FG picks management team for sovereign wealth fund .

BusinessDay

Okonjo Iweala

The federal government, on Tuesday, announced a top management team to manage the country's sovereign wealth fund, a move which analyst believed would steer oil revenues into longer-term investment, announcing a top management team for its new sovereign wealth fund.

Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the fund would start with a cash hoard of around $1 billion. The top team will come from First Bank and UBS.

Nigeria is one of only three OPEC member states that do not have an SWF, and the new fund is being keenly watched by global markets and investors in Africa's second biggest economy.

The government hopes the fund will provide a firmer legal basis to ring-fence Nigeria's savings from competing demands so it can better save when oil prices are high.

Sovereign wealth funds are essentially government-run investment portfolios that buy into anything from mainstream assets such as stocks and bonds to direct foreign investment.

Nigeria, Africa's top energy producer, pumps over 2 million barrels of oil a day but has frittered much of it away over the years on government wages, other recurrent spending and corruption, ills that Okonjo-Iweala quit her World Bank job to come back and tackle.

Auditor and consultancy firm KPMG helped hire the SWF board.

Mahey Rasheed, a member of the board of First Bank, was chosen as the chairman of the fund team with UBS executive and former JP Morgan head Uche Orji chosen as the managing director and chief executive officer.

Okonjo-Iweala said she hoped by the end of the year the team would lay out plans for the $1 billion but did not say when investments would start.

The SWF has three main aims: saving money for future generations, funding infrastructure and defending the economy against commodity price shocks.

"I think the sovereign wealth fund will make Nigeria more attractive for investors," Okonjo-Iweala told reporters.

She said she hoped more money would be paid in later, adding that 20 percent of the fund would go to each of its three targets and the board would decide how to invest the other 40 percent.

President Goodluck Jonathan signed a bill into law in May last year authorising the SWF, but powerful state governors originally blocked the fund, saying it was unconstitutional.

They later agreed to it going ahead, albeit with an initial limit of $1 billion, a fraction of the $7 billion savings that are in Nigeria's Excess Crude Account (ECA).

Many state governors fear the SWF will mean less money for them to spend than the current ECA system for saving oil cash.

"The battle was long but I think the country stands to gain and I think it was worth it," Okonjo-Iweala said on Tuesday.

The SWF is meant to replace the ECA eventually but Okonjo-Iweala told Reuters last week the two will run side-by-side until people get comfortable with the SWF.

Critics say the ECA is opaque and can be too easily used.

The account contained $20 billion in 2007 but fell to $3 billion after a presidential election last year, despite five years of high oil prices. It has since risen to $7 billion.

Corruption: Buhari dares IBB.

By CLIFFORD NDUJIHE, DAPO AKINREFON, MICHAEL EBOH & GBENGA OKE
FORMER Head of State and Presidential Candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, in the 2011 general elections, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), yesterday dared former Military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (rtd), to expose him if he had facts and insisted that IBB and other leaders played crucial roles in destroying Nigeria’s oil industry.
IBB had on Monday threatened to expose Buhari’s shady deals in the oil sector when he functioned as Petroleum Minister and later chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund, PTF, if Buhari did not shut his mouth.

Former heads of state, Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Muhammadu Buhari

Speaking through his spokesman, Mr. Kassim Afegbua, the former Military President was responding to Buhari’s comments blaming President Goodluck Jonathan, IBB, Obasanjo for killing the nation’s oil industry.
On IBB specifically, Buhari, who was hosting leaders and members of the CPC, led by the House of Representatives member from Funtua/Dandume Federal Constituency of Katsina State, Dr. Mansur Abdulkadir, on Monday, said the administration of General Ibrahim Babangida was responsible for the high level of corruption and destruction in the petroleum industry.
He added that the corrupt practices in the oil sector during the eras of Babangida, Obasanjo and Jonathan had led to the enslaving of the masses.
Countering, IBB had reportedly said: “We are conversant with General Buahri’s so-called holier-than-thou attitude. He was a one-time Minister of Petroleum and we have good records of his tenure as minister. Secondly, he presided over the Petroleum Trust Fund, PTF, which records we also have. We challenge him to come out with clean hands in those two portfolios. Those, who live in glass houses, do not throw stones. General Buhari should be properly guided.”
However, Buhari insisted on his comments and dared IBB to carry out the threat of exposing him.

Decadent state of petroleum industry

Speaking through Engr. Rotimi Fashakin, the CPC spokesman, Buhari insisted he spoke the truth.
He said: “The truth of the matter is that General Buhari has just stated the obvious and it is what everybody knows about the decadent state of the Nigerian Petroleum Industry. Nigerians know which regime contributed immensely to that sector. So we still insist that what General Buhari stated is the truth and if General Babangida says he has facts about General Buhari over the issue, let him bring them out.
“At least Prof Tam David West worked closely with both General Buhari and General Babangida, so Tam David West should be able to tell Nigerians who among both men actually contributed to the decadence state of the oil industry.”

Corruption blossom under Obasanjo—Falae

Reacting to the exchanges, yesterday, one-time Minister of Finance and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Olu Falae, told Vanguard on phone that corruption reached an alarming height during Obasanjo’s administration in 1999.
His words: “The people are former heads of state and to the extent that corruption had been going on for quite sometime in the country, maybe that is why he (Buhari) is holding them accountable. But I don’t know the statistics or information to either agree or disagree with him (Buhari).
“But there is corruption in the whole country; the country is awash with corruption and nobody can really know where it started from though some government functionaries can. Corruption is the biggest problem we have.
“I cannot attribute it to any particular person but this thing started in earnest since 1999 that was during the Obasanjo administration; that was when the thing really blossomed.
In the past, one suspected that a few military leaders were the ones, who had access to the money, but since we returned to civilian rule, thousands of people now got into the act: from the local to state and federal government levels. And it has been growing since then. Corruption has grown very fast since 1999.”
At a time other leaders were exonerating themselves from the decay that had been inflicted on the citizenry, Obasanjo said yesterday that his regret after eight years in power as a civilian president was that he was unable to fix the epileptic power situation of the country.
President Jonathan had on Monday dissociated his administration from the rot, saying there was no how his regime, under two years, could have destroyed all amenities and infrastructure, if his predecessors provided them after many years in power.
Obasanjo, who was speaking at the Nigeria Leadership Initiative, NLI, as Guest Speaker Forum in Lagos, said, however, that his inability to fix the power problem was as a result of lack of funds in the initial period of his administration, owing to the low price of crude oil in the international market, Nigeria’s depleted foreign reserves and huge debt burden.
He also blamed oil companies operating in the country for their non-chalant contribution towards addressing the nation’s power problem.
Some oil companies abandoned Nigeria—Obasanjo
According to Obasanjo, oil companies in Nigeria refused to contribute towards addressing the power problem, except for only one of them, Agip.
He said: “During my time as a military president, my major aim was forging a united country and a self-reliant economy. I later realised that we can only achieve that with a constitution. When I came back to power 20 years after, I also pursued the agenda of uniting Nigeria and building a self-reliant economy. I can say we achieved all that.
”However, my regret is that we did not address the power issue in the country before we left. This is mainly because of the absence of funds at that time. If the country had money at the early stage of my presidency, we would have fixed the power.
“The country’s earning was low when we came to power; crude oil was selling at about $18 – $20 per barrel. When our earning started improving, we then started the Independent Power Projects, IPP.
“The oil companies abandoned Nigeria in our drive towards addressing the power problem. They did not do what they were supposed to do in that regard. Only one oil company, Agip, supported the country”.
Asked to rate Nigeria’s current leadership, Obasanjo said, “I will not want to comment publicly on Nigeria’s leadership at the moment.”

Nnaji resigns amid controversies, scandal.

 by Martin Ayankola, Fidelis Soriwei and Olalekan Adetayo.

