The Nation Newspaper

Category: Northern Report

FCT inaugurates children’s home

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration has inaugurated a children’s home cum transit camp for orphans, motherless babies and abandoned babies in Gwako community in Gwagwalada Area Council, Abuja.

The administration said the home which is equipped with skills acquisition facilities, is capable of transforming the lives of the teeming youths and vulnerable children who roam the streets of Abuja as beggars or destitute.

Minister of State for the FCT, Olajumoke Akinjide who inaugurated the homeý said FCT residents are yet to see the end of the current administration because it still has more to give to Nigerians.

She added that even as the new government takes power, it should continue from where the present administration stopped and not allow all the laudable projects of the outgoing government to waste.

She said: “The vision for a facility that will cater for the welfare of this vulnerable segment of our population, mainly orphans, motherless and abandoned babies, is in keeping with the transformation agenda of the outgoing administration.

•Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Boboye Oyeyemi (middle); Deputy Corps Marshal, Administration, Chidi Nwachukwu (left) and Deputy Corps Marshal, Operations, Adei Abu at the strategic session with 313 Commanding Officers in Abuja

“The inauguration of this project therefore underscores the many positive projects which have been executed by this administration as it draws the curtain over an eventful tenure.

“The home being inaugurated today is, indeed, only one of such projects and is designed to pass on the torch of positive legacy to the FCT residents and the incoming administration.

“Governance is continuous. The FCTA remains grateful for your sacrifices and urges you to remain resolute and give the same loyalty and support to the incoming administration”

Akinjide thanked residents for their support and partnership as they work together to improve the welfare of residents and to advance the fortunes of the territory; saying that the facility aims at alleviating the plight of children who, for no fault of theirs, found themselves on the unfortunate segment of our society.

“It will serve as an educational as well as a skill acquisition centre for the home mates while benefiting the host community. We are certainly hopeful that it will give these children a solid start in life.

“The quality of care given to our children irrespective of the circumstances of their birth, to a large extent, determines the value of their adulthood and by extension will impact on the future of our nation.

“It is therefore for this reason that the home has been structured to provide an enabling environment for these vulnerable children to develop self-reliance and self-confidence and to be mentally adjusted to fit into the larger society in order to compete favourably with their peers in the future.”

She, therefore, urged managers of the facility to ensure that the purpose of the home is fully realised.

In her speech, Special Guest of Honour and Minister of Women Affairs, Hajia Zainab Maina, commended the FCTA for the “dynamic project” just as she called on well-meaning Nigerians to support the project. She added that in other climes, citizens do not wait for government to provide everything for them.

In her welcome address, Secretary, Social Development Secretariat, Mrs. Blessing Onuh, said the ceremony marked the completion of a project that is capable of transforming the lives of teeming youths and vulnerable children who roam the streets of the FCT as destitute and beggars.

“This centre is meant to be a transit camp to cater for their immediate needs. The administration thought it wise to provide them with skills while they wait to be re-united with their families,” she said.

She noted that it was at some point like a burden for this administration due to large influx of internally displaced persons (IDPs) into the FCT but “we thank God for a successful completion of this project. We hope that we will raise our future entrepreneurs as we have provided various training facilities to meet up with the growing demand of global trend.”

•From left: Former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Timipire Sylva; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim and Mrs Ibukun Odusote during the Presidential Inauguration Planning Committee meeting at the Banquet Hall Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The inauguration, which was attended by Hajia Maina, Olajimoke and other government officials, was the brainchild of the Social Development Secretariat and funded by the FCT Administration. The project comprises six classrooms that can take at least 50 people each for theoretical learning; an administrative block, workshops in various skills ranging from fashion designing and tailoring, shoe making and design, hairdressing and salon technique, welding and wrought iron design and catering and confectionaries; 200-capacity multi-purpose hall and recreational facilities such as synthetic five aside football pitch and a volley ball court and hostel facilities that can accommodate about 1, 000 people.

The hall, according to Onuh, can be utilised for several events ranging from business, workshops, conventions and reception, among others through which the centre can be self-sustained; as they intend to maintain it through internally-generated revenue.

She called on individuals and organisations to partner with the Social Development Secretariat in achieving this objective.

She, however, warned youths who roam the streets of the FCT that begging is prohibited in FCT. Onuh urged them to take advantage of the opportunity provided by government to improve their well-being.

