₦airaland Forum

Minister absolves Obasanjo in Halliburton bribery scam

By Emmanuel Ogala and Idris Akinbajo

February 15, 2011 07:10AM


The Attorney General of the federation, Bello Adoke, has absolved all the former presidents fingered in the infamous Halliburton scandal of any involvement in the $180 million bribe scam.

Mr. Adoke said that none of the former heads of state, including Olusegun Obasanjo, profited from the bribes which spanned three administrations. He however admitted that the president’s aides were culpable in the scandal.

The justice minister said this on Monday when defending his ministry’s budget in front of the senate sub-committee on judiciary, human rights and legal matters headed by Dahiru Umaru.

The minister said that the major culprits in the scam were Bodunde Adeyanju, a former aide to President Obasanjo, and Ibrahim Aliyu, who was a former aide to President Abdulsalam Abubakar. Mr. Adoke’s predecessor, Michael Aondoakaa, had repeatedly come under fire for his kid gloves approach to the case. Mr. Adoke’s verbal acquittal of the ex-heads of state comes after a similar reprieve to the construction giant, Julius Berger in October last year.

NEXT revealed that $120 million in bribes was paid during Mr. Obasanjo’s administration alone between 1999 and 2005. Yet, during the interrogation yesterday, Mr. Adoke said the former president knew nothing of it.

“The aide (Bodunde) never mentioned Obasanjo’s name,” Mr. Adoke said.

“The aide said he collected it (the bribe) and he admitted that it was not for the President. He emphatically said that President (Obasanjo) never knew about it. He answered his father’s name.”

Continuous bribe

Mr. Adoke also argued that the scam predates the Obasanjo regime and started during the regime of the late dictator, Sani Abacha.

“The Halliburton scandal is beyond the regime of President Obasanjo, it started from the time of Abacha, even officials of the government of General Ibrahim Abacha had collected money, the officials of the government of General Abdulsalam have collected money; it was a continuous process,” the minister said.

He added that his findings revealed that while the bribery scam lasted, only officials of the government, especially aides to the president, benefited and “never” the presidents.

Ikechukwu Obiora (PDP Anambra), chairman, Ad-hoc committee on sale of Federal Government houses, was however not satisfied with the minister’s defence of the past presidents.

He argued that since the special assistant to President Obasanjo was paid money in order to influence the award of contracts, there is an implication that the money was intended for the former president.

“We have to do an intensive public hearing on this,” Mr. Obiora said.

The minister, however, admitted that former President Obasanjo had, during his administration, made overtures to Jeffery Tesler, the indicted London lawyer who gave out the bribes. He said Mr Obasanjo sought to recover 50 per cent of the total amount but he could not say why this never happened.

“I do not know why the money was not repatriated,” he said.

He argued that only $21 million of the $180 million bribery sum paid to Mr. Tesler was given to Nigerian officials during the period while the lawyer kept the balance as profits of the fraud.

Recovery account

The justice minister said that the various amounts earned by the government as a result of the settlement with the companies involved in the bribe are currently held in a Recovery Account controlled by the office of the Accountant General of the Federation.

“Penal funds are not treated as revenue, the money does not go into the federation account but goes into what we call the recovery account for the exclusive use of the federal government,” Mr. Adoke added.

He also said that $1.4 billion of Abacha’s loot is still stashed in foreign banks while only $1 billion of the loot has been repatriated into the recovery account.

The Cover-up

Contrary to what Mr. Adoke said, and as reported by NEXT in previous editions, documents from the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the United States indicated the involvement of three former successive Heads of State: late Abacha, Mr Abubakar, and Mr Obasanjo.

The three benefitted from the bribe scheme which spanned over ten years, beginning from 1994, and involving several of their aides. The bribes were meant to secure liquefied natural gas contracts from the federal government; with the total value of the contracts being $6 billion while the bribe money was $180 million. The contracts were given in four stages; trains 1 and 2; train 3; trains 4 and 5; and train 6.

Mr. Adoke did not give any basis for the exoneration of the former Heads of State.

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/News/Metro/Crime/5677561-146/story.csp

Appeal court president accuses chief justice

By Peter Nkanga

February 5, 2011 11:32PM   


The President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Salami, has accused the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Aloysius Katsina-Alu, of trying to remove him from office.

Mr. Salami in a letter addressed to Mr. Katsina-Alu, who is also the Chairman of the National Judicial Council, alleged that his planned removal was initiated during meetings of the Federal Judicial Service Commission held on February 1 and 2 while he was away at Ilroin, Kwara State.

In a letter dated February 4 and addressed to Mr. Katsina-Alu, Mr. Salami alleged that the action was a validation of months of rumours of his planned ousting which he had then dismissed as "talk shop gossip" originating from mischief makers.

According to Mr. Salami, "What was thought to be a rumour became the subject of serious discussion initiated by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Alosius Katsina-Alu"

He further faulted Mr. Katsina-Alu for instituting a discussion which concerned him at the council meeting without first consulting with him; and expressed his disappointment that the CJN presented the issue even when "the subject was not part of the agenda of the day".

He continued in the letter, "It was sadly not deemed fit and proper to discuss the proposal with me. Perhaps my view did not count for anything. Neither was it expedient or decorous to place such an important matter on the agenda. No council paper was circulated."

Mr. Salami is of the view that his movement away from the Court of Appeal is a ploy. Mr. Katsina-Alu had told members at the meeting that Mr. Salami should be appointed to the Supreme Court. He said his move would "strengthen" and "add value" to the apex court. He further assured the council members that Mr. Salami would not lose his seniority by the new appointment.

However, Mr. Salami in his letter stated, "I regret to say I am not taken in. I am contented with being the President of the Court of Appeal. Indeed it is common knowledge that I had even in a more auspicious moment declined for good reason to be appointed to the Supreme Court. Nothing has changed since then."

Mr. Salami asked Mr. Katsina-Alu to desist from the "present unholy move to push me out of the Court of Appeal for whatever reason". The president of the Court of Appeal advised that "I do not therefore think that it will be fair for the Chief Justice of Nigeria to seek to create a dangerous precedent which may give rise to chained reactions".

The battle of the Justices

The impasse between Mr. Salami and Mr. Katsina-Alu who were both sworn into their respective offices in December 2009 has caused a lingering tension in the judiciary. This was notably evident in March 2010 when a Supreme Court Justice, Dahiru Musdapher, disqualified himself from adjudicating over the re-run governorship elections in Sokoto State, following an electoral dispute between the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.

Mr. Musdapher was quoted as saying then: "I had taken part in discussion pertaining to the case between the CJN and the President of the Court of Appeal. I did not personally feel comfortable to adjudicate in this matter. I am uncomfortable hearing this case because of the fact that I had taken part in discussion on issues pertaining to this case".

Sources following the ongoing gridlock say the motive behind Mr. Salami's conspired removal and appointment to the Supreme Court is to pave way for an amenable Appeal Court president who will play to the dictates of politicians seeking to hijack the judicial process following disagreements anticipated from the general elections in April 2011.

This decision is said to be based on recent Appeal Court judgments in several states which saw governorship elections of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) overturned in favour of opposition parties.

Mr. Salami noted in his letter, "Needless to say that the environment is already over-heated and in a state of flux. Let no one do anything to disrupt the status quo. Nigeria is greater than all of us."

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5673361-146/appeal_court_president_accuses_chief_justice.csp

Kwara people are tired of slavery - Belgore

Tuesday, 01 February 2011

Kwara Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) gubernatorial candidate, Mohammed Dele Belgore, has said he represents the multitude of Kwarans, who desire a clean break from decades of socio-economic and political servitude and repression.

Belgore, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), told newsmen in Lagos, on Sunday, that his candidature followed widespread discontent of Kwarans and all lovers of freedom and good governance nationwide about the way the state had been run like a fiefdom over the years and their clamour for paradigm shift to usher in an era in which government would work for common good.

“Our people had continued to groan under poor and selfish leadership. They are crying out for a saviour that would take them to the promised land.

“We feel the pain of our people. We know that failure to act now threatens this generation and generations yet unborn. This is why we have come to offer focused, kind-hearted, and committed leadership to our people,” he told newsmen.

“It will be an epic battle between reactionaries, who want to maintain at all costs their anti-people and selfish grip on power and the forces of change and progress, who are ready to serve and give back to Kwarans a better life and their lost right to aspire for greatness. The forces of progressive change are speaking up the world over, as recent events outside this country had shown.

“Today our people are united behind us in this unprecedented clamour for a day-break in Kwara. Yes, it promises to be one great political contest and one that Nigerians are most interested.”

http://tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/16955-kwara-people-are-tired-of-slavery-belgore

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5670708-146/governor_weeps_as_women_protest_in.csp

Governor weeps as women protest in Jos

By Ayo Okulaja

February 1, 2011 02:52AM 


Plateau State governor, Jonah Jang, broke down in tears on Monday in Jos while addressing thousands of protesting women, including female students of the University of Jos, at the State House.

The women, clad in black, showed up in their thousands and wailed and sang sad songs for several hours in Jos, the state capital. The women were protesting the recent violence which has claimed the lives of hundreds of people in Jos.

The governor, overwhelmed by the wailing women, some of whom flung themselves to the ground and rolled around, could not stop the tears from rolling down his face as he addressed them. His wife, Ngo Talatu, who welcomed the protesters, also wept quietly throughout her husband’s speech.

The spokesperson for the protesting women, Rhoda Wal, condemned the failure of the government to address the violence.

“Innocent and harmless women, children and students are being killed in the attacks in our communities and nobody is doing anything about it,” Mrs. Wal said.

“Few attackers were arrested but that was the last that we heard about them while our sons who are defending their communities are indiscriminately arrested and put in prisons,” she added.

The women also complained that they and their children were no longer safe in their homes and in the markets, and urged the appropriate authorities to do something urgent to address the situation. They also protested against the continued presence of the military’s Special Task Force, whom they accused of being biased, and urged the federal government to reconstitute the force.

The protesters alleged that specific sections of Jos and places of worship were being protected by armoured tanks and heavily armed security personnel while other areas were unguarded and left wide open to attackers. Hausa youth and University of Jos students clashed over the weekend, leading to an intervention by the task force which ended with a few students shot.

“Market women are not safe in their markets and children are not safe in the schools; the majority of casualties in the Christmas Eve bomb blast in Kabong were women,” said Ms. Wal.

The women demanded the immediate relocation of the Farin Gada tomato market, Angwar Rogo settlement, and Bauchi road motor-park, saying that these places constituted security threats to the university communities. They also called on retired military officers, former governors, and traditional rulers in the state to mediate in the crisis.

Operation Rainbow to the rescue

Mr. Jang, pulling himself together, responded to the women by saying that the continued crisis in the metropolis was a ploy to disrupt the ongoing voter registration and forthcoming general elections.

The governor said that Plateau State and federal governments were working on a security outfit he called ‘Operation Rainbow’, to take over the maintenance of security in the state from the military.

Mr. Jang also said that the outfit would comprise of police, retired military officers, and villagers who would be trained to provide security for their various communities.

The governor appealed to the protesters to be patient with the military, saying that they were humans and not saints, an appeal the women rejected with resounding chants of “No!”

Mr. Jang promised the women that all markets close to the University of Jos would be relocated to ensure the security of students and staff.

The speaker of the State House of Assembly, Istifanus Mwansat, also informed the protesters that the legislature was working with the executive to find a lasting solution to the crisis. The protesters had earlier stopped at the State Police Command headquarters where they presented their grievances to the commissioner of police, Abdulrahman Akano.

Court of Appeal resumes sitting

Judges of the Court of Appeal have resumed work in Jos after they rounded off a routine sitting in Gombe State on Friday. The return has put an end to speculation that the court had been relocated to Gombe State following the persistent crisis in Plateau State.

Ambrose Momoh, the director of press and public relations, Federal Ministry of Justice, Abuja, had said the rumour was untrue. Mr. Momoh had told the News Agency of Nigeria that he was not aware of any such order.

Also, public schools in Jos remained closed on Monday as students did not resume despite the directive from the federal government that all schools should open following the expiration of the three weeks ordered for voter registration.


http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5670708-146/governor_weeps_as_women_protest_in.csp

Nigeria Gunmen Attack, Kill Police Officer; Police Kill 2 Boko Haram Suspects- Canadian Press

Posted: January 30, 2011 - 19:17

By Njadvara Musa

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria — Gunmen attacked a police checkpoint in restive northern Nigeria on Sunday, killing a policeman and leading police to shoot dead two of the gunmen, police said.

Police commissioner Mohammed Abubakar said the gunmen attacked Sunday morning. He said police believe the attackers were members of a radical Muslim sect.

"One of our policemen was killed today, Sunday, while two members of the Boko Haram gunmen were also gunned down during an exchange of gunshots at the Pompomari Housing estate in Maiduguri," Abubakar said. "Our men have also killed two of the attackers whom we believe are members of the outlawed Boko Haram sect."

He said the attack has prompted police to staff each of the city's more than 25 checkpoints with at least 10 policemen.

Earlier Sunday, Abubakar said police in the northern Nigeria city had arrested 19 people over the slaying of the region's dominant gubernatorial candidate.

Modu Fannami Gubio was the Borno state candidate of the All Nigeria People's Party, a conservative party dominant in Nigeria's Muslim north, for the upcoming April elections. The party already controls politics in Borno state.

He was killed Friday with six others.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the killing. However, the attack mirrors the style used by Boko Haram. Abubakar blamed the group as well in his initial statement to reporters, but offered no evidence to show the group's involvement.

