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Tag: tomorrow

  • What’ll tomorrow bring?

    What’ll tomorrow bring?

    It is a land in need of help. In its short history, things have moved at snail’s pace. Developments have been reluctant in coming. The difficult terrain has been an easy excuse for its leaders. Its poor have become poorer. Its rich richer. Some cry of hunger. Others cry of not knowing what to do with their money. Money is not their problem but how to spend it. Both camps, however, have something in common: they are all crying. But for different reasons.

    Welcome to Bayelsa State, the rich state with an army of poor people. Its Otuoke-born son and its most popular indigene, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, left power last May 29 as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    At a moment like this, I am tempted to ask: What does former President Jonathan make of the political impasse in his home state of Bayelsa? Happy? Sad? Unmoved? I have a feeling he is saddened at the turn of events. I would have loved to know his thoughts as the state gets another opportunity tomorrow to free itself from the ‘jagajaga’ that its attempt to choose its next governor has become. At a time like this, it is not unusual to look up to statesmen for direction.

    I am really worried for Bayelsa, which I have been to a couple of times. Odi, perhaps its second most popular town after Yenagoa, the capital, was what first took me to this state.  No thanks to the military invasion of the town during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. I was in the town to do a report on how the town had survived after the man-made disaster.

    On my visits to Bayelsa, prosperity had never confronted me. Poverty had always stared me in the face. The situation has not changed. The wealth of the state is in the hands of a few who really do not reside there. Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt are where they have their homes. Yenagoa is only a cash-cow to them.

    For the people who live in Nembe, Ogbia, Brass and others, life is brutish. Eking out daily living is akin to being on the war front. Fathers are forced to become irresponsible because the common wealth is in the hands of a few. Mothers struggle to take care of their children.

    Thousands, if not millions, are poor, stinking and not sure of where the next meal will come from. They live in the creeks. Their houses, made of wood, are covered with palm fronts, which they have to change from time to time as they wither away.

    For them, luxury is a stranger. It is something they hear about and see when the rich choose to throw their weight about. Some of the children cannot go to school. The reason is obvious. What leaders call free education is a mirage.

    But, do they really have any reason to be poor? I don’t think so. They were born into wealth. Niger Delta, where the oil of Nigeria’s prosperity is drilled, and of which Bayelsa is a key part, fuels the country’s engine. Yet the people live as though they have sinned and come short of the glory of God to be consigned to that sort of existence. It is not really God that they have sinned against. It is their leaders, the men leading them.

    In some communities in this great state, the multinationals have their flow stations so close to homes. They send out gas flares throughout the day and the only way to differentiate between night and day is to check the clock. In many towns, oil pipelines are not underground. They are in the open. And often they burst or are burst and the soils are damaged in the process.

    Bayelsa people have shouted, protested and threatened violence over their fate; change has refused to come. It is as if the multinationals also has another licence: to send them all to their early graves so that their leaders can have all the wealth for themselves, including the little they manage to spend on basic amenities. This environmental genocide, as some have called it, is having serious effects on the people. Strange diseases are killing the people. Pregnant women are developing strange allergies, which the ill-equipped health centres can do nothing about.

    I have been told of several people with aggravated asthma, painful breathing, chronic bronchitis and decreased lung function. And don’t forget premature death. It is as though oil is more important than man.

    The governments, both at state and federal levels, are accomplices in this man’s inhumanity to man. To hell with the people once the royalty and dividends keep coming. It is a tale of ‘Papa Deceiving Pikin’. It is just a big game of deceit.

    Bayelsa is in a bad shape as the people of Southern Ijaw Local Government take the bold step of deciding who the next governor of the state is. There is a stalemate which only their votes can break.

    Already, allegations and counter-allegations are flying about. Bayelsa, the ‘small’ state with the least local government areas in the country, has been turned upside down. This state, with only eight local government areas and with the bulk of its people unable to feed, has heard tales of how hundreds of millions were paid as bribes to tilt the pendulum one way or the other. It is in this state of confusion that the decisive votes will be cast tomorrow.

    Will the logjam be finally broken tomorrow? The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has promised to end the era of inconclusive polls. Tomorrow is a test for the electoral umpire. But aside the umpire, it is also a test for the two contenders: Governor Seriake Dickson and ex-Governor Timipre Sylva. Both men have accused each other of   all the wrongdoings possible. Tomorrow, we expect them to rein in their supporters. Violence should not be the name of the game.

    From INEC’s record, Dickson won in six of seven local government areas so far declared. Sylva won in one. For Sylva, Southern Ijaw, where his running mate hails from, was another place he was and is still sure of winning. His camp was and is still confident that with votes from Southern ijaw, his chances of being governor again were and are alive. They are not worried by Dickson’s win in six local governments, whose combined registered voters are just a little over Southern Ijaw’s. There are 120,827 registered voters in Southern Ijaw. So far, Dickson has 105,748 votes; Sylva has 71,794. Depending on what happens tomorrow, either can still carry the day. It is not quite won and lost yet.

