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Tag: 2015

  • 2015: Battle for Abia Government House

    2015: Battle for Abia Government House

    No fewer than 10 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirants are warming up for  primaries in Abia State. Governor Theodore Orji is pushing for power shift to Ukwa Ngwa, Abia South Senatorial District. But, some stakeholders are calling for a level-playing field for contenders. Who becomes the flag bearer? Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the scramble for power in the Southeast state.  

    The succession battle started last year. At the ceremony marking the 22nd anniversary of the creation of Abia State, Governor Theodore Orji reflected on  governance and peoples’ expectations. He told stakeholders in Umuahia, the state capital, that the next governor would inherit some challenges.  He highlighted some of the virtues expected of his successor.

    Orji said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate would be a credible politician worthy of peoples’ vote. The governor said he would not impose any aspirant. He was also emphatic that he would not permit any imposition by any stakeholder.

    Few weeks ago, the governor maintained that his views had not changed. When critics alleged that he had already anointed a candidate, he dispelled the rumour. In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Charles Ajunwa, the governor said  the candidate would emerge in a democratic primaries. Orji said no aspirant would be excluded from the process, adding that the state would not be under any family domination and idol worship.

    “There was a time in the history of Abia State that nobody could become an ordinary councilor without worshiping an idol. After worshiping an idol, you then worship an individual and his family. Abia people may not have known what I did for them; my major achievement is the liberation of Abia State from idol worship and family domination,” he stressed.

    However, the governor said the ruling party will adopt zoning for next year’s poll. This statement has implications for the contest. In fact, it has polarised the state into pro-zoning and anti-zoning forces.

    In the last one month, the contest has assumed a new dimension. Aspirants have embarked on last minute consultations with stakeholders across the 17 councils areas. Some of them have been endorsed by various individuals and groups. Keen watchers of the Abia politics have described the state as a potential flashpoint, owing to the interplay of forces.

    Sources said former Governor Orji Kalu and his supporters are challenging the governor to a duel. There is a plot to weaken him, ahead of the exercise. But, the governor is also gathering supporters to resist the onslaught. The entire South District is backing the governor, following his support for the rotational principle.

    Haling the adoption of zoning, the leader of the Abia Democratic Movement, Prince Sonny Aku, said: “Let no none take Abia for granted. Power must shift and the next governor must come from Ukwa Ngwa.

    “Those who had rule the state cannot come back through the back door through their crony. It will not work. The governor must not be disturbed or distracted. He must complete all his projects and be allowed to hand over to an Ukwa Ngua man. We will not sit down and fold our arms. We will not allow anybody to rubbish the governor. Any attack on the governor is an attack on Abias.”

    Aku, a prominent businessman and community leader, added: “We will do everything legally to stop the attack on the governor and the confusion they want to create to deny the people of Nkwa Ngwa their right. Abia will go where the governor will go. Governor Orji has followers and Abia people are with him. In 2015, power shift to Ukwa Ngwa is non-negotiable. Anybody who wants to truncate this agenda should wait and see what will happen. Those who have skeletons in their pocket will be exposed. Abia people know the source of their wealth.”

    But, apart from zoning, there are other factors that will shape the contest. These include the quality of aspirants, their popularity among stakeholders and delegates, financial strength and the influence of the governor,  who is expected to hand over to a successor who has the ability to continue with the modest foundation laid by his administration.

    Close associates of the governor insist that it would be a great disservice to the state, if any aspirant who has a link with past retrogressive forces succeeds  him. In their view, another retrogressive successor may reverse the gains of the last seven and half years.

    A PDP chieftain from  Ohafia Council, Chief Kalu Asiegbu, said Abia cannot afford to return to another period of doom. “If I have my way, I will call on  delegates to the primaries to shun any aspirant who held positions during the last administration between 1999 and 2007,” he said.

    Also, the Methodist Archbishop of Umuahia, Most Rev. Sunday Agwu, said  the state must not return to what he described as the years of locust. At a thanksgiving service organised for the Secretary to the Government (SSG), Prof. Mkpa Agu Mkpa, at the Wesley Methodist Church, Umuahia, the cleric also reflected on zoning, saying that it is only meaningful, if it throws up a competent person. Turning to the governor, he said: “We have heard that your party has a zoning system. So, you intend to hand over to Ukwa/Ngwa indigenes. Your Excellency, our plea is that you should be careful about the person you are handing over to.

    “We will not want to have a governor who is selfish, inaccessible, an idol worshipper, not compassionate, parochial, clannish and inhumane, or a governor who does not like to support the work of God.”

