Nigeria and the billion dollar dirty slaps ~ by Olusegun Adeniyi

My sister, Dr Oby Ezekwesili could not have been more apt when she said Nigerians like to major in minors. Ever since the inauguration of Prof Chukwuma Soludo as the Governor of Anambra State ended on a slapping note, there has been no bigger storyline in Nigeria than the humiliation of an errant (now former) First Lady. From creative social media memes to academic disquisitions on the sociology, anatomy, and psychology of what it means to give or receive a ‘dirty slap’, we have had it all. But, given reports of recent days, Nigerians should be more concerned about those who are ‘slapping’ us in the oil and gas sector than the entertainment of two powerful women squabbling in the public arena. In the past week, three prominent citizens have publicly revealed the quantum of crude oil that Nigeria now practically ‘allocate’ to some financial bandits. First to raise the alarm was the Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Mr Tony Elumelu who lamented that our country is currently “losing over 95 % of oil production to thieves.” Then the former Seplat Energy CEO and top industry player, Mr Austin Avuru wrote that “the entire export pipeline network has been surrendered to vandals and illegal ‘bunkerer’ thus the phrase, ‘crude theft’ which crept into the industry about 2010 has taken on a new meaning.” He added: “There are some pipelines systems now (particularly in the East) where 80 percent of production injected therein does not make it to the terminal.” And while he may not have given any specific figure, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele confirmed on Monday that oil theft has reached industrial scale in Nigeria. From the picture painted by the trio of Elumelu, Avuru and Emefiele, it is obvious that Nigeria is being ‘slapped’ left, right and centre by criminal cartels. Meanwhile, not only have we invited this opprobrium upon ourselves in the manner some people catwalk to their humiliation, the high and mighty also now feel the heat. To put that in the proper Nigerian language, the rich are now also crying. In his capacity as chair of the National Economic Council ad hoc Committee on Oil theft, Governor Godwin Obaseki disclosed in August 2019 that in the first half of that year, 22 million barrels of crude production were stolen. That has resulted in a situation in which many states are already in serious financial crisis because of dwindling oil returns At such a critical period as this, the implications of massive oil theft should command more attention among Nigerians than the slapping dexterity of a former beauty queen. If anything, my experience of the past 48 hours has left me deeply troubled about the future of Nigeria. Within that period, I have seen, at close range, the promise and peril of our country. On Tuesday, I was in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos to witness the commissioning of the Dangote urea and ammonia fertilizer plant with a capacity to produce three million metric tonnes per annum, making it the biggest on the continent. It is located within the precincts of the almost completed 650,000 barrels per day oil refinery, also promoted by Alhaji Aliko Dangote. That is a delightful testimony to resilience and entrepreneurship. But yesterday, I joined the federal government team from Abuja to Port Harcourt to witness firsthand how our oil wealth is being ‘privatised’ by criminal gangs. Led by the Minister of State, Petroleum, Mr Timipre Sylva, others in the team included Chief of Defence Staff, Lt. General Lucky Irabor, Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd, Mr Mele Kyari, the CEO, Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr Gbenga Komolafe, NNPC Group Executive Director, Upstream, Mr Adokiye Tombomieye, as well as several senior officers from the Navy, Air Force and the security agencies. Before we took to the sky, we had travelled by road into the forest of Ibaa in Ikwerre local government where we saw local refineries at work. A pipeline takes crude into huge dumps and the long petrol storage tank under which it is cooked (refined). With what I saw yesterday, I don’t know how any rational investor would want to put his money in the Nigerian oil and gas sector. The sheer magnitude of the tragic debauchery speaks eloquently to the total breakdown of law and order in Nigeria. While I intend to return to the oil theft malaise and the implications for our national economy and security as well as the environment, let me state that this problem did not start in 2010 as alluded by Avuru. For the past two decades, the Gulf of Guinea has been one of the most dangerous routes for shipping activities because of oil theft. “A tanker will be commandeered, the tracking devices disabled, and its cargo siphoned off onto a smaller ship in an isolated location and sold on the black market”, according to oilprice.com, an authoritative news outlet for oil and gas, in a report published years ago. “Fuel theft in Nigeria is so systemic it will not be slowed or stopped any time soon. Doing so would be tantamount to eliminating drug trafficking in Colombia”, argued Dr Terry Hallmark, an international oil and gas industry risk analyst, in a piece he wrote for Forbes magazine in 2017. With 5,120 kilometres of pipelines network, 2,965 kilometres of sea-lines, 124 kilometres of condensates, 164 kilometres of liquid petroleum gas (LPG), 112 flow stations, 2000 wellheads, 126 production platforms, 17 loading buoys and 13 export terminals, Nigeria has a huge oil and gas assets. But these assets, as I have consistently highlighted in the past two decades are also perhaps the most unsecured in the world. That explains why we now have a situation in which almost everyone believes he could help himself with what belongs to all of us without consequences. In a 5th June 2019 