She also urged FCT residents not to encourage begging by giving alms to beggars on the street.

“They should instead make such contributions to existing aid programmes carried out by our churches, mosques and the centre whenever they wish to support the welfare of these vulnerable groups,” she said.

April 28, 2015
Residents worry over heaps of garbage

Residents of Kuje Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have decried the growing heaps of refuse and the inability of the council to evacuate them.

The heaps of garbage at the front of the market along Kuje-Gwagwalada Road, General Hospital Junction and various dump grounds may lead to an outbreak of epidemic if urgent steps are not taken.

Some residents who spoke with Abuja Review said the huge garbage heaps in their various communities have not been evacuated for a long time.

Mrs. Blessing Gata, a resident of Sauka area behind the Gomo Palace said the garbage close to her house has not been evacuated for over a month.

“I do not know why the area council authorities have not come to evacuate waste in this area for more than one month now. The huge garbage heap is breeding mosquitoes which make people victims of malaria. Now that the rains will start soon, it will be terrible. I am appealing with the Kuje Area Council to come and evacuate the refuse so that we can live a healthy life,” Gata said.

Mr. Andrew David, who resides at Anguwan Gade Extension lamented the growing heaps of garbage which he said poses danger to healthy living.

He, however, appealed to the relevant authorities in charge of evacuating waste in the area to take the necessary step in ensuring sanity in the area.

“It has been a while I saw people evacuating waste in this area. We do not actually know what is happening. We are appealing to the authorities to come and evacuate the waste because it is malodorous.

Reacting, the Kuje Head of Environmental Sanitation Department, Mr. Abdulkarim Abdulrazaq, said the waste evacuation exercise was no longer handled by area council, saying it is currently handled by the Satellite Town Development Authorities (STDA) and monitored by the department.

He, however, called on residents of the area to stop the improper dumping of garbage by the road side.

“The heap of garbage in some areas in the council results from improper disposal of refuse by some residents.

“Despite the departments’ effort on evacuation and keeping the environment clean, some people have failed to comply with sanitation rules and regulations.

“The council is also trying its best in terms of creating awareness on proper waste disposal but some residents have refused to do the right thing,” he said.

April 28, 2015
Indigenes appeal to Buhari to end demolition

Natives of Kpaduma communities in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have called on the incoming administration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to end the incessant demolition of communities in the territory.

Speaking on behalf of the natives at a news conference on Kpaduma communities’ court case against the Senator Bala Mohammed-led administration, Secretary to Kpaduma communities, Simon Baba-Yerima said with the incoming administration, there is hope for the natives against marginalisation and threat of lives by the present administration.

According to Baba-Yerima, a situation where ancestral homes of the natives are demolished and they are driven out to look for where to reside, their farmlands are taken from them without adequate compensation, is inhumane to the natives of the FCT and should be discontinued in order for peace to reign in the territory.

“So, we pray that the incoming administration of Gen. Buhari will put a stop to the menace and inhumane treatment that is meted on the natives of the FCT by the present administration. We have suffered a lot in the hands of this government.

“We believe that as a leader who has the passion for the masses and not only for the high class in the society, he will listen to our cries and bring soccour to the FCT natives. We are also asking that as when the new administration comes on board, we should be carried along in order for things pertaining to the FCT to go smoothly for the benefit of everybody.

“We are also pleading that the new minister of the FCT should be a native of the FCT. He should be chosen from any of the nine ethnic groups in Abuja, so that our rights will be protected. If we have a minister from the FCT, he will understand our problems and fashion out proper means to solve them without threat to the lives of anybody in the territory,” he said.

April 28, 2015
What Katsina expects from Buhari

The sweet savour of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s victory at the polls has not subsided in Daura, his hometown in the north of Katsina State. But when he visited the emirate after the elections, the enthusiastic crowd made it clear they wanted a president for all Nigerians, not a provincial or regional leader. TONY AKOWE reports

The crowd that welcomed him at the Katsina airport was comparable to the multitude that queued up to vote for him. They chanted his name as he rode triumphantly to Daura, his ancestral home. But they also knew what kind of president they wanted: one who will make a huge difference as a true national leader.

It was the first time Daura residents and the people of the emirate were seeing the retired General after he became President-

Inset: Gen. Buhari

elect. It was all jubilation right from the Katsina airport as the people lined the road in joyous celebration.

