A Russian passenger plane carrying 224 people has just be reported crashed in Egypt’s restive Sinai Peninsula.
According to an AFP report quoting Egyptian officials in the office of Prime Minister, Sharif Ismail, a “Russian civilian plane… crashed in the central Sinai.”
A senior aviation official said the plane was a charter flight operated by a Russian company carrying 217 passengers and seven crew members. He added that communication with the aircraft was lost.
Sergei Lzvolsky, an official with the Russian aviation agency Rosaviatsia told Interfax news agency that the plane had departed Egypt’s Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh at 5:51 am local time (03:51 GMT) today.
He said the aircraft did not make contact as expected with air traffic controllers in Cyprus, and “since then the plane has not made contact and has not appeared on radars.”
“Prime Minister (Ismail) is expected to meet the concerned ministries and competent authorities to follow up on the accident of the Russian civilian plane that fell in central Sinai,” Egyptian premier’s office said. [myad]
Just as the newly confirmed ministers by the Senate are waiting to get their respective portfolios in the Federal Cabinet, another spanner has been put in their works. President Muhammadu Buhari sent a shock wave across to them by saying that not all the confirmed ministers would be assigned offices. The President made it clear that some of the screened and confirmed ministers will only end up sitting on the Federal Executive Council (FEC) as a way of fulfilling the constitutional requirement of having at least one minister from each state of the federation. The President made this position known Friday in an interview he granted the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) and Channels TV, shortly before he left for New Delhi, India to attend the third summit of the India-Africa Forum. “There was no reduction (of ministers) to 36. What the constitution says, and we cannot work outside the constitution, is that there must be a cabinet representative from each state. “Yes, there used to be 42 ministers. I think we will be lucky if we can have half of that now because we cannot afford it. “Others may not be substantive ministers, but they will sit in the cabinet because that is what the constitution says and we cannot operate outside the constitution.” President Buhari insisted that he would reduce the number of federal ministries and by extension number of ministers. In answer to a question on whether he will reduce the number of ministers, he said: “Of course. “Unless you can volunteer to be paying them (ministers).” [myad]
What do you do during a flight that lasts nine hours and six minutes? You read. You sleep. You wake, and sleep again. You eat. You pray (if you are the praying type). You discuss with your co-passengers. And of course, you ruminate about your destination. What you’ve heard, or read about the place, particularly if you were visiting for the first time.
But first, due credit for this headline. ‘A Passage to India’ is the title of a literature text I read in the university some 32 years ago. It was a 1924 novel by the English writer, E.M Forster. The book was on the struggle for Indian independence from British colonial rule, and the book is today regarded as one of the 100 Great Works of the 20th Century by the Modern Library, while Time Magazine also includes it in its ‘All Time 100 Novels’ list.
A Passage to India. That was what I embarked on, alongside my principal, President Muhammadu Buhari, who was billed to attend the 3rd India-Africa Forum Summit, scheduled for New Delhi, the Indian capital, between October 27 and 30,2015.
What had I heard about India? You probably heard those childhood tales, too. India, the land of potent talisman. India does not take part in world soccer competitions, because the world football ruling body, FIFA, had banned it for life. What was the offence? Well, France had met with a country that nobody knows, in a game of soccer. But instead of depending on natural skills, India deployed its famed talisman. The opponents kept kicking the air, because the Indians had made the ball invisible. While the opponents did all the gyrations, however, the Indians did all the scoring. When the game ended at the end of 90 minutes, India had scored 90 goals.
Blue murder, FIFA screamed! This is unnatural, and would bring the beautiful game into disrepute. So it banned India for life. Well, that was the story we heard as young boys. Believe it, and you’d believe anything.
And what of athletics. The International Athletics Federation had to ban India for life, too. What happened? It was an Olympics Games (nobody seemed to know what year, and who the host country was). India was competing, and ended up winning gold medals in all the races. You would see all the athletes at the starting blocks, and the moment the whistle is blown for the race to begin, Indian athletes would already be breasting the tape at the other end. Talisman at work!
This is unfair competition, the rest of the world screamed. So the athletics federation banned India again. And that was how the country was left to play cricket, hockey and other such games. But the question we did not ask ourselves was; if talisman worked with soccer and athletics, why doesn’t it work with cricket and hockey? At least, India gets defeated in those games. Some imaginations are simply fertile.
