₦airaland Forum

Honestly, this is a good food for thought. As much as I agree that every Nigerian is first a tribalman before being a NIgerian, we should begin to play down the tribal sentiment for us to move forward. The Igbos should play their politics right and forget the biafran agenda. The other major tribes are suspicious that the Igbos still nurse this agenda. It is now up to the Igbos to convince the other tribes to trust them in the Nigeria project.

President Goodluck Jonathan inspected the ongoing construction of the National Railway Terminal at Idu and the Abuja light rail transit system. Below are some of the images from the inspection

The Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase, has directed the IGP Monitoring Unit (X-Squad), and the Force Provost Marshall, to start enforcing anti-corruption directives in order to check corrupt practices among police personnel.



Arase gave the directive shortly before his maiden closed-door meeting with senior officers in Abuja on Wednesday.

He said the measure became necessary to restore the image of the police.

“Any officer caught either through whistle-blowing framework or direct operations of the enforcement units of the force will be appropriately dealt with in line with established disciplinary procedure’’, he said.

Arase added that such an officer might face prosecution in the “swiftest fashion.’’

He said the public had lost confidence in the police because of corruption, adding that it had also hindered the force from tackling crime in the most ethical and professional manner.

“This administration intends to address the menace of corruption in the police by developing frameworks and interventions that will address root causes of corruption.

“In this regard, official factors like logistics and welfare challenges that create grounds for corrupt tendencies by police officers will be vigorously addressed.

“The second approach is to pursue a very robust anti-corruption enforcement strategy that will leave no serving officers and citizens under any illusion about its integrity, and firm commitment to national ethical rebirth and development.

“Very soon, the nation will witness a massive and sustained deployment of the anti-corruption action units of the force for enforcement functions’’, he said.

Arase said the enforcement would be laced with in-house and national public anti-corruption enlightenment with whistle-blowing mechanism.

“The new anti-corruption crusade of the force will take full cognizance of the appropriate sections of our criminal laws and hold both the giver and taker of bribes accountable’’, he said.
According to him, the drive will be clear, coordinated, massive, firm and sustained, target and tackle issue relating to commercialization of bail.

He also said road blocks, abuse of police power, particularly in relation to pre-trial detention, would be tackled.

Arase restated the ban on road blocks nationwide and described it as public nuisance, points of corruption and a source of police-citizens frictions.

“The Commissioners of Police, Area Commanders and Divisional Police Officers in whose jurisdiction illegal road blocks are detected will be personally or vicariously held liable’’, he said.
He added that strict and swift disciplinary actions would be meted out to such officers found culpable.

The acting I-G explained that the purpose of the meeting was to ensure professional interaction between the management team and field officers to create peer review platform for crime fighting.
He also said that it was to evaluate performance of officers in the just-concluded general elections and evolve plans for seamless inauguration of elected office holders on May 29.

The meeting, he also said, was to lay out his policy thrust and clear strategies to achieve them. (NAN)

Home » Money Market » World Update » Francois Michelin, head of Michelin tyres dies at 88
Francois Michelin, head of Michelin tyres dies at 88
Wednesday, April 29, 2015 0 Money Market, World Update

Francois Michelin, who led the eponymous French tyre group for nearly half a century, died at the age of 88, the Clermont-Ferrand-based company said Wednesday. “We have learned today with deep emotion that Mr. Francois Michelin has passed away,” a Michelin statement said, without giving further details.

“Mr. Francois Michelin dedicated his life to the company. He headed it for 47 years, when he handed over the reins to his son Edouard. A visionary and a humanitarian, (he) tirelessly embodied the values of respect that are the very foundation of our Group’s identity,” the statement said.



Michelin became director of the company in 1955, and helped transform it into one of the world’s top three tyre manufacturers alongside Bridgestone and Goodyear.

In 1999 Michelin vacated the group’s top spot to make way for Edouard, whose 2006 drowning death during a boating incident left France stunned.
Famous for a discretion that earned him the title of “France’s most secretive boss” by the national press, Francois Michelin was one of several family members who directed the company founded in 1889 by his grandfather.

Capable of inspiring respect and fear in equal measure, Michelin was generally hailed as one of the country’s most accomplished industrialists, and the champion of a company and product whose name is closely associated with France itself.

“Francois Michelin carried the values of French industry on high across the world: innovation, vision, discipline and passion,” tweeted French Prime Minister Manuel Valls at word of his death.

“On behalf of the Group’s employees, I would like to pay special tribute to this exceptional man who was universally respected for his values, his convictions, and his vision,” said Jean-Dominique Senard, Michelin’s current chairman.

The Enugu State Police Command is currently trying to unravel the circumstances that led to the murder of a father and a mother by their sons in separate incidents in the Coal City.

The two bizarre incidents occurred within a space of two days, Sunday, April 26, and Monday, April 27, 2015, in different parts of the state.



In the first incident, which took place on April 26, one Chijioke Onyeke reportedly murdered his father at Umuaina, Umuogboagu village, in Igboeze North Local Government Area of the state.
It was gathered that at about 6:30pm on that fateful day, Chijioke inflicted machete cuts on his father’s head after a quarrel that arose over a yet to be determined reason.