A first-time visitor to Daura may be taken aback by the show of solidarity for the incoming president, but the General himself said it was nothing new. He told reporters that the reception he received from his people had always been overwhelming.

“The reception I receive in my constituency has always been like that since April 2002,” he said. “So, for you, it may be something spectacular but it has always been a regular thing”.

Mallam Ahmed Abubakar, a resident of Kofar Baru in the heart of Daura town, told The Nation that though they were still celebrating the victory of their kinsman, he had never seen such a large turnout of people in the town.

“For all these years that Buhari had been contesting the election, right from the defunct ANPP [All Nigeria Peoples Party] to CPC [Congress for Progressive Change] days, we have never witnessed such a large turnout of people,” he said. “I think this is as a result of the victory for General Buhari and the APC [All Progressives Congress].

“At first we were scared, we thought the election may not hold, but we were only surprised to see that they are only here to observe the election. General Buhari has more supporters now than all other previous elections; you know in this country more than any other time before, Nigerians need change, we need someone who has the interest of the country at heart, we need someone that will embrace all Nigerians in respective of religion or tribe.”

Contrary to popular thinking, the people of the town do not believe that Buhari is a hard and rigid man who does not listen to people. Instead, they believe that he is always willing to share what he has. They believe that he is a good listener, with a good sense of humor.

Senator-elect for Katsina North senatorial district, Mustapha Bukar, who also hails from Daura, told The Nation that Buhari has always been a friendly person.

He said, “I believe that you have associated with him. Two weeks ago, you were in his house. He is a very friendly person and if you don’t come close to him, you will think that he is not friendly. But people think that you can be friends with people by giving them money or asking them to do something that is wrong. When he declines, somebody will think that he is not friendly. General Buhari is a very friendly person. One thing I like about him is that each time we talk there is always a lot of jokes that will make you laugh and relax and make you understand that he is listening and takes your advice. You may say that he does not give you the answer quickly, but that is because he digests whatever you give him. He does not just take things the way you think because anybody coming to a senior person like him would have thought through what he wanted and if the outcome is not what he is looking for, then he may think the man is not friendly. I think he is a very friendly person”.

Bukar who resigned his position as a District Head to contest the Senatorial seat, said the secret behind the people’s love for the General cannot easily be explained. Bukar believes that he is liked because of his honesty.

“It is not money that makes him popular, but making people see him as an example. He is liked because he is honest and so, people come to him. They believe in his ideal, they believe he leads by example. He does not have to give them money, but he tells them what to do and when he was in a position to do what they wanted, he did not hesitate. When he was in PTF [Petroleum Trust Fund], he did a lot of projects and nobody has been able to do what he did. No ministry has been able to do the amount of work that he did when he was in PTF and he made sure there is social justice. They believe he is a person that will ensure there is equity and what is need in any nation is to have that social justice and equity. Give people what they need. He is somebody who has always tried to show the people that there is social justice and that people should be given their dues. They people know that as a leader, he will take care of their responsibilities. The followers believe that anybody who is in a position of authority is there to take care of all their problems and there is no way he will allow anything to happen to them. Unfortunately, these days, the leaders who are supposed to take care of the subjects ends up compromising them. That is the difference. He is a very simple person to work with”.

For former Speaker of the House of Representatives and Governor elect of Katsina state, Right Honourable Aminu Bello Masari, the emergence of Gen. Buhari as President elect will be a plus for the state. Masari is not unaware of the fact that Buhari coming from Katsina will put a lot of pressure on his government. He told The Nation that “We are not meeting with Buhari on the platform of political party alone. We have a long standing relationship and now, we have a political relationship. That Buhari is from Katsina state, for us, is a plus, and that plus depends on how we manage it. We want Buhari to be a Nigerian leader. We don’t want Buhari to be a regional, zonal or provincial leader. We want him to be a Nigerian leader that will leave a legacy of positive contribution to this country and that is the basis on which people elected him. So, we will help him to maintain and improve on those qualities which the people of Nigeria see in him. We will never do anything that will tarnish his image, his reputation or his standing internationally and nationally. When we go somewhere and say I am from Katsina, we want the doors to be open. So for us, it is a plus”.

Residents of the Daura are no doubt enjoying the new status of town. The attraction of different people to the town for the election, they said has increased business activities in the town and believe that with Buhari as Nigerian President, attention will now shift to the place just like it did other parts of the country that has produced Nigerian President. However, they want the President elect to bring development to the place. They believe that business Centres such hotels and other recreation Centres should be attracted to the town.

