The United States of America has expressed dissatisfaction with the inauguration of Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza for a controversial third term, even as it accusing the ruling party of ignoring the people’s will.
In a statement today, Washington warned that the crisis in the central African nation was not over and that political dialogue and international efforts to mediate it were key to bringing it “back from the precipice.”
Nkurunziza, an ex-rebel turned born-again Christian who believes he is in power by divine choice, was inaugurated earlier today after he won elections that the United Nations said were neither free nor fair.
“Today’s inauguration in Burundi demonstrates the ruling party’s intent to ignore the voices of its people in pursuit of its own political agenda,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said.
“An inauguration — without a government that represents the population’s many political voices and without a comprehensive and inclusive dialogue — will not resolve the political and security crisis in Burundi.”
Nkurunziza’s third term has been condemned as unconstitutional by the opposition and provoked months of protests. There has been a string of killings since his re-election, including the assassination of his top security chief in a rocket attack last month.
“An inclusive and comprehensive political dialogue is the only credible route to re-establish stability in Burundi and forge a peaceful and consensus path forward,” Kirby said.
Washington, heavily involved diplomatically in Burundi’s crisis for months, has repeatedly condemned Nkurunziza’s third mandate.
Last month, President Barack Obama singled him out as an example of the dangers of trying to stay put as he condemned African leaders who refuse to give up power.
US diplomats with area expertise are especially concerned about the risk of a resurgence in violence in this tiny country in the heart of the troubled Great Lakes region.
Nkurunziza was a Hutu rebel leader during the 1993-2006 civil war, when at least 300,000 people were killed. That war pitted rebels from the majority Hutu people against an army dominated by the minority Tutsi. [myad]
About 10 days to September in which President Muhammadu Buhari promised to name members of the federal cabinet, the leadership of his All Progressives Congress (APC) has said that so far, the President is still keeping the list of the ministers to his chest.
The National Publicity secretary of the party, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, made it clear that only President Buhari knew those he would appoint as he had decided to keep it ‘to his chest.’
He said: “We will wait for September, and whatever else anyone has said is just innuendos. I don’t know why Nigerians are in such a hurry. If a man has a mandate for 48 months, I don’t think it is inordinate to spend four months. Who will get medal because he appointed ministers within record time? It is the quality of the ministers – when they are able to deliver – that the country judges him with.”
The party’s spokesman insisted that the President should not be put under pressure to name ministers as the citizens will hold him responsible if he appoint wrong people into his cabinet.
“We have seen people that appointed ministers in the first month, what happened to them at the end of the day?”
On who and who may make the list and the condition with which they may be appointed, Mohammed said: “I know that there are informal meetings going on daily between the President and leaders of the party. I don’t think there is anywhere either at NEC, NWC or Caucus that anybody has discussed the issue of ministers. The President I know has kept this thing very close to his chest.
