram Figure Speaks, Ruling Out Dialogue With Nigeria Gov’t

By SaharaReporters, New York
SaharaReporters has obtained an audio interview of a man, identified as Mujhahedeen Muhammad Marwana, who claims to be the second-in-command to Boko Haram leader Imam Abubakar Shekau, conducted in Hausa by phone in Bauchi State, by a foreign journalist.

In it, Marwana speaks authoritatively about meetings between members of his group and some top Northerners, including Governor Sule Lamido, former Minister of Defence Bello Halliru, and Sheik Dahiru Bauchi. The translation, into English, did not provide any context to those meetings.

According to the source which made the tape available, the interview was broadcast yesterday, January 28, but it is unclear when it was conducted and where it was broadcast. Translated into English, the interview shows Marwana dispelling any possible dialogue with the militants because the government has allegedly killed 47 Boko Haram emissaries in dialogue efforts that have never seen the light of day.

In the interview, Marwanna also explained Boko Haram’s predicament in Kano, stating that four principal members of their group are being “unjustly” held there and must first be released as a pre-condition for any future developments. He indicated that there are others also being held in Abuja, Maiduguri and other locations in the North.

He told his interviewer: “Many people have called us for dialogue many times but the government is fooling itself, thinking they are clever but [are] deceiving themselves. They are insisting they don’t know us, it is false, we have met their representatives many times but because of their evil plan they kept denying [us] because of their greed and wickedness.”

Marwana also reiterated that Boko Haram is following Allah’s instruction to serve him and that his group is not attacking anyone unjustly.
He asked: “Before they attack us, have you ever see us attacking them and their cronies from the beginning? Even pressmen we have no problem with them except where there were some plots,” he said.

Apparently on the subject of treachery on the part of the government, he recalled “the first meeting” following the execution of former Boko Haram leader Mohammed Yusuf in Maiduguri.

“We were six in Shehu’s Palace,” he recalled. “From there we were 40 that met in Damaturu and only three of us survived. We went to Kaduna and met in Arewa House; of 11 of us, 10 were killed by special squad of security agencies around Tafa on Abuja way, with all these, who is a cheat and want trouble? We sat with Governor Sule Lamido, former minister of defence, Bello Halliru and Sheik Dahiru Bauchi, this is what we want our Muslim Ummah to know.”

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/another-boko-haram-figure-speaks-ruling-out-dialogue-nigeria-gov%E2%80%99t

Police Pension Fund Judgement Scam: Meet Rogue Judge Abubakar Talba
Posted: January 29, 2013 - 14:15
Posted by siteadmin

By SaharaReporters, New York

This picture is the face of Talba Abubakar Mahmud, the Abuja judge who gave yesterday’s shocking ruling that set free a police pension fund thief, John Yakubu Yusufu, is popularly known in the city’s legal circles as "Justice Taliban," SaharaReporters has learned.

According to an entry under his name on the webpage of the High court of the Federal capital Territory Abuja, Mr. Mahmud was born on January 2, 1960.

The judge who has become the object of anger and resentment from Nigerian citizens across the world with his bizarre ruling was born in Fagge in Kano state, but his father is from Adamawa State.

He is married with 11 kids, but it is unclear if he has more than one wife.

The entry shows that he was appointed to his current position in December 2003, and that he obtained a law degree in 1985.

Although Mr. Mahmud claimed to have obtained a diploma in law in 1981, a B.L degree in 1985 and a Masters Degree in Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice in 2009, his biodata does not disclose the institutions from which he obtained the degrees.

In yesterday’s judgement in which Mr. Mahmud announced himself to the world, he gave a police pension thief, who pleaded guilty to stealing $203 million, a two year prison sentence and offered an option of $1,500 fine in lieu of the sentence.

The infamous sentence is attracting a massive backlash from Nigerian citizens and anti-corruption activists across the globe.

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/police-pension-fund-judgement-scam-meet-rogue-judge-abubakar-talba

Abubakar Mahmud Talba

Northern elders seek amnesty for Boko Haram members

Posted by: Kolade Adeyemi, Kano on January 29, 2013 in News 55 Comments

NORTHERN elders yesterday rose from a three-day summit in Kano Government House with far-reaching decisions, including a call on the Federal Government to grant amnesty to Boko Haram sect members.

They urged the government to initiate a restoration, reformation and rehabilitation programme that would reintegrate demilitarised Boko Haram sect members into the society.

According to them, the type of amnesty that ended militants’ unrest in the Niger Delta region would be suitable in the North.

The elders also identified widespread insecurity, breakdown of the educational system, massive illiteracy and leadership failure as part of the problems of the North.

Specifically, they urged President Goodluck Jonathan to dialogue with the sect and grant its members amnesty just as it was done for restive youths in the oil-rich Niger Delta region.

As far as the elders were concerned, President Jonathan, his deputy Namadi Sambo and the 10 Northern governors have not shown enough sympathy for the states under the Boko Haram siege.

The positions of the elders were contained in a communiqué issued after a three-day summit organised by Northern Development Focus Initiative (NDFI) at the Kano Government House. The curtain dropped yesterday on the summit.

They also advocated death penalty or life imprisonment for indicted corrupt officials in both public and private sectors, recommending that all stolen assets be forfeited to government.

Indicted public officials should be suspended from office pending the outcome of investigation, they said.

Signed by Alhaji Usman Farouk, a former governor of Northwestern State and Dr. Sadiq Umar Abubakar, chairman and secretary of the NDFI respectively, the communiqué reads: “Education has collapsed to the extent that over 70 per cent of children of school-going age are not attending school.”

The elders regretted the lack of avenues for gainful employment for teeming youths and noted the concerns and fears of youths for the survival of the region and that of the country.

They blamed rising insecurity and ethno-religious crises on government’s failure to rise to the challenge.

According to the communiqué, attitudes of northern elite and leaders, lack of synergy due to failure of elected representatives to interface with the executive to develop new policies have been parts of the problems bedeviling the North.