    My final take: The Bayelsa stalemate needs to end tomorrow. The governor-elect must emerge and in an atmosphere of peace. Plans to use ex-militants to wreak havoc and swing the pendulum in whichever direction is not in the interest of the state and its people who need to be rescued and fast too.

  • Tomorrow is here

    We must define what we want to achieve with the Super Eagles.  Are we looking at an Eagles squad which will excel in Russia in 2018, as usual, a senior national team that will merely make up the number of participants at the 2018 World Cup?

    We have been at the Mundial  five times and our best has been to equal the feat achieved in 1994 when we reached the second round, losing 2-1 to Argentina in the United States. We repeated the second round placing at Brazil 2014 World Cup. In strict terms, we have not realised our potential, especially when one recalls that Senegal reached the quarter-finals of the Korea/Japan 2002 World Cup in her debut appearance.

    Given our population and coupled with our players’ exploits in Europe, the Eagles should always make the quarter-finals instead of the second round exit. We appear to be stuck on this spot because we never learn the lessons of previous World Cups. And the learning process starts with easing our ageing and undisciplined stars to pave the way for improvement in the team’s play. We have changed coaches but each change makes the coach replaced a better option.

    Happily, the NFF appears to have picked the right coach in Sunday Oliseh, irrespective of what a few pundits are saying. A coach is as good as his last result. Oliseh has succeeded in finding a solution to the hitherto leaky Eagles defence. The team may be wasteful in front of the goalkeeper but the positive from such wastes is that the players are creating scoring chances. What it simply means is that the coaching crew will have to look at the right combination of players to man the midfield. And such midfield arrangement comes with playing a lot of matches to pick the best quartet or trio, depending on the formations the coaches want to adopt.

    Oliseh has lost only one game; the only loss where the Eagles conceded three goals against Congo DR. Since then, the Eagles have thrown up goalkeeper Carl Ikeme, who thinks that Vincent Enyeama is a better goalkeeper, yet continues to prove his mettle in all the games he has played. It is expected that a rebuilt team will totter through its initial matches. But what would stand out as the team’s character will be the results achieved. And with four wins, three draws and one loss, Oliseh’s Eagles are on track, except that most Nigerians want quick results.

    Interestingly, Oliseh is not one not to state the facts as they are. Is it not with results that you judge coaches? How else do you evaluate a coach than when the opponents’ coaches doff their hats of superiority for your coach?

    This is what Swaziland’s coach, Harris Bulungu, said about Oliseh’s tactical awareness: “I believe that the Eagles played a better game today (Tuesday) than in the first leg. They had very fast midfielders and they were very exceptional today (Tuesday). They changed their tactics too by changing some players we thought they would use again just like in the initial leg in Lobamba.

    “We had planned our strategy to explore Eagles’ weaknesses in the midfield and in the defence because of the way they were very slow in the first leg. But the Eagles’ coaches changed that and this unsettled us.

    “For example, the midfield was very slow in the first leg; so, we wanted to capitalise on that but he changed (his tactics) and put in (Paul Onobi instead of Mikel Obi in that position) and it affected our whole set-up. (Onobi) was aggressive, he was quick…also the left and right backs were new players that we didn’t expect to play,” Bulungu told the international media in a post-match interview on Tuesday.

    The accolade for Onobi is the biggest fillip for the domestic game. We have insisted here that it is better to gauge the strength of the Eagles by the number of local players in the team than with the plethora of foreign-based players and annoyingly so, the Nigeria-born lads. Our local game will only have large turnout of supporters at the stadium when a greater number of Eagles stars ply their trade here. With a population of over 200 million, the mill for churning out new talents will sustain the star trek of good players to Europe. After all, Eaglets, such as Victor Osimhen, Kelechi Nwakali, goalkeeper Udoh et al, were discovered in the hinterlands. Until their feats in Chile, no one knew these players. Our coaches must look inwards for talents.

    Is Onobi better than Mikel? No, but he is talented and presently fitter than Mikel. But what does Oliseh think about this debate?

    Oliseh on Thursday said: “What I feel about Onobi is that he’s a home star. I said it from the outset that I don’t care if you play at home or abroad. If you are good enough and you can adapt to the tactics that we play, we will do it. I am glad that the whole world has witnessed a vindication of that policy that I will always adhere to.

    “He’s solid. He’s strong on the man (tackle). He’s solid. He’s clairvoyant and one thing I like about him is that he’s very hungry. And that’s what we need now. However, I must use this medium to state that Onobi did not play at the expense of (Mikel). Nobody has a fixed spot in this team,” Oliseh said.