April 21, 2015
Kwara women farmers seek help

Women farmers in Kwara State have made clear their needs to the government. They said they needed such modern agricultural tools as tractors and soil-enriching inputs, even chemicals to fight crop-eating and other destructive pests, among other things.

It was not a lonely outing for the women growers. A raft of Civil Society groups and non-governmental organisations backed them as they made their case. The farmers were drawn from 18 communities in the state.

The civil society forum on women in agriculture is supported by other non-governmental organisations (NGO) such as Centre for Community Empowerment and Poverty Eradication (CCEPE) and Actionaid Nigeria).

The event was organised by the NGOs.

The women farmers otherwise known as women in agriculture used the occasion to appeal to the state government to ensure adequate supply of fertilisers, herbicides and tractors to aid them.

A representative of the farmer from Kaiama Local Government Area, Silifat Mohammed, who said she has been farming for 22 years, lamented dearth of original herbicides and other farm inputs.

“We urge government to assist us with the provision of fertilizer, tractors and original herbicides. The last planting season I operated at a loss. I expended about N85,000 for in planting beans but at the end I only harvested two bags. Insects invaded my farmland and ate them up,” she added.

Another who gave her name as Taiye Ibrahim, from Budo-Ara, Asa Local Government Area corroborated her colleagues.

She said: “We urge the state government to make fertiliser, herbicides and tractors available to aid our farming activities. We also want to feel the impact of agriculture extension services experts. We need funding too.”

Mrs. Ibrahim said she grew groundnuts, maize and yam.

Director, Agriculture Services, in the state Ministry of Agriculture, Abifarin Olawuyi, said the state government is not unaware of the women farmers’ contribution for the food sufficiency in the state.

Olawuyi said that the state government has always factored in the women farmers in its annual budget.

He added that the paltry amount allocated to the sector in the 2015 budget recently passed by the state House of Assembly was due to dwindling allocations from the federation account.

The director informed the gathering that the state government would make up for that in the supplementary budget.

State Director, Ministry of Planning and Economic Development, Alhaji Abdulazeez Oyelowo aligned with his colleague.

Chief Executive Officer, CCPE in the state, Kareem Suleiman said that the annual allocation to agriculture by successive governments in Nigeria is not enough to galvanise expected growth and development in the country.

Mr. Suleiman urged the state government “to endeavour to subsequently allocate an amount not less than 5 per cent of the total state budget to agricultural sector and progressively increase it to meet up with the 10 percent Maputo declaration commitment.”

He continued “since women participation in agricultural development cannot be overemphasized, considering their significant contribution in the agriculture value chain and food production, we recommend that women farmers be accorded a pride of place in subsequent budgeting which could reflect in at least 30 percent budget allocation to direct line items aimed at supporting smallholder women farmers.

“While noting that allocation to extension services in the previous years and 2015 agriculture budget has been non-existent, which has consistently being discouraging effective agriculture transfer technology by extension officer, we hereby recommend adequate funding for extension services which could reflect in at least 10 percent of the overall agriculture budget to bring about a more vibrant agriculture sector in our fledging agrarian state.

“That a forum should be created by the state ministry of agriculture and natural resources for the participation of smallholder farmers, especially women and civil society organizations in the budgetary processes for ownership.

“Finally, on agriculture financing and credit, we recommend that the state government should proactively engage the federal government to open up the Central Bank of Nigeria initiated ‘Nigerian incentive-based risk sharing system for agricultural lending’ (NIRSAL) for access by smallholder farmers, especially women.”

April 21, 2015
Hope for textile revival

Textile workers hope that the incoming administration of General Muhammadu Buhari will revive the collapsed industry, reports TONY AKOWE

Even before his administration takes off, President-elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari is acutely aware that the country needs a new lease of life. Workers in the comatose textile industry are hopeful that the General’s government will inject new blood into their factories and get them working again.

Gen. Buhari himself was not oblivious of what lay before him.

“We know some big companies that employed a lot of Nigerians and gave them training facilities that have closed down… The important thing in a country with a huge population of youths with more than 60 per cent of them under the age of 30 who are unemployed is to create job opportunities. You need these institutions to give jobs and training to Nigerians. Things just have to change.”

The textile industry used to perform that task. Not anymore.

