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Tag: Jonathan

  • Governors urge Jonathan to confront terror

    Governors urge Jonathan to confront terror

    Southsouth and South Eastern Governors yesterday condemned the rise in acts of terrorism across the nation.

    They urged President Goodluck Jonathan in a communiqué read by Cross River State Governor Liyel Imoke and his Anambra State Peter Obi to “confront terror wherever and whenever it occurs in Nigeria “.

    The meeting which held in Asaba, Delta State capital was attended by nine Governors.

    They are Theodore Orji (Abia), Rotimi Ameachi (Rivers) represented by his Deputy Tele Ikuru, Bayelsa, Seriake Dickson, Enugu, Sullivan Chime, Imo, Rochas Okorocha, Anambra, Peter Obi, Ebonyi, Martin Elechi, Akwa-Ibom, Godswill Akpabio, Cross River State Liyel Inoke and host Governor Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan.

    Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole was absent.

    Part of the communiqué reads: “The meeting was concerned at the condemnable behaviour and antics of some Nigerians and their collaborators in assaulting the collective psyche of the nation, by waging various acts of terrorism … but salutes the resolute stance of Mr. President to confront terror wherever and whenever it occurs in Nigeria”

    The governors appealed to Nigerians to “adopt dialogue and peaceful means to resolve issues affecting our country, adding that they have resolved to work together and ensure regional cooperation in stemming the spate of kidnapping, arson and pipeline vandalisation”.

    The governors praised Jonathan for his “focused leadership and bold, result – yielding transformation agenda, urging the unwavering support of Nigerians.

    The governors agreed on the economic, regional and political integration of the old Eastern and Midwestern regions now the South/South and South Eastern states.

    It urged the Federal Government to embark on the construction and rehabilitation of railway links between all the states in the region.

    It commended President Jonathan for the extensive ongoing rehabilitation and modernisation of airports in the country and called for the establishment of cargo airports including Owerri and additional deep sea ports in the region including Ibaka, Escravos, Agge and dredging of the Calabar ports.

  • Jonathan’s trip to South Africa not a jamboree, says senator

    The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Smart Adeyemi, yesterday said President Goodluck Jonathan’s visit to South Africa was not a jamboree.

    He said the visit led to the signing of nine Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) on economic development cooperation between the two countries.

    The lawmaker said the trip also assisted to end the rivalry and suspicion between the two nations.

    Adeyemi, who spoke with reporters in Abuja, said the visit would stop the hitherto maltreatment of Nigerians in South Africa.

    The senator, who was in the presidential delegation, said: “President Jonathan’s visit to South Africa was not a jamboree. It was very rewarding in the sense that it focused on economic development collaboration and integration. The trip enabled the President to solidify the relationship of the government and people of Nigeria with South Africa.

    “With about nine Memoranda of Understanding between the two countries, it is a pointer to a new chapter in the history of Africa because Nigeria and South Africa are the big economies on the continent.

    “The two leaders succeeded in opening a new vista for continental economic integration. We should expect a new dawn of economic boom between the two countries very soon.

    “The two nations have potential. They are coming together at the right time. The visit will enable other African countries to cooperate and consolidate their ties.

    “So, this is a new chapter in the relationship between Nigeria and South Africa. The good thing about the MoU is that it touches every sector, including mining and power. It will create trade balance between the two nations. We should salute the two presidents for coming together to lay the foundation for a new Africa through nine memoranda.”

  • Jonathan for life!

    Jonathan for life!

    Dokubo is a minimalist; our president deserves more than second term

     

    Do you want peace or war”? That was the tactless question asked in a crisis situation by the principal of the federal school where I did my two-year Advance Level programme years back. Of course, trust students; the answer was predictable. It was a tumultuous “Yes, we want war; we want war”. And, in no time, the school was literally on fire. Policemen were called in and before the end of the day, the school was closed down and the students sent home.

