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Tag: deliver

  • I’ll deliver, Gombe APC House of Reps aspirant assures

    A renowned social/community worker Dr Karu Simon has assured residents of Kaltungo/Shongom Federal Constituency in Gombe State of quality representation if elected.

    He said he will not only empower the people but also change the face of the constituency in four years.

    Simon, who is vying for the House of Representatives slot on the platform of the All Progressive Congress (APC), spoke with reporters in Lagos at the weekend.

    He said: “I represent a fresh breath in the most educated and richest federal constituency in Gombe state.

    “I have always been involved in community development and social works in the last 20 years across the north.

    “I believe the passion for people will allow me make trendemous impact that will lead to empowerment and transformation of lives.”

    Simon said he has all it takes to move the constituency to the higher level in just four years.

    He added: “My works in the National Assembly will attract unprecedented developmental projects that will change in a way people cannot imagine.

    “I am young and grounded. I have support of the grassroots. I believe I have what it takes to represent my people most elaborately.”

     

  • Aveon Offshore, National Oilwell Varco partner to deliver Egina Olt-Buoy

    Aveon Offshore has raised its reputation to a new height, as it partners APL/NOV to launch an Egina Olt- Buoy.

    The delivery ceremony, which took place at Aveon fabrication yard, Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, was attended by key players in the Nigerian oil and gas industry, which included the workers and management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote.

    The Chairman of Aveon Offshore, Tein George, said executing the project required a lot of time and manpower, adding that the brand was proud to have completed the project at the scheduled time.

    He added: “We at Aveon Offshore strive for excellence by delivering top notch services within defined project timeline. We are a proudly safety conscious company and our safety record, which remains uncompromised regardless of the nature of the project we take on and our work, is fully compliant with local content requirements and the recently-concluded construction of this Egina Olt- Buoy is not an exception.”

    The project, which is a joint effort of the National Oilwell Varco and Aveon offshore, has been proved to be safe for use after validating test-runs.

    John Borres Sannaes expressed NOV’s satisfaction working with Aveon Offshore through the course of the project.

    “Before we decided to work with Aveon Offshore, we had a clear understanding of their high standard and their attention to details. So, the decision to work with them on this project was so easy. The engineers engaged in the execution of this project are some of the best around. That was because we wanted the best quality and we wanted to scale through every QC test without any concern,” he said.

    Aveon Offshore remains one of the best oil-servicing firms in the country, with a focus on total client satisfaction that is achieved through the provision of products and services of top-most quality, which is delivered through an unyielding firmness on safety and environmental principle, which has remained second to none.

  • NBA vows to deliver credible polls

    The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has promised to deliver credible and transparent elections in forthcoming elections scheduled for this month end.

    Following fears caused by that one of the presisential candidates has a cross board relationship with Chams, the ICT firm engaged to man the portal for the elections, the NBA President, Mr. Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) took steps to verify the allegations, correct the impression and reinforce confidence in the process.

    At the end of the consultations, the association in a statement said: “The leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association has followed with great concern, the various issues that have arisen regarding the preparation for the conduct of the 2018 NBA National Elections as well as various allegations that have been made which have created perceptions of the lack of integrity in the electoral process and which may cast doubt on its outcome.

    “To address these issues, it became necessary for the NBA to undertake an extensive and careful review of all processes and also seek clarifications andinvestigate all the allegations, particularly with regards to the selection of the e-voting platform service provider as well the integrity and security of the infrastructure to be deployed and the capability of the service provider.

    “The review took place at the NBA National Secretariat in the course of the last two days (Thursday 19 and Friday 20 July 2018) and all relevant stakeholders were invited including the candidates, their technical advisers and some of our members who have raised these concerns or made allegations.

    “The review process was conducted openly with the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA) in the presence of National officers, the Presidential Candidates and some other Candidates, their IT experts and technical advisers and other stakeholders. The e-voting platform service provider; Chams Plc., the Independent ICT Expert Adviser to the ECNBA and other observers were also present.

    “The process involved an extensive review of the selection process of the service provider, modalities for the NBA Elections, technical presentations on the e-voting platform to be deployed including its security architecture and deliberations on the alleged relationship between the e-voting service provider and one of the candidates.

    “Sequel to the review exercise, the NBA President held further consultations on July 20, 2018 with past Presidents, past General Secretaries and the Chairman of the ECNBA to which all the presidential candidates were invited and were in attendance.

    “These consultations became necessary to listen to and address all concerns and to arrive at the best decision in the overall interest of the NBA and the legal profession while ensuring the credibility of the process and the outcome.

    At the end of these consultative processes, the following observations/findings were made: “The selection process conducted by the ECNBA for the service provider of the e-voting platform; Chams Plc. was transparent and credible. The ECNBA acted independently in the above selection process and did not enter into any communication with, nor was it influenced by any elected or appointed officers of the NBA in the selection of the e-voting platform service provider for the election.

    “An introductory letter from Chams Plc. sent to the NBA National Secretariat on Friday, February 9,  was received in the normal course of business but was neither acted upon nor passed on to ECNBA and had no relevance to the decision taken by the ECNBA in the selection process.

    “The cross board membership of the chairman of board of the e-voting platform service provider (Chams Plc.) and an aspirant for theoffice of NBA resident did not constitute any material conflict of interest that would affect the credibility of the electronic voting process or the outcome of the elections.

