Trouble looms over Positions in House

Trouble seems not over in the House of Representatives even with the election of new Speaker and Deputy Speaker as many lawmakers from the six geo-political zones are now engaged in fierce battles for House leadership positions

Last week, the House sacked the four principal officers and asked any of them who wished to come back to obtain a fresh mandate from his or her zone.

The womenfolk is also pushing for the nomination of a ranking female legislator to take one of the principal officer’s slots apparently because the female genre lost a high profile position with the fall of the former Speaker, Hon. Patricia Etteh.
The House reconvenes tomorrow after members were given a short break to attend Monday’s ward congresses of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua will, however, on Thursday, November 8, present the 2008 Appropriation Bill to a joint sitting of the Senate and House.
Etteh had on Tuesday, October 22 read the letter from President Yar’Adua requesting that he be granted permission to present the Appropriation Bill to the joint sitting of both chambers.

The Speaker had said that the zones that cannot resolve their problems were asked to go back and bring their nominations on Wednesday, this is against the backdrop of zoning principal offices. Members of the Integrity Group told Newsmen that they would not influence the return of the leaders who served under Etteh, stating that they would leave the zones to sort out their problems.

Hon. Farouk Lawan, the arrow-head of the group, said the group pushed for the investigation of the contract scam and was satisfied that at the end of the day the decision to remove the former Speaker was unanimous and that even Etteh’s supporters voted against her when it mattered most.

Meanwhile, the Speaker and his deputy have sued for peace and indicated that they may not reconstitute the committees.
Bankole said the immediate plan of the new leadership of the House was to devise ways to do what is right towards the major objectives of the lower legislative chamber and ensure that peace and unity reigned among members.

The new Speaker spoke with newsmen at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, and Lagos on his way to Abeokuta, his hometown, to pay the first visit as the new presiding officer of the House to the Ogun State Governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, and the Alake of EgbaLand, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo.
Bankole said the House was at the point of completing its leadership process.

The Speaker who arrived at the Presidential Lounge of the Murtala Muhammed Airport aboard a presidential jet marked 5N-FGP said: "As you know, it was only the position of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker that have changed. We need to complete the leadership and then we will now come together, put up a short-term, medium-term and long-term plans for the House of Representatives and indeed the National Assembly.”

He stated he was not certain if the House committees would be re-constituted to calm frayed nerves or assuage the brewing bitterness occasioned by the crisis that recently engulfed the House.

Later in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, Bankole called on the people of the state to come together and assist the National Assembly in its bid to make good and quality laws for the country.
“Today, clearly, is a day when the next generation is giving a very good account of itself. Today is a great day in the lives of Baptist High School, Abeokuta,” he said.

The governor said with the election of Bankole as the Speaker, he was hopeful that the fortunes of the House and its image would have a positive turn around in the next few weeks or months.

The new Deputy Speaker, Nafada, also said the new leadership of the House might not tamper with the membership of the various committees.
Nafada, who gave the indication in Gombe over the weekend when he visited his home state and called on Governor Muhammad Goje, noted that the recent development at the lower chamber of the National Assembly clearly showed that the nation's democratic process was on course.

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Yar’Adua calls for a Marshal Plan for Africa                                                               
President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua has called for a Marshal Plan for Africa, along the lines of the European Recovery Programme employed by the United States of America to rebuild the nations of Europe devastated by the Second World War.

Yar'Adua, who was speaking on Sunday in Elttevile, Germany, on the Challenges of Globalisation for Africa at the Partnership with Africa Forum, said that Africa needs a bold plan for its regeneration after “decades of destruction engendered by forced partitioning and many years of self-inflicted ruin”.

While making the call for greater international support for Africa’s efforts to catch up with the developed nations of the world, President Yar’Adua said ultimately, Africa’s development must be championed by Africans themselves.
He said that the whole concept of aid to Africa by the developed nations needed to be “re-thought” because it has become clear that aid, as presently operationalised, “it is usually too little, most times misdirected and generally does not make much of a difference.

“This Forum is a veritably apt platform for laying the foundation of another Berlin Conference, this time to work out the details of the plan to rebuild Africa’s infrastructure and, most importantly, to operationalise an initiative that should allow the nations of Sub-Saharan Africa export everything but arms (EBA) to the OECD nations completely free of duties”.

“I must stress the fact that, ultimately, Africa’s development must be championed by Africans themselves; no one from outside the continent is coming to face up to our developmental challenges on our behalf.  We must commit to strengthening governance institutions and structures”.
“Endemic corruption, which has seen the distortion of our core values and the diversion of scarce resources from their development targets to private hands, must be tackled head-on.  Most critically, Africa must evolve a crop of focused, committed, service-oriented, and God-fearing leaders to drive the continent’s rebirth,” President Yar’Adua declared at the gathering which had President Horst Kohler of Germany and several African leaders in attendance”.

He said that his administration was anchoring its pursuit of a re-energized, stable and prosperous Nigeria on the entrenchment of the fundamental principles of democracy, good governance, free enterprise and the rule of law.
“These principles underlie our covenant with the people of Nigeria, which is encapsulated in our Seven-point Agenda - our short to medium term response to the challenges inherent in Nigeria’s desire to belong to the club of the world’s twenty biggest economies by the year 2020”.

“We recognise that the imperative to rapidly regenerate our economy can only be bolstered by continent-wide, focused economic and political reform.  This informs our desire to drive greater integration and broaden regional cooperation on the continent so as to create and sustain the requisite macro-economic and financial conditions for a globally competitive regional economy,” President Yar’Adua said.

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ICPC: Nine NDLEA officials on the run

Already, the former Chairman of the anti drug agency, has been questioned at the ICPC headquarters in Abuja over the alleged missing exhibits which also included the sum of N903,400.

Impeccable sources at the agency confided in newsmen that the reason for declaring the people missing was their refusal to honour the invitation of the agency. It was gathered that out of those invited since last Wednesday in connection with the missing exhibits only the former Chairman showed up.  

After interrogation to determine the level of his involvement in the missing currency, the former Chairman was granted bail after making some statements.

According to sources, the anti-drug agency had arrested one Onoche Ikenna in October 2005, for alleged drug peddling. In order to unearth the mystery surrounding the issue, a task force set up by the former Chairman was mandated to investigate the alleged involvement of Ikenna in the drug business.

As part of their investigations, one of those declared wanted, was alleged to have led other officials to the residence of the suspect on 28th October, 2005 to check if they could find any clue.

During the search, drugs weighing 3.2kg and some currencies were alleged to have been recovered.
 The source revealed further that instead of the officials to charge the suspect to court based on the total kilogramme of drugs alleged to have been found in the house of the suspect, he was granted bail after five days in detention.

But due to the fact that the suspect was not charged to court during that administration newsmen gathered that the new chairman of the agency, Ahmadu Giade took the suspect to court.

When the charges preferred against Ikenna were on, “his lawyer told the court that some of the items recovered from the house of his client, especially 168,400, were missing from the exhibit deposed to by NDLEA in the court.”
Subsequently, a petition was forwarded to the ICPC on the missing foreign currency and some naira notes put at 903,400.
The ICPC operatives then stormed the NDLEA offices in Lagos to untie the knotty issue.

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Atiku, Yar’Adua in Dialogue

Atiku who spoke with journalists described President Yar’Adua as his brother, affirming, that the President and himself belong to the same family.
He nevertheless clarified that such contacts were without prejudice to the on-going case at the Presidential Elections Tribunal where he is challenging the election of Yar’Adua.

He said his long trip abroad was not because of EFCC harassment but that what kept him away for so long was due to the need to take time out to recover from his knee injury, which was very complicated.
Atiku said he was not jolted by the exit of Abubakar Rimi from AC back to PDP. On the reconciliation efforts in PDP, he said he was not aware of such moves, adding that nobody has contacted him.
Reacting to Prof. Jubril Aminu’s assertion that he (Atiku) would not be welcomed back to the party.

Speaking on the government of national unity (GNU), he said the leading member of his party had asked the PDP government why they needed a government of national unity when the party has 80 per cent of National Assembly members, more than 85 or 90 per cent of other elected members.

He said the fact that PDP is looking for a GNU means that there is something wrong and that there is a question mark. 
With regard to the president’s recent accusation of the opposition fueling the crisis in the Niger Delta, he described it as unfounded, stressing that the situation in the Niger Delta has historical antecedents, “unless, he had more facts he has not disclosed.”

He said that if he meets Obasanjo he would greet him as his former president but disclosed he has never made any effort to call him since they left office in May. He disclosed that the last time he went to Ota was in 1998 to invite him to join PDP.

He declined comments on his assessment of the incumbent administration noting. Atiku said he has no regrets working with Obasanjo, stressing that nobody in this country has worked with Obasanjo for eight years. He hailed the proposed electoral reform by the president as an idea that is good.

The former Vice President denied allegations that Yar’Adua was using his gazette indictment to blackmail him to drop his petition at the tribunal. He said there was only one gazette on the indictment which has been quashed by the court. 
Regarding alleged pressure by some traditional rulers on him to withdraw his petition against Yar’Adua; he said no northern Emir has contacted him so far.

Atiku said his message to Nigerians is that they should demand their rights and put pressure on their leaders to do the right thing. They should insist on selecting those who should lead them to make sure that only the right people who are dedicated to the welfare and development of the country are elected.

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Odey stresses need for collaboration in the media

Efforts are being intensified to further bridge the gap between government and private media organisations in Nigeria.

The Minister of Information and Communications, Mr John Odey told the Chief Operation Officer, Consumer News and Business Channel, CNBC Africa, Mr Trevor Ormerod when he paid him a Courtesy call, that the effort would guarantee proper information dissemination and equal opportunity.

Odey stressed the need for the NTA and FRCN to liaise with the CNBC Africa to develop a framework for accurate projection of events in Nigeria.
Odey advised foreign Journalists coming into the country to be properly documented to ease their duties while in the country.

Mr Ormerod promised that the station would continue to serve as an investment promoter for the country and the entire Africa.
The Minister of State for Information and Communications, Aihaji Ibrahim Nakande had enjoined Officers government to deliver the dividends of democracy.