    Aspirants eyeing Orji’s job include Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, Mr. Friday Nwosu, a lawyer, Senator Nkechi Nwaogu, Mr. Marc Wabara, Mr. Okey Emuchay, Mr. Uche Ogah, Chief Acho Nwakanma and the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Bank Plc, Dr. Alex Otti.

    Nwosu has been endorsed by party chieftains, monarchs, religious leaders, businessmen, women groups, youths and non-indigenes, who are fascinated by his hard work, accomplishments and integrity.

    Nwosu hails from Obingwa Council. He is popular across the three districts. He is a staunch supporter of the governor. Observers see him as a front runner, a bridge builder, who is not in the race to settle scores, a loyal party man and an aspirant who does not have links with previous rulers of the state. Nwosu is also perceived as a non-controversial figure.

    Declaring his ambition in Umuahia, he said: “I’m in the race for the governorship position in Abia State, not just to run, but to build on the foundation laid by Governor Theodore Orji, who has laid a solid foundation for the State. As a legal practitioner of 22 years standing, I have the capacity, vision and commitment to take the state to the next level.

    “I offer my wealth of experience to serve and assure you I will not disappoint the people of Abia State. If I have any plans to deceive Abia people when I become governor, let God stop me, but if I have good intentions for the people of the state better than other aspirants, let God make me governor to the glory of His name. I vow to serve God and humanity selflessly.”

    Nwosu urged the people to support Orji. “Abia state has witnessed several administrations in the past, yet, it has no secretariat, conference centre and other structures. Ministries were scattered around the state capital while the Government House is rented. It was only during Governor Orji’s tenure that things began to change for the state.”

    Abaribe, who is in the race for the second time, is a former deputy governor. He was shoved aside as the number two citizen under former Governor Kalu. He went to the defunct All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP). When he returned to the PDP, he bounced back as a senator. In the Upper Chamber, he is the spokesman.

    Like Nwosu, the senator is favoured by zoning. Besides, he said that he is the most qualified for the front seat, having served as the deputy governor. Many groups and associations have also endorsed Abaribe.

    Nwaogu is the only woman in the race. She is an Amazon. She is popular in her district. But, she is not favoured by zoning.

    The senator is active in the Senate. He is also in touch with the grassroots. On regular occasions, he has organised empowerment programmes for constituents, who have applauded her kind gestures. Nwaogwu has supporters. But, it appears that she may not be favoured, owing to gender consideration.

    Nwakanma is a seasoned banker. He is popular in the financial sector. He is also perceived as a man of integrity. But, he is new in politics.

  • ‘Ekiti ‘ll vote for personality in 2015’

    ‘Ekiti ‘ll vote for personality in 2015’

    All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial aspirant in Ekiti South District Ayodele Adu spoke with  EMMANUEL OLADESU and SINA FADARE on his agenda and other partisan issues.

    You have a flourishing career in the banking world. What attracted you to politics?

    According to a German philosopher, a political illiterate is the worst of illiterates. The inaction of those who do not participate in politics is what causes the social injustices we are all talking about in the society. They don’t know that  not participating in politics make the price of rice in the market to go beyond the reach of the common man.

    If you are not participating in politics, you are killing the economy and not helping the coming generation. As a man, no matter how comfortable you are, you must find a way of contributing your quota to the development of others and see how you can impact into the lives of the people. The zeal to do that has encouraged me to go into politics.

    In my constituency, l see a lot of poverty. Even, at times, it is difficult for people to raise their children’s school fees when l was growing up. So, I made up my mind that, if l have the opportunity, l will assist all those  that are in need. At my private level, l have been trying to give succour to the needy and meet a lot of people’s demand in my little way. If l have the opportunity to serve the people therefore, l will be able to take care of their needs at a global level. For example, l have given scholarship to some people, donated to community projects and assisted in one way or the order, but there is little one can do at an individual level.  That is why l want to be in politics so that l can render more services to my people. If you are in government, you can see to policy formulation and execution, especially policies that have direct positive impact on millions of people. The Senate, which l am aspiring to go, is a place where you discuss the fortune of the country.

    I want to go to the Senate to utilise my wealth of experience in the financial and stock exchange, which I have garnered in the last 16 years, so that the country at large will tap from this opportunity. In the US, erudite lawyers and professionals  are in the Senate to rob minds together and come up with a law that will assist the country in its developments.

    Technocrats are always afraid to swim in the murky waters of politics. What is the motivation?

    There is always a challenge in any area of human endeavour. Politics is not exempted. I have the determination to serve my people in any capacity. That is why l want to go to the Senate. I like challenges and, like l have always overcome them in the past, l will do that of politics and I will have a remarkable achievement at the end.

