₦airaland Forum

kudos to Buhari, creating unemployment since 19BC!!

lol very funny, how ironic, if Ameachi worked like you said so how come this? Wike is only 1year in office! Hahahaha zombies sef

Oga so because there is corruption in Nigeria, you have stop everything in Nigeria to tackle it? if there is rat in your house do you cancel your house and start looking for it? life goes on bro! it doesn't call for cancellation of the project!! investigate the alleged corruption and reaward the contract, and stop playing politics with it!! looking for cheap popularity and scoring political points, we all know what happened in Rivers state when he was the governor!

“I haven’t visited all the power plants but I intend to. I intend to visit all the power facilities so that I understand what I’m expected to manage. If I wanted to do that in a whole month, it wouldn’t be enough".
when you employ somebody who has no clue about the job? we will continue to suffer it!! talk is cheap, Oga get to work already!!

lalasticlala and mynd44 food don done ooooh

brownlord:
Okay, but whatever happened to all analysis obiageli, passingshot, Omenka, berem and other APC paid agent made on Nairaland, on how the APC govt will generate funds to sustain this project and even pay them 5k monthly?

ZOMBIES get sense?

modath:
I can't fault Fayose for this, he made no promise, he can't be held accountable! Dazall.

Chai finally there is hope for redemption, you don't dey get sense small small, chief zombie ODEnka won't like this

Nairaland is no longer informative, I don't know whether bloggers dey pay Seun to be moving their useless and hopeless threads to front page!

Nigerian police please try and contact this guy @YomiShogunle

Zombies will be like he is an ipod yoot!!

ILORIN-A senior lecturer at the department of Political Science, University of Ilorin, Dr. Lukman Saka has criticised the recent trip of president Muhammadu Buhari to United Kingdom for medical treatment on one of his ear problems. He said that, such money that would be used for that foreign medical trip could have been used to developed the nation’s health infrastructures. Checks at the presidency claimed that, the cost of the trip which includes aviation fuel, accommodation, allowances for aides and medical treatment amounts to about £6milion. The special adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina had on Sunday announced that, Buhari would be travelling to United Kingdom for medical attention due his ear problem. Adesina said that, the trip would take 10 days and that the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo would be acting as President. Speaking with journalists in Ilorin on Wednesday on the state of the nation, Dr. Saka said that,”this is the government that had been canvassing for ‎the blockage of wastage in the art of governance, now using public fund to fund foreign medical trip”. He said that, such development has exposed the ineptitude of the nation’s leadership towards the growth of health facilities in the country. Saka added that,”if the nation’s health facilities have been developed, I don’t think there is need for President Buhari to abandoned all health institutions in the country and therefore traveled to UK to seek medical attention”. Saka further pointed out that, ” I want to say that, there are many federal medical centers here in Nigeria and even the one built by former governor of Akwa Ibom state, Godswill Akpabio, it is a specialist hospital, President Buhari should have used this local hospital instead of travelling abroad for medical attention. “This shows that, our leaders are not ready to patronise our own hospitals. This is uncalled for, this is a serious problem and this will not improve health care delivery in Nigeria.” “It is high time to learn to encourage ourselves to use our own health facilities instead of traveling overs‎eas because the money that would be used for foreign medical trip could have been used here to move our health institutions forward”. On the proposed dialogue with the militants that had been bombing oil installations in the Niger Delta region of the country, the political scientists said that, the development was a good one on the part of the federal government. According to him,”it is disheartening that, some militants in the Niger Delta region have regrouped to be attacking oil installations in the region and be it as it may be I think the plan by the government to dialogue with them would reduce the economic burden being experienced due to the attacking of the oil installations”. He said, “at least, the dialogue would involve the militants and the leaders from the region and this would assist in resolving their agitation and this would improve the revenue that would be generated from the oil installations in the country”. Saka therefore advised president Buhari to shun all acts capable of affecting the health development in the country in the habit of seeking foreign medical trip, moreso that, Nigeria is blessed with well experienced medical personnel that could attend to his ear problem.

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/06/don-faults-pmb-foreign-medical-trip/ ba7pb92pmb"

Are you saying that Buhari is also corrupt?

