New Director-General for the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ahmed Rufai Abubakar has made it clear that he and his wife are full-blown Nigerians even from the same village. Rufai Abubakar, who is reacting to series of allegations by those who questioned his new appointment, said that he never at any time held Chadian nationality and that his only wife hails from Katsina State: “from the same community.” He described the series of allegations against him in social media and main stream media as half-truths, misinformation, and outright falsehood.” The reaction, which contained in a statement by the special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Femi Adesina some of such unfounded stories include that Abubakar had retired from the services of NIA as an Assistant Director, because he failed promotion examinations twice, and had to quit, willy-nilly. The statement recalled other allegations to include claim that he is married to a Moroccan, and so cannot hold such sensitive security position, “while others say he was born and bred in Chad, and he holds dual nationality. All these have been widely disseminated on the social, and some mainstream media. “With the formal assumption of office by Mr Abubakar, it is now necessary to set the facts straight. “The new NIA DG retired from Foreign Service as Deputy Director (not Assistant Director) and three times during his career, had won Merit Award for competence and meritorious service. Failing promotion examination can only exist in the fecund minds of fiction writers. His last position before the new appointment was as Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs/International Affairs where again he quietly proved himself. “Abubakar’s parents hailed from Katsina State, and had settled in Chad at a point in their lifetime. “The new DG did his primary school in Ndjamena (then Fort-Lamy), but returned to Nigeria for his secondary and University education. He never at any time held Chadian nationality. “Mr Abubakar’s only wife hails from Katsina State, indeed, from the same community as the husband. The story of being married to a Moroccan can only be tale by moonlight, concocted by people who love a fib. “The President appointed the new DG because he had worked closely with him in the past two years, and sincerely believes that he would add value to the NIA.”[myad]
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo meets President Muhammadu Buhari in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, displayed his usual pleasantness towards anyone he hits silly, when today, Sunday, in Addis Ababa, he looked for President Buhari for a handshake. Eye witness account at the ongoing African Union (AU) Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, said that Obasanjo had first gone round to exchange pleasantries with other African leaders attending the summit, before looking out for Buhari in the crowd to also have a word with him. The eye witnesses who are journalists covering the Summit, report that the brief meeting of the two leaders raised excitement in the Nelson Mandela Hall with photo journalists busy recording the handshake. The meeting of Buhari – Obasanjo today came, about a week after Obasanjo had released a 13-page statement accusing Buhari of under-performance as President and asking him not seek re-election in 2019. Since then, Nigerians have been queuing behind the two leaders, for and against, thereby creating some kind of political tension in the country.
Nigeria’s Falconets thrashed South Africa 6-0 at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City today, Saturday to qualify for the 2018 FIFA Under 20 Women’s World Cup in France.
The Falconets went through on a 8-0 aggregate score.
Gift Monday opened scoring for the Falconets after seven minutes with an assist from the outstanding Rashedaat Ajibade.
Ajibade turned scorer in the 21st minute, when she rounded up the South Africa goalkeeper before she found the back of the net.
Five minutes later, Anam Imo made it 3-0 off a rebound, before Ajibade got her brace in the 32nd minute.
Gift Monday then got her own brace on 39 minutes while Anam Imo got her brace in the 73rd minute.
The only blemish on Nigeria’s copy book was the dismissal of goal star, Gift Monday three minutes from time after a second booking for a poor tackle.
The 2018 FIFA U20 World Cup will be played in France in August this year.
Nigeria had reached the final of the tournament twice, in 2012 and 2014. The
Falconets have made nine straight U20 World Cup appearance. [myad]
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and President Muhammadu Buhari
In a tweet on former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s evangelical press statement of Tuesday, January 23, 2018, calling on President Muhammadu Buhari not to seek re-election in 2019, having spectacularly failed the critical governance test, former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, who is ill at ease with the Buhari administration, wrote: “Obj has spoken, matter closed.” Whereas I concur that Obasanjo had, indeed, spoken, and forcefully at that like a clap of thunder, I am not sure that the matter has closed.
In fact, the former president has succeeded in pulling the Tiger by the tail and challenging the creature to a battle of wits -whether subtle or obvious. “Ga fili, ga doki”, meaning “see field, see horse” was what Obasanjo said in 1998 when he was asked about his readiness for the presidential contest after he had clinched the presidential ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Buhari may seem to be saying exactly the same thing.