    “The allegation that the e-voting service provider had conducted a flawed election for a similar professional association, ICAN was satisfactorily explained as the service provider has continued to conduct elections for that association subsequent to those issues;

    “The consultative meetings and the review exercise nevertheless revealed that the voter verification process was unsatisfactory and in order to address this and perception problems which have been created, it was necessary to take measures to reinforce confidence in the electoral process. The following measures were accordingly resolved to be implemented:

    “The electoral processes shall be disaggregated into three stages and each stage shall be handled by separate entities or service providers duly appointed by the ECNBA. The three stages are:

    “Pre-election: process of compilation and verification/validation of list of voters;

    “Election: the deployment of the e-voting platform for NBA elections Post-election: an audit of the electoral processes

    The ECNBA will undertake a holistic review of the voter verification process to ensure that all issues and complaints are satisfactorily resolved and may engage an independent entity or service provider for that purpose; the revalidated voter data shall be deployed on the electronic voting platform for the conduct of the 2018 NBA National Elections; and use of the validated voter data may be monitored by the ECNBA and representatives of the aspirants pre, during and post-elections.

    “The e-voting service provider appointed by the ECNBA; Chams Plc. shall be limited to the deployment of the e-voting platform for NBA elections, which it has already developed and is ready to deploy. The ECNBA will develop a post-election audit framework and process and may engage an independent entity for that purpose;

    “The ECNBA will ensure that an appropriate review of the integrity of the election portal or voting platform is undertaken and all necessary steps taken to reinforce the security and integrity of the portal/platform and the relevant applications;

    “The ECNBA will ensure that the candidates and their technical representatives are given appropriate access to all processes and given opportunity to make input/observations at all stages of the process.

    In view of the above consensus and pursuant to the powers to issue guidelines for the verification of voters and the general conduct of electronic voting, vested in the

    ECNBA under Article 2.4 (c) of the Second Schedule of the 2015 NBA Constitution, the ECNBA will review the election time table and make appropriate adjustments, ensuring that elections are conducted not later than Tuesday, July 31 as provided for in the NBA Constitution.

  • How technology can deliver credible elections, by NCS

    Nigeria’s elections have usually been marred by rigging and violence, leading to deaths and destruction of properties. But the Nigerian Computer Society (NCS) believes the application of technology to the process would change the narrative, reports LUCAS AJANAKU

    THE Nigerian Computer Society (NCS) has said the application of technology to the elector  al process in the country would deliver free, fair and rancour-free elections.

    Its President, Prof Adesola Aderounmu, said there is the need for information communication technology (ICT) to be deployed to electioneering not only in the country, but also in sub-Saharan Africa.

    Speaking on: The future of elections in Nigeria: Leveraging ICT infrastructure for sustainable national electoral process at theFifth Covenant University Conference on e-Governance in Nigeria at Otta, Ogun State, he said elections should be seen as the best opportunity to encourage political leaders to promote innovation in the polity.

    “So, using ICT to elect credible leaders could motivate successful and satisfied politicians to encourage emerging governments to adapt the innovations to mainstream development and governance.

    “As the 2019 elections draw closer, there is no doubt that putting in place relevant ICT infrastructure for the application of adaptable technology in our electoral processes will go a long way to ensure transparency and credibility of the elections. It is a welcome development that leveraging technology had started, even if rudimentary, with the last 2015 elections that ushered in the present administration in Nigeria.

    “For instance, the application of technology for biometric registration of voters, the issuance of smart permanent voters card (PVC) to voters and voter verification and authentication using the smart card reader, has helped the infiltration of ICT into the electoral process. So also was the idea to scan and upload all voting result sheets for all the elections on a database, which was made accessible to all stakeholders for some months after the 2015 elections. All these formative adaptations of technology with the 2015 elections are commendable, but there is still a long way to go with our future elections,”  Aderounmu said.

     Sensitisation, civic education, e-inclusion

    Aderounmu, who is the Co-Centre Leader, World Bank-Designated Centre of Excellence in Software Engineering, ObafemiAwolowo University, Ile-Ife, said when it comes to conducting elections, sensitisation and civic education are  key in the electoral process and are necessary for democracy. It is all about voter consciousness and popular participation in elections. The citizens, who are voters, need to be effectively sensitised or enlightened about their civic duties and rights during elections.

    According to him, voter education should come before and during an electoral event, showing how, where, and when to vote. Citizens need to know why they must turn out to vote and how to cast their votes to make them count. Sensitissing and educating voters have always been done via the traditional mass media and direct town-hall community engagements.

    He said now with the pervasive influence of technology in society today, educating and cultivating the voters can be done better with the leverage of digital media such as  mobile phone with bulk SMS, bulk voice call or inbound interactive voice response, and the use of web-portals from pre-election polls.

    “Digital technology now enriches political communications and voter engagement like never before. And with the majority of people having access to computers and mobile technology devices these days, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other concerned agencies can transform the sensitisation, civic education and e-inclusion of with the use of the internet via popular social media such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, WhatsApp and special mobile apps to channel and disseminate voter education messages,” he said.

    According to him, digital media help information to be disseminated faster, smarter and real-time, reaching far more people and carrying everybody along. As an illustration, the Barack Obama American presidential campaigns in 2008 and 2012 as well as the global Arab Spring in 2011 transformed interest in leveraging networked digital connectivity for political action. During those epochal moments, he recalled, the use of social media for citizen engagement spread like wild fire. “Today, even experts at the Brookings Center for Technology Innovation in the U.S. affirmatively advocate “using social networking and digital tools to reinvigorate democracy and extend electronic engagement from campaigns and grassroots-activism to governance.” However, he said it is also possible that not every Nigerian voter will have access to new, cost-effective technological solutions like internet-enabled smartphones.

    For instance, using the internet for voter engagement is a step forward in accommodating technologically advanced voters. So, INEC needs to consider these less-technologically advanced voters as we adopt ICT in our electoral process. And also, voter education should be a continuous process and not necessarily tied to an election year.

    Constituency delimitation

    Another way to leverage ICT for Nigeria’s electoral process is through constituency delimitation, using digital maps and charts for proper voter registration.