“The constitution says there would be federal character in the appointment of ministers and I think the president is not going to violate the constitution.” [myad]
L –R: Governors Ibikule Amosun of Ogun state, Willie Obiano of Anambra state, Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara state and Abubakar Badar of Jigawa state, during the briefing of news men after the meeting of National Economic Council at the Presidential Villa, Abuja today, Thursday, August 20. [myad]
President Muhammadu Buhari has warned that he will not tolerate any irregularities or extortion of money from unemployed Nigerians in the coming recruitment into the police. At a meeting with officials of the Ministry of Police Affairs and the Police Service Commission today in the Presidential Villa, President Buhari said that applicants having to pay bribes before being accepted into the police in the past was totally unacceptable. The President told the officials that those in charge of recruitment and training in the Police must be above board and eschew every form of extortion and underhand dealing. “You must ensure that the recruitment process is transparent. Those who will conduct the recruitment must be above board. It should not be heard that they receive gratification or extort money from those who want to enlist in the police,” President Buhari cautioned. The President also directed the Inspector-General of Police to prune down the number of policemen attached to dignitaries, and redeploy all policemen withdrawn from that role to regular police duties. On the stagnation of policemen on a rank for many years, the President counselled the Police Service Commission to review the current structure of the police, and make recommendations on how the problem can be solved to boost the morale of serving policemen. The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Police Affairs, Dr James Obiegbu had, in his briefing of the President, listed inadequate police personnel, dwindling finances and non-rehabilitation of police training schools as some of the challenges facing the police. The Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Sir Mike Okiro said that the country needed to have more than the 305,579 policemen and women which it has at present for effective policing. He thanked President Buhari for approving the recruitment of 10,000 additional policemen and women earlier this week. Meanwhile President Buhari has reaffirmed his conviction that the end of the Boko Haram insurgency is in sight, given the added vigour with which the war against the terrorist sect is now being prosecuted by Nigeria and her allies. Speaking today at an audience with Mousa Faki Mahamat, Chadian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Special Envoy of President Idris Deby of Chad, President Buhari said that with higher morale among troops in the frontline against Boko Haram and their improved logistics, equipment and training, a rapid end to the insurgency could be expected. The President said however that Nigeria and Chad must be prepared to make more sacrifices to end the scourge of Boko Haram since they were at the “very heart of the insurgency”. “We will sustain our effort, and the insurgents will be defeated soon,” President Buhari vowed. The Special Envoy of the Chadian President said that President Deby appreciated the leadership being shown by President Buhari in the war against terrorism. “We also appreciate the diligence shown in appointing a commander for the Multinational Joint Task Force, and President Deby believes that the fight will end in a few months. “Our people rely on us to end the insurgency, because economic development is being hampered. This fight has to come to an end. My coming here is to reaffirm our full commitment. Beyond the number of troops earlier announced, Chad is still ready to commit more soldiers. “The enemy is weakened already. Let’s stand firm, and neutralize them,” he said. [myad]
President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Dr. William Babatunde Fowler as the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) even as he also appointed Aliyu Yahaya Gusau as Director-General, Budget Office of the Federation. A statement by special adviser to the President on media and publicity, Femi Adesina said that Dr. Fowler was the Chief Executive Officer/Executive Chairman of the Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue from 2005 to 2014. The statement said that the new FIRS Chairman had his higher education in the United States where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin and a Master of Business Administration degree from the California State University. It said that before joining the service of the Lagos State Government, Dr. Fowler worked in the banking sector for about 20 years with long stints at Credit Lyonnais Nigeria Limited and Chartered Bank. Under his leadership, the Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue reportedly achieved a sharp increase in internally generated revenue from an average of N3.6. billion per month in January 2006, to an average of about N20.5 billion per month in 2013. Fowler, who holds an Honorary Doctorate Degree of the Irish International University, is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria and the Business Management Association of the United Kingdom. The statement said that Dr. Fowler will serve as Acting Executive Chairman of FIRS until his appointment is confirmed by the Senate. It further said that the appointment of Yahaya Gusau’s appointment is with effect from August 18, 2015 and is for a term of four years, renewable for another four years, unless he attains the retirement age of 60 years or completes 35 years of pensionable service. [myad]
The ongoing ministerial briefing of the President at the State House,Abuja put a spotlight on an important sector long neglected by previous administrations, yet one that can create millions of jobs .
The first briefing of a President by the Ministry of Science and Technology and its parastatal organization, the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, NASENI, over a period of many years showcased opportunities and the enormous achievements made in the invention, fabrication and assembly of capital products for the sustainable industrialization of the country.
A matter for serious concern for President Muhammadu Buhari, who campaigned on a promise to create jobs is the paucity of investments in industry, without which there can be no new jobs or incomes.
Experts have warned a long time ago that Nigeria has been frittering away its demographic dividend.
Sixty-five percent (65%) of the country’s population is made up of youth, and a majority of whom are said to be jobless. The President has been quick to see the danger which he describes as the next most potent for the nation after Boko Haram.
In fairness to them, it is not as if past governments hadn’t seen this problem coming.
