Only voters can remove elected leaders – President Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan Saturday in Lagos restated the opposition of Nigeria and the African Union to the unconstitutional removal of any democratically-elected government.

Speaking during an audience with Ambassador Raouf Saad, Special Envoy of the Interim President of Egypt, Mr. Adly Mansour at the State House, Marina, President Jonathan declared that the Federal Government maintains its stand that only the electorate in any country have the constitutional right to remove an elected leader.

Welcoming the assurance by Ambassador Saad that the Egyptian military were not currently involved in the day-to-day administration of the country, President Jonathan advised the interim government to do all within it powers to return Egypt to democratic rule as quickly as possible.

The President told the Special Envoy that Egypt was very important to Africa and that Nigeria and the African Union will, therefore, give the country all necessary support to ensure that it returns to the path of constitutionalism and political stability as quickly as possible.

He condemned recent terrorist activities on Mount Sinai and reaffirmed the Federal Government’s full commitment to working with the rest of the world to combat terrorism, saying that no person or group has the right to intimidate others with acts of terror.

Ambassador Saad was in Lagos to brief President Jonathan on the current situation in Egypt against the background of the opposition of Nigeria and the African Union to the unconstitutional change of government in Egypt and the country’s suspension from the continental body.

The Egyptian envoy praised Nigeria’s leadership role in Africa and sought President Jonathan’s advice on how Egypt could best overcome its current difficulties.

Reuben Abati
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
July 20, 2013

DailyPost

President Jonathan, one month after.

 By Reuben Abati

It is one month today since former Vice President, and former Acting President, Goodluck Jonathan assumed office as Nigeria’s 14th President. In an earlier article, I had advised President Jonathan to “hurry up” and not allow himself to get carried away with the trappings and schedule of office. I also advised elsewhere that he should do something about his wardrobe and learn to smile - to inspire confidence and downplay burden. I see that the latter advice has been taken too seriously by the President’s wardrobe managers; he now looks like a potential catwalk model what with that “abeti aja” cap he donned to work on June 2, grinning from ear to ear like a lucky hunter of fortunes, obviously amused by the antics of his wardrobe stylists. But as for the other advice about focusing on the ball, (the reason for his being the centre of attraction), and remembering his earlier promise that his government will “hit the ground running,” I don’t seem to see any changes and it is within this framework that we should seek a review of Jonathan’s one-month in office.

We may even step back in time and begin the assessment from February 9 when he took over as Acting President, (more than 100 days in office later) but whether we do that or stay within the scope of the last 30 days, the defining patterns remain the same. I am tempted to provide a list of activities that have so far been engaged in by the Jonathan Presidency, but as this page will not be enough to accommodate such a full list, I shall only provide a few examples and explanations to demonstrate that there has been too much focus in this Presidency on ceremonies rather than service. How? A close review indicates that much of the new man’s time has been taken up by visits to him or by him, locally and abroad, handshakes, speeches, and such other activities which do not translate into any measurable benefit for average Nigerians either in the long or short term.

Nigerian civil servants are terrible: when they find in their hands a boss who enjoys travels or who mistakes receiving this or that delegation for performance, they will readily fill his daily schedule with time-wasters; that way, they protect the status quo. Jonathan faces the risk of spending valuable time on such activities; the danger is that he seems to be over-enjoying it. When will he begin to get his hands dirty with work? He had been acting President for more than 90 days before David Cameron assumed office as Prime Minister of Great Britain. He assumed full authority a week earlier than Cameron did in Britain, but the latter’s government has made more qualitative policy movements, while Jonathan has received more visitors and done more travels.

He should perhaps be forgiven for the relative inaction of his early days as Acting President. With Mr Yar’Adua allegedly on life support and the cabal claiming that he would soon return to office as President, Jonathan’s Acting Presidency was initially tentative, if not somewhat distracted, but it soon began to stir alive. On February 12, the acting President held a meeting at the Presidential Villa with a team of eminent Nigerians including former Heads of State, Gowon, Shagari, Ernest Shonekan, and former Vice President Alex Ekwueme, and US envoy Johnny Carson. On Feb. 16, he hosted ECOWAS leaders and also became Chairman of the body. On February 19, he received in audience the departing Australian High Commissioner and Second Secretary of the Australian High Commission in Nigeria. On February 21, former US President George Bush, former US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and the US Ambassador to Nigeria, who had attended the ThisDay awards in Abuja visited Jonathan at the Aguda House.

By March, the frequency of visits had increased, with more persons and groups trooping to Abuja to see the new man. On March 6, former President of Ghana, John Jerry Rawlings went to see Jonathan, on March 22, it was the turn of House committee on Foreign Affairs and the 2009 Hajj delegation. On March 31, the Liberian President met with Jonathan. On April 8, the Acting President played host to a delegation from the Sultan of Sokoto. The high point in that early moment came between April 11 -14 when Acting President Goodluck Jonathan, on the invitation of the US President Barrack Obama travelled to the United States to attend the Nuclear Security Summit. This was Jonathan’s first official trip abroad as Acting President, and a turning point for him. On that trip, he met with President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, members of the US Council on Foreign Relations, the President of ExxonMobil, the World Bank President, Robert Zoellick, and had an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.

