Dasukigate: Open Letter To Femi Adesina, Presidential Spokesperson

By Yushau A. Shuaib

Dear Mr. Femi Adesina

Since I am a victim of association to one of the most vilified and scandalised Nigerians through media trial, this Open Letter is the best opportunity for me to put some issues in proper perspective following some of your public remarks about your old friend.

*Femi Adesina

As you are aware, I have been actively involved in cementing relationship between the media and security agencies in the recent past. Immediately after my premature retirement from the public service by the Jonathan administration, I was invited by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), under Col. Sambo Dasuki (retired), to help in changing the negative media narrative on Nigeria’s counter-terrorism campaigns. It was at a period when the Boko Haram was having the upper hand in the propaganda campaign of the war against Nigeria with a section of the foreign media castigating Nigerian troops as “cowardly” “undisciplined” and “ill-trained.”

Among other things, I have the responsibility of consulting for the Forum of Spokespersons of Security and Response Agencies (FOSSRA), then Chaired by Major General Chris Olukolade, which has membership from critical public institutions including the military, security, intelligence and response agencies. We also created and sustained web portals for providing accurate and timely information to the public.

I must commend Mr. Femi Adesina for playing greater roles on the success of our campaign because as the President of Nigerian Guild of Editors, you also encouraged Editors to support our activities through occasional self-censorship to manage negative terrorists’ propaganda.

Being one of the closest Editors to former National Security Adviser, you were always sincere and frank when you met and discussed with Dasuki. You never hid your hardened support for the candidacy of General Buhari of All Progressive Congress (APC). I remember your annoyance over security clampdown on the media and when you sought Dasuki’s intervention for compensation for media organisations over their loss rather than engaging in prolonged court cases. I was with you on that occasion in his office.

Addressing The Confusion In The Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI)

By idowu oyebanjo

 There is no doubt that the challenges facing the electricity industry is huge even as all but the Transmission Network have become private concerns. There are fundamental changes now taking place which will define the general outlook of the Nigerian Power System in the future as the power grid becomes unbundled and privatised such that the traditionally integrated and centrally dispatched energy system becomes a largely distributed and more complex architecture.

It is fair to say that today's technical and regulatory governance framework is grossly inadequate to manage the seamless integration of the different stakeholders and functions within NESI which are largely under differing ownerships. This has the potential to lead to disaster and chaos in the future if not addressed now. One of the first things required to be done is to establish an independent expert group to ensure an holistic approach to the phased development of NESI as it is becoming more than obvious to the blind that a "whole System" approach is what is needed to address the challenges facing the industry.

The recommended steering group to address the mechanisms for whole-system integration should be made up of a panel of technical experts from the Transmission and Distribution Network companies, consultants, academia, NERC, BPE, NBET, IPPs, Nigerian Gas Company, NNPC, NEMSA, MAN, data and ICT companies, the Nigerian Electricity Consumers' forum, SON and so on who have practical experience of electricity supply business. The aim of the expert group is to assist in the building of an integrated perspective for the planning and operation of the future electricity network, ensuring not only technical performance but also the opportunities for jobs and exports (technical and materials), identifying issues, defining the questions to be answered, clarifying the parties accountable, obtaining synergies and highlighting areas of relevance to national policy-making.

For most complex systems (which electrical power system is one), there is often a gap between those who specify what the whole system is required to achieve and the plethora of contractors, design authorities, operators, and other technical specialists who provide the hardware, software and other technical skills to construct and run the many sub-systems that together form the whole. It must be mentioned heretofore that neither the transition electricity market nor the free electricity market alone will be able to shape the structure, supply chain and system architecture for the provision of goods and services within the NESI. Hence, it has to be stated that this expert group will provide the co-ordination and the glue between established parties and new entrants, including generators, network users and operators, to facilitate the technical operation and the market mechanisms in a multi-party complex system like the NESI.

The new architecture required to meet the challenges of the NESI would need to develop a "Power System Framework" to address whole-system issues plaguing the NESI and this can only be provided by what we will term a "System Architect". The system architect gives a purposeful direction in the immediate and future development of the power network infrastructure based on defined codes, standards, and processes that enable seamless movement of information and operational instructions. The system architect thus takes responsibility for the correct functioning of the architecture of the whole system.