It reads: “Northern states and the Federal Government should institute compulsory and free education at the primary and secondary school levels for all school-age children and introduce a free pupils feeding programme like Kano State. Governors of the North should increase budgetary allocation to the educational sector to 30 per cent.

“Since security is the responsibility of the Federal Government as enshrined in the Constitution of the Nigeria 1999, all the states affected by security crises in the North should compute all monies expended by them for re-imbursement by the Federal Government.

“A judicial commission of inquiry should be set-up to establish the remote and immediate causes of ethno-religious conflicts and prevalent insurgency.

“All persons identified to be involved in sponsoring, benefitting or involved in all forms of terrorism and insurgency should be prosecuted.

“The Federal Government should set-up a Northern Nigeria Restoration, Reformation and Rehabilitation programme to involve repentant Boko Haram insurgents unconditionally and a special committee of respected northerners should immediately embark on a sympathy and solidarity tour of all states affected by insecurity in the North.”

They also called for a master plan for agricultural revival for the North so as to boost agriculture, create wealth, employment opportunities and develop agro-allied industry.

The summit, which had “Development, peace and unity, as a tool for enhancing socio-economic and political reform in Northern Nigeria”, as its theme, drew political actors in the North ranging from council officials to federal legislators.

The resource persons included former the former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the presidential candidate of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in the 2011 election, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, Sen. Victor Lar, former Director, of Defence Military Intelligence (DMI), Maj-Gen. Muhammadu Sambo and public affairs analyst, Dr. Tilde.

In attendance were: Niger State Governor and Chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum Babangida Aliyu, Gombe House of Assembly Speaker and Chairman of the Northern Speakers’ Congress, former Borno State Governor Muhammadu Goni, Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim, Senator Danjuma Goje and Senator Bukola Saraki.

All the states in the North were also representated.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/northern-elders-seek-amnesty-for-boko-haram-members-2/

Guber poll: Ifeanyi Ubah’s campaign posters flood Anambra streets
On January 28, 2013 · In News
9:16 pm

By VINCENT UJUMADU

AWKA—BARELY few hours after the court judgment freed the Capital Oil boss, Mr. Ifeanyi Ubah, Monday, his governorship campaign posters flooded all the major cities in Anambra State .

The posters were two different designs and a group known as Anambra Progressive Youths, who claimed to be sponsors of the posters, urged him to contest the forth -coming governorship election in the state.

Coordinator of the group, Mr. Joe Nwuba, said by the judgment of the court, Ubah had been vindicated.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/01/guber-poll-ifeanyi-ubahs-campaign-posters-flood-anambra-streets/

Nigerian Official Convicted For Stealing $203 Million Gets Two Years in Jail, Or Option Of $1,500 Fine

Posted: January 28, 2013 - 18:35

By SaharaReporters, New York
An Abuja High Court became the punch line to a tasteless joke today when it sentenced John Yakubu Yusufu, standing trial on charges of stealing N32.8billion in the Police Pension scam, to two years on each of three charges, and then offered him a go-home option of a fine of N250,000 ($1,500).

Wisely, Mr. Yusufu accepted the judge’s kind offer, parted with N750,000 ($4,500), and walked into freedom with the rest of his loot.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), said in a statement it would “study the ruling and respond appropriately.”

Before Justice Talba Mohammed, Mr. Yusufu had dramatically pleaded guilty to counts 18, 19 and 20 of the offense of grand theft and money laundering involving N32.8 billion ($204 million), in connivance with Essai Dangaba, Atiku Abubakar Kigo, Ahmed Inuwa, Wada, Mrs. Veronica Uloma, Sani Habila Zira, Mrs. Uzoma Cyril Attang and Christian Madubuike.

At today’s trial, the EFCC amended the charges and introduced two more suspects, Mrs. Uzoma Cyril Attang and Christian Madubuike.

Mrs. Attang was however not produced in court as she is said to be a powerful woman. She was however identified as a Director of Finance at the Ministry of Communication; between 2007 and 2008, she served as a Director at the Police Pension Fund.

During that short span, Mrs. Attang amassed so much wealth that in one account, at the United Bank of Africa, she had N500 million and the Code of Conduct tribunal brought charges against her. Those charges were then swiftly quashed as the First Lady, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, allegedly waded into the case on her side.

The EFCC said in its statement that Mrs Attang was “removed from the list of accused persons due to her absence in court,” but that she will be arraigned at a later date.

Count 19, one of the three that Yusufu pleaded guilty to, reads: “That you John Yakubu Yusufu between 27th January, 2009 and 25th November 2009 at Abuja in the Abuja Division of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory converted to your use certain property, to wit the sum of N1,364, 285, 419.95 ( One Billion, Three Hundred and Sixty Four Million, Two Hundred and Eighty Five Thousand, Four Hundred and Nineteen Naira and Ninety five Kobo) belonging to Police Pension Office domiciled in its account with First Bank of Nigeria Plc and you thereby committed an offence punishable under section 309 of the Penal Code Act, Cap. 532, Laws of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria, 2007.”

According to the EFCC, prior to the ruling, the defence counsel, Theodore Bala Maiyaki pleaded with the court for leniency. “My Lord, his conduct has shown respect for this honourable court, he has saved the time of my Lord and being a first offender, with no previous record of conviction, I urge the court to temper justice with mercy and sentence him with least possible terms.”

He also pleaded that Yusufu has a serious heart condition and is the bread winner of not only his immediate family but of numerous others.

However, prosecution counsel Rotimi Jacobs reminded the court that Section 309 of the Criminal Procedure Code prescribes a maximum of 2 years imprisonment, a fine or both for the offence which the convict had pleaded guilty to.

He said, “The court needs to send out the message that the era of stealing public funds with impunity is gone. Having regards to the amount and properties involved, the duty imposed on the convict, it would not be good to convict him without regards to assuaging the feelings of Nigerians especially the pensioners.”

Mr. Jacob urged the court to convict Mr. Yusufu accordingly. He also submitted an application seeking for the forfeiture of 13 properties found in Gombe GRA and Abuja which the EFCC seized from Yusufu as proceeds of crime.

