How PDP Dribbled Modu Sheriff To Produce Makarfi As National Chairman

May 21, 2016

In what looked a political drama on Saturday, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ignored proposal for the postponement of its national convention to come up with the former governor of Kaduna State, Ahmed Makarfi as its caretaker national chairman.
The controversial national chairman, Ali Modu Sheriff suddenly found that he had been stripped of the post as he folded his arms on the strength of the proposed postponement of the convention, which the governors of the party and other chieftains defied.

Modu Sheriff who had earlier addressed news men at Le Meridian Hotel in Port Harcourt, citing court orders restraining the party from proceeding with the convention, briefly appeared at the convention but left before the decision was taken to raise Makarfi as caretaker chairman.

Sheriff had said at the news briefing: “if we proceed with the convention, we will be charged for contempt of court. As a responsible party, we have to respect the court orders. We will reconvene as soon as we are able to dispense with the court cases.”

But His directive was ignored as the convention went on as planned with the 12 PDP state governors and other leaders of the party in attendance.

One of the first decisions taken by the convention was the dissolution of the national working committee of the party by a motion moved by former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Austin Opara, and seconded by another former Deputy Speaker, Hon. Emeka Ihediora.
The convention went on to set up a seven-man Caretaker Committee.
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers and Chairman of the party`s National Convention Committee put the question and the motion was affirmed by the delegates.
The convention also approved another motion to set aside decisions taken by the NWC and zoning of its presidential candidate for 2019 election to the north.
The motion was moved by Dr. Babangida Aliyu, a former governor of Niger state and seconded by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta.
The convention also set up a seven-man caretaker committee headed by the new caretaker chairman, Makarfi with Senator Ben Obi as secretary.
The committee was given three months to organize a new National Convention to elect new national officers.
The delegates also barred the committee members from contesting any position in the next convention.
Makarfi, in his speech, said he accepted to serve because it was about the unity of the party and progress of the country.
“ I humbly accept this challenge and I do so, on behalf of other members of the committee. Other members of the committee were nominated on trust.”
Makarfi assured that the committee would serve and bring unity to the party.
“I assure you, you will have no cause to worry. None of us is seeking for any office. We are here to serve and bring unity to our party. I call on all aggrieved party men and women to give us a chance to rebuild our party to give hope to Nigeria and black race.”
The other members of the committee were Sen. Odion Ugbesie, Sen. Abdul Ningi, Mr Kabir Usman, Mr Dayo Adeyeye and Alhaja Aisha Aliyu. [myad]

Only Muslims Who Pass Medical Test Will Be Allowed To Perform Hajj – Officials

Greenbarge Reporters

May 21, 2016

Officials in charge of hajj operations in Nigeria have given an indication that it is only Muslims who passed medical test that would be allowed to perform this year’s hajj in Saudi Arabia.

The information is coming from the Kano State end of the operators, via the state Pilgrims Welfare Board.

The Public Relations Officer of the board, Alhaji Nuhu Badamasi, who gave this indication in Kano, stressed that the directive emanated from the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), an umbrella body of the hajj operations across the country.

Badamasi said that the medical test is necessary because no intending pilgrim would be allowed to travel to the Holy land without knowing his or her health status, adding that the mandatory medical test is in compliance with the directive of NAHCON.

According to him, all state pilgrims welfare boards must ensure that intending pilgrims undergo medical test to enable the board to know their health status.

“The form is designed by NAHCON and pilgrims must attend the screening at the designated government hospitals. Each pilgrim is expected to go to the designated hospital with his or her Hajj payment receipt for easy identification.

“The forms have already been distributed to the hospitals with the names and pictures of the intending pilgrims.

“What is required from them is to go to the designated hospitals where their forms are sent and attend the screening.”

Badamasi said that the exercise is expected to end within the next two weeks.

No fewer than 5,600 intending pilgrims from the state are expected to perform the 2016 Hajj to Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, the Ogun Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board has called on intending pilgrims to augment their 2016 interim Hajj fare from the initial sum of N800,000 to N1.180 million.