Boko Haram, which means "Western education is sacrilege" in the local Hausa language, has attacked churches and engineered a massive prison break in recent months. The group was thought to be vanquished in 2009, when Nigeria's military crushed its mosque into concrete shards, and its leader was arrested and died in police custody.

Suspected Boko Haram members have used motorcycle-riding gunmen to attack soldiers and police manning checkpoints throughout Borno state, as well as those who publicly oppose the group. But much remains murky about Boko Haram's intentions, and whether all the killings in Maiduguri are due to the group's reemergence.

The central Nigerian city of Jos has also suffered ethnic and religious violence, with at least 1,000 people killed there in 2010 and another 200 more have died within the last month, Human Rights Watch said.

The violence in central and northern Nigeria comes as President Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian who took power after the death of Nigeria's elected Muslim leader, seeks the presidency. Some believe a northern candidate should stand in Jonathan's place to appease an unwritten power-sharing agreement in the oil-rich nation's ruling party.



http://saharareporters.com/news-page/nigeria-gunmen-attack-kill-police-officer-police-kill-2-boko-haram-suspects-canadian-press

EFCC Executive Chairman,Farida Waziri : A Good Friend Of Ikedi Ohakim During His 419 Years

Posted: January 29, 2011 - 14:34

By Mr. Don Azuka Onwu

I decided to write you after observing the relationship of Governor Ikedi Ohakim of Imo state and Mrs Farida Waziri, the Chairman of the EFCC. The relationship of the duo dates back to the years of Victoria Waziri at Milverton while Ikedi Ohakim was a 419er.

To put the record straight, I was a boy working in the 419 office of Kingsley Ibe and Ikedi Ohakim at Ajao Estate behind Stop Over Motel along the International Airport road Ikeja. Mr. Kingsley Ibe is presently in detention in Abidjan for 419 related offences, and you can confirm this from Interpol. Mr. Kingley Ibe is from Anara in Imo state and married to the younger sister of the late Morris Ibekwe a federal legislator who died in prison while detained by the EFCC for 419 related offences.

During Ikedi Ohakims 419 period, his associates were Tony Chukwu, late Zeb Phillips, Eze Cletus Illomuanya (Now a traditional ruler) Chief Reginald Amadi, Orji Uzor Kalu (With SLOK office in Calcutta Crescent Apapa), Ezego, Ode Njiji of Njima Paints (Also Victoria Waziri man friend).

Governor Ikedi Ohakim had a more personal relationship with Victoria Waziri (Now Farida) during the boom of 419 in the 90’s. As a result of a petition written by a German client Mr. Bushbeck who was defrauded of 400,000 Deutsch Marks in our office, we were raided on the orders of Victoria Waziri. This led to the arrest of Ikedi Ohakim and Kingsley Ibe in 1994. They were detained in Milverton for a week and a deal was reached and they were released.

Upon their release, Ikedi Ohakim bought a Daewoo Espero from Tunde Debasco Motors and sent to Victoria Waziri. The car was handed over to her at the car park of Ikoyi Hotel in Lagos. Due to my closeness with Ikedi I was always with him and acted as his Personal Assistant. He also issued her with a cheque.

The relationship with Victoria culminated into a more cordial relationship which has lasted till date.

Ikedi used his relationship with Victoria Waziri to broker deals for other "guy men" who had problem with Milverton. Ikedi even went to the extent of
setting up other guy men each time they made money from 419. The fear of Ikedi by 419ers was the beginning of wisdom then.

Ikedi Ohakim runs a 419 government in Imo state. All the beneficiaries of government contracts are 419’s like Tony Chukwu.

I decided to expose the evil deeds of Ohakim as my conscience has pricked me so much. The looting in Imo state is too much and Farida Waziri is turning a blind eye because of her love affair with Ikedi. Ohakim has been sending millions of dollars to Mrs Waziri through one Mr. Moses; I don’t know his other name. Mrs Waziri met with Ohakim in London the last time he travelled and they met at Intercontinental Hotel on Park Lane.

Mrs. Waziri speaks to Ohakim almost on daily basis asking for one favour or the other.

When the EFCC wanted to do their Eastern Zonal launch in July 2009, Mrs Waziri got a call from Governor Ohakim, and he told her to do the launch in Owerri, and that he will support them financially by providing the venue an logistics. Governor Ikedi Ohakim also gave Mrs Waziri’s EFCC the sum of
N300million tax payers money to support the launch.The launch was originally billed for Enugu but Waziri changed the venue to Owerri at the instance of Ohakim. It also afforded them the opportunity to be together at the Government house lodge.

Ikedi Ohakim has been using his company MEKAHOG to steal Imo state money. He has bought up the whole of Abuja. He just bought a house in London. His wife is his major front. They bought land recently in Abuja for N180 million using MEKAHOG account with UBA bank.

It is unfortunate that despite the numerous petitions against Ikedi Ohakim, Mrs Waziri has decided to turn a blind eye. I just want the good people of Imo State and Nigeria to note the relationship between Ohakim and Waziri. It is worthy to note that Mrs Waziri is not fighting corruption in Nigeria.
She is a friend of 419ners and corrupt people in Nigeria.

Mr. Don Azuka Onwu wrote in from Lagos, Nigeria.

http://saharareporters.com/article/efcc-executive-chairmanfarida-waziri-good-friend-ikedi-ohakim-during-his-419-years

CP slaps DPO over inadequate security for DDCMs


By Adelani Adepegba, Abuja

Saturday, 29 Jan 2011

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The Commissioner of Police, Federal Capital Territory, Mr. John Haruna, allegedly slapped the Life Camp Divisional Police Officer, Mr. Mahmud Umar, for not providing adequate security for the ad hoc workers of the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Direct Data Capturing machines being used in the ongoing voter registration.


Haruna was reported to have redeployed Umar, a Chief Superintendent of Police, to the Area Commander’s office for an alleged dereliction of duty, which he could not explain to the satisfaction of the commissioner.


Trouble started for the embattled DPO when the commissioner got a report that the electoral officials and the DDC machines were not being given the necessary security by the police in the Life Camp area, contrary to the directives from the FCT command.


Haruna was said to have followed up on the report by visiting one of the centres, where he confirmed the absence of policemen.


Livid with anger, he was said to have summoned the DPO and demanded explanations for flouting a standing order, but the hapless officer could only mumble an apology, which incensed the commissioner.


He allegedly slapped the DPO for his “incompetence” and thereafter ordered his immediate transfer from the post.


The FCT Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Moshood Jimoh, could not be reached for comments as he neither responded to repeated calls to his cell phone nor replied the SMS sent to him.

http://punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art20110129422045

Date Published: 01/27/11

How Mark, Bankole, Others share N500 billion yearly
…Fleece Ministries, Agencies, Committees of billions of naira


Senate President, David Mark who faces an uphill task in his reelection bid in Benue, and Chairman, Appropriations Committee, Iyiola Omisore, may have upped the ante of fraud in the Senate as they have reworked the system which enables them, in concert with the leadership of both chambers, to fleece ministries, agencies and even committees of billions of Naira each budget year.

From investigations and reports from whistleblowers, Pointblanknews.com gathered that Mark, Bankole, Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, Deputy Speaker Usman Nafada and other principal officers of the National Assembly share a whooping N500 Billion annually from inflated budgets of Ministries and Agencies.

There are also new revelations as to why the leadership of the senate and some senators killed suggestions by some of their colleagues that their wages and allowances be published for Nigerians to see. This came in the wake of the shot from Central Bank Governor, Sanusi, who alleged that over 25 per cent of the nation’s budget is spent on the National Assembly member recurrent.

But spokesman to Mark, kola Ologbondiyan, in a chat with Pointblanknews.com, described the allegations as baseless, even though he acknowledged that the system could be abused. He tried to justify the huge quarterly allowance tagging it ‘running cost’ and dismissed calls for the emoluments of senators to be published in the newspapers.

Pointblanknews.com learnt that even though there were more qualified hands for the appropriations committee chair, Mark had insisted that it should be Omisore, who has introduced novel means of stealing from the system

According to top sources in the senate all the monies taken illegally from ministries, and committees through what is called ‘first line charge’, are often shared between, Mark, Omisore, Deputy senate President, senate leader, Speaker Deputy speaker, chairmen of Rules and Business, and Appropriation.

This arrangement is not going down well with most committee chairmen. They are not happy that Mark who gets N250 million as quarterly allowance should still jerk up their budget through appropriation, with the spoils not getting to them( committee chairmen). Deputy Senate President gets N170 million, while the ‘floor members’ get N45 Million each quarter. This allowance is different from their monthly wages and allowances.

Some of the aggrieved chairmen who spoke with Pointblanknews.com said after they have tidied up their respective budgets, Omisore with support from Mark jerk up each to the tune of about N2billion.

According to them, the appropriations committee also adds no less than N5 Billion on top of each ministry and agency budget. With over 100 ministries and agencies, the total runs into several billions.

Investigations also revealed that in 2010, Senator Grace Bent, the Senate Committee Chairman on Environment had a running battle with Mr. John Odey, the Minister for Environment over the Minister’s refusal to jerk-up the budget of the ministry. The battle was said to have led to a delay in handling the ministry’s budget by the Senate Committee. It was not clear how the issue was later resolved.

Pointblanknews.com sources hinted those committees also rake in billions from their ministries. They also make some adjustments which are often agreed to by the affected ministers. Said one source” the chairmen make additions so they share the spoils with the ministers. Often times the chairmen make additions and ensure those projects to be executed by the ministries are done by their own men. Unfortunately, most times the contracts are not done”

The source continued “ that is why you see the Federal Budget running into trillions with nothing to show for it. The National Assembly adds billions, the chairmen add their own, and the ministers do theirs too. They take out huge chunks through first line charge. The last time it happened some of the chairmen protested at our executive session, but the ( Senate) President dismissed it, saying he will look into it.”

Ologbondiyan said “these things they are alleging are not feasible. The budget is not cash. So how do you agree with a minister to jerk up a budget when you don’t know his disposition? Off course the system could be abused. Every arm of Government has running costs. The senate can’t be different. Those clamoring that the senators should publish what they earn should publish theirs. Let those senators publish what they earn”

Pointblanknews.com also gathered that shortly after the CBN Governor’s allegation, the Senate held a debate. At that debate, some senators, like Uche Chukwumerije and Bode Olajumoke urged their colleagues to publish what they earn. But at the executive session (closed door), Mark and the leadership dismissed it.

http://www.pointblanknews.com/News/os4482.html

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/nigeria-new-wave-violence-leaves-200-dead-hrworg


Nigeria: New Wave of Violence Leaves 200 Dead

Posted: January 27, 2011 - 19:20

Mass grave in Jos

Human Rights Watch
Government Should Urgently Protect Civilians, Invite UN Expert to Jos

(Dakar, January 27, 2011) – A deadly spate of sectarian violence in Nigeria’s central Plateau State since December 24, 2010, has killed more than 200 people, Human Rights Watch said today. The victims, including children, have been hacked to death, burned alive, “disappeared,” or dragged off buses and murdered in bosom-for-tat killings.

The Nigerian government should act swiftly to protect civilians of all ethnicities at risk of further attacks or reprisal killings, and allow the United Nations secretary-general’s special adviser on the prevention of genocide, Francis Deng, to visit the state, Human Rights Watch said.

“These waves of senseless killings risk spreading and have taken a terrible toll on the people of Plateau State,” said Corinne Dufka, senior West Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The state and federal governments should urgently enlist anyone who can help break this cycle of violence, including Mr. Deng.”

The most recent round of violence and reprisal killings was sparked by a series of bomb blasts on Christmas Eve in two Christian communities in Jos, the state capital. Since then, dozens of Muslims and Christians alike have been targeted and killed, often in horrific circumstances, based simply on their ethnic or religious identity. These latest deadly outbreaks follow a year of inter-communal bloodletting in 2010 that left at least 1,000 dead in the state.

In September 2010, Deng formally requested approval from the Nigerian government to visit Jos in October to help community leaders devise measures to reduce the risk of an escalation in the violence. The Nigerian government has not formally replied or authorized the mission.

Targeted and Reprisal Killings
The Christmas Eve explosions, which ripped through two Christian neighborhoods in Jos, and several days of sectarian clashes that followed the bomb attacks, left at least 107 dead, according to Christian and Muslim community leaders in Jos. A militant Islamist website published a statement by Boko Haram, a militant Islamist group in northern Nigeria, claiming responsibility. There has been no independent confirmation of this claim.

The targeted killings and bosom-for-tat violence escalated further in January 2011. Eight Muslim youth in a car heading to a wedding were attacked on January 7 after they took a wrong turn and ended up in a Christian village in Barkin Ladi. Witnesses told Human Rights Watch that the following day the Nigerian army exhumed and returned to their families the corpses of five of them from shallow graves near the village. The three others remain missing.

The following morning, January 8, Muslim youth in Jos indiscriminately attacked Christians, mostly ethnic Igbo market traders, around the Dilimi market and along Bauchi Road. Witnesses interviewed by Human Rights Watch said that the victims were hacked to death with machetes and cutlasses or burned alive by the mob. Igbo leaders said that 48 Igbo civilians were killed in the attacks, while a health worker at the nearby Bingham University Teaching Hospital confirmed that 18 corpses arrived in the morgue on January 8.

Later that day, at least 14 Muslims were killed by mobs in Christian neighborhoods in Jos and surrounding communities. A passenger on an interstate bus to Jos on January 8 told Human Rights Watch that Muslim passengers were separated from Christian passengers and hacked to death. Four of the passengers were killed at a makeshift roadblock manned by a Christian mob in Ratsat, south of Jos, while two others were killed when the bus arrived at the Gada Biu bus terminus in Jos itself.

