Yayale to take charge , As Jonathan jets to US
Written by Mohammed S. Shehu, with agency report
Friday, 09 April 2010 00:50
Yayale Ahmed
Acting President Goodluck Jonathan travels to Washington tomorrow to meet U.S. President Barack Obama on his first foreign trip since he assumed presidential powers in February.
Jonathan has no officially-designated deputy and there was no announcement yesterday on who holds forte in his absence, but a source said Secretary to the Government of the Federation Mahmud Yayale Ahmed will take charge of affairs.

Yayale is the next most senior government official after Jonathan. On Tuesday, he represented the country in Washington, where he and the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signed the U.S.-Nigeria Bi-National Commission agreement.

The acting president would be away till Thursday, indicating that the weekly cabinet meeting may not hold on Wednesday next week.

Jonathan’s spokesman Ima Niboro confirmed that the acting president would travel to the U.S. tomorrow. “Jonathan this Saturday will be making his first official trip outside the country since he assumed executive powers,” Niboro told Reuters news agency, adding that the acting president would return home on Thursday.

Efforts to get officials to confirm on record if Yayale would take charge in Jonathan’s absence were unsuccessful. Niboro did not answer his calls and did not reply to text messages sent to him.

Jonathan is bound for U.S. on the invitation of the American president to attend a maiden nuclear security summit organised by the U.S. government.

Reuters quoted a presidency source saying the two leaders would focus their discussions on ways to prevent global terrorism, four months after Umar Faruk Abdulmutallab allegedly tried to blow up a U.S. passenger jet as it neared Detroit.

Apparently in preparation for the discussions, Jonathan held a meeting yesterday with Faruk’s father Umaru Mutallab behind closed doors at the presidential villa in Abuja.

Dressed in white traditional Babban Riga, Mutallab came alone to the Presidential Villa and met with the acting president for close to an hour. But he did not speak to journalists afterwards and there was no official statement as to what they discussed.

Separately, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano will be meeting top Nigerian government officials in Abuja on April 11 to discuss aviation security.

The U.S. was the first major foreign power to publicly congratulate Jonathan after he assumed executive powers in February from ailing President Umaru Yar’adua, who remains too sick to govern.


http://www.nigeriannews.com/

Yar Adua: Clerics’ Visits, Breach of National Security
From Onwuka Nzeshi in Abuja, 04.09.2010

Minority Whip of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, yesterday declared that the recent visits by religious leaders to Aso Rock Presidential Villa were in breach of national security and irrelevant to the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Some prominent Islamic and Christian clerics had in the last few days visited Aso Rock ostensibly on invitation to meet with President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua who has not been seen in public since November 23, 2009 when he took ill and was flown to a hospital in Saudi Arabia.

Gbajabiamila, a constitutional lawyer and leader of the Action Congress (AC) in the House, faulted the timing of the visits, the choice of visitors and the utterances credited to some of the visitors.

He said the fact that some persons could visit Aso Rock to meet with Yar’Adua when the acting president, Senate president, speaker of the House of Representatives as well as the chief justice of the Federation had not been able to see him since his return from Saudi Arabia has very grave implications on the polity.

According to him, such visits were in breach of national security to the extent that they were arranged by unknown persons operating within the Presidential Villa without the knowledge of Acting President Goodluck Jonathan whom, he said, remains the defacto president and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria until President Yar’Adua fully recuperates.

Gbajabiamila argued that if the visits were intended to distract the acting president from the job of administering the country, then those behind it were obviously not working in the best interest of the country.
He urged Jonathan not to take such security breaches lightly for his own safety and in the interest of the nation as the visits raise questions as to who really is in charge of the Presidential Villa.

He, however, maintained that the gimmicks employed through these visits could not change the power equation as Jonathan was made the acting president and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces through a resolution of the National Assembly to save the country from drifting into chaos and anarchy.

Such visits, Gbajabiamila said, might only be relevant to the extent that it had confirmed the suspicion of Nigerians that President Yar’Adua had been incapacitated all along and some persons had kept the nation in the dark to avoid the constitution from taking its due course.

“The visits and the reports that the president is able to sit and shake hands with people is a welcome development because that means he is recovering. But it misses the point completely. Funny enough, it actually confirms the fears of some of us that the president has been incapacitated all along. Whether the president can shake hands, can recognize you and even if he could talk…

“They said he couldn’t talk but even if he could talk, the point is it does not meet the constitutional test of capacity to function and that is the issue. It is not whether he is well or he is not well or he was sitting on his own. Those are irrelevant as far as the constitutional test of capacity to function in office is concerned. Honestly, it is a comedy of errors but of very tragic proportion,” he said.

He charged the newly sworn in Executive Council of the Federation (EXCOF) to rise up quickly to its responsibility by activating Section 144 of the 1999 Constitution to resolve the lingering controversy over Yar’Adua’s health status as the constitution does not envisage a situation where an acting president is made to rule the country in perpetuity.

“If you look at the constitution very well, really an acting president should be there for about one day, two days, three days, one week or maybe two weeks when the president has gone on vacation or medical leave. But the issue of an inordinate acting president for a year while you have a president is an anomaly in any constitution. It doesn’t make any sense so I think that the new cabinet should do the right thing,” he said.

Section 144 of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 states in parts: “The President or Vice-President shall cease to hold office, if - (a) by a resolution passed by two-thirds majority of all the members of the executive council of the Federation it is declared that the President or Vice-President is incapable of discharging the functions of his office; and (b) the declaration is verified, after such medical examination as may be necessary, by a medical panel established under subsection (4) of this section in its report to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.”


http://www.nigeriannews.com/

Jonathan locks out new ministers
Headlines Apr 9, 2010 *Shuts out Daggash, Ogiemwonyi, Essien for lateness

By Daniel Idonor

ABUJA—DESPITE the orientation on acceptable practices in the conduct of cabinet members, staged at Wednesday’s meeting of the Executive Council of the Federation, EXCOF, three of the ministers came late to their first public function in the State House yesterday.

The three ministers were, therefore, locked out of the council chambers.

The ministers were those of Works, Senator Sanusi Daggash with his Minister of State, Engr. Chris Ogiemwonyi, and Minister of Land, Housing and Development, Hon. Nduese Essien.


*Daggash, Ogiemwonyi and Essien

The gate leading to the chamber which is always open during functions, was locked to prevent other ministers who might also come late for the meeting, from coming in.

The ministers who ought to have been on their seats by 12.00 noon were seeing walking into the villa at about 12.45 p.m.

The Acting President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan presided over the meeting where he received the report on Millennium Development Goals, MDGs.

Jonathan who told the ministers after their inauguration to hit the ground running, warned them that there is no room for failure. He had said: “No minister will be allowed to go on a mission of endless search for solutions. You must hit the ground running!