    In a democracy, constituency delimitation is very important and an improper segmentation of constituencies can compromise the electoral process, thereby provoking needless conflicts and insinuations of marginalisation among peoples and politicians. To address this, it is better to apply the use of ICT solutions, such as digital mapping, digital charts, Global Positioning System (GPS) and GIS Satellite Footprints like the NigeriaSat-1. GPS uses satellites that orbit earth to send information to GPS receivers that are on the ground. The information so received helps people determine their location.

    Registration, data capture

    Voter registration and data capture constitute a major foundational step in the electoral process. Without a proper voters register, there cannot be proper elections. Voter registration helps to facilitate the credibility of the electoral process by preventing multiple voting as each person is only allowed to register once. With this, no one is allowed to register at multiple centres.  It helps in preventing cases of underage voting because only adults of voting age (18 years and above) are registered. He said there have always been controversies over voter registration as some complain of ghost names appearing on the voters register, names of foreign nationals appearing and names of under-age voters appearing too on the register. The use of a centralised countrywide database for voter registration, drawing on the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) data inventory will be good. Updates to the centralised database can be done through web portal e-mails with smart fields, mobile apps, and automatic fingerprint and photo identification systems. In a way, online voter registration via the internet is simpler and more secure than paper registration and manual updates, Aderounmu said.

    Voter verification, voting

    He said when election day comes, ICT also has a huge role to play in streamlining the electoral process to make the election outcomes fair and valid. In fact, the deployment of technology during elections is most consequential because it helps minimise the rampant incidents of rigging and its resultant crises.

    “Thus voter verification and voting on election day can be digitally done through the use of direct electronic recoding machine, optical scanning system, use of smart cards and card readers,” he said.

    Card reader technology was deployed during the 2015 general elections, but card readers malfunctioned in a lot of voting areas across the country. There were even complaints by some governors that the card readers deployed by INEC could not read their fingerprints at the polling booths.

    He said for the coming 2019 elections, we hope INEC would have upgraded the card reader technology to be more effective and error-free. Also, the security of the voting technology is of great concern, and INEC officials must take significant steps to secure the voting equipment from their warehouses to the voting centres. This is where GPS technology also proves useful, as it helps INEC to track its drivers as they deliver equipment and supplies to the polling booths or transport election results from there, to avoid tampering with sensitive vote data.

    Vote counting,computation

    For so long in Nigeria, the use of manual systems in vote counting during elections has been the practice. This process should be transformed with digital computation technology that is cheaper, faster and more accurate. Deploying technology in vote counting will also improve the electoral process by making the counting of tedious electoral systems easier to use.

    Thus, new ICT innovations can be used to replace traditional paper ballots. As earlier said under voter verification and voting, using direct electronic devices, or using machine-readable ballots, can help remove the need to count ballots manually and greatly speed up the vote counting process, as well as guaranteeing accuracy. So, with vote counting and computation, it is highly recommended that INEC engages the use of result management systems.  Most automated voting systems even come with analytics based software to make vote counting and computation easier.

    Result dissemination

    After votes have been properly counted and computed, vote results can also be digitally disseminated to the public. Results can be streamed real-time from INEC website, obtained via SMS Query interfacing with INEC website and real-time RSS Feed.

    Other ICT apps

    The applications of technology in improving the electoral process and enriching democracy are quite many. There are other ICT apps such as the automation of electoral court system; digitisation of ballot papers; use of financial tracking technologies for campaign funds that require the cooperation of financial institutions; deployment of motion detectable security cameras at polling booths (in addition to cameras attached to the voting system); use of robots for detection and diffusing improvised explosive devices (IEDs); and use of body scanners with alarm system at polling booths.

    Challenges

    There are enormous challenges against deploying an ICT-driven electoral system in Nigeria. This is not surprising because the penetration of new technological advances in other areas of our national life has always been sluggish, aside e-commerce and social media.

    He sad political manipulation by political actors is a major challenge against the adoption of ICT in the electoral process. “We all know that Nigerian politicians take elections as a do-or-die affair and would kick against, or circumvent, any innovation that would deny them the opportunity to rig elections in their favour. So, the desperation of politicians to win elections by all means can frustrate or slow down the penetration of ICT in our electoral process,” he said.

    Also, abysmally inadequate infrastructure is a challenge against the leverage of technology in the electoral system. There is poor IT and base infrastructure in the country.

    Then, there is also the perennial problem of poor power infrastructure militating the application of ICT tools in the electoral process. It is a fact that IT needs stable power to function; when that is lacking, as it is the case in Nigeria, adoption of technology in the electoral system can be frustratingly

  • Nyame: Court to deliver judgment May 30

    Nyame: Court to deliver judgment May 30

    A High Court of the FCT, sitting in Gudu, Abuja, will deliver judgment in a suit by the Federal Government against former Taraba State Governor Jolly Nyame, on May 30.

    Nyame was tried for alleged misappropriation of N1.64 billion.

    At the resumed hearing yesterday, the defence counsel Hassan Fajimite told the court about the defendant’s written address, dated December 3, and filed same day.

    He held that the witness’s evidence was based on ‘hear-say’ and that no records show that money was given to the defendant.

    He said: “None of the prosecution witnesses produced any document of the alleged transfer of money by the defendant to any of them

    “I urge your lordship to discredit those evidences.”

    However, counsel to the EFCC Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), who replied on the written address on January 10 and filed same day, said the defendant was liable to be prosecuted.

    He added that all witnesses testified that Nyame gave them money to pay into an account owned by the defendant.

    “My lord, the defendant is trying to cover up and so I urge your lordship to discountenance this submission by my learned counsel and deliver judgment in favour of the prosecution.”

    After listening to both submissions, Justice Adebukola Banjoko adjourned till May 30.

