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  • One and half gbosa for Nigerian Senate

    One and half gbosa for Nigerian Senate

    The Nigerian Senate for a long time has existed in the calloused minds of the Nigerian people as a chamber where a hundred and nine men and women merely meet to discuss how to divvy the nation’s resources amongst themselves. While this may not be entirely true, the Senate on several occasions may not have also exhibited the character that millions of Nigerians all over the country and in diaspora are indeed yearning for. Asides from the election of a number of characters who naturally have no business in the business of legislating laws for the benefit of the Nigerian people, there is hardly a season that the Senate isn’t embroiled in one scandal after another, earning itself  some level of lavish notoriety with respect to allegations of corruption since the commencement of this republic, in May 1999.

    However, news that the Senate had asked President Bola Tinubu to Bola Ahmed Tinubu to withhold funds to the various Local Governments that deliberately failed to elect persons to fill spaces available to run or administer the LGs for a time frame as indicated in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria gladdened my heart as for once the Senate deserved some accolades for considering such a motion.

    Section 7 (1) of the Constitution which focuses on the issue of the Local Government System specifically states that: The system of the local government  by democratically elected local government councils is under this Constitution guaranteed…

    Even to a layman, the basic interpretation of such a section cannot end ambiguously, thus the continuous dependence by a number of state governors on the appointment of interim appointees under the nominal “Transition Committee “ to oversee the administration of  the Local Government System is a flagrant disregard for the constitution and should be frowned upon.

    Read Also; Kaduna Bombing: We’ll push until victims get justice – Sultan

    A situation where an executive governor decides to appoint lackeys and yesmen  into positions for a particular period of time negates not only the democratic principle but also denies the persons at this level the opportunity to elect their choices. In a multiparty system such as ours, such automatically confers a systematic politics of exclusion on members of the other opposition parties who cannot have any representation by virtue of the fact that the governor handpicks party loyalists.

    Such a system much  affects also the deepening  of democracy in our political parties. As most appointments removes the process of competition amongst party men and women. Power therefore resides not in the people but in a few people.

    More-so, the lack of democracy within these councils denies the masses at the local government system any opportunity to adequately interact with the system which is the closest form of governance to them. Naturally, a duly elected local government chairman would naturally be accountable for funds allocated to his LG. Conversely, under the system of “transition! transition!! ”( Apologies to our former IG) the transiting chairman take whatever the Governor allots them but signs that he may have received more. It is a clear case of graft and is one of the means used by most governors, past and present to siphon funds into their own pockets.

    This way the LG’s are denied real development as all ideas relating to development rather than flow from bottom up are handed from top to bottom. This denies not only the LG’s from being competitive forms of government but also the state also loses as it is denied those outbursts of growth that ought to have occurred simultaneously across the state.

    The LG’s which then should be hubs of development are hubs of lethargy with no meaningful growth.

    The senate thus deserves at least one and half gbosa l( Naturally it ought to be three but…) such a resolution is in consonance with the demands of most Nigerians who are sick and tired of the lethargy at the grassroots. This may perhaps be the journey to a restructured Nigeria who knows?

    We cannot argue for true devolution of powers without a functional and democratic local government system.

    In my home state, Anambra, the duo of Willie Obiano and the present incumbent in Professor Chukwuma Soludo refused to conduct LG elections, Peter Obi in his holier than thou posturing conducted his in the twilight of his eight year tenure, compare this to the pace of development within states like Anambra and Kaduna that have regularly held LG’s and the difference will be as clear as between light and day!

    Unelected LG Chairmen and other officials are an aberration to our democracy and thus should not be allowed to subsist in our democracy which has grown beyond the context of being a nascent one.

    In an article sometime ago, I had clearly shown the nexus between the nation’s poverty level and our poor functional LG system. I thus enjoin the Senate and President Bola Tinubu to stand firm with the resolution and ensure that the right things are done! They should shun all forms of distraction and even the arguments that the Supreme Court has ruled on this matter in favour  of the states. That judgement was in favour of democratically elected governments and not that of appointees.

    Again, One and Half Gbosa for the Senate.

  • End of 8th Senate: What’s next for Saraki, Mark, Akpabio Kwankwaso, Akume, Ashafa others?

    All good things, they say, must end. The Eighth Senate was adjourned Sine Die on Thursday to mark the end of the legislative business of the upper chamber. It was a sobering day for the high and mighty in the Senate chamber with a lengthy valedictory session to cap it all.

