Jonathan didn’t contest AU chairmanship – Presidency

President Goodluck Jonathan has debunked reports in a section of the media that he contested the AU Chairmanship position and lost to President Yayi Boni of Benin Republic at the 18th AU summit held in Addis Ababa.
In a statement, Monday,  by Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity),Reuben Abati; ” It is not true that President Yayi Boni “defeated” President Goodluck Jonathan in an election; there was no contest in the first place and President Jonathan was not a candidate for the AU Chairmanship position.”

The statement reads,” It is also not true that President John Atta Mills opposed President Jonathan at any time. Ghana and Nigeria enjoy excellent relations. It is true, however, that in the last week, some newspapers have been speculating that President Jonathan may be adopted  by the ECOWAS Heads of States and Governments to be the next chairman of the African Union, since it was the turn of ECOWAS to produce the AU Chairman for 2012-2013. Mr. President was indeed approached by leaders within and outside the West African sub-region to take up the challenge of leading the AU for the next one year.”
” But the President while appreciating this kind gesture, that he needed time to focus on domestic affairs in Nigeria, and that it would be practically difficult for him to combine the three positions of President of Nigeria, Chairman of ECOWAS and Chairman of African Union. He therefore rejected the offer. ”
“In order to make his position clear, President Jonathan, in his capacity as ECOWAS Chairman, summoned a mini-Summit of ECOWAS at the AU Commission Headquarters on Saturday, January 28, 2012, to ensure that there was a meeting of minds on the position of AU Chairman.  His preference, he noted, would be for ECOWAS to adopt the leader of another country, in order to promote a sense of belonging among member-states. Nigeria, having occupied the position of AU Chairman four times in the past, would readily support any such country.”
Abati also affirmed that “President Jonathan rather than being “defeated” by President Yayi Boni of Benin actually facilitated his emergence as AU Chairman via his unanimous adoption by the ECOWAS Heads of State as the sub-region’s candidate for the AU Chair.”

 

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/jonathan-didnt-contest-au-chairmanship-presidency/

Man docked for stealing of Policeman’s N30,000

By BARTHOLOMEW MADUKWE & CHIDIMMA OKEREAFOR
LAGOS — A 28-year-old man, Jamiu Surakat, who allegedly stole N30,000 belonging to a policeman, Sgt. Henry Okon, during the nationwide strike and protests against Federal Government removal of fuel subsidy, has been arraigned before an Igbosere Magistrate Court, Lagos.

The accused and others at large were said to have stolen the N30,000 from Sgt. Okon when he, alongside other policemen, were removing illegal roadblocks mounted by Surakat and his accomplices on January 13, 2012 at Freeman and Igbosere Streets, Lagos Island, Lagos.
According to the charge, Surakat and his accomplices also damaged a police walkie-talkie held by Sgt. Okon and breached public peace by blocking the streets with tyres and woods, which created problem for people of the area.
The accused is facing  a four-count charge of conspiracy to commit felony, stealing, malicious damage and breach of public peace,  punishable under sections 409, 285, 348 and 44 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2011.
Magistrate L. Balogun granted the accused bail in the sum of N50,000 with one surety in like sum, who is to furnish the court with verifiable residential and office addresses.
The case has been adjourned till February 3, 2012 for further hearing.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/man-docked-for-stealing-of-policemans-n30000/

Supreme Court sacks Bayelsa, Adamawa, Sokoto, C/River, Kogi govs

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
The Supreme Court has in a judgement delivered, Friday morning, sacked the five governors of Bayelsa, Adamawa, Sokoto, C/River, Kogi state from their respective office.
In a unanimous decision, a 7-man panel of justices of the apex court, maintained that the affected governors exceeded the 4-years tenure that was specifically stipulated in section 180(2) of the 1999 constitution.
Counsequently, it made an order setting aside the two lower courts judgments that ab-initio elongated the tenure of the governors till this year.
The affected governors areTimipre Sylva(Bayelsa) Magatakada Wamakko,(Sokoto) Liyel Imoke(C/River) Ibrahim Idris(Kogi) and Murtala Nyako( Adamawa)

 

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/breaking-news-supreme-court-sacks-bayelsa-adamawa-sokoto-criver-kogi-govs/

FG urged to refund N350bn to states on federal roads repairs

BY DANIEL IDONOR
ABUJA — THE National Economic Council, NEC, comprising the 36 states and the Federal Government, yesterday, rose from its first quarterly meeting of the year with a resolution that the central government refunds the over N350 billion that states expended on the repair of federal roads in their respective domain.
At the end of the meeting, the state governors successfully secured a commitment from the Federal Government to accelerate the verification and payment of claims regarding the rehabilitation of federal roads.
Addressing State House correspondents, Governors Theodore Orji (Abia), Olusegun Mimiko, (Ondo), Ibrahim Shema (Katsina) and Murtala Nyako (Adamawa) with some of his colleagues explained that the NEC mandated the Federal Ministry of Works to liaise with the state governments towards ensuring the resolution of the matter.

The meeting resolved that while the process of verification is ongoing, state governments should not relent in maintaining the affected roads if so provided for in the agreements entered into with the federal government.
Governor Orji, said “a special provision is being made by the Federal Government to raise the money for the payment which stands at over N350 billion. To ensure proper maintenance of federal roads, states are encouraged to continue with routine maintenance of such roads provided they comply with new procedures for such intervention”, he said.
There are requests that have been honoured in the past while in the last eight years have not been addressed.
The meeting also agreed on joint funding of Agricultural Transformation Initiative. Governor Mimiko said the Council adopted strategies for deeper cooperation between the federal and state governmentstowards improving agriculture, boosting production, ensuring food sufficiency and providing employment opportunities.
“Following a comprehensive presentation on Agric Productivity Enhancement Practices jointly made by Adamawa, Ondo and Plateau States, each state has been asked to submit proposals on theircomprehensive agric plans to be able to access funding from Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS) administered by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
“The ministries of Agriculture, Water Resources and CBN are collaborating towards funding the necessary  agricultural developments in the states with available funds”, he said.
Governor Shema of Katsina said Council resolved for Federal Government to partner with states toensure completion of the on going dam and other agricultural projects and full utilisation of existing ones to boost agricultural production.
Governor Nyako of Adamawa spoke on the decentralisation of Agric Ministry, noting that the Federal Government was in the process of decentralising the ministry of agriculture by creating regional state offices in line with the ongoing reforms for effective monitoring of agricultural processes in the state. “Those offices will be on ground to work directly with farmers in implementing agricultural value chains.  Other areas of reforms being implemented include public, private sector collaboration in fertiliser procurement and distribution, setting up of marketing corporations, the establishment of agricultural investment framework and transmission of a bill on 40 per cent cassava flour content to ensure compliance”.
Accordingly, NEC decided that states should partner with the power distribution companies (Discos) in their respective domains towards providing improved electricity for the people.
Also, the present privatisation framework of 11 distribution companies should be maintained and states government and NERC, will appoint the independent valuers jointly while also 49 per cent of the total equity of these companies will be held between federal and state governments. Federal and states government will not play any role in the management of these companies.
They also that state governments and the National Electricity Regulation Commission, NERC, should appoint independent valuers to ensure that 49 per cent equity of the privatised power plants in their respective states are reserved for the federal government and states.
Shema said Council agreed that states should partner with distribution companies that are recognised by government. It also agreed that NIPP power plants in states should be privatized upon completion of construction.
It was also agreed that shareholders agreement to be signed between the government and core investors in each distribution company will be done between the states and federal government.  The state that desire to establish or build independent electricity distribution networks within the areas of its states not currently served or being served by the distribution companies, is free to do so by obtaining a franchise. This will be subjected to obtaining a license from NERC without any delay.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/fg-urged-to-refund-n350bn-to-states-on-federal-roads-repairs/

Lagos begins deflooding of 370 schools

By Olasunkanmi Akoni & Monsur Olowoopejo
LAGOS – No fewer than 370 of the 623 primary and secondary schools identified to be flood prone are currently undergoing various channelization, aimed at combating the perennial flooding problem across the state.

Meanwhile, Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area has commenced the rehabilitation of 21 roads in the council to be completed before the end of March 2012.
On the deflooding project, the state Commissioner for the Environment, Mr. Tunji Bello, who spoke during an inspection of some of the projects located in Sari-Iganmu in Apapa-Iganmu council of the state, said: “Year 2012 deflooding of schools programme by direct labour was part of measures by the state government to combat and minimise the negative effect of flooding, confronting most of the schools located on flood plain.”
Some of the schools visited which were at various levels of completion, included: Iganmu Junior Secondary School, Araromi Junior High School, Araromi Senior High School, Sari-Iganmu Junior High School.
According to Bello, the social economic importance of the project include to arrest disruption within learning periods during the rainy season, arresting erosive threats of storm water to buildings and ensuring conducive learning environment in the schools during the entire academic calendar.
The commissioner assured that on completion, flooding that hitherto affected some schools and the host communities in Lagos would be a thing of the past.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/lagos-begins-deflooding-of-370-schools/

Mechanic to die by hanging for stealing car stereo

By Austin Ogwuda, Asaba
A motor mechanic has been sentenced to death by hanging for armed robbery.  He was sentenced to death for robbing a University Lecturer of his car stereo at gun point in company of another accomplice, now deceased.

