A world class 360 degree marketing communication company is recruiting for the position of Research Executive.
Prospective employees must have passion and dream in building a career in Research & Development.

Job Description:

The research Executive will assist the research manager in timely delivery of brief ahead of timeline.
• Analyse data for primary decision making
• Developing methodologies for research assignments
• Carrying out quantitative and qualitative research
• Supervising & monitoring reports of field and adhoc staff
• Design questionnaires for data interview
• Generating consumer insight using field data
• Building relationship with clients on research and data related projects
• Prepare reports for/from meetings
• Delivering on timelines as communicated by line managers
• Developing SWOT analysis for clients in different industries
• Analysing, translating and presenting results
• Any other duty given by line manager

Requirements (skills and Qualifications):

• B.sc or HND in Statistics, Mathematics, Demography or any other related course
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft office applications (mostly excel, power point)
• Strong ability to design and produce ad-hoc reports
• Ability to extract and process statistically relevant data
• Key understanding of research and survey method.
• Not more than 27yrs of age,( original birth certificate will be sighted, sworn affidavit not accepted).
• 0-2yrs experience
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Willingness to learn
• Good listening skills and pays attention to details.

Cv’s should be sent to oandjcareers@gmail.com on or before close of business on wed 17th September, 2014.

A world class 360 degree marketing communication company is recruiting for the position of Accounts Trainee.

Job Description:

Accounts Trainees are to keep financial records and cultivate relationship with external regulatory bodies such as tax and revenues offices.
• Recording and posting of daily transactions
• Attend to bank related activities
• Bank reconciliation statements
• Maintaining fixed assets register (schedule)
• Assisting in the preparation of accounts
• Assisting in processing and paying invoices
• Recording receipts and payments
• Assisting in handling company expenses and payroll systems
• Assisting in completing & submitting TAX and VAT returns
• Attending to bank related matters and any other assignment given

Requirements (Skills & Qualifications):

• B.sc or HND in Accounting (minimum 2nd class honours)
• Not more than 27yrs of age (backed up with original birth certificate, Sworn affidavit not accepted.
• Strong proficiency in Ms Office applications: Excel, Word & Powerpoint. Knowledge of Peach tree is an added advantage
• Excellent oral and written Communication skills
• Honesty is paramount
• Technical competence and analytic skills
• Positive attitude and professional manner in all interactions; commitment to continuous learning and professional development
• Good Listening Skills and must pay attention to detail

Cv’s should be sent to oandjacareers@gmail.com on or before close of business hours Wednesday, September 17th, 2014.

A world class 360 degree marketing communication company is recruiting for the position of Bus development/client service trainee.
Prospective employees must have passion and dream in building a career in Business Development/Client Service Management.

Job Description:

Advertising account executives work within advertising or multi-service agencies, acting as a link between clients and the agency. They are responsible for the coordination of advertising campaigns and therefore communicating clearly to all those involved.
They must understand their clients' needs and objectives and liaise closely with them throughout campaigns, often on a daily basis. They manage administrative and campaign work and ensure that advertising projects are completed on time and on budget.
The role can involve handling multiple accounts and the hours can be long in a competitive environment. A client service trainee usually report to a client service manager.

Key responsibilities and accountabilities

 Responsible for building clientele base of the organisation by developing new businesses
 Acquire marketing communication and other related briefs from clients
 Prepare reports from meetings
 Monitor progress of briefs and projects internally
 Prepare strategy documents, proposals, media plans and budgets for clients
 Participates in brand strategy discussions
 Engage in proactive thoughts and generate new ideas for client’s brands.
 Participate in developing & executing annual client target setting & strategy review.
 Provide timely follow up on all advertising inquiries
 Manage both existing and new accounts with the same degree of professionalism
 Develop and enhance business relationships fostering existing and new business
 Present thoughts on creative outputs and thereafter discussing the same with internal team
 Follow up on clients with calls.
 Type sales contacts and update clients and Bus. dev database
 Develop contact reports of meetings with client and despatch same promptly
 Prepare weekly reports of clients and vendors transactions with agency
 Attend meetings whenever required
 Liaise with all internal departments, approved Vendors and service providers to ensure smooth flow of all assigned projects.
 Any other duty as may be assigned

Requirements (Skills & Qualifications):

• B.sc or HND in any field
• 0-2yrs experience in the field or closely related field
• Age not more than 27yrs (backed up with original birth certificate to be sighted on interview date, sworn affidavit not accepted.)
• Strong proficiency in MS Office applications: Excel, Word, and power point
• Excellent oral and written communication skills and interpersonal skills
• Willingness to learn
• Ability to work collaboratively with others to achieve desired business results
• Positive attitude and professional manner in all interactions; commitment to continuous learning and professional development
• Good listening and presentation skills
• Must be presentable and well groomed

Note:

CV’s should be sent to oandjcareers@gmail.com

Deadline for submission of CV’s must be on or before close of business hours on Wednesday 10th September, 2014.

Expecting more CV.

Also send CV to oandjcareers@gmail.com.

Needed Urgently: Client service Trainee

A world class 360 degree marketing communication company is recruiting for the position of Bus development/Client Service Trainee.

Job Description.

Advertising account executives work within advertising or multi-service agencies, acting as a link between clients and the agency. They are responsible for the coordination of advertising campaigns and therefore communicating clearly to all those involved.
They must understand their clients' needs and objectives and liaise closely with them throughout campaigns, often on a daily basis. They manage administrative and campaign work and ensure that advertising projects are completed on time and on budget.
The role can involve handling multiple accounts and the hours can be long in a competitive environment. A client service trainee usually report to a client service manager.

Key responsibilities and accountabilities

 Responsible for building clientele base of the organisation by developing new businesses
 Acquire marketing communication and other related briefs from clients
 Prepare reports from meetings
 Monitor progress of briefs and projects internally
 Prepare strategy documents, proposals, media plans and budgets for clients
 Participates in brand strategy discussions
 Engage in proactive thoughts and generate new ideas for client’s brands.
 Participate in developing & executing annual client target setting & strategy review.
 Provide timely follow up on all advertising inquiries
 Manage both existing and new accounts with the same degree of professionalism
 Develop and enhance business relationships fostering existing and new business
 Understanding client requirements, and strategizing on how to meet client’s needs.
 Present thoughts on creative outputs and thereafter discussing the same with internal team
 Follow up on clients with calls.
 Type sales contacts and update clients and biz. dev database
 Develop contact reports of meetings with client and despatch same promptly
 Prepare weekly reports of clients and vendors transactions with agency
 Attend meetings whenever required
 Liaise with all internal departments, approved Vendors and service providers to ensure smooth flow of all assigned projects.
 Any other duty as may be assigned

Requirements:

• B.sc or HND in any field
• 0-2yrs experience in the field or closely related field
• Age not more than 24yrs (backed up with original birth certificate to be sighted on interview date)
• Strong proficiency in MS Office applications: Excel, Word, and power point
• Excellent oral and written communication skills and interpersonal skills
• Willingness to learn
• Ability to work collaboratively with others to achieve desired business results
• Positive attitude and professional manner in all interactions; commitment to continuous learning and professional development
• Good listening skills.

Note:

This vacancy is strictly for Lagos state 2014 Batch B Corp members.
CV’s should be sent to oandjcareers@gmail.com

The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has led its Anambra state governorship candidate in the last election, Nov 16,2013 Comrade Tony Nwoye to file a petition at the election tribunal to challenge the verdict of the election. Comrade Nwoye stated this in Awka yesterday during an interactive session with select

stakeholders representing the twenty-one (21) local government areas of the state .