On his return, the then Acting President continued to play host to many visitors: there was an overnight meeting with 28 PDP Governors around April 26, the Conference of Deputy Governors of Nigeria also visited, the Speakers of the Houses of Assembly also trooped to the Presidential Villa; on April 28, he received the President of the Republic of Benin, Boni Yayi. By the end of April, a certain local momentum and international attention had gathered around the Jonathan Presidency so distinctly that Nigerians soon resolved that even if his sick boss suddenly got well, Jonathan should be allowed to continue in office till May 29, 2011. Seeing this to be the case the now displaced Yar’Adua cabal embarked on a series of gambits to deceive the public into believing that their man would soon recover. He did not. With Yar’Adua’s death on May 5, Jonathan assumed office the following morning and thus began the Jonathan Presidency. 

But the pattern that had been established under the Acting Presidency was merely extended. Jonathan did not attend his boss’s burial, for yet undisclosed reasons, it was not until May 8 that he travelled to Katsina to condole with the Yar’Adua family and the Emir of Katsina. He then declared a national week of mourning, and virtually every day, the Presidential Villa was besieged by visitors. On May 11 alone, President Jonathan hosted former Ghanaian President, John Kuffour, the British Ambassador to Nigeria, Bob Dewar, Nigerian state-Governors and the National Council of Traditional Rulers. His presidency has since been in full swing and the main activities as earlier noted have been in form of visits and travels, not just by the President but also his wife who previously had been in the shadows. On May 14, President Jonathan paid his first state visit to Rivers state.
The same day, his wife was in Asaba, Delta state to launch a Foundation set up by Mrs Roli Uduaghan. A week later, Mrs Jonathan jetted out to the United Arab Emirates – her friends say for a medical check up; her enemies claim this was a “gold-shopping junket.” On May 20, the President travelled to Cameroun to attend that country’s 50th independence anniversary celebrations. On May 22, the President travelled to Gombe state; on May 25, he was in Zamfara state. On May 28, Mrs Jonathan won a motorcycle (“okada”) in a Union Bank Lucky Draw, with the Associated Press (AP) reporting that “it appears as though Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan’s luck might have rubbed off on his wife.” Visitors kept trooping to the villa all through May including President of Sierra Leone (May 18), General Abdusalami Abubakar and the ECOWAS Commission (May 24), Head of State of Niger (May 26), the Senate Leadership, the Benue Delegation, the Cameroonian Special Envoy, the US Ambassador, Robin Sanders and US Under Secretary of State, Maria Otelo (-all on May 27).

On May 30, President Jonathan left for France to attend the 25th Africa-France Summit on the invitation of French President Nicholas Sarkozy with whom he had a meeting. He also had a one on one session with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. On June 1, the President travelled from France to Saudi Arabia on “a thank you visit” to King Abdallah who reportedly took very good care of late Nigerian President Umaru Yar’Adua when he was a patient at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital. Jonathan returned in time for an EXCOF meeting on June 2. On Thursday, June 3, he rushed to Ibadan to attend the 60th birthday owambe party of Oyo State Governor Christopher Alao-Akala.

The President was in Ibadan for only a few hours, wearing aso ebi (why?) but nearly every market in the town was shut down: Aleshinloye, Beere, Gbagi, Dugbe, Bola Ige, Oje, Challenge, Oke-Ado. Market women had to lose revenue so Alao-Akala could have his party and Jonathan could swallow amala and gbegiri! This week, President Jonathan is off to South Africa to watch the opening ceremony of the World Cup 2010 on the invitation of President Jacob Zuma. He has also been invited to the G8 summit in Muskoka, Canada, from June 25 -26, and a summit of West African Leaders to be hosted in France, on July 13. In between all of these, the President is obliged to visit other states of the Federation, and probably host a few foreign leaders. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking away.

In order not to give the impression however that this is all that President Jonathan has done since he assumed power, I’ll like to draw attention to other useful details. Except for once or twice and during the period when a Federal cabinet was not in place, or when he was away, President Jonathan has chaired meetings of the Executive Council of the Federation. On April 6, he constituted a new Executive Council. On April 22, he signed the 2010 Budget into law, he has now sent a supplementary budget to the National Assembly. Other activities: he directed that INEC Chairman, Professor Maurice Iwu should proceed on terminal leave; he also set up a Presidential Advisory Committee led by General Theophilus Danjuma (he, of the $1 billion oil bloc sale fame); and a Presidential Projects Assessment Committee. He has appointed a Vice President in the person of Namadi Sambo, former Governor of Kaduna State. 

He has also made useful speeches: in one he promised that his “government will hit the ground running”, in another on May 29, he acknowledged the contributions of MKO Abiola, Alfred Rewane, Gani Fawehinmi, Shehu Yar’Adua etc to Nigerian democracy. He reinstated former EFCC Chairman, Nuhu Ribadu to the rank of an Assistant Inspector General of Police, directed that all charges in court against him be dropped, Ribadu is now back in town as a retired police AIG; Nasir el-Rufai too, key members of the Yar’Adua cabal who plotted against Ribadu and el-Rufai are in the mean time on the run in Dubai and elsewhere. Vincent Ogbulafor who used to treat Jonathan shabbily has been removed as Chairman of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP). General Olusegun Obasanjo who was less visible during the Yar’Adua years has now re-emerged as yet a major factor and as the holder of the unofficial title of Baba Oba of the Nigerian Presidency. On June 3, President Jonathan sent a supplementary budget to the National Assembly: one of the elements of which is a request to be allowed to spend N10 billion to celebrate Nigeria’s 50th Independence Anniversary, with N50 million specially reserved for the First Lady’s proposed visit to orphanages and old people’s homes! On June 1, the First Lady herself played hostess to female lawmakers in the National Assembly. 