    Yes, Nigerian politics is murky, but it all depends on the approach and the tenacity of purpose that you put into it. In Ekiti, l have met with the chairmen of the 64 wards. They are more political and intelligent than l expected. I was able to lay my cards on the table and share my vision and dream of giving it all to the total emancipation of my people from poverty and penury that  are ravaging them now. That is why l sold my profile to them. They are very excited about it and majority of them are praying that l will be their senator   next year.

    If you go to the state now and you talk to anybody on the street, they will tell you that that is our next senator because l was able to sell myself to the people and they are very passionate about my credential and humble background. Although the Peoples Democratic Party  (PDP) will be the party in power next year, that does not change anything because  l parade one of the best credential and the people of the state will want me to represent them in the Senate  without a recourse to any party. Take, for instance, if they want to talk on the issue of finance in the Senate, if l am fortunate to be there, definitely, l will play a major role because of my background.

    How do you think you can make a difference from the previous people who  had represented Ekiti in the Senate?

    My main focus will be the irreversible investment. Ekiti people are agrarian in nature. There is poor economic development. You cannot create market, unless you create institutional changes there. I will try to use my contact, both locally and internationally, to benefit my community and my country at large.

    In the past, the state was unlucky to have some people who are mere on lookers in the Senate and all their constituency allowances were spent on their family. They bought few okada and keke NAPEP. That  is not how to empower the people.  l can assure the people of Ekiti that a new dawn has come and an expert is about to go to the Senate to change their economic fortune.

    What is your chance, in view of the politics of stomach infrastructure, which is in vogue now?

    I still believe that the people of Ekiti did not practice the politics of stomach infrastructure. We have a politically conscious society and the people respect you for what you are and what you can offer, in terms of developmental programmes. They also did not like a situation where you take them for granted. They want you to accord them with little honour. They want to see that you are humble and that you can actually relate with them at any level and that you are accessible to them, especially at the point of their need. For example, l distributed about 30,000 exercise books when I declared my intention officially to my people. I had to give them to students going to school free of charge as my own little contribution to their educational success. This will encourage parents to save millions of naira that could have been expended on these books.

    By so doing,  in my little way, we are re- creating wealth. I donated the exercise books, not for any  reason,  apart for the fact that the students need them at this particular period that they are resuming and it will equally assist their parents.  If that is the only way l can assist my people, l will do it in a million times, if l have the resources. I am always happy and  fulfilled when l put smile on the faces of others.

    What is the assurance that the APC will pick you as its candidate?

    Credibility and high profile that l parade will be an advantage for me. My profile is all over the state and particularly, my senatorial district and it is verifiable. People know my background and the family. This election will not be on party basis. It will be based on personality. It is about the person who is qualified to be there and who will make an ppreciable impact. I have all what it takes to make a difference.

  • 2015: Lagos youths assure party

    2015: Lagos youths assure party

    A leader of the Lagos State youths wing of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Adebola Obale, has promised the ruling party the support of younger voters in the 2015 elections.

    The youth leader spoke at a rally organised by the Kosofe Federal Constituency at the Freedom Park, Ojota, Lagos.

    He said the APC government has done well for the youth, but should give them additional responsibilities.

    Obale said governance should not become the exclusive domain of the old in the country, noting that APC has ensured a level-field for those who wanted to participate in politics.

    He said: “We are at this rally because we want to draw attention to what the youths of the country are facing. Without the youths, there will not be the elders. We are using this medium to call for more opportunities for the youth.”

    He added that the society that neglects the youth would perish, stressing that many leaders who occupy the corridor of power hardly want to give youths the chance to prove their worth.

    “That is why we are urging the President of our youth’s wing, Toyin Balogun, to contest for the House of Representatives. He is a young man who has done much in terms of mobilisation for the success of our party.”

  • 2015: The choice before APC

    As stated on this page last week, PDP has defined itself as a party that wants to hold on to the disproportionate share of our resources its members have cornered. Stealing government money, they have said is not corruption. Exploitation of our innermost fears, promoting ethnic and religious divisiveness to win election is acceptable. While most Nigerians feel a sense of shame that our Chibok girls are still marooned in the forest after four months, the party junkets around the nation celebrating decampees, followed by series of carnivals in some selected cities by TAN at the end of which it presented Jonathan as its star for 2015. They just don’t give a damn.

