Saturday 31 January 2015

Exco of judiciary workers call off eight months strike in Rivers

The Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) has suspended its eight-month
strike in Rivers state.
National Publicity Secretary of the union, Comrade Kayode Igbarago, declared this
today, in Port Harcourt, and directed their members in the state to resume work
on Monday, February 2, 2015.
Igbarago, during the briefing, warned that the judiciary workers in the state should
not be victimised for embarking on the industrial action.
He stated that the decision to call off the strike, which had been under the
supervision and control of the National Secretariat since July 9, 2014, was the
outcome of National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held on Monday, January
26, this year, at the Supreme Court, Abuja, where the decision was reached.
“The national body has after careful investigation been convinced that the state
branch has not compromised the struggle in any form. Furthermore, after careful
and exhaustive deliberation, NEC considered the assurances and commitments
made by various security agencies in the provision of adequate security in and
around the court premises in Rivers State, which was at a point in time a target of
violent attacks. These attacks had sent unimaginable fear and tension to the
minds of the court workers and other court users,” he said.
He noted that: “The interest and intervention of various stakeholders, particularly
Rivers State government, who have made themselves available in virtually all the
meetings, the NBA, both at the national and state levels, who have been
committed in facilitating the various meetings, the NLC, Civil rights groups.
Senator (Dr.) Cyrus Nunieh-led Mediatory Committee and others were also
considered.
“Consequently, the strike embarked upon by the Rivers State branch of JUSUN,
which has been under the supervision and control of the national body is hereby
suspended with immediate effect”.
He continued: “We hereby direct all our members to resume work on Monday,
February 2, 2015. Furthermore, it was resolved that no staff or member of the
Union shall be victimized as a result of the industrial action.
“We, therefore, use this medium to call on relevant stakeholders to take advantage
of this gesture and see to the immediate resolution of the crises rocking the
Rivers State Judiciary.
“We also urge our members to remain resolute to the struggle, while we
appreciate all, who have in one way or the other assisted in the facilitation of the
resolution of the crises”, he said.
Reacting to the suspension of the strike, chairman of JUSUN, Rivers State branch,
Comrade Sokari George, described is as a welcome development, adding that, the
announcement came as a surprise to their members.
It would be recalled that one of the reasons for embarking on the strike is due to
the crisis between the state government and National Judicial Commission (NJC).
The state government nominated and recognised Justice Peter Agumagu, as the
state Chief Judge while the NJC, backed by the Presidency insisted on Justice
Daisy Okocha. Okocha is the most senior Judge in the state High Court, while
Agumagu is the president of the state customary court and most senior judge in
the state judiciary.
The state government took the matter to court but NJC slammed a suspension on
Agumagu for refusing to obey the NJC to step aside for Okocha.
In the midst of the confusion, the state government stated judiciary workers who
took directives from Justice Okocha risk being sacked by the Rivers State
Judiciary Commission.
As a middle ground the state government, through the State House of Assembly
amended the Rivers High Court law, which directed that in absence of a
substantive Chief Judge to assign cases, the Chief Registrar should assign cases
to judges.
Judiciary workers is state said in the midst of the confusion of whose directive to
obey: NJC or state Judicial Commission, they had to embark on indefinite strike.

Customs Seizes N1.4bn Rice In 2014

The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) said on Friday that its seized 241,278 rice worth N1.4 billion in duty and value in 2014 fiscal year.

This is contained in the Rice Seizure Report made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja by the Public Relations Officer, Mr Wale Adeniyi.

According to the report, the quantity of rice seized in 2014 was 76,244 bags higher than the 165,034 bags seized in 2013.

It represents 68.4 per cent increase.

It also showed that the bags of rice were confiscated in 2,719 seizures against 2, 707 seizures made in 2013.

The comparative analysis of the duty and value of rice seized during the year with the previous year also showed an increase in the service’s anti-smuggling activities from the previous year.

A monthly breakdown of the figures showed that 26,986 bags of rice worth N157.33 million from 227 seizures were made in January 2014.

This is against the 14,859 bags worth N86.63 million in 291 seizures made in February.

In March, 24,970 bags worth N91.34 million in 238 seizures were recorded, while 29,689 bags worth N147.21 million in 354 seizures were recorded in the month of April.

A further breakdown of the report revealed that 23,184 bags worth N135.16 million in 301 seizures were recorded in May and 15,441 bag worth N90.02 million in 201 seizures in June.

It showed that 15,990 bags worth N93.22 million in 167 seizures were recorded in July while 20,823 bags worth N121.39 million in 264 seizures in August.

According to the report, 24,505 bags worth N142.86 million in 193 seizures were recorded in September and the month of October recorded 23,365 bags worth N136.22 million in 131 seizures.

It added that 11,531 bags worth N67.22 million in 200 seizures were recorded in November 2014 while 9,935 bags worth N57.92 million in 152 seizures were recorded in December the same year.

(NAN)

PDP to appeal Niger senatorial election tribunal verdict

The Niger State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party says it will appeal
Friday’s election tribunal’s verdict on the Niger East senatorial bye-election.

Alhaji Hassan Saba, Niger PDP Publicity Secretary, disclosed this in a statement
on Saturday in Minna.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that an election petition tribunal on Friday
upturned the result of the senatorial bye-election in favour of Mr David Umoru of
the All Progressives Congress.

The statement, however, urged its members to remain calm and committed to
winning the forthcoming general elections.

It advised APC loyalists not to rejoice yet, adding that the tribunal verdict did not
reflect what transpired at the polls.

NAN recalled that the Niger State Zone B Senatorial bye-election was conducted
in August 2014 to replace the vacancy created as a result of the death of Sen.
Dahiru Kuta.

