The Nation Newspaper

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  • Ogun to revive Technical Colleges

    All the seven Science and Technical Training Colleges owned by the Ogun State Government will soon be turned around when the bill on the inauguration of the Board of Technical and Vocational Education presently before Governor Ibikunle Amosun is signed into law.

    Special Adviser on Education, Science and Technology, Dr Tunji Abimbola, said this while addressing a delegation from the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in his office.

    Abimbola blamed the sorry state of the colleges to neglect by past administrations, and lack of requisite teachers to handle the vocational courses offered in the schools.

    However, with the bill on Vocational and Technical Education Board before the Governor, Abimbola is confident of a change soon.

    “You can be sure that conditions of our Technical Colleges will change for the better if the bill which is before His Excellency is signed into law,” he said.

    Abimbola added that when the technical board is inaugurated the state will be able to access funds from the National Board of Technical Education (NBTE) to improve facilities in the colleges.

    Earlier, the Head of the delegation, Mr Andre Boenne, said they were in Ogun through the Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) office to partner on the economy. In addition, he said they would assist in improving the Technical and Vocational education sector.

  • NCCE assesses NTI study centres

    Teams from the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) spent the last week assessing the Distance Learning NCE programme of the National Teachers Institute (NTI), Kaduna, in the 17 study centres in the Southwest.

    The Lagos team, led by Dr Alex Maiyanga, Director, Planning, Research and Statistics, interacted with staff of the institute at its Lagos office in Ogba before inspecting the facilities, and interacting with students and managers of the various study centres.

    Executive Secretary of the NCCE Prof Muhammad Junaid, who flagged off the exercise, underscored the need for the evaluation of the programme to ensure the system produces quality teachers for the basic education sector.

    In his speech, read by Dr Maiyanga, Junaid said the exercise would enable the NCCE ascertain how well the NTI was doing in meeting the academic benchmark for its programmes.

    He said: “This exercise at the NTI study centres has become expedient because we desire to know the extent to which NTI is keeping faith with teacher education policies and NCCE minimum standard guidelines amid the public outcry against NCE graduates by distance learning. Secondly, as was the case in the conventional colleges where the exercise has taken place, NTI will be kept abreast of certain aspects of the teacher education policies and programmes that need special attention.”

    Allaying fears that the exercise was not to witchhunt, Junaid assured NTI that the process would be transparent, and easy to understand as the assessment tool was based on verifiable indicators.

    In his capacity as team leader, Maiyanga said the team would help NTI perfect its education service delivery.

    “No system is perfect but a system can be perfected. After we have ploughed though, we will tell NTI the areas of deficiencies and how to assess,” he said.

    NTI Director-General Dr Aminu Ladan Sharehu explained how the institute delivers the National Certificate in Education (NCE) programme through the open distance learning platform.

    “In the NTI NCE (DLS), 40 hours per subject per semester or 80 hours per subject per session are devoted to facilitation at the study centres during weekends and holiday intensive contact sessions. A minimum of two hours per day (14 hours per week) or 546 hours per session of self study are expected of each student,” he said.

    He added that the institute has measures in place to ensure quality, including subject monitoring, administrative monitoring of field centres, monitoring of programmes and study centres by the management as well as independent assessors.

    To further improve quality, Sharehu, who was represented by Mr Idris Sule-Mbayo, Director of Field Operations and Students’ Services for NTI, added that the institute plans to establish model study centres and computer labouratories in each geo-political zone this year. This is in addition to appointing seasoned professionals as assessors and consultants, and screen course facilitators each session.

  • Nyako: don’t teach children hatred

    The Adamawa State Governor, Murtala Hammanyero Nyako, has warned teachers not to teach students hatred on the basis of religion or ethnic background.

    Nyako gave the warning at the closing of the 2012 teachers professional development workshop at the Federal College of Education (FCE), Yola.

    “Here, in this hall, we have Muslims, Christians, we have Fulanis, Hausas, and we have Marghis and so on. Don’t go and teach the pupils and students hatred. This state belongs to all of us.

    “There is no need to go and teach hatred or indoctrinate our children. You have to desist from propagating falsehood. This is how God wants us to live and we must live that way to move the state forward,” Nyako warned.

    Nyako, who was represented by the Commissioner for Water Resources, Sajo Gela, also praised the college for training no fewer than 4,555 teachers on teaching techniques in collaboration with the Adamawa State Universal Basic Education Board (ADSUBEB).

    Thanking the government for partnering with the college in training the teachers, the Provost, Prof Abul-Mumin Sa’ad, assured that the state would get the best out of the teachers.

    He said: “Here in FCE, we are addicted to teaching and training. Not just training but doing that in a qualitative way. We are aware of your strong desire to uplift the state of education not only in Adamawa but in the whole nation and globally.

    “We need to continue to develop our teachers so that they continue to achieve success in the teaching profession. I believe they will give you the best because the resource persons here have done all that they could do to train this group of teachers and I’m told that we have brand of very excellent teachers in the workshop.

    Therefore, I will assure you that they will record high impact when they go back to the places of work,” he said.

  • When will they return to school?

    When will they return to school?

    By now, they should be in school. But for these children, schooling is far from their young minds. What they are thinking of now is how to surivive along with their parents in the camps that have become their homes. They were sacked from their houses by floods. The floods destroyed their schools. Though the first term has since begun, these children cannot go to school because of the havoc wrecked by the floods.

    This is the plight of pupils in Edo, Cross River, Benue and Anambra states. The 2012/2013 academic session began on September 17 in some states, and on September 24 in others. Rather than go to school, children in these states, swim, fish or assist their parents to salvage whatever is left of their farm produce.

    Cross River

    In Cross River State, while some schools were submerged, the roads leading to others were flooded. Even in schools not affected, attendance is poor because many of the pupils lost their school materials to flood.

    “Our children can no longer go to school. We even thank God they are alive, today,” Mrs Glory Inyang lamented from her flooded doorstep on Umon Island in Biase Local Government Area of Cross River State.

    As she spoke, her children were fishing in a place that used to be the street. It is Friday morning and her children, Onne and Abiom, are supposed to be at the Presbyterian Primary School, but that is not possible. The school has been sacked by flood.