    I recalled this incident as a result of the threat by former militant, Asari Dokubo, to the effect that willy-nilly, Nigerians must return President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015 if they want peace in the country. If they do otherwise, then, the militants in the Niger Delta who are presently on sabbatical would be forced to return to the creeks. “The day Goodluck is no longer the President; all of us who are on sabbatical will come back. There will be no peace not only in the Niger Delta but everywhere. If they say it is an empty boast, let them wait and see,” said Dokubo, who as leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force (NDPVF) coordinated a campaign of violence in the oil producing areas. Dokubo spoke just a week after President Jonathan’s adviser on amnesty, Mr. Kingsley Kuku, was reported to have said in the United States that chaos would set in unless Jonathan was re-elected. Kuku has said he was misquoted though. Dokubo said he was reiterating Kuku’s prediction of “dire consequences” if the President is not re-elected in 2015. He even sounded a note of warning to our Senate to perish the thought of introducing a six-year single term for president, which would preclude Jonathan from running in 2015.

    We owe Dokubo a world of gratitude for giving us the option of choosing between peace and war, instead of taking us by surprise. I can assure him that the rats at home have heard and would communicate the message to the ones in the bush. Unlike those of us in the federal school then, Nigerians are not students; they are peace-loving people, a thing many of their leaders have often exploited to their (Nigerians’) disadvantage. With Dokubo waving both the stick and the carrot (the stick should they fail to return Jonathan for a second term, and the carrot should they return the president come 2015), I know Nigerians will opt for the carrot. Indeed, that is what they should do if they like themselves and if they are not to show themselves as ingrates. What else do you do for a president who has remained true to character, a man who has served the country diligently and meritoriously in so short a period, thus confirming the aphorism that it is not how long but how well? Indeed, I doubt if any right-thinking Nigerian would oppose life presidency for our amiable and able president.

    What is particularly painful is that many people who have criticised Dokubo have not even given any serious thought to his reasons. When we examine these, we would see that at some point, Dokubo was making sense. Remember that expression and the person who popularised it after the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election by Ibrahim Babangida? First, Dokubo has told us something we never knew; that Nigeria is at peace today not because of amnesty granted former Niger Delta militants by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua but because President Jonathan, a ‘son of the soil’, is President. In the light of this ‘revelation’, one should be wondering what nexus exists between Dokubo and Kuku and, by extension, why the latter is still being paid from the public till if a militant kingpin is now telling us that he has sheathed his swords not because of amnesty but because Jonathan is one of their own. And, in case such people have forgotten, he reminded them that he rejected amnesty because he is not a criminal. So, those touting the amnesty programme as having succeeded had better have a rethink.

    Second, Dokubo said Jonathan is holding the post for the Niger Delta region and that the region, like other regions that have had a shot at the presidency, is entitled to eight years. Are you wondering where performance is in all these? Please stop wondering, for Dokubo reinforced his point by stating that Jonathan has performed better than previous governments. Again, can you fault him? Even if it is a case of the country of the blind where the one-eyed man is king, Dokubo has floored those who see the Jonathan presidency as incompetent. More fundamentally, Dokubo’s conclusion is pardonable when we remember our class on selective exposure, selective perception and selective retention, meaning you see only what you want to see, interpret it the way it suits you and also decide whether to retain it in your memory or delete it. Even a local saying in my place has it that what is facing someone is backing someone else. So, on all fronts, including street and local wisdom, Dokubo is right: Jonathan’s government is better than previous ( I guess, PDP) governments!

    As a matter of fact, I have even heard some people are wondering whether it was the same Dokubo who only a few months back, criticised Jonathan’s government and doubted his re-election in 2015 unless he removed some elements from his government, that has changed position, when the president has not carried out any such reorganisation that would have weeded out the irritants and pollutants. “The President has allowed himself to be imprisoned by some greedy individuals. His goodwill will soon go and that will affect his second term chances,” he had said. Well, that is a fact of life; no condition is permanent. Life itself is dynamic. What is perceived to be black today can suddenly turn to white tomorrow in the face of fresh ‘developments’. If you like you might begin to link Dokubo’s volte-face to the billion naira contracts that the Jonathan government gave him; that, as former President Olusegun Obasanjo said, ‘na yo toro’ (that is your business).