I have a strong feeling that Buhari is very angry at Obasanjo’s open vilification of his government and governance style; and, that he is ready to go the whole hog in a bid to prove a point to Obasanjo. I may not know, as of now, the point Buhari may want to prove and how he intends to prove it, but the one thing I know is that both of them are already locked in a brewing grudge fight. It may be understandable if Buhari feels that he is entitled to a second term in office, whether he performs to Obasanjo’s satisfaction or not. After all, Obasanjo, not being a saint or a perfect administrator, brooked no opposition to secure re-election in 2003 and even attempted constitution amendment that would have provided him with tenure elongation or a third term in office.
Interestingly, both power-loving leaders have the distinction of being retired army generals and war strategists. They are also not new to battles-having both played some commanding roles in the nation’s three-year civil war from 1967-1970. To be sure, political battles are, however, different kettles of tea. They are about wiles or guiles; dissembling or dissimulation; falsehood or dishonesty; undermining or undercutting; betrayal or disloyalty, et al. They are about one entity outfoxing the other.
While Obasanjo is calculating, Buhari is crafty. He has attacked what is most important to Buhari – presidential power – even if he is, perhaps, holding it just for the sake of it. If Buhari recalls the number of times he had unsuccessfully attempted to mount the presidential horse, he would expectedly and naturally be inclined to take on Obasanjo in defence of his prized possession.
The prudent reaction, about twenty four hours later by the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, to the former president’s critical deconstruction of Buhari and his presidency should not be misconstrued for cowardice or intimidation. Buhari is, for crying out loud, president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the federation. He is probably being reflective before taking a final decision on how to relate with an openly critical Obasanjo.
Therefore, Lai Mohammed’s initial response could just be provisional. I have a hunch that Buhari will fight back anyhow, whether or not he wants to seek re-election in 2019. If he has already made up his mind to throw his hat in the ring, then, that will signify the significant fight-back in defiance of Obasanjo’s pro bono “do not re-contest” advice.
But in fighting back, the deeply-divided nation will be treated to a symphony of sorts in a morbid political conflict that is capable of causing collateral damage to political platforms, tendencies and interests. Such negative effects were the concomitant outcomes of the decision by former president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, to seek re-election in 2015 against the advice by Obasanjo and the massive opposition from within and outside the PDP.
By the time the presidential election was conducted and the result was released with Jonathan’s historic acceptance of defeat, it was very clear that the PDP was headed for a troublous future. It was also very clear that many entrenched politicians had been suddenly retired from active politics while a vast majority of budding politicians were compelled to decide whether to stay put in the PDP or redefine their trajectory out of the party.
The PDP experience should serve as a veritable reference point to Buhari and the APC. If Buhari decides to run and he is defeated, for instance, by a PDP candidate or any other party’s candidate, he can rest assured that he and his officials will be made to account for their stewardship. They will be viciously grilled by a new-look Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) essentially to expose the double standards of Buhari, the celebrated Mai Gaskiya-the truthful one- as he is wont to be referred to by his ardent followers in the north.
With this possibility, I do not expect that Buhari will not put up a good fight to defend his position. Even if he decides not to run on health grounds, I anticipate he would prop up a popularly acceptable candidate in his stead; otherwise, like Jonathan, he would lead his party into a cul-de-sac. The fact that Obasanjo had spoken has now thrown up indices by which Nigerians and the international community would assess him (Buhari) and his presidency. Can he pass the acceptance test?
Should he or the APC fail to retain power in 2019, the new Sheriffs in town will latch on his evident failings or frailties to further sully his administration and indicate a probatory direction to finally unmask him as a pretender to the virtuous qualities he flaunted or which he dubiously made people to associate him dearly with. For instance, in addition to reinforcing the charges of nepotism, ethnic chauvinism, impunity and mediocrity against him, there may be unequivocal attempts to present facts that do not support Buhari’s claim of being a believer in talakawa (populist) politics as historically and philosophically popularised by the late Aminu Kano and tended to by former governor of old Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa.
If Buhari does not want to be fatally deconstructed in a writ large fashion, if he does not want to dance naked too soon after leaving office, then he would have to do the needful by ensuring he covers his tracks and secures his back. He should be honest with himself. If he knows he can no longer muster the capacity to continue the mission to rebuild and redeem a nation that he has unconscionably-whether wittingly or unwittingly- profoundly divided, he will do well, in his own interest, not to present himself for re-election.
The president should be wise enough to dismount the horse, step aside for the best material in the APC to pick the presidential ticket just in case Nigerians would be considerate, forgiving and patient to give the party a second chance. But my fear really is, will Buhari and the APC in either of the two scenarios, commit to a free and fair election as did Jonathan and the PDP? Will Buhari be ready to concede victory to the opposition as did Jonathan even without consulting with his party leadership? Can Buhari be that statesmanlike?
