₦airaland Forum

President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday blamed
the previous administrations for the current bad
economic situation in the country.
Buhari while addressing workers during the May
Day celebration at the Eagle Square, Abuja said
the emergence of the All Progressives Congress,
APC, brought an end to the 16 years of squander
by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
According to the President, challenges will always
arise in life, “but how we go about solving them
determines the outcome.”
Buhari said, “Labour remains unarguably an
important element in any policy, programme and
project propagated for national development. This
year’s celebration is significant in a number of
ways.
“First, it marks the first May Day celebration
under the All Progressive Congress, APC,
administration which brought an end to the16
years of national squander, bad governance,
unbridled corruption and economic woes by the
previous administration.
“I make no excuses as this government of the
APC is determined to tackle headlong all socio-
economic ills that have troubled our nation and
we shall evolve solutions to emerging threats to
our well-being and the realization of sustainable
development as well as growth anchored on
equity and social justice.
“The times may be tough, but we Nigerians are
by nature resilient and strong and it is that
nature that propels us to overcome adversities
and still thrive as a nation. There will always be
challenges in the life of a man and what defines
greatness is the way and manner such challenges
are tackled and overcome. I assure you, great
Nigerian workers that this administration is able
and willing to constructively handle the
challenges.”

mike404:
ON YOUR WAY BACK FROM CHANNELS TV

AntidaftMOD:
It seems you've been sleeping.

Pandemonium broke out at Ijesha bus-stop along the busy Mile 2-Apapa expressway this morning after a petroleum tanker driver was allegedly killed by Police and LASTMA officials. Scene of today's incident Earlier this morning, there was pandemonium at Ijesha bus-stop along the Mile 2-Apapa expressway in Lagos after a Petroleum Tanker driver identified as Salisu Sani, was allegedly killed by Police and LASTMA officials. According to a twitter user, @LanreNeville who was at the scene of the incident, eyewitnesses told him that trouble started when the deceased parked his vehicle along the road to say his prayers as a Muslim. When he was done praying, the police officers from Ijesha police station and the LASTMA officers, asked him why he had to pray on the road. An argument ensued and he was dragged from his truck. He fell to the ground and a LASTMA vehicle allegedly ran him over, killing him. The police officers and the LASTMA officials allegedly fled the scene of the incident. Area boys immediately set up burn fire and some of the tanker drivers double crossed the express road with their trucks. The Commandant of the Lagos State Rapid Response Squad, ACP Olatunji Disu, arrived the scene and restored calm to the area.

*Party woos aggrieved members

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

After weeks of controversy and intriguing battle for the soul of the Peoples Democratic Party, the party’s National Executive Committee meeting on Wednesday finally affirmed the zoning of the chairmanship position to the North-East.

But the atmosphere at the poorly attended NEC meeting painted a picture that all may not be well with the opposition party after all. Most of those who spoke at the opening of the NEC meeting were all calling for truce and for those who may have disagreed with the decisions reached at the NEC meeting to sheathe their sword and remain in the party.

Speaking to journalists on the outcome of the meeting, the National Chairman of the PDP, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff said that the NEC has approved the report of the zoning and convention committees.

Regarding the highly contested chairmanship position, Sheriff said that the seat has been zoned to the North-East by the NEC without any dissenting voice.

“The NEC meeting has adopted the report of the zoning committee 100% without any dissenting voice. It approved the zoning of the post of e National Chairman to the North East,” he said.

Sheriff said that the party’s NEC will meet again on the May 11 to approve proposals for constitutional amendments ahead of the national convention

According to the report of the zoning committee, the South West is to retaining the position of the National Secretary while the National Organizing Secretary and Youth Leader is to be produced by (South East). Similarly the committee zoned the Deputy National Chairman South back to the South-South.

When asked whether he will be contesting for the chairmanship position at the May convention, Sheriff said:”The issue is a personal decision for me and when I make up my mind on it I will let you know”.

Earlier, Sheriff had expressed satisfaction over the recent outing of the party during a rally in Jigawa state, describing it as a sign of things to come.