The confident sounding candidate who was also full of praises for what he described as strong backing of the Bamangar Tukur-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the party, disclosed that the need to challenge the election verdict has become imperative because the whole world attest to the fact that the governorship election was fraught with bare-faced administrative and political fraud and open manipulations.

Nwoye got a standing ovation of the stakeholders when he disclosed that the party from the national, zone and state chapters have decided to appeal the election verdict as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, contrary to the initial speculations that the PDP will not go to court over the governorship election.

The flagbearer expressed optimism that his party would upstage the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) just like Governor Peter Obi displaced Ngige and Uba through the instruementality of the court to hold on to power since 2006.

He commended the party faithful for giving a good account of themselves and come second in the election not minding the high level of conspiracy and distractions that made the party campaign for just two weeks before the election.

He also praised President Goodluck Jonathan and national leadership of the party for their support during the election.

Comrade Tony Nwoye bemoaned that the PDP would have been an orphan in Anambra state if not for the support of President Goodluck Jonathan , Engr Authur Eze and some other individuals.

Comrade Nwoye expressed doubt over the capability of the Anambra state Independent Electoral Commission to conduct a free and fair council poll for the state. He based his claims on alleged fraud that fraught the governorship election.

From Chuks Collins, Awka,

Dec 23, 2013


http://www.elombah.com/index.php/reports/breaking-news/19708-tukur-tony-nwoye-head-for-tribunal-vow-to-upstage-apga-in-anambra?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

FAAC: “There Is Financial Crisis In Nigeria”, Says Oshiomhole -

Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State says failure of the Federal Government to remit allocation to states from the federation account is crippling the nation’s economy.

The Governor in a media chat as part of activities to mark the nation’s 53rdIndependence Anniversary of the country said many states are unable to pay salaries and meet other financial obligations and this may have serious security implications.

The Governor who said he cannot say if the Federal Government is broke as some people insinuate as he is not a Federal Government worker however said this is the first time since 1999 that the Federal Government will be finding it difficult to meet its obligation to states.

His words: “I don’t know if the Federal government is broke but I know there is serious crisis and it is unprecedented in the history of this country. For the first time since 1999 allocations can no longer come as at when due to states.

“I have been involved in trying to understand what the reasons are and I have not seen anything yet. Whether we use the word broke or you deny the word broke, the truth is that there is financial crisis in Nigeria which has very serious national security implication.

“Because when we can’t pay salaries, Federal Government can’t pay salaries as at when due, and you can’t pay your contractors and your contractors will begin to retrench their workers, that is recipe for national disaster. So I am hoping that NNPC should wake up and meet its obligation to the federation account otherwise, the integrity of government is at stake, if I
can’t keep my promise, federal government can’t keep its promise, all other governors can’t keep their promises, the Nigerian electorate will be so disillusioned and it could be a disaster. So I am hoping that the NNPC recognizes that it cannot be business as usual and they have few cases to answer as far as I am concerned” he said.

Oshiomhole narrated further that “two years ago it was about the kind of money we were spending on subsidy. In no time, following series of probes and enquiries by the National Assembly and by the presidency they have since discovered the kind of money they stole as regards subsidy, all the people that conspired with them and I believe the EFCC is dealing with that. But just as we are dealing with that, now we begin to hear about the theft of our crude oil such that what is accruing to the federation account is not enough to meet budgetary provision.

“As you know this year’s budget was based on $79 per barrel, that is about 2.4, 2.5 million barrels per day. Now the good news is that contrary to all the forecast, nothing is getting better. And it is sad that we are not doing enough to change things for the better, the challenge of government in any part of the world is to deal with the issues. If the economy is not doing well, you do certain things differently and recover.

“Well it is no more matter for debate, we are ten months into the New year and oil has performed very well, at about one hundred and five, one hundred and ten dollars per barrel throughout 2013. Which means that if we have budgetary provision of $79, we ought to have a surplus of about 30 per cent, which should be in the crude oil account. But rather than having this surplus, we are witnessing a situation where Federal allocations no longer come as at when due, states can’t pay salaries.

“In Edo State, like the rest of our 36 states, part of our July allocation has not been paid. About a third of our August allocation has not been paid and nothing has been paid for September allocation. And it is the first time since 1999 that this thing has happened. The explanation by NNPC is completely watery.

“They collect 455,000 barrels per day for domestic refinery, but they also agreed that the refineries are not working, that the very best they can not refine more than 100,000 barrels per day, so the question is what you are doing with the balance of 355,000. So why will you run business like that, you take 455,000 barrels a day to refine, even when your refineries are not working. Okay whether the refineries did it, where is the money.

“If you multiply one hundred and nine dollars by 455,000 barrels per day, you will imagine the kind of money NNPC ought to be paying into the federation account. And from some of the figures that have been thrown around, NNPC is owing the federation account over N2.3trillion. And Edo state has a share of that amount that will run into several billions of
naira. But last month, many states could not pay salaries, but in Edo state, we were able to pay. Even the federal government could not pay salaries; I think they paid July salaries around the 14th of August. But we paid August salaries in August” he stated.

On the kidnapping and general insecurity, the Governor blamed the media for promoting kidnapping by giving prominence to the vice, publishing how much the criminals ask for and how much is paid thereby attracting others into the criminal activity.

He however said the states law on kidnapping prescribes the death penalty for anyone caught. He security agents in the state are working round the clock to checkmate kidnappers and the state government has continued to provide security gadgets and other welfare packages for the security agents to encourage them to do their work.

On the slow of work on projects in the state, the Governor said no meaningful work can be done during the rainy season, stressing that any work carried out during the period will amount to waste of funds.

http://newsdiaryonline.com/faac-financial-crisis-nigeria-says-oshiomhole/#!


- See more at: http://newsdiaryonline.com/faac-financial-crisis-nigeria-says-oshiomhole/#!

Ngige emerges APC candidate for Anambra guber election; Okonkwo to lead campaign


Former governor of Anambra state and a founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chris Ngige, has been declared the candidate to fly the party’s flag at the November 16 governorship election in the state.

Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, broke the news Wednesday afternoon.

According to him, the choice of Nigige was made after a truce reached over a deadlock that had threatened the unity of the party in the state.

He further disclosed the south-east caucus of the party agreed on the candidature.

Main rival, Senator Annie Okonkwo, will lead Ngige’s campaign, an indication that he may be given an automatic ticket to return to the Senate in 2015 or hold a key position in Anambra government if APC wins the November poll.

“The choice of Ngige was reached through a consensus. Those who thought we shall not succeed today have been disappointed,” Okorocha said.

http://dailypost.com.ng/2013/08/21/breaking-ngige-emerges-apc-candidate-for-anambra-guber-election-okonkwo-to-lead-campaign/?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=breaking-ngige-emerges-apc-candidate-for-anambra-guber-election-okonkwo-to-lead-campaign

Please Mind Your Language, ACN Tells Abati


The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has decried the growing propensity of presidential spokesman Reuben Abati to resort to the use foul language against critics of the Jonathan Administration, saying such crude verbal attacks may boomerang on the presidency if left unchecked.
In a statement,Thursday, by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said there is a difference between a vicious verbal attack, which Dr. Abati now engages in with relish, and a robust response to critics of the Administration, which is what is expected of him.

”Contrary to what Dr. Abati may think, ‘attack’ and ‘criticism’ are not synonymous. An effective presidential spokesman is not the one who employs gutter language to respond to critics of his principal, or one who makes more enemies than friends for his boss, but one who is able to convey the activities and achievements of the president to the citizenry with dignified language.

”By virtue of what is believed to be his sound education, professional training and exposure, Dr. Abati should be well placed to know how to tell a man to go to hell and the man will still be smiling!