    Still on contracts, I hear the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) too is gearing up for a piece of the action. There are reported rumblings in the ‘OOdua house’, with one factional leader allegedly threatening to throw out the other. When such threats are made, we should know what is speaking. Two things normally cause friction between two good old friends – women and money. In the Oodua case, women cannot be an issue because there is more than enough to go round. It has to be money then because, one, it is the root of all evil and second, it is one thing that is hardly enough. No matter how rich people already are, they still want more money.

    But who will blame Oodua for quickly keying into this lucrative and ‘legitimate industry’ in Nigeria? All you need to qualify for the windfall is ability to cause chaos, render the security agencies ineffective and sustain it for a long time, and you are in business. Levels will suddenly change and your statement of account will cease to be a source of sorrow and disappointment to you. Indeed, once you hit it big in that ‘sector’ which is fast gaining ascendancy in the Jonathan era, it is the bank managing directors who have to catch cold whenever you sneeze.

    It is in the light of all these that I want to set the ball of congratulations rolling for President Jonathan in advance, for his well deserved victory in the 2015 elections. With his kinsman, Dokubo, a former but not tired militant declaring war if the president is not re-elected in the election, the coast is as good as clear for President Jonathan to start preparing his acceptance speech for the Dokubo assured victory. The gods of this era have spoken. Militants, terrorists now rule the waves.

  • Jonathan, security chiefs in emergency meeting over Nasarawa, Baga, Bama massacre

    Jonathan, security chiefs in emergency meeting over Nasarawa, Baga, Bama massacre

    President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday launched into  an emergency meeting with security chiefs and members of the National Security Council and the National Defence Council on the recent breakdown of law and order  in Nasarawa State; Baga and  Bama, both in Borno State; Wukari  in Taraba State and Benue State.

    Jonathan may also meet with state governors on the security challenges which may pose danger to the nation’s democracy.

    The Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF) yesterday condemned Wednesday’s killing of  policemen and other security agents at Alakyo, Nasarawa State by members of  the Ombatse  militia.

    It was gathered that an overhaul of the nation’s security apparatchik may be imminent.

    At the session were Vice-President Namadi Sambo; the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd); Chief of Defence Staff,  Admiral Ola Sahad Ibrahim; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Dele Ezeoba; Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal Alex Badeh; Director General of State Security Service (SSS), Mr.Ita Ekpenyong; Inspector-General of Police Muhammed Abubakar who wore a black arm band; and the representative of the Chief of Army Staff, Major General Emmanuel Bassey, Chief of Policy and Plans (COPP).

    The security  chiefs   declined to speak to   journalists who had waited patiently to get information on the outcome of the meeting.

    Only  the IGP spoke briefly.

    He   described the murder of his men in Nasarawa State  as a sad development for the country.

    Police Affairs Minister Caleb Olubolade  also condemned the killing,  but said there would be no reprisal  by the  police.

    Revenge,according to him, will not help the situation, neither will it douse tension.

      He said: ”The security agencies, particularly the police, will not want to go and revenge. It is not going to help us because they are supposed to protect lives and property. Going to revenge will not douse tension and will bring about lack of confidence in the system. So, we still strictly discourage that.

    “Incidentally, Mr. President has supported the police in recent time more than before. The challenges are more than before. So it is sad that those who are protecting lives and property are becoming the targets of various insurgents and criminals be it political or otherwise.

    “What is important now is to re-strategise and empower them the more. Besides that, if there are other avenues that will make us not to grow criminals, the government will have to look into that. The issue of creating employment and other aspects.”

