Dispute over Edo cement plant site deepens

on November 01, 2015 / in News 12:50 am / Comments

Facebook Twitter Google+ LinkedIn Reddit Print
By Kenneth Mbele

It also refuted the claim that the agitation of the community has to do with the discovery of mineral resources in the area, stating that the issue is about the attempt by a monarch, the Okuokpellagbe, to re-draw of Okpella and excise it from its motherland.


“We are part and parcel of Okpella; in fact, we are part of Oteku, which is one of the two ruling houses in Okpella; we are no settlers; we are children of the direct son of Okpella. The Okuokpellagbe has been doing all sorts of things for over 40years, going into our lands and doing whatever he likes with it, but this claim that we are no longer Okpella by him is what has fuelled our agitation, nothing else,” Chief Charles Adogah, SAN, President of Komunio Development Union, said.

He explained his community’s involvement in the crisis tearing apart the cement-producing town of Okpella. Apart from the proof of the January 28, 1965 Mid West Gazette, entitled: ‘Public Lands Acquisition Law’, which read: ‘Notice is hereby given that the following land at Kominio-Okene Road, Komunio, in the Afemai Division of the Benin Province, Mid-Western Nigeria, is required by the government for public purposes absolutely’, to show that it is the officially recognized owner of the land, Adegah presented a copy of a 2014 judgment in the community’s favour by the High Court, Agenebode, Edo State, in which the court declared the revocation notice of the land, dated December 24, 2013, irregular, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect whatsoever. According to him, Komunio’s entitlement to adequate compensation for the land before it could be compulsorily acquired and the setting aside of the purported revocation notice was published in the Vanguard Newspaper of January 11, 2014.

Stating that the Justice V.O.A. Oviawe judgment of November 18, 2014 is yet to be challenged or set aside, Adogah and counsel to the community, Dr. Ayuba Giwa, of A.O. Giwa & Associates, said Komunio was represented as claimants in the suit it filed against the Governor of Edo State and the Attorney General to ask for the reliefs by four of its illustrious sons- Hon. Charles Ikhumesomi, Johnson Afemikhe, Pastor Eshioramhe Eshioguemue and Magnus Odion Philip.

“What they are claiming now is the land close to the cement factory the Mid-West gazette earlier mentioned to have been published on January 28, 1965, clearly showing that the land belongs to Komunio. It did not mention Iddo or Imiegiele. Therefore, the lands, where you have the mineral deposits, are behind, towards the North-East. Their allegation that Iddo and Imiegiele own the land is not true. Ogriga is part of Komunio; they have no existence of their own. Ogriga is just a settlement in Komunio, they are right if they say that they are co-owners of the land because all of us are Komunios”, Adogah and Giwa stated.

“Iddo, now issuing threats to Komunio, was not captured by the origin and genealogy of Okpella documented by the colonial masters in November 1931. The colonial masters, who authored the document, had no interest of their own to serve and there was no issue of mineral deposits then. If they care to know also, four years after the documentation of the Okpella genealogy, precisely 1935, the clan map of Kukuruku was drawn by the colonial masters. It showed Okpella to be made up of two sub-clans, Ogute and Oteku. Imiegiele was in the Ogute sub-clan while Kumunio and their brethren, who migrated from Ituri-egba, close to North Ibie and now call themselves Iddo, were in the Oteku sub-clan. Only this year also, the Ogiriga people re-affirmed, in a letter, that they were part and parcel of Kumunio. Then, you ask, at what stage did Imiegiele, from a different sub-clan and Ogiriga, that is part of Komunio and Iddo that was not in the1931 genealogy of Okpella, miraculously together now become overlords to Komunio?

“That apart, in the statute defining the traditional ruler ship of Okpella, two ruling houses were recognized by law, Ogute and Oteku Ruling Houses. Imiegiele is in Ogute Ruling House. The Oteku Ruling House has two component parts, including the Kuminio part, which comprises the Ogiriga and Iddo component. It, therefore, beats imagination how a legally recognized component part of a ruling house can be a tenant of another component part within and outside that ruling house. If these have not sufficiently put a lie to their claims, the gazette Declaration of the Customary Law of Okpella still exists for all to see.