”To be sure, the use of dignified language by a presidential spokesman is important because whatever he says is believed to have emanated from his principal. It is therefore unimaginable that President Goodluck Jonathan will resort to the use of the kind of language that has been spewing out of the mouth of his spokesman in recent times. To the best of our knowledge, no presidential spokesman in Nigeria’s history has employed such base language in defence of his principal,” it said.

ACN said using such words as ‘ethically-challenged’, ‘hypocrite’, ‘medieval-era ignoramus’, ‘habitual indolence and brainlessness’, ‘descent into moral abyss’, ‘mental indolence’, ‘bootlicking’, ‘hideous and second-rate characters’, and ‘foolish’ to describe the critics of the President is rude, crude, uncouth, unconscionable and uncalled for, and that those who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.

”Dr. Abati, while you are free to exhibit your bombastic prowess, the rarefied realm of the presidency is not the ideal place for that, because when those who are being assaulted with such words respond in kind, it debases the presidency and ultimately hurts the occupier of the office. In a truly global world, such unrestrained response to critics of the presidency also hurts not just the President but the image of the entire country.

”Even if some critics use words that Dr. Abati finds annoying and insulting or engage in criticism that he deems unfair, it is still incumbent on him to avoid responding in kind, simply because he is not speaking for himself but for an institution. It is therefore not enough defence for him to say that he is responding in kind to critics of his boss.

”May we also remind the presidential spokesman that there will be life after that office, and that he should remember that in an era where the power of the written word has assumed more potency for various reasons, it is important to be more circumspect in tongue-lashing critics of the President.

”We will like to advise and encourage the presidential spokesman to learn to use facts and figures to counter whatever he considers an unfavourable criticism of his principal, instead of subsuming such under verbal pugilistic,” ACN said.

http://sardaunamagazine.com/index.php/component/k2/item/650-please-mind-your-language-acn-tells-abati

NGF Election: “Jang is just a floor member, Amaechi is the authentic chairman – Nyako

There are many things that are still uncertain about the conduct of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum election. One thing that is certain however, is which camp has been the loudest; it’s been Plateau’s Jonah Jang’s clique by a mile.

Not anymore it seems. Recently, Ekiti governor, Kayode Fayemi has attempted to set the records straight, Lagos governor, Babatunde Fashola has apologised for the mess, even filed a case in court with the intent to stop Jang from parading himself as chairman of the forum. Now Adamawa boss, Murtala Nyako has taken time off from dealing with the state of emergency currently gripping his state and sparring with President Jonathan on state and local government funds to make one thing clear – Rivers governor Rotimi Amaechi is the authentic NGF chairman.

Nyako plotted the equation in simple terms – Amaechi won the election, Amaechi is the person he would recognise.

He also reacted to a statement credited to Bauchi governor, Isa Yuguda saying that he [Yuguda] might quit the NGF.

“I don’t know what made Yuguda to make that statement but he should be happy that he participated in a transparent election.”

Nyako was very emphatic in his convictions about Amaechi’s chairmanship. He said that if Gov. Amaechi calls for an NGF meeting, all the governors will attend including Jonah Jang who “is just a floor member”. However, he said that even the likes of Jang do not attend, it will not deter Amaechi from fulfilling his responsibilities.

http://ynaija.com/politico/ngfelection-jang-is-just-a-floor-member-amaechi-is-the-authentic-chairman-nyako/

Tinubu to address British House of Commons Monday


Former Lagos State Governor and a national leader of the just formed opposition mega-party, All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, will on Monday deliver the keynote address at a conference at the British House of Commons.
The conference, with the theme: National Development and the People, will be hosted by a senior member of the British Parliament, Mr David Lammy MP. He will be joined by Mr Ivan Lewis MP, Shadow Secretary for International Development; Mr Julius Maada Bio, Sierra Leonean former Head of State, as well as other top politicians from various parties in British political circle.


They will share thoughts and deliberate on salient issues of national development as they concern Nigeria, Africa and the United Kingdom (UK).
A statement yesterday by Mr Sunday Dare of Tinubu Media Office, Lagos, said African Partnership Development, the UK body behind the convocation of the conference, has said Asiwaju Tinubu was chosen as the keynote speaker, with other African leaders and top Members of British Parliament (MPs), “to stimulate proactive actions and deepen the understanding of the international community and the Diaspora public on the challenges of national development against progressive leadership in Africa from the perspective of Nigeria, the most populous black nation”.


The statement added: “The organisers have been the facilitator of several high-powered deliberations focusing on the socio-economic and political progress of Africa, which have played host to a number of notable economic players and political figures in Africa and the UK, offering their views on solving some of the issues undermining progress in their respective countries.”


Quoting a statement from the organisers, Dare said: “The surge in the number of people with impressive credentials, from different diplomatic circles in the UK, British and African entrepreneurs, investors and Nigerian Professionals in Europe, who have signified interest to participate at the event since the confirmation of the former Lagos State governor as the lead discussant for the conference is a clear indication that there will be quality debates and viable outcomes for the future of Africa, and Nigeria in particular.”


The conference organiser, Tunde Alabi, said: “We are very happy at the support we have received from everybody both from the UK and Africa since the announcement of the conference. We are committed to ensuring that every Nigerian in or outside the country, has access to quality life, education, quality and available healthcare delivery service and social equality. We are focused on continuously creating series of engagements that will promote good government and sustainable growth without any political affiliation and or statements.”

The conference is expected to produce reports that will be part of the discourse for future Diaspora engagement, African/Nigeria-UK Economic and business partnership and growth.

http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/tinubu-to-address-british-house-of-commons-monday/

Presidency Splits National Youth Council (NYCN) - Leadership

In what looks like the replicate of the crisis in the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has also been factionalised with allegations and counter-allegations of underhand dealings between the presidency, ministry of Youth Affairs and a section of the umbrella youth organisation.

The congress of the NYCN, which took place in Makurdi, Benue State, was held in contravention of a subsisting Federal High Court in Lagos order dated May 20, 2013, obtained by one Henry Nwabueze to stop the election of new officers.

The position of the NYCN president is now enmeshed in controversy as two individuals lay claims to the office: the incumbent James Olawale Ajani and Yakubu Shendam who was said to have emerged at the Benue congress between May 24 and 26, 2013.

In an interview with LEADERSHIP yesterday, Ajani claimed that there was no election at the Benue congress, and that it was a charade superintended by the minister of youths affairs, Mr Inuwa Abdulkadir.
He said the minister openly told him to forget re-election and that the order came “from the above”.
“The honourable minister continued to persuade me to jettison the election for his candidate claimed to have come from the presidency. He said that he had been mandated by the presidency to deliver Yakubu Shemdan, a personal assistant to the PDP chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Turkur,” Ajani said.

He said he was invited to a meeting at the Benue State Government House in Makurdi by the minister during the ill-fated congress where he asked him to go and drop his ambition because his (minister’s) hands were tied.
He said while the initial congress billed to hold in Akure was cancelled because of “security reports”, the Benue congress was eventually fixed by the minister. He further stated that, during their meeting with the minister, he said they all agreed in principle and the congress planning committee started planning for the congress in Benue.
“We arrived in Benue on May 24 only to be served with a court order to stop the election. But the minister insisted that the congress should go on. But I was advised by the incorporated trustees of the youth body to call off the congress in line with the court order. Meanwhile, at the venue they were sharing money to the people to ensure that the minister’s candidate emerged,” he said.

He said in compliance with the court order, they left the venue only for the minister and his people to turn around and announce Shendam as the new NYCN president.

