We Must End PDP’s Injustice – Buhari, Tinubu

By: Mohammed Ismail, Abu Nmodu

inShare

Key leaders of the new Peoples Democratic Party and the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday met in Yola, Adamawa State, to fine-tune strategies to wrest power from the mainstream PDP in the 2015 general elections.

At the meeting held at the Banquet Hall of the Government House, Yola, the APC and “new PDP” leaders led by former head of state Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, former governor of Lagos State Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and APC national chairman Chief Bisi Akande declared that the time had come for Nigerians to end the injustice and misrule of the PDP.

The trio said that they were in the state to encourage Governor Murtala Nyako to defect to the APC to salvage the country from the “rudderless leadership of the PDP”.

“Nigerians are tired of the injustice and impunity being perpetrated by the PDP which informed our visit to invite you into our fold,” they said.

Akande told Nyako that APC is founded on rule of law where the rights of all Nigerians will be safeguarded to the letter.

‘’I can assure you that, in APC, internal democracy will be enshrined. Please let’s not make a mistake. The time for a viable change is now. Our discussion with other governors is very fruitful ahead of the proposed merger,’’ Akande said.

Buhari re-echoed Akande’s position, saying that their mission to Yola was to persuade Nyako to join the APC for the betterment of the country.

“All what we are trying to do is to get this country out of the current mess. In our bid to do that, Adamawa State must join us to deliver this country; that is why we are here. We need peace and prosperity in this country,” he said.

In his response, Nyako said that he is still a PDP member but would always identify with like minds for the progress of Nigeria. “What we are doing today is not politics but showing concern for our future,” he said. “The fact that Buhari is here physically with other stalwarts of the party is a sign of hope; that leaders from various divides are meeting here gives Nigerians the hope that we are uniting for the good of the country.”

Nyako, who declared that the PDP is very sick, added: “If APC means making Nigeria a key player in Africa, or saving or securing it, I don’t mind being in any political party.”

Nyako, also an aggrieved member of the G-7 governors opposing the Bamanga Tukur-led National Working Committee (NWC), said the PDP is on the verge of death because the leaders in Abuja had given it a terrifying under-cut. “No one should expect me to follow a dead party into the grave,” he said.

The APC national vice-chairman in the north-east, Alhaji Umar Duhu, said that the talk was at the instance of the party.

“We are not expecting only seven but 11 governors and, with this development, the opposition will now have 22 governors and probably take over the leadership of the National Assembly even before the 2015 election.’’

Stay in ruling party, Obasanjo begs G-7 govs

Former president Olusegun Obasanjo has however cautioned the aggrieved G-7 governors against leaving the PDP for the APC.

The leadership of APC is wooing governors Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, Sule Lamido of Jigawa, Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara and Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto, Amaechi, Nyako and Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State to join the opposition party.

Some chieftains of the party that are with them include former vice president Atiku Abubakar, former Osun State governor and national secretary of the new PDP Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, former Kebbi State governor Adamu Aliero, Senator Adamu Abdullahi, deputy chairman of new PDP Jaja Wawa, and its chairman, Kawu Baraje.

Obasanjo asked the aggrieved governors not to remain in the PDP and fight from within because the party had given them the privilege to become whatever they are in politics.

According to a political ally of Obasanjo, the former president is not happy with the development in the PDP and wants the feud to be resolved amicably as soon as practicable.

“Baba Obasanjo has been talking to some of these governors who are very close to him against leaving the PDP for either the APC or the PDM. He has been cautioning them against teaming up with APC in fighting PDP. According to him, their plan to decamp would show them as ingrate to the party that has made them what they are and defecting to opposition amounts to killing the party that has been so good to them,” Obasanjo’s associate said.

The source stated that Obasanjo is also encouraging President Jonathan against daring the aggrieved PDP chieftains “because in politics, everyone matters”.

Corroborating this, Obasanjo’s top aide disclosed that his principal would rather prefer the feud resolved amicably with no victor, no loser approach because going to the opposition would not help them to correct what they are fighting but weaken it.

We believe in reconciliation - Oyedokun

Meanwhile, a member of the PDP Disciplinary Committee, Alhaji Shuaib Oyedokun, has reiterated the position of his party to reconcile and not deepen the crisis. He said the committee was not briefed on the on-going internal squabbles because the party strongly believes in the on-going reconciliation process.

He told LEADERSHIP Weekend that the committee is also interested in healing the wounds with a view to bringing in those who are on their way out of the party by rebuilding it.

“We want to bring in sanity into the party and we want all party members to come together to rebuild it by inculcating discipline. We are not interested in imposing stiff sanction on anyone unless there is a need to do that. Where punishment or sanction is needed, we don’t want it to be punitive but corrective;we want to recommend to the party the need to address the crisis within the party from the root, which is indiscipline,” Oyedokun said.

