One of the most powerful members of the Kano emirate council, the Galadiman Kano, Tijjani Hashim, is dead. He was 79.
An emirate source confirmed that the Galadima died in the early hours of today (Monday) in Abuja. He died of an undisclosed ailment and is survived by many children, grand children.
Tijjani Hashim was the most senior prince in Kano Emirate and was by birth, like the current emir, Muhammed Sanusi II, an heir to the throne of the Emir of Kano when the late emir Ado Bayero died recently.
Although the Galadima’s father was never an emir, his grand father, Abbas, ruled Kano from 1903 to 1919.
The late Hashim was said to be a very close ally of the late Premier of the north and Sardauna of Sokoto, Ahmadu Bello. He served as a regional minister under the Sardauna.
Tijjani Hashim was arguably the most powerful member of the Kano emirate council and was close to virtually all presidents and head of state of northern extraction.
He is also reported to be very close to current Vice President, Mohammed Namadi Sambo.
Meanwhile, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said that the Kano Emirate Council has lost a prized asset with the demise of the Galadiman Kano, Dr Tijjani Hasheem who passed away on Monday.
The former Vice President said in a condolence message by his media office in Abuja on Monday that Hasheem’s influence had become so profound that he had earned an oracular father figure in the emirate before his passage.
The Turaki Adamawa paid tribute to Hasheem for having lived a fulfilled life spent on community service and in peace-building in the Kano Emirate.
“The people of Kano have lost a prized asset, who spent most of his life and times pursuing peace and communal harmony among his people. As the Galadiman Kano, he was a strong confidant and adviser to the Emir of Kano and was the strong backbone of the late Emir Ado Bayero’s reign and contributed immensely to the love and respect that characterised that era,” Atiku said.
He expressed his condolences to the Kano State government, the Emir and people of Kano Emirate Council and the family of Dr. Tijjani Hasheem.
Atiku prayed God to receive the soul of Tijjani Hasheem in al-janna firdaus, fill the vacuum his death has caused in the Emirate and give the family the fortitude to bear the loss of their patriarch. [myad]
Chairman of the Delta State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Peter Nwaoboshi has made it clear that Sir Tony Obuh who is an aspirant on the platform of the PDP is eminently qualified to contest for the party’s ticket. Reacting to insinuations from certain quarters that he is not qualified to run for the governorship ticket in the state, the chairman asked those flying such rumour to discard it. Chief Nwaoboshi who spoke when Sir Obuh paid the PDP executive a consultation visit at the party’s secretariat, said Obuh is a card carrying member of the PDP and has been so since 2011. He added that though Obuh has been non-partisan until he retired from the Delta State Civil Service in August 2014 but that he has been in the background giving the PDP all the needed support to ensure that it moved in the right direction. According to him, the governorship hopeful has in no small way impacted on the party’s performances since 2005 by founding several support groups that propagated the PDP’s manifesto as well as its determination to take Nigeria to a higher pedestal. Chief Nwaoboshi called on those peddling rumours to desist, saying that such rumours would not deter the party from going ahead to hold its primaries or prepare for the general elections. He said that PDP remains the only vibrant and dynamic party in Nigeria with solid structures to win elections in Nigeria in a free and fair atmosphere. The PDP Chairman said that the party is interested in those who can build the party and make it stronger and not those who will derail it through gossip and rumour mongering even as he challenged Sir Obuh not to be deterred but continue to garner support. He gave assurance that the party will support anyone chosen by the members of the party. Speaking earlier, Sir Obuh said that the State needed someone to harness its potentials towards becoming great hence his decision to present himself as he had the immense experience needed to transform the State into an economic super power. He acknowledged the huge potentials that abound in the State especially things need to be done to make those potentials beneficial to the people of the State. Obuh said he believes that government can serve the interest of the people by formulating and implementing policies that everyone can be proud of, adding that he has the experience to achieve all these if given the opportunity. He stressed that his experience in government and governance stands him above the other aspirants, adding that he is also in tune with how the public and private sectors can work together towards enhancing the growth of the State. He pledgef that he is ready to articulate the potentials towards creating a virile and vibrant economy that will cater for the elderly, the women and youths. The Director-General of the Project Obuh 2015 and Political Adviser to the Governor, Chief Fred Majemite acknowledged that Sir Obuh is a marketable product who has stood out in the public service over the years and is capable of taking Delta to a higher pedestal. He described Sir Obuh as a bridge builder who can unite Deltans having impacted on the lives of the people while in the Civil Service. Chief Majemite said that Sir. Obuh will also build a stronger PDP as he is the new face of Delta State politics. [myad]
A taxi driver, who returned N18 Million to the owner, Mr. Imeh Usuah; a traffic warden who perform his duty with a lot of zeal at Wuse in Abuja, Corporal Solomon Dauda and a cook in the Presidential villa since 1979, Mr. Onuh Michael have all bagged a presidential order for a flat each in Abuja for their honesty and hardwork. They also bagged a national honour of Member of the Federal Republic (MFR). Similarly, the man who designed the Nigerian National White-Green-White flag, Pa Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi got a Presidential order to be placed on salary of the officer equivalent to the Special Adviser (SA) to the President for the rest of his life. He also bagged the award of the Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR). President Goodluck Jonathan, who announced the special packages for these four Nigerians as he presented various national awards of honour to 313 Nigerians and friends of Nigeria at in Abuja today, said the government would continue to recognize and reward those who place value on dignity. The President regretted that over time, Nigeria has degenerated from high standard values in every sector of the polical and social life to even desecrating the religious values. Others who received national awards of honour today are eight serving governors: Chief Theodore Orji of Abia state, Malam Isa Yuguda of Bauchi state, Barrister Sullivan Chime of Enugu state, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo state, Alhaji Saidu Dakingari of Kebbi state, David Jonah Jang of Plateau state and Senator Ibikunle Amosu of Osun state who each bagged Commander of the Order of Niger (CON).