Mr. Jacobs said the process of illegally withdrawing and sharing monies among the accused persons started in 2007 and ended in 2009; within that period, Mr. Yusufu came into office, met the unwholesome practice and continued with it. He told the court that apart from the 13 properties confiscated from him, the sum of N325 million found in his account should also be forfeited.

Mr. Jacobs later protested the slap on the wrist handed down by Justice Mohammed, warning that it will defeat the fight against corruption.

Apart from the jail term, the EFCC said the former assistant director of Police Pension office will forfeit 32 properties. They include two units of a 3 bedroom semi detached bungalow at R2, A and B, sunny homes, Dakwo District, Abuja; two units of 3 bedroom semi bungalow- detached at M24, A and B, sunny homes Dakwo homes, Dakwo District Abuja; four units of a 3bedroom semi- detached bungalow, managed by Daniel at sunny homes, Dakwo District, Abuja; eight units of an Estates of two bedroom flats, at Gombe, GRA; one unit Semi-detached Duplex at house 21, 4th Avenue, Gwarinpa, Abuja; four units of a 2 bedroom semi-detached duplex at Bricks city, Kubwa road, Abuja and one unit of Semi- Detached Duplex, at 14B Democracy crescent, Gaduwa, Abuja.

He will also forfeit the sum of N325, 187, 867.18 in cash.

The substantive case was adjourned to February 25, 2013.

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/nigerian-official-convicted-stealing-203-million-gets-two-years-jail-or-option-1500-fine

John Yakubu Yusufu

Abuja job racket

Posted by: Editorial on January 27, 2013

The recent firing of Nigeria’s immigration boss, Mrs. Rose Chinyere Uzoma, after admitting that she apportioned many slots to persons in the inner sanctum of power, including the mother of the president, has unveiled a seedy part of our culture. Few jobs, especially in the public sector, come without moral compromises. Bribes are the key to the employment kingdom.

Also, at lower levels, a syndicate with specialty in employment racketeering characterises job placements in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The obnoxious group reportedly charges prospective job seekers in federal ministries, departments and agencies, (MDAs), huge amounts of between N400, 000 and N500, 000. Shockingly, the syndicate reportedly fronts for heads of some MDAs with base in Gwagwalada, Karu and other strategic areas in the FCT.

At a recent plenary of the Senate, some senators raised the alarm over the injurious activities of the syndicate. Senator Abubakar Bagudu raised a motion on employment irregularities in the MDAs, which he justified by referring to a statement credited to Mrs Uzoma, the out-going Comptroller-General of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), who reportedly said that: “4,000 employment slots approved by the Federal Government were being sold to job applicants and some allocated to other personalities.’’

She reportedly added that due process requiring advertisement meant to arouse the notice of interested members of the public to apply was not adhered to. It is also claimed that such recruitments always favour some states of the federation, in utter negation of the federal character principle.

What the immigration boss said, more fundamentally, is a scourge that has gutted every sphere of our national life. If entry level jobs in our civil service cannot come without the greasy palm, it is because even the plum office holders of the land secured their privileges after bribing their ways. It is common knowledge that whether it is the position of local government chairman or governor or minister or even president, it is almost impossible to enjoy any choice position without compromises that involve separating from huge sums of money and plying the “facilitators” with such good fortune.

Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume at that plenary supported and corroborated Bagudu’s position with his own unpleasant experience with the syndicate: “A constituent came to me that he needed N200, 000 to secure employment in one parastatal. When I refused to give him the money, he said that was the only requirement needed and if I didn’t give him the money, the job was as good as gone … After much pleading, I caved in and gave him the N200, 000 only for him to come back to me days later that the price was no longer N200, 000 but N400, 000. This person was a graduate of geography who had stayed at home for four years without a job.”

What kind of country allows an employment opening to sell this way? What has happened to competence? Would whoever gets employed through payment of bribe not be interested in recouping his money?

Senate President David Mark bewails the desperation but could not find any tangible solution other than to blame the civil service commission and to direct victims to meet with relevant committees during public hearings and perhaps, point out those that demanded money for employment from them. He also charged the Committee on Federal Character and Inter-Governmental Affairs and Employment, Labour and Productivity to do a thorough job in order to reduce the cankerworm or possibly eliminate the criminality/injustice in the employment chain.

The Senate leadership must realise that a good leader does not bemoan but rather inspires the followership towards a good result. In a situation like this, buck- passing will lead to nowhere; neither is the adoption of unworkable committee/public hearing method that has not brought forth any good in the past.

We see Senate’s attitude as incapable of bringing succour to victims. How can we be so sure that the affected committees would do justice over the matter when they meet with the heads of the MDAs? Given our penchant for sectional, ethnic and religious favouritism, there is no guarantee that the committees would not look the other way. After all, many members of the chamber did not exactly win their seats from local popularity based on wisdom, altruism or selfless service.

Furthermore, we doubt whether the matter’s mention would have been deemed necessary at the Senate’s plenary but for the fact that some senators are directly affected by the syndicate’s activities. It is shameful for a senator, where the minimum wage is N18, 000, to have doled out N200, 000 to a constituent, to be paid as a bribe for the constituent to get employed in a federal establishment.

The Nigerian law provides criminal punishment for a bribe giver and taker and it becomes worse where the giver is a lawmaker like we have seen in this case. In addition, what fate awaits those job seekers in the same FCT who cannot afford such a high amount and with nobody to bail them out?

If they borrow to secure the jobs, as top political office holders do – from richer people, from the banks, from political mentors, etc – they start their jobs without innocence but with the spirit to recoup. Corruption breeds corruption.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/editorial/abuja-job-racket/

Spanish govt ‘stole’ my son

January 26, 2013 by Bosede Olusola-Obasa


BOSEDE OLUSOLA-OBASA writes on the agony of a Nigerian seeking custody of his son seized by the Spanish government 11 years ago

Two lovers, Edo State-born Kelly Agbons and Omosefe Ijesurobo, had their love child, Osagie, in 2000 and thereafter, left Nigeria to seek greener pastures in Spain.