 According to him, once all and sundry embrace discipline, then there would be sanity and this is preventive rather than curative. He said there is a need for political education and enlightenment of members on how to follow procedure to resolve grievances instead of going to court.

He said the committee wants every member to be committed to the rule and order. Oyedokun explained that members should be made to behave according to the dictate of the party’s constitution.

No party should expect harvest from PDP crisis – Aliyu

Also yesterday, Governor Aliyu warned that no political party should expect to harvest from the crisis in PDP. He urged politicians to learn how to honour agreements and promises.

 Aliyu spoke at the commissioning of the PDP local government secretariat in Bida. The governor said that leaders of other political parties should make their parties better rather than cashing on the crisis in the PDP to harvest members.

 “Those who are hoping to harvest should wait. They should go and make sure that they make their party a better one and allow us to make our party strong. Those who for any reason feel dissatisfied are free to move to anywhere they want,” Aliyu said, apparently referring to the reported wooing of the G-7 governors to APC.

 He said:  “I’ve learnt to keep a promise and keep to an agreement. In our last meeting, both the G-7 governors and the president agreed to a ceasefire. We are negotiating and the whole purpose at the end of the day is to make PDP a better party, make it a winning party to ensure that our success does not become our failure.”

 Aliyu also said that some members of the PDP in the state who are not following his course were romancing with the opposition because the party leaders have refused to go the way they wanted them to go.

He said: “I have been told that some PDP members in Niger State are beginning to romance with APGA. They say that if the state PDP does not do what they say or want, then they will go to APGA because APGA is friendlier to some people in Abuja.

”You want to go to APGA, go. Go to any party you want. God is still with us and will continue to favour us. We do not fear anything. Anyone that wants to hold a pact or meeting, let him hold, we will not be afraid. What will be will be, so remain committed to the terms of agreement and promises in order to deserve respect from the people you govern.”

 Leadership

Our dear President, allow me to personally welcome you back from Jerusalem, a place regarded as heaven on earth by Christians. I’m certainly persuaded that, like me, you must have fantasised a lot about that monumental city while growing up as a Sunday school pupil in your church. I still vividly recollect that the place was made popular by the triumphant entry of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I used to picture in my mind the kind of tumultuous and overzealously religious crowd that must have welcomed the very young Jesus who performed so many spectacular miracles, the sort we’ve never seen again.

But despite the big reception he got, Jesus did not indulge those who had turned the temple into a market place. He chased them out because, according to him, they had turned it into a den of thieves, just like some politicians have turned Nigeria into a colony of armed robbers at this moment.

This is one lesson I hope you brought back on this trip.

I’ve never been to Jerusalem, or anywhere near Israel for that matter, but your visit has generated enough hoopla and substantial attention that I can’t wait to board the next plane ASAP to go on my own pilgrimage. Such is the awesome influence of a President, more so that of Africa’s most populous nation.

Sir, you cannot blame them for this cynical attitude. Most Nigerians today are generally stressed and would pounce on anyone for sweet revenge. They have largely traced their misery to the lack of good governance. While they might not be able to hold you personally responsible for these woes, they think you’ve have not shown sufficient capacity and determination to lead us out of the doldrums and the suffocating quagmire we’ve buried ourselves in. It is that lack of trust that has permeated all the negative attacks that you tend to get with regularity these days.

Going to Israel at this time was therefore seen as another wasteful jamboree of no useful gain other than a photo opportunity to distract the people from the many terrible problems confronting them.

Since you’re not likely to be properly and truthfully briefed by your friends and aides about the real reactions of the people, please let me volunteer to tell you a bit of it. The picture that generated the most hits on the social media was the one where you were being prayed for in what seemed to be a marathon supernatural session.

Many wondered why the same faces they were familiar with back home were the same people laying hands on you in far-away Israel. What happened to Israeli priests, the original custodians of the Christian Faith? Was this an attestation to the fact that our land has become too desecrated by evil and wickedness that it would be too difficult, if not impossible, for prayers to be answered? They wondered why none of the many holy lands that dot the landscape of Nigeria could not be used for this spiritual exercise.

While that debate raged on the clincher was the picture of the Governors who accompanied you and the expression of piety on their faces as they prayed right in front of cameras. The most famous question on Twitter at that time was if the Governors would be able to convince God that 16 is now higher than 19 in Nigeria, a veiled indictment of their role in claiming a victory in an election that was lost before God and man.

Most of the commentators believe no man can seek and find the favour of God until he’s willing and ready to change his ungodly way. Their position is simply that God is omnivident and cannot be deceived by dramatic acts of atonement when in reality nothing will change and things might even get worse.