    It was also a day to say goodbye to the Senate with all its attractions, a day to begin to plot how to face the world outside the confines of the National Assembly complex. For some, it was a day for chest beating and back patting. For others, especially those who suffered defeat in the February 23, senatorial election, they sported the full weight of a lost election like garments.

    Although most of the senators laboured to put up the ambiance of camaraderie in the chamber while the session lasted, it was obvious that many were lost in thought of the life after the Senate. Some could not conceal their emotion. Many failed to attend the session apparently for lack of what to say.

    The big question is: what’s next for some of the heavyweights in the Eighth Senate who fell by the wayside during the election?

    Where do bigwigs like Abubakar Bukola Saraki, David Mark, Godswill Akpabio, George Akume, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Ahmed Yerima, Magnus Abe, Shehu Sani, Gbenga Ashafa, Tayo Alasoadura, John Owan Enoh and others go from here?

    It may be difficult to decipher or decode what the future holds in stock for these movers and shakers of the Eighth Senate. What is certain, however, is that some of them are not finished politically. Some are already licking their wounds, while those in the All Progressives Congress (APC), who lost their deposit to return to the Senate, may be lucky to clinch ministerial and/or board appointments.

    As a matter of fact, some of them who are of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) extraction may return to the drawing board to plot a comeback. Some will play opposition politics as a means of survival.

     

    SARAKI

    For the two- term former governor of Kwara State, the future looks uncertain and the environment looks unfriendly. He lost his state to the APC. It was a humiliating defeat. The state rejected everything he stood for or represented.

    For 16 years, he had called the shots in the state. His words were laws, his wishes were commands.  Today, a new order is in place. Those opposed to him over the years are in charge. He is now a political reject. Can he bounce back in the state? It will be interesting to watch Saraki leading the opposition in Kwara.

    Going by the fluid nature of Nigerian politics, he may succeed in staging a political comeback in the state. But what becomes of him at the national level? Soon after his defection to the Peoples Democratic Party last year, he was made the National Leader of the party, being the highest political office holder in the party. Will he retain the position now that he holds no political office?

    Those who know him say his ambition to rule the country as President still burns high in him. Although some describe the ambition as an uphill task for him, others see him as one politician who knows how to surmount obstacles. Can he mount a strong campaign for President as a non-office holder? Can he match former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a veteran of presidential contest? Will an Aminu Tambuwal, for instance, queue behind him? Will he still have the clout to pose any serious challenge? The next four years will either make or completely render him irrelevant politically.

    Read also: How eighth Senate touched lives of Nigerians, by Saraki

     

    DAVID MARK

    He declared his retirement from active politics voluntarily. Some say with his wealth of experience, the Benue South former Senate President will always be relevant in the scheme of things in the country. Some describe him as the cat with nine lives.

    Mark, who side-stepped the legendary banana peel in the Senate for eight years, is said to have weighed the options and decided to take a deserved bow from the Senate. Others see him differently. They believe he is in his twilight years politically.

    On the national plane, he may not be a factor in his party. In Benue where the PDP is in power, his alliance with the governor, Senator Suswan, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu and others secured victory for his party. If the working understanding lasts, his relevance is assured. If it derails, he may be seen and heard but ineffective.

     

    GODSWILL AKPABIO

    For Akpabio, who represented Akwa Ibom North West, the coast is not clear. He vowed in his speech during the valedictory session that he would be part of the Ninth Senate. Akpabio is in court to retrieve what he described as his “stolen mandate.” How he is going to do it is yet to be seen.

    But it is also said that Akpabio is already negotiating for a ministerial slot. Any way it goes, the “uncommon Senator” may still play a role. His home state is a hostile environment.

     

    GEORGE AKUME

    Senator George Akume holds the enviable record as the first elected governor of Benue State to spend two terms in office from 1999 to 2007. He followed that up with a victory in the contest for the senatorial seat of Benue North-West and eventually became the minority leader of the upper chamber.

    In the jostle for the seat of the Senate President during the build-up to the Eighth Senate, he was a frontrunner before he stepped down for Ahmad Lawan when it looked like the latter was the candidate favoured by the party’s hierarchy until the Dr. Bukola Saraki pulled the rug off his feet by suborning members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to emerge the Senate President.

    If he had hoped to revive his ambition of becoming Senate President in the Ninth Senate, that too came crashing as he lost his bid for re-election Orker Jev, a former member of the House of Representatives and candidate of the PDP.

    But he is in court to challenge his defeat, believing that it is not over until it is over. If he loses his bid to retrieve his mandate, he will hinge his hope on securing a ministerial slot at the centre. Otherwise, he may spend the next four years in the winter.

