The Nation Newspaper

Category: Abuja Review

  • Give us FCT ministerial slot

    The President of the National Gade Youth Assembly (NGYA) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Comrade Baba Sani, has appealed to the incoming administration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to consider appointing a native of the territory as minister of the FCT.

    Sani, who spoke with newsmen in Abuja, said the original inhabitants of the territory have, over the years, not been privileged to be appointed into key positions at the centre.

    According to Sani, since the inception of democracy in 1999, natives of the territory that comprised nine ethnic groups have always been treated like second-class citizens in their ancestral home.

    He urged the president-elect to shun those urging him to appoint Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, as a minister of the FCT, saying there are qualified natives of the territory that can handle such position if given the opportunity.

    “The national Gade Youth Assembly also urges the president-elect, Muhammadu Buhari to shun those urging him to appoint Rabiu Kwankwaso, as FCT minister. Besides, such move is repugnant to national justice, equity and good conscience,” he said.

    The group further urged the incoming administration to set up a committee that would look into some uncompleted /abandoned projects, especially at the satellite towns, which he said has direct bearing on the lives of residents of the territory.

    “We also plead with the president-elect to cancel the land swap policy introduced by the outgoing FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed, because it has robbed the original inhabitants of their ancestral homes, inheritance and democratic rights,” he added.

  • One thing Mr. President should do before May 29

    Consigning the blood thirsty insurgents to history is one thing President Goodluck Jonathan should achieve before quitting the stage on May 29.

    Thousandsof innocent souls have been lost due to the insurgency in some parts of Nigeria, which were mainly carried out by the Islamic sect Boko Haram.

    Not only have many Nigerians also been maimed and orphaned as a result of the deadly onslaught of the sect over the years, a great number of them have been rendered homeless and life may never be the same again for them, even when the insurgency ends.

    Apart from the lives that were lost, maiming and destruction of properties by the sect, a substantial part of Nigeria’s annual budget that would have been used for development was appropriated towards procuring military hardware needed to fight the insurgents.

    It is also on record that the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan is said to be achieving giant strides against Boko Haram in the past one month over and above what was achieved in the past years of the war.

    Besides reclaiming almost all  lost territories from the insurgents, over 300 women and children in Sambisa Forest were said to have been freed from the clutches of Boko Haram in the past two weeks.

    While attributing the recent successes to the acquisition of necessary equipment for the war against the insurgents, President Jonathan has even opposed the deployment of international forces against Boko Haram.

    He had rather called on the international community to assist with rebuilding the areas destroyed by the sect over the years.

    The President was so confident now against the sect that he even vowed on Thursday last week that he would handover a Nigeria free from Boko Haram to the President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari on May 29.

    No doubt, Nigerians will be happy if the President can really achieve that on or before the handover date.

    But they will be happier if President Jonathan can go further to unveil the ‘real’ sponsors and financiers of Boko Haram before he leaves office on May 29.

    Even if there won’t be time for his administration to prosecute the sponsors to logical conclusion, the incoming administration will pick up the cases from where he stopped.

    As a Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, many Nigerians won’t believe that President Jonathan has not had access to security information over the years pointing to the real sponsors and financiers of the insurgents.

    Not a few numbers of the terrorists were arrested by security agencies in the past five years and, as expected, valuable information on the ‘real’ sponsors should have been gathered by the government.

    To wash his hands of the blood of innocent souls shed by the insurgents, President Jonathan should ensure that there are no cover-ups on the sponsors. He should also ensure that urgent steps are being taken to expose and bring them to book, even if that is the last thing he will do before leaving office to start his statesmanship role.

    To expose and prosecute the sponsors is very important as it will reduce the possibility of Nigeria and Nigerians experiencing such insurgency in the future.

    Again, it will give the incoming administration a clean slate to begin work without the evil sponsors and financiers walking free in the society.

    To remain silent and conceal the real identity of the sponsors will not be the best for Nigeria.

    And if what has happened over the years were manipulations by some persons in the system for financial or other gains, the President should move against them as there is still time to act before leaving office.

     

    Massive turnout excites Jonathan

     

    President Goodluck Jonathan was, on last Saturday of April, stunned with the turnout of people for the last and fifth Presidential Prayer Breakfast at the Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja.

    The turnout was complete opposite of the attendance at the Palm Sunday Service in the Aso Villa Chapel on March 29, 2015.