Nine serving ministers were also conferred with CON. They are Malam Ibrahim Shekarau (Education), Professor Chinedu Nebo (Power), Mrs. Sarah Ochekpe (Water Resources), Arc. Mike Onolememen (Works), Labaran Maku (Information), Hajiya Zainab Maina (Women Affairs), Arc. Musa Mohammed Sada (Mine and Steel), and Nyeson Wike (Education –State) and Ambassador Bashir Yuguda (Finance -State).
All the present service chiefs, including the acting Inspector General of Police and most judges of the Supreme court, Head of the nation’s Civil Service and some top traditional rulers were awarded with Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR). [myad]
Between Friday 18 and Sunday 21 September, 2014 the Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Diaspora Organization (NIDO) in the United States and the Americas took place at the Embassy Suites, Columbus, State of Ohio, United States. There is no doubt that the sweet memories of the epochal conference would linger in the minds of many for a long time to come due to its resounding success. For the Minister of FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed who was represented at the conference by the Permanent Secretary of FCT, Engr. John O. Chukwu, it was a moment of honour as his land reforms and infrastructure provision mechanism received high rating. The event whose theme was, “Nigeria’s Transformation Agenda and Leadership Accountability: The Role of Nigerians in Diaspora” attracted no fewer than 500 delegates from the Americas and Nigeria. These comprised the Nigerian Diasporans in the Americas, their allies, friends of Nigeria, Afro-Americans, Nigerian lawmakers, top Nigerian government functionaries, diplomats and many others. The FCT Minister made an elaborate power point presentation at the event. Among the areas covered were investment opportunities in FCT, transportation, security, strategies for accelerated infrastructure provision and general land reforms. The highly revealing presentation was greeted with a thunderous ovation by the delegates many of whom became enthusiastic to invest in Abuja. They were particularly enamored by the innovative land swap policy designed to catalyze development and at the same time bring down spiraling property cost in the nation’s capital. The Permanent Secretary, after the presentation, was besieged by the Diaspora members and other potential investors from different parts of the US, Canada and other American countries. They were all making enquiries on how they could tap into the new opportunities in FCT. While calling on Nigerians in the Diaspora to take opportunity of the current transformation agenda and invest in Nigeria, particularly the Federal Capital Territory, Engr. Chukwu urged them to think more about what they could contribute to the development of Nigeria and less about what they could get from it. He stressed that demonization of Nigeria, its government and people by the Nigerian Diaspora rather than solve would worsen the challenges facing Nigeria. He added that the time is now for the Nigerian Diaspora to act fast to assist in finding solution to the challenges confronting the nation. One interesting strand of the discussions among the delegates after the FCT’s presentation was the correlation some of them drew between ongoing infrastructure cum general developmental revolution in Abuja and Dubai’s transformation from an outlandish idea to an economic powerhouse of the Middle East. A parallel was drawn between Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, the man whose magical infrastructure and PPP modules are accelerating the development of Africa’s fastest growing city and the architect of the rapid transformation of Dubai, the United Kingdom-trained Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum. Sheikh Mohammed combined the speeds of a gazelle and a lion to transform Dubai into a world mega business hub of repute. In the story of the gazelle and the lion, one is running to eat while the other is running to live. Realizing that life is a race, Sheikh Mohammed never abandoned one opportunity to wait for another. Through a parallel strategy designed to lure multinational companies, Sheikh Mohammed successfully turned Dubai into the global business hub of the Middle East. Senator Mohammed is doing the same through the land swap programme in Abuja. The land reform decree issued by Sheikh Mohammed in 2002 allowing foreigners to own real estate in Dubai — a first in any Gulf state, is akin to the courageous land reforms and the swap strategy introduced by Senator Mohammed in 2011 in FCT. Prior to the reforms, Dubai had no real estate market and land was given out under semi-feudalism. In other words, all land was held by the sheikhs or by favored Emirati friends upon whom the sheikhs had bestowed parcels. Everyone else — including every foreigner — was a tenant. But with the 2002 reform, anyone could buy a home or land in Dubai — an opportunity with particular appeal to wealthy families in unstable countries nearby and other around the globe. For example, “loaded Lebanese afraid of another civil war back home, Indian nouveaux riches seeking respite from the poverty at their doorsteps, and Russian oligarchs banking assets stripped from operations in their decaying motherland all poured cash into Dubai properties.” Overnight, Dubai became a place for the magnates of the Middle East, Africa (including Nigeria), South Asia and the former Soviet Union to park wealth too risky to keep back home. A highpoint of the mad rush for Dubai occurred in 2009, “when the dictator of Azerbaijan amassed nine waterfront mansions during a two-week, $44 million buying spree — all