Tuesday, 9 July 2013

Osama Bin Laden 'Once Stopped For Speeding'


The al Qaeda founder, who masterminded the 9/11 terror attacks, was travelling with two of his aides when they were pulled over by a policeman on their way home from a bazaar in Swat.
The wife of one of the men said her husband "very quickly settled the matter" and the group were allowed to drive on.
The revelation is made in a Pakistani government report, which investigates how bin Laden, once one of the world's most wanted men, was able to live in Pakistan undetected.
It found evidence of "culpable negligence and incompetence at almost all levels of government" and accused political, military and intelligence chiefs of a "sustained dereliction of duty".
The report, obtained by Al Jazeera, said bin Laden's Abbottabad hideout, with its high walls, barbed wire fence and isolated location, was "hardly normal".
"The extent of incompetence, to put it mildly, was astounding, if not unbelievable," it said.
Bin Laden was holed up in the complex for around six years, evading US troops as they waged their war on terror in Afghanistan.
He would wear a cowboy hat to avoid detection as he moved around the building and would eat apples and chocolate when he was feeling sluggish.
He was killed by US Navy Seals during a covert raid on the complex in May 2011.
The 336-page report, which is based on testimony from more than 200 witnesses, also confirmed Pakistani officials were not informed about the raid in advance.
They were allegedly kept in the dark amid fears bin Laden would be tipped off, although the report said there was nothing to suggest any current or former Pakistani officials helped him hide.
Earlier, it emerged that US military files on the raid were transferred from Pentagon computers to the CIA, where they are likely to avoid public scrutiny.
The records were moved in order to protect the identities of the Navy Seals, according to the US Inspector General, and officials denied it had been done to sidestep Freedom of Information Act requests.
YahooNews

2015: It’s Buhari Or Nothing – Senator Sulaiman Nazif


Ahead of 2015 general election, Senator Sulaiman Nazif has cautioned the newly formed political party, All Progressives Congress (APC) not to field any candidate other than General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) if the party must win the presidential election.

Senator Nazif who represented Bauchi North Senatorial District between 2007 and 2011 told newsmen in Zaria that the youth wing in the country were rooting for Buhari to re-contest the presidential election in 2015.

He said even if internal democracy was to prevail, Buhari who was the three-time presidential candidate of one of the parties that formed the APC remained the best presidential material in the next general election.

Nazif said: “General Muhammadu Buhari was about 42 years old when he became the head of state. He was made head of state because of his past records as governor and as Petroleum Minister. When he was head of state, Nigerians appreciated what he did. And that is why we are calling on him to come back and re-contest the presidential election. Until he wins the election, we will continue to call on him to re-contest and re-contest.

“We, the younger ones, are saying that he should come out and re-contest; we say he should come out. I am one of the younger persons in Nigeria.

I am one of the greatest beneficiaries of democracy in Nigeria today, but we are insisting, appealing and saying that the mandate he contested thrice, he should come back to re-contest and claim the leadership he has been doing since when he was a youth because they didn’t allow him to finish it.

We will not rest until he agrees to come back and contest, we will work for him; protect his vote to ensure that he becomes the president of this country. “I can tell you that when Buhari was head of state, he left legacies behind, and when he was in the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), he helped the young people in the country.

All the professionals in Nigeria benefitted from General Buhari. “What I am trying to point out is that when we talk of internal democracy, General Buhari is a member of APC, he is a Nigerian, he was one of those that fought for the unity of this country, so he has the mandate to contest.

“He is one individual alive today in the history of Nigeria that has more than 12 million votes uninfluenced by money or anything, so if he contests again he will win.

I asked those who contested with Buhari whether they will contest again, and they said they will never contest again with him because of the voting margin.

“Today in Nigeria, there is nobody that can beat him in a fair and free election, I am a young man, I know what the man can do, I know the kind of overwhelming support he has, and we are talking about democracy, government of the people by the people for the people.

General Buhari is for the people; he is always for the masses. “So internal democracy is what will allow Buhari to emerge because he has the support, he is capable, he is fit, he is committed and he has the love of this country. He has the votes of the people.”

WHY SMEARS CANNOT DENY NIGERIANS AND NIGERIA OF BUHARI PRESIDENCY AGAIN.


 SMEARS AND REBUTTALS-THE COLLECTIONS OF SMEARS AGAINST BUHARI.


BUHARI'S HANDSHAKE AND HANDCUFF by Obinna Okoro (Notes) on Sunday, March 27, 2011 at 4:28am

Obasanjo never hid his disgust for General Sani Abacha who had jailed him for a “phantom coup”. Released from jail and still wallowing in a fit of new found spirituality, he wrote a book and called it “The Animal Called Man”. And he elected to wage a battle on this “Animal Called Man”. While taking his oath of office at the Eagle Square on 27th May, 1999, he had pledged to wrestle corruption out of our national psyche. In a fit of mediaeval triumphalism, he chanted: “there will be no sacred cows!” But his first attack was a disaster.

No sooner had he made that declaration than he dispatched Mallam Haroun Adamu to the headquarters of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), an intervention agency run by General Muhammadu Buhari, to start the war on corruption. Haroun Adamu’s public brief was to wind down PTF but the hidden one was to disgrace General Buhari by exposing the “shady deals” in PTF. Contractors working for PTF were used to picking their cheques across the counter without much ado. Under the new inquisitor, contractors discovered they now had to oil their cheques out, something alien to the PTF they knew. They cried foul. And there were several other fouls after the first foul. To say that Obasanjo was thoroughly embarrassed by his minions would be an understatement, so much so that till date he does not discuss PTF in public.

As a General, it would appear that Obasanjo read Sun Tzu’ s “The Art of War” upside down. Sun Tzu had counselled: “Know thyself; know thy enemy. You will fight a thousand battles without defeat.” The blitzkrieg he deployed only showed he did not know PTF. He might not have needed to fire a shot to win or wean PTF. To date, most Nigerians knew how PTF started, what it did but not how it ended. Not known as one who forgives, was it not surprising that General Buhari walked the streets with his head high throughout Obasanjo’s imperial majesty when the fear of EFCC was the beginning of political wisdom?