     

    RABIU KWANKWASO

    Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso was the first governor of Kano State in the Fourth Republic, elected on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party. After ruling the state from 1999 to 2003, he lost his re-election bid to Ibrahim Shekarau in the 2003 governorship elections.

    But he returned as governor in 2011 for another four-year term that ended in 2015 when he contested the presidential primaries of the APC but lost to President Muhammadu Buhari.

    His bid for the presidential ticket of the PDP also fell on its face as he lost it to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar who also lost the election proper to President Muhammadu Buhari. Although Kwankwaso was handed the PDP structure in the state as a way of compensation, his son-in-law who he backed for the governorship seat also lost.

    His next line of action remains unclear, particularly as he has since fallen out with his former deputy and incumbent governor of the state, Abdullahi Ganduje. The defeat of the PDP governorship candidate in Kano State, observers say, may force him to retreat to plan a fresh political onslaught in order to remain relevant.

    SANI YERIMA

    Former Zamfara State governor, Alhaji Sani Yerima, is popular for championing the cause of Sharia by being the first governor to adopt it as the official mode of administration in his state. He held sway as the governor of the state for eight years from 1999 to 2007 before winning election to the Senate.

    Having been in the Senate since 2007, he was not a candidate in the last National Assembly elections. But if he had hoped to retire to the state with his party man in the saddle as governor, fate decided otherwise as the Supreme Court declared all the elections won by his party in the state null and void.

    With the nullification of APC elections in Zamfara State, new leaders have emerged. How he will get around the troubling situation remains uncertain. How far he can also go in the circumstance is uncertain if his plan was to retire to Zamfara to play godfather politics.

    He may, however, be aiming for a ministerial slot from his party at the centre if only to sustain his political relevance in the next four years.

    GBENGA ASHAFA

    Senator Gbenga Ashafa, a civil servant-turned-politician, was in the Senate for two terms representing Lagos East.

    Although he was visible in the APC in Lagos and in the Senate, that was not enough to earn him another term. He lost the party’s primary to four-term member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Bayo Osinowo.

    Observers expect him to remain in APC and remain visible. They also see him venture vigorously into business.

     

    TAYO ALASOADURA

    He was in the Senate for just one term representing Ondo Central.

    He won election into the Senate on the platform of the APC in 2015 but fell out with Governor Rotimi Akeredolu.

    Having lost on both fronts, Abuja and Ondo, his next move remains a matter of conjecture.

     

    MAGNUS ABE

    Senator Magnus Abe was one of the governorship aspirants whose dreams collapsed in the just concluded general elections. His bid to secure the governorship ticket could, however, not materialise as he engaged some of the party’s leaders in a running battle.

    Convinced that the governorship primary of the party did not follow a due process, he dragged the party to court to challenge the candidacy of Tonye Patrick-Cole who had emerged the governorship candidate of the APC through the party’s direct primaries.

    He heaved a sigh of triumph when the Supreme Court ruled the candidacy of Patrick-Cole null and void. All the while, there were allegations in the APC circle that Abe was doing the bidding of Governor Nyesom Wike and other PDP stalwarts in his battles with the leadership of APC.

    Even now, there are strong speculations that the Rivers East senator may defect to PDP to actualise his ambition. It is also being speculated that the governorship slot of Rivers State will be zoned to his area in 2013 to pave way for Abe to run.

    With his rumoured closeness to Governor Nyesom Wike, Abe may exploit the situation to oil his political campaign for 2023.

    JOHN OWAN ENOH

    The erstwhile senator from Cross River Central was one of the aspirants who had a shot at the governorship slot of Cross River State.

    Although he came from the academia to bestride the dark space of politics, Enoh weathered the storm to emerge the governorship candidate of APC. Unfortunately, he lost the election to the incumbent governor and candidate of the PDP, Ben Anyade.

    A lot of people believe that Enoh could return to the ivory tower and use it as a base from where he would make another shot at the governorship seat when the opportunity beckons again.

     

    SHEHU SANI

    The senator from Kaduna Central was one of those who were not in good terms with the governors of their states. Between him and Governor Nasir el-Rufai, there has been no love lost, hence his defeat at the poll did not come as a shock to many.

    His running battle with el-Rufai is seen by many as his undoing. But Sani is one that many would see as a cat with nine lives.

    Having failed to pick the APC ticket, he defected to the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) from where he hoped to realise his ambition of re-election into the Senate. However, he lost.

