Do Nigerian Lives Matter?

By Benjamin Obiajulu Aduba

 The leadership and followership of Americans stood up when some Black Americans were killed and asserted that Black Lives matter. It came from the pulpits of both Catholic and Protestant churches, from mosques, from temples and from political parties. GOP’s response was tame but it is on record. Not everybody believed that the killers’ stand were wrong but all agreed that killing was not the solution. As President Assad is killing his people, the world arose in anger as they did when Saddam and Gadhafi did the same things. Initial condemnation came from Syrians, Libyans, Iraqis.

How different is Nigeria’s. Nobody in Nigeria is speaking out as President Buhari is killing peaceful demonstrators at first in Port Harcourt and now in Onitsha. At PH two citizens were killed and in Onitsha nine others were killed by. In both cases PMB’s troops shot and killed unarmed demonstrators bringing the total Buhari killings to eleven in five months of his administration. Since the demonstrations have not stopped the civilian killings by the “man of God” is bound to rise.

If a president killing his people is bad what about the reactions of politicians, business leaders, religious leaders, civil rights advocates, internet warriors, etc.? The reaction is a deafening silence. Not a word from Iman’s, bishops, “men of God”; nothing from the Senate or the House; nothing from Human Rights groups, Nothing from governors, etc. Nothing but silence.

The question becomes: why this silence?

I offer these guesses:

Boko Haram Is Wounded And Dangerous

By Max Siollun

Less than a year ago, the militant group Boko Haram controlled an area of northeastern Nigeria the size of Belgium. It was “a mortuary for the uncooperative and prison for the conquered,” as one unlucky resident described it to me at the time, and it threatened to engulf ever more of the country. The brutal Islamist insurgency had sapped the morale and discipline of the Nigerian army and seemed poised to carve out a caliphate that rivaled the one it had pledged loyalty to in Iraq and Syria.

Fast-forward just 10 months and the idea of an Islamic caliphate in northern Nigeria seems a distant memory. Delusions of statehood caused Boko Haram’s leaders to overreach, inviting a powerful regional military response and bolstering the candidacy of former Nigerian military leader Muhammadu Buhari, who set about crushing the Islamist insurgency after winning the presidency in March. A regional military coalition led by Nigeria has recaptured much of the territory Boko Haram once controlled and driven its fighters into remote regions in Nigeria’s northeastern corner.

But if Boko Haram has seen its territorial ambitions dashed in recent months, it is hardly on the verge of defeat. In a way, Boko Haram has come full circle, reverting back to the kind of asymmetrical warfare that was once its grisly hallmark. As a result, the group poses as much of a danger to civilians now as it did when it fought to control cities and towns. In the last six months alone, Boko Haram has killed nearly 1,500 people.

What explains the rollercoaster ride of the last 10 months? Part of the answer is hubris. Last month, a senior Nigerian military officer told me that the publicity Boko Haram garnered from its 2014 kidnapping of more than 200 schoolgirls from the town of Chibok emboldened the group’s leaders to be more ambitious, resulting in costly mistakes. Instead of sticking to the hit-and-run tactics that it had used to successfully torment the Nigerian military for years, Boko Haram began to seize and hold territory, boldly declaring an Islamic “caliphate” in the areas it had conquered. This stretched the group’s resources too thin and forced it into a conventional war with the Nigerian military that it could not win. Boko Haram also shed its domestic focus, launching cross-border raids into neighboring Cameroon, Chad, and Niger, all of which eventually joined a five-nation military coalition against it (along with Benin and Nigeria).

Remove Subsidies And Redirect Cash Into Needful Investments

"It Makes More Sense To Remove Subsidies And Redirect Cash Into Investments That Go Directly To Those Who Need It Most"

By Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

Globally, government support for fossil-fuel subsidies will amount to almost $650bn this year. The cost of these subsidies far outweighs the benefits and burdens the middle classes. Reforming the system can make energy infrastructure more efficient, shore up public finances and allow more targeted spending on public services.

The idea is not a new one. In 2009, the G20 countries and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum committed themselves to cutting inefficient subsidies but progress has been limited. But in the context of the decline in oil prices, which benefits consumers, we have a golden opportunity to deliver reform.