Witnesses told Human Rights Watch that two days later, on January 10, gunmen attacked Wareng village, a Christian community south of Jos, burning homes and killing residents. Four women and seven children were killed in the attack.

Muslim and Christian leaders in Jos told Human Rights Watch that they also knew of dozens of disappearances. They said that, in the past month, 42 Muslims, mostly motorcycle taxi operators in Jos, have been reported missing, while more than 51 Christians have still not been accounted for.

“This terrible cycle of violence and impunity needs to stop,” Dufka said. “Both the state and federal governments have shown a disturbing lack of urgency in addressing the violence and tackling the underlying causes of these deadly outbreaks.”

The federal and Plateau State governments should take concrete steps to break the cycle of violence by ending discriminatory state and local government policies that fuel inter-communal tensions, providing adequate protection for vulnerable communities, and ensuring a speedy and effective investigation and prosecution of the perpetrators of the violence, Human Rights Watch said.

Origins of the Crisis
Plateau State is in an area of central Nigeria known as the Middle Belt that divides the predominately Muslim north from the largely Christian south. Local political elites have long battled for power and control of limited resources and have stoked religious tensions to those ends. Widespread poverty and unemployment, fueled by endemic government corruption and mismanagement, have created an explosive social mix as competition intensifies for scarce opportunities to secure government jobs, education, and political patronage.

These tensions have been exacerbated by state and local government policies that discriminate against members of ethnic groups classified as “non-indigene” – those who cannot trace their ancestry to what are said to be the original inhabitants of an area. Non-indigenes, in Plateau State and elsewhere, are openly denied the right to compete for state and local government jobs and are subject to discriminatory admissions policies at state-run universities, denying them important avenues of socio-economic mobility. Discriminatory government policies have effectively relegated thousands of Plateau State residents to permanent second-class status.

Religious and ethnic identity often overlap in Nigeria. The main actors in the deadly struggle for power and resources in Jos have been the Hausa-Fulani and the Berom ethnic groups. The Hausa-Fulani, the vast majority Muslim, are the largest ethnic group in northern Nigeria. They are classified as non-indigenes in Jos, though many are from families that have been there for several generations. The Berom, predominately Christian, along with the Anaguta and Afizere ethnic groups, are designated indigenes.

A Decade of Suffering
In the past decade, more than 3,800 people have been killed in inter-communal violence in Plateau State, including as many as 1,000 in 2001 in Jos and more than 75 Christians and at least 700 Muslims in 2004 in Yelwa, southern Plateau State. In November 2008, two days of inter-communal clashes following local government elections in Jos left at least 700 dead.

In January 2010, several hundred people were killed in sectarian clashes in and around Jos, including a massacre on January 19 of more than 150 Muslims in the nearby town of Kuru Karama. On March 7, at least 200 Christians were massacred in Dogo Nahawa and several nearby villages. Over the next nine months, more than 120 people died in smaller-scale attacks and reprisal killings leading up to the Christmas Eve bombings and renewed sectarian clashes.

Inter-communal violence in Plateau State and northern Nigeria has a history of spreading to other regions. Following the 2004 violence in Yelwa, reprisal killings in Kano State left 200 Christians dead. Muslim attacks against Christians in the northern city of Maiduguri in 2006 led to reprisal killings of more than 80 Muslims in eastern Nigeria.

Members of the security forces have also been implicated in serious abuses. In November 2008, Human Rights Watch documented 133 cases of unlawful killings by the federal police and army sent to Jos to quell the sectarian violence. Witnesses told Human Rights Watch that, on January 10, 2011, at least one soldier was seen participating in the attack on Wareng village, which left 15 Christians dead.

Unbroken Cycle of Violence
The federal and Plateau State governments have not only failed to tackle the root socio-economic causes of the violence, they have also failed to break the cycle of killings by holding those responsible to account. In all but a handful of cases – 17 Hausa-Fulani men were convicted by the Federal High Court in Jos in December 2010 – the perpetrators have not been brought to justice. In the absence of effective redress through the courts, communities that have suffered violence frequently resort to vigilante justice and exact revenge by inflicting commensurate harm on innocent members of the other community.

Over the years, the federal and Plateau State governments have set up various committees and commissions of inquiry that have examined these issues, but the reports from these bodies, and the occasional government white paper, have mostly been shelved. Despite repeated outbreaks of violence, the government has largely ignored the findings and failed to implement the recommendations.

The federal government, however, has taken some steps to beef up security in Jos and surrounding communities since early 2010. While the military presence has had some effect in deterring and responding to attacks, the underlying causes of the reoccurring outbreaks of violence remain.

For more Human Rights Watch reporting on Nigeria, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/en/africa/nigeria

For more information, please contact:
In Washington, DC, Eric Guttschuss (English): +1-202-612-4325; or +1-202-510-1106 (mobile)
In Washington, DC, Jonathan Elliott (English): +1-202-612-4348
In Dakar, Corinne Dufka (English): +221-77-783-3131 (mobile)

Witness Accounts:
A Hausa-Fulani driver described to Human Rights Watch how the eight members of a Muslim wedding party were attacked on January 7 after they took a wrong turn leading to a Berom village south of Jos:

            At around 4 p.m. on our way to a wedding in Mangu two of the cars took a wrong turn in Barkin Ladi local government area. The first car, a small Mazda, contained eight people. I was driving the second car. We were all Hausa-Fulani from Jos. The other car was ahead of us. I stopped to ask for directions. We were near Dorawa-Tsohuwa village, a Berom community. When I stopped, some people surrounded the car. There were three people on a motorcycle behind us and four people came out of the bush, two on each side. I am thinking they will tell us the actual direction. We were talking with them in Hausa but they were conversing in Berom language. They said we should come down [from the car] and they were calling others on their phones. I realized that something was going to happen and slammed down the throttle. The two in front of the car stepped aside and we escaped from the danger. I called Jamilu, who was in the first vehicle. Jamilu’s mother is the senior sister of the groom. He told me: ‘We have been surrounded by people. They killed two of us. Me, I am running. They want to kill me.’ I heard the sound of something crash and the phone went off. I called him again but the phone was off.

            We went back to Mangu and informed the soldiers what happened. They sent a lieutenant and 10 soldiers in a Hilux [pickup truck] back to the village. They allowed me to come because I knew the exact place where we stopped. We went back but did not see any corpses. The next day we went back again with the security. We entered Dorawa village but the people did not talk. Some of them ran and the soldiers caught two of them. One of them said he was coming back from Barkin Ladi and saw people burying something but he didn’t know what. The security went to the place and found a hole used to explore tin. The security digged and found the corpses of five people. I saw the corpses. Jamilu was among them. They had cut the necks of three, one they broke his head, the other they cut his body and removed his manliness. The soldiers took the corpses to the air force base. Up until now the three other corpses have not been found.

An Igbo pharmacy technician described to Human Rights Watch how he was attacked by a Hausa-Fulani mob on January 8 in Jos:

            On the 8th of January, some minutes to 11 a.m., I was on my way in a taxi to Terminus Market on Bauchi Road. I saw people block the road. They were beating and burning people. I saw them burn two people. I opened the door of the vehicle to get out. I was wearing a suit. One Hausa man ran across the road and said, ‘Let us kill this unbeliever.’ There was nowhere I could go. They rushed me and beat me with machetes and cutlasses. I defended myself with my hands but I got weak and fell down. After that they sliced my head and they used a dagger to stab me in the rectum. When they were satisfied with the bleeding they said I was dead. They then dragged me to the Bauchi Road bridge and threw me over it. There is no water there in the dry season and I landed on the ground. The Hausa came in groups and looked at my corpse. When they would come I would seize my breath. They thought I was dead. I cried in my mind ‘Jesus, Jesus, save me.’ My body had no life but my mind was very strong. I did this for three hours. The soldiers came around 2 o’clock. I opened one of my eyes and said to them, ‘Kindly help me.’ The soldiers said, ‘This man is not dead.’ One of the young soldiers jumped down, picked me up and took me to hospital. I was cut all over my body. My right hand was shattered. My head was cut around six places. They stabbed me in my anus. My stomach was all scraped up. I went to theater [for surgery] four times. They operated on my hand, but I cannot use it for anything now.

An Igbo shop owner in Jos described to Human Rights Watch how eight men were killed in Jos on January 8:

            My shop is in Dilimi, a Muslim area. I deal in electrical parts. I was in my shop around 11 a.m.-12 p.m., when I saw about 40 Muslim youths coming with machetes, daggers, and firewood. There was a man in a Plateau State government vehicle with his son. He was buying from the boys selling clothes in front of my shop. I don’t know whether he was Berom but he was a Plateau man. He looked back and saw them break the glass on the car. He said they should stop. He didn’t know there were so many of them. They hit him with a plank and then set him on fire. His son ran away.

            I ran to my neighbor’s shop. He is a Hausa man, a Muslim. He protected me. I stayed in his shop one hour. I was seeing everything that was happening outside. They [the Muslim youth] were chasing everyone who was a Christian. I saw them dragging people. They were going with fuel and machetes. I didn’t see any guns. They blocked everywhere you could run. Some [of the Christians] had blood on their bodies and were running.

            I saw them gather four people together and burn them. They smashed their legs and dropped them together, and then put them on fire in the street. I saw them kill two people inside a jeep. They didn’t allow the men to get out. They broke the glass and poured fuel on them. One was an Igbo man. I know his shop. They killed another man across the main road. I saw them roast the body. I saw eight people killed that day.

            Around 1:30 p.m. the army come and rescued us. Others that hid themselves came out as well. There were almost 20 or 30 other Christians. The soldiers walked us to the boundary dividing the Muslim and Christian area.

A Muslim passenger traveling on an interstate bus on January 8 described to Human Rights Watch how the Muslim passengers were separated from the Christian passengers and killed:

            On January 8, around 2 p.m., I boarded a bus in Lafia, Nassarawa State. It was a Marcopolo bus carrying 64 passengers. At around 6 o’clock [that evening] we were stopped by a roadblock in Ratsat in Jos South [local government area]. The people put a tree and stones in the road. There were about 200 people – men, women, and children. They were Berom. They told us to all come down from the bus and asked, ‘Where are the Muslims?’ They identified four Muslims because they were wearing kaftans [traditional Muslim dress] and asked them where they were coming from. They said they were coming from Lagos. The crowd then started beating them. The people on the bus were all crying that they should leave them. They first beat them with sticks then used their daggers and machetes and killed them. They threw their bodies in the bushes. The driver told us to enter the bus and that we should go, so we left the corpses there. Four of us Muslims survived – two men and two women. We didn’t identity ourselves as Muslims.

            I was afraid but the Christians on the bus told us not to be afraid and advised us not to talk. They told us we should identify ourselves as Christians. From there, there were heavy [military] checkpoints on the way. At one point we didn’t move for almost three hours. The driver tried to tell the military what had happened but the soldiers told the driver to ‘go, go, go.’ They didn’t want to hear anything.

            Around 11 p.m., we reached the bus terminus at Gada Biu in Jos. As we came down from the bus a group of people surrounded us. They said, ‘Where are you coming from?’ They divided the Muslim passengers from the Christian passengers based on the mode of dress. I was wearing jeans and t-shirt. They asked me my name. I said my name was Daniel. They asked me to pray in Christian and I prayed. I had attended mission school so I knew how to pray. I said, ‘In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.’ They then said I should tell them the story of John the Baptist. I said I know the story but that I didn’t remember it. I told them I could tell them the story of Jesus Christ. They said ok and said I should step aside. That is how I escaped.

            The group that surrounded us took the two Muslim passengers wearing kaftans to one side. They were a Fulani man and woman on their way to Gombe [State]. The other Muslim woman on the bus was wearing a jacket because it was cold and they didn’t confirm she was Muslim. I just kept quiet and was watching them. The men then hit the two Muslims with machetes, cutlasses, and daggers. They killed them there in the terminus. The other passengers were running. After they were finished, the soldiers came in their vehicle and the group ran away.

A Berom man in Wareng, a Christian village south of Jos, described to Human Rights Watch how armed men, including at least one soldier, attacked the village on January 10, killing 15 people:

            At around 11:30 p.m., I heard shooting of guns. I didn’t know what to do. The attackers were many. They were speaking Fulani. They came to my house and broke the door. As they entered the house they were shooting. I hid in the second room. They entered inside but didn’t find me. It was God that hid me. One of the attackers was a soldier man. I saw him as he passed by my window. He was wearing the new uniform of the soldiers – not the green uniform but the brown uniform. Later when we were looking around we saw an ID card of a soldier on the ground. Our councilor reported it to the chairman of the local government.