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Minister of Power, Prof. Bart Nnaji, on Tuesday resigned from office amid controversies and allegations of conflict of interest in the privatisation process.
Besides being at loggerheads with Power Holding Company of Nigeria’s workers on sundry issues, he was said to have interests in two firms that submitted bids for the Afam Power Plc and the  Enugu Electricity Distribution Company Plc.
The PUNCH learnt on Tuesday that Nnaji  must have been pressured into resigning from the Federal Executive Council by the Presidency because of  fears that the issue of conflict of interest could damage  the credibility of the privatisation process, which has local and foreign investors as bidders.
The privatisation of 17 electricity firms is scheduled to be concluded in two months’ time.
Meanwhile,  President Goodluck Jonathan said he had accepted the resignation.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, the President thanked Nnaji for his services to the nation.
It was gathered that it was when it was established that Nnaji had interest in two firms, Skipper Nigeria Limited and Eastern Electric Nigeria Limited, that the National Council on Privatisation chaired by Vice- President Namadi Sambo, decided to cancel the technical bid evaluation process conducted for the two firms.
The NCP had last Friday named seven firms as the successful bidders for five generation companies.
 According to Chairman of the National Council on Privatisation’s Technical Committee, Mr. Atedo Peterside, the successful bidders qualified to take part in the financial bidding slated for September.
The preferred bidders for Ughelli Power Plant are Phoenix Electricity, Transcorp Consortium and Ampiron Power Distribution Limited.
Two bidders, CMEC Energy and GPN Nestoil Power Services Limited, were named for the Sapele Power Plant.
Only one firm each emerged successful for Geregu, Kainji and Shiroro Power Plants. They are Ampiron Power Distribution Limited, Mainstream Energy Solution Limited and North South Power Company Limited respectively.
He explained that the seven firms were chosen after scaling the 750 pass mark for the bidding process which involved submission of bids by pre-qualified bidders.
There was speculation that the NCP had been silent on the bidders that were prequalified for the Afam Power Station because of the conflict of interest that had arisen during the privatisation process.
A national newspaper had reported that Nnaji, a member of the NCP by virtue of his position as Minister of Power, had told the council that O & M Solutions of Pakistan, a member of one of the consortia bidding for Afam, had worked as a contractor for Geometric Power.
Nnaji  further notified the NCP that Geometric Power had a minority stake in Eastern Electric Nigeria Limited, which had submitted technical and financial bids for Enugu Distribution Company Limited on July 31.
He also reportedly informed the council that owing to his position, he had notified President Jonathan of his company’s bid for Enugu Distribution Company, and brought it to their attention that although he had an interest in Geometric Power, he had resigned from its board and transferred his shares to a blind trust.
Following this disclosure, Nnaji was said to have excused himself from the consideration of the report of the technical bids.
Having been informed of Nnaji’s direct and indirect interest in two companies being privatised, the report said the council decided to cancel the technical evaluation that had been conducted for Afam and disbanded the evaluation team.
Reacting to the issue of conflict of interest few hours before his resignation, Nnaji said he had voluntarily on Friday, August 24 , 2012, informed other members of the National Council on Privatisation at a meeting, which considered the report on the technical evaluation of bids for generation companies. He said he had revealed to the committee that a company with which he was associated before he joined the government in 2010, was a client of a member of a consortium interested in acquiring majority shares of the Afam power plant in Rivers State.
A statement from his office then said, “The minister consequently applied to be excused from all deliberations at the meeting, and he maintained his ground despite the insistence of some of his colleagues.
 “The minister ought to be commended for exemplary commitment to transparency, probity and the common good. If most public officers had been behaving like Professor Bart Nnaji , there would not have been trust deficit in Nigeria over the decades in respect of the relationship between the people and those in government. The unprecedented domestic and international investor confidence in the
Nigerian power sector is directly traceable to the personal and professional integrity of the process drivers like Professor Nnaji.
“We welcome wholeheartedly the decision of the National Council on Privatisation that bids for the Afam plant be evaluated all over again because justice should not only be done but also seen to have been done by all and sundry.’’
Before he finally threw in the towel, the former minister had also been at the receiving end of the war declared by workers of the PHCN.
The workers had opened a can of worms on some financial transactions allegedly carried out by Nnaji which reportedly drained the purse of PHCN.
They had given the embattled minister a seven-day ultimatum to explain what he did with the money running into millions of naira which they claimed was withdrawn from the firm’s coffer.
Vice-President of the National Union of Electricity Workers Employees, Mr. Etete Ntukuben, last Friday, called for a probe, not just of the PHCN superannuation account, but the entire account of the PHCN.
Ntukuben said that investigators should be brought in to take a critical look at the withdrawals by the  former minister from the account of the PHCN.
“Let us have a holistic look at the PHCN account apart from the pension account; we should take a look at the minister’s withdrawals.
A lot of millions of naira have been withdrawn and given to soldiers and policemen in the guise of security maintenance,” he said.

Why Are CPC Leaders Impervious To Reason?

Abubakar Yusuf Bakori.

How far can the national leaders of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) go in their stubborn resistance to reason without ultimately weakening or harming the party? Their present approach to ending the internal crises rocking the party is only making the situation worse.
The appointment of caretaker committees to run the affairs of the party in states such as Kano and Katsina states is only intensifying the crises. In fact, these committees are not welcomed in these states because they were brought to displace grassroots-based politicians who are the main strength of the party.
They are being tolerated rather than welcomed. Appointing caretaker committee is a clever way to shield the national leaders of the party from taking  full responsibility for the party’s disappointing performance during the 2011 general elections.
No keen political observer of Nigerian politics can be fooled by the subterfuge of creating or imposing caretaker committees to protect the national leaders from responsibility. Were they not responsible for the crises in the first place by the introduction of the needless and unjust policy of substitution and imposition of candidates?
Didn’t they deliberately reject the outcomes of peacefully and credibly conducted gubernatorial primaries in Kano, Katsina and Bauchi states because the results didn’t favour their preferred aspirants? Instead, they imposed candidates that lost the primaries and the voters revolted at the polls. This injustice was the beginning of the intractable internal crises rocking the CPC.
Therefore, the establishment of caretaker committees is a clever way of dodging the solution. General Buhari needs to assert himself over the way  the party national officers are running the CPC. Why should Buhari remain indifferent when injustice was committed against duly elected candidates? He is the moral pillar of the party’s credibility and Nigerians would have expected him to overrule any decision by the party leaders, which was inconsistent with justice and the principle of internal democracy. The tail should not be wagging the dog in this respect.
If the CPC leaders are really serious about addressing the internal crises decisively, then a caretaker committee should also be appointed at the national level of the party to replace the officials responsible for the mismanagement of the party’s goodwill.
It is immoral to remain in office after being responsible for the losses your party suffered during the elections. Leadership is about taking responsibility for your own poor judgement, which ultimately cost your party victory.
It is on record that the former British Labour Prime Minister, Mr. Gordon Brown took personal responsibility for the defeat of his party by the Conservatives.
Do the current national leaders of the CPC have any justification setting up caretaker committees and creating scapegoats when they themselves have no reason to remain in office any longer? They exhausted energy fighting the party’s popular candidates and imposing their own who were never legitimately elected at the primaries. Do they have to wait for General Buhari to tell them to take the path of honour and resign? Should any sensitive leader value office more than his credibility?
When they called a post-election evaluation meeting at the party secretariat in Abuja, the national leaders were openly booed by the chairmen of the party chapters across the country. Wasn’t that embarrassing incident a signal that they have lost the confidence of the CPC members and supporters?
Let us face it: the CPC requires radical surgery and that cannot be achieved by the present cosmetic strategy of sacking democratically elected leaders and replacing them with caretaker committees. The excessive idealism of the CPC national leaders was mainly responsible for the poor showing of the party during the 2011 elections. Humility is a critical element of effective leadership.
The all-knowing mentality of the CPC national leaders, which seeks to shut out other better ideas and opinions, will take the party nowhere. Any humble leader should listen to well-meaning advice. Unfortunately, when leaders assume a tin god posture, they cannot see reason or acknowledge where they go wrong, even if it may cost the party dearly. In the words of the great inspiration writer, John Mason, “the person who never changes his opinion can never correct his mistakes.”
Inflexibility and the posture of indispensability is the core reason why the current national leaders of the CPC should not be trusted with the responsibility of restructuring and reforming the party. They are part and parcel of the crises rocking the party. No realistic party leader should expect to displace popular politicians like Mohammed Abacha, Lado Dan Marke and Dan China in Kano, Katsina and Bauchi States and carry the people along. These popular politicians have touched the lives of the people so much that you cannot detach them from hearts of the ordinary people.
Only a man living in the moon would have expected Col. Lawal Ja’afaru Isa to defeat Mohammed Abacha at the primaries or any other elections. But the national leaders ignored reality and imposed Isa at all costs. And the party paid dearly for that miscalculation.
The appointment of caretaker committees to replace elected chairmen of CPC chapters in the country is like holding a conductor responsible for a man-made accident and letting the driver go scot-free!
General Buhari should order the immediate dissolution of the national leadership of the party and replace them with credible and grassroots-based politicians who can relate with the people better and win their trust. They should stop scratching the surface of crises that demand radical and courageous solution. In fact, Chief Mike Ahamba, a former Buhari loyalist, foresaw the disaster they were leading the CPC into and resigned. They are exploiting General Buhari’s trusting attitude to sit tight even when it is obvious that their continuation in office is an obstacle to progress.