“Time is of fundamental essence and no distraction in our mission will be tolerated. This is a patriotic call to service and the self must, therefore, take a back seat. This rare privilege must not be abused!”

One of the ministers seen displaying his invitation to one of his sympathizers indicated that the time on his invitation was 1.00 pm


http://www.nigeriannews.com/

Jonathan, Sanusi, others to tackle electricity problem
By Obinna Ezeobi, Abuja, Published: Friday, 9 Apr 2010



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Jonathan, Sanusi, others to tackle electricity problem


the Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, and the Minister of Finance, Dr. Olusegun Aganga, have been named as members of a special committee to tackle the challenges in the nation’s power sector.



Also on the committee, which constitution was announced on Thursday by the Minister of State for Power, Mr. Nuhu Wya, are the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement, Mr. Emeka Eze, and representatives of the ministries of Petroleum and Water Resources.



The committee, headed by Acting President, Goodluck Jonathan, and with Wya as vice-chairman, also has experts from the power sector as members.



Wya did not give the names of the private sector experts but he explained that with the constitution of the committee, the Federal Government had begun to work in an “emergency manner” to solve the problems in the power sector.



He was, however, quick to point out that “emergency manner” did not mean a declaration of state of emergency in the power sector, which ailing President Umaru Yar’Adua had promised Nigerians during his electioneering campaign in 2007.



Wya, who also declined to make any promise on when power generation would hit 6,000 Megawatts, assured Nigerians that there would be remarkable improvement in electricity supply in the shortest possible time.



Speaking in Abuja after assuming office, the minister explained that the concept behind the special committee was to create a one-stop shop that would quickly improve the delivery of electricity to Nigerians without any hitch.



He also said that the process of generating and delivering electricity involved several stakeholders.



According to him, Jonathan has a deep passion for the power sector because it holds the key to the country’s development.



He said, “The special committee includes the CBN, which will unravel the issue of letters of credit and the issue of securitisation by ensuring that whoever is giving us power has some kind of security and other issues, which militate against the clearing of our goods from the ports.



“It also includes the minister of finance and he will fast track whatever we need in terms of budgetary needs and address any budgetary challenge we may have, comprehensively and timely.



“It also includes the BPP, which will process and ensure that our procurements are done timely. It also includes the Bureau of Public Enterprises, which will fast track the reform agenda that was started in 2005.



“There is no declaration of state of emergency, but we are working in an emergency manner. We are getting all the stakeholders to participate in this committee because power is a chain of many stakeholders, from gas to generation to transmission and to distribution.”



He said the immediate objective of the committee would be to improve power supply, get sufficient gas, reinforce transmission and distribution networks and ensure that whatever was on the ground was improved upon and sustained.



Wya added, “The oil companies are in-charge of gas and the Ministry of Water Resources is in-charge of water and they are going to be involved.



“And we have people from the private sector who are specialists in power that are coming to assist us.



“We want to ensure that all issues militating against prompt execution of power projects are concluded within the shortest possible time.”



The minister challenged power sector officials to embrace the reform in the sector.



He said, “Engineers and technical people should not get afraid. All of us will find relevance within whatever comes out from the reform. Reform does not mean sacking people, it only means changing our way of doing things, doing things more efficiently.



“There should be proper accountability and rule of law in whatever we do. We must try to pass the message down to the junior ones, particularly the unions to embrace this new lease of life that the Acting President is giving to the power sector.”



Wya added that the committee would also work to create an enabling environment for present and new investors to operate.



According to the minister, the committee will in the medium term, explore other sources of energy.



“We have many dams and they have huge hydro electric potential. We are going to tap into those resources so that we can give Nigerians more electricity delivered to the point of consumption,” he said.



http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201004096311825

Oyedepo, Onayeikan brief Jonathan on visit to Yar’Adua
By Ihuoma Chiedozie and Obinna Ezeobi, Published: Thursday, 8 Apr 2010



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Bishop Oyedepo


Four Christian clerics, who reportedly met with President Umaru Yar’Adua in the Presidential Villa on Monday returned on Wednesday to brief Acting President Goodluck Jonathan about the development.



The clerics, including the National President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Archbishop John Onaiyekan; the General Overseer of the Living Faith Church, Bishop David Oyedepo; Pastor Emmanuel Kure of the Throneroom Trust; and Prof. Yusuf Obaje, met the Acting President in company with the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission, Mr. John Kennedy-Okpara.



The meeting held behind closed doors.



The four clerics did not speak to journalists after meeting the Acting President. Rather, they consulted briefly on the corridor before leaving the Presidential Villa.



However, it was gathered that their visit was not unconnected with Monday’s trip to the President’s residence, where they reportedly met and prayed for Yar’Adua.



Four Muslim clerics had earlier said that they had met and also prayed for the ailing President, who has not been in public since his return from Saudi Arabia in February.



Meanwhile, Onaiyekan confirmed on Wednesday that he joined some Christian clerics to pray with Yar’ Adua at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Easter Monday.



The overseer of the Throneroom Trust Ministry, Pastor Emmanuel Kure, had made public the prayer session with the President in an interview with Reuters.



He had disclosed that other clerics such as Onaiyekan; Oyedepo; and Obaje were part of the prayer group.



Onaiyekan, in an earlier interview with our correspondent on the telephone at about 3.30pm on Monday, had said that neither he nor the Christian Association of Nigeria had been invited to pray with Yar’ Adua.



But in a clarification on Wednesday on the telephone at 5.30pm, Onaiyekan confirmed that he actually joined the delegation that prayed for Yar’Adua.



The Catholic cleric said that he got a personal invitation to join the prayer session after he had spoken with The Punch on the telephone.



According to him, “The time you called me on the telephone, I told you exactly the situation, that there was no official invitation; that if I got a personal invitation, I will go and pray for a sick man.



“That was the position I took at that time. After that, other things happened. I got a personal invitation and l went and prayed and I came back.”



Declining to divulge details of the visit, Onaiyekan maintained that it was personal, adding that he initially did not plan to go but later changed his mind.



He said, “As I said, I am not talking to the press about it because it was a private visit.



“If those who invited me wanted the press, they would have called them to come and cover the visit.



“At the time you called me on the telephone, I was not planning to go. But things changed afterwards. I do not know why this is generating so much interest.”



http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201004083282678

ibb illgotten riches money is talking, the evil man

U.S. approves capture of Muslim cleric
Reuters
Published: Wednesday, April 07, 2010

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The Obama administration has authorized operations to capture or kill a U.S.-born Muslim cleric based in Yemen, who is described by a key lawmaker as Americas's top terrorist threat, officials said yesterday. The decision to add Anwar al-Awlaki, pictured, of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, to the target list followed a National Security Council review prompted by his status as a U.S. citizen. Mr. Awlakihadcontacts with a Nigerian suspect in the attempted bombing of a transatlantic passenger jet as it approached Detroit on Dec. 25 and with a U.S. Army psychiatrist accused of shooting dead 13 people at a military base in Texas on Nov. 5 .