You may ask: so is this all that the Jonathan Presidency is all about, the substance of the last 30 days or the last 117 days? I think one point is clear: 
President Jonathan has been able to establish his authority as the man in charge, but it is so unfortunate that everything has now been reduced to his political ambition with regard to the 2011 Presidential election. It is the kind of politics which further distracts the administration so much that there have been reports of Jonathan posters on Abuja streets, protests by aggrieved Northerners that Jonathan must not run, counter protests from the South that Jonathan must run, and the emergence of a group which goes by the label: Movement for the Support of Dr Goodluck Jonathan (MOSoGJO –www.supportgoodluck.org).
Jonathan’s emergence by its very fact, has brought much stability, and has raised Nigeria’s standing with the international community. 
Yar’Adua as President was not available in the international circuit, Jonathan is; the world now has a Nigerian President that they can relate to. But the truth is that this is not something that has been worked for and achieved: Nigeria’s strategic importance guarantees that already. But it is this given factor that President Jonathan seems to be exploiting. There should be a lot more substance to his Presidency, even with the limited time at his disposal.

What I see is that so far, it is President Jonathan that is drawing all the benefits from his presidency and not the people. Ahead of the 2011 elections, he is already campaigning for his own election as President. He is Chairman of ECOWAS; he has met all the leaders in the region and hosted some of them in Abuja: he is the man they know. 
He is also making huge forays internationally, acquiring required name recognition and pumping the right hands. He has behind him the entire machinery of incumbency.

Traditional rulers, Governors, Deputy Governors are all falling over themselves to see him: they know he is in charge, they know he controls the oil blocs and a lot more, and when they visit, I bet he doesn’t fail to let them know what is best for them. Where is that candidate who would show up later and claim that he or she too wants to be President? Cleverly, Jonathan is pushing himself ahead. He is playing politics and not working. His job requires study and reflection and a sense of mission. Where and how does he get that if he is perpetually receiving visitors and junketing all over the place? He has a Vice President but after the initial politics of his nomination and appointment, Namadi Sambo seems to have turned into wallpaper.

Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Patience may have all the luck in the world including such luck that makes her a curious winner of an okada motorcycle (!), but Nigerians expect a lot more.
Guardian

Jonathan, Northern governors in hide and seek visit to Obasanjo

Dimeji Kayode-Adedeji

The northern governors waited for Mr. Jonathan to leave before arriving Mr. Obasanjo’s house.
Four Northern governors on Saturday played what could be described as a hide and seek game with President Goodluck Jonathan when the two parties separately visited former President Olusegun Obasanjo at his private hilltop mansion in Abeokuta, the Ogun State Capital.

The northern governors include Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Aliyu Wamako (Sokoto), and Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano). The four governors are among the Peoples Democratic Party governors that defied their party and the presidency to vote Governor Rotimi Amaechi as the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum.

Mr. Jonathan was the first to arrive at the ex-president’s house. The president paid an unscheduled visit to Mr. Obasanjo on his way to condole with the Abati family over the burial of the mother of his spokesperson, Reuben Abati. The Abati’s live in Abeokuta, close to Mr. Obasanjo.

The president held a closed door meeting with Mr. Obasanjo for over one hour.

While Mr. Jonathan was meeting with the former president, the northern governors arrived the Ogun State capital unaware of the president’s visit.

Upon realising that the president was in town, the governors reportedly resolved to stay away from Mr. Obasanjo’s house until the president leaves.

About five minutes after the president left Mr. Obasanjo’s house, the governors arrived.

Speaking with journalists after their closed door meeting, the northern governors said they were in Abeokuta for “consultation” with the former President on “very important matters.”

“We have come to greet the most accomplished Nigerian ever and would remain so for a very long time and to consult him on very important matters,” Mr. Nyako, who spoke on behalf of his colleagues, explained.

The president after his visit to the Abati’s told journalists that he did not attend Friday’s funeral for the deceased because he was away in Togo for an official function.

He also confirmed his meeting with Mr. Obasanjo, saying he remained the ex-president’s son.

“Of course, you know that Reuben’s house and Obasanjo’s house are just about 10 minutes drive to each other. It would not be proper if I’m coming to Ogun State to see Reuben who is just at Obasanjo’s backyard that I would not stop over to greet him (Obasanjo).

“I’m Obasanjo’s son – and Obasanjo probably have some differences. So, I said that before coming to greet the family, let us stop over and greet Obasanjo and we did that. We stopped over there. Even our helicopters are there in the Government House, we drove down here,” the president said.

Mr. Obasanjo was a major backer of the president in 2011, but is believed to be opposed to any re-election plans for Mr. Jonathan, preferring to support a Northern candidate rumoured to be Mr. Lamido of Jigawa. The former president boycotted the widely publicised presentation of Mr. Jonathan’s mid-term report in May, preferring instead to attend a function by the Jigawa governor on the same day.