One other question that featured prominently was if you will seize the opportunity of this spiritual excursion to reconcile with all your enemies as directed in the scriptures where you are expected to forgive seventy times seven times. Your fellow citizens were also concerned and visibly agitated by the unprecedented prodigality going on at all levels of government in Nigeria.

No amount is too big to be wasted on frivolous projects by those entrusted with our common wealth. Our people are wondering if your trip to Israel would open up your eyes to the abysmal suffering of Nigerians in the midst of plenty and open up your heart to their bitter wailing and tears. They were praying that the teachings of Jesus Christ and his humble disposition would rub off on you as you visit historic sites in Israel.

On a very serious note, Nigerians expect to see some visible changes in your style of governance henceforth. It would be nice and rewarding if you can rededicate your life to serving Nigeria with all your faith and strength and no longer by mere words. To achieve this would require painful sacrifice and on the part of your family, friends and associates.

You’re the barometer by which most of our leaders measure and copy bad or good manners. No nation is led by a multitude. A nation is controlled by one great or useless shepherd. If you are frugal, most of your operatives would notice and struggle to follow your template.

But if you’re profligate, it is natural for everyone to adopt a reckless disposition to power and the finances that go with it. Power is often abused in a state of lawlessness.

There is no country in the world that would have frittered away trillions of Naira on a phantom subsidy and life would still go on as normal. Such possibilities send wrong signals to sensible people that it does not pay to be reasonable in a place where warlords control all the perks.

It would also be nice to see how you will handle the matter of your second term ambition. Will you leave it entirely in the hands of God who has brought you this far without ever lifting a finger or transfer the project into the hands of infidels who would do anything and everything to attain and retain power. If you ask my free opinion, I will suggest you follow your original pattern where good things drop on your laps without ever fighting like most of your peers.

The God who has brought you into this stupendous achievement will never abandon you in the lions’ den, if you abide by his injunctions. But if you decide to continue with the business as usual inclination, you will fail woefully like most of your predecessors.

Nigerians are not asking you to raise Lazarus from the dead but they expect you to uplift them from abject poverty and horrible ignorance that has encircled our national life. They are requesting and expecting you to deliver on some of your campaign promises if not all. We are tired of promises that would never fly because a few people with access to power have cornered what belongs to all.

I will suggest again, with all due respect, that you urgently embark on cost-cutting moves. The world will applaud you when you show that you’re not in power for your personal aggrandisement but to diligently serve man and God.

The country has already provided maximum comfort for you and your team; you need not go overboard by frittering our resources away as if money is going out of vogue. What is written all over your government and supporters today is an attitude of it-is-our-turn-to-share-the-national-cake-and-God-forbid-anyone-trying-to-stop-us-from-eating-it-well-or-even-totally-afterall-the-oil-is-ours! That is so sad.

You promised last year to reduce how you used to travel before the fuel subsidy crisis but your trips have actually increased as if with a vengeance. No leader is ever respected when he hardly sits at home to mind the business for which he was elected. It is a sign of lack of seriousness to gallivant about while leaving behind our magnitude of gargantuan problems. No sincere leader who cares for his people would feel comfortable to go on a binge while university students have not attended schools in over four months and those on campus are being slaughtered like rams by Boko Haram.

It is to our eternal shame that we seem to be seeking relevance abroad when our home is sinking deeper and deeper into the cesspit of irrelevance and shame. I therefore plead with you sir to put on the toga of love for Nigeria above the convenience of escaping to countries that have taken the pains to develop their environment. Most Nigerians who migrated abroad would prefer to live at home if ours was relatively conducive. Please, let your aides check for you how many leaders travel the way you do and you will be shocked at the results.

You must have read of a man called Chairman Mao of China. He went through so much deprivation to set his country on the path of greatness that it has attained today. Every nation on earth is looking towards China today but we all conveniently forgot the incredible discipline that made the miracle possible.

The same can be said of India. The country bears a lot of resemblance to Nigeria and we’ve had many generations of close interactions. But India has become a major power by investing in intellectual pursuits while we are killing the brains of our naturally-gifted youths. Indeed, we now run to India for most of our medical needs and challenges. That is a pity!

Let me give a few more examples. Brazil was once declared bankrupt before our very eyes. The same Brazil has emerged from its seemingly fatal economic woes to become one of the most ambitious industrialised nations in the world. Even if the country has its own contractions and upheavals, it has certainly started its powerful journey towards recovery. It is not funny that we are not able to produce and provide the basic needs of our own people.