  • Contractor gets 15 months to deliver Oshodi-Airport road

    Contractor gets 15 months to deliver Oshodi-Airport road

    •Work begins on repair of 10-lane expressway

    The Lagos State government yesterday kick-started the reconstruction of Oshodi International Airport Road, with a pledge to complete the project in 15 months.

    Last month, at the quarterly town hall meeting at Badore in Ajah, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, announced that the reconstruction of the road  would begin this month.

    The governor said the construction would transform the road into a world-class highway.

    The design includes the reconstruction and expansion of the carriage to three-lanes on both directions with two-lane service road in both directions.

    The road also has a ramp bridge to provide a U-turn from Ajao Estate to the airport, the construction of a flyover at NAHCO/Toll Gate and drainage works.

    Others include removal of existing pedestrian bridge at Ajao Estate and construction of pedestrian bridges at Ajao Estate and NAHCO/Hajj Camp.

    It also include the construction of a slip road to provide access to Ajao Estate, construction of lay-bys and installation of street lights.

    At the kick-off, Waterfront Infrastructure Development Commissioner Adebowale Akinsanya said the commencement of the project was in line with the commitment of the Ambode administration to transform the axis, being the major gateway to the nation’s commercial nerve centre.

    He said the state government undertook the reconstruction of the road, being one of the busiest in the state with traffic averaging 50,000 vehicles daily.

    The commissioner noted that its poor state was not acceptable to the status of the state as the fifth largest economy in Africa and the nation’s commercial hub.

    Akinsanya said some of the fences on the corridor was identified to be in the right-of-way.

    The commissioner said the government would minimise the impact of the project on property owners.

    He noted that to properly carry people along, a stakeholders’ meeting will hold on Thursday where residents could ask questions.

    Akinsanya said to fast-track the project, three groups of workers would handle the project, working day and night.

    On completion, the commissioner said, the project would be linked to Oworonshoki reclamation project, which is also ongoing and is aimed at transforming the corridor to a major entertainment and tourism hub.

    He urged residents and motorists to cooperate with the government while construction lasts, adding that the intention is to transform the area.

    Akinsanya said: “There will be minor inconveniences, but we are going to try to mitigate the impact. The work will be accelerated. The project is to make life easier for everybody. We just want to appeal to people to cooperate with us. We will be here to talk to the people in case of any issue, and we are also working with our partner, the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).”

  • Lagos set to deliver ‘Right of Way’ for Alapere Road

    Lagos set to deliver ‘Right of Way’ for Alapere Road

    Determined to ease the traffic on Ibrahim Babangida Boulevard, at the Ketu/Mile 12 end of Ikorodu Road, the Lagos State Government has begun the Recovery of Conservative of Right of Way of Alapere-Agboyi-Ketu.

    The gridlock on this road usually originates at Alapere Junction and its contiguous roads.

    The project, which is a four-lane road of 18.6m width, inclusive of a carriageway, will see the development of Oluwakemi/Ajiboye Street with additional ingress into adjoining streets from Alapere to Agboyi. It is being developed to carry traffic from Alapere through Agboyi towards Ikorodu. The project is a follow up to the first phase of the Alapere layby road, which was constructed to ease traffic off the major road into Alapere.

    The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mr. Wasiu Anifowoshe, in a statement by the ministry’s Chief Public Relations Officer, Mrs. Nwonah Olubukonla, said the Right of Way project began with the marking of affected illegal buildings. The statement indicated that the owners of affected structures had been engaged and notified as well as given enough opportunity to remove their wares and salvage their property before the full commencement of the removal operation.

    A statement attributed to Anifowoshe, read in part: “We run an all inclusive government and do not embark on any removal of structure without first obtaining the buy-in of the affected people and communities through the engagement of stakeholders in interactive meetings. Some weeks ago, the state government embarked on a stakeholders’ meeting with the Alapere -Agboyi-Ketu community and interestingly they embraced the idea, which led to this development.We know what it takes to put up a structure so we have planned this project and pledged minimal removal. It is all in the overriding public interest and the economic growth and development of the community and Lagos State as a whole.”

  • Perform and deliver

    Operators in the country’s weak power sector must improve  

    Although he may not have said so pointedly, Babatunde Fashola, the Power, Works and Housing Minister, may have finally accepted one notorious fact about the electricity distribution companies (DISCOs) to which the federal government handed over the retail end of the power market: not only are they hopelessly incompetent and clueless, they are also unpatriotic.

    The minister, who spoke at the inauguration of a transmission line built under the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP) in Akwa Ibom State last week, accused the 11 DISCOs of being stumbling blocks. He mentioned specific ways by which they allegedly hinder the smooth regulation of the power sector by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

    The DISCOs, he alleged, “refused to submit their annual statement of accounts to the NERC as required by the reform law, and by so doing, frustrated attempts by NERC to activate their pacts in the Transitional Electricity Market (TEM) which should bind them to objective service delivery”. Not all, when NERC moved to activate their contractual obligations as contained in the TEM – they, the minister said, allegedly frustrated the regulator, and by so doing, held the rest of the value chain – the generating companies (GENCOs) and the gas producers to ransom.

    On their N100 billion debt claim, the minister was emphatic: rather than the government engaging their cartel – Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED) – the claims will be treated individually and only upon honest verification. He also reminded the DISCOs that “the privatisation exercise that transferred the distribution companies was not held as a contract with an association. It was between Nigeria and the distribution company.”

    No doubt, Fashola’s remarks were well-timed. Today, with hopes that the DISCOs will somehow get their act together wearing thin with each passing day, the minister’s concern, and indeed that of long-suffering electricity consumers, should be treated seriously.  To start with, it is ordinarily a serious matter that the DISCOs would neglect to observe the key elements of the agreement binding them to fair and equitable service delivery. It is unacceptable that they are allowed to allegedly disrespect the agreement without serious consequences. The federal government must not give the impression that it is utterly helpless; the ill-served electricity consumers also must not give the impression that they can do nothing.