The pertinent question therefore is "Who or what is the System Architect?"

*NERC Chair, Sam Amadi 

The system architect is a separately defined entity that would take a whole-system and long-term responsibility for developing and agreeing the framework of architectures, standards, protocols, and guidelines needed to ensure seamless technical integration of the sub-systems of the industry players and parties, enabling a seamless response to the challenges arising from policy imperatives as they emerge over the coming decades. This single entity will be responsible for the management of the complexity of the evolving power system architecture in the public interest on behalf of government. Solutions for system integration challenges should be developed in consultation with key industry stakeholders while considering whole-system cost-benefit across the supply chain. The system architect would also have advisory role in providing assurance that the whole system can meet the policy-driven technical challenges of the next two decades. The role would involve developing functional specifications, policies, interfaces and best practices, overseeing system integration, interpretation of the direction of established policies by government to enable the organisations responsible for implementation and operation to do so in a coherent manner. Acting as a risk manager, the system architect will provide early warning of emerging risks to system stability and advise on the feasibility and timescales for the implementation of policies. To this end, the system architect is limited in function to technical matters that will make the Nigerian Power System function effectively to meet government's policy objectives while accommodating the requirements of the markets. Of course there will be times when effective technical integration requires attention to commercial and regulatory frameworks, and in such times, the system architect would be expected to identify these and work with government and other parties to resolve them.

The system architect in general will operate as an integration model that combines the existing segmented functions into a single function with the overall responsibility and ultimate accountability to the Minister of Power. For example, the architect can extend the scope of two key existing entities- the Grid code and Distribution code panels whose scope at the minute is limited to operational and technical matters rather than the integration of technical, operational and commercial aspects across the whole system. To succeed, the panels must be constituted to address structural and technical constraints jeopardising the successful development of the NESI with a clear focus spanning the whole system - generation, transmission, distribution, consumer, and related information flows.

NERC too should ensure the integrity of the underlying systems engineering while keeping its focus on commercial and economic levels. The activities of the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED) and Nigerian Electricity Consumers Advocacy Network (NECAN) forum need to be strengthened to realise the objectives of the power system. It is believed that the integration and management of data and ICT will present further challenges despite the goodwill or commitment of stakeholders and expertise of individuals involved if there is no adequate legal personality or party that will be accountable for ensuring the functionality of the increasingly complex system. Overall, there is a highly fragmented institutional landscape today that maintains and develop the codes which govern the operation of different aspects of the system, but none of which takes a whole-system view. This needs to be addressed urgently.

Buhari Regime Has elevated Propaganda To A Historical Level

By Olisa Metuh

No Nigerian should be happy with the bitterness, wickedness and vengeful spirit that pervades our land. Our people are now not only divided along religious and ethnic lines but also along political lines with the attendant bickering thereof.

Our new media is filled with people spewing insults, abuses and so much hatred. The government has elevated propaganda to a historical level while the ruling party, not content with lies and deceits, now engages in promoting spite and political persecution.

What can lead a distinguished Senator of the federal Republic of Nigeria to burn the constitution of an opposing political party? It is not enough to dismiss this as the excesses and exuberance of a victor, not at all, this is really part of an organized and coordinated warfare against the vanquished party!

We lost an election, some of us publicly convicted without trial by the government as a group of corrupt Nigerians, electoral victories of our governors, senators and honorable members reversed, members arrested and detained with orchestrated charges, our freedom and liberties denied and now our constitution torn and burnt by an opponent in pure disdain, ridicule and scorn. In what other ways can we be so humiliated and abused?

I speak the minds of millions of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members when I say enough is enough.
The Almighty God knows that in opposition we have been decent, responsible and civil. We have accorded our conquerors great respect not because we are afraid but because it is right, proper and will definitely assist in promoting an enduring political culture in our land.

Enough of the bitterness and acrimony, let the President start the healing process side by side his anti-corruption legacy.

WE ARE TOO DIVIDED!!!