Bart Nnaji Abruptly Resigns As Nigeria's Power Minister.

By SaharaReporters, New York

The minister of Power resources Professor Bart Nnaji has resigned as a minister in President Goodluck Jonathan's government.
A statement from the Presidency said the President Jonathan has accepted Prof. Nnaji's resignation.
 Mr. Cdon Anuba who acted as spokesperson to Prof. Nnaji also confirmed Nnaji's resignation to Saharareporters.

Oshiomhole Not Qualified to Be Governor – Tribunal told..

As the Edo State Electoral Tribunal hots up, the Tribunal has been told that Governor Adams Oshiomhole the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) candidate was not a fit, an appropriate person to contest the governorship election as a result of his academic qualifications as stimulated by the constitution. The Tribunal was also told that the primary schools claimed to have been attended by Adams Oshiomhole was not in existence as at the time he claimed to have attended the school and that he Oshiomhole did not complete the secondary modern school he claimed to have attended.
In response to the reply of the Election petition filed by General Charles Ehigie Airhiavbere (Rtd) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Airhiavbere lead counsels Chief E.L. Akpofure, SAN and S.O. Agwinede Esq said that the voters register used for the election was manipulated as a manual register was smuggled in and used in several polling units contrary to INEC and political parties earlier position.
The summary of the response are as follows:
PARTICULARS
1. There was no Iyamoh Primary School, Iyamoh in 1957.
a) The 1st Respondent (Adams Oshimhole) was barred from enrolling into and entering primary one in 1957 having not attained the minimum age of SIX YEARS by the provision of Western Region of Nigeria Garzette No. 17 Vol. 5 dated 5th April, 1956.
b) The 1st Respondent dropped (Adams Oshimhole) out of the Secondary Modern School in the second year and did not complete the mandatory three years course at Blessed Martin Secondary Modern School, Jattu-Uzairue, which he claimed to have attended between 1963 and 1965.
c) Unexplained discrepancies in the academic certificates presented as aforesaid.
d) The Petitioners state in reply to paragraph 27 of the said Reply that publication in the Newspaper like the Nation Newspaper does not cure the effect of the continued campaign carried out by the 1st and 2nd Respondents (Adams Oshiomhole and the ACN) beyond the prescribed campaign period as stipulated by law.
2. In specific reply to paragraph 24 of the 2nd Respondent’s Reply to the Petition, the Petitioners (Airhiavbere & PDP) state that the 1st Respondents (Adams Oshiomhole) is not the owner of the Secondary School Modern School Certificates and the altered Testimonial presented to the 3rd Respondent and the 1st Respondent does not have Primary School Leaving Certificate.
3. The Petitioners aver in reply to paragraph 23 of the 2nd Respondent’s Reply to the Petition that the 1st Respondent(Adams Oshiomhole) is not educated up to School Certificate Level or its equivalent contrary to Section 182 (1)(J) of the same Constitution (as amended) .
4. In answer and reply to paragraph 22 and 22(a) of the said 2nd Respondent’s Reply, the Petitioners (Airhiavbere & PDP) state that the production of new Manual Registers under any circumstance for use in the Governorship election in Edo State on the 14th day of July, 2012 amount to a revision or amendment which was clearly prohibited by the 3rd Respondent (INEC).
5. In further response to the said paragraph 15 and 16 of the 2nd Respondent’s Reply, the Petitioners state the laid down accreditation and voting procedures in the manual For Election Officials were not observed and the column for “Governor” were not ticked as required and box for entering number of accredited voters and other statistical Election data were not followed rendering the various Forms EC8A affected void.
6. In further answer and reply to paragraph 11(c) of the said 2nd Respondent’s Reply, the Petitioners state that any addition to or alteration of the said 2011 Voters Registers amount to a revision which the 3rd Respondent’s expressly and unambiguously prohibited. All revised Voters Registers are void as far as they affect the said July 14, 2012 Governorship Election in Edo State.

Edo Political Forum.

 

 

Perjury, Forgery: S/West PDP gives FG 14 days ultimatum to commence Tinubu’s trial.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the South-West has given the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) 14 days to commence the trial of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) leader and former governor of Lagos State, Bola Ahmed Tinubu for forgery and perjury.
The party said it was on record that Tinubu did not attend Government College, Ibadan as he stated in his profile and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) FORM CF. 001 in 1999, adding that; “it insults the sensibilities of Nigerians and the integrity of the country for liars and document forgers like Tinubu to be sermonising about good governance.”
PDP Zonal Publicity Secretary, Hon. Kayode Babade said in a statement issued in Ibadan today, that; “Until people who commit crimes are made to pay for their crimes, no matter their status, Nigerians will continue to see criminality as a way of life.”
Babade said; “It is on record that when Tinubu was Lagos State governor, a petition dated August l2, 1999, was written against him by one Alhaji Jameed Seriki of 62 Balogun Street, West, Lagos and one Dr. Waliu Balogun-Smith of 5 Unity Road, Ikeja, Lagos to the Inspector General of Police.
“The documents enclosed by the Petitioners were photocopies of Tinubu’s inauguration profile, INEC FORM CF. 001, affidavit sworn to at Ikeja High Court of Justice on 29th December 1998, the year books of Government College, Ibadan and the transcript of Chicago State University.
“It was alleged in the petition that there was discrepancy in the age of Bola Tinubu since the profile published during his inauguration stated that he was born in 1952 and the age on the transcript of the governor at Chicago State University states that he was born in 1954.
“Also on INEC form CF 001 1999, he said he was born on March 29, 1952, but on his passport with number, A1883991 he said he was born on March 29 1954 in Iragbiji, Osun State.
“Tinubu also claimed on oath that he attended Government College, Ibadan, which he never did. And curiously, he did not include the Government College, Ibadan in his INEC Form in 2003.
“Again, Tinubu lied on oath that he was a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in the United States. Curiously too, he did not include this qualification in his INEC Form in 2003. He simply wrote; ‘Not Applicable’ on both his O’ Level and Post Graduate qualifications.
“From the above, it is an established fact that Tinubu lied on oath about his attendance of Government College, Ibadan and the O’ Level certificate he filled in his INEC forms in 1999 was forged.
“Therefore, if perjury and forgery is still an offence punishable by the relevant laws of the country, Bola Ahmed Tinubu must be tried now!
“Failure to do this by the AGF will mean that Nigerians are free to go ahead and be committing forgery and perjury.”
TheTruthNg.com

Don advocates movable refineries to meet energy needs.

Port Harcourt – A university don, Prof. Godwin Igwe, has suggested that governments should build modular refineries in all states of the federation to meet the energy needs of Nigerians.
Igwe said in Port Harcourt on Tuesday that modular refineries were easy to assembly and were movable.
He said the building of such refineries would also be handy in addressing fuel scarcity problems.
Prof. Igwe is the Director, Centre for Gas, Refining and Petrochemicals, Institute of Petroleum Studies, University of Port Harcourt.
“Modular refineries are very simple refineries. You don’t have to make 300,000 barrels a day or whatever higher amount.
“You can tune it to such a level that you could produce between 20,000 to 100,000 barrels a day, and it’s movable. It is not like a big structured, big refinery.
“It will solve the problem by not making the diesel and other products that are involved in refining.
“You are only cracking for gasoline. If you have a process, you make diesel, you make the bottoms, at each boiling temperature, you have different materials, it is a manufacturing process.’’
Igwe also suggested that energy banks be set up to assist small-scale entrepreneurs who would work at the modular refineries.
He said government should discourage people involved in illegal refineries by making them to work at modular refineries.
“The bank will be geared towards people who are making and producing fuel for each of the 36 states. Our rich people can do that, by supporting these small-scale people.
“We have to support our entrepreneurs and most of them are very smart, but they do not have the money to back them up. (NAN)

Hope In The Time Of Trial By Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah.