The elder Onyeke sustained severe injuries from the cuts, which prompted family members and neighbours, who were around when the incident occurred, to rush him St. Mary’s hospital, Ogurete, Enugu Ezike.

But, unfortunately, he died at the hospital.

The deceased’s corpse was deposited in the morgue of the General Hospital, Ogurute, Enugu Ezike, for autopsy.

However, Chijioke has been arrested, and he is presently in police custody.

In the other incident, one Chidi Agbo, of Ette Center in Igboeze North Local Government Area of Enugu State, has been arrested by the police for allegedly beating his mother to death over a yet to be identified reason.

It was gathered that the deceased, identified as one Virginia Agbo, met her untimely death on April 27 after her son allegedly beat her up.

It was learnt that Virginia’s lifeless body was found lying on her bed after the son finished pummeling her.

The spokesman of the Enugu State Police Command, Mr. Ebere Amaraizu, who confirmed the two incidents on Wednesday, said Virginia’s body was also deposited at the mortuary of the General Hospital, at Ogurute, Enugu Ezike.

Amaraizu disclosed that the two suspects are helping the police in ongoing investigations.

Ebubeslym:
Great.
I hate all these faster than their shadow Aides.

Sack them if they misbehave.

this is what ruined GEJ

Rightly opined!

Makamuanwuo:
pls babaonechance wait untill u assume office b4
giving order,do u know whether because may 29 by 12am the angels will mistakely blow the trumpet.so relax,keep ur mouth close and remember dat we all keeping ur promises.






be wise like solomom

He was actually giving the order to his personal aides to be careful and not heat the polity. As an African, I do not think it is spirtually right to wish a fellow human dead.

A disagreement has broken out between the transition committees of President Goodluck Jonathan and General Muhammadu Buhari as the president accused the Buhari team of acting like a parallel government and trying to stampede the Jonathan administration out of office.



Addressing state House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council meeting Wednesday, the Minister of National Planning who is also a member of the Jonathan Transition Committee, Abubakar Suleiman said the Buhari transition team was making impossible demands from the government.

Although he did not name those demands, he however warned that the president’s magnanimity should not be construed as cowardice.

President-elect, Maj. Gen. Mohammadu Buhari(retd.), has read the riot act to his personal aides asking everyone to confine himself or herself to officially assigned roles.

Buhari said this in a statement on his behalf by Mallam Garba Shehu, the Director of Media and Publicity of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council, in Abuja, on Wednesday.

The retired General directed that all matters relating to the dealings with the media should be left to his official media team.



According to the statement, the President-elect instructed all his staff, including the personnel attached directly to him, to steer clear of all dealings with the media.

Shehu said Buhari aligned himself with the pronouncement of his party, the APC, which had earlier expressed disagreement with the temporary barring of the African Independent Television from covering his media affairs.

Buhari was quoted as saying, “I would like everyone to henceforth stay within his or her defined area of responsibility.”

The president-elect added that his media team should be left to deal with their media colleagues as they best knew how.

The statement added that Buhari was neither consulted nor informed about the AIT’s barring, and only became aware of the matter after the public uproar it generated.

“The time of change has come,” he said, “and we must avoid making the same mistakes that the outgoing government made.”

This is even as the Peoples Democratic Party caucus in the House of Representatives expressed concern over the initial barring of AIT by Buhari’s team.

The Mulikat Akande-led caucus in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday, said it was deeply concerned about the far reaching implications of the action, especially in a democratic setting.

According to the caucus, the ban negates democratic ideals, including freedom of expression, and the holding of divergent opinions.

The President-elect, Gen. Buhari, today Wednesday April 29th in Abuja inaugurated a 19-member Transition Committee to liaise with its Federal Government counterpart to ensure a smooth transition.

A statement issued in Abuja by the National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Committee (APC), Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the terms of reference of the committee include to develop a clear framework for liaison with the out-going Administration for purposes of a smooth hand-over/take-over and to receive hand-over documents from Ministries, Departments and Agencies and itemise the most important or most urgent issues confronting the in-coming government

It said the committee is also saddled with reviewing and making preliminary assessment of the balance sheet of government with particular emphasis on the status of assets and liabilities of government; cash flow position of the government; quantum of public domestic and external debt of government and their deployment; government’s out-standing contractual obligations and its ability to meet such obligations and the status of implementation of capital projects.

The committee is also expected to undertake a preliminary assessment of the security challenges facing the country and the counter-insurgency measures taken by the government thus far; the counter policy measures being implemented in the Niger Delta to deal with unrest and major economic crimes in the area. In particular, the status of the Amnesty Programme, the readiness of the Police and other national security and intelligence agencies in addressing threats to law and order and provide a brief over-view of CBN, NNPC, NCC, Customs and FIRS.

Other terms of reference of the committee include to suggest “quick fixes” which will result in tangible, visible and practical measures so that CHANGE will be seen after 30 days, after 100 days, after 6 months of the Administration taking office, and to make any other observations which in view of the Committee would be helpful to the transition and take-off of the new Administration. The committee has two weeks to conclude its work

Speaking at the inauguration in Abuja on Wednesday, the President-elect charged the committee to ”assess the information provided to you and advise me on its quality and accuracy. It is a simple matter that you must have the right information if you are to shape appropriate policy decisions.