    The Palm Sunday Service, which was a day after the Presidential elections was held across the country, had very few people in attendance.

    Even though President Jonathan was yet to concede defeat to the President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, many of the worshipers, who stayed away probably saw the handwriting on the wall as the results of the election were trickling in from across the country.

    Attendance during that Sunday service, besides the choir, did not exceed the first three rows on both sides of the hall while workers and few security aides and media men occupied the rows behind.

    In spite that the Chapel was always filled beyond capacity anytime President Jonathan was worshiping there, he however, kept calm in his usual style and didn’t show whether he was surprised with the low turnout at the Palm Sunday Service.

    President Jonathan, who was getting used to the thinning crowd after he conceded defeat, couldn’t hide his surprise when he saw the massive crowd at the prayer breakfast in the State House.

    Hear him: “Today, I expected a very low turnout because, in most cases, when government is going, the number of people that attend service here reduces. You will notice that even the number of people that have been coming to the chapel becomes less and less.

    “But when I came in, I noticed that the hall is filled up. So, I have to sincerely thank all of you.”

     

    Mohammed’s uncommon gesture to church

     

    It is no longer news that  a quiet and godly place known as the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Jubilee Resort and Leadership Centre has been inaugurated and is ready for use in Abuja.

    The edifice, located within the premises of the National Christian Centre Abuja, has four suspended floors and a basement, 53 standard double and single bedrooms, two presidential suites, 1,000-capacity conference hall with two-wing galleries, board room, restaurant, two units of elevator, 500 KVA standby power generating set, 500 KVA transformer, 60,000-litre capacity underground water tank with 25.5 distribution pumps, laundry rooms and parking lots.

    But what is amazing in the construction of the project is the role played by a Muslim Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Mohammed.

    Not minding that he was not a Christian, he gave his all to the project that made the CAN President, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor to single him out among other donors.

    He said: “This dream would have just remained a dream without good people, great Christians with great hearts. Many promised to support us, but unfortunately, not many paid, a few responded to our requests. In your presence, your Excellency, we want to recognise them, we want to be able to give them a little plaque representing how we feel about what they have done.

    “It all began with the FCT Ministry led by the Hon. Minister, Bala Mohammed. Thank you for being the starting point for us. Also the Minister of State standing by you to support us.”

  • Residents rue fuel scarcity

    Residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have accused the Federal Government and marketers of petroleum products of being responsible for the biting fuel scarcity in the territory.

    The residents, who lamented the prolonged fuel scarcity, said the situation has worsened with commercial drivers increasing transport fares by 100 per cent because thousands of vehicles are queuing up for fuel at the filling stations.

    Samuel Donatus, a motorist, said he spent two days at the NNPC filling station along Kubwa-Zuba Expressway where over 2,000 cars were on the queue for fuel, with no hope of getting the product.

    “I have no fuel in my car and I have been sleeping at this filling station for the past two days. I eat and sleep here. I do not know when it is going to get to my turn when they eventually start selling the fuel and I cannot afford black market where one litre is sold at between N200 and N250.

    “The truth is that this fuel crisis is really a punishment on us. Imagine the suffering we are all going through because of the forthcoming handover. This is not fair. We should not be going through this challenges; we deserve better from the outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan administration,” he said.

    Gloria Udo, a civil servant lamented that the prolonged fuel crisis has taken a negative turn on the residents because motorists that were considerate during the beginning of the fuel crisis have been forced to increase their fares.

    “From Kubwa village to town, I paid N200 instead of N100. The worst part of it all is that it is difficult to get the vehicles to board to town. Nobody knows what is going on and how long this fuel problem will last.

    “We are really suffering in the FCT. Things are getting harder by the day. When the fuel problem began, we thought that it will be just for a moment, but now, it has lasted up to two months and nothing has been done about it. We are suffering and smiling at the same time in this city,” she said.

  • 14,000 IDPs to benefit from medical outreach

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Primary Health Care Development Board (PHCDB) has said that about 14,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in seven camps in the territory would benefit from the free medical outreach being organised by the board.

    The Executive Secretary of PHCDB, Dr Rilwanu Muhammad, made this known in during the inauguration of the April 2015 National Immunisation-plus Days organised to mark the Africa Vaccination Week (AVW) and the World Malaria Day.