    On the call for state of emergency, the Police Affairs Minister declined to comment, saying it was  clearly not within his purview, adding that Nigerians “have the right to call for whatever they want. At the end of the day, the President will take a decision.”

    Reacting to the allegation that the police were killed in retaliation for the alleged murder of nine members of the  cult, the minister said;  “I wouldn’t know what is true about that. All I know is that the police have a duty to perform and as such, they must not fear; they must be equipped; they must be trained; they must do their job because they are under instruction. The police will not just wake up and pick their leaders if nothing has gone wrong. The populace must know that anybody can be brought in by the police for interrogation, depending on the intelligence the police get. ”

    On the US’ position that the development  could destabilise the country, he said: “Well, news reports from outside Nigeria sometime can be misleading. So, we must not rely completely on that because  at times, they get information even from our own people, they multiply it and exaggerate it to suit themselves. So, what is important is for us to look inwards as Nigerians, work together, our people should give information to the security agencies who in turn will protect them.”

    A  source said  ahead of the  meeting that it would discuss the possible overhaul of the nation’s security system to curtail insurgency in any part of Nigeria.

    The source said: ”Definitely, I can assure you that there will be a change of tactics. The military and security agencies may now adopt pre-emptive strategies to save lives.

    “Members of the two councils are disturbed at the rate at which military men and police had become the targets of insurgents. This spate of unprovoked attacks will stop.”

    The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, who confirmed the emergency session to our correspondent, said: “As I speak, an emergency security council meeting is going on with security chiefs. They are doing an overview of the security situation in the country.

    “You will recall that the President aborted his trip to Namibia to attend to security challenges in the country. The security session will cover a review of reports on security challenges in Baga, Bama, Wukari, Nasarawa and Benue states.

    “The President is having a face-to-face briefing with security chiefs and relevant agencies involved in curtailing those crises.

    “I may not be able to give you the details now until after the meeting.”

    Another source, however, added: “The President is likely to meet with state governors on whatever proactive measures being put in place to guarantee safety of lives and property in the country.”

    Section 16 of Part 1 of the Third Schedule to 1999 Constitution mandates the National Defence Council to “advise the President on matters relating to the defence of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Nigeria.”

    The council advises the President on “ matters relating to public security, including matters relating to any organization or agency established by law for ensuring the security of the federation.”

    In condemning the attack on policemen by members of the Ombatse cult, the NSGF described the ambush  as shocking, rude and sad.

    It asked  the militia to cease its attacks immediately.

    Expressing the forum’s condolences to the Police High Command, the Department of  State Security Service and the families of the victims, the Chairman of the forum and Governor of Niger State, Dr Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, said no grievance can justify such a dastardly act against law enforcement agents.

    In a statement signed by Aliyu’s Chief Press Secretary, Malam Danladi Ndayebo, the forum called on security agencies to ensure that the perpetrators are caught and brought to justice to prevent a re-occurrence, emphasizing that a situation where security personnel on whose shoulders lie the responsibility of protecting lives and property become easy targets for criminals was unacceptable.

    The statement lamented frequent attacks on the police and other security agents, saying the nation cannot afford a situation where criminal elements will overwhelm state security apparatus.

    It also condemned the killing of farmers and destruction of property by Fulani herdsmen in the Agatu Local Government Area of Benue State, describing it as one attack too many.

    The forum called on the authorities to commence the prosecution of 10  suspected  mercenaries alleged to have perpetrated the Agatu mayhem.

  • If not Jonathan, then who?

    If not Jonathan, then who?

    Some have labelled him a bread-and-butter rebel with a cause. Some say he is just a smart man who knows how best to feather his nest. Others call him an ethnic irredentist who has perfected the art of empty blabbering. But I believe Alhaji Mujahid Asari-Dokubo is too big to be crated into someone’s warped descriptive nuances. In our quick rush to hang him in the sun to dry for daring to insist that President Goodluck Jonathan must remain Nigeria’s leader post 2015, we tend to forget that this true son of Niger Delta was speaking under the influence of a spirited dose of presidential amnesty. And instead of showing him some respect for accepting the Federal Government’s plea to distance his crew from violence and oil bunkering by voluntarily abdicating his kingdom in the creeks, we are busy nudging the police to arrest him for threatening a spiral of violence should Jonathan be eased off a seat which should be his for eight years! Why should we?