In October 1994, General Sani Abacha increased the pump price of petrol from N3.25k to N11.00 per litre. Nigerians assailed him with criticisms for this unpopular move and to assuage their feelings, he quickly established the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund to use a portion of the proceeds of the increase to intervene in critical sectors of the economy. Nigerians never took Abacha seriously on this project until Gen Muhammadu Buhari was announced and inaugurated the chairman of the PTF in March 1995. That PTF awarded contracts worth billions of naira is not news. The news the PTF made within the four years it existed was and still is that contracts awarded were executed to their logical conclusion and for those not executed, the PTF got every kobo back.

Before PTF, contractors were used to abandoning contracts and bolting away with their advance payments. It never happened in PTF. When Buhari visited the Onitsha end of the Enugu-Onitsha express way awarded to a local contractor and discovered the job was abandoned, he simply called on the bank that guaranteed the contractor to pay back. There and then, the contract was terminated and later awarded to another contractor. From that moment, banks and insurance companies that provided bonds to contractors learnt that the old order had changed and had to monitor projects it guaranteed. For the years it existed, PTF published its annual reports and always addressed press conferences to respond to issues arising from the reports.

And each time it did, it challenged anybody who could deliver on any of its projects at a price cheaper than what it cost the PTF to submit his proposal. Nobody ever did. In one of the presentations of its annual report, the Executive Secretary of the Board of the PTF, Chief Tayo Akpata, maintained that the roads constructed by the PTF not only cost less than World Bank funded roads but were also better qualitatively. He challenged anyone to prove the contrary. Until the PTF was scrapped, nobody did. While the PTF existed, contractors never needed to lobby and grease palms to get LPO’s. You only needed to belong to the appropriate group of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and other professional groups to qualify.

Not a few contractors received requests to supply the PTF in the comfort of their offices. It was so unbelievably true that some had to travel to Abuja to reconfirm if the LPO’s they received were genuine. And genuine they were. To be paid for a completed contract, all the contractor needed was to present a certificate of completion issued by the ubiquitous consultants engaged by the PTF and his cheque would be prepared. And with a proper letter of introduction, a contractor could send a third party to pick his check across a counter in the Finance Department without any ceremony. Picking a cheque then was just like walking into a bank to withdraw cash across the counter.

As staff of Set and Sell Communications Ltd and later Media Trust Ltd, I personally picked several cheques on behalf of these firms. The challenge the finance department of the PTF faced then was getting contractors to come and pick their cheques which would pile up for months as a good number never knew it was so simple. One cannot also forget in a hurry the PTF drug revolving scheme. Under this, the PTF set up offices in hospitals across the country and supplied them with drugs. The financial consultants employed by the Fund ensured that receipts from the sales of the drugs were used to replenish the stocks in an unending cycle that banished out-of-stock anthem the Nigerian public were forced to listen to before then.

And it was not easy to divert PTF drugs to the parallel market. The smallest tablet supplied had PTF logo engraved on it. Somebody attempted diverting the drugs and was caught. General Buhari took up the case personally and ensured the culprit went to jail. After that, nobody heard of diversions again. The strategy of the PTF in procuring these drugs is worth reviewing. Over 60% of the drugs supplied to the PTF were locally produced. In fact, the PTF only imported drugs that could not be produced by the local pharmaceutical firms. The pressure on the existing pharmaceutical companies was so much that almost all these firms had to increase their capacity by expanding and employing more hands. Neimeth Pharmaceuticals, Emzor Pharmaceuticals among others can be contacted to affirm or disprove this.

This policy was deliberately made to ensure that more jobs were created within the economy. Builders who built for PTF would also tell you that they were not allowed to import paints. There was a list of all the paint manufacturers in the country maintained at the PTF from which builders bought paints. Within the same period, the capacity utilisation in these companies soared as they expanded and created more jobs. A look at the records kept by IPWA plc and other existing paint makers within the period under review is worth attempting to digest the profundity of the PTF intervention in the building sector; and other sectors it intervened in as its model was so overarching that critics labelled it “the alternative government”.

This column is not enough to put in a proper perspective the job General Buhari undertook and did while in PTF but it suffices through this glimpse to understand the mindset and the strategy of this maelstrom which the ruling elite hate for his forthrightness - a quality in short supply in governance today. One can cite the number of roads and hospitals rehabilitated by the PTF. One can also quote the billions it spent. The essence of the PTF, however, lies more in the multiplier effect its intervention had on the economy as a whole than in the number of what it did, which on its own was equally impressive. This distinction is what differentiates growth from development. While the former is quantitative, the latter is qualitative.

As a political economist, I know that the economic development of any third world country lies in qualitative transformation. Before the coming of PTF, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida had introduced the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) which he had claimed had no alternative. The revered economist, Professor Sam Aluko, had also reminded him that economics was a science of alternatives; that even death had an alternative which was life and that SAP was a kiss of death. IBB was to acknowledge the failure of SAP when out of frustration around 1991, he exclaimed that “the Nigerian economy had defied all known economic theories and was surprised that the economy had not collapsed”. The economy did not collapse.

The PTF intervention ensured it did not. This was the lesson OBJ failed to grasp when he dissolved the Fund with executive fiat in 1999. As at 1997, funds available to the PTF was about N115 billion and Nigerians could point at projects the fund was expended on. A decade after PTF, the governments from OBJ’s to date had spent much more than that in the power sector alone and have not been able to generate even a megawatt more of electricity. Managing public funds is serious business. General Muhammadu Buhari was fond of telling contractors on visit to sites: “If you perform well, you get a handshake. If you perform badly, you get a handcuff”. This is the mantra we need at this historical juncture. The man that incarnates this mantra out of the available presidential candidates is General Muhammadu Buhari. There is also a lesson to be learnt from the day Buhari left PTF.

Obasanjo, on assumption of office, announced the setting up of the interim management committee led by Mallam Haroun Adamu to wind down PTF. The following day, Buhari addressed a press conference and invited the new management to immediately take over. He told Nigerians that everything the new management needed were in the records to which they would have unhindered access. He bid his staff farewell, descended the stairs, literally jumped into his four wheel drive that took him home to Daura. He never stepped into that premises again to this day. And he never fled the country to escape the EFCC.The likes of Obasanjo should go back to the military academy to understand “The Art of War” before going on another offensive.