    Public Relations Officer of the Biase council, Mr Uno Ilem, said pupils in two other communities the school serves were also at home.

    “The Presbyterian Primary School, Umon Island, serves about two or three other communities. As I speak to you now, that community is fully submerged. Nobody is going to school,” he said.

    Fortunately for Mr Bassey Ilem, his children can go to school. But, the mode of transportation has changed. To get to their school in Agwagwune in the hinterland of Biase, they have to go in a canoe. Things are no longer as they used to be and life has become a lot harder for them as their new environment needs getting used to.

    “Primary schools have a separate canoe from secondary schools. That is the means of transportation,” he said.

    In Abayong, David Ana, a pupil of the Government Secondary School, said he could no longer go to school because his uniforms, bag, books and sandals were washed away by the flood.

    Chief Kyrian Mbu, the principal, said David was among the majority of pupils yet to resume because of the flood. Although his school was not affected, he said the effect of the flooding on the community has affected the school’s activities. He is seeking the assistance of influential sons of the town to help the pupils replace what they lost.

    “Three quarter of my pupils have not resumed school up till now because of the flood. The houses have all been submerged in water. In fact, I am going from one house to another, pleading with chiefs of the villages to buy uniforms and books for them to start school. Government should also help us, too, in this regard. My students are suffering too much,” Mbu said.

    Mr Ukam Ukam, a parent whose children attend the school, is also seeking help.

    He said: “All their textbooks and exercise books and uniforms have been affected by the flood. Please, the government should come to our aid. I have four children in the school, but now they are just in the house.”

    St. Augustine Primary School, Agwagwune is better off than many schools. Rather than suspend academic activities, it has relocated pupils to the Town Hall temporarily.

    “We are now using the Town Hall as classrooms. The children can study here as the schools have been taken over by water,” said a teacher, who pleaded anonymity.

    In Okpandin in Yala Local Government Area, where the entire community was sacked by flood, Mr Festus Odey said going to school was not a priority as survival was more important.

    “We have the problem of feeding not to talk of going to school. Everywhere has been taken over by water. We are fortunate to have a family to accommodate us for the meantime. For now, we are begging the government to come to our aid to tackle this problem, so that we can return to our normal lives.”

    In Boki, the Community Secondary School was completely submerged following a landslide occasioned by the flood.

    Mr Michael Abang, whose two sons are pupils of the school, said they now help him out in the farm, because that is the only school around them.

    “Oga, the secondary school we have is now under mud, and we are begging government to come and help us with this situation,” Abang said.

    Schools in Obubra, Ogoja, Ikom, Abi, Odukpani, Boki, Obudu and Obanliku local governments are also affected, but to a lesser extent.

    Commissioner for Education Prof Offiong Offiong said government would come to the schools’ rescue.

    “We have already taken steps to relocate the children and make necessary arrangements to ensure that academic activities in those schools are not disrupted. Some of the schools have also been captured under our comprehensive renovation programme. By next month, some contractors will be mobilised to site. So, we are on top of the situation.”

    Benue

    The education of no fewer than 300 pupils in three primary schools remain uncertain one month after a new academic session began in Benue State. They were affected by the massive flooding in Makurdi, the state capital, following the release of excess water from Lagdo Dam in Cameroun.

    They are: St. Catherine’s Primary School, L.G.E.A primary School and N.K.S.T primary school Wadata, Makurdi.

    The Benue State Government has turned the schools to temporary camps for the displaced.

    Pupils and teachers have been asked to stay at home – if they still have one – until the water subsides.

    The parents of these pupils are worried that their children are out of school when teaching is going on in other schools.

    There is anxiety among parents on what the future holds for their children. Many expressed fear that if steps were not taken to get the children back to school soon, there’s danger ahead.

    A mother of four at L.G.E.A School camp, Mrs Ene Omale, told The Nation she was afraid of what the future holds for her children.

    “I have laboured day and night with my husband to train the children with the hope that, they would in turn take care of us in our old age. But, with the flood and closure of schools, the future of their education is bleak. I beg the government to find alternatives,” she said.

    Another father, Bemdoo Ug,o advised the Benue State government to relocate the affected pupils to other schools to secure their future.

    When The Nation visited the camps, displaced camps, most of the children were either playing football, helping their mothers to cook, or helping to offload relief materials brought into the camps by good Samaritans.

    Some of the children who spoke to The nation expressed concern that one month after resumption, they are still out of school, saying they want to go back to school as quickly as possible if they can.

    Anambra

    Since the start of the 2012/2013 academic session on September 17, pupils in primary and secondary schools in five local government areas of Anambra State affected by the flood have not resumed.

    The Commissioner for Education, Dr Uju Okeke, who visited the affected areas at the Governo’s Peter Obi’s instance told some pupils everything would be fine. Hit by flood are Ogbaru, Anyamelum, Anambra East, Anambra West and Awka North local government areas.

    School bags, textbooks and exercise books went with the flood that overtook homes.

    Families are lamenting the loss of property and their means of livelihood, especially farms.

    At Ogbaru Local Government Area, Hon Afam Ogene of the House of Representatives wept for his people after inspecting the damages in the communities for eight hours in a flying boat. Even his own home was taken over by flood. Obeagwe Primary School close to his house was totally submerged. There are fears that when the flood subsides, the structure may be weak and inhabitable. The place could only be accessed by boat.

    With the floods making going to schools impossible for pupils, Osuorah Obiorah, a Primary Six pupil of Umunankwo Central Primary School, his friend Onuorah Ejeshi of Obeagwe Primary School, Chioma Onyechukwu (Primary Three) and Chineche Onyia (Primary Two) kept busy swimming in the flood that reached the window level and roof tops of some buildings.

    Ossamala Government Technical College and Atani Primary School, Ogbaru suffered similar fate.

    It was in Ogbaru that three pupils allegedly drowned in Okotie Odeakpe and Iyiowa Odekpe and another community.

    Joy Nwakpa, a two-year-old twin from Ebonyi State who died, Okotie Odeakpe was said to have missed her step and fallen into the river in front of her home.