At a brief ceremony to mark the birthday of Mr John Odey, Aihaji Ibrahim Nakande said the Minister had demonstrated honesty and hard-work and prayed God to continue to guide and protect him.

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House elects Bankole as speaker

The House of Representatives on Thursday elected Dimeji Bankole from Ogun State as Speaker and a Gombe State legislator, Usman Bayero Nafada, as Deputy Speaker.

The 37 year-old new Speaker is the son of a former National Chairman of the All People's Party (APP), now All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Chief Suara Alani Bankole.

Chief Alani Bankole who of Oluwo Iporo Ake is a leading member of the Alake Regency Council in Abeokuta, Ogun State, has however, pitched tents with the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

But the PDP was believed to have indeed backed an Osun State legislator, George Jolaoye, against Dimeji Bankole in the Speakership race.

Jolaoye, a quiet member of the House of Representatives, however, received a trouncing at the Assembly's open voting with Bankole scoring 304 to Jolaoye's 20 in a House of 360 members.

The election of the new Speaker and Deputy Speaker followed the forced resignation on Tuesday of the former holders of the offices, Mrs. Patricia Olubunmi Etteh and Alhaji Babangida Nguroje. Etteh hails from Jolaoye's Osun State.

The PDP's national chairman, Ahmadu Ali, had on Wednesday told some of the chamber's members at a meeting that Jolaoye fit the party's zoning formula and urged the legislators to retain the office of speaker in the South-West, and Osun State in particular. He particularly named Jolaoye as the PDP's candidate.

Both elections, which were conducted on Thursday morning, reflected the decisions taken by the various House caucuses on Wednesday night during which contestants were asked to deliver their manifestos.

Bayero was elected unopposed after the Integrity Group had urged a member from Adamawa State, Binta Garba Masi, to withdraw from the race.

Prior to the election, the Speaker pro-tempore, Terngu Tsegba, preached reconciliation, restoration and healing to the legislative chamber that was until Tuesday embroiled in brawling, resulting in the death of one of its members.

New Speaker Bankole represents Abeokuta South in Ogun State and is currently in his second term of office. As freshman in the 2003-2007 sessions, Bankole was the Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Finance. In those years, he played active roles in the reforms of the sector and bringing tranquility to the hitherto querulous House-Presidency relationship over budgets.

With his then committee chairman Farouk Lawan, Bankole played key roles in the defeat of the N1.40 fuel tax proposed in the budget 2004 by the federal executive.

Bankole is the first Speaker of the House of Representatives with a military background having passed into the Royal Military Academy and subsequently serving at the Sandhurst Royal Artillery Corps.
As a member of the House of Representatives, Bankole is also a member of the Pan African Parliament based in South Africa.

His victory came as a result of synergy between the hitherto quarrelling factions in the House - the Due Process Group and the Integrity Group. Both had agreed to resist any impositions by the PDP.

Bankole joined the race as far back as August this year, with the networking support of Mrs. Mercy Almona-Isei, Farouk Lawan and Emeka Ihedioha. The support base rallied to his aid by these Reps cut across various political interests and groups outside of the National Assembly.

Bankole's acceptance speech appears also to be in the mould of the policies and programmes of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, with a pledge to make the Nigerian economy one of the worlds most advanced and the eradication of corruption.

As at Thursday, the caucus of the South-South geo-political zone re-elected Tunde Akogun as the Leader of the House of Representatives.
Thursday election was a culmination of the disagreement between the PDP and its majority party caucus in the House.

The Reps had defied directives by the party for even the election of a Speaker pro-tempore ahead of yesterday's election for a substantive Speaker.

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House dismiss PDP Principal Officers

However, two of the officers, House Leader, Hon. Tunde Akogun, and Deputy Whip, Hon. Aminu Wazri Tambwal, are set to retain their jobs as they were later re-nominated by their zonal caucuses.

Mrs. Patricia Etteh and Alhaji Babangida Nguroje had resigned as Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House over the contract scandal. The Speaker Pro-tempore, Hon. Terngu Tsegba, who led the House in plenary, announced the sacking of the PDP officers as part of the four-point  recommendations of the House after the executive session which lasted about two hours.

Tsegba also announced a communication from the Clerk of the National Assembly, Alhaji Nasiru Arab, formally declaring the seats of the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker vacant.
But another round of meeting called on Wednesday by PDP to agree with its House members on which state of the South-west should produce the new Speaker ended in a stalemate.

This development has thrown up a rat race for the speakership. But as the race hoots up, newsmen learnt that the top job may now be a straight battle between Leo Awoyemi and George Jolaoye, both from Osun State.
Governors of PDP states in the South-west who met Tuesday night in Abuja had decided to back Jolaoye for the top job while the Integrity Group which saw to the ouster of Etteh is said to have pitched its tent with Awoyemi.
The House formally began the consideration of the Idoko panel report on the renovation contract.

In considering the report in plenary, the House asked the management of the National Assembly to come up with a standard procedure for the award of contracts taking into consideration extant rules and regulations of the House and other regulations guiding such contracts.

The second recommendation by the lawmakers was that the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) should take steps to make the residences of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker habitable so that they could move in as soon as possible.

The House also directed the management of the National Assembly to determine the true status of the contracts in view of the repudiation and the voluntary withdrawal of the contractors handling the projects before the Idoko panel issued a stop work order to the contractors.

The officers affected in the gale of sack in the House included the Majority Leader, Akogun, who is from Akoko Federal constituency of Edo State; his deputy, Hon. Baba Shehu Agaie, from Agaie/Lapai Federal constituency of Niger State; the Whip, Hon. Bethel Amadi, from Mbaitoli /Ikeduru Federal constituency of Imo State and his deputy, Tambwal, who represents Kebbe /Tambwal Federal constituency of Sokoto State.

They were asked to go back to their zones and caucuses to seek fresh mandates for elections if they are to come back as principal officers. The four officers stood by Etteh till the very end.

The consideration of the report puts to rest the Etteh saga, which held up the business of the House for 11 weeks and culminated in the death of a member from Katsina State, Hon. Aminu Safana and the eventual resignation of Etteh and Nguroje on Tuesday evening.

Ruling on the order, Tsegba explained that the listing of names would only come into play when a fresh Speaker of a new parliament was being elected. He therefore overruled Agoro.
Hon. West Idahosa who contested the post of Speaker Pro-tempore in absentia with Tsegba also cited Order 7 Rule 1 in the matter of privileges of the members.

Idahosa said he was not aware that his name was listed as a candidate for the post of Speaker Pro-tempore and was never contacted.
But Tsegba also ruled him out of order saying he was nominated and seconded by the House.

After the ruling, the Speaker pro-tempore called for the House to go into an executive session to consider the Idoko report.
The House after reconvening from the executive session called on Hon. David Idoko to lead the debate on the report.

Hon. Dino Melaye who later briefed newsmen after the sitting said the House did not apportion blame to Etteh or the assembly management  in respect of the 25 per cent mobilisation paid to the contractor handling the Speaker’s residence, Messers Stateco Nigeria Limited. He said the money was a performance bond issued by Fidelity Bank and that there was no criminal intent in it.

In disagreeing again with PDP, this time over the choice of a new Speaker, most of the party’s House members refused to accept that the new speaker should come from Osun State, which had earlier produced Etteh.

The PDP National Working Committee (NWC) had at its meeting on Tuesday night zoned the speakership to Osun State and subsequently convened a meeting with its House members to inform them of the party’s decision.

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Democracy triumphs, says Yar’Adua

President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua has described the resignation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mrs. Patricia Olubunmi Etteh and her deputy, Alhaji Babangida Nguroje as another triumph for the efforts to entrench democratic norms and principles in our polity.

President Yar'Adua in a statement by his Special Adviser (Communications), Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi, also said he feels vindicated by his insistence on the crisis being resolved without foisting arbitrariness and disregard for due process and the rule of law.

The President urged members of the House of Representatives to speedily put the crisis behind them and rise to the challenge of performing the legislative duties for which they were elected.

President Yar'Adua also noted that the nation should learn useful lessons from the way the crisis has ended by always giving democratic institutions "the fullest chance to grow to maturity through a transparent learning process anchored on the rule of law."

The statement reads that President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua welcomes today's resolution of the long-running crisis in the House of Representatives through the free and unfettered operation of the internal processes of the Lower Chamber of the National Assembly.

President Yar'Adua views the voluntary resignation of the Speaker, Mrs. Patricia Olubunmi Etteh and her deputy, Alhaji Babangida Nguroje, as another triumph for the efforts to entrench democratic norms and principles in our polity.

President Yar'Adua also feels vindicated by his insistence that there is no political crisis that cannot be resolved through a democratically-accountable process without extra-legal interventions which can only foster arbitrariness and disregard for due process and the rule of law.

The President hopes that the entire nation has learnt useful lessons from the episode and that more Nigerians will now realise that it is always best to give our democratic institutions the fullest chance to grow to maturity through a transparent learning process anchored on the rule of law.

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He polled 250 votes to defeat Mr. West Idahosa PDP Edo who got 33 ballots.
As speaker Pro-tempore, Tsegba will preside over the consideration of the report of the panel which probed the award of the contract for the renovation of the residences of the speaker and her deputy.

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Rivers State plans to probe Omehia's tenure

To ascertain if there were cases of misappropriation of funds, the Rivers State government has begun investigating the state's finances in the past five months under the ousted Governor Celestine Omehia.

Disclosing this on Monday in Port Harcourt, Director of Press Affairs to Governor Chibuike Amaechi, Ogbonna Nwuke, said that efforts are being made by financial experts to unravel if any money was moved from the system before the governor's assumption of office. The government is trying to confirm if tax payers' money required for development purposes were taken away by those who ought to protect them.

Also, a source at the Government House, Port Harcourt told newsmen that Amaechi, who was sworn into office on Friday, has ordered investigation of the state finances in the past five months due to perceived misappropriation of state funds.

The source mentioned that an unspecified amount of physical cash was carted away from Government House last Thursday. It is a situation which the present government regards as highly embarrassing and shameful. It was also alleged that all armored cars in the governor's fleet, including a Range Rover and Land Rover, were taken away.
Since his assumption of office, Amaechi has been using his personal bullet-proof car, which he bought when he was the Speaker of the state House of Assembly.