On Nasir El-Rufai's wall (2012)

"Another friend on Facebook and seems to be a senior military officer, Shehu Tarfa, posted this as his status yesterday which I thought worthy of sharing....some information about my political leader General Muhammadu Buhari that I was not aware of....NasirD MAN GEN M BUHARI. Yesterday OBJ publicly told d world that GMB is an upright man. Not many ppl know that his 1st daughter is married to an Igbo man from Anambra. He exempted Christians from performing duty on Sundays.When his Muslim soldiers asked him to exempt them from duty on Friday, he told them the bible says Christians should rest on the 7th day, the Muslims should show him where the Koran says they should rest on Fridays.

As head of state he slashed d number of Muslim going on pilgrimage by 50%. His driver and cook for d past 10 yrs plus are Christians yet some uninformed Nigerians say he is a bigot. It is a pity that some ppl failed to understand that PDP deliberately capitalised on d gullibility of Nigerians to paint him black. This they did in order to keep their loot and ensure that he never gets d opportunity to send them to gaol.How many Nigerians would hold d appointment of gov, minister of petroleum, PTF chairman and head of state yet don’t own a house in Abuja? Luv him, hate him u cannot take his integrity away from him.Well done Gen Muhammad Buhari. U have stood d test of time and character with a swagger. It is time we kept d record straight. By Nasir El-Rufai

MIA's response:

Alhaji Nasir El- Rufai. I have been telling people who are demonising and making false statement about Buhari, (saying that he "hates Igbos") that his first daughter married to an Igbo man. I thank God that OBJ eventually speak out on this matter. However, I am very disappointed that he did not speak out sooner when the damage was done to the good reputation of Alhaji Buhari. Fact remains that there is no shred of evidence that Buhari will stoop so low as to involve or engaged in "ethnicism or religious fanatism". This false story is saturated by people who want us to continue to be distracted while they steal billions of Nigerian resources. It is documented that GEJ, the president of Nigeria says that "Boko Haram are in his government". It is also a documented fact that Azazi the security adviser to the president of Nigeria says that "PDP is responsible for Boko Haram".

We also have documents which clearly indicates that majority of the so called Boko Haram who were arrested are Christians and not Northerners. I feel we should try our best to call a spade a spade and allow the masses everlasting peace. But the peace will start when we all look at our individual tribe’s men and women whose majority are corrupt. And then start asking important questions about them and not on the few Nigerians we have left that were consistently on the side of the masses who are going through untold hardship.

And it is a known fact that Boko Haram precedes Buhari's interest in the presidency. This was supported when Major General Inameti Yellow-Duke said that ''The people who organized the boko haram did not do so to support Buhari.There is this north/south dichotomy. Even when they were voting in the 2011 election, statistics showed that most of the northern states voted Jonathan. even in Kano, Jonathan scored the required 25 percent. The only place Buhari had a of clout was Kano. Even in Katsina , they rigged him out. Boko haram is not a Buhari phenomenon. I want to believe that he himself does not want to make any comment about them, because anything he says will be held against him. When they started boko haram, Buhari was not going in for election against Obasanjo'' By Major General Inameti Yellow-DukeEx-Chief of Operations Nigeria Army"


Thanks to Sharon Faliya Cham for reminding Nigerians of the involvement of Christians in terrorist activities in the country in her article As The Church Slept.. The Trilogy serialized in Leadership Newspaper. We should all be cautious and think twice before we jump on each other’s neck. Now, let's read in the book of Sharon Faliya:

1- Hasan Ojudu and Samaila Yakubu all xtians; arrested with vehicle load of explosives and ammunition after shortly the attack on Deeper life Church in Gombe.

2- 8 COCIN members arrested with explosive devises at Miya Barkatai branch of the church.

3- Lydia Joseph arrested with explosive device in Bauchi

4- Emmanuel King arrested while disguised as a Muslim and attempting to bomb Redeemed Christian Church Yenogoa.

5- Madam Ruth attempted bombing ECWA Church in Kalarin area of Gombe.

6- Mr Alex Danladi involved in COCIN HQ bombing was lynched by worshipers. He was a church member disguised in military uniform.

7- Sunday Eze, Samuel Taiwo and 3 Ghanians were arrested with heavy weaponry in Ghana.

8- Monday Davou was arrested while planting IED at Maker weekly market at Riyom LG.

9- A group of robbers led by Evangelist Wale Adeluwas nabbed. They used to meet in the Church B4 operation.

10- Gary Hyde, the British in court for shipping 80000 guns and 32 million round of ammunition in the country.

11-the 4 Xtians arrested trying to bomb St Theresa Catholic Parish. Makurdi. For details and dates read leadership of Tuesday and Wednesday 5 and 6 June 2012.

And now John Odia believed to be the mastermind of Zaria two attacks. As much as i hate to talk about this issue, I find it difficult to keep mute when without proper investigation; people are unduly castigated and condemned! So help us God.

Once again, we thank Sharon Faliya Cham for reminding Nigerians of the involvement of Christians in terrorist activities in the country.

NOT ONLY MUSLIMS WERE INVOLVED IN BOMBINGS IN NIGERIA:

Pastor Mattew Kukar warning to Nigerians that Christians were involved in Bombing Churches in Nigeria:

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD (Ps 46:10): AN APPEAL TO NIGERIANS BY REVEREND MATTHEW HASSAH KUKAH

On the occasion of the Carol of Nine Lessons organized by NTA and Radio Nigeria on December 10th last year, I was invited to deliver the message. I chose to speak on the theme, Do Not Be Afraid as a means of encouraging our people against the backdrop of fear and frustration that was mounting at the time. Since then, it would seem that things have gotten progressively worse in our country. In the course of my reflections, I sought to encourage my fellow citizens not to be frightened by the events of the time. I insisted that despite these tragic and sad events and the situation of our country, we needed to conquer fear. I argued that the message of Christmas was a message about the good news of the birth of the Prince of Peace, Emmanuel, (God-with us) and the Saviour of the world. Against the backdrop of other developments in the country at that time, I concluded by calling on the federal government not to carry through its plans for the removal of fuel subsidy.