Read more: http://www.nationalpost.com/todays-paper/story.html?id=2771401#ixzz0kObMindr

Perform or get out, Jonathan warns ministers

Elizabeth Archibong


April 7, 2010 02:35AM
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Acting President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday warned the new ministers not to allow their personal interests override that of the nation. He said he will not tolerate any form of mediocrity and ministers who fail to measure up to expectation will be sacked.

Speaking at the inauguration of the new executive council of the federation which took place at the presidential villa Abuja, Mr Jonathan said the ministers must be alive to their responsibilities, “we owe this much to our people,” he said. The new cabinet replaces one dissolved suddenly on March 17 by the acting president.

There are, however, still no substantial ministers for the ministries of Health, Water Resources and Power.

Dora Akunyili, who spoke against the conspiracy to keep the nature of ailing president Umaru Yar’Adua’s illness a secret, made her way back to the ministry of information, while the former minister of state for petroleum, Odein Ajumogobia was moved to the foreign affairs ministry, with Aliyu Idi Hong as the minister of state.

The former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Adetokunbo Kayode is the new defence minister, with Murtala Shehu Yar’Adua as the minister of state. Mohammed Bello Adoke now becomes the new Attorney General of the Federation.

Suleiman Bello from Zamfara State was appointed minister of state for health and Nuhu Wya becomes minister of state for power.

The new cabinet also saw the reassigning of Diezani Allison-Madueke as the new Petroleum minister; with Fidelia Njeze as aviation minister and John Odey retaining his place as minister of environment.

Jonathan in power

The acting president is to oversee the ministry of power for a certain period and will be working with the sub power committee of the presidential advisory council headed by Barth Nnaji.

Ebonyi and Taraba states are the only states yet to have ministerial nominees and the acting president is expected to forward four more names to the senate for screening and clearance.

Mr Jonathan told the new ministers that he will meet all of them in two week’s time when they will agree on “ministerial milestones and targets” which they will sign and religiously follow.

Mr Jonathan orders the ministers to periodically update the public with progress reports of their performance and level of implementation of their ministries’ targets.

He also urged them to “hit the ground running”, adding that the administration will continue to pursue the implementation of the policies with which it came into office in May 2007.

He expressed his confidence in the team saying that the mission of the executive council is to deliver on the promise of good governance by showing competence, honesty of purpose, patriotism and selflessness in the business of governance.

Mr. Jonathan said he will be requesting a fortnightly briefing on the state of the economy from the economic team which shall be constituted very shortly.

The team, which he said will be under the chairmanship of the minister of finance, will help fast-track the process of development which he said is the most important task in the life of the nation.

He also warned the ministers to shun corruption, as the administration will not hesitate to take all necessary action to protect the bond of trust, which must always exist between the government and its people.

Ready for work

Most of the ministers resumed work immediately after the swearing in ceremony. Mr Ajumogobia was accompanied to the ministry by the permanent secretary, Martins Uhomoibhi, who had earlier witnessed the swearing in ceremony. Mrs Anenih, in a meeting with the management-level staff in the women ministry, said she will ensure that the ministry increases female participation in politics by 100 per cent in 2011.

The newly appointed minister of the interior, Emmanuel Iheanacho,

assumed office yesterday with a promise that his tenure will mark the end of large influx of foreigners entering the country unchecked. The minister, who was accompanied by the ministry’s minister of state, Humprey Abbah, said despite having a limited time, the calibre of experienced staff they have met will be utilised to deliver on the federal government’s agenda.



http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/News/National/Military/5551130-146/perform_or_get_out_jonathan_warns.csp

The Catholic Church on Trial
By Sonnie Ekwowusi, 04.06.2010

In the last few weeks, the Catholic Church has been under excruciating media trial over the charge of pedophilia or child sexual abuse preferred against some Catholic priests in some countries. The trial, for me, reached its crescendo last two weeks or so when the CNN devoted close to two hours to analyzing what it considered as the case against the Catholic Church and its verdict against the Church.


First, I think it is important to understand what this charge is about: the nature of the charge; time for bringing the charge (the Catholic Church has declared this year as the year of the priest); the evidence being adduced to sustain the charge and the huge space created in the new media to prosecute the case. It is also important to juxtapose the charge with past historical judgments and even theological judgments. And of course, no student of history will fail to read the charge against the background of the conflict between modernism(neo-modernism) or rationalism and faith. The charge should also be read along the relentless efforts to re-construct or demythologize Christianity to make it more appealing to the human flesh.


Granted, pedophilia stands condemned. The Catholic priests involved in it have done great damage to the Church as well as committed injustice against the hapless victims and members of their families too. Any wonder, deeply grieved by this injustice, the Church has come out openly to condemn pedophilia by stating that it is both a crime and a mortal sin. During his pontificate, Pope John Paul 11 condemned the sex scandal involving some Catholic priests in the United States even when one or two Catholic Bishops attempted to conceal the scandal. Pope John Paul 11 went further at the threshold of the Jubilee of the year 2000 to publish a document dated 7th March titled in English: Memory and Reconciliation: the Church and the faults of the past wherein he admitted the guilt for the past wrongs committed by certain members of the Church although without failing to emphasize at the same time that the Church is holy but her members that constitute the pilgrim Church are sinners. In saying this, the Pope affirmed what Pope Paul VI said that while the Church is indefectibly holy her members may not be holy. Now since the dramatization of the sexual abuse charge leveled against some Catholic priests started in the new media, Pope Benedict VI has come out openly to register the regrets and apology of the Church for the preferred charge. His regrets and apology capture the mind of the Church over the years in this serious matter.


But unfortunately the on-going media trial of the Catholic Church, or, better put, the orchestrated media attack against the Catholic Church transcends pedophilia charge. Simply, the attack is against priestly celibacy, the Catholic Church's teaching on sexual morality, marriage, homosexuality, divorce, condom and the rest of them. The attack is deeply-rooted in the clash between rationalism and faith; orthodoxy and non-orthodoxy; hedonism and morality. Pedophilia obviously has provided a good cover to re-invigorate the old attack against the Church. The old argument contained in the attack has not changed. Perhaps what has changed is the manner of launching it in the new media. Read again the old charge or argument: “Some Catholic priests in some European and American countries are involved in child sexual abuse. Child sexual abuse is a crime. Therefore priestly celibacy should be abolished. All Catholic priests should get married. The Catholic Church should approve the use condoms and ordination of women priests…”. Even someone was suggesting that in the light of the latest charge against some Catholic priests, Pope Benedict V1 should tender his letter of resignation as Pope immediately.