Yes, Buhari is corrupt! You want to hear it from my mouth? He is corrupt and I am emphatic about it! He would not say he is not. If he is not corrupt, why did he allow corrupt people, especially former governors to serve in his government? How did he source the money used to fund his election? Why is he giving an individual that is being accused of corruption key portfolio in his government, if he is not corrupt himself? There are several instances to prove that he is corrupt. Look at some former governors and others, if they did not use their states’ funds to sponsor Buhari’s election, as have been severally alleged, what can the president tell Nigerians that make this set of people more qualified to handle two or more key ministries, each of which is even a huge load on an individual? How many heads does Fashola have, or what makes him more human, more capable or more qualified to handle three huge ministries if not to enable him recoup monies he used to sponsor Buhari’s election? The same with Amaechi. That is corruption. It is most unfortunate that the government of he, who claims to be an apostle of anti-corruption is filled with questionable and corrupt individuals. Look at the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, who recently attempted to compel the Nigerian Communication Commission – an agency under his ministry – to loan him over N13 million to fund his un-named official trip to China. If not that God exposed him by leaking his memo to that effect, that money would have been cornered just like that. It shows that such thing has been happening – muscling agencies and parastatals under him to loan him money that may never be repaid. Is that not sheer abuse of office? Has the president done anything about that? We all know why. That is also corruption. The information minister has just been making too much noise with no reasonable impact. Look at even the budget. How can you budget over N39 billion for information propaganda? That amount is more than the budget of some two ministries put together. What do you need such money for; to feed Nigerians with more lies and deceit? The man has got to a point where the president should relieve him because function of party propagandist is different from that of a country’s image maker, which Lai is yet to realise. Lai Mohammed is a sycophant just like Jonathan’s Labaran Maku. Maku was mouthing all sorts of things during Jonathan’s era but he was busy amassing wealth to fund his governorship election, which he lost in Nasarawa. But when he was denied the ticket, he decamped and joined another party, even at the detriment of his principal, Jonathan who was in the presidential race at the time. He has reduced himself to nobody politically. Even the recent appointment of director generals by Mohammed in his ministry is sentimental, divisive and tribal; and we totally condemn it. How can you appoint only DGs who are mostly Muslims and Northerners leaving nothing for the south; just like no Igbo man is occupying office as heading any military or paramilitary agency? If Buhari says he is not corrupt, he should look into all those issues.

When the Igbo were shouting marginalisation and condemning Buhari after his first key appointments, you condemned it, saying such complaint was premature. Why are you now crying over marginalisation?

I felt that it was too early to start complaining. But we have waited now and have exhausted our patience. They are not being fair at all. It is not enough to say that you do not hate the Igbo. You have to match your words with action. There is wicked marginalisation of Ndigbo and southerners in this country and it is so glaring. This cannot augur well when we are preaching one Nigeria.

Some people say that the present complaints were the same issues that led to Biafra agitation in the past, was that the case?

Yes, that was the case. But we are not going to be violent about it, we will continue to cry and advise the authorities on the danger of running lopsided government in a country like Nigeria. The president was once quoted as saying how can the Igbo complain of marginalisation when Kachikwu is the minister of petroleum resources and GMD of NNPC, and other individuals that he mentioned. These people are from South-south, from Delta State. Moreover, appointment into offices does not translate into infrastructural development or direct empowerment of a zone. Kachikwu who they readily mention always serves as a junior minister under the president who allocated the petroleum ministry to himself.

However, what I am saying is that the agitation for Biafra is really not because we want to have a sovereignty of a fresh country but rather because we want to be recognised and treated as co-stakeholders and legitimate part of the entity called Nigeria. Are they saying that there are no South-east-South-south individuals that are qualified and capable to head any military or paramilitary agency in this country? Again coming to DGs, how many South-south- South-east indigenes were appointed as DGs? Even if Buhari wants to appoint only APC members into his government, are there not capable APC members in all the South-east and South-south states? We have been totally side-lined, yet they keep still singing one Nigeria. That is another dangerous corruption that is now building up in APC-led present Federal Government. We appreciate that they are trying to fight corruption and trying to instil discipline into the system but this is part of the needed discipline – not being selective in the scheme of things in the country. We, as men of God abhor and condemn selective negligence. Be fair to all. Buhari stated in his inaugural address that he is for nobody and for everybody yet he is not living it. He is now for somebody. He is no longer making himself to be seen as president of Nigeria but president of a section of Nigeria. So, things must be done normally, with equity and fair play, for peace to prevail. Look at Ogbonnaya Onu. For all his efforts and sacrifices towards the emergence of Buhari as President, all he was given is minister for science and technology. Is that all that such intellectual could get for accepting to dissolve the entire political party, the ANPP, he was heading into the alliance that produced the APC government? Or is it because he is Igbo?

As a religious leader and stakeholder in this country, what can you point at as achievement of the Buhari government?

We have seen that Nigeria is becoming a more disciplined society where people are being controlled over financial recklessness. That is the only thing I can point at now. There is no security in the country. There is no infrastructural development because the money is not there. There is spiral decline in the economy, gradually sliding to recession if urgent control measures are not taken. There is high rate of poverty and hunger and people are angry. Is it unemployment that we would talk about or what? Many governors are said to be using their bailout funds anyhow they like and nothing happens.

