Adams Oshiomhole Wins Second Tenure as PDP Counts Losses

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Governor Adams Oshiomhole

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has officially declared Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, the incumbent governor of Edo state as the overall winner of Saturday’s gubernatorial election. Oshiomhole had an overwhelming victory over his closest rival, Gen. Charles Airhiavbere (Rtd) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP. The comrade governor polled a total of 477,478 votes (73.72%) of 647,698 total votes cast, winning convincingly in all 18 Local Government Areas of the state.

Charles Airhiavbere of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) polled a total of 144,235 votes (22.27 %) 647,698 votes, to emerge second. Solomon Edebiri of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) got 3,642 votes to place third while Izevbuwa Roland of the Congress for Political Change (CPC) polled a total of 2,792 votes (0.43%) of the total votes to emerge fourth.

Frank Ukonga of the Social Democratic Mega party (SDMP) got 807 votes (0.56 %) of total votes to place fifth. Andrew Igwemoh of the Labour Party (LP) got 604 (0.09 %) to place sixth and Paul Orumwense of the National Conscience Party (NCP) got 504 votes (0.08%) and occupied the last position.

Is Nigeria a Failed State or A Failing State? (Part 3)

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While communicable and water-borne diseases remain a menace, there is hardly any urban or rural set up with potable water supply, thereby dashing the hope of eradication of these preventable diseases like diarrhea, enteric fever, dysentery, etc. People still drink from the same rivers and streams with cows and goats in some parts of the country when government could effortlessly provide them with pipe borne water.

Fake drugs litter the shelves of several pharmacy and patent medicine stores. The importation of fake and substandard drugs by some unscrupulous businessmen has put the lives of several Nigerians on the line. So many people have met their untimely deaths following the ingestion/injection of fake, injurious drugs. Some have even become paralyzed as a result. The high cost of living has made so many people depend on the sub-standard drugs imported from some Asian countries thereby jeopardizing their health.

Insecurity of lives and property is now the order of the day as Nigerians can hardly go to sleep with both eyes closed. The country’s just recovering from the era of militant assault when the Boko Haram insurgency started. Today, several people have been killed and many others maimed by this terrorist group operating in the name of religion. Churches are being burnt and bombed without provocation by these religious fanatics all in the name of Allah. The police, military, civil defense corps, etc. are obviously helpless in the midst of these spates of bombing and terrorism. The Boko Haram seems to expose the intelligence ineptitude of the security arms of government.

The judicial arm of government is also not helping matters as they are indirectly helping to frustrate the drive toward eradication of corruption in the country. Of the several cases arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), only an infinitesimal proportion has so far been convicted and punished in a manner satisfactory to the average masses. There has always been the excuse that there are no enough evidences to prosecute and convict the accused persons. The few ones convicted were made to pay fines reminiscent of being given a pat on the back for stealing. They pay meager fines and go back home to feed fat on their booties.

Sports (especially football) that has provided some consolation for the badly battered Nigerians in the midst of these colossal failures has recently become a source of disappointment and heartbreaks to so many sports lovers. Our football fortunes have nosedived to irredeemable level. For the first time in 27 years the Super Eagles failed to qualify for the Africa Nations’ Cup after they were eliminated by Guinea. The male U-21 team and the Super Falcons were both eliminated from the All Africa Games by the Ghanaian teams. The Super Falcons also got knocked out of the 2012 London Olympics by Cameroon. The last straw that broke the camel’s back came when our U-23 (Dream team 5) got eliminated from the 2012 London Olympics as well. The U-17 could also not qualify for the world cup in Mexico.

The question now is, is Nigeria a failed state or just a failing state? If it is yet to become a failed state, what should we do to redeem the fortunes of our darling state? Should we all watch helplessly while the country sinks into oblivion or should we do something to salvage the situation?

Your opinions are welcome. If you love this post, share it to your friends and make sure you subscribe to this blog to get our updates.

Is Nigeria a Failed State or A Failing State? (Part 2)

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With all the oil wells and the abundant deposit of coal in the country Nigerians are still groping in darkness; power supply is erratic and epileptic. Many people die from fumes from the exhaust pipes of generating plants which are imported into the country in their millions, which has made her the highest importer of generating plants in the world. With over $20b sunk into the power sector, electricity still remains a mirage. While the world is running away from nuclear energy because of the associated dangers to health, it is now that Nigeria is considering building a nuclear energy plant to cater for the electricity needs of the masses. Our natural gas and coal are begging to be tapped.