purchased in the name of his 11-year-old son.” Back in Nigeria, with the land swap and an unprecedented land reform in place under the midwifery of Senator Mohammed, Abuja is fast becoming a veritable global outpost and has clearly emerged as one of the three fastest-growing cities in the world. The reforms introduced by Senator Mohammed have ignited massive booms. Between 2010 and date with the current Minister in the saddle, Abuja’s population has nearly doubled and its urbanized footprint tripling. Statistics show that standard housing development for residential and institutional use has quadrupled in numbers and still ballooning. The rapid turnaround is the product of Senator Mohammed ability to think outside the box. As Engr. Chukwu put it in Ohio at the 2014 NIDO Summit, the implementation thrust of the Transformation Agenda in FCT is to open up the Territory to unfettered private capital-driven development. He said it was this thrust that made the FCT Administration to introduce the Land Swap programme as a catalyst for accelerated infrastructure, housing and overall development. According to him, the private sector under the programme would be incentivized to provide site and services within the districts. Thus Government’s emphasis would be to provide the policy, legal regulatory environment for seamless private sector participation in the development of the districts of the FCT. Of course, the benchmark of the current rolling plan is to open up by providing modern infrastructure in at least 10 new districts within five years. The programme is based on contractual Agreement with no fewer than 15private investors on the basis of the Land-for-Infrastructure Swap Framework at the onset. The total land area for the development in the present package is 4,283.2 hectares within Phase IV of the Federal Capital City (FCC). It is projected to require a minimum of $3.8 Billion of private sector capital. The distance of this area is averagely 20 minutes from the City centre and 15 minutes fromthe Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. The benefit analysis of the investment initiatives of the FCT Administration include creation of more than 300,000 jobs within the plan period; inflow of over N1 trillion investment to the FCT; reduction of housing deficit by 20%; reduction of cost of rent/lease by 15%; increased funding to human capital development and enhanced security of lives and properties 20% of schooling population. Abuja under Senator Bala Mohammed with its vibrant economy anchored on an emerging class of home-grown multinational corporations which are as able as they are eager to participate in the global growth party is the ideal place for the moment. With the right policy in place and a robust security network in place, the Federal Capital Territory is reshaping business and redefining the African economy for a powerful launch on the global stage. Other speakers at the Ohio NIDO conference include former Nigeria’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations, Professor Ibrahim Gambari who spoke on “Nigeria’s Diplomatic Strategies in Relation to the Transformation Agenda”, Professor Vince Anigbogu of the Institute for National Transformation, Abuja who delivered the keynote address; Professor Ilesanmi Adesida, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost, University of Illinois who spoke on “How Nigerians in the Diaspora can Transfer their intellectual property/capital for the Transformation of Nigeria into a Technological Superpower,” Dr. Harry Alford, President/CEO, US National Black Chamber of Commerce; Professor Kelechi Kalu, Vice Provost for Global Strategies and International Affairs, Ohio State University whose lecture was on “Safety and Security and Nigerian Transformation Agenda” and others. Among others were the Nigerian Ambassador to the United States, Dr. John Adefuye, Professor Hauwa Ibrahim of the Harvard, Architect Bernard Lot, the Director of Public Building of the Federal Capital Development Authority, Professor Chris Igodan of Ohio State University, Dr. Kate Okpaleke of the, Engineer Mike Akpan and many others. NIDOA Board of Directors Chairman, Chief Gabe Okoye in his welcome address said that the average of about $21.5billion was remitted to Nigeria in the past two years by Nigerians in Diaspora, a contribution only surpassed by oil revenue. One thing which the NIDO members are expecting with bated anxiety is the creation of the Diaspora Commission by the Federal Government to act as a medium for seamless interface between Nigerians in the Diaspora and their native land. In other words it is expected to serve as the vehicle through which the Nigeria Diaspora Community can channel their vast resources to Nigeria for the development of the country, the NIDOA leader reasoned. Chief Okoye likened the creation of the commission to former President John Kennedy’s call for Americans to ask for what they can do for their country, not what their country can do for them. With the resolution passed by this year’s National Conference recommending the creation of the commission, Okoye and other NIDO members are upbeat that their dogged push for its birth is beginning to yield the expected result. “We must use the opportunity availed to us by this conference to plant in the ears of all our guests, especially those from the homeland that, we unapologetically insist on the implementation of the resolutions of the National Conference,” Okoye added. In his opinion, the resolutions have common sense, relevant and equitable. [myad]
• Nosike Ogbuenyi , the Special Assitant on Media to the FCT Minister was in Columbus, Ohio for the NIDO Conference.