As at the time of their departure, their love adventure had not been consummated in a holy wedlock. However, they lived together and had a common dream.

Typical of emigrants, the journey of Kelly, Omosefe and Osagie to Spain was not all rosy, neither was their initial effort to settle down there.

They actually arrived at their destination in two boats – father first, then mother and baby. They also had difficulty finding a job, and to worsen their case, they had no legal residency papers.

So, the young family settled in Murcia with a relative of Omosefe.

To seek better job in order to fend for Osagie and mum, Kelly moved from Murcia in 2001 to Barcelona. He visited his family bi-weekly to see how they were faring. But on one of his visits in October 2001, he discovered that Omosefe had been deported and Osagie deposited in a children’s home.

Now aged 36, Kelly is battling the Spanish authorities for the custody of their son. Kelly was 25 when he last saw Osagie.

Omosefe was 21 years old when she was sent back to Nigeria without her son, who was then slightly above one year old. She was accused of practicing prostitution.

That singular action by the Marcia authorities left a sour taste in Kelly’s mouth. When he spoke to our correspondent on the telephone, he described the years without his first child as “tortuous”.

It is more worrisome for him that going by the Murcia authorities’ stance, there appears not to be any possibility of him ever reuniting with Osagie.

He recalled that while he was in Barcelona, the police on October 13, 2001, arrested Omosefe as an illegal Nigerian immigrant claiming that she was working as a prostitute on the streets of Murcia and took her to a detention centre to await deportation.

He said that despite the fact that her lawyer filed a request for her release nine days after, informing the court that she had a little baby to look after, the authorities nevertheless deported her.

Kelly said that not only did they separate the little boy from his family; they also gave him out on adoption to an entirely strange family.

He said he had since then been in touch with his mother through the telephone and that she asked him to endeavour to get the boy back.

“Immediately I heard of the deportation, I returned to salvage my son. But I was denied access to him. The Murcia authorities claimed that the child was abandoned. Before we knew what was happening, another family had adopted Osagie and I have not seen him since then.

“I have been through a lot since that time. To further press home our demand, I invited his mum to Spain in 2008, and we were even on local television together on this issue. I did paternity test in 2004. I am determined to get my son back,” he said.

Kelly, who now lives in Santa Coloma de Gramenet in Barcelona province, noted that another Nigerian woman called Patience was deported alongside Omosefe for the same reason. He said her child was also withheld from her and wondered if the Spanish authority was following a trend.

He said there had been several court cases in Spain on Osagie’s issue and expressed joy that they found something wrong with the approach used by the authority.

A Spanish newspaper, El Pais in English wrote in its June 22, 2012 publication, “When the administration realised that a mistake had occurred, among other reasons because the media denounced this and an identical case involving another Nigerian child separated from his deported mother, it immediately tried to get mother (Omosefe) and child (Osagie) back together by asking the Nigerian Embassy to locate Omosefe. But she never turned up. Years later, in court, the government alleged that once deported, it was impossible to bring the mother back, and that the little boy had not been signed up in the Civil Registry, which left him in a legal limbo and made him a ward of the state.”

But Kelly denied the claim, reiterating that he had been in communicating with Omosefe on the telephone all these years.

He said that after a decade of appeals in various Spanish courts, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg ruled that there had been a breach of the European Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Since there was no hope of reuniting with his erstwhile lover, Kelly now lives with another woman with two children, but he is still yearning for his first born.

In the same vein, he said that Omosefe had been trying to settle down after the ugly experience.

Kelly said that Strasbourg had in a ruling, established that the Spanish state was guilty, but that it could not return Osagie to his biological father. It, therefore, asked the government to pay Kelly 8,000 euros as damages.

“I don’t want money. Spain is terrible; all I want is my son. It is unfortunate that when I ran to the Nigerian Embassy in Spain for help on this issue, they acted indifferent. I must not be allowed to suffer this injustice forever. I am alive, I live in the same country but I am denied access to my son. I have the means to cater for my son. I want my son back,” Kelly cried out.

Contacted for comments, the spokesperson, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Ogbole Ahmedu-Ode, said that the Nigerian embassy was not aware of the case.

He said, “I got in touch with our mission in Madrid, Spain and I was informed that there is no record of such a case. Our mission there has handled a number of cases involving Nigerians over the years, but this one is not in our records.

“The Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs has in line with the directive of Mr. President, directed all our missions to ensure that Nigerians are treated fairly, even in cases where they are accused of committing an offence.

“One of the main objectives of establishing embassies abroad is to ensure that Nigerians and the interest of Nigeria are protected. To the b owledge, our missions have been up and doing.”

Attempts to reach the Spanish Embassy in Abuja for comments were not successful as no official was ready to handle the matter.

For now, Kelly can only hope that somehow, things will change for the better and he will be reunited with his son.

http://www.punchng.com/feature/saturday-people/return-my-son-to-me-nigerian-father-begs-spanish-govt/

Kelly with a photograph of his son and himself

.

PHOTONEWS: Angry Families In protest Against Dana Airline Over Non-Payment of Claims

SaharaReporters

Aggrieved families affected by the crash of Dana 0992 flight on December 3rd of 2012 today converged at the Ikeja office of the Dana Airline to
protest non-payment of their claims.

A warehouse owner said he had submitted relevant documents to request a claim of N500million to the management of Dana Airline, but that after series communications, Dana Airline has not replied to a single correspondence.

The protesters say they are determined to continue seizing the office of Dana Airline until it responds appropriately to the damages caused by
the crash of June 3rd 2012.


The airline resumed normal flight operations on January 4th this year.

http://saharareporters.com/gallery/photonews-angry-families-protest-against-dana-airline-over-non-payment-claims

Govt raises 11-man panel to probe Police Colleges’ rot

Posted by: Gbade Ogunwale, Abuja on January 23, 2013

The Federal Government yesterday set up an 11-man committee to probe the rot in Police Colleges.

The committee will also ascertain the amount of money appropriated for the police to renovate and upgrade the police institutions between 2009 and 2012.