Prosecution led by the State Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr. Marcel Okoh called four witnesses to prove its case.
The mechanic along with another person were accused of robbing one Johnson Unuerho of his car stereo on the 29^th of June, 2002 armed with a gun at Okpara Inland within Isiokolo judicial division.
However the 2^nd accused persons one Gabriel Iyerowho, a driver was discharged and acquitted.
The  victim of the robbery incident, who was PW2 (prosecution witness), a Principal Lecturer attached to the College of Education Warri, narrated how he tip-toed to the window,  opened the blind gently and saw the  1^st accused person, Patrick Ekeh and another member of the gang now deceased before shouting for help.
Justice Fred of Oleh High Court in Delta, in his judgment stated that “in the final analysis, I uphold defence of alibi of the 2^nd accused persons. It ought to have been investigated by the police but was not. And besides, he was not one of those sighted by the PW2 when he took a peep through the window of his house and so no evidence fixing him at the scene and sufficient to dislodge the alibi raised by him.
While sentencing the accused, he said, “this is an offence of armed robbery for which I have no discretion. The penalty is death and I am not in a position not to impose it. To this end, the accused person is sentenced to death by handing in the neck until he is dead”, the judge stated.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/mechanic-to-die-by-hanging-for-stealing-car-stereo/

Girl born without limbs in Bauchi

By Emeka Mamah & Suzan Edeh
BAUCHI—A baby, girl, without hands and legs, has been born in Sandigalua village in Zaki Government Area of Bauchi State. The baby, named Fatima, was born to the family of Ahmadu Didda, a peasant farmer and wife, Rukaiyya, on January 13.

Fatima’s father, Didda, however, expressed gratitude to God for giving them the child, describing her as a beautiful baby. Didda said Fatima was delivered at home and that both the mother and the baby are healthy.
Father’s plea
He said: “This is a gift from God. But it won’t be easy for us to raise Fatima because without legs and hands, she needs special care and attention. We feel sorry for her but with assistance from government and individuals I know that she will live a good life.”

The couple, however, appealed to both government and well-meaning individuals to come to their aid in order to care for the child.

Also, in a special appeal, a blind man who is the Chairman of Physically-Challenged People in Sakwa, Mr. Abdullahi Gindi, said: ‘’It is the duty of society to ensure that Fatima is not discriminated against as a result of her condition.

Fatima Didda

“She (Fatima) needs to be assisted. We are grateful that she was born a healthy child. She sulks normally and so we need to protect her.
’’But her parents are poor and that is why we are calling for assistance so that Fatima would live.”

Doctor’s opinion
A medical practitioner, Dr. Cletus Eze, has said that a woman can have a deformed baby if she takes certain drugs at the early stages of her pregnancy.
Dr. Eze, who spoke in a telephone interview with Vanguard, lamented that Nigeria was one of the few countries in the world where even a university graduate would buy drugs from the shelf and swallow them without even reading the leaflets accompanying such drugs.
According to him, a woman can give birth to a deformed child like Fatima if she takes drugs like flagyl within the first three months of her pregnancy.
Self-medication
He said: ‘’Nigeria is the only country where people buy drugs from non-professionals and administer same on themselves. There must be laws to regulate some of these bad practices because of the harmful effects of certain drugs.
“The mother of Fatima must have taken certain drugs, which she would not even remember having taken at the early stages or within the first three months of her pregnancy.
’’The worst thing is that she might not even be able to sue anybody, because such drugs were not prescribed by qualified people and she must have forgotten the particular drugs she took or where she bought them.
“The authorities must continue to educate the citizens on the bad effects of self medication,” he added.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/girl-born-without-limbs-in-bauchi/

We're on Northern govs’payroll – Boko Haram

By Emmanuel Aziken, Political Editor, AbdulSalam Muhammad, Victoria Ojeme & Ndahi Marama
LAGOS —The Boko Haram sect has cited the stoppage of its monthly financial support for the recent attacks on northern states, claiming that the group was until recently being bankrolled by some northern governors.

The claim by the group came as it also alleged that former President Olusegun Obasanjo was in its firing range last September but was spared because of his tolerance of the sharia Islamic code during his presidency.
An unnamed high ranking official of the group alleged that the Ibrahim Shekarau administration in Kano made a monthly N10 million donation to the group while the Bauchi Governor, Alhaji Isa Yuguda besides financial commitments was also an admirer of the military prowess of the group.
The group has, nevertheless, dismissed any personal grouse with President Goodluck Jonathan, alleging that the problems with the administration were carryovers from what it claimed to be the callousness of the Yar‘Adua administration in waging war against the group.
The allegations were made by a high ranking official of the group to the online publication 247ureports.com.
Mr. Michael Ishola, Chief Press Secretary to the Bauchi State Governor, Alhaji Isa Yuguda, however, debunked the claim as a “very, very strange allegation.”
The newly appointed Special Adviser (Media) to the Kano State Governor, Mallam Halilu Dantiye on his part, claimed ignorance of any monthly payment to the group by the Ibrahim Shekarau administration which the present administration succeeded as he claimed that there was no such issue contained in the handover note.
Noting that the attacks on Kano and Bauchi arose from the stoppage of the financial support to the group by some northern governors, the official in the disclosures to the publication said that the entire northern governors have ongoing relationships with the group.
“Most of them pay us monthly to leave their states alone”.
It was alleged that the Shekarau administration reached an agreement as far back as 2004 to be paying a monthly support of N5 million to the group which was later raised to N10 million sometime in 2009.
The agreement also reportedly included infrastructural support. The support was, however, allegedly stopped at the inception of the Kwankwaso administration in May 2011.
The publication alleged that the Kwankwaso regime also turned against the group dismantling its infrastructure in the state.
“We warned the Governor of the consequences. We concluded on Kano in December 2011,” the source said. Shekarau’s spokesman, Sule Yau did not respond to the allegations yesterday as he did not respond to a text message sent to him. Mallam Dantiye Special Adviser to Governor Kwankwaso claimed ignorance of the alleged support saying that nothing like that was contained in the handover note received from Shekarau.
On Bauchi, the publication reported that Governor Yuguda reached a similar agreement with the leadership of the group for the payment of N10million monthly to the group alongside the provision of training grounds on the many mountains scattered in Bauchi State. The governor it was reported also promised to give them security against arrests by the federal government.  The agreement was supposedly reached in June 2008 but mid 2011, the governor reportedly stopped the disbursement of the funds.
Mr. Michael Ishola, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Yuguda also refuted the allegation against Governor Yuguda. “It is a very, very strange allegation, because the Isa Yuguda I know cannot be involved in such an allegation. We in Bauchi have been living in peace. We are not involved in that,” he told Vanguard yesterday.
Why we didn’t kill Obasanjo — Boko Haram
While noting the group’s reservations on the mediation initiated by President Obasanjo with the group through Babakura Fuggu, in-law of Mohammed Yusuf, the slain founder of the group, the publication disclosed that the new leader of the group, Imam Abubakar Shekau, had considered priming Obasanjo for assassination as the September 15, 2011 exchange approached.
According to the publication:  As Obasanjo concluded his secret meeting the previous day at the Green House with three other religious group [Jamatu Nasirl Islam, JNI and CAN] in Jos, the capital of Plateau State on the Wednesday of September 14, 2011, and took off the following day to Borno State, the terrorist group, according to the source, marked the former President within their ‘firing range’ from the moment he landed in Borno State at minutes after 11am till he departed the State in the late afternoon of the same day. According to the source, “we were not sure of him”.
“He was going to be a big catch” said the source who explained that the leadership halted the operation as Obasanjo went inside the residence of Babakura.
“Obasanjo was good to us. We had no problem with Obasanjo. We had him. We could have taken him out”, as he recalled that the sharia movement took off during the period when Obasanjo was president. “The problem started during the late President Yar’Adua regime. Goodluck only inherited the problem. We have no problem with Goodluck. But his Ijaw people around him are deceiving him”.
See details  here
JTF kills 4 Boko Haram members in Maiduguri
In a seeming fight back, the Joint Task Force (JTF), “Operation Restore Order” in Maiduguri, Borno State claimed success in gunning down four operatives of the Boko Haram sect in the town. The four were reportedly killed yesterday in Pompomari ward of Maiduguri , the Borno State capital.
According to a Press statement signed by the Field Operations Commander of the JTF, Col. Victor Ebhaleme the quartet was apprehended along with bomb materials.
He said: “Four members of the sect involved in the killings in Maiduguri metropolis and its environs and have been under the surveillance of security agencies were shot dead”.
The statement further claimed that, various Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) materials prepared for detonation were equally recovered from their Golf Saloon car.
The statement further warned those still harbouring the sect members to desist from such acts, urging them to report all suspects to security agencies for prompt action
Nigeria, US join forces against Boko Haram
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s effort to combat the activities of the Boko Haram sect received a boost yesterday as it resolved to collaborate with the United States in the fight against the group.
The meeting between the two countries held under the aegis of the US-Nigeria Bi-national Commission had US Deputy Assistant Secretary, Mr. William Fitzgerald leading the American side, while the Nigerian side was led by the Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary, Ambassador Martins Uhomoibhi in company of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Gen. Andrew Azazi (Rtd.)
Both the Nigerian and US officials met in Abuja to formalize a response to the general insecurity in the northern part of Nigeria. Before retreating to a closed door meeting, Fitzgerald disclosed that, due to the intensity of the insurgent activities in the North, the security working group was split into two, with one group focusing exclusively on tackling the Boko Haram menace, while the other would focus on security of the Niger Delta region.
He said: “Today marks a new beginning, security issues in the North have taken up new significance, so we have chosen to split the regional security cooperation and the Niger Delta. The regional security cooperation has its own working group which will meet today (yesterday) and tomorrow (today).”
“I bring on behalf of the US government, the deepest condolences on the heinous attacks that have taken place during the past few days first in Kano and then Bauchi State. We deplore swiftly the reign of terror that has existed in the north of the country for many months. And we stand with you to work together to find a way to bring peace to the north,”  the US envoy added.
Ambassador Adefuye was quoted as saying that “the United States government has proposed that the Niger-Delta and regional security component of the commission be split into separate entities and the first meeting on regional security should hold immediately on 23 and 24 of January. We have agreed to this proposal.
“We are receiving adequate support and assistance from our international friends without compromising our independence and freedom of action.”

