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Tag: leaders’

  • 2015: PDP leaders move to dump Sambo

    2015: PDP leaders move to dump Sambo

    • Another Northern governor emerges Jonathan’s favourite

    The shape of the battle for the 2015 presidential ticket in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seems to be manifesting by the day.

    Some powerful forces in the party are pushing for a replacement of Vice President Namadi Sambo as running mate to President Goodluck Jonathan on the party’s ticket.

    Their choice is a serving Northern governor, who, in the opinion of those pushing his case, has more clout in the region than Sambo.

    They regard their candidate as the ultimate joker the party needs to win the North.

    But a few other leaders are wary of the backlash of dropping Sambo and they are weighing the options.

    According to findings, a major target of the Jonathan camp is how to secure the backing of at least 11 out of the 19 states in the North.

    The permutations in the camp of the President is that he could win convincingly in 22 states made up of 11 in the North, five in the South-East and six states in the South-South.

    Northern states being targeted are Plateau, Sokoto, Gombe, Benue, Kogi, Bauchi, Taraba, Adamawa, Kebbi, Kwara and Jigawa.

    Katsina, Kano, Kaduna, Zamfara, Yobe, Borno, Nasarawa and Niger are considered unpredictable.

    A party source, who spoke in confidence, said: “A committee, comprising some trusted ministers, select loyal PDP leaders and strategists of the President have been working round the clock on how to secure the second term mandate.

    “After the groundwork has reached an appreciable level, the President will then make a declaration in 2014.

    “But a major challenge is how to win at least 11 of the 19 states in the North. The South-East and South-South are already taken for granted. Even where there is a bit of opposition in Rivers State, the presidency is already tackling Governor Rotimi Amaechi.

    “Some PDP leaders are pushing for another Northern governor as running mate to President Jonathan to secure the North, especially the politically volatile North-West and North-East.

    “A fair-complexioned governor in the North-West is being proposed to replace Vice-President Namadi Sambo, whose stronghold on the North is rated as weak. Since Sambo came on board, the party leaders believe he had acted more as a “technocrat” than a politician.

    “They are clamouring for a VP who could play a political role like ex-VP Atiku Abubakar did for former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

    “As part of the induction of the said North-West governor into national politics, some PDP leaders and governors have recommended him to succeed Governor Rotimi Amaechi as the chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum in May.

    “The recommendation of the governor is based on his achievements, antecedents with the Yar’Aduas, and ability to reach out to Northern emirs and opinion leaders.”

    Asked of the disposition of Jonathan, the source added: “So far, he is not disposed to dropping his deputy but if the party thinks otherwise in 2015, he might have no choice.

    “The President does not want to talk about 2015 now to avoid distraction.”

    Another source added that some forces in the presidency are uncomfortable with Sambo’s political weight.

    “I think the signs are there that the PDP might change its team because some forces want Sambo out. They have no particular reason than sheer politics. They are suspecting his movement too.

    “Recently, Sambo was scheduled for a trip to Owerri, Imo State. His advance team had gone to Owerri only for the VP to be stopped from going. They said the President asked Sambo to represent him elsewhere.”

    It was also gathered that Jonathan’s strategists have not lost hope on their plan to ‘capture’ the South-West in 2015.

    It was learnt that they are targeting Osun and Ekiti States.

    Another source said: “Jonathan’s team is yet to give up on the South-West although the presidency’s cold war with Obasanjo and the recent sack of the National Secretary of PDP have discouraged most party members in the geopolitical zone.

    “Their targets are Ekiti and Osun States. The recent development in PDP has helped to strengthen people’s faith in the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in the zone. The performance of the ACN governors has added much value too.”

    Although Jonathan is banking on Governor Olusegun Mimiko and the Labour Party to deliver Ondo State in the South-West, there are concerns that the politics of the South-West does not follow a similar pattern all the time.

    It was gathered that the same forces which claimed to have secured a second term ticket for Mimiko, came out openly to protest against Jonathan’s administration for allegedly marginalising the South-West.

     

  • Strengthen democracy or face political instability, Jonathan warns African leaders

    Strengthen democracy or face political instability, Jonathan warns African leaders

    President Good-luck Jonathan yesterday urged African leaders to strengthen democracy and the rule of law in their countries or face continued threats to political stability and societal peace.

    Addressing the Parliament as part of activities marking his visit to Cote d’Ivoire, President Jonathan said the present generation of African leaders must rise to the challenge of managing contests for political power in a manner that assures greater collective security and peaceful co-existence.

    Leaders of emerging democracies, he warned, must not succumb to the lure of dictatorship, which is the surest way of bottling up grievances and dissent in their countries.