I argue that the above contention is completely flawed. First, there is no evidence anywhere that the largest number of pedophiles is found among Catholic priests. Child sexual abuse, like any other sin or crime, cuts across people of all classes, social and religious backgrounds and clergy of other religions. In his book: Pedophiles and Priests, Philip Jenkins, a non-Catholic author, recounts that only 0.3% of the entire Catholic clergy are pedophiles, and that 1 out of every 2,252 Catholic priests, in the report considered over a 30-year period, was afflicted with pedophilia in the United States. So, why is the Catholic Church singled out to be attacked? Part of the reason is that the Catholic Church is the Church worth attacking. The media, as you know very well, thrives on sensationalism and ground-breaking news. What news will it make, for instance, to report the sexual riots taking place in some comparatively obscure or unknown churches? Who will be interested in reading, for example, that the owners of some small churches in my little village are divorcing their wives several times and at the same time confiscating other peoples' wives?
Second and more importantly, priestly celibacy is not the cause of child sexual abuse among some Catholic priests.

Therefore it is highly illogical to call for the abolition of ecclesiastical celibacy simply because some Catholic priests in some countries have misbehaved. What these critics forget is that marriage does cure sexual abuse let alone reduce it. Writing on this often-misunderstood matter in 1 Corinthians 7, St. Paul clearly stated that marriage and celibacy are two vocational ways of living the same mystery of God's covenant with man. Both celibacy and marriage involve self-giving and sacrifice. He who cannot understand celibacy cannot understand marriage. Critics advocating that erring Catholics priests should be allowed to marry forget that marriage doesn't cure infidelity let alone reduce it. For example, a Catholic priest who cannot be faithful to his priestly celibacy cannot be faithful to his wife if he were married. In other words, marriage is no less demanding than celibacy. Life is a about struggling to subject one's passions to reason. The high rate of divorce today results from lack of discipline of the sexual appetites. Walking the streets of Bronx in New York three weeks ago I was shocked to see the increasing number of Divorce/Dissolution of marriage offices lining up the streets. In Nigeria the rate of divorce among young married couples is increasing day after day. Not to mention the high level of marital infidelities recorded all over the place. A friend once said that sex is the new weapon the devil is now using to control the world. Somehow he is right. Sex is selling like hot cake today. In commercial adverts, in fashion, in music, on TV…sex is selling everywhere today. The biggest sex and prostitution market today is the Internet. I guess that users of the Internet without filters to filter away the useless sexual thing are exposing themselves to all sorts of temptations. And mind you, Catholic priests are exposed to the same temptations because, grace apart, they are human beings too with human weaknesses.


But as l said earlier, life is about struggling to control the disordered passions. St. Augustine remains the best teacher in this matter. You just have to read his epic work: The Confession of St. Augustine to appreciate how a sinner of today can be come a saint tomorrow and vice-versa. And of course the life of Pope John Paul 11 is an open book. His life teaches that the faithfulness of one man can bring about tremendous positive changes in the world. Like Pope John Paul 11, there are many Catholic priests who are heroically living up to their priestly vocations.

But unfortunately the liberal press is not interested in reporting the good things happening in the Church: it is always lurking around to point out what it considers as the scandal rocking the Church. Good journalism, I suppose, is marked by balanced and objective reporting not jaundiced reporting coloured by prejudices and biases. The CNN and the BBC, for instance, have become experts in focusing only on the bad allegations leveled against the Catholic clergy. They hardly report about the countless Catholic priests who are faithful to their priestly calling. But the moment any allegation of sexual abuse is leveled against any Catholic priest anywhere in the world they are quick to pick it and give it prominent news headline. This, for me, is jaundiced and unethical reporting. It is also an act of injustice against the Catholic Church.


In his reaction to the press criticism of Church at the height of the American sex scandal, Pope John Paul 11 said: “A great work of art may be blemished but its beauty remains”. The Catholic Church is not run in the media. Moral truth is not established through democratic vote in the media. Moral truth, which is predicated on the eternal truth, is discovered not invented in the media

http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=170326

End of the road for stolen goods receivers
Crime Alert Apr 7, 2010 • Business lucrative, says suspects

By Ifeanyi Okolie

TWO traders identified as Chidiebere Ozurumba and Chizoba Nwankwo whose stalls are located at the popular Ojo Alaba International market, in Ojo local government area of Lagos state respectively are currently telling detectives attached to the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (Fed. SARS) Adeniji Adele, Lagos, all their tricks in diverting cleared containers and selling the contents at give away prices. They were alleged to had recently conspired with some yet to be known person to hijack and diverted a 40ft container load of 500 units of LG television sets valued at N14 million.

The duo aged 30, admitted with impunity that stolen goods business is very lucrative and easy to dispose off.

Police investigation has shown that the two traders have been in the business of stolen goods for sometime now until recently when the bubble bust.

They were alleged to had conspired to hijack the container, having held the driver hostage and surreptitiously diverted the container and its contents belonging to LG electronics to a warehouse located in Alaba international market preparatory for quick disposal.

The diverted container was reportedly cleared at the Tin Can Island Port and was on its way to the warehouse of LG Electronics, located on Warehouse Road Apapa before the hijack. Moments after the hijack, the goods were allegedly sold to Mr. Chidiebere for as low as N5 million naira.

Meanwhile, Chidiebere who trades mainly on generating sets was said to be finding it increasingly difficult to sell off the TV sets and so gave them away at a give price to his accomplices, Messrs Chizoba and one other person who is presently at large.


Chizoba Nwankwo with some of the stolen goods.

Crime Alert further scooped that, the owners of the goods, upon the discovery of a hijack immediately alerted the police who swung into action at the Alaba International market following a tip- off. It was in the process that some of the television sets with serial numbers matching the missing ones were trailed to Chizoba’s shop who during interrogation confessed that he bought them from Chidiebere.

The confessions and regret
Both confessed to the crime saying they were into stolen goods business because it is very lucrative. Suspect Chidiebere admitted that he would have made N1m profit at the end of the day hence he invested his money in it.

“I saw it as quick means of making money and have actually been making money from it. I knew they were stolen goods, but I was eager to recover from a previous business I did, which was on generators. In that deal, I lost over N10m because after I bought them the police swooped in and arrested me. They emptied my shops and they took away both the genuine and stolen goods I have.

Ever since then, I have been trying to recover my money. So, when they brought these goods for me to buy. I took it as an opportunity of recovering my lost money. The goods were sold to me at a price twice lower than the original market price. I quickly paid N5m because I don’t want them to sell it to some one else. I had little problem selling the goods because I don’t sell television sets.

This was why I contacted Messrs Chizoba and Marcus because they sell television sets in the market. I, in turn sold the goods to them at a price a bit lower form the prevailing market price.