Poor turnout as Jonathan takes campaign to Kaduna

A half-filled stadium marked the presidential campaign rally of President Goodluck
Jonathan at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna, as the President rounded off his
re-election campaign in the North-West zone of the country on Saturday.
The 25,000 capacity stadium was half filled as many supporters shunned the
Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential candidate’s rally.
A visibly angry deputy governor of the state, Amb. Nuhu Bajoga, was spotted by
our correspondent at the rally, complaining bitterly to members of the local
organising committee at the main bowl of the stadium.
He reportedly told the committee to “go and bring the crowd.”
It was gathered that the ‘welfare package” for supporters were allegedly diverted
by some unnamed officials of the local organising committee.
Curiously, a section of the stadium, rather than praising the president, started
singing “sai Buhari,” a situation that forced security operatives to chase the
disgruntled supporters out of the stadium.
The president, who arrived the stadium at about 1.30pm, went round the scanty
stadium, before taking his seat.
In his speech, Jonathan said Kaduna was one of the major beneficiaries of the
Federal Government and as such, it was payback time for the people of the state
to re-elect him in the February 14 election.
He said the state was the focus of the Federal Government in the next four years
if elected.
He added that the collapsed textile mills in the state would be revived, so as to
create jobs for the teeming youths in the state.
Jonathan noted that the state must work with the party for the development of
the state.
Vice President Namadi Sambo had earlier, in his speech, said the people of the
state appreciated the gesture of the president for his(Sambo) choice as his
running mate in the February poll.
He described the president as patriotic and detribalised and therefore urged the
people of the state to vote the party in all the elections.
Sambo said the president loved the people of the region, pointing out that the
president was determined to bring back the collapse industry in Kaduna State
through the establishment of the 215-megawatt Kudendan Power Plant in the
state.
Also, Senate President David Mark said Kaduna was important to the party, as
according to him, if the state leads, other parts of the North would follow in the
forthcoming election.

No petition on ex-militants war threat -Police

The police have said they are still studying the threat by some ex-militants to
declare war against the nation, if President Goodluck Jonathan does not win the
forthcoming presidential election.

The Force stated that it would take appropriate action at the right time.
Some ex-militants, including Mujahideen Dokubo-Asari, Tompolo and Boyloaf, had
threatened to wage war against the nation if Jonathan loses the presidential
election in February, after a meeting between Governor Seriake Dickson of
Bayelsa State; the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Mr. Kingsley
Kuku and the ex-warlords in Yenagoa last week.
Former Defence Minister, Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, had called for the arrest
of the ex-militants for constituting a threat to the peace of the nation.
But when asked what on Friday what the police planned to do about the threat,
the Force Public Relations Officer, Emmanuel Ojuwku, explained that the police
were studying the situation and would take appropriate steps.
When prodded further on why the ex-militants had not been summoned or
cautioned, Ojukwu said there was no report before the police on the threat.
He said, “We have not taken action because there is no report or complaint
before the police; no one has lodged a complaint on the issue, but we are
studying the situation and would take the necessary step at the right time.”
The Federal Government had on Thursday condemned the inflammatory statement
by the warlords, saying there was no basis for the beating of war drums by the
ex-militants.
Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, described the threat by the warlords as
reprehensible, stressing that Jonathan had said he would concede defeat if he
lost the presidential election.
Moro said, “It is reprehensible for people to threaten this country with mayhem
and violence should their candidate lose the elections. The President of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has not left anybody in doubt
as to his preparedness to conduct a free, fair, credible and transparent election.
“Mr. President has said that in the unlikely event of his losing the election, in the
course of this exercise, that he is straight man enough, he was democratic
enough to concede defeat.
“And so if Mr President himself, who is the main contestant in this election, who
is the President of this country, who is the leader of the PDP, has come out to
say that he was going to ensure free and fair elections, where the choice of
Nigerians would be respected, I do not see where statements from the supporters
of either Mr. President or any other political parties for that matter should derail
the course of this democratic movement.”

Debate group denies partisan allegation by APC


The Nigeria Elections Debate Group, NEDG, explained , yesterday, that is was non-partisan and that there was no justification for the All Progressives Congress, APC, to turn down its invitation to the on-going debate.

The group’s Media and Publicity Committee Chairman, Mr Tony Akiotu
said in a statement that the activities of the group were not influenced
by its Chairman Mr. Shola Omale, in spite of.his position as Director –
General of the federal government -owned Nigeria Television Anthony.

He said Mr. Omale only happened to be the chairman by virtue of
been the Chairman of BON, a position which rotates between the D-G
of NTA an Voice of Nigeria, VON.

According to Mr. Akiotu, the founder of the African Independent
Television, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, also does not influence the group.

He explained further that the group was independent and registered
the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC with the Guild of Editors,
Nigerian Union of Journalists, and the Transition Monitoring Group as
members, along with the Broadcasting Organization of Nigeria, BON.

The group urged the APC to reconsider it’s position, as the debate
provided an opportunity for its presidential candidate to sell himself to
the Nigerian electorate.

The next round of debates has been scheduled for tomorrow.

Friday 30 January 2015

LCC appeals to IG to tell Mbu to release toll operators

Lekki Concession Company (LCC) has appealed to the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba to tell Joseph Mbu to release toll operators arrested by his aides on Thursday 29 January.

In a statement by LCC, it pleaded with Abba to prevail on Mbu to release its staff after they were forcefully and unnecessarily seized from their duty post in Lagos state.

According to the statement: “At about 6:09 p.m. on Thursday 29 January 2015, the newly deployed AIG Zone 2, covering Lagos and Ogun States, (AIG Joseph Mbu) passed through Lane 8 at Toll Plaza 1 on the Eti-Osa Lekki-Epe Expressway, (a toll road under concession to a private concern, Lekki Concession Company-LCC) with 6 police vehicles and an armoured van in his convoy,” the statement said.

“Though it is customary to exempt law enforcement agents and other agencies on
official duty from paying toll, each vehicle that passes through the plaza still
needs to be processed as exempt vehicle to ensure adequate reconciliation of
daily transactions. Consequently, while the toll collector was trying to process the
vehicles, the police officers in the AIG’s convoy asked him to open the boom for
all the vehicles to pass through. Unfortunately, all explanations by the Toll
Collector on the need to follow LCC’s operational guidelines and to process the
vehicles individually fell on deaf ears.”
Joseph Mbu: his aides seized the toll collector without
reason
LCC noted that: “After he had processed the first vehicle, the police men in AIG’s
Mbu’s convoy jumped off their vehicle into the booth and physically assaulted the
Toll Operator. They then bundled him and 3 policemen attached to the plaza into
their vehicle and whisked them off.”
“The toll Collector and the 3 policemen are currently detained at Maroko Police
Station in Lagos. The CCTV footage clearly shows that there was no delay or
confrontation by the LCC staff at the plaza which could have degenerated into
such act of intimidation, harassment and detention.
“In view of the foregoing, we wish to passionately appeal to the Inspector General
of Police Mr. Suleiman Abba to kindly use his good office to intervene and ensure
immediate release of the detained LCC staff as they have committed no offence.
At the material time, they were only doing their legitimate duties.
“We also wish to affirm that we do appreciate the important functions of Law
Enforcement Agencies. However, we expect them to also assist us in preventing
a breakdown of law and order by following universal rules and procedures where
applicable.”