Bishop Matthew Hassan KUKAH

By Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah

We boast of our troubles because we know that trouble produces endurance, endurance brings acceptance and this acceptance brings hope. This hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out His love into our hearts by means of the Holy Spirit who is God’s gift to us (Rom 5: 4)
Although it is true that these are trying times for Nigeria, nay, the world at large, it is not true that the causes of these trials are the same for all nations. Whereas our leaders love to seek refuge from their inefficiency by assuring us that we are not alone because neither corruption nor insecurity are peculiar to us, they forget that the disease might be the same, but the causes and cures are different. Whereas corrupt government officials in atheistic China could lose their lives if found guilty of an infraction against the state in their line of duty, in Nigeria, the most religious nation in the world, these same persons could actually prolong their lives by the size of their corruption. National honours, recognition by religious and traditional leaders all go to add to the give legitimacy to corruption by the elite. But the cumulative impact of corruption has come back to haunt us as it has become clear especially in the last ten years.
How will Nigeria survive these trials? In the end, how will this endurance bring us hope and is there any chance that this hope will not disappoint us? We prayed for an end to colonial rule and it came and went. No sooner did we become independent than our hopes were dashed. Then the military came. We endured, prayed and hope that the country would return to civil rule. That too has come to pass and today, we are more sorrowful and angry than at any time in our history.
In response to the Madalla bombing, I published an appeal to Nigerians titled, Do Not Be Afraid.In it, I enjoined Nigerians to remain steadfast and firm because we will survive the murderous trials and persecutions by the agents of evil who desecrate religion by wearing a devilish mask. Now, it is time for us to look up to the meaning of the cross of Christ as symbol of the triumph of good over evil. The challenge is whether indeed we as Christians can embark on genuine personal and communal repentance and commitment to turn to the true teachings of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He came that we might havelife and have it to the full(Jn. 10: 10). The humiliation and scandal of His death is the guarantee that all who die in Him will have eternal life (Jn. 11: 25, I Cor. 15: 22). In His cross is our hope that we Christians will understand that suffering has a meaning in God’s plans. At a time when Christians are made to believe that suffering is an aberration, we need to pray that God helps us to understand and appreciate its purifying effects in our lives as individuals and as a nation. We have seen the end of slavery and in our own times, the end of apartheid. In each case, the people become stronger.
To be sure, these are tough times for Christians in Nigeria. There is no doubt that the negligence of successive Government has created a climate of impunity in which Christians have continued to feel trapped in many parts their own country especially in the some northern states. Over the years, the federal and state governments have looked the other way as our Churches gradually became objects of desecration and target practice by a band of miscreants and criminal youths who claim to be Muslims. Our priests have been slaughtered from Kaduna to Maiduguri, thousands of innocent Christians have been trapped and murdered in their churches and homes. Their places of worship and their properties have been destroyed while the governments of Nigeria continued to fiddle and fritter away the opportunity for national cohesion. The incompetence of governments has opened up a vacuum where criminals wear a religious mask.
Rather than feel under siege or threatened, we Christians must arise to the fact that these are the trials that bring forth endurance. It is sad to hear Christians sound as if Jesus made a mistake by offering a higher goal than the murderers and arsonists can understand. Faced with protracted injustice and violence, I hear some Christians wonder what Jesus meant when He said: You have heard it said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I tell you, do not take revenge on someone who wrongs you. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, let him slap you on the left as well (Mk 5: 38-9). Some Christians have sought to moderate their thoughts by claiming that after offering their two cheeks which have been struck by the enemy, it is time that we must feel justified to seek revenge. Others claim that these criminals must be taught a lesson so that they do not think that they have a monopoly of violence.
The anger and the frustrations of our people are understandable especially against the backdrop of an incompetent state which has lost its ability to apprehend and punish criminals. But, as the late Rev Martin Luther King said, It is only the love of Jesus that is capable of transforming an enemy into a friend. It was well after His executioners had completed their work that they acknowledged that, Truly, this was indeed the Son of God (Mt. 27: 54). Mahatma Gandhi who preached non-violence was not a Christian. Rev. Martin Luther King or a Nelson Mandela, his disciples embraced non-violence and in the end, they all have triumphed and left the world a memorable legacy that years of violence and vengeance could not produce.
Forgiveness and good neighbourliness have always been part of our lives as Africans before evil crept into our lives, dividing us into Christians and Muslimsrather than brothers and sisters. Easter gives us Christians a chance to preach this message because we are Christians not because of what anyone else believes or thinks.
Jesus said to us: I tell you who hear me. Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you and pray for those who ill-treat you (Lk 6: 27, Mt 5: 44). We are most gratified by the fact that over time, our Christian youths have continued to conduct themselves in the most peaceful manner in keeping with the laws of the land even against provocation. Till date, there is no record of any Christian youth who has ever set out to burn or destroy a mosque. Wherever anything has happened to the contrary, it has been an act of self-defense to repel these miscreants. I hope that their Muslim counterparts can learn a lesson from this and hopefully, together, our youths can become agents of peace. But we religious leaders must work hard to create environment for collaboration and avoid stoking the emblems of division and hatred through what we teach our youth. The federal government must be awake to its duty because it is its negligence that has left the public space open to scoundrels.
Sadly, our nation is still in the woods despite claims of superfluous religiosity. A climate of moral relativism and uncertainty, a blurred vision, hangs gloomily in the air. A sense of what or who is right or wrong is contested. Can any senior public officer ever go to jail in Nigeria for stealing? The answer is, it depends. Can Nigerians ever agree that the stealing of state resources is a sin? The answer is, it depends.
Do we know how anyone can get a job that they qualify for in Nigeria? The answer is, it depends. Do we know how a good man or woman can win an election in Nigeria without money or the power to corrupt the system? The answer is, it depends. How do you gain admission into a University in Nigeria? The answer is, it depends. What qualifications do you need to get a job of a contract in Nigeria? The answer is, it depends. Having secured a job, how do you retain it or get promoted? The answer is, it depends. Is there any hope that one day the Judiciary will really and truly become blind to social status and power in Nigeria? The answer is, it depends. Will Nigeria come out of this mess or ever develop a sense of shame? The answer is, it depends.
The challenge of Easter is for us to rethink the reality of our faith. Although it easy for us to say that he world is in crisis, the fact is that indeed, it is religion and the loss of its moral compass that account for this crisis. In Nigeria, we have watched over the years as those in power have seduced religion and religious leaders and have now domesticated religion. We have watched as religion has lost its moral authority, independence and capacity to speak truth to power. We have surrendered our altars to politicians and men and women of influence and power. The thunderous prophetic power of the Church is gradually becoming a whisper, with religion becoming a balm to cover the ugliness of corruption. The Church has been caught up with power and now, the hunter has become the hunted. Prayers warriors, sorcerers and prophets, for a little share of the filthy lucre are promising to arm-twist God to do the will of their clients even when they steal elections or loot the state treasury. Is it any wonder that truth has been so relativised that a culture of it depends has now emerged?
In this climate of moral relativism, can the word of God regain its power? The answer is yes, because,St Paul assured us that: The word of God is living and powerful! It is sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the dividing of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12). We must recover this power so we can cut through the clouds of doubts that have dulled our consciences. Our Christian politicians must be encouraged to make a difference in our political life. We have models and the Catholic Church has continued to point the way for Christians to make a difference in their public life.
To this end, the Catholic Church has recognized the nobility of politics as a vocation and a call to public service. In 2000, the late Holy Father, Pope John Paul 11 made St Thomas More (A Man for All Seasons) the patron saint and model of Christian politicians. Closer home, our own late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere is on his way to being beatified and presented by the Catholic Church as a model for African politicians. Against this backdrop, I want to appeal to our Christians to continue to uphold the principles of the Christian Gospel especially as it pertains to honesty, distributive justice, accountability, integrity and the pursuit of the common good. May the Lord raise up saintly politicians for us.
Finally, the simplicity of life of Jesus should be the model for us Christians especially in an environment where modesty is gradually giving way to unruly, unscrupulous and greedy quest and display of often ill-gotten wealth. We learn from Jesus how not to use power wrongly because; the one who was God did not take advantage of his equality with God but became obedient unto death (Phil 2: 8). There is a lot for us to learn from the selflessness of the early Church as we learn from their life of love and sharing. There is need to listen to the words of St James who has told us that: True and genuine religion is this, taking care of orphans and widows in their suffering and keeping oneself from being corrupted by the world (James 1: 27).