So, the bailout is not even serving the purpose for which they were given. We are only hoping and praying that the present administration achieves something tangible in its second year. Again, there are those that have legitimately executed some contracts for the Federal Government, who are now complaining that government has refused to pay them. If that is true, President Buhari should look into it and pay them. They should be paid. If government fails to pay them, it also amounts to corruption, and God frowns at that. You cannot cancel contracts because they are being handled by perceived PDP members and re-award same to APC members without paying for job already done.
http://sunnewsonline.com/buhari-is-corrupt-archbishop-chukwuma/

THE Anglican Archbishop of Enugu Ecclesiastical Province, Dr Emmanuel Chukwuma is not happy with certain current affairs of the nation. For one, he rates President Muhammadu Buhari’s performance in the last one year as grossly unimpressive. He also regretted the president’s failure to address the crisis caused by Fulani herdsmen across the country, in his Democracy Day speech, insisting that government is paying lip service to the issue.

Chukwuma, alleged that the menace of the herdsmen is a grand plan orchestrated to Islamize Nigeria, warning: “We are ready to face them. Any evil herdsman that performs any nonsense anywhere in the South-east should be ready for war. We are not going to draw a reprisal, but we will defend ourselves and make sure that they do not exist in this area anymore to rape our women, destroy our farms and unleash criminality! He also spoke on other national issues including Biafra agitation.

President Buhari, and his APC recently clocked one year in office and while some Nigerians have given them kudos, others have described their outing as a year of broken promises. What is your view?

APC came on with a deceitful colour, blowing the mind of Nigerians day-by-day with bogus promises, which we are yet to see. One may not blame them so much anyway, but the fact is that both the government and the party have not behaved democratically in the last one year. We are supposed to be in full democratic setting but unfortunately, we have found ourselves under military-democracy. That is what APC has inflicted on Nigerians, and that is what I advise them to purge themselves of without delay. If you compare the style of former President Goodluck Jonathan with that of President Buhari, you would notice that Jonathan was a better democrat as president. In fact, he was a democrat to the core. But now, we don’t have such democratic spirit in Buhari. It is such spirit that reassures citizens that their president realises that democracy is actually government of the people, by the people, and for the people. Where do you have such assurances under the present dispensation? Everything is militarized, which is not healthy. We are aware, with shock, that the quantum of spoil and financial depletion that occurred in the last 16 years is so enormous that it cannot be effectively addressed within one year. We can also accept the excuse that one year is not enough to effect the desired recovery, reconstruction and rehabilitation of both the nation’s economy and infrastructure. But Buhari and APC should also know that Nigerians would not allow it to continue to run the country through intimidation, victimisation and spirit of witch-hunting. Things must be done in an atmosphere of love, care and concern. Citizens should be made to see and be convinced that the APC has truly come to repair and not to destroy. There is a way corruption is fought and you end up destroying whatever that is remaining. He who is saying look at a peck in your eyes should remove his own first.

There may be good intentions to fight corruption and reposition the economy of the country, no doubt, but the way they are going about it lacks coordination and professionalism. The government lacks professional financial economists that will help it to put things in proper perspective. I have said it before and I am repeating it again that the minister of finance is immature and unsuitable to manage the nation’s economy at this critical time. All we have seen her do in the last one year is just speaking English, which cannot help the economy in anyway. I don’t think she has any capacity in financial management to handle the management of Nigeria’s economy. I do not have anything against her person, but I am sure that we have several citizens who are much more seasoned and qualified to manage our economy. As we speak, there is no clear economic team, no clear direction of the economy. Our economy is down, our foreign reserve is down, hunger is high and domestic pump price of petrol is high. So, citizens are helpless. Part of the reason for all these problems is because most of the Buhari’s cabinet members, which took him almost six months to put together, were appointed on sentimental basis, not professional basis. For instance, Babatunde Fashola is a lawyer, who would have fitted better as attorney general of the federation but you find him in Power, Works and Housing. What does he know about power? Yes, he was a governor, but being a governor is different from being a federal minister. They are not even related at all. Headship of a ministry should be purely on professional basis. Look at Chris Ngige that is in Labour. He is a medical doctor that would have fitted better in the health sector. There are several others like that. Nigeria has come to a point where appointments should take the shape of round pegs in round holes and not the other way round. The president did well by appointing medical experts as both the senior and junior ministers to man the health ministry and it is commendable. He should shun corruption and repeat same in other sectors.

Are you implying that the APC government is corrupt?

They cannot say they are free of corruption. All we heard in the last one year was fighting corruption, war against corruption and all that. What has Mr President, who is the leader of APC done to the alleged or perceived corrupt people in the party? He is just busy pursuing perceived oppositions. Anybody who dares to speak against the government, they will clamp on him to make sure that person does not talk. Is that not tantamount to waging selective war? That is not democracy, and that has to be avoided! Nigerians are still looking forward to a better Nigeria where one will say he is coming to bring change and it would not turn out to be a change to poverty, hunger, hardship and inflation as we have witnessed in the last one year.

But the current hardship seems to be a global phenomenon, isn’t it?