This is the main reason I have said that even though Obasanjo had spoken, just as many Nigerians are doing and will do with their votes on the Election Day, the matter of 2019 election together with the redemption of our nation from the shackles of some cabal has not closed. It cannot close until power is retained or changes hands without the dogs and the baboons being soaked in their own blood.
President Muhammadu Buhari has called on the African leaders under the auspices of African Union (AU) to curb the flow of financial support from sponsors to Boko Haram terrorists.
Speaking at the meeting of the AU Peace and Security Council in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Saturday, under the theme, “Towards a Comprehensive Approach to Combat the Transnational Threat to Terrorism,” the President said: “the need to curb the flow of terrorism financing cannot be over-emphasised. Concerted efforts must be made to not only dismantle the network between transnational organised crimes and terrorist organisations, but also to block the payment of ransom to terrorist groups.”
The Nigerian President assured that his country remained committed to supporting counter terrorism efforts within the African Union and the United Nations, while recalling the UN Resolution 1373 which stressed that “any person who participates in the financing, planning, preparation or perpetration of terrorist acts should be brought to justice.”
He called for resolute and coordinated initiatives by developing an African Union data base of persons or groups and entities involved in terrorist acts for use by law enforcement agents even as he sadi: “Nigeria believes that the timely establishment of this tool at the continental level will be strategic in this fight.”
President Buhari expressed Nigeria’s grave concern over the increasing threats posed by transnational terrorism and the attendant humanitarian crisis, also condemned in the strongest terms the continued activities of the terrorist groups in Africa, and around the world.
He called for more concerted action by the African body and the international community to address the global scourge.
In doing that, the President noted that the conditions that are conducive to the spread of extremism, radicalisation and terrorism must first be addressed. Similarly, he said collaborative measures must be taken to disrupt the recruitment of terrorists, their financing networks and the movement of foreign fighters.
President Buhari disclosed that Nigeria has enacted domestic anti-terrorism laws that also deal with related issues such as kidnapping, drug peddling and gun-running. He, however, noted that, “Terrorism cannot be defeated only through military force and law enforcement measures. We need to adopt a multifaceted approach of good governance, economic development and creation of job opportunities for our youth.”
Linking terrorist activities to climate change, the President reiterated Nigeria’s “important call for global action to support the recharging of the Lake Chad Basin,” which has shrunk by over 80 per cent and has impacted negatively on the livelihood of millions of people in the countries of the Basin.
“There is considerable evidence that the environmental state of the Lake contributed to the radicalisation of jobless youth who joined Boko Haram.”
In their submissions, the Chairperson of the AU Peace and Security Council, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, the African Union Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, and the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, agreed on the real threat of transnational terrorism, and the need for global efforts to curb the negative trend. [myad]
Prof. Yesmi Osinbajo attended World Wconomic Forum
In our government we’re not talking about 2019. We are focused at this point on ensuring that we deliver on our promises. We have a four year term for now and that’s what we’re focused on and that’s what the president is also focused on.
In an interview with an American basic cable, internet and satellite business news television channel (CNBC), at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo spoke on some of the achievements of the Muhammadu Buhari administration. He emphasized the commitment of Buhari to ensuring that the government delivers on its electoral promises despite the call on him to contest for a second term in 2019.
CNBC: The good thing for Nigeria is that you have been listed in the top ten countries of ease of doing business. What difference does that make coming to this conference here in Davos?
Osinbajo: Well I think the major thing is that we have some acknowledgement from the world especially the World Bank that Nigeria is a place that’s open for business and as you said, we were listed in the top ten reforming countries in the ease of doing business so this very good for us and a lot of investors are looking our way on account of the fact that they see positive development in terms of creating a better environment for business. We’ve also recently released our incentive regime a publication which details all of the available incentives across sectors of the economy. It’s a bullish period in terms of attracting business and we are excited.
CNBC: Speaking about sectors of the economy I know that one of Nigeria’s great dreams is to start growing its own food again after years of importing with oil money. How is that going?
Osinbajo: That’s going very well indeed. What we’ve found for example just to take rice as an example: between rice and wheat we were importing almost $3 billion worth of that particular produce but today we are possibly one of the largest growers of paddy rice. Milling is a bit of a problem but we will be self-sufficient in rice production we hope by early 2019. At the moment we are doing exceedingly well. Imports of rice have gone down by as much as 80 per cent and that is one of the major food imports that we have. We are also looking at other areas such as sorghum, millet and all of those areas where there is also a great deal of activity and a great deal of agricultural growth. At the same time agriculture also means more jobs, so many more jobs are being created in the agricultural areas.