    The other pupil allegedly died on the premises of Hands Maid Montessori Nursery/Primary School, Oderubber, Odekpe after straying into the flood that surrounded the school.

    Ogbaru comprises 16 communities with over 300 villages. The communities are Atani, Akiliogidi, Akili-Ozizo, Amiyi, Mputu, Obeagwe, and Ohita. Others are Odekpe, Ogbakuba, Ochuche, Umuodu, Ossomala, Ogwu- Anocha, Umunamkwo, Umuzu, Okpoko and Ogwu- Ikpele.

    A parent, Evangelist Philip Mbanefo, from Akiliozizo, said no school opened in Ogbaru because there was no single land for habitation. He said schooling was out of it as people were looking for means of survival, appealing to the Federal Government not to abandon those displaced in the five councils.

    “Parents are talking about the welfare of their families and not about schools and teachers don’t come at all because the entire place is covered by flood. There is hunger because crops that should be due in November are being harvested prematurely because of flood,” he said.

    Principals of Community Girls Secondary School, Okpoko, Mrs Helen Okwuosa, and her counterparts Mr Basil Igbozulike of Government Technical College, Osamala and Felix Obi Okafor of Community Secondary School, Atani expressed dismay over the precarious situation they found themselves.

    Many primary schools were submerged including Migrant School and Waterside Primary School as confirmed by the Headmaster, Community Primary School, Awba Ofemili, Mr Mgbechi Nzekwe. He said school properties weredestroyed by flood but the worst was the hectares of farm lands washed away.

    More than 300 pupils of Ege Migrant School barely managed to escape the floods. Their head teacher, Mrs Ozua Elizabeth, said the teachers just had enough time to navigate the children to safety before the flood overtook the school. A similar incident happened at Waterside Nkpuocha Migrant School.

    An SS1 pupil of Dr Alatu’s College of Excellence, Nnewi, Agbata Samuel ,told The Nation that his parents’ rice and cassava due for harvesting in November were washed away, taking with them the hope of his resumption.

    “I could not raise the needed funds to go back to school,” he said.

    The situation is grim for Chidozie Anachunam and Okafor Victor, pupils of Community Secondary School, Awba, Ofemili, who said it may take as long as three months to return.

    “We are not going to recover from this shock on time as our farm lands, cash crops and homes were flooded. There are no teachers and there are no roads but boats everywhere. Corps members have ran away and nothing would happen till December,” they said.

    A Primary Five pupil, Amos Muokwudo, was seen offloading unripe rice from the farm of his father, Mr Amos Muowudo, to save some from the flood. He lamented that his father’s 20-plot rice farm was submerged.

    Edo relocates pupils

    Pupils in primary and secondary schools in flood affected areas of Edo State have been relocated to schools in neighbouring villages to continue their education.

    Four schools in three LGAs, Estako Central, Estako East and Esan South East were over taken by flood when the River Niger overflowed its bank and sacked several communities in the localities.

    Permanent Secretary of the State Ministry of Education, Mrs. Gladys Idahor gave the names of schools affected to include Illushi Primary School, Udochi Secondary School, Anegbette Secondary School and Osemede Secondary School.

    Mrs. Idahor said the pupils were relocated to ensure that the state’s academic calendar was not affected in the localities.

    She noted that many victims of the flood had already sent their wards to neighbouring villages before the state intervened.

    However, she said classes still went on in schools used as temporary refugee camps by the flood victims.

    She said: “The victims used a block of classroom while we used other blocks for lectures. We ensure there is no over population in the schools.”

  • Gunmen kill 43 students

    Gunmen kill 43 students

    -40 dead in Adamawa, three in Maiduguri

    -Security chiefs move to Mubi

    THE drums may have been silent on Independence Day. Not so the guns of yet unknown assailants who stormed Mubi, Adamawa State’s second major town, on Monday.

    No fewer than 40 students were killed by the gunmen who unleashed a storm of bullets on a community where students live. But the police said 25 people died.

    There are three higher institutions of learning in the town – the Adamwa State University, the Federal Polytechnic and the School of Health Technology.

    Three students of the University of Maiduguri were killed also on Monday.

    The three were murdered by unknown assailants in their apartments at 202 Housing Estate.

    Residents of the estate said the assailants sneaked into the area and killed two of the students – a woman and a man. The third was said to have escaped through the back door but was shot.

    “He died in the hospital. He was a friend from southern Borno but his father is in Abuja,” one of his colleagues who identified himself as Ezekiel, said.

    The bodies of two of the slain students were discovered at an isolated area near the Maiduguri Water Treatment Plant.

    The killing of the students has heightened tension among parents and residents.

    However, the University of Maiduguri said it cannot comment on the incident for now. “I’m sorry, we can’t comment on the incident now,” Chief Information Officer of the institution, Ahmed Tanko Mohammed said.

    Wuro Fatuje, a suburb of Mubi where off campus students stay, was attacked by the gunmen at about 10pm, according to sources.

    The curfew in the town, which had been in place since the security swoop last month, was slightly relaxed on Monday because of the 52nd Independence anniversary events.

    Mubi is the town where 13 Igbo traders were killed during a village meeting in January. Most of them hailed from Anambra State.

    The Boko Haram sect has also been operating almost unchallenged in the town where people have been killed and GSM equipment destroyed.

    Last month, after a swoop by security men, two bomb factories were destroyed. Not less than 300 Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and 25 assorted brands riffles were recovered.

    Boko Haram Kingpin – Abubakar Yola (a.k.a. Abu Jihad) was killed during the ‘Operation Restore Sanity’.

    The casualty figure in Monday’s bloodshed was unclear.

    “I counted about 16 bodies being evacuated after the shooting and I cannot really say whether all of them were dead or not,” a resident, who pleaded for anonymity, said.

    Another said he counted over 20 bodies, pointing out that both students of the polytechnic and those of the nearby School of Health Technology were tenants in a hostel that was attacked. The facility houses over 50 students.

    Adamawa Police spokesman Mohammed Ibrahim confirmed that 25 people were killed, 19 of them students of the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that the embattled town of Mubi had been under curfew since the past 10 days, following series of killings and destruction of communication masts.