Kumunio had, at no time, taken Jack Oba to court for calling them tenants and lost the case. We challenge anyone in possession of such a court judgment to come out with it. In fact, we are aware of a judgment in a case between Dirisu Aliu of Imioko-Ukhuomunyio and Alhaji Sumaina Aruna of Iddo and another between Aliu and Osuma Audu, decided on November 22, 1994 by the Ukpilla District Customary Court. The court, in that case, decided that the land, occupied by the Nigerian Army along the New Road, belonged to the plaintiff’s father, Aliu Unuakhe (Agbadamachi), of Imioko- Ukhuomunyio. What happened these past years is that the Komunio people were interested in peace and good neighbourliness and did not bother over Okuokpellagbe, Alhaji A. Y. E. Dirisu’s actions, including the signing of concession papers. Now, he wants to drive us out of our land. We can’t take that and we decided to boycott activities at his palace and he has now gotten a section of Ogriga, Iddo and Imiegiele to say they own our land. You cannot call people slaves and expect them to be quiet. How do you call aborigines tenants and you expect them to fold their hands?”

Adogah restated the observation of the Kumunio people, at their conference, that the BUA Cement Group, which they commended for its huge investment in the area, was discriminating against their youths in its recruitment exercises.

The community, in accordance with its resolution at that conference, he said, had mandated a 10-man delegation to deliver a protest letter to the firm’s management, arguing that employment for youths by the BUA Cement Group ought to be a corporate social responsibility to its host.

As the community has resolved to take its destiny in its own hands in a process of self-determination and among others pursue with the Edo State Government the creation of its

own separate clan out of Okpella, the Kumunio Development Union President said the community will pursue this goal side by side with massive development of the place, beginning with an education programme for its children to raise the Human Development Index (HDI) of the community. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/11/dispute-over-edo-cement-plant-site-deepens/

Dispute over Edo cement plant site deepens

on November 01, 2015 / in News 12:50 am / Comments

Facebook Twitter Google+ LinkedIn Reddit Print
By Kenneth Mbele

It also refuted the claim that the agitation of the community has to do with the discovery of mineral resources in the area, stating that the issue is about the attempt by a monarch, the Okuokpellagbe, to re-draw of Okpella and excise it from its motherland.

Oshiomhole
Oshiomhole
“We are part and parcel of Okpella; in fact, we are part of Oteku, which is one of the two ruling houses in Okpella; we are no settlers; we are children of the direct son of Okpella. The Okuokpellagbe has been doing all sorts of things for over 40years, going into our lands and doing whatever he likes with it, but this claim that we are no longer Okpella by him is what has fuelled our agitation, nothing else,” Chief Charles Adogah, SAN, President of Komunio Development Union, said.

He explained his community’s involvement in the crisis tearing apart the cement-producing town of Okpella. Apart from the proof of the January 28, 1965 Mid West Gazette, entitled: ‘Public Lands Acquisition Law’, which read: ‘Notice is hereby given that the following land at Kominio-Okene Road, Komunio, in the Afemai Division of the Benin Province, Mid-Western Nigeria, is required by the government for public purposes absolutely’, to show that it is the officially recognized owner of the land, Adegah presented a copy of a 2014 judgment in the community’s favour by the High Court, Agenebode, Edo State, in which the court declared the revocation notice of the land, dated December 24, 2013, irregular, unconstitutional, null and void and of no effect whatsoever. According to him, Komunio’s entitlement to adequate compensation for the land before it could be compulsorily acquired and the setting aside of the purported revocation notice was published in the Vanguard Newspaper of January 11, 2014.

Stating that the Justice V.O.A. Oviawe judgment of November 18, 2014 is yet to be challenged or set aside, Adogah and counsel to the community, Dr. Ayuba Giwa, of A.O. Giwa & Associates, said Komunio was represented as claimants in the suit it filed against the Governor of Edo State and the Attorney General to ask for the reliefs by four of its illustrious sons- Hon. Charles Ikhumesomi, Johnson Afemikhe, Pastor Eshioramhe Eshioguemue and Magnus Odion Philip.

“What they are claiming now is the land close to the cement factory the Mid-West gazette earlier mentioned to have been published on January 28, 1965, clearly showing that the land belongs to Komunio. It did not mention Iddo or Imiegiele. Therefore, the lands, where you have the mineral deposits, are behind, towards the North-East. Their allegation that Iddo and Imiegiele own the land is not true. Ogriga is part of Komunio; they have no existence of their own. Ogriga is just a settlement in Komunio, they are right if they say that they are co-owners of the land because all of us are Komunios”, Adogah and Giwa stated.