Director, Special duties in the Police Affairs Ministry is the head of the probe team raised by Police Affairs Minister Omoniyi Olubolabe.

The committee has one week to submit its report.

President Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday visited the Police College in Lagos after Channels Television exposed the rot in the school.

Members of the committee are: Rep. of NPF-Vice Chairman, Director, Finance and Account-Member, Director, PID-Member, Director, PSD-Member, 3 Nos. Representatives of NPF-Member, Legal Adviser-Member, Head of Budget Division-Member, Head of Internal Audit-Member, Head of External Audit-Member and Secretary-PRS.

The committee’s term of reference are:

•To ascertain the amount of funds appropriated by the Federal Government of Nigeria to the NPF for renovations/upgrade of the Nigeria Police Institutions between 2009 and 2012 and total donations received in the period under review.

•To examine the budget proposed/appropriated by NPF for the Training Institutions between 2009 and 2012

•To verify the utilisation of the appropriation to the NPF for the upgrade of facilities in the following Police Training Institutions.

•Detective College Enugu;

•PMF Training Schools Gwoza and

•Illa Oragun, ATS Training School, Nonwa Tai;

•Police Colleges Ikeja, Kaduna, Maiduguri, Oji-River, PTS Iperu.

•To ascertain if the Heads of the NPF Formations were regularly updating the NPF Management on the conditions of the Institutions between 2009 – 2012 and what actions were taken by the Management of NPF sequel to such;

•To examine the design and capacity of the institutions vis-à-vis the current number of intakes;

•To examine the current condition of infrastructure in all the NPF training institutions and make appropriate recommendations to Government;

•To consider any other matter relevant.

Olubolade said his ministry and the police management team will address the rot in police colleges in the country without delay.

He spoke to reporters after a meeting with Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar at the Force Headquarters yesterday. ,The minister said the matter is of priority to the government.

Olubolade said the meeting with the IGP centred on how to fix the decay in police colleges and how to tackle the rising wave of terrorism, kidnapping and other criminal activities in the land.

The minister said: “We looked at the training of policemen and the training institutions not only on police colleges because solving the problem of police colleges alone is not enough.

“We will solve the problem of police colleges and that of other training institutions including the Police Academy in Kano as well as the Staff College in Jos.

“Once we address those issues, we will be making better progress. So, if you ask me, this meeting was aimed at repositioning the police to attend to training matters. To attend to operational matters so that this year, we will see a better policing in Nigeria police.”

“Nigerians should expect a highly professional police force that will stand up and face the challenges that are confronting our nation. And to do that, I have to constantly meet with the management team headed by the IGP who is here with me as many times as possible.

“This is to ensure that we are on course with our plan, to ensure that whatever we asked for to make the police force more efficient, is given to us. It is also to ensure that we are making progress in fighting crime, criminality and terrorism.

“Like I said, I am here to follow up on what I have just spoken about; to interact with the IGP and his management team, to look at lapses that may exist and how we will surmount them because it is a joint effort and I think it is critical to do that.

“The IGP is making some progress in certain areas and I will also have to look at them”.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/govt-raises-11-man-panel-to-probe-police-colleges-rot/

My Police College Is Better Than Yours By Rudolf Ogoo Okonkwo

http://saharareporters.com/column/my-police-college-better-yours-rudolf-ogoo-okonkwo

Posted: January 22, 2013 - 20:15


Two years ago, a friend of mine dropped out of circulation without the slightest warning. He was someone I spoke to, at least, once a month, though, most times, we spoke once a week. So his disappearance was traumatic to me.

My friend graduated from one of those elite schools in America and went on to work for the greatest corporations of the world. In a way that I could never fathom, he understood the world properly – its politics and economy. He was also a master of human behavior. When the likes of Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala and Sanusi Lamido make their fancy statements about macroeconomic indicators, default swabs, and adding value and capacity building to things that have no way of retaining either, he was the one who translated such jargons for me.

On a tangible level, when Nigeria’s foreign reserve went down, he would tell me even before the newspapers filed their reports. He even knew what the money was used for. When it went up, he also knew why. When my postulations were off mark, he would educate me. When my conclusions were an overreach, he would pull me back. He was well plugged in politically and otherwise. Invariably, he was doing something very important for me – crosschecking my reality.

So he disappeared. I tried to contact him by all the means I knew but he would not respond. In over ten years that I had known him no month had ever passed that we were not in touch. Even when he was traveling all over the world, as he often did, he found a way to keep in touch – even if it was just as simple as sending a note about something I wrote.

One day, I heard through a source that he had joined the government in some capacity. Though surprised, I wasn’t alarmed. I had always felt that he knew more than those running the country so it would not be a bad thing for him to go inside and make the changes he had proposed in several of our conversations. I made further efforts to reach him but no luck. He would have been able to explain in a layman’s language why we are borrowing money from China, day in day out, when we have $46 billion in foreign reserve. Also, he would have been able to map out for me the political intrigues playing out within the PDP.

Nine months after I first heard that he had joined the government, he contacted me. He confirmed that he was working for the government but said he was not at liberty to keep the communication line open. Then, in a parting shot, he noted, “my friend, government is worse than you ever imagined.”

Coming from him, that statement meant a lot to me. Though I may sound confident most times, in my quiet moments, I often question if I was not being dribbled by events. At night I’d wonder if I was not being beaten aerially. Every now and then, I needed to hear the state of things from trusted people who are in the know -people who have in their palms the stories behind the stories.

Many months ago, I sincerely concluded that President Jonathan’s presidency, when it is all said and done, will be a wash. But I did not know that he is worse than I can ever imagine.

President Jonathan made a surprise visit to the Lagos Police College to see for himself the despicable images of the institution that Channels TV had broadcast. He came. He saw. And he shot himself in the foot.

Instead of picking a fight with the people in authority who allowed such an institution to degenerate to that level, he picked a fight with the TV station that brought those images to the world. He questioned how the TV station was able to get inside the institution and record such shameful living conditions. Like a sinking man who feels perpetually under attack, he conjured up the emotion that the goal of that exposé was to embarrass him and his government. Why would anybody bother to embarrass a man who does a good job embarrassing himself each time he opens his mouth?