 *Metuh is National Publicity Secretary of the PDP

Buhari To Borrow N5 Billion A Day To Finance 2016 Budget – PDP

...Nigeria Going The Way of Greece

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has given more insight into why the N6.08 trillion 2016 federal budget presented by President Muhammadu Buhari is a huge fraud, warning that with the proposed N1.84 trillion borrowing (a colossal borrowing), the nation is going the way of Greece.

PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, while speaking with newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday said a breakdown of the N1.84 trillion shows that the nation would be borrowing N5 billion a day for the next 365 days, starting from January I, 2016, without corresponding provision for economic production and a clear repayment plan, a scenario that spells doom for the future of the nation.

According to Metuh, “some people may be wondering why we raised an alarm about the budget. The reason is simple. When we analysed the budget, we discovered it is a misshapen attempt at a Keynesian economics of applying deficit spending to stimulate growth even when studies have proven that GDP growth rates decrease by over 50% when debt goes from low or moderate to high. But then we know the borrowing here is to pay huge campaign debt and fund a political war chest.

Nigeria: Running The Economy Without Oil Wealth

By Banji Ojewale

THERE were two major national problems our military rulers managed poorly. First was the enormous wealth that came our way in the oil boom of the early 70s. One martial ruler said his headache wasn’t money: It was how to spend it. Whereupon the country under him took upon itself the Father Christmas role. We gave and gave to African countries that were not as oily endowed as we were. When we could no longer locate the needy in Africa we turned to shores outside the continent.

There was that distant Caribbean island. One of the reports on the matter said we paid the salaries of that country’s civil servants when the government couldn’t oblige their servants. Was it a loan? Was the money paid back with interest? Or we gave it to them not hoping it will be returned?

After that era, another military leader came into the scene. He also enjoyed economic prosperity, engendered by the then Persian Gulf War that made Nigeria’s crude oil much sought after. His own problem was that despite applying all the political and economic strategies that big money could afford, a socio-politically ailing Nigeria failed to stabilise. And so he threw up his arms in despair and said the country had defied every solution in the books. Many astute observers wondered what became of the wise counsel of the galactic cabinet of his junta.

Now in our day, in the period that would soon pass as the post-oil age, there is another challenge: what do we do without oil wealth? Can we manage the country and its teeming population with depleting wealth from crude? Is it possible to run this huge economy without the black gold?

Those who have a keen sense of history, those who know what played out in the days of the old Western Region under Chief Obafemi Awolowo wouldn’t beat about the bush to answer those questions in the positive. They would tell you offhand that if he and the premiers of the other two regions developed their areas without oil in their days, Nigeria today would also thrive without oil, if we had the right leaders with bold and resourceful ideas.

Why Lai Mohammed Must Be Fired

By Femi Aribisala

Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf was the Minister of Information in the dying days of Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq. Nicknamed “Comical Ali” by British tabloids, al-Sahaf made a fool of himself during the Iraqi war by constantly fabricating victories of the Iraqi army, even as territory after territory fell to the American-led allied forces.

*President Buhari congratulating Lai Mohammed after he was sworn in as Information Minister 

What was so ridiculous about him was that his lies were so blatant, only fools could believe them.  Even when American tanks rolled into Baghdad, Comical Ali declared: “There is no presence of the American columns in the city of Baghdad at all. We besieged them and we killed most of them. Today, the tide has turned. We are destroying them. The Americans are going to surrender or be burned in their tanks.”

Lai Mohammed, Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, is Nigeria’s home-grown “Comical Ali.”  It would not be unfair to fashion him as “the Minister of FABU.” Barely two months of assuming office, Mohammed has established himself as an instrument of cheap propaganda and disinformation.  On internet blogs today, he is now generally referred to by his traducers as “Liar Mohammed.”  Without a doubt, he has earned this sobriquet by his penchant to be extremely economical with the truth.

Lai Mohammed’s tall tales have now reached epidemic proportions.  It is a contradiction in terms that a government that claims to be anti-corruption, and a president that boasts to be a man of integrity, should have a “Comical Ali” as its face and spokesman.  It is doubtful that Mohammed can stop being himself.  However, if President Buhari is interested in redeeming his now battered image, he needs to admit he made a big error of judgment in appointing Mohammed as a minister.