Is hike in pump price of petrol, without proper dialogue and pre-information also a global thing? Can you mention any country in the world that can hike the domestic price of petroleum products overnight to the tune of about 80 percent even when the price of the commodity has crashed at the international market? Everyone knows that everything in this country is tied to prices of petroleum products especially petrol. After earning people’s votes through mind-blowing campaign promises of reducing the pump price of petrol to N40 per litre, Nigerians suddenly woke up to behold an overnight all-time hike to N145 naira, which is N105 naira above their promised amount of N40 naira per litre. What do you call that? Can such happen in other countries? They should have first, engaged in extensive mutual dialogue with the masses, through various stakeholders, technocrats, labour unions and religious leaders. That would have ensured that whatever agreement reached would be communicated to the people in a way that will guard against undue shock. The labour movement was asking for increased minimum wage, you didn’t care about that but went ahead to increase the pump price. You then began to muscle and intimidate their union. But the truth is that the current pump price is not commensurate with the income of the people as well as the current salary scale of workers, which is very wicked and suicidal. The implication is that the government is insensitive to the needs and views of the people. The president should be sensitive to the needs and views of Nigerians at all times. People are suffering and they need succour, not more suffering. That is why citizens seem to be losing confidence in the APC government, as we speak. And any programme that will bring more hardship on citizens will end up totally crashing people’s confidence in the present administration. The government has been talking about putting some palliative measures in place but I do not agree that because you said you have palliative measures to cushion whatever effect then you are free to unilaterally force strange and stifling policies and programmes on citizens. The palliatives they mentioned are not even enough. How would the so-called palliatives truly translate to the economic development and relief of the people in Nigeria? They might just be packaging the palliatives for themselves, which may end up as money for the boys.

But beyond all that have been said, I see what we are experiencing in this country as part of God’s punishment for Nigeria, because we have taken so many things for granted just like the children of Israel, who were taken into exile in Babylon and also to Asyria. God had promised them inheritance of the Promised Land. But after they offended Him, God took them to Babylon and Asyria as well until they learnt hard lessons and were brought back again. Nigerians should use the current hardship to repent and think about the way we have been so careless, wasteful and indisciplined in managing our resources. Let us use the current situation to think about how to recover ourselves and be a disciplined, prudent society where we can be grateful enough to shun impunity, embrace integrity and value God and human life.

Do you also see the rampaging herdsmen as part of God’s punishment for Nigeria?

The incidence of herdsmen is a matter of people orchestrating some sort of strategies to Islamise Nigeria. That is why nobody has been arrested and prosecuted over it, just as we have in the case of Boko Haram. The president has not also seen reason to make any categorical presidential declaration over it, not even in his recent 2016 Democracy Day address. So, you can see that it is another tricky way of trying to Islamize the country. That is why you see the people spreading their attacks across the country, unruffled. The federal government must declare a state of emergency over the AK-47-carrying rampaging evil herdsmen and not unleashing military guns on placard-carrying youths holding peaceful rally in the east. However, if the government continues to pay lip service to the present realities, they should realise that everybody is now ready to protect themselves and their farmlands. I am speaking in particular reference to the South-east here. We are ready to face them. Any evil herdsman that performs any nonsense anywhere in the South-east should be ready for war. We are not going to draw a reprisal, but we will defend ourselves and make sure that they do not exist in this area anymore to rape our women, destroy our farms and unleash criminality! I had made it clear severally that enough is enough in the South-east. We must begin now to cultivate our own crops, rear our own cows and be able to say: Please, hold your cows, goats and crops. Don’t bring these things to the South-east anymore since you are causing problem and loss of innocent lives here. Then we would be forced to go into serious Fadama farming to empower ourselves. Nobody should take us for granted anymore after all they are even using our own opportunity to enrich themselves by grazing their cattle free of charge on our grasses for many years now. It is their private business, and nothing is free in business. Why should some people be known to be possessing dangerous arms and they are ignored by the authorities who now turn to fire shots at others that are carrying placards? Why should herdsmen be allowed to carry AK-47 about if there is no hidden agenda? That is why the Anglican Church has condemned their so-called proposed grazing bill. It is an Islamic agenda, it is discriminatory and it is not acceptable because it is part of their grand design to Islamize the country.

Do you support Governor Fayose’s recent ban on public grazing of cattle in Ekiti state?

I would say that I feel happy that some state governors can take bold but tough measures to protect their people. The governor of Enugu State is also doing well. In Enugu State now, any herdsman that is found with AK-47 or any weapon other than a stick, would be arrested and charged for murder and illegal possession of arms. That is what should be the case. The case of Ekiti is a more fierce measure. The Ekiti governor adopted outright ban of public grazing of cattle, and that is a dangerous trend. But at least, the herdsmen are now on their knees begging the governor for leniency. So, herdsmen should behave themselves across the country to avoid similar sanctions on them. But if those causing mayhem around us are Boko Haram elements in herdsmen robes that have infiltrated the South-east, then we shall know how to deal with them.