Sources at Government House disclosed that over 18 unallocated new Toyota Camry 2007 cars parked in front of the old Brick House were all moved to unknown places the night Omehia vacated office.
In a related development, the Action Congress (AC) in the state has called for a probe of contracts awarded by the Omehia administration.

The party also urged Amaechi to declare a state of emergency in all facets of governance in the state to address the deplorable and state of despair of education, health, security sectors, and unmotorable roads, lack of basic amenities in our communities and the unacceptable unemployment level of our youths.

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Supreme Court gives reasons for Amaechi’s Installation as Governor

Indications emerged at the weekend on what might have informed the apex court’s decision. 
Highly-placed sources told Newsmen Sunday that the Supreme Court justices refrained from ordering fresh elections in the state because they feared that the PDP might bar Amaechi from contesting.
He had been expelled by the party for resorting to legal action after his controversial substitution by the PDP on February 2, 2007.
The party did not state reasons for his disqualification then, although it was announced at the Court of Appeal last month that Amaechi disqualification was based on an indictment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The EFCC indictment came on February 20, two weeks after Amaechi substitution. 
“The Supreme Court justices were wary of a situation similar to the Ifeanyi Araraume case in Imo State when the PDP disobeyed its ruling that he was the authentic candidate of the party for the governorship election,” Newsmen said.
The PDP had substituted Airframe with Engr. Charles Ugwuh as its candidate, but the Supreme Court ruled that the substitution did not fulfill the requirements of the 2006 Electoral Act, which stated that “cogent and verifiable reasons” must be given for the substitution of candidates.
The party subsequently expelled Araraume and withdrew from the governorship race in the state by failing to field any candidate.

“The Supreme Court believed that the PDP willfully disobeyed its judgment by failing to field Araraume under a guise, and it clearly did not want a situation where its ruling would be wilfully disobeyed through some other manipulations. That is why it stated unequivocally that Amaechi was the candidate and should be sworn in,” the source explained.

Lagos-based lawyer, Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), however disagrees with the Supreme Court over its ruling. Fawehinmi, in a press statement made available to Newsmen Sunday, said the order “installing Amaechi who never contested the governorship election as governor of River State” was wrong.
According to the radical lawyer, the assumption of office by Amaechi is a “judicial imposition” on the Rivers State people who he said did not vote for Amaechi on April 14, 2007.

Fawehinmi said: “I have no quarrel with the decision of the Supreme Court in so far as it nullified the election of Celestine Omehia on the ground that he was not the appropriate candidate of that party.
According to the legal practitioner, the essence of democratic elections is that the electorate should decide who should be their leaders.
He further cited Section 177 of the 1999 Constitution to buttress his argument saying that, the section provides that no governorship candidate could be validly returned as an elected governor where there are more than two contestants unless he has the highest votes cast in that election according to section179(2) of the constitution.

By the judgment of the Supreme Court, Gani expressed regrets that the electorate of Rivers State was denied the opportunity of electing their governor and that Rotimi Amaechi was imposed on them by judicial fiat and not through the ballot.

Gani said that in his own opinion, the appropriate order was for the court to have ordered a fresh governorship election in Rivers state with Amaechi as the PDP candidate as it is only by this that the electorate of Rivers state would not have been denied their constitutional right to choose their governor.
However, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), in a statement by its acting President, Mrs. Ladi Iliya, said it was particularly grateful to the Supreme Court which in this landmark judgment which decided to dwell on 'substantial justice without regard to technicalities'.

The NLC commended the people of Rivers State “who have been forced to live under an illegal government, insecurity and an endless curfew.” NLC also called on all workers and Nigerians to support the Supreme Court judgment and assist the new administration in Rivers State to take off smoothly.

According to the NLC, the Supreme Court judgment and the inelegant role of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the elections once again raises the issue of how long the Prof. Maurice Iwu leadership of INEC will be allowed to remain in office. Former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, commended the judgment on his return to the country yesterday after spending three months abroad, reportedly to undergo treatment for his leg injury which he sustained in a domestic accident last April.

Speaking with journalists at the airport, Atiku hailed the Nigerian judiciary for bold verdicts it had given recently on the disputed April elections at various levels.
He said the decisions by the Supreme Court, the election tribunals and courts so far have shown that politicians no longer needed the military to sort out politics when they mess things up.
He praised the judiciary as the last hope of the common man, adding that he felt justified in his consistent and unbending trust in the country’s judiciary.

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Also on Friday, after the meeting of the National Caucus with the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP in Abuja, Thursday and Friday, the party announced its acceptance of the Supreme Court judgment, which removed Sir Celestine Omehia and installed Hon. Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi as governor of Rivers State.

The notice for the meeting with the House members was contained in a statement issued by the PDP National Secretary, Chief Bernard Ezeh.
Ezeh said that the party was delighted with the level of cooperation by the factions in the House.
On the cancellation of the election of Omehia, the party said it respected the verdict of the Supreme Court.
The party, promised to pursue all other litigation involving it at the election tribunals, adding: “Our belief in the nation's judicial process remains unshaken.”

The National Working Committee of the PDP had on Tuesday met with its members in the House on how best to resolve the crisis.
The party leadership counseled members to use the opportunity in Order 7 of the House Rule to elect a Speaker pro-tempore to debate the Idoko report.

While pro-Etteh lawmakers argued that a Chairman pro-tempore will be elected for the purpose of the report, the opposition insisted on Speaker pro-tempore.  The acceptance of the Amaechi verdict is coming amidst speculations that the party may in the next National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, move for the reversal of the expulsion of the new Rivers governor.
Newsmen gathered that when the matter came up at the Thursday and Friday National Caucus and the NWC meeting, those in favour of recalling Amaechi were in the majority and it was decided that due process be followed in the reversal of his expulsion.

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FRCN signs contract with Japanese govt.

representatives of the Japanese government for the improvement of medium wave broadcasting in its Kaduna National Station.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Executive officer of Radio Nigeria, Ben Egbuna, said the agreement would further boost the relationship between Nigeria and Japan.

The six hundred Million Naira project would further enhance the operation of the Corporation across the West African sub-region.

The Director General also gave an assurance that FRCN has the required operational competence to man the equipment.

Also in FRCN delegation was the Director Kaduna National Station, Mallam Ladan Salihu, Director Engineering Services Engineer Moses Okpanachi and the former Chairman of the FRCN Board, Dr Mohammed Mustafa.

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Supreme Court dismisses suit seeking to nullify EFCC Act

On Thursday, the Supreme Court dismissed a suit brought by the Benue State Government seeking to nullify the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act 2004.

With the apex court’s decision, the latest attempt to scuttle ongoing prosecution of some ex-governors has been stopped
The suit filed by the Benue State Government had the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and the Attorneys-General of other 35 states of the Federation as respondents.

In a unanimous decision by a panel of seven justices of the court presided over by Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu, the apex court held that the proper parties for the determination of the suit were not before the court.
The plaintiff had invoked the constitutional provision that any state could institute a suit at the Supreme Court to ask the apex court to declare that the National Assembly acted ultra vies or unconstitutionally in enacting the EFCC Act 2004. 

The Benue State Government had asked the apex court to declare that the EFCC Act 2004 and its several provisions void for being in clear breach of the 1999 Constitution and the spirit and tenets of federalism.
Counsel to the plaintiff, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), submitted that the power vested in the commission by its enabling laws interfered in the powers constitutionally vested in the Government of Benue State.

 "Having regards to the provisions of the penal code law of Benue State,  the National Assembly acted ultra vies by enacting EFCC Act, vesting it with powers  to investigate, prosecute on matters within the governmental power of Benue State,'' he said.
Olanipekun who led a team of lawyers urged the court to order that EFCC has no power to conduct any oversight function on the affairs of Benue State, to arrest, detain any officials of the state for any purported allegation of corruption.

Mr. Michael Aondoakaa, the Attorney-General of the Federation, was one of the lawyers that had appeared for the plaintiff in the suit.
Counsel to Federal Government, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN), had filed a preliminary objection to the suit arguing that no reasonable cause of action was disclosed against his client.

He asked the court to dismiss the suit on the ground that the necessary parties were not before the court.
Only last Wednesday, Rev. Jolly Nyame, former governor of Taraba State, appeared before an Abuja High Court where EFCC submitted that the looting of the state treasury was perfected in Abuja and thereby vowed to recover all money allegedly stolen.

The accused in the case was alleged to have converted the money meant to procure stationeries which ran into millions of Naira into private pocket, thereby breaching a provision of EFCC Act.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will on November 20 begin hearing on the appeal filed by former Senate Minority leader, Senator Usman Albishir, challenging his substitution as the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) candidate for the April 2007 governorship elections in Yobe State.
At the mention of the matter Justice Iyorger Kastina-Alu, who presided over a five-man panel ordered the parties in the suit to file and serve the written briefs before that date.

The apex court had earlier granted leave to Senator Albishir to serve the Governor of Yobe State, Senator Mamman Ali, an order of substitution of service. The leave by the apex court followed an application filed by Albashir who is contesting the illegal substitution of his name with that of Ali by ANPP, the platform which Governor Ali became governor of Yobe state.

In a notice of appeal filed by his counsel, Abdullahi Ibrahim, SAN, Albishir said the party, which had agreed that his name was omitted in error, and following an order of the Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna, wrote to INEC to that respect.

According to the notice of appeal, ANPP was said to have allegedly written to INEC three days to the election to correct the mistake of the omission of Sen. Albashir’s name; only for the electoral body to reply that it was late as the entire election documents bear Gov. Ali’s name. 

It accused INEC of not doing anything tangible to address the situation, until the conclusion of the elections.
But the Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna and presided over by Justice Liman, in its judgment held that Albashir was the authentic candidate of ANPP for the governorship election in Yobe State.

It directed INEC to put his name on the ballot papers. Abdullahi Ibrahim, SAN, Albashir’s counsel, in the application prayed the court to, among other things grant the leave to serve the governor with an order of substitution and for an accelerated hearing.
Albashir is asking the Supreme Court to declare him as the candidate of the party and be returned as the state's governor. 