It is this insatiable greed that has destroyed our nation, created a climate of violence and chaos. In celebrating Easter, we must think of Jesus, the one who had everything but came to the world in a borrowed womb (Lk. 1:38), was born in a borrowed stable (Lk. 2:7), had no where to lay His head (Mt. 8:20, Lk. 9: 58), had His last supper on a borrowed room and table (Mk 14: 14-15), rode to Jerusalem on a borrowed donkey (Mk 11: 2-3) and even in death, was buried in a borrowed tomb (Lk. 23: 53). The Lord Himself has assured us, Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God and trust in me (Jn. 14: 1).
The late American President, Benjamin Franklin said:Doing an injury puts you below your enemy. Avenging injury may make you even with him. 
But forgiving sets you above your enemy. May the one who forgave his killers who did not know what they were doing (Lk 23:34), grant us the grace to forgive those who have caused us untold grief and brought our nation almost to its knees.  May He grant peace to those who have died in these trials and consolation to their families. Nigerians will laugh again for our Redeemer liveth. A happy and blessed Easter to you.
Bishop Matthew Hassan KUKAH
Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese.

Southsouth, Southeast, Southwest battle for INEC’s Secretary.

By Yusuf Alli, Abuja.

INEC Chairman Prof. Jega

•Kaugama bows out in six months •Odds favour Southwest

Three geo-political zones are battling for the office of the Secretary of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) which may be vacant in the next six months.
The zones are Southsouth, Southeast and the Southwest.
Also, there are indications that the presidency may bring in an experienced civil servant outside the electoral commission for the post. But INEC staff members are also pushing for the appointment of one of their experienced directors.
The said since there are about 67 directors in the commission, it is needless bringing in another director who will have to learn the rudiments of managing an Electoral Management Board (EMB).
The tenure of the current Secretary of INEC, Alhaji Abdullahi Kaugama would end in the next six months, it was learnt.
Besides the tenure issue, it was also learnt that in line with the ongoing reforms of INEC by its Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, the Secretary would have been asked to step aside because he is from the same Northwest geopolitical zone with INEC chair.
Although Jega inherited INEC Secretary, there had been agitations within INEC that a zone cannot produce the two top posts in the electoral commission.
A source in government said: “Since the INEC chairman is from the North, naturally the position of Secretary will come from the South. I am aware that this has been the pattern at least since the Second Republic (1979 to1983).
“What we have now is that the three zones in the South (Southsouth, Southeast and Southwest) are jostling for the office. 
“As a matter of fact, the Southsouth has thrown up some candidates including the Administrative Secretary of the commission in Imo State Mr. Udoh from Cross River State, Head of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) from Akwa Ibom, Okop; the Director of Political Party Monitoring from Delta State, Mrs. Regina Omo-Agege, and former Head of Legal Affairs, Wole Uzzi.
“The odds may however favour the Southwest because out of the three zones, only the Southwest has never produced either the chairman or Secretary of the electoral commission. But some stakeholders want the office thrown open to all the zones.
“It is left to INEC management to come up with a benchmark for the selection of the new secretary.
“If INEC is allowed to choose its Secretary from within, it has to pick one out of the 67 directors on its payroll.
A breakdown of the directors in the commission is as follows:  Niger (two); Delta (three); Kaduna (two); Sokoto (one); Benue (nine) Anambra (nine); Zamfara (two); Cross River (three); Enugu (one); Kano (one); Plateau (three); Imo (four); Akwa Ibom (three); Bayelsa (two); Kogi (one); Katsina (one); Osun (one); Abia (three); Gombe (one); Kebbi (three); Lagos (two); Edo (three); Ogun (one); Bauchi (two); Jigawa (one); Yobe (one); and Borno  (two).
Another source however claimed that attempts by Jega-led INEC to start its reforms with the choice of a new Secretary may suffer some setbacks as the Presidency is contemplating bringing in an experienced civil servant on board.
The INEC officials are however opposed to the plan because the commission has enough directors who could fit into the bill.
The source said: “I think some politicians are trying to pull the strings to have a civil servant from outside as INEC secretary. They probably want somebody they could control.
“Yet, this was the same method that almost crippled INEC in the past. Most of the former secretaries came from the civil service who owed allegiance to the powers that be. In line with INEC reform focus, the PricewaterhouseCoopers Report favours a Secretary from within.
“If a Secretary comes from outside, he will just start learning which may not augur well for the system.
“Most staff favour internal candidate for the job. We have had stability in INEC because Abdullahi A. Kaugama had been part of the service since 1987.
“Kaugama started his Federal Service Career with the then National Electoral Commission (NEC) as an Electoral Officer in Kano from March 1987 to November 1992; he rose to become the Chief Personal Officer (NEC) Jigawa till April 1994. He later became Deputy Director (Admin and Human Resources) at INEC Headquarters Abuja from May 2004 to March 2005.
“He was promoted Director on GL 17 while still serving as the Administrative Secretary of INEC Katsina State, a position he held until 1st February 2007, when he was appointed the acting Secretary of the Commission.
“If the government imposes a Secretary on INEC, it will not be tidier enough for the system and it might have implications for the transparency of the electoral process in 2015. That was a major internal challenge which INEC had during the annulment of June 12, 1993 election.”

Jonathan has admitted failure, says ACN.

The Action Congress of Nigeria has described the lamentations of President Goodluck Jonathan at the opening of the 52nd Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Bar Association as the most criticised president in the world, as an admission of failure, incompetence and unpreparedness to govern.
Jonathan at the conference wondered why he was being held responsible for the state of insecurity, power failure, decaying infrastucture even though his administration inherited these problems
In a statement issued in Ibadan on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said that what a nation expects from a president even at a time of crisis are words that will inspire the citizens and give them confidence that the helmsman is on top of the situation and not the kind of words credited to President Jonathan which are only capable of demoralising the citizenry and telling them things are out of control and that he is completely at loss as at what to do.
“Great leaders in the world like Winston Churchill, Dwight Eisenhower, JF Kennedy are remembered today more importantly for the quality of leadership they provided their various nations at moments of crisis. Even in the face of imminent defeat and paralysing casualties Winston Churchill was still able to inspire and rally his people to victory and faced with Cuban Missile crisis President J. F. Kennedy did not throw up his hands in despondency,” the party added.
“Hasn’t anyone told President Jonathan that the buck stops on his desk? Hasn’t anyone told President Jonathan that an administration inherits both the assets and liabilities of his predecessor in office. Hasn’t anyone told President Jonathan that his responsibilities as President include clearing the mess left by his predecessors in office while at the same time leaving his own legacies. Does President Jonathan expect sympathy from the citizens by this open admission of incompetence and resignation to failure, the party asked.
“What Nigerians expect from their leader are uplifting words, words of inspiration that can bring out the hidden potentials of its citizens, words that will galvanise Nigerians to positive action and imbue them with self esteem and not the kind of lamentations of President Jonathan that have served only to confirm that the ship of state has no helmsman and everyone is at peril,” the party concluded.
PMNews.

Electricity will drop by 300MW after rainy season – NERC.

 by ALLWELL OKPI.

Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, Dr. Sam Amadi

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has said power generation will drop by 300 megawatts after rainy season and this will partly cancel the improvement in electricity supply experienced recently in some parts of the country.

While answering questions during a recent e-conference on power sector reforms, organised by Spaces for Change, a human rights organisation, the Chairman of the NERC, Dr. Sam Amadi, said the recent improvement had been due to repairs of some power plants and high water volume occasioned by the rainy season.

Amadi told the moderator of the e-conference, Zainab Usman, of the International Crisis Group, Brussels, that it was unrealistic to expect more than 5000MW by December.

He urged Nigerians not to be too hopeful about the recent improvement, stating that a massive haulage of power will come in the near future.

“The current improvement in generation is because of repairs on plants which resulted in the recovery of lost capacity, and of course, the rise in rainfall has helped us to recover about 200 to 300MW lost during the dry season.

“We have over 20000MW of licensed power. If we succeed in creating a market that allows for these licensees to get to bankability for their projects, then we are home and dry. So, we should not invest much hope on this small improvement.

“The key thing is to let Nigerians know that although in the next eight months or so, we may not see a major haul of new power, in the subsequent eight months, we will make significant and sustainable progress,” he said.

Amadi noted that the capacity building embarked upon by NERC was yet to yield results in terms of improvement in power generation and distribution.

Amadi also noted the bane of the power sector has been corruption, which had continued to undermine the investments made in the sector.

He said, but for corruption, the National Integrated Power Project initiated by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration would have provided at least an additional 5000MW of power.

Amadi also reiterated that the prepaid meters were to be distributed to customers free of charge.

“Meters are no longer to be paid for by customers. That is the law. But practice may be different in many different places. Please refuse to pay for meters and report anyone who asks or collects money for meter to NERC and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission,” he said.

Abuja not designed for common man –Bala.