    Unfortunately, unlike PDP, even with the exit of Ali Modu Sheriff, Tom IKimi and Femi Fani-Kayode until recently the public face of APC which has pulled all the stops for the greater part of the year to be a carbon copy of PDP, the party has yet to clearly define itself. The public declaration of Atiku Abubakar who shares a PDP vision of power, a vision that has driven him from PDP to AC, back to PDP and now APC, for the party’s presidential ticket has only reinforced the impression that the two parties are the same side of a coin. And even for the core supporters of APC, it is not unlikely that for the fear of having their ears jarred by Atiku’s declaration, many might have not cared to listen to his familiar tone. And unfortunately for APC, while the electorates know what President Jonathan and his PDP represent, they cannot say the same of Atiku Abubakar whether clothed in the cloak of PDP or APC.

    It is equally depressing that preparation for Buhari’s declaration is in top gear with the party behaving as if there are no lessons to be learnt from our recent history. The problem is not just that the duo have  contested several times, labelled serial losers by PDP or that Buhari is over 70 in a world run by those in their thirties and forties. Or that nearer home, Zik, Ahmadu Bello, Awo, Bode Thomas, Rotimi Williams, Enahoro, Akintola, Fani-Kayode, Osuntokun, and Ikoku made their major contributions to our national development in their thirties and early forties; it is just that the duo are unelectable looking at our geo-political configuration.

    Buhari, unarguably is about the best Nigerian leader to face our nation’s daunting problems. He is the answer to PDP corruption, Jonathan indecision, society’s indiscipline and his party endless squabbling. Buhari has proved our problem is leadership and corruption. During his short stay as Head of state, our refineries worked. We earned foreign exchange selling refined petroleum. We did not import grain. Our problem became how to store what was locally produced. He rejected IMF-inspired SAP which was later accepted by Babangida. Buhari was vindicated as Babangida’s indiscretion and unpatriotic act led to the collapse of all our industries.

    But Babangida, David Mark and  Gusau, Buharis’ nemesis, along with other greedy politicians who wanted  Buhari out of the way to run the country in their own image along with their laboratory-incubated ‘new breed’ politicians have been in charge in the last 15 years. Now Jonathan with his exploitation of our fears and anxieties that have found expression in ethnic suspicion among our multi ethnic groups, mindless killings of innocent people in the middle belt states of the country by yet-to-be-identified so-called Fulani herdsmen, it is leaders like Buhari, a Fulani who is deeply committed to his Islamic religion no less than president Jonathan, an Ijaw is to his Christian fundamentalist beliefs, that suffer the collateral damage of the exploitation of our ethnic and religious differences. The forces against him today are as potent as they were in 1985, 2003, 2007 and 2011.

    Buhari shares a common fate with Awo. He was the most qualified Nigerian leader in terms of achievements, preparation and commitment to the poor in our nation at independence. But within two  years of independence, the parasitic political and economic elite across the land unjustly sentenced him to 10 years imprisonment, installed Akintola, a man who had been constitutionally removed by his party, without election, went ahead to rig the 1965 regional election in his favour while keeping Awo in Calabar prison.

    He was brought out of prison by Gowon to make useful contribution to the successful prosecution of the civil war caused by the greed of the political elites from the north and east. When in 1979, he wanted to bring his expertise to solve some of our nation’s problems, Obasanjo said the most competent man didn’t have to win. The erstwhile enemies, the parasitic political and economic elite from the east and the north who derailed the first republic once again went into a coalition which predictably collapsed over sharing of nation’s booty. In 1983, during Awo’s last attempt, the forces against him and by extension against Nigeria almost ensured he did not get a running mate from the north and east. Once again, it was the greed of NPN, an umbrella body for political and economic parasites that led to the collapse of the second republic which heralded Buhari as head of a military junta in 1985.

    With Awo’s ‘adventure in power’ between 1962 and 1979, he had no business contesting the 1983 election. He ought to have sat back to tender the UPN which he was a major investor. Buhari today is faced with similar option. The reasons are obvious. For 2015, the greedy PDP northern political elite fearing Buhari presidency would drive them out of town, the middle belt, victims of recent mindless killing by yet-to-be-identified so-called Fulani herdsmen has been programmed to believe the fear of a Fulani man is the beginning of wisdom. The South-south and South-east, contractors and importers of sub-standard goods that enjoy government waivers, hiding under the banner of ethnicity and religion while sucking the blood of the dispossessed in their midst, have proclaimed Jonathan as the liberator of the Igbo and the long awaited Ijaw messiah. They have, without proof, declared Buhari, who secured no votes in the area in 2011, a ‘Boko Haram sponsor and leader of a ‘janjaweed party’. In the South-west, he is haunted by his role as a military dictator among the old and those below 30 who were never taught history at school have become captives of prosperity prophets, backers of Jonathan. How does those nudging Buhari on expect him to walk this ‘tight rope’ over a sea of greedy and selfish Ijaw and Igbo sharks with injured anti-Fulani predators impatiently waiting at the beach?