# # # #

Omehia Removed

The Supreme Court today ordered the removal of Sir Celestine Omehia as Governor of Rivers State.

The Court also ordered the immediate swearing in of Mr. Rotimi Amaechi as the new Governor.

Amaechi was immediately sworn-in as Governor at the Court premises.
Earlier in the day Police tightened security at the Court as it prepared to deliver its ruling to determine the authentic PDP Governorship candidate for Rivers State in April 2007 election.

Amaechi, former Speaker of the Rivers House of Assembly, had filled a petition before the Court contending that he was the authentic candidate for the April 14 Governorship election won by the PDP in the State, but was wrongfully substituted.

He asked the apex Court to remove Omehia and declare him the winner of the election.

# # #

Etteh agrees to step aside but with conditions

Hon. Patricia Etteh, who has remained unmoved all along, has finally agreed to step aside.

On Wednesday, the chamber of the House of Representatives was quiet. This followed the decision of some members to shelve their threatened parallel session, in deference to the wishes of the leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

But the peace may not be for long. Reason: The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) announced plans to march on the House if the legislators fail to get Mrs. Patricia Olubunmi Etteh, the Speaker, out of office.
Etteh is presently battling to save her office, following a house renovation contract scandal. Her decision to adjourn sitting until Tuesday, against the motion on the floor of the House for it to resume sitting, had caused uproar among her colleagues.

The members on Tuesday resolved to sit and appoint a Speaker pro-tempore who would preside over the debate on the report of a House panel that investigated allegations that Etteh approved contracts of N628 million for the renovation of her official residence and that of her deputy, Babangida Nguroge, as well as the buying of 12 state-of-the-art vehicles.
Ali Ndume, the Minority Leader of the House and ANPP Leader, had issued a statement following Tuesday's adjournment conveying the decision of the opposition and others from the majority PDP to discountenance the Speaker's adjournment and reconvene the House in her absence.

The groups had also directed the Clerk of the National Assembly to ensure that the House chamber was made available along with the Mace, to enable proceedings to hold.
But instead of a plenary session, the Leader of the Action Congress (AC) party caucus and House Minority Whip, Femi Gbajabiamila, addressed the media at the lobby of the main building of the National Assembly. He expressed partial satisfaction with the position of the PDP national leadership that Ette should step aside for the consideration of the report.
Gbajabiamila however described the PDP's move as belated and again called for the resignation of the Speaker.

He added that the House members were prepared to wait until Tuesday to resume sitting and start deliberations.
The House of Representatives doors were locked all through while the lobby and the entire White House was devoid of the traffic of House members. Sighted in the lobby while Gbajabiamila spoke were Abike Dabiri (Ikorodu-Lagos), Linda Ikpeazu (Onitsha-Anambra) and Chinedum Eluemunor (Oyi/Ayanmelu-Anambra).
The House leadership on Wednesday evening raised a four-man team to draft an agreement for a lasting solution to the impasse in the chamber. The chairman of the House Committee on Rules and Business, Ita Enang, announced the development at a press conference in the National Assembly after a meeting with the party.

Enang said there was no plan for the Speaker to step aside for any Speaker pro-tempore, stating that since the issue had to do with committee of the whole, the rules of the chamber provide that the Deputy Speaker should preside. He said in the extant case, the Deputy Speaker had been mentioned in connection with the contract and might not preside.
A member of the anti-Etteh camp, Emeka Ihedioha, told newsmen that the legislators decided to shelve the protest session due to the intervention of the PDP leaders.
It was also learnt that Etteh has agreed to step aside for the debate on the report of the nine-man investigative committee although not without conditions.

Sources said that at the meeting of representatives of the pro-Etteh camp, the Due Process Group and the party leadership at the national secretariat of the PDP said the Speaker was asked to step aside for the debate on the report.
This position was however rejected by the opposition who maintained that the Speaker could go into the chamber next Tuesday with her paraphernalia of office but would have to step aside for someone else to conduct the business of electing a Speaker pro-tempore. After the interim Speaker might have emerged, the person would be in charge of business in the chamber until the debate on the report is concluded. The Speaker pro-tempore, according to the opposition, should be accorded every responsibility of the Speaker until conclusion of the exercise.

# # # #

Anti-Etteh Members Set To Sit Despite Adjournment

The House expected to reconvene on Wednesday to consider the report of the Hon David Idoko panel on the renovation contract abruptly adjourned sitting on Tuesday, October 23, till Tuesday, October 30.

But the adjournment did not go down well with the lawmakers opposed to the Speaker, Hon. Patricia Etteh, who was expecting the House to resume plenary on Wednesday and begin the consideration of the Idoko report. At the meeting with the warring PDP members in the House, the party, though restated that Etteh should not preside over the consideration of the Idoko panel report, called for due process to be followed.

Tuesday proceedings in the House had begun around 10: 35 am when the Speaker arrived the chambers, and after prayers, she approved the votes and proceedings of last week Tuesday.
Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, Deputy Minority Leader and Action Congress Leader in the House, however called Etteh’s attention to what he said was not a true reflection of the business of the day.

Hon Femi Gbajabiamila while addressing the House said the point of order raised by Hon. Emma Jime on the mode of dressing of one member and Hon. Kanayo Graham Bur Oquawka’s letter were not reflected in the votes.
While ruling on the order, Etteh reminded Gbajabiamila that he did not site the relevant section of the House rules but again directed the Chairman of the Rules and Business Committee to ensure that the errors were corrected.
Hon. Ali Mohammed Ndume,The Minority Leader, however, cited Order 5 Rule 8 and pleaded that there should be no sentiment as the lawmakers had convened to honour their late colleague in a valedictory session.

In a bid to enable members go into business of the day, Hon. Samson Osagie from Edo State  raised an observation that the day should not be a day for  petition but for the valedictory session for the late Safana.
Mrs. Patricia Etteh, Speaker of the House of Representative called on the House to observe a minute silence in honour of the late lawmaker.
In her address, Etteh described the late Safana as “a personality of sublime pedigree and towering achievements, was a rare epitome of simplicity, humility and altruism.”

“You will recall that in the past two months or thereafter, the House of Representatives have been embroiled in a crisis of misrepresentation. This was why we all agreed that an ad hoc committee was necessary to look into all the issues in contention. In setting up this committee, we spelt out terms of reference and the committee report was submitted a day before we went on the last Sallah recess,”

Etteh added: “On resumption, it was expected that we will consider the report and come out with a position on the way forward. However, this process has not been allowed to play out for reasons we all are acquainted with.”

The Speaker thereafter called on Hon. Tunde Akogun, the House Leader, to move a motion for adjournment which the Leader did and was seconded by Hon. Baba Agaei, the deputy leader, and the House adjourned till Tuesday, October 30.

But the adjournment was not popular as members claimed that they only heard Akogun adjourn the House till Wednesday, October 24, 2007. As the Speaker left the chambers with the mace, some members remained on their seats.  They met briefly, threatening to sit Wednesday, October 24, 2007 by 10 am. Some of the members who said since the Sergeant at Arms would not release the mace, they might likely go to one of the neighbouring states to hire one or produce one overnight to ensure that they legitimize their business.

Hon. Farouk Lawan, Leader of the Integrity Group, told newsmen that the Speaker had refused to step aside to allow the report to be considered.
“You can now see who is holding the House to ransom. Obviously, Madam Speaker does not want the issue to be resolved from what has happened on Tuesday, October 23
“We can’t continue this way. We must find a solution to this problem,” he told newsmen.

 A member of the group told newsmen that the North-east lawmakers had moved to have Nguroje removed and replaced but after critically reviewing his involvement in the alleged contract scam decided to allow him stay.
The meeting at the PDP headquarters in Abuja commenced around 4.10pm on Tuesday October 23, it was presided over by Chief Bode George, the Deputy National Chairman (South), in the absence of Senator Ahmadu Ali, the outgoing National Chairman, who was being screened by the Senate for ambassadorial appointment.

The PDP will continue to uphold and support the rule of law and due process as it has done so far. It is therefore imperative that same shall apply in all arms of government, be it legislative, judiciary and executive. At the end of it all, the PDP as a family will come out more united and better focused to face the responsibilities of nation building.
The party, however, said that the meeting was out to ensure complete legislative independence, stating, “PDP will uphold the time-tested principle of legislative independence, rule of law and representative democracy and will definitely not support any venture that is neither democratic not constitutional.”
 
After the meeting, both the party, the Etteh camp and the Integrity group all  agreed that the embattled Speaker should not preside over the deliberation of the Idoko panel report but provided that due process must be maintained at  all times.

Lawan and Hon Lynda Chuba-Ikpezu and Enang spoke to newsmen on the outcome of the meeting.
In his comments, Lawan commended the party for insisting on the application of the rule of law and due process.
Chuba-Ikpezu re-echoed the views of Lawan saying that members of the integrity group would support the position of the party that Etteh should step down in the debate of the Idoko report.
Though, Enang agreed with members of the anti-Etteh group that she should step down, he however said that the embattled Speaker should say the House prayer and later step down for the Deputy Speaker to preside.

He also said that in the event that the Deputy Speaker is not allowed to preside because he is mentioned in the report, whosoever that is appointed to preside by the House as Speaker Pro-Tempore must not be escorted out of the House with the Mace, as the Speaker has not been indicted.

The Speaker Pro-Tempore is merely presiding only for the sake of the Idoko report. Anything outside this, he said would not be accepted to member of the Due Process group.
Enang disagreed that the House would sit, according to him; the House has been adjourned till October 30.

But Hon. Mercy Isei and Chuba-Ikpezu disagreed and insisted that the House would sit Wednesday.
The attendance at the meeting was more than 200 members of the House.
Meanwhile, the two warring camps have selected some of their members to continue the meeting with PDP on the matter.

Akunyili explains how Nigeria stopped fake drugs from China

Akunyili, who recounted her experience in China when Mr. Li Jiyuan, the President of Tianshi Group, paid her a courtesy visit in Abuja, said the practice of issuing threats to advocates of war against unwholesome products was universal.