    His words: “We are ourselves daily confronted with the multiplicity of demands and expectations that are the hallmarks of multicultural societies.

    “There are some, here and elsewhere, who might think that the straightjacket of a dictatorship is the surest way to bottle up these grievances and dismantle dissent.

    “That is wrong. Nothing strengthens a society more than openness and a leadership courageous enough to understand the inherent positives that flow from these contending demands. As African leaders, we have to, calmly and dispassionately, harness these energies and utilise them to serve the best interest of our people.

    “Indeed, it is self-evident that people, who feel secure and free, governed by the rule of law and not by the whims of men, are less likely to go to war with each other, either within or across borders, than those who do not.

    “We therefore risk the very institution we are trying to build if we exclude the people who voted us into power in the governance process. That is why we have to build strong institutions and allow the rule of law to take root. Democracy without strong institutions defeats its own objectives.”

    He also maintained that political leaders in Africa must do more to alleviate and ultimately eradicate abject poverty from the continent as it de-empowers people and retards growth and development.

    “We must assiduously promote the welfare of all citizens and create the enabling environment in which they can fully realise their aspirations and potentials.

    “This would enable them, as stakeholders, to invest in the protection of peace and stability of our countries. And this is achievable,” he added.

    The President also called for the loosening of the “bolts of bureaucracy” that currently stifle trade in the sub-region.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Financialism — A moral and ideological warning for world leaders in action

    Financialism — A moral and ideological warning for world leaders in action

    Next Thursday March 7 is the book launch of an unusual book by two unusual people, one a Nigerian and the other an American. The book is a rich synthesis of the unique life, career experience and contact of the co authors on the management of the global political economy illustrated with good stories and analogies. The stories especially remind one of ‘tales by the moonlight‘ which in the slogan of Hallmark Films are’ good stories well told ‘ to teach morality and inculcate wisdom. The book’s focus is on the political economy and how past, historical, ideological and philosophical efforts at making the global economy work to reduce poverty and inequalities have failed. This failure, the authors contend will continue unabated unless the present global trend and error of taking Financialism, which the authors call a corruption or negative mutation of capitalism as the ideological panacea for the world’s political and socio – economic ills, is immediately and urgently acknowledged and corrected.

    The title of the book is Financialism – Water from an empty well; How the financial System Drains the Economy. The authors are Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the former Governor of Lagos State, leader of ACN and an astute businessman; and Brian Browne, the former US Consul in Nigeria from 2003 to 2007 who has served as a diplomat widely in Africa and is a Columnist in this newspaper, The Nation. The Forewords to the book are by two global giants in their own right namely Professor Wole Soyinka the Nobel Laureate in Literature and the Reverend Jesse Jackson the former US presidential candidate who made the famous statement that ‘God is not finished with me yet‘ when he lost the bid for presidential candidature. The two forewords which are rich in the experience of both well known warriors against poverty, oppression and man’s inhumanity to man, literally beg the reader to take time and the book to benefit from the practical, cerebral, real world, strong views of the authors on the running of the political economy. This is a book written by co authors who were bold enough to admit that even though they are not professional economists or planners they are not afraid to affirm that both past and present economists have not been successful in theory and practice to get the world out of incessant and successive financial and economic crises.

    The book’s main thrust is that the market economy driven from Wall Street by greed is leading the world to another financial abyss so soon after the global meltdown of 2008 .The book argues that Wall Street and financial markets have claimed the top of the US ‘ business totem. ‘Wall Street and the financial houses became the new temple of the American Economy‘ and this has been achieved with the mischievous claim that this was the newest, productive and dynamic form of capitalism when it is indeed the face of financialism which the authors say is an assault on itself.

    It postulates that the real sector which produces goods and services in manufacturing has been abandoned by governments who now dance to the tune of invisible market forces dictated by the financial markets, its leaders and its products. It is this false recipe that the apostles of global financialism have put forward as the blue print for the global economies to adopt to survive financial crisis and the co authors are shouting foul in Financialism.

    Comparison abound between Nigeria and the US in the book. While the US is said to be on the decline because of its arrogance and the thinking of its citizenry that it has the best products and is God’s own country, Nigeria is seen as never having tasted prosperity; and has always been wallowing in poverty because of poor leadership; and the fact that the Nigerian nation skipped the manufacturing stage whilst the US is the first post – industrial nation in the world. According to the authors ‘America has become apostate to its own ethic of hard work, solid savings and low debt. It forgot that debt which comes cheaply is the most hard to pay ‘Americans, according to the book worship money and no one can be successful politically in the US without being obliged to fund raisers who are beholden to the financial system and its sponsors from Wall Street.