In Kaduna, only the United Textiles Plc is operating skeletal services. After several years of closure, the company came back to life, operating minimally after receiving grants from the textile revival fund. Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo launched the rebirth of the industry at an electorate ceremony in Kaduna in 2010.

Issa Aremu, General Secretary of the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria said he believed that Buhari would revive the sector. Aremu challenged the incoming government to put in place policies that will see the industrial sector in the country bounce back to life again, while retaining and building on those policies of the Jonathan government that encourage good labour market.

He said, “General Muhammadu Buhari’s victory must usher in new innovative policy changes that must ensure prosperity in place of existing mass poverty. We however suggest that there must be continuity of some good labour market and industrial policies of Jonathan’s administration, such as freedom of association, right to unionisation, unfettered collective bargaining and the new National Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) and the national cotton, textile and garment policy, among others”.

Aremu lamented that in 2014, the performance of the textile sector was very low.

“The performance of the Nigerian textile industry remained at a low ebb in 2014 due to lack of an enabling environment and inconsistency in government policy,” he said. “Key problems affecting the industry include persistent electricity supply crisis, inadequate raw materials, government’s inability to regulate imports, high cost of production inputs, unrestrained importation of fake counterfeit and substandard textiles from China, low patronage of made in Nigeria textiles, security challenges, high interest rate and recent devaluation of the naira. The capacity utilisation in the industry remains below 50% and growth has been stagnant since 2012. The government had talked about a new textile policy in February 2013 [but] there has been no progress. Unless effective steps are taken by the government to revive the industry, gains achieved in 2010 will be lost, resulting in job losses, thus aggravating the unemployment situation. In 2015, we demand for patriotic industrial policies through direct mass actions to protect domestic industry. It is time we grow the non-oil sector”.

He assured that the union will partner with the incoming administration to take necessary steps to revive the ailing industries in Kaduna State especially the textile industry with a view of creating jobs for the mass of unemployed youths in the state.

However, many families who rely on the proceeds from the textile industries in Kaduna to earn a living are also hoping that life will come back to the industries again. Workers of the closed factories and their families as well as others who trade on one item or the other around the close factories are looking forward to the Buhari government collaborating with the Nasir El-Rufai government in the state to breadth life into the industries. Many of those who lost their job due to closure of the industries and had to resort to commercial motorcycle business for their survival were dealt a big blow in 2014 when the Kaduna State government banned Okada operation.

Musa Yakubu who lost his job in one of the textiles companies in Kaduna when it closed down said he was finding life difficult.

He told The Nation: “We are finding it extremely difficult to cope in the harsh economic condition of the county. As a man, I have to struggle to find what I can do. We involve ourselves in all kinds of menial jobs at construction sites. My wife roasts corn on a daily basis. Sometimes, I assist people on the farm and get paid. I was operating Okada when there is nothing I can do, but that had to stop when the state government banned okada. Some of us could not afford to buy tricycles and the ones the government bought did not get to many of us. Now, I do anything that can bring some legitimate money. I have four children; two are out of school because I cannot fund their education. The remaining two are in primary and secondary school, and I am struggling to pay their school fees. Accommodation has been the worst.

“The landlord has threatened to eject me. I want the company to be reopened so that we can be paid our entitlements.”

The Obasanjo administration launched the Textile Revival Fund as well as the cotton rebirth programme as part of government’s measures to ensure the revival of the sector. The Jonathan government gave life to the programme when Vice-President Namadi Sambo formally launched the fund at the UNT Plc premises in Kaduna. Sambo said at the occasion that the Nigerian government regarded the revival of the textile industries as a topmost priority, identifying obstacles leading to the collapse of the sector as the collapse of critical infrastructure, such as power, roads, water, etc resulting in the high cost of doing business for the manufacturing sector and the lack of price competitiveness of Nigeria’s manufactured products; gross under-capitalisation in the face of costly new technologies; lack of long fibre and use of contaminated cotton which combined to generate very low yarn count and quality; lack of other necessary local inputs largely derived from petrochemicals due to the hitherto epileptic performance of the country’s refineries; competition from smuggled fabrics which displaced Nigeria’s exports to the West African market.

He also said at the occasion that: “These as identified were responsible for the collapse of the textile industry in Kaduna, which in its glorious days was reputed as one of the major textile production hubs and perhaps the only existing cluster of textile manufacturers in Africa.