            Fifteen people were killed in the attack: four men, four women, and seven children. Thirteen people died that day, two died later at the hospital. The men were killed with gunshot. They killed the women and children with knives. One of the babies died from the smoke when they burned the house. My brother and his wife and two of their children were killed. Their third child was cut on his head. I took the boy that very night to the hospital. They sewed his head and now it is better. I will try to take care of him if I am alive.


http://saharareporters.com/news-page/nigeria-new-wave-violence-leaves-200-dead-hrworg

Put national interest first, Adeboye charges politicians

NewsJan 27, 2011

By Jimitota Onoyume

PORT HARCOURT – Politicians seeking political offices have been urged to do so for the interest of the nation. Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer, Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG who gave the charge in Port Harcourt at a special prayer service for Rivers state and the political sector further urged politicians to ensure they champion the interest of the poor.
Adeboye said God would continue to honour those that accord him glory.
On his part, governor of Rivers state, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi at the event called on the electorates to vote only credible aspirants in the coming elections. He advised them to be guided by those with the capacity to bring genuine developments to the state.
The Governor said the people of the state should seek the face of God to help them produce the best governor that would appreciate the problems of the people, noting that the people of the state had suffered enough in the past.
Noting that his emergence as governor was divine, Amaechi said it came to be in spite of the manipulations of some persons he identified as powerful men.
Governor Amaechi said his regular prayer was for God to forgive his mistakes and guide him to continue to deliver qualitative leadership to the state.
The governor explained that though his administration came up with some policies that were capable of making his government unpopular but looking back at the programmes it was the best for the overall interest of the people of Rivers State.
He thanked Pastor Adeboye for coming to the state and appealed to him to pray for peaceful elections in Nigeria and Rivers State.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/01/put-national-interest-first-adeboye-charges-politicians/

FG adds 188mgw to power, as supply sits 3,800mgw

Headlines, NewsJan 27, 2011

BY DANIEL IDONOR

ABUJA – NO fewer than 188 megawatt has now been added to the power generation in the country, through the Olorunsogo power plant, which brings power generation in the country to a total of 3,800mw with an estimated 4,000mw by the end of March this year.
This is amongst the first three projects in the National Independent Power Projects (NIPP) to be completed to this stage.
Besides the Olorunsogo plant in Osun state, the generating plants in Aloaji in Abia state and Sapele in Delta state are also being test run.
This is the outcome of the FEC meeting as disclosed by the minister of state for power, Nuhu Wya while briefing alongside the minister of information and communication Labaran Maku, after the second federal executive council meeting of the year, who also said the power plant has been test run and connected to the power grid.
Mr. Wya who enthusiastically spoke on the successful completion of the test run of the Olorunsogo plant, said this was to show that government was serious in delivering on its promise of as some people had not believed that the NIPP projects will even see the light of day adding that the Aloaji and Sapele plants are also being test run in preparation for commissioning in the first quarter of this year.
He however said more generation will be made via the Olorunsogo plant as it had the capacity to generate much more than it is currently generating.
“We are on top of the situation in the power sector…. with this we can assure Nigerians of significant improvement in power supply from now on” Mr. Wya told journalists.
Mr.Maku also briefed journalists on the issues discussed during the closed door FEC meeting, noting that council had primarily focused on memos tendered by the Federal Capital Territory minister, Bala Mohammed, which included the construction of 3 solid waste transfer stations for the FCT worth N2.9billion.
According to the information minister Council approved this contract because of the impact it will have on the city of Abuja and its environs.
“Council approved the award of this contract for the construction of 3 solid waste transfer stations at Mpape, Apo and Kubwa areas of the city, in favoiur of Messrs Goodness International Resources Ltd. In the sum of N2,957,572,096.35 with 12months completion period” Mr. Maku said.
On FCT at this time, the FCT minister said the nation’s capital is now witnessing an influx of foreign investors with a total of $5billion worth of investments; hence the city should be given face lift.
He said projects which include the building of a 37 floor storey building World Trade Centre, Abuja Boulevard, Film Village, Botanical garden and the Housing for Africa project along the airport road have been proposed by investors and some of them have already moved to site, at no cost to government.
Council also approved the award of contract for the provision of primary engineering infrastructure to Mbora District, Abuja in the sum of N6,664,244,869.17 out of the total project cost of N19,952,798,155.76 with a completion period of 36months.
The approval Mr. Maku said is in line with “the administration’s desire to provide adequate mas housing facilities to reduce the pressure of housing for FCT residents”.In order to ensure fire safety in the FCT, Council approved the contract for the supply of 5 units of fire fighting vehicles (Mercedes Benz Model 1518) in the sum of N195,825,000.00.
Council also considered and approved the award of contract for the Reconstruction of Lower Usuman Dam – Gurara Dam road project in the sum of N13,840,383,768.75 with a completion period of 18 months.
According to the information minister, “the reconstruction of this road will guarantee unlimited access to the entire pipeline for operation and maintenance, improve commuting between the two Dams, enhance economic potentials along the route, provide relief and shorter route to Kaduna via the Jere village link and facilitate the Gurara Multi-purpose project phase 11 aimed at developing hydro-electric power generation, agriculture irrigation, tourism and shelter”.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/01/fg-adds-188mgw-to-power-as-supply-sits-3800mgw/

http://www.guardiannewsngr.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36643:mushin-mile-12-recurring-flash-points&catid=3:metro&Itemid=558

Mushin, Mile 12: Recurring flash points

THURSDAY, 27 JANUARY 2011 00:00 BY ALEX OLISE NEWS - METRO

Lagosians want end to incessant violent clashes in the metropolis, prosecution of culprits
WHEN about a fortnight ago, violence erupted in some parts of Mushin, many in the Lagos metropolis were not overly surprised.

They would have easily recalled that some localities in Mushin have, over the years, acquired notoriety for violence between different groups, but mostly factions of transport unions or the O’odua Peoples’ Congress (OPC).

The Mushin crises have been on-going on yearly basis starting from the early 2000 till date, without any solution, despite series of peace meetings organised by the state government, the police and major stakeholders in the area.

Also gaining in notoriety are the Mile 12 and Ketu Market areas.

In this case, the troubles have been traced to the struggle for supremacy among groups of traders from the northern part of the country who dominate the lucrative wholesale-trade in commodities such as livestock, yams, tomatoes, pepper and onions, beans and others.

In 2002 when the crisis erupted within the Mile 12 Market, no fewer than 50 persons were reportedly killed.

More worrisome to security agents is the religious coloration the tussle is taking, as members of the Boko Haram sect are alleged to be staking claims to the leadership of the market groups and are feared to be capable of using the same tactics it is applying in Borno State where the sect thrives.

As at present, the dust has not quite settled at the Mile 12 Market and its environs following the crisis which started on December 6, 2010, involving the caretaker chairman of the market, Alhaji Haruna Mohammed and one Alhaji Ibrahim Mamuda.

The Founder and President of O’odua Peoples Congress, Dr. Frederick Fasheun had a few days before, raised an alarm that the Islamic sect, Boko Haram, could invade Lagos State.

According to him, the O’odua Peoples Congress and Civil Society Club of Nigeria (CISCON) had been following certain ugly developments concerning Boko Haram in some parts of the north such as Bornu and Bauchi where they have been blamed for numerous killings.

However, shortly after the OPC leader raised the alarm, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Marvel Akpoyibo assured Lagosians that the command would not allow the group gain entry into the state.Three days later, the crisis broke out.

Someone knowledgeable about the market association and what transpired told The Guardian: “On the said date, it was gathered that the caretaker chairman of the market association, Alhaji Haruna Mohammed had led a large number of thugs, suspected to be religious fanatics, to Alhaji Ibrahim Mamuda’s residence and attacked him and members of his family, inflicting injuries on them before the police at Area H were alerted.

“When the police arrived, the attackers fled, but by then, the victims had been seriously injured and later taken to hospital.”

But the fact that the crises in Mushin and Mile 12 had lingered over the years and that the coming months may witness fresh outbreaks of violence in those areas, is a cause for worry to Lagosians.

But investigations by The Guardian into the crises in both areas indicate security lapses acknowledged even by police authorities.

“Why have the police in these areas failed to arrest and prosecute suspected culprits to teach others a lesson which will go a long way to serve as deterrent and a warning signal to the youth in the area and other crisis-prone parts of Lagos metropolis?” a resident of Mushin, Akanni Kareem who spoke to The Guardian asked.

He continued:“ What should surprise and frighten every peace-loving Lagosian is the fact that when the troubles start, the youths involved always use sophisticated weapons such as pump action guns both manual and automatic rifles, cutlasses and others to attack each other.

“In the process, innocent people are caught in the crossfire, some are killed or injured.

“The police are helpless in this type of situation as they lack the capabilities to contain such situation until the fighting ends and then, you see them going from one major spot to another, usually arresting people, most of whom would eventually be discovered to be innocent of the crime,” he said.

Another resident, Mr. John Udoh, said: “The security agents cannot claim to be ignorant of the masterminds of the violent cases that have plagued Mushin in the last 10 years.

“Ordinary people know who the sponsors in Akala and Ojuowon as well as Idi-Araba area are, so the police and State Security Service cannot claim ignorance.”

If Lagosians in Mile 12 and Mushin want the police to crack down on the perpetrators of violence before more lives are lost, they have good reason.

In Mile 12, Haruna Mohammed, who is suspected to have links with Boko Haram is alleged to have fled to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, widely believed to be the base from where the militant sect operates.

In Mushin, there is the worry that the factions may also have become further polarised into two different political camps and that the contest for influence may even be more intense and furious with the general elections a few months away.

For now, however, Lagosians must be clinging to the words of encouragement from Dr. Fasheun who said: “We, the members of the Oodua Peoples Congress, will resist any plot by anybody to introduce Boko Haram to Lagos State or any other state within the South West.

“We call on all our members to be on the watch -out and ensure that such evil intention is vehemently resisted.”
Indeed, The Guardian was made to understand that the O’odua Peoples Congress has the situation in the Mile 12 area and its environs as far as Ketu Market under control.

“In this area, at least, the OPC is a peacemaker,” a police source told The Guardian at the weekend. This, unfortunately, cannot be said of its role in Mushin where the factions, so frequently at each others’ throat, are believed to belong to different camps of the socio-cultural organisation.

http://www.guardiannewsngr.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36643:mushin-mile-12-recurring-flash-points&catid=3:metro&Itemid=558

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/guest-articles/goodluck-jonathan-gets-the-pdp-nomination.html

Goodluck Jonathan Gets the PDP Nomination

Written by Amb. John Campbell

Monday, 24 January 2011 16:29

JOHN CAMPBELL, the former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria from 2004 to 2007, is the Ralph Bunche Senior Fellow for Africa Policy Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. His book, Nigeria: Dancing on the Brink, is published by Rowman & Littlefield in November.

Bribery and intimidation likely helped Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan achieve his overwhelming defeat of former vice president Atiku Abubakar for the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) presidential nomination. As a sitting president, Jonathan had access to unlimited amounts of money for bribes as well as control of the security services. With the PDP delegates assembled in one place -- Eagle Square in central Abuja -- his operatives mixed carrots, such as promises of immunity from prosecution, with sticks, including the threat of prosecution to those who remained recalcitrant or who reneged after accepting a bribe.

As the Giant of Africa now turns its attention to country-wide presidential elections, the contest is shaping up to be dangerous and destabilizing, pitting a Christian candidate against a Muslim candidate -- a competition Nigerians have always tried to avoid. Perhaps for the first time, Nigerian presidential elections will matter because the leading candidates are identified with rival regions and religions, identities more important to Nigerians than their national one. If the elections are not credible, there is likely to be much greater popular protest than there has been in the past. Disgruntled elites are already mobilizing popular anger around religious, regional and ethnic identities as they battle to keep control of the state and its oil wealth. Escalating violence in the Middle Belt -- the central part of Nigeria where religious, ethnic and economic boundaries coincide -- and the North, as well as bombings in Abuja, Nigeria's capital, only hint at what is to come.

Since 1999, the PDP presidential nomination has been tantamount to winning the presidency. Nigerian powerbrokers from all parts of the country remained sufficiently united to ensure that a PDP consensus candidate could be rigged into office, particularly because of an informal arrangement among Nigeria's elite, 'zoning,' that provided for the presidency to alternate between the predominately Christian South and the predominately Muslim North. But Jonathan's candidacy has splintered that unity. Originally a Southern Christian vice president, he became an "accidental" president when President Yar'Adua, a Muslim from the North, died. Under zoning, it is still the North's turn and many Northern powerbrokers anticipated that Jonathan would finish out Yar'Adua's term and then step aside, waiting to run on his own until 2015 when it is again the South's turn. Jonathan's decision to run violated this assumption.

Now that Jonathan has the PDP nomination, it remains to be seen how the Northern powerbrokers who have not been co-opted will organize themselves. Already some northerners have been withdrawing from the PDP, and in light of the primary outcome that number will certainly grow. Former military chief of state Muhammadu Buhari has already announced his presidential candidacy from the platform of a small party associated with reform. Never a member of the PDP, he is an austere personality known for his hostility to corruption, and is therefore hostile to conventional powerbroker interests. But he is perhaps the most popular political figure on the street. Atiku Abubakar may run as the presidential candidate of a different party, and former military chief of state Ibrahim Babangida may try to revive his candidacy also using as his platform one of the minor parties.

Nevertheless, the PDP candidate since 1999 has always been rigged into the presidency. In the aftermath of Jonathan's PDP victory, the parts of the now splintered political elite may be willing to do almost anything to prevent his presidential victory in the April 2011 elections. Popular resentment will be strong, particularly if the April 2011 elections are not credible because of the appeal to ethnic and religious identities. The danger is popular protest and violence can easily spiral out of control. Under these circumstances, there is now an even stronger premium on the credibility of the April 2011 elections.

John Campbell is the Ralph Bunche senior fellow for Africa policy studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and most recently author of "Nigeria: Dancing on the Brink." He blogs at "Africa in Transition." Want to learn more about Nigeria? Watch these short background videos.

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/guest-articles/goodluck-jonathan-gets-the-pdp-nomination.html

************** ORIGINAL STORY ***********************

The Shanty Boy
« on: December 09, 2010, 09:59 AM »

The shanty boy

BY PATIENCE OGBO

December 8, 2010 11:12PM


Five-year-old Ayo Olaniyi is not in school like other children.