THE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Bala Mohammed, at the weekend stunned his audience when he disclosed that the Abuja Master Plan was not envisaged to accommodate the needs of the common man.
Mohammed spoke at the formal signing of the agreement for an Addendum of Variation of Scope Contract with the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) to facilitate the completion of the multi-billion naira Abuja Light Rail  Project, which commenced in 2006 but had been comatose since then due to lack of funds.
His words: “With all regrets,  Abuja initially did not capture the needs and aspiration of the common people and the middle level manpower that we have in terms of affordable housing.”
According to the minister, Abuja, the nation’s capital was designed to accommodate only a million people, but   that the territory now has a population of about four to five million people living in the area thereby putting pressure on available infrastructural facilities.
“Abuja has more than four to five million people living in a place where it is supposed to be inhabited with only about a million people at the moment,” he said.
The FCT minister, however, disclosed that the government was  poised  to provide infrastructural facilities at the satellite towns of the territory to give comfort to the middle class workforce that lives outside the city centre, and whose earnings may not afford them the  luxury of private and chauffeur-driven vehicles.
“At the end of the day we are going to reduce the pressure on our corridors by using the mass transit scheme to be provided by the Abuja Rail Project and the employment opportunity it will provide for the population.
“We are going to provide employment opportunities for over one million people. And you can see that when people come to Abuja they try to stay anyhow. I am sorry with all apology and regrets that Abuja initially did not capture the needs and aspiration of the common people and the middle level manpower that we have in terms of affordable housing,” he said.
But Mohammed assured that President Goodluck Jonathan had given the FCT administration the marching order to look inward and facilitate the provision of housing for the people in that category in order to address the numerous social impediments normally presente them.

The parasites.

By Sam Omatseye.

Uduaghan

Why is it that a part of the northern elite has decided to swim in the Niger Delta oil, for all its beautiful blackness and viscous glory? Why is Kwankwaso, the Kano State Governor, not embroiled in the debate with policy wonks on how to bring back the pyramidal triumphs of Kano’s groundnut past? Or why is the ebullient Babangida Aliyu, his Niger State counterpart and head of the northern governors, not devoting his well-known imagination to furthering the frontiers of productivity and harmony as he has been doing?
What is going on is that the North is confronting a mammoth paradox today: a stunning epiphany and an overwhelming denial. A light has fallen into the northern room, but it is at once illuminating and blinding. The illumination comes from its realisation that the North today is not the North of 20 years ago, where it flexed muscles and dictated what happened from the tips of Sokoto to the ocean waves in Lekki Peninsula. 
That was the north of the shadowy Kaduna mafia, the force of men powerful for being anonymous. They were the predators, growling and belching smoke. It was a rampart of power, deciding resource allocations, fuelling military coups, assigning contracts, guzzling and gurgling the oil of the Niger Delta. The mafia, for want of a better word, inspired fear and trembling, respect and loathing, and all the vile emotions in between. 
But it was a quiet and sullen force, not enamoured of public debate nor given to dithering. It had the power of crime and punishment as well as reward. Cocky and quietly defiant, it sometimes carried notoriety as a badge.
Today, the northern power force has no such weight. That is where the denial is. It is because of the denial that we have northern elite bluster in public. It is because there is not much private power. In the heyday of the mafia, they would have shunned the theatre of public debate about offshore and onshore dichotomy. They would have done what they did when derivation was only one per cent. Now, they have to shout and remind one of Wole Soyinka’s chiding of the dowagers of Negritude: a tiger should not shout its “tigritude.” The point is that there are no genuine tigers in the vast lands of the North any more.
But it is not in the character of this column to gloat, since the issue of onshore/offshore dichotomy is not a debate that extends the frontiers of one nation. This is a sombre reality because it is a question of power more than harmony.
But more interesting is that the Niger Delta, which encases the oil, has ironically been a longtime ally of the north. The North has always played the avuncular or even paternal role, dictating the orientation of its politics and enjoying the obeisance of the South-south elite. Its first shock was the emergence of Goodluck Jonathan as President, even though he did it without any regard for the niceties of a statesman. However, Jonathan has shaken the North and it is looking for legitimate means of reasserting itself. But rather than do it by recalibrating its strategy, using its vast size and numerous constituencies and brilliant political players, it is trying to use the brawn of its glory days. That is futile today. That is why its pursuit of the revenues of the Niger Delta states mocks its imperial past.
The relation between the North and the Niger Delta is a clear case of oedipal complex. The father has woken up to see that the son is so powerful that he can slay his former superior. It is the potential equivalent of political parricide.
There are a number of reasons why the call for a review of the offshore/onshore dichotomy cannot stand. One, the 2004 decision by the National Assembly was a compromise that involved every stakeholder from the North. Two, the 13 per cent given to the people of the region is miniscule given what comes out of the bowels of their earths. Three, why does the North want to cut into the 13 per cent when a man like Kwankwaso knows that in the years of the groundnut pyramid, the region enjoyed as much as 50 per cent in derivation. Import duties were also paid to the regions. Is our history going to serve as a parasitic one or a productive one? Why are the states not focused on generating the huge potential that mock us daily in every state? We are seeing already how some governors are raking up more money in internally generated revenue in places like Edo, Oyo, Lagos, Osun and Ekiti. Even Sokoto State has had a good record in that regard. 
In fact, a state like Kano that compares itself in population and investment to Lagos should follow what Lagos has been doing to generate funds as a non-oil state. States like Delta, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Rivers have suffered great environmental degradation from oil pollution. The communities cost more to develop than any part of the country.
In his lecture in Asaba last week, Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, stressed the point that oil does not last forever.  Hear him: “If the demand for resource control has remained trenchant, it is simply because our people have for long lived with the stark evidence of a mindless exploitation of the oil resources in their land. They have lived with the despoliation and degradation of their environments without concomitant benefits…”
He noted that the “peaceful nature of the people” is taken for granted, adding that oil will not last forever.  “There are two cardinal points I envisage. One, get the most you can from oil now as you transform to a post-oil era,” Uduaghan said, echoing his signature: Delta Beyond Oil initiative. “Two, develop other resources of revenue and diversify your economy…”
A study noted that if the offshore money was redistributed to all the states, they would get about 150 million each. How can that make a Dubai of the northern states?
Why would a state suffer the consequences of its littoral status and not enjoy the benefits. The most potent in this regard is Akwa Ibom State. Its Governor, Godswill Akpabio, with massive infrastructure development and education, has deployed its resources to elevate a state that has suffered from the pollution of its waters.
Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers states suffer both from onshore and offshore violations. To deny this is to be insensitive. Not long ago, we witnessed the escalation of militancy in that region. We do not want eruptions of rage in that region again as it will compound the pains of a nation still trying to come to terms with the agonies of Boko haram.
Bauchi State Governor Isa Yuguda hit the bull’s eye when, in dissociating himself from some of his northern colleagues, asserted that the Niger Delta communities have suffered greatly suffering and should be compensated. Second, he echoed the point that the north took part in the debate and decision against onshore/offshore dichotomy. 
This is not the time to curse the darkness of discord in the land. Let us light candles. I argued on this page that 13 per cent was little. Now, some want that also removed. The point they want to make is that foul is fair.

Is the fuel subsidy cabal too powerful?

Written by Jibrin Ibrahim.

inShare

There is increasing evidence that mega looters have taken over the economy and maybe the political system of Nigeria. The mega looters are using our stolen resources to give themselves impunity and to prevent the State and its judicial system from sanctioning them.

They are now taking over the Nigerian labour movement after defeating the police and the anti-corruption agencies. When the House of Representatives tried to deal with the mega thieves, the response was carefully planned and executed. Farouk Lawan who led the Committee ended up as the accused. Even civil society appears cowed as we try with great difficulty to understand what is going on and we are unable to take appropriate measures. Recent actions by NUPENG and the NLC have been confusing and have raised issues on which side they are on, the people or the mega thieves. The action of the Government is very scandalous.

People who are given licenses to import fuel have been provided very high patronage and privilege because the fuel importation system has been designed to provide mega profits for these friends of government. They should have imported the fuel and quietly enjoyed their mega profits. It turned out that most of them did not import any fuel and were simply pocketing a significant proportion of the national budget. When the discovery was done, I expected the Jonathan Administration to be very angry at the economic sabotage carried out by these unpatriotic and wicked elements. I saw no anger. I hear the Minister of Finance celebrating on television that the mega thieves have refunded some of the booty they have stolen. I read in the papers that the mega thieves want to negotiate a partial refund. In any country which takes its integrity and economy seriously, the demand would have been for immediate refund and prosecution to ensure they spend a long time in jail.