    Mohammed said the Africa Vaccination Week, whose theme was “Vaccination, a Gift of Life”, had been scheduled for between April 24 and 30, saying the main goal of the event was to help in strengthening immunisation systems through advocacy, education and outreach services.

    He said the event will commemorate the week and seven of the camps located in three area councils which are Abaji, Kuje, and Bwari had been selected to have health camps for the duration of the Africa Vaccination Week.

    “Arrangement to ensure the availability of the relevant services and supplies to meet the demand created for the interventions have been made. This is to ensure that the health care needs of this group are met,” he said.

    He, therefore, urged the displaced persons, especially women and children, to take advantage of the opportunity offered by the event to access medical care.

    Speaking during the inauguration, the Executive Secretary of National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) Dr Ado Mohammed, explained

    that Nigeria had not recorded any new case of the polio virus in the past nine months.

    Mohammed, who was represented by the Advocacy and Communication Officer of the agency, Dr Adamu Nuhu, also said that it was necessary to reach out to the IDPs through advocacy, adding that the exercise will increase access to the under-served population that are hard to reach and the mobile population in the country.

    Also speaking on the World Malaria Day, Mohammed said malaria had devastated the people’s health and livelihood, but that the agency has made huge gains in the fight against the disease.

    He said new drugs had been made available for the treatment of the disease, promising that the vaccine against malaria will soon be made available.

  • Indigenes fault FCDA on out-of-court settlement

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has opted for an out-of-court settlement in the case between it and the Dagbalo community in the territory, but the indigenous people have issues with the processes of the settlement.

    Rev. Danjuma Tanko, who spoke with reporters after the court proceedings at the FCT High Court under Justice Jude Okeke at Daki-biu in Jabi District, explained that the committee was set up by the FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed and his name was said to have been included for compensation as a move for an out-of-court settlement.

    Rev. Tanko said: “The truth is that in the case of demolishing a community, if there is the need to talk about compensation, the FCDA has to compensate the entire Dagbalo community. If they want to compensate only me, it is wrong, because I am not alone; I belong to the community.

    “That is what they have not been able to conclude. Out of about 100 households, they were able to provide 48 alternative houses and the remaining ones they diverted to unknown places. I have the list with me. Besides that, were they supposed to enforce demolition for resettlement without being compensated?

    “I will never trust the FCDA. If they want settlement out of court, they should include my people. I cannot be comfortable alone, they must go through the due process of compensation. Now, they have cut us off from my community and wiped off the community. Will they be able to get us that kind of community?

    Also, while speaking with journalists, counsel to Dagbalo, Mr. Nkem Adolphima explained that it was announced by the counsel to the FCDA that they had a meeting but were yet to resolve the issue and they needed some time to settle everything that would lead to out-of-court settlement, that the name of the plaintiff has been short-listed for compensation.

    “The fact that both parties have got their evidence and they are working towards ending the case, the next adjoined date will be to adopt the final written address, because we have been told to file our written addresses.

    “Hopefully, based on what the FCDA lawyer said, that they have filed out papers and documents, that the names of the plaintiff have been short-listed.

    “If before the next adjoined date, which is June 30, and they bring their evidences before the court, the case will have a different dimension. Otherwise, the court will proceed to adopt the written address and then take a date for judgment. Although, out-of-court settlement may not be the best option, if they present something that is when something will come out of it.

    “It is not the issue of the FCDA giving promises, we want to see something that would serve as evidences of what they intend to do; that would show that they really want an out-of-court settlement. It is not just having out-of-court settlement with verbal promises. It is not done that way.

    “If we are able to see documents on allocations and compensations, then we will know that we are arriving at somewhere,” she said.

     

  • On come the lights

    On come the lights

    Before now, traffic lights were quite uncommon in Abuja. Those that existed were malfunctioning. This informed the posting of traffic wardens to some strategic intersections in the city to control traffic.

    That was then. Currently, most of the moribund traffic lights have been resuscitated as residents woke up recently to notice that the traffic lights were blinking again.

    Changes residents never thought possible have become reality as politicians and their contractor friends ensure that most of the dilapidated infrastructure in the capital city are revived, at least to prove to the incoming administration that they are capable of making things happen.

    Though Abuja boasts most modern facilities that other states lack, the city has always had an ugly record of maintenance culture and most contractors take this trend for granted, even as they manipulate the system and abandon projects which contracts they have been awarded.