    What then are the options for APC if they are to avoid the mistake of the past? In a liberal democracy political parties are owned by oligarchs who have stakes in the survival of society. In the US, the Republican and the Democrats pursue the same objective. Social change is evolutionary. Buhari, Tinubu Audu Ogbe and other party oligarch should take control of their political party and set up a presidential committee to screen young men for the party’s presidential ticket. Buhari like Awo has nothing else to prove. He, like Awo has been vindicated in his life time by history. With his goodwill, any candidate he endorses and sells to the nation along with his fellow APC oligarchs will be acceptable to Nigerians who feel diminished by PDP’s clueless response to our domestic problems.

    Edward Kennedy from the records of his achievement as second longest serving American senator was the best president America never had because he was haunted by his July18 1969 Chappaquiddick bridge accident which led to the death of his female passenger trapped in his car when it plunged into a river. After his last encounter with Jimmy Carter, he moved on to mentor two great American Presidents, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama who have already earned their places in American history. If he along with his colleagues in APC succeeds in liberating Nigeria from PDP, he can then also sit back like the late Senator Edward Kennedy and say:

    “For all those whose cares have been our concern; The work goes on, the cause endures, and the hopes still lives;  And the dream shall never die”

  • Jonathan, Sambo and the 2015 ticket

    With all the organs of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) declaring President Goodluck Jonathan the sole Presidential candidate of  the party for the 2015 general elections, the decision to pick his running mate is said to be the exclusive right of  the President.

    The sole candidacy declared for Jonathan was said to only cover him and not his Vice, Namadi Sambo.

    For this reason, many politicians interested in the number two job have continued to make clandestine moves to lobby for the post.

    Many of them are believed to be scheming to take charge in 2019 when Jonathan’s tenure will elapse should he get another term in 2015.

    Some of them have begun testing the waters with posters flooding Abuja and many parts of the country showing them as probable running mates to President Jonathan.

    A case in point is the poster showing the PDP National Chairman, Adamu Muazu as the running mate to Jonathan, which took over Abuja streets as soon as Jonathan was declared sole candidate of  the party a forthnight ago.

    Muazu has not disowned or disassociated himself  from the posters, a week after they flooded Abuja.

    If he has nothing to do with it, political watchers expect Muazu to announce to the public that the posters were the handiwork of his detractors. This was yet to be done as at Thursday last week.

    Another allegation has it that Jigawa State Governor; Sule Lamido shelved his Presidential ambition to settle for the number two job under the party.

    But what is being thrown up against Sambo, who many believed has been very loyal and instrumental to all the achievements recorded by Jonathan in the past four years, was the allegation that he has a diminished political value and may not be able to deliver the North for Jonathan in 2015.

    Sambo’s loyalty was said to have facilitated smooth running of the administration unlike the ugly experiences recorded in the past.

    As Jonathan is expected to publicly accept the sole candidacy and announce his running-mate in the next few weeks, political watchers are keenly eager to see if Jonathan will place Sambo’s loyalty above every other consideration, or if he will pick other politicians scheming and strategising to take control of the leadership in 2019.

     

  • Lagos 2015: Igbos should vote APC

    Lagos 2015: Igbos should vote APC

    Prior to the victory of Alliance for Democracy (AD) in 1999 governorship election in Lagos state which produced Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, many progressive Igbo people in Lagos had forged a common alliance under National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) with like minds of Yorubas and other Nigerians from the North and Southern parts of Nigeria to push for the return to democracy from military rule. Under the able leadership of Abraham Adesanya, the late Lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), some of these Igbos which includes Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu (Rtd) and Engr. Joe Igbokwe, to mention but a few, suffered deprivations in their quest to ensure that the military returned to their barracks.

    With the metamorphosis of AD into Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and now All Progressive Congress (APC) the political ruling class in Lagos continued carrying Igbos along together with their political and economic interests. It is instructive to note that before his inauguration in 1999, some prominent Igbo sons were part of the Think Tank set up by Tinubu to formulate policies for the Lagos State government. These include Professor Pat Okedinachi Utomi and Olisa Agbakoba, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

    Under the leadership of Tinubu, an Igbo man Ben Akabueze a technocrat was appointed a Commissioner in Lagos State and has continued to serve till date. Another illustrious Igbo son Engr. Igbokwe was also appointed a General Manager of one of the government agencies. In honour of Rear Admiral Kanu, a Park in Alausa, the seat of government was named after him just like it was done for Gani Fawehinmi (SAN) in Ojota and Dr Beko Ransome-Kuti in Anthony. Several Igbo sons and daughters have continued to prosper in their businesses courtesy of the enabling environment created by the Lagos State government in the last 16 years.