Apologize within 7 days or face our wrath , Ex-Militants tell Danjuma

Niger Delta militants have declared a former defence minister , Theophilous Y .
Danjuma a persona non grata in the region for calling for the arrest of frontline
freedom fighters , including Mujahid Asari Dokubo and Government Ekpemumodo ,
popularly known as Tompolo.
The militant leaders also demanded an apology from Danjuma within seven days
or face their wrath. They said in a statement that Danjuma was among the
northerners who had become very comfortable in life because of the oil money
from the region.
A statement from the president of the forum of leaders of the various militant
camps called the Leadership , Peace and Cultural Development Initiative , Reuben
Wilson said Danjuma was courting with trouble of former militants for daring to
call for the arrest of those Wilson referred to as ‘ Niger Delta heroes ’ .
“ As much as he has the right to free speech , Gen . Danjuma ought to know that
the oil money he is enjoying today , through his ownership of oil blocs, came from
our sacrifices and blood. We staked our life to fight for the development of our
country. We fought for freedom for our land and it pains us that people like
Danjuma who have reaped bountifully from the Niger Delta , can wake up to insult
our sensibilities .
“ For General Danjuma to call for the arrest of Asari Dokubo, then he has walked
on the tail of the serpent . The much we know is that we the ex -militants who
decided to drop our guns to join forces with the federal government to develop
the country , especially the Niger Delta have never said anything or taken any
action that would warrant such explosives from Danjuma . “
They restated their position on the support for Jonathan during the February
election, even as they said they did not believe in violence but would stop
anybody who tried to rig the election against Dr Goodluck Jonathan .
According to the ex -militants , General Danjuma is allegedly enjoying oil money in
the Niger Delta insulting them at the same time.
“ We are therefore giving him seven days from today to retract the statements he
made to the media on the arrest of Asari Dokubo. We see his call as a
declaration of war with the former fighters and we will like to tell him that we
are ready to face him , having declared himself our enemy. ”
“ We are well aware that he own oil blocs in the Niger Delta . He cannot be eating
from our farm and at the same time calling us stupid and wishing that we should
be arrested while he continues to harvest from our farm . Danjuma should
apologise to all the former fighters or we will assume that he has no regrets for
his utterances .
They warned those they allege are intimidating them to abandon the struggle for
the re -election of Jonathan -their joint effort aimed at denying them their right
will not work.
“ They may be in the majority but we have a minority oil and that is what is
feeding this country . If they want to push a minority man out of Aso Rock by
force , they should start thinking of where they will get money to keep their man
in Aso Rock because our oil money will no more be there for them to share .
Danjuma must retract the statement within 7 days and apologise to us . ”

Catholic church urges Nigerians to stockpile foods, others

The Catholic Caritas Foundation of Nigeria on Friday in Abuja expressed fears of
possible outbreak of violence in the forthcoming general elections with a call on
citizens in volatile places to stockpile foods and other essential commodities “in
case shops are not opened for some days.”
Meanwhile, the Catholic Church has said it will deploy 4,889 observers in 23 states
of the country, who will “stay back to observe the elections till the end.”
The CCFN, an organ of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, also advised
churches and mosques to set aside some funds to deal with possible
humanitarian crises that might arise after the polls.
The Executive Secretary of CCFN and National Secretary of Justice Development
and Peace Committee, Rev. Fr. Evaristus Bassey, who said this during a press
briefing, advised Nigerians to be prepared to mitigate the impact of possible
outbreak of violence during the elections.
The CCFN is the relief and development agency of the CBCN while JDPC at the
national level is the advocacy organ of CBCN.
The cleric said, “In the case of a possible outbreak of violence, we advise that
citizens in volatile places should stock essential commodities in case shops are
not open for days. Citizens should, by now, make arrangements for safe havens in
case they have to escape from their homes; and those who can, should move
their families from volatile areas, as the right to life is stronger than the right to
vote.
“Citizens should not rely on the assurances of security agencies alone, as the
scale of violence, if it happens, may overwhelm their capacity, and therefore must
be extra-vigilant.
“After voting, although they could stay back to observe the counting, we advise
ordinary citizens in volatile places to go home and allow politicians to sort
themselves out.
“The Catholic Church is deploying 4,889 observers in 23 states; these observers
will also stay back to observe to the end.”
Bassey recalled the several forms of humanitarian crises already brewing in
Nigeria, including the silent Sahel food crisis affecting the food and nutrition
needs of Sokoto, Kebbi and Yobe states and the post-flood humanitarian crisis,
“with many still to recover their livelihoods even after billions of Naira were
collected.”
“There is the potential Niger-Delta crisis which could erupt anytime. There is the
mother of all humanitarian crises caused by Boko Haram, which has led to the
greatest displacements and miseries since the civil war.
“On top of all these are the potential dangers and humanitarian emergencies that
may arise because of the already charged presidential elections,” he warned.

Punch

Nobody can intimidate us, Oba of Lagos warns AIG Mbu

The Oba of Lagos Alhaji Ridwan Osulale Akiolu Friday warned the newly posted Assistant Inspector of Police to the Lagos Zone, Joseph Mbu, to desist from any attempt to intimidate the people of Lagos, as he earlier did in Rivers State.

The traditional ruler who urged people of Lagos to cooperate with security agencies, warned Mbu, saying that "nobody can intimidate us. Let it be clear that Lagos is not Port Harcourt."

‎Though police redeployment is normal during elections; the Oba warned that "any policeman that comes here to cause trouble will fail. I and my people will give him a matching order."

‎Oba Akiolu who was speaking while receiving the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari's delegation in his palace Friday, said police officers shouldn't be partisan, saying "police should do their constitutional role without bias."

As a commissioner of Police in Rivers state, Mbu controversially fell out with Governor Rotimi Amaechi as the governor accused him of running a script by First Lady Mrs Patience Jonathan to distablise the state.

"I want to sound a word of warning to security agencies. If anybody comes here to come and cause trouble ‎he will fail. Others have tried and failed. Sometimes back, someone (police officer) was posted here and he tried me and Asiwaju (Bola Ahmed Tinubu) and I told him he will fail and he did fail," the monarch said.

He however urged the people of Lagos to cooperate with the security agencies for the general well-being of the state.

"I urged my people to cooperate with the police and the Army to do their job. I want all my people to be peaceful and law-abiding. All shall be well with us," he said.

‎The Oba said Lagos state has suffered under the PDP-led federal government since the return of civil rule in 1999.

"Lagos won't ever lag behind again ‎in the forthcoming dispensation," he said.

He described Buhari as an upright, honest and dedicated gentleman who meant well for the country.

"I know the ability of Buhari. He is very passionate about this country and he will deliver," the monarch said.