About 30 countries, including my own, Nigeria, have already made efforts to phase out fossil-fuel subsidies. In spite of the difficulties, it is well worth the effort.

In 2012 in Nigeria we reformed petrol subsidies. Conscious that the public might be concerned, we ran an information campaign to explain how the savings would be used to help everyone. Political pressure, however, led to the policy being introduced earlier than planned and, as a result, the changes came as a shock to many. This led to protests and the reform had to be partially rolled back.

Despite this, we were right to act. Even phasing out half of the subsidies was a substantial achievement. Some $13bn worth of petrol subsidies, including many fraudulent claims, had burdened the national budget, and we were able to redirect some of those funds. Within a year, our programme to reinvest the savings meant we could finish the renovation of a north-south national railway, as well as introduce improved maternal and childcare services in 500 primary healthcare centres.

Using lessons learnt from Nigeria and other countries we can put together a set of best practices to follow. These include co-coordinated communication, implementation and redistribution efforts. Reform should also create a broad sense of political ownership, especially in fiscally decentralised countries.

One of the most common concerns about removing subsidies is that it will hurt the poor. But in reality the subsidies benefit high-income populations and industry much more than low-income households.

The International Monetary Fund has estimated that more than 40 per cent of fuel price subsidies in developing countries accrue to the richest 20 per cent of households, while 7 per cent of the benefits go to the poorest 20 per cent.

It makes more sense to remove subsidies and redirect cash into investments that go directly to those who need it most. That was the aim of Nigeria’s programme and it is being tried elsewhere. In Germany and Poland, for example, coal subsidy reforms were supported by cash assistance for workers affected by mine closures.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE 

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The Return of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

APC Thieves Only Come To Steal And Kill – Gov Fayose

*Fayose 

Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has raised the alarm that Nigeria under President Buhari was fast becoming a shame, describing the failed attempt by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to manipulate the Bayelsa State governorship election as clear invitation to anarchy. The governor, who said it was shameful that the two elections conducted by INEC under Buhari’s kinsman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu were inconclusive, called on all well-meaning Nigerians and the international community to rise up in condemnation of the APC government’s plot to destroy democracy in the country.

Speaking through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose who said everything under Buhari was becoming inconclusive, added that; “If in three days, INEC could not conduct credible election in Bayelsa State of just eight local governments, one wonders what will happen during the general elections in 2019.

The War Against Corruption In Nigeria

By Denja Yaqub

NO doubt, the dawn of the Muhammadu Buhari Presidency has changed the corruption surge in Nigeria, even as anti-corruption laws and institutions are still very weak and lacking in both capacity and will to curb the spate.

Corruption is unarguably Nigeria’s worst problem, every other problems including unemployment, sit on the trivet of corruption and all we urgently need is a serious government that is committed, beyond words, to the battle against the plague.

*Amaechi, Buhari and Fashola 

President Muhammadu Buhari’s promise to fight corruption during his campaigns and his anti-corruption pedigree certainly gave him majority of the votes that shot him to power as most Nigerians are eager to clear the global dent on our collective image and he needs to ensure he goes beyond mere declarations by strengthening all structures and institutions that can effectively wipe off corruption or at least reduce it.

Since his emergence as President, the only weapon that has been fighting corruption is simply his name. His name has become anti-corruption law, agency and court. Individuals, organisations and government agencies have adopted a culture of self-control; some people who had diverted public funds to their private vaults have been reported to have quietly returned the funds to government. Indeed, the Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai publicly said a former public officer, whom he didn’t name, had contacted him to facilitate the return of money he stole while in government during Goodluck Jonathan’s presidency.

The Peoples Democratic Party, a party that ruled this country to economic ruins for sixteen years but now in the opposition is swamped with hallucinating fright as most of those being questioned for corruption are members of the party. The party believed the anti-corruption battle is directed at its members. It would be strange if majority of those being investigated or facing prosecution are members of any other political party, anyway.