    And, in its usual atavistic way of looking at issues of national importance, the House of Representatives has compounded the problem by erroneously concluding that Asari-Dokubo’s patriotic rant of ‘it’s either Jonathan or no one else’ is “capable of creating disunity and disaffection among the good people of Nigeria.” As for the lawmaker who raised the issue on the floor of the House as a matter of urgent national discourse, Ali Sani Madaki (Kano), I doubt if he read through the reasons adduced for a continuation of the Jonathan presidency before crying blue murder. If he had taken out time to dissect Asari-Dokubo’s unimpeachable logic, he would by now be pushing for the conferment of the highest honours in the land not only on the former ex-militant but also on other well-meaning Nigerians who daily canvas for the extension of the fresh breath of air we currently enjoy.

    Like they say in my profession, facts are sacred and comments are free. Luckily for us, neither Asari-Dokubo nor the Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Committee, Hon. Kingsley Kuku, can be accused of not dwelling on the facts on the table before declaring a no vacancy in Aso Rock until 2019. So, what are these facts? I’ll simplify them. First, that Jonathan is constitutionally guaranteed two terms of four-year tenure. Second, that he is from the Niger Delta, which produces Nigeria’s main revenue—oil. Third, that, with amnesty, the restiveness in the Niger Delta has abated with huge impact on crude exploration. And, most importantly, there is a sense in the insistence by the ex-warlord that “monkey no fine, but him mama like am”. Call it an apt description of the basest form of political skulduggery, it really doesn’t matter for as long this kinsman to many ‘generals’ is on the throne. He is simply the best!

    Besides, these guys are not asking for too much. They are, in my humble opinion, appealing to our sense of equity, justice and fairness. They say since we have voted massively for Jonathan to be in government, we should have the presence of mind to allow him to be in power for just another four years.  After all , didn’t we allow Obasanjo his eight years of deferred dreams? Would we not have tolerated an Umaru Musa Yar’Adua for eight years if he had not died in office? Would it have mattered if the country had been divided down the middle? So, why should anyone deny Jonathan the right to live in Aso Rock just because some debased minds are killing and maiming

    in some parts of the country? Would it not be better to live with the activities of these insurgents than allow the kind of ‘war’ being threatened by Asari-Dokubo and the likes?

    In any case, it is not as if those cavorting for a Jonathan presidency beyond 2015 are solely doing so on the basis of where he comes from. No. They are equally posturing with his unprecedented achievements in the last two years. They said he has been working silently to transform all sectors of the economy even if majority of us have opted to close our eyes to those things. Well, as they say, that one ‘na your toro!’ As far as Asari-Dokubo is concerned, that can only be the jabbering of “greedy politicians.” The common Nigerian from Otuoke in Bayelsa to Baga in Borno knows that a working machine has taken over Aso Rock and he is breaking new horizons in classical over-achievement.

    Listen to Asari-Dokubo: “The (Nigerian) story has changed. I made five hours from Benin to Lagos by road (by the way, it used to be three hours when I did my youth service corps in that ancient town in 1990). Electricity supply is relatively constant now than what it was before Jonathan came in as President. The Abuja-Lokoja Road that was neglected is almost completed and several other roads across the country. People have started using the rail system again. This shows that Jonathan is silently moving the country at the direction to satisfy these people, while we from the Niger Delta are not being satisfied. Before now, we have had university lecturers going on strike for over six months, people go to universities to study courses of four or five years, but end up staying five and six years because the lecturers were always going on strike, but that is not the case as at today because the government is handling the issue. Even at that, this is the most maligned government because some people think, and they have been made to believe that they are born to rule, and so many people who are very timid to challenge them have accepted it.”