The country has the 2nd highest deposit of Bitumen in the world (second only to Canada), yet her roads are death knells, infested with potholes, which has increased the incidence of road traffic accidents with thousands of innocent souls sent to their early graves daily. The annual budgets approved for the ministry of works and housing disappear into private pockets while the poor masses continue to be exposed to untimely death and have no where to rest their heads at the end of the day.

A country that is so blessed with vast arable lands imports rice, beans, peanuts, etc. to the tune of several billions of Naira instead of developing her agricultural sector to create jobs for her teeming graduates; she even imports sardine from Morocco and Tuna from Ghana despite the oceans and rivers that surround the country. The saddest part of it is that the country imports virtually everything from bicycle spokes to tooth picks, peanut burgers, cotton buds, sewing needles, biro, matches, photocopy papers, second hand cars, refrigerators, etc.

The abundant solid mineral resources that are evenly distributed across the 36 states of the federation are mined by a selected few and by those with political connection, with some of them already being depleted but officially this sector is yet to be tapped. For how long should the poor masses be deliberately fed with lies by those who govern them?

Hospitals merely exist by names but can hardly deliver quality health care because they are poorly equipped. Sadly, the country sends minor cases that should be handled here to Egypt, India, South Africa, Ghana, Israel, USA, etc. Today, the nation ranks amongst the countries with the highest maternal and infant morbity and mortality rates in the world. Nigeria recently became the second most HIV-infected country, only second to South Africa. Children die in their droves daily as a result of malaria, diarrhea and malnutrition while our politicians milk the national cow dry. What an irony!

Our colleges and universities churn out graduates who can hardly express themselves in simple Queen’s English let alone defend their degrees. ASUU hardly maintains a full academic section without the universities embarking on strikes. It now takes an average student an additional 2 to 3 years extra to graduate from the university due to incessant strike actions. Politicians deliberately crippled the educational sector to give their children unprecedented advantage over the children of the poor. Their children school abroad and come back home with bogus certificates and ‘Toronto’ degrees which eventually position them to become managers and directors of the few institutions and government establishments available. No wonder our institutions are failing by the day.

Is Nigeria a Failed State or A Failing State? (Part 1)

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The unhealthy political atmosphere and decaying infrastructure coupled with the slow technological and industrial growth in the country have left so many people with the question as to whether Nigeria is a failed state. Why should Nigerians be so pessimistic or hopeless about a country so blessed by God? Why should people live in misery and abject poverty in a country that is arguably among the most naturally endowed in the world? Are the average Nigerian citizenry unpatriotic and non-supportive of their country? I think not.

In a situation where one sees so much natural resources – Crude oil, flowing in the creeks of the Niger Delta, limestone, gemstones, bitumen, gold, bauxite, tin, coal, clay, kaolin, etc. distributed around one and yet there is hunger everywhere, and only politicians are growing fatter and walking around ostentatiously in their flowing regalia, how do you think they should feel, happy?

The reason for the pervading air of despondency and indifference spans from the fact that the lingering state of backwardness, social insecurity, poverty, hunger, preventable diseases, academic decline, political enmity and treasury looting have given the masses no hope about the future. It is on record that 45% of the masses live below poverty line.

Nigeria has earned several billions of dollars (over a trillion dollars actually) from crude oil since oil was discovered in the country in1957. But as the 6th highest producer of crude oil in the world, after 54 years of oil exploration the political leaders are yet to publicly account for the revenue derived from this precious ‘black gold’ which is supposed to be a blessing to the country: the country heavily depends on oil revenue which accounts for over 90% of national GDP to finance its budget while other sectors like agriculture, solid minerals, etc. have been grossly neglected, leaving a lot of the youths and graduates unemployed and roaming the streets.

Each government that comes into power seems to be bereft of concrete ideas as to how to move the nation forward. Log term planning does not exist in their dictionaries. All that comes to their minds is how to increase the pump price of petroleum products since it is the easiest way to make money without sweating. A lot of the oil revenue eventually ends up in the pockets of the few avaricious politicians and their cronies who believe they are doing Nigerians a favour by ruling them.

The current government is even considering total removal of petroleum subsidy at all cost. But nobody has told us what has always happened to the moneys derived from the increase in pump price by successive government. A few individuals are growing fat on the so called subsidy. They buy petrol at a much cheaper rate (subsidized rate) and divert them to neighbouring countries to make more gains why queues at filling stations continue to linger.