    As far as we are concerned, the way out is simple. The breaches are, in our view, sufficient to vitiate the contracts. It is about time the federal government got out of the illusion that these anaemic DISCOs, entities that have shown such disregard for process, after proving that they possess neither the expertise nor the financial muscle to turn the segment around, would at some point turn the corner. Put simply, it is not sufficient for the minister to spell out these breaches; he should go for the stick. One sure path is to ensure that every encumbrance hindering NERC from performing its functions is removed.

    The minister is right in his advice: “Those DISCOs who cannot run the business must be honest with themselves now and begin to look for options either to raise capital, to get more strategic partners in or to do whatever they consider appropriate within the framework of their contract in order to get on with this job.” Our point of disagreement is that it is a weak approach to avoid a frontal intervention. It is not enough to offer advice to the electricity distribution companies that they may choose to accept or reject.

    The DISCOs should be prompted to improve their delivery services and play by the rules. Effective electricity distribution is so crucial to the country’s development that the central operators in the sector must be made to perform and deliver.

  • ‘Ajimobi ‘ll deliver on promises’

    ‘Ajimobi ‘ll deliver on promises’

    Dr. Gbade Ojo is a Political Science teacher at the University of Ilorin. He is also a former Special Adviser on Political Affairs to Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State. In this interview with JEREMIAH OKE, he speaks on the recent Supreme Court judgment, the agitation of the people of Oke-Ogun for power shift in 2019 and other issues.

    What’s your reaction to the recent Supreme Court judgment on Oyo State governorship election?

    The judgment couldn’t have gone otherwise because Governor Ajimobi’s victory was obvious and incontrovertible. As a Special Adviser to the governor, I was an insider and I knew very well that there was no issue of election rigging before, during and after the contest.

    What is the import of this judgment?

    Going to court after election is a way of boosting the legitimacy of the mandate of the person who won the election. This is because when an aggrieved person proceeds to court, and the court delivers judgment that the election was free and fair, then, you are boosting the legitimacy of the government that was formed as a result of that election. Our democracy is still very young and the option of going to court by any aggrieved person is far preferable than inciting their supporters to engage in burning of houses and killing of innocent people.

    What is your advice for the opposition parties, particularly the Accord Party?

    They should go back home to re-strategise and wait for another election. That is the beauty of democracy. In a democratic system, the electorate could vote for a fool they could vote for an incompetent person, as well as a thief. But, they have the opportunity to sack the person they voted for in the last election in subsequent elections

    With this verdict, what should the people expect from the government?

    They should be optimistic that the present administration will deliver all its electioneering promises. The last election was like a payback time for Governor Ajimobi. If he did not deliver, it would have been difficult for him to win the election. Secondly, as at that time, Governor Ajimibi’s party was not the ruling party at the federal level that conducted the election. So, if he was not popular, it would have been difficult for him to win. Therefore, they should expect good governance.

    Eight months after inauguration, there is no commissioner and no elected local government chairmen. What is delaying this?

    After election, the views of the elected leader should be respected. Being a man on the saddle, if he believes that it is proper to delay constitution of his cabinet, it is not bad, primarily because of the financial crunch.

    But, some states have appointed commissioners, despite the financial crunch…

    The financial position of each state differs. For instance, Oyo State will require minimum of N5. 2 billion to pay salaries and wages and when you look at the statutory allocation advertised by Federal Ministry of Finance, there was no month since June last year that Oyo State got up to N2.5billion. If the state could not generate N1.5billion, the two added together is not sufficient to pay salaries.

    The people of Oke-Ogun are agitating   for power shift i 2019. Do you think the zone can produce the next governor?

    I read a report about it recently. It is a reasonable agitation because any zone has the constitutional and fundamental right to agitate for executive power. But, my grouse is the argument being put forward that their roads in Oke-Ogun are not motorable and that their indigenes do not occupy prominent positions in government. The reasons are ludicrous. They also said there is no tertiary institution in the zone. They also go to a ridiculous level of saying that there is no portable water in the zone. But, my take as a political scientist is that much as it is reasonable that they can agitate or demand for power shift, we also need to remind them that Governor Ajimobi believes strongly in a principle of spatial development. The present administration has taken care of all the zones in terms of power sharing. If anybody talks of road, I will tell such person to visit Iseyin which is the gateway to Oke-Ogun; you will see a dualised road that was commissioned by the governor before the election. The issue of tertiary institution in Oke-Ogun, the satellite campus of The Polytechnic, Ibadan in Saki was upgraded by Governor Ajimobi to an autonomous Polytechnic of Oke-Ogun with a rector from the region. Not only that. The school of Health Technology in Oke-ho and the School of Nursing and Midwifery in Kishi, both in Oke-Ogun, are tertiary institutions. In fact the best NYSC camp in Southwest, if not in Nigeria, is located in Iseyin, which is also in Oke-Ogun. In terms of water, I am very conscious of the fact that the water works in Igbeti-Saki-Igboho-Agoamodu, all in Oke-Ogun, are all functional. Talking about the positions in the state, the chief judge of the state is from the Oke-Ogun, the deputy governor is also from Oke-Ogun while the minister of communication is also from Saki in Oke-Ogun zone. So, with all this, Oke-Ogun politicians should thank the governor, rather than saying they are marginalized. I can tell you that critical ministries were given to indigenes of Oke-Ogun in that last dispensation. The commissioners for land, special duties, local government and chieftaincy affairs and currently, the Clerk of the state House of Assembly is also from Oke-Ogun. To crown it all, more than 100 political appointees were from Oke-Ogun in the last dispensation. So, with all these positions, nobody can reasonable argue that the zone is being marginalised.