The Executive Secretary of the board, Alhaji Sefiu Rasheed, made the call on Saturday while briefing newsmen in Abeokuta.

Rasheed said this was to enable the board to remit the required funds to the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Abuja, before the deadline.

According to him, the board has resolved to fix the fare at N1.180 million tentatively, pending the Federal Government’s final decision on the concessionary exchange rate.

He said the board took the decision as the Federal Government was yet to take a definite decision on a concessionary exchange rate because “the Hajj fare is being projected on a current Central Bank Dollar Exchange rate.’’

“Let me assure you, however, that the board will refund excess deposits to offset Basic Travelling Allowance whenever the Federal Government grants concessionary exchange rate.

“The board has fixed June 17 as deadline for payment by all intending pilgrims.”

The executive secretary said that a Hajj seminar for the intending pilgrims had been scheduled to hold simultaneously in Abeokuta, Ijebu-Ode and Ilaro central mosques on May 24.

According to him, the event is compulsory for all pilgrims as this is essential for a successful Hajj.

He urged all eligible intending pilgrims to attend the seminar at the designated central mosques in their respective senatorial districts. [myad]

Private School In Osun Offers Rescued Chibok Girls Scholarships

Greenbarge Reporters

May 21, 2016

The management of Kunike International School, Osogbo in collaboration with Delta School District in Vancouver, Canada has offered to give full scholarships to the first two Chibok girls that have so far been rescued from the captivity of the Boko Haram sect.

The Director of Kunike International school, Mr. Amos Adekunle, who announced the offer in a statement in Osogbo on Saturday, said the girls needed to be encouraged to fulfill their dreams of getting quality education which was temporarily stopped by the terrorists, who invaded their schools on April 14, 2014 and abducted over 200 girls.

The statement read: “The management of Kunike International Schools, Osogbo in conjunction with the management of Delta Schools District, in Vancouver, Canada is extending full scholarships ( all tuitions and boarding) to the first two Chibok girls, Amina Alli and Serah Luka that were recently rescued from captivity.

“Kunike is located in a well secured and safe environment in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

Amina Ali Nkeki with her four-months-old baby and Serah Luka were rescued this week from Sambisa Forest which is the hideout of the dreaded terror group. [myad]

When Did Indigenous People Of Biafra Realize Igbo Are Marginalized, Adesina Asks

Greenbarge Reporters

May 21, 2016

“What is IPOB asking for? They say they are being marginalized, when did they realise that they are being marginalized? Is it about 12 months ago when power changed hands? If the former President Goodluck Jonathan government had continued, would there have been that agitation? Were they not saying he is Ebele Azikwe and he is their brother and that his administration was an administration of the south-east?

These are the questions posed by the special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Femi Adesina, when he spoke in an interview with Punch.

Adesina said he was very sure that generation that fought the 30 months civil war to keep Nigeria as one will never be part of the quest of the current agitators.

He said that if a referendum was conducted in the south-east, the result will show that a larger number will prefer to stay within the Nigerian federation.

“Why did we fight that 30-month grueling civil war to keep Nigeria one if at the end of the day, people will just stand up and say ‘we are dismembering the country’?” he asked.

“The issue is that even among those who live in that geographical area that used to be called Biafra, is there a consensus that they want self-determination? Among those who are there, there is no consensus. Those young people got together because they never experienced war, they never knew the trauma of the civil war in which more than two million Nigerians died. They are the ones beating the drums of self-determination.”

He also reacted to various allegations of dictatorial tendencies leveled against Buhari, the state of the economy, militancy, among other issues.

“We know that this president is a democrat and he is very liberal. We know him when he was a military ruler, now we have seen him as a democrat. We know he is playing the game according to democratic principles and ethos. One thing I am very sure of is that this president is a democrat,” he said.

Adesina also expressed confidence that the current administration would change the country for better.

“Nigeria is like a plane taking off with its nose in the air. As long as the nose of the plane is in the air, you know that it is gaining altitude. Before this government came, the nose of the plane was down and one did not know whether it would land safely or crash-land. There is a lot of hope in the country now.