CNBC: In these times as well, you’re seeing great buoyancy in the stock market and your foreign reserves have also been increasing. How’s that going?
Osinbajo: Excellent. Foreign reserves are at $40 billion which is the highest in about 4 or 5 years and we’re also seeing a great deal of progress with respect to investment but this is going very well indeed. We are quite happy with the capital market. It’s been listed as possibly the best performing capital market in the world. We hope to be able to sustain that bullishness in the capital market.
CNBC: Infrastructure is also a big story as well, particularly in the power front. Are you going to use some of these foreign reserves to help build up Nigeria’s infrastructure? What spending are you planning?
Osinbajo: For infrastructure we are doing quite a bit. First with respect to power we are now doing something in the order of between 7000MW and 9000MW. Now, we expect that with improvements in transmission and distribution that will be able to make an impact. At the moment the impact isn’t as wide or as deep as we want it to be. We want the power sector and the consumer to feel that impact and that has a lot to do with the investments in transmission and distribution which we are doing. We want to get to the last mile, to the consumer.
With respect to rail, we’re doing a lot of work in rail. We’re doing the Lagos – Kano rail with the new standard gauge. That has already started with the Lagos – Ibadan end of it. We’re investing close to $10 billion, we’re getting some funding from the Chinese with counterpart funding from Nigeria. We have already provided counterpart funding and they are providing their own part of that resource. We are also doing the Lagos – Calabar train route which we expect will open up the whole of the Delta area, going up to the South East and the South South regions.
That’s also something we’re doing in the area of infrastructure. Roads are big for us. We’re working very hard on railway and of course power.
CNBC: How much do you plan to increase the investment in places like Lagos which is highly congested as we know?
Osinbajo: Well the Lagos State government – as you know we are a federal state, has its own plans. I know they are interested in doing a fourth mainland bridge. I haven’t heard of any new developments in terms of a metro infrastructure at this time but I know that they’re trying to open up new roads especially a fourth mainland bridge which will be a major road route around the city, going into the outlying areas of the city to greater Lagos. I think that that will happen but one of the things we’re doing is that in the standard gauge rail we’ll be going through portions of Lagos all down the South West from the port areas.
This is really important especially from the point of view of movement of petroleum products and goods from the port area because the railway actually starts from the Apapa port and then goes out to the outlying areas all through the South West and then up North. That will improve general transport logistics.
CNBC: And what about social investment spending for the people on the ground in Nigeria?
Osinbajo: Since 2016 we’re probably investing in the most ambitious social investment project that the country has ever seen. We’re putting N500 billion in the budget, we did it in the last budget, we’re hoping that we’ll be able to engage 500,000 unemployed graduates. We’ll be able to give micro credit loans, conditional cash transfers also to the poorest of the poor.
So, our social investment scheme is really very important. Philosophically for us it’s also a question of not just talking about macro-economic policy. We are concerned about social policy.
Social policy is crucial because we think that in order to achieve the inclusive growth we’ve been talking about we must find a way of accounting for the vast majority of our people who still are in one form of deprivation or the other and that’s why this social investment scheme is extremely important and we hope that we’ll be able to improve on the numbers in terms of the social investment itself and also to see incremental improvements in those who are coming out of poverty.
CNBC: Last but not least, there’s an election coming up in Nigeria. I understand from my sources that the present President Buhari is going to stand again as president. How do you think the election year is going to play out?
Osinbajo: The president has said that he is entirely focused on this term. He wants to ensure that he’s able to deliver on as many of the promises that have been made. So, he’s actually completely focused. In our government we’re not talking about 2019. We are focused at this point on ensuring that we deliver on our promises. We have a four year term for now and that’s what we’re focused on and that’s what the president is also focused on.[myad]
The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria has approved 90 Tour Operator Companies for the 2018 Muslim Hajj operations.
A statement from the commission said that the 90 companies were found suitable for the operations out of 144 that went through pre- qualification exercise recently.
The statement said that the committee, set up by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, Barrister Abdullahi Mukhtar Muhammad, screened the 144 Tour Operator Companies.
According to the Head of Tour Operators Unit of the Commission, Alidu Shutti, the companies were examined based on their past performance, validity of their IATA, tax clearance, Corporate Affairs Certificates as well as inputs from relevant government agencies.