At four he had started fending for himself, by running errands for adults at Otto/Ilogbo slum community in the Ebute Metta area of the state in exchange for a roof over his head. Ayo’s plight began at age two, when his parents separated. His father, Eweola Olaniyi, lost all his property and money to the fire that gutted the over hundred shanties at the slum in February this year. Mrs Olaniyi reportedly walked away from the marriage when things became too difficult, taking her one-year-old daughter along and leaving Ayo, then aged two, with his father.

And then, it got worse when Mr Olaniyi passed away in April 2009. Subsequently, Ayo was left with no family member to cater for him. He is surviving on the charity of the community, which has over twenty thousand slum dwellers. The residents were also affected by the fire that destroyed most of the shanties. They said they made frantic efforts to locate Ayo’s mother or any of his relations, to no avail. “Ayo stayed with me for a while but he is just roaming about in this place,” said Ishola Musbua, the Chairman of the Otto/Ilogbo Community Development Association. “And the residents take turn to cater for him. Today he will eat in this house, tomorrow he will go to another house to eat and bath so his situation is pathetic and we want the government to come to his rescue.”

Seeking government’s help

NEXT investigations revealed that Ayo’s father, the late Mr Olaniyi, was a native of Idanre in Ekiti State, while his mother, Zainab Olaniyi, is from Kwara State. Ayo is presently staying with one Oladapo Shodia, a father of three, who resides in a room shanty at Otto slum. “Ayo has been staying with me and my family for the past one year,” he said. “Our house is just a shanty because since the fire incident, we are barely surviving here at Otto. Initially, he was going to school, but I cannot cater for his schooling needs for now, because things are tight for me and my family. The boy needs a good home, and his mother is nowhere to be found. Every day, you see him wandering in the community and picking up dirt to eat, until somebody will take pity on him and give him something to eat. So life is hard for the boy and government should not neglect him. Since his father died, we have tried to locate his mother, and his family but no success yet, so government and good people should come and take Ayo to a better home.”

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5651145-146/story.csp

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5665217-146/shanty_boy_finds_a_home_.csp


By Patience Ogbo

January 23, 2011 10:56PM

5 year old Ayo Olaniyi, who had been fending for himself by running errands at the Otto-Ilogbo slum in Ebute Metta, has finally found shelter at a couple’s home in Ibadan.

Following the publication of his story by NEXT, in December, Ayo Dada, a pastor at Alleluia Bible Christian church, Kongi, Ibadan, and his wife, Adekemi, volunteered to take responsibility for Master Olaniyi’s upkeep.

Good Samaritans

According to Mrs Dada, a mother of six, the decision to take little Ayo into their care was borne out of compassion. “My husband and I are retired lecturers at the University of Ibadan,” she said. “We read about Ayo in the newspaper in December. Incidentally, he is my husband’s name sake and we took interest in his case. We believe we can give him a home atmosphere and upbringing that will make him useful to the society. So on Friday we came down to look at the place he is staying and it is not the best of place for anybody how much more a boy Ayo’s age. My last child is 18 and Ayo is like a grandchild to us so we will take good care of him. We are grateful to God for giving us this privilege. If tomorrow, his mother shows up, definitely we will release him if anybody has a concrete claim.”

His story

At four, Ayo had started fending for himself, by running errands for adults at Otto/Ilogbo slum community in the Ebute Metta area of the state in exchange for a roof over his head. Ayo’s plight began at age two, when his parents separated. His father, Eweola Olaniyi, lost all his property and money to the fire that gutted the over hundred shanties at the slum in February this year. Mrs Olaniyi reportedly walked away from the marriage when things became too difficult, taking her one-year-old daughter along and leaving Ayo, then aged two, with his father. And then, it got worse when Mr Olaniyi passed away in April 2009. Subsequently, Ayo was left with no family member to cater for him.

A thankful community

Agbodimu Musbau, the Chairman of Otto-Ilogbo community in Ebute Metta, while expressing his gratitude to the couple, called on other Nigerians to emulate them. “Children like Ayo are many in our community, some of them have grown up to become problem in the society because there was nobody to help them,” he said. “Ayo is very fortunate and we are grateful to Pastor Dada and his wife for helping him. I have gone to Ibadan with them to see where Ayo will be living and the place is very beautiful and conducive. Following the reports in the newspaper, Pastor Dada from Ibadan has been contacting me that he wanted to adopt Ayo if his family do not show up. On Friday his wife came to Otto-Ilogbo and saw how Ayo was living and she was moved with pity.”

Carrying everyone along

Mr Musbau said that the Yaba Welfare Home and the Denton Police Station were involved in the decision to hand Master Olaniyi over to the couple from Ibadan. “The welfare officer at Yaba said the state government is willing to take Ayo into the welfare but since there is somebody who is willing to take care of Ayo, that the law allows the community to release Ayo to them as far as they are reputable people and they can take care of him,” he said.

Mr and Mrs Dada are the owners of Winfield Institute at Ibadan, as well as Dada Estate Company. This is in addition to overseeing the Alleluia Bible Church at Kongi, Ibadan. “I and other people in the community will be visiting him (Ayo) from time to time to see how he is doing and if his mother shows up we will take her to see him so there is nothing to hide,” added Mr Musbau.

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http://www.saharareporters.com/news-page/wikileaks-nigeria-shells-ann-pickard-says-turai-tanimu-and-nnpc-gmd-yaradua-were-collectin

Wikileaks On Nigeria: Shell's Ann Pickard Says Turai, Tanimu and NNPC GMD Yar'adua Were Collecting Bribes From Oil Lifting Contracts

Posted: January 24, 2011 - 13:38

By SaharaReporters, New York

A cable recently released by Wikileaks paints a portrait of the extent to which powerful oil giant, Shell, was involved in the political schemes in Nigeria. The US ambassador routinely contacted Shell to discuss important political and economic developments in Nigeria.

In this cable, Shell executive, Ann Pickard, reveals that Umaru Yar'adua's wife, Hajia Turai, his economic adviser, Tanimu Kurfi, and the former Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Engr. Abubakar L. Yar ‘Ádua, were receiving bribes from companies lifting oil from Nigeria. SaharaReporters revealed these illicit activities in a report we did on Turai in 2008.
http://www.saharareporters.com/news-page/exclusive-report-crude-oil-lift,
Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
09ABUJA259 2009-02-10 16:04 2011-01-22 21:09 SECRET//NOFORN Embassy Abuja
Appears in these articles:
www.spiegel.de

VZCZCXRO7442
OO RUEHPA
DE RUEHUJA #0259/01 0411610
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
O 101610Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY ABUJA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5253
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEHOS/AMCONSUL LAGOS 0802
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 ABUJA 000259

NOFORN
SIPDIS

STATE PASS USTR FOR AGAMA
USDOE FOR GEORGE PERSON AND CHAYLOCK

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/02/2028
TAGS: EPET ENRG ELAB PINR ECON SENV PGOV NI
SUBJECT: (C) NIGERIA: SHELL BRIEFS AMBASSADOR ON OIL GAS ISSUES,
COMMENTS ON PRESIDENT'S HEALTH AND HIGH-LEVEL CORRUPTION

REF: ABUJA 203

Classified By: Ambassador Robin R. Sanders for reasons 1.4. (b
& d).

1. (S/NF) SUMMARY: Shell's regional executive vice president for Africa Ann Pickard and government relations representative Pete Francis met with the Ambassador on January 27 in Abuja and provided an update on problems in the oil and gas sector. Pickard said that things were going from bad to worse, especially the security situation. She said that Nigeria now had one of the highest negative ratings for maritime operations, creating problems for Shell in hiring oil tankers to load, as tanker operators will work only under highly selective conditions. Last year there were about 80 piracy attacks on land and water combined. This year already 15 have been tallied, which includes 3 for Shell and 3 for Exxon. On corruption, Pickard said that Nigerian entities control the lifting of many oil cargoes and there are some "very interesting" people lifting oil.

Oil buyers would pay NNPC GMD Yar'Adua, Chief Economic Advisor Yakubu and the First Lady Turai Yar'Adua large bribes to lift oil. Pickard also reported an instance of the Attorney General Aondoakaa allegedlysoliciting a $20 million bribe to sign a document. The International Oil Companies (IOC) are quite concerned about the "very flawed" new petroleum sector energy bill. The IOCs will be asking U.S., Dutch, and U.K. COMs to convey points on the bill to GON policymakers. Pickard agreed that the President's health is a guessing game. She said that in her recent meetings with Yar'Auda he seems alert, though very drawn in the face, thin, and frail. Her information is that the President was not in danger of dying soon, but also was unlikely to ever fully recover from his ailments. (Note: see septel on oil/energy sector issues for the Ambassador's meeting with the new Minister of Petroleum Resources. End Note). END SUMMARY.

2. (C) Shell's regional executive vice president for Africa Ann Pickard and government relations representative Peter Francis met with the Ambassador on January 27, 2009 in Abuja and provided an update on problems in the oil and gas sector. Pickard reported that Shell's meeting with Minister of Petroleum Resources Dr. Rilwanu Lukman scheduled for earlier that day had been cancelled; the third week in a row where key appointments had fallen through, with the excuse of being summoned to the Presidential Villa. (Note: Emboffs have observed that meetings with ministers and senior staff are indeed often cancelled with the explanation that they have been summoned to the Presidential Villa, even when the President is out of
town. End note). Econ Counselor and Econoff (notetaker) also
attended the discussion.

- - - - - - - - -
from bad to worse
- - - - - - - - -

3. (C) The Ambassador took the opportunity to share with Pickard that the Mission was in the midst of completing its Strategic Plan and asked Pickard where she thought Nigeria was headed. Pickard said that things were going from bad to worse, especially in terms of security. She said that Nigeria now had the highest negative rating for maritime security, creating problems for Shell in hiring oil tankers to load; tankers will work only under highly selective conditions.
She also noted that late on the evening of Saturday January 17, Nigerian militants attacked and boarded two vessels at a Shell crude oil loading platform in Bonny and took eight crew members hostage.
Standard procedure on the tanker was followed: the ship went into immediate lock down; there were no injuries or fatalities from the boarding. The eight Nigerian crew members who were taken hostage were later released. The pirates who went through the sections of the boat to which they were able to gain access, smashing and stealing computers, electronics, and personal items of the crew members. The second vessel was a tug boat towing a supply vessel from Bonny to Calabar. Last year there were about 80 incidents of piracy; this year already 15 had been tallied, which includes 3 for Shell and 3 for Exxon. GON officials have told Shell to "hire more security."

The price of doing business in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria continues to climb she concluded. [Note: The International Maritime Bureau (IMB), a division of the International Chamber of Commerce -www icc-ccs org - reports that the waters off the Gulf of Guinea (Nigeria) remain the second worst, with 40 incidents in 2008 to the Horn of Africa (Somalia) with 42 recorded incidents. The IMB notes that in 2009 the Horn of Africa will be more intense as Spring comes due to the large number of foreign warships in the region on active patrol to ensure the safety and security of vessels. The same increased security is not expected for Nigeria in 2009. End Note]




- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
shell believes coup unlikely; corruption worsening
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

4. (S/NF) The Ambassador asked what Shell's thoughts were on any potential for a coup. Pickard answered that there is little intellectual capital to plan and execute a coup and Shell sees little potential for one. Pickard then went on to say that corruption in the oil sector was worsening by the day. The Ambassador asked for a few examples. Pickard said that Nigerian entities control the lifting of many oil cargoes and there are some "very interesting" people lifting oil (People, she said that were not even in the
industry). As an example she said that oil buyers would pay Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) General Managing Director Yar'Adua, (Note: not related to President Yar'Adua. End Note)
Chief Economic Advisor Yakubu, and the First Lady Turai Yar'Adua large
bribes, millions of dollars per tanker, to lift oil. The IOCs control the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cargos, so GON actors do not have the same opportunity for illicit gain. Pickard also said xxxxxxxxxxxxAttorney General Aondoakaa had told a visitor that he would sign a document only if the visitor paid $2 million immediately and another $18 million the next day.

- - - - - - -
very bad bill
- - - - - - -

5. (C) Pickard reported that Shell, Exxon-Mobil and Chevron all have big license review disputes with the GON. Shell has taken its dispute to court and the court is supporting Shell's position.
According to her, Shell is stepping back for the moment, however, to see how the other two majors negotiation fair, but is not taking its case out of court yet. The IOCs are quite concerned about the "very flawed" new petroleum sector energy bill. The bill is silent on what fiscal regimes would be applied. Shell says that the bill could reduce the corporation's overall value in Nigeria. GON discussions around the bill have mentioned the possibility of moving to five-year licenses and prohibiting exploring both oil and gas from the same source, which would contradict how oil and gas extraction works in practice. The bill is silent on joint ventures; it just states that NNPC will be incorporated. Pickard said the bill was "likely to sail through." The IOCs will be asking U.S., Dutch and U.K. COMs to convey points on the bill to GON policymakers. (Note: Pickard mentioned that the IOCs will not share company information directly; they will hire consultants, like McKinsey, to produce common themes so the messages from the IOCs to be shared with the relevant Ambassadors are clear and consistent. End note). Pickard lamented that the expected cycle of petroleum is at least five years for the first oil to flow, another 10 years of production to begin to break even. These numbers change when oil is $40 per barrel instead of $100 per barrel. Hence, a five year license would not be an incentive for investment and development.