    Back to Tuesday’s game, I don’t blame Swaziland’s coach for the missile thrown at Mikel. It should spur the Chelsea star to always be at his best. I have craved for dramatic changes in the way things are done in the Eagles. And I yelled when I saw the Eagles’ bench loaded with our so-called big men. I looked at the bench several times as the game ran its 90 minutes course to see if Mikel Obi, Godfrey Oboabona, Elderson Echiejile et al were the ones on the bench. I wonder what was going on in their minds. Intermittently, I was looking at their countenance. I watched Mikel’s reaction after the game. I’m glad the Chelsea star took what happened to him on the chin. He will return to his Barclays English Premier League side to improve on his game.

    The Swazis’ loss to the Eagles’ biggest positive was the two goals scored from set piece. The last time I saw the Eagles score such a beautiful free-kick was against Cameroon at the 2004 Africa Nations Cup by master dribbler Austin Okocha. When Simon Moses curled the free-kick into the net, I shouted. The second goal neatly converted by Efe Ambrose showed that such acts were rehearsed during training.

    Is anyone surprised that Simon Moses struck that free-kick into the net? Well, Moses stated in a post-match interview: “I have been practising set-pieces and I’m happy I was able to pull it off and score the goal. You have to be versatile as a player and I’m a big fan of Cristiano Ronaldo as I always try to learn from him. I hit the post with a free-kick in the first leg in Swaziland but I’m glad I hit the target at home. It’s been God’s grace all the way.”

    There are several ways to score goals. But the ones that show a player’s depth of talent rest with such set-pieces. It is for this reason many wished that Okocha was younger. Okocha was a gazelle. He thrilled everyone at his peak. We just hope that Moses perfects this set-piece stuff. Such acts put a lie to teams that confront us with defensive tactics. Perhaps, if the Eagles’ set pieces had been scored earlier, the Swazis would have been beaten groggy with goals. They would have been forced to come out and reduce the tally. That would have been their albatross.

    The Eagles’ squad against Swaziland wasn’t the dream one. And the coaches know that and will strive to tinker with the team’s formations and those to execute their strategies to give Nigerians something to be proud of.

    The Eagles attacking line would convert the goal scoring chances whenever we have a creative midfielder. Simon Moses and Odion Ighalo have been outstanding. They have troubled most of the teams that the Eagles played against. It is important that the opposition identify you as a threat after the game. Simon and Ighalo give us hope that the goals will come aplenty as the players gel into an indivisible unit.

    Ahmed Musa has effectively combined the role of the captain with his duties on the pitch. He has done well. I also salute his spirit each time he is substituted. Many a captain will shrug their shoulders to show their disgust over the manager’s decision. But Musa has been a remarkable example of a true leader. He walks out of the field briskly after handing over the captain’s band to the vice captain. He sits with others on the pitch and watches the rest of the game. He shows passion with the way he reacts to goal scoring chances for his team. A lesser captain will cover his face or walk away from the bench. Thank you, Ahmed Musa, worthy captain. Up Nigeria!

  • Ikeji Aro 2015 to climax tomorrow

    Ikeji Aro 2015 to climax tomorrow

    Activities marking this year’s Ikeji Aro have since commenced in Arochukwu. The celebration will climax on Eke traditional market day, which is tomorrow  in the ancient town of Arochukwu, Abia State, with cultural displays. Arochukwu is the cradle of Igbo civilisation. The theme of this year’s festival is “Ikeji Arochukwu: Nigeria’s Home of Tourism”.

    In the ancient days, Arochukwu was the abode of the supreme God – Chukwu. Because people always needed answers from Chukwu, Arochukwu became a pilgrimage centre, bringing spiritual succor to the patrons. With that kind of responsibility, every Aro man came to be regarded as a priest of the Chukwu, and they travelled far and wide bringing pilgrims to the City of God, for indeed that is what the word ‘Arochukwu’ means.

    Indeed Ikeji Aro festival has been celebrated in more than 350 Aro Diaspora communities in Nigeria, where Aro people lived and still live to date.

    They include Aro Ndizuogu, Aro Okporoenyi, Aro Ikwere, Aro Ngwa, Aro Izombe, Aro Cameroun, Aro Ajalli, Aro Oru, Aro Ndike , Aro Ndiokpalaeke, Aro Ndiowu, Aro Orji and Aro Ohaozara amongst others. Interestingly, all the Aro Diaspora communities still maintain ancestral bondings with their kindred and villages in the Aro homeland.

    Each key day of the 17 days of the Ikeji brings together different segments of the community in reenactment of events depicting Arochukwu history. The different peoples of Aro descent choose the period of Ikeji to return and pay homage to their ancestral homeland.