“Iddo, now issuing threats to Komunio, was not captured by the origin and genealogy of Okpella documented by the colonial masters in November 1931. The colonial masters, who authored the document, had no interest of their own to serve and there was no issue of mineral deposits then. If they care to know also, four years after the documentation of the Okpella genealogy, precisely 1935, the clan map of Kukuruku was drawn by the colonial masters. It showed Okpella to be made up of two sub-clans, Ogute and Oteku. Imiegiele was in the Ogute sub-clan while Kumunio and their brethren, who migrated from Ituri-egba, close to North Ibie and now call themselves Iddo, were in the Oteku sub-clan. Only this year also, the Ogiriga people re-affirmed, in a letter, that they were part and parcel of Kumunio. Then, you ask, at what stage did Imiegiele, from a different sub-clan and Ogiriga, that is part of Komunio and Iddo that was not in the1931 genealogy of Okpella, miraculously together now become overlords to Komunio?

“That apart, in the statute defining the traditional ruler ship of Okpella, two ruling houses were recognized by law, Ogute and Oteku Ruling Houses. Imiegiele is in Ogute Ruling House. The Oteku Ruling House has two component parts, including the Kuminio part, which comprises the Ogiriga and Iddo component. It, therefore, beats imagination how a legally recognized component part of a ruling house can be a tenant of another component part within and outside that ruling house. If these have not sufficiently put a lie to their claims, the gazette Declaration of the Customary Law of Okpella still exists for all to see.

Kumunio had, at no time, taken Jack Oba to court for calling them tenants and lost the case. We challenge anyone in possession of such a court judgment to come out with it. In fact, we are aware of a judgment in a case between Dirisu Aliu of Imioko-Ukhuomunyio and Alhaji Sumaina Aruna of Iddo and another between Aliu and Osuma Audu, decided on November 22, 1994 by the Ukpilla District Customary Court. The court, in that case, decided that the land, occupied by the Nigerian Army along the New Road, belonged to the plaintiff’s father, Aliu Unuakhe (Agbadamachi), of Imioko- Ukhuomunyio. What happened these past years is that the Komunio people were interested in peace and good neighbourliness and did not bother over Okuokpellagbe, Alhaji A. Y. E. Dirisu’s actions, including the signing of concession papers. Now, he wants to drive us out of our land. We can’t take that and we decided to boycott activities at his palace and he has now gotten a section of Ogriga, Iddo and Imiegiele to say they own our land. You cannot call people slaves and expect them to be quiet. How do you call aborigines tenants and you expect them to fold their hands?”

Adogah restated the observation of the Kumunio people, at their conference, that the BUA Cement Group, which they commended for its huge investment in the area, was discriminating against their youths in its recruitment exercises.

The community, in accordance with its resolution at that conference, he said, had mandated a 10-man delegation to deliver a protest letter to the firm’s management, arguing that employment for youths by the BUA Cement Group ought to be a corporate social responsibility to its host.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/11/dispute-over-edo-cement-plant-site-deepens/
As the community has resolved to take its destiny in its own hands in a process of self-determination and among others pursue with the Edo State Government the creation of its own separate clan out of Okpella, the Kumunio Development Union President said the community will pursue this goal side by side with massive development of the place, beginning with an education programme for its children to raise the Human Development Index (HDI) of the community.

Follow the link:

I need the E book on mini importation: tonykelo@yahoo.com

I got this whatsapp message and thought that you too should know about this IRON LADY OF INEC. I know as of fact that the WORLD and INEC is at her feet.Please, kindly circulate until SHE AND INEC AUTHORITIES BECOME AWARE OF HER ACTIVITIES IN RIVERS STATE


"MRS. NANCY O. GAFFAR: INEC, PDP PLAGUE ON LAWYERS AND ELECTION PETITIONS IN RIVERS STATE....

Who knows this Lady, MRS. NANCY O. GAFFAR? Mrs. Nancy Gaffar is the Legal Officer in the Rivers State INEC Office. She is one of the most powerful INEC Staff in Rivers State. Whereas, Mr. Bocco Ekong was the PDP heat man during the elections, Mrs. Gaffar is the heat person of the PDP for the Election Petitions Tribunal. She is said to have very top godfathers at INEC Head Office in Abuja, including National Commissioners. She has a very strong ties with Mr. Bawa, the Head of Legal Department. Mrs. Abirimire, a National Commissioner, is also there for her.