President Muhammadu Buhari said Thursday in
Abuja that it was a matter of great concern to
him that nearly two-thirds of states of the
federation are still having difficulties with salary
payments despite the bail-out funds provided to
them by the Federal Government.
Speaking at a meeting with members of the
Nigeria Governor Forum at the Presidential Villa,
President Buhari said that he was very disturbed
by the hardship which state government workers
across the country and their families were facing
due to the non-payment of salaries.
To ameliorate the hardship being faced by
affected workers, the President said that the
Federal Government will strive to make more
funds available to the states by expediting action
on refunds due to them for the maintenance of
federal roads and other expenses incurred on
behalf of the Federal Government.
President Buhari also said that he will establish an
inter-ministerial committee to study a Fiscal
Restructuring Plan for the Federation which was
presented to him by the governors.
The President said that the committee will review
the plan to improve the finances of state
governments and make recommendations on
how proposals in the plan should be dealt with by
the Presidency, the Federal Executive Council and
the National Assembly through legislation.
President Buhari urged the governors, however,
to understand that while he was ready to do all
within his powers to help the states overcome
their current financial challenges, the Federal
Government also has funding problems of its own
to contend with.
“You all know the problems we have found
ourselves in. You have to bear with us,” he told
them.
The Chairman of the Governors Forum, Governor
Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara State and the Governor
Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, who chaired the
committee that worked on the Fiscal
Restructuring Plan, asked the Federal
Government to do more to help the states
financially.
The governors told the President that while they
had resolved to take other measures to boost
their internally-generated revenue, the
implementation of the Fiscal Restructuring Plan
will help them to deal with their funding problems
on short, medium and long-term bases.
They said that if the plan was adopted and
implemented by the Federal Government, states
of the federation will become more financially
empowered to fulfill their constitutional
responsibilities.
Garba Shehu

The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP)
Thursday issued a seven-day ultimatum to the
Ministry of Petroleum Resources to end fuel
queues cross the country.
CNPP warned that at the end of the ultimatum, it
will mobilize the organized labour, civil society
groups and the masses to occupy the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) until the
minister and minister of state resign.
This was contained in a statement jointly issued in
Abuja by its National Chairman, Alhaji Balarabe
Musa, who was the Second Republic Governor of
old Kaduna State and the Secretary General,
Chief Willy Ezugwu.
The group maintained that: “Both the Minister
and Minister of State for Petroleum Resources
have shown a track record of undeniable and
monumental ineptitude in resolving the problems
associated with Fuel Scarcity in the last 11
months.
“While the Minister of State for Petroleum
Resources and Group Managing Director, Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Ibe
Kachikwu has kept double talking on the issue,
the Minister and President Muhammadu Buhari on
his part has maintained relative silence.
“About seven months ago, Kachikwu had
confessed: “Personally, I will have chosen to sell
the refineries, but President Buhari has instructed
that they should be fixed.
“After they are fixed, if they still operate below 60
per cent, then we will know what to do.’
“A 90-day presidential ultimatum for the refineries
to be fixed ended in December and the deadline
was not met.
“In the same vein, the government set April 7
deadline to end the fuel queues being
experienced across the country, again, the
deadline was not meet.
“After blaming some people who rather than sell
products send them into hinterlands where they
can sell at ridiculous prices to make quick returns
on their investments wrongly, the Ministry few
days ago blamed the scarcity on 30% of supply
allegedly diverted outside Nigeria.
“The government should be reminded that it has
all the security apparatus and personnel to tract
the saboteurs and bring them to justice.
“Enough of all the blame games and lack of will to
tell Nigerians the truth about the lingering fuel
scarcity. If by the end of seven days, and the
situation is not addressed, the CNPP shall have no
choice but to lead the organized labour, coalition
of civil society groups and the Nigerian masses to
occupy NNPC until the minister and minister of
state resign their positions in the Ministry,” the
statement added.

iflywithbuhari:
Don't worry, we are planning an Equaliser. When we strike, both the greedy governor and the Terrorist President will be jaw- dropped

