Malam Shamuna Ustaz Jibril, the man who is credited with many predictions which he attributes to God and through his powers, has predicted a massive victory for General Muhammed Buhari in the forthcoming polls in Nigeria.
In the same vein, he said a spiritual calculation also puts the New Patriotic Party (NPP) ahead of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) should an election be held in 2016.
In the case of the Nigerian polls, he said in his latest release on the politics in both Africa’s most populous nation points out that “Buhari’s All People’s Congress (APC)will register a marvelous performance in the forthcoming polls.”
“The APC will win in Lagos State by 53%, Kano, 70%; Borno State, 87%; Yola and Adamawa States 85%, Katsina State and Delta States 55% and 35% respectively,” he said.
Continuing, the cleric said, “Using the Holy Quran, I can predict that the APC will win 54% of the total votes while its rival PDD will get 38%.”
Continuing, however, he mentioned that “Goodluck Jonathan will seek to massage the figures in his favour, especially in Delta, Cross River and Ogun States. PDP will be involved in ballot box snatching in Port Harcourt which will be pursued by APC supporters.”
Nigeria’s Electoral Commission, he said, would attempt announcing their own results outside the real ones, a situation which would plunge the country into chaos.
“I call on Buhari to stand his ground and insist that the right thing is done.
I also call on Goodluck Jonathan to hand over power as quickly as possible otherwise his wife, the defence minister and the head of the Electoral Commission will find their way to the ICC eventually. No matter how much Goodluck tries to change the results, he won’t succeed. If Goodluck insists some of his cabinet ministers would be killed in the ensuing mayhem and their houses torched. It will take over a week for the results to be declared. Boko haram insurgents will vandalise some polling stations and kill 10 persons, but 15 of their men will also be killed in Bawolli, Yola, Jos and Maiduguri.”
He asked the world to pray for Nigeria because things would be rough during and after the elections.
In Togo, he predicted that the incumbent Faure Eyadema would win the polls by 53 percent. In the US, he predicted that the Republicans must work hard to take power from the Democrats.
In Burkina Faso, he said the polls date would be postponed by three months.
In Ghana, he said, “Were elections to be held in 2016, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) will register the following results “Greater Accra Region, 70%; Ashanti Region, 88%; Eastern Region, 85%; Western Region, 79%; Volta Region, 35%.
I, however, doubt if there is going to be elections in that year. Should there be elections, however, the foregone are the results to be registered.”
Besides the energy crisis, there would be other challenges between now and August, one of which would be a major water shortage.
“One of the former American presidents will pass away,” he added.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has uncovered yet another in the series of devilish plots being hatched against the leadership of the party, this time involving a huge amount of money (in US dollars) which are being ferried into Nigeria by some people who will then claim they were hired as cash couriers by APC leaders.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the funds are to be ferried into the country through the Seme or Idi-Iroko, or any other border posts, anytime from now.
It said those who orchestrated the importation of the raw cash from a West African nation have also tipped off the security agents at the border posts to watch out for those who are bringing in a colossal amount in US dollars.
“Their plan is that once the couriers – who have been coached on their assignment – are arrested by Nigerian security agents, they will point accusing fingers at some top APC leaders who supposedly commissioned them to bring in the money to be used for the forthcoming elections.
“The plotters of the evil plan will then order the arrest of the leaders, with a view to damaging their credibility and destabilizing them ahead of the elections,” APC said.
The party said as many evil plots as are being hatched by desperadoes who are bent on setting the country ablaze just to realize their naked ambition will be exposed, because Nigerians themselves, within and outside the government, have decided to be extra vigilant.
“Let’s be clear: Our leaders, who have been the targets of unprecedented mudslinging as well as physical and psychological threats will not be intimidated into abandoning their epic struggle to save our country from a rapacious administration.
“Therefore, let those who have been unrelenting in threatening them and also painting them black, using every means imaginable, desist, because their game is up. The people of Nigeria have repudiated their primitive tactics,” it said.
APC said those who will, in their usual manner, rush to deny this plot must remember that despite their denials in the past, all the alarms raised by the party have either come to pass or have been checkmated by their exposure.
“Let us remind them that we raised the alarm over their plan to postpone the elections and it came to pass. We raised the alarm over their opposition to the use of card readers and now all Nigerians can see. We raised the alarm that the OPC will demonstrate against Jega in Lagos and it was accurate to the day. We will continue to expose the plotters of evil,” the party said.
ozoigbondu: Three motions was tendered but it was remi fayode's own that got both parliament and british assent though with a small modification on the date of the actual independence
ZACHIE: Some say it was Chief Anthony Enahoro Fani Femi Fakayode claims it was his father that did Yet, another source claims it was actually Chief S L Akintola that did.
There was more than one motion tendered, in the years leading up to 1960. Here is one from 1953.
Written by CHIEF ANTHONY ENAHORO Mr. President, sir, I rise to move the motion standing in my name, “that this House accepts as a primary political objective the attainment of self-government for Nigeria in 1956”.
‘Sir, this motion is an invitation to the Honourable Members of this House to associate the highest legislature of our land with the expressed desire of the peoples of this country, whose views we all represent, for political autonomy in 1956. It seeks to provide representatives from all parts of the country with an opportunity to exchange views on the most burning question of our time. It is an invitation to this House to make a declaration of objective with regard to Nigerian freedom.
‘I do not propose, sir, to go into the arguments for self-government because I am satisfied that it is generally accepted on all sides of the House that self-government for this country at some future date is a desirability. Therefore I propose to deal with this motion in two main parts and very briefly –namely, of what significance is such a declaration of objective and secondly, why should the objective be 1956?
‘Sir, I believe that a declaration of objective by this House has become a matter of supreme importance in our march towards self-government. For the time being, this Legislature is the supreme voice of the people of this country, although not all majority decisions which have been taken in this House in the past could hope to survive the test of a referendum. It is essential, in my view, to assess why a formal motion of this nature the honest feelings of various sections of the House and to discover to what extent these feelings may truly reflect the aspirations of the politically conscious citizens of this country.
‘Self-government is after all, sir, a subject on which it is of the first importance that people should believe rightly, and I cannot overstress the great inspiration and succour which various political parties in this country would derive therefrom if the demand for self-government in 1956 were to enjoy the full force of the backing of the highest legislature of the country.
‘Some Honourable Members may feel that the issue of self-government is not one for these House to decide. It may be argued that it has very little to do with the present administration of this country, but speaking for this side of the House, sir, we have always felt that the House of Representatives should serve a dual purpose in our political progress. Firstly, that it is our duty to utilize the powers which we now enjoy in this House to further the expansion of our economy and of our social services and to remove obstacles on the road to freedom; but secondly, and perhaps even more important, we must use this House Representatives itself to continue the fundamental struggle for national freedom. One of the basic moves in the furtherance of that struggle –and even though we carry it on with less violent methods than the people of Kenya have found it necessary to employ, it is nevertheless a struggle –is a statement of our goal and that is why, in my view, it is necessary for this House to express an opinion on this subject.