However, I would add that Fayose’s measures may not be the best way because you don’t fire all your bullets at once. I think that a more gradual measure would have been better. That is what the Enugu governor has done. If the herdsmen operate within limited areas without raping our women, destroying our farms and terrorising our people, we will allow them. But if they should go back to their old style, then we shall fire our shots. That is the case here. But, if Fayose’s latest action was based on repeated attacks on Ekiti people, as I heard, then nobody should blame the governor for taking bold measures to protect his people. After all, he is the chief security officer of the state and is answerable to the security of all Ekiti residents.

Why is it that many of those who celebrated the exit of PDP are now turning around to regret the emergence of APC-led federal government?

Nigerians rejoiced over the change because we know that so much impunity had happened in the erstwhile government. Jonathan was a good man, a good democrat. But he allowed so much impunity among his team. That was what happened. Squandering of the nation’s commonwealth was the order of the day, such that if it had continued, the country would have crumbled economically. Look at the staggering amount that had gone into private pockets; how would you have known about it? The country would have bled to death. But God always has a way of salvaging Nigeria. And that is why APC must not take Nigerians for granted. They should stop foot-dragging over letting us know how much they have recovered so far, who and who have been prosecuted, where the monies are going into and what their next projection is like. Nigerians need official tangible statements and not bits of information and hearsay. Nobody has told us what happened to all the Abacha loot that was said to have been recovered. So, we don’t want stories or blame-game anymore. Their failure to give citizens official information until Nigerians start pressing for it amounts to corruption. And of course you know that corruption always breeds corruption. We should stop using tactics to cover up where corruption is underground. Sincerity and prudence in governance are what Nigerians are yearning for. And it would be most regrettable if the APC fails to offer them to Nigerians after all their bogus election promises.

If you say that Jonathan was a good man only that he allowed so much impunity in his team; does that also imply that one can say that it was the PDP government and not PDP that was corrupt during Jonathan’s government?

No. That was not what I was driving at. Are Olisa Metuh and the rest of them not PDP officials? They were all involved.

So Jonathan was corrupt?

Let me tell you: No politician is clean – all of them are corrupt! I say that without any apology. All of them are corrupt because they know how they manipulate things to go in their favour. The political parties know how they manipulate things to get money for their elections. The whole money that was stolen and being recovered now was given to them by the government through the party to strategize for elections. You cannot separate a government from the political party that produced it. So, all of them were involved. The same thing goes to the APC. Most of those occupying key positions in Buhari’s government were those who used their state’s funds to sponsor his election. APC governors sponsored Buhari’s presidential election, which was why they were the main initiators of bail out funds. So, all politicians are corrupt.

you will see Zombies will attack the messenger and not the message! that's how to spot a zombie! Lalasticlala and mynd44 do the needfull!!

more

more

here are his tweets

Kenai:
Soooooo, let me get this straight - Bank X sacks 100 workers, and you respond by threatening to withdraw their license, possibly leading to a total closedown of the bank, culminating in 900 of their remaining staff becoming jobless?

Wow!!! Buharinomics in full throttle!
An ILLITERATE will forever be an ILLITERATE!

I hope you're still enjoying your NEPA bill certificate brandishing president.

hahahahaha wait until zombies arrive with their zombie logic hahaha passingshot Oya

this is very funny, they really think this is military government, Kai obviously a minister that reasons this way, doesn't know what he is doing!

kudos to Buhari!! creating jobs since 1914! Apc Zombies what do you have to say?

lalasticlala and mynd44 this is a good advice, do the needfull!!

Wonderful !! God bless you More!!

Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan delivered a speech promoting democracy, titled ‘Civis Nigerianus Sum – I am a Citizen of Nigeria’ at the Bloomberg Studio in London, United Kingdom today Monday 6 of June. The former President also gave a speech at Bloomberg calling for a Universal Bill of Rights for all Nigerians. Dr. Jonathan also talked about some of his achievements in office including increasing access to education for all Nigerians, maintaining a healthy economic growth rate and ensuring the primacy of the Rule of Law. JonathanIn his speech he said, ‘I am proud of the fact that my Administration established a Federal University in every one of the 12 States that did not previously have them. Now, for the first time in our country’s history, every state has a university established by the Federal Government.’ He also said ‘despite it not being the responsibility of the Federal Government to develop primary and secondary schools, we built hundreds of these schools across Nigeria.’ Dr. Jonathan in his speech also called for equality for all Nigerians, saying ‘no investment in our people is going to pay off if we are unequal.’ Questions after his speech were moderated by Mr. Rob Hersov, founder, CEO of InvestAfrica. The former President has been on a multi-city speaking tour in Europe and North America Read the full text below. Since leaving office one year and one week ago, I have had the luxury of time to be able to reflect on the future of my great country, Nigeria. So today is not about my personal memories or a litany of ‘what ifs’. No! Today I would like to share with you what I believe is the key learning from my experiences for the future of democracy not only in Nigeria but also across the entire continent of Africa. I said before the last election that my political ambition was not worth the blood of one Nigerian. I was true to my word when on March 16th, 2015, just after the election, when the results were still being collated by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), I called my opponent, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) to concede, in order to avoid any conflict and ensure a peaceful transition of power. This was without precedent in my country and I am proud that it achieved my goal of no conflict arising from the result of the election. Some may think it is ironic that perhaps my proudest achievement was not winning the 2015 Presidential Election. By being the first elected Nigerian leader to willingly hand over power via the ballot box, to the opposition party, without contesting the election outcome, I proved to the ordinary man or woman in the country that I was his or her equal. That his or her vote was equal to mine, and that democracy is the ‘Government by the will of the people’, and Nigeria, and indeed Africa is ripe for democracy. It is my sincerest wish that democracy continues to be consolidated in the continent of Africa and it will even get better. For it has always been my consistent desire to help consolidate peace and cultivate democracy in Nigeria and across the Continent. In fact, it was the key foreign policy objective of my Administration when we were able to help broker peace and restore democracy in Niger, Mali, Guinea Bissau and Cote d’Ivoire. ¬ In Niger – The first challenge that confronted ECOWAS when I was Chairman in 2010 was the military intervention there. We were able to resolve it through sheer determination and prudent consultations which paved the way for the country’s return to constitutional rule and democracy. ¬ In Mali – As the Co-mediator of the effort to return the nation to democracy after a surprising military take-over, I was the only sitting President to visit Mali and meet all the stakeholders in the early and difficult times of the crisis. I ensured that Nigeria played the leading role in all the negotiations coordinated by ECOWAS. Our efforts produced a political timetable for the holding of democratic elections. I was happy that our work led to the historic Peace and Reconciliation Agreement signed in Bamako on 15th May, 2015, which I was privileged to witness. ¬ In Guinea Bissau, a nation known for its long history of political crises. As leaders of ECOWAS then, we worked hard to bring about peace by building international consensus around a transition arrangement. This led to the full restoration of constitutional order in the country. After leading the negotiations that produced an interim government, Nigeria provided both financial and logistic support, making it possible for a successful election to hold. The process produced a democratic government that is currently running the country. ¬ In Cote d’Ivoire, in 2010, ECOWAS, under my leadership, demonstrated its commitment to enduring democracy, by standing firm behind the winner of the Presidential elections. The winner H.E. Alassane Ouattara, assumed his rightful place as President, and went ahead to provide quality leadership not only to his country, but also to ECOWAS as its Chairman. As the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and a key actor in ECOWAS, we were also able to encourage peaceful elections in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Togo. // And today, the focus of my energies is to uphold democratic principles, promote peaceful political transitions and support citizen entrepreneurship and intra-Africa trade. These are precisely the objectives of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation. We will achieve this by working with African Governments, the private sector, civil society and other friends of Africa to galvanize action towards improving our societies and making a change in the lives of the ordinary people in our various countries. We will work for good governance by promoting credible and transparent elections, as well as peaceful power transfers. I have no doubt that this is the basic requirement we need for strengthening our institutions and enthroning stability. Our interest in youth and women entrepreneurship is driven by the urgent need to create jobs for Africa’s teeming young population. To this end my Administration championed various initiatives and programmes, including the “Youth Enterprises with Innovation (YouWin), which encouraged young people to go into business, and the “Nagropreneur” programme, which encouraged them to go into mechanized agriculture. Beyond job creation, Nigeria like other developing countries, faced the challenges of corruption, which is a stumbling block to the development of nations. I think it is important to let you know my administration took many steps to curtail this scourge, in the areas of Finance, agriculture and petroleum. To take just one example, we drastically reduced corruption in the agricultural sector with the help of a simple mobile phone. We achieved this by providing an e-wallet to farmers which grew the percentage of registered farmers receiving subsidy from 11% to 94%. And in the process we were also able to save billions of naira in fertiliser subsidies. Through our Agricultural Transformation Agenda, we greatly boosted food production and saved almost a trillion naira on food imports. This one initiative had the benefits of improving food security, creating more jobs and reducing inflation to its lowest levels in over 5 years. Our ambition was to sanitize the corruption in petroleum subsidies by completely deregulating the sector. However, our efforts were frustrated by unhealthy political resistance. Consolidating democracy and the effective war against graft should be the collective responsibility of all citizens. I would like to emphasize my ongoing commitment to good governance, effective stewardship and transparency. For Nigeria to further develop and progress we need peace, freedom and unity. These values need to be deeply, strongly and irreversibly entrenched in Nigeria for all time. For this to happen, it is imperative that both the Executive and the Legislative arms of Government institute a Bill of Rights. A Bill of Rights that will end discrimination and tribalism, and promote equality, enabling everyone to work towards the common goal for the development of the nation. A Bill of Rights which like the British Magna Carta, some 800 years ago, enshrined the principle of habeas corpus so that no person is deprived of his liberty without a trial of his peers. A Bill of Rights, like that introduced by America’s Founding Fathers, which stated “the people shall not be deprived or abridged of their right to speak, to write, or to publish their sentiments; and the freedom of the press, as one of the great bulwarks of liberty, shall be inviolable.” There is a phrase from Cicero going back to Ancient Rome, “Civis Romanus sum.” Meaning, “I am a Roman citizen.” But it meant much more than that. It meant that every Roman was entitled to all of the rights and protections of