 

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/we-re-on-northern-govspayroll-boko-haram/

600 million new jobs needed in next 10 years says ILO

GENEVA (AFP) – The International Labour Organization on Tuesday released a pessimistic report for the global jobs market in 2012 saying urgent attention is needed to create 600 million new jobs in the next 10 years.
“Despite strenuous government efforts, the jobs crisis continues unabated, with one in three workers worldwide, or an estimated 1.1 billion people, either unemployed or living in poverty,” said ILO director-general, Juan Somavia, in the Global Employment Trends 2012 report.

“What is needed is that job creation in the real economy must become our number one priority,” he said.
“Whether we recover or not from this crisis will depend on how effective government policies ultimately are.”
The report said governments must coordinate and act decisively “to reduce the fear and uncertainty that is hindering private investment so that the private sector can restart the main engine of global job creation.”
ILO senior economist Ekkehard Ernst said at a press conference the recovery started in 2009 was short-lived and there were nearly 29 million fewer people in the labour force now than “would be expected based on pre-crisis trends”.
“Our forecast has become much more pessimistic than last year, with the possibility of a serious deceleration of the growth rate,” he said.
The report refers to “discouraged workers”, those who have decided to stop looking for work because they feel they have no chance of finding a job and are considered economically inactive.
“If these discouraged workers were counted as unemployed, then global unemployment would swell from the current 197 million to 225 million, and the unemployment rate would rise from 6 per cent to 6.9 per cent,” Ernst said.
Young people continued to be the hardest hit by the jobs crisis.
“Judging by the present course,” the report says, “there is little hope for a substantial improvement in their near-term employment prospects.”
The ILO says 74.8 million youths aged 15-24 were unemployed in 2011, an increase of more than four million since 2007 in the total global labour force of 3.3 billion.
Globally young people are nearly three times as likely as adults to be unemployed. The global youth unemployment rate, at 12.7 per cent, remains a full percentage point above the pre-crisis level.
Ernst and fellow ILO economist Moazam Mahmood recommended additional public spending “to support both the domestic and global economies.”
The report warned that outside of Asia, developing regions have lagged behind developed economies in labour productivity growth, raising the risk of a further divergence in living standards and limiting prospects for poverty reduction.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/600-million-new-jobs-needed-in-next-10-years-says-ilo/

Kano blast: Police confirm 186 dead

By AbdulSalam Muhammad
KANO—The Police authority in Kano yesterday confirmed that a total of 186 persons died from last Friday multiple bomb blast that rocked the ancient city of Kano
A statement signed by the Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris in Kano put the civilian casualty at 150, while his Command lost a total of 29 personnel during the attack

The Commissioner of Police stated that the sect attacked seven targets in the state which included, Zonal Police Headquarters along BUK road, where a suicide bomber crashed through the gate detonated a bomb and caused maximum damage to the building
Other places which were attacked simultaneously by the group were Zaria Road Police Division, Immigration office, Farm Centre police Division,, SSS headquarters, the official residence of the Assistant Inspector General of Police , and St. Louis Secondary School.


Red Cross volunteers pull a dead body from under a heap of

rubble following multiple explosions and armed assailants in

the Bompai area of the northern Nigerian city of Kano,

on January 21, 2012. AFP PHOTO



The police boss revealed that two cars heavily loaded with explosive devices, primed for suicide mission at the Command headquarters at Bompai were repelled, adding that the first suicide bomber drove through the JFK end of Bompai barracks and the officers on duty prevented him from gaining access to the barracks, he detonated it on the road”.

The statement added that the police fired at the second vehicle, a Toyota Camry which ran into the wall when it could not access the state command headquarters. The driver was gunned down as he attempted to escape while the explosives were demobilised by the men of the explosive ordinance device unit.
Ibrahim Idris said that the state command was able to recover ten different types of motor vehicles comprising, Honda CRV, Toyota Camry of different models, Honda Brahma, Golf, Toyota first lady loaded with improvised explosive devices at places like Sheka quarters, NNPC Mega filling station Hotoro, Tishama Goron Dutse, Miller road and police headquarters road Bompai in the metropolis.
The statement added that “the command also recovered three hundred (300) Coca cola cans of improvised explosive devices at various locations in the city, Eight peak milk tins of 350kg loaded with improvised explosive device, eight  drums size of 350kg loaded improvised explosive devices loaded in cars in various locations in the city”. The extremists attacked and brutally killed innocent civilian citizens who were going about their lawful business along Tudun wada road, club road, cemetery road, Abuja Yan Dusa, SDY roundabout and St.Louis avenue”.
The commissioner in the statement commiserated with members of the public and urged them to continue to support the command for effective policing, and further wished all those who suffered various degrees of injuries quick recovery.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/kano-blast-police-confirm-186-dead/

Alhaja Odofin, 7-yr-old son declared missing

Former chairmanship candidate of Peoples Democratic party, PDP, in Eti Osa Local Government, Alhaji Ibrahim Odofin, popularly known as Eleshin has declared his wife, Alhaja Fatimoh Odofin and his 7-year-old son, Toheeb Odofin missing and appealed to anyone with useful information on their whereabouts to contact the nearest police station.
Alhaji Odofin said his wife and son left home on December 22, 2011, and have not been located since then. According to him, Alhaja Fatimoh Odofin whose maiden name is Fatunwase Abimbola Yetunde drove out with their son in their Toyota FJ Landcruiser car with registration number AP980EKY.

Photo shows missing Master Toheeb Odofin and Mum, Alhaja Fatimoh Odofin.

He, however, ruled out foul play from the opposition, saying he had not offended any one to warrant any kind of vendetta, and that politics had nothing to do with the disappearance. When asked if he had been contacted for ransom, he said that no one had made such calls.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/alhaja-odofin-7-yr-old-son-declared-missing/

ICC denies deal for Kaddafi’s son to be tried in Libya

THE HAGUE (AFP) – The International Criminal Court denied Monday that it had agreed that Seif al-Islam, slain Libyan dictator Muammar Kaddafi’s most prominent son, can be tried in Libya.
“The ICC has made no decision on this matter,” court spokesman Fadi el-Abdallah told AFP in response to a claim by Libya’s Justice Minister Ali H’mida Ashur that Seif would be judged by a Libyan court.
The ICC said earlier in a Twitter message that it had received a reply from the Libyan authorities to questions asked by its judges by a Monday deadline.

“The ICC has accepted that Seif al-Islam will be tried in Libya by the Libyan judiciary,” Ashur told AFP.
“The trial will take place in Libya. The Libyan justice is competent and we gave the file (on Seif) to the ICC on Friday,” Ashur added.
Seif, 39, who was arrested on November 19, is in the custody of the military council of Zintan, a town 180 kilometres (110 miles), southwest of Tripoli.
He is wanted by the ICC on charges of crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the conflict in Libya.
Libya’s National Transitional Council had already told the ICC in a letter published on November 24 that Tripoli wanted to try him.
The international court had asked Tripoli in December to say by January 6 “if and when” Seif would be handed over for trial in The Hague. That deadline was extended to January 23 at Libya’s request because of the “security situation” in the country since the fall of Kaddafi in October.
The judges also wanted to know if Seif had been arrested on the ICC warrant issued in June and if it was correct that he was being held incommunicado.
Human Rights Watch said on December 21 after visiting Seif in Zintan that he appeared to be held in good conditions but called on the Libyan authorities to grant him access to a lawyer.
The New-York based Human Rights Watch, in its World Report 2012, has raised concerns over Libya’s judicial system.