Well, we were passing to India, and it was for serious business. India and Africa had found common grounds, and were cooperating for development in what Narendra Modi, Indian Prime Minister calls “partnership beyond strategic and economic benefits.”
We landed in the land of film stars, beautiful damsels (hope my wife is not reading this) and, of course, medical tourism, at nighttime. Straight to Lalit Hotel, where our President and his entourage were to stay. Lalit. You need to hear a bit about the story of the hotel. It was part of the Lalit Hospitality Group, established in 1988 by Mr Lalit Suri, a very successful businessman and politician, who represented his people in the Indian parliament.
Lalit Suri had the Midas touch. The hotel chain was very successful, and can be found today in most major Indian cities. He had great plans for expansion, and was growing steadily towards the goal. But in 2006, while on a trip to London, Lalit suffered a massive heart attack, and died. He was only 59. But his wife, Dr Jyotsna Suri, took up the gauntlet, and is today keeping her husband’s dreams alive, along with their four adult children.
A day before we travelled, a massive earthquake had occurred in Afghanistan, and the tremor was felt both in Pakistan, and New Delhi. But the organizers of the summit said ‘no shaking,’ that delegates had nothing to fear. There were presidents and top government officials from more than 41 countries, and it was, indeed, a great outing for India and Africa.
Wednesday began with a bilateral meeting between President Buhari and Prime Minister Modi. Discussions focussed mainly on three areas: strengthening relations between the two countries, oil business, and helping Nigeria and Africa to develop their potentials.
India would be quite willing to cooperate with Nigeria on the military front, the PM said. She had helped set up the Nigerian Defence Academy in the early 1960s, provided instructors, and also took in Nigerian officers in its military academy. In fact, President Buhari was at the Defense Services College, Wellington, between July 22 and November 24,1975.
India wants Nigeria’s oil on government to government transactions, and President Buhari said the request would be considered in the context of ongoing reforms in the industry.
Back to Wellington. The alumni of the academy paid the Nigerian president a courtesy visit at the Lalit Hotel. Led by Gen V.K Singh, it was time to go down memory lane. The then Lt Col Buhari had been described thus in a confidential report by H.W Kulkam, the Chief Instructor of the College:”Tall, slim, and well-turned out, Buhari is a quiet, unassuming and honest individual.”
Major General S.P Malhotra, Commandant of the College, on his part, had written: “Sober and balanced. Straightforward, simple and mature.” Memories are made of such.
In almost all the countries he has visited, President Buhari always spared the time to interact with Nigerians in the Diaspora, at the grounds of the Nigerian Embassy or High Commission. It was not different in New Delhi.
Ambassador ‘Sola Enikanolaiye, the acting High Commissioner of Nigeria to India had put together an impressive assemblage of professionals, post-graduate students, businessmen, indeed, Nigerians from all walks of life. He reeled out the many ways in which the High Commission supports Nigerians in India, and from the way he was repeatedly hailed, he seems quite popular with the people.
Nigerians asked many questions. The President answered them all. And he gave them his usual charge: be law abiding. Don’t lord it over your hosts. Obey the rules. Be good ambassadors of Nigeria.
From the High Commission, it was time to meet with the CEOs of Indian companies, particularly those who do, or are aspiring to do business in Nigeria. All the big names in pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, construction, manufacturing, power, oil and gas, agriculture, and many other sectors, were there. They spoke earnestly. The President responded frankly. New vistas were opened, promises were made. A very rewarding session, if you ask me.
That parley did not end without President Buhari warning the Indian businessmen not to connive with unscrupulous people to send sub-standard food and pharmaceutical products to Nigeria. To show how dear this was to the heart of the Nigerian president, it formed part of his paper at the plenary session of the summit the next day.
Thursday was the main day, in which 41 heads of government gathered at the Indira Gandhi Stadium for the high point of the summit.
After a colorful opening session of cultural display, Prime Minister Modi took the floor. He underscored the raison detre of the summit:
“The dreams of one-third of humanity have come together under one roof. Today, the heartbeat of 1.25 billion Indians and 1.25 billion Africans are in rhythm.”
He said further: “India is honoured to be a development partner for Africa. It is a partnership beyond strategic and economic benefits. It is formed from the emotional bonds we share, and the solidarity we feel for each other.”