She is so untouchable, more so now that Hajia Aminia Zakari has been appointed the Ag. National Chairman of the Commission. Mrs. Gaffar was boasting on Friday that the Ag. National Chairman CANNOT do anything to her because, according to her, they have come a long way; adding that for the same reasons JEGA DID NOT AND COULD NOT DEPLOY HER, IS THE SAME REASON AMINA CAN NOT DO ANYTHING TO HER.

Mrs. Gaffar, single handedly has prevented all the lawyers in Rivers State from obtaining the document EC17, which is the oath of neutrality expected to be deposed by every staff of INCE that participated in the General Election 2015. Because, 75% of the adhoc staff were substituted, that oath was not taken. As cover up, she has made it impossible for any political party to have FORM EC17; except the PDP.

The APC had alleged that she is the reason that her Forensic Experts have not been allowed access to documents as ordered by the Tribunal. The APC also alleged that they had petitioned her to the Inspector General of Police, but to no avail. But for now, all of those are fruitless actions. A very close source (a Deputy Director) in INEC National Office said that Mrs. Gaffar, Mr. Bawa Mrs. Eremere and 3 other National Commissioners are part of Nyesom Wike's cabal. The source added that Mr. Wike, through the Ag. Director Legal, appointed lawyers for INEC for every of the petitions in Rivers State, and that most of the lawyers have 4 to 6 cases each while others not nominated by Mr. Wike got only one each.

For us who represent the smaller political party, our interest is to be able to document our records. Mrs. GAFFAR must not punish us because of her hatred for the APC. Mrs. Aminia Zakari must proof to lawyers and political parties and indeed Nigerians that Mrs. Gaffar is not her front as is speculated, nor is she under Mrs. Gaffar's aprons-string. MRS. GAFFAR MUST BE CALLED TO ORDER OR REDEPLOYED

Please, this message MUST GO ROUND UNTIL IT GETS TO AMINA ZAKARI.

Barr. O. S. West
Barrister and Solicitor"

35 squares in all

Mr President, beware of the mafia! 0
BY OUR REPORTER ON JUNE 16, 2015 THE FLIPSIDE - ERIC OSAGIE
sun 468 x 60
The mafia rules every society. A small, clique of powerful individuals, pursuing their narrow, selfish interests, for the benefit of the mafia and the Mafiosi. Fact two: The mafia, like an octopus, is everywhere, in every sector, and are as diverse as the society they operate.

What this means is pretty simple: The bigger the sector it plays, the big­ger the mafia; the more powerful it becomes, the more vicious, the more selfish and more individualistic its character reveals.

Another notorious fact: No mafia rules in the interest of the generality. Even if it pretends to, like the old Ital­ian Mafiosi, the truth is it would not be what it is if the welfare of the masses was its primary preoccupation. The rule of the mafia is antithetical to the general good of the people, which democracy seeks to promote.

Another critical point to note: Profit is the major motif and motivating fac­tor that drives the Mafiosi. Nothing more. It’s the game of cash, the game of crunch, the game of survival and the game of amassing more cash. The more money you have, the more influential you are in the Mafiosi and the society you operate.

The mafia is a kindred. It is the brotherhood. The brotherhood of power and greed. Nothing like ethnic or ter­ritorial boundary for the mafia. No East, West, North or South. The network is efficient and the link is iron-tight. Unit­ed in the pulsating enterprise of wealth pursuit usually at the detriment of the larger society, the mafia is a family of ruthless businessmen far closely knitted than the rest of the society can imagine. What joins them is far more important than what divides them.

Nigeria is a nation of all kinds of mafia. But two are the most prominent. Political mafia: Those who call the shots at the different strata of governance and decide who gets what and when; who becomes governor or president; who gets the ministerial job, who gets ap­pointed into what position. In the near­est future, I hope to delve extensively into the tricks and intrigues of the political mafia and how they have held the nation by the balls and the jugular, and what to do to dismantle them if our country will truly embark on the march of progress

There is also the mafia, which con­trols the economy. You know them, don’t you? In different sectors of the economy, they are the guys in starched Babaringa and designer suits, with bil­lions of naira investment portfolios, and crisscrossing the corridors of power, dol­ing out cash donations at campaign fund­raising dinners and presidential platforms where cash is the name of the game. Their vice-grip on the banking, manu­facturing, oil and gas, and indeed every lucrative sector of the economy makes this mafia the deadliest of the mafias.