‘A declaration of objective, sir, is important in other respects. We and our people can be likened to builders. We have set out to build a new state. From the multitude of tribes in this country we are striving to build a new and modern structure. Self-government is merely the foundation of that structure. This work of construction is a romantic idea to me, and I am sure that Honourable Members will agree with me that we are all proud and honoured to be the architects and that we should be grateful to Providence that this task has fallen upon our generation. But among the responsibilities which accompany this great honour and privilege is the important decision which none but ourselves can make, as to when we shall strike the first sod in this new edifice.
‘Many Honourable members, sir, have had houses built for them. Others like myself may only have seen them built. In the North I have seen peasants construct their own hamlets. For many years these poor peasants must have planned and dreamed of their own little homes. They did not just sit by and hope that Providence would create a new home for them. They did not say to themselves, “I shall lay the foundations of my new home as soon as practicable.” That is not planning. On the contrary, I am sure that they must have examined their own earnings and their business prospects over a period, then considered their commitments and found out where savings might be made here and there, and then they could say to themselves, “By the grace of Allah, I shall lay my foundation in three or five years’ time”
‘Now, the builders of a nation, as we are, are no different from these poor peasants. That is why in places like Russia, England, India and other countries, the Government sets out a declaration of objectives embodied in five-year plans, and all that this motion asks of this Legislature is to follow in the footsteps of these great and wiser nations and to establish a political objective towards the attainment of which we can bend the energies of our own people.
‘Many years ago, sir, when I was a young man and I entered public life, the popular slogan was “Self-government in our life-time”. But as the country advance, this slogan went out of vogue and the new catch-phrase was “Self-government as soon as practicable”. That is many years back. As I have said, I do not wish to deal with the arguments for self-government and how the desire for freedom grew, but anybody who has kept pace with political advancement or with the trends of political thought in this country in the last seven years will agree that the bare idea of self-government is no longer attractive, is no longer enough.
‘Whether it is expressed as “Self-government in our life-time” or “Self-government in the shortest possible time” or “Self-government as soon as practicable”, it has ceased to be a progressive view, because Nigerian nationalism has moved forward from that position. The question in the public mind since the end of the war has been, “Self-government, when? What time, what date?” That is the question which this motion now invites Honourable Members, who should be true representatives, representatives of that same public which is demanding an answer, to answer.
‘There is a third reason, sir, why a declaration of objective is important. We do not want to part with the British people with rancour. For may years have they ruled us. We are not an unreasonable people, and like a good house servant, it is only fair that we should give our masters notice of our intention to quit, so that they can effect arrangement either to employ new servants or to serve themselves. We do not wish to take them by surprise. On the contrary, we wish to invite them to co-operate with us in the attainment of our objectives.
‘Honourable Members may remember that the Indian cause alienated a lot of sympathy in the United Kingdom because of what was regarded as the indecent hast with which the British evacuated or withdrew from India. The British mind, essentially a conservative mind, does not like things thrust upon it all of a sudden. We all know that. This motion is designed therefore to acquaint the British public with what we are thinking, with what we are feeling, so that our agitation in 1956 for self government will not come to them as a surprise. This motion will also afford the British Government sufficient time within which to arrange gradual withdrawal and progressive transfer of power to Nigerians.
‘Sir, a declaration of objective, such as this, is essential for a fourth reason. It is now accepted by the highest international bodies that there should be a time limit for self-government for Colonial territories. I may mention here, without giving anything away, that one of the questions which the recent British Labour Party Delegation to West Africa asked my party was what the House of Representatives thought about self-government for Nigeria in 1956. The Trusteeship Council of the United Nations Organization has requested governments administering Trust Territories to fix target dates when such territories will attain self-government. The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions has also declared its acceptance of the principle that a time limit should be set by occupying powers and Imperialist Governments for self-government for their dependencies.
‘Even in Britain itself, a large body of opinion is growing in support of this principle. I well recall, sir, that when I was in England last year, Mr. Fenner Brockway, the well-known Socialist M.P., said in the course of a Colonial affairs debate in the House of Commons: “I should like to urge upon the House and particularly upon the Secretary of State for the Colonies that if we are to secure the confidence, trust and co-operation of peoples in the Colonial Territories, the best way to do it would be in discussion, consultation and agreement with them to fix a target date when in each respective Colony the goal of self-government would be secured. And I believe that if it were possible to pursue such a policy, we would change the psychology of the Colonial peoples.”
‘I myself think that was a very correct assessment of our psychology. It is clear that such international organizations as I have mentioned and men like Mr. Brockway are thinking along the lines of this motion and I think it is up to this Legislature, representing the peoples of this country, to strengthen their hands.
‘That, sir, is very briefly the first part of my argument explaining the significance of a declaration of political objective.
‘Now, sir, if it is agreed that an objective should be declared, what should it be? It may be asked, “Why pick on 1956? Is not 1956 an arbitrary date?” What considerations have led to the decision on this date?
‘Mr. President, tow of the many factors which have influenced our selection of this date are the factor of convenience and the factor of previous commitment. 1956 is convenient, sir, because it is the year which will see the end of the present constitution. The Constitution Order-in-Council is dated 1951 and is supposed to expire in five years It is public knowledge that all true nationalist have made up their minds that this is the last constitution prescribing a dependent status which the people of this country can tolerate.
‘To recommend a date earlier than 1956 would be to put premature end to the life of this constitution, and although I myself can contemplate such a course with pleasure, we know too well how strenuously some sections of the country would resist it. In addition, most of the programmes and policies of the Regional Governments to educate and prepare our people for freedom are based on five-year plans, and I think it would be unwise, to say the least, to interrupt the process of maturity of these programmes with the upheaval that constitutional changes might occasion.
‘To settle on a later date would mean a further period in national slavery, a prospect which I do not think any Honourable Member would welcome. We might, if we settled on a later date, have to draw up yet another interim constitution and waste time and public funds to arrange new elections, still as a subject people, at a time when our sister colony on the Gold Coast and our kinsmen in the West Indies and places like Malaya will most assuredly be free independent nations. It seems to me, therefore, that we cannot afford to put the date forward and it will be inadvisable to set it back. Convenience therefore dictates 1956.
‘The arguments on the grounds of previous commitment are even stronger. There may be some doubt as to whether any particular political party is fully representative of the people, but there can be no doubt whatsoever that any unanimous view approved by the majority of political parties must represent the true feelings of the politically conscious citizens of any country, and 1956 from this point of view enjoys the advantage of unanimity. The Action Group, the N.C.N.C., the Northern Elements Progressive Union, the Askianist Movement, the Convention People’s Party, have all publicly declared for self-government in 1956, and I am confident that today –on this historic day in the political annals of this country- I am confident that the Northern People’s Congress will take the opportunity of this debate to associate themselves with the declared objective of all other true nationalists in this country.
‘Sir, the Action Group, the N.C.N.C., the Northern Elements Progressive Union, and indeed all true nationalist who interviewed the Labour Party delegation left them in no doubt that 1956 is their irrevocable choice. I myself, in the course of my tour of the United Kingdom last year, gave many interested organizations and our own students over there to understand that we are deeply committed to 1956. I am sure that Chief Bode Thomas, Chief Arthur Prest, Mr. Arikpo and Mr. Nwapa who represented us abroad last year in their ministerial capacities, could not have failed to make this claim. Chief Bode Thomas has even gone further to publicize our ambitions in Canada and New York to world personalities. All these great people and organizations are looking forward to the emergence in 1956 of the largest and greatest Negro nation in the world as a free independent country.