”Needless to repeat, that your Committee – and indeed our Government – are not on a witch-hunt or engaged in fault-finding. We want the facts and nothing but the facts. What has been done can not be undone. Our job is to learn from the mistakes of the past and attempt to avoid similar.”

Gen. Buhari hailed the calibre of the committee’s membership, saying they represent some of the best Nigeria can offer. He described the committee chairman, Malam Ahmed Joda, as one of the few surviving links between First Republic civil service to the present day, a man whose versatility includes farming, industry and 21st Century IT and one of Nigerian’s precious assets.

Full list of Transition Committee members:


1. Mal. Ahmed Joda – Chairman

2. Dr Doyin Salami – Vice-Chairman

3. Mr Boss Mustapha

4. Mal. Muhammad Hayatuddin

5. Alh. Abubakar Malami SAN

6. Brig. Gen. Lawal Jafaru Isa

7. Sen. Hadi Sirika

8. Sen. Audu Ogbeh

9. Barrister Dalong

10. Mrs Bola Adesola

11. Mr Wale Edun

12. Mrs Nike Aboderin

13. Dr Ogbonnaya Onu

14. Mr Festus Odimegwu

15. Chief John Oyegun

16. Gov. Rotimi Amaechi

17. Dr. Tam David West

18. Alh. Lai Mohammed

19 Mal. Adamu Adamu – Secretary

Alhaji Lai Mohammed
National Publicity Secretary
All Progressives Congress (APC)
Abuja, April 29th 2015

An unidentified young man with earphone on, was on Wednesday killed by a passenger train at Cappa area of Oshodi, Lagos.

A correspondent of NAN who was inside the train reports that the man was standing on the rail track oblivious of the fast approaching train.



The NAN correspondent reports that the Ogun-Lagos-bound mass transit train was leaving its Oshodi station to Mushin when the accident occurred.

The train had as usual, sounded its horn repeatedly as it was approaching the railway crossing at Ilupeju Bye-pass for clearance of its track.

According to an eyewitness, the man who had his earphone on was apparently carried away with either the call he was receiving or listening to music.

“Obviously the man was not aware of the approaching train even as it blasted its horn, perhaps because of the earphone.

“Before he knew it, he was already hit by the train and was not given any chance to escape.
“Immediately he was hit, the body was mangled as the train dragged it underneath,” the eyewitness said.

NAN reports that people standing by the rail track that saw the incident raised their hands over their heads in a show of pity for the deceased.

“The man has suddenly and unwittingly lost his life to sheer carelessness,” a passenger said.
NAN reports that it was not the first time a moving train would crush to death people standing on the rail track because of having their earphones on.

Among them was a lady in 2006, killed at Shogunle GRA railway crossing, while another one was killed in 2007 at Oshodi.

You have just shown what we know PDP for; think Nigerians are stupid. How is this possible. We live and reside in Lagos. We see things. We are not blind. The election of Saturday will not be won and lose through campaign of hatred. But of facts and vision.

Dear Lagosians,

First let me thank you all for turning out to vote on the 28th March 2015 and for doing so peacefully to make history by electing the All Progressives Congress candidates in the Presidential and National Assembly elections.

Once again, I must address you as we approach Saturday’s elections, when you will be electing a Governor who will continue after me and consolidate on the progress we have built together.

You will also be electing members of the State House of Assembly who will make laws on your behalf to assist the Governor and his team in the Executive arm.

Although your votes will be cast for one political party or the other, let me remind you that you will actually be voting for your well-being, security, prosperity and future.



You will also be voting for the future of your children. You will be choosing candidates and a party that you will entrust your lives to.

Think hard, think clearly, think deeply. Ask yourselves a few questions.

Who has shown a better record and example of protecting and securing you between the political parties?

Which of the parties cares more when disasters happen?

What is the record of the parties as it relates to the promises they have made to you in the past?

Which of the parties do you see regularly and which one do you see once in a while?

Which of the parties do you see when your life or property is threatened by epidemics like Ebola or by unfortunate accidents like plane crashes?

Which of the parties is showing that you can become home-owners without knowing anybody?

Which party has responsibility for providing electricity for you, and which one is taking up the responsibility to light up your streets and communities at night?

Which of them cares more about your children and their safety?

Indeed ask yourself; which of the parties threatened you with thugs on that sad Monday of March 16th and which is seeking to protect you by supporting the police; with patrol vehicles, fuel and other equipment?

Ask yourself when last you saw the Federal Fire Service in Lagos. The proud men and women of the Lagos State Fire Service have taken over admirably.

Ask yourself who should be supporting the police and who is actually doing it?

Dear Lagosians, your choice of who to vote for will be easy if you answer these questions within yourself honestly.

Indeed, you have clear choices to make between parties that use your resources to develop your society and community on the one hand, and the party that chooses to bring money to you for distribution when election beckons.

So you can choose between schools for your children, hospitals for your community, roads for your transportation or in the alternative, you can choose to have these services monetized once in four years.

Remember, that choices have consequences and your vote will decide the choice that shapes your lives.