PremiumTimes

APC SNEEZES PDP FOUNDATION CRUMBLES

Prof. Femi Ajayi

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s soon as NAFDAC approved the prescribed incompatible APC medication for the political migraine, perpetrated by PDP, claiming to be the largest political party in Africa, the political map is changing; PDP has gone berserk, confused, as to the direction of the storm which will extricate the assembled materials in the PDP House of Commons. In the process of PDP reaction to the structure, under construction by the APC, it has gone hysterical by destroying its structure under the disguise of house cleaning through surgical operations of suspending and expelling. In the process of surgical operation on gallbladder stones, the functioning kidney removed by PDP design, leaving the patient with the ailing kidney that could not sustain life.

PDP has been displaying its pitiable approach to the challenges facing the party recently, as reported in the Nigerian print, electronics, and social Media. The suspension and expulsion fever, has taken over the good judgement of the PDP National Working Committee, unfortunately, dislocating its structures. The fever created by APC would continue to hunt PDP; and PDP is not even smart enough to find clever ways of adjusting, and rising up to the challenge.

PDP Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, was almost gone before the PDP Chief Architect, Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, came to his rescue. The allegations levelled against Tukur stemmed from his flagrant violation of the party's constitution, questionable party membership, to his abdication of constitutional duties and responsibilities, which qualified him for removal. The group piloting the onslaught is not new in the PDP struggles.

The party initially suspended Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State and his Sokoto State counterpart, Aliyu Magatakarda Wammako, for their engagement in anti-party activities. Leadership of PDP on Monday, April 29, 2013, suspended the 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, loyal to Governor Rotimi Amaechi, who is the chair of the controversial Nigeria Governors Forum. The Sokoto State Governor was suspended and about facing expulsion from the party when the 'hands of Saul and voice of Jacob' saved him.

The PDP will possibly suspend another set of its members, who have constituted themselves as internal opposition. The party is becoming very suspicious of some governors in the name of instilling party loyalty and discipline.

President Goodluck Jonathan assisted by Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State
while kicking off the reconstruction of Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Friday. Photo: ALABA IGBAROOLA

Some suspected members pencilled down to go could be Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed (Kwara) for his loyalty to Senator Bukola Saraki whose loyalty to the Jonathan presidency is seriously in doubt.; and Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta) cosy relationship with his predecessors, Chief James Ibori. Governors Wamakko, Governor Babangida Aliyu (Niger); Governor Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Governor Saidu Usman Dakingari (Kebbi), and Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano); are under the microscope for their opposition to the Jonathan 2015 ambition. Adamawa State Governor, Admiral Murtala Nyako, is a target because of the running battle he has had with the party's national chair for some time now.

Could the list be part of the projected 14 PDP Governors on the brink of rolling over to APC? Is that a mere propaganda or the reality that PDP is failing to accept?

The simple allegation against the suspension of the PDP members across board is superficially anti-party activities. If that is the yardstick used by the PDP in its suspension fever, what does it has to say to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, a PDP member, making some inciting statements that the country is ready for a revolution; with his"open romance with the APC" as its possible candidate for the 2015 President? That is enough to expel him from the party if not the hypocritical approach to the workings within PDP. His statement is too reckless and qualified to press for treason charges for inciting Nigerians to go against the Government.

Because of endemic corruption in the country, coupled with the general estrangement of the people with the ruling elite, Tambuwal thinks that the country is ripe for a revolution despite his hold on the incubator of corruption, the National Assembly. As the Speaker of the House of Representatives, what has he done or what is he doing to prevent the corrupting appetite of an average Nigerian politician? Faruk case is still hanging; and non-disclosure of their salaries, and allowances, murky to the public.

PDP tornado has landed in Rivers State whereby five members of the House worked on a script to impeach the Governor through the Speaker. As mentioned, the axe of suspension fell on the Amaechi's 27 loyalists in the Rivers State House of Assembly when Amaechi was been rumored as the Vice Presidential candidate for the 2015 elections under Sule Lamido, Jigawa State Governor. That stratagem could scuttle Jonathan chances in the 2015 Presidential elections. Implementing the script, it was chaotic, when on July 9, 2013; five members of the RSHOA impeached the Speaker while Amaechi have to personally rescue those loyal to him.

Pro and anti-Amaechi supporters in P H.......Michael Okechukwu Chinda, Rivers State Lawmaker Hit on Head in Coma

In each location where PDP tornado touched down, with the suspension and expulsion of members, each of the cases has its unique reasons. However, the hay fever within the party is the APC expansionist program, while PDP is in disarray as to how to handle it. It is like the Nigerian medical personnel inability to find solution for malaria.

The storm blowing from the North, found its way to the South West, especially in Ogun State, where the former Governor, Gbenga Daniel, doggedly caged within PDP, suspended, or expelled from the party. Daniel allegation was anti-party activities, for defecting with his loyalists to the Peoples Party of Nigeria prior to the 2011 elections, and for his alleged romance with the Labour Party in the state.

PDP is seriously in trouble, courtesy of APC. Is the Nigeria ruling PDP a curse in the country with untold hardships and woes, since democracy returned to Nigeria in 1999? Possibly it is time for a strong, virile, committed, principled political party return to the central government.

Most Nigerians have wished to see a mega party to displace PDP, at least at the Central, which is creating the hysterical atmosphere within the party, maliciously kicking both good and bad members out of the party, disregarding their contributions in building the party within their constituencies, especially in the South-West region. Ironically, Ogun State PDP created the orifice, choreographically staged, for ACN entrance into the corridor of governance without hassle.