She recalled how many notable companies in China refused to accept quality control consultancy for Nigeria for fears of losing their lives. But Akunyili acknowledged that one Chinese accepted the offer, brushing aside threats from fake drug barons in China.
She said that Tianshi Group was appointed Independent Quality Control Analyst for NAFDAC in 2002 because of high integrity shown by the company's chairman.

The Director General expressed joy that the Tianshi boss had not limited his screening of Nigeria-bound Chinese drugs but extended the laboratory analysis to raw materials and finished products.
In his remarks, the Tianshi President described Akunyili as the 'pride and heroine' of Africa in view of her relentless fight against fake drugs and substandard products.
Jinyuan maintained that by virtue of her track record of selflessness, incorruptible and transparent public services, particularly in the protection of lives, Akunyili has earned the respect and love of not only African nations but also the entire world.

He disclosed that his company accepted the offer to be NAFDAC's Independent Quality Control Analyst from China five years ago because of the "uncommon passion, handwork, determination and zeal shown by the NAFDAC helmsman in the discharge of her official duties.

# # # #

2007 Christmas Carol

Nation Building must require collective effort by all and sundry. This is why the Arrow Head of the Nigerian Television Authority, Tonnie Iredia is asking for an enhanced collaboration between public agencies to achieve a common goal for a greater nation.

Iredia who made the remark during the inauguration of a committee for the 2007 edition of the annual Carol of Nine Lessons, also called on the twelve man planning committee, drawn from FRCN, NTA and VON, to demonstrate excellence in organizing the event.

The Leader of the FRCN Team and Director Programmes, Mrs. Maria Odey said the Carol of Nine Lesson was the contribution of the partnering agencies towards spreading the message of peace for the upliftment of the society.

The Planning Committee which is headed by the NTA Executive Director Programmes, Jimmy Atte, would among other responsibilities, fix the date for the Carol.

# # # #

Yar’Adua steers clear of intervening in Reps crisis

On Monday, the Executive Branch of the Federal Government of Nigeria made a direct public comment on the crisis currently rocking the House of Representatives.

The statement was signed on behalf of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua by Baba Gana Kingibe, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
He advised the legislators to resolve their rift "in a serene atmosphere and with befitting decorum." In the pushing and shoving of the House session, a member from Katsina State, Aminu Shuaibu Safana, slumped. He died later in the hospital.

Florence Ita-Giwa, the President's National Assembly Liaison Officer, said that the President would not interfere in the rift.
Yar’Adua restated his position that in deference to the principle of separation of powers, he would not make a direct intervention on how the crisis should be resolved.
The legislators, who are torn into two camps, have been rancorous and physical in advancing their positions on the controversial renovation of the official residences of Mrs. Patricia Olubunmi Etteh, the Honourable House Speaker, and Babangida Nguroje, her deputy.

The federal executive's plea notwithstanding, the group rooting for the removal of the Speaker declared that the search for Etteh's successor had almost been concluded.
Yar'Adua, who has consistently steered clear of the crisis, despite repeated calls for his intervention in it, said that the matter ought to be resolved within the rule of law and the Rules of the House of Representatives.

In a statement in Abuja, Kingibe expressed the concern of the Federal Government over the matter and called for a speedy resolution of the stalemate. The SGF noted that the federal executive took into consideration, calls from various quarters for the presidency to intervene in the matter but pointed out that President Yar'Adua believes in the rule of law and separation of powers.

The SGF said that the position of government was that the rules of the chamber must be followed and advised the lawmakers to be dispassionate so that the matter could be resolved in the interest of the chamber and the nation. "Government is of the view that if Honourable members observe the internal rules of the procedure of the House, and if they eschew passion and bring reason and maturity to bear on their deliberations, they can resolve the contentious issues in the best interest of the House and indeed the nation”.

The government challenged the chamber to rise up and resolve the impasse in a most peaceful manner.
However, a member of the opposition under the auspices of the Integrity Group, Emeka Ihedioha, in a chat with newsmen in Abuja said the group had almost resolved the matter and the issue before members now was the choice of Etteh's successor.

Meanwhile, the chamber will hold a valedictory session in honour of Safana, a member who collapsed in the chamber during a commotion on the floor and later died in the National Hospital, Abuja. The House is likely to adjourn for the day after the session till Wednesday, to continue debate on the report of the nine-man panel that investigated the alleged scam involving the leadership of the chamber.

The Minority Leader in the House of Representatives, Mohammed Ali Ndume said the decision of the opposition in the chamber that the Speaker should resign, was an irreversible one. Ndume, who spoke with newsmen in the National Assembly, said the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) caucus in the chamber had taken a position on the matter and had not changed it and it is that Etteh should resign or be impeached.

# # # #

Etteh: Reps prepare for further confrontation

The House resumes on Tuesday valedictory session in honour of Hon. Aminu Safana from Katsina State who slumped and died last Wednesday in the fracas that engulfed the legislative chamber over the consideration of the Hon. David Idoko panel report on the controversial renovation contract.
But normal plenary session will continue on Wednesday at which the issue of panel report will take the centre stage.

The pro-Etteh group under a new platform, the “Due Process Group,” accused members of the anti-Etteh “Integrity Group” of attempting to bribe the Speaker, Mrs. Patricia Etteh, during the committee selection process with a RAV 4 utility vehicle for them to be appointed into choice committee chairmanship positions.

Newsmen learnt that a meeting of some senior members of the House could not resolve the issue of replacement for Etteh if she is removed from office.
The Idoko panel, which investigated the controversial N529 million contract for the renovation of the official residences of Etteh and Nguroje had returned a damning report saying due process was not followed in the contracts.
The Due Process Group said that the only way the crisis could be resolved was to allow the Rules of the House to be followed.

The Chairman of the House Committee on Capital Market, Mr. Aliyu Wadada, who spoke on behalf of the Integrity Group said, Mrs. Etteh’s loyalists were merely trying to blackmail those who wanted her to step aside for the Idoko Panel report to be debated.
He vowed that the opposition would not succumb to such “blackmail, distraction or distortions,” saying the report must be debated with a Speaker pro tempore presiding.
No amount of blackmail, no amount of distraction, no amount of distortions will derail the integrity group from is focus and the focus its integrity.

The continuous focus is integrity and the only way this integrity can be established and for it to be appreciated by Nigerians after being established is that the Idoko Panel report should and must be deliberated on the floor of the House of Representatives with the Honourable Speaker stepping aside for a speaker pro tempore to be elected by the members of the House of Representatives as provided by the House rules.
The group advised Mrs. Etteh to come out and prove that an honourable member tried to bribe her, saying, that even if that was the case, it has not exonerated her from the charges against her.

He remarked that the Integrity Group was not asking for the emergence of the speaker pro tempore from within its ranks but that the selection would be done on the floor of the House in accordance with its rules.
Also speaking on the issue, the chairman of the Integrity Group and chairman of the House Committee on Education, Mr. Farouk Lawan said the Integrity Group respected the position of President Umaru Yar’Adua on transparency, accountability and due process as well as his stance not to intervene on the House crisis.

He said the House has the capacity to resolve the matter even though members have been frustrated thus far by a Speaker who he said has refused to step down to allow for progress.
Our position is that we want the House to work in tandem with the position of the President on the fight against corruption and on the strict adherence to the rule of law.

“We recognise his neutrality in this matter and we respect that and we do not believe that he is supporting her and we do not also believe he is against her,” he said, advising state governors who were desperate to sustain Mrs. Etteh in office to focus on bettering the lives of the people.

# # # #

Indicted persons to face prosecution -Aondoakaa

The minister stated that “the National Assembly is constitutionally vested with powers to investigate and expose corruption. Their report ought to be given the highest attention by the office of the Attorney-General,” Aondoakaa declared.

The Attorney-General vowed that governors, ministers and any other government official mentioned in those reports would be prosecuted. He explained that there was no time limit to filing criminal charges, stating that his Ministry had requested the National Assembly to forward copies of those reports.

“We are going to file appropriate charges, based on offences disclosed in them. They will be arrested and charged to court. There will be a different Nigeria from now. The fight against corruption must be total and one agency cannot cover everything,” he averred.

On the issue of extra budgetary spending, he warned that government agencies and officials who spend money for which no budgetary provision had been made would face criminal charges.
“Within the next one year, things will be done according to the law. There will be no extra-budgetary spending. It is criminal. These are clear cases of crime. Within one year, Nigeria will come to its rightful senses. An Appropriation Act is a law and a violation carries severe consequences.”

It would be recalled that one of the points raised by the Idoko panel against Patricia Etteh, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, has to do with expenditure without budgetary provisions.
The Idoko report was to be considered by the House on Tuesday but the Speaker’s insistence on presiding over deliberations led to fracas during which a member, Hon. Aminu Shuaibu Safana, slumped and died, causing the House to adjourn abruptly.

Others likely to fall under the hammer following their indictment by panels of the National Assembly are former Education Minister, Professor Fabian Osuji and former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara. Two of them were arraigned on criminal charges in court under the Obasanjo government over the bribe-for-budget scandal in 2005.

The Attorney-General who is in Singapore to participate in the International Bar Association’s Annual Conference is also holding useful discussions with key members of Singapore’s judiciary, with a view to reforming Nigeria’s legal system. Singapore currently occupies top position in global ranking for its legal framework.

# # # #

CBN wins the African Banker of the year Award

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Professor Chukwuma Soludo has won the African Central Banker of the year award.

At a ceremony in Washington DC, Professor Soludo dedicated the award to the government and the people of Nigeria.

He said he was grateful to President Yar’Adua for believing in him and the Central Bank.
Professor Soludo noted that Nigeria as the fastest growing financial system in Africa would continue to move towards the realisation of the financial system strategy 2020.

Many banks in Nigeria attending the IMF World Bank meeting, also won various awards which include the Bank of year, Most Innovative bank and the Most Socially responsible bank.
The Development Bank of the year award went to the Bank of Industry.

# # # # #

Buhari, Atiku tender conflicting results of presidential polls
Former military ruler, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, both candidates in the last presidential election, on Thursday presented as exhibits what they called three conflicting results released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the April 21, 2007 presidential poll.

The occasion was the continuation of the proceedings in their petitions against the election.
Buhari tendered two of the alleged conflicting final results on the poll and same admitted while Atiku presented the other version which was not admitted as evidence.

Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN), Counsel to Buhari, who tendered the result sheets on behalf of his client said the two different results were on the same INEC Form EC8DA (Form for final election result).
He said the results which were Certified True Copy (CTC) from INEC office also bore the signature of the electoral commission’s Chairman.

A version of the presidential election result was marked as “Manual” while the other version was marked as “Electronic.”
Both results (Manual and Electronic) bore INEC logo with “Independent National Electoral Commission: Summary of Results from States Election to Office of the President: Collation at National Level,” as titles.
There was another electronic version of the final presidential election entitled: “Election 2007" which also bore entirely different figure of votes scored by each of the presidential candidates that participated in the poll.

The third version was not admitted as exhibit because both INEC and President Yar’Adua objected to its admissibility on the grounds that it was sourced from the internet and that it was not certified.
INEC said it was possible that its site might have been tampered with by criminals.

Counsel to President Umaru Yar’Adua and Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, INEC, Police, Chief of Army Staff raised no objection to the documents.

The three different results had President Yar’Adua of the People’s Democratic Party as the winner of the poll.
In the manual version, President Yar’Adua polled 25,316,176 votes from the 36 states of the Federation including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to beat Buhari who had 6,846,740 and Atiku who allegedly scored 2,601,748.

In the electronic version, Yar’Adua polled 24,638,063 from the 36 states of the Federation including FCT to beat Buhari who scored 6,605,291 and Atiku who got 2,637,848 votes at the poll.

In the third version sourced from internet, Yar’Adua scored 24,784,227 to beat Buhari who allegedly scored 6,607,419 votes without any figure allocated to Atiku.

The internet version had 2,567,798 votes for a candidate whose name was missing on the result sheet.
In accepting the exhibits tendered by Buhari, Justice James Ogebe held that “the documents are accepted as exhibits by the consent of all parties in this petition.”

But moments after the documents were tendered, Alhaji Atiku attempted to tender the internet sourced result sheets which were rejected by the court, following objection from both Yar’Adua and INEC.

Justice Ogebe could not hide his disbelief, asking the INEC legal team if it was disowning the result got from its website.
Lead counsel to INEC, Dr. Bello Fadile said though he had inspected the documents presented by Atiku, it would be difficult to accept it since it was not duly certified by the commission.

He added that since computer websites are not totally fool-proof, there were chances that some people could have hacked into the website and tampered with the original result posted on it by the commission.
The court which appeared unconvinced by the explanation said it would be waiting for the appropriate time for the commission to prove its suspicion.

An application brought by Ahamba to get more witnesses to testify on other contentious exhibits brought by Buhari was rejected by the court, because he failed to specify the number of the witnesses he intended to call; what they would be tendering and how long it would take them to do so.

Yar’Adua’s legal team had objected to the application, while INEC raised no objection. INEC’s position on it left the Yar’Adua’s camp wondering.

Proceedings got stuck at a stage when Ahamba could not produce the witnesses needed to kick-start the full hearing of the consolidated petition.

He told the court that he did not plan for presentation of witnesses, since he thought that his application for more depositions of witnesses would succeed.

A suggestion from the Yar’Adua’s legal team that Buhari’s petition be struck out over inability to produce witnesses, was frowned at by the court, with Justice Ogebe reminding the counsel of the importance of making everybody to have a feel of justice in the hearing of the cases.
He demanded the withdrawal of the offensive suggestion and it was withdrawn with apologies.

# # # #

Lower House adjourns to honour Safana

The House of Representatives did not convene plenary session as a mark of respect for a member from Katina State, Dr Aminu Safana, who died in the hospital on Wednesday after he slumped during the rowdy session in the House.

The rowdy session was as a result of the refusal of the Speaker, Mrs Patricia Etteh to step aside as demanded by some members to allow debate to commence on the Idoko Investigative Panel Report on the alleged irregular award of contract by the leadership for the renovation of the official residence of the Speaker and her deputy.

Dr Safana was until his death on Wednesday, a member of the House representing Batsari-Dan Musa Safana Federal Constituency of Katsina State and was also the Chairman of the House Committee on Health and Human Services in the House of Representatives.

The ever busy lobby of the National Assembly was virtually deserted as most of the members travelled to Katsina to condole with the family, the government and people of the state on the sudden death of Dr Aminu Safana.

# # # #

Soyinka cautions against playing ethnic card for Etteh
Prof. Wole Soyinka, Nobel laureate, in the United States (U.S.) on Tuesday cautioned those playing the ethnic card in favour of Patricia Olubunmi Etteh, the Honourable Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Soyinka rejected the insinuation in some quarters that Etteh was only a victim of ethnic domination, insisting on the pursuit of truth and justice in the issue no matter whose ox is gored Soyinka said on Tuesday in a statement, that citizens would be partisan only for the sake of truth.

Some commentators and politicians from the South-West have sought to present the Etteh leadership crisis in the House as an insult against the Yoruba people. Some of those who have made such comments include Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu and Dr. Frederick Fasehun, leader of the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC). In recent reports, Fasehun actually threatened that any attempt by members of the House of Representatives to impeach the Speaker, will draw the wrath of the Yoruba.

While addressing a press conference tagged: "Unknown details of the Patricia Etteh drama", Fasehun said: "The people who want to impeach the Speaker of the House of Representatives do not love the nation." Fasehun stated that "the real unspoken reasons why some group or cabal itches for her impeachment lies in the fact that for eight years, their zone controlled juicy committees like Petroleum, Defence, Foreign Affairs, House Services, Niger Delta, Appropriation and Media. Etteh has now rocked the boat and allowed the leadership of those committees to shift to other zones."

But Soyinka told newsmen that he was closely following the saga in the House, adding that he has been briefed about some of the ethnic sentiments involved. Nonetheless, the Nobel Prize winner said he was prepared to rise above such limited ethnic sabre-rattling in favour of truth and justice.
He added that all citizens must be prepared to redefine partisanship as being partisans of truth and justice under any circumstances.

He, therefore, submitted that the House of Representatives must rise up to its duty and having ascertained guilt or innocence (of all those involved in the house probe), act accordingly.
When asked to comment on the refusal of Mrs. Etteh to step down, Soyinka said he would hold further comments for now but expressed deep concern that truth is truth no matter who is affected.

# # # #

Contract scam: House records casualty

It was yet another rowdy Session in the House of Representatives today as Members could not deliberate on the Idoko Panel report which investigated contract for the renovation of the residence of Speaker Patricia Etteh and her Deputy.

It has been confirmed that Dr. Aminu Safana, Chairman House Committee on Health is dead.
He slumped during the rowdy session of the House from where he was rushed to the National Hospital.

Radio Nigeria gathers that the body is being flown to his home state, Katsina for burial.
The Minister of the FCT, Dr. Aliyu Modibo and the leadership of the House of Representatives were sighted at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport as part of the burial party.

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N400m contract: Senate rejects Mark’s offer to step aside

And, after an hour of debate, the Senate directed its Committee on Ethics, Privileges, Code of Conduct and Public Petitions to immediately investigate all media reports about the allegation.
Omar Hambagda, who heads the committee, was also asked to identify all senators who might be responsible for the circulation of the reports.

It is to submit the report of its findings next Tuesday for a more thorough deliberation and parliamentary action. Raising Order 15 of Senate Standing Rule, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Services, Effiong Bob who introduced the matter, argued that the integrity of the Senate was at stake.
There were indications that Senator George Akume (PDP, Benue North-East) who is locked in a face-off with the Senate President over the issue could be suspended at the submission of the report.

On the floor, several Senators cast aspersion on a colleague who, according to them, has repeatedly orchestrated a media war against the institution of the Senate.
Though several of the Senators who spoke shied away from naming Senator Akume, the deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu confronted him and asked him to explain a press statement issued by his aide on the matter.

The motion for an investigation into the reports of the alleged N400 million renovation contract was brought to the Senate floor by Senator Effiong Bob, chairman of the Senate Committee on Senate Services who came vide Rule 15 of the Senate standing rules.
Affirming a breach of his privilege as a Senator, Senator Bob affirmed that neither the Senate Services Committee nor the Senate President awarded the contract as alleged.

Seconding the motion, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Information and Media, Ayogu Eze, wondered why the story about the alleged renovation had been occurring in the media, pointing out that he had tried to dismiss the allegations but to no avail.
As soon as Eze ended his contribution at 11.50 p.m., the drama of Mark's offer to step aside began.

The Senate Leader, Teslim Folarin, whispered to Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu. He then rose from his allotted seat and walked up to Mark and whispered a few words to him. Folarin thereafter motioned to Ekweremadu who stood up, and moved to the side of the table where Mark was. As if on cue, Mark offered to step aside since the issue being discussed involved him.
Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN), Deputy Senate Leader, who was separated from Folarin by the aisle and another senator, leaned back and kept trying to catch the attention of the Senate.

When he was getting nowhere, Ndoma-Egba stood up, buttoned his suit, and walked over to Mark. As soon as he ended the consultation, the Senate President announced that he was getting on with the debate.
But the Senate Deputy Minority Whip, Olorunnimbe Mamora, expressed disappointment that Mark was not allowed to step aside, noting that it was a moral issue.

Mamora stated that the Senate had a Code of Ethics which guided the actions and conduct of every member, adding that all those who participated in circulating the allegations acted against the code.
He expressed support for a full investigation by the Senate Ethics Committee to identify the members behind the rumour.
But Ahmed Mohammed Markarfi advised that the chamber simply pass a vote of confidence on the Senate President to send signals to the outside world that the Assembly had refused to be distracted.

He said that the investigation could still be carried out by the committee if there were real allegations but not an investigation based on rumour.
Ekweremadu said the contents of the advertorial were very useful to the issue at stake, adding that there was no way Akume's aide would issue that statement without his knowledge.

Akume raised his hands to speak on the matter but to no avail. Mark cut short the debate and explained his reasons for supporting the investigation of the media reports.
He said: "When I was elected Senate President last June, I promised to be honest and transparent in my duties. So, if anything brings that into doubt and questioning, whether it is rumour or not, I think it is better we clear it. The issue is not just because it is a rumour, it borders on our integrity."