Biafra Challenge And Nigeria’s Future

By Nze Nwabueze Akabogu (JP)

For the past four weeks or thereabout, the nation had witnessed an unprecedented upsurge in the massive non-violent demonstrations which has now reached a crescendo in the agitation for the actualization of the sovereign state of Biafra jointly led by MASSOB and the so-called Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The widespread agitation throughout the South East region as well as some parts of the Igbo speaking areas of the South-South region suddenly erupted in the wake of the reported detention of the Director of the clandestine “Radio Biafra” based in the United Kingdom, Nnamdi Kenu, who was reported to have been picked up by security operatives on his arrival from London recently.

The MASSOB led by the irrepressible Chief Ralph Uwazuruike had for many years been in the vanguard for the actualization of the defunct Republic of Biafra through non-violent means. The Biafran Army was defeated by the Nigerian Armed Forces after thirty months of devastating civil war with the famous slogan of “No victor and no vanquished” as was declared by the erstwhile Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd) in January 1970.

Regrettably however, almost forty six years after the disastrous conflict, all the contentious issues that originally led to the unfortunate war had remained unresolved, hence the current wave of agitations spearheaded mainly by the restive youths who invariably had inherited the seeming lopsidedness of the nation’s political structure as well as gross marginalization being suffered by the people within the geographical entity known as the defunct Republic of Biafra or South-East region of Nigeria to be precise.

The Nigerian nation seemed to have lost the golden opportunity to put the dark period of the civil war and its horrifying memories permanently behind her hence the nation had failed to take advantage of the famous declaration of “No victor and no vanquished” slogan to build a new nation through the adoption of a deliberate policy of genuine reconciliation and re-integration of the Igbo nation into the mainstream of the nation’s political system of governance.

Abstinence Is The ‘Only’ Prevention

By Hannatu Musa Musawa

Every December 1 is a day set aside to mark the World AIDS Day. It is a day which avails people an opportunity worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV/AIDS, show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died as a result of AIDS. It is a day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection. Government and health officials, non-governmental organisations and individuals around the world observe the day, often with education on AIDS prevention and control. 

(Pix:wishestrumptet)

Globally there are an estimated 34 million people who have the virus. Despite the fact that the virus was only being identified in 1984, more than 35 million people have died of it, making it one of the most destructive pandemics in history. However, today, breakthrough scientific advances have been made in HIV treatment. Also, now, there are laws that protect people living with HIV and we have come to understand so much more about the condition.

Nigeria has the second-largest number of people living with HIV worldwide. The HIV epidemic in Nigeria is complex and varies widely by region. In some states, the epidemic is more concentrated and driven by high-risk behaviours, while other states have more generalised epidemics that are sustained primarily by multiple unconventional interactions in the general population. Youth and young adults in Nigeria are particularly vulnerable to HIV, with young women at higher risk than young men. There are many risk factors that contribute to the spread of HIV in our society, including high-risk practices among itinerant workers, high prevalence of STD’s, clandestine practices, international trafficking of women, and irregular blood screening.

Rape! We Are All Guilty!

By Joe Onwukeme
I was moved to tears as I watched raped victims and their families stood in the House of Representatives on Thursday, 23rd October 2014 to narrate their agonizing experience in the hands of rapists.

The victims, mostly young girls, pleaded for justice to be done on their plight and also called on government through the female lawmakers and their counterparts to expedite action and pass Sexual Offences Bill that is currently pending in both the lower and upper chambers with a view of sparing them the trauma they are going through.

Corruption Mobilizing To Fight Back

By Femi Falana 

 Last week, some of the principal  suspects implicated in the probe of the $2.1 billion and N643 billion arms gate were nabbed by the Economic and Financial Commission.  Pursuant to the ex parte orders validly issued by the courts  the suspects have since been detained  for the purpose of investigation. But in a desperate move designed  to divert the attention of the Nigerian people and the international community from the grave allegations of reckless and criminal diversion  of the public funds  earmarked for arms procurement to prosecute the war on terror, some reactionary politicians have accused the Buhari administration of engaging in  impunity for detaining the suspects beyond 48 hours without trial. In challenging the detention of the suspects by the EFCC  a senior lawyer was alleged to have said that "a magistrate court has no power to issue a holding charge warrant".