Dear Lagosians, it is tempting to take the right and opportunity to vote for granted. It is tempting to think that it is too much trouble.

I agree that the process can be made much easier. But it is no excuse to refuse to vote.

Out of 5.8 million registered voters and 3.8 million PVC collections, only about 1.5 million turned out to vote, on the 28th March 2015.

Think of all the pain, the effort, the sleepless nights it took to get the PVCs to you. Think of the best way to show that the effort was not wasted or in vain.

It seems to me that the best way is to have all these 3.8 Million voters come out to vote.

By refusing to vote, you surrender decision making to a few and you will be bound by the consequences of your choices.

By refusing to vote, you do a great disservice to many who have lived before you, who fought very hard at great personal costs to themselves, to earn you this right.

By refusing to vote, you dishonour the sacrifice of patriots before you who fought for the right to vote.

Remember that when they were fighting for the right to vote, they were not fighting for yesterday, they were fighting for today and tomorrow.

They have handed today to you and I, can we secure tomorrow for the next generation?

Remember that since the capital of Nigeria was moved from Lagos 24 years ago in December 1991, Lagos has been abandoned by the Federal Government.

Ask yourself when the last major new road in Lagos was built by the Federal Government. It was the 3rd Mainland Bridge completed in 1990.

The assets the Federal Government left behind almost became a burden but for our resilience to maintain them. Today the Federal Government is owing Lagos N51 Billion which remains unpaid.

This is not in accord with the spirit of the promise made to Lagos when the Federal Government first declared Abuja as the capital in 1976.

The Head-of-State at the time, the late Gen Murtala Muhammed, said then and I quote him:

“…Lagos will, in the foreseeable future, remain the nation’s commercial capital and one of its nerve centres. But in terms of servicing the present infrastructure alone the committed amount of money and effort required will be such that Lagos State will not be ready to cope.”

(But we have coped at great sacrifice)

“It will even be unfair to expect the state to bear this heavy burden on its own. It is therefore necessary for the Federal Government to continue to sustain the substantial investment in the area. The port facilities and other economic activities in the Lagos area have to be expanded.

“There is need in the circumstances for the Federal Government to maintain a special defence and security arrangement in Lagos which will henceforth be designated a special area. These arrangements will be carefully worked out and written into the new constitution. Kaduna and Port Harcourt are to be accorded similar status and designated as Special Areas…”

Sadly, no Federal Government and indeed not the PDP Government has done anything to redeem that promise for the 16 years it was in power or to protect Lagos.

Instead of assisting Lagos, they attacked her. If you remember FERMA, in 2006, the same PDP seized your Local Government money and resisted the attempt to bring Government closer to you by creating more local Governments.

On Monday 16th March 2015, the same PDP continued in their tradition of assaulting Lagos. Their supporters took over a major road in Lagos and threatened your peace and security.

On Wednesday 18th March 2015, the President-Elect, Muhammadu Buhari came to Lagos and said Lagos will receive compensation for the role she has played in maintaining Federal Government Assets.

Yesterday on Tuesday the 7th of April 2015, he was here in Lagos in his first political engagement since he became President-Elect and he reiterated his commitment to support Lagos.

This is what I will vote for. This is what I urge you to think about as you vote on Saturday.

This is the place that every Nigerian calls his home. It is the home of displaced people. It is the place where the homeless arrive and are made welcome.

It is the place where generations of Nigerians have arrived without knowing anybody but have, through the opportunities and inclusion, become somebody.

This is the place where the Late Chief Adeniran Ogunsanya and Owelle Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe consummated the handshake across the Niger and played politics without bitterness.

Tell those who try to divide us that our greatest strength has always been our diversity.

Tell them that you feel safe here, and that I have continuously assured you of your safety as the basis of our mutual co-existence.

Tell them that our waterways have been assets of prosperity and sustenance, for transport, recreation and fishing and they will remain so.

Let nobody now attempt to re-write that history for you.

When they reel out false statistics about Lagos, please ask them the statistics about the places they governed for 16 years.

When they reel out statistics, please remind them that those statistics don’t stand in isolation, they are the burden of a whole nation and many parts of West Africa that Lagos state bears.

When they promise you heaven and earth, remember their broken promises on power, security and many more.

Ask them to show you a plan, if they can produce one, which is doubtful, ask them whether they have implemented it elsewhere.

Tell them that you have seen the Lagos Development plan for 2012 – 2025, that the Lagos Light Rail Project, the Adiyan Water Works Phase II of 75 Million gallons a day, the solar power for all schools and many more which are part of the plans for you and your children and which are already being implemented.

Tell them that you will vote to keep a plan that you can see, that is already working, instead of a plan that you have not seen.

Ask them what happened to Vision 20:20, to the 7-Point Agenda and to Transformation.

Tell them that your bird in hand will not be traded for a dozen unseen birds in the bush.

Tell them that this election is not about money, tell them that it is not about ethnicity and it is not about religion.

Tell them that this election is about the place you call your home, the place you earn your living and the place where your investments are the safest.

Tell them that you will not play ethnic or religious politics with your survival. Tell them that you will not vote with anger.