Modi backed his position with statistics. In the past few years, trade between Africa and India has more than doubled to over $70 billion. India is now a major source of business investment in Africa, and 34 African countries enjoy duty free access to the Indian market. The country has equally committed $7.4 billion in concessional credit and $1.2 billion in grants since the first summit held in 2008.
In the immediate future, according to Modi, concessional credit of $10 billion would be given to Africa within five years, while grant assistance will total $600 million.
The presidents spoke one after the other. Trust Robert Mugabe, who spoke in his capacities as Zimbabwean president and chairman of African Union, he used the opportunity to fire darts at the West.
According to him, one-third of the world’s population must be respected, therefore, the United Nations must become the United Equal Nations, with its Charter amended.
Chairperson of the AU Commission, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, submitted that Africa and India could no longer be rationally excluded from the permanent seat of the UN Security Council, a position supported by almost all the presidents.
One thread ran through the presentation of nearly all the African leaders. This was a good time to promote cooperation between Africa and India. South-south cooperation must not just be political slogan, but an opportunity for the countries to to meet their growing challenges.
“Africa needs mutual partnerships leading to development, rather than aids,” submitted King Mohammed VI of Morocco.
Idris Deby Itno of Chad said India and Africa had had mutual exchanges since time immemorial, stressing that partnership will help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
President Muhammadu Buhari said India and most African countries have similar historical experiences, and the summit was an opportunity to review what had been achieved since 2008, stressing:”India and Africa must develop new spirit of solidarity to confront challenges.”
He equally brought the message home, saying:”as a government, we have demonstrated our strong determination to change the direction and content of governance, including the management of our resources through accountability, transparency, and result-orientation in governance. We are confident that India, as a tested friend and dependable partner, will always stand shoulder to shoulder with us in the discharge of the mandate entrusted to us by our people.”
With the summit over, and planning to return home, I sent text messages to my friends in Nigeria, saying since I was in the land of talisman, they should indicate the type they wanted. The responses were rib-cracking, but you can’t beat this one from Steve Nwosu, Deputy Managing Director/Deputy Editor-in-Chief of The Sun Newspapers. He wrote:
“Get me a money doubling ring. They call it evergreen pocket. Every money you spend finds its way back to your pocket. Hahahaha.”
No doubt, India and Africa are onto a strong partnership that may be enduring, mutually beneficial, with strong implications for development. That is the true talisman.Ever potent, ever sure.
Femi Adesina is Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, to President Buhari. [myad]
The Permanent Secretary in the Cross River ministry of education, Anne Odey has angered the state Governor, Ben Ayade. The punishment for what the state government called “flouting of civil service rules” is an indefinite suspension. According to the State Security Adviser to the governor, itJude Ngaji, in a chat with news men in Calabar, the state capital, the suspended permanent secretary single handedly ordered the stoppage of prayers in schools’ assemblies by students. Odey had, in a statement directed all private and public primary and secondary schools in the state to stop morning and afternoon devotion forthwith. According to Odey, the directives came from the Commissioner of Police, Henry Fadairo, in view of the security challenges facing the nation. But the Security Adviser said that governor Ayade was not aware of such directive and neither did the permanent secretary pass on such information through the governor or through his office for approval. “The governor feels pained that the permanent secretary got such sensitive information without seeking for his advice and went ahead to issue directive suspending morning devotions in schools. “The governor has directed that the permanent secretary be suspended indefinitely while the ban on suspension of devotion has been lifted immediately. “It is true that police got intelligence information that Boko Haram is planning to bomb schools during morning devotion and therefore directed authorities in the ministry of education to act fast. “But the permanent secretary did not bother to refer to the governor or call for stakeholders’ meeting to that effect.” According to the SSA, it would be contradictory to say that the governor who not only believes in God, but a strong catholic, would turn around to do otherwise. Ngaji appealed to religious leaders to discountenance such instructions as the state government is committed to inculcating good moral lessons into the pupils and students in schools. Reacting, John Eluu, the state Police Public Relations Officer, said Fadairo had approved a 10 minute time duration for morning and afternoon devotions. “The Commissioner of Police told us during our briefing today that he has approved 10 minutes each for morning and afternoon devotion in both public and private schools in the state.” The state Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Archbishop Joseph Ukpo, had reacted to the directive stopping devotion in schools by asking the state government to immediately withdraw such directive. The CAN leader said that such directive negated freedom of worship. “This directive to suspend morning devotion will negatively affect the moral upbringing of our children who are the future leaders of this country.” [myad]