Buhari, who was in Lagos for his presidential campaign tour and fundraising dinner paid homage to Oba Akiolu in his Isaleku palace in Lagos Island. He said he will fight corruption, insecurity, revamp infrastructure and create employment for the youth.

The event was kick started by the Lagos state traditional white gowns first class and second class chiefs paying homage to the Oba.

Arms Cache: Supreme Court Frees Convicted Lebanese

Nigeria’s Supreme Court, on Friday in Abuja, nullified and set aside the conviction of Mr. Talal Ahmad Roda, a Lebanese resident in Nigeria’s North Central city of Kano who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment over cache of arms allegedly belonging to Lebanese terrorist group, Hezbollah. Talal Ahmad Roda was arrested in the Kano house where the ammunition was found and was sentenced to life imprisonment having been found guilty of conspiracy by a federal high court in Abuja. The trial court had freed Mr. Mustapha Fawaz, owner of Abuja-based Amigo Supermarket and Wonderland Amusement Park, and Mr. Abdallah Thahini both of whom stood trial alongside Mr. Roda over the arms.

A five man panel at the apex court presided by Justice Musa Dattijo Mohammed, held that there was no evidence adduced before the trial court linking Roda to the cache of arms found at No 3, Gaiya Road, Kano from where he was arrested.

Furthermore, the court held that the trial court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the trial as the discovery of the arms cache was in Kano and not in Abuja. It held that the accused persons ought to have been tried in Kano.

The Supreme Court noted that although the federal high court’s jurisdiction covers the entire country, it’s criminal jurisdiction is however limited to the division where the alleged crime was committed and held that the Kano Division of the court ought to have heard and determined the matter and subsequently set aside the decision of the trial court as well as that of the Court of Appeal which had earlier upheld the decision of the trial court.

The Federal Government had on July 29, 2013 arraigned the three men and the companies on terrorism charges.

While Roda was convicted on counts 8 and 9 relating to conspiracy, Fawaz, his companies and Thahini were acquitted on all the counts.

Justice Adeniyi of the trial court had held that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubts that the discharged persons are terrorists.

The judge was of the opinion that since the Hezbollah military group was not labelled a terrorist group under any Nigerian law, the court could not hold otherwise and observed that some aspects of the investigation were not properly conducted.

The Supreme Court however described counts 8 and 9 relating to conspiracy as unknown to the Miscellaneous Offences Act under which the affected charges were framed.

“Offence of conspiracy as contained in countd 8 and 9 of the charge is not recognizable by the law. It is not known to the law. The proceedings of the lower court affirming the decision of the trial court is hereby set aside and the conviction and sentencing of the appellant are also set aside” the apex court held in its unanimous decision.

Tribunal Nullifies Election Of Zagbayi Of PDP As Niger East Senator

National Assembly election Tribunal sitting in Minna has nullified
the election of Dr Shem Nuhu Zagbayi of the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) in the last Niger East by-election and has ordered
that David Umar of All Progressives Congress (APC) be returned
as duely elected Senator for Niger East.

Nigeria’s foreign reserves down by 20 per cent

Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves fell to $34.38 billion by January 28, down 20.3 per cent from $43.16 billion a year earlier, owing to drawdowns by the Central Bank of Nigeria to defend the naira.

Data from the central bank on Friday showed the reserves of Africa’s biggest economy have steadily declined, falling 0.43 per cent month-on-month.

The naira has remained under pressure, trading outside the central bank’s target band of 160-176 to the dollar as oil prices plunge.

This is despite a devaluation meant to find the currency’s true value and shore up

Federal Secretariat Blackout: Workers Cry Out Over Persistent Power Outage

Workers in various blocks of the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja are lamenting persistent epileptic power supply that has almost crippled activities in most federal ministries.
It is expected that since the Head of Service Office complex located at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja hosts ministries, top government agencies and parastatals, workers in the complex would have a reasonable share of the improved electricity supply, but, the reverse is the case.
When LEADERSHIP visited Block C, D and E Complex of the Head of Service which has the Ministry of Science and Technology, Culture and Tourism and also the Bureau of Public Service Reform (BPSR) The Presidency, and Ministry of Youth Development, it was discovered that the office complex has been experiencing prolonged blackout for over two months.
The development has subjected the workers whose offices are on the top floors of the buildings to endless stress of using the staircase up to the 11th floors on a daily basis.
According to the head of Maintenance in one of the ministries in Block E, who pleaded anonymity, the office of the Head of Service was supposed to have the sole responsibility of paying utility bills for the entire office complex, but, could not continue because their budget could not carry the expenses.
“But, by right the Head of Service is in charge of all these estate, the utility bill is supposed to be from them. But, since the ministries have agreed to contribute their quota, to make sure that the thing works, but things are not working. Because, for more than two months Block D, E and some part of C have no electricity. They restored the light last week for three days, and it went off again, and since then till today, we are in darkness.
“Although, there is a power generator that could carry the entire complex, but, the complex cannot fund it, because, the generator is a four series one.”
He said that the generator consumes a lot of diesel, saying that, “If the generator is put on for an hour, it would consume about 10 drums of diesel, not to talk of the entire day’s job.”
He further said that since the office of Head of Service has its own generator which does not have the capacity to carry the entire complex, it lives on that without being affected by the persistent blackout, saying that the present electricity situation was not the same when the Head of Service was in charge of the general maintenance of the entire complex.
“You can see me sitting down doing nothing in the office, but, as the Head of Maintenance, I am supposed to be running around looking for solution, making sure that the offices are okay. But, it is not possible, since there is no light and the situation is beyond me. We have offices up to the 11th floor on Block E and this Block D. How do the staff work when there is no electricity?
“Will some of them that have offices on the top floors come and sit down on the basement without going up? It is not possible. If something could be done, that would rescue the complex from this great sufferings, we will be very glad. Even the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has the same problem.
“We were told last week that the power was disconnected because of money owed the power distribution company. But, my Ministry has paid. Last time they paid N5million, they paid more than N2million. The only ministry that was owing on Block D, as I heard, was the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, which is owing over N3million then, but I cannot say if they have paid, but others have paid. So, I do not think it is only about electricity bill, the distribution company should be blamed for all these mess,” he said.
Mr. Matthew Chukwuemeka, a staff member of one of the ministries in Block D, lamented that the workers are suffering, because of the persistent power failure, saying that activities in most offices have almost been paralysed for the past two months, since there is no electricity to power computer systems and operate the elevators that take staff to the highest floors and that the staff are subjected to work in the dark, using their phones as torch light.
“We are really suffering here. The truth is that I do not know what the ministers in the ministries affected are doing, because, they go to meeting at the Head of Service, and they also go for ministerial meetings. All the ministers are here, even my minister is here, Culture and Tourism minister is here, Science and Technology is also here and all other ministers. Special Advisers to the President are all here in Block C. So, they know about this situation and I do not know why the situation persists.
“But, I am not sure it is because of paying bills, there must be something wrong. Either the people in charge of distributing powers are not working, because, I do not see why I should be a technician or an Engineer, I will not be able to identify the fault affecting electricity supply or probably some people are trying to sabotage the government. If you go to almost all the ministries, they are using generators. This place could be identified as annex to the presidential villa, there is supposed to be constant electricity supply.
“How can we continue like this, it is not possible. The company supply electricity is the one to be held responsible for the epileptic power supply in all government agencies, because, it is not supposed to be like this. How can I have electricity in my house at Mararaba and there is not light in the city centre. It is sabotage. Because, the government has done so much to improve the power sector, but, they are still sabotaging government’s effort to improve on the power sector,” he said.
Haruna Imrana, Director Communications for Head of the Civil Service of the Federation explained that the office of the Head of Service has played its role adequately to ensure that things are in order in the entire complex, and it is trying as much as possible to see to the adequate maintenance, in terms of security, water supply and others, saying that since the responsibility has been shared to pay utility bills, there is no need for any ministry to lag behind in their responsibilities.
Reacting to persistent power failure, the Business Manager of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, Engr. Mike Ezugwu said that the previous power situation at the Head of Service complex was as a result of a fire outbreak at Apo district, which destroyed most of the electricity installations some time ago, saying that work on the affected installation is still in progress.
“But, sometimes there are faults from connection that would result to power failure. For me, presently, I do not have electricity light in my house at Area 2, section 1. You know that the connection that leads to the Federal Secretariat is an underground cable, anything thing could happen in the underground, until we carry out the repair to restore it.
“Faults occur in every power supply situation. Some of the offices may be owing, but, I do not think their light is disconnected because they are owing money. From our end in the office, I do not think they are disconnected. It is a normal routine sometimes, because, faults could occur on the lines, as a lot of things cause fault to occur,” he said.
Ezugwu, however stressed on the need for occupants of the Head of Service complex to pay their electricity bills, because, they need to sustain the services of the power distributors, saying that even if the persistent power failure was not as a result of disconnection, if consumers fail to pay their electricity bill, they are bound to face disconnection.