report, ‘Nigeria’s Oil Thieves Roar Back as Militants Kept in Check’ that I once referenced, Bloomberg stated that “Oil theft is now an industry employing thousands in Nigeria.” Barely a month after the report, the Nigeria Natural Resource Charter (NNRC) revealed that Nigeria lost a whopping N1.6 trillion to oil theft in 2016 and N995 billion in 2017. That amounts to a combined loss of N2.6 trillion (about $7.2 billion at the then prevailing exchange rate) for the two years. Before we left Port Harcourt around 9PM last night, I spoke with several NNPC officials and senior military/security personnel on the gravity of the challenge of oil theft in Nigeria but that is an issue for another day. Today, I am republishing my column of 23rd September 2004 (about 18 years ago) so that Nigerians can understand just how long this rain has been beating us. ~ The United States-based Human Rights Watch, in a recent report, stated that oil theft accounts for 10 percent of Nigeria’s daily production. Describing illegal oil bunkering as Nigeria’s most profitable private business estimated to yield between $750 million to $3.5 billion annually (depending on the season), the report also stated that the violence being witnessed in the Niger Delta has a direct link to the illegal business: “Oil has become literally the fuel for the violence-despite the fact that in theory it should be easy to stop its theft (it is hard to hide a tanker and easy to trace its owner)”. The Human Rights Watch is wrong here. In a nation where big vessels ‘disappear’, bunkers are not that hard to hide! But the report gets interesting when it talks about their modus operandi and those believed to be involved. I crave the indulgence of readers to quote more extensively: “Illegal oil bunkering – long prevalent in the Delta – has become a sophisticated operation that no longer requires the cooperation of oil company staff to operate equipment at wellheads or allow access – though there are still reports that they are involved. “The bunkerers tap directly into pipelines away from oil company facilities and connect from the pipes to barges that are hidden in small creeks with mangrove forest cover. Frequently, both in the riverine areas and on dry land, the police and military are involved in the process or are paid off to take no action against those tapping into pipelines. “In November 2001, the Nigerian federal government set up a Special Security Committee on Oil Producing Areas, ‘to address the prevailing situation in the oil producing areas which have, in recent past, witnessed unprecedented vandalisation of oil pipelines, disruptions, kidnappings, extortion and a general state of insecurity.’ “Reporting to President (Olusegun) Obasanjo in February 2002, the committee noted that a ‘major threat to the oil industry … arises from the activities of a ‘cartel or mafia’, composed of highly placed and powerful individuals within the society, who run a network of agents to steal crude oil and finished product from pipelines in the Niger Delta region.’ “The committee indicated that many of the militant youth groups responsible for halting or diverting oil production and preventing free traffic on the waterways ‘could be enjoying the patronage of some retired or serving military and security personnel.’ “Despite this high-level recognition of the seriousness of the problem, there appears to be no proactive government strategy for investigating the organized illegal oil bunkering rackets. There have been some seizures of the vessels involved. “More than nineteen vessels used in the illegal bunkering business are reported to have been seized by the army and navy in the year to July – though it is often not clear what happens to their cargoes thereafter…” According to media reports, now confirmed by the authority, ‘MT African Pride’, one of the 15 vessels arrested for alleged bunkering in August last year (2003), and carrying 15,000 barrels of crude, is missing. Testifying before a House of Representatives Committee, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Sunday Afolayan said his men were helpless on what he called ‘practice of topping’, obviously the Naval euphemism for oil theft. He blamed the Police for this sudden disappearance of a vessel on the high sea, arguing: “It is my responsibility to arrest the ship and another to prosecute. I have made arrests and handed over and it is not my duty to do anything beyond my constitutional duties.” Probed further, Afolayan said there was a directive in January this year (2004) from President Olusegun Obasanjo to the effect that the vessel should be handed over to the police for prosecution after the cargo had been taken away by the NNPC. Those who attended the said meeting were Nuhu Ribadu, Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC); Funso Kupolokun, Group Managing Director, NNPC; and the Police IG, Tafa Balogun. Afolayan, during his testimony at the House (where we got to know that another vessel, ‘MT Jimoh’, has also disappeared) said the Navy had begun an in-house probe into the matter resulting in the court-martial of some officers and ratings, after pushing the blame on the Police. But the Naval Chief did not have the last say on the matter. In his testimony, Balogun said that consequent upon receiving the presidential directive, he set up a panel led by DIG Ogbonna Onovo (who would later become IGP) to take custody of the vessel and suspects but the Flag Officer Commanding Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Bob Manuel, refused to oblige them on grounds that he was yet to be briefed by Afolayan. At about the same time, according to Balogun, another letter was issued to the police stating that the Navy would take custody of the ship but would release the suspects. Said Balogun: “MT African Pride, reported missing by the Navy was never, and I repeat, never in the custody of the