    The 24-hour curfew was relaxed to 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. five days ago by the State Government, following some arrests and recovery of explosives in the house-to-house search in the commercial border town.

    The president of the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi Students Union, Elias Pwanidi, told our correspondent on the telephone, that six bodies, of the 34 that he claimed were killed, had been identified at the Mubi General Hospital Mortuary.

    He said the majority of those killed were students of the institution who were preparing for the start of second semester examination yesterday.

    He listed some of the dead as including: Chimonbi Festus (Civil Engineering HNDI) the PRO of the students union and Lucky Emmanuel (ND II) the outgoing president of the Mass Communication Students Union.

    Others are: Ishaku Ibrahim (ND II Mass Communication), Ayo (surname unavailable) ND I Electrical Engineering and Emmanuel (surname unavailable) HNDI Electrical Engineering.

    The Nation could not confirm the names last night as the school’s authorities could not be reached.

    Many injured – some critically – in the attacks which lasted more that one hour are on admission at the Mubi General Hospital.

    The shootings kept the city residents awake all night.

    A source said 40 bodies were deposited at the Mubi General Hospital, adding that as at yesterday morning, more bodies were still being recovered from the scene of the attack.

    The incident came barely a week after the Joint Military Task Force recorded a major breakthrough arresting over 156 suspected terrorists and discovering a local bomb manufacturing factory as well as a cache of arms and ammunition.

    The Brigade Commander of 23 Armoured Brigade, Yola, Brigadier General John Nwoaga, Commissioner of Police Goeffrey Okereke, Director of State Security Service (SSS) and other Service Commanders have relocated to Mubi.

    A Federal Polytechnic spokesman said it was a “commando style attack”.

    The spokesman said the unknown gunmen invaded the area, shooting sporadically at any moving person, for over one hour.

    “There was heavy gun fire of different calibers around 10 pm till 11pm, when it subsided.”

    He said 26 students of the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi are among the dead. While the others are students of the other two institutions in the town.

    The internal joint security task force headed by Brig-Gen. Nwoaga and Police Commissioner Geofrey Okeke, were rushing reinforcements to Mubi.

    Some agencies gave another account of the attacks.

    “They are conducting elections in the Federal Polytechnic and unknown gunmen just entered and sprayed people with bullets,” said Abdulkarim Bello of the Red Cross, adding that more than 10 people were killed.

    A National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) spokesman said initial reports indicated some of the victims were candidates in the polls.

    There were conflicting reports over whether the elections were being held or had been carried out in previous days.

    “It was shooting by unknown gunmen,” said the agency’s Yushau Shuaib. “A number of people died.”

    A military spokesman confirmed that there was an incident involving gunmen, but could not provide further details.

    “I am now on my way to Mubi in the company of other security officials,” Lt. Saleh Mohammed Buba told AFP. “There was an incident at the polytechnic involving some gunmen.”

    The killings caused an exodus from the town by both students and staff of the institutions.

    A lecturer on condition of anonymity said he learnt that about 40 bodies had been deposited at Mubi General Hospital Mortuary.

    Some of the fleeing lecturers of the polytechnic, who are not authorised to speak, said they saw at least 10 truckloads of soldiers and riot policemen moving into the troubled town.

    Some of the students were said to have converged on the Rector’s home with their luggage as early as 7am yesterday.

    The BBC had earlier reported that “at least 20 students have been shot dead by unknown gunmen in Mubi, north-eastern Nigeria”, a police source.

    “The attack happened at a student hostel away from the Federal Polytechnic Mubi campus,” the source said.

    A lecturer told the BBC that more than 40 students had been killed.

    The reported killing comes days after a major operation against the Boko Haram militant group in the town.

    The lecturer, who did not want his name to be used, told the BBC’s Hausa Service that the students were asked to say their names after lining up.

    He says it is not clear why some were killed and others spared – some of those killed were Muslims.

    “Everybody is scared and staying indoors now,” he said.

    He added that students were now leaving the town, many with tree branches over their cars- a traditional sign of neutrality in Nigeria.

    Mubi is in Adamawa state, which has a mixed Muslim and Christian population and borders Borno State, where Boko Haram came to prominence in 2009, staging an uprising in the state capital, Maiduguri.

    Boko Haram has not yet commented on the Mubi attacks.

     

  • ACN to Mimiko: pack and go

    ACN to Mimiko: pack and go

    The governorship campaign train of the Ondo State Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) rumbled into Akoko North Senatorial District, yesterday.

    It was electrifying, with the National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, enjoining the people to vote out the ruling Labour Party (LP) governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko.

    The election is October 20.

    The former Lagos State governor said it was curious that Mimiko, who opposed former Governors Adebayo Adefarati’s and Olusegun Agagun’s second term ambitions, was demanding for a second term.

    Besides, Tinubu stressed that Mimiko’s aspiration lacked justification because he has not performed creditably in the last three and half years.

    Beaming a searchlight on his administration, the ACN leader said the governor, who, according to him, failed to deliver on roads, education, health care, water and job creation, lacked the credibility to seek continuity in office.

     

    He said: “If you spend three years to build one hospital, you will spend 15 years to build three. Which market is he building? That is the domain of my mother in Lagos.”

    Alluding to the significance of the October 20 governorship poll, Tinubu said it is critical to the Southwest’s economic integration, adding that Ondo State should not be left out in the march of regional progress.

    At the rally, the ACN leader also warned the police to desist from molesting ACN leaders in the state ahead of the election to prevent violent reaction by the people. He said it was wrong for the police, which is funded by the public purse, to become tools of oppression in the hand of any governor.

    The governorship candidate, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN), reiterated his commitment to women and youth development, promising to redeem his promise to create 30,000 jobs for youths, if voted into office.

    The ACN flag bearer, who said Mimiko must reap what he sowed, objected to the governor’s second ambition on the ground that he has remained a consistent advocate of one term for any governor.

    Tinubu, who flew into Ikare in a chopper, stormed the rally around 2 pm, waving the broom, the symbol of the ACN – at the crowd. He was accompanied by the party’s National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande, Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola and former Ogun State Governor Aremo Olusegun Osoba.