    Even President Barak Obama was not immune to scrutiny as the authors correctly predicted that he would be reelected as he desired because he is part of the establishment and raised funds there from , and thus would be able to do scant reform; and the book was written well before the reelection. Which shows the predictive foresight of the co authors.

    My intention here is not to do a book review but to draw readers attention to the book albeit in the form of a me and my big mouth manner. This is because I am really fascinated and excited by the amalgam of fresh ideas and stories in the book whose main concern is on the global political economy, its past and present management and the course in which it should be directed to achieve sustainable global prosperity and social equity. The book provides ample research material for this column with its name of Global Economy and Politics. The book also is a lesson in constructive criticism, as it provides suggestions to both Nigeria and the US on the way forward after averting the powerful and all -consuming ideological ambush of Financialism.

    All the same I cannot resist the temptation to put the book in the context of this column especially with regard to events of the past week. The book Financialism should be a companion to world leaders who genuinely want to lead their people aright and into prosperity especially in this age and time of austerity and youth unemployment which are the hallmarks and by products of blatant Financialism as exposed by Asiwaju Tinubu and Brian Browne in their book. I would recommend the book to South Korea’s new first lady president Park Guen – Hye who was sworn in this week and who promised to recreate the economic prosperity her late father a military dictator Park Chung Hee achieved in making S Korea one of the Asian Tigers through export driven growth and prosperity decades ago.

    I recommend the book to the Castro Brothers who have ruled Cuba between them since 1950 when they sent Baptista packing from Havana with the illustrious Che Guevara leading the attack. This week Raul Castro – who recently took over as president from his senior brother , the ailing Cuban leader Fidel – was elected for another five years till 1918 by the Cuban National Assembly. Raul Castro has said he would step down then and has made provision for a successor if he did not make it to 1918. Significantly Raul told the Cuban Assembly that he was not appointed into office not to introduce capitalism but to protect and promote socialism. While that may sound ambiguous it still shows how far from rapport Cuba is from its big neighbor and exporter of capitalism, nay financialism, the USA.

    The book is recommended for the leaders of Italy especially with the hung parliament from last Sunday’s election, that has made the world to see Italy as ungovernable. To me, aside from the center left party that claimed only the lower house, two real winners emerged from the last Italian elections for different and opposing reasons and that explains why they cannot ever form any coalition .

    The first winner is Beppe Grillo a comedian that Italian took seriously because he said politicians are useless and have run Italy aground and the people voted for his party – the Five Star Movement and its candidates -even though they know they lack the experience to govern. The second winner is the epitome of the discredited Italian politician that Grillo campaigned against, Silvio Berlusconi now the Houdini of modern Italian politics. The wily fox Berlusconi simply bent in the direction of the storm of anger against his past political and personal record and wooed the electorate by condemning the reforms of austerity measures with a promise of tax refund, and the Italian electorate got hooked and returned him and his center right party – People of Freedom – to relevance on the edge of political extinction. Surely, these two unique Italian leaders who are part of the present world leaders in action, will benefit immensely from Financialism – Water from an empty well, by the co – authors – consummate politician and leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and fellow columnist, Brian Browne.

  • ‘Leaders demand restructuring, national conference’

    ‘Leaders demand restructuring, national conference’

    Leaders from Igbo land and some others outside the zone, took another look at the socio- political and economic fortunes of Nigeria when they met at the 14th National Conference of Igbo Youth Movement in Enugu and contended that only restructuring, achieved through a National Conference, can save Nigeria. Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu, presents the highlights

    Eminent Nigerians, who gathered last week’s Saturday at Nike Lake Resort, Enugu, at the 14th National Convention of the Igbo Youth Movement, (IYM), may not have expected the current verbal crossfire, especially from the presidency, when they alleged symptoms of a failing state and demanded that only restructuring would save Nigeria.

    They had also called for convocation of a national conference before 2015 general elections to save the perceived ‘collapsing nation.’

    But throughout the week, verbal arsenals from government officials and presidential aides are indications that the country’s seat of power is not taking kindly the suggestions from the political leaders and elders.

    The IYM convention, tagged; ‘National Conference before 2015 Elections, Only Roadmap to a Truly Greater Nigeria,’ had in attendance, elder statesmen and leaders of thought from Igbo land and featured speakers from the zone and some other parts of the country.