Chidiebere Ozurumba

But the truth is that, they were aware that the goods were stolen. I think they were interested in the profit they will also make out of the goods that was why they accepted to buy them. But how the police got to find out is something I am yet to understand because the people that t sold the goods to me, promised never to let the cat out of the bag. I was so surprise when some policemen brought Chizoba to my shop and they got me arrested.”

Continuing Chidiebere said, “I feel terrible getting myself into this situation. My life and family are all shattered. My brothers have been coming to get my bail but they have not has not been possible yet.”

Police speaks
Reacting to the tell-tale of the suspects, the Commissioner of Police in_charge of the of the Fed. SAR Lagos, Mr. Jubril Adeniji, described the business of stolen goods as criminal adding that the buyers are themselves more liable because according to him, “If there is no ready market for these stolen goods criminals would be discouraged to go stealing.

It is because when they steal, somebody somewhere is waiting to clear the goods.” He confirmed that the suspects would be arraigned before a court of law at the end of the investigations.

http://www.nigeriannews.com/

Yar’Adua : I owe public no explanation – Oyedepo
Cover Stories Apr 7, 2010 By Sam Eyoboka & Kolade Larewaju

ABEOKUTA – PRESIDENT of the Living Faith Church, Bishop David Oyedepo yesterday confirmed that he actually visited ailing President Umaru Yar’Adua at the Presidential Villa but declined to give details of the man’s state of health.

Bishop Oyedepo who spoke to reporters in Abeokuta, declined further comments on their visit to the ailing president merely saying “yes” when asked to confirm the reports in the newspapers.

Pressed to speak on the president’s health, he said “that is personal. I owe the public no explanation.”


Bishop Oyedepo
Oyedepo was one of the four Christian leaders who were led by the president of Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, and Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Most Rev. John Onaiyekan, who visited President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua on Easter Monday to pray with him. Others included Rev. Emmanuel Kure and the erstwhile chaplain of Aso Rock Chapel, Prof. Yusuf Obaje.

Meanwhile, as over 140 million Nigerians await the verdict of the four Christian leaders on the state of health of President Yar’Adua, feelers reaching Vanguard showed that the team was hurriedly assembled to balance a political equation as Muslim clerics had earlier prayed with him.

According to informed sources, an earlier move to get credible Christian clerics to be part of the Easter Monday visit flopped when some of them were perceived not to be too keen on the visit.
The whole idea of the Easter prayers by Christian leaders was said to have emanated from a former two-term governor who believed he could contract eminent Christian leaders to pray for the ailing president, especially after a similar exercise by Muslim clerics.

The immediate family of the ailing president was said to have bought the idea and therefore asked one of the key officials to liaise with the former governor. It was at that point that the former governor was said to have called the National President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor who was expected to reach others.

The proposal was for Oritsejafor to recruit the services of the CAN president, John Onaiyekan, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG, Pastor Enoch Adeboye and one other cleric.

http://www.nigeriannews.com/

Obama confirms Nigerians new role in global security
By Ike Nnamdi
Wednesday, April 7, 2010


US President, Barack Obama
Photo: Sun News Publishing
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US President, Barack Obama, has said Nigeria will play a strategic role in America’s current strategy to boost regional security. Defending his decision to invite Acting President Goodluck Jonathan to the White House for next week’s ‘Global Nuclear Security Summit’ in Washington, Obama said Nigeria has actively promoted and participated in regional security efforts on the continent.

He said Nigeria also will play a crucial role in America’s attempt to track down and secure lose nuclear materials while denying terror groups and nation’s access to the weapons.

Obama said his administration has adopted a new nuclear strategy that seeks to narrow the conditions under which the United States might use nuclear weapons. The policy document said the massive US nuclear arsenal from the Cold War-era is ‘poorly suited’ to address the current global challenges of terrorists and unfriendly regimes that seek nuclear weapons.

It said it is essential the U.S. better align itself to address those priorities. The document said the international climate in recent years, including major improvements in missile defense, unrivaled US military capabilities and the easing of cold war tensions, allows the United States to fulfill national security objectives with significantly lower nuclear force levels and reduced reliance on nuclear weapons.
It said the United States will not use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapons states that are party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and in compliance with their non-proliferation obligations.

In an interview, President Barack Obama said he would make exceptions for what he called ‘outliers’, such as Iran and North Korea, that have violated or renounced the international treaty. The document, the Nuclear Posture Review, said with the reduction of its nuclear weapons, the United States will be in a stronger position to persuade other countries to join efforts in non-proliferation and securing nuclear weapons.

The US Congress requires each new administration to release a plan for use of nuclear weapons. The document said the United States will lead expanded efforts on global nuclear non-proliferation and seek to reverse the nuclear ambitions of North Korea and Iran. It also called for the modernization of aging US nuclear facilities. Defense Secretary, Robert Gates has requested $5 billion to be transferred from his agency to the Department of Energy over the next several years for that purpose. Mr. Obama is scheduled to vivit Prague to sign a new arms control agreement with Russia. It reduces by about one-third, the number of nuclear weapons either country could deploy.




http://www.nigeriannews.com/

Moves to impeach Yar’Adua receives court’s blessings
From GODWIN TSA, Abuja
Wednesday, April 7, 2010


President Umaru Yar’Adua
Photo: Sun News Publishing
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A Federal High Court has cleared the Borno State gubernatorial aspirant of the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP), Alhaji Bukar Al-Amin, and Barrister Max Ozoaka to commence moves of impeaching ailing President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua through the newly constituted executive council of the federation.

Justice Anwuli Chikere specifically granted leave for the applicants to apply for an order of mandamus for the removal of President Yar’ Adua from office on the grounds that he is presently incapable of discharging the functions of his office.

The order in question is to compel the Attorney General of the Federation and members of the Executive Council of the Federation (EXCOF) to convene a meeting for the purpose of the considering and passing a resolution declaring President Yar’Adua incapable of discharging the functions of his office as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Justice Chikere has, however, asked the applicants to put the respondents on notice within seven days and serve same with the order for the leave.
The ex-parte application, which received the blessings of the court, was brought pursuant to order 34, rules [1] [3] of the Federal High Court.

The applicants, in their suit, are seeking a declaration of the court to the effect that having regard to the prevailing political circumstances in the country, the respondents and members of ECOF, are under an obligation to act upon the provisions of section 144 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to consider and pass a resolution declaring President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua incapable of discharging the functions of his office as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

They are also praying for an order of injunction compelling the respondents to carry out and discharge the duty imposed on them by the provisions of section 144 of the 1999 Constitution, to wit; hurriedly convene a meeting of its members for the purpose of considering and passing a resolution declaring President Yar’Adua incapable of performing the functions of his office.