Since then, things have gradually snowballed well beyond what one had either feared or hoped. On Christmas day, a bomb exploded at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, in Niger State, killing over thirty people and wounding a significant number of other innocent citizens who had come to worship their God as the first part of their Christmas celebrations. Barely two days later, we heard of the tragic and mindless killings within a community in Ebonyi State in which over sixty people lost their lives with properties worth millions of naira destroyed and hundreds of families displaced. In the midst of all this, on New Year’s Day, the President announced the withdrawal of fuel subsidy and threw an already angry and frustrated nation into convulsion.

Right now, I feel that perhaps like the friends of Job (Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar), who came to visit their sick friend and found the burden beyond comprehension, we find ourselves in the same situation. For, as we know, when they came and found Job in his condition, they spent seven days and seven nights, and uttered not a word (Job 2:13). Right now, no one can claim a full understanding of the state we are in. However, even if we cannot understand the issues of the moment, our faith compels us to understand that God’s hand is in all this. The challenge is for us to have the patience to let His will be done.

 The tragedy in Madalla was seen as a direct attack on Christians. When Boko Haram claimed responsibility, this line of argument seemed persuasive to those who believed that these merchants of death could be linked to the religion of Islam. Happily, prominent Muslims rose in unison to condemn this evil act and denounced both the perpetrators and their acts as being un-Islamic. All of this should cause us to pause and ponder about the nature of the force of evil that is in our midst and to appreciate the fact that contrary to popular thinking, we are not faced with a crisis or conflict between Christians and Muslims. Rather, like the friends of Job, we need to humbly appreciate the limits of our human understanding.

In the last few years, with the deepening crises in parts of Bauchi, Borno, Kaduna, and Plateau states, thanks to the international and national media, it has become fanciful to argue that we have crises between Christians and Muslims. Sadly, the kneejerk reaction of some very uninformed religious leaders has lent credence to this false belief. To complicate matters, some of these religious leaders have continued to rally their members to defend themselves in a religious war. This has fed the propaganda of the notorious Boko Haram and hides the fact that this evil has crossed religious barriers. Let us take a few examples which, though still under investigation across the country, should call for restraint on our part.


Some time last year, a Christian woman went to her own parish Church in Bauchi and tried to set it ablaze. Again, recently, a man alleged to be a Christian, dressed as a Muslim, went to burn down a Church in Bayelsa. In Plateau State, a man purported to be a Christian was arrested while trying to bomb a Church. Armed men gunned down a group of Christians meeting in a Church and now it turned out that those who have been arrested and are under interrogation are in fact not Muslims and that the story is more of an internal crisis. In Zamfara State, 19 Muslims were killed. After investigation it was discovered that those who killed them were not Christians. Other similar incidents have occurred across the country.

Clearly, these are very troubled times for our country. But they are also very promising times. I say so because amidst this confusing debris of hate, anger and frustration, we have had some very interesting dimensions.
Nigeria is changing because Nigerians are taking back their country from the grip of marauders. These stories, few as they may be, are the beginning of our song of freedom. Christians are now publicly crossing the artificial lines created by falsehood and bigotry. Let us take a few examples of events in the last week alone:

In Kano, amidst fears and threats of further attacks on Christians, a group of Muslims gathered round to protect Christians as they worshipped. In Minna and recently, in Lagos, the same thing repeated itself as Christians joined hands to protect Muslims as they prayed. In the last week, Christians and Muslims together in solidarity are protesting against bad governance and corruption beyond the falsehood of religion. Once freed from the grip of these dark forces, religion will be able to play its role as a force for harmony, truth and the common good.

Clearly, drawing from our experiences as Christians, we must note that God has a message for us in all this. To elicit what I consider to be the message, I will make reference to three lessons and I know there are far more. First, these times call for prayer. At the height of our confusion during the Abacha years, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria composed two sets of prayers; one, Against Bribery and Corruption and second, for Nigeria in Distress. Millions of Catholics have continued to recite these prayers and we must remain relentless in the belief that God hears our prayers and that God’s ways are not our ways.

We know that our Muslim brethren and millions of other non-Christians feel the same and are also praying in a similar way for our country.Two, these times call for solidarity of all people of faith. We are a nation of very strong believers and despite what anyone else may say, millions of our Christians and Muslims do take their religion very seriously. However, you might ask, if that is true, why do we have so many killings in the name of God and of religion? My answer is that we have such killings because we live in an environment of a severely weak architecture of state which allows evil to triumph. It is this poverty that produces jealousy and hatred which leads to violence.

We live in a state of ineffective law enforcement and tragic social conditions. Corruption has destroyed the fabric of our society. Its corrosive effect can be seen in the ruination of our lives and the decay in our society. The inability of the state to punish criminals as criminals has created the illusion that there is a conflict between Christians and Muslims. In fact, it would seem that many elements today are going to great extremes to pitch Christians against Muslims, and vice versa, so that our attention is taken away from the true source of our woes: corruption. As Nigerians, Christians and Muslims, we must stand together to ensure that our resources are well utilized for the common good. This is why, despite the hardships we must endure as a result of the strike, the Fuel Subsidy debate must be seen as the real dividend of democracy.

Three, religious leaders across the faiths must indeed stand up together and face the challenge of the times by offering a leadership that focuses on our common humanity and common good rather than the insignificant issues that divide us. We therefore condemn in very strong terms the tendency by some religious leaders to play politics with the issues of our collective survival. Rather than rallying our people, some of our religious leaders have resorted to divisive utterances, wild allegations and insinuations against fellow adherents of other religions. In the last five or so days, text messages have been circulating across the country appealing to some of our worst demons. We are told that many senior clerics either believed or encouraged the circulation of these divisive and false text messages. We must condemn this for what it is; a grand design by enemies within our folds who are determined to destroy our country. Whatever they may call themselves, they are neither true Christians nor Muslims.