    His next line of action may be difficult to predict, considering that he came from the background of  an activist and may yet return to his comfort zone. A lot of people believe that activism runs in the vein of the Kaduna Central senator.

  • Senate threatens to order shutdown of Bet9ja over refusal to honour its invitation

    The Senate Committee on Youth and Sports on Tuesday threatened to order the shutdown of Bet9ja office if the company failed to honour its invitation for a second time.

    The Chairman of the Committee, Sen. Obinna Ogba, made the remark at the National Assembly, Abuja during the verification of loto companies with license to operate in Nigeria.

    Ogba (PDP Ebonyi Central) said it was unfortunate that Bet9ja refused to honour the committee’s invitation.

    “Clerk, write to Bet9ja again. If they did not honour our invitation, we will ask the National Lottery Commission to seal their offices,” he said.

    Read also: Updated: Senate begins Emefiele’s confirmation

    According to him, the Senate is making efforts aimed at assisting the Lottery Commission to generate money for the Federal Government.

    ”We want to see bet9ja. They can’t run away,” he said.

    The chairman explained that the verification followed series of complaints against the betting companies, adding that ”some don’t even have offices while others have not been making remittances to the government.”

    ”Some got the licences but they are not operating. The new regulation only give them one year to start operations,” he noted.

    Meanwhile, about 20 other betting companies appeared before the committee for the verification exercise. (NAN)

  • Senate Committe issues two -week ultimatum to truck owners, others, over Apapa gridlock

    The Senate Committe on Works has issued a two-week ultimatum to truck owners,  Nigerian Port Authority and other agencies to remove every truck/trailer causing traffic jam on Apapa-Wharf and Apapa-Oshodi roads.

    Besides, one-week deadline was given to contractor handling trailers’ park at Tincan Port  to complete the project for commissioning and immediate use.

    Also,  other agencies handling various  logistics operations at the Apapa port were issued another one-week ultimatum to brace up.

    In what he described as ‘a national embarrassment’ for trailers to turn bridges and major roads leading to the port  to parks, the Senate Committe Chairman, Senator Kabiru Gaya, warned that if there is no positive response after two weeks,  the committee would take definite action and also compel the Federal Government to do something drastic.

    Gaya, who led other senators on the committee like Barnabas Gemade, Clifford Ordia and Mao Ohambuwa on a fact finding mission to Lagos to seek a solution to the Apapa traffic jam,  said they have come to sit with all stakeholders to provide immediate solutions to the gridlock.

    He said :” Let me say for two weeks, we will see positive response. If we don’t, we will take our action and  I can assure that the federal government will do something drastic.”

    On automatic call up system for trailers,  Gaya stated that government was trying to get temporary parking spaces for trailers to ease traffic, calling on agencies that are concerned with trucks’ clearance to speed up the process by automating  their system of operations.

    He bemoaned alleged  illegal taxes levied on truck drivers for parking , calling on the security agencies to desist from the act.

    As part of measures to ease Apapa gridlock,  Gaya said a small committee has been set up to submit report to the Senate Committe within four days.
    He wants NPA and other agencies to give waivers to shippers so that other ports such as Warri and Port Harcourt ports could be attractive for use.

    During the emergency meeting  on decongestion of traffic jam in Apapa in Lagos, stakeholders such as representatives from NPA, truck drivers’ associations, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority,  Federal Roads Safety Commission and shippers spoke on causes of the gridlock and how to nib it in the bud.

    Inadequate loading bays by ship owners, bottleneck procedures of clearance, multiple check points by the Nigerian Customs and decadence of port infrastructure were listed as factors responsible for trailers gridlock on Apapa road.

    General Manager Security, NPA,  Captain Iheanacho Ebubeogu , stated what his agency was doing to fast track trailer clearance,  calling on other companies to comply with modus of its operation at the port.

    Director of Work in the South west urged owners of trailers to remove them from the road and park them in designated locations.

  • Onnoghen’s suspension: Senate APC caucus seeks to join suit

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) Senate Caucus Monday applied to the Supreme Court to be joined in the suit filed by the Senate challenging the suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen.

    The application of the APC Caucus to be joined in the suit is coming despite the withdrawal of the suit by the leadership of the upper chamber.

    The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, had in a statement said that they decided to discontinue the case due to the intervention of the National Judicial Council (NJC) in the matter.

    Senate Leader, Senator Ahmad Lawan, in another statement, said that the APC caucus decided to join in the suit to challenge the inclusion of its members by the leadership.