Lai Mohammed must be fired immediately.  Barring which, the only honourable thing left for the Honourable Minister to do is to resign.  A Minister of Information should not be allowed to become a Minister of Misinformation.

Mr. President, Your Government Is Losing Momentum

A Nigerian Citizen's Open Letter To President Muhammadu Buhari

Dear President Buhari,

We are in dangerous times, and your actions, or inactions, will count for a lot. The truth is that whenever someone begins a project, especially a project which he has fought so hard for, it is important to make haste, lest motivation wanes. If motivation wanes, there is a clear and present danger of the entire project faltering. That, is the cliff down which we all stare at the moment, including you, no, especially you.

The wind in the sails which swept you to office just over half a year ago are beginning to dissipate, and no other scenario illustrates this better than what is happening in the North East at the moment. I'd rather not, at this point, dwell on the fact that the buck stops at your table, and for my own, selfish reasons.

I voted you, and at this point, I don't want to accept that I may have made a mistake. In voting you, I had hoped that if anything, I'd be looking at an end to the Boko Haram nonsense post haste. That has not happened. Rather, I've been told about a "technical defeat". What does that mean?

Sir, a week before we all queued up and voted you into office, I stood before a room full of your supporters, an audience which included some of the "big men" in your government today, and I told them that no matter what, they should not lie to you. I took that stand, because I believed, and still believe, that the reason the government of your predecessor failed was because of that kind of dishonesty. Sadly Sir, it appears that my advice was not heeded.

You are the President of Nigeria. Your success will be beneficial to me, and to millions of my fellow citizens. Likewise, your failure, will negatively impact me, and millions of my fellow citizens. Telling you the real situation at every point in time will lead you to success. Hiding things from you, will lead to failure. It is my duty to you, and to my country, to tell you the facts always. I do not do blind support Sir, it is not in my blood, and will never be. I do not do blind opposition either. I say things, as I see them, regardless of how painful some of my peers may find such statements. It is both a weakness, and strength. How you see it Sir, depends on your disposition, and I still like to believe Sir, that you of all people, see such truths as strengths.

Sir, your government is losing momentum, and a large part of it is, at least to my mind, because the people around you, those you have chosen to surround yourself with, are being dishonest with you. They have continued to tell you the same tales that you were told during the campaign, the same tales their predecessors told your predecessor. Rather than sit you down and have an honest discussion with you about the state of things, they are living in denial about the realities on the ground, from the price of oil, to the pump price of petrol, to the state of the economy, to Boko Haram. They are living in denial about the constitutionality of some of your actions, actions which are eroding your credibility as a man of integrity.

I'll end this letter Sir, by asking a very simple question, a question who's answer is meant for you, and you alone: All things being equal, in thirty years, you will be gone, I'll still be here, how would you want me to describe you to my grandchildren?

Sincerely yours,
Cheta Nwanze

Some Of Buhari’s Assertions Are Patently Dishonest – Femi Fani-Kayode

Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, writes an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari

Mr. President, as one of your most loyal and faithful subjects who has nothing but the utmost respect for your person and your office, I am constrained to write you this open letter. This is because there are a number of issues that I believe that it is important for you to clarify and to come clean on.

I say this because some of your assertions of late are at best contradictory and at worst patently dishonest. Whichever side of the political divide we are on I believe that we can all agree on one thing: that the prosecution of the war against terror is not something that any of us should play politics with. This is especially so given the fact that human lives are at stake and the very existence of our nation is under threat. Like much of the rest of the world our country is going through hell at the hands of the jihadists and Islamist terrorists.

There is no gainsaying that we must all come to terms with the fact that the Islamic State in the Levant (ISIL), Al Qaeda, the Taliban, Al Shabab, Boko Haram, Hamas and another group that the internationally-respected Global Terror Index has described as the ''Fulani militants'' (aka Fulani herdsmen) are nothing but bloodthirsty murderers and the lowest form of life.

They are indeed the scum of the earth, the troublers of humanity and the vermin of hell. It is with this in mind that I urge you to take the war against terror far more seriously than you are doing and plead with you to stop passing the buck.