For those Christians who have reacted in fear, they require conversion. If we wait for these evil men or women to decide when we shall stand for Christ, then we have surrendered our soul to the devil. If we fear to stand up for Christ now, let us remember that He has already said: Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will acknowledge before my father in Heaven, Whoever denies me before others, I will deny him before my father in Heaven(Mt 10: 32). Again, Jesus warns that rather than fear at times of uncertainty, adversity or upheavals, we should be confident. He said: When these things begin to take place, stand erect; hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand(Lk. 21: 28). Furthermore, St Paul has assured us that; If we die with Him, we shall live with Him. If we endure with Him, we shall reign with him( 2 Tim 2: 11-12). Surely, those who are asking us to go under our beds, to flee in the face of persecution must be reading a different Bible.

These are difficult times but they are also times of promise. Our country has turned its back on all forms of dictatorships. Our hands are on the plough and we are resolutely committed to democracy. Like a Catholic marriage, we may not be happy but we cannot contemplate a divorce. God does not make mistakes.
Although the freedom and growth promised by democracy are not here yet, we must remind ourselves that a better tomorrow is possible, a more united and peaceful Nigeria is possible. The challenges of the last few days have shown the resilience of our people and their commitment to democracy and a better life. We believe this is possible. The government must strive to earn the trust of our people.

All sides must take lessons from the demonstrations and resolve to build a better and stronger nation. Let us hold on to the words of the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI when he told the President, religious, traditional rulers and people of the Republic of Benin in the Presidential Palace on the 19th of November: Do not cut off your peoples from their future by mutilating their present....There are too many scandals and injustices, too much corruption and greed, too many errors and lies, too much violence. All peoples desire to understand the political and economic choices which are made in their name; they wish to participate in good governance. No economic regime is ideal and no economic choice is neutral. But these must always serve the common good.

By Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese.


SOME DOCUMENTED FACTS ABOUT DEADLY BOMBINGS IN NIGERIA:

WHEN MEND BOMBED ABUJA ON INDEPENDENCE DAY IN 2010, THE PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA LIED TO THE WORLD WHEN HE BLAMED THE BOMBING ON INNOCENT OTHERS RATHER THAN MEND, NIGER DELTAN TERRORIST GROUP.

IN FACT, HE EXONORATED MEND IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE DEADLY BOMBING SAYING THAT HE KNOWS HIS PEOPLE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE BOMBING.
SEE CONNECTION BETWEEN MEND and JONATHAN

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/ henry-okah-trial-south-africa-uncovers-role-jonathan%E2%80%99s-aides-abuja-independence-day-bomb-s?page=1

(Bear in mind that the president hail from Niger Delta)

BELOW ARE THE REASONS WHY MAJORITY OF NIGERIANS ARE REFUSING TO ACCEPT PROPAGANDA, THE PRESIDENT, AND HIS MEN WHEN THEY CONTINUE TO BLAME BOKO HARAM ATTACKS SOLELY ON THE DEADLY RELIGIOUS BOKO HARAM.

Based on all evidence before us and the fear of God that governs the soul, we well-meaning Nigerians have taken Buhari out as a suspect in Boko Haram issue in that 1. Buhari is not a PDP, People Democratic Party.

1a) Evidence shows that Buhari condemn Boko Haram Bombings.

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/buhari-jonathan-pdp-condemn-xmas-day-bombing-churches

1b) More Evidence shows that Buhari condemn Boko Haram Bombings.

http://saharareporters.com/news-page/buhari-condemns-attack-un-building

2. Before he died, Azazi (the security chief to the president of Nigeria) confessed to the whole world that PDP are responsible for Boko Haram.

SEE Evidence of Azazi confession--

http://www.channelstv.com/home/2012/04/27/azazi-blames-boko-haram-attacks-on-pdp/

3. President Jonathan also confirm to the whole world that he know who Boko Haram are, that they are in his government, he concluded by promising the world that he would release the names of boko Haram in his government.

BUT, up to date, evidence shows that President Jonathan have failed on this very important promise.

Compare this two documented utterances from Buhari and Jonathan in your evaluation:

 "What they (BOKO HARAM) are doing now is worse than election rigging. I suggest that Mr President be decisive on those criminal elements." Muhammadu Buhari(2011)

And this was President Jonathan's response to Buhari's earlier advice on ways to tackle BOKO HARAM terror campaign.

" They (BOKO HARAM) are our siblings, we cannot send soldiers to crush our siblings."
PRESIDENT JONATHAN (2011)

Also, we are aware that there are 3 fractions of Boko Haram-
a) the ruthless religious boko haram
b) deadly business arm who trade in arms.
c) The evil militant Boko Haram that PDP imposed in order to achieve divide and conquer.

This latter group are mainly responsible for pain, death and hardship on Nigerian citizens because they attack churches, market places and targets high valued Northerners. And it explains why the Nigerian government are not consistent when dealing with the ruthless religious fractions of Boko Haram because they are not telling the whole truth to Nigerians and the world.

Hence, we are appealing to Nigerians and the world to remember Azazi's claim, his positions as the security chief to the president, and how he was disgracefully dismissed after confessing that PDP are responsible for Boko Haram, and finally, how he died. I rest my case.


Smear campaigns regarding the "N2.8 billion missing oil money" i

The candid message to the Buhari-Haters on smear campaigns regarding the "N2.8 billion missing oil money" is that they go and update their records from relevant subsequent development on this baseless, scurrilous and uncharitable claims "dripping with false information, inaccuracies, terrible innuendo and deliberate or expedient amnesia."

INCONTROVERTIBLE RECORDS SHOW THAT:

The Alhaji Shehu Shagari government set up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry headed by Honourable Mr. Justice Ayo Irekefe of the Supreme Court, to inquire into the alleged N2.8 Billion missing oil money. The findings? They were in the “negative...no such funds were missing" (Tam David-West).

The saga of the 'missing' oil money was exhaustively treated with relevant quoted documents by no lesser person but General Olusegun Obasanjo in his book : "NOT MY WILL", the Buhari-Haters are particularly requested to read: Chapter 11, pages 216 - 240:

Obasanjo said: "It was interesting that Buhari's name as Minister of Petroleum Resources and Chairman of NNPC was not mentioned. Of course, since no money was actually and truly missing, his name should not have been mentioned" (Not My Will, p 222).