Ajani also revealed that, prior to the recent shenanigans that produced Shendam, an ex-militant, Asari Dokubo, had been threatening him to drop his ambition and support one Henry Nwabueze, saying they couldn’t support him because he was working for ACN and Tinubu.

Meanwhile, Shendam has denied all allegations by Ajani, saying there was a free and fair election in Benue. He said Ajani was disqualified based on age discrepancies on his official documents which suggest that he is above 35 years of age.
“My brother, you know in an election the loser will always complain of malpractice. But there was an election and I won the election as the new president of the council,” Shendam told LEADERSHIP on phone last night.

Allegation baseless – Minister

But the minister of youth affairs, Inuwa Abdulkadir, also told LEADERSHIP in a telephone interview that he was never a party to the NYCN election. He denied allegations that he unilaterally installed a stooge on orders from above.

However, the NYCN electoral committee chairman, Mr Bili Tafawa Balewa, refused to answer when asked whether an election took place or not, saying “I cannot talk”.

The committee secretary, Mr Segun Ewedemi, only offered to say that the truth would be known very soon. “We will soon make our position known to the press, hopefully next week; so take it like that for now,” Ewedemi told LEADERSHIP last night.
Another contestant to the office of the vice-president, Ezekiel Don Peters, told LEADERSHIP that there was no election.

He said what took place in Makurdi was a deceit by some desperate people. For his part, another stakeholder, Marvin Yobana, said Shendam is actually the new president going by what happened in Benue last week.

http://nigerianssavingnigerians.org/forum/discussion-on-politics/presidency-splits-national-youth-council-leadership/#p3363

We’ll Hold Jonathan Responsible for Safety of Amaechi, Others -NDPF


A group Nigerian Diaspora Professionals Forum,NDPF has called on President Good luck Jonathan to cease all manner of hostilities against Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi and other dissenting voices.

In a statement emailed to Newsdiaryonline.com, NDPF said “That the President and the ruling PDP should (cease) all hostilities against the Rivers State Governor and Chairman of Nigerian Governors’ Forum(NGF), Mr. Rotimi Amaechi and all other dissenting voices”. NDPF added that it “ will hold him (Jonathan) responsible for their safety.”

The group’s call came on the heels of the sudden grounding of Amaechi’s plane by the federal aviation authorities in Nigeria.

The Nigerian Diaspora Professionals Forum, NDPF also said it “ will extensively mobilize for progressive change in 2015. We have already set up our cells in strategic capitals around the world with sizable diaspora population. Like the anti-subsidy removal protests, this will be another tsunami and we count on the support of all progressives in Nigeria”,insisting that “Another Nigeria is possible”.

Read the full text of the groupo’s statement below:

Amaechi’s Safety- Hold President Jonathan Responsible

We are Nigeria Diaspora Proffessionals FORUM(NDPF), a coalition of Nigerian academics, professionals and practitioners in the diaspora currently resident in the United Kingdom, United States of America, Germany, France and South Africa. Our management executive committee(MESCOM) convened an emergency meeting today 29th April 2013 coordinated from our global secretariat in Johannesburg, South Africa, to consider the disturbing state of affairs in our home country Nigeria and do observe as follows:

 That we are concerned the deteriorating security situation in Nigeria amidst deplorable infrastructure and frequent and unresolved cases of murder, kidnap and terrorism.

 That we are very apprehensive about the deliberate and systematic seizure of the democratic space by the ruling People’s Democratic Party(PDP) through the arbitrary arrest and detention of members of the press and clampdown on all dissenting voices.

 That we are embarrassed by the level of poverty in the midst of plenty in Nigeria.

 That we are disappointed about the ineptitude of the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan through obvious democratic deficits and reversal of most of the gains achieved through the war against corruption waged by previous administrations.

We therefore call on President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to:

 Tackle the embarrassing security problems in Nigeria urgently so that some of us want to return home can be guaranteed basic safety.

 Concentrate on completing his mandate and desist forthwith from contemplating to contest again in 2015. It is our verdict that he is performed abysmally poorly and giving him and his party another opportunity will plunge our country into further darkness.

 Scale up the war against corruption by conclusively prosecuting those who have been indicted by one form of corruption or the other including reversing the pardon granted to the rogue governor DSP Alamieyeseigha.

 That the President and the ruling PDP should seize all hostilities against the Rivers State Governor and Chairman of Nigerian Governors’ Forum(NGF), Mr. Rotimi Amaechi and all other dissenting voices. NDPF will hold him responsible for their safety.

 That the Nigerian Diaspora Professionals Forum(NDPF) will extensively mobilize for progressive change in 2015. We have already set up our cells in strategic capitals around the world with sizable diaspora population. Like the anti-subsidy removal protests, this will be another tsunami and we count on the support of all progressives in Nigeria.

 Another Nigeria is possible.

Signed

Yahaya M. Bello (Johannesburg, South Africa) & Pauline Adenike Folarin (New York,USA)

All enquiries to gejmustgo@gmail.com

http://newsdiaryonline.com/well-hold-jonathan-responsible-for-safety-of-amaechi-others-diaspora-group/

Governor Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State has stated in clear terms that his administration is rebuilding the state’s infrastructure to compliment the development efforts of its founding fathers and not the transformation agenda of the Federal Government.

Amaechi spoke, Monday, when participants of the Senior Executive Course member 35 from the Nigeria Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) Kuru, Jos paid him a courtesy visit at Government House, Port Harcourt as part of their tour and analysis of the nation’s transformation agenda. Amaechi said the transformation agenda could be implemented by the next administration after his tenure as he is focused on rebuilding.

“We are not doing transformation; we are only going back to where our parents left us first before we can commence transformation. There is nothing we are doing now that King Diette-Spiff did not do, but they have all deteriorated. So we are going back to where King Diette-Spiff left the state, and hope that, whoever takes over from us can then transform. So here, we are not transforming, we only get back to where Spiff left us. He built over 200 Secondary schools and Primary schools. We even had fish farms but they have all been vandalized and the land taken over by communities. So there is nothing new. The only thing that is new is the quality and the type of roads that we are building and the monorail project. We have a target of January, 2014 to complete the monorail that will be the first in Africa. Now it is 3km and if we have N72 billion we will extend it to 7kms,” Amaechi said.



The governor spoke of his administration’s vision and efforts in education, health, welfare and other sectors.

“The Model Secondary schools, like the Model Primary schools are ICT compliant. An Indian Company has taken over the sustainability of the project, but government is still negotiating with the due process to provide one child with one tablet.”

“We promised our people 160 Health Centres, we have completed 120, the remaining 40 health centres are under construction. We have hired 400 doctors and making efforts to hire another 200 this year,” Amaechi said.

The governor also said the wage bill of workers has increased from N2.5 billion to N8.9 billion due to the inclusion of salary bill of primary school teachers, a responsibility undertaken by the local government councils before he assumed office.

He assured that his administration will make good its promise of ensuring 24 hours steady power supply.

“We believe that by the time all the power stations have been completed, we should be able to have 715 megawatts. So, for the next four to five years, whoever becomes the next governor will not concentrate in building new infrastructure. By the time we stabilize power, you will have what we call suppress demand, it will rise and you will have people move over to start business. But the federal government have refused to allow us distribute power. We are the only state that has built 26 sub-stations. That is the only way we have given power to people’s homes. In the next few months, we should be able to have regular power supply in Port Harcourt,” Amaechi said.

On roads, Amaechi said, his administration has built internal drainage system which has made the construction project expensive, adding that some of the welfare facilities to be provided at the Greater Port Harcourt City have underground networks.