Deployment Of Troops For Elections Unconstitutional -Court

A Federal High Court sitting in Sokoto on Thursday held that it is unconstitutional for the military to be deployed for election purposes.

Justice Mohammed Rilwan ruled that other than for the purposes of protecting the nation’s territorial integrity, no constitutional provision allows for the deployment of the military for elections.

The suit challenging the deployment of military for election duties was instituted by the Deputy Speaker of the state's House of Assembly, Bello Goronyo, representing Goronyo Constituency.

Justice Rilwan added that” for the federal government to do so, it must have taken recourse to the National Assembly, which would enact such law”.

The Nation

Financial Crises RocksNigerian Civil Aviation Authority

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There are strong indications that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) might be headed for severe financial crisis owing to alleged mismanagement of its funds by succeeding heads of the regulatory body.

It was gathered that some of the past heads of the agency frittered away the money that accrued from the 5 per cent charges paid by local and international airlines.

Sources close to the agency told THISDAY that the NCAA, which hitherto had huge deposit of funds is no longer in robust financial health, and finds it difficult to raise money to run operations.

According to the sources, the agency only manages to pay workers emoluments without enough funds for training, which was the hallmark of the Authority as a regulatory body.

Directors-General and acting Directors-General in the past were alleged to have used spurious contracts as conduit to siphon the Authority’s funds. The NCAA was said to have at a time owed workers allowances, a situation which industry sources said was an alien in the organisation.

A senior official who confirmed the development said on Wednesday said the new Director General, Captain Usman Murktar, who has a brief stay, is making frantic efforts to control what he described as “the jamboree” that has been taking place in the Authority.

THISDAY also learnt that NCAA is not generating money as it used to do because although the domestic airlines still per 5 per cent charges, they are not sincere in remitting the actual funds that accrue from the charges.

Because the money is being squandered, sources said, the regulatory body might be headed to financial turmoil.
“Former heads of the agency mismanaged the funds NCAA had. There was a time NCAA had huge deposits which it did not touch and it was able to maintain and fund the training schedule and before you go for training your money will be paid to you. But now it has changed; even when you fund your training NCAA may not be able to pay you back for several months.

“What they have been doing is that they raise fake contracts and deploy money to the non-existing contracts. There was a time a N10 million contract was negotiated but N72 million was paid for it. You must have heard that recently N135 million was used to furnish the Director General’s office,” the official said.

Some of the workers of the Authority who passed vote of confidence on the new Director General expressed the hope that he bring sanity into the system and rein the excesses that existed in the past.

“Captain Murktar is making efforts to control the situation but that depends on what he would do with the saved funds. It will be good if he ploughs them back into the system, but who knows; he is still new so it is too early to judge him, but those who wish NCAA well are happy with what he has done so far. But not many people are happy; he may be standing on the way of those who had been benefitting from the jamboree of the past,” the official added.

THISDAY also learnt that 10 per cent of the workers in NCAA are actually doing the technical job of regulation while the other 90 per cent is support staff.

This, sources said affects the morale of the core staff who allegedly earned less than their colleagues in administration and other non-technical areas.

“The argument they put up for paying the core staff poorly is that many of them are above retirement age. In fact, the non-core staff attends more training than the professionals and some of them earn twice as much as these professionals. If not for FAA Category 1 audit and the International Civil Aviation ICAO) Audit, many of these core staff would not have gone for the needed training,” the official stressed.

FIRS Generates N4.69tn Revenue in 2014

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) said on Thursday that it generated N4.69 trillion from taxes for the federal government in 2014.

FIRS said in its Quarterly Revenue Report issued in Abuja that the figure surpassed its target for the year by about N400 billion. The report showed that the 2014 revenue was about N106 billion less than that of 2013, which stood at N4.80 trillion.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the revenue was derived from petroleum profit and non-oil taxes, including income tax, gas income, capital gain tax, stamp duty and Value Added Tax (VAT).

The report also indicated that N2.45 trillion, representing 52.96 per cent, was collected from petroleum profit tax while N2.24 trillion, representing 47.04 per cent, was collected from non-oil taxes during the period.

A breakdown of the total collection showed that company income tax contributed N1.18 trillion; N10.83 billion from gas income; N2.59 billion from capital gain tax and N10.94 billion from stamp duty.