“It is time for the PDP to take a long, hard look at itself in the mirror and change everything that is ugly about the party.” This was the reaction of All Progressives Congress (APC) to the communique issued by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Caucus today on the political developments in the nation. Describing such position of PDP as a rehash of the opposition party’s infantile whining, APC, in a statement by it National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, said this will not save the PDP from going down unless it re-brands most urgently. “It is time for the PDP to take a long, hard look at itself in the mirror and change everything that is ugly about the party, instead of wasting its energy and time on irrelevancies.” APC said that PDP cannot continue to do things in its old trademark, crooked ways and expect a different result. “The PDP just doesn’t get it, despite being the architect of its own fall from power. The days of winning elections with the aid of slush funds, brigandage, deceit and rigging are gone forever, hence the PDP must return to the drawing board to fashion out decent and empirical ways of re-packaging and selling itself to Nigerians, just like the opposition did when they decided to come together.” The party said the PDP’s ceaseless and ill-advised attack on the judiciary, now its favourite whipping boy, the endless put-down of government agencies and the demonization of everyone but itself will fetch the party nothing but political grief. “Instead of a blanket and unsubstantiated accusation against the judiciary over the election petition tribunal rulings in Rivers and Akwa Ibom, the PDP would have shown itself to be a serious party if it had provided statistics on how many of the cases filed at the various election petition tribunals nationwide, after the 2015 elections, have so far been decided in favour of the PDP and the APC, so that Nigerians can see whether the PDP has not won any single petition or whether all the cases have been won by the APC. “The PDP has forgotten that the same judiciary that it is willfully castigating today had decided many election petitions in favour of the party and against the APC, whether at the Governorship, National Assembly or State Assembly levels, and the ruling party has not opted to bring the whole house crashing down on everyone just because of that. “Going down the memory lane, when the PDP took itself to court in 2007 over the Governorship election in Rivers, the same judiciary that has now become an apparition to the PDP awarded the Governorship to a candidate who never even featured on the ballot because the party crookedly substituted his name. Then, the PDP did not see the judiciary as being used by the then PDP Administration, neither did the opposition castigate the judiciary.” The APC called PDP to stop yowling and engage in strategic thinking that could propel the party forward, rather than continue to be nostalgic about its past, which is neither dignifying nor enlivening. “The 16 years of the PDP – which the party has continued to shamelessly celebrate – are nothing to celebrate, either for the impunity that characterized the party’s governance, the massive looting of the national treasury that is still being assessed or the bastardization of all the values that the nation holds dear. Thankfully, President Muhammadu Buhari has brought sanity to governance even as the PDP has continued to try to distract him with their endless wailing. “Our parting word for the PDP: Stop throwing juvenile tantrums against everyone, especially the judiciary. Stop wasting your energy on frivolous accusations. Learn how to communicate your thoughts to Nigerians in a more civilized way and put your shoulder to the wheel if you want to reincarnate as a force to be reckoned with in our country’s political firmament.” [myad]
The State Governor, Chief David Nweze Umahi has assured his people that the tax slammed on them is meant to boost the state revenue. According to him, the new revenue law is in their own best interest, emphasising that the taxes were not intended to punish the people but to cushion the impact of the dwindling allocation accruing to the state from the federation account. Governor Umahi who spoke to newsmen at a press conference in Abakaliki, the state capital today, explained that with an improved internal revenue base, the government would be able execute projects that would transform the state and better the lots of the citizenry. He said that the unfriendly reactions of the people towards the new taxes and levies were misplaced, adding that the State Executive Council did not direct that the arrears of taxes for 2013 and 2014 be collected alongside those of 2015. “My people went beyond bounds. We never directed anybody to collect taxes for 2013 and 2014. Our interest is for 2015; there is nowhere, with the level of poverty in the state, we will ask people to pay tax for three years and give them four days to do that.” He however appealed to the people to pay their taxes for 2015 based on the new rate, stressing that a town hall meeting would be held early next week to review the impact of the new tax regime. The governor assured that those those who paid for 2013 and 2014 will receive their money back. He asked those charged with the enforcement of the payment of taxes in the state to wear a human face in the execution of the assignment, warning that any revenue agent found to be engaged in malpractices would be made to face the wrath of the law. “The moment you defraud any Ebonyian in this issue of revenue, you will go to prison straight.” The governor appealed to traders at the Abakpa and Kpirikpiri markets to buy forms for the allocation of shops at the International market and that the two markets would soon be designated as food stuff markets only. He announced the extension of time for the sale of the forms to 31st of December, 2015. [myad]
Elder statesman and former Federal Commissioner for Information, Chief Edwin Clark, has taken ex-Presidential spokesman, Reuben Abati, to the cleaners.
