Reliance On Rice Importation Will Cost N23.4 trillion

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, has disclosed that the Federal Government about $150 billion (N23.4 trillion) could be spent by 2050 to meet the demand of a  population that has an increasing demand for imported rice.
Speaking at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) workshop on Financing Nigeria’s Agricultural Revolution, Dr Adesina said “Nigeria is now the largest importer of rice in the world. As our population rises, demand for rice is projected to rise from the current level of five million MT to 36 million MT by 2050. Unless Nigeria begins an aggressive import substitution programme for rice, it will spend $150 billion annually importing rice by 2050 and the nation will be broke.”
Dr Adesina who has been driving a robust agricultural policy of encouraging and wooing investment and funding of local production in the country, stressed the need for the nation to take a bold step in food security  strategies. He says the strategies would make Nigeria self-sufficient in the production of rice by 2015.
He said “To encourage the production and milling of local rice, the Federal Government has raised tariffs on imported brown rice and finished rice. The policy is working. In the last 12 months, 13 new rice mills, with a total capacity of 240,000 MT, have been set up by the private sector.”
The Minister also seized the opportunity at the forum to reveal that the nation now has local rice flooding the market that are as good as the imported rice, some of them include Miva and Ashi rice in Benue, Umza rice in Kano, and Ebonyi rice in Ebonyi.
Efforts by the Ministry of Agriculture in sensitizing Nigerians on the need to  begin to value locally produced rice as compared to the imported considering the costs are commendable, but it is expected a more proactive public/private sector partnership  will help boost the production of the local rice.
With this assertions made by the Minister   a lot has to be done in ensuring that the Commercial  and Peasant farmers are encouraged in the production of the local rice and other foodstuffs. China had a robust policy like these and this was able to position them as a leading food producer in the globe.
It is expected that the aggressive agricultural policy unveiled by the ministry will be sustained, this will guarantee not only massive agricultural production and a boost in the sector, but food security.
BusinessNews

Pilot’s Bombshell: Lagos International Airport Has No Runway Light

The deplorable state of Nigeria’s airports was once again brought to the fore as a pilot, Benson Ikponwosa on Monday said Nigeria’s premier airport in Lagos, the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, has no light and poses a danger to travellers who arrive or depart from the airport.
Mr Ikponwosa said the runway lights were destroyed when the road was resurfaced and thereafter, has not been replaced.
He said: “If planes were coming into Nigeria at night and for any reason the light on the runway closer to the domestic terminal fails then all those airplanes would need to go to Cotonou, Lome or Ghana.”

Typical Runway Light Of An Airport

 InformationNigeria.org

Yakowa ’s Wife To Emerge As Kaduna State Deputy Governor

The widow of the late governor of Kaduna State, Mrs Amina Elizabeth Yakowa, is set to emerge the deputy governor of the state following the death of her husband in a helicopter crash on Saturday.
The plan to tap Amina as the deputy to the newly sworn-in governor of Kaduna State, Dr. Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, is being championed by northern governors across party divide, top northern politicians and governors from other regions of the country with the aim of sustaining Yekowa’s legacies.

Those promoting the move to install Yakowa’s wife could meet with President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice President Namadi Sambo later this week.The insisted that Mrs Yakowa was the best candidate for the position. She was a former deputy director at the Ministry of Defence and only retired after her husband became governor.
The promoters said they were also inspired by the example of the wife of the former Senate President, Mrs Margery Okadigbo, who emerged to take over her husband’s slot in the Senate. They also alluded to the recent example of a former Senator from Plateau State, Sen. Gyang Dantong, who was similarly succeeded by his wife, after he was killed by gunmen at a funeral in the state.
Mrs Yakowa was born on May 20, 1953 in Kwoi, Jaba Local Government of Kaduna State.
An educationist, she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
Naijaurban

Bayelsa helicopter crash: Chopper had ‘engine failure’ after 10 trips

The Nigeria navy executive Agusta 109E helicopter, which crashed yesterday killing Kaduna State Governor Patrick Yakowa, former NSA Andrew Owoye Azazi and four others, had engine failure, naval sources have said.
SaharaReporters learned that the pilot of the helicopter communicated with the control tower in Port Harcourt to report the problem before it crashed to the ground and caught fire. The chopper belonged to the Nigeria navy, but it had been placed at the exclusive service of the president in the Niger Delta region.
The navy has had three Agusta 109E helicopters. In 2007, one of them crashed due to bad weather as it approached the Owerri airport in the night, accompanying INEC election materials. Four persons died in the crash.
The other two, NN07 and NN08, which actively worked the Bayelsa airspace yesterday, were commissioned in 2009.
Sources told SaharaReporters that the choppers had been placed almost exclusively at the service of President Goodluck Jonathan and his cronies, which is the reason why they were deployed to carry VIPs to and from the Port Harcourt International Airport for a private burial event of presidential aide Oronto Douglas that had no official value.
Prior to yesterday’s deadly flight, the naval choppers also carried VIPs to the funeral of President Jonathan’s brother, Meni, less than two weeks ago.
At the time of the crash, the helicopter had reportedly done 10 shuttle trips between Port Harcourt and the burial place of Mr. Douglas’s father in Okoroba. Landing and taking off from the soccer field of a decrepit local school in the town.
The flight was reportedly the last one, but the engine failed some ten minutes after takeoff, leading to the fatal crash.
President Jonathan, who had earlier attended an overnight “Holy Ghost Congress” at the Redeemed Church of God on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway then issued a terse statement which revealed the names of crash victims and the usual promise that a probe of the crash will be conducted.
Meanwhile, Mr. Jonathan has ordered two new luxury helicopters from the same manufacturer, AgustaWestland, the Anglo-Italian helicopter company based in Italy. The two AW 101 VIP helicopters will cost Nigeria $40 million. In 2010, Mr. Jonathan ordered three presidential jets as soon as he took office.
 DailyPost