    It may also be pointed out that leading Igbo groups in Lagos such as Aka Ikenga, the Pan Igbo Think Thank, Ndigbo Lagos, a Socio-Cultural organization and also the leading Igbo Socio-Cultural group Ohaneze Ndigbo have held strategic meetings with Tinubu and later Fashola over the years. These groups in recognition of the contributions of these governors to the protection and development of Igbo interests in Lagos have also honoured them on several occasions in the past.

    As the 2015 governorship elections approaches in Lagos State, one of the rival political parties to APC has gone into its bag of tricks and has come up with a plot to deceive Igbos into voting for it. It is tinkering with the idea of making an Igbo man a deputy governorship candidate of its party together with a few slots in commissionership and the state House of Assembly. This promise would have been good if not that it is only a gimmick to win elections in Lagos State and not borne out of a sincere love for Igbos. Why is it that in 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 governorship elections in Lagos State, the party did not nominate an Igbo man as its deputy governorship candidate? Having lost its deposit in the last four general elections, this party is desperate to win at all cost.

    Further, Igbos should remember that the mere fact that a person is chosen as a candidate does not mean that his kinsmen would vote for him. In 1999, the ruling political mafia in Nigeria chose General Olusegun Obasanjo (Rtd) as the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). His kinsmen, the Yorubas instead voted for Chief Olu Falae, the presidential candidate of AD. Obasanjo was roundly defeated in the six Yoruba states including his home state of Ogun.

    Since Igbos have made appreciable in road into APC, it is better for them to remain there and negotiate their interest inside that party. The transformation of Lagos which started with Tinubu in 1999 and has continued with Fashola since 2007 has benefited all Lagosians without discrimination.

    Infact, I dare say that as a people given to mercantile pursuits, these two administrations which has boosted the economy of Lagos State by logical deduction has favoured the Igbos more than any other ethnic group doing business in Lagos. Therefore, it is in the enlightened self interest of the Igbos to vote for APC in 2015 governorship election in Lagos State.

     

    • Aham Njoku,

    Lagos.

  • 2015: Atiku needs good luck!

    SIR: Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar says he is the most investigated Nigerian.  Why not?  It is either because he is the most tainted Nigerian or he is the most victimised Nigerian under the sun.  But, of course, he cannot be denied the cap of being the most dogged fighter in the political arena since 1999, having, as it were, fought his former boss, now friend, Olusegun Obasanjo, to a standstill and still lives to tell the story.  Atiku is not only a giant killer, he is also one that knows how to kill generals politically. He did it to Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida; and Minister of Defence, General Aliyu Mohammed Gusau.

    One was a former Head of State and former President; another, a former military President; and the other, a security chief of immense connections.  Who says Atiku has not got financial and political clout? But he may soon add another General to the feathers in his cap when he rubbishes former Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari, if he makes the mistake of running in a primary with the tested politician.  And that is it!  None of these men is politically wily enough to beat this politician who is playing on a turf he knows better than them.  They are soldiers, trained in the art of violence, but Atiku is a kettle of fish they cannot contend with.

    Only fellow politicians can neutralise Atiku in a political game. Ask Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and he will tell you how he neutralised the former Vice President in the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).  Atiku ran away from the ACN, politically bruised and bloodied.  Ask Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the sitting president who made political mincemeat of Atiku.  Atiku may have political brains and brawns, he lacks the humility and the cunningness of the zoologist with a truck load of good luck from on high.

    Atiku says he has what it takes to bring people together and turn things around for better, adding that his decision to run for President was borne out of the need for good governance; but the question remains, what did he do with the four years he ran the country while his former boss was gallivanting round the world seeking to impress the international community rather than build a nation?  It is no longer news that it was his activities in those four years that had made him the most investigated Nigerian. And that is when he was number two; what will happen if he has four years as the country’s chief executive and commander-in-chief?

    Other than his fellow political traveler, Buhari, Atiku stands out as the only one who has contested the nation’s highest political office the most since 1999.  But if he is not careful as before, he will have his nose rubbed in the mud again because he has no good luck.  Good luck, for now, resides elsewhere in Asokoro District of Abuja.