Buhari Has No Answers To Nigeria's Problems – Gov Fayose

Ekiti State governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose has called on Nigerians to pray specially for President Mohammadu Buhari; saying; “The President needs God to give him the necessary wisdom to be able to find solution to the country’s economic and security problems.”

*Buhari 

The governor also challenged the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, to relocate to Sambisa in Borno State or Yobe and move around there without heavy military security if indeed he was sure that Boko Haram had been defeated.

Speaking through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose said; “only God’s intervention can save Nigeria from the present economic and security problems as it is glaring that the man running the affairs of the country at the federal level does not have any answer to the problems.”

He said; “Even the Holy Bible said in James 1:5 that if anyone lacks wisdom, he should ask God and as it is, Nigerians must assist the President in asking for wisdom and understanding to tackle the country’s economic and security problems before Nigeria is further plunged into more woes with the federal government’s decision to borrow N2.2 Trillion, which translates to N6.066 billion per day to finance the 2016 Budget.” He described the Federal Government’s announced reduction of petrol pump price from N87 to N85 per litre as a continuation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) government’s governance by deceit, saying; “Even secondary school students of economics know that you cannot deregulate and regulate at the same time.”

BuhariGate: A Malicious Propaganda Against Buhari

By Garba Shehu

As the war on corruption heightens, the political battle-line between the governing All Progressives Congress, APC and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has sharply been drawn.

While leaders from both parties voice out their support for the clean-up of the country by ridding it of corruption, the National Working Committee of the PDP seems clearly to be working contrary to the anti-corruption rhetoric of their Board of Trustees. Their public communication organs have, in particular, become increasingly combative against the exercise. 

*Buhari

All that the President, leading the APC change orchestra, is trying to do is to revamp a moribund nation with growth, jobs and recovered looted funds. Sadly, only a few, if any in Wadata House are treating the war against corruption as the extra-ordinary event which it is. Instead, when they speak up, they do so most ardently against it. In a clear demonstration of obstructionist politics, they challenge the government in every move it makes, but fail to spell out alternative roadmaps to curbing the monstrous corruption that threatens to consume the country; they rush to condemn and dramatize even the smallest of measures which, given time and patience will manifest through positive outcomes. 

Doing this gives the PDP the illusion of being an effective opposition party but taken in the context of national interest and the mood of the nation, it is doubtful it is yielding anything beyond limited political returns. To most Nigerians, the cacophonous opposition is just a media spectacle to distract or mellow the President.

After an historic loss in an election to the opposition for the first time in the annals of this country’s political history, PDP has not looked inwards in any serious way to seek its revival. The first and major leap at reform ended disastrously when first, the party establishment rejected a well-timed apology tendered on its behalf for their past failures. Then, the leader of the reform movement got himself mired in allegations leading to court charges of the theft of billions of Naira voted for weapons purchase to fight terror in the North East. Chief Raymond Dokpesi's trial (and Col. Dasuki's) is no doubt a serious blow to any prospects of a turn-around in the PDP. 

Stop Punishing Nigerians For Politicians' Wrongs! - Ben Murray-Bruce

Gov Okorocha’s Christmas Tree And Other Tales Of Political Vanity

By Moses Ochonu

Political vanity is a particularly Nigerian affliction and has been an ancillary scholarly interest of mine. I published an academic article in 2004 on the subject, citing several examples from Nigeria’s then fledgling experiment with civilian rule. The article dwelled extensively but not exclusively on the cases of late former governors Abubakar Audu of Kogi State and Mohammed Lawal of Kwara State.

*Okorocha

The former had an obnoxious penchant for naming every government project after himself and his family members. The latter was so consumed by a need to personalize his power that all mass transit buses belonging to the Kwara State government during his tenure were boldly marked with the moniker “UP LAWAL.”

Since the publication of that article, similar examples of personalized power and political vanities in high places have proliferated. I am reliably informed that in Kayode Fayemi’s Ekiti State, a remarkable record of infrastructural investments was marred by an inexplicable insistence on naming all projects after the former governor and his wife.