Rather than that, the mega thieves pay NUPENG to organise a strike and blockade of the federal capital and openly threaten the Government that they will bring the Jonathan Administration to its knees if it does not continue to pay for fuel that has not been supplied. The response of Government was to negotiate with them, beg them and cajole them. Is the Government mad? The stupendous wealth these people control is based 100 percent on Government patronage. How can they threaten the same Government that is making them super rich? And how can the Government succumb to the blackmail?

The Nigerian Labour Congress owes Nigerians an explanation for their shameful action in support of the mega thieves. How can they come out to openly support the mega thieves? In January, we had engaged in a struggle in which lives were lost to compel Government to look inward at their friends in the oil cabal who were responsible to the spectacular increase in the amount of money spent on the so called fuel subsidy. We called for investigation and prosecution of the cabal. When NLC chickened out of the struggle, their excuse was that they had been threatened. Who is threatening them now to support the same cabal that we fought against? They must apologies to Nigerians for selling out. Government must be very pleased with itself that the trade unions are now wheelers and dealers and are no longer in a position to organise a credible strike but are available to organise strikes on behalf of those looting our national treasury.

There is a real question today about whether we have a functional state. We now learn that Nigeria, the country with the largest armored forces in Africa is paying the former militant, Alhaji Dokubo-Asari $9 million a year, to get his militants protect our oil pipelines which they used to destroy. He is not the only one. NNPC is reported to be paying $3.8 million a year apiece to two former rebel leaders, Gen. Ebikabowei “Boyloaf” Victor Ben and Gen. Ateke Tom for the same pipeline protection. In addition, yet another one, General “Tompolo” Ekpumopolo, maintains a $22.9 million-a-year contract to do the same, the official said.

Nigeria is paying out hundreds of millions of dollars a year to maintain an uneasy calm in the Niger Delta, where attacks ranging from theft to bombings to kidnappings had led to a significant decline in oil production. Production, we are now told, has risen to its former level of 2.6 million barrels a day. Most of the extra money earned is however paid back to the former militants or distributed to the fuel subsidy cabal. The risk posed by the action of Government is that everybody now knows that the rewards of militancy and economic sabotage are millions of dollars. The prime placed on paying off saboteurs would definitely lead to an escalation of their activities. According to reports, oil theft appears to be on the rise again. Shell has announced that an estimated 150,000 barrels of oil are stolen from Nigerian pipelines daily. Some experts think this estimate is actually much lower than the reality.

Following a review of totally incomprehensible and contradictory presentations by Governmental ministries, departments and agencies, the House Of Representatives Committee on Fuel Subsidy was able to make a credible estimate that the probable daily consumption of Petrol from the record of marketers and NNPC comes to an average of 31.5 million litres daily. It, therefore, proposed the continuation of subsidy for Petrol and Kerosene and suggested a budget of N806.766 Billion for the 2012 fiscal year. The Committee asserted that the 445,000 bpd allocation to NNPC is sufficient to provide the Nation with its needs in petrol and kerosene, with proper management and efficiency. The Committee recommended the refund to the treasury of the sum of N1, 06 trillion for various violations. The Government now is talking of a refund of only 400 billion.

It is clear that fuel subsidy corruption has revealed a new trend of corruption in Nigeria. In the past, corrupt transactions took place mainly through contract inflation, over- invoicing and receiving of kickbacks. But the fuel subsidy corruption has witnessed situations whereby people collect subsidy payments without making any supplies, collect foreign exchange without supplying petrol and collect subsidy payments for not supplying petrol having collected foreign exchange for the purpose.

The spectacular failure of recent high profile criminal prosecutions relating to corruption dramatizes the collapse of the system of public prosecution in Nigeria. It appears clear that the fuel subsidy cabal are likely to defeat the judiciary and get away free. The body language of the Government is a good indicator. We do not see anger in the voices of Government as they talk about the issue. No wonder some of those being prosecuted would have the temerity to ask for their passports back so that they can travel abroad for their summer holidays.

We Nigerians must act more as citizens and not subjects. The country belongs to us all and we can no longer leave the political space and bureaucracy to shenanigans, and for common thieves and crooks. If the mega thieves are too strong for the Government, we need to devise new strategies to continue the struggle against corruption. Above all, we need to assess what is happening to the Nigerian state and seek pathways towards saving it.

I can’t rule a divided nation – Jonathan.

From DailyPost.

President Goodluck Jonathan has said that he still believe in one Nigeria, noting that the unity of the country is his main priority.
Jonathan who spoke through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati in Abuja affirmed that he can’t govern a divided country.
He said this against the backdrop of the declaration of independence by the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People and the Bakassi Self-Determination Front, all of them from the South-South zone.
He said, “The Federal Government is committed to the unity of Nigeria. It also believes strongly in the indivisibility of the country. This is also enshrined in the constitution.
“The president has made it clear that he would not preside over a divided Nigeria.
On the groups declaring “republics,” Abati said the news had so far remained in the realms of online reports with nobody coming out publicly to make the declarations.
“These things are only seen on the Internet. It is easy for people to sit in the comfort of their rooms and make pronouncements.
“But the country remains one and the government is committed to that unity,” he said.
Meanwhile, Abati kept mum on government’s decision on the declarations by some groups.

Presidency defends billions paid to Niger Delta ex-militants.

The Presidency on Sunday defended the yearly award of about N5.6bn contracts to former Niger Delta militants to protect oil pipelines. It said the contract was in the interest of the nation.
Speaking in a telephone interview with our correspondent, the Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said Nigeria had benefited immensely from the exercise.
He said that the volume of crude oil being produced in the country had increased tremendously since the exercise commenced.
A Wall Street Journal report last week focused on the yearly payment of about N5.6bn to former Niger-Delta war-lords for guarding the oil pipelines in the restive region.
The report gave a break-down of the militants involved in the contracts as ‘General’ Government Tompolo Ekpumopolo,N3.6bn; Asari Dokubo, 1.44bn; ‘General’ Ateke Toms,N560m and ‘General’ Ebikabowei Boyloaf Victor Ben, N560m.
While defending the government action, which Okupe said was done by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, he said, “Since this exercise began, the crude oil production has jumped from 1.8mbpd to 2.6mbpd.
“That is an increment of over $700m income per day to the government.   So, when you compare what was paid to get this benefit, it pales into insignificance.”
He said the issue of pipeline and their safety were matters of national security and should not be politicised.
Okupe said it was on record that oil majors were already engaged in community protection of pipelines and there was no better way to secure the pipelines than to employ members of the community within the community were built.
Moreover, he said the transaction for the contracts were “with NNPC and corporate organisations who have the abilities to protect the pipelines and the nation is enjoying the benefits.”
But the Congress for Progressive Change in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Rotimi Fashakin, argued that the Jonathan regime had earlier in the year, awarded the contract for the nation’s maritime security to Global West Vessel Specialist Agency, a private firm owned by Ekpumopolo.
It said that the reason given by the Federal Government for its action “is the inability to ‘source’ the $103m needed to invest over a 10-year period on a Project expected to garner N124bn into the nation’s coffers, generate 1,375 direct jobs and 1,620 indirect jobs.”
It also added a contract of an undisclosed sum was awarded in July 2012 to the same company owned by Tompolo for the supply of 20 patrol boats to the Nigerian Navy.
The opposition party said it “considers these actions as grave financial imprudence by a regime that seems not to ‘give a damn’ if the nation totters.”
It asked the government to say if the regime was giving tacit approval to militancy as legitimate occupation in the country, wondering why the Niger-Delta insurgency was never known to Nigerians during the military regimes.
The CPC appealed to the National Assembly to urgently look at the contracts and take a decisive action on them.
Okupe, however, said the CPC was just being mischievous in its actions.
- The Punch

Opposition parties aren’t better than PDP – Alkali.