- - - - - -
gas issues
- - - - - -

6. (C) The Ambassador said that the Mission was looking at performance measures for the economy, i.e. the linkage between the country's electricity output and gross domestic product (GDP). The Ambassador shared that the Mission feels strongly that gas for feedstock is the key to Nigeria's power production, which is only about 2,800 average megawatts for a country of 140 million people. Pickard agreed and added that the U.S. got it wrong on its domestic natural gas policies, which it took over 20 years to sort out. So it is not surprising that Nigeria has it wrong at this point. She said there is not adequate infrastructure for gas. Gathering plants and pipelines to carry the product to the power plants still have to be financed and built. The Nigeria Independent Power Projects (NIPP) were located where there is no gas and no infrastructure. In addition, the international oil companies were coerced into building a power plant each, something they have no expertise in, and they are scrambling to deliver gas to these plants.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
yar'auda vacation is perhaps something else
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

7. (S/NF) Pickard agreed that the President's health is a guessing game. She said that in her recent meetings with Yar'Auda he seems alert but drawn in the face and frail. She reported that a xxxxxxxxxxxx contact says that the President was not in danger of dying soon but has serious ailments from which he will never fully recover. Pickard shared that Berger provides transportation including planes for the President and has reportedly flown in doctors and technicians to attend the President (reftel). She said,
for instance, that xxxxxxxxxxxx confided that they flew the President from Germany to Saudi in September 2008. Additionally, the Berger contact thought the President would not return to the Villa offices, as they were moving the President's personal things out of the Villa. (Note: What we think this means is that Yar'Adua is spending most of his time in the presidential residence and not in the Villa offices. End Note).

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
hopes that oil nationalism can be tempered
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

8. (C) The Ambassador asked how comfortable Shell was with the new appointment of Dr. Rilwanu Lukman as Minister of Petroleum Resources, and the appointment of Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo as the new NNPC GMD. Pickard sees the nationalism card cooling with the removal of former NNPC GMD Yar'Adua, given that new Minister of Petroleum Lukman is more "pragmatic" and will hold sway over deputy Minister Ajumogobia.

(Note: Ajumogobia's technical assistant told EconOff in a meeting on January 14, 2009 that the State Minister was focusing on Gas, since before the mass cabinet change he was State Minster of Petroleum, with a separate State Minster for Gas.) End Note. She said she was also okay with NNPC chief Barkindo. She has worked with Barkindo several times over the past few decades, especially when they were both working climate change. She said Barkindo led Nigeria's technical delegation to climate change negotiations that produced the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)and the Kyoto protocol to UNFCCC during while he served on its Bureau at various times. She indicated that although his undergraduate studies were in political science, he obtained his MBA from Southeastern University in Washington DC and did postgraduate work in petroleum economics and management at Oxford University. Although she also said terms like nationalistic and Chavez she however said that she thought
he could be steered in the right direction on the petroleum sector.

- - - -
comment
- - - -

9. (C) Although Pickard clearly seems frustrated with the way things are going in the maritime security, oil sector legislation, and corruption which affects Shell's bottom line, it was useful to hear that she has hopes for the new Petroleum Minister and NNPC chief. Septel on the Ambassador's meeting with new Petroleum Minister Lukman will address many of these same issues.

10. (U) This cable was coordinated with Consulate Lagos.

Sanders

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Jos crisis: several commissions of inquiry, no action

By Peter Nkanga


January 23, 2011 07:52AM


Plateau State, once billed the ‘Home of Peace and Tourism’ has steadily been receding into a ‘Home of Pieces and Terrorism’. This is because past and present Nigerian leaders have allowed the violence which first sprouted 16 years ago on April 12, 1994 to continue unabated. The remote cause of the recurring crisis on the Plateau has remained the same for over half a century — ethnic groups claiming superiority over the other, with the people all fighting for political, economic, religious, and social identity. Due to the ineptitude of governments at all levels, the issue has, between 1994 to date, led to thousands of Nigerians losing their lives in no fewer than 70 cases of communal violence in Plateau State, with 23 of these clashes occuring in 2002 and 2004.

The Fiberesima report

Ten days after the 1994 crisis, the then military administrator of Plateau State, Mohammed Mana, a lieutenant colonel, set up a Commission of Inquiry to “look into” the riots, “find out” its genesis, “recommend ways” of avoiding a future re-occurrence”, and “recommend appropriate action” against those found guilty of causing the mayhem.

Within several weeks, the seven-member commission headed by Justice Aribiton Fiberesima heard the oral evidence of 50 witnesses, admitted 66 memoranda and 44 exhibits. At the end, it was concluded that the immediate cause of the crisis was the appointment of a Hausa-Fulani man, Aminu Mato, as the Jos North local government caretaker committee chairman.

“While his kinsmen nodded approval to his appointment, the Berom, Anaguta, and Afizere tribes gave it an outright rejection. A battle line was drawn between the tribes,” the commission noted.

The remote cause was however traced to the 1991 creation of the Jos North and Jos South local government areas, under military ruler Ibrahim Babangida, which was “totally against the wishes of the Berom, Anaguta, and Afizere communities”, as they found themselves in Jos South LGA, “while the Hausa-Fulani community was left to enjoy numerical dominion in Jos North LGA where Jos metropolis is located.” “The communities saw this arrangement as a grand plan by the Hausa-Fulani to seize Jos town from them. They also resented the pattern of the newly-created LGAs because it left their paramount ruler, the Gbong Gwom, isolated in an enclave of the Hausa-Fulani in Jos municipality.”

On April 5, 1994, the aggrieved communities held a peaceful demonstration and made it clear that Mr. Mato’s appointment was “unacceptable to them”. But the next day, he was sworn as committee chairman. Further aggrieved, the three communities “vowed not to allow him assume office”, and on April 8 thronged the local government secretariat to disrupt the handing over ceremony. They were calmed only after a government order directed the local government’s director of personnel management to take over the running of the council.

Feeling the government had compromised at their own expense, the Hausa-Fulani people on April 11 slaughtered cows and other animals on the highway near the Abattoir to protest the government’s action, while stating “their action was just the beginning of things to come unless Mr. Mato was allowed to take over the administration of Jos North LGA.” By April 12, “chaos ensued” for over half of the day, leaving in its wake several dead, many displaced, and destroyed property worth N328,278,659.80.

The Niki Tobi report

The Fiberesima Commission made many recommendations to the government, including sanctioning “all individuals, groups of persons, and organisations indicted by our Inquiry”. They were never implemented. The government’s inaction led to sporadic communal clashes for the next five years, culminating in the September 7, 2001 violence, when all hell broke loose once again in Jos and environs. This time the crisis lasted a week and claimed about 1,000 lives, with loss in property valued at N3,369,716,404.95.

On October 18, 2001, the Plateau State governor, Joshua Dariye, during the civilian government of President Olusegun Obasanjo, inaugurated a 10-member commission of inquiry, headed by Justice Niki Tobi, who was then the presiding justice of the Court of Appeal, Benin City, and later the justice of the Supreme Court. Their mandate was essentially the same with that of the 1994 commission. During the next eight months while they worked, there were at least five more outbreaks of violence. In its findings, the commission declared “history seems to be repeating itself here”, noting that the 2001 and the 1994 crisis “are very similar”. It was glaring the government had failed in its constitutional primary role of ensuring the security and welfare of its citizens.

“For some reason which is not altogether clear to us or for no reason at all, the government neither issued a white paper on the (Fiberesima) report nor implemented any of the (Fiberesima) Commissions recommendations,” the commission declared, while further contentions were “that if the recommendations of the Fiberesima Commission had been implemented by government, the crisis of September 2001 would have been averted.”

Like in 1994, the appointment of another Hausa-Fulani, Mukhtar Mohammed, on June 20, 2001, as the Jos North local government coordinator of the National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP), a federal government agency, rocked the boat.

Mr. Mohammed’s appointment was “greeted by written complaints, petitions and protests, calling for his immediate removal” and he be replaced with an ‘indigene’ of Jos North local government. For the next few months, the tension created by his appointment boiled until finally on September 7, 2001, the crisis erupted. The final straw appeared to have been precipitated by a Christian woman, Rhoda Nyam, who, while returning to her working place, was prevented from passing through a road at the Congo-Russia area of Jos where a Muslim congregation had gathered for their Friday Juma’at prayers.

The Hausa-Fulani account was Miss Nyam came back immediately with a group of youths who “descended upon the Muslims worshipers with matchetes, bows and arrows, sticks and other dangerous weapons”. This account was disputed by Miss Nyam who said upon pleading that she be allowed to pass through the footpath reserved for pedestrians and cyclists during the Friday prayers, one of the three men who refused “slapped and kicked her. She then ran to her house and the same man who had assaulted her pursued her, now holding a pistol”.

“The rest of it is now history,” the commission noted, “a very pathetic history”. With supporting evidence, the commission accepted Miss Nyam’s testimony as “the true and correct state of affairs”, due to disparate accounts of the events by Muslim witnesses, while a key Muslim witness on two occasions “failed to make himself available” for cross-examination; and yet another witness who claimed to have worshiped at the Congo-Russia mosque on that day saying he never saw Miss Nyam as he “could not see what was happening”.

A question of credibility

But Bawa Wase, a representative of the Hausa-Fulani community and who has testified at the inquiries, discredits both Commissions of Inquiry, as biased and discriminatory in their process.

“First of all the composition of the panels were discriminatory. With the Fiberesima commission, there were seven Christians and only two Muslims, so of course the balance of probability is defeated, “ says Mr. Bawa, while adding “Justice Fiberesima lives in Jos. I even know his house, and before his appointment to head the commission he was with the Plateau State High Court. So it is a case of a worker answerable to his employer.”

The spokesperson for the Ulama/Elders Council, a group that promotes the interests of Hausa Muslims in Plateau State also said the Niki Tobi Commission was more sensitive to other tribes by virtue of their minority status.

“Both the chairman and the secretary are both from minority groups having similar crisis of identity. The report was biased. It was not a fair process because sides had already been taken from the onset,” Mr. Wase added.

Adding to the credibility debate is which tier of government undertakes the commission of inquiry, as explained Etannibi Alemika, a professor of Criminology and Sociology of Law at the University of Jos.

“The general perception is a commission of inquiry from the state government will be pro-indigene Christian, but if it is by the federal government, then it will be pro-Hausa Muslim. This has accounted to the Hausa people many times boycotting some of these things involving the state government,” Mr. Alemika said.

Unpublished reports

Between 1994 and 2010, there have been at least seven commissions of inquiry into the resurging crisis in Plateau State, four from the state government and three from the federal government. Of the Plateau State-instituted commissions, only the Fiberesima and Niki Tobi reports have been published, while the Plateau State peace Conference report (2004), and the report of the Justice Bola Ajibola Commission of Inquiry (2008/2009) are yet to be released. It is evident that no past and present Nigerian leader has any respect for the sanctity of life. Our government’s continued showmanship of continually instituting commissions of inquiry with no result to show, has ensured actors, murderers, and perpetrators of crimes remain unpunished, leaving thousands of innocent victims to have died in vain.

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http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/News/National/5665126-146/pfizer_victims_unlikely_to_get_compensation.csp

Pfizer victims unlikely to get compensation soon

By Nicholas Ibekwe

January 23, 2011 08:23AM

The hope of victims of the 1996 Trovan Clinical Trial in Kano conducted by Pfizer to get appropriate compensation continues to grow dim, as the multinational pharmaceutical company, with the support of some self-serving Nigerian elite, has not relented in its efforts to prolong the suffering of the mostly impoverished victims.

The multinational pharmaceutical company, which admitted to the Federal Government Trovan Investigative Panel in 2001 that it had not taken proper records of the 200 victims it admittedly used in their experiment, is now claiming that it has the DNA samples of those used as guinea pigs in the trial.

Throughout the negotiations leading up to its settlement with the Kano State government, even while appearing before the investigative panel set up by the federal government in 2001, at no time did Pfizer mention that it had taken DNA samples of those illegally recruited for its trial. Pfizer, which unfortunately, has been calling the shots throughout the negotiations, now requires victims to present their DNA samples as a mean of authenticating that they were actually subjects in the trial before any form of compensation is paid to them.

According to excerpts of what we believe is a copy of a secretive settlement agreement Pfizer reached with the Nigerian government, the company, which entered the settlement on the basis of “no admission of liability”, is asking “any person submitting a claim form to the Fund must provide a saliva sample for DNA testing purposes, and must consent and submit to a medical examination if requested.”

Improper Identification

However, the victims’ lawyers have questioned Pfizer’s demand for the victims’ DNA samples. They contend that in the first place, the company didn’t even have proper identification of the trial subjects. In 1996, Pfizer, capitalizing on the support of corrupt government officials, flew in their doctors in the middle of an outbreak of a tripod of measles, cholera and cerebrospinal meningitis epidemic, to conduct an illegal clinical trial on sick infants in Kano. Apparently trying to cover up all traces of the clinical trial it was conducting in a room with newspaper-covered windows, the company did not bother to properly identify the sick children they were using as “laboratory animals”. The victims were simply identified by serial numbers and initials written on tiny pink cards.

“Let us assume that Pfizer collected the DNA samples of the victims, how are they going to link the correct DNA sample with some initials appearing more than one time?”, asked Kunle Omitimirin, a member of the victims’ legal team.

“The victims were treated worse than guinea pigs”, said Mr. Ishola, a member of the victims’ legal team. “In a laboratory, guinea pigs are better identified.”

Further, throughout the negotiation leading to the settlement with the Kano State, at no time did Pfizer mention that it was in possession of DNA samples of those it used for the clinical trial. The multinational, which earns upwards of $18 billion annually, only came up with the issue of DNA tests when it was time to compensate the victims.