    Read Also: Onnoghen’s suspensionnot signal to dictatorship – FG

    The statement reads: “The Senate caucus ‎of the All Progressives Congress (APC), consisting 56 senators, being the majority party in the Senate, today Monday, 4th February, 2019, applied to the Supreme Court, to join in the suit purportedly filed by the Senate, against the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as interested parties.

    “The APC senators rely on the Supreme Court (Additional ‎Original Jurisdiction) Act of 2002, which provides that the resolution of the respective chambers of the National Assembly is a prerequisite of filing such suit.

    “The caucus is therefore challenging the said suit and objects to the inclusion of its members.”

    It is not clear whether the Senate APC caucus application to be joined in the suit was made before the Senate withdrew the suit.

    It is also not clear if the caucus will insist on going ahead with the suit.

  • UPDATED: Senate cancels emergency plenary session

    The Senate on Monday called off its planned resumption of plenary for Tuesday.

    The leadership of the Senate at the weekend summoned emergency session of the upper chamber to consider the suspension of the Chief Justice of Nigeria(CJN) Justice Walter Onnoghen.

    Immediately the emergency plenary session was announced, tension began to build as All Progressives Congress (APC) senators and their Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) counterparts started mobilising members for what was described as a “make- or- mar session.”

    The Senate leadership also held a series of meetings said to have been necessitated by the need to weigh options.

    Late Monday, feelers filtered that the leadership of the Senate was considering calling off the emergency session.

    It was alleged that some senators concluded arrangements to perpetrate mayhem in the chamber during the session.

    Read Also: Onnoghen’s suspension: Senate calls emergency session

    The cancellation of the planned session may not be unconnected with the fear that “things might get out of hand” a senator told our reporter.

    There was also rumour flying around that some senators planned to move impeachment notice against the Senate leadership at the emergency session.

    The Clerk to the Senate, Nelson Ayewor in a statement entitled “Cancellation of Senate resumption in plenary” informed “all Distinguished senators of the National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that the resumption in plenary scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday 29th January, 2019 has been cancelled.”

    The statement said that the scheduled date of resumption in plenary earlier fixed for Tuesday, 19th February, 2019 remains.

  • Drama as Senate confirms Olukoyede as EFCC scribe

    The Senate on Wednesday finally confirmed the appointment of Mr. Olanipekun Olukoyede, as the Secretary of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    The confirmation was however not without drama.

    Sharp disagreement between the Chairman, Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Senator Chukwuka Utazi and some members of the Committee, trailed the confirmation.

    Two members of the committee, Senators Isa Hamman Misau and Dino Melaye, claimed that the screening of Olukoyede was done without their input.

    The duo insisted that they should be told if there were hidden interests in the screening of the nominee.

    The situation almost degenerated into verbal altercation between Utazi and Misau but for Senate President Bukola Saraki’s intervention.

    Olukoyede, from Ekiti State, is the Chief of Staff to the Acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu.

    He was nominated as Secretary to the Commission by President Buhari through a letter dated September 10, 2018 and addressed to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki.

    The Senate on October 3, 2018, referred President Buhari’s request for the confirmation of the nominee to the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, for screening.

    Utazi (Enugu North), on Tuesday, presented the report of the Committee on the screening of the nominee to the Senate for adoption.

    He told the Senate that Olukoyede satisfied the Committee and demonstrated competence and sufficient experience to occupy the office for which he was nominated.

    Senator Misau (Bauchi Central) opposed the confirmation of Olukoyede, claiming that most members of the Committee were not carried along in the screening exercise.

    Utazi explained that he invited all members of the Committee to the screening of the nominee but only three of them attended.

    He also noted that the three senators out of the eight members formed quorum because the Senate rule stipulates that one-third of members shall form quorum.

     Saraki asked the Committee members to meet and discuss the report to avoid creating divergent positions on the confirmation exercise.

    When the report was presented again yesterday for consideration and adoption, Senator Misau raised further objections.

    The Bauchi Central Senator claimed that he was not contacted for the meeting as directed by the Senate on Tuesday.

    Another member of the Committee, Senator Dino Melaye, supported Misau.

    Read also: EFCC arraigns businessman for providing false information

    Melaye said that Utazi did not comply with the resolution of the Senate to hold a meeting of members of the committee to discuss the report.

    Utazi, who expressed anger over the accusation by members of the committee, told the Senate that he sent letters of invitation to all members.

    He said some members of the committee did not attend the meeting because they went for oversight functions of other committees.