The applicants hinged their action on the following grounds that by virtue of section 144 of the 1999 Constitution, the defendant and members of the EXCOF are under a legal obligation to sincerely and objectively consider and pass a resolution declaring President Yar’Adua incapable of performing the functions of his office.
The applicants, indeed, the entire citizens of Nigeria, are entitled to be politically led and governed at every level in this country, more so at the apex level, by a verifiably healthy citizen.





http://www.nigeriannews.com/

Nigeria: Acting president's new Cabinet sworn in
© 2010 The Associated Press
April 6, 2010, 8:50AM

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Print Share Del.icio.usDiggTwitterYahoo! BuzzFacebookStumbleUponABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria's acting president has sworn in the oil-rich nation's new Cabinet, which includes a woman overseeing the country's petroleum ministry.

Acting President Goodluck Jonathan swore in the 38 members Tuesday. He put Diezani Allison-Madueke at the head of the petroleum ministry, a key post for a country that is the No. 3 supplier of crude oil to the U.S. She is a former employee of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, the major force in Nigeria's oil exploration.

Jonathan also restored Dora Akunyili as information minister. She circulated a memo to the Cabinet in February calling on it to grant then-Vice President Jonathan powers to act on behalf of President Umaru Yar'Adua. Yar'Adua has been ill and absent from office for months.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/6946013.html?

nigeria james bond 007 is at it again, this man should be jailed for life.

Ibori's investigator attacked by gunmen

By Elor Nkereuwem


April 6, 2010 02:29AM
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Solomon Yorr, an official of Nigeria's anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is in a battle for life as medical personnel struggle to patch up his bullet ridden chest.

Mr. Yorr, in the past few weeks, has been intensely involved in the investigation of the former Delta State governor, James Ibori. He is the second-in-command of the team in charge of Mr. Ibori's investigation.

Mr. Yorr, who is attached to the Economic Governance Unit, an elite group in the commission which handles mainly cases of Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs), was attacked by gunmen on Sunday night in his home in Keffi, Nassarawa.

Femi Babafemi, the head of Media and Publicity of the EFCC, in a press statement yesterday, said that the operative is now receiving medical attention and has been installed in an Intensive Care Unit(ICU) in Abuja.

EFCC operatives, who spoke on conditions of anonymity, expressed fears that the attempt on Mr. Yorr's life was not unconnected with the high profile investigations that he has been handling.

Increased tempo and increased attacks

Mr. Babafemi of the EFCC told NEXT in Abuja yesterday, that the recent attacks on operatives of the commission was a result of the increased pace of high profile investigations undertaken by the commission, while debunking the idea that the recent attacks was indicative of a revamp in the quality of investigations being carried out by the EFCC.

"The steam has always been there. We are also raising the tempo of our activities. Some of these attacks are rooted in the desperation of some corrupt politicians to succeed in the 2011 elections. We had already alerted the public on the threats that we have been receiving," he said.

Mr. Babafemi said that between December, 2009 and March, 2010, two active operatives and one former operative of the commission had been killed. But he restated the determination of the anti- corruption agency to go ahead with its duties.

"The EFCC chairman, Mrs. Farida Waziri, has since directed that security should be beefed up around the officer, while she prays for his recovery. She has equally stressed that the various attacks against the agency and its officials will not in any way distract or deter us," Mr. Babafemi said.

Taking care of its own

A Lagos-based human rights attorney, Jiti Ogunye, however, had harsh words for the leadership of the anti-graft agency, who he says is not doing enough to safe guard the lives of its operatives.

"My observation is that the leadership of the EFCC may not be doing enough to protect its operatives," he said, adding that he feared that the continued attacks on operatives could demoralise their colleagues.

"For a law enforcement agency, it is important that perpetually, the capacity of that agency is bolstered such that it stays ahead of criminals or would-be-criminals. Part of the capacity should be its ability to protect its operatives. It is very important that a law enforcement agency must be able to do that," Mr. Ogunye stressed.

Mr. Ogunye dismissed the idea that the EFCC may be working harder than in the past, and insisted that the leadership of the EFCC must look inwards to solve its current challenge.

"There might be a self-inflicted disability on the part of the leadership of the EFCC, because once the leadership is compromised, then the operatives will no longer be safe. The commission must look inwards to find out what they have not been doing right to protect their operatives," he said.



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Equatorial Guinea jails Nigerians for palace attack

Mend has denied being involved in the attack
A court in Equatorial Guinea has sentenced seven Nigerians each to 12 years in prison for an attack on the presidential palace in February 2009.

They also received the equivalent of thousands of dollars in fines.

Several Equatorial Guineans accused of participating in the attack were released because of lack of evidence.

The government had said the attack involved Nigerian militants from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend), which denied this.

The convicted Nigerians claimed they were on their way to Cameroon when their boat was driven off course by a storm and stopped by the Equatorial Guinea navy.

A group of attackers then tried to take the presidential palace in Malabo but were defeated in a gun battle by the army.

Equatorial Guinea is the third largest oil exporter in sub-Saharan Africa and has a history of coups, the last successful one being in 1979.

In 2009, British mercenary Simon Mann was given a pardon after being sentenced to 34 years in jail for his role in a 2004 coup plot.



http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8605113.stm?

ask and it shall be given unto u, then what will encourage me back to naija is, ( good governamce ) i cry for my country, with good leaders, corruption will say bye to nigeria govt

anybody can visit yaradua too, any big deal, do oyedepo tell u that he himself saw yaradua, if yes? let him talk to nigeria that we re waiting to hear from him

Posted on: Today at 11:53:03 AMPosted by: Spyker
Insert Quote
Comparing wealth should not be the issue, why not compare infrastructure, education, in short basic necessities of life before you conclude. I have never been to Ghana and i don't want to go there but if you look at the way and manner Nigerians are running to Ghana, you will stop comparing
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

thank u bros, comparing ghana to nigeria, nigeria have to put their house in order, no single system that is working in nigeria, ghana is now overtaking us

Posted on: Today at 10:03:04 AMPosted by: bashdecash
Insert Quote
@NLs,

why cant we be so mild in our words towards Muslims and Islam?

- Imams claimed they saw him, we call them drunkards, liars etc.

- now that clerics have also claimed they saw him, let me hear what NLs will call them.


now we are waiting to hear from any one of them, somebody like oyedepo, he cant lair to nigeria, i cant believe all this propaganda from news papers, till then.

Posted by: Remii
Insert Quote
Christian Clerics too have "met" him.


http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/news/article02/060410?pdate=060410&ptitle=Intrigues over Yar'Adua's 'meeting with Christian clerics'

Intrigues over Yar'Adua's 'meeting with Christian clerics'
From Madu Onuorah, Abuja (with agency report)
INTRIGUES and subterfuge over the state of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's health continued yesterday as the nation was enveloped by stories that he reportedly met with some Christian leaders at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, yesterday evening.