Speaking of more projects, he said, “You will see our new Sports City and the facilities. The only thing that is outstanding is the installation of the seats. I have insisted that they should fix the kind of seats at the Olympic Stadium in Britain. We have paid the contractor and he should complete the project. We are also embarking on the installation of water.”

“Employment is one of the reasons behind crime. So if you don’t generate employment, the rich will not sleep. And we believe that the easiest way to generate employment is through Agriculture, because you are dealing with two categories and that is the skilled and unskilled manpower. We have the Buguma Fish Farm; one is in Andoni, another at Ubima, then Opobo, while one will also be sited in Okrika. You will see the Songhai Farm, the Banana plantation in Tai Local Government; and we have revived the Risonpalm of 16,000 hectares of land,” Amaechi said.

Earlier, leader of the delegation and representative of the Director-General of NIPSS, Prof. Ibrahim Mohammed Jumare, said the purpose of the visit is to undertake a study tour on strengthening institutional framework and the transformational agenda in the country.

He said, participants will visit other states in the Southern part of the country including, Enugu, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Ekiti and Oyo States, and will also have an interactive session with various tiers of government on issues of the transformation agenda of the federal government.

http://abusidiqu.com/?p=12109&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Abusidiqucom+%28Abusidiqu.com%29

The Grounding of Rivers State Aircraft: My Story —- Governor Amaechi


Rivers State Government explains how the Federal Government grounded its Bombardier jet at Akure Airport

We had set out from Abuja in the morning of Friday April 26, 2013 to Imo State to attend the funeral rites of the younger sister of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Hon. Emeka Ihedioha. Our plane, a Bombardier jet owned by the Rivers State Government, landed at the airport in Owerri. It was in Owerri that the pilot of our plane was first tipped off that there is a plot to ground our plane in Owerri that friday.

Fortunately for us, we took off from Owerri airport and arrived at Akure airport en-route to Ekiti for the burial of the Deputy Governor of Ekiti State Funmilayo Olayinka without any incident. On the flight to Akure was the Speaker of the House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Aminu Tambuwal who we met in Imo State and was also heading to Ekiti for the burial of Mrs Olayinka. Also on the flight were the Governor of Rivers State Rt. Hon, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, the Director-General Nigeria Governors Forum(NGF) Asishana Bayo Okauru, Kalabari prince and politician Prince Tonye Princewill, some aides of the Governor and me.

Once our party left the Akure airport for Ekiti, our pilot went to the airport offices to make statutory airport payments and fees, file his flight plan and declare his manifest. After filing his fight plan and declaring his manifest, our pilot was told to go and see the Controller. The Controller bluntly told him that the Rivers Government plane would not be allowed to leave the airport. In other words, the plane had been grounded! He said that the plane should have been grounded in Owerri. The Controller on duty at the airport in Akure mentioned some vague issues relating to the customs papers of the plane, which has been flying in Nigeria for many months? That didn’t make any sense to the pilot. He enquired on whose orders the plane was being grounded, he was told that it was the Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Authority (NAMA). And that he should reach the NAMA MD.

By the time our party, which now included four House of Representatives Honourable members- Mohammed Sani Idris Kutigi, Daniel Rayeineju, Idris Ahmed Wase and Ifedayo Abegunde- returned to the Akure airport, there was confusion everywhere. Speaker Tambuwal, the Honourable members and Governor Amaechi and his team, were all stranded at the airport. The plane that brought Speaker Tambuwal and Governor Amaechi to Akure could not leave Akure airport. Calls were being made as these two democratically elected leaders, furious and perplexed, tried to fathom what could have caused this monumental embarrassment to them and their offices.

After trying fruitlessly for some time to get the plane released, Speaker Tambuwal then offered to fly Governor Amaechi to Port Harcourt with the plane(another small aircraft) that brought the other four Honourable members to Akure. To accommodate Governor Amaechi in the small aircraft, one of the House of Representatives members offered his seat to the Governor .

The pilot of the Rivers State Government plane was already locking up the aircraft for us to leave for Lagos by road when a call eventually came through that the plane could now leave. The Controller received a directive to allow the plane fly out of Akure. The decision to let us go, we later learnt, was due to the pressure brought on the aviation authorities by Speaker Tambuwal.

It is indeed most shameful and ludicrous that NAMA and the Aviation authorities are now saying that they grounded the Rivers State Government plane because the pilot did not file a flight plan and declare a manifest. That’s a blatant lie. A big fat one at that. The pilot filed the flight plan and manifest, and paid all the statutory airport fees and charges shortly after the plane arrived at the Akure airport in the afternoon. If the pilot filed a flight plan and manifest at the airports in Abuja and Owerri, where he flew from same day, why won’t he then do the same in Akure? It is instructive to note that all through the traumatic time we spent in Akure, no official of the airport or aviation staff came to tell Governor Amaechi that we were grounded because our pilot “refused to file a flight plan and manifest.” All they kept saying was that they were just obeying directives, it was beyond them and we should call Abuja. Speaker Tambuwal and the other four members of the House of Representatives are living witnesses to that charade.

NAMA and the aviation authorities should explain to Nigerians why an aircraft owned by a State government, that flew the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal and a democratically elected Governor of a State who also the chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, would be grounded at an airport for no just cause?

DAVID IYOFOR
Chief Press Secretary
To The Rivers State Governor

April 27, 2013

http://www.ediong.org/post/49033545436/rivers-state-government-explains-how-the-federal#_

Fasehun’s UPN Is Illegal, Jonathan’s Destabilisation Ploy, Says Bisi Akande:


NATIONAL Chairman of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Bisi Akande, has described Dr. Frederick Fasehun-led Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) as an illegal organisation and a ploy by President Goodluck Jonathan’s to destabilise the country.

Akande, former deputy governor of old Oyo under the platform of the default UPN, said the original party has been abolished by a decree.

Speaking with The Guardian Saturday, he said: “UPN as at today is an illegal organisation. It was abolished by a decree, which has the force of statute. And to resuscitate it will require an act of the National Assembly. That is all I know and that is the truth.”

Recently, Fasehun, who founded the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), explained that he did not revive the party for personal interest.

“I am not intending to take any elective position but I see a lot of failures in the system.  Nigeria would have been a great country but for the people. And why must you institutionalise lies and bogus propaganda just because we have political differences?  For some time now, people have been telling various lies about me just because they are jittery over the resuscitation of UPN,” he said.

But Akande stressed that the revival is beyond Fasehun.

“Fasehun’s UPN cannot just be dismissed as an attempt by a particular individual. It is not. The truth of it is that Jonathan wants Nigeria destabilised so that the Southsouth will say they are the bona fide owner of oil.

“They want Nigeria to break up and that is why the President wants to destabilise the country. When Nigeria gets into serious trouble most people will become refugees. We already know what it is to live under a very bad government, you can imagine what absence of government will bring,” he noted.

Not done, Akande, a personal friend of Fasehun, declared: “I don’t want to be part of it because I know it is an illegal organisation with sinister intension. Anybody can resuscitate it but we will meet in court.

“They want to subsume thugs under that platform to fight the APC in the Southwest. They want to use it as a cover for thuggery against APC in the zone.”

However, Akande would not be drawn into discussion on the personality of Fasehun even as he insisted that the OPC leader never told him anything about the new UPN.

“I don’t know about Fasehun and I don’t want to talk about him; he is my personal friend. But I am talking of the illegal UPN; and I know what the law says.

“Fasehun never told me he wanted to resuscitate UPN. But he’s not a lawyer; he’s a medical doctor. And he may not know the implications. He has not sought my advice and I am not giving him one”, Said Akande.