I was glad when I saw you on television the other day talking about how Lee Kuan Yew was able to turn Singapore from a Third world to a First world country. Lee’s background is very similar to yours.
He was not born with a silver-spoon and had to struggle most of his life. This ostensibly toughened, prepared and propelled him for the role he later played in transforming the lives of his country. Nobody would remember him today if he used his power to acquire billions of dollars.

He would have been just one of the billionaires. He’s remembered, and celebrated globally, for his epic struggle to make what seemed impossible possible. I would want you to actually read about this great leader rather than be presumed to be regurgitating a prepared script and see if you can borrow some tips from his personal character, vision and actions.

My last example will come from Rwanda. You must have read about the genocide which ravaged that country in 1994 when the Hutus massacred the Tutsis and the world was aghast with the horrific pictures of dead bodies that floated everywhere.

The story is different today. Rwanda is blessed with visionary leadership, just like Ghana was rescued from the brink by Jerry Rawlings. It should give you hope that if you play less politics and concentrate on things of substance you may still be able to wipe out the tears and hopelessness of Nigerians.

You will never achieve anything tangible if you carry on with your psychedelic and feel-good approach to Nigeria. Our problems have reached a stage where the musical chairs of periodic elections may never work again.

The only way to avert the death of our hard-won democracy is for all of us to change how we do things from the top to the bottom. You must lead the way for that to ever happen, Sir.

I fervently pray that now that you’ve gone to Jerusalem and back, you will see the light and become born again!

You are always in our thoughts and prayers.