With respect, the detention of the suspects is in strict compliance with the rule of law. The attention of the "critics" ought to be drawn  to sections 293-299 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 (ACJA) which stipulate that a suspect arrested for an offense which a magistrate has no  jurisdiction to try, shall within a reasonable time, be brought before a magistrate court for remand. The order which shall be for a period not exceeding 14 days may be further extended provided that if the investigation is not concluded  within 28 days the court may summon the appropriate authority to show cause why the suspect should not be unconditionally released. Suspects who are remanded in custody are at liberty to ask for bail or apply to the appropriate high court to secure the enforcement of their fundamental right to personal liberty. In view of the clear and unambiguous provisions of the law it is misleading to insist that a magistrate court lacks the power to grant the application filed by the EFCC for the detention of the criminal suspects.

Why Hasn’t Biafran Spirit Died?

By Asikason Jonathan

” What had started as a belief was transmuted to total conviction; that they could never again live with Nigerians. From this stems the primordial political reality of the present situation. Biafra cannot be killed by anything short of total eradication of the people that make her. For even under total occupation Biafra would sooner or without colonel Ojukwu rise up again”

– Frederick Forsyth

Let me start by disagreeing with Forsyth that apart from total eradication of Biafran people that Biafran spirit cannot be killed. The problem here is with the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and what Achebe described as the ‘Igbo problem.’

The 1999 constitution of the  Federal Republic  of Nigeria did not only incorporates the colonial mistakes of 1900s which made the Northern Nigeria a force  to be reckoned with in the country’s politics but it created also a leviathan out of the federal government to such a nauseating level that the component units are seen as dependents and not co-ordinates.

Many people have asked: what do Igbo people want? The answer is very simple! We want political inclusion, we want a society where fair play, justice and equity, rule of law and meritocracy reign – that’s just what Ndi Igbo want!

The resurgence in the agitation for Biafra lies on fact that the Igbo – 48 years after civil war – are yet to find their bearings in the Nigerian federalism. We are yet to distinguish between the dictionary and the political conception of the maxim: No Victor No Vanquished. Let us not forget Ojukwu’s question: What did he [Gowon] do to make the victor not being the victor and the vanquished not being the vanquished?

Allow The People’s Will To Prevail In Bayelsa – PDP Tells Buhari

PRESS RELEASE 

‘Steer Clear Of Bayelsa Governorship Election’, PDP Tells Buhari

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) forewarns President Muhammadu Buhari to steer clear of Bayelsa governorship election and allow the will of the people to prevail, if he really desires to sustain the nation’s democracy.

PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh in a statement on Sunday said intelligence information reaching the party shows that President Buhari is neck-deep in APC’s desperation to forcefully take over Bayelsa state, for which he has directed a covert military and other security operations to assist the APC to rig the election, which has already been won by the PDP.

“At the head of this illegal military operation is one Capt. Louis, who led the hijacking of elections in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, the largest in the state. Military personnel have seized ballot materials including result sheets in Igbematiru, Peremabiri, ward 3, ward 6, ward 8, ward 12, ward 13 and ward 15, which they took to Ologbobiri in military gunboats, where massive thumb-printing is going on in favour of the APC. In Ward 7 Ekowe, the military hijacked and destroyed voting materials.

Nigeria's Baby Farmers

Investigating Nigeria's notorious baby farms and the criminals who abuse and exploit women for profit [Watch a heart-rending documentary].

"It is understandable why a desperate childless couple might do anything to have a baby, but those who exploit their unhappiness for profit are not so easy to forgive.

In this deeply disturbing episode of Africa Investigates, Ghana's undercover journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas and investigative reporter Rosemary Nwaebuni team up to identify and expose some of those those behind Nigeria's heart-breaking baby trade.

It is a scam that exploits couples desperate for a baby and young pregnant single mothers - often stigmatised in a country where abortion is illegal except in the most dire medical emergency. It is also a trade that international NGOs have identified as sinister and out of control."