    Towards the end of the rally, Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi joined the party leaders on the podium.

    Akeredolu was accompanied by his wife, Mercy, his running mate, Dr. Paul Akintelure, Director of Akeredolu Campaign Organisation Chief Tayo Alasoadura, Ifedayo Abegunde, and other members of the campaign team.

    Highlights of the rally included the presentation of the flag to the candidate by Chief Akande, who enjoined the people to endorse Akeredolu at the poll – in public interest.

    Presenting the flag, the national chairman said: “I thank you all for your love and patience. I am giving the flag to the next governor of the state. I will return to thank you after the election.”

    Thousands of party faithful from far and near thronged the Ikare Cenotaph, the venue of the mega rally, cheering Akeredolu and numerous ACN leaders who turned up in solidarity with him. They defiled the downpour, which heralded the carnival-like ceremony that lasted for over seven hours.

    It was reminiscent of the First and Second Republics when the campaign train of the legendary Obafemi Awolowo hit Akokoland. Brooms filled the air amid the rain, with the sea of party supporters shunning the umbrella, the symbol of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    Party followers came from Oka, Oba, Irun, Ikaramu, Akunnun, Epinmin, Iwaro, Ugbe, Ibaramu, Akungba, Supare, Ajowa, Arigidi, Okegbe, Ogbagi, Eti-Oro, Ikun, Ayegunle, Isua, Ipesi, Ifira and Owo. They were locked in the unity of purpose.

    Ace musicians Wasiu Ayinde and Buga, foremost Ewi exponent Olayiwola Arowolo Elaloro, renowned actor Fadeyi Oloro, and the Owo Cultural Troupe were thrill the crowd with music and wisecracks.

    In a symbolic manner, some party members mobilised a motor saw machine to hew down “the Iroko”, the tree from which the governor borrowed his nickname.

    Although policemen and other security agents were around to ensure security, there was no display of unruly behaviour by the multitude.

    The Southwest leader of the party, Senator James Kolawole, led a pack of ACN leaders in the zone. With him were the chairman of the party from Osun State, Mr. Biyi Adelowo, his Lagos, Ondo and Oyo counterparts – Otunba Dele Ajomale, Chief Akin Adesoji and Chief Akin Oke; Lagos State Vice Chairman Cardinal James Odunmbaku, Senator Titus Olupitan, Alhaji Ganiyu Badmus, Southwest Publicity Secretary Ayo Afolabi, Youth Leader Abdullahi Enilolobo, Secretary to Osun State Government Alhaji Moshood Adeoti, Prince Rotimi Agunsoye, and Mr. Toba Oke, chairman of Ifako-Ijaye Local Government, Lagos.

    Also at the rally were Senator Ajayi Boroffice, Mrs. Jumoke Anifowose, Mr. Wale Akinterinwa, Dr. Jayeola Ajatta, Prince Olu Adegboro, Ganiyu Abayomi, former Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in Ondo State, Prince Diran Iyantan, former state legislator Jaja Tayo Abidakun, South District leader Mr. Wale Akintimehin, Comrade Sola iji, Igbede Adeolu, Gboyega Adedipe, Mr. Ranti Oyebade, Banji Ajiloge, Olayato Aribo, Akinsehinwa Apata, Women Leader Modupe Johnson, Dr. Tunji Abayomi, Ojo Akingba, Prof. Agboola Ogunlowo, Sam Omojuwa, Saka Yusuf, Wole Elaye, Dele Ogunsakin, Mr. Tokunbo Ajasin, Chief Ajibola Adebayo, Idowu Otetubi, Olakunle Eko, Enas mohammed, Toyin Ajinde, Dr. Segun Akinwale, Chief Ademola Adetula, Kunle Eko Davies, Adebambo Odoro, Mr. Femi Adekanmbi, Basorun Wale Oyewole and Timehin Adelegbe.

    Tinubu, who thanked the party followers for the huge turnout, asked: Who is your governor? The crowd roared: “Akeredolu!”.

    He also asked: “Which party would you vote for on October 20? The people chorused: “CAN!”.

    The party leader asked the electorate to reject Mimiko at the poll, saying that he is an ingrate. He said ACN will provide the amenities the LP government has denied the people, including good roads, free education, potable water, good hospitals and jobs for youths.

    Tinubu said: “Today, you have seen our candidate. Somebody calls himself Rahman Olusegun Mimiko. The judgment of God has come. The next election will be an exercise of success and reward for you. It is a vote that will liberate Yorubaland. Iroko wants to be in the forest alone. Use your broom to chase them away. Chase away hunger, poverty, unemployment, penury, disease, water shortage, lack of drugs.”

    The ACN leader justified his description of Mimiko as an ingrate unworthy of more political favours, saying that he had betrayed the trust of the progressive bloc in the Southwest.

    He recalled: “Four years ago, Iroko came to me, weeping. He came along with two of my brothers, complaining that he was being cheated and that we should help him. We had looked at the PDP and we were displeased. PDP had just stolen our votes in the Southwest. We began the war. The warrior, Aregbesola, was fighting. We fought in Edo, Ibadan, Abeokuta. I am reporting this to you so that you can judge Mimiko with your votes.

    “I took him as my brother. I gave him money and all logistics. The radio station that has become his enemy today was used to help him. It belongs to us. We went to Europe to look for help for him. It was not free. We spent pound sterling. Mathew chapter six, verse seven says ‘don’t give what is holy to the dog or swine because they will cast their spoilt on it. We have given what is holy to Mimiko and he has cast his spoilt on it. The Book of Psalms, chapter 17, verse 13 says, ‘if you reward goodness with evil, evil will not depart from your house’. When he could not enter town freely, we gave him bullet proof car. Judge him by your votes.”

    Tinubu, who explained that Mimiko’s continuation in office meant a setback to the integration agenda, added: “Mimiko wants to isolate Ondo State from Yoruba states and Afenifere mainstream. We do free education and relieve people of WAEC fees. Look at what is happening in Lagos. Ondo State collects more federal allocation than Lagos. I sympathise with Akokoland. You are enduring bad roads, lack of medical care. Where is water? For three years, he has been feeding himself and his family with state money.