police. “It is not even a question of ‘MT African Pride’, all the vessels have always been with the Navy. If anybody says he handed over a ship to me, let him produce the handing over note because there is no way the handover of such magnitude can take place without a handover note. “The vessels in question were at the high seas where the police have no access to them. The Navy deployed helicopters and ships to trace the ‘MT African Pride’ and it was on the pages of newspapers that I read it. If the ship had not been in their custody, why did they deploy ships and helicopters to search for it?” In another country where leaders are accountable to the people, several public officials would have lost their jobs by now, assuming they are not already in jail. But because this is Nigeria, we have a situation in which arrested vessels carrying stolen oil just ‘disappear’ into thin air and the Naval Chief can only tell us some cock-and-bull story! Since the ugly development broke, I have had time to speak to several people in the oil sector as well as in the Navy and I am privy to some damning reports. I also have it on good authority that the Navy has on several occasions in the last one decade arrested vessels carrying stolen crude but up till now, there has not been one single prosecution of these criminals. The oil majors have also written several reports to the government on the activities of these illegal bunkerers, sometimes mentioning names and pointing out the danger of their activities since a large chunk of their ‘returns on investment’ go into the purchase of arms. But nothing happened. Whichever way one looks at the Nigerian condition today, one cannot but agree with the conclusion reached in the July 2003 IMF Working Paper titled “Addressing the Natural Resource Curse: An Illustration from Nigeria”. It reveals that over 35-year period Nigeria’s cumulative revenues from oil (after deducting the payments to foreign companies) have amounted to $350 billion at 1965 prices yet only few people feel the impact of this huge wealth. The authors, Xaxier Sala-i-Martin, a professor of Economics at Columbia University and Arvind Subramanian, an Advisor, Research Department, IMF argued that on just about every conceivable metric, Nigeria’s performance since independence has been abysmal essentially because of oil. Check out the statistics: While Nigeria’s Per Capita GDP was US$1,113 in 1970, it had declined to US$1,084 in 2000 which places the country among the 15 poorest nations in the world. The poverty rate, measured as the share of the population subsisting on less than $1 per day, increased from 36 percent to 70 percent. “In 1965, when oil revenues per capita were about US$33, Per Capita GDP was US$245. In 2000, when oil revenues were US$325 Per Capita, the Per Capita GDP remained at the 1965 level. “In other words, all the oil revenues did not seem to add to the standard of living at all. Worse, however, it could have contributed to a decline in the standard of living,” the duo wrote. The objective of the 44-page report, according to the authors, was to demonstrate that corruption, weak governance, rent seeking and plunder are problems intrinsic to most countries that own mineral resources, especially oil. In the light of recent developments, I think the authors may have to review their report because they have only scratched the surface where the Nigerian oil asset is concerned. The rot is much deeper than they, or anybody, can ever imagine. ~ It is remarkable that 25 years after the death of the former Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters and consummate politician who envisioned a Nigeria United with a strong commitment to social justice and democracy, the centre built in his memory continues to thrive as a conference facility, Research library, exhibition hall and hub for policy advocacy and citizen engagement. Credit must go to the board chaired by President Olusegun Obasanjo and the management team led by Director General, Ms Jacqueline Farris. • You can follow me on my Twitter handle, @Olusegunverdict and on www.olusegunadeniyi.com.

EXCLUSIVE: Air Peace CEO Allen Onyema’s company dissolved in U.S. By Chiamaka Okafor

U.S. government fingered the company in 2019 as one of the firms allegedly used by the CEO and Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, to perpetrate bank fraud and money laundering. Authorities in the U.S. state of Georgia have dissolved Springfield Aviation Company LLC allegedly used for bank fraud and money laundering by the CEO and Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema. The company, incorporated and based in Georgia State, is said to have been deficient in filing its annual registration, after the U.S. Department of Justice filed charges against its principals, including Mr Onyema in 2019. Owned and controlled by Mr Onyema, Springfield Aviation Company LLC was formed on April 4, 2016, as a domestic limited liability company to carry on any legitimate business, documents seen by PREMIUM TIMES show. But on November 22, 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the charging of Mr Onyema, accusing him of moving more than $20 million from Nigeria through United States bank accounts in a scheme involving false documents based on the purchase of aeroplanes. Mr Onyema was charged alongside Air Peace Limited’s Head of Administration and Finance, Ejiroghene Eghagha. They both face 36 charges of conspiracy, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, money laundering, and credit application fraud in connection with the $20million scheme. One of the companies used in committing the alleged offences is Springfield Aviation LLC, prosecutors said. “Beginning in approximately May 2016, Onyema, together with Eghagha, allegedly used a series of export letters of credit to cause banks to transfer more than $20 million into Atlanta-based bank