    The ‘Afor Okpo na Aza Awada’, which was held on September 4, is the ceremony which signifies the beginning of Ikeji, and this is performed at Ugwuakuma village. During the period of the festival, each of the nine Otusi that make up Aro Kingdom (Akuma Nnubi, Eze Alu Akuma, Ivijioku, Amata Eze Obim, Okennachi, Bianko Nnaezema, Amaja, Ezeagwu and Okwara Agwu Eke) visit Awada Aro Okeigbo to rekindle the ancient bonds that hold them together as a people.

    The major days of the festival calendar are Eke Odu, Afor Osu and Nkwo Ekpe Ibom Isii. Nkwo Ekpe ceremony is held at Ibom Village Square. Several cultural displays, including dances and masquerade contests are showcased, especially those of the Ibom Isii villages. The highlight of the occasion is the wrestling contest; the contestants never fail to respond to the rhythm of the talking drums as the combination of dance steps and wrestling skill is entertaining. At the end, Odu Mgbede Ibom entertains and leads Eze Aro and his entourage back to Aro Palace at Oror Village.

    On Eke Ekpe day, which is the grand finale of the festival, each of the 19 villages that make up the polity of Arochukwu performs a masquerade or a peculiar dance at the communal square, Amaikpe. The activities of these events are very fascinating and interesting to watch. Knowledgeable judges in Aro culture are appointed to select the best performing village. At the conclusion of events on Eke Ekpe day, a winner is announced to the admiration and jubilation of the people.

    Meanwhile Ikeji Aro annual lecture has already been held on September 4, as a prelude to the Ikeji (new yam) festival. This event is a forum for the Aro nation to discuss the tradition, Christianity and idolatory worship as it affects Arochukwu culture.

  • Young microbiologists as leaders of tomorrow

    Former Director-General (DG), National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), Prof Oni Idigbe, has advised youths to create and share ideas to contribute to economic transformation.

    Idigbe, who was guest speaker at the 38th Conference of the Nigerian Society for Microbiology, said: “Youths should gather, start putting ideas together, and develop their hands in order to play various roles to achieve economic transformation, particularly in the area of poverty alleviation.”

    The five-day conference, which held at the Multipurpose Hall, University of Lagos (UNILAG), has as theme: ‘The role of Microbiology in national economic transformation.’ it was organised to inform the public on the empowerment of the youths who would ensure a better tomorrow.

    Idigbe advised youths to research and be innovative to create new products, investigate on where and how to find better health and improve productivity, thereby increasing wealth and reducing poverty.

    Dean of the University’s Faculty of Science, Prof Olusoji Ilori, charged professionals and educationists to inspire youths through education in the classroom and otherwise.

    “Leaders are discouraging the youths with their lackadaisical attitude to work. The lecturers should develop, mentor and train the students. They must also encourage them to love Nigeria deeply and desire to serve selflessly to make Nigeria better than what it is today,” he said.

    Similarly, President, Nigerian Society for Microbiology, Mr Kehinde Eniola said: “Students are leaders of today because they are the engine room of any society, if they are allowed to contribute their quota by being encouraged and forming part of the society, they will go a long way to engineer the transformation of the society because they will be the one to carry the information out, bring the ideas.”

    A 400 level microbiology student, Sandra Nnaka, told The Nation that the Society has helped her to understand how microbiology can impact positively on the environment and the economy.

    “We can always solve our problems ourselves by using our facilities; we do not have to import things to use in Nigeria,” she said.

    Another student of the same level, Emmanuel Olubodun, lauded the Society for their forward-thinking.

     

  • Power of Tomorrow premieres in Abuja

    Power of Tomorrow premieres in Abuja

    The Ladi Kwali Hall of Sheraton Hotel, Abuja, will play host to top dignitaries, this Saturday, as foremost entertainer and philanthropist, Jolly Abani, premieres her new flick, Power of Tomorrow.

    Abani said the ceremony will score high on two points; the content of the movie and the high profile guests which will include top politicians, captains of industry and the film’s star-studded cast.

    The producer who doubles as a cast in the film, starring as Mrs. Allen, said all necessary arrangements have been put in place to make the premiere a night of classy entertainment.

    Expected at the premiere are casts of the movie such as Oge Okoye, I.K Ogbonna, Yakubu Mohammed and Jibola Dabo who will also rock the red carpet at the show.

    Others, according to Abani, are political bigwigs such as the former governor of Ebonyi state, Senator Sam Egwu, All Progressives Congress chieftain and former governor of Abia state, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu as well as investors like Chisco Transport boss, Chief Chidi Anyiegbu and Dr Donald  Peterson.

    “We have dotted the I’s and crossed the I’s towards making our film premiere one that guests and movie lovers will remember for its class and glamour,” she said.

    Abani revealed that the film which is her first as a producer, was made to remind mothers of their role in the home and the society at large.