CLICK HERE TO READ FULL REPORT AND WATCH DOCUMENTARY  

Turkey Will Regret Shooting Down Russian Jet – Putin Says In State Of Union Address

“…Today we have again come face to face with a destructive and barbarous ideology, and we must not allow these modern-day dark forces to attain their goals.

“We must stop our debates and forget our differences to build a common anti-terrorist front that will act in line with international law and under the UN aegis.

“Every civilised country must contribute to the fight against terrorism, reaffirming their solidarity, not in word but in deed.

“This means that the terrorists must not be given refuge anywhere. There must be no double standards. No contacts with terrorist organisations. No attempts to use them for self-seeking goals. No criminal business with terrorists.

“We know who are stuffing pockets in Turkey and letting terrorists prosper from the sale of oil they stole in Syria. The terrorists are using these receipts to recruit mercenaries, buy weapons and plan inhuman terrorist attacks against Russian citizens and against people in France, Lebanon, Mali and other states. We remember that the militants who operated in the North Caucasus in the 1990s and 2000s found refuge and received moral and material assistance in Turkey. We still find them there.

Watch Speech Here [English]

“Meanwhile, the Turkish people are kind, hardworking and talented. We have many good and reliable friends in Turkey. Allow me to emphasise that they should know that we do not equate them with the certain part of the current ruling establishment that is directly responsible for the deaths of our servicemen in Syria.

“We will never forget their collusion with terrorists. We have always deemed betrayal the worst and most shameful thing to do, and that will never change. I would like them to remember this – those in Turkey who shot our pilots in the back, those hypocrites who tried to justify their actions and cover up for terrorists.

“I don’t even understand why they did it. Any issues they might have had, any problems, any disagreements even those we knew nothing about could have been settled in a different way. Plus, we were ready to cooperate with Turkey on all the most sensitive issues it had; we were willing to go further, where its allies refused to go. Allah only knows, I suppose, why they did it. And probably, Allah has decided to punish the ruling clique in Turkey by taking their mind and reason.

“But, if they expected a nervous or hysterical reaction from us, if they wanted to see us become a danger to ourselves as much as to the world, they won’t get it. They won’t get any response meant for show or even for immediate political gain. They won’t get it.

“Our actions will always be guided primarily by responsibility – to ourselves, to our country, to our people. We are not going to rattle the sabre. But, if someone thinks they can commit a heinous war crime, kill our people and get away with it, suffering nothing but a ban on tomato imports, or a few restrictions in construction or other industries, they’re delusional. We’ll remind them of what they did, more than once. They’ll regret it. We know what to do.

“We have mobilised our Armed Forces, security services and law enforcement agencies to repel the terrorist threat. Everyone must be aware of their responsibility, including the authorities, political parties, civil society organisations and the media...”

–Russian President Vladimir Putin in his State of the Union address on Thursday, December 3, 2015

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL TEXT OF THE SPEECH 

One Party State Loading In Nigeria: The APC Game Plan

By Olanrewaju Aderemi Obafemi

A few days after the 1999 Presidential Election, then Comrade Adams Oshiomhole led a delegation of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to Ota, Ogun State to congratulate the winner of that election. While hosting the NLC team then President-Elect, General Olusegun Obasanjo, still smarting from his wholesale rejection in the South West, swore to destroy the Alliance for Democracy (AD) “in the national interest”. 

*Buhari and Obasanjo

He argued that with the kind of hold that the AD had on the South West it could only remain a regional party and that as long as the South West remained loyal to it the Yoruba would not be able to play at the national stage. Then National Secretary General of AD was procured by Obasanjo to foment a crisis, which he executed, but unfortunately he trusted Obasanjo to reward him handsomely and neglected to negotiate properly. What he got was a directorship in an obscure federal agency.

Shortly after Obasanjo leaked his infamous December 2013 letter to President Goodluck Jonathan to the press the leadership of the then newly registered All Progressive Congress went to Abeokuta to pay homage to the ex-president and invited him to help guide their new party to success. Obviously basking in the recognition that had been accorded him Obasanjo promised to help. He subsequently kept haranguing President Jonathan until the immediate past president was defeated at the polls.