‘We have all at one time or another held out high hopes for 1956 to our own people at mass meetings, at public lectures, in the press and though other media. Our people are expectant. We have, all of us, whether it is the Action Group or the N.C.N.C. or other parties, promised at one time or another to lead them to the promised land in 1956. We cannot now go back on our plighted word. You will understand, therefore, Mr. President, that on these three grounds of previous commitments, 1956 is a position from which it is impossible to retreat, and that is why this motion recommends it to this House for adoption.
‘Mr. President, there are one or two minor points to answer on this subject, such as, “shall we in fact be able to rule ourselves in 1956? Shall we have enough knowledgeable men and women? Are there any grounds for the fear on the part of some Members from the North that they will be dominated by the South?” I shall leave these questions, sir, to be dealt with by my Honourable Friends who will speak after me. For the moment, I hope I have said enough to show why it is of paramount importance that this House should set target date for self-government and why that date should be 1956.
‘One final observation I would like to make is upon the attitude of the Special members of this House and of the Ex-officio Members to this motion. I believe, sir, that the subject of self-government is an issue between Nigerians and the British Government. It is nothing whatever to do with my good and honourable friends, the Special members and with my equally good and honourable friends, the Ex-officio Members. I hold the view that no non-Nigerian has the right to express an opinion in this House on this subject or seek to influence the course of this debate on the time that we may choose to strike for freedom. We are the elected representatives of our people –and that applies to all Nigerians here. We are all elected by some process. We, as the elected representatives of our people, do not require the assistance of any alien to help us to decide when we should be free. I would, therefore, appeal to the Special Members to refrain from speaking and from voting on this motion, whatever their private feelings may be.
‘The Ex-officio Members, sir, are in a similar position. Their functions in this House relate to the work of certain specified departments of government. Perhaps they have the interest of Nigeria at heart. Perhaps they have not. Their private feelings are entirely their own concern and are of no consequence in this debate. The subject of this motion is not covered by the portfolio of any Ex-officio Member. I would like, therefore, to appeal to them in all sincerity to stay out of this debate, sir, and to let us Nigerians argue our own demands and desires and differences among ourselves. We will go into the lobbies, sir, to decide the future of our own people and of our own children. None of the officials has a stake in this country, and I mean no offence at all when I describe them as mere birds of passage. They are here today, sir, but being of the Colonial service, they may well be elsewhere tomorrow, by transfer or by retirement. I beseech them, therefore, not to take any course which might lead to an estrangement between us and them.
‘Mr. President, the whole country –I might even say the whole world- is awaiting the verdict of this House on this motion. News of what we say there today will travel far and wide. I do not know how many honourable members read the English press. They may have noticed in the Daily Telegraph an account of the debate which took place here last week on nudity. I am sure that any Honourable member looking back now and reading an account of that debate will feel thoroughly ashamed of the decision of the House. I appeal, sir, to all sections of this House not to let us repeat the mistake of underestimating the extent of overseas interest in the proceedings of this House. Our minds are irrevocably made up on the issue of self-government in 1956.
‘Sir, I beg to move.’
(Extracts from Fugitive Offender by Chief Anthony Enahoro pages 124 to 131)
alfred5: Interview with DW? And i ask APC which one is DW?
Can yuou please give us Yutube section of this interview?
APC, shame on you people!
That's a statement by Wole Soyinka, the first African writer to win the Nobel Prize for Literature back in 1986. DW- correspondent Jan-Philipp Scholz caught up with him in Nigeria's most populous city Lagos
Another faction of the OPC responded swiftly and angrily on Monday, accusing Mr. Adams of betraying the group and the Yoruba people.
“We, the members of the National Coordinating Council of the Oodua People’s Congress, OPC, the highest ruling body of the organization, wish to disassociate ourselves from the shameful, destructive, violent and reactionary activities of the Gani Adam-led team which occurred in Lagos today,” the group said in a statement.
“What was witnessed today in Lagos was the highest level of political violence sponsored and funded by certain elements in the Jonathan government.
“Gani Adams is on his own and does not enjoy the support of a large size of our membership spread across the country. He is working for the sponsors of violence against our people who want the March 28 elections not to hold. Unleashing terror on innocent citizens and killing them is not the way of democracy. It is not our idea of a people-oriented advocacy.”
Monday’s meeting of the OPC faction was attended by Shina Akinpelu, Monsuru Akande, Sunday Adebayo, Kilanko Oladipupo, Kehinde Ogunyale, and Gbenga Eegunlusi.
In its statement, the faction accused Mr. Adams of being on “dubious project” and using the pipeline contract from the government as an excuse to recruit people to work for Mr. Jonathan and PDP in the South West.
“Gani Adams is acting against Yoruba interest. The compromises he has made amounts to selling the Yoruba to the present government for a piece of Pipeline contract to line his pockets,” the group said.
“OPC is not about pipeline contracts or any other contracts for that matter. The Yoruba interest is beyond contracts. We seek justice and fairness from the current government.”
The group called on Yoruba sons and daughters to join them in condemning Mr. Adams and his “anti-democratic tendencies.” “We must renounce him and remind him he cannot sell the Yoruba race to Jonathan and PDP on the cheap. He also has no authority to speak on behalf of the Yoruba people,” they said.
“We pity those who rely on him to win votes. They will be sorely disappointed. Their investment is a bad one already. We reject today and always any attempt to use our organization and its members for narrow and selfish partisan purposes.
“We must remind them that the Yoruba people cannot be hoodwinked by sweeteners. No one should expect them to kow tow to an individual who is a Lilliputian in the political development and history of the Yoruba nation.”
While renouncing Mr. Adams and his activities, the group also renounced other Yoruba sons and daughters who are playing roles inimical to the welfare and interest of the South West.
“We call on our people to be vigilant politically at this time. Nigeria needs a new leadership, a new direction and a country that works.”
^^^GEJ learnt a thing or two from his godfather who managed to weaken Afenifere beyond the point of repair, while raising a new structure in the form of Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE). Reposed with just the right amount of skulduggery, it is clear that that he has also perfected the art of decapitation; where babies are split in half and kith is pit against kin.
Let's see how far this reinvigorated attempt to 'divide and conquer' takes him...
One of the highly respected monarchs in Ijebuland, who was part of the meeting confided in that they are not hungry monarchs who can be easily bought over with the President’s dollar, thus, decided on their stand before the meeting.
The royal father revealed that the President had before the visit sent an emissary to the Paramount ruler to discuss how he would like the meeting to go, a development that really pained Awujale.
[b]“A prominent Ijebu businessman, whom I don’t want to mention his name was sent to Awujale by the President to speak with him on how he will want the meeting to go and also to get a remarkable response from him. He believes that Awujale is a strong factor that can add weight to his ambition at the poll.
“This man met with Awujale on Wednesday, a day before the visit but Awujale angrily expressed his reservation to the middleman,” the royal father said.
The Oba noted that Awujale is blunt and straight forward monarch. “He told the man, whom he so loved, that he will never be part of such arrangements and warned him never to do such again.”