    And did he have to say about the call for his arrest? He fired: “I am saying it bold and clear without mincing words, that the consequences of my arrest, Nigeria will be history.

    The last time Obasanjo arrested me, my arrest reduced Nigeria oil production to 700,000 barrels per day. This time, it will reduce it to zero barrel and we will match violence by violence, intrigues by intrigues. We are ready for them.

    Goodluck Jonathan will complete his tenure of two terms whether they like it or not; for us, they don’t even exist because we pay them; he who pays the piper decides the tune.

    And then…Kingsley Kuku: “People have created negative tendencies just to create the belief that President Jonathan cannot govern Nigeria. I did not say that Jonathan should be elected, by hook or crook, as President in 2015 otherwise there will be violence in the Niger Delta. I said for the peace process not to degenerate and collapse, President Jonathan should be allowed to implement the amnesty package. Nigeria will never be ungovernable. Nigeria will be governable under President Jonathan and he is already stemming the tide of restiveness.” Awww!

    How more logical can anyone be on this matter? Those who say the Jonathan train should be stopped because Nigeria is tottering on the brink of anarchy miss the point. It is not really important whether he has the capacity to rein in the terror that has assailed the nation. It matters not whether he is slow and sadly effete at tackling the ills that continue to plague the society. This debate is not about how guns echo sorrowful lullabies and ignite teardrops in our homes. It is about the politics of leadership in a nation that is forever perched on a plateau of non-populist leaders’ delusion of grandeur. It is not even about war and peace. Instead, it is about something more pedestrian than the lure of the stomach which has propelled many to think through their buttocks—what the National Auditor of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mr. Adewole Adeyanju, tagged “turn by turn Nigeria Limited.”

    Being a man of figures, Adeyanju simplified all the fiery ranting of Asari-Dokubo thus: “PDP has leaders and we know them. Today, our leader is the President and Commander of the Armed Forces, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonatha n. This man is from the South-South. The best thing to do for Nigeria to sustain peace is to make Nigeria turn by turn Nigeria Limited. That’s why we can talk two terms. South-South is there now and we should just allow them to do two terms and that is how Nigeria can survive.”

    And so, neither cluelessness nor outright incompetence can stop the moving train in this asphyxiating environment of government by the whim! If not Jonathan, who else can help sustain this uncommon transformation – the motions without movement in our land and the unequalled peace of the graveyard that now pervade the land? Who else but Jonathan?

  • Jonathan: new national industrial plan coming

    Jonathan: new national industrial plan coming

    President GoodlucK Jonathan has said his administration will soon unveil a new National Industrial Revolution Plan.

    The plan, he said, is being fine-tuned to further encourage investors and local production.

    The President according to his media aide, Dr. Reuben Abati, announced the new initiative when he addressed a delegation of Nissan South Africa in Cape Town, South Africa, on Wednesday. It was during his state visit to South Africa.

    “Nigeria is working on a new Industrial Revolution Plan that will further promote investments in every sector of the Nigerian economy and strengthen areas in which the country has comparative advantage,” Jonathan said.

    The President explained that the aim of the plan is “to create a win-win situation for investors and Nigerian people”.

    The Managing director of Nissan South Africa and leader of the delegation Mr. Mike Whitfield said the Nissan Group is interested in investing in the automobile sector in Nigeria, in collaboration with its business partners.

  • Jonathan appoints Ciroma’s wife as MD of NIWA

    Jonathan appoints Ciroma’s wife as MD of NIWA

    President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday appointed the former National Woman Leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hajiya Inna Maryam Ciroma, as the Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA).

    Other Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of some Federal Government parastatals appointed by Jonathan, according to a statement by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Anyim Pius Anyim, include: the Director-General of the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency ( SMEDAN), Mr. Bature Masadi.