The country remains the only oil producing state in the world that imports refined petroleum despite the fact that it has 3 standard refineries that are supposed to take care of the local demand. The resurgent queues for fuel at filling stations remain an incurable malady. The billions of dollars purportedly spent on providing subsidy are enough to make our refineries functional and stop importation of refined products. But the will power to do that is just not there.

Apart from being blessed with crude oil, our natural gas reserve is enough to take care of the financial needs of some countries that do not has these endowments. But today what do we see? Our gases are flared with impunity by multi-national oil companies, with the dwellers in the Niger Delta suffering from one form of respiratory ailment or the other. Rain water is undrinkable because of its acidic nature due to uncontrolled gas flaring. Our creeks have been so polluted by oil spillages that the aquatic life is fast disappearing. Some of the fishes have actually undergone mutation and other aquatic organisms are mercury-laden, making them harmful for human consumption.

Goodluck Jonathan Finally Emerges as Nigerian President

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Article first published as Goodluck Jonathan Finally Emerges as Nigerian President on Technorati.

Dr. Goodluck Azikiwe Ebele Jonathan has finally polled over 25% in more than 24 states of the federation to emerge as the duly elected president of Nigeria in the April 16th 2011 Presidential elections (under the platform of the Peoples Democratic party) as required by the constitution. He was able to win in 22 states and also got the required 25% in 8 additional states to beat his closest rival Gen. Muhammadu Buhari of the Congress for Progressive Change.

Dr. Goodluck Jonathangot a total of 2.5M votes while Muhammadu Buhari got 12.2M. Former EFCC chairman Nuhu Ribadu and former Kano state governor Ibrahim Shekarau got 2.79M and 917,012 respectively. The result therefore implies there would be no run-off election since the winner was able to get the required 25% in more than 24 states.

Nigerians have voted overwhelmingly for the candidate of their choice irrespective of party affiliation. The voting pattern of the people has also shown that Nigerians are no longer interested in political parties but rather they are voting for people based on individual performances. The voting pattern shows that the areas won by some parties during the NASS were reclaimed by the PDP in the presidential polls.




Now that Nigerians have given their mandate to Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, it’s time for him to settle down and go to work after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the final result. The people are eager to see him perform this time, having been disappointed in time past by the ruling PDP.

During his campaigns he promised to focus on some important areas like Power, education, economy, etc when elected. He has now been given a golden opportunity to live up to his word. If he must achieve his dreams, he needs to shun party loyalty and appoint the best hands in the country to help in the nation building. There are so many technocrats in the country that are willing to assist him in making Nigeria great.

He should be willing to appoint the best hands into his government irrespective of the geopolitical zone, religion or political party. The mandate given him was not given only by his party. All Nigerians voted him, so he should be able to reach out to all and get them to help him achieve the best result.

He must also be aware that the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) which Muhammadu Buhari represents did not do too badly in the presidential polls and that Nigerians may decide to give their votes to CPC in 2015 elections if PDP fails to live up to their expectation now.

There should also not be segregation of those states or areas where he lost out. Everybody should be carried along in the spirit of good sportsmanship. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) should demonstrate they are mature enough to rule this country. They must embrace both their friends and their imaginary enemies and forge ahead in the interest of the country.

Everyone is optimistic a new Nigeria is possible. The people conducted themselves peacefully during the elections to show to the world they want a successful transition. They must not be disappointed by the ruling party or by the President.

Nigeria has by this conduct of a credible election demonstrated they could still be trusted by other African countries to lead the way and usher in a new Africa where leaders must merit the mandate of the people and not get into offices through stolen votes. Thanks to Professor Attahiru Jega who made this possible by living up to his reputation and has shown that massive rigging could be avoided in Nigerian elections.

We must also not fail to give credit to politicians who decided to drop their win-at-all-cost attitude to ensure a hitch-free election. Nigeria is really coming of age and in no distant time we will get to where we hope to be.

Dr. GoodLuck Jonathan Picks PDP Presidential Ticket

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President Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan Friday morning emerged the flag bearer for the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2011 presidential election in a landslide victory over former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Sarah Jubril at the party’s primaries conducted at the Eagle’s Square Abuja.

He polled 2,736 out of the 3,507 votes (with 61 voided), while Atiku Abubakar came a distant second with 805 votes. The third candidate and the only female contestant Sarah Jubril had only a vote.