    • Chika Onuora

    Asokoro, Abuja

  • 2015: Plot to dump Bayelsa Senators, Reps thickens

    2015: Plot to dump Bayelsa Senators, Reps thickens

    Ahead of the 2015 general elections, there is a plot to deny senators and five members of the House of Representatives from Bayelsa State return tickets to the National Assembly.

    As part of the plan, it was gathered that major stakeholders from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held a crucial meeting at the Ogbia Brotherhood Town Hall on Thursday, where they affirmed zoning of the party’s tickets for 2015.

    The meeting was said to have been convened by King A.J Turner, President Goodluck Jonathan’s close confidant and a major power broker in the state.

    The stakeholders, who are majorly from the Bayelsa East Senatorial District, argued that only strict adherence to zoning would guarantee peace and equity in the state.

    If the decision is implemented the three senators and five members of the House of Representatives will lose their rights to seek reelection in the PDP.

    The affected senators are Emmanuel Paulker (Bayelsa Central); Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa West) and Clever Ikhisipo (Bayelsa East).

    Members of the House of Representatives affected are Foingha Jephthah(Nembe/Brass), Henry Ofongo (Southern Ijaw), Wallman Ogoriba (Yen/Kolga), Dr.Stella Dorgu (Sagbama) and Nadu Karibo(Ogbia).

    The zoning decision of the stakeholders were said to have the backing of the President, Dr. Goodlcuk Jonathan, the state Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson and his deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah (retd).

    The stakeholders were said to have resolved that Ikisikpo, Jephthah and Karibo should not be returned in 2015.

    It was allegedly concluded that the seat of Jephtah, who hails from Nembe Local Government Area, had been zoned to Brass.

    For Karibo, his seat is supposed to be rotated among Ogbia groups of Kolo, Oloibiri and Ayama. Having come from Oloibiri, the stakeholders said he must relinquish it to Ayama in 2015.

    The Senatorial position of Bayelsa East, being occupied by  Ikisikpo, an Ogbia indigene, was said to have been returned to Brass.

    It was gathered that the decision was generating controversies in the state, as the lawmakers were said to have felt betrayed, following their roles during the New PDP debacle in the country.

    But they were said to be found wanting during the political crises that led to the deposition of former Governor Timipre Sylva.

    It was, however, gathered that the stakeholders were planning to return the member representing Sagbama federal constituency, Dr.Stella Dorgu, who was elected to complete the term of Governor Seriake Dickson.

    She was said not to be part of what the party termed “insubordination” during the debacle that removed Sylva.

  • Oshaniwa: Eagles will qualify for 2015 AFCON

    Oshaniwa: Eagles will qualify for 2015 AFCON

    • Urges Nigerians not to panic

    Super Eagles’ defender Juwon Oshaniwa has urged Nigerians not to fret over the country’s qualification for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON)  slated for Morocco.

    Nigeria’s senior national team only picked a point out of possible six including a 2-3 home to the Red Devils of Congo on September 6 at Calabar.

    But Oshaniwa in an exclusive interview with SportingLife from his base in Israel asserted that the Eagles would take the remaining matches of the AFCON qualifiers seriously starting with the away tie against Sudan next month.

    He asked Nigerians not to panic but to pray for the success of the team in the remaining four matches adding that maximum points in those matches would ensure the AFCON defending champions are in Morocco next January to put themselves in the right stead to have a go at the trophy again.

    “We know what it is at stake and we have resolved to win the remaining matches not minding what it will take out of us. We don’t want Nigerians to panic because we would ensure that the Eagles’ qualify for the Nations Cup. We need Nigerians’ prayers,” Oshaniwa who plies his trade with Ashdod SC told SportingLife.

  • 2015: Where’re politicians of conscience?

    2015: Where’re politicians of conscience?

    ‘The ultimate test of man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard’ ————Gaylord Nelson

    Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) was that quintessential English philosopher who is best known for his political thought on the problem of social and political order. He wrote about how human beings could live together in peace so as to avoid civil conflict through his advocacy of obedience to an unaccountable sovereign that could be a person or group empowered to decide every social and political issue; failure to do this according to him, could lead to what he called a “state of nature” that is anarchical. The consequence of this, in his view, is that the life of the people under that state of nature becomes ‘brutish, nasty and poor.’

    But looking at the past and current situations in the country, it is doubtful if Hobbes contemplated human beings, especially the developing countries’ politicians, as purely particularly egoistic. This riddle has been the speck on the theory of this founding father of modern philosophy because it gives no reverence to the need for good ethics, morality and conscience as parameters for leadership obedience by the governed.