All key witnesses invited to the Judicial Commission of Inquiry as showed by the White Paper said it was alllies and it did not happen:

DR TAI SOLARIN: "He has no material, fact or proof that the sum of N2.8 billion was missing. " (Not My Will, p 221).

FELA KUTI: "Denied knowledge of the missing N2.8billion." Fela was even 'disclosed' for tendering forged document (Exhibit 102 d) on money movement (Not My Will, p 221).

SOLA ODUNFA (Editor, Punch): "...Agreed he published the story of the missing N2.8 billion and followed up with the publication of apology." (Not My Will, p 222).

ROBERT HUBBARD, MANAGER, MIDLAND BANK, LONDON: "The Enquiry Tribunal went to London. He categorically stated that any reference to his bank was untrue" (Tam David-West).

OLU SARAKI (Senate Leader): "...had no personal knowledge of the loss or movement of money. Derived his knowledge from telephone calls, letters and telexes received. Was satisfied that no money was missing." (Not My will, p 221).

 PLEASE HELP DISSEMINATE THIS MESSAGE WHEREVER AND WHENEVER THE OPPORTUNITY IS FOUND TO DISPEL THE LIES SHAMELESSLY PEDDLED AROUND (REPEATEDLY - "AD NAUSEAM LIKE BROKEN GRAMOPHONE DISC") BY THE BLINDLY BIGOTED MINDS ON THE SOCIAL NETWORKS.

In conclusion,

All of our so called leaders and their pen pushers cannot accuse Buhari of corruption. Because Buhari is not corrupt and he would never be. They know that, that is why they are demonizing him. That is why they feared him, because they know that he is the only man as Nigeria stands today that can lock them away after getting our stolen money. May God continue to give us wisdom because we deserve peace and progress in Nigeria.

The corrupt that is mortgaging the future of the next generations doesn't care about tribes, religion or their political affiliations. All that binds them together is corruption, nothing more, nothing less. And if truth is to be told, majority of Nigerians doesn't give a damm about tribe or religion.

There is endemic corruption and abject poverty in our prospective villages and towns, that is what our focusing should be because it is what matters to millions of ordinary Nigerians. This is worthy of our focus; this is what can make all Nigerians progressive; this is what can make our beloved country Nigeria to be once again the giant of Africa.

It is entirely up to individual Nigerians to continue helping those who are corrupt and mortgaging the lives of our future youths. But bear this fact in mind, the world is moving on positively, productively and progressively and any damage or neglect you do now will come back to hunt not only you but your children unborn.

We have a choice and myself and my household will never be part of anyone that damage the reputation of good people while hero worshipping killers of dreams.The state of Nigeria of today is my evidence, hence I support Buhari-Fashola 2015 for APC. PROGRESSIVE WE STAND.

Marian Iyabode Awolowo
Nigerian Global Awakening.

PRESS RELEASE - General Muhammadu Buhari


YOBE killings: Buhari anguished , counsels on proactive security measures.
The National Leader of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB) has lent his voice in the loud condemnation of the mindless killing of innocent Nigerians students in Yobe state by a blood-thirsty armed gang. This is not just condemnable but abominable! The shedding of innocent blood is abhorrent in the furtherance of the cause of our common humanity.
This unfortunate incident has once again jolted us into fresh realism on the foreboding of the unknown that the scepter of insecurity in the land has forced on us. This is the time to appraise the effectiveness of current security system with a view to optimizing for proactively combating the Nation’s security menace. As it is often said that, it is preposterous in deploying the same method all the time and expecting different result, our leader has counseled on taking another look at the effectiveness of the blanket disruption of Telecommunication services in the states of Yobe, Borno and Adamawa. Usually, the ‘lock-down’ strategy should not be prolonged and must be preceded by unassailable intelligence gathering. This is the way that the security agencies can be on top of the situation.
GMB equally uses the opportunity to condole the families of the deceased and the government of Yobe State. He prays for the infinite mercies of the Almighty God to grant them fortitude to bear the irreparable losses.
God bless the Federal republic of Nigeria.

Rotimi Fashakin (Engr.)
National Publicity Secretary, CPC.
(Tuesday, 9th July, 2013).

Letter from Africa: The looting of Nigeria's pension funds

Shola Odunfa

 
Ex-civil servants protesting in Abuja, Nigeria (October 2012)
In our series of letters from African journalists, Sola Odunfa in Lagos writes that many elderly Nigerians are battling to survive after their pensions were stolen by corrupt officials.
The compulsory retirement age for public officials in Nigeria is 65 years, after which one is expected to settle down to an easy life of contentment and leisure.
But don't you believe it.
The reality is that you may spend your old age running after government contracts if you have the wherewithal, or tending chickens in your backyard to eke out a living.
It is not that the pension cannot sustain you. Far from it.

''They stepped out of the public service into the embrace of discomfort and hunger brought on them by former colleagues who had stripped the treasury bare”