The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers on Tuesday reacted to the claimof fuel diversion by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, describing it as a cover-up for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s inefficiencyin providing adequate supply.Kachikwu had on Monday said trucks conveying petrol were being diverted from Lagos to Cameroon and Chad, adding that fuel scarcity had persisted mainly because the NNPC could not track the trucks.However, the Chairman, NUPENG, Lagos Zone, Alhaji Tokunbo Korodo, said in a telephone interview with our correspondent, “I don’t believe that that statement is correct. He (Kachikwu) is only trying to look for a cover-up for the inefficiency on the part of the NNPC. If you say somebody is diverting and it is so clear to you as a minister, what have you done to prevent a recurrence and who are those responsible for the diversion? Is it the drivers, the marketers or the transporters?“If at all there is diversion, as alleged, what is the function of our law enforcement agents? What are they doing? Are they compromised?He is a government official and he should always be mindful of his statements. This is the man that has given series of reasons for the lingering fuel scarcity.”The problem, according to Korodo, is that there is inadequate fuel supply in the country.On the tracking devices the minister said the government would instal on tankers, the NUPENG chairman said, “He has said it several times. On the issue of tracking device, I can tell you categorically that over 80 per cent of the tankers in Nigeria have tracking devices installed by the transporters.What he is telling us is not a new thing. It is a political statement.”The National Chairman, Petroleum Tanker Drivers Branch, NUPENG, Mr. Salimon Oladiti,recalled that the minister had recently said that fuel queues might not disappear until May.

The Federal Government said it has stopped
providing resources to government officials to
travel abroad for medical attention on cases that
could be handled in the country.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 56th
Annual General Conference and delegates
meeting of the Nigeria Medical Association, NMA,
in Sokoto, President Muhammadu Buhari, said his
administration would not encourage expending
hard earned resources on any government official
seeking medical care abroad.
Buhari, who was represented by the Minister of
Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, said “While this
administration will not deny anyone of his or her
fundamental human rights, we will certainly not
encourage expending Nigerian hard-earned
resources on any government official seeking
medical care abroad, when such can be handled
in Nigeria.”
Buhari urged health professionals to avoid inter-
professional crises which had impacted negatively
on the nation’s healthcare delivery system.

dunkem21:
The way people bring half baked haphazard article to NL is worrisome .. Just to shout Crookola Saratiff ..

Saraki must be making some wet their panties

Following the alleged murder of about 48 persons in Ukpabi, Nimbo community of Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area in Enugu State on Monday by suspected cattle rearers, the House of Representatives on Tuesday summoned the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr. Lawal Daura, over the incessant deadly attacks carried out by unidentified marauding herdsmen in different parts of the country. This is just as a motion on the massacre in Enugu again brought to the fore the opposition to the proposed Grazing Bill from the executive arm of government meant to provide hectares of land as grazing reserves for the nomads. The motion named: “The Invasion and Senseless Slaughter of Persons in Ukpabi, Nimbo Community of Uzo-Uwani LGA of Enugu State by Unknown Herdsmen” was brought before the House yesterday by Hon. Chukwuemeka Ujam (Enugu PDP) as a matter of urgent public importance. Ujam lamented that the invasions by herdsmen were becoming a recurring issue across the country, and constituting a threat to the security of the nation. “These attacks are beginning to gain momentum and have the potential of escalating into an existential crises as farmers are compelled to resort to self help in a bid to stay alive,” he said. Having raised the motion, reactions flowed from other members who all condemned the wave of attacks by the herdsmen and expressed their opposition to the Grazing Bill. In his contribution, Minority Leader, Hon. Leo Ogor, condemned the attacks in Enugu and other states, but noted that the proposed solution by creating grazing routes or grazing reserves would not guaranty peace. “We have to bring in modernisation. The idea of moving from one place to another with cattle should be discouraged. Everyone who wants to raise cattle should have his own farm or reserve,” Ogor said. Hon. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha (Abia PDP) said the Grazing Bill would die in the House, vowing that the lawmakers would not allow it pass. “When you take land from the people and give it to cattle rearers, what will happen to our cassava or yam farms? Are we going to live on meat alone? Let them buy ranches and rear their cattle there,” Onyejeocha said. Speaking earlier with THISDAY, Hon. Uzoma Nkem Abonta (Abia PDP) said the attempt to pass the proposed bill at all cost was a misplaced priority and was capable of compounding the clashes between farmers and the herdsmen. He said that it would impoverish the people whose lands would be forcibly taken away, adding: “A situation where a council is being proposed in the bill with the power to seize land deemed suitable for grazing without the owners having a say is draconian. “Cattle rearing is done by private persons, so why would government be seizing or acquiring land for such a venture. We are already crying that the Land Use Act is not good anymore, so Mr. President should declare his interest in pushing the bill, which would favour people who are probably not even Nigerians.” On the possibility that the marauding herdsmen may not be Nigerians was corroborated by Hon. Aminu Shehu Shagari (Sokoto APC) who described the Fulani as peace loving people. Shagari said some foreign elements had invaded the country under the guise of being Fulani herdsmen through the nation’s porous borders aided by the insecurity in the country. Shagari, a Fulani man, called on the security agencies to quickly arrest the situation before innocent citizens get killed in reprisals. Hon. Chika Adamu (Niger APC) also said that there was a high likelihood the marauders are not Fulani, as there were hardly traces of their cattle in places they were alleged to have attacked.

The Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on Tuesday called for an end to the violence that has been recorded in various parts of the country, which has been attributed to nomadic cattle herdsmen.Speaking at the day’s plenary at the Upper Chamber, Saraki, according to a statement issued by his media aide, Bamikole Omishore, urged the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, to fast-track the execution of the report of the Senate Public Hearing aimed at addressing the herdsmen crisis.Immediately after plenary, Saraki took to his official social media pages on Twitter and Facebook to update Nigerians on the development, saying that: “It is important that theviolence attributed to herdsmen is addressed and curbed to ensure the safety, well-being and unity of the people and the country.”It would be recalled that in recent weeks, there have been attacks on communities by individualssaid to be Fulani herdsmen. With the violence occurring in Ibadan in the South-Western State ofOyo, Enugu in the South-East, and Agatu, Benue State in the North-Central.The statement observed that violence between herdsmen and host communities is becoming more prevalent.

The militants issued a press release outlining their reasons for supporting a division of Nigeria and an independent Niger Delta while threatening to cripple the national economy if their demands are not met.by SaharaReporters, New YorkApr 25, 2016The Niger Delta Avengers, a new militant group in the oil-rich Niger Delta region, have called on the federal government to hold a national conference that would allow Nigerian citizens to vote on whether or not the country should be divided into four self-governing regions. The militants issued a press release outlining their reasons for supporting a division of Nigeria and an independent Niger Delta while threatening to cripple the national economy if their demands are not met.Niger Delta militantsTife OwolabiRead the full press release below:NIGERIA IS A FAILED ENTITYThe recent happenings in the country is clear eye opener to how the Nigerian state has derailed and its heading to nowhere. A country where those in power over look the main reasons why they were voted into power. That has showed how self centered and selfish the people we look up to as leaders in the country.When they (politicians) are elected or appointed into any political office. Their primary aim is to enrich themselves andinfluence infrastructural projects to theirregion. Clear example is the present administration where Fulani herdsmen whom are the kinsmen of President Buhari are above the law despite the killing and atrocities they have committed against farmers in the south and middle belt but the president can give a shoot on sight directive to military against the peaceful protest of the Indigenous people of Biafra. Other one is the 2016 budget where nearly all the major projects are channeled to the North even though the creeks of the Niger delta are in dear need of development to improve the standard ofliving.The allocation of mining license is othercrime this country is committing againstits Niger Deltans. Where 80% of the oil blocs are allocated to northerners and the rest 20% is spread among the Easterners and westerners. THIS IS A CRIME AGAINST THE PEOPLE OF THE NIGER DELTA.

while he recommended a PMS’ price of N120 per litre, stating that the Federal Government had no business regulating the sector.