    Distinguished speakers at the well attended event included, Prof. Ben Nwabueze, General Alani Akinrinade, Col. Joe  Achuzie, Amb. Joseph Ayalogu, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Sen. Ben Obi, Col. Ben Gbulie, Chief Solomon Asemotah, Chief Dipo Famakinwa, Chief Michael Orabator, Chief Ayo Afolabi, Rev. Ukandu Ucheya, Chief Kunle Famoriyo, Prof. Mark Odu, Prince Emeka Onyesoh, Chief Toke Benson Awoyinka and Mazi Obinna Obi.

    In his remarks, the National President of IYM, Evangelist Eliot Ukoh, said the choice of the theme became necessary because, according to him, “the survival of Nigeria as one indivisible nation is blinking.” Elliot added that though the Igbo youths believe in one Nigeria, they know that “such would not be effective without a restructuring of the country.”

    Chairman of the occasion and renowned constitutional lawyer, Prof Ben Nwabueze, also said the “convocation of a national conference is overdue.” The elder statesman added that there are so many variables indicating that Nigeria is on the verge of becoming a failed state, pointing out, therefore that only a national conference can bring Nigeria back. He also warned that if proactive steps are not taken to checkmate the impending danger, like convocation of a national conference before 2015, “the country might head to the rock.”

    ‘This country is on the verge of becoming a failed state. There are so many failed states in Africa and Nigeria is on the verge of getting to that status of a failed state.

    More than any other contribution, Nwabueze’s assertion that Nigeria is exhibiting signs of a failed state has been a subject of debate since then. The presidency in particular is not amused by the assertion. So, soon after the meeting in Enugu, presidential spokesmen did not hesitate to reject the assertion that symptoms of a failed state are manifesting in the Nigerian state.

    Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, in his reaction, was decisively combative when he described Nwabueze’s comments as “irresponsible” and “unpatriotic.”

    He contended that “available facts and figures do not suggest anything near a failed state in the country.”

    In his words: “A failed state is where there is erosion of legitimate authority, where there is instability and the country cannot afford to provide public services like the provision of light, good roads, water supply and security services.

    “In Nigeria, there is a serving national and state Assemblies providing quality legislative services and issuing out good and quality legislations for the good governance of the country and the states.

    But the former Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Alani Akinrinade and Col. Joe Achuzie (rtd), who also spoke at the Enugu event, said the situation in the country had gone so bad that the present leaders must go beyond rhetoric and seek solution to “what has obviously become a complex problem for the country.”

    Akinrinade, who attributed the problem of the country to the constitution which was handed over to us by the military, insisted that a democratic nation state like Nigeria cannot be ruled by military fiat. He was of the view that efforts should be made to prepare acceptable and workable constitution for the nation by Nigerians themselves.

    Achuzie pointed out that the existence of many nations within the country was becoming a major threat to its continued existence as one nation, explaining that the national conference would help in addressing the challenge.

    “Unless we go back and convene a national conference where all the ethnic nationalities will say how they will co-exist, there will be no movement forward. Something must be done to rescue the situation,” he said.

    Former governor of Anambra State, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, said the IYM’s call for national conference was faultless. “I agree with IYM that Nigeria must have a national dialogue, “if not for anything else, after 100 years of our existence, we should be able to talk about ourselves, we will remain together but we have to understand ourselves.”

    Mr. Solomon Asemota, SAN, in his contribution, said “the constitution we are operating now is very defective. Even the National Assembly has agreed to that and that’s why 60 areas have been short-listed for amendment.

    But the Special Adviser to the President on Inter-Party Affairs, Senator Ben Obi, in his speech said President Goodluck Jonathan and indeed the federal government was not against the convocation of a National Conference, but that the agitators of such conference should organise themselves and meet with both the president and the leaders of the National Assembly.

    “We’ve all agreed to a national conference but at this time, we should be able to go beyond calling for national conference and initiate action towards realising same. Even the president himself has never said he is opposed to the conference but we need the right calibre of men and women to go to Abuja and demand from both the president, who is heading the executive and Senator David Mark, who is heading the legislature, on the need to convoke a national conference.

    Prof. Mark Odu, in a paper presented at the occasion, titled: ‘Ndigbo: Identity crisis has ended,” said “only people who are relevant to a people will lead them from here on, just as the era of cash and carry politics is at an end and our identity, born of our history, should dictate our trajectory.

    ‘Ndigbo should have no other identity crisis to move on in Nigeria. They should just make up their minds about what is right, proper and in the general good of Nigeria and use their population to move Nigeria there,” he said.

    Other eminent Nigerians in attendance, included Chief Guy Ikoku and Prof. Felix Oragwu.

     

     

  • Leaders sworn in

    Leaders sworn in

    THE Student wing of the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers (NSCHE), Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka chapter, has inaugurated its new executive.