“Libya’s interim government and its international supporters should make it an urgent priority to build a functioning justice system and begin legal reform that protects human rights after Muammar Kaddafi,” the group said in the report.
Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch said in the report that “independent courts and the rule of law will help ensure stability in a country emerging from four decades of dictatorship and eight months of war.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/icc-denies-deal-for-kaddafis-son-to-be-tried-in-libya/

Police thwart fresh attacks, find over 100 bombs in Kano

KANO  (AFP) – Nigerian police foiled fresh attacks in the city of Kano Monday, discovering eight bomb-laden cars and over 100 unexploded devices around sites attacked last week.
“So far we have discovered over 100 home-made bombs in the operation we have launched in bomb recovery in different parts of the city,” said a senior police official on condition of anonymity.
He said “lots of the unexploded bombs were recovered around the police headquarters” which was one of the targets struck in the deadly Friday attacks.

Earlier Monday police said they found eight explosive-laden cars abandoned by road sides across the city, including one near a police station and another in a market in a densely-populated area of the city.
“We are still facing serious security threats,” he said.
Meanwhile about 200 Muslim clerics and political leaders offered peace prayers in Kano, an ancient holy Muslim city of about 4.5 million people.
“I will pray to God that we should never re-live the catastrophe that resulted in the deaths and maiming in our city,” Kano State governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso said.
Wole Soyinka implores Nigerians to fellow
Nobel literature laureate Wole Soyinka appealed to fellow Nigerians to eschew reprisals in the face of the deadly attacks.
“We must not accept the agenda of Boko Haram. Do not consider reprisals, protect your neighbours” Soyinka said. “They (Boko Haram) want… to embark on a programme where neighbours will turn against neighbours.”
Jonathan has said some Boko Haram members have infiltrated government — from the security agencies to the legislature and the executive arm of government.
Senate president David Mark said he and the speaker of the House of Representatives Aminu Tambuwal, had ignored security risks to travel to Kano.
“We want to ensure that a few misguided Nigerians who have been led into this action don’t take this country hostage,” he said.
Former president Olusegun Obasanjo sought to downplay the crisis.
“Even though it is a big challenge… it is not one that… shakes Nigeria to its foundation,” Obasanjo said in Banjul on Sunday.
Relief workers said the death toll from Friday’s attacks was at least 166 but a doctor at a major hospital said the toll could soar to 250.
Around 50 people gathered Monday outside the main hospital’s morgue waiting to collect remains of their loved ones for burial.
Lying on a bed in a ward at the hospital with a bullet wound in his leg, tannery worker Monday Joseph, 29, said he was driving home from work with four colleagues when one of the bombs went off.
They abandoned the car and started running.
“The four of them died. I am the only one who survived,” he said.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/police-thwart-fresh-attacks-find-over-100-bombs-in-kano/

Emir of Kano weeps as Jonathan visits

By AbdulSalam Muhammad & Victoria  Ojeme
KANO—The pomp of royalty was set aside, yesterday, as the revered Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero broke down in tears as he recounted the loss of human lives that followed last Friday’s Boko Haram attack on the ancient city before a visiting President Goodluck Jonathan.
Right in front of his subjects while receiving President Goodluck Jonathan, the octogenarian monarch could not hold back his tears, while reflecting on the level of carnage and the hundreds of innocent souls who had been killed from bomb blasts by the Boko Haram sect.

See photos of some of the victims of the Kano blasts here
The president’s visit was to commiserate with the Emir over last Friday’s bomb blast in the ancient city that reportedly left about 162 dead and several others injured.

President Goodluck Jonathan signs Condolence Register at the
Palace of the Emir of Kano Alhaji Ado Bayero (Right)
during his visit to Kano State.

It took the monarch almost half an hour to read through a two-page prepared speech in Hausa as he broke down intermittently shedding tears and on each occasion, palace guards had to form a ring around him before wiping off his tears.
In his speech, Alhaji Bayero told the visiting President that the emirate deeply appreciated his visit and complained that Kano, a city of over 9 million people, is under-policed and appealed to the president to beef up security in the city.
Alhaji Ado Bayero told the visiting president that the emirate will support current effort by the federal Government to combat terrorism in all its ramifications, adding that Kano ‘deeply appreciate the courtesy of Mr. President.”
Bayero told the President the need to increase the number of police and other security agents in the state, noting that the current arrangement where 8,000 policemen serve the state of over nine million people calls for urgent review.
“It is a far cry that a city of kano’s size and status is being policed by 8,000 men, and we appeal to the authority concerned to have a rethink on the current situation in the overall peace and stability of the state”, Bayero  stressed.
The monarch described the Friday attack  as ‘unfortunate, ugly and violent” and tasked people to fear Allah in what ever they do, adding that Kano emirate will intensify prayers for Almighty to intervene in the security challenges.
To underscore the security situation of the period, tanks were deployed around the palace with armed soldiers.
Thousands of residents also lined the streets to welcome the President as crowd of onlookers waved in appreciation of the visit.
This was President Jonathan’s first official visit to the Northern part of the country since the increased activities of the Boko Haram insurgency.

We will not rest until terrorism is wiped out— GEJ

In his speech, the president assured that the Federal Government will not relent until terrorism is wiped out in the country.
Sporting Black caftan (long gown) and black shoes to match President Jonathan stated that those behind the ‘dastardly act are not spirit and they are people that live with us”, stressing that the hallmark of their activities call for increased security consciousness by Nigerians’.
President Jonathan who was accompanied on the visit by the National Security Adviser, General Patrick Azazi; Defense Minister, Dr Bello Halilu; National Chairman of PDP, Kawu Baraje among other top Federal Government functionaries explained that the security challenges call for concern of everyone, saying “we need to know as well that an attack on one is an attack on everyone of us”.
Said he: “Those who perpetrate this dastardly act are not spirit, they live freely with us in the society and the security challenges they pose have now made it incumbent on us to be extra vigilant on what our next door neighbor does and by so doing, we will overcome the evil forces,” he said.
The Commander-in-Chief declared before the Emir and his council of chiefs  that in view of Kano’s importance in the region and sub Saharan Africa, the state would not be neglected” and promised increased security to the town and other hot spots in the federation.
The President noted that his visit to Kano was to build the confidence of the people of the state in the ability of the government to tame the Boko Haram insurgency, adding “they will never succeed”.
The President during his two hour visit, also visited the military hospital, Zone 1 Office of the Assistant Inspector General of Police before jetting out to Abuja and said that the Federal Government in concert with the state government will explore ways of assisting victims of the multiple bomb blast.
President Jonathan, while responding to earlier request by the Emir on the completion of three abandoned irrigation projects in the state, River Kano, Bagwai and Kunchi said that such projects have been captured in 2012 appropriation for action in line with his campaign promises.

EU offers to help track culprits

The European Union, yesterday, offered to assist Nigeria in dealing with the challenge of checkmating the Boko Haram sect, after last Friday’s bomb and gun attacks that left over hundreds of people dead and hundreds more injured.
While joining the international community to strongly condemn the attack on the Zonal Headquarters of the Police, three police stations as well as the Kano residence of the Inspector General of Police and Kano Command office of the Nigeria Immigration Service, the EU also disclosed of plans to meet with the Nigerian government in February to discuss possible assistance that would assist in dealing with the Boko Haram menace.
A statement posted on EU media website and obtained by Vanguard in Abuja said High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the Commission, Catherine Ashton spoke in reaction to the deadly attacks.
According to the statement, “We will discuss with the Nigerian government in the coming days, including at our forthcoming Ministerial dialogue in early February, possible ways and concrete actions in support of peace, security and development in the country, particularly for the poorest communities.
“The High Representative is profoundly shocked and saddened by the latest wave of terrorist attacks that appear to have killed more than 150 innocent citizens in Kano, Northern Nigeria, on 20 January. She sends her most sincere condolences to the victims, their families and their communities.
“The EU resolutely rejects terrorism as a means to any end.”
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/emir-of-kano-weeps-as-jonathan-visits/

DSP, army corporal, 8 others killed as explosions rock Bauchi

By Suzan Edeh with agency report
Bauchi— Barely 24 hours after explosions rocked several parts of Kano State metropolis, leaving 162 persons dead, two churches were destroyed when two bombs exploded in the neighbouring Bauchi State in the wee hours of yesterday while some unidentified gunmen invaded the Tafawa Balewa area of the metropolis killing eight civilians, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, DSP,  a soldier and another unidentified police corporal. The deceased DSP was simply identified as Adeleke.
*warning: graphic image below*

Kano Bomb Blast Victims at the
Murtala Mohammed General Hospital,kano. Photo Olu Ajayi

The churches were located in Fadama Mada and Railway areas of Bauchi, the state capital.
Vanguard learnt that although no casualty was recorded during the blasts in the churches, the vibration from the explosions destroyed the roofs of the churches and damaged part of their perimeter fences, just as louvres in the adjourning houses were shattered.