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NASS plays host to Indian Head of Government

The Indian Leader is on a two-day State visit to Nigeria.

The Chairman of the House Committee on Rule and Business, Chief Ita Enang feels that the address of the Indian Prime Minister to the Nigeria Parliament would help strengthen democratic ties between the two countries.

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Ali, Ebonyi gov escape harm

Dr. Ahmadu Ali, outgoing national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Chief Martin Elechi the Ebonyi state governor, escaped harm when the convoy conveying them to Enugu airport after the civic reception for former Governor Sam Egwu was involved in an accident.

The accident, according to a witnesses, occurred while officials of the state government, led by Governor Elechi, were seeing Ali off to the Akanu Ibiam Airport, Enugu, shortly after a civic reception that was held in honour of the former governor of Ebonyi state, Dr Sam Egwu and wife, Eunice at Abakaliki.

Confirming the incident, Comrade Chinedu Ogar,  the PDP Secretary in the state, described the development as “very unfortunate”, adding that apart from Chief Umahi who had fracture in one of his ankle, no other person in the convoy had serious injuries.
Informed sources further told newsmen that Egwu whose reception was held did not join the convoy as he was still receiving some of his visitors at his Ezzamgbo country-home. 

Before the accident, Ali had spoken at the reception where he said the yardstick for the party's next chairman will depend on the person's track records.
A source said Umahi's driver was driving at top speed, allegedly hurrying to catch up with the convoy of the National Chairman and the governor, which was said to be some meters ahead of them.

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Kogi State: INEC ready for fresh Polls

Idris’s election was voided on Wednesday by the Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Lokoja on the ground that the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and its candidate, Alhaji Abubakar Audu, were unlawfully excluded from the poll. 

 Dr. Ishmael Igbani, INEC Commissioner in Charge of Political Parties, told newsmen on Thursday that the commission would have no option than to obey the tribunal.
But under the law, the governor has up to 21 days to appeal the judgement during which time he remains in office and if he appeals, he holds on to the governorship pending the determination of the appeal.
Idris declared on Thursday night that he would definitely appeal the tribunal judgement.

Speaking through Mr. Farouk Adejoh-Audu, his Special Assistant, Media and Publicity, the governor said he had already briefed his lawyers to appeal the judgement but lamented that the tribunal was yet to make the certified true copy of the judgment available to him as required by law.
Igbani said if the governor was going on appeal the commission would have to wait until the outcome of the appeal.

Adejoh-Audu told newsmen that the governor was set to appeal the tribunal judgment but that there was a problem.
He said: “The judgement is not available to us. We have not received a copy of that judgement. We have applied to the tribunal to give us the certified true copy of the judgement so we can appeal the judgement. The tribunal has been unable to give us the certified copy we requested and they have gone on holiday. “But our lawyers informed us that the law made it mandatory on the tribunal to give us a certified copy of the judgement within seven days of the delivery of the judgement.

Meanwhile, reactions to the nullification of the governorship election continued with the ANPP candidate in the April 2007 presidential poll, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), describing the judgement as the triumph of democracy and demonstration of the fact that rule of law is the backbone of democracy.
In a statement he personally signed, Buhari said: “Permit me to commend the judiciary, in this instance the Kogi State Election Petitions Tribunal, for reinventing, rekindling and deepening faith in our democracy.

“The main kernel of the judgement is the sign post that many illegal and fraudulent electoral results shall be voided in distance time,” Buhari stated.
He added: “The judgement as a mechanism of justice has vindicated and confirmed the position of both local and international monitors, that the Electoral Commission was neither independent nor impartial in conducting the 2007 elections.

That rather than being an impartial umpire the Professor Maurice Iwu’s commission was a hired private vanguard, otherwise how can a person whose party was validly nominated, screened and obtained a court order be unlawfully excluded on the eve of the election?
 The judgement is a victory and triumph of democracy and tonic for those of us who have implicit confidence in the judiciary as the last hope of the oppressed and as earlier mentioned a harbinger of what to expect.
He commended the Kogi State ANPP governorship candidate, Audu, for his resilience and commitment to the rule of law, wishing him good luck in the fresh elections after the appeal.

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Nigeria secures new credit from ADB
On Wednesday Nigeria secured a fresh credit of about N9.9 billion (US$79.4 million) from the African Development Bank (ADB) to boost water supply in Osun and Yobe states.

The new credit has swelled Nigeria's indebtedness to ADB to $669.90 million. Before commitment, Nigeria owed the bank $590.50 million as at the end of June this year. The amount comprises $383.51 million in ADB loans and $206.99 million ADF credit.
A statement from the headquarters of the African continental development institution in Tunis said the Board of Directors of the African Development Finance (ADF), the soft-loan arm of the African Development Bank Group (ADBG), approved the credit to finance an important rural water supply and sanitation scheme in Nigeria.

The project aims to improve the social welfare and health of people in Yobe and Osun States towards poverty eradication through the sustainable development of Water Supply and Sanitation (WSS) facilities.
It will provide adequate and safe water and sanitation services to the rural population and strengthen sector capacity for Programme execution and effective operation and maintenance.

The project will increase water coverage in the two states to 100 per cent by 2015 from the current level of 46.40 per cent in Yobe and 44.72 in Osun. Sanitation coverage will increase to 90 per cent by 2015 as against 33.60 per cent in Yobe and 29.20 per cent in Osun.
Among its socio-economic benefits, the bank said, the project will lower infant mortality rate from 110.6 per 1000 to 30.3 per 1000 in 2015. Under-five mortality rate will also decrease from 193.6 to 63.7 while primary school enrolment will increase from 67.7 per cent to 100 per cent by 2015. Also the average distance to the nearest water point will be reduced from 15 kilometres to less than 500 metres and per capita basic water consumption will increase from 15 l per capita per day to 20 l/c/d by 2012.

The target population is 3.32 million for water facilities and 2.98 million for sanitation services. The sub-programmes will thus contribute up to 3.60 per cent to the national targets with regard to safe water supply in line with MDGs. Its contribution to the national sanitation target is estimated at 3.23 per cent.
The project falls within the framework of Nigeria's Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) Programme, developed through financial assistance from the AfDB. Nigeria's RWSS Programme includes investment sub-programmes for the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The bank's intervention under ADF 10 (2005-2007) targets the two states of Yobe and Osun.
About 70.30 million or 52.2 per cent of Nigeria's N140 million populations live in rural areas.

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Kogi State: Election Tribunal Drops bombshell on Idris

 The Kogi State Election Petition Tribunal has nullified the re-election of Governor Ibrahim Idris of Kogi State for second term in office.

Declaring judgement today, the Chairman of the Tribunal Justice Ibrahim Bako described as illegal, null and void INEC’s disqualification of the ANPP Governorship candidate, Prince Abubakar Audu from contesting the April 21 election.

The Chairman said it was evident that Prince Abubakar Audu was validly nominated by the ANPP as its governorship candidate.

Justice Bako therefore ordered for a fresh governorship election in which Prince Audu would participate.

Prince Audu had petitioned the tribunal over his disqualification at the eleventh hour by INEC from contesting the last governorship election in Kogi State over his alleged indictment for corrupt practices.
 

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Ibori: Yar’Adua orders AGF to cooperate with London Police
Mr Michael Aondoakaa, the Attorney-General of the Federation, has been directed by President Umaru Yar’Adua to cooperate fully with the London Metropolitan Police in its investigation of Chief James Ibori, the former Governor of Delta State, saying contrary to media reports, he remains committed to the fight against corruption.

Ever since the October 1 ruling by the Southwark Crown Court which vacated its August 2 restraining order on Ibori’s property following moves by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to prosecute Ibori under the British Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, public commentators have been accusing the president of playing “soft” with the ex-governor.

The president has also been accused of being privy to the attempts by Chief Michael Aondoakaa, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, to frustrate the efforts of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in prosecuting some top politicians over allegations of corruption under the pretext of “rule of law”.

In a statement signed by Mr Segun Adeniyi, the President’s Special Adviser on Communications, “President Yar’Adua assured he would never be deterred from the “sincere and total prosecution” of the war against corruption by the status of accused persons or whatever claims they may imagine they have on his goodwill.”

Following the ruling by the Southwark Crown Court in London lifting the restraining order on the foreign assets of Chief James Ibori, former Delta State Governor, there have been media reports and comments suggesting that President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua is not fully committed to fighting the war against corruption. I would like to state with all possible emphasis that nothing could be further from the truth. President Yar’Adua remains resolute and unshakable in his commitment to waging a real war against corruption.

In the particular case of Chief James Ibori, contrary to suggestions that President Yar’Adua and his administration are willfully shielding the former governor from prosecution by the British authorities, the President has in fact authorised a visit to Nigeria by officers of the Metropolitan Police who are conducting a criminal investigation of Chief Ibori.

The President has directed the Attorney-General of the Federation to give the fullest possible cooperation to the officers of the Metropolitan Police in their quest for evidence of offences allegedly committed by Chief Ibori.
Because the war against corruption is a process and not an event, President Yar’Adua believes that it is best to follow the path of legality in its prosecution.

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Integrity Group disagrees with Ali on Etteh
Integrity Group (IG) members in the House of Representatives, demanding the resignation of Patricia Etteh Speaker have stood up to Ahmadu Ali, National Chairman, People’s Democratic Party (PDP )  saying his directive for them to back down is his opinion.

If Etteh is impeached all PDP members in the House would forfeit their seats says Ali.” But Halims Agoda, a member of the IG, responded on Monday that Ali is not the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP, and that whatever he has said is his personal opinion, which runs contrary to those of the people in the constituencies. He insisted that the report of the probe panel indicted her over the N628 million renovation contract.

Femi Okunrounmu, Its Secretary, described the statement as "very unfortunate and most unpatriotic …. It has exposed the party as a very corrupt party which loves to deceive Nigerians.
"How can (Ali) be threatening the members for doing their job? He has no shame whatsoever. In a sane society, the party should be in the front line of those calling on her to resign. But here, what we have is the national chairman of her party asking that she should be let off the hook.
"The question I want to ask Ali is: can he use that amount of money to renovate his own house? Will he agree if someone uses his money to renovate a house that dose not belong to him? Public funds should not be spent like that.