Dr. Goodluck Jonathan’s landslide victory has finally proved that the issue of zoning that has threatened to tear Africa’s largest political party apart is after all not fully supported by the people. Atiku was only able to get an overwhelming victory in 5 out of 36 states. All the people/states that openly supported the zoning arrangement may have after all decided to practice true democracy which is a reflection of the voice of the people.

Unfortunately, the former VP lost to Jonathan in his own state – Adamawa state. Nigerians have once again shunned the politics of ethnic divide, tribal bigotry, geopolitical differences and religious sentiments to pick the candidate they felt is best suited to be president come May 29, 2011.

Only during the June 12, 1993 election that saw the emergence of late Chief M.K.O. Abiola as the acclaimed winner of the election under the umbrella of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) did Nigerians overwhelmingly vote for a candidate irrespective of his geopolitical zone, religion or ethnic background.

Come to think of it, if the issue of zoning had taken its course then the best candidate for the party would not have had the chance of emerging as the flag bearer. What this means therefore, is that zoning was never the mind of the majority of the people: it was smuggled into the party’s constitution by a selected few who did so for selfish reasons.

The people have spoken their minds by the way they defiled the zoning arrangement to vote massively for the best candidate who clearly was not supposed to be qualified if that kangaroo arrangement had been respected. The policies and constitutions of political parties and every organization should be formulated to reflect the true yearnings of the people and not that of a few privileged.

Dr. Goodluck Jonathan has presented Namadi Sambo as his running mate for the April 2011 elections; and if what we saw during the PDP convention is anything to go by, then the pair is sure of massive votes from Nigerians irrespective of their political parties, ethnic groups, cultural backgrounds or religion. A lot of people believe in the Goodluck-Sambo pair to deliver the dividends of democracy to them. They have already started to carry out major reforms in the economy, power sector, education, transportation, etc to the delight of the citizenry.

We hope that come May 29, 2011, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan would be sworn in as the duly elected president of Nigeria, so he could complete the nice works he has started. We say congratulations Goodluck, for emerging as the presidential flag bearer of the People’s Democratic Party.

Governor Adams Oshiomole; A Purposeful Leader

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Adams Oshiomole of the Action Congress (AC) and governor of Edo State in Nigeria has proven by his leadership style that there is still hope for our country. The former president of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) became governor of Edo State when the average masses had given up hope of experiencing good and purposeful governance.

The South-South State was passing through a state of infrastructural, educational and political decay when the visionary governor regained his mandate that was hitherto stolen by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). Since he took over the mantle of leadership, the rate of rural and urban development has sky-rocketed.

He has opened all blocked drainages, electrified rural communities, dualized the urban roads in Benin City, and rehabilitated several primary and post primary schools in the state. Power supply is now fairly stable in the state; the small and medium scale industries are now enjoying a boom. Erosion menace in the state has now been put under control (though there are still places that require government urgent attention).

The citizens of the state have now been spurred into paying their taxes regularly by the level of infrastructural rehabilitation in the state. Adams Oshiomole announced recently that the state’s internally generated revenue has increased to N1b from N300m monthly since he assumed office.

One impressive side of his leadership is that he is accountable to the electorate. He informs the person of how much that comes into the state and how it is spent. He has carried everybody along; making sure he sites project in both the state capital and other local government areas.

Recently, a member of the House of Representatives, and a staunch member of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Patrick Obahiagbon defected from the PDP to the Action Congress (AC) and told the public the reason he defected was because of the developmental strides the state now enjoyed under Chief Adams Oshiomole. He said he needed to join hands with the action governor to move the state forwards.

This is the same state that Chief Lucky Nosa Igbinedion governed for eight uninterrupted years and he looted the treasury of the state; Infrastructural became decayed, Civil Servants were sacked in their thousands, state roads became impassable and the state was in perpetual darkness.

Today, the average masses in Edo State are singing praises of the incumbent governor; business is booming, the taps are running, port holes have disappeared from the roads, the state is illuminated constantly and nobody is harassed by touts anymore. Adams Oshiomole is truly a visionary and purposeful leader who has the interest of the citizenry at heart.

Nigeria Relapsing Into A One-Party State?

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The recent development in Nigeria where elected leaders or representatives of the people cross over to another party, with the people’s mandate, is both alarming and unhealthy. Most of the political leaders – Governors, Ministers, members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, local government chairmen, councillors, etc were voted based on their party manifestos. Defecting with their votes to other parties therefore, should be seen as a rape of their mandate.