Legality of collecting DNA samples

Counsel to the victims have also argued that it is illegal to collect a person’s DNA samples without their consent. Pfizer, so far, has been unable to present any documentary evidence that the victims consented that samples of their DNA should be collected. Even Aliyu Umar, the attorney general of Kano State, admitted to NEXT that it was not legal to do a DNA test without the consent of the person to whom the test was being administered.

Mr. Ishola further argued that judging the short time Pfizer spent in Kano in 1996 before they hurriedly left in the middle of the epidemic, it was almost impossible for Pfizer to have completed the DNA tests of the 200 children it claimed it used in the trial.

“How are we sure that Pfizer will not provide the DNAs of Ugandans just to show the world that most of the claims were false”, said a lawyer who pleaded anonymity.

Counsel to the victims are expressing serious doubts as to the motives behind the call for DNA testing by Pfizer at this point in time. Mr. Ishola claims that his studies on clinical trials show that the DNA of the subjects is mostly required when concluding a trial. According to him, he suspects that Pfizer might be requesting for the DNA samples of the victims so as to use them to complete information already collected on the test.

Meningitis Fund Board of Trustees

The composition of a Meningitis Fund Board of Trustees has stirred up further controversy leading to the settlement. The board of trustees, which draws its funding from the Kano State government’s $30 million (N4.5 billion) share of the $75 million (N11.25 billion) compensation paid by Pfizer, comprises of Abubakar Wali, the former Supreme Court justice as chairman; Alfa Belgore, the former chief justice of Nigeria; David Odiwo as executive secretary; Muataseer Ibrahim, the vice chancellor of the Katsina State University; Isa Hashim (who has been sacked from the board by the Kano State government) and Musa Borodo.

According to the agreement reached with the Kano State government, Pfizer is required to appoint three members of the board and the Kano State government, the other three members. Counsel to the victims have argued that the composition of the board is faulty. According to them, the victims should have been represented on the board. They averred that what Pfizer and the Kano State government have done is appoint themselves as judges in a case where they are the accused. The victims’ counsel are of the position that there is no way the victims are going to get justice form this board.

Next also learnt that apart from the Toyota Prado Sport Utility Vehicles (SUV) given to each member of the board, they were also paid N1 million each at every sitting. According to our source, who asked not be named, the committee had sat for about 15 times at the luxurious The Prince Hotel in Kano.

“Any member of the committee who has a conscience seeing the plight of the victims should have immediately resigned from the committee,” said Mr. Ishola.

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/News/National/5665126-146/pfizer_victims_unlikely_to_get_compensation.csp

S-East govs hailed for endorsing 2015 Igbo presidency project

NewsDec 13, 2010

By Tony Edike

THE decision by governors and political leaders in South East geopolitical zone to back the agitation for 2015 Igbo presidency as the basis for supporting any presidential candidate for 2011 presidential election has been applauded by leaders of Igbo Political Forum, IPF.
The South East governors and some political leaders from the zone had at a meeting held at Nike Lake Resort, Enugu, last Sunday, resolved to throw their support behind the presidential ambition of President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011, but declared that their support for him would depend on his acceptance to support the aspiration of Ndigbo to produce the Nigerian president of Igbo extraction in 2015.
Reacting to the development, Monday, one of the facilitators of Mkpoko Igbo and a member of Igbo Political Forum, Professor ABC Nwosu, said the positive decision of the governors on the issue of 2015 presidency was commendable, adding that the decision was in line with the IPF’s struggle, which centres on the actualisation of Igbo presidency.
The IPF, which has prominent Igbo leaders as Dr. Alex Ekwueme, Senator Ken Nnamani, Chief Simon Okeke, Professor ABC Nwosu, Dr. Sam Egwu, among others, has been in the forefront of the struggle for the actualisation of Igbo presidency in 2015 and went further to enter into an agreement with Northern political leaders, who had agreed to support Ndigbo to produce the president in 2015.
It was on the basis of that agreement that most of the presidential candidates from the Northern states have agreed to run for one term of four years and thereafter hand over power to a president of Igbo extraction in 2015, but even though a section of Igbo have agreed to back Jonathan for 2011, no concrete agreement had been reached with him as to whether or not he would support an Igbo to become president in 2015, if elected president next year.
Professor Nwosu, who spoke with reporters at the Mkpoko Igbo secretariat in Enugu said: “We hereby congratulate the governors and South East politicians who met in Enugu on Sunday and endorsed Igbo Presidency 2015 as condition for supporting any presidential candidate in 2011. This is what our struggle has been whether as Igbo Political Forum or as Mkpoko Igbo or Ahamefula.
“We still assert both as IPF, Mkpoko Igbo and Ahamefula that the only concrete agreement on the table is that between the IPF and the Northern Political Forum. We salute the governors for their courage and determination as political leaders of Ndigbo not to betray the Igbo Presidency project 2015.
“We are satisfied that when the time comes there will be no statement coming from the presidency on this matter having committed itself to a different direction that is not South East in 2015.”
Nwosu said that the IPF was ready to work with the South East governors and any other group “that is committed and determined to execute the Igbo presidency project 2015 in an honest and transparent manner and not on the basis of neighbor and brother because every Nigerian is our friend, neighbor and brother in this Igbo presidency project.”
He assured that for Ndigbo in Mkpoko Igbo, Igbo Political Forum and Ahamefula, “Igbo presidency in 2015 is non_negotiable” urging all Igbos to support the project with the spirit of Ahamefula (equity and justice for all).

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/12/s-east-govs-hailed-for-endorsing-2015-igbo-presidency-project/

FG drops charges against Cheney, Halliburton

NewsDec 13, 2010

THE Federal Government’s effort at prosecuting former United States Vice President Richard Bruce ‘Dick’ Cheney and other officials of Halliburton paid off, following payment of huge sums of money to the coffers of Nigeria, as Nigeria has reportedly agreed to drop charges against Cheney and Halliburton.
The development followed agreement reached between Nigerian officials in the negotiating team and top officials of the United States and Halliburton in a meeting held in London, weekend.
At the meeting, Halliburton agreed to pay about N20 billion as criminal penalty, while promising to liaise with the United States Government to recover the outstanding $I32 million which is currently frozen in Switzerland.
It was gathered that former United States President, George Bush, Snr and former United States Secretary of State, Mr. James Baker were part of the deliberations through conference calls.
The Attorney General of Federation and Justice Minister, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN, led Nigeria’s team at the negotiations which included the Secretary of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr. Emmanuel Akomaye, legal luminaries, Damian Dodo, SAN, and Godwin Obla and the Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, Roland Ewubare.
Halliburton’s Chief Executive and Chairman, David Lesar, who replaced Cheney, Halliburton President, Eastern Hemisphere, Ahmed Lofty, Deputy General Counsel, James Ferguson were part of it.
Halliburton sought for small fines but the Nigeria officials vehemently opposed the move, reasoning that the United States could not have benefitted from the fines more than Nigeria, where the crime was committed originally. “We will not settle for less than what was paid to the U.S Government”, the AGF said.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/12/fg-drops-charges-against-cheney-halliburton/

UAE Court Of Appeal Rules That James Ibori Be Extradited To UK

Posted: December 13, 2010 - 11:49

By SaharaReporters, New York

A United Arab Emirates  Court of Cassation in Dubai today ruled that the former governor of Delta state, James Ibori, be extradited to the United Kingdom to face trial for money laundering, forgery, credit card fraud and grand theft charges.

The ruling followed a similar decision by the Court of First Instance in Dubai which ordered Ibori's extradition to the UK last October.

UK authorities have successfully prosecuted Ibori’s sister, Christine Ibie-Ibori, his mistress, Udoamaka Okoronkwo (nee Onuigbo) on those charges. Both women are serving jail terms in a UK prison.

Ibori's wife, Theresa Nkoyo, and his UK-based lawyers, Bhadresh Gohil were also convicted recently.

UK officials said they expect Ibori to be flown to the UK soon. Saharareporters could not immediately confirm if Ibori plans to appeal against today's judgement before the UAE Supreme court.

http://www.saharareporters.com/news-page/uae-court-appeal-rules-james-ibori-be-extradited-uk

Verbal attack: Fayose’s family apologises to OBJ

Written by Kolawole Daniel, Abuja

Monday, 13 December 2010

THE family of former governor of Ekiti State, Mr Ayodele Fayose, at the weekend, condemned the utterances of their son against former President Olusegun Obasanjo and tendered an apology to him.

It will be recalled that Fayose and Obasanjo were reportedly engaged in altercation at the thanksgiving ceremony in honour of the former governor of Osun State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola.

Addressing a press conference at the weekend, in Abuja, a younger brother to the former governor, who is an aspirant to the House of Representatives, Emmanuel Fayose, said he was “briefing the press on behalf of Fayose’s family.”

He said the action of his elder brother was condemnable, adding that the family decided to apologise to set the record straight that members of the family did not support him on that particular incident.

“I am here to react to the face-off between my brother, Ayo and Chief Obasanjo. I think my brother went too far. We thought we should apologise, that is why I am here to apologise on behalf of the family that we are sorry for the utterances of my brother against Obasanjo,” he said.

http://tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/14654-verbal-attack-fayoses-family-apologises-to-obj

National Assembly: You are so primitive; only primitive people do this type of thing – Engr Tukur

FinanceDec 13, 2010

By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief & Oscar Onwuemenyi

The controversy over the jumbo pay at the legislative arm of the federal government has refused to die down, despite explanations by the law makers that they got 9 per cent and not  25 per cent of the overhead  budget in the 2010 fiscal year.  The legislators have even agreed to cut their pay in the 2011 budget but still remain under fire.
In this interview with the former Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Engr. Hamman Tukur, he said legislators must not act as if they are contractors whose only interest is to maximize profit. He also condemned what he termed “primitive wealth acquisition” by public officers.

Excerpts:
The Federal legislature has been in the news lately for self-allocation of huge funds. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, pulled the lead off the finances of the National Assembly when he said the legislature takes 25 per cent of the Federal Government’s overhead costs. But the legislators insist they got only 9 per cent. What is your view on the matter?

