[Opinion] REVOLUTIONARY ACTION begins with REVOLUTIONARY THINKING

If you are familiar with Lagos, i do not mean the geographical location of the State but the way of life and mentality of millions of people who lived there in the late 90s, you would be familiar with the unwritten rule especially among the males, that it was wrong to talk to strangers. Now I do not mean people new in the community but anyone you met along the way who was not your family or friend, all this fear because we believed such persons may steal our male genital organs  or even rob us of our will and thus order us to provide all our valuables without question. Even i still unconsciously hold the boys whenever a stranger inquires for directions from me, hoping that i had not fallen victim.
If you are American or British, the thought of a seemingly innocent traveller stealing your male organ just by exchanging innocent words about his destination with you may seem absolutely ridiculous and may sound like a story used to scare recalcitrant children. But, trust me, it is our reality, a reality as strong and evident as that shared by the people of Romania who believe in the existence of vampires; ancient creatures who live among us and  feed on the blood of their innocent and unsuspecting victims.
But that is not all, there are quite a number of superstitious theories that guide the actions of an average native Nigerian, superstitions such as : one should not plant a banana tree in his house as it will serve as a meeting point for witches; that it was wrong to do laundry at night as it was an omen; that if a wife was childless or a man was unlucky, he or she was the target of offended village members or extended relations who were not happy with their success and happiness. At this point, let me state that i just planted a banana tree in my house a few months ago.
This is not an article into the existence of evil or the potency of charms concorted by dibias or a babalawo, it is rather a peripheral look into the effect our cultural heritage has over us as a people and how it affects our society as a whole. Believe it or not, the society is hostile  and our experiences have helped build this abnormalcy. Mistrust and false suspicion are the order of the day. Every tribe and interest group has an agenda for their benefits, we all shun collective gain. If you doubt this, look at the crop of public officers we have in Nigeria who are worldwide renowned experts at syphoning public funds or the struggle between the Yorubas, Hausas, Ibos and Minority tribes on who will be the number one citizen of this nation, this feud is as old as the country itself.
If we really must change the rioutous direction affairs of this nation are going, we must take a great look at our culture and rid ourselves of some norms that promote the malady. Norms like those of the Ibo who praise their sons and daughters who return home with stupendous wealth without regard for how it was made; or the norm of the Hausas which makes a person lord and master over others because “the others” are poor and have no means of surviving but for the handouts of this fellow who uses the restless nature of the illiterate youths to his advantage; or the yoruba norm of owanbe that promotes an excessive display of wealth.
This seemingly un-important cultural ethics in the larger society promote wide spread corruption and a way of life where the rich and smarter thieves are worshipped while the righteous man who is filled with integrity is hardly recognised or even applauded. How then can we build a society we hope will be based on the tenets of equality and social tolerance? We are our own problems and our solutions also lie with us. If we must change society, we must first change ourselves.  Revolutionary actions begin with revolutionary thinking.
InformationNigeria.org

Insecurity: Is a Muslim Defence Minister from Northern Nigeria the Solution?

As it will have been noticed that the post of defence minister is vacant in the country, investigations by the Nigerian Tribune has revealed that a silent cold war is brewing over the political control of the Nigerian military between loyalists of President Goodluck Jonathan and traditional Arewa power holders in the Northern part of the country, investigations by the Nigerian Tribune has revealed.
According to their source, the presidency is caught in between two major groups, seeking to get their nominees to occupy the defence portfolio in the federal cabinet. A top retired military general, who was described as unofficial security adviser to the president, is reported to have nominated a Christian retired general from Kebbi State for the top job, an action said to have been stoutly opposed by the Hausa – Fulani elite from the core north.
The General, who is also from Kebbi, was said to have insisted that the nominated retired general, has the capacity to push through the reform of the military and complement efforts of the National Security Adviser in the fight against terrorism in the country. The president‘s man who is also a former senator, was said to be angry with his people from the North-East, over their insistence that a Christian from Kebbi cannot be a defence minister.
Meanwhile core Northerners who are opposed to the move were said to have described the plan for a Christian minister of defence as the final onslaught against the core north by the Jonathan presidency. The group was said to have sent delegations to the president, advising against the approval of the nominees and the forwarding of the nominated names to the Senate for confirmation. And, to make good their threats, the northern group was said to have informed their members in the senate to block the confirmation of the General if his name was eventually sent to the senate.
InformationNigeria.org

N5 trillion “stolen under GEJ”: “It is gross misinformation – Presidency slams Punch report