Pension Scam Latest: More than N20 Billion Newly Discovered in Dormant Accounts

The last has definitely not been heard of the pension scam that recently hit the country as the Chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT), Dr. Abdulrasheed Maina, during an interview with journalists yesterday in Abuja, disclosed that it had found another N20 billion stolen pension funds. Maina said the funds were hidden in some dormant accounts in some banks. However, he said no reports have been made to the authorities concerned because investigations were still ongoing.
His words: “Recently, we discovered some money hidden in other accounts, apart from the N221 billion we have recovered and sent to the government… I did not disclose this earlier because we are still under investigation. The money is over N20 billion.
“The amount has been hidden in some accounts that are dormant for over three years… As soon as we get through with our investigation, we will report to the Minister of Finance to instruct the Accountant-General to move the money” he said.
Maina also expressed sadness that the Senate Joint Committee on Establishment and Public Service and States and Local Governments Administration, was being misled into maligning the task team. He continues: “Our detractors thought we have an account and we are keeping money. We only go to the bank, see account balance and write what we have observed. We have all the security agencies in our midst… “We have this coordination but people don’t know. They give false information to the Senate Committee and they sit down on false information without verifying… If you are given an assignment as a committee, I feel the first person you will look for is the person in charge of the team.
“We are the depository of the database of the civil service, we ought to have been invited first so that we can go round the country with the committee investigating management of pension fund but nobody invited us” he said.
He then accused corrupt persons within the system, who were feeding fat through the loopholes, as the ones fighting hard to make sure that the team was discredited: “They want to distract us. It is not about anything but corruption fighting back,” he said.
InformationNigeria.org

N32.8Bn Police Pension Scam: EFCC Arrests Dangabar For Interfering With Forfeited Properties

Esai Dangabar

By Wilson Uwujaren Ag. Head, Media & Publicity Unit

Esai Dangabar, one of the six accused persons being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on a 16 criminal charges bordering on conspiracy and criminal breach of trust for their role in defrauding the Police Pension Office to the tune of N32.8 Billion naira (Thirty Two Billion, Eight Hundred Million Naira), was on Thursday December 13, 2012, arrested for interfering with the properties which the court had ordered forfeited to the federal government.
Among properties belonging to Esai which the court ordered forfeited to the federal government on interim basis pending the determination of the substantive suit are: Block of 3 Bedrooms flats at Gwarinpa (6 units), along EFAB Estate, Life Camp; a Block of Bedrooms flats (6 units) at Mabushi District, beside ministry of works; Estate of 4 Bedroom Duplexes (16 units), behind Wuye Modern Market, Abuja; a mini Estate at No.19, Ukpabi Asika Street, Asokoro, Abuja; 12 Units of 2 bedroom Flats at 1, Waziri Ibrahim Crescent, Gudu District, Abuja; 5 Bedroom Duplexes 1, Waziri Ibrahim Crescent, Gudu District, Abuja; 4 Bedroom Bungalows at 1, Waziri Ibrahim Crescent, Gudu District, Abuja and 2 Bedroom flat at Zone C, Apo Resettlement, layout.
Others are: 5 Blocks of One bedroom flats at Zone C, Apo Resettlement layout, Abuja; Twin duplex of 5 bedroom & 3 rooms, 33, ML Wushishi  BQ 1 Crescent, Utako, Abuja; 2 Blocks of 3 Bedroom flats,  Area 3, Former NYSC Office, Abuja; 2 Bedroom , Area 2, Abuja, Behind Shopping , Complex , 3 Bedroom flats , 2 Goran village, along Adi Farms Limited, Abuja-Keffi Road;  180,000 Litres Storage Facility on a Land of about  5,000sqm, with Office Building, Workshop and 20 Loading Bay 1 Suleja,  Niger State.
Vehicles belonging to Dangabar which have been ordered forfeited to the government pending the determination of the criminal charges against him were seven trucks with registration numbers XH 909 RSH; XH 910 RSH; XH 912 RSH; XH 908 RSH; XH 911; XH 913 RSH and XH 460 KUJ.
Dangabar’s bank accounts forfeited to the government were: two Damule Nigeria Limited accounts with FCMB; Damule Nigeria Limited account with Main Street Bank; E. D. Laumara with Access Bank; three account numbers of Essai Dangabar Laumara’s with Access Bank; Laumara E. Taure account with Skye  Bank; three of AMD Global Logistics account with Skye Bank. Two accounts of Future Logistics Limited with Skye bank. Three accounts of Marine Logistics & Leisure Integrated in Skye Bank. Two Damule Nig Ltd accounts in Skye Bank.
Companies belonging to Dangabar and five others, forfeited to the EFCC were Halas Investment Limited; At homes; Sy- A Global Services Limited; Jidag Technical Services Limited; Damule Nigeria Limited; Marine Logistics; AMD Global Logistics; Future Logistics Ltd; Jenago Services Limited; H Takano Nigeria Limited; Noni Anthony System Limited; Saudauna Enterprise limited;  Ulover International Resources Limited; Somadok Express; Kechis Water Bottling Company; Kechis Events Managers; Kechis Straw; Kechis Plastic Extrusion company; Geopet Petroleum Services Limited; Aina Farms: Otega Farms, Bannachi Global Links and Comm. Co. Limited.