The Advisory Council of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has resolved to urgently address the funding challenges facing the commission so as to re-position it for better service delivery to the people of the region. The Advisory Council which comprised of governors of the nine Niger Delta States of Delta, Edo, Rivers, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Ondo, Imo and Abia has Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State as its chairman. The Council which met on Saturday night in the New Government House, Asaba, also decried the attitude of some oil majors who defaulted on their funding obligations to the commission thus stalling the commission’s activities. The Governor of Ondo State, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, who briefed the press after the meeting said that the meeting has provided the Council an opportunity to look into the funding challenges, programmes and budget of the Commission. He said that the Advisory Council also looked at ways to leverage the outstanding funds from some of the oil majors who have defaulted on their funding obligations to the commission. “We got a briefing from the Chairman of the Commission on the funding challenges facing the commission and we are ready to see how we can assist in resolving some of these challenges and how we can (recover) some of the outstanding funds from the oil majors.” Governor Mimiko explained that the Advisory Council also looked at the projects undertaken by the Commission and urged the NDDC Board to place emphasis on legacy projects that would create jobs for the people of the Niger Delta region and sustain the economy of the region beyond oil. The Chairman of the Board, Mr. Dan Bassey Abia in an interview said that the meeting has provided an opportunity to resolve the problems facing the commission stressing: “we have started a new NDDC. Things are getting better” Besides Mimiko, others in attendance are Theodore Orji of Abia, Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa, Liyel Imoke of Cross Rivers, the host Governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan and the Secretary to the Imo State Government who represented the Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha. Also in attendance were members of the Board and management of the NDDC.
Chairman of River state APC, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya
The All Progressives Congress (APC), Rivers State Chapter, has asked President Goodluck Jonathan to stop day-dreaming over a statement credited to him that his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would take over the State from APC in the 2015 general elections. The party dismissed such claim as ridiculous and unattainable. A statement from the state Chairman of the party, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya today said: “this boast, made on Saturday by President Jonathan, during PDP’s South-South Rally in Benin City, the Edo State capital, is ridiculous because it runs counter to the realities on ground in Rivers state. “President Jonathan’s boast is obviously based on ignorance about current political realities in Rivers State. He may not have known that the State PDP leader and prospective governorship candidate, Junior Education Minister Nyesome Wike, has polarised PDP in Rivers State to the extent that it cannot even win a councillorship seat in a fair and free election.” APC said that Chief Wike, on whom the President is building his hopes of PDP reclaiming Rivers State, has lost political relevance since he left the mainstream of the political family that binds Rivers state together under the leadership of the man that made him whatever he is politically today – Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi. “Wike is either deluding himself or deliberately feeding Mr. President with lies in a bid to feather his nest.” Dr. Ikanya cited what he called “Jonathan’s wickedness towards Rivers State as yet another reason why PDP can never recapture power in the State. “On what basis should the people of Rivers State vote for PDP in 2015? Is it based on the wicked policies of the Jonathan administration against Rivers State and her people? Is it based on the ceding of our oil wells to his home State of Bayelsa and supporting Akwa Ibom and Abia states to take over our oil wells? Or is it because he has ensured that the Federal Government does not site any meaningful project in Rivers State? Or his deliberate refusal to implement the UNEP Report on Ogoni, President Jonathan has left no one in doubt of his deep hatred for Rivers State and her people, so how can we support him or any PDP candidate in 2015?” The APC leader stressed that the achievements of governor Rotimi Amaechi’s administration are enough to give APC victory in future the elections. He listed such achievements to include turning Port Harcourt into World Book Capital City, eradication of militancy, dogged fight for the oil wells and other rights of Rivers State and its people as well as achievements in Education, Agriculture, Health, etc. Dr. Ikanya made it clear that Rivers people have since adopted APC as the party of their choice and that there is nothing the PDP or any other party can do about that.
President Goodluck Jonathan has said that he believed in stomach infrastructure and that any leader who does not believed in it is not ready to lead.
He stressed that even his political party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as a party, believed in stomach infrastructure because the party must ensure that there is food security and job creation in the country.
President Jonathan who spoke today in Benin city, capital of Edo state, at the South South PDP political rally tagged ‘Unity Mega Rally,’ emphasized that any leader who claimed not to believe in stomach infrastructure was not ready to lead, as “you cannot lead hungry people.’’
He said that his government has so far reduced the poverty rate in the country by 50 per cent, even as he said that it is only PDP that has remained stable since its formation. He said that the party had never changed its name, logo or motto, and that it is the only party that gives its members the freedom to aspire to the highest level.
According to him, all that the nation needed now is unity, assuring the citizenry that although all the roads could not be rehabilitated at once, his administration would continue to improve on all infrastructures in the country.
He also gave the reassurance that since the nation is able to conquer the Ebola Virus Disease, it would also conquer the Boko Haram insurgency.
The president however appealed to the party loyalists to be decent in their variuos electioneering competitions in order not to create enemies among themselves.
Earlier, Vice President Namadi Sambo said the present administration had completed seven power projects with a total of 2,000 mega watts for the South South under the Transformation Agenda.
Similarly, Senate President David Mark described Jonathan as ‘’ a good sell’’ hence his unanimous adoption by the party as its choice candidate for 2015.
The PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, described the president as a bridge builder and unifying factor.
He reassured that all defectors to the party would be reintegrated into it without bias.
The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the party, Chief Tony Aneneih, said the zone had every reason to be proud of its contribution to national development.