The difference President Buahari wants to make can only succeed by moving away for past measures with only palliative effect on youth unemployment.
President Buhari has often spoken about agriculture, public works, IT, industry and mining as capable of delivering the quick wins.
Past agricultural practices have had the effect of constricting the definition of farming.
For agriculture to deliver jobs on the scale the President is looking at, it has to go beyond cropping and cereals production. The whole concept has to change.
It is for this reason that the new administration is seeking to boost livestock,fisheries, horticulture; geese, duck and bee farming and all that. In the neighboring Cameroon, export of fresh flowers is a key flank of their foreign exchange earnings.
Those who patronize Chinese restaurants know the value of ducks. It is so high in export value that the few who have tried taking it abroad say it is a money spinner.
In addition, there is also what they call medical agriculture. Organic plants are grown and exported such as the moringa that have herbal and medicinal value with ready markets everywhere. After listening to the presentation on this sector, the President’s parting shot, having realized the challenges was “I’am going to give you a tough Minister.”
The President has also been speaking about public works projects, subject to improvement in the earnings of the government. But he is not oblivious of the limitations of this line of job-creation. Its absorptive capacity is limited largely to labour and low in capacity in dealing with skilled manpower.
When NASENI and the Ministry of Science and Technology came calling, they broached an important issue dear to the President.
They made presentations to him on home-initiated and home-sustained industrialization processes through the development of relevant processes,appropriate local machine designs and machine-building capacities for capital goods and equipment manufacture that can lead to job-creation, economic well-being and national development.
The President was much excited seeing this. He wondered aloud why industry was not lapping up these local inventions. It was equally clear that the problems on the part of these important agencies of government agencies is the lack of capital infusion to move prototypes to capital and industrial goods. He asked for a one-on-one meeting with the NASENI Executive Vice Chairman for further briefing.
Successful economies such the United Kingdom, Japan and the United States got to where they are today because because they did just this. They encouraged invention and adaptation through business incubation and the availability of venture capital. The President spoke about his enthusiasm for energizing local manufacturing of goods using indigenous technology as against the wholesale importation of goods and services as is the current practice.
In response to this concern came the overwhelming as well as disturbing impression that Nigeria’s industrialization and growth are being held back by an industrial sector dominated by foreign interests that are keener on maintaining home ties than in keying into local patent. For this reason, private investment using the local patent has remained in the doldrums.
To change the unwanted situation, government, according to some experts, has to put its own house in order and look at policies that will drive up the capacity of industry to employ enmasse. Some even argue for trade barriers and subsidies since everyone is doing the same.
Government at the center may consider a national industrial plan in accordance with national plan objectives and party principles or manifesto. Many think this is necessary to define priorities and give budget benchmarks because state government are not always run in a serious or objective manner. When he saw what NASENI and the other agencies in the science and tech sector were doing, the President’s question, obviously out both interest and concern is: have you ever made this type of presentation to the states? The answer was that only Bauchi and Nassarawa have so far shown a measure of seriousness.
For such a central plan to succeed, it must take into account the peculiarities and endowment of the states. In addition, it should be a “must-implement” for APC states and optional for those in the hands of the opposition. By this, APC states can become model states in job creation through innovation and industrial production. In addition to giving the party relevance, this plan imposition may have the effect of synergism in national development efforts.
With his expressed commitment to supporting the science and technology sector, along with agriculture, mining, IT and industry through invention and local manufacture, the President has taken a major step towards fulfilling a key campaign promise, which is to address the failure of the economy to create jobs.
Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari onMedia and Publicity, writes from Abuja. [myad]
Financial and public policy experts have faulted the Auditor-General of the Federation (AGF), Mr. Samuel Ukura over the procedure adopted by his office in arriving at the audit report on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) from 2008 and 2012. In his reaction, one of the experts, Mr. Duada Bala said that the AGF’s recent disclosure to the National Assembly Clerk, Alhaji Salisu Maikasuwa that N183 billion meant for the development of the Niger Delta was diverted between 2008 to 2012 “has thrown up questions of procedure, propriety and due diligence in the overall conduct of the AGF in the matter.” Bala, in a statement in Abuja, wondered whether “the AGF followed the normal procedure in the audit process, whereby queries, if any, are first presented to the relevant organisation and responses received before a final report.” The financial analyst asked: “Is the AGF aware that the NDDC does not write cheques and give same to contractors, but that everything to do with payments is between duly certified contractors and the banks, which must verify the specific details of extent of work before payments? “Is it true that banks only make payments after the respective contractors have met the specific and specified requirements for every branch of payment and that it is the banks, not the NDDC that must see to this even in their own interest as responsible corporate citizens? “Did the Office of the AGF even take the trouble to ascertain the paradigms governing many of the issues it chose to comment upon, and without recourse to those who could have explained the issues?” Bala expressed delight that the Director of Finance and Accounts in the NDDC has put a couple of things in proper perspective which questioned the credibility of the report, adding that the new leadership of the commission led by its Managing Director, Bassey Dan-Abia has been able to institutionalize probity and commission hitherto abandoned projects. Bala said: “the new school hostels in eight universities was one of his interventions in addition to the completion of projects suspended by previous leadership. Road networks rehabilitation and completion in several states have been going hand in hand with employment creation and youth empowerment programmes. “There are legacy projects, the Partnership for Sustainable Development (PSD) Forum – and much more – under the current leadership. That is why Nigerians must be careful, especially since mischief-makers may use the misinformation and half truths of the audit report to undermine the very impressive strides and reputation of the current focused and hard working NDDC leadership team.” Bala describing the Auditor`s report as the best proof that all had not been well with the Commission until very recently, saying that the fact that it covered the timeline of 2008 to 2012 should call for “a distinction between the endemic problems of the NDDC long before its current management, and the performance of this current leadership.” Also, the Executive Director (Finance and Administration) of the NDDC, Henry Ogiri, accused the Auditor-General of playing to the gallery. He said that it was wrong to use deductive accounting as a basis for auditing, arguing: “fraud is not a gamble; established rules have to be used.” This even as another staff of the Commission said that the issue of staff advances was not properly handled and interpreted in the report. The unnamed staff, described the contentious issue of Staff advance as a moving account which they retire or are retired as soon as the task is accomplished. “That is, if I give you money as advance, you are expected to retire on completion of the mission to which the money is attached. Some of these advances have been retired accordingly. All these things have procedures. How can somebody say N1.7 billion could not be accounted for?” On the indictment of the NDDC over N785 million being a part of N1.1 billion allegedly paid to contractors for the supply of furniture to various schools in Delta State, the same staff of the Commission, said: “In our records, we have evidence of full delivery and acknowledgment by the school authorities or the beneficiaries. The conclusion is like playing to the gallery. We were not even given any opportunity to respond to this kind of faulty findings before making it public.” Also Sam Akpe agreed that an audit report is a mere query, explaining that audit query is just an observation by the statutory body; and not a judgement passed on the commission. In his piece titled: “Auditor-General’s Report: Is NDDC guilty as charged?” Mr. Akpe said: “…whatever the position of NDDC, the auditors have done their job; and so are the self-employed political jobbers who are already calling for the sack of the management. Certainly, there are procedures that must be employed in the execution of the report to ensure that justice is done. For now, it is a mere report; not a judgement.” [myad]
Kogi State governor, Captain Idris Wada has formally accepted to run for second term in the November 21 governorship election in the state.
Captain Wada, in his acceptance speech said: “the words of our elders are words of wisdom, but I have come to appreciate that in the last few weeks, before elders speak, they might have employed experience, patience, candour and courage. This latest gesture from our leaders has added to the weight of responsibility that I shoulder. My pledge and response is to surpass your expectations, God helping me.”
The governor, who was speaking at a meeting with PDP elders, commended them for their support to his administration.