Why should the statement by Sanusi bring about any controversy at all? It is not the percentage that matters, whether it is 25, 10 or 9 per cent is not important. The issue at stake, in my opinion, is: can the National Assembly justify the amount of money being spent on them?
It is also not a matter of spending on overhead or recurrent or whatever, the question is: what is the total package that Nigerians are paying their legislators?  Are they worth it, did they earn it? If a Senator or a member of the House is taking more than is within the rule of law, it is wrong. It doesn’t matter whether it is one naira or ten naira, it is still theft!
Why should they overreact over a simple statement by the Governor of the Central Bank, unless they are feeling guilty. As they say, the guilty are always afraid. At any rate, Nigerians should be asking questions of the Clerk of the National Assembly, who is the Chief Accounting Officer of the legislative arm of government.
He is the one to account for every single suspected money being paid to the National Assembly, if it is correct or…he must produce authority – who asked him to pay such money? There is a report in the papers saying that the Speaker, Bankole was forced to increase payment of the members to N42 million quarterly.
Who gave the Speaker the authority to approve anything for anybody? Nigerians should remember that the Speaker is just one member of the House of Representatives who happened to have been elected by his colleagues; there is never an election for the position of the speaker, and the person can be changed every week if they so demand.
So, under what circumstances would the Speaker approve all that money, under what law or authority did he approve the said sum of money? In my view, the Clerk should be held responsible for such a misapplication of national resources.
Coming back to the Sanusi issue, in my view, it is not the percentage that matters. The amount of money being taken by these people, is it justified? Is it within the rule of law? If the answer is yes, then Sanusi would be wrong, but if the answer is no, then, of course, the National Assembly members are guilty and the CBN governor is right.
We should not stop at saying they are wrong, but insist that there should be proper restitication. Nigerians trusted these people, especially the Senators.  Many of whom held big public offices before they were elected into the Senate.
In fact, at their level, they should serve Nigeria free of charge; they should all be ready to offer free service to the country as happens in other climes, especially in Europe. I am saying that Senators should offer Nigerians free service, then we can look up to them for guidance. And not for them to be involved in these fishy things, and then get over-suspicious by a simple comment from the CBN governor: what’s the big deal about what he said?
It is clearly stated in Section 70 of the constitution that the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission shall determine the salaries and any other allowances of members of the state and National Assembly legislatures. Note that even after the salaries, every other imaginable allowance has been included in the package they are supposed to take.
Therefore, no other naira can be earned by any legislator in Nigeria outside of this package, but it is obvious that this is not really the case today. According to the latest reviewed package, the annual basic salary for a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is N2,026,400. On a monthly basis, the basic salary of a Senator is N168, 866.66. We have included outside of the basic salary any imaginable allowance such as motor vehicle allowance, fuelling allowance.
We can only give them maintenance allowance for their vehicles as under the monetisation policy of government, no legislator should be given a car; he or she should take a loan just like civil servants, and pay over the period of your tenure as a legislator. When some time ago, the House of Representatives bought about 400 vehicles, claiming they were for committees in the House, we asked who authorised that, and for what committees?
Why should they buy so many vehicles, or any vehicle for that matter? We also told the legislators not to stay in houses above the standard of Apo Village in the FCT, for two reasons: one is so they can remain close to the people they are supposed to be representing in order to have the true picture of things and appreciate their daily problems. The second reason was for security reasons in case of a coup d’etat.
This is in order to ensure their own security, as well as to safeguard our democracy and our nation. Under those circumstances, we agreed to give them an allowance for them to rent a place, in case they are outside. Therefore, we included domestic allowance, utilities allowance and entertainment allowance. We also gave them security allowance to cover for their guards. Note that legislative aides are to be provided for by the Bureaucracy of the National Assembly, not by the legislators. Every single chairman of a committee  and their vice are given an allowance, therefore there is no excuse for him or her to take anything else.
There is even an allowance to cover for their newspapers and periodicals! Now, the issue of constituency projects is a warped one. The purpose of constituency is not to include constituency projects in the budget. We noted that as politicians representing specific areas, they would require offices to host people from these constituencies who bring their complaints, and an allowance was made for the maintenance of this office, including hiring an office clerk and a secretary to sort their mails and other constituency-related business.
We discussed these issues with them before the allowances were fixed. The sum total of these allowances, for Senators comes to about N683,910. 12. We also give them handsome severance packages at the expiration of their tenure to enable them earn a living after serving the people. This package is very generous and amounts to about 300 per cent of their basic salary. What are they complaining about?
The legislature gave themselves  N159 billion in this year’s budget and it appears that beyond their salaries and allowances, the money could have been too large that they are tempted to create ways of spending it. Apparently, they are not satisfied with the package and have continued to explore and exploit every possible avenue of taking money out of the national purse.
In this year’s budget alone, the National Assembly has over 159 billion, to do what? And of course, by the time their salaries and allowances are covered, they find a way to push the balance into ‘overheads’, including travels and the like. But, unfortunately, why should legislators charge money for ‘travels’ when they have cars that are fuelled and maintained by government?
They have to pay for hotel accommodation and have to feed
My problem is that these legislators have not addressed the main issues. Nigerians elected them to represent their interests so that there would be development in the country. They are supposed to act as the difference between a democracy and a dictatorship. Let them provide the leadership, for goodness’ sake, so that every single Nigerian will enjoy better quality of life. They should not just keep accumulating money, to do what with it?
If you are giving over N40 million every quarter, what will you do with it? How could a responsible legislator receive N10 million every month in Nigeria, giving the circumstances we are in” no schools, no hospitals, no roads, no rail, no power supply, no jobs for hundreds of thousands of youths, haba!
Given the huge cost of maintaining our legislators at every level of government, some people have advocated making service in the legislature a part-time job. Some have even suggested that members be paid only for the number of times they come to plenary, given that a lot of them rarely show up for plenary sessions. What do you think of that?
When I was at RMAFC, we thought it is a minimum of about 180 days in a year that they members sit and considered paying them for just the number of days they work. However, we went to the Constitution and discovered that it specified that they be paid ‘salary’ and ‘other allowances.’
You see, a salary cannot be a part- time payment. Salaries are being paid to legislators in Nigeria only because the word ‘salary’ appeared in the Constitution, otherwise, we would have paid them for only the 180 days they come in to work, or depending on the number of days a representative attends. In that situation, the RMAFC would have undertaken to monitor all the sessions of all the 36 legislatures across the country. But, we have to abide by what the constitution says.
Does that mean if any change is to be made on the wage structure of the National Assembly, we would have to amend the Constitution?
Definitely! It is there in Section 70 of the Constitution. However, there is no gainsaying the fact that it is a very expensive legislature. Maybe, the question is: should we have gone ahead with the Presidential system of government knowing it would become very expensive? I mean, how can you justify the fact that such an amount is spent on a National Assembly that can only boasts of passing 13 bills out of a possible 199 in a year?
It is a shame! come on, you spend all these billions when you are supposed to make laws and you just sit there, and you say people should not comment? I don’t know what is wrong with our country. You are not contractors to your own country.
We must not behave like contractors to maximize profit and then disappear. This is our country, who else is going to develop it? You are in authority, for goodness sake, and you have to be serious and get everything for Nigeria. You must be productive. What about the rampant insecurity and the cases of armed robbery all over the place? What about hundreds of thousands of youths that leave the universities every year and have no jobs?
What a country! Are we not ashamed of ourselves? And you sit there in those legislative houses and you think that you are running a democracy?
The CBN governor made a comment, is this how you are going to run a democracy, and you concentrate on what you earn. Come on, You are so primitive; only primitive people do this type of thing. Only primitiveness produce this kind of result. How can you? Development must get to the grassroots, every Nigerian must be in it and live comfortably. Do you see what is happening? We are closing down our industries, unemployment is increasing; no efficient rail system. C’mon, in 2010!
And we say we are running a democracy, we have resources, and we have oil money! Primitive people! It is so annoying, so frustrating, and all you hear in the media is politics and contesting elections; contesting elections to do what? Nigeria seems to be going backwards. It’s a shame!

A lot of people believe that as Chairman of the RMAFC,  you were instrumental to this jumbo pay they now receive. People opposed it but you said that you wanted to make them comfortable…

(Cuts in) No! Forget about that! Comfort? What do you mean? Believe me, we used the salaries of the civil servants as the benchmark to fix the basic salary of these legislators. The issue of jumbo pay is self-given. In this Presidential system of government, and because we are more or less operating outside the rule of law, the legislators will now insert various amounts of money in order to take care of themselves.
Who told them and under what rule? The Executive reserves the responsibility to prepare the budget and the judiciary and legislature must go to the executive to present their budgets in a single economy. If by the time the proposed budget goes to the National Assembly, they know where to just twist this or that, increase here or there.
I need to restate that whenever legislatures have issues with the budget they should only call upon the Governor in the state or the President in the National government; you cannot call on MDAs to defend what they did not give to you. Call the President who sent you the budget, so he in turn will send his representative or expert. You cannot call on people who did not send you anything.
This is why the whole saga around Oversight functions performed by the legislatures becomes another issue with transparency. According to the Constitution, this oversight function shall arise only if there is a problem about implementing a law or it is weak;
You find that in Nigeria, when these legislators go to the MDAs for this so-called oversight functions, that is where a lot of hanky-panky takes place.  You see, what kind of thing is this? Why do we do these in our own country, and everyday we talk about corruption, corruption!
My advice to the legislators is that if they are taking bribes they should return it!

You mentioned the Presidential system of government. Many people have argued that the Presidential system is very expensive for an emerging economy like Nigeria. Why not revert to the Cabinet system?

You see, I don’t even know why we adopted this system because we are not due for it, particularly, the American system we seemed to have copied hook, line and sinker! In my view, if you are coming out of several years of military dictatorship, you do not jump into a very expensive and unwieldy system as a Presidential system of government.
Besides, the Presidential system seems to lean more to the authoritarian or dictatorial style of governance that people are trying to run away from in the military regimes, with its President and Governors who possess almost autocratic powers of Chief Executives, and constitutions that give them powers to appoint and sack at will.
If you adopt the Parliamentary system, it is so directly opposite of a dictatorship because even the Ministers in a government are elected by the people, same as the Prime Minister, and they meet routinely to talk as peers, that way, they can tell one another the truth. That way, every one behaves. But what we often see with the Presidential system is one person ‘summoning’ another, in a very authoritative style to come and explain every statement!
It shows contempt, intimidation and verges on terrorism! I saw on TV that Sanusi was kept waiting for over two hours at the National Assembly. What kind of nonsense is that? This man is in charge of our national liquidity, and major economic policies, and he’s being made to wait for more than two hours while his work is suffering!
The Presidential system is far too expensive, and we have not matured enough to practise it.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/12/you-are-so-primitive-only-primitive-people-do-this-type-of-thing-engr-tukur/

Ondo flags off Residency Card project

NewsDec 12, 2010

Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko,  in Akure, has  flagged off the first-ever Residency Card project in Africa.
During the flag off, the Governor said the project was not for not for identification. He said it was aimed at having reliable and up_to_date data of all residents in the state that would in turn serve as a precursor for effective planning and allocation of scarce government resources for effective service delivery management.
Governor Mimiko, alongside his Deputy, Alhaji Ali Olanusi and the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mr. Samuel Adesina, were the first to be registered.
Already, the State Information Technology Agency, SITA, has enumerated 2,741 towns, hamlets and villages and identified 2,010 centres for the scheme.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/12/ondo-flags-off-residency-card-project/

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Breaking News: Two dead as Aregbesola rescued five accident victims at Osu


The timely arrival of Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola at the scene of an auto-accident along Osu-Ile-Ife expressway saved the lives of five people and limited fatality to two on Saturday as he ordered two vehicles in his convoy to convey the wounded to the Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa for treatment.
Governor Aregbesola was travelling around 1.00 p.m. from Ilesa to attend the 2010 edition of Iwo day celebrations in Iwo town as a Special Guest of Honour when he met the victims in the wreckage and rescued them in an operation that lasted for one hour.
The accident involved a brand new ash-coloured 2009 Toyota Camry car without a registration number which skidded off the road while the other one, a sports car was burnt beyond recognition.
The driver of the Toyota Camry car, whose name could not be ascertained, died instantly alongside a policeman that bore Toba Abidoye with service number 458051 on his name tag. He was suspected to be a corporal.
While Aregbesola ordered that the injured victims be transferred to the Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa, for treatment, the corpse of the driver of the Toyota Camry car could not be retrieved from the wreckage of the car by his security aides and other members of the convoy.
Moved with empathy, the Osun State helmsman ordered his aides and security agents to help the victims out of the sports car which caught fire and was burning intensely.
The wounded victims were immediately conveyed to the hospital in a blue-coloured Toyota Hiace bus and a Hilux van in the Governor’s convoy.
One of the injured victims was suspected to be either a mobile policeman or a soldier as he was wearing an army green-coloured pair of trousers.

http://www.osundefender.org/?p=10938

SECTION 39: The new Babangidas

By Ayo Obe

234NEXT

December 12, 2010 01:53AMT

If Nigerian public opinion seems to be coming down unduly harshly on the men and women elected to represent us in the various legislative houses across the land, the growing anger must be put into the context of what was expected of them when we returned to civilian rule – with democracy as the goal – in May 1999.

Under military dictatorship, two of the three branches of government, the executive and the legislature, were combined in the same unelected body, be it Supreme Military Council or Armed Forces Ruling Council.

The third arm of government, the judiciary on the other hand, continued very much as it had under civilian rule, save for some attempts by the military dictators to inject themselves into certain criminal proceedings.

The main other evidence of military rule was their presence on armed robbery and firearms tribunals. So with the return to civilian rule, these military manifestations simply melted away.

But the laws that had to be applied by the judiciary, even under military rule, emanated from the military dictators of the day. And it showed.

Their first ‘law’ would be to suspend and modify the Constitution and order that any decree or law they passed would take precedence over it and any other law. At first of course, they made a lot of blunders and on more than one occasion had to resort to ‘emergency legislation’, the hasty passing of new decrees to correct earlier mistakes – the kind of mistakes that are inevitable when you consult only yourself and imagine yourself the fount of all wisdom.

Under the dictatorship of Ibrahim Babangida, things reached the stage where the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Ligali Ayorinde, bowed before the ‘Kabiyesi’ clause: Babangida, our self-proclaimed president, was equivalent to a Yoruba monarch of old – his word was law. At the height of the June 12 crisis and the legal battles that raged over it, another judge declared that so subjected were the Nigerian people that Babangida did not even have to bother putting any order into writing, that he could be sitting “in his toilet” and whatever he said would be law. Yes, it was that bad.

It is from this slavery and arbitrary rule that Nigerians hoped that the return to civilian rule and the removal of the power to make laws from unelected dictators would rescue them. Lawmaking would, as from May 1999, rest in the hands of our elected representatives.

Perhaps because we knew that elected legislators were coming fresh to the business of governance, we cut them some slack. We tolerated their evident greed and arrogance. Maybe we hoped that they would settle down, stop thinking only about themselves, and start making laws “for the peace, order and good government of the Federation” as envisaged in the 1999 Constitution.

Apparently our forbearance was taken, not as encouragement to learn their jobs and start to do the right thing, but as licence to extract even more for themselves from the Federation while devoting the minimum amount of time and energy to their primary law-making duties. Nobody has believed that this parliament was truly interested in checking or balancing the power of the executive branch since the Elumelu-led House Committee that investigated the power sector hearings that fizzled out in debacle and disgrace for its members.

Despite the recent attempts to bully the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, I make bold to say that it isn’t really about the money. The National Assembly wants to have its own ‘facts’ about the glutton’s share of the national budget that it consumes, triumphantly calculating that it takes “only 3.25%”, and not the 25% of recurrent overheads cited by Sanusi.

Rather, the real concern is the absolute failure of the National Assembly to do its job. In fact, so lazy have our lawmakers become that they are now floating the idea that rather than have to go through the bother of making laws, the nation should learn to jump to whenever they merely pass a resolution! Like Babangida, the military dictator of old, they want their mere word to be law.

And as we saw in the brazen refusal of the House of Representatives to obey the court order reinstating their members who had exhibited some modicum of conscience and responsibility about the like-water-for-money spending habits of their leaders, they also want court orders to be subject to their own whims and caprices – just like military dictators. Executive lawlessness is one thing, but lawmakers’ lawlessness! In 1993, Babangida referred fondly to “the resilience” of the Nigerian people. It wasn’t a compliment. It was a polite way of expressing his assumption that we would continue smiling at whatever nonsense he dished out to us. We, the Nigerian people, had to take to the streets at the risk of our lives, before he was forced to step aside.

There is a similar complacent assumption about the powerlessness and ‘resilience’ of today’s electorate on the part of our new Babangidas: that is why it is hardly surprising that they are trying to legislate themselves into positions of power within their political parties, or that craven ruling party bosses are whimperingly considering their demand for automatic re-selection to contest next year’s elections. It is obvious that it doesn’t even occur to the new Babangidas that come 2011, we won’t have to take to the streets to put them aside. The question is: does it occur to ‘We, The People’?


http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Opinion/Editorial/5652568-182/story.csp