    Anyim also announced the appointment of Mrs. Dukpe C. Atoki as the Director–General of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) and Mr. Danjuma Dabo as the Managing Director of the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC), Jos, the Plateau State capital.

    Mr. Emeka Nkem Mba was named the Director-General, Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) while Prof Eli Jidere is now the Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN).

    The President also named Mrs. Sally Mbanefo, as an Executive Director with the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC).

    In the statement entitled: Appointment of Chief Executive Officers of some Federal Government Parastatals, the SGF said Dr. Jonathan has approved the appointments.

    He added: “All the appointees are expected to resume duties immediately.”

  • Supplementary Budget debate suffers setback in Senate

    Supplementary Budget debate suffers setback in Senate

    • Reps may shun amendment debate

    The Senate yesterday deferred the consideration of the 2013 Supplementary Appropriation Bill indefinitely.

    Though consideration of the bill was listed in the Order paper, Senate Leader, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, told his colleagues that the lead debate of the bill was not ready.

    Ndoma-Egba moved that the bill be stood down for another legislative day.

    He was unanimously supported by his colleagues.

    President Goodluck Jonathan submitted a bill for an Act to amend the 2013 Appropriation Act to authorise the issue from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation a total of N4,987,382,196,690 in March for the consideration and approval of the National Assembly.

    The amendment sought by Jonathan, observers said, might re-enact a fresh round of bickering between the National Assembly and the Presidency.

    The President reluctantly signed the 2013 budget in February and shortly after in March, forwarded a memorandum to the National Assembly seeking an amendment of the Appropriation Act.

    Jonathan accused the lawmakers of over reaching their powers by including clauses that might be injurious to the spirit of separation of powers in the budget.

    He insisted that the affected clauses could hamper the work of the Executive if not expunged.

    Apart from seeking an amendment of the 2013 Budget, Jonathan also asked the lawmakers to amend the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) budget as passed.

    His listed three clauses, which, according to him, impinged on the separation of powers and could hamper the work of the Executive.

    He demanded a cut on the provisions made for personnel cost across the service and change of some provisions voted for capital projects.

    Though Jonathan explained that the proposed amendment was the outcome of various consultative meetings with the leadership and committees of the National Assembly following the passage of the budget, the submission of an amendment bill did not go down well with some Senators

    Jonathan said it became neccesary that certain provisions, including cuts to personnel cost across the service and provisions for some capital projects be changed through an amended budget.

    The insertions, Jonathan said, included Clause 6(ii) which states: “The Accountant-General of the Federation shall forward to the National Assembly full details of funds released to the government agencies immediately, such funds are released;” while Clause 9 states: “All Accounting Officers of Ministries, Parastatals and Department of Government who control heads of expenditures shall upon the coming into effect of this Act, furnish the National Assembly on quarterly basis with detailed information on the Internally Generated Revenue of the agency in any form whatsoever.

    Both clauses run counter to established chain of reporting, Jonathan said.

    Also there are indications that the House of Representatives may return the 2013 amendment budget sent to it by the President.

    Though the House has said that it will take a decision on if or not to consider the 2013 amendment budget sent to it by President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday next week, there is the possibility the budget may not be touched at all.

    Speaking with reporters during a briefing at the National Assembly yesterday, the spokesman of the House, Zakari Mohammed, gave this subtle indication when he said members were on oversight, and some, especially the ANPP and CPC members are preparing for their conventions.

  • Jonathan okays N10b for environment programme

    Jonathan okays N10b for environment programme

    • As World Bank supports NEWMAP project with $400m

    President Goodluck Jonathan has approved about N10 billion to implement the Great Green Wall (GGW) Programme.

    The World Bank and the Federal Government are also supporting the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP) with $400 million.

    The Minister of Environment, Mrs. Hadiza Mailafia, made this known at the Ninth National Council on Environment yesterday in Makurdi.

    Mailafia said: “Mr President has graciously approved the sum of N10 billion for the implementation of the GGW programme over a period of 36 months.