He also said that the zone had made sacrifice to keep the country together as well as contributed to the economic growth.
The president had earlier inaugurated the Benin-Ofusu Dual carriage, where Gov Adams Oshiomhole of Edo described the quality of work as impressive.
Oshiomhole also congratulated the president on the massive road construction and rehabilitation across states in the country. [myad]
Nigerian Golden Eaglets, today, Saturday at the UJ Esuene Stadium, Calabar, sent Gabon national team packing with 5-0 to qualify for the 2015 Confederation of African Football (CAF) U-17 Championship holding in Niger Republic.
The match was the second leg qualifying match. Nigeria had lost 1-2 in the first leg played in Libreville a fortnight ago. Nigeria has thus qualified on 6-2 aggregate score line.
Captain Kelechi Nwakali put the Eaglets ahead in the 20th minute through a spot kick after the Gabonese goalkeeper, William Alin, brought down Kingsley Dogo in the 18 yard box.
The goal spurred the Eaglets to action, and this resulted in the second and third goals by Ebere Osinachi in the 35th and 43rd minutes respectively.
The Gabonese came out stronger in the second half putting pressure on the Eaglets but poor finishing robbed them of goals.
Kehinde Ayinde sealed the hope of the Gabonese through a brace in the 65th and 75th minutes to make it a historic 5-0 win for the reigning world champions.
Coach Emmanuel Amuneke said, after the match, that the team would proceed on a short break before the tournament proper in Niger Republic.
He expressed satisfaction with the result and promised to work on the lapses noticed in the team before the championship.
“Now that we have qualified, everybody will now go home and meet their loved ones; after that, we will come back and begin the preparations for the championship
“I thank the Cross River Government for its support and Calabar fans for being there for us always.” [myad]
Contrary to report by a senior member of the European Parliament, Franz Obermayr that the opposition party in Nigeria, All Progressives Congress (APC) could be sponsoring Boko Haram by channeling European Parliament financial aid to members of the sect, the Australian negotiator, Dr. Stephen Davis, said Boko Haram leaders had never mentioned any political party as sponsoring the sect, but individuals, in this interview:
Do you have any evidence that the opposition political party in Nigeria is the one sponsoring Boko Haram? “I have never heard any political party mentioned by any Boko Haram leader as funding or being associated with Boko Haram. The Boko Haram commanders have only mentioned individuals like former Governor Sheriff. I heard Sheriff was APC and now PDP but that is irrelevant to me. I have never mentioned political parties in my discussions with Boko Haram. The names of individual sponsors were given by Boko Haram leaders, not their political party association.” What sort of sponsorship has been mentioned by Boko Haram that they have received? “Former governor (of Borno state, Ali Modu) Sheriff was specifically mentioned many times. Specifically for example, Sheriff was mentioned as sponsoring trips of the boys to the Lesser Hajj. There, the boys are “re-orientated.” In effect they are recruited to Boko Haram. When they return to Nigeria the recruits are then taken off for further re-orientation by which they mean teaching and for training. Some of the training took place in Mali by Tuareg leaders but now more training is conducted locally.” Could mere funding for Lesser Hajj by the assumed sponsors have manifested in the high level of sophistication that the sect has assumed today? “Funds are provided to purchase weapons. This is sometimes transferred through the Central Bank of Nigeria to a person in Cairo who provides the weapons and also provides military uniforms. At other times, vehicles are purchased in Benin (Republic) for example, and driven into Nigeria where they are sold for cash. They do not mind taking a loss on the sale price as by this method they can obtain cash in Nigeria without a direct link to the sponsor.” This person in Cairo, is he an Egyptian? Why are you not able to disclose his identity to the security agents for necessary action? “No, he is a Nigerian. He is a Kanuri who has fought with Boko Haram and now associates with a network of jihadists. I have given all his details to the DG-SSS.” What sort of vehicles do they purchase? “VW Golf was mentioned as a favourite. They can sell these very easily in Nigeria. They do keep some to use for suicide bombing. Some time ago they told me one sponsor pledged six Hilux vehicles for the suicide bombers.” You have heard that a “fake” Shekau was killed last week in Kondunga. Do you believe what the military is claiming that the man killed was Shekau or possibly a “fake” Shekau? “I continue to believe that Shekau was killed on or about June 19, 2013 when we were deeply engaged in peace discussions. I have had so many senior commanders tell me that Shekau is dead. It was several weeks after that a Shekau video appeared on YouTube. When I viewed that video with JAS leaders they immediately said, “That boy. We have used him before.” They were totally dismissive of any claim that Shekau was still alive. They referred to the person in the video as the “fake Shekau.” Some months later, one of the senior commanders told me the name of the fake Shekau was Abdul Mutallif. The commander who named him was the one who wrote the script that the fake Shekau reads from in the videos. But I have heard they have used more than one fake Shekau. In July this year I was told the fake Shekau is Isa Damasaka. Earlier in June they referred to him as Bashir. We had been in communication with him over the release of the Chibok girls. Isa Damasaka is one of the names the military has released when identifying the man killed at Kondunga last week. He has also been identified as Bashir Mohammed so I am confident this man is indeed the fake Shekau. However, I do not know if Abdul Mutallif is another name he used or there is another fake Shekau named Abdul Mutallif who may still be alive. I have no doubt we will know soon so we await a new video by another fake Shekau. The man who was captured at Kondunga last week was a great source of information about Boko Haram sponsors. He was captured alive. The military are too quick to execute captured Boko Haram leaders. This man could have revealed so much about Boko Haram and its sponsors that may have brought a quick end to the terrorism.” There are some reports that many Boko Haram fighters have surrendered in recent days. You want to say something on this? “This is an indication that Boko Haram commanders now understand that they have been fooled. They have followed a “fake” Shekau. Boko Haram fighters have died following a fake Shekau and fake teaching. The political sponsors have led these boys to believe that they are purifying Islam, purging the country of corruption by slaughtering people. In fact the political sponsors of Boko Haram are corrupt politicians seeking power and more wealth. The sponsors epitomise all that the Boko Haram fighters are seeking to eliminate from Nigeria.” So what is next for Boko Haram? “The death of the fake Shekau shows how the fighters have been duped and totally misled by the sponsors. The fighters and commanders would be wise to take this opportunity to reach out to the government for a peace dialogue. If they do not believe they can have a peace dialogue without being captured and executed the alternative message I have for the commanders is this: Your sponsors will use you and sacrifice you so they can gain power. Set the captive girls free and walk away from Boko Haram while you still have the opportunity.” [myad]