The VAT, comprising Nigeria Customs Service Import VAT and Non-Import VAT, according to the period, contributed N802.95 billion of the total non-oil taxes collection during the period.

The report also said that other non-oil taxes collected were Education Tax, N189.61 billion; N53.28 billion from Consolidated Account and N9.91 billion from National Information Technology Development Fund (NITDEF) levy.

The report further showed that N1.05 trillion was collected in the first quarter while N1.45 trillion was collected in the second quarter. It also indicated that N1.19 trillion was collected in the third quarter and N1 trillion was collected in the fourth quarter.

Nigerian Farmers Displaced by US Company’s Land Grab

Thousands of Nigerians are being kicked off their land in the North-eastern Taraba State for US-based food and agriculture company Dominion Farms, a new 300 square-kilometre rice plantation in the area, according to a new report released this week.

According to the report, the massive project is backed by the federal government and G8’s New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition in Africa, a project that is meant to enhance food security and livelihoods for small farmers in Nigeria and the rest of Africa.

However, two Nigerian non-government organisations (NGOs), Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) and the Centre for Environmental Education and Development (CEED), have argued that the land being offered to Dominion Farms is still being used by thousands of Nigerian families for agriculture, water resources, fishing ponds and grazing areas.

“Initiatives like the New Alliance seem to be more about providing opportunities for agribusiness to carve up the resources of African countries rather than trying to address poverty or hunger,” said Heidi Chow, food sovereignty campaigner from Global Justice Now.

Approximately 45,000 people use the land and will be gravely affected by the large-scale rice farm project, according to the report released by GRAIN, an international rights group that supports small farmers, along with Global Justice Now, ERA/FoEN and CEED.

“Our land is very rich and good. We produce a lot of different crops here like rice, beans, guinea corn, cassava, soya beans, millet, yam as well as fish farming and the rearing of animals like goats, sheep and cattle,” said local farmer Mallam Danladi K Jallo.

“But since Dominion Farms people arrived... we were asked to stop our farm work and even leave our lands as the land is completely given to the Dominion Farms project.”

According to the report, some of the local people had been promised adequate compensation for their lands, and that new schools, roads, hospitals and a farm training centre would be built. However, none of these promises have been kept.
Development of the massive agriculture project began without community consent, while affected Nigerians remain in the dark about what, if any, future compensation plans may be.

“We were happy when we heard of the coming of the Dominion Farms not knowing it was for the selfish interest of some few members of the state, federal government and the foreigner in charge of the Dominion Farms,” said local farmer Mallam Danladi K Jallo.

Nigeria has been vulnerable to large land grabs in the past few years since the government has prioritised attracting international investment in the country’s agricultural sector.

Both the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and the Federal Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment say the investments will increase national food production and make Nigeria a food exporting country.

But the report contradicts these government claims. “Through this policy, vast tracks of agricultural lands have been identified by the government for large scale projects by foreign companies.

“This increases the risk of land grabbing, a process where local communities are displaced from their land and lose their ability to grow food and their livelihoods,” reads the report.

“But since Dominion Farms people arrived... we were asked to stop our farm work and even leave our lands as the land is completely given to the Dominion Farms project.”

Nigeria has been vulnerable to large land grabs in the past few years since the government has prioritised attracting international investment in the country’s agricultural sector.

But the report contradicts these government claims. “Through this policy, vast tracks of agricultural lands have been identified by the government for large scale projects by foreign companies.

“This increases the risk of land grabbing, a process where local communities are displaced from their land and lose their ability to grow food and their livelihoods,” reads the report.

Chad captures Nigerian town from Boko Haram

Chadian army has driven Boko Haram militants out of Malumfatori town
in north-eastern Nigeria, a senior official from Niger has told the BBC.

The reported capture of the town, which lies near the borders of Chad
and Niger, follows two days of fighting.

Both ground and air forces are reported to have been used in the
assault.

Niger officials said Chadian ground forces moved into the town after
crossing Lake Chad. It is not known if the operation was approved by
Nigeria.

Boko Haram insurgents have carried out a number of cross-border
attacks on Nigeria’s neighbours in recent months, attacking villages
and military bases.

The Islamist group has seized dozens of people and taken them back
to north-east Nigeria, where it controls a swathe of territory.

The Nigerian authorities say they are doing all they can to tackle the
militants but neighbours, including Niger and Cameroon, have said
more must be done.

Chad has already sent troops to Cameroon to help it counter Boko
Haram incursions and last week Nigeria said the Chadian army would
be fighting on its territory.

However, it was not immediately clear if the authorities in Abuja had
prior knowledge of, or any role in, the operation in Malumfatori.

People who fled the area told the BBC they had seen military planes
bombing the town, which is on the shores of Lake Chad.

Some of those who left the town during the fighting are reported to
have crossed into Niger.

Meanwhile, reports from the area say fighting has now spread to a
nearby town, Abadam.

Nigerian officials have made little public comment. They said they
were investigating the reports of fighting in the north-east.

Aviation Minister Osita Chidoka told the BBC that Nigeria “has to
redefine its fault lines in fighting” Boko Haram.

He said tackling the group required not just military action but also
“improving the capacity of the Nigerian state” in areas such as the
judiciary, prison system and law enforcement agencies.

“A lot will be done about Boko Haram beyond fighting them in the
north-east part of the country,” he said.

African Union heads of state are due to discuss the crisis over Boko
Haram at their summit beginning on Friday.

Ghanaian President John Mahama has said the leaders must produce
a “specific plan of action” to “deal permanently” with Boko Haram.

Thousands have died and many more have been displaced because of
the group’s six-year insurgency.

African Union calls for 7,500-strong force to fight Boko Haram

The African Union called Friday for a regional five-nation force of 7,500 troops to defeat the “horrendous” rise of Nigeria’s Boko Haram Islamist militants, AU Commission Chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said.

“Boko Haram’s horrendous abuses, unspeakable cruelty, total disregard for human lives, and wanton destruction of property are unmatched,” Dlamini-Zuma said in a statement after the bloc’s Peace and Security Council met late Thursday, ahead of a full AU summit meeting on Friday.

The Boko Haram uprising has become a regional crisis, with the four directly affected countries — Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria — agreeing along with Benin to boost cooperation to contain the threat and to form a Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).

“I am deeply concerned by the prevailing situation as a result of Boko Haram terrorist activities, including the recent escalation of violence witnessed on the ground,” Dlamini-Zuma added.

“The continued attacks in northeastern Nigeria and the increasing attacks in the Lake Chad Basin, along the border with Chad and Cameroon, and in the northern provinces of that country, have the potential of destabilising the entire region, with far-reaching security and humanitarian consequences.”