Tell them that you will vote with common sense and for experience.

Tell them that you have seen Lagos survive without Federal support, and you wish to see her flourish with Federal support.

That will be the most historic thing you will have done, putting Lagos in the centre with your votes.

History and tomorrow beckons. Don’t turn your backs.

Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN

Governor of Lagos State.

Honestly, we must be responsible with our comments. Of course there are Lagos indigenes different from residents. Even I that is of Isale-Eko origin cannot make claim to the Oba of Lagos throne since I am not from the royal family. So, Lagos state also have her own tradition, custom and traditional institutions. No matter how long a non-indigene had resided in Lagos, there is a limit of right to tradition and custom privileges of such individual. LAGOS CAN NEVER BE "A NO MAN'S LAND"! At best it could be referred to as a cosmopolitan state.

A former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has said the Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu, is not a member of the All Progressives Congress and cannot speak on behalf of the party.

Tinubu said this at a rally in Iganmu, Lagos, while reacting to the controversial comments of the monarch on Tuesday.


The APC National Leader, who noted that he was the first Yoruba governor to ever appoint an Igbo commissioner, said the Peoples Democratic Party, having failed to win last week’s presidential elections, were desperately trying to pull the APC into the Akiolu controversy.

He said the Coordinator of the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria, Ifeanyi Ubah, and the PDP leader, Bode George, were only making baseless accusations against the APC.

Tinubu said, “The oba is not a politician. His job is to accommodate all political parties, whether PDP, APC or SDP. So, what did he (Ubah) go and do at the palace?

“To you Igbos, don’t we pay your children’s school fees like others? Or is it the palace that pays for it? When we conducted an exam and a spelling competition, an Igbo boy, Ebuka, from Anambra, came first and he became the governor for one day.

“Those that won the competition three times in a row were Igbo. Ebuka was sent to Switzerland computer school and then Obafemi Awolowo University. We did not say he was an Igbo boy and he would not enjoy. He became an executive in Oando and he is now in Canada.

“Another boy, Felix, won and went to Switzerland and OAU. We paid his scholarship; we did not deny him because he is Igbo.”

In a separate statement, the Lagos State APC Publicity Secretary, Joe Igbokwe, said the monarch spoke out of anger.

He urged his kinsmen not to take out their anger on the APC governorship candidate, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, who knew nothing about the incident.

The statement read, “Oba Rilwan Akiolu of Lagos is not a card-carrying member of APC. He is not a leader in the APC. He does not speak for the APC. He did not speak for Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos state.

“He did not speak for our national leader Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He did not speak for the incoming governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode. His Royal Highness is at liberty to speak for himself and he spoke for himself only.

“Lagos APC appeals to Ndigbo not to take the statement as the position of the party in Lagos. We passionately appeal to Ndigbo not to carry the statement credited to Oba Akiolu too far so as not to put a knife on things that have held us together for more than 50 years now.

“If out of annoyance, you throw your cap away, a mad man will take it and use it forever.”

Well written.

The All Progressives Congress, APC, has condemned the Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu and distanced itself from the hate speech made by him that anyone that refuses to vote for APC governorship candidate in Lagos, Akin Ambode, will die in the Lagoon within seven days.

The party made this known via its Twitter handle, @APCNigeria.


The party has refused to make comment on the incident since the news broke on Sunday and was promoting #WhyYouShouldVoteAmbode on its twitter handle but realizing the public outcry and allegation that Akiolu spoke the mind of the leadership of the party, it was forced to make the clarification before resuming the promotion.

Boss13:
Ambode is a better choice no doubt especially when you look at other states being governed by PDP. However, the Oba of Lagos made a derogatory speech that he is yet to apologise for. That speech is making a lot of people rethink.

APC has dissociated itself from the hate comment of "Olowo Eko". The Oba made the statement in his individual capacity.

This is the time Lagos State will get the "Special status" we Lagosians clamour for, if the State is govern by the same party at the Fed level. We must all ensure that APC wins so that we can feel the Federal presence in infrastructural development. Without considerable Federal support, past Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu and out going Governor Fashola used their creativity to move the state forward towards a mega-city status. This must be sustained and consolidated by voting AMBODE come Saturday. Eko o ni baje!

http://www.nigerianeye.com/2015/03/ibb-lamblasts-first-lady-fayose-fani.html

Hate campaigners got a bloody nose yesterday. Former President Ibrahim Babangida protested against attacks by President Goodluck Jonathan’s supporters on his person and others.

He cited other generals under attack as former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, the late ex-Head of State Gen, Sani Abacha, ex-Head of State Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar and a former Minister of Defence, Gen. T.Y Danjuma.



Although Babangida did not mention names, First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan, Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi and Peoples Democratic Party Campaign Council spokesperson Femi Fani-Kayode have been criticised by many for championing hate campaign.

He said those promoting hate documentaries are “intellectually delinquent or they suffer memory loss”.

He said nothing forbade former military leaders from contesting presidential elections, adding that leadership training is better grounded in the military than any other profession.

Gen. Babangida, in a statement he personally signed and released by his media office, said the stigmatisation of past military leaders accounted for “espirit de corps amongst ourselves in support of our military institution and colleagues when the stakes are high”.