Awujale then asked the middleman: “How many President have you ever hosted in your life, even, with your riches and wealth? Are you now the one to teach me on how I should host the President or you think I am a stereotype or robot King. Never let such a thing happen again, else, you will not like what will happen next,” the monarch was quoted to have told the President emissary angrily.[/b]
Commenting on why they refused to take group photograph with Mr President, the monarch queried: “why the noise about group photograph, haven’t they got enough pictures during the meeting, after all, they took several pictures, is that not enough. So, what is so special or important about this group photograph?
“You can see how the picture taken at the Ooni’s palace gwent viral on the social media. Is that the kind of thing our own picture will turn to? Awujale is not like that, he is an institution of integrity, an authority and a symbol of culture and tradition. We respect our tradition and nothing should be done to soil it. If Mr ‘A’ does something, does that mean that Mr ‘B’ too must do it?
“Awujale has spoken our minds, we don’t campaign for any politician and President Jonathan is not exempted. Is he not a different person, are they not all the same. So, we have resolved to maintain our dignity and integrity. We are fathers to all, we should not be seen as playing partisan politics and that was what we have demonstrated,” the royal father said.
Another monarch, who is from Odogbolu local government expressed dissatisfaction with some of the utterances from both the President and some of his aides during the meeting.
The monarch, who pleaded anonymity exclusively revealed that the President either deliberately or tactically ignored some of their requests and was saying other things.
It would be recalled that the PDP Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Muazu, while speaking at the palace, recounted his youthful experience where he stated that Ijebu are stingy people, but was angrily corrected by Awujale, who said, “we are not stingy, but prudent in our spending.” All the monarchs at the palace and other Ijebu sons and daughters at the palace were uncomfortable over the his joke. Even, when Muazu was insisting while speaking that we will not leave here until we receives blessing, it was clear that his hosts were not happy with him over such embarrassing statements.
According to him, “We were worried when the President was reacting to the requests and address of Alayeluwa, Oba Awujale. In his address, he mentioned like four to five things and when the President wanted to react, he just flipped through them and was saying that he did roads, railway, agriculture, so, if re-elected, he will do more. ‘A n wi’ri,o nwi’ru’, meaning, we are saying this, he is saying another thing. “Awujale spoke about not feeling the federal presence in Ijebuland, rescusitating the moribund Iwopin paper mill, Ijebu state and also on reimbursement of Governor Amosun on the construction of the Mobalufon flyover. We should have risen above partisan politics. That bridge is a landmark not for Ogun people alone but Nigerians as a whole, but instead of direct response, he was making political statement, forgetting that he is not at a campaign ground,” he revealed.
A Presidency source confirmed to our correspondent that they are now regretting their visitation to Ijebu Ode, especially, the following day when they read newspaper reports and saw the headlines which was not good for the President’s re-election bid.
Sources at the Presidency revealed that after the meeting with the royal father, President Goodluck Jonathan and the PDP inner caucus were very angry with some of the party leaders from the state, who have made the Presidency believe that they are very popular in Ogun.
The source disclosed that during the analysis of the visit, one of the party leaders from the southwest, who was on the entourage said: “we would have got the endorsement if not for the stupid tale of the Chairman. Why should he be saying that Ijebus are stingy in front of their Obas, that’s too bad.
“He was even saying that we would not leave the palace until the monarch bless us. Is he forcing them or what. Something must be done to redeem ourselves because I know Awujale very well,” the party chieftain was quoted to have said.
A palace source also informed our correspondent that Awujale, since last Thursday visit of the President, has received over 500 text messages congratulating and commending him and other Ijebu monarchs on their actions. The messages according to the source, are still pouring in.
It would be recalled that on February 21, President Jonathan, after inaugurating the Olorunsogo Power Plant 2, at Papalanto in Ewekoro local government area of Ogun state, held a private meeting with some prominent traditional rulers in the state. At the meeting were the Akarigbo of Remoland and Chairman of the Ogun State Traditional Council, Oba Michael Adeniyi Sonariwo; Alake and the Paramount Ruler of Egbaland, Oba Michael Adedotun Gbadebo, Olowu of Owu, Oba Adegboyega Dosunmu, Olu of Itori, Oba Fatai Akamo, Oniro of Iro, Oba Adebari, Olu of Owode-Egba, Oba Kolawole Sowemimo and other traditional rulers, mostly from the Ogun Central Senatorial District.
Also, three weeks ago, the President was in Oyo State to visit the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi and the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Oladunni Ajagungbade in their respective palaces.
On March 7, the President visited the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, in Ile-Ife, Osun State to seek the support of the monarch and other Osun monarchs for his re-election.
Apart from the Ooni, the Orangun of Oke-Ile, Oba Adedokun Abolarin, the Owamiran of Esa Oke, Oba Oba Adeyemi Adeniran, the Olufi of Gbongan, Oba Adetoyese Oyeniyi, Alowa of Ilowa, Oba Bukola Ali, the Olojudo of Ido- Osun, who is the Secretary, Board of Trustees, BoT National Council of Traditional Rulers in Nigeria, Oba Adedapo Aderemi and other monarchs from the entire Ile-Ife region were at the palace to receive the President.
The President, thereafter, proceeded to Ilesa, where he also met with the Owa Obokun and Paramount ruler of Ijesaland, Oba Adekunle Aromolaran. Traditional rulers from Ijesaland were also present at the Owa’s palace to receive the President. In Ekiti State, a similar scenario played out. Jonathan met Ekiti monarchs when he visited the state for the PDP campaign in January and about 50 traditional rulers were present at the meeting and the President took time to shake hands with all of them.
Facts have emerged on why Awujale of Ijebuland and other Ijebu monarchs failed to take group photograph with President Goodluck Jonathan when he paid a courtesy visit to the Awujale and Paramount ruler of Ijebuland, Oba (Dr.) Sikiru Kayode Adetona, Ogbagba II, last Thursday.
Royal fathers who spoke to our correspondent revealed that Jonathan and the national chairman of the Adamu Mu’azu made statements that angered the monarch, noting that, Mu’azu’s description of Ijebus as stingy people played a major role in making the Ijebu visit a fiasco.
Jonathan, the presidential candidate of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was also not endorsed by the Awujale because ahead of the presidential election on March 28, 2015 because the Awujale said Ijebu Obas are not allowed to do so.
As part of his efforts to seek for re-election, Jonathan has been visiting several people, including the monarchs, he visited the South-West repeatedly since the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, postponed the general elections.
The President has traversed the geopolitical zone, holding series of meetings with traditional rulers, religious leaders and other groups and individuals.
Analysts have concluded that the Southwest voters might determine the outcome of the presidential election, as a result, both the APC and the PDP are making strenuous efforts to win the votes of the region.
Last week Thursday, when Jonathan paid a private visit to the Awujale in his palace at Ijebu Ode with the expectation of cow-tow him and other Ijebu monarchs to endorse him as it was done for him at Ile-Ife, Osun state.
Our correspondent can exclusively report that the Presidency has remained unsettled since the visit as they were shocked by what happened at the palace.
Earlier before reading the welcome address by the Dagburewe of Idowa, Oba Y.A. Adekoya, he was quoted to have told Mr President that: “His Excellency, the man you are sitting with now, our own Awujale and Paramount ruler of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona is 81 years old and he has spent 55 years on the throne. The man is wearing gold and you know that gold does not rust,” Dagburewe was quoted to have said amid applause.