    He said that some Committee members were holding the Senate to ransom due their selfish interest.

    Utazi urged the Senate not to set a bad precedence by allowing few individuals to slow down the work of the chamber out of their selfishness.

    Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, explained that once a committee had turned in its report, the report become the property of the Senate.

    Ekweremadu said that after debate of such report, the presiding officer put the question to allow senators vote the way they wanted.

    Senate Leader, Senator Ahmed Lawan also said that the committee met the rules of the Senate.

    A voice vote agreed that the report should be considered.

    Another voice vote overwhelmingly supported the confirmation of Olukoyede  as the EFCC secretary.

  • Senate seeks appointment of separate power minister

    Senate seeks appointment of separate power minister

    The poor power generation and distribution in the country took the center stage in the Senate yesterday.

    After over one hour of debate on ways and means to improve the near moribund power sector, the upper chamber resolved to ask President Muhammadu Buhari to appoint a separate power minister with further delay.

    The Senate insisted that the appointment of a separate power minister would ensure concentration in the power sector.

    Senator Francis Alimikhena (Edo North) who moved the motion for the appointment of a separate minister of power, posited that such a measure would assist the country to shore up the power sector.

    The senate resolution followed the adoption of a motion on “The need to establish and delegate Special Purpose Vehicles to execute and operate Major Power Sector Development Projects,” sponsored by Senator Mustapha Bukar (Katsina North)

    Senator Bukar in his lead debate said that the National Assembly enacted the Electric Power Sector Reform (EPSR) Act, 2005 on March 11, 2005, which kick-started the process of privatization of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) towards developing a Competitive Electricity Market with the establishment of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to provide for the licensing and regulation of the entire value chain of the Nigerian Electricity Market (NEM)

    He also noted that the privatization exercise became effective on November 1, 2013 when the unbundled Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) was sold and transferred to successful bidders of the 6 Generation Companies (GENCOs) and the 11 Distribution Companies (DISCOs), while the ownership and control of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) was retained by the Federal Government for strategic reasons.

    He said “Further notes that in its quest to bridge the power gap for sustained economic growth in Nigeria by adding significant new generation capacity to Nigeria’s electricity supply system, the Federal Government conceived the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) in 2004, which metamorphosed into Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC) incorporated in 2005.

    Read also: http://staging.thenationonlineng.net/buhari-remains-only-credible-candidate-for-2019-election/

    “Aware that this institution oversees Generation portfolio consisting of 10 gas-fired power plants with cumulative design capacity of 4,774 MW; Total Asset value of $8.5 Bn including generation projects accompanied by supporting transmission, distribution and gas infrastructure projects and due to gas supply shortage and uncompleted transmission projects, only about 1,200 MW was accessible to the national grid at that time.

    “Consequently upon the commencement of the privatization and establishment of the Nigerian Electricity Market, the role of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works & Housing (FMPW&H) was restricted to Policy and oversight of the autonomous agencies operating in the Nigerian Power Sector; these are the:

    Transmission Company of Nigeria; National Power Training Institute of Nigeria; Nigerian Electricity Liability Management Limited (NELMCO); Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA), Rural Electrification Agency

    “Notes that considering the need for continuous development of the Power Sector infrastructure, the Federal Government remains committed to developing project initiatives in order to increase generating capacity and diffuse the energy mix beyond thermal generation to renewable energy, such as hydro-power, solar power and wind energy.

    Consequently, certain project initiatives were retained for direct supervision by the Federal Ministry of Power. These included, but are not limited to:

     3,050 MW Mambilla Hydropower project; 700 MW Zungeru Hydropower project,  215 MW Kaduna Thermal Power project; 50 MW Katsina Wind Power project

    “Further Notes that annually significant and incremental sums are appropriated towards these projects and the National Assembly has been approving such appropriation in the interest of conceived intention to improved generation capacity to the Nigerian citizens;

    “Worried that there are challenges of managing such projects because the Federal Ministry of Power, as currently constituted, does not have the required professional competence and resources to effectively execute these projects, hence they resort to engaging contractors and consultants for every project development activity;

    “Also worried that the implementation of large scale projects is always fraught with the risk of cost and schedule overrun, with attendant consequences on overall contract sum;

    “Notes that turnkey Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) projects have FIDIC Conditions of Contract being applicable with strict provisions for liquidated damages, such as fixed contract sum and set delivery period. Unfortunately, these conditions of contract cannot be met under the setting of a ministry;

    “Further notes that necessary project management controls needed for effective delivery are not enforceable on the Federal Ministry of Power; these are:

    Cost Control, Schedule Control, Quality Assurance (Q-plan, Q-criteria, etc.), Procurement Control (personnel, inspection and expedition), Design Control (Design compliance and value engineering), Change Order Control (Management of scope variations); Document Control (Review & timely approval of designs).