He not only insisted that former President Goodluck Jonathan was defeated in the 2015 presidential election because Abati failed to act exactly as a spokesman, but asked Abati to apologize to his former boss for betraying him..
Clark, who seemed to be responding to the recent firework on him by Dr. Abati, accused Abati, who was Jonathan’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity of sabotaging his then principal by failing to promote his image and achievements despite his advice for him to constitute “a publicity committee made up of eminent journalists in Aso Rock and that media proprietors and senior journalists should be invited to Aso Rock.”
Alleging that this advice were ignored by Abati because of the presidential spokesman’s covetousness, the former Federal Commissioner for Information recounted that many journalists and media houses always complained to him that Abati was not carrying them along.
It would be recalled that the former Presidential spokesman had about a fortnight ago written in an opinion titled; “Clark the Father, Jonathan the Son,” where he among other things asked: “Who would ever think Chief E.K. Clark would publicly disown President Jonathan? He says Jonathan was a weak president. At what point did he come to that realisation?
“Yet, throughout the five years, he spoke loudly against anyone who opposed the president,” wrote the then President’s publicist.
But wondering why he came under attack over his comments on Jonathan “for reasons so obvious,” Clark said that it was curious that Abati, who he accused of failing to sell Jonathan’s achievements to Nigerians, could accuse him of disparaging a man he (Abati) was never loyal to.
The Niger-Delta leader maintained that he had to at a point blunt out to Abati how negligent he is to his duties by not defending Jonathan against some of the scurrilous attacks against him and also by not promoting the president’s image and well-known achievements of his administration.
“Dr. Reuben Abati has risen to the defence of his last employer too late. He owes the former President apologies for his (Reuben Abati) failure to perform while in office. I should not be used as a scapegoat. I love Goodluck Jonathan and Goodluck Jonathan loves me,” he said.
Clark also recalled that before his appointment by the former President, Abati was one of the strongest critics of the president in his Guardian newspaper column, stressing: “I do not recall any favourable remark made by Abati all those years when he was the chairman of the Editorial Board (of the Guardian) and syndicated columnist about the former president, His Excellency, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and the First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan.
“If I recall correctly, they were always the butt of ridicule by Dr. Reuben Abati. In fact, he became so notorious and fearless a critic of former President Jonathan and his wife in the Guardian Newspaper that I had to draw the attention of my cousin the proprietor of the Guardian newspaper to his excesses.
“These vitriolic attacks on former President Jonathan and his wife only stopped when he was appointed the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity by the former president.”
The President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has announced his decision to head to the Supreme Court to challenge the judgment of the Court of Appeal on his case at the Code of Conduct Tribunal. Saraki said he needed to test the position of the Court of Appeal at the higher court to determine if it will stand the test of time. The Court of Appeal had, earlier in the day, ruled that the CCT was right to have initiated proceedings against Saraki in a case of false assets declaration. Saraki was accused of under-declaration of his assets when he was the governor of Kwara State. His, Joseph Daudu (SAN), however disagreed with the ruling, saying his client will head to the Supreme Court. Daudu, who made Saraki’s position known, said this was to rest the judgment of the Court of Appeal. [myad]
The Code of Conduct Tribunal has fixed November 9 for the beginning of prosecution of the former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godsday Peter Orubebe.
Orubebe is standing trial on a four count charge bordering on a breach of the Code of Conduct of Bureau and Tribunal Act.
This was contained in a summon today, which was served on the former Minister by the bailiff of the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
The charges were filed by Peter Danladi (Esq) of the Code of Conduct Bureau on October 8, 2015, on behalf of the Attorney General of the Federation.