Earlier, the PDP stakeholders, chaired by the immediate past governor of the state, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris and the former deputy governor in the then Benue State Alhaji Sule Iyaji called on Wada to seek a re-election based on his track records of achievements.
Stakeholders from the three senatorial districts and the Elders’ Advisory Council of the party had unanimously endorsed the re-election bid, of Capt Idris Wada, and also adopted him as the party’s sole candidate in the forth coming governorship election.
The stakeholders also agreed that power rotation be entrenched in the state body politics.
The meeting resolved that after the tenure of the incumbent, power should rotate between the west and the central senatorial district of the state.
Also among those present at the meeting were, Alh Sule Iyaji, Chief Patrick Adaba, Prince Olushola Akanmode, the Speaker Kogi State House of Assembly, and a host of other party faithful. [myad]
The Police in Bauchi have cautioned parents to beware of unknown persons who would offer their children “sweets, chocolates and biscuit” as gifts. The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, DSP Haruna Mohammed said today in Bauchi that it has been established that such gifts are used by such unknown persons as baits to initiate children into occultism without being aware of it.
Haruna, who has embarked on a sensitization campaign in schools, also urged parents to monitor and ensure that their children related with a responsible peer group.
“Parents are advised to closely monitor their children, know their peer group and also discourage them from collecting gift items such as sweets, biscuits and chocolates from strangers, as these are the easiest ways to initiate them into secret cults and other social vices.”
The spokesperson also identified frequent attendance of ‘parties’ by youth as another easy means of getting initiated into cultism. [myad]
Alumni Association of National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPPS) has thrown its weight behind the determination of President Muhammadu Buhari to retrieve all the monies stole by politicians in the past regimes even as it advised that such public treasury looters should also be jailed. Leader of the Alumni Association, Major-General Lawrence Onoja, who led the members of the association on a courtesy visit to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja today, expressed satisfaction with steps so far taken by President Buhari to fight corruption and reposition the economy. He pledged the support of the Association for the actualization of what he called the Three-Point Agenda – Security, Corruption and Economy of the Buhari Administration. Onoja stressed the need for the government not to only make a forensic audit of the government agencies but should jail all those found guilty of looting the country’s treasury. This was even as Vice President Osinbajo blamed past governments for forging polices and planning, including budgeting, which did not reflect the needs and the conditions of the majority of the people. The Vice President made it clear that the important thing in governance is for the policies to address the need of the people, adding: “this is the main challenge.” According to him: “policies don’t seem to have solutions that truly reflect the understanding of the question of poverty,” expressing concern about extreme poverty in parts of the country. Osinbajo said that records have shown that there are 110 million poor people, representing two third of the population, and regretted that “when you look at the economic and social policies, and you look at the level of illiteracy in parts of the country, some are extremely bad and some with cases of about 80 percent or 90 percent of children out of school, and other cases of unimaginable decayed infrastructure.” Professor Osinbajo said that one of the challenges of policy formulation is how to speak to the people and how to address their plight, adding that the people are concerned about “how do I get a meal, how do I get healthcare and how to send children to school.” The Vice President challenged members of the Alumni Association to discuss how policy formulation could be rooted in the conditions of the people. “I want the Institute to think about this” even as he welcomed the idea of the proposed policy round-table by members of the Association. According to him, what has been lacking in government is a time to think, reflect and consider policy while still working. The policy round-table is being put together by the association, to provide an interface between policy makers and government on how to address the needs and improve the living conditions of the citizens through policy formulation. [myad]
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President Buhari’s Job Search, By Garba Shehu
The ongoing ministerial briefing of the President at the State House,Abuja put a spotlight on an important sector long neglected by previous administrations, yet one that can create millions of jobs .
The first briefing of a President by the Ministry of Science and Technology and its parastatal organization, the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, NASENI, over a period of many years showcased opportunities and the enormous achievements made in the invention, fabrication and assembly of capital products for the sustainable industrialization of the country.
A matter for serious concern for President Muhammadu Buhari, who campaigned on a promise to create jobs is the paucity of investments in industry, without which there can be no new jobs or incomes.