A Bauchi township resident, Garbi Ali, said he heard two explosions around 2 a. m. before anyone would likely be in church, and went out to investigate.
“One of the churches was at the railway line. They just destroyed the gate. But the other one at Fadama was completely destroyed and the roof collapsed,” he told Reuters by telephone, adding that he did not think there were any casualties.
Experts, however, told Vanguard that the explosions were caused by alleged Improvised Explosive Devices, IED, the types usually  used in quarries for blasting rocks.
Vanguard further gathered that alleged attempt by those who attacked the two churches to rob a new generation bank located in the area was, however, aborted by a combined team of military and police personnel, who confronted the gunmen in gun duel.
Bauchi State Police Commissioner, Mr Ikechukwu Aduba, while confirming the incident, told newsmen that the gunmen in a bid to beat a retreat from Tafawa Balewa and thereby escape through Mararraba Liman Katagum, attacked a combined team of police and military personnel, killing a military personnel on the spot.
According to Aduba, “preliminary investigations into the case by the police, revealed that 10 unexploded IED were recovered at the scene of the crime and six persons have been arrested by security agents in connection with the attack. They are currently helping the police to tidy up investigation, while efforts have been intensified to round-up the fleeing gunmen.”
Aduba then urged members of the public to support security agents in combating crime, saying it is the civic responsibility of the public to give useful and genuine information to security men in the state.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/dsp-army-corporal-8-others-killed-as-explosions-rock-bauchi/

Bombs, gunfire rock Nigeria; more than 140 killed

LAGOS, Nigeria — Coordinated attacks claimed by a radical Islamist sect left at least 143 people dead in Nigeria's second-largest city, a hospital official said Saturday.
The official said Saturday that the figure represented those in a mortuary at Kano's largest hospital, as well as those whose bodies have already been claimed by families for burial.

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The sect known as Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the attacks that started Friday in the city of more than 9 million people.
Soldiers and police officers swarmed streets Saturday in Kano, a city that remains an important political and religious hub in Nigeria's Muslim north. But their effectiveness remains in question, as the uniformed bodies of many of their colleagues lay in the overflowing mortuary of Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital, Kano's largest hospital.
The attacks started Friday afternoon after Muslim prayers and as shops closed for the weekend. A mortuary attendant, who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity, said the facility had 126 bodies.
Other bodies likely were at other clinics and hospitals in the city.
"There were bombs and then gunmen were attacking police and police came back with attacks," a senior local government security source told Reuters. Hospital staff said bodies were still arriving at morgues in Kano.

In a statement issued late Friday, federal police spokesman Olusola Amore said attackers targeted five police buildings, two immigration offices and the local headquarters of the State Security Service, Nigeria's secret police.
At least 50 injured
Nwakpa O. Nwakpa, a spokesman for the Nigerian Red Cross, said volunteers offered first aid to the wounded, and evacuated those seriously injured to local hospitals. He said officials continued to collect corpses scattered around sites of the attacks. A survey of two hospitals by the Red Cross showed at least 50 people were injured in Friday's attack, he said.
State authorities declared a 24-hour curfew late Friday as residents hid inside their homes amid the fighting.
A Boko Haram spokesman using the nom de guerre Abul-Qaqa claimed responsibility for the attacks in a message to journalists. He said the attack came as the state government refused to release Boko Haram members held by the police.
Boko Haram has carried out increasingly sophisticated and bloody attacks in its campaign to implement strict Shariah law across Nigeria, a multiethnic nation of more than 160 million people.
Boko Haram, whose name means "Western education is sacrilege" in the local Hausa language, is responsible for at least 510 killings last year alone, according to an AP count.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46081837/ns/world_news-africa/#.Txr8DKU9nlk

Wikipedia, Google protest Internet bills

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Wikipedia went dark, Google blotted out its logo and other popular websites planned protests on Wednesday to voice concern over legislation in the US Congress intended to crack down on online piracy.
Wikipedia shut down the English version of its online encyclopedia for 24 hours to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) introduced in the House of Representatives and the Senate version, the Protect IP Act (PIPA).

Google placed a black redaction box over the logo on its much-visited US home page to draw attention to the bills, while social news site reddit and the popular Cheezburger humor network planned to shut down later in the day.
The draft legislation has won the backing of Hollywood, the music industry, the Business Software Alliance, the National Association of Manufacturers and the US Chamber of Commerce.
But it has come under fire from digital rights and free speech organizations for allegedly paving the way for US authorities to shut down websites accused of online piracy, including foreign sites, without due process.
“For over a decade, we have spent millions of hours building the largest encyclopedia in human history,” Wikipedia said in a message posted at midnight (0500 GMT) on its darkened website.
“Right now, the US Congress is considering legislation that could fatally damage the free and open Internet. For 24 hours, to raise awareness, we are blacking out Wikipedia.”
The founders of Google, Twitter, Wikipedia, Yahoo! and other Internet giants said in an open letter last month the legislation would give the US government censorship powers “similar to those used by China, Malaysia and Iran.”
“We oppose these bills because there are smart, targeted ways to shut down foreign rogue websites without asking American companies to censor the Internet,” a Google spokesman said Tuesday.
“So tomorrow we will be joining many other tech companies to highlight this issue on our US home page,” the spokesman for the Internet search giant said.
Reddit said it would shut down for 12 hours — from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm (1300 GMT to 0100 GMT) — to protest the legislation.
“We wouldn’t do this if we didn’t believe this legislation and the forces behind it were a serious threat to reddit and the Internet as we know it,” reddit said.
“The freedom, innovation, and economic opportunity that the Internet enables is in jeopardy.”
Ben Huh, the founder of Cheezburger network, said on his Twitter feed that his 58 sites, which include icanhascheezburger.com, FAIL Blog and The Daily What, will observe a blackout on Wednesday.
NY Tech Meetup, an entrepreneurial group that counts more than 20,000 members, has meanwhile planned a demonstration to protest the legislation outside the Manhattan offices of New York senators later in the day.
Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales announced the plans to shut down the site in a message on his Twitter feed.
“Student warning! Do your homework early. Wikipedia protesting bad law on Wednesday!” Wales said.
“This is going to be wow. I hope Wikipedia will melt phone systems in Washington on Wednesday. Tell everyone you know!” he said.
Volunteer-staffed Wikipedia turned 11 years old on January 15 and boasts more than 20 million articles in 282 languages.
The White House expressed concern about the anti-online piracy bills in a statement over the weekend.
“While we believe that online piracy by foreign websites is a serious problem that requires a serious legislative response, we will not support legislation that reduces freedom of expression, increases cybersecurity risk, or undermines the dynamic, innovative global Internet,” it said.
“Any effort to combat online piracy must guard against the risk of online censorship of lawful activity and must not inhibit innovation by our dynamic businesses large and small,” the White House said.
News Corp. chief executive Rupert Murdoch, who backs the US legislation, accused the “blogosphere” of “terrorizing many senators and congressmen who previously committed” to supporting it.
“Nonsense argument about danger to Internet. How about Google, others blocking porn, hate speech, etc? Internet hurt?” he wrote on the popular micro-blogging website.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/wikipedia-google-protest-internet-bills/

Soldiers ‘ll remain on the streets – FG

By Rotimi Ajayi, Henry Umoru & Gbenga Akanmu
ABUJA- THE Federal Government declared, yesterday, that it was not in any way prepared to withdraw soldiers who have been deployed to patrol the streets of Lagos and some other cities across the country until there was total peace in such areas. This came as Lagos lawmakers have joined others in condemning government’s action and called for the withdrawal of the soldiers.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja yesterday, Minister of Defence, Dr. Bello Haliru Mohammed said that the deployment of soldiers became imperative following security reports that some persons had concluded plans to hijack the protests and rallies and make the government ungovernable for President Goodluck Jonathan even if the organised labour called off the strike. He explained that soldiers were deployed to give support to the Police.


Flanked by the Minister of State, Defence, Erelu Olusola Obada; the Permanent Secretary, Linus Awute; the minister who noted that the government took the decision to drive away those who were determined to bring down the government and cause crisis, stressed that it was the responsibility of government to stop violence and nip in the bud any plan of anarchy before it occurs.



President Goodluck Jonathan inaugurating the
Golf Course of the Air Force



The Minister said: “Let me emphasise that under no circumstances will the government stand aloof while some misguided elements unleash violence on the Nigerian society. As a responsive government, the Goodluck Jonathan’s administration is irrevocably committed to promoting the greatest good for the greatest number of Nigerians irrespective of tribe, religion or political affiliation. As soon as the situation is brought to normal, the soldiers will be withdrawn.”

It will be recalled that following the deployment of soldiers on the streets of Lagos, the State governor, Babatunde Fashola, on Monday kicked against the move and called for the immediate withdrawal of the military personnel from the streets, saying that there was no justification for it as the rallies in Lagos had been conducted peacefully.
Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka and a number of other Nigerians had also condemned the deployment of soldiers and called on the Federal government to withdraw them.
The Minister commended the efforts of the officers in the rank and file of the Nigerian Armed Forces, the Police and other Security agencies for displaying what he described as enviable maturity, understanding and professionalism in their conduct while the protests and rallies lasted.
Mohammed who said that Nigeria was at the cross road of insecurity, stressed that at the moment, the country does not face any external threat, but bombings which have become a new development in the nation’s history are highly condemnable, even as he commended Nigerians for the peaceful protests and rallies carried out which was an indication that democracy has come to stay.
“On the present insecurity in the country, which is our immediate concern, the bombings, shootings and killings going on in different parts of this country form a new dimension of security problem to this country. Prior to this period we never knew suicide bombing or bombing of any type as a form of protest, but now it has become the reality, it is totally condemnable by all our citizens and all civilized beings all over the world. Therefore it is the responsibility of this government and the Ministry of Defence is in support of this resolve, and we should not waver or get deterred in confronting this senseless act of few misguided elements of this country. We call on all Nigerians to remain calm and go about their lawful businesses while the government is determined to get to the bottom of the causes of this act of violence and remove them from the face of this country.”