    She said: “Power of Tomorrow which I also love to call Mirror In The Sun is an eye opener. It is a story of what some women in politics have to do in order to succeed. Yes, I believe in gender equality but I also believe that a woman should first be a woman. Women should never neglect their role in the family and society, just because they want to make it in life or politics. I don’t think that a woman should go all the way like, Mrs. Allen, the main character in my movie did.

    “The lead character in my movie killed her husband, killed her daughter and sadly, she still didn’t become a senator. This woman (Mrs. Allen) had to get her husband out of the way after she started having using sex as a tool to further her political career. Of course, her husband who discovered she had become unfaithful wouldn’t take her infidelity, so he had to be eliminated. Even with all her desperate actions, she died without her dream of becoming a senator coming to reality.”

  • Sambo leads Fed Govt’s transition committee

    President Goodluck Jonathan has raised a 17-man transition committee to take stock and prepare a comprehensive handover note for the President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

    The panel, which held its inaugural sitting yesterday, is headed by Vice President Namadi Sambo.

    But the presidency is awaiting the transition committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC)/president-elect for what a source described as “constant consultations on key issues.”

    Although the list of the committee was yet to be made public, it was gathered that it was a “compact panel” for efficiency.

    Some members of the committee are the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke (Northcentral); the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who is also Coordinating Minister for the Economy (Southeast); Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Stephen Oru (Southsouth); Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda (Northwest); Minister of Police Affairs Mr. Jelili Adesiyan (Southwest); and the Minister of Transport Senator Idris Umar (Northeast).

    Others in the team are the Managing Director of Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Mr. Mustafa Chike-Obi; the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Bureau of Public  Enterprises, Mr. Benjamin Ezra Dikki; and some technocrats in government.

    Speaking with State House correspondents at the end of the committee’s meeting, Anyim said: “We met to discuss the terms of reference and developed the guidelines for preparing the handover briefs and the committee adjourned to April 20 for a second meeting.

    “After we have collected our own briefs from the MDAs (ministries, departments and agencies) and then put them together, we will then interface with the other committee so that whatever clarification they want, the questions they have, we will be able to address them.”

    On whether he was aware that a committee has already been set up, he said: “Yes, that is normal. Ours is to collect our own hand over briefs, prepare the briefs and prepare the president’s handover notes.

    “The terms of reference of our own committee are to collate relevant information for the hand over briefs from all the MDAs, prepare them and interface with the incoming administration’s transition committee.”

    A reliable source, who spoke in confidence, said: “The President mandated the committee to do a thorough job to enable the administration to take off on time.

    “The government is only awaiting the APC/President-elect’s transition team to compare notes and carry the new government along.”

    The source said the key areas the committee might focus on include the actual state of the economy; assets and liabilities, especially local and foreign debts; the level of privatisation programme; completed and uncompleted projects; multilateral agreements; and the oil industry among others.

    But, there were indications yesterday that the President-elect might meet with APC leaders tomorrow on the transition committee of his incoming administration.

  • Anxiety in Rivers as residents go to polls tomorrow

    Anxiety in Rivers as residents go to polls tomorrow

    There are strong apprehension that the two main political parties in Rivers State – the All Progressive Congress and Peoples Democratic Party – could be heading for a bloody showdown in tomorrow (Saturday) governorship and state assembly elections. The state’s unenviable status as one of the flashpoint states in the 2015 general elections have been buttress by the fallout of the Presidential election.

    Already,  there are ominous signs that the situation could even turn bloodier, considering that from the period of consultation to rallies and campaigns by the two political parties to various local government and wards in the state have proved doomsayers right.

    In Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area alone, more than 50 persons have been killed in several political violence. And just few days to governorship election unknown gunmen murdered nine APC leaders and supporters in the area including the former Caretaker Committee Chairman and his two children.

    With the anxiety in the minds of residents some political analysts thought that with the emergence of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari as President-elect, the tension should reduce. They opined that the command loyalty of security personnel who were often used to perpetrate electoral crime would also reduce and pave way for peace.

    Mr. Chigozie Orlu-Orlu, a legal practitioner who had petitioned National Human Right Commission (NHRC) over wanton killing of Rivers citizens, however said more people would be killed on the eve, during and after governorship and State House of Assembly elections in Rivers State.

    He noted that both political actors in PDP and APC have not done much to refrain their followers on the need to shun violence but were been interested on how to grab power.

    “Just few days to the governorship election you can see how many people that were killed, that shows a clear picture of what is going to happen on Election Day. Don’t forget, this is Wike’s last fight, Jonathan is not there again to reappoint him if he loses. So, for him, this is not a fight to joke with. He will fight with his last blood to see if he can succeed, he wouldn’t mind if one million souls died but Rivers must be ruled by PDP.

    “What happened on the Presidential election where some APC leaders were intimidated and kept under a house arrest will no longer be possible, so, there will be an eyebrow to eyebrow contest in Rivers State.”