But Dangabar approached the Court of Appeal, Abuja division to challenge the order of the High Court to have his properties forfeited. The appeal court, in a unanimous ruling on July 24, 2012, dismissed his application. In a ruling read by Justice Kolawole Bada, the Appeal Court resolved the three issues raised by Dangabar in favour of the EFCC. Two other justices who held the same view were Justices Bukar Chua and Husseini Mukhtar. The court ruled that the interim forfeiture order pending the hearing of the criminal charge preferred against him is provided for under the EFCC Act. “The court, having been given that power, the exercise of it has not taken away the accused right to fair hearing”, the three justices reasoned.
The court further ruled that the provisions of Section 28 and 29 of the EFCC Act is validated by Section 44 (2) of the 1999 Constitution and is therefore constitutional. Additionally, the court ruled that the presumption of innocence cannot be interpreted to allow a suspect to retain the proceed of the alleged crime made against him. Accordingly, the court ruled that Section 34 of the EFCC Act was substantially complied with by the lower court. He has again proceeded to the Supreme Court challenging the Appeal Court judgement.
Dangabar and his co travellers returned to the high court to challenge jurisdiction and prayed the court to quash the charges against them. But on November 12, 2012, Justice Mohammed Talba of High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, sitting in Gudu, Abuja dismissed the applications to quash charges as the judge said the applicants failed to supply relevant material before the court to warrant the quashing of the case against them. He also said that so far, based on the proof of evidence before the court, the prosecution has presented his case in such a way that a prima-facie has been established against them.

While the public has been warned to stay away from the aforementioned properties and other properties belonging to other accused being investigated by the EFCC, trial in the substantive case of Dangabar and others who were arraigned on May 28, 2012, comes up on January 28, 2013.


Wilson Uwujaren
Ag. Head, Media and Publicity
17th December, 2012

President Jonathan’s Effort to Purchase Another Jet Tied Up In Bankruptcy Court

In addition to the two new luxury helicopters ordered by President Goodluck Jonathan from the Anglo-Italian AgustaWestland at a cost of $40 million, as SaharaReporters reported earlier today, we have learned that the government made a deposit of another $9 million for a Hawker 4000 jet.


In 2012 budget an additional $12 million was budgeted to complete the purchase of the jet.
But that money is now tied up in court, as our investigation has revealed that the manufacturer, Hawker Beechraft, entered into bankruptcy proceedings in the US District Court of Southern New York last May.
Curiously, the purchase notice was initiated by one Group Captain Ma Yakubu, who gave away the $9 million using the address of “Nigerian Presidential Wing, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Presidential Air Fleet Abuja, Nigeria.”  His phone number and email addresses were listed as follows:  +234 8052088048 and Maminuyana@Yahoo.Com.
Our sources say this is highly unusual, as the purchase order would normally have emanated not from an airport, but from within the presidency, the Ministry of Aviation or the Nigerian Air Force.
Yesterday’s crash of a Nigeria navy executive Agusta 109E helicopter, which killed Kaduna State Governor Patrick Yakowa, former NSA Andrew Owoye Azazi and four others, while doing private errands for presidential aide Oronto Douglas, demonstrates how public property is routinely converted to private benefit especially in a corrupt administration.
The presidency currently has at its disposal about 11 jets, many of them running errands on a daily basis for privileged officials and their relatives.  When those are not enough, they call for similar equipment that belong to the armed forces, the Nigeria Police, the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, and similar offices.
“Yesterday, the naval helicopter was abused throughout the day, like a free taxi cab, until it simply fell out of the sky,” an analyst told SaharaReporters.
The two helicopters on order by Mr. Jonathan will cost Nigeria $40 million, but it is unclear how many similar equipment may be on order around the world, or have already been bought or delivered, because government officials often account to nobody.  The tracking of most contracts is non-existent after they have been awarded.
SaharaReporters has written to Group Captain Yakubu in an effort to obtain further information about the aborted purchase of the Hawker 4000 jet.
The US District court has approved Hawker Beechcraft’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy as a slimmer corporation, also last week the court authorized the company to sell off its entire inventory of Hawker 4000 jets at $20 million each.
InformationNigeria.org