Ruthless and manipulative, because of the monstrous cash at their disposal, you dare them at your own peril. They are also in the formidable class of the AGIP (Any Government In Power). Philan­thropy and subversive generosity are the tools deployed to endear themselves in the hearts of the public, to portray them as loving, caring, benevolent corporate citizens, who care for the masses, who wish for the society to grow, who create jobs and wealth for the ordinary man on the streets to flourish and live life more abundant. But that’s farther from the truth. They take more than they give; from our collective till, they have made themselves super rich, even as they enjoy all kinds of privileges from the state to continue to build empires of wealth.

They put the men in power and the leaders then turn round to empower them through all kinds of state privileges, a case of ‘you-rub-my-back, I-rub-your-own.’ The society is the worse for it. What should have been used to provide infrastructure and other social amenities is ‘scrambled and partitioned’ between the government officials and their spon­sors both in the political and economy Mafiosi. What you then have is a com­munity of deprived, dispossessed and disgruntled citizenry. A nation where citizens keep wondering in bemusement how come their rich country is a nation of largely poor citizens. The answer stares them in the face: A ruthless col­laboration of locusts swiftly and jointly attacking the honey pot. No less.

The trouble with Nigeria is not that it is impossible to have a wealthy nation providing the best services for the major­ity, if not all, its citizenry. The point is, we have a few greedy individuals who seem sworn to creating a dynasty of the super-rich, at the detriment of others who are in the majority.

Go to any part of the globe, Europe and the United States, Nigerians own the most magnificent buildings, drive the most exotic cars, have the highest num­ber of private jets in Africa, and generally live life to the fullest. But they are not more than 0.001 per cent, while over 90 per cent of their compatriots live on less than a dollar a day. We are endowed with natural resources, which a few have cor­nered for their personal benefits. We are the sixth largest oil-producing nation on earth, yet we are still battling with basic amenities of life: Water, light, housing, health care, etc.

Except for a few states, you can’t find evidence of governance, not to talk of good governance, in many others. What you have in many states is a flurry of activities, heat without fire, motion without movement. Blaring sirens going everywhere but nowhere. Excellencies who haven’t delivered excellent services. At least, not the ones we can see or feel. You weep for a nation run down by prodigal fellows, posturing as leaders.

In the 21st century when other advanced nations are talking about technological conquests, we are still weighed down by how many kilometres of roads have been constructed; how many boreholes have been sunk. By the time we finish with our roads, the rest of the world may have abandoned roads and commenced space shuttle.

While the rest of the world are united in fighting for progressive leaderships that propel engines of growth and de­velopments in their respective countries, we are bugged down by issues of ethnic and zoning consideration. We are talking about where our leaders should come from, not the character of the man who should lead Africa’s most populous na­tion. Majority of Nigerians care not if the president comes from North, East, West or South, even Ghana, Kenya or the United States of America. We just need a man who will deliver for us the good life, a meaningful life, a quality life. Poverty knows neither ethnic, re­gional, religious nor zonal boundaries. A poor man in the North is not differ­ent from the poor man in the South. He just needs a good leader to lead him up the mountain of prosperity. It matters not for him where that saviour comes from.

In a nation that should be strug­gling to liberate its citizens from the pangs of hunger and poverty, it should matter to all Nigerians what happens to our major revenue earner; how the oil resources is managed or largely mismanaged. From the unpublished and unimplemented several probe panels set up by successive govern­ments, it is common knowledge that the oil sector sits on a barrel of stench. We are submerged by oil thieves, who conservatively could have stolen over three trillion dollars.

Worse still, Nigeria is unable to account for the number of crude it produces daily. We are bleeding from all points: Bunker­ers, importers, exporters, explorers, government officials, etc. We also have the oil mafia, those who have the lucra­tive OPLs running into the billion and trillion marks. Since we all substan­tially agree that too much stealing is going on in the petroleum sector, let’s get the oil thieves; let’s police our oil resources. Nigeria’s oil mafia are the cause of the squabble going on. They have stolen so much that the little that is left, after all kinds of parasites have feasted on the oil resources, is what the leadership of the North and South of the country have been fighting over.