The beauty of democracy is in checks and balances which is provided by the opposition parties. Where there are no checks and balances, there is the tendency for the ruling party to become dictatorial. And when there is dictatorship the people suffer unjustly. This is what PDP is driving the country into – becoming a one-party state, where there would be no one to oppose her.

Our politicians are indirectly telling us through their conduct that either they do not understand their party manifestos or they lack integrity. Whichever the case, they cannot be trusted with the people’s mandate since they are not honest enough to protect the people’s votes.

They have also shown that they are in politics simply for their selfish gains and not because they want to represent us. They only see politics as business and so they jump to any political party that offers the best bargain. The last gubernatorial election in Anambra state exposed some of these avaricious politicians; notable amongst them was this particular woman who contested on the platform of one of the parties she thought could easily secure the people’s mandate for her. As soon as it was announced that Peter Obi had won the election, the next week she ran back to the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP).

Politics in our country has become exploitative: people now use the smaller parties to secure a mandate and then run to PDP where they think they stand the chance to personally gain more. They use the people’s mandate to negotiate for their Ambassadorial, ministerial and other appointments. If we allow this ugly trend to continue in our national polity, sooner or later our nascent democracy would be destroyed by these selfish, dishonest, shameless and greedy politicians.

Recently the former governor of Abia state, Mr. Orji Uzor Kalu went back to PDP (after ruling under the platform of PPA). He was accepted at the national level, but the state refused to accept him back because they understood he was coming back for selfish reasons. If other states would emulate Abia state, the political harlotry in our nation would be checked.

The declaration by the national house of assembly that everyone has the right to cross over to another party irrespective of whether he is carrying the mandate of the people on another political party platform is not helping matters. The house of assembly should realize that this declaration is moving the country in the wrong direction where our national political boat would soon capsize. They are elected to make laws that would suit the nation and not their political party. The country belongs to all Nigerians and not to PDP alone; they should therefore make laws that posterity would applaud and not condemn. Everyone should stand up to condemn this development that is threatening to destroy our nascent democracy and take us back to the military era.

Nigeria House Of Representatives In Show Of Shame

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The Nigeria House of representatives on Tuesday 22nd June 2010 got involved in what could best be described as a show of shame and national embarrassment; as the law makers threw caution to the winds and engaged in fisticuffs in the full glare of publicity, with some ending up with broken nose, broken arms and torn clothes.

Trouble started when eleven members of the house - Dino Melaye, Salomon Awhinawi, Ehiogie West Idahosa, Gbenga Oduwaiye, Independence Ogunewe, Austin Nwachukwu, Kayode Amusan, Bitrus Kaze, Abba Anas, Gbenga Onigbogi and Doris Uboh, accused the speaker Dimeji Bankole and the leadership of the house, of financial misconduct. The case was even reported to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) by Dino Melaye.

The speaker of the house organized his own group to try to intimidate the eleven members who were bent on fighting corruption in the house. Their eventual suspension and an attempt to forcefully drag them out of the chamber led to a physical combat, during which some of them (five of the aggrieved members) had their clothes torn to pieces; one left with a broken nose. However one of them was able to over power one of the aggressors, leaving him with a broken arm.

This show of shame is coming up at this time when Nigerians have all become weary of corruption; and the government of Dr Good luck Jonathan as trying to put in place better mechanisms to eradicate corruption in Africa largest country

But why would the law makers go to that extent of taking laws into their hands? Politics in Nigeria has become an investment platform; where people invest all they have in order to get into office and then later steal over a 1000% of what they invested. They want to sit tight in office since it is the highest profit yielding investment ever. Instead of losing such high yield investment, they would rather lose their integrity and get their names rubbed with mud.

How can we control this trend?
1. Choose Representatives based on integrity: Representatives of the people should be chosen based on integrity and past records, and not on party loyalty or affiliation. It is only by this method that people with character and track records would be nominated to represent their constituencies

2. Give constituencies power to recall erring Representatives: when constituencies are given the power and legal backup to recall erring representatives, those who are elected to protect their interest would sit up; because they know they would be recalled should they disappoint their constituencies

3. Make corruption punishable: a lot of people are getting involved in corrupt practices because there seems not to be adequate punitive measures put in place to make corruption unattractive. The moment people are punished in proportion to their crimes, they would no more engage in corruption with impunity.