– ‘No efforts should be spared’ –

More than 13,000 people have been killed and more than one million made homeless by Boko Haram violence since 2009.

Regional nations pledged earlier this month to commit a battalion each to the force, a total of some 3,000 troops, but Dlamini-Zuma said after meetings Thursday it was decided that “no efforts should be spared” to defeat the fighters.

“Accordingly, it is recommended that the countries of the region be authorised to increase the strength of the MNJTF to up to 7,500,” she added, after the meeting at AU headquarters in the Ethiopian capital, where the two-day annual summit of the 54-nation bloc opens Friday.

Chad’s President Idriss Deby, who earlier this month sent a convoy of troops and 400 military vehicles into neighbouring Cameroon to fight Boko Haram, said action had to be taken.

“We have seen too many meetings and no concrete action,” Deby said.

“Today, there are four countries affected by Boko Haram, but tomorrow it may be a continental problem.”

Nigeria has the largest army in west Africa but has come under criticism at home and abroad for failing to stop the advance of Boko Haram.

Earlier this month Nigerian security officials ruled out the need for a United Nations or African Union-backed force to fight Boko Haram, saying the country and its partners could handle the threat.

But international pressure has ramped up, with a top US military commander General David Rodriguez, head of US Africa Command, warning this week that tackling Boko Haram will need a “huge” international effort.

The regional force will have the backing of the AU, and will ask for expected UN Security Council approval as in previous African-led forces such as those in the Central African Republic, Mali or Somalia, Dlamini-Zuma added.

“The people of the region have paid a heavy price to the scourge of terrorism, their plight has to be urgently brought to an end,” she added, highlighting the especial impact the insurgents have had on women and children, including the “ordeal of the girls kidnapped in Chibok” in Nigeria in April 2014.

A key task of the force, to be deployed with an initial mandate of a year, will be “conducting military operations to prevent the expansion of Boko Haram and other terrorist groups activities and eliminate their presence,” the statement added.

Thursday 29 January 2015

Don’t commit suicide over Boko Haram, Sambo tells Buhari

Vice-President Namadi Sambo on Thursday advised the APC presidential candidate, retired Maj.-Gen.Muhammadu Buhari, against committing suicide by planning to personally lead the war against Boko Haram terrorists, if elected president.
Sambo gave the advice at the PDP Presidential Rally in Yola, Adamawa.
The vide president said his advice was against the backdrop of the advice given to Buhari by his presidential running mate to personally lead the war against Boko Haram if elected President in next month’s presidential election.
Sambo urged Buhari to ignore the advice from the APC vice presidential candidate, adding that any attempt by Buhari to lead such war would amount to a “suicide mission” in view of his age.
According to him, the APC should allow President Jonathan to continue to adopt ”a more scientific and modern” warfare in tackling the menace of the Boko Haram insurgency.
“I want to seize this opportunity to draw our attention to a publication, last week, credited to the vice-presidential candidate of the APC that their plan is to ask their presidential candidate, retired Maj-Gen. Buhari, to lead the war against Boko Haram.
“I want to ask you a question, a retired 73-year-old General – can he run? No!
“Okay, let’s assume that he can run; how many metres can he run before he falls? The training of a General that retired in 1985 is it the same training that can address a modern war? No!
“Now we are fighting war with drones, with new ideas that our President, a PhD holder, a scientist that is using (his knowledge) to address the security issues of this country.
He described the paln as a suicidal proposal, asking “will he (Buhari) go with a suicidal proposal?”
The vice-president urged the electorate to support President Goodluck Jonathan, saying Jonathan was the answer to the nation’s security and the answer to its development.
Sambo reassured that the PDP-led administration would continue to do its best in addressing the nation’s security challenges across the country.
On the developmental efforts of administration, Sambo said that the President had earmarked funds for the completion of two hydro-power dams in Adamawa.
“I want to give you this good news that Mr President has approved the development and completion of Kiri Dam and Jada Dam.
“All these Dams will be provided with hydro-electricity power and an irrigation scheme, with which we are developing economic corridors in Adamawa state.
“In addition to that, in the transport sector, I have good news for you. Mr President has approved the dredging of River Benue.Very soon, we will have a river port and ships and boats from different parts of the world will be here in Yola.”
Sambo then urged the electorate in the state to ensure that they obtain their PVCs to enable them to vote for President Goodluck Jonathan and all other PDP candidates in the February 14 and 28 general elections.
In his remarks, a chieftain of the PDP and a former Minister, Sen. Jubril Aminu, said Adamawa people had resolved to vote for Jonathana/Sambo ticket as well as other PDP candidates in the state during the February elections.

2015 general elections: CJN selects 242 Election Tribunals' Members

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Judges who will determine election petitions arising from 2015 general elections have been selected.

The judges who will serve as chairmen and members of election petition tribunals for the 36 states and Abuja will be sworn in next Tuesday by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Mahmud Mohammed, GCON.

A statement by the Media Aide to the CJN, Mr Ahurakah Isah, said the tribunals which comprised of 242 judges would determine election petitions emanating from the 2015 general elections.

The names of judge who made the list are not yet made public.

Meanwhile,‎ the CJN has asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to conduct proper investigation of cases before filing cases in court to avoid turning courts to “holding facilities”.

The CJN said this when the Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde and some other officials of the commission visited him in in his office.

The CJN who also observed that the charges filed before the courts against suspects were sometimes numerous even as he expressed concern at lack of will to prosecute the cases.

Justice Mohammed said that the unfortunate situation had put the judiciary at the receiving end of all manner of persecution and condemnation from victims and the public who formed the impression that the courts were denying suspects' justice.

He said:‎ “To reiterate, if for any reason the prosecution is not ready to proceed with the case, then the matter should not be brought to court at all rather than leaving the public with the impression that the judiciary is not performing its role in curbing corrupt practices in Nigeria.

The judiciary is required to adjudicate in matters involving corruption where only they are moved to do so. The courts are not intended to descend into the arena. We are not meant to seek out the scourge with a view of stamping it out no matter how much we would have loved to do so.

Man Bags 10 Years Imprisonment for Contract Scam

The Economic and Fiunacial Crimes Commission, EFCC, recorded its first conviction for 2015 on Wednesday January 28, 2015 as Justice A. Ongetenu of the Federal High Court Abakaliki, Ebonyi State convicted and sentenced one Monday Agha to 10years imprisonment for offences bordering on conspiracy, impersonation and obtaining money by false pretence.

Agha, who was arraigned on July 20, 2013, allegedly fraudulently opened several accounts in different banks using fictitious names with which he conspired with one Moses to defraud some unsuspecting victims.