    The PDP in the state who are still nursing their wounds from the presidential contest which was won by APC Presidential candidate, have insisted that there is no cause for alarm. PDP also promised to battle it out to ensure a clean victory of the governorship and State House of Assembly elections.

    In a statement issued few days ago by the Chairman of Media and Publicity Committee of the PDP in Rivers State chapter,  Emma Okah  admonished supporters not to be deterred by the outcome of the presidential poll but to put it behind them and think of the governorship and State House Assembly elections.

    On April 4, the party’s supporters in Obio/Akpor LGA staged a protest warning voters to stay at home if they don’t want trouble. They also said that Rivers State is a PDP state and those who want to vote for governor and State House of Assembly candidates should prepared their minds because only those who want to vote PDP would be allowed to vote.

    But, members of All Progressive Congress (APC) in the state who are rejoicing over Buhari’s victory and on the other hand unhappy over the fraudulent Presidential and National House of Assembly elections which was swept by PDP,  believe that the time to tolerate PDP  is over.

    The APC leadership has rejected the state Presidential result, hinting of possible legal action, said they would not allow their opponent to use the police and other security agencies to manipulate result the way they did in the last election.

    A protest by APC supporters led to a heavy traffic jam at Aba-road expressway opposite Rivers State branch of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The party while registering their grievance over the ‘sham Presidential election’ vowed to resist any attempt to rig April 11 governorship and House of Assembly elections.

    The Caretaker Committee Chairman of Ogu/Bolo LGA, Hon. Mina Tende who led his supporters to the INEC office after REC declared the Presidential poll results, said INEC and security personnel conspired to rig Rivers elections. He said he went to INEC office by 2pm on the last elections to complain about the situation but regretted that nobody listened to him.

    Tende Said “We are here to tell the world that there were no elections in Rivers State, our people boycotted the elections and such cannot be called elections.  There were two observers at the INEC office in Ogu/Bolo and I told them that I have never seen it this way.  I also told the REC that I expected her to go round and see things for herself. There is connivance and a plan to do what they did. As I am talking to now, it has been confirmed that INEC were paid N15million each in all the LGA and that is what they used in buying the result sheets,” he alleged.

    Another APC chieftain, Hon Welendu Amadi , a former chair of  Ikwerre Local Government Area, said they were ready for tomorrow’s election.

    He said:  “It is clear that PDP with their agents rigged  the presidential election  but we will not give them such opportunity again. If you have been following events, you will discover that there has been intimidation and attack using the police to carry out their act. With the emergency of Buhari as the President-elect, there would be limit to which police will obey their orders.”

    Dike Iheanyichukwu, a lawyer and the Chairman Rivers State Lawyers for Change, said there is no need to kill one another because of tomorrow’s elections because power has changed hand. He said with the situation on ground, the APC candidate, Dr. Dakuku Adol Peterside, would win the election.

    He argued further that if Rivers State would witness free and fair election, Prof. Jaga must remove the Resident Electoral Commissioner before tomorrow.

    The leadership of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) had also protested against the outcome of Presidential and National House of Assembly elections. The party described last Presidential poll as a sham and huge waste of resources.

    The state chairman of APGA,   Hon. Terri Godffery,   said APGA leadership in the state will continue to protest the worst election ever conducted in the history of Rivers State, adding that tomorrows election his party have agreed to support the governorship candidate of APC, Dr. Dakuku Adol Peterside as to effectively monitor INEC, security personnel and PDP in tomorrow’s election.

    Chief Hon. Brave Nwobo, APGA House of Representative candidate   PHALGA Federal Constituency 1, said if elections were to be conducted  free and fair,  he would have  won. He added that party agents who are not members of PDP were severely beaten at the polling units.

     

  • Ikuforiji: I have learnt not to worry about tomorrow

    Ikuforiji: I have learnt not to worry about tomorrow

    Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji recently held his annual media session with correspondents. During the session, he spoke on on partisan issues. OZIEGBE OKOEKI was there.

    We will like you to tell us your next move after leaving office as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly?

    That is a very difficult question for me to answer, because when I look back on the much that I can remember in my life — and I can remember more than 90 per cent of the years — I see that God has a way of making me achieve in life. One thing that I have learnt from my own life is not to worry too much about tomorrow.

    I am not clairvoyant and I don’t pretend to be a prophet, but it is not very likely that this generation would witness another three-term Speaker in the Lagos State House of Assembly (LSHA).

    Really, I have so much in my hands right now and I can’t see any vacuum in my life. Many of you might have heard that I am a doctoral student in far away Liverpool in the United Kingdom, I am in my final year now and since the beginning of this year, I have not been able to do much on my thesis. I must find time to get that done because I am supposed to finish by May 2015, which is five months time. I am also a year one law student in the University of Lagos. I also like to join your world as a social/public commentator, where I can comment on national issues without any fear of political leaders. Though I have too many things to do, I am not tired of politics and I am still a senior member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Sixteen members of the 7th LSHA would not be returning in 2015. What is the implication?