4. Removal of parliamentary immunity: Immunity should be removed from office holders in order to make them answerable to the electorate while still in office. When they know they are accountable to the masses, they would stop plundering and looting public treasury.

5. Reduce salaries of politicians: the only people enjoying unrestricted salary increase in Nigeria are the politicians. This should be stopped. Anybody going into public office should do so for the sole purpose of serving the people. If they go there because of the attractive salaries they will never give their best to the electorate.

6. Assets declarations: politicians should be made to publicly declare their assets before assuming a public office and on completion of their tenure in office.

7. Freedom of information bill: the freedom of information bill before the National Assembly should be passed into law as a matter of urgency. This would enable the public give information concerning any corrupt politician without fear of molestation.

The Return of President Umaru Musa Yar'adua

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President Umaru Musa Yar’adua left Nigeria on the 23rd of November 2009 for medical attention in Saudi Arabia and returned back to the country exactly 93 days later. But his period of absence from the presidential seat brought series of debates that almost tore the country apart.

Today the president is back in the country, what next? Has he been truly certified medically fit to continue in office as enshrined in section 144 of the 1999 constitution or is this a political game by the North to make sure power did not shift from their zone to the South-South? The president had maintained 92 days of silence and evasiveness but while the presidential delegation were on their way to Saudi Arabia as the last resort to ascertain whether or not he was truly fit to continue in office he suddenly sneaked into the country from his medical sojourn without the prior knowledge of his cabinet; not even his vice. Do you think things should be done this way min this 21st century? Is this how things are done in America, Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, etc where the leaders are accountable to their citizenry? If not so, why is it always the opposite when it comes to Africa?

The Saudi authorities did everything to prevent the National Assembly members, the governors, and everyone that mattered from seeing our president as though the president were in captivity. If the president is strong enough to return to Nigeria today it means he was strong enough to at least say ‘hello’ to his ministers and lawmakers who had visited him few days earlier. One thing is not clear to me; why this ‘sneaking out and sneaking in’ of the president? The president belongs to all Nigerians and of course they have the right to know what is happening to him because the day he was elected into office he ceased to be the property of the North and became Nigerian property. This act of re-colonization of our country by a developing country like Saudi Arabia shows how helpless Nigeria has truly become. I do not in any way blame the Saudi authorities for treating us with levity; I blame our people who have refused to develop, otherwise why should we be going to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment?

Now that Mr. President has come back to his country what lessons did he learn from this situation? Is he thinking of reshaping the health sector of his country to look better than that of Saudi Arabia, or is he thinking of how to go back and enjoy the standard health facilities in Saudi next time he needs medical care? His actions and attitude toward our health sector would determine whether president has truly learnt any lessons from his health challenges. Mr. President should also remember that health care is part of his seven point agenda.

Dr Goodluck Jonathan Declared Nigerian Acting President

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Nigerian Vice President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was yesterday declared by the House of Senate as acting president after 78 days of absence of President Umaru Musa Yar’adua from office. The upper finally did what the Nigerian masses had expected from them after the head of state’s whereabouts and state of health had remained shrouded in secrecy.
The declaration of the House of Senate was in line with 145 of the 1999 constitution which mandates the president to transmit a letter to the National House of Assembly that he is incapacitated or is unable to continue in office. They had argued that the president had by the BBC press interview of January 13th 2010 declared that he was incapacitated and so waiting for a personal letter was no longer necessary. They reasoned that their action was to save the country from further state of chaos and anarchy. This declaration would however require the confirmation of the Federal Executive Council which is expected to meet over the matter to examine section 144 of the constitution and determine whether the president is truly fit to continue in office.
The House of Representatives has already rejected a motion seeking the president to transmit a letter to them empowering the VP to assume the position of acting president. The 36 states’ governors have also put their weight behind the Senate: they have been making frantic effort to see that this political impasse was resolved without creating bitterness and enmity.
However, a lot of Nigerians have been reacting to this development and have been commending the Senate for finally acting to save the country from further embarrassment in the eyes of the international community. Notable among those who have reacted is Secretary to the government of the Federation Yayale Ahmed, who said that the Federal Executive Council was in support of the Senate. Also the President of the South-South People’s Assembly Senator Matthew Mbu Jr commended the senators for taking a step in the right direction.
In his broadcast to the nation Dr. Goodluck Jonathan said his role as the acting president was a call to duty. He regretted the Jos religious crisis, promised to maintain the amnesty deal with the Niger Delta, commended the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC for a successful elction in Anambra state, and also promised to improve the power supply in the country.
It would be recalled the Nobel Laureate Professor Wole Soyinka last week led a peaceful rally demanding that Goodluck Jonathan be declared the acting president in respect of the constitutional provisions.
The Federal Executive Council should be aware that Nigerians are waiting for them to toe the path of honour and do what is expected of them without any political gimmicks as anything short of supporting the present position of the Senate may not be tolerated by the masses.