  • ‘Buhari has a huge burden to deliver’

    ‘Buhari has a huge burden to deliver’

    Former Abia State Governor Orji Kalu spoke with reporters in Lagos on the Buhari administration, the anti-graft battle, terrorism, the Biafran agitation and other national issues. Correspondent KELVIN OSA-OKUBOR was there.

    What is your take on plans by some governors to either sack or cut down on salaries of civil servants?

    It is a truism that all is not well with the state of Nigeria’s financial economy. The current situation, if the truth must be told is that we are in dire straits. This time calls for deep reflection and serious financial reengineering by managers of the public sector.

    This requires creative, strategic and visionary leadership by leaders at all levels because the reality is that the resources accruing from crude oil sales are dwindling by the day on account of falling oil prices in the international market .

    Above all, leadership is about the ability to take the right decisions at the right time by putting the people first. Interestingly, governors should cut down on frivolous expenses to meet their financial obligation, especially workers salaries and payment to pensioners.

    If it means converting a portion of the security vote to fix serious responsibilities, it is worth it.

    This is because many governors allegedly siphon the so-called security vote. We must learn to live within our means as a way to sustain a decent life. Governors should leverage on other revenue sources to complement the federal allocation. The era of depending on a mono product economy is long over.

    Are you not disturbed that, in the face of dire economic realities, President Muhammadu Buhari needs to hammer out serious economic interventions or measures to revive the economy?

    I cannot agree with you  any less on this matter. In fact, any casual observer of the Nigerian economic situation knows that things are not okay. As some observers have out  put it, the economic house is falling. Unless urgent steps are taken, we may be heading for trouble economically. Put in a parable, we could situate the economic reality by seeing President Muhammadu Buhari as the manager of the economy as a distributor who has distributed goods to his customers, he came back to the market, all his customers closed the door, he didn’t see anybody to collect money from.

    He called somebody and said break the door any door  he broke, nothing was seen so he went back to all the shops, there was nothing again inside the shops, he didn’t see the goods he supplied them and he didn’t find  any money that the shop owners were supposed to pay. That is the dilemma of the president if I can say. He didn’t tell me but this is what I feel.

    I feel strongly that it will take the president the next two to three years to sort out this problem. Nigerians are always in a hurry and I am surprised, change don’t come easy. The situation is only comparable to somebody who supplied goods and could not get money back.

    How do you think the president is feeling in this dismal scenario you have painted?

    The president should be having hypertension now, but I am sure he is confused himself because the goods he supplied there are still there, even if he does not have his money. So, that is the position the president is right now. You know I am not a member of APC. So, I don’t speak for them. What  I speak is the truth and people should not be expecting president Buhari to do miracles. I am not a member of his party, but he is a very close friend of mine and you should not be expecting President Buhari to do miracles. I don’t expect him to do miracle. There is no miracle in this business, he has to take his time.

    The situation is made worse because oil prices have gone down and everybody is looking if there will be any slight change in the third quarter of 2016. Nigerians just elected their president for change and they want to see the change immediately. It is not possible. The president has to take his time, he has to take account of what he has seen and what he has not seen, from what I am hearing, they have not even started to ask questions about where is our money has gone to. So, many people said that many officials still need to answer some questions. My reading is that President Buhari as our  leader is very unlucky. He came into the saddle of leadership for a change during a very difficult time.

    What is your take on efforts by the Buhari administration to recover looted funds by the past regime through the anti – corruption measures?

    I think President Buhari is on track in his efforts to revive looted funds by the past administration. The anti-corruption measure is not a drawback as some critics may want to see it. Given the malfeasance that took place in the last regime, the President is handling the situation very well. It is not a drawback  at all. Buhari should know who he should call because there was massive looting, I am sure most people didn’t want to listen to some people like us, who were shouting about what happened in the last administration.

    We said  that there was corruption and the corruption that we saw in the last administration was very high. I told airport correspondents in one of my interview sessions when I landed at the Lagos Airport that there was corruption in the last regime. Though, I am a friend of the former president, but I spoke the truth. I told you people that I came from Emirates, Dubai and I have never seen the kind of corruption I am seeing. Then, in Nigeria, people are carrying the dollar by hand.

    Journalists confronted me that why can’t I advise the former president and I remember telling them that, beyond friendship, the country comes first .

    Our country comes first, So, I am still standing here. If Buhari is doing a bad thing tomorrow, I will caution him. I have written letters to President Obasanjo. I have written to Jonathan, although the one of Jonathan is not in the public and I have written letter to Yar’ Adua when he was president. I am sure Nigerians should be patient with President Buhari.

    He might not do much in terms of infrastructure, but he will clean up the cobweb. There is a lot of cobweb in the system, we have lost process totally, the process I used to see when I was governor of Abia State, I no longer see the process, people should follow processes in doing soothing so you know business men like are in a hurry to make money, I am losing money, paying 10,000 workers is not easy so it is a problem, we need to be patient.

    How do you think the government could fix the system?

    This calls for serious reengineering in policies to rework the economy. We need to move away from dependence on crude oil receipts. I have been shouting for eight years that  there is need to diversify the economy. At a point in time, I met my governor. I said that we must go back to manufacturing, farming production. There is a large market in West Africa and nobody is talking about that market, nobody is talking that we can produce, nobody is talking that we can go to farm, look at Nigeria is still importing maize, palm oil, can you imagine in this world.

    What is your take on the approach to fighting corruption by the current administration?

    I am convinced that the president is sending the right signal on how to fix the country by coming all out to fight corruption . Though his approach may need some modifications . I think Buhari should adopt the process methodology, not the personality or hate model .