There is no amount of Jonathan's appeal that could help him in the South west, this time around, the way PDP is going with the business of suspension and expulsion. In addition, the architects of the PDP successes in the past have been disengaged, rubbished, rejected, publicly humiliated, and unappreciated.

Using the Lagos-Ibadan Express, as a launching pad for the PDP in the South west, has already met its waterloo. Over 50 percent of the economic transaction in the country is done between Lagos-Ogun axes through the 35 years old road. PDP has inherited in the South West the witches, demons and wizards that took over the goodies on Lagos-Ibadan Express.

At the time Jonathan was supposed to make a 'fatherly' intervention with the public humiliation of the serving Governor under his administration, he turned deaf ears to the PDP challenges in Ogun State. After election, he ignored where he was supposed to mend fences for winning the Southwest. Unfortunately, Amosun recruitment from ANPP to ACN was a pointer to the political vacuum created by PDP for easy access by ACN.

Jonathan might be boorishly naive about PDP status in the South West Region politics. PDP, as a matter of fact, is in the auspice facility in South West. It is speedily disappearing as quickly as it came into the region. Regardless, SW Zone is going to be an uphill task in the region, out of reach for the PDP in the 2015 elections.

Once beaten, twice shy!

The Obasanjo's 2003 ensnare that dislodged the Alliance for Democracy, AD, in the region is a political bitter lesson for the very sophisticated South West politics; which was believed to have been championed by the immediate past Ogun State Governor, who PDP decided to expel from the party he helped built in the Region, to the amazement of the AD. Stylishly Daniel never stated that he was out of AD or Afenifere group, UPN, SDP, or even Labor Party, which he combed together for PDP in 2013. Daniel is smart enough to still keep his base.

Otunba Gbenga Daniel                                                                            Rotimi Amaechi

Nothing would be wrong or demoralizing for Daniel to return to his roots, without much appreciation from PPDP as the party knows no better way of appreciating those who helped the party; just as Rotimi Amaechi is seriously finding out the prize for honest support Goodluck Jonathan poll successes in 2011 elections. His case has gone beyond party loyalty.

As posed by some of our readers; by what parameters did they measure Daniel's involvement with other political parties and by which barometer did they gauge the risks of these involvements to PDP? How would it amount to anti-party activity if Daniel by his association with other parties, converts their members to PDP for instance as he did in 2003? If Daniel leaves PDP, how does it strengthen the party? Moreover, he will be leaving with 12 other chieftains suspended with him; where does that leave PDP? Who should be prosecuted for the anti-party crime of weakening the party?

Osun State, as earlier mentioned in some of my pieces, is a no-go area as Aregbesola has, quietly and crudely, like a good farmer, established a very strong hold of Osun State. In Oyo State, there cannot be a sure way for PDP as the leaders in the States are not in concert with the rhythmic as played by the political gadget in the State. PDP in Ekiti is daisy. It has been an unpredictable scenario in Ekiti politics as no one is sure, where it actually belongs. PDP is recruiting old, discarded, burly members, displaced by Baba Iyabo, towards 2015.

UPN, which has been a good source of a unifying instrument for true Awoists, is coming up and to be displaced by the Accord Party that is eyeing Oyo State. What about the SDP of the later day saints; that is on the rise?

Mimiko is ensuring the sustainability of the Labor Party in Ondo State. LP could not be a lone ranger in the South West politics, tailoring his programs along Awo's line. There is the need for it to spread its dragnet to get at least one more state to its side in the region in 2015.

Ogun State, with the silenced Awo loyalists, seems to be an easy target for the LP, ready to rock the State. Meanwhile the incumbent Governor in Ogun State might walk into the Lion's Den with his politically motivated malicious programs. Instead, for the administration to build on the blue print of the enabling environment for investment and business growth, developed by the immediate past administration, he started on the footpath of vengeance.

The shadowy bigger figures that manipulate the strings are the problem of PDP. These are people for whom personal aggrandizement is far more important than the common good of the party and indeed, the nation as a whole. An average Nigerians politician is after what they could get to increase their empire. These megalomaniacs will lead to the fall of PDP in 2015 unless they examine their conscience and change their ways, which could be too late.

As Ogun State PDP executive deliberated, no one was surprised about the outcome, as there is no love lost between Daniel and the trio member of the PDP, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, former Minister of Commerce and Industry, Jubril Martins-Kuye and party financier, Buruji Kashamu, popularly known as Omo Ilu.

On a serious note, he could be under USA Drone, very soon he could be with 'Uncle Sam' he thought he is hiding away from, as the world has become a global village.

Since Baba Iyabo has decided to take the interpretation of an elder statesman approach to mean putting his gear anywhere in the 2015 elections, the last obstacle on Kashamu's way for the full control of the State is the former Governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, who is chicly and quietly minding his business.

The un-biased judges chorused the expulsion of Daniel from PDP, as his continuing stay in the PDP is a threat to their positions especially the PDP financier, who rode into Ogun politics on Daniel's horseback. As he gained the inside circle of PDP, he felt it is time for him to take the mantle of PDP leadership in the State. For Kashamu to take full control of the PDP in Ogun State, Daniel has to get rid of, from the Party completely.