    The inauguration, which took place last Friday at the Chemical Engineering department building, witnessed a large turnout of students.

    The Head of the department, Dr Joseph Nwabanne, advised the members to surpass the achievement of the outgoing leaders, stressing that the department was known for promotion of excellent and hard work. Nwabanne urged the incoming leaders to “be aggressive” in attending national conferences and students conventions of the mother engineering body.

    The staff adviser of the society, Dr Matthew Menkiti, advised members of the executive to observe due process in the discharge of their duties. He listed the achievements of the outgoing members, which he said included a purchase of functional projector, fixing public address system and organisation of “best induction ceremony” in the faculty. He urged the new executives to do more.

    The incoming president, Samuel Aroh, a 300-Level student, expressed gratitude to the students for voting him, while promising to work with other members of the executive to move the department forward. The outgoing president, Chukwudi Umeokwonna, advised his successor to always seek the opinion of the staff adviser before embarking on any activity.

    Others inaugurated included Nkechi Tony-Okereke, Vice President; Onyekwelu Nwabundo, Secretary; Judith Uchechukwu, Assistant Secretary; Chidiogo Ezekwem, Financial Secretary; Augustine Amraibure, Director of Socials 1; Ogonna Ofojebe, Director of Socials II; Livinus Udeh, Public Relations Officer 1; Ogechi Ezepue, Public Relations Officer II; and Arinze Ezekude, Provost.

     

  • Ekiti students inaugurate leaders

    Ekiti students inaugurate leaders

    The Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife chapter of the Federation of Ekiti State Students’ Union (FESSU) has inaugurated its new executive. The ceremony, which was held last week, was attended by members of the federation, who thronged to the venue.

    The incoming president, Temitope Orebe, promised to promote the welfare if the members. Temitope, who is a native of Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government and 400-Level Law student, advised students to take their primary assignment seriously, urging members to uphold what Ekiti State is known.

    He promised to carry out programmes, which would address the needs of the member, assuring that bursary and scholarship allowances would be paid regularly.

    Though, the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Bamitale Omole, whi is a native of the state, was absent but lecturers from Ekiti State were present including the immediate past president of the association, Dada Oluwasheyi.

  • 2014: Ekiti PDP leaders in supremacy battle

    2014: Ekiti PDP leaders in supremacy battle

    Ahead 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State, Assistant Editor, Dare Odufowokan, reports that the fortune of opposition People’s Democratic Party is being threatened by factional interests and endless supremacy battle.

     

    The race for the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2014 governorship election is fast gathering momentum.  A growing number of gubernatorial aspirants have stepped up very intense political activities aimed at being positioned as frontline contenders for the party’s ticket.

    In fact, so intense are the political activities daily being organised by aspirants on the platform of the PDP that the state governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, recently described them as unnecessary distraction to governance in the state.

    Aside Fayemi, the PDP itself is feeling the heat emanating from what has become a supremacy battle among chieftains of the party. The current factionalisation of the party with aspirants and their godfathers alike controlling splinter groups within the party, is a fallout of the ongoing struggle.

    The return of former governor Ayo Fayose to the party, last September, has contributed to the frenzied political activities in the state. Shortly after being granted a waiver by the national leadership of the PDP last year, the former governor declared his intention to vie for governorship position in 2014.

    His supporters have been painting the streets with his posters and organising rallies. His group, which has a firm control of the party leadership in the state, has also been very outspoken in criticising the Fayemi-led Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) administration in the state.

    Fayose is not alone in the race for Fayemi’s job. About a dozen of other PDP chieftains are currently oiling their political machineries to give the sitting governor a run for his money in 2014. But first, they will have to slug it out among themselves to determine who flies the party’s flag.

    Others who have already thrown their hats into the ring for the contest include Bisi Omoyeni, former deputy governor and a former Managing Director of Wema Bank Plc. His entrant into the race is still seen by many as a surprise given the manner he left his job as Fayose’s deputy some years back.

    Another former deputy governor of the state, Chief Abiodun Aluko, is also keen on getting the PDP ticket to confront Fayemi in 2014. He made his intention to contest the forthcoming governorship election in the state known at a rally in Ikere Ekiti.

    While many see Aluko’s ambition as a continuation of the frosty political relationship between him and Fayose, his former boss, the Ikere-born politician is quick to say that he is not at loggerheads with the ex-governor.

    “Fayose and I have no quarrel at all because we have been able to put the past behind us. He was personally present during my official declaration in Ikere Ekiti and he promised to work with me if I end up clinching the ticket to run as the candidate of our great party,” he said.