The Commission has opened its doors to the 54 companies that did not meet the criteria to appeal on the outcome of the exercise to the Chairman/CEO before next weekFriday, February 2.[myad]
President of the United States of America, Donald Trump has said that until he became politician, he never knew that the press is this nasty, mean, vicous and fake.
The U.S. President, who spoke today, Friday at a special closing session of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said: “it was not until I became a politician, that I realised how nasty, how mean, how vicious and how fake the press can be.”
He did not see anything wrong in him putting America first just like Presidents of other countries.
“As president of the United States, I will always put America First, just like the leaders of other countries should put their countries first also. But America First does not mean America alone.
“America is a cutting-edge economy, but our immigration system is stuck in the past,” he added. “We must replace our current system of extended-family chain migration with a merit-based system of admissions that selects new arrivals based on their ability to contribute to our economy, to support themselves financially, and to strengthen our country.”
On the issue of defense, President Trump said: “to make the world safer from rogue regimes, terrorism, and revisionist powers, we are asking our friends and allies to invest in their own defenses and to meet their financial obligations. Our common security requires everyone to contribute their fair share.”
In reference to NATO, the U.S. strong man underlined the efforts to put “maximum pressure to de-nuke the Korean peninsula.
“We continue to call on partners to confront Iran’s support for terrorists and to block Iran’s path to a nuclear weapon.”
World Trade Organization (WTO) Director General, Roberto Azevedo at the World Economic Forum on Thursday, called on countries to refrain from taking measures towards protectionism, in reference to Trump.
This was even as the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), warned President Trump over the real possibility of nuclear war, urging the international community not to ignore the nuclear threat.
“We are very concerned about Trump’s new policy on nuclear weapons. It lowers the threshold of using nuclear weapons. It develops more usable nuclear weapons,” Beatrice Fihn, ICAN executive director, told Anadolu Agency in an exclusive interview on Thursday in Davos, Switzerland.
On Thursday, a group of scientists moved the “doomsday clock” 30 seconds closer to midnightThursday, citing the looming threats of nuclear conflict and climate change.
The clock has now advanced to two minutes to midnight, a metaphor for the end of humanity. It is now “the closest the Clock has ever been to Doomsday,” matching only the height of the Cold War, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists said.
Over 3,000 participants from more than 110 countries and more than 340 public figures, including more than 70 heads of state and government and 45 heads of international organisations, are attending the Davos Economic Forum. (Anadolu Agency)
The Kaduna State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has mounted pressure on the former governor of the State, Ahmed Makarfi to contest the 2019 presidential election.
The stakeholders of the party, in a major re-grouping after the 2015 elections, described the former Kaduna governor, who is now a Senator of the Federal Republic, as the “best material” for the nation’s top job.
Former Kaduna governor Ramalan Yero, in an address at the meeting, said that the PDP is proud of Makarfi’s performance during the trying period of the party, when he served as the chairman of its National Caretaker Committee.
He said that Makarfi’s ability to organize a successful National Convention was also a proof that he was a good manager of situations.
“Clearly, Makarfi is the best man for the top job after successfully leading the party out of the crises that almost confined it to the dust bins of history,” he said.
Ramalan later called for a voice endorsement and received a thunderous support for the former governor.
Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele has described those involved in cryptocurrency, which is now making waves on the internet as gamblers.
In an interview, Emefiele warned: “Cryptocurrency or bitcoin is like a gamble, and there is a need for everybody to be very careful. We cannot as a Central Bank give support to situations where people risk savings to ‘gamble.’
On the possibility of future regulation of cryptocurrency, the CBN boss said, “I have asked my colleagues in the research and monetary-policy department to study the market and get to know what the issues are. The Central Bank may in future make some very concrete pronouncements as to the direction.”
Emefiele’s warning is consistent with a circular issued by the CBN last year, warning banks and other Financial Institutions (OFLs) not to use, hold, or trade digital currencies. It cautioned financial institutions to ensure that digital exchange customers must have effective Anti-Money Laundering/Combating The Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) controls to enable them comply with customer identification, verification and transaction monitoring requirements.
Similarly, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), issued a statement last year, advising Nigerians to exercise extreme caution with regard to using digital currency as a vehicle of investment.
Data from Local Bitcoins, a Bitcoin start-up company, showed that Nigeria came second in the world’s peer-to-peer (P2P) Bitcoin transactions last year outpacing major European countries, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
Cryptocurrencies are not issued or backed by any bank or government, nor are individual digital currency valuable as a commodity. Cryptocurrency are traded on online exchanges and transferred anywhere in the world, allowing holders to skirt currency controls.
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Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele has described those involved in cryptocurrency, which is now making waves on the internet as gamblers.