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The Presidency has taken on Punch newspapers for its unflattering reports on the leadership style and activities of the President Goodluck Jonathan administration.
Punch Newspapers reported on November 25th, that N5 trillion had been stolen under President Jonathan’s administration.
Punch said, “Our correspondents arrived at the stolen sum after poring over the reports of the various committees set up by the President to probe some sectors of the economy, particularly oil and gas.”
It added, “Five trillion naira is the summation of government funds said to have been stolen, according to the Mallam Nuhu Ribadu-led Petroleum Task Force report; the Minister of Trade and Investment’s report on stolen crude; the House of Representatives fuel subsidy report and investigations into the ecological fund, SIM card registration and frequency band spectrum sale.
“The Ribadu report on the oil and gas sector put daily crude oil theft at a high 250,000 barrels daily at a cost of $6.3bn (N1.2trn) a year. This puts the total amount lost through oil theft in the two years of Jonathan’s government at over $12.6bn (N2trn).”
In his rebuttal of the claims, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe said the Punch was peddling gross misinformation and absolute falsehood.
“We reiterate that the conclusion that N5 trillion was stolen under President’s Jonathan’s watch is gross misinformation and absolute falsehood. Nowhere in the Ribadu was that conclusion reached. It never happened, and it is wholesomely untrue.
“We want to state categorically, for the umpteenth time that it was this administration that exposed the oil subsidy scam, pension scam, and also set up  the Nuhu Ribadu committee to look into the rot in the oil sector.
“We must state that the fight against corruption is not a short boxing bout, but a long fight that will be systemic, strategic and institutional. The role of the judiciary in bringing culprits to justice cannot be underestimated in the war against corruption. No matter the Federal Government’s commitment , the President has no power to jail any suspect by presidential fiat. Therefore he should not  be made a scape goat for the failure of other arms of government  who fail to judiciously discharge their responsibilities.  It is also not true that lack of funding is stalling the fight as concluded by Chairman, Coalition Against Corruption, Debo Adeniran. We must not forget what the   EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde said recently about how judges and lawyers stall trials of high profile suspects. The two trials of James Ibori inNigeriaand theUnited Kingdomfully underscore this point.
“The Federal Government, mindful of this judicial stumbling block, has put together a bill to reform the criminal justice system, so that justice will no longer be evaded through sundry abuses of court processes.
“We assure Nigerians that in spite of the persistent and perplexing mischief of deceitful politicians,  and some unpatriotic Nigerians who never sees good in whatever government does, the administration will continue its unrelenting fight  to rid our society of this menace.”
This is a war the President has set for himself and he has demonstrated the will and capability to prosecute same.
YNaija.com

Blame my boss for low performance of Police – Outgoing CP

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Outgoing Commissioner of Police in Plateau State, Mr. Emmanuel Ayeni, has blamed the Federal Government and the Inspector-General of Police for  the poor performance of the force.

He described the current police reforms as cosmetic, saying they would not achieve the intended results.
Ayeni, who  spoke in Jos on Monday at his pulling out ceremony, also called for the establishment of state police and the payment of N150,000 as minimum wage in the police.
The police chief, who served the force for 32 years, likened the period as an adventure in “the valley of dried bones”.
Ayeni said, “On July 15, 1980, I started my career in the Nigeria Police. I was very young and focused. However looking back to that day, I can say that, though I give glory to God for what He has done  for me, my career was an adventure in the valley of the dried bones.”
Ayeni, who will be succeeded by the former Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Chris Olakpe, said the current reforms and promotion were arbitrary and subject to  loyalty to the Inspector General of Police and the Police Service Commission
The former commissioner blamed the Federal Government and the IG for the general apathy and low morale among officers and the rank and file of the police.
He particularly frowned on the retirement of 13 deputy and assistant inspectors general of police and their replacement with junior officers.
He said, “The ongoing reform in the police is extremely cosmetic and it cannot take the Nigeria Police to the next level. Frankly speaking, the White papers on various committees’ reports are not being properly implemented. We should embark on wholesome reforms that are properly implemented.
“There are rules governing promotion in the police. However in the name of police reforms, promotion is done with the colouration of heavy contract. The known criteria for promotion in Nigeria, particularly seniority and merit have been consigned to the dustbin of history.
“Promotion now is a reward for parochial loyalty to IGP and Chairman of PSC.”
YNaija.com

Oil Benchmark Face-Off: World Bank Intervenes, Begs Senate To Shift Grounds

Top officials of the World Bank have met with the Senate leadership in a bid to resolve the lingering logjam over the inability of the National Assembly to agree on a benchmark for the 2013 budget. President Goodluck Jonathan had on October 9 presented a N4.92 trillion 2013 budget to a joint sitting of the National Assembly predicated on $75 oil benchmark.

Sources present at the meetings said the World Bank wanted the National Assembly to maintain the status quo ante and pleaded with the lawmakers to retain the budget benchmark at the $75 presented by the Presidency.
The Senate disagreed and stuck to its guns that the budget benchmark cannot “be left as it was presented to us.” Senate President David Mark was unable to attend the meeting but the Finance Committee Chairman, Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, reportedly took control of the meeting with the World Bank officials where he presented the Senate’s position.
“He told the World Bank officials how there are so many sources of revenue accruing to the Presidency, but which were not captured in the annual budgets appropriated by the National Assembly. For instance, some revenues from the NNPC, Gas, Excess Crude Account (ECA) and other sources are not reflected in the budget.”
The source added that by the time Makarfi was through with his explanations, the World Bank officials could no longer canvass their argument that the National Assembly should let the oil benchmark be left at $75. “Even with the calculation given, Makarfi said there are still sources of revenue not captured in this year’s budget,” the source noted.
Another source at the meeting said the oil benchmark controversy was a proxy battle between the presidency and state governors towards 2015 which some how found its way to the National Assembly. According to the source, “the main reason the Presidency is insisting on retaining the $75 oil benchmark is because it doesn’t want the governors to have too much money.
“The Presidency doesn’t want the National Assembly to raise the oil benchmark to either $78 or $80 because by so doing, more money would accrue to the CRF which by law is to be shared by the three tiers of government. Sharing of any extra money from that legitimate account will not work in the favour of the Presidency because it automatically means that the governors will have money in preparation for 2015. Don’t also forget that more than half of the state governors now are in their second terms and do not need the Presidency to do them any favours unlike what happened in the 2011 polls,” the source concluded.
InformationNigeria.org