Our correspondent reliably learnt that the Presidential protocol officers had tried to rush the MC, who is one of the Otunbas, but the compere bluntly told them: “I am acting on the directives of the Awujale and nobody can give another order. That is our tradition here, we don’t rush.” Later the Master of Ceremony invited the Obiri of Aiyepe to introduce all the members of the Ijebu Traditional Council numbering about 45. It would be recalled that as the event was rounding up, the Master of Ceremony announced that all the monarchs should move outside of the palace terrace for a group photograph with the President.
The atmosphere at the Lions Hall, venue of the meeting inside the Awujale palace, instantly changed as most of the monarchs declined to go while those who had intended to go for the picture, having read the body language of others, who are mainly old horses, had to retrace their steps. The photo session was called off as the President hurriedly left the palace.
The show signalled serious disappointment and embarrassment to the President, as the protocol hurriedly guided the number one citizen to his vehicle and zoomed out of the palace to catch up with another appointment at the Nigerian Stock Exchange in Lagos.
IN a display of leadership-by-example in these belt-tightening times brought about by the slump in crude oil price at the international market, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has ordered a 30 per cent pay cut for all political appointees in the Executive arm of government including himself and the Vice President.
But there is a new twist over the pay cut initiative by the President yesterday as a dependable source at the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMFAC) told The Guardian that the President lacks the power to implement a pay cut unilaterally without the Commission’s approval.
The source who asked not to be named, however, confirmed that the Commission was in receipt of a request from President Jonathan on the matter but said the request may not sail through because it does not for now see the need for the pay cut, pointing out that a similar development played out around 2009 and 2010 when the late President Umaru Yar’Adua made the request of pay cutin the face of falling oil prices.
With crude oil mineral resources constituting more than 80 per cent of Nigeria’s revenue stream, the country’s liquidity condition has, expectedly, been jolted since the third quarter of last year when prices at the international market headed downwards until recently when it began a gradual recovery.
The slide downwards has made it very difficult for the funding of the capital components of the 2014 fiscal plan as envisioned. Consequent upon this, the current fiscal plan still with the National Assembly presents a very tight and austere budget with some of ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) getting zero allocations for capital expenditure, the scrapping of certain redundancies within the public service and introduction of alternative areas of revenue generation to make up for the more than 50 per cent drop in revenue from the petroleum sector.
Now, in addition to those unveiled earlier by the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala when she presented the 2015 spending plan on December 17 last year, which include the introduction of taxes on luxury items and first class and business class air travel taxes, Jonathan has directed a 30 per cent pay cut for all political appointees in the Executive arm as part of sacrifice to free up revenue for funding of the yet to be passed plan.
The Director -General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Dr. Bright Okogu, who revealed this at the weekend when he spoke to The Guardian exclusively in Abuja, said the directive takes immediate effect.
All classes of political appointees including Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Federal Government agencies are affected by the pay cut order. His words: “Political office holders’ salaries are being cut by between 20-30 per cent, ranging from permanent secretaries, directors’ general and so on all the way to ministers.
This, however, does not amount to very much, but the purpose is to show the commitment of this administration that if they want to make adjustment, they want to do it and lead by. “Beyond this pay cut, you can also look at the expenditure side and see pruning measures such as some of the things the people do on a yearly basis to decorate offices. We are encouraging government officials to delay such things like getting new office buildings or such things. We are going to focus on things that are really important for recurrent spending.
‘‘And the final point I wish to make relates to the Oransaye Report which you may have heard of. The Federal Government initiated this and has gone through the whole process. The report has been submitted, the White Paper is out but what has happened is that some merging entities may lead to loss of jobs.
‘‘The aim here is to streamline the activities of these agencies and save government some money and then fund the ones that are left, better. If necessary, you can deploy such staff to other areas of government where they are needed, so you are not laying people off.
‘‘The President has told us severally, that the ideas he has are not to deny people their jobs. He knows that every single person that is working and earning salary is taking care of other five, six extra people in the immediate and extended families. So this is not a matter of saying you want to throw people out of jobs.
This is very clear, when it comes to job protection and creation. The President is very concerned and he supports us 100 per cent in some of the policies we have developed as a team over the years.”
The Director- General also gave an insight into the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and fiscal plan still with the National Assembly as well as how the plan is fashioned to protect the vulnerable and ordinary Nigerians from the pangs austerity. “We have an oil production level which has fallen from last year and the years before. We are hoping that the actual production that comes in will match what I have just described. We have chosen a benchmark price currently lower than the market price at about 52 or 53 dollars per barrel. Whatever it turns out to be, we have initiated a lot of measures including some of the ones you have heard of.
“Number one, some of the entities that were enjoying tax exemption status, such as in the oil and gas sector, are now going to pay. They were making profit before. The forbearance given to them was to the point and we should be able to get revenue from that. This is an innovation. You also have the tax on luxury items. But when it comes to things to protect the lower income class, the President told us not extend the tax.
This is a demonstration of the President’s concern, those are some of things he has been passionate about, that is trying to protect the lower class. Like I mentioned, the Federal Inland Revenue Service will bring in more non-oil revenue and we are hoping that down the road, some conversation about Value Added Tax (VAT) can be concluded. ‘‘The Federal Government gets 14 per cent only and the states where more VAT is generated get 85 per cent.
One per cent goes to FCT, so the Federal Government is pushing this to help the state governments and they also have interest to see the VAT rate move down the road. We are not saying we are going to do it today, because the atmosphere is not ripe now but we are talking and preparing everybody’s mind and consulting to see what Nigerians think about it. “Then look at the expenditure side, just to round up, because you have the revenue side and the expenditure side. The government has initiated and introduced a circular with respect to training being done in Nigeria.
There is no reason why if Ministry of Finance or any body wishes to train staff, such staff must go to Ghana or Dubai or anywhere else. ‘‘We’ve always said that this is not the best way to go.
We have beautiful places here in Nigeria like Tinapa or Lagos or even here in Abuja. Several other areas around the country can be good for trainings. But this year it’s actually being put into action,” Okogu further revealed. But according to the RMFAC source: “The remuneration package for political, public and judicial office holders in use now remains the February 2009 to June 2009 approved package because the last time the late President Umaru Yar’Adua attempted to revised it suffered a setback because the commission which role is to among other things fix political office holders’ package didn’t see the need based on economic realities then.
You know it was during the same oil price fall. So the package has not changed. “Yes, President Goodluck Jonathan has actually made the same request. But unfortunately, the commission has still turned it down because there is no merit in the move. I can tell you he has no right to temper with the salary of any political office holder.
“However, the President in his own capacity can say he would not receive a part of his salary or all of it, saying he is donating it for charity or related cause but he can not order his or any other person’s pay as approved by the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission,” our source insisted.
Under the sustaining pay package for political office holders, annual take home pay is N14.058 million which translates to a month pay of N1.171 million.
The Vide President takes home annually the sum of N12.126 million broken down to N1.010 million every month. For senior ministers, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and chairmen of constitutional bodies, their annual package is N7.801 million with a monthly value of N650,136.65 kobo while ministers of state and members of constitutional bodies take an annual package of N7.536 million which gives them a monthly pay of N628,056.91 kobo.