a citizen in Rome. It didn’t matter if you were rich or poor or even a prisoner, you were still a citizen of Rome and protected by the state. Wouldn’t it be good for us to aspire to a Nigeria where we too could apply that same principle “Civis Nigerianus sum”? Each of us could say, “I am a citizen of Nigeria!” We would be able to look beyond where each of us comes from, and look past our tribal origins. We would be able to evaluate each other on our merits, rather than our religion, or region. We would be free to think or do as we wished, as long as we observed the laws of the land, without fear that the land would withhold our rights under the law. What would it mean to be able to declare “I am a Nigerian citizen”? You would be judged on your own merits, not your tribe. You would have access to education that can help you succeed on whatever path you choose. You would be part of a proud culture, one that others want to invest in. You would be safe in knowing that society judges you by your successes and failures, rather than your place of origin. You would be equal before the law and your protection is enshrined in the laws of the country. You would be an asset and a valued member of your country; one who is worth investing in; who can return that investment tenfold within your lifetime. Ultimately, it means that you would be an ambassador for Nigeria, and you would be able to proudly go around this world and say, “I am a citizen of Nigeria.” Isn’t it true that we are all citizens of a proud Nigeria? Home to great civilizations, such as the NOK and Igbo Uku, which date back over 4,000 years, we are one of the oldest cultures in the world. We are a civilization that had faced challenges, fought wars, and reformed our systems; we have always prevailed through difficult times. We are a civilization that now stands at a crossroads a key time when we must make a decision to move forward or go back. It is my belief, that No matter what location, No matter what faction, No matter what tribe, Each one of us can come together as citizens of the future Nigeria. It was the American Green Party politician Ralph Nader who said, “There can be no daily democracy, without daily citizenship.” The first transformation… must be … a shift in our mindset. We have to make the decision to make the rights of our people our priority when making government and investment decisions. Rather than spending money on resources that will run out, we should be investing it in people who are the key constant elements in the socio-economic transformation of society. Nigeria is projected to have a population that will surpass that of the United States of America by the year 2050. But if we have not invested in our people, then we will not be ready to manage. Our money must go towards providing education for all, because we know that once our citizens are educated, they have futures. Those futures lead to safer cities, stable economies, and more businesses. When a young person does not have access to education, their future is jeopardized and statistics show that they may be prone to antisocial and criminal activities. I am proud of the fact that my Administration established a Federal University in every one of the 12 States that did not previously have them. Now, for the first time in our country’s history, every state has a university established by the Federal Government. Despite it not being the responsibility of the Federal Government to develop primary and secondary schools, we built hundreds of these schools across Nigeria. Yet we need to build on these achievements by changing our mindset to investing in the resources above the ground, rather than below the ground. Once we invest in our citizens, it will be our time to confidently enter the international stage. Each one of us will be able to go to any nation and proudly proclaim: I am a citizen of Nigeria.” When we have a good mindset, we must also strive for equality. No investment in our people is going to pay off if we are unequal. One area some of the international community disagreed with me, was that while I was in office, I signed into law a bill that discriminates against a segment of our population. This private member bill was put forward in the context of polls that showed 98% of Nigerians did not think same sex marriage should be accepted by our society. This was the highest percentage of any country surveyed. The bill was passed by 100% of my country’s National Assembly. Therefore, as a democratic leader with deep respect for the Rule of Law, I had to put my seal of approval on it. However, in the light of deepening debates for all Nigerians and other citizens of the world to be treated equally and without discrimination, and with the clear knowledge that the issue of sexual orientation is still evolving, the nation may, at the appropriate time, revisit the law. When it comes to equality, we must all have the same rights as Nigerian citizens. Former US Congressman Charles Rangel noticed the same thing when talking about America, he said “Full participation in government and society has been a basic right of the country symbolizing the full citizenship and equal protection of all.” Equality will promote meritocracy, growth and security. Tribalism, regionalism and religious intolerance should never be acceptable in Nigeria. Within the Nigerian Federation, anyone, regardless of their home state should be treated equally and have full protection under Federal Law. That is the only way that all Nigerians can be at home in any part of the country and proudly say “I am a Nigerian Citizen.” That is the only way we can eradicate tribalism, regionalism and religious intolerance before they destroy our beloved Nigeria. The constitution recognizes anyone born in Nigeria by Nigerian parents as a citizen. We must go the next step and accept all Nigerians residing in any part of the country as equal citizens. Our new Bill of Rights must therefore amend our constitution to criminalise discrimination of Nigerian citizens residing in any part of the country based on their place of origin. Indigenes and residents must pay the same amount for school fees and social services all over the county. I ask the same question that Eric P. Liu asks, “The next time someone uses denial of citizenship as a weapon or brandishes the special status conferred upon him by the accident of birth, ask him this: What have you done lately to earn it? Every Nigerian must feel at home in any part of Nigeria. It is the only way that each of us will be able to say, “Civis Nigerianus Sum.” As our country increases its equality, its cultural value will increase too. When we increase the cultural value of Nigeria and show it to the world, not only will people spend their business dollars in our country, but their vacation dollars too. You have to buy into the culture of a country before you decide to visit or invest. It will become a self-fulfilling prophecy for our beloved nation. As we invest in the equality of our people and strive to make ourselves more equal, the world will take notice. As our image rises in the eyes of others, we will become even prouder of our national culture. This will repeat and repeat in a positive feedback loop where both parts feed each other and grow as a result. Before I conclude, let me ask you this: Which Nigeria do we as citizens want? An equal or unequal Nigeria? An educated or uneducated Nigeria? One Nigeria or many Nigerias? We all know the answers to these questions hence my call for a Bill of Rights, based on our shared vision for a future Nigeria which is… A Nigeria where you are judged on your merits and not your origins; A Nigeria where you can get the education you want and the future you choose; A Nigeria whose government serves the people and is not above the law; A Nigeria whose government invests in its resources above the ground and not just the resources below; A place where we all work together, rather than allow ourselves to be divided by tribalism or prejudice; Nothing better sums up this vision for Nigeria than our national anthem, which sounds as good in prose as it does in song: “Arise, O compatriots Nigeria’s call obey To serve our fatherland With love and strength and faith The labour of our heroes past Shall never be in vain To serve with heart and might One nation bound in freedom Peace and unity.” I will leave you with this: I am a patriot. I am so very proud of my country. And I believe it is only right and proper for me, and every Nigerian to be able to proudly proclaim, in our villages, in our towns, in our cities, in our country and anywhere in the world: “Civis Nigerianus Sum” I AM A CITIZEN OF NIGERIA. A speech by H.E. Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, former president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, delivered at Bloomberg Studios, London, United Kingdom on Monday, 6 June 2016