accounts controlled by Onyema,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Georgia said in a November 22, 2019 statement announcing the indictment of the two suspects. “The letters of credit were purportedly to fund the purchase of five separate Boeing 737 passenger planes by Air Peace. The letters were supported by documents such as purchase agreements, bills of sale, and appraisals proving that Air Peace was purchasing the aircraft from Springfield Aviation Company LLC, a business registered in Georgia. “However, the supporting documents were fake — Springfield Aviation Company LLC, which is owned by Onyema and managed by a person with no connection to the aviation business, never owned the aircraft, and the company that allegedly drafted the appraisals did not exist. Eghagha allegedly participated in this scheme as well, directing the Springfield Aviation manager to sign and send false documents to banks and even using the manager’s identity to further the fraud. “After Onyema received the money in the United States, he allegedly laundered over $16 million of the proceeds of the fraud by transferring it to other accounts.” Firm’s dissolution However, since the charges were filed, nothing has been heard of the progress in the case and Mr Onyema is not known to have visited the U.S. ever since. Bob Page, the public affairs officer for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Georgia, declined comments when PREMIUM TIMES contacted him for updates on the case. But this newspaper has now obtained information that Springfield Aviation, the U.S. company Mr Onyema used in making the problematic transactions, has now been dissolved. In an October 22, 2020 letter to the company, seen by PREMIUM TIMES, the Secretary of State and the Corporation Commissioner of the State of Georgia informed the firm that it had been dissolved. “I, Brad Raffensperger, the Secretary of State and the Corporation Commissioner of the State of Georgia, hereby certify under the seal of my office that Springfield Aviation Company, LLC a Domestic Limited Liability Company was mailed a notice in accordance with Title 14 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated and was involuntarily or administratively dissolved or its certificate of authority revoked by the Office of Secretary of State on 10/22/2020 for failure to file its annual registration and/or failure to maintain a registered agent or registered office in this state,” the document, tiled Certificate of Administrative Dissolution/Revocation, read. “This certificate is issued pursuant to Title 14 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated and is prima-facie evidence of the existence or nonexistence of the facts stated herein.” PREMIUM TIMES learnt that Springfield Aviation LLC (with Control Number 16035630) became deficient in filing its annual registration following the indictment of its principals in 2019. READ ALSO: TIMELINE: How U.S. started investigating Allen Onyema for multi-million dollar fraud Mr Onyema has kept away from the U.S. while the company’s only staffer, based in Georgia, was also charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud. The firm’s long-term registration agent, Roy Hadley, E. Jr., of Atlanta, also appeared to have cut off links with the embattled corporation. He did not respond to an August 7, 2020 correspondence from the Georgian Secretary of State informing him of the state’s intention to dissolve Springfield Aviation and requesting him to show cause why that should not be done. Other indicted firms Findings by PREMIUM TIMES showed that Springfield Aviation LLC is one Mr Onyema’s four overseas business entities. The others are Springfield Aviation Company Inc., registered in Canada on August 22, 2018 (with incorporation number 1095798-4), Bluestream Aero Services Inc., also formed in Canada on August 22, 2018 (with incorporation number 1095801-8) and Air Peace Limited (Johannesburg) founded on December 9, 2020 (with identification number K2020918092). At least $10.4 million of the $14.3 million seized from Mr Onyema in the case are held by the Bank of Montreal, Canada, by the two Canadian-registered firms. While $5,634,842.04 is held in the name of Bluestream Aero Services Inc., the sum of $4,593,842.05 is said to be held in the name of Springfield Aviation Inc. The balance of the funds – $4,017,852.51 – is held by JP Morgan Chase Bank in the name of Springfield Aviation Company, LLC, Mr Onyema’s U.S.-based entity that has now been dissolved. Air Peace responds PREMIUM TIMES contacted Air Peace whose head of public affairs, Stanley Olisa, said he knows nothing about the dissolution of Springfield Aviation Company, LLC. “I am not aware of that, I will not be able to comment.” When asked about the status of the previous indictment, Mr Olisa said: “the case is in public domain, there are reports on it, so that is it.”

UK suspends student, work visa applications in Nigeria By Samuel Oamen

The United Kingdom Embassy in Nigeria has announced the temporary suspension of study, work and family visa applications. It explained this was because the priority has been placed on applications made under the Ukraine Family Scheme. In a statement posted on the official Twitter page of the United Kingdom Embassy in Nigeria on Tuesday, the embassy announced that Ukraine Family Scheme was launched in response to the humanitarian crisis arising from the invasion of Ukraine. The statement titled: ‘Temporary suspension of priority visas for student, work and family applications’, clarified that Nigerians, whose passports were ready for collection, would be contacted by the Visa Application Centre. The statement reads: “UK Visas and Immigration is currently prioritising applications made under the Ukraine Family Scheme, following its launch and in response to the humanitarian crisis arising from the invasion of Ukraine.