LAST LINE: First published March 2013, this column reflects the land­mines the Buhari presidency must watch out if it must succeed. The many mafias shadowing his government, waiting in the wings to swoop on his government for personal and selfish benefits. Could that be the reason over two weeks after he assumed the mantle of leadership, he has found it difficult to name all his personal aides? Is he being held hostage by the mafia? Time, as they say, will tell!

Mr President, beware of the mafia!

0
By Our Reporter on June 16, 2015 The Flipside - Eric Osagie

The mafia rules every society. A small, clique of powerful individuals, pursuing their narrow, selfish interests, for the benefit of the mafia and the Mafiosi. Fact two: The mafia, like an octopus, is everywhere, in every sector, and are as diverse as the society they operate.

What this means is pretty simple: The bigger the sector it plays, the big­ger the mafia; the more powerful it becomes, the more vicious, the more selfish and more individualistic its character reveals.

Another notorious fact: No mafia rules in the interest of the generality. Even if it pretends to, like the old Ital­ian Mafiosi, the truth is it would not be what it is if the welfare of the masses was its primary preoccupation. The rule of the mafia is antithetical to the general good of the people, which democracy seeks to promote.

Another critical point to note: Profit is the major motif and motivating fac­tor that drives the Mafiosi. Nothing more. It’s the game of cash, the game of crunch, the game of survival and the game of amassing more cash. The more money you have, the more influential you are in the Mafiosi and the society you operate.

The mafia is a kindred. It is the brotherhood. The brotherhood of power and greed. Nothing like ethnic or ter­ritorial boundary for the mafia. No East, West, North or South. The network is efficient and the link is iron-tight. Unit­ed in the pulsating enterprise of wealth pursuit usually at the detriment of the larger society, the mafia is a family of ruthless businessmen far closely knitted than the rest of the society can imagine. What joins them is far more important than what divides them.

Nigeria is a nation of all kinds of mafia. But two are the most prominent. Political mafia: Those who call the shots at the different strata of governance and decide who gets what and when; who becomes governor or president; who gets the ministerial job, who gets ap­pointed into what position. In the near­est future, I hope to delve extensively into the tricks and intrigues of the political mafia and how they have held the nation by the balls and the jugular, and what to do to dismantle them if our country will truly embark on the march of progress

There is also the mafia, which con­trols the economy. You know them, don’t you? In different sectors of the economy, they are the guys in starched Babaringa and designer suits, with bil­lions of naira investment portfolios, and crisscrossing the corridors of power, dol­ing out cash donations at campaign fund­raising dinners and presidential platforms where cash is the name of the game. Their vice-grip on the banking, manu­facturing, oil and gas, and indeed every lucrative sector of the economy makes this mafia the deadliest of the mafias.

Ruthless and manipulative, because of the monstrous cash at their disposal, you dare them at your own peril. They are also in the formidable class of the AGIP (Any Government In Power). Philan­thropy and subversive generosity are the tools deployed to endear themselves in the hearts of the public, to portray them as loving, caring, benevolent corporate citizens, who care for the masses, who wish for the society to grow, who create jobs and wealth for the ordinary man on the streets to flourish and live life more abundant. But that’s farther from the truth. They take more than they give; from our collective till, they have made themselves super rich, even as they enjoy all kinds of privileges from the state to continue to build empires of wealth.

They put the men in power and the leaders then turn round to empower them through all kinds of state privileges, a case of ‘you-rub-my-back, I-rub-your-own.’ The society is the worse for it. What should have been used to provide infrastructure and other social amenities is ‘scrambled and partitioned’ between the government officials and their spon­sors both in the political and economy Mafiosi. What you then have is a com­munity of deprived, dispossessed and disgruntled citizenry. A nation where citizens keep wondering in bemusement how come their rich country is a nation of largely poor citizens. The answer stares them in the face: A ruthless col­laboration of locusts swiftly and jointly attacking the honey pot. No less.

The trouble with Nigeria is not that it is impossible to have a wealthy nation providing the best services for the major­ity, if not all, its citizenry. The point is, we have a few greedy individuals who seem sworn to creating a dynasty of the super-rich, at the detriment of others who are in the majority.