    The most visible aspect of the low maintenance culture had been in the area of traffic lights. There is prevalence of broken down traffic lights as one drives through the city. Some of them give confusing or conflicting go ahead sign to motorists so much so that they could cause accidents. Some of them come on when they are not supposed to or go off when a particular lane should have right of way.

    Residents and motorists have been complaining about this situation for so long and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) transport secretariat always claimed that something was being done about it. Recently, there is a wind of change with regard to the functioning of the traffic lights in the FCT.

    ýCurrently, there is no need posting traffic wardens to man all the intersections of Abuja because all the dilapidated traffic lights have been fixed and new traffic lights have been installed in locations where residents never believed was possible. The traffic situation had always been a nightmare in front of the Wuse Zone 3 Market. Here, people driving towards the market from around the bridge always struggle their way through, especially when the traffic wardens where not around. However, one morning, residents woke up to behold a new traffic light installed on the road which has drastically reduced the traffic situation.

    Mr. Jonah Festus plies the route daily. He expressed surprise at the sudden development.

    He said: “ýI learnt that the contractor that was supposed to install the lights had been paid a long time ago. He did not install them. Now that Buhari is about to be inaugurated, he has decided to do it out of fear for what might happen to him.

    “This is a good development. The Abuja traffic light system used to be terrible, but now with all this changes, driving around Abuja is turning into fun.”

    Another resident Chidi Agu expressed delight at the development in the city. He said: “It is really nice driving around town these days and noticing that the traffic lights now work. It is really commendable and I’m not bothered about how they waited until this time to do it. The important thing is that they have done something nice that is worth commending.”

    The Public Relations Officer (PRO) FCT Transport Secretariat, Mr. Ifeanyi Ughamadu, in a telephone chat with Abuja Review denied that the change was meant to please the incoming Buhari administration.

    “The administration recently changed from using the public power supply to powering the traffic light with solar panels. ýWhat is actually happening now is that all the traffic lights in Abuja are being changed to solar panels and we intend to finish soon. The development is a partnership with the Chinese and we have been working on it for a long time. It’s possible that residents are only noticing it now. If you look closely at places where you see traffic lights now, you will also see solar panels mounted on top of it.

    “We are not only repairing the old ones and changing them into the new solar-powered lights but we intend to extend the installation of traffic lights to Kubwa and Gwarimpaý. We intend to have 24-hour coverage now, unlike before where the traffic lights go off anytime that there is power outage. We realised that the solar powered light is much more reliable.

    “The decision on this was taken a long time ago and we began installing it a while back. Honestly, it does not have anything to do with the change of government. The changes had been in the pipeline for a long time and we even began the installations since last year.

    “FCT residents should expect more of ýconstant traffic lights working because all traffic lights would be streamlined towards solar which the country has in abundance. We will install and repair over 70 traffic light junctions in town and I do not know the exact number that will be installed in Gwarimpa and Kubwa but that will be happening very soon,” he said.

    Whether the changes are propelled by the fear of the new administration or according to the explanations of the PRO, it is a good development. The important thing still remains that the traffic light is making life of residents less stressful as there is free flow of traffic. Installation of traffic lights in Gwarimpa and Kubwa will also be great. Residents are optimistic that most malfunction facilities in the FCT will also be rehabilitated to ease life of the residents.

  • Igbo seek scrapping of land-swap policy

    Igbo seek scrapping of land-swap policy

    Investors in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have called on the incoming administration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to scrap the land swap policy which was introduced by the FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohommed, saying that the policy is against the interest of the natives and residents of the territory.

    The Chairman of Zaudan Pazeri Property Owners’ Association, Elder Friday Ugoala, who spoke on behalf of residents of the FCT at a news conference in Abuja, said if the land swap is allowed to continue, the rate of accommodation or services that would arise from it will be beyond the reach of the common Nigerian who resides in the capital city.

    According to Ugoala, if the land swap policy is scrapped, the average Nigerian will have hope to acquire land and build it at his own pace. He debunked the notion that the FCT is not meant for everybody, adding that they will have the hope of having a home to stay in the FCT.