    But the constant clash between the supporters of these two politicians and the fact that they belong to different factions of the party puncture their claim of friendship and expose the battle for supremacy currently raging between them.

    The immediate past senator representing Ekiti North, Mr. Ayo Arise, former member of the House of Representatives, who represented Ekiti North Federal Constituency 1, Mr. Wale Aribisala, and a former senator from Ekiti South district, Mr Gbenga Aluko, are some other chieftains of the party currently jostling for the gubernatorial ticket ahead of the 2014 election.

    The race to dislodge Fayemi also has another estranged ally of Fayose’s, Yinka Akerele, Ropo Ogunbolude, who was a Special adviser to former governor, Chief Olusegun Oni, a former chairman of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) in the administration of Oni, Chief Dayo Adeyeye, and Second Republic Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Bode Olowoporoku in contention on the platform of the PDP.

    There are also very strong indications that the Minister of Police Affairs, Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade (rtd), may also be interested in the party’s governorship ticket.

    Although Olubolade has not signified intention to contest, sources said interest groups are daily springing up within and outside his political party across the 16 local government areas of the state to push for his emergence as the party’s candidate in the 2014 governorship race.

    Following the rumour of the minister’s ambition, the Fayose camp has been viewing Olubolade with suspicion. It would be recalled that the minister and the former governor joined forces to snatch the control of the party in the state from former governor Segun Oni’s faction.

    At PDP congress, held on March 18, 2012, the group loyal to Olubolade and Fayose polled 318 votes to produce Makanjuola Ogundipe as the chairman, defeating Akin Omole who polled 310 votes. Omole is loyal to the Oni-led faction of the party.

    The Fayose group also produced all other party executive members. Prompted by Oni and other party chieftains opposed to Fayose’s rising profile in the party, Omole declared himself as a factional chairman.

    The national leadership of the party recently recognised the Ogundipe-led executive and mandated the party in Ekiti to spare no effort in bringing the Omole group back into the recognised PDP.

    But the ongoing struggle for the gubernatorial ticket of the party may have further divided the party into splinter groups as all the aspirants and their godfathers are daily scheming on how to grab control of the party machinery in the state ahead of the 2014 election.

    Recently, the Omole group said there can be no reconciliation except the state executive is harminised. Former governor Oni, who is believed to be the pillar behind the group, made the statement.

    “There can’t be serious reconciliation without harmonisation. If they said they are reconciling, the question is, did they fight each other? What brought the disagreement was that some people felt left out from the running of the party. That is why we have to seek accommodation everywhere for those that are left out. We must accommodate everybody so we can all work together to achieve our objective of taking this party to the promised-land as quickly as possible,” Oni said

    The fear of the Oni-led faction, according to sources within the party, is that with the control of the party firmly in the hands of Fayose’s associates, it will be difficult for them to stop the imminent emergence of the former governor as the candidate of the PDP in 2014.

    But Fayose and his allies are not ready for any reconciliation that will tamper with the current leadership of the party in the state. They argue that the proposal is a calculated attempt by some people to weaken the party ahead of the governorship election.

    The former governor, while calling for caution on the part of some notable chieftains of the party,  said the Ogundipe-led state executive is open to reconciliation and ready to readmit disgruntled members back to the fold. But he was quick to add that whoever is still thinking of harmonisation should stop dreaming.

    Determined to find a way out of the current gridlock within the party, some party chieftains are now clamouring for the expansion of the State Working Committee to a 40 –member executive to accommodate the aggrieved members.

    The proponents of this new peace initiative, led by former deputy governor, Abiodun Aluko, said it will allow all factions and groups within the party to have a sense of belonging in the affairs of the party while also not tampering with the place of the current executive members.

    “In the election, someone polled 318 to defeat the main challenger who polled 310. So it will be difficult for those victorious in the congress to sideline those who lost out because the election was too close. But I want to emphasise that the present executive should be allowed to stay, but new offices can be created because the 14 –member executive is not sacrosanct, so that peace can reign,” Aluko said.

    But the state executive members would want Aluko ignored. According to them, the initiative is just another ploy to throw spanner into the wheels of the party’s determination to win the 2014 governorship election.

    “We know these people very well. They are our people and we can read them well. What they want is for us to succumb to their evil plots of either harmonisation or expansion so that latter on, they can go to court and say the composition of the state executive is not known to law. That way, they will drag the party into litigation and stall our match to victory,” a leading member of the executive said.