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=119523%3Afasehuns-upn-is-illegal-jonathans-destabilisation-ploy-says-akande-&catid=1%3Anational&Itemid=559&utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

Spoon Feeding the Government is not the Business of the Opposition, ACN Replies Jonathan

Posted by Editor
The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has called on the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan to step down if it is overwhelmed by the demands of running the country, adding that spoon feeding the government in power on how to successfully pilot the affairs is not the business of the opposition.

Reacting to a statement credited to a presidential aide, Dr. Doyin Okupe, that the opposition only criticizes without offering solutions to the country’s myriad of problems, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohamed, however said the ACN has gone beyond its brief to offer suggestions to many knotty issues.

”If the PDP-led federal government is expecting the opposition to waste its time and energy in helping it to run the government, then it is another clear indication that those at the helms neither prepared for the huge responsibility placed upon them by being voted into office nor learnt fast enough on the job. Little wonder the country’s development has been in reverse gear since 1999,” it said.

The ACN said it is aware of its responsibility as the leading opposition party, and that it has always been guided by the highest ideals of democratic principles and the best practices of democratic opposition in the world.

”In speaking truth to power in Nigeria, on many occasions we have turned ‘non-issues’ which are critical for democracy, liberty and justice into issues; we have, through our media interventions, created the possibilities of greater participation by Nigerians in the governance of the country, while canvassing for greater transparency and accountability in the affairs of government and public institutions. We are glad Nigerians appreciate this and have constantly told us so.

”Because we believe in constructive criticism, we have even gone beyond our brief to offer suggestions. Any close perusal of our regular interventions dating back to the Obasanjo presidency will realize that we have proffered solutions to oil militancy in the Niger Delta and Boko Haram violence, suggested ways to wean the country off fuel subsidy through local refinery of crude oil instead of making Nigerians to bear the brunt of a corrupt system; pointed out what areas of the economy needed more government attention to enhance socio-economic development and alerted the government to the dwindling fortunes of the oil sector due to low investment and the emerging dangers of shale oil discovery in the US and elsewhere.

”But we have since realized that this federal government is not in power to improve the lives of the citizens but to enrich the few members of its clique and feather its own nest. That is why we are gearing up to take over the mantle of leadership at the centre through the support of Nigerians, who are totally fed up with a party (PDP) that has failed to make their lives better since assuming office in 1999,” the party said. 

ACN also responded to the statement that it is trying to mislead Nigerians with the allegations that SURE-P funds are being channeled into the pockets of PDP members across the country in preparation for the 2015 elections, saying the presidency just doesn’t get it. ”Lest the presidency and the PDP muddle the waters, what we have said is that after the SURE-P funds have been shared among the three tiers of government, the federal government converts its own share into slush funds which are then given to persons who are neither elected nor recognized by law to ferret into the pockets of PDP members. We went ahead to list the names of those who have been appointed to coordinate the sharing of the funds, and noted that they are the same as President Jonathan’s campaign coordinators in the states – and no one has been able to fault us!” the party said.

Meanwhile, the ACN has expressed its total disgust at the increasing resort to the use of gutter language by presidential aides when responding to the criticism of the federal government by the opposition. ”It is sad that this presidency is being increasingly defined by the use of rude and crude language against the opposition. The ACN and its leaders have been mercilessly maligned and called unprintable names, to such an extent that the deeper you sink into the gutter in talking about the ACN and its leaders, the more assured your meal ticket is at the presidency.

”But we are honestly not surprised. When a key spokesman for any government is a corrupt and undignified personality who, under a decent dispensation, should be undergoing trial for collecting huge funds for contracts not executed, that government has already defined its own public image. When a key spokesman for any government is a man who has jettisoned every principle he used to hold dear and has negated everything he ever wrote, just to secure a meal ticket, that government cannot and should not expect to be respected and believed by the citizenry. That is the crisis facing the Jonathan Administration,” the party said.

http://abusidiqu.com/?p=11310&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=spoon-feeding-the-government-is-not-the-business-of-the-opposition-acn-replies-jonathan&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

@op, I'm I correct? Lol

@idoko, you are from today NL's ''Mr. I'm I correct'' Lol

Had my first interview 5th march, 2013 at the bank's Marina HQ. Any update yet?

Bode George Accused of Stealing Oil Subsidy Savings As Sure-P Largesse Tears Lagos PDP Apart


Savings from the removal of oil subsidy which was intended for the purpose of providing infrastructure for Nigerians and cushioning the harsh effect of the federal government policy on the removal of subsidy from petroleum products has now become a subject of in fighting between members of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP in Lagos state as a group which called itself Concerned PDP Stakeholders, Lagos state has accused PDP leader and convicted former Chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority Chief Bode George of stealing from it.

Funds from the oil subsidy savings which has now been converted to largesse for distribution to members of the ruling PDP across the states of the federation was reportedly sent to the Lagos state chapter of the PDP for distribution to members but the Concerned PDP Stakeholders in the state rose against the fund’s control and distribution by Chief Bode George whom it also accused of stealing.

Abusidiqu.com gathered that the oil subsidy savings instead of been used to provide infrastructure for Nigerians have been turned into campaign money for the second term bid of President Goodluck Jonathan as many states have received their own share of the fund.

While accusing Bode George of pursuing personal agenda with the funds made available to the party in the state, the group in a statement titled “2015:

RECIPE FOR SECOND TERM FOR JONATHAN FROM PDP LAGOS, SACK SHELLE, OYEDELE, B.G, AND OTHERS IF YOU WANT LAGOS 2015? and obtained by Abusidiqu.com condemned the decision of those handling the largesse in Abuja to put Bode George in sole control of its distribution in Lagos state. The full text of their statement unedited reads:

“We are shocked to see that the Sure-P programme in Lagos has again been hijacked by the Bode George faction again!

They have given Union some slots but what about the neutral non-aligned people? They have continues with the politics of exclusion in Lagos State PDP and this will no longer be accepted.

We therefore call on the National Chairman of PDP, The Chairman of the South West Caretaker Committee, The Chairman of the Sure-P – Dr. Christopher Kolade, Federal Minister for Finance and Supervising Minister – Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala to please remove Bode Oyedele immediately if the Sure-P is to succeed in Lagos State.

Bode Oyedele is not fit to represent the interest of Sure-P in Lagos State as he is not a grass root man and he is not accepted by the people. You cannot impose a man who has lost touch with his people. You cannot impose a man who has lost touch with his people. All the dollars he collected for the Presidential campaign was spent by him, Bode George and Shelle. We know all the money he collected from Aganga during that time. He collected many cars too from Abuja, where are they? Mr. President should ask the security agencies to give him a full report on people before he approves them for any position.

Bode Oyedele cannot coordinate Sure-P in Lagos State. We reject him. He has packed all Bode George’s agents as Sure-P beneficiaries. Is this the objective of Sure-P? Some local governments like Eti-Osa, Ajeromi, Lagos Islands etc. Please find out how they got the beneficiaries.

In Eti-Osa there are names of criminals as beneficiaries, especially Ward HI. This is a waste of Subsidy money and defeating the objective of the programme. There are responsible eminent citizens who should be contacted to verify and screen the submission of names for beneficiaries but Bode George’s loyalists are putting names of touts and miscreants for his own personal agenda. We won’t allow this to happen. We intend to go to court to obtain an order to dissolve the state Exco if the Caretaker Committee won’t do it.

1.       RECIPE for Jonathan to win the Presidential election in Lagos State :

We want a caretaker committee for Lagos now, if Jonathan wants a second term.

2.       We want Bode Oyedele removed as Co-ordinator for Sure-P. He has started planning how to siphon money for the Sure-P.