They cannot tell the nation one thing and be doing another thing; that is doublespeak, and that is not acceptable to us. The normal thing for Etteh to do is to throw in the towel because of the position she is occupying. We are totally in support of that call.
Campaign for Democracy (CD) also hit out at Ali, describing his threat as condemnable and reflective of the "military mentality" that runs in the PDP.
Joe Okei-Odumakin, CD President, said Ali is suffering from the military’s "obey before complain" mentality, and urged the lawmakers to choose between denting their images and jettisoning the "gratuitous threat."

She added: "It is left for the lawmakers to determine if their names are worth rubbishing or they want to protect what is left of their integrity. Their action would also determine if they want the PDP that has almost become a historical object to dictate what form their life should take."
Victor Ndoma-Egba, Deputy Senate Leader, countered in Calabar that Etteh should not resign, because if she does, "it would give credence to those who intend to hijack the House of Representatives and also give credence to a wild allegation that lacks merit.

The entire National Assembly would be endangered because some members who may want to be mischievous would always make wild allegations to force the leaders they do not like to resign from office.
Leo Awoyemi, House Emergency and Disaster Preparedness Committee Chairman, added that what the Chamber has done "and upon which I want to appeal to Nigerians is that we have demonstrated that we have the capability to look at issues critically, and follow due process. It was in that light that a panel was set up to look into the allegation. The report came out and, in all fairness and in the spirit of transparency, it was covered live.

"Every Nigerian was able to watch the proceedings, which means that the House has nothing to hide …. I want to plead with all Nigerians to allow us, the House that is, to conclude the entire process, and I believe that the out come would not be disappointing to Nigerians."
A group of lawmakers claimed in Abuja on Monday that it has got 260 members to frustrate attempts to impeach Etteh, a process that requires a two-thirds majority of the entire 360 legislators.

House Information and National Orientation Committee Chairman, Dino Melaye, stated "categorically that the pro-Etteh group is definitely in the majority. Democracy is a game of numbers and right now, we have collected over 260 signatures of members who are loyal to her … I appeal to those trying to create problems where there are none, to sheath their swords in the interest of democracy and the good people of Nigeria."

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Jonathan urges UN involvement in the Niger Delta area

Goodluck Jonathan, Vice President who met with a UN team in Abuja, said the Federal Government needs the world body's help in the areas of job creation and capacity building for the restive youths. Jonathan also urged the UN to help the government check the inflow of small arms into the oil-rich region.

The Vice President told Mr. Alberic Kakou, the leader of the delegation from the UN Inter-departmental Mission on the Niger Delta and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative in Nigeria that the provision of jobs and capacity building remain the most viable way to make the youths shun crime and restore lasting peace to the area.
The Vice President also appealed to stakeholders to pool resources to solve the age-long crisis in the region.
He was positive that with the accomplishment so far recorded by the administration, peace would soon return to the area.

Jonathan observed that the Niger Delta was at one time in the history of Nigeria a destination for most of European goods entering the country and that any disturbance in the region was therefore bound to be of interest to the international community.
Earlier, Kakou said the team was at the Presidential Villa for a follow-up meeting on how the UNDP could assist in finding a solution to the crisis.
He assured Nigeria of the UN's determination to join genuine quest for stability in the region, adding that the UN would make the objectives of the Federal Government in the Niger Delta its own.

Kakou also delivered a message from the UN Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-Moon to the government over the death of seven Nigerian soldiers on peacekeeping mission in war-torn Darfur, Sudan.
Also Jonathan told officials of an oil firm, ENI E&P, that with the improved security situation in the Niger Delta, the region was now more secure for business activities.
He said that the government would not relent in ensuring a crime-free Niger Delta.

The Vice President declared that very soon total peace would be achieved, wherein oil companies and other businesses may only require the most rudimentary security for their installations and operations.
He praised Agip for its role in the Brass Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project, saying that this further demonstrates the firm's commitment to the development of the Niger Delta.

He commended Mr. Antonio Panza, the out-going managing director, and congratulated his successor, Roberto Casula, over his appointment.
Agip thanked the administration for its efforts towards peace in the Niger Delta. He said that Agip had resumed operations in the region, a feat made possible by the government's handling of the security situation in the area.

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More Nigerian Soldiers off to Darfur

Major General Azubuike Ihejirika, the GOC 81 Division of the Nigeria Army, who made the announcement, said the soldiers would soon be airlifted to the troubled region.
Speaking with newsmen on Sunday at the Air Force Base, Ikeja, Lagos, Ihejirika said the army was not discouraged in anyway as their ultimate motive was to ensure peace in the entire continent, stating that by their singular action thousands of lives can be saved.

The army is not in any way discouraged, because peace is the ultimate reason for the establishment of the Armed Forces and in the present global setting, peace support operation has assumed the primary role of the armed forces.
Ihejirika added that previously, the main concern was defence against external aggression. So the peace keepers themselves know that they are doing a risky job, and they also know that through their efforts thousands of lives are saved, so there is no way we can be discouraged from this lofty goal of striving for peace in Africa.

An orchestrated attack on an African Union Army Base in the war-torn Darfur had resulted in the killing of seven Nigerian soldiers.
 Ten peacekeeping soldiers were reportedly killed in total in the attack said to be the deadliest since the forces were deployed in 2003.The remains of the dead Nigerian soldiers were brought home on Friday and buried at the military cemetery Abuja. 
Ihejirika advised his men to pay more attention to new tactics to protect themselves and those they are meant to defend stating that what happened was quite unfortunate.

On whether the army would now move towards peace enforcement instead of peace keeping, he said that was not his decision to make and that if such decision would be taken, it would come from another level.
He explained that the first batch of troops moving from their unit in Badagry to Darfur would replace another batch being pulled out of the place stating that the departing soldiers were the first set of about 200 soldiers of the total number of 680 to be deployed.
The troops we have here are the first chalk of troops moving from the unit in Badagry moving to Darfur. They are going to replace another body of troops that are being pulled out from the place. So they are the first set and they will soon board. The total no of troops is about 680, but this first wave is about 200, and they are about seven batches,” Ihejirika said.

He said that the troop movement was rotational, once they serve six months on the average; we rotate them so that they can come back and join their families. We want to avoid too long separation from their families and them having fatigue; that is just the basis.
The troops were supposed to have left the country in the early hours of Sunday morning on board a Hercules C130 but could not do so due to the fact that the aircraft developed slight hitches.

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Samuel Peter defends World Heavy Weight boxing title

However, he dropped once in the second round, and twice in the third, Peter rose each time and wedged with the fight till the 14th round. McCline, surged to an early lead but lost impetus in the later rounds. Judge Billy Costello scored the fight 115-110; Judge Steve Weisfeld, 115-111 and Judge Julie Lederman 113-112. No one, including McCline, disputed the scores. ESPN's card had Peter winning as well, 115-111, with Peter sweeping the last nine rounds after twice pulling himself off the canvas in Round 3.

The other was McCline's strange refusal to move his hands after Peter rose with 1:47 minutes to go in Round 3 after a right hand to the chin sent him toppling forward onto his hands and knees.

Peter was wobbling when he got up and McCline uncomplainingly measured him before sending him to the floor a second time behind three straight left jabs with right hands right behind them. That final combination jolted the champion and sent him flat on the seat of his powder blue trunks with 57 seconds still to go in what was probably the biggest round of Jameel McCline's career.

But Peter pulled himself back up again and despite still moving a bit unsteadily McCline oddly began to retreat.  Peter grew bolder, using his jab and a harsh body attack that often strayed below boxing's demilitarised zone and only a few of the sizzling right hands that had knocked out so many of his earlier opponents to control the rest of the fight.

As had happened to him so often in the past, the 6-foot-6, 266-pound McCline clearly began to tire under Peter's relentless attack. His mouth began to hang agape and more and more often he would clinch and then stare over Peter's shoulder into the eyes of his chief second, Poppa Ray Drayton, as if looking for some sort of suggestion about what to do next.

Whatever Drayton told him before they left the locker room was clearly right on target, starting at the very end of round 2 when McCline knocked Peter off-balance with his shoulder and then dropped him on his pants with a compact right hand to the chin.
Drayton had no answers after those knockdowns, and certainly neither did McCline. Each round, he threw his jab and the straight right hand behind it that had been so instrumental in his early success less often.

That allowed Peter to clear his head and begin to take control of the fight. The few times McCline did land the right hand after that, it seemed to wobble Peter but no longer with the same kind of concussive intensity of those early moments.
After the decision was announced, Peter claimed he had broken his left hand during training camp but hid the fact to the commission because he did not want to follow in the footsteps of the man he was originally supposed to be facing, Oleg Maskaev WBC champion.

Maskaev had pulled out of the fight because of herniated discs in his back. Though Peter's promoter, Dino Duva, said he had not yet seen any medical reports confirming that injury, they had agreed to accept the interim title and push on to keep the card (and Peter's payday) intact.

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The buried soldiers were - Samuel Orokpo (29), Danjuma Madaki (39),  Privates Duniya Audu (33), Usman Saleh (39), Bala Mohammed (27), Dogara John (27) and Toyin Ajao (25) all of Nigerian Battalion 11. Audu, who was yet to be told of the death of his father also died without seeing his one-month-old son.

Families, friends, colleagues, top government functionaries while paying their last respect could not hold back tears just as the  wives and children of the dead soldiers would not be consoled.
The pregnant wife of Ajao collapsed each time she heard her husband’s name being called and at a point had to be taken away from the area.
The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Andrew Azazi said that apart from the fact that the geography of Darfur makes the defence of positions a difficult task, it was known from the onset that the troops were at risk.

Report revealed that it was a totally unprovoked and malevolent attack on Nigerian location at Haskanita and that the effect of the incident on Nigerians was very devastating.
Azazi said I am very sure there are debates all over asking why we sent our troops to that place. Why are our troops getting killed? Why do we need to ask all these questions? We must all die one way or the other whether we are sleeping on our beds, or in operations, or just driving. For these seven soldiers, they died gallantly.

Those of us in uniform know that when we joined this noble profession to defend our nation and protect the interest of that nation, there will be several tribulations.
The military in operations is prone to casualties but no