Nigerian Politics And Lies (Part 3)

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Security of lives and property of Nigerians has not been guaranteed because the Yar’adua government has always watched helplessly while these rights are snatched from the citizenry in broad day light. The menace of armed robbery is on the increase: only recently the Inspector General of Police had told the public during the test driving of some bullion vans assembled in Nigeria that he needed a bullion van that’s bullet proofed, fire proofed and bomb proofed, noting that armed bandits were becoming more sophisticated.
The spate of religious crises (especially in the North) has also not abated in this administration. We were barely recovering from the Militancy in the Niger Delta region when the Boko haran killings started, and only recently the Jos crisis which claimed over 200 lives. The funniest thing is that each time these problems (especially the religious crises) occur the government promises to prosecute the culprits but at the end nothing happens because some of them are politically motivated. The average Nigerian sleeps with one eye opened.
Our federal and state roads have remained death traps with the South-East and the South-South geopolitical zones worst hit. Road projects have been awarded several times and promises made that the roads would be ready for people to travel home during the Christmas periods but at the end they turn out to be dreams from delirious minds that the people have falsely believed. The road linking the two busiest cities in Nigeria – Lagos and Onitsha is at best pothole laden and several souls are lost on this road annually. The only portion that is okay is from Benin City to Asaba. How can the economy thrive when there is no means of transporting finished goods to the final consumers?
Finally, the rule of law has not fared better. This received its test when the president fell sick and refused to declare his Vice Dr. Goodluck Jonathan acting president as spelt out in the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The same president who has always professed to be an advocate of the rule of law has vehemently refused to obey section 145 of our constitution and has also refused to hearken to all the people calling on him to toe the path of honour and do what is expected of him as enshrined in our laws (thank God all that have now been resolved). All we have been receiving from our politicians is one form of lie or the other regarding the state of health of the president, his whereabouts and his fitness to continue in office. When will these politicians ever think of national interest first before self? And for how long do they think they can successfully lie to the masses in order to steal what belongs to them?

Nigerian Politics And Lies (Part 2)

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Elections in Nigeria have been characterized by rigging, ballot box snatching, thuggery, political assassinations, imposition of unpopular candidates and declaration of false results. The same system ushered in this government. Sensing that the vast majority of Nigerians never believed in them from the outset the Yar’adua administration promised to carry out political reformation as soon as possible but after several months nothing tangible has happened in this direction. With the 2011 polls by the corner, the Justice Uwais’ electoral reforms panel report is yet to see the light of day in the national Assembly.
Agriculture still remains a shadow of itself with Nigeria depending on massive food importation to feed her citizenry. It would be recalled that this administration in the wake of the world economic meltdown had wanted to import rice to the tune of #80b; but this received serious condemnation from the masses who felt the money should instead be channeled into agricultural development. Nigeria ranked number one in palm oil, groundnut and kola nut production decades ago and was even among the 3 highest producers of cocoa but today Indonesia and Malaysia are making more money from palm produce than we make from crude oil; our groundnut pyramids have disappeared. And the government keeps maintaining its resolve to keep feeding Nigerians with lies.
Economic development continues to elude us as long as the government has refused to take the bull by the horns and formulate policies that would attract tangible investments. Our government properties have all been auctioned to people who have connived with government agents to sell them at cheap rates, share the kick fronts and the kickbacks, leaving the sectors undeveloped. We started to construct the steel plant about the same time with South Korea but today while the Koreans export cars, ships, electronics and steel we are still struggling with how to get our steel industry on its feet. How can it work when politicians deliberately make bogus budgets and implement only a miniature part of it and keep the remainder in their pockets? The question is, our annual national budget which now runs into trillions of naira what are they used for? Are they for improving the welfare of the citizenry or for foreign trips, or for making the politicians fatter?