The charges are: “That you Godsday Peter Orubebe while being a Minister of Federal Republic of Nigeria in charged Niger Delta Affairs, on or about June 29th 2011 did make a false declaration in your Asset Declaration Form by failing to declare plot 2722 Kyamu District Abuja on assumption of office on 26th September 2007 and on leaving office (at the end of your tenure), on June 29, 2011 and you thereby committed an offence under section 15 of Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act Cap C15 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and as incorporated under paragraph 11(1) & (2) of part 1 fifth schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and punishable under section 23(2) of the CCB & T Act and as incorporated under paragraph 18 of part 1, fifth schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
“That you Godsday Peter Orubebe while being a Minister of Federal Republic of Nigeria in charge of Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, on or about June 29, 2011 did made a false declaration in your asset declaration form by failing to declare plot 2059 Asokoro district, Abuja on assumption of office on September 26, 2007 and on June 29, 2011 and you thereby committed an offence under section 15 of the CCB & T Act, Cap C15, laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and as incorporated under paragraph 11(1) & (2) of part one fifth schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), and punishable under section 23 (2) of the CCB & T Act and as incorporated in paragraph 18 part 1 fifth schedule to The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
“That you Godsday Peter Orubebe being a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in charge of Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs on or about September 19, 2012 asked for and accepted the sum of fifty million naira from one Pastor (Dr) Jonathan Alota, as bribe for the contract awarded in favour of his company, Chemtronics Nigeria Limited and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 10 of the CCB & T Act CAP C15 laws of the federation of Nigeria 2004 and as incorporated under paragraph 1 Federal Republic of Nigeria and punishable under section 23 (2) of CCB & T Act as incorporated under paragraph 18 of part 1, fifth schedule to the Constitution (as amended).
“That you Godsday Orubebe while being a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in charge of Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, on or about 2013 asked for and accepted the sum of twenty million naira from one Pastor (Dr) Jonathan Alota as additional bribe for the contract awarded in favour of his company Chemtronics Nigeria Limited for the construction of skill acquisition Centre at Edo State for the sum of one billion seven hundred and ninety nine million, nine hundred and fourteen thousand two hundred and fifty naira eighty eight kobo only (₦ 1,799,914,251.88K) and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 10 of CCB & T Act as incorporated under paragraph 18 of part 1 fifth schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).”
According to the return date of the summons, Orubebe is expected to be arraigned on November 9, 2015.
Orubeb is expected to take a plea on the charges when the case begins on November 9. [myad]
The Kano State Government has ordered the immediate closure of Hassan Ibrahim Gwarzo Secondary School for Boys over allegation of sodomy being perpetrated by students of the school.
State Acting Governor, Professor. Hafiz Abubakar, said this while inaugurating a 14-man committee in Kano today to probe the allegation.
Abubakar, who expressed government’s concern on the unfortunate incident, named a former Vice Chancellor of the University of Maiduguri, Professor Abubakar Mustapha, as head of the committee.
Among other mandate of the committee includes a comprehensive investigation of the alleged sodomy by students of the HIGSSB, located at Sallari quarters, so as to identify all victims of the alleged cases, as well as determine the extent of abuse.
The acting governor asked the committee to also identify the culprits in the alleged act of sodomy among the students of the school and establish the degree of their culpability.
A statement by the Acting Governor’s Director of Press, Usman Bello, quoted the the government as having directed the committee to investigate the fore-knowledge of the school management in the cases and ascertain its culpability or otherwise.
The acting governor equally asked the panel to recommend appropriate sanctions to be taken by the state government against perpetrators as well as any other steps incidental to the committee’s mandate.
The panel was given two weeks to submit its report. [myad]
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A Voyage To India, By Femi Adesina
What do you do during a flight that lasts nine hours and six minutes? You read. You sleep. You wake, and sleep again. You eat. You pray (if you are the praying type). You discuss with your co-passengers. And of course, you ruminate about your destination. What you’ve heard, or read about the place, particularly if you were visiting for the first time.