Just how clueless can President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan be if he has outwitted every other potential aspirant in the presidential candidacy politics of his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)? Or, how inexperienced, as claimed by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, can he be if he has effortlessly eclipsed the opposition within and put the fear in those outside his Party? These are the pertinent questions to ask as this unassuming politician continues to thwart the orchestrated plans by some forces of darkness to plunge Nigeria into anarchy through terrorism. The critical plot by these wicked forces is simple: make the country ungovernable and consequently weaken the moral basis of Jonathan’s presidency. The abduction of over 200 school girls in Chibok, agonizing as it is, is part of the schema. The planned bombings across the northern states, especially Borno, Yobe and Adamawa where there is a state of emergency in place, feed into the overall agenda to intimidate Jonathan from seeking a second term in office. But in spite of the high jinks that have been woven around the terrorism ravaging parts of the north, Jonathan has remained focused on governance. He is pursuing his transformation agenda with single-minded guts, translating campaign promises into concrete achievements in the nooks and crannies of the nation. Yet, his opponents are engaged in flights of fancy. They dismiss him as clueless and inexperienced! I ask once more: how clueless can Jonathan be if he continues to quietly overwhelm all opposition? How inexperienced can he be if he remains unshaken and undistracted by the ranting of the naysayers? If I choose, for a moment, to be delusional like the members of the opposition gang, I will pass Jonathan off as clueless for failing to throw his weight around or exercise one quarter of the enormous powers that are vested in him and his office by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. And, sadly, I will be living in a Fool’s Paradise by so doing! The truth is, if Jonathan’s “cluelessness” could secure him an unprecedented endorsement by his Party as its sole presidential candidate in 2015 general election, it continues to baffle why some people still view him from that prism. It also amazes me how a “clue-full” predecessor of his could not perform a similar feat in 2003? To be sure, Olusegun Obasanjo, the Ebora of Owu and then all conquering Emperor of Aso Rock, was supposedly on top of his game. He deployed the powers of his office to maximum effects because he had every imaginable clue about governance. He was once a military head of state; and, so, he had experience. That was the general notion. But what happened in 2003? He was a victim of political subterfuge from within his Presidency. His vice president, Atiku Abubakar, perfected a plot to supplant him. So many things were, indeed, wrong with that Presidency that put tension on the polity. Not like the loyal Vice President Namadi Sambo, who has been very supportive of President Jonathan, Atiku, as he is popularly addressed, worked from the outset to undercut his boss. It took some leaders of the Party to rally support for a harried Obasanjo who was eventually able to survive the plot by a disloyal vice president to upstage him. Securing the ticket of the Party for his second term in office was not an easy task. It was a total war of attrition, which he won at a great price to his ego: retaining Atiku, whom he had profiled as disloyal and corrupt, on the presidential ticket was not Obasanjo’s original idea. Indeed, Obasanjo’s plan was to feed Atiku with his (Atiku’s) proposed Mandela Option (a term in office). Even though, the deadline for collecting the expression of interest form had gone past, Atiku and his gang of governors threatened to swing their delegates’ votes to Dr Alex Ekwueme who was in the race for the ticket at the presidential primary. Obasanjo and the leadership of the Party did not allow that to happen by keeping Atiku, with his baggage of alleged corruption, on the ticket. But Obasanjo had to placate the Nigerian people by ensuring that relevant agencies and institutions of government investigated Atiku’s alleged corrupt deals in government. The investigation dwelled on his deal with the United States Congressman William Jefferson, which culminated in the Nigerian angle to the deal gone awry – the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) probe to authenticate Atiku’s complicity. Obasanjo-Atiku’s second term was thus characterized by stress and strains occasioned by intrigues and vendetta in governance and power relations. In retrospect, did a “clue-full” and “experienced” Obasanjo have to go through all that tension or bring the same on the Party and the nation? Was it that he never really had a clue about how to prosecute a successful presidential succession politics? Now, why was it difficult for Obasanjo to achieve that feat and not difficult for Jonathan to do it? Yet, Obasanjo is a reference point in the quarters of those who conveniently pass Jonathan off as “clueless” and “inexperienced” in politics and statecraft. Today, a “clueless” and “inexperienced” Jonathan has achieved effortlessly in the PDP his endorsement as the Party’s sole candidate in the 2015 presidential election. And, from all indications, Jonathan is primed to clinch a second term in office. Perhaps, how he manages his exit trauma (which all second term presidents and governors experience) in 2019 will further distinguish how this “clueless” and “inexperienced” President can seize a great moment to define his eon and secure a place in the pantheon of great Nigerian leaders. It will certainly differentiate him from a predecessor’s misadventure of a Third Term agenda that exposed his desperation to perpetuate himself in power.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
The Advisory Council of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has resolved to urgently address the funding challenges facing the commission so as to re-position it for better service delivery to the people of the region.