This was a cluster that accounted for well over 70 percent of the working population of Kaduna in the 1980s and 90s… Our Founding Father of this industrial success had the vision of a similar textile industrial complex to that of the Manchester of the United Kingdom. The foregoing problems of the textile industry informed the approval by the Federal for the Federal Ministry of Finance to raise and disburse through Bank of Industry (BOI) the N100 billion Cotton, Textile and Garment Development Fund through a bond issued by the Debt Management Office (DMO). The Fund is meant for on-lending by BOI for the expansion, refurbishing, resuscitation and modernisation/re-tooling of existing textiles, ginning and all other assorted cotton industries as well as the cultivation of cotton.

We have pursued and have had to set up committees at both state and Federal levels to come up with practical recommendations that can address these identified challenges. These committees made far-reaching recommendations and followed them with concrete steps aimed at addressing them. We then identified with the challenges of Power and approved the siting of the 215mw thermal power plant to address the challenge of constant power supply.”

April 21, 2015
Indigenes seek FCT administration’s probe

Natives of Dagbalo community in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have appealed to the President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to probe the present FCT Administration led by Senator Bala Mohammed, over what they described as corruption in land racketeering.

The leader of Dagbalo community, Rev. Danjuma Tanko, who expressed joy that the needed change has come to Nigeria, also appealed to the incoming administration to restore the sanity of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), which he said has compromised and working against the wishes of the residents.

While speaking during a community enlightenment programme at Apo area, Rev. Tanko said the atrocities and undemocratic activities committed by the Mohammed-led administration to the natives, demand urgent attention by the incoming administration.

According to him, the present FCT administration has succeeded in truncating the original Master Plan and of the FCT by diverting allocation meant for indigenous people of the FCT to their family members, friends and cronies.

“We were faced with forceful demolition, which was carried out by this administration without alternatives and it is causing massive trauma and hardship to our people till today.

“We appeal to our President-elect to institute a panel of inquiry to probe the Mohammed-led administration, for imposing on us some policies that are detrimental to us and also denying us means of livelihood, thereby subjecting us to hardship.

“We want him to use his good offices to restructure the Department of Resettlement and Compensation, because of the role it played in denying the people of Akpajenya community and other FCT communities their resettlement areas at Apo Resettlement, after they were unlawfully evicted from their ancestral home,” he said.

He further complained that most employment opportunities meant for the natives in the FCDA have been diverted to other Nigerians from Bauchi State, claiming that the original inhabitants have been totally cut off from development, while they are surrounded by beautiful edifices of influential Nigerians who wrongfully took over their ancestral land.

April 21, 2015
Winding down

With few weeks to the May 29 handover date, activities at the seat of power seem to be gradually slowing down.

Activities last picked up in the period immediately following President Goodluck Jonathan’s concession of defeat to President-elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

Some high and mighty in the society then thronged the State House, Abuja to commend Jonathan for conceding defeat and averting bloodbath in the country that might have resulted from protests about the results of the presidential elections.

But since then, the usual hustle and bustle in the State House appear to be fast disappearing.

It is so intense that the emptiness is threatening to transform the Villa to a kind of a ghost yard.

Apart from the members of staff who report to work and could be seen going about their normal duties, most of the political appointees were believed to have started clearing their desks in preparation for May 29 handover.

The first shocker happened on Monday last week when it was discovered that some of the car parks close to the entrance to the President’s and Vice-President’s offices, were not filled to capacity as at few minutes past 10:00 in the morning.

The trend was also noticed in the following days of the week.

These car parks, which are utilised by staff and visitors alike, get filled up on a normal day as early as 9:30 a.m.

Members of staff and visitors, who do not arrive before 9:30 a.m., most times make do with any available space in the other car parks like ‘Nyanya’ and ‘Mararaba’ which are farther away from the entrance to the President’s and Vice- President’s offices,

Official vehicles of presidential aides and other top officials normally parked by the entrance to the offices were also not left out of the new trend.

It is also quite some time now that an official function was held in the old Banquet Hall of the State House. The hall that normally hosts at least one official function either attended by President Jonathan or Vice-President Sambo, did not host any official function last week.

Many governors and politicians who normally visit the President over one issue or the other, seem to have stayed away from the Presidential Villa.

It is not really clear whether the Presidency was still finding it difficult to recover from the outcome of the 2015 general elections or whether the activities of the government have actually started to wind down.