NaijaUrban

Read Dele Momodu’s Exposé On Jonathan’s Journey To Israel

• Posted On: 2nd November 2013
• By: Naijaurban
• With 1 Comment

Our dear President, allow me to personally welcome you back from Jerusalem, a place regarded as heaven on earth by Christians. I’m certainly persuaded that, like me, you must have fantasised a lot about that monumental city while growing up as a Sunday school pupil in your church. I still vividly recollect that the place was made popular by the triumphant entry of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I used to picture in my mind the kind of tumultuous and overzealously religious crowd that must have welcomed the very young Jesus who performed so many spectacular miracles, the sort we’ve never seen again.
But despite the big reception he got, Jesus did not indulge those who had turned the temple into a market place. He chased them out because, according to him, they had turned it into a den of thieves, just like some politicians have turned Nigeria into a colony of armed robbers at this moment.
This is one lesson I hope you brought back on this trip.
I’ve never been to Jerusalem, or anywhere near Israel for that matter, but your visit has generated enough hoopla and substantial attention that I can’t wait to board the next plane ASAP to go on my own pilgrimage. Such is the awesome influence of a President, more so that of Africa’s most populous nation.
Sir, you cannot blame them for this cynical attitude. Most Nigerians today are generally stressed and would pounce on anyone for sweet revenge. They have largely traced their misery to the lack of good governance. While they might not be able to hold you personally responsible for these woes, they think you’ve have not shown sufficient capacity and determination to lead us out of the doldrums and the suffocating quagmire we’ve buried ourselves in. It is that lack of trust that has permeated all the negative attacks that you tend to get with regularity these days.
Going to Israel at this time was therefore seen as another wasteful jamboree of no useful gain other than a photo opportunity to distract the people from the many terrible problems confronting them.
Since you’re not likely to be properly and truthfully briefed by your friends and aides about the real reactions of the people, please let me volunteer to tell you a bit of it. The picture that generated the most hits on the social media was the one where you were being prayed for in what seemed to be a marathon supernatural session.
Many wondered why the same faces they were familiar with back home were the same people laying hands on you in far-away Israel. What happened to Israeli priests, the original custodians of the Christian Faith? Was this an attestation to the fact that our land has become too desecrated by evil and wickedness that it would be too difficult, if not impossible, for prayers to be answered? They wondered why none of the many holy lands that dot the landscape of Nigeria could not be used for this spiritual exercise.
While that debate raged on the clincher was the picture of the Governors who accompanied you and the expression of piety on their faces as they prayed right in front of cameras. The most famous question on Twitter at that time was if the Governors would be able to convince God that 16 is now higher than 19 in Nigeria, a veiled indictment of their role in claiming a victory in an election that was lost before God and man.
Most of the commentators believe no man can seek and find the favour of God until he’s willing and ready to change his ungodly way. Their position is simply that God is omnivident and cannot be deceived by dramatic acts of atonement when in reality nothing will change and things might even get worse.
One other question that featured prominently was if you will seize the opportunity of this spiritual excursion to reconcile with all your enemies as directed in the scriptures where you are expected to forgive seventy times seven times. Your fellow citizens were also concerned and visibly agitated by the unprecedented prodigality going on at all levels of government in Nigeria.
No amount is too big to be wasted on frivolous projects by those entrusted with our common wealth. Our people are wondering if your trip to Israel would open up your eyes to the abysmal suffering of Nigerians in the midst of plenty and open up your heart to their bitter wailing and tears. They were praying that the teachings of Jesus Christ and his humble disposition would rub off on you as you visit historic sites in Israel.
On a very serious note, Nigerians expect to see some visible changes in your style of governance henceforth. It would be nice and rewarding if you can rededicate your life to serving Nigeria with all your faith and strength and no longer by mere words. To achieve this would require painful sacrifice and on the part of your family, friends and associates.
You’re the barometer by which most of our leaders measure and copy bad or good manners. No nation is led by a multitude. A nation is controlled by one great or useless shepherd. If you are frugal, most of your operatives would notice and struggle to follow your template.
But if you’re profligate, it is natural for everyone to adopt a reckless disposition to power and the finances that go with it. Power is often abused in a state of lawlessness.
There is no country in the world that would have frittered away trillions of Naira on a phantom subsidy and life would still go on as normal. Such possibilities send wrong signals to sensible people that it does not pay to be reasonable in a place where warlords control all the perks.
It would also be nice to see how you will handle the matter of your second term ambition. Will you leave it entirely in the hands of God who has brought you this far without ever lifting a finger or transfer the project into the hands of infidels who would do anything and everything to attain and retain power. If you ask my free opinion, I will suggest you follow your original pattern where good things drop on your laps without ever fighting like most of your peers.
The God who has brought you into this stupendous achievement will never abandon you in the lions’ den, if you abide by his injunctions. But if you decide to continue with the business as usual inclination, you will fail woefully like most of your predecessors.
Nigerians are not asking you to raise Lazarus from the dead but they expect you to uplift them from abject poverty and horrible ignorance that has encircled our national life. They are requesting and expecting you to deliver on some of your campaign promises if not all. We are tired of promises that would never fly because a few people with access to power have cornered what belongs to all.
I will suggest again, with all due respect, that you urgently embark on cost-cutting moves. The world will applaud you when you show that you’re not in power for your personal aggrandisement but to diligently serve man and God.
The country has already provided maximum comfort for you and your team; you need not go overboard by frittering our resources away as if money is going out of vogue. What is written all over your government and supporters today is an attitude of it-is-our-turn-to-share-the-national-cake-and-God-forbid-anyone-trying-to-stop-us-from-eating-it-well-or-even-totally-afterall-the-oil-is-ours! That is so sad.
You promised last year to reduce how you used to travel before the fuel subsidy crisis but your trips have actually increased as if with a vengeance. No leader is ever respected when he hardly sits at home to mind the business for which he was elected. It is a sign of lack of seriousness to gallivant about while leaving behind our magnitude of gargantuan problems. No sincere leader who cares for his people would feel comfortable to go on a binge while university students have not attended schools in over four months and those on campus are being slaughtered like rams by Boko Haram.
It is to our eternal shame that we seem to be seeking relevance abroad when our home is sinking deeper and deeper into the cesspit of irrelevance and shame. I therefore plead with you sir to put on the toga of love for Nigeria above the convenience of escaping to countries that have taken the pains to develop their environment. Most Nigerians who migrated abroad would prefer to live at home if ours was relatively conducive. Please, let your aides check for you how many leaders travel the way you do and you will be shocked at the results.
You must have read of a man called Chairman Mao of China. He went through so much deprivation to set his country on the path of greatness that it has attained today. Every nation on earth is looking towards China today but we all conveniently forgot the incredible discipline that made the miracle possible.
The same can be said of India. The country bears a lot of resemblance to Nigeria and we’ve had many generations of close interactions. But India has become a major power by investing in intellectual pursuits while we are killing the brains of our naturally-gifted youths. Indeed, we now run to India for most of our medical needs and challenges. That is a pity!
Let me give a few more examples. Brazil was once declared bankrupt before our very eyes. The same Brazil has emerged from its seemingly fatal economic woes to become one of the most ambitious industrialised nations in the world. Even if the country has its own contractions and upheavals, it has certainly started its powerful journey towards recovery. It is not funny that we are not able to produce and provide the basic needs of our own people.
I was glad when I saw you on television the other day talking about how Lee Kuan Yew was able to turn Singapore from a Third world to a First world country. Lee’s background is very similar to yours.
He was not born with a silver-spoon and had to struggle most of his life. This ostensibly toughened, prepared and propelled him for the role he later played in transforming the lives of his country. Nobody would remember him today if he used his power to acquire billions of dollars.
He would have been just one of the billionaires. He’s remembered, and celebrated globally, for his epic struggle to make what seemed impossible possible. I would want you to actually read about this great leader rather than be presumed to be regurgitating a prepared script and see if you can borrow some tips from his personal character, vision and actions.
My last example will come from Rwanda. You must have read about the genocide which ravaged that country in 1994 when the Hutus massacred the Tutsis and the world was aghast with the horrific pictures of dead bodies that floated everywhere.
The story is different today. Rwanda is blessed with visionary leadership, just like Ghana was rescued from the brink by Jerry Rawlings. It should give you hope that if you play less politics and concentrate on things of substance you may still be able to wipe out the tears and hopelessness of Nigerians.
You will never achieve anything tangible if you carry on with your psychedelic and feel-good approach to Nigeria. Our problems have reached a stage where the musical chairs of periodic elections may never work again.
The only way to avert the death of our hard-won democracy is for all of us to change how we do things from the top to the bottom. You must lead the way for that to ever happen, Sir.
I fervently pray that now that you’ve gone to Jerusalem and back, you will see the light and become born again!
You are always in our thoughts and prayers.