    So, I think the President should not do what Wole Soyinka proposed when he warned former EFCC chairman, Malam Nuhu Ribadu about his approach of going for alleged suspects and their family members. Remember, Soyinka advised Nuhu Ribadu  then, if he cannot catch a governor, he could  catch his mother. This was what Wole Soyinka said in a public fora. I am confident that the approach should be radically different. Buhari should not do adopt that approach of, if you cannot  this governor, catch his, mother, a mother that didn’t do anything. This was the practice in the past and people kept quiet. So, I think Buhari should be just in his judgment. They should be thorough. Nobody is locking anybody up, I was kept by EFCC for two weeks. Are we  following  the right processes round?

    The methodology adopted by EFCC now has changed. Now, suspects are questioned and told to go home. Any day they want to charge them to court they will charge them to court, which is a civilise way of doing it.

    But, it is not everybody that they will tell that because there are some who have to be detained to be able to get more  information and  money looted from them. I am not saying that Buhari is totally  not getting it right as to what they are doing, but the right process must be adopted .

    Are you comfortable with the strategies adopted by government in fighting insurgency in the North?

    I think president Buhari is on track because he has adopted the right strategy by engaging sub-regional efforts to tackle challenge of insurgency. As part of the trans national strategy, he adopted on assumption of office , he visited heads of state of neighboring countries, including Chad, Togo, Benin Republic Niger and Cameroon to secure the commitment of leaders of those countries on how to cooperate to stamp out insurgency. The former president Jonathan  did not engage this strategy. But, Buhari has secured the friendship of these nations to enable him get their support to fight insurgency. This is the way to go in tackling this problem.

    This strategy explains the successes so far recorded. Recall a few days ago that Cameroon said they have caught some insurgents. The strategy is paying off .

    What is your reactions to the lingering agitation for self determination by the Movement for the Sovereign State of Biafra ( MASSOB)?

    First, I think the signals we are getting from the agitation are quite intriguing in many respects. But, the government should not disregard the agitation The strategy of going violent by the agitators is not to be supported because violence in any form has never been the way to resolve issues of agitation for self determination. As a patriotic Nigerian, I believe in the unity and the indivisibility of this country. As an Igbere man from Abia State, I love this country and will continue to push for its togetherness. To be honest with you, those boys are right in their quest to agitate for self-determination. They have a right to demonstrate for what they consider may be their right as recognised by the United Nations Charter for Human Rights. But, what I do not agree with is the violence associated with the demonstrations, and the alleged  killing of  soldiers  by the agitators .

    No commander-in-chief of any country should tolerate such act by any group, no matter the issue involved. It is an affront on the state. If I were the commander-in-chief, I will never tolerate such brazen act of lawlessness and violence. Any group that kills one of my soldiers, I will invoke the law to handle such people. Nobody, no matter how disenchanted over their agitation should think of killing any soldier or police in the name of agitating for their own republic.

    You cannot kill any soldier or police and get away with it. This is wrong, not because you are calling for your own republic. The United Nations charter gave them the big right to ask for self determination, it depends on the people to conduct a plebiscite, it is not a right of determination to go and destroy peoples’ properties, to go and destroy Nigeria Armed Forces, whether is Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy or Nigerian Police. The quest for self-determination should not be used as an avenue to commit serious criminality.

    Agreed it is a right. But, how do you go about it?

    From the point of view of an international business man , the agitators could express how they feel about self determination. But, the question is: are those rights really worth it? If I were  the President of Nigeria, I will like to annex Benin Republic and other countries to become what I will call the United States of Nigeria including some West Africa countries. So, why should any government allow any part of the country at this material time to clamour for being  allowed to separate itself . So, why do you want to remove some parts now. Those boys also have a right to  opt for what they want.

    This remains largely conditional, if only the  people in the affected areas are left to conduct a plebiscite, to say whether or not it is something the United Nations has properly defined  as a precondition for such agitation. This is what you should do the people should do if they are no longer comfortable with their inclusion in the current political arrangement that constitute the the Federal Republic of  Nigeria.

    President Buhari should be very familiar with this development, because the agitation by MASSOB  has been there from time immemorial. It is not something new. If I were the  president I will  consult and engage some high profile traditional rulers and some political leaders to go and ask the boys what do you really want, what is really their  problem, what can we do to  stop them  from asking for this. What is the reason for this agitation? If we take our minds back, that was how the insurgency by Boko Haram started. When the insurgents first started the killings, it occurred in a Catholic Church. And as an adherent of that denomination, I vehemently condemned it. I told you airport correspondents that when Boko Haram finished killing the Catholics, they would go and kill everybody. This was how kidnapping started when I was governor, they were kidnapping white people and I spoke out, people in Federal Government abused me.

    I said when they finish kidnapping white people and there is no more white man to kidnap, they will kidnap us and that is what is happening in the country today.

    So, I  will advise the Federal Government that as a federation, it must by properly managed to resolve agitations by some people, who are seeking to opt out as a republic .

    Government cannot stop people from such agitation, what is critical is how the issue concerning such agitation is handled .

    It is the management of the people that matters.

    President Buhari as a matter of fact should set out to engage  traditional rulers and leaders of thoughts with security and intelligence agencies on how to resolve this potential trouble .

    Resolving the agitation for self determination needs an all inclusive strategy ,not use of force , or carrying guns .

    Government needs to engage the agitators and make them realize that it is ready to resolve whatever issues they have raised .

    I must advise security agencies that using force to quell the agitation for self determination at this time is not the best strategy .

    It is a wrong strategy hearing people saying that we will quench it by force, we cannot quench anything by force because it is their right to ask for self determination.

    Recall what happened in Eastern Europe , they used engagement strategy not force .

    My advise is that  it is only a president that does not know what he wants  that will want a section of his country to go.  I think negotiation is part of democracy.