    “Also, the land swap policy is against the natives of the FCT, because, many of them would be sent out of their ancestral communities for strangers to come and occupy, all in the name of land swap. The truth is that the greatest humiliation you can give to a man is to send him out of his ancestral home, where his ancestors were buried. This is not right.

    “If the land swap policy is not scrapped, I do not know how many of the natives can afford the price the estate developers would place their houses when constructed, because most of them would be out to make money with their structures, without considering if the common man could afford it or not. The policy is a conduit for corruption, because it encourages corruption and injustice.

    “There are many cases where individuals have been awarded plots of land, just for the fact that their files are being processed in the FCDA office. The next thing is that they jump upon allocation and they hand it over, saying that it has been swapped. There is capital vote approved for the FCT Administration, but the logic they gave for the land swap is that it is saving the government the cost of infrastructure, whereas there is budget for infrastructure.

    “Within this period of land swap, what new places and special things have been done with the fund that is supposed to have been saved as a result of land swap? We have not noticed tangible achievement in terms of saving. So the land swap is encouraging corruption,” he said.

     

  • Enter farewell visitors

    With about a month to the handover date, President Goodluck Jonathan has started to receive dignitaries on a thank-you and farewell visits from beyond the national borders.

    One of the first visitors was President Alassane Ouattara of Cote d’Ivoire who was at the Presidential Villa on Monday last week to thank him for all the support he has given him and his country in the past five years.

    Briefing journalists after the closed-door meeting, Ouattara, who was recounting Jonathan’s role that ensured Ouattara took over from Laurent Gbagbo who  was hanging onto power in 2010 in Cote d’Ivoire, became a bit emotional as the two leaders managed to fight back tears during the session.

    He was particularly grateful that Jonathan, who was Nigeria’s Acting President five years ago could mobilise other West African leaders to oust Laurent Gbagbo, who had refused to relinquish power after losing the presidential election.

    Besides commending Jonathan for shunning replay of the Gbagbo experience in Nigeria, he was happy that bloodshed was averted in the country as Jonathan peacefully conceded defeat to Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

    Gbagbo’s refusal to concede defeat to him after the presidential election, he said, resulted in a four-month civil war in which over 3, 000 people lost their lives.

    He said: “So, I wanted to tell you our appreciation over the leadership we have received from you during these years. You know that about five years ago, Cote d’Ivoire had elections and I won the election and the former president decided not to leave office. This brought the civil war and 3,000 people were killed.”

    “We were put in a hotel for protection by the United Nations for four and a half months. We were there without food because the hotel was guarded by the president’s men. It was only after four and a half months of imprisonment in that hotel that finally we were able to leave the hotel; after the former president quit and finally left office for me.”

    “I am saying this to stress that what happened in Nigeria is a lesson to all of us. Please, accept my admiration. I think that avoiding violence, avoiding civil war when we have elections in Africa should be our utmost objective,” he said.

    Continuing, he said: “People are more important than power and Mr. President, my good friend, I am not surprised about what you did and I wanted to congratulate you, congratulate the Nigerian people and congratulate the President-elect.

    “My brother, you have shown support to me during the difficult years I went through, you have shown friendship to me all these years. So, I want to tell you thank you.” he added.

    The following day, Tuesday, the Ghanaian President, John Mahama, who is also the chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) also, visited President Jonathan to commend him on behalf of ECOWAS for his statesmanship in conceding defeat to Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

    He said: “I also took the opportunity to commend him for the statesmanship that was displayed after the election. We all knew that he congratulated the president-elect, Gen. Buhari after the election realities and he conceded. I feel that was a very great sign of maturity and has earned the respect of all Nigerians and the respect of the international community for all what he did.

    “We expect a smooth transition and possibly the role that Nigeria plays in the ECOWAS being the biggest economy not only in our sub-region but also in the whole continent.

    “Of course there is a special relationship that exists between Nigeria and Ghana too and so, in my second heart as the President of Ghana, I wish to congratulate our brothers and sisters in Nigeria on what has been a very good election,” he said.

    To ensure continued support from Nigeria after May 29, these leaders did not fail to seek audience with the President-elect, Gen. Buhari, during their visits.

    Jonathan and Buhari, no doubt, will continue to receive such visits as the D-day approaches.

     

    And Jonathan stings

     

    Barely 10 minutes after bidding the Ghanaian President, John Mahama, farewell from the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Tuesday the defeat of President Goodluck Jonathan at the March 28 Presidential elections recorded its first casualty.