The state pension is big enough to encourage you to seek rejuvenation, even by taking a new wife and starting life all over.
After all, you could be as young as 60, the age for voluntary retirement.
Nigeria has two classes of government pensioners. One consists of those who took insurance for their old age by either stealing as much as they could while in the public service, or collecting as many bribes as they were privileged to do by their offices. Members of this class have no need of their pensions.
The second class is made up of the honest, self-righteous ex-public official who would not touch one kobo of government money beyond their salaries and allowances and to whom bribe-taking was contrary to their religious beliefs and family values.
Investigations suspendedThis second class had calculated their pensions and concluded that they and their spouse would live in comfort until death.
But they stepped out of the public service into the embrace of discomfort and hunger brought on them by former colleagues who had stripped the treasury bare.
A Nigerian policeman holds a teargas launcher in Lagos on 1 June 2012 Police offices cannot be sure of a comfortable retirement
In the past three years, several official investigations into Nigeria's pension funds have revealed theft on an unimaginable scale.
Newspapers reports of the hearings convey the impression that the funds were stored in open rooms to which officials had unimpeded access. Apparently, officials were free to walk in and loot as much as they could.
''Government pensioners, wherever I meet them, cut a sorry image”
A junior clerk allegedly had 12 million naira (about $75,000; £49,000) in his bank account. A deputy director in a ministry allegedly had 500 million naira ($3m) in one account and $2m, in hard currency, in another account.
Nigeria's police officers, themselves not immune to the temptations of corruption, are not guaranteed a comfortable old age either. The investigations have revealed that the Police Pension Fund has also been ravaged.
The list is endless. Yet, the investigations have been suspended without covering all ministries and parastatals.
One of the cases that was pursued caused yet more controversy in January when a high court judge imposed a fine of $4,600 on an official who had pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal $142m from the police pension pot - instead of opting for the harshest sentence available, a two-year jail term with a fine.
The judge was subsequently suspended for a year without pay by the National Judicial Council for failing to exercise "discretion judicially and judiciously" in the case.
Government pensioners, wherever I meet them, now cut a sorry image.
They spent their working years serving the public, despite poor pay, in the belief that their old age would be well-cushioned by a generous pension for life.
Now they live by the day in the forlorn hope that a cheque may come in unexpectedly. Many of them regret their honesty in service.
BBCNews
 

The Buhari I Know

SAM NDA-ISAIAH

Last week, a certain Abu Mohammed Ibn Abdulaziz, who claims to be second in command of Boko Haram, held a radio conference with journalists in Maiduguri in which he declared his sect’s readiness for a conditional ceasefire. He went ahead to name those they preferred or trusted to facilitate a proposed dialogue with the federal government. On his list of preferred facilitators were General Muhammadu Buhari, Shettima Ali Monguno, Gaji Galtimari and Bukar Abba Ibrahim. Only Buhari is not of the Borno/Yobe axis. But only the name of Buhari has generated passionate interest from both admirers and detractors.

Predictably, Buhari’s foes have jumped on this piece of news and are celebrating their pet fantasy: that Buhari must have been a sponsor of Boko Haram. Why should they pick him if they do not share common beliefs, someone declared in a newspaper yesterday. A certain Bitrus Kaze, who claims to be a lawmaker representing Jos South/Jos East federal constituency in Plateau State, and who, I am certain, has never met Buhari, asserted quite “authoritatively” via a press statement that the nomination of Buhari as a facilitator by Boko Haram can be “likened to the proverbial birds of the same feather (sic) that flock together”. Continuing, he said, “anyone who has been following the internecine violence perpetrated especially in northern Nigeria by those merchants of death should understand their choice of General Buhari. Eventually, the men behind the masks are being unveiled. In my view, Buhari, like Boko Haram, is a religious extremist who cannot be trusted to negotiate for sustainable peace in Nigeria. In the build-up to the 2003 presidential election, Buhari was reported to have asked Muslims across the country to vote only for the presidential candidate that would defend and uphold Islam.”

Hon. Kaze also spoke of the Sheikh Lemu report in a way that showed clearly that he didn’t read the report and didn’t listen to all the statements and explanations of Sheikh Ahmed Lemu.

The social media and the internet have also been worked into a frenzy on this issue of Buhari’s nomination by Boko Haram. Most who berate the former head of state on the internet are clearly ignorant of the man they comment so authoritatively about. But the one I find more exasperating is the mischief of those around government who, though not making public statements, are rejoicing over this development. It’s like Boko Haram has given them exactly what they have always craved free of charge. One of them jokingly said, “Why should we be surprised? We have always known that Buhari is the chairman of Boko Haram.” Of course, they did not want to be quoted.

The people around President Jonathan have, for long, been insinuating the nonsense about a link between some northern leaders and statesmen who have served this country in the past meritoriously and Boko Haram. Because they were the sponsors of the Niger Delta insurgency, they believe that everyone must be like them. Only a few like Pa Edwin Clark have been courageous enough to actually name General Buhari, General Ibrahim Babangida and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the sponsors of Boko Haram. I once told some of them to take Clark to court on the matter, but they all told me they would not dignify the man.

Only very few people would claim to be closer to General Buhari than I. And even among those close to him, very few can claim to know him like I do. Buhari is one of the most outstanding human beings I know, with all his faults. He is certainly not a perfect man. It is not for nothing that I have supported and voted for him in all the three attempts he has made to be president of this country. Buhari may not be a perfect person or your ideal politician, but I am yet to meet a sane person who would disagree with me that Nigeria would have been a totally different place if he had been sworn in as president in 2003 or 2007 or 2011. At the very least, nobody would have attempted to steal N2.6 trillion under his presidency and if any thief were bold enough to try it, there would be very harsh consequences – exactly the kind of leadership that any country that cherishes progress would need. He would have given a damn about declaring his assets and there would have been a very clear response to the Niger Delta militancy and oil thefts that took a life of their own during the Obasanjo, Yar’Adua and Jonathan presidencies. And Boko Haram would not have overpowered the government as we see today. Remember when he was head of state and Maitatsine insurgents struck in Kano? That was the last time the world heard anything about Maitatsine. In fact, for those who remember very well, Maitatsine started during the Shehu Shagari era and it was when Buhari took over and the sect struck in Kano killing many people that he put a decisive end to the insurgency. Buhari had said at the time that Maitatsine would never happen again and it never did. Boko Haram is a mutation of Maitatsine.

Anyone that is close enough to former presidents and heads of state would know that one thing that binds them together – and which they all agree on, no matter their differences – is the obsessive belief in the oneness and stability of Nigeria. And I am close enough to almost all living former heads of state (with the exception of Obasanjo, of course) to authoritatively speak on this.

Buhari, of course, is one man that is generally misunderstood. I remember, a few years ago, when a pastor friend of mine said that Buhari didn’t laugh at all and would always be unfriendly. I found a way to lure my friend into Buhari’s home one evening. Immediately we came before the former head of state, I announced to Buhari in the presence of everyone, “Sir, this my pastor friend said you don’t laugh at all.” Buhari burst into a hearty laughter and immediately started a very funny conversation with my pastor friend. By the time we left, my friend was both in stitches and delighted. This has been a subject of his discussions since.