3.       Stop imposing Bode George, Ogunlewe, Ade Dosunmu, Koro, Bode Oyedele, Shelle, Deji Doherty, Finnih on us. Allow us to promote the leaders we want and trust. We need a change in Lagos. We will find neutral persons.

4.       Dissolve Lagos Exco NOW NOW NOW.

5.       Appoint a PLO for Lagos.

6.       Support Stores F.C of Lagos

Leave all these old men aside.

Bode Oyedele is a factional leader, and cannot carry everybody along. Mr. President should please ask them to cancel all the Sure-P beneficiaries in Lagos and investigate the origin of the names and call for fresh nominations if the programme is to achieve its objective in Lagos State.  Sure-P is not for Bode George’s agents. If PDP members are going to benefit, it should be PDP members all round, and not selected members. There are some areas where the beneficiaries are just stooges, who have agreed to share the money 50/50 with some useless leaders in the party. We will fight this out and expose them very soon. We call on the President to investigate the names that were submitted, and cancel all of them.

We are not fools, and we are tired of people taking us for granted. Bode Oyedele can never be deputy governor, because all of us will work against him. They should investigate why he was sacked, any why they all call him “Ole”.

http://abusidiqu.com/?p=10789&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bode-george-accused-of-stealing-oil-subsidy-savings-as-sure-p-largesse-tears-lagos-pdp-apart&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Insecurity: Tinubu Blasts Jonathan, Says President Should Resign.


Former Lagos state governor and national leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria (A C N) Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has condemned the inability of President Goodluck Jonathan to end the wanton waste of citizens lives across the country and demanded that the president should take the noble path of resigning rather than continuing to blame imaginary enemies for his own incompetence.

Tinubu who spoke to journalists at the Mallam Aminu Kano Airport, Kano today after a paying a sympathy visit to the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero  over recent attack on the monarch and Monday bomb blast that killed and injured scores of persons in Kano, said: “I am worried of the sustenance of terrorism. If it is happening in some of these states all this while and you have not gathered enough intelligence to nip it in the bud, you have failed. You should please resign as a government.”

Speaking further, the radical politician said : “You cannot continue to blame all the Inspectors General of Police or police officers alone. It is the responsibility of the President of Federal Republic of Nigeria to make sure that Nigerians live in harmony, not divided religiously, not divided by tribe and not in conflict among themselves”



While expressing the view that some persons in government can be fuelling the insecurity problem so that they can continue to loot public funds under the guise of security vote, the former governor expressed support for the granting of amnesty to Boko Haram members. He however said those involved in criminal activities among them must be made to face justice. “For the innocent ones among them, there must be amnesty. We cannot fight a war in our own country against minor crimes and minor people. We would only end up multiplying these people by trying to use force against our own citizens”, he added.

He blamed Jonathan’s incompetence for the president’s claim that Boko Haram members are ghosts. “They are no ghosts. Those people in prison, are they ghosts? If there are ghosts, then please show me their graves? If they are ghosts, then remove the JTF, because the JTF is not trained to fight ghosts”, he stated.

Source:

http://abusidiqu.com/?p=10446&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=insecurity-tinubu-blasts-jonathan-says-president-should-resign

Bayelsa, six other states fail DMO’s solvency test:

Bayelsa and six other states in the country have failed the domestic debt sustainability analysis undertaken by the Debt Management Office (DMO).

According to the report, which the DMO board, headed by Vice President Namadi Sambo met on Tuesday to consider, the seven states’ domestic indebtedness relative to their IGR positions ranks high beyond the recommended international threshold of between 92 per cent and 167 per cent.

Indeed, the affected states, according to the report on Pages 26 and 27, are presented in pink colour signifying the danger level of their indebtedness. Those next to this endangered category are stated in yellow while states whose positions are healthy are presented in green colour.

Bayelsa led the heavily indebted states with a score of 1,712 per cent insolvency.

The state has a domestic debt stock of N162.82 billion as at the end of December 2011, while its IGR was put at N9.510 billion.

It was followed by Cross River State, which by end of 2011 had a domestic debt stock of N90.750 billion, relative to its IGR size of N16.553 billion.

The debt management agency said the state’s indebtedness ratio is 548 per cent far above the recommended threshold.

The third in this category was Zamfara State, which scored 497 per cent, representing its total domestic debt of N12.968 billion relative to its N2.611 billion IGR.

Ebonyi State was next in line with a score of 272 per cent, representing her domestic debt stock of N40.239 billion relative to her IGR of N14.778 billion.

Oil-rich Delta State came fifth with a rating of 263 per cent as the state’s domestic debt stock then was N90.843 billion, while its IGR stood at N34.601 billion.

Adamawa State followed with a rating of 217 per cent, with a debt stock of N25.954 billion, while its IGR stood at N11.948 billion.



Kogi State was seventh on the league with a solvency score of 207 per cent score, representing its indebtedness of N34.122 billion in relation to its IGR of N16.500 billion.

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) too was presented in the same pink colour among the seven risky states, though its debt figure was not presented on the table.

The DMO offered explanation on the solvency exercise relative to IGR: “Given the fact that sustainability or otherwise of domestic debts are by best practice to be measured against the own revenue of the borrower, an analysis of the domestic debts of the states to their IGR was also undertaken.

“For this, the Debt Relief International (DRI) solvency threshold of 92 per cent to 167 per cent is applied. The result as shown in the table below outlines the need for the sub-national governments to grow their IGRs to reduce excessive pressure on their statutory allocations in the running of their governments and free up resources for other developmental projects.”

Six other states presented in yellow, signifying warning alert as they are close to attaining the solvency bar, are Edo, Akwa Ibom, Kwara, Ondo, Plateau and Taraba.

The remaining states presented in green all scored below the recommended solvency ratio of 92 per cent.

Source:

 http://businessnews.com.ng/2013/03/18/bayelsa-six-other-states-fail-dmos-solvency-test/?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=bayelsa-six-other-states-fail-dmos-solvency-test

Tinubu Speaks On Botched 2011 ACN/CPC Merger, Cautions Buhari Against Blackmail:

LAGOS, April 16, 2011

(THEWILL) – Former Lagos State Governor and leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has cautioned the presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), General Muhammadu Buhari on making derogatory comments over the failure of the ACN and the CPC to reach a working alliance ahead of the Presidential election which held today nationwide.
Bola Tinubu spoke during a question and answer session with journalists after his accreditation to vote in the election in Alausa, Lagos.
On why the alliance failed?

The story is not different from what the National Chairman said last week. It is very unfortunate that the two serious national parties could not solve the problem earlier than now. We have been at it for quite some time now. You all are aware of the National Democratic Movement, which Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was a member before he moved back to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). The movement was left with Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa, General Muhammadu Buhari and us. From that moment on, it would have been a good opportunity to form an alliance. It is not about individual. It is about the need to form a strong structure.

So what transpired?

At that time, there was no Congress for Progressive Change (CPC). What we had was The Buhari Organisation (TBO). Suddenly, CPC was registered. To me, at that stage, instead of a merger to form a unified platform, they started talking about alliance. Alliance in a presidential system has never worked. You need to form a common platform with a common manifesto to be able to work together and be able to educate the people on the difference between the common platform and the constituting parties.
When the merger plan did not work, they dragged us back. I will not blame any person. But Buhari, as a leader who is highly experienced, and has been a statesman and contested election twice and has complained of rigging and irregularities in court for a long time challenging the process, he should have seen that it is not wise to bring CPC in at the time we were rooting for a merger. But we still respected him and wanted to continue with the merger plan, but he said he wanted an alliance. So, the merger was suspended.
However, if you want alliance, instead of a merger, you must be ready to negotiate, give, take and make sacrifices. But it is unfortunate that we are so self-centred and selfish to the extent that it beclouds our patriotic sense. They do not want to give, but want take. We suspended the alliance talk till after the National Assembly election, the result of which showed that Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has better strength and better spread than CPC. So, we should be the leader in the alliance.
But they want to keep the presidential candidate as well as the running mate, in an alliance where we should be the leading pack. Now, the alliance is not strong enough to produce the senate president, neither can it produce the House of Representative Speaker, so what are we going to get in return? I am ready to sacrifice my two legs to be amputated, but you are not even ready to sacrifice your index finger. They were offering us cabinet positions which you can change your mind tomorrow and sack at will.