    The President, through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, announced the sack of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Suleiman Abba from office.

    The tone of the statement showed that the Presidency was really angry with the IGP as similar statements normally avoid the use of the word ‘sack’.

    Although no reason was given in the statement for the sack, his exit was said not to be unconnected with the role he was said to have played during the 2015 general elections.

    It is not clear whether the President, in the coming days, will also use his sledge hammer on politicians in his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who were believed to have played roles that had adversely affected his re-election bid.

  • Give us good feeder roads

    Residents of Dutse Sokale in Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have appealed to the chairman of the council, Hon. Peter Yohanna to construct feeder roads in the community, in order to alleviate their suffering.

    Mr. Simon Chukwu, one of the residents who spoke with our reporter lamented that state of the roads in the community is unbearable, as most of the residents suffered immeasurably.

    According to Chukwu, residents of the community have made countless appeals to the leadership of the council to provide infrastructural development for the people in the community, but not much has been done in that regard, apart from the improved power supply.

    “We really need good feeder roads in this community, because, without it, life is unbearable. Car owners in this community repair their cars on weekly basis because of the bad roads and they have no choice, since they live in the community.

    “Whenever it rains, the entire community will be in mess, to the extent that you will not be able to identify where the road is or where the pits which gully erosion has constructed are. Now that the rain is about to start, we are afraid because of the challenges we will experience,” he said.

    Isah Ishiaku, a motorcycle operator in Dutse Sokale explained that due to the deplorable state of the roads in the community, most of them get scared to ply the roads when it rains, because they often fall off from their bikes with passengers.

    “The truth is that the best thing the chairman, Hon. Peter Yohanna can do for us now is for him to give us good roads in this community. If the roads are constructed, we will have peace of mind to carry our passengers to their destinations without fear of falling into the mud,” he said.

     

  • Xenophobic attacks: Indigenes warn S/Africa

    Federal Capital Territory (FCT) indigenes have threatened to close down South African businesses operating in the nation’s capital as a reprisal for the Xenophobic attacks in that country.

    The group has given the South African Government 48 hours to apologise to Nigerians and other nationals of African countries for the wanton killings during the xenophobic attack.

    The group also demanded that concrete steps be taken by the South African authority to tackle the menace.

    The threat was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the FCT Residents Association meeting in collaboration with some traditional rulers in the territory, which was jointly signed by the Secretary-General of the Forum, Comrade Yunusa Yusuf and the Eze Igbo of Abuja, His Royal Highness (HRH) Ibe Nwosu and made available to reporters.

    The natives stressed that Africans must integrate as a continent to battle the xenophobic attack in South Africa. They said: “We pledge to remain our brother’s keeper irrespective of nations, tribes and tongues and we will continue to act as such within the limit of our laws and international conventions.

    “That there have been relentless attempts by the South African Government to undermine peace in the continent and replace it with a different ideology based on xenophobia. We are confident that the Federal Government of Nigeria will handle the situation in South Africa at the international level.

    “That we the host community of multi-nationals including South Africa business community, are not happy with the onslaught in South Africa on flimsy and baseless guise of xenophobia.

    “That, having studied the situation in South Africa vis-a-vis the trauma our brothers are subjected to in the past weeks, we have resolved to give the South African Authority Forty Eight (48) hour’s ultimatum to apologise to Nigerians and other nationals of other African countries for the wanton killings and destruction of property of other nationals resident in South Africa.

    “That failure to come up with permanent solution within the stipulated 48 hours ultimatum, drastic measures, including attacks on the business interests of South Africa in the Federal Capital Territory will be ruthlessly carried out as a reprisal to the ongoing xenophobia attacks.

    “That the business interests of South Africa operating in the Federal Capital Territory listed for attack include but not limited to Shoprite, DSTV, Barcelos, Pick ‘n’ Pay, Spar, Steer, MTN, Debonairs, Hungry Lion and Mr. Price, among others”

    The group regretted that despite that South Africa businesses operating in the FCT have continued to marginalise Abuja natives in area of employment, Abuja natives have allowed them to operate without intimidation from any quarters, stressing that the South African Government should forthwith demonstrate the spirit of brotherhood towards other nationals resident in South Africa or face the consequences.will be ruthlessly carried out as a reprisal to the ongoing xenophobia attacks