Public office holders in Nigeria adorn their offices with all manner of silly award plaques. One former minister, God rest her soul, had an entire wall of her office covered in awards from all manner of organizations — some of them concrete, others clearly made up by sycophants to curry her favor. She liked to take pictures against the background of this wall of vanity. The pictures made it to newspapers and then to the Internet, where they live to date. It was a vulgar form of political narcissism, a kind of self-deification.

The said former minister was so in love with her own image that she invested energy, time, and resources feting and garnishing herself in awards and other accouterments of self-validation. She built a shrine to herself, reveling in her own proclaimed greatness. Fortunately, she was a largely effective, achieving public servant, so her political vanities didn't matter that much. She could be forgiven for her vain indulgences.

Our Change Slogan Is Not A Campaign Gimmick – President Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari's Christmas Message To Nigerians 

*President Buhari with Bishop Matthew Kukah 

I felicitate with all Nigerians, especially our Christian brothers and sisters, on the joyous occasion of this year’s Christmas. On this occasion of the commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ, let us all rededicate ourselves to the virtues of peace, love, honesty, justice, equity, piety, humility and service to others which he taught. 

There can be no doubt that a greater manifestation of these virtues and ideals in our lives will immensely help us to become a more united, peaceful, secure and progressive nation.

Let us also reach out in love and compassion to fellow Nigerians who are in distress at this period of our nation’s history.

I particularly urge you all to remember victims of terrorism and insurgency in the country, especially Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

The Federal Government will continue to collaborate with state governments and other stakeholders to ease the harsh conditions in IDP camps, while the ultimate objective remains to quickly put an end to insurgency and return the IDPs to their homes.

We must never again allow any group to hold the nation to ransom under whatever guise.

Let us also not allow current socio-economic and security challenges to dampen our expectations for a better Nigeria.

This administration has taken a number of measures to restore hope to our people. The 2016 Budget defines our commitment to giving Nigeria a new lease of life.

Our change slogan is not a campaign gimmick but a promise that must be kept. We are determined to bring about tangible changes in the lives of our people.

In this regard, efforts will be intensified to recover stolen funds, block revenue leakages and enthrone due process, transparency and accountability.

Public office is a public trust that must be held to the highest ethical standards.

I wish all Nigerians a Merry Christmas.

Please drive carefully.

MUHAMMADU BUHARI

RELATED POST 

Pastor Kumuyi Is Right: Christmas Is Idolatrous

Aisha Buhari's Lavish Party Obscene, Callous And Wicked – The THIRD Force

Press Release 

*Aisha Buhari 

“The THIRD Force considers it morally repugnant and a slight on the sensibilities of Nigerians that at a time when over 2,000 Nigerian lives have been reportedly wasted and unaccounted for in the Zaria Shia massacre; at a time when Nigerians are confronted with severe economic hardship, fuel scarcity and Nigeria’s worst ever crash of the Naira against the dollar; at a time when Nigerians are groaning under the yoke of what may be the worst Christmas celebration ever; at a time when the scourge of Boko Haram attacks have overwhelmed the capacity of our military to defend the territorial integrity of Nigeria Aisha Buhari, the wife of the Nigerian president is throwing a lavish party that was not only obscene in its opulence, but callous, wicked and insensitive to the plight of millions of deprived Nigerians who are bearing the brunt of this government’s record cluelessness, lack of direction and phantasmagoric policies.

*Mrs. Buhari arrives for the dinner party (informationvilla)

“What exactly are we celebrating? Has President Buhari’s government achieved so much that a party of rice, pounded yam, fruit juices and malt drinks organized for starving youths of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party is the priority of the moment? What happened to the IDP camps with millions of displaced Nigerian citizens who have been reduced to beggars by a government that failed them?

“Under Buhari, Nigeria’s economy has suffered terrible blows. Nigeria appears directionless; the right of citizens to free speech is being threatened; our stock market is crashing; citizens are being killed and their rights violated by the same authorities that swore to protect them; our president is globetrotting like foreign trips are running out of fashion; we wake up every day in a Nigeria where election promises are being denied by the ruling party and return home to food left over by the movers and shakers of the country. Yet here we are, organizing a party to immortalize the folly. What disdain!