Nigeria serves Apple, Google order as FCCPC, ICPC, NITDA probe money lenders By Wale Odunsi

The Federal Government of Nigeria has commenced an “advanced investigation” of digital money lenders. Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) chief, Babatunde Irukera, made the announcement Monday. He issued a statement on behalf of the Joint Regulatory and Enforcement Task Force (JRETF) comprising the FCCPC, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC). Irukera noted that pursuant to an order of the Federal High Court, the JRETF executed a search and seizure order on certain lenders. The team extracted valuable evidence and in some circumstances prohibited or restricted continuing operations. He said the FCCPC has served the order on banks, suspending operations of accounts which some of the companies used to conduct transactions under probe. “Further, the Commission also entered and served wide-ranging orders on Google LLC (Play Store) and Apple Inc. (App Store) to enforce the withdrawal of certain applications”, Irukera noted. ”Those affected were found to have engaged in inappropriate conduct or the use of their application to violate the rights of consumers. ”The court order prohibits the acceptance and presentation of new applications for the same purpose without regulatory assessment and approval. “The investigation is still active and ongoing. The JRETF expects further and similar action as it continues to gather additional intelligence to that effect.” ”The businesses raided on Friday, March 11 were directed to desist the interest compounding and loan repayment/collection practices under investigation. ”Violators will be subjected to the full extent of the law including prosecution (without an option of administrative regulatory resolution), the statement warned. The FCCPC said its orders are without prejudice to existing borrowers repaying legitimate loans or modifications to previous terms and conditions. The Task Force urged citizens to provide useful information and evidence that may assist the ongoing inquiry.

The gradual Lagosianisation of Abuja By Prof. Emeka Aniagolu

The whole reason Nigeria moved its national capital from Lagos to a vast piece of land, smack in the middle of the Federal Republic Nigeria, was to get away from the monumental congestion of Lagos. The result was Nigeria’s new capital city: Abuja. The congestion in Lagos was/is the result of several factors: the sheer press of its humongous human population — estimated now at about 21 million people; the largely unplanned, sprawling megalopolis it became, from its modest beginnings as the command-post of British colonial administration in Nigeria; which simultaneously gave the British easy access to the sea for purposes of commerce and warfare, should the natives become overly restive; and the economic powerhouse Lagos became, as a result of its being the administrative nerve-center of colonial and postcolonial Nigeria, its huge workforce, consumer market and tax-base. Lagos was Nigeria’s capital from 1914 — the year the British colonial administration amalgamated the Southern and Northern “protectorates” into one colonial state — until 1991; when Abuja became Nigeria’s new Federal Capital Territory (FCT). From 1914 to 1960 — the year Nigeria became independent of Britain, a period of 46 years — Lagos was the beautiful, prosperous, proud capital of Nigeria; albeit, saturated with the hubbub of politics, commerce and the episodic ethnocentrism of the Yoruba, who did all they could to remind everyone that Lagos was still in their neck of the woods, and therefore, owned by them, although playing host to the Federal Republic of Nigeria as its capital. Two pivotal events changed the dynamics as well as trajectory of Lagos in the history of Nigeria. The first was the two military coups that took place in 1966: The January 15, 1966 Coup and the July 29, 1966 Coup. The first coup toppled the civilian government of Nigeria, leading to the first military regime Nigeria had, under Major-General Aguiyi Ironsi. The second military coup led to the overthrow of the Ironsi regime and the installation of the first Northern-dominated military regime Nigeria had; headed by General Yakubu Gowon. As a result of a concatenation of factors too numerous and too complicated to get into in an article of this nature, Nigeria was plunged into a three-year bloody civil war that claimed the lives of nearly three million people. The second major factor that changed the dynamics and trajectory of Lagos in the history of Nigeria, was the so-called “Oil-Boom” which some people facetiously refer to as Nigeria’s “Oil Doom.” It began in 1970, virtually at the close of Nigeria’s fratricidal war. The following year, 1971, Nigeria joined the Organization of Oil Producing & Exporting Countries (OPEC). A 2005 estimate put Nigeria’s daily production of crude oil at 2.413 million barrels; making Nigeria the world’s sixth largest producer. It is further estimated that since 1960, Nigeria has reaped US$600 billion in oil revenues. Huge oil-based inflows of revenue continued for Nigeria into the decade of the 1980s, only beginning to reduce in the early-to-mid-1990s. It was that kind of revenue flow that made Nigeria confident enough to embark on a number of major projects, not least of which was FESTAC ’77, the construction of the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos, an “Africa-centric” foreign policy that was financially generous to many African countries and Afrocentric causes, as well as fueled domestic graft on a stupendous scale. It was also the confidence the unprecedented revenue flows crude oil sales afforded Nigeria, that made it possible for the military government of Murtala Muhammed to embark on the bold, albeit, needed step of moving Nigeria’s federal capital from Lagos, and building a