President Goodluck Jonathan has said that he believed in stomach infrastructure and that any leader who does not believed in it is not ready to lead.
Just how clueless can President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan be if he has outwitted every other potential aspirant in the presidential candidacy politics of his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)? Or, how inexperienced, as claimed by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, can he be if he has effortlessly eclipsed the opposition within and put the fear in those outside his Party?
Nigeria’s FCT Land Policy Riceives High Rating At Diaspora Summit In America, By Nosike Ogbuenyi
Between Friday 18 and Sunday 21 September, 2014 the Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Diaspora Organization (NIDO) in the United States and the Americas took place at the Embassy Suites, Columbus, State of Ohio, United States. There is no doubt that the sweet memories of the epochal conference would linger in the minds of many for a long time to come due to its resounding success.
For the Minister of FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed who was represented at the conference by the Permanent Secretary of FCT, Engr. John O. Chukwu, it was a moment of honour as his land reforms and infrastructure provision mechanism received high rating.
The event whose theme was, “Nigeria’s Transformation Agenda and Leadership Accountability: The Role of Nigerians in Diaspora” attracted no fewer than 500 delegates from the Americas and Nigeria. These comprised the Nigerian Diasporans in the Americas, their allies, friends of Nigeria, Afro-Americans, Nigerian lawmakers, top Nigerian government functionaries, diplomats and many others. The FCT Minister made an elaborate power point presentation at the event. Among the areas covered were investment opportunities in FCT, transportation, security, strategies for accelerated infrastructure provision and general land reforms.
The highly revealing presentation was greeted with a thunderous ovation by the delegates many of whom became enthusiastic to invest in Abuja. They were particularly enamored by the innovative land swap policy designed to catalyze development and at the same time bring down spiraling property cost in the nation’s capital.
The Permanent Secretary, after the presentation, was besieged by the Diaspora members and other potential investors from different parts of the US, Canada and other American countries. They were all making enquiries on how they could tap into the new opportunities in FCT.
While calling on Nigerians in the Diaspora to take opportunity of the current transformation agenda and invest in Nigeria, particularly the Federal Capital Territory, Engr. Chukwu urged them to think more about what they could contribute to the development of Nigeria and less about what they could get from it.
He stressed that demonization of Nigeria, its government and people by the Nigerian Diaspora rather than solve would worsen the challenges facing Nigeria. He added that the time is now for the Nigerian Diaspora to act fast to assist in finding solution to the challenges confronting the nation.
One interesting strand of the discussions among the delegates after the FCT’s presentation was the correlation some of them drew between ongoing infrastructure cum general developmental revolution in Abuja and Dubai’s transformation from an outlandish idea to an economic powerhouse of the Middle East.
A parallel was drawn between Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, the man whose magical infrastructure and PPP modules are accelerating the development of Africa’s fastest growing city and the architect of the rapid transformation of Dubai, the United Kingdom-trained Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum.
Sheikh Mohammed combined the speeds of a gazelle and a lion to transform Dubai into a world mega business hub of repute. In the story of the gazelle and the lion, one is running to eat while the other is running to live. Realizing that life is a race, Sheikh Mohammed never abandoned one opportunity to wait for another.
Through a parallel strategy designed to lure multinational companies, Sheikh Mohammed successfully turned Dubai into the global business hub of the Middle East. Senator Mohammed is doing the same through the land swap programme in Abuja.
The land reform decree issued by Sheikh Mohammed in 2002 allowing foreigners to own real estate in Dubai — a first in any Gulf state, is akin to the courageous land reforms and the swap strategy introduced by Senator Mohammed in 2011 in FCT.