- See more at: http://www.naijaurban.com/read-dele-momodus-expose-jonathans-journey-israel/#sthash.oUYwDb67.dpuf

A nice story with a good message

Sheikh Khalid Yasin:


A while ago, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our small town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around from then on.

As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my young mind, he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me good from evil, and Dad taught me to obey. But the stranger…he was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with adventures, mysteries and comedies.

If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league. ball game. He made me laugh, and he made me cry. The. stranger never stopped talking, but Dad didn’t seem to mind.

Sometimes, Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to what he had to say, and she would go to the kitchen for peace and quiet. (I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to leave.)

Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our home… Not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our longtime visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that burned my ears and made my dad squirm and my mother blush. My Dad didn’t permit the use of alcohol. But the stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and pipes distinguished.

He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing.

I now know that my early concepts about relationships were influenced strongly by the stranger. Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked… And NEVER asked to leave.

More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you could walk into my parents’ den today, you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures. Categorically, he destroyed all the moral values, ethics, love, time for each other and other good qualities we had in our family…..whilst adding some unnoticeable quantity of positive stuff also, which any way we would have had even without him……

His name?…. .. .

We just call him ‘TV.’

Kwankwaso Counsels Imams Against Turning Pulpit Into Platforms For Partisan Politics

Gov. Rabi’u Kwankwaso of Kano State has advised Islamic scholars and Imams of Juma’at mosques in the state against engaging in partisan politics.

The advice is contained in a statement issued by the Director of Press, Malam Halilu Dantiye, a copy of which was made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano on Saturday.
According to the statement, Kwankwaso gave the advice while addressing Imams of Juma’at mosques from the 44 local government areas of the state at the Government House.
“It is not appropriate for Ulamas and Imams to turn their pulpits into platforms for political comments and inflammatory remarks”, the governor counselled.
He reminded them that their partisanship could be misunderstood, degenerate into misgivings or even lead to unrest.
He therefore urged them to preach peace, tolerance and mutual understanding as leaders of the people.

“It is annoying that some Imams use their sermons to blackmail political leaders. They have turned into politicians in disguise and this is not the best for our society,” he lamented.
He assured them that his doors would remain open for constructive advice, pointing out that he is bound to make mistakes as a human being.
“As religious leaders, you have the right to seek audience with me and I will be ready to listen to you so that together, we can move the state forward”.
The governor also enjoined people to avoid rumour mongering in order to ensure that peace and harmony reigned supreme in the state and the country at large.
InformationNigeria

Lagosians In Highbrow Areas May Be Drinking Own Faeces –Investigation

In a country where there is a wide gulf between the rich and the middle class, living in highbrow areas like Lekki, Ikoyi and Victoria Island in Lagos is a sign of better life.

The belief of many residents of the Lagos mainland is that those in these parts of the city are living large. This is more reinforced by the fact that the crème de la crème of the country have their homes in these placesIf one is to suddenly relocate from the mainland to either Ikoyi or Lekki, the belief is that providence has suddenly smiled on such individual.