2015 General Elections

Apart from President Jonathan’s principal shortcoming, which was neglecting the communities that supported him to victory in 2011 and instead heavily patronizing the ones that did not support him in the hope that he could turn them, the 2015 Presidential Election was won by rumours. What? While preparing to make a bid for the presidency a record fourth time General Muhammadu Buhari tasked an associate of his, Prof. Femi Olufunmilade, Head of Department of International Relations and Strategic Studies and Sub Dean of the School of Post Graduate Studies and Research at the Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, to avail him of a strategy with which to defeat the incumbent president. Olufunmilade accomplished the task and submitted a report which indicated that the only way incumbents have been unseated in Africa was through widespread disaffection with the government of the day.

Social Media Regulation Bill – SERAP Seeks UN Intervention

Press Release 

“We are seriously concerned that the National Assembly of Nigeria will any moment from now pass a bill to jail for two years and fine anybody or group of persons who send any alleged false text message or post false message on the social media against another person.

“SERAP is concerned that rather than increasing universal and inclusive access to the Internet for all Nigerians, the National Assembly of Nigeria is working to undermine access of citizens to the Internet. Yet, freedom of expression entails the ability to both speak and receive information, including through the social media and other generated content services such as YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and chat applications,”

“By initiating this bill, the National Assembly is impermissibly restricting the ability of the citizens to use these tools to communicate, connect, and seek independent sources of information.”

“SERAP also contends that the bill will restrain access to internet and social media, curtail the freedom of the press, and online content in illegitimate, disproportionate, or otherwise unlawful and abusive ways. The real targets of the bill are social media and human rights defenders that might be critical of government policies or report on corruption involving high ranking government officials,”

Adamawa: Travails of An Anti-corruption Lawmaker

Maliki Salaudeen

To say that President Muhammadu Buhari came to power on the wings of his anti-corruption credentials is simply stating the obvious. And that the All Progressive Congress (APC) party swept majority of the governorship seats on account of the change mantra of the party is equally not contestable. What is however a subject of contention is whether some of the party’s governors are still on the same page with the president in his avowed determination to clean the nation’s Augean stable.

* Jibrila Mohammadu Bindow

Today, in Adamawa State, a cruel drama of sorts is currently playing out, which if not urgently nipped in the bud, has all the potentials of negating President Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade. What makes the entire scenario alarmingly worrisome is the fact that the state is being governed by an APC governor, Sen. Bindow Umar Jibrila.

Allegations are rife in the state that the governor is currently pilfering the resources of the state with abominable perfidy under the guise of executing sundry projects, a development  Abdurrahman Abubakar Isa, a member representing Mubi South constituency in the State House of Assembly, has been vehemently kicking against, which in turn has drawn the ire of the governor. For his insistence that things be done in a proper manner in line with the twin principles of transparency and accountability, Abubakar Isa is today being barbecued on a smoldering fire of victimization.

The genesis of the current face-off between the governor and Isa stemmed from the former’s submission of a document dated 28th October, 2015 to the State House of Assembly titled ‘’Re-Submission of Detail Areas of Virement in the 2015 Revised Budget’’, which in reality was a request for new capital projects and not projects already contained in the earlier Appropriation Law. This did not go down well with Isa, who happened to be the Chairman of the House Committee on Finance, Budget and Appropriation, as he rightly insisted that ‘’the only way new projects can be captured in the budget after passage of the Appropriation Law is by a supplementary appropriation bill duly passed by the House’’.

Buhari: How Prepared Is This Absentee President?

By Immanuel Igwu

Within six months of inauguration, the man Nigerians elected in a historic voter revolution has created an alarming pattern of absenteeism. President Muhammadu Buhari, who is hyped as an orator of ‘’body language’’, has been voting with his feet since May 29, 2015.

*Yet another goodbye to Nigeria

An audit of his overseas travel shows that, so far, he has accumulated more than forty days and forty nights of elopement!

Though Buhari begged for and received from Nigerians a clear mandate to help break the free fall of a nation that is disappearing into an economic abyss, a Nigeria that offers the world one of the most frequent and highest death tolls due to terrorist attacks, he shows that he can hardly afford the discipline of sitting down long enough to master the desperate emergencies of the nation.