    “I don’t have a single vote in Ondo. Chiefs Osoba and Akande have no vote here. Akeredolu has a vote. We are struggling because of the masses. If you cooperate with Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Edo, and Ekiti, we will have a refinery. It will produce thousands of jobs. Railway will come. If LASTMA, LAWMA, Highway Managers are set up here, there will be jobs. Why can’t Ondo enjoy micro water works?

    “He said one term only and fought Adefarati and Agagu over one term. Now, he wants a second term. He will do his second term in prison. Don’t be afraid. If it is difficult to remove the ring of power from his finger, the finger will be cut off.”

    Tinubu praised the police for maintaining security at the rally. But he urged them to be non-partisan in Ondo politics.

    He said: “Police, be careful. Stop being partisan. Some of you are good. I will not denigrate you. If you frame up our members and arrest them, there will be problem. The people of Nigeria pay you salary. If there is action, there will be reaction. If you intimidate us, we will react. So, we will not allow you to intimidate our members and arrest them without justification.”

    The ACN leader advised the people to shun violence as members of a great party that would soon take over from the ruins of the Labour Party government. He said Akeredolu is a man of great character, intelligence and capability, adding that he had served society as a talented, reliable and dependable professional.

    Inubu praised the party patriots who stepped down for him, including Prof. Boroffice, the Asiwaju of Akokoland, Segun Abraham, Ajatta, Dr. Tunji Abayomi, Mrs. Anifowose, Akinsehinwa Apata and Alasoadura.

    He said the ACN government will set up a skill development programme in Ondo State, adding that Akeredolu will give fish and, at the same time, teach the people how to fish.

    To the prospective voters, the former Lagos State governor said: “Don’t be afraid. They will not intimidate you. It is a loser who will resort to violence, oppress, repress and use police to intimidate. Don’t leave the polling station. Nobody has the right to chase you out. Don’t use the hand you use to thumbprint to put the ballot paper into the box, otherwise, it will be void. Vote and defend your vote.”

    Aregbesola sang a song mocking those who invoked the rain to disrupt the rally, saying that ACN will not hide from rain or sun in the Sunshine State.

    For him, it was a homecoming of a sort. Seized by nostalgia, the Osun governor paid tributes to the leaders and people of Ikare, where he grew up as a school boy.

    Aregbesola said that Ondo State cannot be in antithetical relationship with its progressive kith and kin in the Southwest, adding: “This Iroko will wither away”.

    He added: “On poll day, wake up early. Let our mothers wake up early. Cook for your household. After that, take your bath and dress well. Prepare to face the electoral marauders. You men, prepare for the electoral duty. After voting, you women can go, but men should wait behind. Give your bloc vote to ACN. Hew the Iroko tree.”

    Osoba said: “Our party took its root from Awolowo. When ‘Demo Party’ rigged election in 2003, only Lagos survived. We stood as warriors and took back Ekiti, Osun, Oyo, Ogun and Edo. Oshiomhole policed the vote in Edo in 2007 and 2012. He won. By the grace of God, Akeredolu will win massively.”

    Boroffice thanked the crowd for their resilience, saying: “As you trooped out today, troop out on October 20 to vote ACN. On the ballot paper, you will see ACN and the broom; thumbprint appropriately.”

    Abayomi said: “I ask you, people of Akoko, do you love Akeredolu? I have discusse with him. He will tackle your problems. Vote for him.”

    Ajomale spoke on the need for Ondo people to join the progressive bloc by voting out Mimiko.

    He said: “ACN is ruling Lagos, Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Edo and Ekiti. Ondo should not be different. We have a chance on October 20.”

    Echoing him, former Lagos State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs Agunsoye said: “Ondo should not be left out of regional economic integration in the Southwest. On October 20, vote and not only that, wait around to police your vote.”

    Abidakun, an Akure Labour Party (LP) chieftain, who defected to ACN a day before the rally, flayed Mimiko for what he called personalisation of power, adding that he was an ingrate who turned around to bite the finger that fed him. He urged the people of the state to vote ACN to have a political relief.

    Ajatta said: “You must hack down Iroko. ACN has promised to repair the damage to Akoko by LP government.”

    Gboyega, son of the late Chief Adefarati, urged the people of Akoko and Owo to maintain their political understanding and unity.

    He said: “Let us vote for Aketi. Akoko and Owo are the same. When Ajasin wanted to become governor, Akoko supported him. When Adefarati wanted to be governor, Owo supported him. I call on the people of Akoko to vote for Akeredolu.”

    Abraham said: “Tinubu is the Awo of our time. He loves us in Ondo State and Yorubaland. ACN has promised to develop Akoko. I have that assurance. All ACN leaders love Akoko. That is why Aregbesola came here to set up a computer centre. ACN will not disappoint us. Our candidate and his running mate are professionals known worldwide. Vote for them.”

    Akinsehinwa-Apata said: “Akoko will give 100 percent vote to ACN. Akeredolu was part of the success of Iroko, but Iroko is an ingrate. Vote him out”

    Olayato said: “Ondo State is today outside the progressive bloc. It must return to the fold on October 20”.

    Akeredolu hailed the courage of Tinubu, saying that he is a great leader. He said great leaders like him are rare, urging Yoruba to always pray for him.

    He unfolded his agenda, assuring that women and youth development would be one of his priorities. He said he would provide 30,000 jobs for youths.

    Akeredolu said Mimiko’s second term aspiration is a nullity, adding that an advocate of one term cannot enjoy continuity in office.

    He stressed; “Mimiko prayed for one term for Adefarati; it was answered. He prayed for one term for Agagu; it was answered. Now, we are praying that he should only spend one term; the prayer will be answered’.

     

  • Jonathan under attack over anti-corruption claim

    Jonathan under attack over anti-corruption claim

    Feathers have been ruffled in the Presidency following the false claim by President Goodluck Jonathan on Nigeria’s corruption rating in his Independence Day broadcast.