Nigerian Politics and Lies (Part 1)

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Politics is a way of formulating policies and making decisions that would affect the country and its citizenry positively. It is the essence of forming government and electing people to represent their constituencies so nobody would be left behind in the scheme of things. The Nigerian politics seems to be different from all other countries’ in that it is characterized by lying, looting, thuggery, election rigging, extermination of political opponents, and deceit.
The Nigerian presidential system of government is fashioned after America’s, but unfortunately we don’t seem to copy the moral aspect of the American presidential system, its respect for the rule of law and the equality of everyone before the constitution. We have only created a system whereby we lie to the electorate. The Yar;adua government came into office about 3 years ago with the 7 point agenda which then seemed to be the solution to our multifaceted political and social problems. It promised to give a facelift to education, economic reforms, rule of law, power, security of lives and property; agriculture, and roads rehabilitation, but as I write this article I can’t remember which of the points has been pursued to a logical end.

To start with, the government threatened to declare a state of emergency in the power sector within few weeks of assumption of power but two years and nine months later, not only has it failed to declare the emergency it has also failed to generate a meagerly 6,000 megawatts of electricity. The inability to generate the needed electricity to boost the economy had always been blamed on the restiveness in the Niger Delta region vis-à-vis the pipeline vandalism but since the declaration of amnesty nothing has changed. The 6,000 megawatts target set for Dec.2009 eventually ended up being a pipedream and power supply still remains erratic and epileptic. In fact power generation has now fallen below 3,000 megawatts for a country with about 150 million people.

Secondly, our educational sector has continued to suffer neglect. This administration witnessed the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) embarking on strike that took one complete semester. Today Nigerians are going back to Ghana to further their education. It has even deteriorated to the point that some Nigerians now send their children to Ghana for secondary education. What a calamity! Nigeria with over 91 universities cannot boast of one of these universities ranked among the first 200 in the world. Where are we heading?

President Yar'adua's Health And The Nigerian Politics

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President Umaru Musa Yar’adua left Nigeria about 66 days ago for Saudi Arabia on account of ill health. The president left the country on the 23rd of November 2009 after he was diagnosed with a heart problem and ever since his health and the seat of presidency have remained a subject of national debate.
Interesting as this national debate has been, the national house of assembly seems to be helpless about the whole situation. To start with, I understand there is a provision in section 145 of our federal constitution (1999) which says that in the event that the president could no longer perform his duty the vice president should be declared the acting president. This section of our constitution has been interpreted differently by different people just to keep heating up the polity. While a faction of the house of senate strongly advocates a strict adherence to the provisions of our constitution another group believes the president is strong enough to continue in office; the third group is on the fence: they are neither in support of the constitutional provision nor are they against it.
While the senate is busy debating section 145, the House of Representatives seems to be completely indifferent. They do not seem to be bothered that their country has been without a president for 66 days. The best they have done so far on this issue was to send a delegation to Saudi Arabia to see how the president was faring. Well, I understand they never had an access to the president. The Federal executive council had earlier done the same thing with the same result, so the mission embarked upon by the Reps was no longer necessary since everybody has been tactically prevented from seeing him or even speaking with him. The minister of information, Professor Dora Akunyili does not even know anything about Mr. President’s health and so she has remained helpless; she even owned up that she has been in the dark. She complained that the President was supposed to have briefed the nation through a press conference but surprisingly a BBC interview was arranged for the president, which is casting doubts on the minds of so many Nigerians as to whether their Head of State is still alive.
The Federal Executive Council has also added more confusion to the whole thing by saying that the President was fit to continue in office and was even free to rule the country from anywhere and for how long he cared. They have by that declaration added support to the earlier one made by the minister of justice. History should not be forgotten so soon: in 1998, our then head of state Gen. Sanni Abacha had a protracted illness but those hanging around the seat of power encouraged him to remain in office instead going to seek medical help. What happened later, he died in office. This I think should be a food for thought for our president.
Besides, the civil service law in Nigeria allows a civil servant to be absent from office on account of ill health for 42 days after which he should be declared no more fit to continue. Having spent 66 days and not certain when to be discharged, do we really think President Yar’adua is fit to continue in office? Come to think of it, this a man who already has renal problem and recently heart problem surfaced, is the stress of running the country not enough to compound his health problems? Anybody who truly loves him should advise him to honourably vacate his office and rest so he could have enough time to fully recuperate.
The ruling by the federal high court last week on this matter should be respected as the president himself believes so much on the rule of law. The people’s Democratic Party should fast to save this country from anarchy.