brand new capital city from scratch in Abuja. Read Also: Insecurity: Bandits don’t repent until they die, says El-Rufai As a planned city,[1] Abuja was built mainly in the 1980s. It officially became Nigeria’s capital on December 12, 1991. The fundamental idea of moving Nigeria’s capital from Lagos to a virgin land in the middle of the Federation and to build it up from scratch, was to get away from the lack of planning, congestion, unbelievable traffic snarl ups, heat, humidity, disorderliness, poor quality of life, filth, etc., that was/is part and parcel of the Lagos experience. True, the rich and famous as well as those who managed to get-rich-quick through fair and foul means; carved out for themselves verdant, luxurious enclaves in a few pricey parts of Lagos Island, Victoria Island, Banana Island and/or Mainland Lagos; but for the teeming masses, Lagos remained/remains a grueling cesspool with no respite from its torment in sight. Abuja was meant to get away from all that. To not only make life safe and sound, but to provide a high quality of life for its Nigerian residents, as well as to make them proud of their capital city internationally. To be sure, some of that was achieved. However, once again, the vast majority of the residents of Abuja have become sequestered in barely livable virtual ghettos, as chaotic as anything in good old Lagos. If you are in any doubt, visit Pape, Nyanya, Karu, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Anagada, Lugbe, Idu/Karimo, Gwagwa, Jiwa, Jikwoyi, Tungamaje, Kuchingoro, Karamajiji or Gosa; and then, decide for yourself. The problems with and in Abuja are multiplying slowly but surely by the day. Here are a few glaring ones: Mounting traffic jams in and around major suburbs within the City of Abuja: Gwarimpa, Life Camp, Jabi, etc; Mounting traffic jams on all the feeder roads to and from the City of Abuja and its surrounding suburbs, including the six-lane highway that leads from the City of Abuja to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport; Numerous “dark zones” lacking street lights. They do not make for either security nor effective luminescence outside the headlights of cars; Numerous out-of-service traffic lights at major intersections within the City of Abuja and in its surrounding suburbs, if they are installed at all; Reckless driving for which the Police and Road Safety seem unable to control or punish. People run the red lights of traffic lights at will, with no consequence; and they gratuitously weave in and out of marked lanes of roads, climb unto and drive on the sidewalks and shoulders of streets and roads, turning them into part of the lanes of those streets and roads, totally unmindful of other motorists or the danger they pose to pedestrians; Many of the surrounding suburbs of the City of Abuja are literally menaced by hundreds, if not thousands of unruly Okada and Keke riders and drivers; the consequence of a total absence of a mass transit system — either on wheels in the form of city buses or in the form of light rail; The City of Abuja and its surrounding suburbs, except for a few of its older districts and neighborhoods (such as Asokoro, Maitama, etc), lack sidewalks for pedestrians. How a city planned from scratch can miss such a feature on its streets, beats my imagination. Was it not in the master plan or was it ignored for reason(s) mere mortals like me cannot fathom? Unaffordable housing in or near the City of Abuja. This forces people, Youth Corpers and other lower-to-middle-income earners, to search out expensive subpar housing in the suburbs of the FCT, compounding their commuting experience to and from the City of Abuja. For a few years, the former Minister for the FCT, Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai, the current Governor of Kaduna State; tried to hold the line on standards for the management of the FCT; but with his departure, the slide towards what I call the precipitous Lagosianization of Abuja, is moving at breakneck speed. Without a serious and determined rescue mission, I give Abuja five more years and it would have completed its transformation into the new “Lagos” in the middle of Nigeria; complete with pockets of opulence and aesthetic beauty, engulfed by huge swaths of proletarian ghettos and semi-ghettos, with streets and highways cluttered with old and aging cars, belching lung-choking carbon monoxide; driven by frantic, angry, frustrated, benumbed motorists, helplessly invoking the name of the God of their religious faith and swearing at the faceless institution called: Government! The current Minister of the FCT, Muhammadu Bello, has been an unmitigated disaster, a total waste pipe; lacking in imagination, innovation and pro-action. He has squandered nearly eight years doing virtually nothing for and with the City of Abuja and its suburbs. To this day, I and several other highly-placed people I have had the privilege of speaking with, cannot fathom why President Buhari reappointed him Minister of the FCT for a second term; after his utterly lackluster first term as Minister, other than, perhaps, two reasons: nepotism (they are both Fulani and Muslim, and some say, longtime family friends), and placing loyalty over and above competence. The City of Abuja and its suburbs need professionally trained City Managers, one for each of the suburbs that comprise the FCT, and one for the Abuja metropolis. Such professionally trained City Managers, will completely overhaul the administrative/bureaucratic nightmare known as AMMC; substituting in its place, an efficient machinery for solving problems in and of the City of Abuja and its suburbs; as well as turning Abuja into a world class city, that makes it onto the list of the great cities and tourist destinations of the Aniagolu is a professor of political science and history in the United States.