    The President, relying on a purported rating by Transparency International (TI) – a worldwide corruption watchdog – said Nigeria is “the second most improved country in the effort to curb corruption”, after the United States.

    The President’s claim has been denied by TI through an e-mail it sent to Premium Times, an online news portal.

    “Transparency International does not have a recent rating or report that places Nigeria as the second most improved country in the fight against corruption,” the email said.

    Embarrassed by the denial, an immediate marching order was issued for an investigation into the sources of the report by the President.

    Close presidential aides who made input to the President’s speech, it was learnt, met to review the sources of the claim, which was reportedly quoted from BusinessDay report on September 12.

    Opposition parties yesterday chided the President for the goof.

    The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) asks the President to apologise to Nigerians for misleading them.

    The ANPP said the President’s statement was “manufactured to boost the administration’s ego.”

    The Federal Ministry of information blamed BusinessDay for misleading the President.

    A memo on its website by Reno Omokri, Dr. Jonathan’s Special Assistant on New Media, reads:

    “Our attention has been drawn to reports from some opposition – leaning media houses alleging that Mr. President made some false claims about Nigeria’s standing in this year’s Transparency International anti corruption rating.

    “As is the practice worldwide, we accept the premise that whatever is published in the media and goes unchallenged is the truth. On this issue, the media published their synopsis of the most recent Transparency International report and BusinessDay, a well-respected newspaper with a bias for business reporting in a headline on the 12th of September 2012 with the title ‘FG’s anti-corruption initiative impacts Nigeria’s global perception’ said: “The survey on global corruption perceptions for 2011 versus 2001 showed that the third best improvement in the world was in Nigeria, with its score improving by 1.5 points”.

    The above quoted comments were relied upon in coming to the conclusion that Mr. President honestly came to in good faith. To this day, Transparency International has not disputed the findings of BusinessDay.

    For a section of the opposition to now cast aspersions on the integrity of the President when he relied on notorious facts (anything published in the press and which remains unchallenged is a notorious fact) is proof positive of the now obvious fact that they lack ideas on how to move Nigeria forward and would rather snipe at efforts of the President to move the nation forward for which any patriot would do.

    In conclusion, the President acted in good faith and his statement was based on notorious facts and are evidenced by recent breakthroughs in fighting corruption in the oil industry where subsidy fraud suspects are already facing trial as well as in the agricultural sector where decades old corrupt practices in the fertilizer distribution network have been eradicated via the voucher system which cuts off the middle man.”

    Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati said yesterday. “The President’s message is that this administration is tackling corruption. The revelations from the pension scam and the fuel subsidy scam as well as the sanitation of activities at the ports all came to be because the President sanctioned them. People should focus on the message; namely that a lot of progress has been made and is still being made to tackle corruption in the system. There are lots of people outside there who mislead Nigerians that nothing is being done. These people tackle individuals. What the President did was that he fired hope and promised his rededication to the service of the nation. There are those who are looking for a way to water down the message.”

    In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the ACN said:

    “In the 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index, which measures perceived levels of public sector corruption, Nigeria scored 2.4 on a scale where 0 means highly corrupt and 10 means very clean. It was ranked 143 out of 183 countries.”

    The party expressed shock and sadness that the President of Africa’s most populous nation and the continent’s second largest economy can make such a frivolous claim on an issue of global concern as corruption.

    It said i”n addition to apologising to Nigerians for the bogus claim, the President must immediately kick-start an investigation into the source of a claim that has exposed his Administration and the entire country to global ridicule.”

    The ACN said the wrong claim by the President, who was apparently trying to showcase the ‘achievements’ of his administration in the fight against corruption, raises doubts about the authenticity of other claims by the President in the anniversary speech.

    ‘’Among other claims, the President had said that real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 7.1 per cent on average; that his Administration’s Investment Climate Reform Programme has helped to attract over N6.8 trillion local and foreign direct investment commitments, and that Nigeria is ranked first in the top 5 host economies for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Africa, accounting for over 20 per cent of total FDI flows into the continent.

    ‘’Now that the President’s claim of positive rating for Nigeria in the anti-corruption fight has been debunked, it is logical for Nigerians to doubt the truth in the other claims, and indeed in the entire speech. This is very sad for the Jonathan Administration, because if the bond of trust between the government and its citizens is broken, the government’s credibility suffers and, without credibility, any government is not worth its name,’’ ACN said.

    The party said if the President fails to act quickly to unearth the source of such a spurious claim and ensure it does not recur, he risks a bigger embarrassment from officials who may want to tweak facts and figures to justify their positions.

    ‘’In the end, the responsibility for any inaccuracy in any speech by the President rests squarely on his shoulders,’’ it said.

    The ANPP National Publicity Secretary, Emma Eneukwu said: “The All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) believes it is unreasonable for the number one citizen of this great nation to misrepresent statistics as this is a strong message of support to corrupt people and those planning to obfuscate the citizens for their own personal gain. Words and body language are potent enough to aggravate corruption just as corrupt practices would. When a leader embellishes a story, he is inadvertently telling his subjects to turn the truth on its head whenever they find the opportunity.

     

  • NJC: President can’t decide Salami’s fate

    NJC: President can’t decide Salami’s fate

     

    The National Judicial Council (NJC) has opposed the retention of Justice Dalhatu Adamu as the President of the Court of Appeal.

    This is contained in the council’s reaction to a suit by 11 plaintiffs suing for themselves and on behalf of the Registered Trustees of the Centre for the Promotion of Arbitration.

    The plaintiffs are Mr. Jitobo Akanike, Idris Musa, Allens Agbaka, Ibrahim Bawa, Princewill Akpakpan, Obruche Ayeteni, Nosa Ihaza, Timothy Odumosu, Stewart Salomi, Egogo Lawrence and Maxwell Adeniran.

    They are before the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenging the refusal of President Goodluck Jonathan to reinstate the suspended President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Isa Ayo Salami.

    The NJC agreed with the Plaintiffs that President Jonathan has no power or role under the 1999 Constitution or any other law to recall or reinstate Justice Salami or any other Justice of the Appellate Court.