Reports had it that a Catholic Archbishop led the group of clerics that saw the ailing President.

However, a senior pastor at the Living Faith Church Worldwide, who craved anonymity, said Bishop David Oyedepo of the Living Faith Church who was rumoured to be on the entourage actually spent the day ministering at his church's Easter Youth Camp programme at Canaanland, Ota, Ogun State and therefore could not have been in Abuja.

A source told The Guardian last night: "Yes, some Christian leaders met with the President this evening. But that is all I can tell you about this. The only thing I can add is that throughout the duration of the visit, President Yar'Adua never uttered a word. He never said a simple word."

Not a few people however said that yesterday's report was in keeping with the recent consistent attempt by some people to give impression that Yar'Adua was on his way back and thereby derail the Goodluck Jonathan acting presidency.

According to a report by the Associated Press (AP), Pastor Emmanuel Kure of the Throngroom Trust Ministry in Kafanchan, Kaduna State, said he and three other Christian leaders met for "about five to 10 minutes" with President Yar'Adua at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Kure said the President was physically weak but "able to grunt out an amen."

He said he and the other leaders received separate request to attend the meeting on behalf of the Presidency.

The Guardian could not speak to Kure last night even though he was confirmed to be in Kafanchan where he heads his church.

The leaders reportedly led a prayer to God on the behalf of President Yar'Adua.

Some Muslim leaders had last Friday met with the President in a publicised forum announced to Muslim faithful at the National Mosque Abuja.

President Yar'Adua has not been seen publicly since late November when he left Nigeria for treatment in a Saudi Arabian hospital.

The President's chief physician said Yar'Adua suffered from acute pericarditis, an inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart. But kidney problems and ill health long have plagued President Yar'Adua, who even left the country during his 2007 electoral campaign to seek medical treatments in Germany.

"I am told that it is a great improvement from his previous state," Kure said.

Kure declined to offer further details about President Yar'Adua's condition, saying: "We should not overheat the polity."

However, the visit comes after many criticised President Yar'Adua for meeting privately with Islamic leaders last week without addressing the nation. During that visit, the imam of the National Mosque, said that President Yar'Adua could raise his hands in prayer though he never stood up.

The visit by Christian leaders also may be an attempt by President Yar'Adua's closest allies to quiet criticisms over the religious nature of the last visit as well.

Yar'Adua left the country without formally placing Vice President Goodluck Jonathan in charge, sparking a constitutional crisis.

The National Assembly empowered Jonathan to become acting president on February 9. A military convoy and an ambulance reportedly swept President Yar'Adua back into the presidential palace on February 24, but he is yet to be seen in public, even by the Acting President.


propaganda, drama continue part 2

until oyedepo says a word, i will never believe all this reports. we re watching the drama nollywood part 2

One dead in fresh sectarian clashes in central Nigeria
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Facebook Twitter Delicious Digg Fark Newsvine Reddit StumbleUpon Technorati Yahoo! Bookmarks Print AFP/File – Policemen stand guard at the police headquarters in Jos in March 2010. Fresh clashes erupted Monday between … Mon Apr 5, 5:34 pm ET
JOS (AFP) – Fresh clashes erupted Monday between groups of Christian and Muslim youths in Nigeria's central city of Jos, leaving one dead as security forces restored order, a senior state official said.

"There was a clash, a very minor clash that led to the death of one youth, a Christian youth," Information Commissioner for Plateau State, Gregory Yenlong told AFP.

Police spokesman Mohammed Lerama also confirmed the attack, which appeared to have been staged on a group of Christians returning from a church rally, but he did not give any details.

The military and police swiftly moved in to stamp out the unrest which broke out around 7:00 pm (1800 GMT) in the Nassarawa Gwom area, the epicentre of the January clashes.

The sizes of the clashing groups could not be immediately established.

"Unknown to the Christian youths some people just blocked their way along the road and started chanting war songs," said Yenlong.

"Security forces came in and brought the situation under control. Unfortunately it was the security forces that killed the youth," he said. He said another person who was wounded was being treated for cuts, but he could not establish what caused the wounds.

More forces have been deployed, the information chief said.

Hundreds of people have died in sectarian violence in Jos and its environs since January.

Last month police said over 100 people -- mainly Christians - were killed by Muslim Fulani cattle herders, although state officials say at least 500 perished in the attacks targetting Christian villagers.

In January, over 300 people -- mostly Muslims -- died in clashes in and around Jos.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is divided almost in the middle between the two faiths. Plateau, of which Jos is the capital, is a de facto buffer as it straddles the mainly Muslim north and predominantly Christian south.



http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100405/wl_africa_afp/nigeriaunrestreligion?

Onaiyekan, Oyedepo, 2 others meet Yar’Adua
Headlines Apr 6, 2010
Bishop Oyedepo, Most Rev. Onaiyekan and President Yar'Adua

*Shake hands and pray for him

*I have no comment for the Press — Onaiyekan

By Sam Eyoboka

ABUJA—ONE week after the visit of some Muslim clerics to the ailing President Umaru Yar’Adua, Christian leaders, yesterday, visited the Aso Rock to pray with the president.

Reports reaching our newsroom last night said the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, President and Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Most Rev. John Onaiyakan, Presiding Bishop of Living Faith Church, Bishop David Oyedepo, Rev. Emmanuel Kure from Southern Kaduna and the erstwhile Aso Rock Chaplain, Prof Yusuf Obaje were the visitors to the president.

According to the report, they arrived Aso Rck at about 4.30 p.m. and as it happened during the Muslim clerics’ visit, they prayed with the President for quick recovery.

Our source said the visitors shook hands with the president who was said to be sitting besides his wife at the time of the visit and after the prayers they again shook hands with him before leaving.

It was not immediately clear if there was any exchange of words between the visitors and the President but our source said the man was in high spirit and made efforts to thank his visitors for their continued prayers for him and the nation.

Earlier in the day there were speculations that efforts to get the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye and the PFN President, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor to be part of the visit flopped because of some logistic problems.

The development led to an alternative arrangement by the Yar’Adua group to arrange for another batch of clerics to visit Aso Rock.

When Vanguard yesterday contacted the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, President and Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Most Rev. John Onaiyakan, on the reported visit to the ailing President , the clergyman said he had no comment for the press.

The president has not been seen in public since November 23 last year.

The nation was jolted last week with the reports that four Muslim clerics including the Chief Imam of Abuja, visited the President and prayed with him.

Ustaz Mohammed’s BBC interview

It will be recalled that three Islamic clerics led by the Chief Imam of the National Mosque in Abuja, Ustaz Musa Mohammed, visited President Umaru Yar’Adua last week and in an interview with BBC said the man could not speak coherently.