But first, due credit for this headline. ‘A Passage to India’ is the title of a literature text I read in the university some 32 years ago. It was a 1924 novel by the English writer, E.M Forster. The book was on the struggle for Indian independence from British colonial rule, and the book is today regarded as one of the 100 Great Works of the 20th Century by the Modern Library, while Time Magazine also includes it in its ‘All Time 100 Novels’ list.
A Passage to India. That was what I embarked on, alongside my principal, President Muhammadu Buhari, who was billed to attend the 3rd India-Africa Forum Summit, scheduled for New Delhi, the Indian capital, between October 27 and 30,2015.
What had I heard about India? You probably heard those childhood tales, too. India, the land of potent talisman. India does not take part in world soccer competitions, because the world football ruling body, FIFA, had banned it for life. What was the offence? Well, France had met with a country that nobody knows, in a game of soccer. But instead of depending on natural skills, India deployed its famed talisman. The opponents kept kicking the air, because the Indians had made the ball invisible. While the opponents did all the gyrations, however, the Indians did all the scoring. When the game ended at the end of 90 minutes, India had scored 90 goals.
Blue murder, FIFA screamed! This is unnatural, and would bring the beautiful game into disrepute. So it banned India for life. Well, that was the story we heard as young boys. Believe it, and you’d believe anything.
And what of athletics. The International Athletics Federation had to ban India for life, too. What happened? It was an Olympics Games (nobody seemed to know what year, and who the host country was). India was competing, and ended up winning gold medals in all the races. You would see all the athletes at the starting blocks, and the moment the whistle is blown for the race to begin, Indian athletes would already be breasting the tape at the other end. Talisman at work!
This is unfair competition, the rest of the world screamed. So the athletics federation banned India again. And that was how the country was left to play cricket, hockey and other such games. But the question we did not ask ourselves was; if talisman worked with soccer and athletics, why doesn’t it work with cricket and hockey? At least, India gets defeated in those games. Some imaginations are simply fertile.
Well, we were passing to India, and it was for serious business. India and Africa had found common grounds, and were cooperating for development in what Narendra Modi, Indian Prime Minister calls “partnership beyond strategic and economic benefits.”
We landed in the land of film stars, beautiful damsels (hope my wife is not reading this) and, of course, medical tourism, at nighttime. Straight to Lalit Hotel, where our President and his entourage were to stay. Lalit. You need to hear a bit about the story of the hotel. It was part of the Lalit Hospitality Group, established in 1988 by Mr Lalit Suri, a very successful businessman and politician, who represented his people in the Indian parliament.
Lalit Suri had the Midas touch. The hotel chain was very successful, and can be found today in most major Indian cities. He had great plans for expansion, and was growing steadily towards the goal. But in 2006, while on a trip to London, Lalit suffered a massive heart attack, and died. He was only 59. But his wife, Dr Jyotsna Suri, took up the gauntlet, and is today keeping her husband’s dreams alive, along with their four adult children.
A day before we travelled, a massive earthquake had occurred in Afghanistan, and the tremor was felt both in Pakistan, and New Delhi. But the organizers of the summit said ‘no shaking,’ that delegates had nothing to fear. There were presidents and top government officials from more than 41 countries, and it was, indeed, a great outing for India and Africa.
Wednesday began with a bilateral meeting between President Buhari and Prime Minister Modi. Discussions focussed mainly on three areas: strengthening relations between the two countries, oil business, and helping Nigeria and Africa to develop their potentials.
India would be quite willing to cooperate with Nigeria on the military front, the PM said. She had helped set up the Nigerian Defence Academy in the early 1960s, provided instructors, and also took in Nigerian officers in its military academy. In fact, President Buhari was at the Defense Services College, Wellington, between July 22 and November 24,1975.
India wants Nigeria’s oil on government to government transactions, and President Buhari said the request would be considered in the context of ongoing reforms in the industry.
Back to Wellington. The alumni of the academy paid the Nigerian president a courtesy visit at the Lalit Hotel. Led by Gen V.K Singh, it was time to go down memory lane. The then Lt Col Buhari had been described thus in a confidential report by H.W Kulkam, the Chief Instructor of the College:”Tall, slim, and well-turned out, Buhari is a quiet, unassuming and honest individual.”
Major General S.P Malhotra, Commandant of the College, on his part, had written: “Sober and balanced. Straightforward, simple and mature.” Memories are made of such.