“This time last year, we did not know whether Boko Haram would advance into the core south and core-west. It seemed it would because Boko Haram was not just confined to the north-east then; it was in the north-west and north-central. The sect was active in Abuja, it was active in Kogi and the next thing was that it was going to make a foray into the south-west and go into the south-south and we know what would have happened to the country if that had happened. So if you compare the security situation this time last year with the situation now, you will know that Nigerians have a lot of reasons to be thankful to God.

“Anybody who blames this government for the nation’s economic woes does not understand the issues. A government does not run down the economy in 12 months. This government came on board to meet an economy which the President said had been vandalised. What this government has been doing in the last one year is coping with the consequences of the rot that the previous government left behind. It is not only about the previous government, but an accumulation of what was done by the many governments in the 16 years of the Peoples Democratic Party in power.

“Do not forget that these were years that oil sold for an average of $100 per barrel and there was a time it hit $140 per barrel. How come we did not save? How come we have no reserve? How come infrastructure is at the stage it is? Anybody who says this government caused it does not just understand and I would want to pity such a person.”

The presidential spokesman said the government was on top of the situation in the Niger Delta, saying most of those behind attacks on oil installations have been arrested.

“Saying government is at a loss is not right because each time this (pipeline attacks) happens, in a couple of days, those who did it are apprehended. I am sure that in everywhere it has happened, those responsible have been apprehended within a number of days,” he said.

“So you cannot say the government is at a loss because it has the capacity to deal with it. I am not saying that it is by the use of force or arms alone that government is going to respond to it, but then, this government does not lack capacity to respond to that development.” [myad]

US: Oklahoma Criminalizes Abortion, Offender Risks 3 Year Jail

Greenbarge Reporters

May 21, 2016

Oklahoma state legislators, in the United States of America, have approved a measure that would make abortion a felony for doctors, with potential penalties that include removal of medical license and a maximum prison sentence of three years.

The state House has approved the measure last month with a vote of 69-15 and sent it to the Senate, which passed it on Friday with a vote of 33-12.

Senate Bill 1552 now goes to Governor Mary Fallin to sign or veto it. However, the new abortion bill will automatically become a law, should Fallin, who was sworn into office on January 10, 2011, refuses to sign or veto it.

However, there are few exemptions. Abortion will only be allowed if it is to preserve the life of the mother or to remove a miscarriage.

Pregnancy resulting from a man making love with is daughter or a woman making love with her son cannot be terminated. Also pregnancies resulting from women being forced against their will cannot be terminated.

Some Senators maintained the fact that they support the bill because state government is responsible for protecting life in the state.

According to Republican Senator, Nathan Dahm: “Since I believe life begins at conception, it should be protected, and I believe it’s a core function of state government to defend that life from the beginning of conception.”

Senator Ervin Yen, a Republican and the Oklahoma state Senate’s only physician described the bill as “insane.”

According to Cheeky Dave, who is also against the bill: “the use of political office to impose religious beliefs on people that do not practice that particular or any religion is an abuse of power; an abuse of power is simply tyranny, which I am sure these republicans will say that they are opposed.”

In this case, the wealthy women will be able to go to another state and have their abortion done if they do not wish to have any child while the poor ones who cannot afford to go to other states to do the abortion will have no other option than to have the baby. [myad]

How Bauchi Spent N8.6 Billion Bail-Out Fund – Governor’s Spokesman

Greenbarge Reporters

May 21, 2016

The Media Adviser to Bauchi state governor, Yakubu Mohammed has explained how the state government spent the N8,609,100,000.00 bailout fund given by the Federal Government, purposely for the payment of accumulated salaries of civil servants.

In a statement on Saturday, Yakubu Mohammed said that out of the total amount received from the federal government, 8,521,100,000.00 was used to off-set backlogs of salaries, adding that the process of paying salaries was started by Governor Abubakar even before the idea of bail-outs to states was conceived.

Debunking what he called insinuation by rumour mongers that Governor Mohammed Abubakar squandered the money, the spokesman insisted that the bailout fund was use for the purpose for which it was released.
He said that it is not true that a Presidential investigative team was in the state to verify the alleged misappropriation of the funds by the state government, saying: “t his is false and a move designed by mischief makers to bring the administration of Governor Abubakar into disrepute.”
Yakubu Mohammed commended the efforts of the governor in ridding the state of corruption, especially in the civil service.