Withdraw soldiers from Lagos, Lawmakers tell Jonathan

Meanwhile members of Lagos State House of Assembly have called on President Goodluck Jonathan to, as a matter of urgency, withdraw the military from the streets of Lagos.
Addressing newsmen yesterday in Lagos, Chairman, House Committee on Information, Segun Olulade stated that the House condemned in strong terms the deployment of military personnel to disrupt peaceful protest in Lagos.
“We view this action on the part of President as provocative and undemocratic particularly in a democratic dispensation. Due respect and courtesy ought to be extended to the deserving authority and failure to do this usually results in chaotic situations”, he noted.
According to him: “This is reminiscence of the sad period of military junta in Nigeria and must be erased completely in our national life. We recognise the right of every citizen to freely express himself and we therefore identify with every citizen engaging in peaceful protest against or in support of any policy of Government”.

President hid troops deployment from Governors

In a related development, more facts emerged yesterday that President Goodluck Jonathan may not have consulted the governors of the affected states before deploying troops to Lagos and other cities last Sunday ahead of the scheduled Monday rallies and protest called by Labour and Civil Society groups.
A very reliable source who attended a meeting the President held with the governors late Sunday night revealed that at no time did the President ever hint of his intention to deploy troops.
According to the source, the President only discussed the need to rally a nation-wide support for the removal of subsidy in order to boost national revenue and it was learnt that the governors were divided on the timing of the subsidy removal.

Some of the governors who were said to be opposed to the removal of the subsidy by the President were those from the South West states.

Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola was particularly said to have told the President of the need to tackle corruption at the Federal level so that monies being stolen by public office holders could be available for national development.
It was learnt that the governor told the meeting that once corruption has been tackled, the Federal and State Governments should then put concrete infrastructure on ground that would empower Nigerians to make economic choices.
His position was said to have been supported by the Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi and Lagos Governor Babatunde Fashola.
It was learnt that the President assured the Governors that he would reduce the pump price of petroleum from N141 in order to get the strike called off.
“This was the final agreement at the meeting before they left Abuja for their states late Sunday night by flight. By the time we got to Lagos around 3.15 am and we were on the road to our state, we were surprised to see soldiers deployed everywhere.

“Our convoy was stopped three times by the soldiers and the ADC had to explain who was in the vehicle before we were allowed to continue our journey. We were stopped three times. The decision to deploy the troops was a huge surprise for us as the President never mentioned this and certainly the governors would have been opposed to it” the source said.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/soldiers-ll-remain-on-the-streets-fg/

Much ado about fuel subsidy

By TUNDE BAKARE –
DEFINITION: To subsidise is to sell a product below the cost of production. Since the Federal Government has been secretive about the state of our refineries and their production capacity, we will focus on importation rather than production. So, in essence, within the Nigerian Fuel Subsidy context, to subsidise is to sell petrol below the cost of importation.
The unsubstantiated claims of the Federal Government: The government claims that Nigerians consume 34 million litres of petrol per day. The government has also said publicly that N141 per litre is the unsubsidised pump price of petrol imported into Nigeria. (N131.70 kobo being the landing price and N9.30 kobo being profit.)

Annual cost of importation
Daily Fuel Consumption: 34 million litres
Cost at Pump: N141.00
No. of days in a regular year: 365 days
Total cost of all petrol imported yearly into Nigeria:
Litres Naira Days
34m x 141 x 365
= N1.75 trillion
Cost borne by the consumers
Nigerians have been paying N65 per litre for fuel, haven’t we? Therefore, cost borne by the consumers = Litres Naira Days
34m x 65 x 365 = N807 billion
Cost of subsidy borne by the government: In 2011 alone, government claimed to have spent N1.3 trillion by October – the bill for the full year, assuming a constant rate of consumption is N1.56 trillion. Consequently, the true cost of subsidy borne by the government is: Total cost of importation minus total borne by consumers, i.e. N1.75 trillion minus N807 billion = N943 billion.


Pastor Tunde Bakare

 Unexplainable difference: N617 billion. The Federal Government of Nigeria cannot explain the difference between the amount actually disbursed for subsidy and the cost borne by Nigerians (N1.56 trillion minus N943 billion = N617 billion).
Bogus claim by the government: A government official has claimed that the shortfall of N617 billion is what goes to subsidising our neighbours through smuggling. This is pathetic. But let us assume (assumption being the lowest level of knowledge) that the government is unable to protect our borders and checkmate the brisk smuggling going on. Even then, the figures still don’t add up. This is because even if 50 per cent of the petrol consumed in each of our neighbouring countries is illegally exported from Nigeria, the figures are still inaccurate. Why?
World Bank’s figures: populations of West African countries
NIGERIA: 158.4 million
BENIN: 8.8 million
TOGO: 6 million
CAMEROUN: 19.2 million
NIGER: 15.5 million
CHAD: 11.2 million
GHANA: 24.4 million
The total population of all our six neighbours is 85.5 million.
Let’s do some more arithmetic:
a) Rate of Petrol Consumption in Nigeria: Total consumed divided by total population:
34 million litres divided by 158.8 million people = 0.21 litres per person per day.
b) Rate of Petrol Consumption in all our six neighbouring countries, assumed to be the same as Nigeria:
0.2 litres x 85.5 million people = 18.35 million litres per day
Now, if we assume that 50 per cent of the petrol consumed in all the six neighbouring countries comes from Nigeria, this value comes to 9.18 million litres per day.
Pathetic absurdity: There are two illogicalities flowing from this smuggling saga.
*If 9.18 million litres of petrol is truly smuggled out of our borders per day, then ours is the most porous nation in the word. This is why: The biggest fuel tankers in Nigeria have a capacity of about 36,000 litres. To smuggle 9.18 million litres of fuel, you need 254 trucks. What our government is telling us is that 254 huge tankers pass through our borders every day and they cannot do anything about it. This is not just acute incompetence, but also a serious security challenge. For if the government cannot stop 254 tanker trailers from crossing the border daily, how can they stop importation of weapons or even invasion by a foreign country?
*Second illogicality: Even if we believe the government and assume that about 9.18 million litres is actually taken to our neighbours by way of smuggling every day, and all this is subsidised by the Nigerian government, the figures being touted as subsidy still don’t add up. This is why: Difference between pump price before and after subsidy removal = N141.00 – N65.00 = N76.00. Total spent on subsidizing petrol to our neighbours annually = N76.00 x 9.18 million litres x 365 days = N255 billion.
If you take the N255 billion away from the N617 billion shortfall that the government cannot explain, there is still a shortfall of N362 billion. The government still needs to tell us what/who is eating up this N362 billion ($2.26 billion USD).
Illogical assumptions
*We have assumed that there are no working refineries in Nigeria and so no local petrol production whatsoever – yet, there is, even if the refineries are working below capacity. ii) Nigeria actually consumes 34 million litres of petrol per day. Most experts disagree and give a figure of between 20 and 25 million litres per day. Yet there is still an unexplainable shortfall even if we use the exaggerated figure of the government.
*Ghana, Togo, Benin, Cameroun, Niger, and Chad all consume the same rate as Nigeria and get 50 per cent of their petrol illegally from Nigeria through smuggling. These figures simply show the incompetence and insincerity of our government officials. This is pure banditry.
Fact: The simplest part of the fuel subsidy arithmetic will reveal one startling fact: That the government does not need to subsidise our petrol at all if we reject corruption and sleaze as a way of life. Check this out:
*NNPC crude oil allocation for local consumption = 400,000 barrels per day (from a total of 2.450 million barrels per day).
*If our refineries work at just 30 per cent, 280,000 barrels can be sold on the international market, leaving the rest for local production.
*Money accruing to the Federal Government through NNPC on the sale, using $80/bbl – a conservative figure as against the current price of $100/bbl – would be $22.4m per day. Annually this translates to $8.176bn or N1.3 trillion.
*The government does not need to subsidise our petrol imports – at least not from the Federation Account. The same crude that should have been refined by NNPC is simply sold on the international market (since our refineries barely work) and the money is used to buy petrol. The 400,000 barrels per day given to NNPC for local consumption can either be refined by NNPC or sold to pay for imports. This absurdity called subsidy should be funded with this money, not the regular FGN budget. If the FGN uses it regular budget for subsidising petrol, then what happens to the crude oil given to NNPC for local refining that gets sold on the international market?
Tactical blunder
The Federal Government is making the deregulation issue a revenue problem. Nigerians are not against deregulation. We have seen deregulation in the telecom sector and Nigerians are better for it, as even the poor have access to telephones now right before the eyes of those who think it is not for them. What is happening presently is not deregulation but an all-time high fuel pump increase, unprecedented in the history of our nation by a government that has gone broke due to excessive and reckless spending largely on themselves. If the excesses of all the three tiers of government are seriously curbed, that would free enough money for infrastructural development without unduly punishing the poor citizens of this country. Let me just cite, in closing, the example of National Assembly excesses and misplaced spending as contained in the 2012 budget proposal:
Number of Senators 109
Number of Members of the House of Representatives 360
Total Number of Legislators 469
2012 Budget Proposal for the National Assembly N150 billion
Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member N320 million
Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member in USD $2.1 million/year
Time has come for the citizens of this country to hold the government accountable and demand the prosecution of those bleeding our nation to death. Until this government downsizes, cuts down its profligacy and leads by example in modesty and moderation, the poor people of this country will not and must not subsidise the excesses of the oil sector fat cats and the immorality cum fiscal scandal of the self-centred and indulgent lifestyles of those in government.
Here is a hidden treasure of wisdom for those in power while there is still time to make amends:
PROVERBS 21:6&and7
“Getting treasures by a lying tongue is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death. The violence of the wicked will destroy them because they refuse to do just.”
A word of counsel for those who voted for such soulishly indulgent leadership: “Never trust a man who once had no shoes, or you may end up losing your legs.”
This is the conclusion of the matter on subsidy removal: i) “If a ruler pays attention to lies, all his servants become wicked.” (Proverbs 29:12)
ii) “The Righteous God wisely considers the house of the wicked, overthrowing the wicked for their wickedness. Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and will not be heard.” (Proverbs 21:12&13)
Thanks for your attention. God bless you all.
Pastor Bakare was CPC’s vice presidential candidate in 2011
Annual cost of importation
Daily Fuel Consumption: 34 million litres
Cost at Pump: N141.00
No. of days in a regular year: 365 days
Total cost of all petrol imported yearly into Nigeria:
Litres     Naira     Days
34m     x 141     x 365
= N1.75 trillion
Cost borne by the consumers
Nigerians have been paying N65 per litre for fuel, haven’t we? Therefore, cost borne by the consumers =     Litres     Naira     Days
34m     x 65     x 365
= N807 billion
Misplaced spending in the budget
Let me just cite, in closing, the example of National Assembly excesses and misplaced spending as contained in the 2012 budget proposal:
Number of Senators 109
Number of Members of the House of Representatives 360
Total Number of Legislators 469
2012 Budget Proposal for the National Assembly N150 billion
Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member N320 million
Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member in USD $2.1 million/year