Prior to the reforms, Dubai had no real estate market and land was given out under semi-feudalism. In other words, all land was held by the sheikhs or by favored Emirati friends upon whom the sheikhs had bestowed parcels. Everyone else — including every foreigner — was a tenant. But with the 2002 reform, anyone could buy a home or land in Dubai — an opportunity with particular appeal to wealthy families in unstable countries nearby and other around the globe. For example, “loaded Lebanese afraid of another civil war back home, Indian nouveaux riches seeking respite from the poverty at their doorsteps, and Russian oligarchs banking assets stripped from operations in their decaying motherland all poured cash into Dubai properties.” Overnight, Dubai became a place for the magnates of the Middle East, Africa (including Nigeria), South Asia and the former Soviet Union to park wealth too risky to keep back home. A highpoint of the mad rush for Dubai occurred in 2009, “when the dictator of Azerbaijan amassed nine waterfront mansions during a two-week, $44 million buying spree — all purchased in the name of his 11-year-old son.”
Back in Nigeria, with the land swap and an unprecedented land reform in place under the midwifery of Senator Mohammed, Abuja is fast becoming a veritable global outpost and has clearly emerged as one of the three fastest-growing cities in the world. The reforms introduced by Senator Mohammed have ignited massive booms.
Between 2010 and date with the current Minister in the saddle, Abuja’s population has nearly doubled and its urbanized footprint tripling. Statistics show that standard housing development for residential and institutional use has quadrupled in numbers and still ballooning. The rapid turnaround is the product of Senator Mohammed ability to think outside the box.
As Engr. Chukwu put it in Ohio at the 2014 NIDO Summit, the implementation thrust of the Transformation Agenda in FCT is to open up the Territory to unfettered private capital-driven development. He said it was this thrust that made the FCT Administration to introduce the Land Swap programme as a catalyst for accelerated infrastructure, housing and overall development.
According to him, the private sector under the programme would be incentivized to provide site and services within the districts. Thus Government’s emphasis would be to provide the policy, legal regulatory environment for seamless private sector participation in the development of the districts of the FCT. Of course, the benchmark of the current rolling plan is to open up by providing modern infrastructure in at least 10 new districts within five years. The programme is based on contractual Agreement with no fewer than 15private investors on the basis of the Land-for-Infrastructure Swap Framework at the onset.
The total land area for the development in the present package is 4,283.2 hectares within Phase IV of the Federal Capital City (FCC). It is projected to require a minimum of $3.8 Billion of private sector capital. The distance of this area is averagely 20 minutes from the City centre and 15 minutes fromthe Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
The benefit analysis of the investment initiatives of the FCT Administration include creation of more than 300,000 jobs within the plan period; inflow of over N1 trillion investment to the FCT; reduction of housing deficit by 20%; reduction of cost of rent/lease by 15%; increased funding to human capital development and enhanced security of lives and properties 20% of schooling population.
Abuja under Senator Bala Mohammed with its vibrant economy anchored on an emerging class of home-grown multinational corporations which are as able as they are eager to participate in the global growth party is the ideal place for the moment. With the right policy in place and a robust security network in place, the Federal Capital Territory is reshaping business and redefining the African economy for a powerful launch on the global stage.
Other speakers at the Ohio NIDO conference include former Nigeria’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations, Professor Ibrahim Gambari who spoke on “Nigeria’s Diplomatic Strategies in Relation to the Transformation Agenda”, Professor Vince Anigbogu of the Institute for National Transformation, Abuja who delivered the keynote address; Professor Ilesanmi Adesida, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost, University of Illinois who spoke on “How Nigerians in the Diaspora can Transfer their intellectual property/capital for the Transformation of Nigeria into a Technological Superpower,” Dr. Harry Alford, President/CEO, US National Black Chamber of Commerce; Professor Kelechi Kalu, Vice Provost for Global Strategies and International Affairs, Ohio State University whose lecture was on “Safety and Security and Nigerian Transformation Agenda” and others.
Among others were the Nigerian Ambassador to the United States, Dr. John Adefuye, Professor Hauwa Ibrahim of the Harvard, Architect Bernard Lot, the Director of Public Building of the Federal Capital Development Authority, Professor Chris Igodan of Ohio State University, Dr. Kate Okpaleke of the, Engineer Mike Akpan and many others.
NIDOA Board of Directors Chairman, Chief Gabe Okoye in his welcome address said that the average of about $21.5billion was remitted to Nigeria in the past two years by Nigerians in Diaspora, a contribution only surpassed by oil revenue.
One thing which the NIDO members are expecting with bated anxiety is the creation of the Diaspora Commission by the Federal Government to act as a medium for seamless interface between Nigerians in the Diaspora and their native land. In other words it is expected to serve as the vehicle through which the Nigeria Diaspora Community can channel their vast resources to Nigeria for the development of the country, the NIDOA leader reasoned.
Chief Okoye likened the creation of the commission to former President John Kennedy’s call for Americans to ask for what they can do for their country, not what their country can do for them. With the resolution passed by this year’s National Conference recommending the creation of the commission, Okoye and other NIDO members are upbeat that their dogged push for its birth is beginning to yield the expected result.
“We must use the opportunity availed to us by this conference to plant in the ears of all our guests, especially those from the homeland that, we unapologetically insist on the implementation of the resolutions of the National Conference,” Okoye added. In his opinion, the resolutions have common sense, relevant and equitable.
[myad]
• Nosike Ogbuenyi , the Special Assitant on Media to the FCT Minister was in Columbus, Ohio for the NIDO Conference.