Ogun State, with the former Governor Daniel, might be similar to the suspension of the Gombe State Governor; Alhaji Bala Tinka's offence is a mischief in party affairs and execution of self agenda. He is one of the founding members of the PDP in the State. Coincidentally he has not been finding it easy at the hands of the elders' forum of the party, who all seem to be working tirelessly to ensure that he is out of the party, as done to Daniel in Ogun State.

There might be other political parties eyeing Ogun State; the Accord Party, the Unity Party of Nigeria, the Social Democratic Party, and the Labor Party as well. PDP might have sold out its chances in retaking the State with its available raw materials. It is becoming a laughing stock if the educated elites, or could we say the educated illiterates, in the State, continue to relinquish Ogun politics to the woodpeckers despite their huge human resources advantages in the State.

Ogun State is the first among equals in Nigeria as in Politics, Education, Business, Medical, Entertainment, Arts, Culture, or Literature. Definitely, with the current trend in the State, the uneducated smart, stark, illiterates, whose goals are to amass wealth, would continue to dictate the direction of Ogun politics. Efforts to get the elites to the mainstream of politics in the past, to fill in the gap that the PDP created through the 'Enemies Within' as the path to 2011, has failed.

Kwara State is politically inclined to the North, most especially the Middle Belt, which is geographically and historically part of the South West. The colonial partitioning accepted by most Kwarans, as the players in the Kwara politics are not too sure where to be, most Kwarans are not too comfortable with their current situations. ACN attempted to dislodge the PDP in 2011; it met a strong blockade with the stronghold of Kwara politics. His son has been quietly taking political notes from the grassroots to ensure that PDP holds on to the State in 2015. However, where is he with Jonathan? Time may not be on PDP side as another party could aggressively dislodge PDP in the State.

APC is capitalizing on PDP weaknesses especially in the South West. In reference to a report, PDP could loose to APC in 2015 at least, half of votes in the North-East and another half in the North-Central, meaning about 11.5 per cent while the North-West and the South-West both controlled 46.3 per cent of the national voting population. The North-West has about 26.9 per cent of the votes, meaning about 19 million votes while the North East has about 15.8 per cent of the votes which is about 11.6 million votes. The South-West has 19.4 per cent of the national voting population which in real terms translate to about 14.4 million voters.

PDP is loosing the South West and the strategic location of Ogun State, as the centre of economic hub, to the socio-economic location, not only to the South West, but to the entire country, making it attractive to another bridegroom. The LP penetrating Ogun State will be an easy target for Mimiko as PDP has decided to expel the agent of PDP stronghold in the State.

PDP is in a confused state, courtesy of the prescribed APC for the Nigerian nascent democracy migraine. The Institute of Party Loyalty is eroding the democracy ground in Nigeria, with another set stage in Rivers State.

Femi Ajayi is a Professor of Policy, Management & Conflict Resolution, Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State

Nigeriaworld

Opinion: ‘Enough is enough’ is not an option in marriage

By Nomalanga Mhlauli-Moses

As surprising as it seems, I am not entirely convinced that the “right” thing to do was for the pastor’s wife to leave her husband.

On Saturday night, I imagine that many people were glued to their television screens to watch the much publicized episode of “Iyanla: Fix My Life” on OWN. For the first time since the show started, I made a deliberate effort to make sure that I tuned in because I could not believe the little bit that I had heard about what the show had in store.

Iyanla traveled to Shreveport, Louisiana to help a woman “fix” her life after her husband, a pastor, confessed to having slept with at least 20 women during the course of their 10 year marriage. The pastor estimated that about 10 of the mistresses were women who were also members of his church. The pastor had also fathered a child with one of his mistresses who was not only a church member, but was also a married woman, when he started an affair with her.

Iyanla supported the pastor’s wife through the process of admitting to herself that she wanted to leave but did not do so for two reasons. The first reason was that she enjoyed the benefits that came with being the First Lady and being held in high esteem because of her title. The second reason was that she was terrified of the unknown path that lay ahead of her if she left her husband, the church and the life that she had been living for nearly 11 years.

To me, it seemed as though Iyanla was encouraging her to tell her truth and then encouraging her to act on what it seemed she was afraid to act on. While it was very subtle, I did also feel as though Iyanla slightly nudged her towards the direction of leaving, even if not permanently. My interpretation of what Iyanla said to her was that it was obvious that she had to leave.

While I have a great deal of love and respect for Iyanla, I am always mindful of the fact that she has been married and divorced three times. That is not said to judge her, but to put some of her advice into perspective. I entirely agreed with her when she gently suggested to the First Lady that she had suffered emotional, psychological and even spiritual abuse at the hands of her preacher husband. Iyanla was right to point out that abuse is not only physical.

As surprising as it seems, I am not entirely convinced that the “right” thing to do was for the pastor’s wife to leave her husband. You don’t have to be a Christian to know that when Christians get married, they make vows to each other and among those vows, there is usually some variation of a vow to stick together through “thick and thin” and through “sickness and health”. The complicating factor here is that the pastor admitted to Iyanla that he had been molested- “penetrated by a man” at an age as young as around four to seven years old. The pastor kept that a secret all his life until he told Iyanla and that is the “sickness” that he has been living with.