    That is also a very tough one. In 2007, we fought very had for 17 members to return to the House, in 2011, it was another battle to get 22 members to return. Yes, we have 24 who already have tickets, but it is still my hope and pray for more serving legislators to return. I want to tell you, ours is a very young democracy, a lot of hitches are still on our path. I personally would not like a situation, where we have seven women in the 7th Assembly and we cannot have eight or 10 women in the 8th Assembly. If the number reduces, it doesn’t portend good omen for our democracy, not just for Lagos State House of Assembly. In 2003, there was only one woman, Hon. Adefunmilayo Tejuosho. When we resumed in June, Bola Badmus joined, following a bye-election.

    In the sixth Assembly, we had five women and in the 7th Assembly, we have seven women. That makes me feel proud and happy because it means that we are progressing. The womenfolk should be given more opportunities, which is how it is everywhere in the world.

    What made it possible for you to survive as Speaker for so many years?

    You should have asked my colleagues why they did not impeach Ikuforiji; they are in a better position to tell you that. I can tell you from my own side that it is one thing to look at a job and see the peck side of it and it is another thing to see the job done. Even in 2003, when we were coming in, I fought very hard to be Speaker of the House, thank God I was not made the Speaker then, because it gave me room to study the House and I became more conversant with its rules and procedure before I was made Speaker in December 2005. There are many things you need to understand and know if you want to lead the legislative arm. Unlike any other arm of government, the Speaker as the head should also be a great follower; he is the servant of his people. Unlike the Governor, who has the power to hire and fire, the Speaker can only persuade. If the Governor asks any of his aides to send out a message that he would be hosting press men on a particular day and he says they are invited, about one quarter or half of them would make sure that they attend. But, you cannot do that with the members of the House, they would attend at their own convenience. If you understand that they are your boss and you are not their boss there would be no problem. The seat of the Speaker is like a chair, the arms, the legs, the back and the front belong to different members. If you remove any part of the chair, you would not be able to sit very well. So, you need all the parts to be able to sit comfortably. If you are conscious of that, the number one thing is the grace of God, the Bible did not tell us to keep praying alone, you have to work. Of course, you cannot satisfy everybody, I am never carried away if they praise me that I am powerful because they delegated the powers I have to me.

    How true is the rumour that you plan to return to the Assembly in 2015?

    Well, it is not in my plan. I have no such plans. Even before the governorship primary, every opportunity I have had to talk publicly, even at the Hijrah lecture, I said that it is not my intention to return to the Assembly. God has his own plan; if they want me back, all of them must be seated with our leaders and they have to bring my mother from heaven to come and tell me to come back. Honestly, it is time to move on, after a decade. I am sure when you tell some of your friends if per adventure I have plans to return to the House, they would say ‘what happened, is he the only one, what else does he want?’ Really, I am tired; let me just go and rest.

    Was there a time you saw the position of the Speaker as being challenging?

    Yes, every second has been challenging since December 29, 2005 and I have always faced the challenges with a lot of courage. Anyone who tells you that the position is not challenging is not progressive-minded; he is not serious-minded and he is not going to take the House anywhere. Think about it, today, everyone in the country agrees that Lagos Assembly is the number one in the federation. In fact the National Assembly cannot compete with LSHA. When we were in Tanzania in July, some of the people from the National Assembly, the staffers and some Senators started greeting me unusually as soon as I came in. I was wondering what happened. It was later I heard that the President agreed to sign the National Assembly Commission Bill a day before I got there. The only thing they used to convince him was that Lagos has done it and he felt that if his rival has done it, he should sign the document. The day he was to sign it was the day I got there and they were happy that the man who made it possible had come. Now, this is having an impact on them, if you don’t see the position as challenging, you are not likely to be on your toes. If you don’t know that everyday has its own peculiarities, then you would not make progress. If I am Speaker of the House for the next 10 years, everyday would come with its own peculiarities, because there are still so many things to be done, and I would want to get them done. Those are challenges, and we must always take up the challenges and do our very best.

     

  • Who says youths are leaders of tomorrow?

    SIR: Young people are part of the bouquet of a society. They are an integral and essential part of a society; they offer that specific aroma of theirs which complements the societal wholeness. Young people cannot survive without a society, and a society in turn is incomplete without their belligerence. That informs the cliché, “Nigerian youths are the leaders of tomorrow”.

    I wonder why the term has become so unrealistic and impossible to attain. Today, unemployment has not only ravaged our young minds, the future is particularly bleak.

    I hear stentorian activists make speeches about on how women can serve if given 35 percent opportunity. What about the youths?