Buhari’s favourite in LEADERSHIP is the Ghana-Must-Go pocket cartoon at the back page. He would call several times laughing and laughing and laughing. By the way, this Ghana-Must-Go fetish is also shared by General IBB, General Abdulsalami, General Danjuma, the late President Yar’Adua, former Vice President Atiku and sundry political leaders of disparate tendencies across the country.

Buhari always enjoys a good joke even if it is one poked at him. And he is one of the wittiest persons I know. Recently, some pretty-looking ladies went to visit him at home to seek his support and blessing for their NGO. They asked for a photograph with him which was later published in several newspapers. On sighting the photograph, I called him to say that he should have proceeded to pick one of them as a second wife. He was so amused that he told some people that “Sam ba ya da kirki”, meaning “Sam is a very unkind person.” He said I was unkind to have suggested such an unkind thing to him. Everyone laughed.

During a Council of State meeting just before the 2003 elections in which he was the presidential candidate of the opposition ANPP contesting against the PDP of which a sitting President Obasanjo was the candidate, there was a banter between him and Obasanjo which many people still remember. Buhari had a cold then and was coughing just before the meeting. It was also during the outbreak of some strange kind of flu in Asia. When Obasanjo noticed Buhari was coughing, he said, “Muhammadu, hope you have not contracted that strange disease”, or something to that effect. Buhari immediately responded and said, “I have not been globetrotting sir.” Everyone burst into loud laughter. That was the period Obasanjo was gallivanting all over the planet and hardly stayed at home to perform his presidential duties. What Buhari was telling Obasanjo then was that it was he (Obasanjo) who would more likely contract a foreign disease as a result of his famed globetrotting.

Hon. Kaze and many others who do not know Buhari call him a religious extremist – and Hon. Kaze particularly still quotes something he claims Buhari said a long time ago: advising Muslims to vote only for fellow Muslims. Well, I think people like him would need to read Bishop Matthew Kukah’s position on this, which he wrote in an article at the time. Bishop Kukah, who knows Buhari well and even spoke with him on the matter, spoke the truth at that time as he always does. Those who also know Buhari would tell you that there are only two Nigerians who can get him to do what he doesn’t want to do – General Gowon and General Danjuma, both Christians. I am sure Hon. Kaze and his like do not know Buhari enough to know this. Neither would they know that his personal driver of more than 10 years is a Christian. His cook is a Christian and so are many others on his domestic staff.

On December 31, 1983, just after the overthrow of Shehu Shagari, and the coup was still going on, Buhari left Kaduna to return to his base in Jos where he was the GOC. On his way, he sent a message to other “conspirators” that Major-General Domkat Bali, who was the most senior among the coupists, should be declared head of state. It was later in the day that Bali and others in Lagos dispatched an Air Force plane to Jos to bring him (Buhari) to Lagos in order to make him head of state. Muslim extremist Buhari choosing Bali, a Christian, to be head of state? Does this make sense? Buhari told me this story himself. The story was even the more corroborated by Dr Mahmud Tukur, the cerebral minister of commerce in his cabinet then and perhaps the closest to him. Dr Tukur actually went further to tell me that, on two occasions as head of state, Buhari almost walked away and simply wanted to hand over to Bali because he just didn’t like the way some of his colleagues were behaving. This is also another exclusive for people like Hon. Kaze.

You may not like Buhari and may actually hate his guts, but there are some facts about him that cannot be controverted. He actively detests corruption, he hates slothfulness and takes Nigeria and public service too seriously to be associated with any type of crime whatsoever. He has told me that Islam does not approve of taking innocent lives. Boko Haram people may be trying to latch onto his credibility, but the Buhari I know is unlikely to accept to be part of anything to do with Boko Haram. Don’t forget, this is the man who obliterated Maitatsine when he was in power.

If Buhari has any faults at all, it is that he is totally without guile and too naïve to stop election riggers from always taking advantage of him. I have had issues with him over the path to victory in the past elections. He has not been able to cobble together the kind of national alliance that is a desideratum for winning the presidency in a democracy and a strategy for stopping election riggers. When Obasanjo in 2003 and 2007 and Jonathan in 2011 declared that the elections would be free and fair, he believed them hook, line and sinker. You can accuse Buhari of too trusting but certainly not violence or religious bigotry or mischief. He is too much of a statesman and too much into the principles of law and order to be associated with the kind of crimes that Hon. Kaze and Jonathan’s cronies are trying to associate with him.

I am a Christian, a Bible-believing one and a very proud one for that matter. If Buhari were a tenth of what people like Kaze, who don’t know him but authoritatively say he is, would I still be one of his closest associates?

EARSHOT

The Murder Of General Shuwa

If Nigerians are not frightened about the way someone of General Mamman Shuwa’s stature would so easily be shot dead by yet undetermined gunmen, then, we must be sleepwalking into destruction. Boko Haram has declared that it had no hand in the needless murder. Shuwa was a very simple man and mingled freely with the lowest in the society. If a war hero like Shuwa did not die on the warfront only to be killed so cheaply by common criminals, then, we must all sit back and ponder the future of Nigeria. As someone wrote in a newspaper yesterday, if someone like General Shuwa can so easily be killed, then, an endgame is unfolding in the north which could spell terminal disaster for the whole country.

But why are we so helpless? Why do we seem to be sleepwalking inexorably towards our annihilation as a nation? Have we been so programmed for self-destruction that we can do nothing to reverse it? We need answers to these questions quickly before it is too late. And only those in charge of the country can give the correct answers.

via: Nasril el-Rufai on facebook

STILL ON BUHARI.

''After retirement the untired General went home and become the chairman BOT of "Gidauniya Jihar Katsina"( an NGO founded after a fund raising to develop katsina state) in 1991. He led for 17 years and voluntarily retired in 2009. It was really the best of all times; we saw prudence, accountability and honesty and resourcefulness in stewardship, for, more than 500 millions were spent under Buhari in different projects: drilling boreholes, agric loans, healthcare facilities, learning materials for schools etc. Truly, the katsina people first spotted the beacon of hope''. - Ibrahim Muhammad Kurfi on facebook.