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/06/civis-nigerianus-sum-citizen-nigeria-jonathan/

cezarman:
Hahahahahahahaha!! That One Got You Right? No,we 'hate' Seeing A Fellow Hardcore Nicur's Hard Hairy Ars.It's Annoying.

yo what's has my Ars. got to do with this?

989900:
Exactly my thoughts the other time when I said not releasing the names might not actually be a bad thing.

Obasanjo, GEJ and some other people from both APC, and PDP returned monies . . . some had terms for returning the monies.

In the states and some other countries for example, we have plea bargain/restitution even when you go to court. If you can achieve that without legal fees and time wasting -- the better.

We've been st00pid enough from the past to allow every D!ck, Tom, and Jerry have unrestricted/unaccountable access to gov't accounts, in flagrant contradiction to the constitution.

I hope the TSA,BVN,IPPIS, and other templates degrade such gross level of malfeasance and perfidy.

Let's be honest here, so what proof does FG have that they really recovered the loot? do we believe them like that as we all know the reputation of this Government and with lie sorry Lai Mohammed involved? how do we know they are not making things up knowing that this Government still behaves like it's campaigning? did Buhari not say that he will name the looters? So if I steal and return am a free man and no crime committed?
*modified* to all those who have quoted me trying to justify all these stupid reasons, I have one question for una, NA TODAY GOVERNMENT BEGIN TO LIE TO US? WHERE IS THE PROOF ABI MAKE WE JUST DEY BELIEVE THEM DEY GO? LIKE HOW UNA TAKE BELIEVE APC'S CAMPAIGN PROMISES? PLEASE WE ARE NOT ALL ZOMBIES LIKE UNA, WE CAN STILL THINK!!

Luukasz:
I hope u ain't one of those PDP Bigots.

and I hope you are not one of those zombies that have sold their thinking ability?

make Una see reason ooh anyway I no even wan argue but if Apc like make dem dey cook up figures upandan!! and kontinu with their useless propaganda, make dem no tell us say NIGERIA IS BROKE! cos na money be this so!!

Buhari needs help!! even blaming the dead? so the woman deserves to die abi? so if I don't respect or disrespect religion there will be no peace? LUGARD WHY??

huntila:
But he Said the truth na. Respect each other's faith. We need to be tolerant.

like seriously? so if I don't nko? is it worth my life?

as for me, (1) I think he (even tho I know that he can't even use a smart phone talk less of using social media) blames the dead woman for what happened
(2) if you disrespect my religion I have the right to kill you!
lalasticlala and mynd44 what do you guys think?
TO BE HONEST BUHARI NEEDS HELP!!