It could be argued that the pastor’s adulterous ways were just a manifestation of the violation that he  suffered as a little boy. He was sexually abused and then went on to abuse the woman he loved, emotionally, psychologically and, as Iyanla put it, spiritually. I am not suggesting that the pastor should get a “free pass” and neither was Iyanla but I still maintain that while it may seem obvious to some that the pastor’s wife should leave, it may not be that simple.

Being that they are Christians, I imagine that they vowed to stay together “through sickness and health”. When most people exchange vows, they make all kinds of declarations, but what most of them really mean is “I will stay as long as staying does not get too hard”. I am not saying that the pastor’s wife should stay, nor am I saying that she shouldn’t. What I am saying is that it is not as simple as it may seem and my observation is that too many people want to enjoy the “good” in marriage and will leave when the “bad” shows up; they will enjoy the “health” and won’t stick around for the healing when “sickness” shows up.

In the end, the pastor and his wife separated. The pastor went for counseling (healing). What will happen after he is “healed”, we may never know. In fact, we will never know if he will even be “healed” or if he will be a lying cheater for the rest of his life. In the end, I hope both the pastor and his wife will find peace and I also hope that they do everything that they can to shelter their children from the “sickness” that crept into their marriage.

YNaija

Opinion: My encounter with Prophet T.B Joshua

by Ekerete Udoh

I was taken in by the ease and facility with which the rich and the powerful all mingle in a symphony of spiritual curiosity and the sense of order and organization that defines the church.

Let me start by apologizing for the unavoidable absence of this column last week. It was due to circumstances that were completely beyond my control. I thank all those who had called and sent text messages wondering if I was okay. Thanks a million.

He is one of the most consequential if not the most consequential prophets of our generation. His prophetic pronouncements have come to pass with clinical precision, from the improbable election of the late Ghanaian president, Professor Atta Mills, to the air crash in Buffalo, New York in 2010, to the Boston, Massachusetts marathon day bomber and other great predictions, Prophet T. B Joshua- the General Overseer of The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations (The SCOAN)has continued to confound the world with his uncanny spiritual and prophetic gifts.

All over the world, especially in the United States, the name T. B. Joshua elicits great curiosity, admiration and spiritual awe. Most readers of my newspaper, The Diasporan Star, especially those from the southern tip of Africa – Zimbabwe, South Africans – the Caribbean community and other mainstream American populations have asked me on many occasions to try and do an in interview with the great Man of God, Prophet T. B. Joshua and to feature him in our very popular column, “Keepers of the Lord’s Vineyard”. One of such deep followers of the prophet, Christine Ngorosandu, a Zimbabwean-American nurse had pleaded with me last year to do a big story on the church and the prophet as a way to show the world, especially Americans the awesome power of God that is unfolding in the church and I remember telling her I would do so, when I next I visit Nigeria. Ms. Ngorosandu had paid a pilgrimage to Synagogue church last year and came back a spiritually changed and deeper Christian.

And so, last Tuesday, I decided to go to the church and attempt to see the Prophet who is affectionately called by millions of his followers “Man of God”. I was stunned first by the majesty of the church, the intricate designs of the main church, the pace of activities I saw, the throngs of people from all nationalities that were united in a single pursuit of spiritual growth and development; the professionalism the staff had shown- from the security, to the ushers and to the media team, who as a reflection of the name of the church cuts across all nationalities, the media team, for instance, are all Britons and as they greet you, and ,making you feel completely at ease and at home, they let you know they have internalized certain Nigerian lingos, such as telling you “no wahala.

I was taken in by the ease and facility with which the rich and the powerful all mingle in a symphony of spiritual curiosity and the sense of order and organization that defines the church. “We will try our best to ensure that you get to see the ‘Man of God” one of the media aides had told me and as I enjoyed the sumptuous meal of rice and stew chicken in the church’s well-appointed cafeteria. I was amazed by what the Lord could do in the lives of the people, by picking a chosen vessel upon which all nations would come together and praise Him without a recourse or resort to class, gender, colour or pedigree.

It is a known fact that T.B. Joshua’s ministry is defined by prophetic pronouncements and the need to let us mere mortals understand the supernatural elements of God, but I was shocked-pleasantly so, to understand that the church has done a lot of charitable works- giving hope to the hopeless, lifting people up from the depth of despondency to self-fulfillment, providing succor to the weak and the infirm, the widows whom the society often abandons to the vagaries of hard existence upon the death of their husbands and breadwinners. I was pleased to note that that the church and its TV arm-Emmanuel TV have done extensive work in bringing to the fore the hardships the earthquake ravaged people of Haiti had faced, and the resources the church had put to bear in ameliorating some of those harsh realities of the Haitian people.

I have observed the actions of a lot of churches- from those in the United States and here, in Nigeria, and the emphasis on most of those churches has always been to collect without giving back to those who helped nurture the growth of those churches. You will hear congregants of those churches tell you they cannot afford the school fees for their children in some of the schools those churches run and administer. The tuition is simply out of reach of the ordinary and not so ordinary members of those churches. What I saw at Synagogue, was different. I saw a church community that celebrates philanthropy, that builds and encourages people to be the best that God had wanted them to be- a church that is all-inclusive and I began to wonder why some naysayers have trafficked in some outlandish, vile and base innuendos about the church and its leader.