    The Council insisted that the power to recall Justice Salami solely and exclusively belongs to it without any recourse to the direction or authority of any other person, including the President, outside the council.

    Its counsel, Mr. Usman Isah, posited that the extension of Justice Dalhatu Adamu’s appointment as the Acting PCA is unconstitutional, illegal, null and void by virtue of section 238(5) of the 1999 Constitution.

    The section states: “Except on the recommendation of the National Judicial Council , an appointment pursuant to the provisions of subsection (4) of this section shall cease to have effect, after the expiration of three months from the date of such appointment and the president shall not reappoint a person whose appointment has lapsed.”

    The NJC argued that Justice Adamu cannot be re-appointed by President Jonathan after the expiration of his three months in office without its recommendation.

    Justice Adamu Bello has, however, ordered parties in the suit to file and exchange their written addresses and fixed December 4 for adoption.

    In the suit against Jonathan and the NJC, the Plaintiffs, who are human rights activists, are seeking an order of mandamus to compel them to recall Justice Salami from his suspension.

    Justice Bello had at the last sitting, ordered the service of the court’s process on Jonathan through the office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Bello Adoke (SAN).

    The Judge granted the order, following an exparte motion filed by the 11 plaintiffs.

    The motion was brought pursuant to Sections 153 and 21 of the third schedule of the Constitution as amended Order 4 Rule 2 and Order 6 Rules 5(b) of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2009 and under the inherent jurisdiction of the court.

    The court also granted an order for the Plaintiffs to sue in representative capacity.

    The plaintiffs are contending that Jonathan has breached the Constitution for disregarding the NJC’s recommendation.

    They are urging the court to declare the extension of Justice Adamau’s tenure as the Acting PCA as unconstitutional, illegal, null and void.

    The Defendants are Jonathan, Adoke, NJC, Justice Salami and Justice Adamu.

    In the Originating Summons, the Plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that: the NJC is the only body that can discipline Court of Appeal Justices and/or the president of the Court of Appeal; and a declaration that *the refusal of the third defendant to implement the recommendation of its three-man panel headed by Honourable Justice Aloma Mariam Muhktar (JSC), urging the recall of Justice Salami constitutes a breach of the constitution as amended.

    They are seeking also an order: •of mandamus directing the third defendant to implement the recommendation of its three-man panel urging the recall of Justice Salami.

    •directing the third defendant to recall the fourth defendant to resume his duties as the President of the Court of Appeal forthwith; and

    •a declaration that the President has no power whatsoever and/or howsoever to discipline Court of Appeal Justices and or Justice Salami.

     

  • Promasidor launches media awards

    Promasidor Nigeria, makers of Cowbell milk has called for entries for its media excellence awards for journalists, tagged Promasidor Quill Awards.

    Its Head, Legal and PR, Mr Andrew Enahoro, said in Lagos that the awards were now officially opened and urged journalists to enter for the competition through its website.

    “The ‘Promasidor Quill Awards’ which was launched in March, is now officially open. Submission of entries will run all through to March 2013 when it will be closed for compilation. Interested journalists can log on to the website http://quillawards.promasidor-ng.com/ to submit their entries.”

    Enahoro said the awards would encompass five categories and will be done strictly on an e-platform.

    “The ‘Promasidor Quill Awards’ will cover five categories which are the Brand Advocate of the year, Best CSR Report of the year, Most Educative Report of the year, Best Report on Nutrition and the Best Photo Story of the year. These categories have been carefully thought-out to accommodate most journalists in the industry. Unlike others, the ‘Promasidor Quill Awards’ will be done on an e-platform. It will be done strictly using the internet so as to avoid difficulties in submitting entries. This will give interested participants equal opportunity to participate in the awards and also there will be no case of lost entries as you will receive an immediate response after submitting your entry.”

    When asked who the judges were, Enahoro said “the panel of judges will consist of a representative from Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), an academia and a veteran journalist.

    Speaking further, Mr. Ayodele Oguntubi, Coordinator Corporate Affairs, Promasidor Nigeria while demonstrating how to upload entries for the awards, said journalists are entitled to one entry per category.

    “Interested journalists can only submit one entry per category, except the Brand Advocate category where we will do the collation ourselves with the help of our agency. It will be required that a scanned copy of the story in print and a Microsoft word copy of the story be submitted for legibility,” Oguntubi said.

    Revealing the prizes, Oguntubi said winners in each category will get an opportunity to do a course at Lagos Business School (LBS), a high-end Laptop, a high-end camera for the photojournalist, and all Promasidor products.

    The ‘Promasidor Quill Awards’ is a platform in Nigeria to reward journalists for dedicated news reportage on Industry, Education, Corporate Social Responsibility & Nutrition issues all year round. These Awards will be an annual event that would add more depth and reward reporting excellence. Winning journalists would be rewarded with befitting prizes and be given the opportunity to add to their knowledge and skills set.

    It was launched at the Promasidor Media Brand Academy in March, 2012.ny has recorded remarkable growth over the years and it presently employs more than 1,000 Nigerians in various aspects of its operations.

  • ACN slams Anyim on ‘State of Osun’

    ACN slams Anyim on ‘State of Osun’

    The Action Congress ofNigeria (ACN) in  Osun State has faulted a statement credited to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Pius Anyim, in which he said addressing Osun State as the “State of Osun” was unconstitutional.

    The party berated the state’s chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for its “baseless” criticisms of the Governor Rauf Aregbesola administration.

    In a statement by its Publicity Director, Mr. Kunle Oyatomi, ACN said Anyim was either “informed” or “economical with the truth”.

    The party said: “There is nothing unconstitutional about how we call the state. Its name is Osun, period. If the Aregbesola administration prefers to call it the ‘State of Osun’ or the PDP thinks it sounds better as Osun State, neither of them is committing a constitutional crime. They have both identified the state as Osun, which is its constitutional name.

    “It is senseless for anybody to suggest constitutional illegality where no such crime has been committed. We are particularly shocked that a lawyer and former Senate President, who is supposed to be highly knowledgeable considering the office he had occupied and his current office as the SGF, could get involved in this puerile conversation, which originated from the mundane thought process of Southwest PDP.”