President Jonathan and Vice-President Sambo, however, carried out some functions in their offices last week.

On the fear that the government was grinding to a halt, the Minister of Information, Senator Patricia Akwashiki said: “That is not to say that governance has stopped; of course we are in government until the day the president-elect takes oath of office.

“There is no space for vacuum. There are things happening. So, governance is not stopping, we are still working,” she added.

Jonathan versus Diezani

There have been increasing rumours from the grapevine that all has not been well with the relationship between President Goodluck Jonathan and Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.

Besides Jonathan appointing her the first female minister to oversee the oil sector which in turn gave her the opportunity to emerge as the first female President of Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the two of them hail from Bayelsa State.

The genesis of the rift between them has been traced to the pronouncement by the president-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to probe the activities of some key ministries and government agencies and parastatals when he assumes office as the President.

Not long after this pronouncement, Diezani, who did not attend the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday last week was rumoured to be seeking asylum abroad in order to escape the possible consequences of the probe. Diezani, however, has denied the rumour.

Another rumour following the photograph of Diezani at the residence of the former Head of State, Abdulsalami Abubakar in Minna, Niger State also has it that Diezani was there to plead with Abdulsalami to intervene in order to prevail on Gen. Buhari to shelve the probe.

Still from the grapevine, another rumour claimed that Diezani wanted Abdulsalami to intervene in order to keep her job in the oil sector so that Nigeria will retain the Presidency of OPEC.

This last rumour, according to the grapevine, was the main cause of the rift between Jonathan and Diezani.

Somehow, Abdulsalami and Diezani arrived few minutes apart to meet with President Jonathan at the Villa on Thursday last week, leaving rumour mongers the believe that Abdulsalami came to beg Jonathan on behalf of Diezani.

But Abdulsalami denied the rumour when he came out of President Jonathan’s office.

He said: “I think people are just trying to be mischievous. I have been meeting with a lot of people and a lot of ministers in the course of this transition. So, there is nothing strange in me meeting with anybody.

“This is not the first time I have been meeting her and a number of ministers. So, I don’t see what the whole hullabaloo is all about. People are just being mischievous.”

Journalists who kept vigil waiting for Diezani to come out from the President’s office to respond to the rumours, were disappointed as she did not come out as they dispersed when it was getting late.

While a popular saying says that there is an element of truth in every rumour, Nigerians are keenly waiting and watching to see how these rumours and episodes will end.

2015 elections heat at FEC

The issues surrounding the March 28 Presidential and National Assembly elections and April 11 governorship and state House of Assembly elections momentarily engaged the attention of many members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) last Wednesday.

Even though most of the cabinet members could not deliver their constituencies for their principal, President Goodluck Jonathan and their states for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), they spent some time chatting about the elections as they moved round the chamber exchanging pleasantries.

But the exchange of pleasantries among the ministers on Wednesday last week was quite different from the way they have done it over the years. The joy, happiness, hugging, laughter and joke-cracking that normally accompanied their greetings were very scarce.

Some of them, after handshakes, managed to put up smiles that didn’t go beyond their faces as they quietly headed for their seats.

The coldness in the chamber did not, however, stop some of them who were seeing each other for the first time after the elections from discussing and sharing their experiences concerning the elections in their states.

They were seen in groups discussing the matter before the FEC meeting started.

One of the groups involved Minister of State II for Foreign Affairs, Musiliu Obanikoro, Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Oloye Olajumuke-Akinjide, Minister of Police Affairs, Jelil Adesinyan, Minister of State for Works, Adedayo Adeyeye and later joined by the Minister of State for Education, Viola Onwuleri.

Another group included the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Steve Oru, Minister of State for Defence, Augustine Akubundu and Minister of State for Health, Fidelis Nwankwo.

The discussions came to abrupt end when the President arrived around 10:16 a.m. to start the meeting.

April 21, 2015
Darkness hurts

There is a lot to grieve over in Dutse, Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Residents raise millions of naira and hand it over to the local power distribution firm, yet, they often have no power. GBENGA OMOKHUNU reports

Darkness falls everywhere but in Dutse Baupuma, a community in the FCT, it brings with it dreadful realities. In hot weather, no one sleeps comfortably, and this has a toll on their health.

That is not all.

There is also a sense of exploitation, if not outright fraud.

How?