The statement said: “In clear attempts to whip up support for President Goodluck Jonathan, certain persons, groups and individuals have embarked on several campaigns of calumny against former military Heads of State and presidents who have had the opportunity to govern this country.

“Of particular reference is a one-hour documentary aired on Silverbird Television on Tuesday night; 24th March, 2015 that deliberately impugned the integrity of Generals Olusegun Obasanjo, Muhammadu Buhari, my humble self; Ibrahim Babangida, the late Sani Abacha, Abdulsalami Abubakar, and T.Y. Danjuma; all of whom have had the privilege of presiding over the affairs of this great country at various levels.

“It is either that those promoting the hate documentary are intellectually delinquent or they suffer memory loss; or a combination of both.

“I have my very strong reservations about the contents and thematic focus of the said documentary. Apart from promoting hate campaign which clearly undermines the modest contributions of these former presidents, the commentaries in the documentary against the former presidents leave a sour taste in the mouth.

“Nobody is stopping anyone from campaigning for their preferred candidates contesting various positions in the elections, but to do that at the expense of the reputation, contributions, patriotism, loyalty and sacrifice of former presidents to the Nigerian state is, to say the least, immature.”
The ex-Military President said nothing forbids ex-military leaders from contesting presidential election.

The statement said: “The military is at present combating the dreaded Boko Haram sect to restore Nigeria’s territorial integrity. What law under a democracy forbids retired military personnel from participating in politics and presenting themselves for election? Over 90 per cent of American Presidents have military background.

“Leadership training is better grounded in the military than any other profession. And the military parades some of the best brains in any country, including Nigeria.

“In fact, some of my military students that I tutored have Doctorate Degrees.

“It is, therefore, callous, wicked, out-of-sync, cynical and a show of crass ignorance for anyone to undermine the military institution by embarking on mudslinging campaigns against former presidents and leaders with military background.

“While those campaigners are pointing their accusing fingers at us, they forget to recall that the present Director-General of the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation is actually a retired military officer.

“It is this form of demonisation and stigmatisation that often compels us to exhibit esprit de corps amongst ourselves in support of our military institution and colleagues when the stakes are high.
“As disciplined military officers, we are patriotic Nigerians and must be treated with utmost respect and decorum.”

He said irrespective of any insinuations against the military, he remains proud of the institution.
Gen. Babangida said: “The military is an institution that is so dear to my heart. It is an institution that nurtured my growing up and my achievements in life. I am not only sold to the military institution and by extension the Nigerian state, I am betrothed to it.

“As a profession, retirees are bound to participate in politics and democracy as an all-inclusive process, same way that doctors, lawyers, teachers, nurses, and civil servants get involved in it. It is the reason why I ventured into politics in 2003 before I quit in 2010. It is the same reason why General Obasanjo participated and got elected; and now General Buhari.

“It is therefore very curious that promoters of President Goodluck Jonathan’s aspiration would attempt to demonise and stigmatise former military leaders and cast aspersions on them in order to malign their reputation. This is very unfair.

“Fact is; the military fought a civil war to keep this country together. What I suffer today is a consequence of the injuries I sustained during the Nigeria Civil War. I am not sure there is any patriotism that is more than that. Some of us were prepared to die for the country.”

Babangida reminded pro-Jonathan campaigners that the idea behind the formation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) started in his home.

He said those parading themselves as democrats today had all participated in military governments
The statement added: “For record purposes, and without sounding immodest, the idea of a PDP that has now become the ‘largest party in Africa’ started in my home, here in Minna.

“With the support of my fellow colleagues, we prepared the way for this democratic process that has now led us to where we are presently.

“We built the democratic infrastructure and architecture. Those who are parading themselves as democrats today, all participated in military governments.”

theoctopus:
First, how does that negate the picture of Lagos? Anyway, you have just admitted that your Fashola performance is a scam. That is fine with me...

And for the records, this was the River Niger flood disaster. For you to post this as the response to the Iyana-Ipaja mess shows APC are really a scam party

By the way who is to blame in the Iyana-Ipaja pix, is it the State government that has provided drainage or the market men, women and transporters that have turned the drainage to refuse dump-site? I was holed up in that part of your pix, waiting for a friend few weeks back. I was shocked by the tons of garbage in the drain. This is a serious issue that should not be politicised. If you can help in the sensitisation of business owners in that area against using the drain as refuse ground, please redirect your effort to that, instead of using this; calamity waiting to happen stupidity of the perpetrators, as a political campaign.

Thank you for bringing this up.

http://www.naij.com/409058-buhari-addresses-making-naira-dollar-equality-claims.html

The clarification was made via the Deputy Director of Policy and Strategy of the APC Campaign Organisation, Mr. Bolaji Abdullahi at the 8th and closing session of the Nigeria Political Party Debates Series (NPPDS), organised by the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) and the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) titled: “Manifesto Hour: Political Parties and Citizens.”

According to the Daly Trust, he said Buhari only described the economic situation where value of the Naira dropped to as low as N230 as unacceptable, but that the former Military ruler was wrongly reported in the media.