For the categories of special advisers, which included others like speech writers, their yearly pay is N7.09 million and per month, N590.957.81 kobo. For the Auditor General of the Federation, the Accountant -General of the Federation; executive secretaries; chief executives of parastatals and INEC Resident Electoral commissioners, their annual package is N7.414 million which translate to a monthly pay of N617, 881.68 kobo.
The package is exclusive of some other emoluments which are annually or monetised entitlements.
First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan has stated that her husband must complete a second term as allowed by the Constitution.
She spoke in Benin, Edo State on Saturday at a women’s rally in support of President Goodluck Jonathan.
Dame Jonathan also responded to criticism that she was guilty of hate campaigns and highlighted her husband’s achievements.
“Everybody is staying there for eight years. Now it’s our turn. We must complete our eight years. It is a constitution of this country. We will complete our two tenure and hand over.
“I am a peaceful person and I preach peace anywhere I go. They are looking for fight, they are looking for war. They are troublesome people. That is why they went and take expired drugs.
“Now they are crying. They are the people stoning people and nobody talk. They are dragging stadium but me I am ready to go to the street and do my campaign.
“The president is building schools. That is why in the whole federation when he came in, he built universities in every state. He built federal universities so that our children should go and learn.
“Goodluck has built uncountable hospitals, primary health centres. He equipped primary health centres, trained doctors and nurses
“In Edo State, the federal university has been rehabilitated and well equipped for us. He gave our sons scholarships. Mr. President is ready to pay if you don’t have money to pay for your children.
“They were there years back. They have nothing to offer. Ask them what they offered to us when they were there. They were in Aso Rock before, what did they forget in Aso Rock they want to go and take. Days are gone when old people will continue to dominate us”.
In a bid to put to rest the controversy surrounding the credentials of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Major-General Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian Army has stated that it is not in possession of his West African School Certificate (WASC) with which he enrolled in the Nigerian Military Training College in 1962.
At a press briefing yesterday in Abuja, the Director of Army Public Relations (DAPR), Brig-Gen. Olajide Laleye, said the clarification was necessitated after the barrage of requests from individuals and corporate organisations seeking to know the true position of Buhari’s credentials.
But in a swift reaction, the APC warned that those bent on destroying its candidate may end up destroying the country’s military by dragging it into politics.
Providing further insight, Laleye said: “I don't have that information on whether General Buhari has applied for his credentials. The reason why we put this press conference together is because individuals and corporate bodies have written severally requesting for his credentials.
“We want to make it clear that we hold Buhari in high esteem having risen through the ranks. “Now the raging controversy concerning this has been what the Nigerian Army presented to you as facts. We have not added anything and we have not subtracted anything.
“In his personal file in the Nigerian Army, we do not have his original copy of his WASC, nor does the Nigerian Army have the certified true copy of his WASC results, neither do we have a photocopy. We don't have any of them but we do have other documents to show how he was recruited into the Nigeria Army as was entered in Form 199A.” The army spokesman explained that the available records indicated that Buhari applied to join the military as a form six student of the Provincial Secondary School, Katsina, on October 18, 1961. “He was fully endorsed by the principal of the school, who also wrote a report on him and recommended him to be suitable for military commission. “It is the practice in the Nigerian Army that before candidates are shortlisted for commissioning into the officers’ cadre of the service, the Selection Board verifies the original copies of credentials presented.
“However, there is no available record to show that this process was followed in the 1960s,” he said. Nevertheless, Laleye said the entry made in the Nigerian Army Form 199A at the point of documentation after commission as an officer indicated that the former head of state obtained his secondary school certificate in 1961 with credits in the relevant subjects: English Language, Geography, History, Health Science, Hausa and a pass in English Literature.
“Neither the original copy, certified true copy nor statement of results of Major-General M. Buhari's WASC result is in his personal file. I hope this explanation will put to rest the raging controversy surrounding the secondary school credentials of Major-General Muhammadu Buhari as it affects the Nigerian Army,” he said.
customized13: [s][/s]Its worse when you know nothing and yet you don't seem to acknowledge that. You are so dull, anything other than this is simply unacceptable.
Nah the odious rain-water wey fall make dove and vulture cower for shelter under the same canopy. We are not in the same league, TANoid customized13
customized13: oluwole statement of result, buhari joined the army with a piece of paper from his principal.
A1 in Igbo? What kind of reetaarded analysis is this?
In addition to your limited intellectual ability, are you also blind?
Not WAEC format in 1961? (1) It is called a certifying statement of results (2) Buhari's sat his exams under an examination board that was not WAEC
Katsina State was created in 1987 So frigging what?
You will be surprised that in that school, student records dating as far back as 1932 are still intact. Out of the whole lot, Muhammadu Buhari’s 1961 final examination records were fished out. They were then entered into the standard result format issued to all secondary school students who graduated from schools in Katsina state.
For each school, the Principal and the Examination Officer are the signatories to results issued from the master list sent to the school by the relevant examination bodies as you must have seen it on the copies of the statement of result circulating in public.
Wrong Name A slightly different spelling does not amount to fraud. Ever heard of standardization? Adeshola == Adesola
Conflicting Date The only conflict that exists here is the one you conjured up 1961 denotes the year the original exam was held. 2015 denotes the year a new statement of results was released
Failed maths, yet gained admission without incomplete result
NOTES:
Examination results were classed in grades by 1 to 9. 1,2,3,4,5 & 6 indicate a Pass with Credit; 7 & 8 indicate a Pass; 9 indicates a Failure. To pass the School Certificate, candidates had to pass examinations in a variety of groups. It was compulsory to pass English Language, but not Maths, in order to gain the Certificate. The number of candidates who sat for the WASC Hausa examination in 1961 was 152. Our records show that Hausa was set in the Northern Region in 1961.
What happened to the more cerebral TANoids on NL? Why does one have to spend valuable time responding to pan-handlers, whose contribution to debates is mainly of nuisance value.
PhockPhockMan: Have you ever seen anybody who got employed with mere statement of result? Keep deceiving yourself.
Trying to convince a TANoid, whose stock-in-trade is to mortgage the truth, is essentially a pointless exercise. My intervention here is not about what you are your co-travelling band of deluded souls care to believe, far from it. Rather, it is more about setting out the stall for the more objective reader.
But why is it difficult for Buhari to produce the original copy of the certificate?
He did. As I speak to you, I don’t know where my original certificate is because we gave the original to the Military Board. They took it from us when we applied to join the Army. You give the original copy of credential to the board. They take it and keep it in your file, that’s what happened. How many years ago? 50 years. And Nigeria with our (poor) record-keeping and filing things into an archive -if we have an archive at all; an archive inhabited by rats and cockroaches. I think it’s an insult. I take it as a personal insult.
“They cannot intimidate us forever. Let me tell you that my courage comes from knelling down, praying and asking God for strength.This time in South-South and South-East, we will not write result. We are going to vote and our votes will count and I am proud to be part of APC. You must vote and stay there because members of PDP are magicians,” Seminatari quoted Amaechi as saying.
d. In Oyo State, the General Office Commanding 2 Division, Major General NS Muazu (N/7627) was posted to the Division for the same purpose. When he assumed command, one of the gubernatorial candidates handed him over a brand new PRADO JEEP with Two Million Naira (N2,000,000.00) as a gift. Is that part of his mandate as a GOC?