With the recurring image of a lanky, bespectacled man standing at the door of the presidential aircraft, waving and waving an umpteenth good bye, Buhari has literally compelled the discerning to cotton up to the fact that he would rather go elsewhere than fulfill the sedentary lion-share of his job!

Time is the easiest to calculate aspect of Buhari’s wanderlust: By checking his itinerary and adding small numbers, one can determine that our brand new leader has notched a month plus stay abroad. The monetary cost is different: It is hidden. Nigerian taxpayers do not know the irreducible minimum amount of their money that grows wings whenever he leaves the Nigerian airspace in his presidential glory.

The Magnitude Of Corruption In Ghana

By Nana Akwah

It must be our ultimatum duty to uphold the fighting of tigers and flies at the same time, resolutely investigating law-breaking cases of leading officials and also to a great extent willing to resolve the abnormal and harmful inclinations and corruption problems which happen all around people.

*John Dramani Mahama

The economy of Ghana is at its worst since it independence. Most of our people poor and they are wallowing in stark poverty and starving on account of the expensive consumer goods.

Basic commodities prices are always on the increase however wages for workers still remain. It is inhumane and unfair for all the hardships the people are going through. All basic needs are continually increasing and the present NDC government is not taking actions but to corrupt!

The economy is down owing to corruption as it is very rampant at high places. The problem with our society is that we can not absolve ourselves from the evil practice. Almost the entire country is caught up in the menace as we find ways to engage in the act.

I sincerely believe that most people will fall prey or get compromised if they had chance to get to the position where they have access. I could vouch that about 75 percent of the people are compromised. Although corruption could be said to be very prevalent among the citizens however, it very sickening to observe the profligacy exhibited by these officials. The least said of them the better.

IPOB Protests: We Will Not Tolerate Any Breach Of Peace Under Any Guise – Gov Obiano Warns

Text Of Broadcast By Gov Willie Obiano Of Anambra On The Evening Of Wednesday, December 2, 2015 

“My beloved people of Anambra State, I wish to address you on the on-going protest staged in Onitsha by the members of the Indigenous People of Biafra and MASSOB.

“The government of Anambra State has been monitoring developments and is greatly concerned about the security of lives and property of residents and visitors to the state. As your Governor and Chief Security Officer of the state, I am compelled to act to avert any likely breakdown of law and order. In all situations, the preservation of human life comes first and I am determined to enforce that.

“Since the inception of my administration, we have made the security of lives and property our priority and we are not going to compromise on that. I, therefore, sincerely appeal to members of the IPOB, MASSOB and other aggrieved groups and individuals to maintain the peace and resist any attempt by hoodlums to take advantage of the situation and destabilize any part of Anambra State.

“I am in constant touch with all the security agencies in the state to ensure that what has otherwise been a peaceful protest is not hijacked by trouble makers. All mischief makers are hereby warned to keep off as we will not tolerate any breach of peace under any guise or pretext. You are seriously warned! I therefore wish to assure Ndi Anambra and all visitors to the state to go about their normal businesses peacefully as the security agencies are on top of the situation to preserve law and order.”

Gov Oshiomole’s Unconscionable Campaign Of Lies Against Me – Okonjo-Iweala

PRESS RELEASE 

Former Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has requested the Federal Government to call Edo State Governor, Mr Adams Oshiomhole to order over the Governor’s recent efforts to link her name to the alleged $2.1 billion arms issue.

The Minister stressed that she has absolutely nothing to do with the issue.

*Dr. Okonjo-Iweala and Gov Adams Oshiomole 

She stated that it is an abuse of public office, the judicial process and her human rights for Governor Oshiomhole whom she stopped from taking a highly suspicious N15 billion loan to make false allegations against her while hiding behind the constitutional immunity granted state governors.

As recently confirmed by the Debt Management Office, professional analysis showed that Oshiomhole’s loan request which was based on using low interest World Bank loan to offset high interest commercial loans would have left Edo state with a heavy debt burden and the the state would have found it very difficult to pay back.