But living in these areas has its downside as Saturday PUNCH has learnt. A new finding has revealed that residents who use water from boreholes constructed within their compounds in these areas might unknowingly be drinking or using water contaminated with their own human wastes.
Saturday PUNCH was on a finding mission on the impact of human waste disposal in the Lagos Lagoon when the fact came to light that the construction of septic tanks in these highbrow parts of Lagos was not a good idea.
The Coordinator of the Lagos State Wastewater Office, Mr. Lekan Shodeinde, told Saturday PUNCH that the water table in these areas was too shallow, which is why the construction of both septic and borehole in the same compound is a dangerous affair.
Shodeinde said, “A lot of houses in areas like Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Lekki are polluting the water table.
“Those areas are not supposed to put in place septic tanks. In some of these areas, before you dig five feet, you have reached the water table. Now, imagine going to such places to put in place septic tanks which are constructed in such a way that the waste seeps into the ground.
“They are simply soiling the water table. These areas are supposed to have a centralised wastewater treatment where the effluent emanating from households passes for treatment.”
This is the practice in many developed countries where centralised sewers are put in place to cater for the management of human wastes generated from each home.
According to Steven Burian, Stephan Nix and Robert Pitt in their study on Urban Wastewater Management in the US, the centralised system of management of wastewater has been in existence in the country since the middle of the 19th Century.
Saturday PUNCH spoke with a bricklayer, who explained that a standard septic tank could be as deep as 10 feet. Considering the fact that the water table in these coastal areas is comparatively shallow, it is possible that contamination occurs to groundwater sources in some of the places.
Experts say there may be considerable hazard for those who use water sourced from boreholes directly in these areas, or those who do not have water treatment facilities or filters in their homes.
Prof. Ebenezer Meshida of the Geoscience Department of the University of Lagos, who also teaches at the Civil Engineering Department of the Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State, said the type of water one can get in most parts of Lekki, Ikoyi, Ajah and Victoria Island, is highly contaminated.
He said, “The water in the region is not expected to be used as drinking water. That type of water can be used to clean your car or flush the toilets. Any water you get around five metres depth is highly dangerous.
“The type of water that is fit for consumption in that area should be obtained from boreholes that are very deep, deeper than third water level. Those who are experienced in drilling boreholes understand that at the third water level, you get fresh water. Sometimes you get to 200 metres or 300 metres before you can get drinkable water but some will say it is too expensive.
“Those who build houses in that zone of Lagos must be people with millions of naira in their pockets because it is not a zone that is good for extracting drinkable water.
“What is usually obtained there is salty or polluted water. Most of the diseases people fall prey to in Lagos are from polluted water consumption.”
But what can be done by those who already have shallow boreholes in these areas?
Prof. Meshida said boiling of the water is an age-old system that still works fine.
He said, “Boiling is the first stage of treatment. You can then filter after that. In those days, we made use of filters that used candles. If you boil water from whatever source it comes from and you filter it with a cloth and put it in the candle filters, you can be sure you are safe.
“I will suggest that anybody who wants to drink water sourced from shallow boreholes in such areas should go to environmental chemists. They are in university chemistry departments. They will help to analyse the water. They will be able to identify the chemical composition and determine the best way to treat the water.”
A borehole contractor, Mr. Elijah Idowu, who runs Noble Fourstar Hydro Resources, explained to Saturday PUNCH the process it takes to reach a depth where drinkable water can be extracted in the Ikoyi-Victoria Island-Lekki zone.
He said, “Digging borehole is never a child’s play in that zone because you will be talking of about 500 or 700 metres before one can reach a drinkable water depth.

“If an average depth borehole is about N500,000 in another place, you will be looking at about N7m to dig a borehole in a place like Lekki or Ajah.
“What we do usually is that we screen and case the contaminated water part of the hole so that this does not affect the fresh water we reach at the deeper part. Even with that, it is still advisable if the residents install facilities which they can use to filter the water before consumption.”
The Lagos Water Corporation has always discouraged the sinking of boreholes in the Lagos metropolis but in a city where a large percentage of the residents do not have easy access to pipe borne water, this may be a futile plea.
The Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, has also expressed concern over the proliferation of boreholes in the state, saying they constituted long term environmental problem.
In a publication by PUNCH in February 2012, the governor said the residents of the state were better off with more water works than more boreholes in their different houses.
He urged the residents to make use of domestic connections to their homes wherever there is a waterworks, saying government would continue to build waterworks to bring water close to various homes in the state.
When Saturday PUNCH spoke with some residents of these upscale areas, it turned out that the situation was more pathetic than most people would imagine.
Those who spoke with Saturday PUNCH at Victoria Island, explained that the water they get from their boreholes is so bad that it is sometimes totally unusable without being treated.
At Idejo Street, Victoria Island, a house guard, Henry Okoro, went inside his compound and brought out a bowl of water. It looked like one in which brown clay had been dissolved.
“This is the kind of water you get from the borehole here,” he said.
He said a tanker supplies the house with water from another part of Lagos every week.
“Some of these tankers collect N10,000 per supply, some N8,000,” Okoro said.
At Osapa London area of Jakande, Lekki, a resident, Oyebola Ogunsanya, said even though she did not know that septic tanks pollute the water table, she and other residents were not bothered because the water in their borehole is not usable.
She said, “The water in the borehole is like the colour of salt and it is very salty. Even after treatment, it is still not usable. We pay tankers to fill our overhead tanks.
“Apart from the N7,000 I pay to fill the tank which I share with another neighbour in my boys’ quarters, I spend as much as N5,000 weekly on bottled and sachet water. The water from our borehole is just unusable.
“Where I was living before, the water was brownish in colour. You dare not even think about using it to wash, not to think of drinking. What we do is that we treat the water so that it could at least be used to wash clothes and toilets.
“We have a water treatment plant in the house. After treating the water, we wait for about three hours. Then it turns whitish. Only then can we use it to bathe or wash toilets. Even at that, one still has to pour disinfectants in it.
“My sister in Lekki Phase I lives in a six-bedroom duplex and they have to get two tankers of water every week.”
But Mrs. Stella Billy-Ashogbon, who lives in Ajah said the water in that side of the coast is cleaner than the one obtained around VI.
She said, “Most people who live here are those who would not spare cost in anything they do in their houses. Most people know that the deeper you go, the cleaner the water becomes. People who live here hire professionals to dig boreholes in such a way that they would not worry about contamination.
“Most of those who dig shallow wells or boreholes don’t use them for domestic purposes. They use it for construction or to wet flower. To get a sustained supply, you will have to go very deep.
“Those who build septic tanks around here take it far away from boreholes and they can afford to make their boreholes very deep, no matter the cost.
“All my friends living between Victoria Island and Chevron area of Lekki have a similar problem though. No matter how deep their boreholes are, the water they get from there is always brown. They buy water all the time. Sometimes they even buy water to wash clothes.
“Saying this place is supposed to have a centralized sewage system instead of individual septic tanks is just being idealistic. We like to be idealistic in the country instead of addressing our own peculiarity.”