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From: TAIWO AMODU, Abuja
Professor Rufai Ahmed Alkali, immediate past National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dismissed the ongoing alliance talks among some parties as a mere flash in the pan, which any discerning gladiator of the PDP should not be bothered about. In an interactive session with journalists in Abuja, Alkali submits that Nigerians are used to alliance discourse among opposition parties, which he claims have no fresh initiative on governance. Excerpts:
You are the immediate past National Publicity Secretary of the PDP. Since you left office, Nigerians have not been hearing from you despite various issues that have arisen on the political turf. Why this long silence?
First and foremost, I want to thank you all for taking your time to come and see me. As you are aware, the national convention of PDP took place in March this year and following the convention, new set of National Working Committee members emerged under the leadership of Dr. Bamanga Tukur and subsequently we handed over to the new NWC. So, it is logical that having served out our time of four years, the best thing to do was to step back and step aside, if you like, to give the new leadership of our party time to settle down to do the serious business of managing our great party. With that, I thought, the best thing to do is to continue praying for them and assist them in whatever way possible through any advice, where necessary, to enable them to also succeed. As you are aware, managing party politics worldwide is a serious business, more so in an emerging democracy like Nigeria.  The leadership of the party requires all the support, cooperation and prayers of every member of the party and also for them to build on what we left behind. I have been reluctant to talk. I needed time to settle down but now that you have taken the pains to come and insisted we talk, you want to ask one or two questions, as a party man and a man who has dedicated himself a long time to fighting for our people at every level, it will be impudent to discourage you.
Some opposition parties like the Action Congress of Nigeria and Congress for Progressive Change are already having alliance talks ahead of the 2015 general election and already saying they are going to displace PDP. How do you see this development?
As you are aware, one of the fundamentals of popular democracy is that there should be more than one political party in the political terrain, to provide options or alternatives to the ruling party. Nigeria, as I have said repeatedly, in normal condition, believes in multi-party even though there was a time people tried to put a tag on PDP that we are opposed to other political parties surviving. The truth has triumphed. PDP has always believed in multi-party system and that is what has been provided for in our constitution and that has always been the bases for our interaction and relations with other groups. But no political party would also like to consign itself to the back bench. Each political party wants to struggle and fight hard to make its mark. PDP has been in the centre in this country since 1999 and despite the imperfections of popular democracy, it has made its own contributions. Sometimes it is difficult to appreciate things, particularly when we have them. I know the leadership of this country under PDP has made giant strides at so many levels but that does not mean that the other political parties will not try to upstage PDP. They have been trying to do that. The blessing is that they think merely being anti-PDP or fighting PDP is enough for Nigerians to accept them. It is not enough. They have failed to come up with something that is different, something that is fresh, something to show to the country that they can do better if they are given the chance. So far what we have seen, because of court rulings and thanks to the dogged commitment of the government both under the late Alhaji Umaru Yar’Adua and under our current President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, is the believe in the rule of law. The judiciary has been giving window of opportunities to political parties, especially the opposition, to take over power in so many states of our country. But in those states that the opposition was able to get judgment like Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun, Edo and the rest, you find that so far, apart from the populism that they bandy around, they have not done anything close to what PDP has done. So, in that case, they cannot pretend to be better than PDP. In fact, what they are doing in some of the states, like Ogun where they held local government election, it was terrible. In Lagos, the last local government election held about one and half years ago was a fiasco. It was one of the most scandalous elections that was ever held in this country. But because they can make a lot of noise from the Lagos side, the rest of the country kept quiet. So, in that case people are not fooled. They can continue making alliances and counter alliances but because they are not united to provide any alternative to this country, to PDP, they are not likely to make any substantial progress. But that should not make members of PDP to be complacent or to take things for granted because one of the greatest mistakes anybody can make is to overestimate his own ability or underestimate the capability of his enemy or his opponent. So far we have been having these incremental damages through these court decisions. For example, Edo has gone, now he (Governor Oshiomhole) has been dancing around that he won election but we know what happened in Edo. Now we are moving to Ondo and I am very happy to note that the people of Ondo have come out very solidly behind our own friend and brother, former National Legal Adviser of PDP, Chief Olusola Oke. If the kind of spirit that the people of Ondo State demonstrated in choosing the candidate is sustained, if they continue along that line, I cannot see how a third rate political party can come and overload themselves on PDP in Ondo State. But PDP must put its house in order. That is the reality. We must unite. In all the states in this country where there is no unity among PDP members, PDP has lost out.
President Goodluck Jonathan recently had parley with stakeholders from Plateau over the Jos crisis. What is your take on this initiative to resolve the Jos crisis?
First and foremost, we are known to be cosmopolitan people. Nigerians are historically mobile, they move from one place to another to establish businesses, to establish all kinds of relationships with other communities. Therefore, it is very difficult to take a knife and cut a community and say this community is completely distinct from the other community. In the case of Plateau, it is one of the darlings in northern Nigeria because by its own climate, by its own historical evolution, everything about it makes it a cosmopolitan place for everybody to be there. May be you call it a melting pot just like Kaduna, Lagos, or Abuja. These are cities with people from all walks of life. The moment people begin to see themselves or see others or treat others or be treated as different, then the basis for peace are undermined. We thought the foundation for these entire problems is this indigene/settler thing, which is unknown to the Nigerian constitution. The rest of the country does not know this issue and if this issue can be detached from the lexicon of the people in Plateau State, I believe that over 50 per cent of the problem has been sorted out. When I read some of the stories, some of them are completely out of contest. To talk about the Jihad that some people are trying to wage in Plateau. I don’t know where people get some of these ideas. I feel there is need for co-habitation and collaboration. Everybody need each other. What the Federal Government has done in recent past is very good, especially the parley that has been started, inviting stakeholders, talk to them dispassionately, listen to their views, listen to their opinions, understand their position, understand their views, understand their fears and then listen to the other side, understand their problems and plight and subsequently bring them together as they are trying to do. Beyond that, those who have been coming and talking to the President and the government must also be very frank and very honest because it is one thing to come and tell the President a position and when the government takes a final decision everything again is jettisoned and we are again back to square one. So, there must be signs of willingness on the part of everybody to come together because ultimately it is the peace that is most important. In the past, Plateau was like a home for everyone, it was the centre of trade and centre of industries. Today, Plateau is on its knees and then for how long? I feel that the step that the government has taken now, bringing people step by step first and subsequently bringing them together is one of the best things to do. It has now gone beyond the stage of blame game. Now the question is what must be done to stop the crisis. So long as we are still at the stage of blame game it is not going to stop the problem. If you know you are on wrong side you must be willing to accept, that is the quality of leadership. If you know you are wrong you must know there is nothing wrong for you to say yes,’ you have made some errors based on quality of information available to you at a particular time but with fresh information you can take new decisions. All the leaders of the groups must carry everybody along, see everybody as your own and I think that will make a lot difference.
What is your take on the purported impeachment move against President Jonathan by members of the House of Representatives over alleged poor implementation of the budget?
My take on this is that Nigerians always cherish democracy in that they believe it is the system that gives them opportunity to debate issues, to argue issues and then to take decisions but sometimes we tend to be carried away. Democracy also means that we must also go by the rules, we must also be bound by the constitution and we must also be bound by issue of law and order. Often, you find that our people have ambivalent attitude to the National Assembly. When the National Assembly is working amicably with the Executive, they begin to abuse te National Assembly as lame duck, rubber stamp and chamber of yes men. On the other hand, when the National Assembly begins to define issues concerning the country, some people will say the National Assembly wants to bring down the roof. So, I think the main thing is that the three arms of government, Executive, Legislature and Judiciary, historically have been created to serve purposes that are mutually cooperative, sometimes competitive but most of the time cooperative. Under a popular democracy, the Executive executes the laws, the Legislature makes the laws and of course you know the Judiciary interprets the laws. But in between, you also have a thin line where there is always cooperation, especially between the executive and the legislature, because the legislature will be happy to see that when they make laws they are implemented. But the executive will also insist that whatever laws they are going to make, it should be implementable. That is why sometimes in making legislation, laws can be initiated from the executive or from the legislature or even from private member outside. Ultimately, I think the goal is to serve the people of this country. This is part of the creative tension you find in an evolving democracy and I believe the National Assembly will act maturely and I believe ultimately they will work very closely with the President so that our people will have the benefits of popular democracy. I will not be surprised that there are people who want to see more problems between the presidency and the legislature and they will be happy to see that because that will now put the executive on the spot. But what purpose will it serve? Ultimately our objective is that an elected government is to serve the people and since Mr. President has committed himself to transforming this country in varieties of ways, the cooperation between the executive and the legislature is the surest way to achieve this objective. So, I do not see it as beneficial for people to continue to beat drums of war between the executive and the legislature. They are going to cooperate and I am sure they are going to find lasting solution to this issue before us. One good thing also is that we have the party and the party leadership. We have elders, we have leaders in the party and I am sure that even where there appears to be some tension between the executive and the legislature, the party is always there to provide the role of intermediary and will bring all those issues to quick resolution. So far, I see the National Assembly, whatever they are doing they have the interest of the country at heart and also I am sure they (National Assembly) also know Mr. President has very deep commitment to make a difference in this country, which will translate towards achieving reasons they were elected. All put together, I don’t think the issue we are talking about has reached a point where there will be too much trouble.