In almost all the countries he has visited, President Buhari always spared the time to interact with Nigerians in the Diaspora, at the grounds of the Nigerian Embassy or High Commission. It was not different in New Delhi.
Ambassador ‘Sola Enikanolaiye, the acting High Commissioner of Nigeria to India had put together an impressive assemblage of professionals, post-graduate students, businessmen, indeed, Nigerians from all walks of life. He reeled out the many ways in which the High Commission supports Nigerians in India, and from the way he was repeatedly hailed, he seems quite popular with the people.
Nigerians asked many questions. The President answered them all. And he gave them his usual charge: be law abiding. Don’t lord it over your hosts. Obey the rules. Be good ambassadors of Nigeria.
From the High Commission, it was time to meet with the CEOs of Indian companies, particularly those who do, or are aspiring to do business in Nigeria. All the big names in pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, construction, manufacturing, power, oil and gas, agriculture, and many other sectors, were there. They spoke earnestly. The President responded frankly. New vistas were opened, promises were made. A very rewarding session, if you ask me.
That parley did not end without President Buhari warning the Indian businessmen not to connive with unscrupulous people to send sub-standard food and pharmaceutical products to Nigeria. To show how dear this was to the heart of the Nigerian president, it formed part of his paper at the plenary session of the summit the next day.
Thursday was the main day, in which 41 heads of government gathered at the Indira Gandhi Stadium for the high point of the summit.
After a colorful opening session of cultural display, Prime Minister Modi took the floor. He underscored the raison detre of the summit:
“The dreams of one-third of humanity have come together under one roof. Today, the heartbeat of 1.25 billion Indians and 1.25 billion Africans are in rhythm.”
He said further: “India is honoured to be a development partner for Africa. It is a partnership beyond strategic and economic benefits. It is formed from the emotional bonds we share, and the solidarity we feel for each other.”
Modi backed his position with statistics. In the past few years, trade between Africa and India has more than doubled to over $70 billion. India is now a major source of business investment in Africa, and 34 African countries enjoy duty free access to the Indian market. The country has equally committed $7.4 billion in concessional credit and $1.2 billion in grants since the first summit held in 2008.
In the immediate future, according to Modi, concessional credit of $10 billion would be given to Africa within five years, while grant assistance will total $600 million.
The presidents spoke one after the other. Trust Robert Mugabe, who spoke in his capacities as Zimbabwean president and chairman of African Union, he used the opportunity to fire darts at the West.
According to him, one-third of the world’s population must be respected, therefore, the United Nations must become the United Equal Nations, with its Charter amended.
Chairperson of the AU Commission, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, submitted that Africa and India could no longer be rationally excluded from the permanent seat of the UN Security Council, a position supported by almost all the presidents.
One thread ran through the presentation of nearly all the African leaders. This was a good time to promote cooperation between Africa and India. South-south cooperation must not just be political slogan, but an opportunity for the countries to to meet their growing challenges.
“Africa needs mutual partnerships leading to development, rather than aids,” submitted King Mohammed VI of Morocco.
Idris Deby Itno of Chad said India and Africa had had mutual exchanges since time immemorial, stressing that partnership will help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
President Muhammadu Buhari said India and most African countries have similar historical experiences, and the summit was an opportunity to review what had been achieved since 2008, stressing:”India and Africa must develop new spirit of solidarity to confront challenges.”
He equally brought the message home, saying:”as a government, we have demonstrated our strong determination to change the direction and content of governance, including the management of our resources through accountability, transparency, and result-orientation in governance. We are confident that India, as a tested friend and dependable partner, will always stand shoulder to shoulder with us in the discharge of the mandate entrusted to us by our people.”
With the summit over, and planning to return home, I sent text messages to my friends in Nigeria, saying since I was in the land of talisman, they should indicate the type they wanted. The responses were rib-cracking, but you can’t beat this one from Steve Nwosu, Deputy Managing Director/Deputy Editor-in-Chief of The Sun Newspapers. He wrote:
“Get me a money doubling ring. They call it evergreen pocket. Every money you spend finds its way back to your pocket. Hahahaha.”
No doubt, India and Africa are onto a strong partnership that may be enduring, mutually beneficial, with strong implications for development. That is the true talisman.Ever potent, ever sure.
Femi Adesina is Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, to President Buhari. [myad]