Soldiers rescue Eze Igbo from suspected Boko Haram

BY VINCENT UJUMADU
AWKA—IGBOS residing in Mubi, Adamawa State, are still having rough times in the hands of the dreaded Boko Haram sect as members of the sect weekend attempted to kill Eze Igbo in the area, Chief Malachy Agbazue. They were, however, unsuccessful as soldiers came to his rescue.
Agbazue was said to have been working with Lamido Mubi, Alhaji Issa Amoudu, to stop further killing of Igbos in the area.

Vanguard gathered yesterday that members of the sect swooped on the residence of the Eze Igbo in an attempt to kill everybody there, but were overpowered by soldiers who were detailed to guard the house.
Following the attempt on his life, security was said to have been beefed up in his palace and other area where Igbos reside in Mubi.
No fewer than 15 Igbo people residing in the area, including 13 from Adazi and two in Agulu, both of Anaocha local government area, have been killed by the Boko Haram sect and their bodies are still lying at the Yola General Hospital mortuary.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Awka branch weekend, condemned the continued killing of Igbos in parts of the North, calling on the governors of the South East states to send vehicles to the North to evacuate their people.
In a statement by its chairman, Chief Stanley Mbanaso, the NBA said that with what was happening in the country, there was need for convocation of a Sovereign National Conference in the country.
The statement read in part: “The Nigerian Bar Association, Awka branch takes exception to and decry in particular the gruesome murder of indigenes of Adazi community in Anaocha local government area of Anambra State by Boko Haram in Mubi, Adamawa state;
“We urge the government of Anambra State to take all necessary steps to ensure the safety of lives and property of all Anambrarians living in the North;
“We urge Anambra State government to quickly deploy enough luxury buses or vehicles to Northern part of Nigeria to convey home Anambrarians currently trapped in some of the Northern states in the country; and “that members of Nigeria Bar Association, Awka Branch are in full support of the recent calls for convening of Sovereign National Conference to discuss the entity called Nigeria.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/soldiers-rescue-eze-igbo-from-suspected-boko-haram/

Affordable malaria medicines: When will Nigerians begin to benefit?

By CHIOMA OBINNA
Little Nkem was the joy of her parents who were childless for over 15 years before her birth. From the date of her birth, Nkem was adored as the princess of the house. Her parents never ceased to thank God each day that breaks. But little did they know that their joy will be short lived.
It started like a fairy tale when Nkem all of sudden became ill. All efforts to bring down the high fever proved abortive. Sadly, there was no money to take her to a health centre. They, they resorted to self medication. Nkem was bombarded with different types of pain relievers in the absence of standard medical treatment in any hospital.

Still battling to save their only child, they decided to take her to a nearby diagnostic laboratory where a few tests were conducted. Lo and behold, malaria was confirmed. With the laboratory test, it was expected that Nkem’s illness would be tackled immediately, unfortunately, purchasing the recommended malaria drugs became a problem drugs due to the financial situation of the family.
Nkem’s parents are poor. Her mother sells packaged water, popularly known as pure water while the father is jobless. Things are tight.
Little Nkem’s health got worse. Worried that genuine Artemisinin combination Therapy, ACT, costs between N1, 000 and N1, 500 depending on the brand, Nkem’s mother started gathering proceeds from her daily sales, with the hope that within a week, she would buy the drug for her child.
However, luck ran out for her. Few days later, Nkem’s health deteriorated further, and she died.
She is part of the 90 per cent of the country’s population at risk of malaria, a statistic of the 30 per cent of childhood mortality and among the 30 Nigerian children who lose their lives every hour from malaria_ related illnesses.
Malaria remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developing world including Nigeria. According to WHO, every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria.
In the views of Nigeria Minister of State for Health, Dr. Mohammad Ali-Pate, malaria scourge costs Africa’s economy about $12 billion and Nigeria alone loses about N132 billion to the plague apart from the loss of man hours by the nation’s labour force.
Before now, Chloroquine (CQ) has remained the treatment choice in Nigeria due to its remarkable safety and efficacy profile and affordability. Following the increase in Chloroquine resistant malaria parasites since their first detection in 1978 has resulted in CQ’s demise as the gold standard of uncomplicated falciparum malaria treatment.
Moreso, the evolution of malaria into a multi -drug resistant disease with concurrent increases in malaria-related morbidity and mortality has resulted in a global public health crisis.
In 2001, the WHO recommended the combination of an artemisinin derivative and a longer acting antimalarial such as lumefantrine, Sulfadoxine, SP, Mefloquine or amodiaquine as preferred first line treatment for uncomplicated malaria.
Thanks to the fact that there is overwhelming evidence that the addition of an arteminsinin derivative to another effective malaria treatment significantly reduces treatment failure, delays the emergence of resistance and reduces carriage of the gametocyte and thus potentially malaria transmission.
The global response has been to encourage the use of combination antimalarial alternatives preferably including an artemisinin derivative. Artemisinins are modern group of medicines which includes; artesunate, artemether, dihydroiartemsinin, artemotil. Today, current treatment guidelines for uncomplicated malarial is the use of Artemisinin – based Combination Therapies, ACTs. Although ACTs was introduced in 2000, but the WHO did not officially change treatment protocols recommending ACTs until January 2006. Since then, ACTs has remained the gold standard in malaria treatment.
Despite the clinical evidence which have shown that ACTs are effective against even severe forms of the diseases better than quinine, no thanks to the fact that many Nigerians cannot access these drugs due to the high cost of these ACTs. The use of the ACTs at the community level has been vigorously promoted over the years since the emergence of chloroquine_resistant strains of the parasite about a decade ago.
But in Nigeria today, many people resort to the use of herbs as they cannot afford to pay as high as N1, 000 and N1, 500 for a full dose of ACTs.
Again, there have been concerted malaria control efforts in the country to see how best it could reduce or totally eliminate the scourge unfortunately, only very little progress has been achieved as current statistics from the Federal Ministry of Health indicates that, “malaria is still a global emergency that affects mostly women and children.
However, when the Minister of Health, Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu in November 2010 officially launched the Affordable Medicines Facility for malaria (AMFm) initiative in the country, Nigerians, particularly, the down trodden who could not afford to treat successfully, a boot of malaria heaved a sigh of relieve that at last a solution has come to drastically tackle the scourge of malaria.
Little did they know that one year down the lane, the alleged benefits of the initiative which is primarily to cut down the ACTs prices is yet to be felt by Nigerians. There is no gainsaying the fact, that malaria, caused by parasites spread by anopheles mosquitoes, remains a serious disease affecting children and adults with consequences that are graver among children and pregnant women.
Although significant progress has been made to increase awareness about its prevention and treatment, malaria remains as one of the greatest public health burdens in the country.
In adults, its common symptoms are headaches, weakness, fever, aches and pains, high body temperature (chills and rigors) and bitterness in
the mouth (and loss of appetite) while in children, in addition, it may also manifest in more than normal sleeping, nausea and vomiting.
Statistics available have shown that estimated 50 percent of the adult population in Nigeria experience at least one episode of malaria yearly while infants have up to two to four attacks annually. Almost everyone on the street has had at least one malaria attack at some point. Many persons actually suffer multiple attacks in the same year.
With this heavy load, Nigeria shoulders one third of the world’s malaria burden.
Unfortunately, reports have shown that one of the reasons the malaria parasite continues to debilitate Nigerians is increasing resistance to older, inexpensive treatments, such as chloroquine.
In Nigeria, ACTs account for only one in five anti-malarial treatments taken. The primary reason for this is cost. On the average, ACTs cost about N1, 500, which is 10-40 times more than the older, ineffective drugs.
AMFm is a financing mechanism by Global Fund established to expand access to ACTs, thereby saving lives and reducing the use of inappropriate treatments.
The initiative has four objectives. First is increasing the availability of ACTs in public and private outlets; second, is reducing the cost of ACTs to a level that is comparable with other antimalarials (such as chloroquine, sulphamethamine, and artemisinin monotherapy). The third objective is increasing the market share of ACTs among antimalarials; four, increasing the use of ACTs, including among vulnerable groups such as poor people, rural communities, and children.
The Global Fund provides subsidy for ACTs both in public and Private Sectors. They have negotiated with manufacturers with a reduced price for ACTs. First line buyers purchase the ACTS directly from manufacturers thus lowering the cost to first line buyers.
Retailers are permitted a small mark up, but the idea of the AMFm is to pass the majority of the subsidy onto consumers, who would then be able to afford the ACTs. The aim of the AMFm is to reduce the cost of ACTs to compete with CQ and SP in order to increase the availability and use of ACTs, and poor quality antimalarial drugs from the market.
The AMFm also requires participating countries like Nigeria to implement supporting interventions, such as public awareness campaigns and policy / regulation measures specific to the situation in each country.
In the words of the minister while directing medical doctors and other health officials in the country to use ACTs henceforth for treatment of uncomplicated malaria, “The launch of AMFm will further accelerate
our drive to ensure we have 50 per cent reduction in malaria by 2013″.
One year after, the costs of ACTs continued to escalate. Health watchers are wondering if the celebrated initiative in the media is really having impact on the prices of ACTs in the country.
They are also asking if at all the country are abiding by the aims and objectives of the initiative which includes; increase in the provision of affordable ACTs through the public, private not-for-profit (such as NGO) and private for-profit sectors. Reducing the price of ACTs to be comparable with other antimalarials and increase in the use of ACTs?
Is government really providinga subsidy of up to 95 percent in manufacturing cost of ACTs by facilitating increased use of ACTs through drastic reduction of the cost of these drugs (potentially to N75.00 for end users for an adult dose)?
Nigerians would also want to know if the 43 importers that signed up to participate in the AMFm towards making ACTs affordable and available across the country are really committed. These and more are questions begging for answers.
Though, the AMFm remains an interesting model that could still be useful as one of several strategies to improve malaria treatment,there is need to make effective antimalrial drugs accessible and affordable to the vast majority of patients both in the urban and rural areas to check the endemic nature of the disease.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/affordable-malaria-medicines-when-will-nigerians-begin-to-benefit/