    “Worried that with the engagement of multitudes of consultants, there is a risk of lack of ownership and knowledge transfer upon completion and commissioning of the projects, which would hamper proper management of the facilities when in operation. This is the current situation being experienced at the 215 MW Kaduna Power plant under construction by the Ministry;

    “Aware that Nigeria has had successful record of implementing several mega infrastructure projects to completion and it is imperative to draw on such models utilized for refineries, fertilizer plants and steel mills (Kaduna and Port Harcourt Refineries, National Fertilizer Company of Nigeria Plc (NAFCON), Delta Steel Company Limited and the 3 Inland Rolling Mills). Each of these Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) had full management team and foundation staff to manage the execution of the project on site. Upon completion, the Project Managers were appointed as the Managing Directors, while full-stream staff members were recruited prior to commissioning the projects;

    “Further aware that when the Federal Government was keen to build Gas based power plants, it created the Niger Delta Power Holding Company of Nigeria (NDPHC) to build, manage and operate these schemes. Although some of the power generating plants have been sold, NDPHC has continued to own and run these plants while the Government is preparing to sell the remaining plants;

    “Worried that with the privatization of the power sector, the Federal Ministry of Power, Works & Housing is rapidly expanding its project implementation activities rather than   limit its role to General Policy direction pursuant to Section 33 of the EPSR Act 2005.

    This attitude has not given the regulatory body, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and other agencies created by the Reform Act the enabling environment to develop their capacity to regulate and create the electricity market required to attract investment in the sector. This assertion is evidenced by the fact that over N100billion has been provided for the construction of power projects by the ministry under the 2017 budget. Recently, the Federal government announced the approval of over $5billion for the construction of the Mambila hydro project under the ministry.”

    Also read: Rich Nigerians should pay more tax- Senate

    The Katsina State lawmaker prayed the Senate to accordingly resolve to urge the Federal Government to immediately incorporate SPVs for the implementation of the following alternative energy projects:a. Hydropower Projects; b. Solar Power Projects; and c. Wind Power Projects;

    Urge the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing to use gas as the source of Energy for the Kaduna Project in accordance with the original project concept and the MOU signed with gas suppliers to complete the project as  adequate provision has been made for the project in the 2017 Budget;

    Urge the Federal Government to employ qualified management team to take charge of the project development in the SPVs and gradually resource the companies in readiness for full operations when the projects  are commissioned;

     Urge the Federal Government to transfer all generation, transmission and rural electrification projects to the respective agencies for proper administration;

    Urge the above-named SPV’s when created to comply with the provisions of the Electric Power Sector Reform (EPSR) Act by applying to NERC for the generation licenses and to the TCN for Grid inter-connection approval.

    All the prayers were adopted.

  • Nigerian Senate, what gives?

    Right now, Nigerians are too hungry and angry to tolerate jokes, clownishness, absurdities, pantomimes, buffooneries, slapsticks and other theatrical movements that do not translate to more food for the people in general

    Leader, I am sure you are also wondering, just as I am, what to do with this intractable weather. I tell you, I am at my wit’s end. When it’s not unbearably hot, you are wondering if the heavens have not forgotten to close the gates of hell. Yet, the fans and air conditioners we installed in the streets silent; — no electricity. What, there are no air conditioners installed in the streets? The people have no food to eat we’re talking about street ACs? Now, look who’s looking at the fine points. I could have sworn our government had got round to that considering all the billions of Naira I hear being bandied about daily.

    Well, someone had better hurry up with that street air-conditioning project, because the news is that we ain’t seen nothing yet. Yeah, the Meteorological Room people upstairs are predicting a much higher jump in the temperature, worldwide. Anyway, now I am wishing I had built me a house of bricks. I hear they are extremely cool all year round, like my grandmother’s water pot. The greatest fridge in the world cannot match that one, and it does not need IBEDC.

    I’ll tell you something that is even much cooler than that pot, it’s the news that women make better leaders than men. Ah ha! I always knew it, but I was too afraid to say it. Some new study has said it for me, that women make better leaders than their male colleagues. The long and short of that study is that women possess some personality traits such as openness, sociability, supportiveness, etc., that make them better leaders. Did I say that already?