This was even as he said: “what is happening is a subtle blackmail by some powerful individuals in the state who are not comfortable with the ongoing staff verification and a fight to stop corruption in government to paint the administration of Governor Abubakar in bad light.

“There is no blackmail or intimidation from any quarter that will derail the good governance policy of the present administration from delivering the dividends of democracy to the people of Bauchi State.” [myad]

Third Class Traditional Ruler Kidnapped In Kogi

Greenbarge Reporters

May 21, 2016

A third class traditional ruler of Elete town in Kogi state, Chief Aminu Aku has been kidnapped by unidentified gunmen.

The News Agency of Nigeria ( NAN) gathered that Aku was kidnapped by a gang of five masked gunmen at about 8:30 pm on Friday in his town located on the Lokoja-Ajaokuta highway.

The incident came barely 24 hours after the kidnap of two chieftains of the Kwara chapter of the APC on the Lokoja-Okene road.

Aku was said to be returning from a function at Ajaokuta and was just alighting from his car when he was abducted. He was subsequently driven away in a vehicle brought by the abductors.

NAN learnt that the gunmen had already called to demand for a N10 million ransom.

The state Police Commissioner, Yakubu Usman however said that the abduction of the traditional ruler was yet to be confirmed. [myad]

Atiku Sees Brighter Economic Fortune For Nigeria

Greenbarge Reporters

May 21, 2016

Nigeria’s former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has said that the future of the country’s economy looks very bright in spite of the present challenges the country is going through.

According to him, investment in agriculture and allied businesses is the answer to the puzzle of how to get the country out of her addiction to fossil fuels, and over-reliance on rent-seeking enterprises.

The former Vice President spoke on Saturday in Abuja at the ground-breaking of an animal feeds factory, Rico Gado Nutrition, Nigeria.

Atiku said from the experience he has gained in the agro-business enterprise, he is sure that agriculture is a key ingredient for unlocking the nation’s future fortunes, adding that it is an opportunity to change the way Nigerians look at the economy and agriculture.

“Despite the doubts about our economy because of current challenges, we are confident about Nigeria’s future and about our future. I think I speak for my partners in this joint venture when I say: We know what we are getting into, and we’re doing it because we believe in Nigeria, because we believe that Nigeria will overcome its current difficulties, because we believe our nation will change for the better.” [myad]

US: White House Thrown Into Panic As Gunman Was Shot

Greenbarge Reporters

May 20, 2016

The United States seat of power, the White House was thrown into panic on Friday after the secret service shot a man at a nearby checkpoint.

The man was reportedly carrying a weapon and was ordered to stop by security officers before being shot. He is currently in a critical condition even as the White House was placed in lockdown. The lockdown was lifted before the close of the day.

US Park Police said the shooting was on West Executive Drive, about a block from the White House.

President Barack Obama was not at the White House at the time of the incident as he had left earlier to play golf.

It is understood Vice-President Joe Biden was at the White House and was taken to a secure location. [myad]

Secretary Of Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission Sacked

Greenbarge Reporters

May 20, 2016

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrims Commission (NCPC), John-Kennedy Opara, has been removed from office.

A statement by the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, said that the disengagement of Mr. Opara from office as head of the commission became effective, Thursday.

The statement added that President Muhammadu Buhari thanked Mr. Opara for spearheading the affairs of the commission in the last eight years, and wished him success in his future endeavours.

Opara was appointed in 2008 by the Shehu Musa Yar’dua-led administration, for an initial tenure of five years. He was reappointed in June 2013, after his first tenure ended, by former President Goodluck Jonathan for a second and final tenure.

He was removed from office two years before the expiration of his tenure in June 2018. According to the law setting up the pilgrims agency: “The Chairman or any members of the Commission may be removed from office by the president, if the president is satisfied that it is not in the interest of the Commission or the public that the member should continue in office.” [myad]

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