Constitution Review: President, Governors May Go To Jail For Rejecting Legislative Summons by Chris

Constitution Review: The president and state governors can face jail terms if they refuse to honor summons from federal and state lawmakers This is because there is a provision in 0ne of the sections of the constitution amendment bill passed by the Senate which empowers the National Assembly and State Assemblies to summon the president and state governors to answer questions bordering on security or other issues on which the national and state houses of assembly have powers to make laws, failing which they can be convicted. The bill seeks alteration to Section 67 of the Principal Act by inserting after subsection (3) a new subsection (4). The new subsection (4) provides: “Nothing in this section shall preclude the National Assembly from summoning the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to attend a joint session of the National Assembly to answer questions on national security or any issue whatsoever, over which the National Assembly has powers to make laws”. The bill further seeks to alter Section 108 of the Principal Act to insert a new subsection (4) to provide: “Nothing in this section shall preclude the House of Assembly of the State from summoning the Governor of the State to attend a sitting of the House of Assembly to answer questions on security or on any issue whatsoever, over which the House of Assembly has powers to make laws.” It also passed a bill to make it an offence, and to provide for the possible conviction of any person who refuses to honour the summons of the National Assembly or any of its committee. The bill seeks to alter Section 129 of the Principal Act to insert after subsection (2) a new subsection (3). The new section provides: “Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Constitution, any person who, after having been summoned to attend, fails, refuses or neglects to do so and does not excuse such failure, refusal or neglect to the satisfaction of the House or the Committee in question, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to such punishment as shall be prescribed by an Act of the National Assembly. Out of a total of 93 registered senators, 77 voted in favour of the bill to summon the president and governors, 13 voted against and one lawmaker abstained, bringing total votes to 91. The chamber also approved a bill to include presiding officers on the membership of the National Security Council. The chamber, however, turned down a bill to provide for more seats for women in the National and State Houses of Assembly. Also rejected were bills to alter Part I of the Second Schedule of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to include Value Added Tax on the Exclusive Legislative List; removal of Transitional Lawmaking Powers of the Executive; to provide for Diaspora voting; to grant mayoralty status for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and appointment of a minister from the FCT. The Senate has however approved financial autonomy for state legislatures, judiciaries and local governments in the country. The approval came yesterday during voting on the report of the Senate Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution (Fifth Alteration) Bills, 2022. Senators during voting on the report rejected pension for presiding officers of the legislature. Out of a total number of 88 Senators registered to vote on the bill, 34 voted in support and 53 against the bill. Also rejected were bills to override presidential veto in constitution alteration, and to override presidential veto in respect of ordinary money bills. The rejected bills require the mandatory four-fifth (votes of 88 Senators) and two-thirds majority (votes of 73 senators) to pass, respectively. The bill on Procedure for Overriding Presidential Veto in Constitutional Alteration seeks to provide for the procedure for the passing of a constitution alteration bill where the president withholds assent. On the other hand, the bill for an Act to alter the provisions of the Constitution to provide the procedure for overriding executive veto in respect of money bills seeks to provide for mode of exercising federal legislative power on money bills before the National Assembly. While 94 senators registered to vote on the bill to override presidential veto in constitutional alteration, 79 lawmakers of the chamber voted in support and 15 against it. The bill fell short of the needed 88 votes (four-fifth requirement) to pass. On the bill to override presidential veto in respect of money bills, out of a total of 84 registered senators, 44 voted in support, and 39 against the bill. The bill also fell short of the required two-thirds requirement (73 senators) to pass. In addition, the Senate also rejected bills to provide for the removal of presiding officers of the legislature, and to change the name of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area in Plateau State to Gwol Local Government Area. Meanwhile, the Senate passed a total of 49 bills out of the 68 considered bills during voting yesterday. The bills were contained in a report of the Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution. A total of 19 alteration bills were rejected during the voting exercise which lasted almost five hours during plenary. President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, while setting the stage for voting on the bills, explained that only bills which enjoyed passage in both chambers would be transmitted to the State Houses of Assembly for concurrence. According to him, any bill which fails to pass in the Senate or House of Representatives during voting automatically stands rejected by the National Assembly. Reps Approve LG Autonomy, Independent Candidacy Meanwhile, the House of Representatives yesterday voted in support of financial and administrative autonomy for local government areas in the country in the ongoing review of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). The lawmakers, at plenary, passed the bill seeking the abrogation of the state/local government joint account, as well as a bill proposing to establish the local government area as a third tier of government in the country. The bill for the abrogation of states/ local governments joint account was passed by 286 votes, while the bill for administrative autonomy for the council areas was supported by 258 members, while 15 members voted against. Also, the House approved bills seeking to move electricity generation and distribution, airports, railways and prisons from the exclusive to concurrent list. However, the House rejected the bills seeking to extend immunity from criminal prosecution to the heads of the legislature and judiciary and life pension for the Senate president, deputy Senate president, Speaker of the House and deputy speaker. The bill for pension for presiding officers was rejected by 193 votes against 162. A total of 240 votes was required to pass the bill. On the other hand, 185 voted for immunity for the heads of the legislature and judiciary