Like I said, at best, President Jonathan is a wash. The real surprise for me in the whole drama was the reaction of the Nigerian people. I have always known that the Nigerian people are smarter than their president. Now I fear that the dumb down is beginning to affect we, the people.

I was surprised that Nigerians seemed outraged by the state of the Police College. It made me question, for the very first time, where in the world my people have been. When you read that this Inspector General of police stole billions and another one stole a fraction of a trillion, what did you think the billions were meant for? These things are all connected. That we are not conscious of these connections really troubled me.

When a pension fund is embezzled, it simply meant that hundreds of thousands of retirees are going to go without their pension at the most vulnerable period of their lives. You don’t have to know a retiree to feel their pain. You don’t have to visit their homes to understand their sufferings. You don’t have to watch them drop dead on a line waiting for their pension to get outraged. But it appears that our people, in our undying quest to get our own share, have lost the capacity to value others by putting ourselves in their shoes.

When Nigerian government officials or their associates are flown abroad for treatment, the fund is coming from our limited commonwealth. That is from the same pot that was initially designated for something that would have served the greater good. There is no way of eating your akara and having it. The billions in foreign exchange that we spend sending the kids of beneficiaries of government largesse abroad to study; wives of government officials on medical excursions; attending unnecessary jamborees abroad, are the same funds we should have used to provide services to our people. This gross mismanagement is what makes all the difference between one oil producing country and another. The earlier we understand these connections, the better for us.

I was also shocked that Nigerians were disgusted by the poor state of the Police College dormitories. Maintenance of infrastructures is not the forte of Nigerians. Wasn’t our billion naira National Stadium abandoned right in the neighborhood of the president? Even on individual level, haven’t you noticed that many homes in Nigeria don’t get maintained ever? Some buildings in FESTAC have never been repainted since 1977. And it wasn’t that the owners could not afford to do so. Ever noticed how fast the once magnificent 1004 Flats in Lagos turned into a dump?

When you visit the homes of Nigerians abroad, most times, they are in disrepair. I often joke that you only need to know the street where a Nigerian lives and not the house number. Once on the street you can identify the house of a Nigerian by the state of the lawns. Once you see over grown lawns or a lawn with patches of dead grasses, you may be looking at the home of a Nigerian. In the winter, un-shoveled walk ways will give the Nigerian home away.

I regularly ask Nigerians abroad to pay a visit to their secondary school or even university whenever they travel home. A visit to your secondary school dormitory, where you once lived, will put the Nigerian situation in the right perspective for you. That is, if there is still a dormitory. And if it is better than the picture from the Police College, then, you are one of the exceptions.

The Nigerian decay is vast and deep. To begin to extricate ourselves from the abyss we have fallen into, we have to first of all enforce a paradigm shift. We have to stop deceiving ourselves that it was God who put these wasteful spenders in power. God had nothing to do with it. And once we accept that, then we will regain the strength to question them. Except we belong to those whose philosophy is that we should not disturb the comfortable – in fact, that we should worship them so that our turn will come.

Those who treat police recruits as “poultry chickens” should not be stunned that as full fledge cops, they treat citizens as compost. If a police college is in that horrible shape, imagine the shape our prisons are. Do you also need a camera to go into the Nigerian prison before you figure it out?

The moment I see a police officer on a road checkpoint wearing a pair of bathroom slippers and holding together parts of his gun with ropes, I knew what to expect in their living quarters. If there is a Nigerian English dictionary, the best image to illustrate filth is the picture of a police barrack.

Over the years, Nigerians have been reduced to a mere greedy bunch. For us, the only games in town are; whose property is bigger; whose vanity is superior, whose grandeur is larger. The measure of success has been reduced to some silly mantras: My bank accounts are larger than yours; my hummer is bigger than yours; my kids are in more elite universities abroad than yours; my pastor’s temple is larger than yours; my convoy is longer than yours. This greed breeds corruption and the corruption in turn feeds the greed. And the vicious cycle continues. Self-aggrandizement has become a substitute for self-actualization.

The commandant of the Lagos Police College said something apt when faced with what should have been an embarrassing situation. His answer was basically simple: my police college may be bad but it is better than yours. The president seems to understand. And Nigerians seem to understand, too.

In Nigeria, things are really worse than you ever imagined. If you haven’t realized it, it is only because you have not seen the video clip yet.

http://saharareporters.com/column/my-police-college-better-yours-rudolf-ogoo-okonkwo

By SaharaReporters, New York

An undated photo showing runaway governor of Enugu state, Sullivan Chime in the company of visiting governors of Benue, Rivers and Akwa Ibom in London.

Governor Godswill Akpabio, Gabriel Suswam, Sullivan Chime and Rotimi Amaechi
www.nairaland.com/attachments/959147_chime_jpg7dd64529dfbab8b9342478fbe39feaa2

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/photonews-governors-forum-visit-ailing-enugu-governor-london

Resign now, Amaechi tells Orubebe
On January 21, 2013 · In News
9:21 pm

HOUSTON, TEXAS — CHAIRMAN, Governors Forum, NGF and Rivers State Governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, Monday, said the Minister of Niger Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe, had failed the region and should honourably resign.
Minister of Niger Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe and Governors Forum, NGF and Rivers State Governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi,

Minister of Niger Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe and Governors Forum, NGF and Rivers State Governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi,

Speaking with journalists in Houston, Texas, US, during a town hall meeting with Rivers State community, he said the reason for the creation of the Ministry of Niger Delta was to develop the region, adding: “Under Orubebe, what development have we witnessed? None.

It is a strategy to distract the Niger Delta people by trying to hide all his failures. I had gone through the region and no presence of his ministry was felt anywhere in the area of meaningful or people oriented projects.

“I challenge him to a debate for every one project Orubebe can show me that he had done in the Niger Delta region. I will show him 10 of such projects in Rivers State.