    “Similarly, the sum of over $400 million have also been set aside for the NEWMAP programme.”

    The GGW involves the planting of trees covering 1,500 km long and 15 km wide from Dandi Arewa Local Area of Kebbi State to Marte Local Area in Borno State.

    According to her, the amount will be used to address desert encroachment in the 11 frontline states of the north.

    Speaking on soil erosion, the Minister said the Federal Government has started work on flood control infrastructure across the country.

    She said apart from the NEWMAP, the measure adopted by the Federal Government was to deflood to protect lives and properties.

    She urged Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to take cognizance of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Act No. 86 when contracts are awarded, adding that automated Flood Early Warning Systems have been installed in flood prone areas.

    The move, according to her, is aimed at reducing the impact of flooding in the selected areas.

    The Benue State Governor, Gabriel Suswam, listed global population growth and industrialisation as causes of environmental problems among nations.

    He said while desertification ravages the north, flooding and erosion threaten the survival of the southern population.

    Suswam, who was represented by his deputy, Steven Lawani, however suggested collective efforts to address the challenges.

    Wife of the Governor, Dooshima Suswam, urged women to plant trees., ading that this would encourage afforestration.

  • Jonathan wobbles as Somalia beckons

    SIR: Nigeria needs more of strategic urgent socio-political manoeuverings if the current bull in the China shop will not only destroy the shop’s wares but collapse the whole edifice. No head of state has shown total lack of grasp and managerial incompetence, cluelessness and paralysis on almost every aspect of national life as the current occupant of the highest office in Nigeria. This obvious administrative skill deficit is amplified by the ordinariness that the symbol of authority in Nigeria has assumed. The jejune and pedestrian analysis of policies and the cavaliar attitudes of the emperor towards fundamental issues of state such as insecurity, corruption, the economy and a host of others have sharpened and widened the faultlines of the country.

    As emperor Nero fiddled and Rome burnt, the Nigerian emperor is antagonizing every critical sector and geo-political zone with the annoying ethnocentric

    grandstanding of the ethnic Ijaw jingoists and supremacists even in the Niger Delta region.

    The Ijaw with highest concetration in Bayelsa and other few enclaves in some coastal communities have converted the current presidency to an ethnic instrument of victimization and ascendancy to the exclusion of other minority groups in the south not to talk about the alienation of others in the appropriation of state power and resources. It is appalling that these people do not give consideration to the post-Ijaw presidency by their actions and relations with others in Nigeria’s highly combustible powerhouse.

    Under President Jonanathan, Nigeria has become a huge slaughter slab, a haven of kidnappings, a redoubt of terrorists and a centre of communal skirmishes with blood flowing like the water of River Niger. Yet the government believes that the system will continue to wobble and fumble, till 2015 when another abracadabra called election will take place without concrete effort and strong political will to arrest this drift.

    The increasing autocratization of our democracy through the gradual assault on the core tenets and ethos of democratic institutions, federalism, rule of law and constitutionalism through both subtle and crude subversion of institutions and agencies of the state is worrisome.

    All of the above coupled with the erosion of state authority in most part of the country with many arm-bearing groups such as Boko Haram, MEND, MASSOB, OPC, etc challenging the monopoly and monopolization of the instrument and apparatus of coercion and violence and holding sway in different parts of the country with the apparent inability of the present weak government in containing and curtailing it and if this is to be added to the worsening unemployment situation and grinding poverty in the land, then Somalia beckons.

    With the weakening and decapitation of the state by a wobbling emperor through his self-serving and subversive policies, implosion is imminent and the prediction of the U. S research think-tank would have been accelerated. It would be a complete somaliazation of Nigeria. I strongly pray against it but would the power that be listen. A stitch in time can still save nine.

    • Akinrolabu T. Omonitan,

    Ikeji-Ile Ijesa, Oriade LGA.,

    Osun State.