    What do you think about the parlous state of roads in the South East that the MASSOB agitators have alluded to as evidence of neglect of the region by successive administrations ?

    Reasonably, this is a serious matter. Honestly, the state of the roads in this region is not good at all. Consider for instance,the  Enugu-Port Harcourt, Aba- Umuahia  Express Road that has not been constructed .

    If I were the president I will fix this road in the next two years to quell this recurring agitation .

    What about the Oka – Onitsha Expressway , it is not yet constructed , what about the Umuahia – Ohafia – Arochukwu Road leading to Cross River , government should fix these roads within a short time as part of measures to resolve the agitations .

    What about Arondizuogu – Okigwe Expressway , the road has not been fixed .

    The government should also consider fixing Enugu – Makurdi Road , it is not good that people are dying on these roads everyday .

    It is for these roads that I quarreled with the Obasanjo administration since 2001.

    I consistently drew attention to the fact that roads in the South East, in particular federal roads were very bad and government has taken this for granted .

    Look back at what I said over ten years ago about the state of our roads , they are still recurring today and government is still playing politics with it.

    To sustain the unity of this country, which is foremost , government should look at these issues and resolve them . That is the truth  and it must be said .

    Could you clear the air on insinuations that you are planning to defect to the All Progressive Congress ( APC)  as a friend and supporter of Buhari to galvanize support for him if he wants to run for a second term in 2019?

    There is no doubt that I am a friend of Buhari .

    Well I will tell you the truth, my mother is in APC, you know Buhari is a family friend ,  he is a chieftaincy holder in Igbere in our village, he  was awarded a

    Doctorate  degree when I was governor in Abia State.

    This happened at a time the former president gave me a call that nobody should be given doctorate that day, we went ahead to honour Buhari With the doctorate degree .

    The former president was opposed to this because Buhari was contesting against Obasanjo in 2003.

    For me, all these things are minor, which party you belong to does not make any meaning, what is important is that the president is a friend of the family and if he handles Nigerians well, he is a young man as far as I am concern comparing him to Mugabe.

    If Buhari handles the country very well , he will be running for a second term in 2019, I will support him but, that is not a condition to join  the APC.

    Membership of any political party is immaterial at this time . All that is critical is that I have access to the President anytime .

    There is no time I told Buhari I want to see him that he has declined .

    He is not the type of president that to businessmen , who are going around the corridors of power looking for business .

    Any businessman going to Buhari with the hope of getting business has missed it .

    The president has a lot of job in his hands .

    If I were in Buhari’s position, I will run for second term, that is the truth, there is no Nigeria president who didn’t ask for second term but it also behooves on Buhari to treat Nigerian people very well so that he can gain their endorsement for a second tern bid.

    What is your take on the issue of removal of fuel subsidy , what is affecting the oil and gas sector ?

    The president needs to be convinced to remove fuel subsidy , because it does not favour the poor .

    The fuel subsidy thing is only the benefit  of the rich .

    But, Buhari is yet to be convinced .

    In my opinion , removal of fuel subsidy will favour the poor, who constitute the thinking of the president .

    The president thinks more about the poor, that is the truth, we need to continue telling the president that this subsidy is not for the poor, it is for the rich and I don’t blame him because the man who wants the poor people to get something.

    He is a man who thinks more about the poor, he is a man who could have bargain everything for himself, this is a man I know him very well he has no attachment to say this is my business, I am going to  give Orji Kalu business, some business people who are  going to him thinking that he will give them business, they are wasting their time.

    He is thinking about majority of those boys carrying Biafra flag, he is thinking about them, he is thinking about all those people who are carrying guns for Boko Haram and how they can stop .

    I discussed subsidy with him, his answer was, what happen to the poor and it behooves on his economy team  to look him in the face and tell him that honestly Mr. president we must remove subsidy and it depend on Nigerians to also get on him and say that we must remove subsidy .

    You don’t blame a man who is not a business man like me, he never traded in oil he is minister of petroleum yes, am not sure he knows basically that this subsidy is just for rich people who are trading on the oil.

    It behooves on his economy team between now and the next few months or few years to convince him and say no, we will continue losing money if you don’t remove subsidy .

    Could you tell us what happened to your bid to become president of FIFA ?

    The truth is that I never aspired to be one president of FIFA .

    But, some people know that I have the capacity to handle the body .

    Blatter  endorsed me , with many heads of state in Africa.

    Even, Great Pele of Brazil endorsed me , with many powerful countries in Africa who wanted me to run .

    They wanted Nigeria to run for that exotic position   But as a country we took it for granted .

    Pele could not have saying Nigeria should run without narrowing it down to somebody . I will speak on FIFA more elaborately in the future . I will speak on why I did not run for FIFA in the future .

    What plans do have in place to bring back Slok Air ?

    Slok Airline is going to come back, well you know the case

    of Slok Airline is before a Federal High court judge and I cannot really go deep on it.

    We have taken the Federal

    Government to court and we sued them to pay us N35billion, if two people are fighting it is only the court that will

    separate you .

    The Ministry of Aviation planned to ask us to take back our operating  license and shut up.

    And we have said no to such plans. Remember we had 14 aircraft kept on the ground for over one year .

    That is a huge loss .

    The reason we are suing the ministry is to get our money back .

    For over one year , we did not fly , we need our money back .

    We invested over forty billion Naira , and we are only asking for N35 billion .

    We will stand by the decision of the court.

    We will pursue our case to the Suprehe a Court to enforce our rights and the damages done to our business .

    We will exhaust all legal avenues to enforce our rights .

    People just think that the judiciary is weak , that is not true, the judiciary had saved us many times .

    I know that some judges are corrupt , there is no segment of Nigeria that is not corrupt .

    Slok airlines will return to correct some deficiencies in the aviation industry , because you know we are very efficient .