Well, since GOCs became de facto Resident Electoral Commissioners (REC), anything goes
For the emboldened question, I refer the petitioners to Donald Duke's scoop on how Governors rig elections
A MUST READ: How Governors Rig Elections, By Donald Duke-Guardian ...
...
When the Resident Electoral Commissioner comes before the elections are conducted- of course when he comes to the state, usually, he has no accommodation; monies have not been released for the running or conduct of the elections and all that because we always start late. He pays a courtesy call on the governor. It’s usually a televised event you know, and of course he says all the right things. ‘Your Excellency, I am here to ensure that we have free and fair elections and I will require your support.’
Now, at that courtesy call, most governors, at least I did, will invite the Commissioner of Police because he is part of the action and he sits there.
[b]After the courtesy call, the Resident Electoral Commissioner now moves in for a one-on-one with the governor the says, “Your Excellency, since I came, I’ve been staying in this hotel, there is no accommodation for me and even my vehicle is broken down and the last Commissioner didn’t leave the vehicle, so if you could help me settle down quickly;’ and the governor says, ‘Chief of Staff, where is the Chief of Staff here?’ And the Chief of Staff appears. Governor says: ‘Please ensure that the REC is accommodated–put him in the Presidential lodge, allot two cars to him, I give you seven days to get this done. Then the relationship has started; I am going to share some of these things with you so that we don’t leave here with any illusions.
A lot of us, folks who have gone through an election or have been elected for one thing or another, see groups like Save Nigeria Group (SNG), the CLP as woolly-eye dreamers, you have to come down to the backsides, since I am now a hybrid between both. I want to bring you both down to backsides. Let me take you down to what happens so that you can change it because if you don’t change it, we here won’t suffer but I think of our children will.[/b]
dein77: Sir Isaac Newton, the electoral law said CERTIFICATE, not STATEMENT OF RESULT!
All we want to see is Buhari's WASC/Cambridge. That's all.
In that case, you would be waiting till kingdom come. I have already explained why a certifying statement of results (or affidavit) has to be used, in place of a stolen certificate, elsewhere.
Now let's see if you can process the information included below...
(An earlier post on the same subject) ========================================
Who told you it is possible to get a certificate for an examination held more than 50 years ago, in 2015, TANoid @maslong?
When are you untutored clowns going to understand that things worked a little differently in the 1960s? Or that 'University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate' (UCLES) no longer exists in its original form.
For one; all enquiries relating to certificates of exams held that far back, must now go to 'Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Exams' (OCR) - a new examination board
Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Exams (OCR) Contact OCR if your old exam board was one of the following:
East Midland Regional Examinations Board (EMREB) Midland Examining Group (MEG) Oxford and Cambridge Examinations and Assessment Council (OCEAC) Oxford and Cambridge Schools Examination Board (OCSEB) Royal Society of Arts (RSA) Southern Regional Examinations Board (SREB) Southern Universities Joint Board for Schools Examinations (SUJB) University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES) University of Oxford Delegacy of Local Examinations (UODLE) West Midlands Examinations Board (WMEB) If your exam board was the East Anglian Examinations Board (EAEB), contact either Pearson Edexcel or OCR - they both hold some of the records.
And two; OCR would only provide a 'certifying statement of results' - the equivalent of the same document already provided by Katsina college - and not an original CERTIFICATE.
customized13: yarning, as if we don't know how northerners go about it, buhari joined the army with a written letter from his principal, abeg tell us something else.
Chew on this...
EXCLUSIVE: Katsina College releases Buhari’s WASC results
Government College, formerly Provincial Secondary School, Katsina, which Muhammadu Buhari, the All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential candidate, graduated from in 1961, has released Mr. Buhari’s secondary school certificate examination results.
The results, obtained exclusively by PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday, confirm Mr. Buhari’s claim that he undertook the University of Cambridge West African School Certificate Examinations and obtained five credits in English Language, Geography, Hausa Language, History, and Health Science.
PREMIUM TIMES obtained the computer printout from Cambridge University as well as a statement of result, signed by the current principal of Katsina College, dated January 21, 2015.
The results show that Mr. Buhari, a former military head of state, failed in Mathematics and Woodwork, and had a pass in Literature in English. The examination centre number was 8280, while Mr. Buhari’s candidate number was 002.
The statement of results is printed on the letter head paper of the Katsina State Ministry of Education, and it shows that the examination took place in 1961.
The Cambridge print out also shows the result of 17 other candidates at the centre, including Shehu Yar’Adua, a former Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters.
customized13: Only an insane person will think buhari cannot join the army without wasc based on quota system.
I cannot debate someone who defaults to a state of unreason, but I have no problem putting the facts out there for other interested parties.
Whether you like it or not, back then, the basic educational requirement for admission to the Officer Corps was a West African School Certificate or equivalent. Now here is the clincher; maths was not a pre-requisite for the West African School Certificate (WASC) in the early '60s.
2. To pass the School Certificate, candidates had to pass examinations in a variety of groups. It was compulsory to pass English Language, but not Maths, in order to gain the Certificate.
See image attached for further details on entry qualifications. Source: The Nigerian Military: A Sociological Analysis of Authority and Revolt 1960-67 (African Studies), Robin Luckham
Osama10: I can still remember my days in Uniport, we did certificate verification close to graduation time, I travelled to benin then WAEC office got the certificate and back to school to do the verification exercise. So why is it so difficult for someone who claims to be a Mr Integrity to just show a common certificate? I just wonder.
PhockPhockMan: To prove that I'm brainless as you said , show me Buhari's certificate. Or Sharaaaaaaaap.
I insist, Buhari is certificateless.
dein77: Instead of all these unnecessary insults, let him just show it to us. It's that simple! Mohamed Buhari, according to the letter of recommendation from his principal, gained admission into the Military with WILL PASS basis. Of course then, the Nigerian Military was effectively an Hausa-Fulani military where favouritism, nepotism and corruption reigned supreme. From the letter, it was obvious an average Hausa-Fulani needed ONLY a letter of recommendation to gain admission to institutions located at the North. Besides, there's no further evidence he later got his certificate. We should quit being emotional about this issue. He that cometh to equity should do so with clean hands. We won't let this matter slide till its addressed. It's not impossible for him to have grown through the ranks to become a general, especially in a system headed mostly by the Hausa-Fulani oligarchs. We know these things. He was in the UK lately. He should spare us the stress by simply showing us his certificate. What's difficult?
A statement of results which qualified him for a certificate has already been produced - fact! Have you seen the folks at Cambridge, who addressed other ancillary matters in two different press statements, dispute its authenticity? Of course not!
I am afraid El-rufai is absolutely right on this score, some of you just can't help showcasing your limited intelligence to the rest of the world.
On the same day, the president equally visited Owa Obokun of Ijesaland, Oba Adekunle Aromolaran, in his palace at Ilesa to get assurances from him for his ambition.
However, in the South West, Jonathan would need his good luck and the bulk votes to stand a chance of turning the tide against his major rival, Buhari.
The zone has the strongest inclination to Buhari among the three geopolitical zones in the South.
It is thus understandable that the Jonathan and the PDP have been making frantic efforts to woo the people of the region.