T.B. Joshua in spite of the awe-inspiring presence he commands is exceedingly simple. When I eventually got to meet him on Wednesday, July 17, in his office, I was shocked by the simplicity he projected, the demeanour of a true and caring man of God that he wore and the simplicity of his office, his mode of dressing and approach. I was left confounded. Walking up to his office, I had been battling some butterflies in my stomach as I wondered how and where to start interviewing a man of God who sees everything and is able to read people’s minds. He totally relaxed me and even though he told me, he was giving me ten minutes to ask my questions, he was generous enough to have given me a few more minutes and eventually asked me to come back for a full-length interview which was conducted yesterday, Friday, July 19.

The Prophet was very keen to speak on topical issues and had answered all my questions with his characteristic frankness and openness. We touched on both politics, social, spiritual, world affairs and his prediction on what he saw coming in 2015 and how what he saw coming could be averted. The full interview with the awesome man of God, Prophet T. B. Joshua will be published in the next edition of The Diasporan Star and excerpts will be published here in Nigeria as well. Please look out for this once-in a million encounter with the Man of God who has brought all nations to Nigeria, and in the process redefine the way we are seen and regarded by the larger world.

Nigerian Pop Culture Now Rules the World
I have written about this topic more than once and I am not yet tired of writing about it, until I am convinced the powers that be, understand and appreciates the awesome power that is inherent in this key aspect of our essence: the appropriation of our popular culture or pop culture as Americans call it for national development and the fashioning or rebranding of our nation.

Even though we have challenges and difficulties as a nation, even though our compatriots have defaced our national brand by indulging in tendencies that are less than noble, even though we have been branded in the most unflattering manner all over the world, one key element of our national life stands ramrod straight, illuminating the darker recesses of our lives, and pointing a way forward to what would be, is to be and would certainly become- a nation of hugely creative people whose talents and skills in music, movies and other elements of the creative arts stand us apart from the rest of our continental compatriots. Recently, I was in London and had visited ‘The Steam nightclub’ located at Paddington Hilton, and the packed audience was dancing deliriously to the music of top Nigerian acts.

I have observed same in places like Forest Hills, Queens, New York, which is probably the most ‘Jewish’ of all the Jewish neighborhoods in the whole of the United States outside of Israel. At a lounge I visited a while back, Tu’face’s African Queen was played repeatedly and the young patrons were singing along effortlessly. Brimming with pride, I told my companion the guy was my compatriot and she felt very excited

It is a known fact that our popular culture as represented in music and movies dominate the African continental creative firmament, shaping and affecting the ways people see and regard us, and even our unique lingos have found expressions in popular culture all across African. Why then is our government not appropriating this unique rebranding tool to better define us a people. I intend to dwell more on this topic next week. Please keep a date.

YNaija

Barcelona Coach, Tito Vilanova to Step Down Due to Health Condition

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Tito Vilanova is stepping down as coach of Barcelona to continue his treatment for cancer, club president Sandro Rosell has confirmed. Vilanova, who replaced Pep Guardiola as coach of Barca last summer,

had a tumour removed from his throat in late 2011, but suffered a relapse a year later. He underwent another operation on his parotid gland in December before beginning a course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in New York.

Barcelona said in a statement on their website: 'Tito Vilanova will not continue on the Barca bench.
'President Sandro Rosell announced this Friday that the Catalan coach will not start the season.'

In a brief press conference that was held with members of Barcelona's first team in attendance, Rosell said: 'The news I have is something that you never want to give.

'After evaluating Tito's routine tests, the treatment to follow will be incompatible with being the first-team coach.

'I want to ask for respect for the privacy of this process.'

'It's a tough blow but Barca have suffered many blows and we've got through them,' added Rosell, who said the club expect to make an announcement on Vilanova's replacement in the coming days.

Reports in Spain had earlier suggested Joan Francesc Ferrer, known as Rubi, could take over Vilanova in a caretaker capacity.

The 43-year-old joined Barca's coaching staff last month as an assistant to Vilanova and Jordi Roura - who took charge of the first team when Vilanova was absent last season.

Rubi was head coach of Girona last term and led the club to the Segunda Division play-offs, where they lost to Almeria to miss out on a place in the top flight for the first time in their history.

The 43-year-old had penned a one-year contract with Barca with the option for a second season and took up his post earlier this week as the first team reported back for pre-season training.

However, there was no mention of Vilanova's possible successor on Friday, with Rosell saying: 'In next few days the vice-president Josep Maria Bartomeu and sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta will present the new coach, probably at the start of next week.'

Barca, meanwhile, cancelled their training session scheduled for the evening and Rosell confirmed they would not now be travelling to Poland for Saturday's pre-season friendly with Lechia Gdansk.

'We've spoken with all the players in the dressing room and we've decided not to go to Poland tomorrow,' he said.

Vilanova only took over from Pep Guardiola last summer, but missed a chunk of the season after undergoing treatment for cancer in the United States.

The 44-year-old had a tumour removed from his throat in late 2011 but suffered a relapse a year later and underwent another operation on his parotid gland on December 20 before beginning a course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in New York.

After two months in the United States he returned to Barcelona in April, and speaking to the media for the first time since his treatment he said: 'I feel with desire and with strength I want to continue next season.'

In the final months of the season Vilanova made two more trips back to America for follow-up tests and to undergo further treatment.

The second of those trips was scheduled for this summer, but was brought forward to May after Barcelona clinched their fourth Primera Division title in five years with three games to go.

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