Experts have warned a long time ago that Nigeria has been frittering away its demographic dividend.
Sixty-five percent (65%) of the country’s population is made up of youth, and a majority of whom are said to be jobless. The President has been quick to see the danger which he describes as the next most potent for the nation after Boko Haram.
In fairness to them, it is not as if past governments hadn’t seen this problem coming.
The difference President Buahari wants to make can only succeed by moving away for past measures with only palliative effect on youth unemployment.
President Buhari has often spoken about agriculture, public works, IT, industry and mining as capable of delivering the quick wins.
Past agricultural practices have had the effect of constricting the definition of farming.
For agriculture to deliver jobs on the scale the President is looking at, it has to go beyond cropping and cereals production. The whole concept has to change.
It is for this reason that the new administration is seeking to boost livestock,fisheries, horticulture; geese, duck and bee farming and all that. In the neighboring Cameroon, export of fresh flowers is a key flank of their foreign exchange earnings.
Those who patronize Chinese restaurants know the value of ducks. It is so high in export value that the few who have tried taking it abroad say it is a money spinner.
In addition, there is also what they call medical agriculture. Organic plants are grown and exported such as the moringa that have herbal and medicinal value with ready markets everywhere. After listening to the presentation on this sector, the President’s parting shot, having realized the challenges was “I’am going to give you a tough Minister.”
The President has also been speaking about public works projects, subject to improvement in the earnings of the government. But he is not oblivious of the limitations of this line of job-creation. Its absorptive capacity is limited largely to labour and low in capacity in dealing with skilled manpower.
When NASENI and the Ministry of Science and Technology came calling, they broached an important issue dear to the President.
They made presentations to him on home-initiated and home-sustained industrialization processes through the development of relevant processes,appropriate local machine designs and machine-building capacities for capital goods and equipment manufacture that can lead to job-creation, economic well-being and national development.
The President was much excited seeing this. He wondered aloud why industry was not lapping up these local inventions. It was equally clear that the problems on the part of these important agencies of government agencies is the lack of capital infusion to move prototypes to capital and industrial goods. He asked for a one-on-one meeting with the NASENI Executive Vice Chairman for further briefing.
Successful economies such the United Kingdom, Japan and the United States got to where they are today because because they did just this. They encouraged invention and adaptation through business incubation and the availability of venture capital. The President spoke about his enthusiasm for energizing local manufacturing of goods using indigenous technology as against the wholesale importation of goods and services as is the current practice.
In response to this concern came the overwhelming as well as disturbing impression that Nigeria’s industrialization and growth are being held back by an industrial sector dominated by foreign interests that are keener on maintaining home ties than in keying into local patent. For this reason, private investment using the local patent has remained in the doldrums.
To change the unwanted situation, government, according to some experts, has to put its own house in order and look at policies that will drive up the capacity of industry to employ enmasse. Some even argue for trade barriers and subsidies since everyone is doing the same.
Government at the center may consider a national industrial plan in accordance with national plan objectives and party principles or manifesto. Many think this is necessary to define priorities and give budget benchmarks because state government are not always run in a serious or objective manner. When he saw what NASENI and the other agencies in the science and tech sector were doing, the President’s question, obviously out both interest and concern is: have you ever made this type of presentation to the states? The answer was that only Bauchi and Nassarawa have so far shown a measure of seriousness.
For such a central plan to succeed, it must take into account the peculiarities and endowment of the states. In addition, it should be a “must-implement” for APC states and optional for those in the hands of the opposition. By this, APC states can become model states in job creation through innovation and industrial production. In addition to giving the party relevance, this plan imposition may have the effect of synergism in national development efforts.
With his expressed commitment to supporting the science and technology sector, along with agriculture, mining, IT and industry through invention and local manufacture, the President has taken a major step towards fulfilling a key campaign promise, which is to address the failure of the economy to create jobs.
Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari onMedia and Publicity, writes from Abuja. [myad]