    Who would have guessed it? I thought these were the very things men used to put down in the house. ‘Why must we visit my brother the third time in two years simply because he lost his job?’, goes the man petulantly. And the woman goes, ‘It’s not just your brother I am worried about, it’s the children. We need to make sure they are alright.’ So, because of this, the study is saying women are… What a world we live in.

    If it is true that women make better leaders (I love the sound of that), then it must mean that the Nigerian Senate does not know it. Right now, people are not too happy with the senate, because the women are not up and doing. It could also mean that there aren’t enough females in the senate to shove the men aside and take over.

    Seriously, the happenings in the Nigerian Upper Chamber seem to have left all us gawking and wondering what is going on. Here we are, a nation filled with people who are literally hungry and practically begging each other for a morsel of food, tired of a supposedly temporary recession that is promising every whit to be permanent, and all we get is a senate filled with people callously celebrating unseriousness! If we are not hearing about a senator who has given serial numbers to his vehicles literally, we are hearing about a bullet-proof jeep that is having us all going around doing double takes and muttering aloud to each other like Galileo, ‘Can this be so? Can it be true?’

    At the centre of these national affairs appear to be the senate president, Senator Bukola Saraki and Senator Dino Melaye. I have listened to the discourses and have been amazed at how we have all left the substances and are chasing the shadows around. The first substance is that Nigerians are hungry. The second is that Nigerians are hungrier than we know. The third is that Nigerians …. You can guess the rest, but listen to the shadows we are chasing right now.

    First, should the Ag. head of customs, a retired army colonel, appear before the senate in his street clothes or appropriately uniformed? Hmn. Am I hearing someone giving a parallel metaphor about Nero fiddling while Rome burnt? The difference with this one is that instead of picking up buckets and attacking the inferno, the people are standing around debating the philosophy of conflagrations. A worthy subject for a treatise, right?

    Then, the discourse moved to the Magu case. To be (confirmed) or not to be (confirmed); that was the question. Again, rather than beg the assembly people to stop roiling around doing photoshoots and get down to the serious business of governing, the ordinary people preferred to add the weight of their lips to the matter and take sides. We are still hungry, people, or have we forgotten? Don’t we think that is a weightier subject for us to attack with our lips? It gets worse.

    Then came the controversy of whether or not senator Dino actually graduated from the university he claimed. Again, there were pages and pages, posts upon posts affecting to either side. It got so bad even the exalted chief executive (that stands for Vice Chancellor in some universities) of the institution had to take some valuable hours to address the press and slap our faces with the almighty fact: the senator graduated in third class! I hear the record keepers are still trying to locate the exact records to back him up.

    Naturally, the exulting third class graduate is said to have made a triumphant entry into the hallowed chamber the next day, wearing his academic gown. Now, I say, there is everything worrisome about this. To start with, I ask myself, is this kind of behaviour allowed in the chamber? Does the behaviour not appropriately measure the days of emptiness in the chamber? Most importantly, how does the action help to fill our empty stomachs? As usual, the people gawked. Some applauded, others laughed but most remain non-plussed, trying to fathom how on earth this action translates to democratic ideals in a land of desperately hungry people.

    Then came the matter of the multimillion Naira bullet-proof vehicle and the reported customs payment and my poor head just snapped. There really is so much it can take, you see. I think it stopped processing all these negative pieces of news about Nigeria, including even the purported report of the suspension of one of its members ‘for petition writing’! Seriously! After going round and round, my head finally buzzed on one point, can a class suspend one of its own members? I think I need a lawyer to explain that to me. I thought it was only the teacher or the person responsible for sending the fellow to college in the first place who could do that. But then, as I said, my poor, weak head has been so assaulted it can hardly think properly.

    This is why I have resorted to addressing the source: Senate, what gives? Why is the Upper House displaying its rump for the world to see? Is the senate now about just two people? Why should the body earning the most in the land be worth such questionably ‘not much’ in terms of productivity, reputation or even regard? I know teachers whose days are filled with horror because they have to deal with children whose parents are afraid of them. They have no time to frolic around, have no single car, they earn very little as salary, yet do not go around parading their academic garments or honours.

    I think the senate needs to move away from these horror stories coming out of its house. It needs to develop a sense of maturity that can cloak it with more seriousness to reassure Nigerians. Right now, Nigerians are too hungry and angry to tolerate jokes, clownishness, absurdities, pantomimes, buffooneries, slapsticks and other theatrical movements that do not translate to more food for the people in general. Let the senate get serious, please.

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