Ustaz Mohammed, however, expressed optimism that Yar’Adua may resume duties soon, as “he has improved remarkably.”

He said the Pesident sat down when they were with him and was dressed in jumper and trousers with a cap to match. Besides, the Islamic leader who said that he was on the visit together with Dr. Datti Ibrahim Ahmad, President of the Supreme Council of Sharia in Nigeria and one Sheik Musa Pantami, explained that they sought permission from the President’s family to see the ailing President and not that they were invited to see him.

He said: “We met him sitting down with his wife while his ADC stood behind him. Although we could not hear what he said, from where we sat, we could see his mouth saying Amen, together with us when we prayed for him. In fact, contrary to rumours that he was seriously ill, we saw that he had improved tremendously and we believe he would be able to resume work any moment from now.”

Another of the clerics, Dr. Ibrahim Datti Ahmad told newspapers that though Yar’Adua shook hands with them and prayed together with them, he didn’t talk to them.

Dr. Ahmad, who is the President of the Supreme Council of Sharia in Nigeria, SCSN, warned that Yar’Adua’s powers must not be taken away from him.

He told newsmen: “We met the President around 5.00 p.m. late in the afternoon. Contrary to what some people have been saying, the President is not in a situation where he is almost dead; he is only sick.

“He was sitting on a dinning chair when we came in and met him. He was not being supported by anybody but himself, he was sitting down calmly. He did not look like someone who is almost dead.

“When we entered, we were not sure of what we were going to meet. So we entered and stood at a respectable distance and greeted him. He extended his hand to us and we shook it one by one. This is contrary to the views of those who keep saying he doesn’t know where he is.

“After that, we prayed for his health. He joined us in the prayers, raising his hands the way we raised our own; his lips were moving. When we finished, we told him we only came to greet him. He shook hands with us.”

Yayale jets off to America in Jonathan's stead

Terfa Tilley-Gyado


April 5, 2010 11:39PM
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The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Yayale Ahmed will lead the formal signing of a new bilateral agreement between Nigeria and the United States of America to take place this week in Washington DC.

Mr. Ahmed will sign the agreement on behalf of the Acting President, Goodluck Jonathan, who had originally planned to make the trip. He is also scheduled to meet senior policy makers in the American capital.

Before leaving the country on Monday night, Mr. Ahmed spoke to key officials about the objectives set by the Acting President before his journey. High on the agenda was the increasingly tensed relations between Nigeria and America following the attempted plane bombing last Christmas by Umar Abdulmutallab.

He said that although the Federal Government respects the concerns brought by the America administration, Nigeria has proved its ability to stabilise its governance and displayed loyalty to its constitutional legacy and foundation.

The SGF spoke with gratitude towards the long lasting efforts made by the US to support Nigeria and its people.


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Nigeria poll chief should go says senior U.S. official

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By Andrew Quinn
Reuters
Monday, April 5, 2010; 1:27 PM

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States believes Nigeria's elections chief should be replaced if the country, a major U.S. oil supplier, is to hold credible national polls next year, a senior U.S. official said on Monday.

Assistant Secretary of State Johnnie Carson, the Obama administration's top official for Africa, said Independent National Election Commission (INEC) chairman Maurice Iwu had proven himself inadequate in overseeing Nigeria's "deeply flawed" polls in 2007.

"If Nigeria is to move forward improving its election process it probably needs to consider improving the level of management at the top," Carson told a news briefing.

"Nigeria is a democracy that is moving forward. It deserves leadership appropriate to the task in the election commission."

Hundreds of Nigerians protested last week outside INEC headquarters in the capital Abuja demanding the removal of Iwu, whom they deemed responsible for the 2007 polls that brought President Umaru Yar'Adua to power.

Those polls were so marred by ballot-stuffing and voter intimidation that local and international observers said they were not credible, and legal challenges to Yar'Adua's victory lasted for months after he took office.

With new elections due by April 2011, acting President Goodluck Jonathan, who assumed executive powers almost two months ago with Yar'Adua too sick to govern, has made overhauling the electoral system a top priority.

PAST RECORD

Carson, announcing the formal launch on Tuesday of the U.S.-Nigeria Binational Commission, signaled that Washington hoped to see change at INEC at least by the time Iwu's current term ends in mid-2011.

"We hope that when it comes time to look at reappointment or the decision to appoint someone else, that his past record be taken into account," Carson said.

The new commission, which Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will formally launch with the Nigeria's government secretary Mahmud Yayale Ahmed, aims to bolster U.S. ties to the country in areas including energy, governance and food security.

Carson said Nigeria -- now the third largest oil supplier to the U.S. market ahead of Saudi Arabia and Venezuela -- was of huge strategic importance and thus merited the first of three planned joint commissions between the United States and key African countries.

The other two due to be signed this year are with South Africa, the continent's industrial giant, and Angola, which increasingly rivals Nigeria in oil production.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/05/AR2010040502501.html?

nice machine, happy sales

Nigeria duo P-Square triumph at Africa music awards
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Facebook Twitter Delicious Digg Fark Newsvine Reddit StumbleUpon Technorati Yahoo! Bookmarks Print AFP/File – Burkina's president Blaise Compaore offers a trophy to Gabonese singer Pierre Akedengue (L) to reward … 10 mins ago
OUAGADOUGOU (AFP) – Nigerian R&B duo P-Square were crowned Africa's best in the recent Kora music awards held in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou, attended by some 3,000 people including the country's president.

The twins Paul and Peter who form P-Square beat Senegalese group Black Diamond, Angola's Paul G and homegrown Amety Meria to scoop the top award Sunday, which is worth one million dollars (742,000 euros).

The diva from Cape Verde Cesaria Evora and Gabon's Pierre Akendengue picked up lifetime achievement awards, and a homage was also paid to the late Michael Jackson at the ceremony held in Ouagadougou's sports stadium.

The only black mark on the evening was the absence of Senegalese-American R&B star Akon who, despite being offered a private jet and 150,000 dollars, did not make the trip to the Burkina Faso capital.

Kora awards promoter Ernest Adjovi deplored the singer's absence and apologised to the "15 million Burkinabes and the billion Africans" watching the ceremony.

At least one hundred television channels in 22 countries broadcast the ceremony live, organisers said.

Other successes on the night included Becca (Ghana) for best African prospect, Chronicle 2h (Senegal) for best reggae artist and Alicia Keys, also absent, who was crowned best African-American artist of the diaspora.

Artists from 24 African countries took part in the competition, whose awards are decided through a share of public and jury votes.

The Kora awards were created in 1996 and for the first time the ceremony took place outside South Africa.



http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100405/wl_africa_afp/africaburkinaculturemusic?

the mighty are falling