Go to any part of the globe, Europe and the United States, Nigerians own the most magnificent buildings, drive the most exotic cars, have the highest num­ber of private jets in Africa, and generally live life to the fullest. But they are not more than 0.001 per cent, while over 90 per cent of their compatriots live on less than a dollar a day. We are endowed with natural resources, which a few have cor­nered for their personal benefits. We are the sixth largest oil-producing nation on earth, yet we are still battling with basic amenities of life: Water, light, housing, health care, etc.

Except for a few states, you can’t find evidence of governance, not to talk of good governance, in many others. What you have in many states is a flurry of activities, heat without fire, motion without movement. Blaring sirens going everywhere but nowhere. Excellencies who haven’t delivered excellent services. At least, not the ones we can see or feel. You weep for a nation run down by prodigal fellows, posturing as leaders.

In the 21st century when other advanced nations are talking about technological conquests, we are still weighed down by how many kilometres of roads have been constructed; how many boreholes have been sunk. By the time we finish with our roads, the rest of the world may have abandoned roads and commenced space shuttle.

While the rest of the world are united in fighting for progressive leaderships that propel engines of growth and de­velopments in their respective countries, we are bugged down by issues of ethnic and zoning consideration. We are talking about where our leaders should come from, not the character of the man who should lead Africa’s most populous na­tion. Majority of Nigerians care not if the president comes from North, East, West or South, even Ghana, Kenya or the United States of America. We just need a man who will deliver for us the good life, a meaningful life, a quality life. Poverty knows neither ethnic, re­gional, religious nor zonal boundaries. A poor man in the North is not differ­ent from the poor man in the South. He just needs a good leader to lead him up the mountain of prosperity. It matters not for him where that saviour comes from.

In a nation that should be strug­gling to liberate its citizens from the pangs of hunger and poverty, it should matter to all Nigerians what happens to our major revenue earner; how the oil resources is managed or largely mismanaged. From the unpublished and unimplemented several probe panels set up by successive govern­ments, it is common knowledge that the oil sector sits on a barrel of stench. We are submerged by oil thieves, who conservatively could have stolen over three trillion dollars.

Worse still, Nigeria is unable to account for the number of crude it produces daily. We are bleeding from all points: Bunker­ers, importers, exporters, explorers, government officials, etc. We also have the oil mafia, those who have the lucra­tive OPLs running into the billion and trillion marks. Since we all substan­tially agree that too much stealing is going on in the petroleum sector, let’s get the oil thieves; let’s police our oil resources. Nigeria’s oil mafia are the cause of the squabble going on. They have stolen so much that the little that is left, after all kinds of parasites have feasted on the oil resources, is what the leadership of the North and South of the country have been fighting over.

LAST LINE: First published March 2013, this column reflects the land­mines the Buhari presidency must watch out if it must succeed. The many mafias shadowing his government, waiting in the wings to swoop on his government for personal and selfish benefits. Could that be the reason over two weeks after he assumed the mantle of leadership, he has found it difficult to name all his personal aides? Is he being held hostage by the mafia? Time, as they say, will tell!