    With the governorship election in Ekiti fast approaching, analyst are saying unless the ongoing supremacy tussle within the PDP in the state is put to rest as quickly as possible, it may be very difficult for the party to make good its promise of returning to the government house in 2014.

     

  • The papal attitude our leaders need

    The papal attitude our leaders need

    The pope, the supreme leader of Catholics worldwide, is respected not only by members of his faith, but by people of other faith. Whether a Muslim, Protestant, Methodist, Anglican, Baptist, Lutheran or Pentecostal, we all rever the pope because of his office. The pope occupies an exalted post which confers on him the moral authority to speak and be listened to by those in power. Even dictators recognise the moral influence of the pope. Whether we like it or not, the pope remains the leading figure in Christendom. We may not like him or his faith, but we cannot afford to disrespect his exalted office.

    It is the office that makes the pope and not the other way round. When the pope speaks, he does so with the authority of his high office. Though popes are human, we have come to deify the office they occupy because we believe that in doing so, we are serving God through them. Since we all want to be on God’s side nobody wants to be seen to do anything that will offend a pope, except such a person is a Joseph Stalin or a Sani Abacha. What did these brutes do? They looked down with disdain at popes. The late  Abacha as military head of state rebuffed entreaties by the late Pope John Paul II to release the late Chief MKO Abiola from detention in 1998.

    The late Stalin as a general in the German army ridiculed the high office of the pope during World War 11. In response to the late British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s admonition that Poland be spared the agony of the war as a Catholic nation-state in order  to avoid having complicated relations with the Vatican,  the late Stalin fired this riposte : ‘’How many divisions does the Pope of Rome have?’’ The pope may not have troops as Stalin observed but he has something greater than all the soldiers of the world put together. These are the battalions of the Lord’s army, who are willing and ready to take up the pope’s fight whenever the need arises.

    The pope is the commander-in-chief of the Lord’s army. He does not fight his own wars with arms. His weapon of warfare is not carnal. The only weapon he has is the word, which is greater than all the guns, bazookas and armoured tanks in the world. There is nothing that drives home the moral authority that popes wield than the sudden resignation of the current pope on Monday on health grounds. The world is still in shock that Pope Benedict XVI could throw in the towel because he has become ‘’incapacitated’’ by age. Many are shocked because if they were in his shoes, they would not have taken that route. They would have remained in office, wasting state resources on what they know to be a bad case. We are witnessing a thing like this in our own clime.

    Here in Nigeria, resignation is not in the dictionary of public officers no matter how bad their health is. Even when they know that they can no longer continue in office, they will keep it as a secret from the people and be pretending that all is well with them. Illnesses know no status. No matter the office one occupies if he does not have good health, he cannot enjoy that position. Those who say that health is wealth know what they are talking about. He who has good health has everything. He is fit and able to do his work no matter how hectic it may be. The jobs of a pope and let’s say a governor are not easy. They are demanding jobs and those who occupy these offices should be ready to give the job their all. They can only give their all when they are hale and hearty.

    Man has no control over health matters. We can fall ill at anytime irrespective of the position we hold. A master falls ill and a servant also takes ill. The pope’s case has shown that illness is not a respecter of position. Because the rich and the poor can fall ill, it goes to show that there is nothing to be ashamed about when we are indisposed, especially, if we occupy public positions. We should be able to come clean with the people when anything ails us as public officers because by virtue of our positions we have become public property. What the pope has done should be a lesson to all those who hold public office that we should be open at all times. If the pope had kept quiet, nobody would have known that anything is wrong with him, particularly as the Vatican is very good at keeping secrets.

    But because of the fear of God, he told the world the truth about his health and opted to resign from office, something which seems difficult to do in this part of the world. About three years ago when the late President Umaru Yar’ Adua became ill those around him did everything possible to keep it away from the public until he died in the confines of Aso Rock. In recent times, some governors took ill and instead of their people being briefed about these leaders’ ailment, they went abroad under the guise of going on holiday. When their vacations became longer than necessary, the people started asking questions. Instead of providing answers to these questions, their aides resorted to imputing political motives.

    Who is to blame in such circumstance? Those asking questions or those trying to shroud the governors’ true health status in secrecy? One of the governors, Sullivan Chime, of Enugu State is back; the other, Liyel Imoke of Cross River is still abroad. We don’t know what ails Imoke, but it seems his illness may not be that serious as he had time to celebrate his wife’s 50th birthday last year in the United States (US). He is expected to have resumed by now, but he has not. We have no been told why, but when we start writing about it, our reports will be seen as pieces of entertainment to be laughed at just as Chime and his friends did when we carried stories about his illness while he was abroad.