Hired Writers Behind Purported Interview Granted By Me - Femi Falana

Press Release

My attention has just been drawn to an obnoxious publication of an interview that I never granted. In the fake interview, I was alleged to have condemned the judgment of the Court of Appeal in respect of the governorship election in Akwa Ibom State. I did not grant the interview ascribed to me by the hack writers. In fact, I could not have condemned the judgment as it is well grounded in law. The so called interview is a hatchet job in every material particular.

Those who know me will attest to the fact that I have never supported the rigging of elections in any manner whatsoever and howsoever. Hence, I have consistently supported the use of PVC and Card Readers which were strenuously opposed by election manipulators in the country. As a lawyer, I have never represented election riggers in any court or tribunal. As a public commentator, I have regularly advocated for the prosecution of election riggers in Nigeria and in other African countries.

Onitsha Massacre: The Dangerous Silence Of Gov Obiano

By Osondu Nwike

Governance in a democratic dispensation is primarily meant to protect the governed among other responsibilities. The relationship between the leader and the led does not start and end with canvassing for votes at which time the leader dines and dances with the common man.

Governor Willy Obiano's silence and inactivity on now two pronounced massacres in Onitsha is dangerous not only on his insensitivity on the lives of Igbo people but on the troubling suspicion on who the real enemies of the Igbo people are. It is Biblical, dating to the days of Esau and Jacob that for a porridge, one can mortgage his rights. Has Obiano played along for his porridge at Abuja?. It is a known fact that after the 1st Onitsha massacre, the governor of the city where the dastardly act took place did not visit any of the wounded neither did he make out time to show concern to the families of the victims nor condemned the act in strong terms.

Yesterday, 17th of December, 2015, about 8 unarmed Igbos marching towards the Niger Bridge head were killed by the soldiers while over 13 were wounded. The most disturbing part of this second massacre is the allegation that same soldiers abducted the bodies of the killed and made away with them.

Gov. Obiano must set politics aside and act as the protector of his people. Anambra people and the rest of Nigerians resident in Onitsha must be seen by the governor as part of his responsibility to protect and care no matter the association, religion and status they represent.

It is on record that the governor of Kaduna State, in company of the IGP and the Minister of Interior visited the Shiite leader, expressing concern and love for the people no matter what may have transpired and that is the expectation of Anambra people, that is the expectation of the Igbos, that is the expectation of IPOB, that is the expectation of MOSSOB and that is the expectation of Nigerians.

In the Zaria incident, the Amnesty International, British High Commissioner and many others issued statements condemning the massacre but in Onitsha massacres, non even acknowledged such occurrences. The reason being that the leadership of the State did not even acknowledge it in the first instance. Collaborators, silent conspirators and other elements of that nature are always identifiable in societies but when it involves lives, it becomes dangerous for leaders to be silent.

- The Nigerian Voice 

Challenges Awaiting Kogi Governor-Elect, Bello

By A. S. M. Jimoh

The Kogi state gubernatorial election has come and gone, but the controversy that trailed it has refused to die. The whole scenario of the election has taught us important lessons. It has shown that power truly belongs to God, a cliché often use by our politician but never live by it. Secondly, our effort alone can never earn us our goal. We need a touch of the Divine.

*Yahaya Bello

While there are losses, angers, victories and jubilations, the man who smiles most is one young Alhaji Yahaya Bello, born approximately forty years ago. Following the death of Alhaji Audu Abubakar, him being the runner-up in the primary was picked by the party through constitutional provision to be Audu’s replacement. He is now the Governor-elect. If Allah wills, he will take the mantle of leadership of Kogi state on the 27th of January 2016.

Because of the triviality and complexity that surround Kogi politics, he will be navigating a very turbulent water. He will be faced by ethnic distrust and a comatose state with nothing to show in term of infrastructure and other indices of development. Nevertheless, if he has the mettle, he will sail through the troubled water to safety unscathed. For a man who deployed enormous resources to campaign, make promises, went to primary and finally winning the governorship, it is assumed that he has the vision to lead the state out of its current direction to an intensive care unit. But recent history has shown that many our politicians only invest in campaign, make promises, pretend a vision and when he/she wins, he/she turns out to be worse than a highway armed-robber and a pillaging army. Alhaji Yahaya Bello must show he is different.