The residents of Dutse Baupuma in Bwari Area Council said they were told to raise millions of naira with which the distribution firm would procure just what was needed to supply them power.

They did, managing to contribute N5m, which they allegedly gave to the firm. Their challenges remain, though. No power. No hope.

They have had enough and are on the verge of marching on the local power distribution company in charge of the area.

The residents urged the firm to fulfil the promise they made to the people on provision of constant electricity for the community.

The residents, on the verge of a protest to the power distribution company, said that towards the end of last year, circulars were distributed in the community directing residents to contribute N5,000 per house for the purchase of a new power transformer and cables to boost supply.

According to Mr. Simon Chukwuma, a resident of the community, residents of over 1,000 houses contributed the said amount totalling over N5 million.

Chukwuma said since the contribution was made, power to the community remained epileptic and nothing much has been done to justify the money collected from members of the community.

“Many of us are aggrieved because it seems that the people that promised us constant power supplies were not sincere. Imagine, when they came to us to urge us to contribute the money, they promised that they would ensure that we have light every day, because, they will get another transformer for us and replace the electric wires on the poles.

•A power transformer

“Although, they brought the transformer, they did not do anything about the wires that had been on the poles for ages. As a result of this, fuses on the transformer get spoilt on a daily basis and when they spoil, they want us to beg them before they rectify it, after we have paid for the services.

“Since this year, the way we have been suffering of power failure is something we never experienced even before we contributed money for the power distribution company to rectify the electricity situation in the community. After each household in the community had struggled to pay N5, 000, we are still suffering. This is what we call corruption and it has to be corrected,” he said.

Mrs. Gloria Alhassan, another resident who spoke with our reporter explained that the way things are going in the community, members of staff of the power distribution company do not care about the well-being of the residents.

Since the beginning of this year, light will go off for up to three days and when restored, it will not last for up to five hours.

“It is just about three days ago that the power supply has been stable. But, before now, it was as if the power distribution company had forgotten about our community. The meat and soup we put in the freezer get spoilt on a daily basis, because of prolonged power failure. Despite the money we contributed, we are experiencing power failure more than any community in Abuja,” she said.

Commenting on the issue, a staff of the power distribution company, who preferred anonymity because he was not competent to speak on the matter, explained that there may be some electricity problems which have been thwarting the efforts of the distribution company to ensure stable power supply in the community, adding that it is not the decision of the company to make residents of the community be in darkness. He promised that the problem will soon be rectified.

April 21, 2015
Igbo demand ministerial slot

Igbo investors in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have called on the incoming administration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to consider their investors in the FCT when appointing ministers for the territory.

This, according to them, is because they control over 70 per cent of investment in the capital city.

The investors, who spoke through the chairman of Zaudan Pazeri Property Owners Association, Elder Friday Ugoala, at a press conference in Abuja, said the previous FCT Administrations where someone that resides outside the FCT was appointed to govern the affairs of the territory, has had negative effects on the investors who are majorly Igbo residents.

According to Ugoala, when considering the appointment of the minister of the FCT, the incoming government should consider making a native of the FCT minister, while an Igbo man should be made the minister of state, or an Igbo man should be minister, while a native should be minister of state.

“Abuja has major stakeholders, not just those residing in the city. It is on record that Igbo have not less than 70 per cent investment in Abuja in terms of property, merchandise and hospitality industries. So, we have invested heavily in Abuja, and we are demanding that the ministerial slots should be shared with the Igbo who are major stakeholders in the FCT.

“We have reasons to demand for the slot of minister of the FCT, because, he will be sure that our investments are protected. If you consider the outgoing administration of Senator Bala Mohammed, you will notice that there are so many litigations that have to do with our investments and property, which we do not expect to continue that way. We even look forward to a situation whereby those issues in courts would be withdrawn and settled amicably.

“It is obvious that there are two major stakeholders in the FCT, which are the political stakeholders and economic stakeholders. The natives are part of the political stakeholders because they control over 65 per cent of FCT population. So, it could be justice done to these two stakeholders, if the FCT ministerial slots are given to both of them, with due respect to other residents.

“History has shown and events have played out that in the FCT politics, those ministers that come from areas that do not have so many stakes in the FCT, have done so much havoc to investments in Abuja. This is because they do not have people who cry to them about the pains they feel. We have entertained that fear, that if such era continues, our investments will continue to suffer and we do not want that to happen,” he said.

April 21, 2015