Indeed, the PDP and its strategists in the Presidency are believed to be jittery over the realisation that losing the South-West might cost them the presidential election.
The outcome of the presidential elections will tell how far his consultations went. It’s too late – APC
The APC meanwhile, has derided the efforts to canvas for votes in the forthcoming general elections as an effort in futility.
The party said President Jonathan was attempting to do in six weeks what he could not do in four years.
It, however, noted that such calculation and assumption that the PDP could make the people vote for it within six weeks was “a glaring instance of cluelessness, incompetence and near total lack of governance that the Jonathan administration has exhibited in the past six years.”
The APC, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed early this week said “Even if President Jonathan moved Aso Rock to the South-west or opened the nation’s treasury for Nigerians so as to remain in power, it is obvious that majority of the citizens have rejected the government.”
While it frowned at the president’s lobbying in the Southwest, it said all the president’s “latter-day” efforts went up in smokes when over one million Nigerians marched through the streets of Lagos in support of change.
The party said its latest opinion poll on the forthcoming elections showed that Nigerians had already made up their minds regarding which party to vote for even before the six-week postponement which the PDP orchestrated to allow its candidates at all levels recover from its dwindling image.
“It was amazing the president’s men can even think that six weeks of unprecedented bribery of individuals, pretence governance, and cash-induced occult-like ‘prayer’ sessions, among others, will turn the tide in their favour. Nigerians are not fooled by these antics,” the APC stated.
THE postponed general elections were greeted with mixed feelings by Nigerians. Though many had kicked against the six weeks postponement, but beneath the line of such opposition was the general agreement that the shift would afford the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, ample time to put its house in order to avert a post-election crisis.
The two frontline political parties, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and the All Progressives Congress, APC, having also accepted the shift, have since then been projecting strategies to outwit one another at the polls.
President Goodluck Jonathan, mainly having sensed the swing towards his rival, Muhammadu Buhari of the APC in the crucial Southwest has devoted strength and strategies towards recovering himself in the region.
The strategic importance of the Southwest was underlined by the presence of the two major political party presidential candidates in the Southwest last Thursday. Indeed, any activity that would take the president to Lagos is now a relish.
In an interesting manner, President Jonathan has, perhaps, made the South West his second home, visiting at the slightest opportunity. In the last three weeks, the president has gone on a tour of the South-West visiting traditional rulers, politicians, leaders of ethnic nationalities and other opinion leaders, seeking support.
On January, 13, he had a stop-over at the palace of the Ewi of Ado-Ekiti soliciting for the support of the people.
Also, on February, 19th, the President visited Oba of Lagos, Rilwanu Akiolu.
But the traditional ruler failed to endorse any presidential candidate but he did not hide his position on the current political issues in the country.
Jonathan’s train also stopped in Ondo State where he visited the Regent of Akureland, Princess Adetutu Adesida during his presidential rally in February.
To show his seriousness, he visited the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi twice within two months.
He has also visited the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Jimoh Oyewumi where he canvassed for votes in the ancient town.
On Mar 11, 2015, Jonathan visited the Awujale and Paramount ruler of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, Ogbagba II at his palace in Ijebu Ode to solicit for the royal father’s support. The traditional ruler, however, said he would not give out an endorsement.
The Awujale was away in England when the president met with prominent traditional rulers from the state on the sidelines of the commissioning of the Olorunsogo Power Plant last month.
The monarchs were led by the Akarigbo of Remoland and Chairman of the Ogun State Traditional Council, Oba Michael Sonariwo, Alake of Egbaland, Oba (Dr.) Aremu Adedotun Gbadebo,Olowu of Owu,Oba Adegboyega Dosunmu,Olu of Itori,Oba Fatai Akamo, Oniro of Iro,Oba Adebari,Olu of Owode- Egba, Oba Sowemimo and other traditional rulers, mostly from the Ogun Central Senatorial District.
On March 7, Jonathan paid a courtesy call on the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade, where the monarch led some prominent traditional rulers to pray and endorse the President for another term in office.
The senator representing Kwara Central Senatorial District, Bukola Saraki, has denied links to an alleged documentary which aims to expose the love triangle between President Goodluck Jonathan, his wife Patience and the Petroleum Affairs Minister, Diezani Allison-Madueke.
The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation had alleged on Wednesday that Mr. Saraki and two serving All Progressives Congress governors were planning to sponsor and fund a damaging documentary about the private lives of the three titled, Dirty Love Triangle Between President Jonathan, Patience and Diezani.
However, a statement by his media aide, Bamikole Omisore, Thursday, said the senator, who is an APC member, was not aware of any love triangle between the president and the two women in question and therefore, had not been and would not be involved in anyway, manner or process of such a documentary.
“Senator Saraki has always centred all his argument on issues that affect the lives of Nigerians,” Mr. Omisore said. “Such issues include but are not limited to unemployment, mismanagement of public funds, and non-implementation of the budgetary provisions just to name a few. “These are the things that affect Nigerians and as a Senator of the Federal Republic these are the issues Nigerians want the Senators to debate and not the private affairs of Mr. President.
“On the contrary it has been PDP that has been attacking the private lives of our presidential candidate and personal affairs of our leaders in the APC. We have maintained a certain respectable decorum in both the use of language and material in every campaign.”
The statement said Mr. Saraki, a former governor of Kwara State, was aware that the PDP was pushing such a ridiculous story as a way of blackmailing members of the opposition with spurious and cooked-up allegations.
“For the avoidance of doubt we have concrete evidence at our disposal to the effect that the recent bad press Senator Saraki has been receiving lately surrounding an old issue of over a number of years involving a bank loan and company called Joy Petroleum, are directly orchestrated by the presidency particularly documents sent by email to the judiciary correspondents for their use,” Mr. Omisore said.
“Senator Saraki is aware that the PDP has been going around Kwara State bribing and begging people to partake in a documentary against him to cause disaffection in the eyes of the public having adjudged him a threat in the forthcoming general elections.
“So it’s funny to now hear that the same party that’s organising such a documentary and from the beginning of this campaign have threaded on this dishonourable course using their own words should be accusing others of what they intend to do.”
The statement said the alarm raised by the PDP on the planned documentary was just a diversionary tactic in preparation of a bigger plan. It said Mr. Saraki was not aware of any “love-triangle,” describing the allegation as baseless and lacking in substance.
“I want to reassure all our supporters that as you know this is not our trade in stock and should disregard this false alarm,” Mr. Omisore said. “Senator Saraki will like to warn all those still scheming to carry out this false documentary on him that he will fight back and legally defend himself and warn those in glass houses whose past particularly as regards their private lives is not honourable should steer clear and be warned. We have restrained ourselves not because we don’t have the capacity but because we have pledged that this election will be about issues.”
Mr. Saraki, according to the statement congratulated members and non-members of the APC but “rejected such evil offer because it is glaring that Nigerians are more concerned about issues that matter to them such as how to get jobs for their children, food on their table and security of their lives and properties and not the love triangle documentary or any of the derogatory attacks and documentary against opposition being sponsored by PDP.”
Politics › Re: Survey Tips Buhari To Win March 28 Election- The Sun Newspapers by TheOtherview: 11:23am On Mar 19, 2015