Puzzle as convicted Nollywood actress escapes prison custody

By TINA AKANNAM, Dutse
•She was aided internally -  Comptroller
PRISON officials at the Hadejia Prisons in Jigawa State are still battling to unravel the circumstances surrounding the ‘mysterious’ disappearance from custody, of a convicted Nollywood actress, Rabi Ismaila. The Kano -based actress said to have made her marks in Hausa home videos is popularly called Rabi Cecilia by her numerous fans.

But she was reportedly sentenced to death by hanging in 2005 by a Kano High Court for the alleged murder of her boyfriend. Vanguard gathered that the actress whose whereabout could not be ascertained may have been aided by some prisons warders to flee custody.
Corroborating the speculations, the Jigawa state comptroller of Prison, revealed that when he was told of the escape on December 15, 2011 without breaking the walls or digging a long underground tunnel, he concluded that the prisoner must have been aided internally. ‘I just told the officer in charge of the prison that it is a clear inside plot because there was no way the actress could have escaped from the Hadejia prison without the help of an insider.
What I did immediately was to interrogate all the prison wardens on duty when it was discovered that the six prison warders on duty including three female warders may have collaborated and aided her to escape” However, sources said the state police command has since swung into action with a view to tracking down the fleeing prisoner.

Describing the escape as “unfortunate” the comptroller assured that all those involve in the escape of the prisoner will be brought to book, adding that his men were already working around the clock to ensure that the escapee was rounded up wherever she was hiding.

Interestingly, sources said Rabi’s escape from prison, was discovered when a prison warden went on the usual roll call in the morning on the December 16,2011 and discovered that she was not on her bed.

Rabi Ismaila

She subsequently raised an alarm that the actress prisoner had escaped. This was about six months after the Nigerian apex court upheld the verdict of the two lower courts that she should die by hanging in July last year.

Actress Rabi Ismail 39, was convicted on 5 January 2005.
It would be recalled that the actress, in 2002 was arraigned before a Kano High Court for culpable homicide contrary to Section 221(b) of the Penal Code. The case dragged on till January 5, 2005, when Justice Haliru Mohammed Abdullahi pronounced her guilty of the charge.
She was convicted of killing Ibrahim by luring him to a picnic at Tiga Dam, where she poisoned him with chocolate and drowned him. While delivering the lead judgment, Justice Haliru said the court was convinced beyond reasonable doubt that Rabi, a Hausa film actress, committed the act.
Quoting Rabi’s confessional statement, the judge noted that before pushing Auwalu into the dam, Rabi had removed the sum of N10,000.00 from his pocket. “Circumstantial evidence before the court also adduced that the convict was guilty…” the judge stated, while averring that all evidence in possession of the court pointed convincingly to the fact that Rabi committed the offence, on which basis she was sentenced to death. Justice Haliru noted that the evidence of each of the nine witnesses that testified in the court corroborated the others.
According to those close to her, the convict even remonstrated against her younger sister who was crying profusely at the court premises over the death sentence. “I am ashamed of you. What is it after all? With or without the sentence, death is an inevitable end for all human beings.
“Don’t cry for me because everyone will die one day,” Rabi reportedly said. Even moves by her colleagues to plead on her behalf for state pardon were not encouraged by Rabi. She was said to have insisted that she was conscious of the crime she committed and was ready to pay for it.
After that judgement, not many people knew that Rabi’s lawyer had convinced her to appeal the High Court judgement; which she did. But the Appeal Court sitting in Kaduna and presided over by Justice Alkali Ba’aba also in 2008 upheld the High Court judgement that sentenced Rabi to death by hanging.
In the judgement of the apex court delivered by Justice Francis Fedode Tabai, the court noted that the actress was charged with culpable homicide. The supreme court after examining the alleged confessional statements of the accused actress Rabi Ismail as well as the witnesses’ depositions and the records of trial within trial, it did not see any reason to interfere with the decisions of the High Court and Court of Appeal which concurrently found Ismail guilty of culpable homicide. The court consequently affirmed and upheld the death sentence already passed on the actress by the two lower courts in July last year.
The lead judgement prepared by Justice Francis Fedode Tabai, the apex court noted that the accused person failed to place sufficient evidence capable of convincing it that she did not murder her deceased boyfriend on December 25, 2002.
And that having examined the confessional statements of the accused, the depositions of all the witnesses that were called in the matter, as well as records of trial within trial earlier conducted by the lower courts, it did not see any reason to interfere with the decisions of the High Court and Court of Appeal which concurrently found Ismail guilty of culpable homicide. Therefore, the 7-man panel of jurists found her guilty as charged and accordingly okayed her death sentence.
The court consequently affirmed and upheld the death sentence already passed on the actress by the two lower courts in July last year.
Actress Rabi Ismaila, popularly called Rabi Cecilia by her fans, was said to be haughty and ruthless. A well-known figure at the alleged notorious Abedi Street of Sabon Gari, Kano, where she lived as a prostitute, it is said that she adopted the name Cecilia in a brothel where she hawked sex.
A single mother of two, she was widely believed to have acquired spiritual powers and people were cautious about saying bad things about her.
Rabi was said to be a no-nonsense woman, she was also influential, even among politicians. She was pretty and had lots of money to throw about which she reportedly got from her male friends and the chain of businesses she manages in the transportation sector.
Street urchins popularly called Yandaba in the north were very loyal to her because she gave them lots of money and they were always ready to deal ruthlessly with anyone whom she ordered them to do. Rabi was known to control the men around her because of her beauty.
Even as an actress, Rabi was a restless lady. She was known for her absence when they were on shooting locations. She also manipulated great influence when she was active in the Hausa film industry. Reports say she dodged being registered in Kannywood and snobbed several threats of expulsion by the leadership of Kannywood.
As an actress, her acquaintances said she had a habit of quarrelling with others even when on locations which was the reason why most of her female colleagues avoided her and because of her queer habits.
Perhaps that was why when the news reached her colleagues that she had murdered her boyfriend, none of them expressed surprise, because they knew what she could do.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/puzzle-as-convicted-nollywood-actress-escapes-prison-custody/