On continuity, Abdullahi said the party would improve on those projects considered beneficial to the people, but that those that do not represent interest of the people would be terminated if elected into office.
READ MORE: http://www.naij.com/409058-buhari-addresses-making-naira-dollar-equality-claims.html

Frankly speaking, Fayose has shown that he is more afraid of a GMB government than the serious business of governing Ekiti. At least, even if he is very sure of PDP retaining Aso rock, I expect that he should also think of the possibility of an APC government in the centre. How will he mend the broken fence between Ekiti and an APC led Fed govt, if that happens? Someone should tell this man to face the business of governing Ekiti. By the way where is all this advert money come from. From Ekiti state account or his personal purse?

My last take, the advert sponsored by Fayose in today's Punch newspaper does not add value to help the electorates make wise decision. At the best, it stands out as a "beer parlour" talk.

http://www.naij.com/409043-the-5-biggest-losers-if-jonathan-wins.html

Three days to the election, Nigerians are all looking forward to the announcement of the winner after the presidential election. The two main oppositions are President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party and Gen. Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressive Congress.

In this List, we have the top five potentially losers (Pics) if president Jonathan braves the odds and reclaims the iron throne for himself:
READ MORE: http://www.naij.com/409043-the-5-biggest-losers-if-jonathan-wins.html

http://www.naij.com/408363-would-osinbajo-have-made-a-better-presidential-candidate-than-buhari.

It’s just days before the big day when the Nigerian people get to elect the next president, and a lot of things have been going well for Buhari and his running mate Yemi Osinbajo.

But some people still think it could have been better if the APC had a different presidential candidate.

Naij.com contributor and commentator on political issues, Adedayo Ademuwagun, in this piece, analyses who would have made a better presidential candidate for the All Progressives Congress.

Would Osinbajo have made a better presidential candidate than Buhari? Is Buhari the best person the APC could have chosen to run for president?

Buhari’s emergence as the APC candidate was cheered by a lot of people in the country who were either opposed to Jonathan continuing as president or were in support of the opposition party. They thought Buhari could make things better if he’s running the country, and they thought he’s an upright man who will provide strong leadership.
READ MORE: http://www.naij.com/408363-would-osinbajo-have-made-a-better-presidential-candidate-than-buhari.html?utm_source=traqli&utm_medium=traqli&utm_campaign=traqli&traqli-referral=musayussuf%40gmail.com&source=traqli

http://uncova.com/big-warning-obasanjo-warns-against-any-plot-to-hand-over-to-militarya-must-read

BIG Warning!!! Obasanjo Warns Against Any Plot To Hand Over To Military|A MUST READ
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Tuesday warned against handing over the reins of government to the military.

Obasanjo said the speculation that the government was planning an Interim Government had been substituted by speculations that President Goodluck Jonathan was plotting to hand over to the military. He said that doing so would undermine the integrity of the country.

The ex-President, while hosting Aisha Buhari, wife of the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, said, “I do hope we will get things more right. A lot of rumours are flying around; I think we have gone away from the rumour of Interim Government because that is not in our constitution.

“I hope we will soon go away from the rumour of handing over to the military because the military is not meant to run the affairs of a nation in terms of running government.”

http://uncova.com/exclusive-buharijonathan-saturdays-hard-choicea-must-read

IN just a matter of three days the long anticipated 2015 elections would have been under way. What took several years of arduous planning and billions of tax payers’ money that both the government and the election planners may never be able to account for would have come. Six weeks ago Nigerians felt ready for the elections before top members of the Jonathan administration engineered a shift in the electoral date.

Buhari Vs. Jonathan

That shift has afforded the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) time to put its house in order and better prepare for the task before it. The delay allowed for wider distribution of the Permanent Voters’ Cards and test running of the contentious card readers.

But more than all of this, the shift in date was a convenient excuse for the Peoples Democratic Party to catch its breath and make desperate plans to forestall a defeat for which it seemed headed had the election gone ahead as planned on February 14. The PDP must by now be congratulating itself for pulling off such a masterstroke decision that has brought it back into electoral reckoning. But whether this is sufficient to ensure victory is something we must all wait to see until the last ballot is cast on Saturday, 28 March.

The decision Nigerians are called upon to make on Saturday is certainly a hard one. It is, however, a decision most probably made many weeks if not months ago. While the six weeks delay may have worked eminently in favour of the PDP, far more than anything the All Progressives Party could hope to gain from it, it is doubtful if it is enough to chip off the substantial part of the apparent lead enjoyed by the APC.

For most of what the PDP has done in the last six weeks amounted to no more than a practical demonstration of the huge war chest it controls by way of hundreds of billions of Naira at its disposal, slush funds it deployed to win the support of already impoverished citizens reduced to subjects by their poverty. Otherwise, not much damage could have been done by the documentaries made on Muhammadu Buhari or, more notably, Bola Tinubu.

While the Buhari documentary was in many instances a poor attempt at working to an answer, manipulating facts to suit premeditated objectives, the Tinubu documentary, although far more on point, was directed at a well-heeled financier/king maker that is not standing in the election. Either way, such attempt at speaking to the intellectual side of the Nigerian voter would have been very effective among a more sophisticated electorate- highly literate, educated and mobilised.