We did a 41-kilometre road to Opobo under water, yet the East-West Road on land he cannot complete. The Port Hacourt/Owerri Road is their road, yet we are doing it with Rivers State funds.”

On his rumoured presidential ambition
The governor also spoke on his rumoured presidential ambition, saying: “I cannot contest against Mr. President.

We are from the same region. I respect him, and he is a good man. I am tired of responding to this issue of presidential ambition. It is normal to have contrary views on some topics but it doesn’t transcend to hatred.

“It is the likes of Orubebe that fans the embers of hatred. It is unfortunate that he can accuse me of corruption, nobody has accused me before.

If Orubebe wants us to go public any day, I am ready. I often tell them that the problem with me is that I am not an old man.

I am equal to the task of confronting anybody who confronts me on issues that are mundane.
“I advise him again to face his work, and make his presence felt in the region.

After all, I don’t have any mansion anywhere, but I know Orubebe’s mansion. If he wants, we will show the world his mansions.”
Rivers State also hosted a business forum to attract foreign investors to the state.

The forum was declared open by the Mayor of Houston, Amise Parker, who was impressed by the performance of Governor Amaechi in Rivers State. The Mayor said that a group of Texas Business community would visit Rivers State next month for a business trip.

On his part, Ambassador Geoffrey Teneilabe, the Nigerian Consul-General, said Rivers State under Governor Amaechi had witnessed unprecedented developments, adding: “It is blessed with a dynamic and visionary leader with remarkable achievements in virtually every sector.”

It was gathered that hosting an investment forum in Houston, Texas was strategic, as it is the hub of business in the South-East United States with combined economies over $4.5 trillion in GDP.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/01/resign-now-amaechi-tells-orubebe/

Visit To Police College: ACN Says Jonathan Missed The Point

Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has condemned the comments made by President Goodluck Jonathan on Friday while on a surprise visit to the Police College Ikeja, to see the decaying state of the training institution.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, the party said instead of using the occasion to tell Nigerians what his administration will do to uplift the training institution and many of its likes across the country, the President chose to berate imaginary enemies who are bent on embarrassing his administration, and also questioned how Channels Television managed to film the rot in the college.

“Mr President, those comments were totally unnecessary, and they put a damper on what would have been a great moment for you. A surprise presidential visit is always a good strategy for leaders to see things in their real state, without the usual window dressing that heralds scheduled visits. But it must be properly managed to achieve the maximum effect. Failure to make the best of that moment is akin to snatching defeat from the jaws of victory,” it said.

The ACN said the expose by Channels shows that the media is alert to its watchdog responsibility, hence it should not matter how the Television station gained access to the college or who was behind it.

The party said the President can still make amends by making a policy statement on how his administration plans to turn around the fortunes of the police college in particular, and all the police training institutions across the country in general, as part of an general effort to improve the overall welfare of the men and women who are saddled with the responsibility of protecting the lives and properties of all citizens.

“Subjecting police men and women to dehumanising and demeaning conditions, the type exposed by Channels, during training means we cannot and should not expect them to be exemplary after their training, Nothing good can come out of what we saw in that college.

“Terrible as the state of the Police College in Ikeja is, it represents a tip of the iceberg when compared with the pervasive rot in police barracks and police stations, as well as the generally poor welfare of the police. There is no doubt that the pervasive corruption in our country and the lack of maintenance culture contributed to what has now become a global embarrassment to the whole of Nigeria, not just to the Jonathan Administration.

“Therefore, there is no better time than now for the Administration to embark on a concerted effort to reverse the rot. It may also not be a bad idea for the President, who was reportedly angry and shocked at what he saw during the visit, to order a probe into how the institution deteriorated so badly, with a view to prevent a recurrence,” it said.

http://www.channelstv.com/home/2013/01/21/visit-to-police-college-acn-says-jonathan-missed-the-point/

Fashola Discusses I.T, Growth With Google Chairman

Lagos state Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), yesterday had a meeting with Executive Chairman of Google Inc., Eric Schmidt to discuss the use of the internet and technology to drive growth in diverse sectors of the state.

The meeting which held at the State House, Marina had several government officials and members of the Google team in attendance.

The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Dr Obafemi Hamzat was in attendance alongside his Science and Technology counterpart, Mr Adebiyi Mabadeje. The Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mrs Olushola Oworu, Director, Google Idea, Mr Jared Cohen, Country Manager Google Nigeria, Juliet Ehimuan, Deputy Chief of Staff, Governor’s Office, Ms Moji Rhodes and member, Lagos Innovation Advisory Council, Mr Tomi Davies were all present at the meeting where it was revealed that Lagos is the hub of Google Inc.’s initiatives in the country

http://www.channelstv.com/home/2013/01/21/ffashola-meets-google-chairman-eric-schmidt-talks-i-t-and-growth/

ACN Asks Martin Luther King, Jr. Center, USA, to Withdraw Gabriel Suswam’s Award Without Delay
Posted: January 21, 2013 - 02:55
Posted by siteadmin

caption: Gov. of Benue state, Gabriel Suswam
By SaharaReporters, New York
The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Benue State has vehemently denounced a foreign award conferred on the governor of Benue State, Mr. Gabriel Toruwa Suswam by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center in the United States.

In a statement, the party advised the management of the Center, which is located in Atlanta, Georgia, to withdraw the award immediately. The governor was presented with the award on January 18.

“While ACN has no issues with Governor Suswam receiving a personal award for private endeavors, we feel ashamed, betrayed, and embarrassed by the said award given to him for “meritorious” service to his nation,” the statement said, stressing that Suswam's well-known profligacy ought not to be rewarded by the revered Center.

The party said it was even more appalled that the Center went ahead with the award despite having been promptly alerted about the risk it was taking. It described the conferment of the noble award on an undeserving individual as a betrayal of Dr. King's legacy.

“The organizers of the 2013 MLK Award have robbed the people of Benue State, Nigeria of their right to commemorate the noble memory of Dr. King at this year's remembrance, by not only honoring the plunderer of their commonwealth, but also cheapening the image of Dr. King in an apparently monetized award.”