    ‘’When I read in the papers how I died in India, we then turned Nigerian papers to entertainment forum. We read what they wrote about me and laughed. It became an amusement kind of thing’’, he told reporters in Enugu on Tuesday. The joke, your excellency is rather on you. If you had provided the information you gave on Tuesday, there would have been no need for speculations in the papers about your health. Sir, there is nothing to be ashamed of if we are ill. We are all human, whether a governor or a reporter; so, the report was not to mock you; it was to draw attention to your health challenge. You knew from the outset that you were going abroad for cancer surgery; so, why did you keep the information to yourself?

    Were you afraid that we will wish you death under the surgeon’s knife? That is where you got it wrong sir. If you had told us we would have prayed for a successful surgery for you as the world is today praying for the pope. If the pope can tell the world that he is ill, why can’t governors in Nigeria do the same? Why should we as public officers be afraid to inform those we lead of our illnesses? The other day, Hillary Clinton was diagnosed of blood clot and as she was being taken to  the hospital, her aides released information about her illness. That is how it should be, but unfortunately our leaders do not think so because they have something to hide.

    There is no big deal about illnesses because they will come and go, if we are not destined to be killed by them. Our leaders tend to make a mountain out of a molehill with the way they handle issues relaing to their health. They are too secretive about their well-being as if it is an abomination to be ill. What happened in the case of the late President Yar’ Adua should have taught them a lesson, but they will never learn. But it is not too late; they can still learn from how Pope Benedict XVI  handled his own health challenge. May God give us leaders who are forthright, down to earth and can connect with us.

     

  • Leaders for Osun students

    The National Association of Osun State Students (NAOSS), Osun State Polytechnic (OSPOLY), Iree, has inaugurated a new executive. The ceremony, which was held at the New Lecture Hall 7, was attended by the chairman of the association’s electoral commission, Bashir Fatai and president of OSPOLY Students’ Union Government (SUG), Abiodun Osin.

    Fatai dissolved the outgoing executive before swearing in the new officials. In his admonition, Abiodun noted that the youth in every society remained the dynamic, energetic, courageous and productive. He charged the incoming members of the association to work for students who elected them into the offices.

    The new executive is led by Gafar Usman. Others are Abolore Ogundapo, Vice President; Olumuyiwa Ogunleye, General Secretary; Muibat Mohammed, Assistant General Secretary; Kazeem Alade, Financial Secretary; Ayomikun Adesogbon, Treasurer, and Jonathan Adeyanju, Auditor General.

    Others are, Idowu Olapade, Public Relations Officer 1; Habeeb Mustapha, Social Director; Taiwo Lawal, Welfare Director and Sikiru Okiki, Chief Whip.

    In his remark, Gafar noted that his administration would discharge its responsibilities without fear or favour to any group. He also promised to make life better for the members of the association.

  • Oyo students elect leaders

    •Ajimobi praised on good governance

    The National Association of Oyo Students (NAOS) has elected leaders at the national level of the association. The elected officials will steer the affairs of the association for an academic session.

    The election took place amid tight security at the Old Atiba Local Government Secretariat, which now houses the NAOS secretariat.

    Daud Temitope, a student of the University of Ibadan (UI), became the president while Hassan Adebayo, a student of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) was elected Speaker.

    At the inaugural sitting presided by Hassan, the 400-Level Political Science student charged the members of the executive to rise up to the challenges facing the association. He observed that the time when elected officials would shy away from responsibilities had gone, adding that the association must be repositioned to attain an enviable height.

    Daud thanked God for his election, noting that his administration was faced with a great task. He said every member of the association would be carried along in the implementation of his programmes. He assured members that the association’s secretariat in new Atiba Local Government, Ofa Meta, which is still under construction, would be completed soon.

    Meanwhile, the Federation of Oyo State Students Union, (FOSSU) has praised Governor Abiola Ajimobi for “giving governance a new meaning in the state”. This commendation was made at the FOSSU senate meeting, which took place at the headquarters of Ibarapa Central Local Government, Igbo-Ora, last week.

    The National President of the union, Olansile Muili, while briefing senators of the union in a meeting presided by Ezekiel Ayansola, said he met the governor on the need to initiate a youth-oriented programme which, he said, the governor agreed on.

    He said the governor had agreed to sponsor the maiden Abiola Ajimobi Inter-tertiary Institutions Debate Competition in which all students of Oyo origin in tertiary institutions will participate. He added that plans were underway on the payment of bursary and scholarship, adding that it would be paid immediately after the biometric exercise.

    Ezekiel expressed happiness with the development, advising the president and the other executive members to work towards the realisation of the contest.