I’m Happy To Have Played Alongside Messi – Ronaldinho

Former Barcelona playmaker, Ronaldinho, has said he expects Messi to win the Ballon d’Or for a record fourth consecutive time in January ahead of Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo, reports Xinhua.

Ronaldinho gave this indication while paying tribute to Messi, who Sunday, became the highest goalscorer in a calendar year after surpassing German great, Gerd Muller’s record of 85 goals set forty years ago.
“For me Messi is the best in the world,” he added. “For the last few years he has played at a level of football we have never seen before.
“I’m very proud to speak of him, because I was there when he started off and now he is the best in the world, it makes me so happy.
“The game I remember the most is when he scored his first goal, because it came from my pass and I remember this game most vividly because he was just getting started.
“I had the chance to be there and live that moment. I’m very happy that his first professional goal came from a pass from me. Messi knows that there will always be a place in my heart for him.”
InformationNigeria.org

Corruption: Nigerians are not fools and cannot be fooled for too long – Presidency replies ACN

Following the claim by leading opposition party, the Action Congress of Nigeria, (ACN), which blamed the rating of Nigeria as the 35th most corrupt nation in the word on President Goodluck Jonathan’s government, the Presidency has said yesterday that the current rating of the Transparency International has nothing to do with the present administration.
According to the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe, such claim “is preposterous and lacking in credibility, and can only be best described as pure political mischief.
He said, “Lai Mohammed knows they, in the Action Congress, live in glass houses and should not throw stones because his party is home to some of the most notoriously corrupt Nigerians ever. He should not throw stones just to score cheap political points. His party has no moral leg it can stand to pontificate about corruption.
Okupe said: “Nigerians are not fools and cannot be fooled for too long that there is endemic corruption within the rank and file of his party. It is an undeniable fact that corruption is a major challenge to the nation and its people, and everyone agrees it is endemic and has been with us for over three decades.
“Few days ago we spelt out details of commendable efforts of this administration in fighting corruption and also confirming the demonstrable political will of this administration to take up this onerous challenge.
“Critics of this administration appear to be deliberately undiscerning, confusing incidences of corrupt practices unravelled by this administration and legal steps being taken by the administration as being corrupt practice of the same administration.
Part of this mischief and attempt to bring opprobrium on this administration was the assertion by President of the Campaign for Democracy, CD, Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin. She said N5 trillion was stolen under Jonathan, and that “the non-implementation of the Farouk Lawan report as well as the Nuhu Ribadu Presidential Task Force findings has completely killed the fight against corruption in Nigeria.”
The above calls to question her respect for facts because it is a fact that the Lawan report has been handed over to the EFCC, and there are ongoing prosecution deriving from this, while the President just set up a White Paper committee on the Ribadu report. How do you implement a report without a white Paper?.
We reiterate that the conclusion that N5 trillion was stolen under President’s Jonathan’s watch is gross misinformation and absolute falsehood. Nowhere in the Ribadu was that conclusion reached. It never happened, and it is wholesomely untrue.
“We want to state categorically, for the umpteenth time that it was this administration that exposed the oil subsidy scam, pension scam, and also set up the Nuhu Ribadu committee to look into the rot in the oil sector.
“We must state that the fight against corruption is not a short boxing bout, but a long fight that will be systemic, strategic and institutional. The role of the judiciary in bringing culprits to justice cannot be underestimated in the war against corruption.
“No matter the Federal Government’s commitment , the President has no power to jail any suspect by presidential fiat. Therefore he should not be made a scape goat for the failure of other arms of government who fail to judiciously discharge their responsibilities.
“It is also not true that lack of funding is stalling the fight as concluded by Chairman, Coalition Against Corruption, Debo Adeniran. We must not forget what the EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde said recently about how judges and lawyers stall trials of high profile suspects. The two trials of James Ibori in Nigeria and the United Kingdom fully underscore this point.
“The Federal Government, mindful of this judicial stumbling block, has put together a bill to reform the criminal justice system, so that justice will no longer be evaded through sundry abuses of court processes.
“We assure Nigerians that in spite of the persistent and perplexing mischief of deceitful politicians, and some unpatriotic Nigerians who never sees good in whatever government does, the administration will continue its unrelenting fight to rid our society of this menace.
This is a war the President has set for himself and he has demonstrated the will and capability to prosecute same,” he added.
DailyPost