InformationNigeria

REVEALED: Jonathan Begs Amaechi To Support Him For 2015

President Goodluck Jonathan’s quest to remain in office beyond 2015 is set to wear an ethnic coloration and it seems his main headache is Governor Rotimi Amaechi who is part of the G-7 governors who have already started meeting with the APC leadership on how to join the leading opposition party.
OluFamous.Com gathered that President Jonathan is now preaching peace with Amaechi from all angles and he also assured Amaechi that he will no longer allow anyone to undermine his authority as a governor.
Below is what a source close to Amaechi said about the secret meeting:
“The discussion started right from the Port Harcourt Airport when the trio boarded the chopper and continued at Okrika, but was brief. You know that it was a secret meeting and no person was allowed to join the three of them. But the discussion, as I later learnt, was on how to bring reconciliation to the PDP.
“We understand that both the president and Dickson persuaded Amaechi not to succumb to the pressure from the leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to dump the PDP and join the opposition.”
The PDP will become an opposition party if Amaechi and the G-7 governors eventually join the APC as they will be having about 20 governors, while the PDP will be left with just about 15 governors.

OsunDefender

Several feared killed in Anambra religious stampede, Ngige blames Governor Obi

Nnenna Ibeh

Chris Ngige, in black with the incumbent Anambra governor, Peter Obi.

The Anambra State Police Command on Saturday said it was yet to ascertain the casualty figure in a stampede at a religious program presided over by a cleric, a reverend father, popularly referred to as Ebube Muonso.
The accident occurred in the early hours of Saturday at Uke, Anambra State.‬
The state police spokesperson, Emeka Chukwuemeka, told PREMIUM TIMES that the casualty figure has not been confirmed.‬
‪”Yes, there was stampede early this morning, some persons are feared dead but the number of persons dead have not been ascertained,” Mr. Chukwuemeka said‬.
‪He said the police had commenced investigations into the cause of the stampede.
‪”I have visited the site. I wouldn’t know whether it was when the governor came or after he left but these are issues that would be resolved after the investigation we just launched has ended,” he said‬.
‪The candidate of the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, for the November 16 governorship election, Chris Ngige, has, on his facebook account, accused the present governor, Peter Obi, and his All Progressive Grand Alliance candidate, Willie Obiano, of causing the stampede.‬
‪”Reports reaching me have it that the APGA campaign train, last night went to the Adoration Ground at Ukeh and induced stampede as Obi’s goons charged at worshipers who booed at them for campaigning at the Holy ground,” Mr. Ngige said‬.
‪The post also stated that the priest in charge had earlier told Mr. Obi that the people already knew who to vote for and that he need not worry over that.‬
‪”The priest in charge, Ebube Mmuo Nso had told Obi that the people already knew whom to vote for so should be left alone. Unfortunately, in sheer act of wickedness, Obi’s goons charged at the crowd who booed at them and induced stampede which led to the untimely death of 15 persons including women and children while wounding many more,” he said‬.

PremiumTimes