ACN called on the Center to understand that the good people of Benue State have been shortchanged for the past five years by Suswam’s poor governance and activities that are at total variance with the ideals that Dr. King stood for.

“Governor Gabriel Suswam has totally embraced unbridled violence to achieve his political ambitions, contrary to the non-violence principle that Dr. King promoted and died for,” the statement said.

It pointed out that while the governor celebrated his award with pomp and pageantry at the Hyatt Plaza in Atlanta, for instance, hospitals in Benue State are starved of medication, and teachers’ salaries remain unpaid.

It also said: “Despite the purported commissioning of the water works in Makurdi, Otobi and Katsina-Ala by President Goodluck Jonathan, water is very far from being available to the people because reticulation has not been done. It is therefore, not possible for Governor Suswam to have saved over two million children through the provision of clean water. Most families still depend on other sources of water supply in Benue State for domestic use.”

ACN urged the MLK Center to withdraw the award so as to avoid the impression being created in the minds of Benue people and Nigerians that the legacy of the legendary Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., has been auctioned to the governor at the cost of their commonwealth.

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/acn-asks-martin-luther-king-jr-center-usa-withdraw-gabriel-suswam%E2%80%99s-award-without-delay

Jonathan’s visit to police college meaningless — House C’mitte

January 20, 2013 by JOHN AMEH and ALLWELL OKPI 104 Comments


The House of Representatives Committee on Police Affairs has criticised President Jonathan’s visit to the Police College Ikeja.

The Chairman of the committee, Mr. Usman Kumo, described the President’s action as “meaningless.”

Kumo stated that the visit might be counterproductive because Jonathan seemed to suggest that he was not aware of the dilapidated state of police formations and barracks in the country.

Kumo noted that whatever aim Jonathan wanted to achieve with the visit had been defeated, as “he simply displayed that he has not been in touch with what has been happening to the police.”

He added, “Who does not know that all police colleges in Nigeria are in a dilapidated state and uninhabitable?

“Why did he go to Lagos? Was it because a television station aired the poor state of affairs there.

“All police colleges, barracks and formations in Nigeria are dilapidated and uninhabitable.

“What about Gwoza? What about Jos? Are these places better?

“Did he go to Lagos because it is cosmopolitan?

“It is meaningless.”

Asked whether the committee would investigate the decay in the college, Kumo said it would serve no purpose.

According to him, it was public knowledge that the Force was not adequately catered for.

He listed poor funding, welfare and equipment among the major problems of the Force, which had not been addressed for many years.

However, the chairman said his committee would meet with the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, on Wednesday next week to discuss the challenges facing the Force.

Kumo clarified that the meeting was already scheduled before Jonathan’s visit to Ikeja.

“The meeting has nothing to do with the Ikeja visit.

“That is not the aim. It was scheduled already that the IG and members of the committee would meet to discuss on police matters,” he stated.

Similarly, prominent lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay, said he was disappointed that the President didn’t seem moved by the level of decay he saw at the police college, but was angry that it was exposed.

He said, “The fact that such an important public institution was allowed to decay to that level shows the kind leadership we have in this country and government’s total lack of consideration for Nigerians. But what was more baffling to me was the President’s reaction. He didn’t express shock at the level of decay but was angry that the failure of his government was exposed.

“He didn’t care that those that are being trained there would come out to be of no use to the country, because they were trained in a decayed and hostile environment. He was only concerned with the image of his government. That to me is a pointer to the character and attitude of those in government and it’s very disturbing.”

http://www.punchng.com/news/jonathans-visit-to-police-college-meaningless-house-cmitte/

ROSE UZOMA’S SACK: Recruitment turns awry as fate of 4,560 employees hang in balance
On January 17, 2013 · In News 1:00 am

By SONI DANIEL, REGIONAL EDITOR, NORTH

ABUJA—The sack, on Tuesday, of the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigrations Service, Rose Uzoma, by the Federal Government has dashed the hope of no fewer than 4,560 Nigerians who had been secretly offered employment by the service.

Vanguard gathered authoritatively that the Federal Government has ordered immediate cancellation of the employment letters already issued by Uzoma to the affected Nigerian applicants.

Findings revealed that most of those secretly offered employment were gearing up to assume duties when the recruitment controversy broke out, finally culminating in Uzoma’s forced retirement.

A source close to the Interior Ministry in Abuja said that the Federal Government was deeply embarrassed by the controversy surrounding the recruitment and would therefore not allow what it described as ‘backyard’ recruitment into the service.


Former Comptroller-General, Nigeria Immigration Service, Mrs. Rose Uzoma
The source said, “I can say that the government has cancelled the recruitment exercise and will take appropriate steps to recruit in a transparent way.

“There is no way we can allow the fake employment to stand,” the source explained.

When the employment row first broke out, Uzoma had tried to deny recruiting people into the service and particularly favouring certain states but she had to own up before the National Assembly that the jobs were not advertised so as to avoid recruiting bad eggs into the service.

The former Comptroller-General argued that the recruitment was meant to ‘correct’ the existing anomaly in the service workforce in which 12 states were at disadvantaged position as they lacked immigration officers.

Before the scandalous exercise, Imo State for instance, where Uzoma comes from, had highest number of immigration staff with (1,187) followed by Kogi (885) and Benue (851) while Ebonyi had the lowest with 233.

The North Central zone tops the list with (5,144), South-South (4,306), North-West (4,089), North-East (3,095), South-East (3,415) and South-West3, 267) out of the 21, 612 employees in the NIS.

Meanwhile, Mr. Rilwan Bala Musa, who was appointed in acting capacity to replace Uzoma, assumed duties yesterday with series of meeting with key officials in line with his new designation.

Musa was described as the most senior officer in the NIS, thereby eliminating the usual controversy that attends such appointments. Musa was promoted to the post of Deputy Comptroller General of the NIS two years ago.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/01/rose-uzomas-sack-recruitment-turns-awry-as-fate-of-4560-employees-hang-in-balance/