while 111 voted against. Also, the Green chamber rejected a bill proposing the creation of 147 special legislative seats for women in the national and state legislatures. While 81 members voted in support of the bill, 208 members voted against the proposed legislation. After the defeat of the women-oriented bills, the deputy minority leader, Toby Okechukwu, appealed to the lawmakers to support a bill proposing a minimum of 20 percent of ministerial and commissioner positions for women. Okechukwu said: “I made this observation mindful of the duty we owe ourselves. It does not hurt, injure or do any harm to the country if we bring the women up to speed.” However, when the bill was subjected to the vote, only 224 members voted in favour. When the proposed legislation failed to garner 240 required votes, Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila called for a voice vote after which he ruled in favour of those in support of the bill. Also, the House rejected a bill seeking to make the removal of a presiding officer of the national or state assembly more strident by 201 votes against 71. However, Gbajabiamila, apparently dissatisfied with the voting, subject the bill to a second vote. In the second balloting, 185 members voted for the bill, while 99 voted against. In all, the House passed 56 out of the 68 constitution alteration bills and rejected 12 after a tension-soaked session, which lasted for over five hours. Apart from the local government autonomy bill, other constitution alteration bills passed by the House include the proposed legislation seeking to provide for independent candidacy for elections in presidential, governorship, legislative and local government council elections, which was passed. However, the bill for Diaspora voting was rejected by 240 votes against 58. Similarly, the House rejected a bill seeking to include Value Added Tax (VAT) in the exclusive-legislative list by 209 votes against 91. Also, the House approved the financial autonomy for state legislature and judiciary with 286 votes against one, while 305 members supported an alteration of the constitution to empower the national and state houses of assembly to summon the president or a governor on any issue they have power to legislate on. Similarly, 304 members voted for the creation of a state security council for the various states in the country, while 290 members voted for the inclusion of the presiding officers of the National Assembly in the National Security Council. Also, the 259 members voted for the alteration of the constitution to provide for the president, vice president, governor and deputy governor to vacate office if they defect from the party on whose platform they were elected into office, except there is a division in their political party. Earlier, the speaker, while addressing the wife of the vice president, Mrs Dolapo Osinbajo, who was in the chamber to observe the proceeding, promised that the House would look dispassionately at the bills relating to women. NLC mobilises states for LG autonomy approval The persistent demands by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) for autonomy for local government and for the judiciary has yielded results as the federal lawmakers yesterday voted overwhelmingly in favour of their autonomy. Though both chambers of the National Assembly approved local government administrative autonomy as a critical component of democracy, some lawmakers voted against the move. The labour congress had on Monday during the protest promised to shame lawmakers who would refuse to vote in favour of autonomy. In several protests held Monday and Tuesday at the National Assembly, NLC urged lawmakers to give 100 percent of their votes for autonomy when they commence clause-by-clause vote on the ongoing constitution amendment. At the meeting with the leadership of the National Assembly yesterday, both the NLC and lawmakers agreed to mobilise Nigerian workers for state and local government rallies in furtherance of the demands to push state legislators to vote along the same lines. Comrade Wabba also presented before the leadership of the National Assembly the request to retain labour on the exclusive list. He insisted that legislators approve 35 percent affirmative action for women and decide the indigeneship between her local government of origin and that of her husband. He said, “We are here to appreciate what the National Assembly has done about the autonomy and the issue of women. Progressively we are trying to allocate 101 seats for women. Third is the issue of citizenship and indigeneship of women; is it to become the indigene of the husband or their fathers? We want that to be sorted out. We also have the issue of 35 percent reservation for women and more representative seats allocated to women. We urge the National Assembly members to vote in favour of this; every senator and member will answer his name on how the voting goes,” Wabba said. The chairman, Senate committee on labour, Senator Godiya Akwashiki who spoke on behalf of the Senate leadership, expressed support for the mobilisation of NLC members across states to press on state legislators to vote in support of the autonomy for the judiciary and local government.

Nigeria needs more rebels to move forward – Obasanjo By Ernest Nwokolo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that Nigeria requires honest people as rebels to move her forward. Obasanjo said people who live life of honesty and integrity have to also be rebels, explaining that life of honesty and integrity embolden one to speak truth to power, not caring a hoot whose ox is gored. The elder statesman spoke yesterday in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, at the unveiling of the autobiography of the Babanla Adinni of Egbaland, Chief Tayo Sowunmi, as part of the celebration of his(Sowunmi) 80th birthday. The autobiography titled “Footprints Of A Rebel,” was reviewed by Hafsat Abiola – Costello, daughter of the late politician, MKO Abiola, and founder of Kudirat Initiative for Democracy. According to Obasanjo, having honest people as rebels remained one of the greatest assets for rebuilding a nation. He lauded the octogenarian and former activist for living an exemplary life worthy of emulation by the younger generation. “Looking at the title of the book, I ask myself, why would someone call himself a rebel? But it is good. “But the truth is that if you have to leave a life of honesty and integrity, you have to become a rebel. There would be some time you would be asked to do something, but you would say no, this is not right. And when you say that, you will become a rebel. You may even become a persona non grata. “There is no country that we can call our own except Nigeria. Our country, Nigeria, needs more rebels. Those who would look at things straight in the face and say ‘this is not good for Nigeria,” Obasanjo said. Speaking earlier, Pastor Tunde Bakare of Citadel Global Community Church, seeks inter-generational reintegration between older and younger ones as part of efforts to regenerate the country.