    The afore-stated adumbrated intellectual scrutiny of Hobbes’ works is informed by last week’s blanket approval of President Goodluck Jonathan by all the directing minds of ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as the party’s sole presidential candidate for the 2015 general elections. The PDP governors led by its forum’s chairman, Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, its Board of Trustees (BoT) chairman, Tony Anenih, Adamu Muazu, PDP national chairman, Olisa Metuh, its national publicity secretary; Senate President David Mark and members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) that serves as its highest decision-making appendage recently adopted Mr. Jonathan as the party’s consensus candidate in next February presidential election. That game, obviously an exercise in impunity, made mockery of the well-espoused principle of internal democracy of political parties. And quite presumably, the hearts of most discerning Nigerians have since not ceased bleeding!

    The way and manner that otherwise men of honour “regurgitated” superlatives about the president and his leadership style at the event compelled yours sincerely to wonder if they were talking about the same man whose tenure has put the nation in the worst turmoil than any past leadership of the country. One wonders if these adults truly mean that Jonathan should continue after 2015. The mind went on peripatetic adventure and accompanied by surging questions: Could it mean that they, who are mostly serving top officers of state and from the ruling party, are indifferent to the plight of suffering Nigerians and debilitating state institutions? Are they unaware that five months after, the over 200 Chibok abducted girls are still in the bondage of the Boko Haram insurgents? What about the corruption of subsidy surrounding the management of crude oil proceeds by this administration? Are these supposed party chieftains saying that the odious exportation of $9.3million government money in privately owned aircraft where the president’s close pastor friend has residual interest is in order?

    Again: Could they be saying that one of the reasons for reposing confidence in the president is because South Africa seized Nigeria’s hard-earned illegally transported funds to her territory? Or could it be because of the abysmal human rights record of his administration as depicted by Amnesty International through the illegal torture of Nigerians by the police/military institutions? Does President Jonathan deserve a re-election for spending over a trillion on a Boko Haram war that is far from being won due to the nation’s military that is witnessing its greatest low and de-motivation under his administration? Could the president be deserving of another term for hobnobbing with alleged sponsors of Boko Haram? Could this wobbling handling of the Boko Haram criminal nuisance be the reason why the Senate hastily approved $1billion loan for the president to fight the insurgents while people are generally aware that the loan will eventually be deployed by the commander-in-chief to prosecute his 2015 re-election ambition? They could not even be bothered that the president has not accounted for the trillion already spent on the battle against the Boko Haram rebels.

    Based on the fore-enumerated necessary questions and several others not asked owing to space constraint, this column wonders if morality has any impact on a politician’s decision to run or pursue a re-run for office; or whether such is pertinent before endorsing anybody seeking to contest an election. The impunity against morality and character that is going on in especially the ruling PDP has underscored the fact that conscience as the inner voice that warns us in our overt conducts that somebody may be looking is lacking in the ruling party—and perhaps in other parties too. The directing minds of most parties, especially as depicted by the nauseating endorsement of Jonathan have shown, quite vividly to groaning Nigerians that character, which means the doing of things that one would not want to do but is conscientiously and morally right to do, is lacking in the country’s embattled polity.

    This column winked at the phoney and incongruous epithets used to describe Mr Jonathan as if he is inimitable, just to save their daily bread. These are historically insincere politicians, pretenders, interlopers, charlatans and irredeemable impostors that ended believing themselves by fooling the undiscerning public. They did same to Ibrahim Babangida, the despot who was ignominiously forced to step aside. They cajoled late tyrant Sani Abacha; and few of them despite their old age called former president Olusegun Obasanjo ‘baba’ just to ensure that he got to their well orchestrated disgraceful end in the saddle. One will perhaps be unduly alarming to state that Obasanjo ended abysmally with the ultimate collapse of his Third Term agenda through which billions of state funds were reportedly disbursed as alleged gratification to politicians perceived to be strategically positioned to help in fructifying that satanic ambition.

    What Jonathan might not easily remember also is that these same choristers helped Obasanjo to change the party’s constitution to allow former president unfettered access as the leader of the party and to have a say in who becomes future president. But quite ironically, it is instructive that the same Obasanjo, though alive, was not at the venue where the current ‘who-is-who’ (his former allies in mis-governance) in PDP converged to endorse Jonathan. What a lesson to the incumbent! Is it proper to describe these PDP politicians and others like them in the other political parties as politicians with conscience? The answer is absolute NO! For not upholding sincerity of purpose, truthful justice and realistic reliability in this odious blanket endorsement of an inept “ruler” in Jonathan, it is almost certain that the words of the presently suffering Nigerians and the future generations will not be kind on these political jesters in PDP.