Not one whose reality is determined by the immediate pursuits of non-existent jobs, food, clothing and housing- in short by the material poverty of its existence, poverty the Jonathan administration has on the one hand found no way to ameliorate, and on the other hand been responsible for. The Nigerian voting ethic is governed by the guts, by how well the material needs of voters are met. Ours is politics of the belly now called stomach infrastructure. For the most part of the Jonathan years, the ability of Nigerians to meet their material needs has been seriously downgraded. Which is why this administration’s fate might have been sealed long before now.

But this very fact, that is the pauperisation of the people, may ironically account for whatever gains and inroads the PDP may have made among the voting population whose poverty, like a vicious cycle, has made them more vulnerable to the kind of financial bombardment orchestrated by the PDP in the last few weeks.

Both the poor and the very wealthy across the country have in this instance been laid open to the attack and have been falling all over themselves (as we’ve seen among double-speaking Yoruba leaders and nationalists) to claim their share of the ‘free’ money the PDP (and the APC) has been distributing. Otherwise, Nigeria’s current ruling party is as good as gone. The party or, better put, its flag bearer’s goodwill with the Nigerian people has since gone into overdraft.

Goodluck Jonathan by virtue of his failure to rise to the demands of leadership, surrendering the authority vested in him by the Nigerian people to corrupt and rapacious subordinates, has long lost the respect of many Nigerians.

In spite of the efforts he has put into fighting the insurgents in the north and rolling back the gains they have made in the last five years in just six weeks, there is no certainty that things would change if he is given another chance. Had he done the right thing at the right time there would have been no question about his staying on in office.

But this is cold comfort to Nigerians as their only credible alternative, Mohammadu Buhari, is surrounded by persons whose morality reminds one of a pigsty.

It stinks. At a fundamental level there is very little or nothing to choose between the PDP and the APC. What the PDP is doing at the centre the APC governors are doing in the states they control. Many of them have alienated the electorate who they dumped after using them to gain or return to office.

They owe their workers several months salaries, are insensitive to the needs of the electorate, and have roundly failed and betrayed the people in the same way that the PDP governors and the president have betrayed Nigerians.

Even though General Mohammadu Buhari has done quite a bit to shore up his national and democratic credentials, away from the image of a religious bigot/autocrat, and has by personal example shown he is not particularly moved by material acquisition, he is surrounded by persons of questionable means. All of which makes the decision Nigerians must make even more difficult. Thus both leading presidential candidates in Saturday’s election are snared by their surroundings.

But while Goodluck Jonathan has all but capitulated to the sharks around him and appears reconciled to their predatory logic, running and hunting with them as with a dog or a fox, Mohammadu Buhari seems capable of being his own man.

It is for this reason that he may prove the leader Nigeria needs for now. But far more importantly, it will be in the long time interest of Nigeria’s democracy for the PDP to lose this election for beyond its sense of entitlement that has gone beyond toleration, its defeat would be proof that sovereignty resides still with the people and that the purpose and goal of public office is service and not power. It is a lesson Nigeria needs now more than ever. But wherever the pendulum swings, whoever emerges victorious in the election, let peace reign.

lalasticlala:
Mighty Joe, Nigeria's Notorious Robber Executed In 1973 For Stealing ₦10.

https://mobile.twitter.com/MusadiqZ/media/grid?idx=1

Thank you for refreshing history. I quite understand the flow of response. Most contributors were either not born then or were toddlers to understand that "mighty joe" was a notorious armed robber that met his water loo during one of his notorious operations. He held Mushin and environs by the jugular. The amount involve is not the question, but the modus operandi. A lot of people had been grieved by his notorious activities back then.

All the same, forgiveness lies with GOD!

It is quite sad. But breaking the law when you know the consequence, in this case, is SUICIDAL.

There is strength in our unity. I stand for 0ne Nigeria under a good leadership.

Jakpon:
Make everybody answer him papa name.

Hausa must go back to Hausaland

Yoruba must go back to Yorubaland

ibo must go back to iboland

Ijaw must go back to Ijawland

ONE NIGERIA DON DIE

Farmafric: YOUWIN stand for Youth Enterprise with Innovation In Nigeria. The Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (You WiN!) Programme is a collaboration of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Communication Technology (CT), the Ministry of Youth Development and the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development that will launch an annual Business Plan Competition (BPC) for aspiring young entrepreneurs in Nigeria, in line with the Federal Government’s drive to create more jobs for Nigerians. The programme will be implemented in partnership with Nigeria’s private sector, who will be requested to provide funding support. Winners will be selected from a large pool of applicants and they will be trained and thereafter write a second business plan. Final winners will be given grants between N1million to 10 million (FREE).
To participate, Register at: www.youwin.org.ng for tips on how to write an effective winning business plan, especially for Agriculture, send us an email: contact@farmergiantltd.com or visit our site for tips: www.farmergiantltd.com my blog also could help: pauladoyi.

Is this programme for women only?

sambas: Just saw it on ait news, Banks in Nigeria to replace atm card with finger print. I don't know if i'm the only one against this development, with the current security pros.Is it not better to loose an atm card to robbers than a finger in every attack?

A cut finger losses its features. So it is useless.