After diligent prosecution, Justice Ongetenu convicted the accused on six of the eight count charge preferred against him and sentenced him to 10years imprisonment.

The convict was also ordered to pay N2,730,000 (two million, seven hundred and thirty thousand naira) in restitution to the complainant.

One of the charge reads: “that you Agha Monday (a.k.a Nwachukwu Peter Elom), Elder Emmanuel Elom, (at large) Obinna Chijioke (at large) Agatha Chigbata Munachi (at large) Anthonia C. Nwigwe (at large) Hon. P. A. Odonio (at large) sometime between December2010 and April 2011 in Ebonyi State, within thejurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Abakaliki with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of five hundred and fifteen thousand naira (N515,000.00) from Chinyere Bright through Oceanic Bank (now Eco Bank) account number 0190001034503 by false pretence that the said Chinyere Bright has been awarded a contract for the printing and supply of 25,000 pieces of polo shirts by the Government of Ebonyi State and the said money is for mobilisation and processing of the said contract, which pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1)(a) of Advance Fee Fraud and other fraud Related Offences Act,2006 and punishable under Section 1(3)of the same Act”.

The convict had previously been convicted by a Federal High Court, Enugu and sentenced to 7 years in prison for defrauding a University don of N805,000.

Why Buhari will boycott BON presidential debate – APC

The Presidential campaign of the All Progressives Congress has said its
candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) and his running mate, Prof. Yemi
Osinbajo, will not participate in the Broadcast Organisation of Nigeria organised
electioneering debate.
According to the APC Presidential campaign, its candidate was staying away from
the event because of the unhidden bias and campaign of calumny by key
organisers of the programme, against the corporate political interest of the APC.
This position was contained in a statement signed by Mallam Garba Shehu,
Director Media and Publicity of the APC Presidential Campaign Organisation, in
Abuja, on Thursday.
APC said the Nigeria Election Debate Group -powered debate, was fraught with
fundamental errors from the outset, by wearing the toga of government control,
especially being composed mainly of agencies and allies of the incumbent
People’s Democratic Party’s administration.
The statement partly read, “A salutary inspection of the composition of NEGD
brings into focus the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria, National Television
Authority, Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria and the Africa Independent
Television (owned by a PDP chieftain).
“And going by the avalanche of inflammatory statements, misinformation and
blatant lies being propagated by some of these media against our Party and
candidates contrary to the Koffi Annan brokered Abuja Peace Accord, and the
failure of these aggressors to desist and apologise, have left the APC Campaign
with no option than to steer clear of any premeditated smear campaign that could
be inimical to our prospective electoral success.”
The campaign spokesman further explained that the boycott by the APC should
not be seen as disrespect to Nigerian voters, or an alibi for the party to dodge
public scrutiny; but it must be viewed as an honourable right not to consent to
any activity that could distract, demean, denigrate or derail the fast-moving train
of the party.
Shehu noted that the APC remains a party of progressive intellectuals, genuine
technocrats, successful businessmen and women, and most of all, eminent and
courteous people of honour who would never condescend to the level of sadistic
gutter propaganda, all in the name of political exigency and crass opportunism.
He pointed out that many Government-controlled media have clipped the wings of
APC promotional advertisements on one excuse on the other adding that, until a
court upturned their decision recently, the Nigerian Communications Commission
shutdown some telecom portals for soliciting legitimate campaign funds from
members of the public for APC.
Shehu also said, “Aside, elements close to sitting President Goodluck Jonathan
have commissioned series of derogatory and death threat advertorials against the
person, family and associates of the opposition leader, General Muhammadu
Buhari.
This, he said, prompted the APC to send letters of complaint to the Inspector
General of Police, the Director General of State Security, Advertisers Practitioners
of Nigeria, Independent National Electoral Commission and the erring media that
published or aired such offensive adverts or documentaries.
He expressed regret that none of our letters of protest has been attended to by
the authorities.
Shehu stressed that whatever the incumbent President wants to do with the
instrument of state to harass members of the opposition into humiliating
submission would not work.
He maintained that the APC/Buhari campaign is now a people’s movement. The
more they try to rubbish it, the more popular we are with the populace.
“We are not shadow-chasers or moonwalkers. The APC is concerned mainly with
the lack of unity and security in Nigeria; plus the growing decimation of lives,
property and territory of our great country due to preventable insurgency; the
slumbering economy; decaying educational system; absence of jobs; poor public
health; and the cancerous institutionalisation of corruption in our national life. You
can’t fool the people all the time. Nigerians will vote out their oppressors come
February 14.” He said.

UN warns Ebola epidemic ‘not yet contained’

The Ebola epidemic is decreasing but is still present in a third of the areas of the three worst affected west African nations, UN Ebola coordinator David Nabarro warned Thursday.

“The number of cases is decreasing week by week and getting to zero in many places… but we still see occasional flare-ups and we still see some surprises with new cases out of our contact lists,” Nabarro told AFP.

“That means that the epidemic is not contained yet,” he said.

Nabarro was speaking at the African Union headquarters, as leaders gather a day ahead of a summit meeting where Ebola is a key issue for discussion.

The worst outbreak of the virus in history has seen nearly 9,000 deaths in a year — almost all in the three west African countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone — and sparked a major health scare worldwide.

The three nations have been devastated by the outbreak, which began in December 2013, but all have seen recent signs that the virus is on the wane, with the number of new cases dropping weekly.

Liberia, once the country worst hit by the outbreak, hopes to have no new cases by the end of next month.

“We must maintain the effort with even greater intensity, the forthcoming rainy season is a concern,” Nabarro said.

But he also said there were key lessons from the response to Ebola, and said that a proposals to set up an African equivalent to the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would be a step forward.

“I took us too long to be ready, we need a better response capacity,” he said.

“The African CDC will allow the AU to be much quicker.”

On Friday and Saturday African leaders are set to discuss the economic recovery of countries affected by Ebola, as well as the setting up a “solidarity fund” and planning the CDC centre, which in its initial phase would operate as an “early warning system”.

AU Commissioner for Social Affairs Mustapha Sidiki Kaloko, speaking Wednesday, promised it would be operational by mid-2015.
Oxfam has called for a “massive post-Ebola Marshall Plan” for affected west African nations, referring to the United States aid package to rebuild Europe after World War II.

“It’s clear that Africa’s existing architecture for early disease detection, response and control is wholly inadequate,” Oxfam said in a statement on Wednesday.

The World Health Organization admitted earlier this month that the UN agency had been caught napping on Ebola and pledged reforms to avoid similar mistakes in future.