    Being a leader tomorrow requires a vision today, and this vision today must be put to work for full actualization. This used to be the case until tomorrow turned to horror. When the vision of being a leader seems to have completely dwindled yesterday and now today – we are left like sheep without shepherd. It seems everything we had envisaged have fizzled.

    In 1985, IBB was the president and our teachers told us that Buhari was the former Head of state. Then, our teacher also called us “the leaders of tomorrow”. Twenty-seven years later, IBB and Buhari are still around the scene. Its either our teacher lied to us about being the leaders of tomorrow, or that tomorrow is yet to come. Who’s fooling who?

    In a country like ours, it is dispiriting to think what the future holds, when as blessed as we are, what has befallen us is regression.

    Imagine; in 1983, Bamanga Tukur was Governor of the defunct Gongola State (now Adamawa and Taraba). Thirty years later, he would emerge as chairman of the ruling party, PDP. Dr. Bello Halliru was commissioner in the Old Sokoto State (now Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara) only to become Minister of Defence 33 years after. Major General David Mark (rtd) was military governor of Niger State in 1984 and now he is Senate President more than 28 years after. The same goes for ex-Governor Murtala Nyako, who was governor of Niger State in 1976.  Until his impeachment recently, he was Governor of Adamawa State – 36 years after.

    What then can we do? Recently some states are passing bills against peaceful demonstrations – their trick to bamboozle the many for their pound of flesh. These peter pans would employ many ways to make sure the youths peter out, if their egregious activities keep being challenged as mascots.

    Only in Nigeria is this possible. A place where the youth have no hope of the future, where the health sector, labour, judiciary and education are perennially on strike.

    The question is – if youths have not prepared themselves sufficiently today, how can anyone say that the future will be bright?

    Let all hands be on deck, if we must escape these shackles and wade into the future as leaders.

     

    •Onwa Franklin Chukwuemeka,

    Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State.

  • Cross River…For tomorrow to be better

    For three days last week, Cross River State government took reporters round some of its legacy projects. The tour started in Calabar and terminated in Ogoja, the far end of the state which is no less than five hours away from the state capital.

    was one of tempered expectations,

    In Ogoja, many of the state correspondents, who were conversant with the state of rural roads, were impressed with the transformation that has taken place between their last visit and now. Almost all streets in Ogoja have had their roads tarred, with good drainage channel.

    Across the state, old roads have become new and non-existent ones, such as the Margaret Ekpo Bye-pass, have sprung up.

    There is a deliberate effort to redress the neglect of the rural areas. It is a case of roads, roads everywhere and several to travel smoothly on.

    The importance of water has not been lost on the administration too. Things that will sustain its status as the tourism headquaters of Nigeria have been deliberately targetted and given attention.

    Through the State Investment Promotion Bureau, it has attracted foreign investment. Top on the list is Wilmar International Limited’s $400 million investment in agriculture and agro-processing. There is also the Brentex Petroleum $300 million pipe mills manufacturing; the $700 million Essar Power Limited 660MW Integrated Power Project; Southgate Cocoa, and the Artee Group’s investment in shopping malls.

    All these are despite the fact that  the state’s last derivation cheque in the sum of N345 million came in 2012 – the aftermath of the July 2012 apex court ruling terminating its membership of the oil-producing club. The ruling ceded its 176 oil-wells to its neighbour, Akwa Ibom State. The development came as dampener, but the state has risen beyond it.

    The state may have lost close to N20 billion in the over 22 months of non-receipt of the 13 per cent derivation funds, it is making up through FDI. The world-class Calabar International Convention Centre (CICC) not far from the Tinapa Resort –both in the domain of the sprawling Summit Hills –holds a lot of promises. It promises to make the state a force in global tourism.

    On completion, the CICC will host a 200-bed Convention Hotel under the state’s Public Private Partnership model.

    Tinapa also stands to gain from the Summit Hills project, where a monorail will link it with the CICC and end its current woes.

    The Songhai farm complex in Abi and  the multi-million dollar Wilmar farm complex in Akampka also hold promises of improving the state’s fortunes. The Songhai Farm is intended to train the youths in integrated farming system. In the farm, waste products from plants, birds, fish ponds, which are ordinarily disposed off, are recycled as inputs. The Wilmar farm is strictly for oil palm, the mainstay of Malaysia’s economy.  Cross River may as well become Malaysia all things being equal.

    As good as what the state has to showcase are, they must be followed through. The CICC, the Songhai Farm and the Wilmar Farm are not at maturity stage yet. So, nothing must stop their destinies. They hold a lot of promises that will eventually pay off what the state lost to derivation funds. Cross River can be better and the key to its being better is in the oil palm farm, the CICC, the other parts of the Summit Hills project, the Songhai Farm and others, which if not followed through, can turn out to be white elephant projects. It is good Governor Liyel Imoke says all the funds needed to see these projects through are ready.