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF VISIONARY AND UNITED YOUTHS (NAVUY) INVITES ALL NIGERIA YOUTH TO HER FIRST INAUGURAL MEETING.
National Association of Visionary and United Youths (NAVUY) is hereby requesting for energetic, purpose driven and motivational youth in each state of the federation to start integrating members with a view to saving our country Nigeria from imminent collapse going by the prevailing political situation in the country.
We need 36 state leaders and a leader in the FCT who will be integrated into the national body to carry out this cause. NAVUY shall never have an ethnic, religious, tribal, educational, political sentiment. We may however support any political party that is ready to pursue and sustain the unity of Nigeria while carrying the yearnings and aspirations of the youth along. We must engage peaceful dialogue in all our agitations. The youth of any nation constitute the strength of that nation in terms of population and contribution to nation building. We have got the power to make it work and decide to have a better united Nigeria state. We shall work with any similar youth associations that may share common goals and objectives with us.
We are the future leaders and must not allow the current crops of political leaders to kill the future that we are going to live in. Let start now to agitate for a better united Nigeria where all the ethnic groups that constitute the Nigeria state will leave as one without discrimination in order to create a peaceful, progressive, lovely, and united Nigeria.
NAVUY first national meeting will be held in October 26th October, 2013. Venue will be communicated to intending members in a later date. The intending State leaders can call Tony on 08094845427,navuykel@yahoo.com for more information as they are at liberty to have their meetings prior to the national inaugural meeting (NIM).
Nigeria can and must be better. This dream is realisable if the youths are determined to make it work. This is a clarion call to all Nigeria youths.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF VISIONARY AND UNITED YOUTHS (NAVUY) INVITES ALL NIGERIA YOUTH TO HER FIRST INAUGURAL MEETING.
National Association of Visionary and United Youths (NAVUY) is hereby requesting for energetic, purpose driven and motivational youth in each state of the federation to start integrating members with a view to saving our country Nigeria from imminent collapse going by the prevailing political situation in the country.
We need 36 state leaders and a leader in the FCT who will be integrated into the national body to carry out this cause. NAVUY shall not have an ethnic, religious, tribal, educational, political sentiment. We may however support any political party that is ready to pursue and sustain the unity of Nigeria while carrying the yearnings and aspirations of the youth along. We must engage peaceful dialogue in all our protests. The youth of any nation constitute the strength of that nation in terms of population and contribution to nation building. We have got the power to make it work and decide to have a better united Nigeria state. We shall work with any similar youth associations that may share common goals and objectives with us.
We are the future leaders and must not allow the current crops of political leaders to kill the future that we are going to live in. Let start now to agitate for a better united Nigeria where all the ethnic groups that constitute the Nigeria state will leave as one without discrimination in order to create a peaceful, progressive, lovely, and united Nigeria. Tomorrow may be too late. We either do it now or merely exist today with no future tomorrow.
The first national meeting will be held in October 26th October, 2013. Venue will be communicated to intending members in a later date. The intending State leaders can call Tony on 08094845427 for more information as they free to have their meetings prior to the national inaugural meeting (NIM).
Nigeria can and must be better. This dream is realisable if the youths are determined to make it work. This is a clarion call to all Nigeria youths.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF VISIONARY AND UNITED YOUTHS (NAVUY) INVITES ALL NIGERIA YOUTH TO HER FIRST INAUGURAL MEETING.
National Association of Visionary and United Youths (NAVUY) is hereby requesting for energetic, purpose driven and motivational youth in each state of the federation to start integrating members with a view to saving our country Nigeria from imminent collapse going by the prevailing political situation in the country.
We need 36 state leaders and a leader in the FCT who will be integrated into the national body to carry out this cause. It will never have an ethnic, religious, tribal, educational, political sentiment. We may however support any political party that is ready to pursue and sustain the unity of Nigeria while carrying the yearnings and aspirations of the youth along. We must engage peaceful dialogue in all our protests. The youth of any nation constitute the strength of that nation in terms of population. We have got the power to make it work and decide to have a better united Nigeria state. We shall work with any similar youth associations that may share common goals and objectives with us.
We are the future leaders and must not allow the current crops of political leaders to kill the future that we are going to lead. Let start now to agitate for a better united Nigeria where all the ethnic groups that constitute the Nigeria state will leave as one without discrimination in order to create a peaceful, progressive, lovely, and united Nigeria.
The first national meeting will be held in October 26th October, 2013. Venue will be communicated to intending members a later date. The intending State leaders can call Tony on 08094845427 for more information as they free to have their meetings prior to the national inaugural meeting (NIM).
Nigeria can and must be better. This dream is realisable if the youths are determined to make it work. This is a clarion call to all Nigeria youths.

Book: Ziska by Marie Corelli
Music: Water E No Get enemy by Fela Anikulapo Kuti
Movie: Heat by Tony Montana

I have used all of the above

I wish people like this will come to say they want to marry my 6 year old daughter so that I can send them to an early grave no matter the cost because they don't deserve to live once it comes to that. Yerima is a jinn already. he needs to be casted out.

Don't u 4get that the yorubas are the hypocrites we have in this country. They have been the problem of nigeria since independence.

What is Sen. Ugbesia Odion (Edo Central, PDP) doing on that list? That man must be sanctioned and call to order. He should be properly examined being the only senator on that list from the south-south. He is a disgrace to the dignified Edo people. signed.

What is Sen. Ugbesia Odion (Edo Central, PDP) doing on that list? That man must be sanctioned and call to order. He should be properly examined being the senator on that list from the south-south. He a disgrace to the dignified Edo people. signed.

An Iroko has fallen in Edo State. The Edo people have just lost another Icon. what a Loss. May his giant and courageous soul rest in peace. Rest-In-Peace Oladele Moses Kelobo. He was aged 82.