When did the ACN back up then, was it after the offer of cabinet positions?

We were still ready to go along with the plan in the interest of the country. But we later discovered that while we were negotiating the alliance, they are also speaking with the Save Nigeria Group (SNG), to which they have conceded the slot of Vice Presidency. We accepted him, but asked him to surrender the vice presidential slot. If we do not have that, our platform, which we have laboured so hard to build, will be in danger.
So we proposed a merger which will be implemented after the election. We could not afford to jettison our symbol because it is the symbol of economy, especially for the poor. But we were ready for a joint logo that will show the broom on one side and Buhari’s pen on another side as a new logo for the future. The negotiation went to that extent. Yet, they refused to commit to that plan. At that point, it became clear that they are only after using us to win election, without having any regard for our platform. We decided at that point to cancel all suggestions and look at things holistically.

Why did the ACN not push for a candidate from the younger generation?

We actually did because globally, younger people are taking over governance. They are producing better results, even the very conservative Russia is shifting ground for the younger generation. Our candidate is younger than others. Ribadu is a lawyer and an institutional man. He built Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which became a deterrent to widespread irregularity, from the scratch. When Ribadu was at EFCC, Buhari was one of the principal advisers of EFCC. Both of them have a long family history when Ribadu’s father was a parliamentarian. So, he could have become our national hero and our own Mandela, by supporting Ribadu.
So, may be, the election will throw up a run off. Then we can resume the alliance talk.

But I got a text from Chief Bisi Akande this morning that “General Buhari on Voice of America radio today said that ACN has already sealed a deal with the PDP for some cabinet post and Speaker of House of Representatives.”

That is false, if it is true that Buhari said so. It is blackmail. I do not expect somebody of his calibre to make such statement. We are going to remain committed to our manifesto.

On the meeting between the ACN and President Goodluck Jonathan?

If President Jonathan will invite the leadership of the ACN to even have a discussion on collaboration, he has done well. It means he has shown the desire to win the election. But what has Buhari done? Has he ever willingly contacted the leadership of ACN privately? Until we were rallied by some leaders who wanted us to form the alliance, Buhari never took a single proactive step. I do not believe a man running to be the President of Nigeria and not Emir of Katsina should have the needed flexibility. To be a good leader, you have to be flexible and accommodating.
On Nuhu Ribadu’s readiness to drop out for Buhari
In fact, in all honesty, Ribadu was even willing to step down when we consulted him. He was ready to make the huge sacrifice. But the other party remained unbendable. I have never being a part of federal government even though, the democracy we enjoy today is a product of our struggle in National Democratic Coalition (NADECO). I did not take advantage of it when former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who is my kinsman, was in power. Or are you going to say he did not invite me? He invited me several times. He even set a booby trap in 2003. I bypassed it and defuse that trap.


Was CPC formed to frustrate the merger of progressives by fifth columnists?

Let us finish the bleeding before the careful analysis and post-mortem of the failure of the alliance will be done. But a leader must be able to identify great opportunities and sit on it, hold on tight. No one can mislead me easily because I examine facts, figure, and factors before taking decision. So, irrespective of how many columnists, why will a leader see that opportunity and not seize it? I think is a question of the quality of leadership ability.


Tell us details of your meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan?


He sought for my audience in Lagos not in Abuja. As somebody, I knew when he was a Deputy Governor, I have to respect him. The meeting was in Lagos. I told him that I have been in this position for years. During the military era, General Ibrahim Babangida took me as a younger brother and was very close to my family. Despite that, I did not change my position. When our democracy was aborted, I had a choice to go back to my profession. I chose to stay with the people, and struggle for democracy. I went into exile. I do not have to do that if not that my commitment to democracy is very firm. I told him that PDP has failed us for 12 years and I have 101 reasons not to join them. I said, “Mr. President, I respect you but I am not going to work with you. I have a party that I am leading and I am not looking for anything.” I do not need a presidential jet. I have been in presidential jet three times since the return of democracy. I boarded presidential jet twice with Alhaji Abubakar Atiku en route Umrah. The third time was with President Umaru Yar’Adua. We met at Kaduna. We flew together to Abuja. If they are sure I flew in presidential jet to see Jonathan, let them produce the manifest of that flight. It is amazing that blackmail thrives more than the truth in this country. There are so many misleading stories that could easily be verified but surprisingly ended up being believed.


On the election proper:

This election has its own form and next week’s governorship will have its own form too. That is when this low turnout will turn to massive turnout. All politics is local. We are all going to massively vote for Governor Raji Fashola.


Source:

http://www.osundefender.org/?p=15026

Peoples Democratic Party has said it has no information that the South-East geopolitical zone is agitating to take a shot at the presidency. It said such calls are coming from "disgruntled" persons.

More politicians from the zone and the apex Igbo socio-political body, Ohanaeze Ndi'gbo, have recently decried the area's alleged marginalisation at the presidential level.

However, the National Publicity Secretary, PDP, Mr. Olisa Metuh, who spoke with our correspondent on the telephone on Friday, said the rotational presidency was no more relevant, adding that presidential candidates would henceforth be picked on merit.

He said, "I am not aware that the Igbo are calling for the presidency; you can quote me on that. I noticed that one or two disgruntled persons are saying it. Nigeria has gone beyond the equation of where a person (presidential candidate) comes from; we have transcended that.

"The most important thing is the capacity and the capability of whoever is heading Nigeria, and that is why we are looking at the entire country. It is not about where you are coming from; it's about your capacity and your agenda for the nation."

Reacting to the Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha's statement on Thursday that PDP had failed the South-East, Metuh described the governor as a regional politician who should be ignored at the national level.

"I have directed the South-East zone publicity secretary to answer him. He is a regional player; he's not a national player. We don't need to reply him at the national secretariat," he said.

Okorocha, who was a founding member of PDP, had, while explaining why he pitched his tent with the newly formed All Progressives Congress, said he had nothing against President Goodluck Jonathan but his party, the PDP.

Source:

http://mobile.punchng.com/output.php?link=http://www.punchng.com/news/disgruntled-politicians-behind-call-for-igbo-presidency-pdp/

Some civil servants in Lagos will now work on Saturdays, starting from May 3.
They will resume at 10am and close at 2pm.

Those affected in the pilot scheme are workers in the ministries of Transport, Physical Planning and Urban Development and Land Bureau.
Governor Babatunde Fashola announced this yesterday at LTV8 Blue Roof multipurpose hall while rendering an account of his stewardship to the people on his 2,100 days in office.
The event was attended by the first Military Administrator of the state Brig.Gen. Mobolaji Johnson, former Governor Lateef Jakande and Chief Molade Okoya-Thomas.

House of Assembly Speaker Adeyemi Ikuforiji was represented by the Chairman of the House Committee on Information and Strategy, Mr. Segun Ololade.
Also present were former Commissioner for Finance Mr. Wale Edun; Commissioner for Environment Tunji Bello; Information Commissioner Lateef Ibirogba; Head of Service Adesegun Ogunlewe; Secretary to the State Government Mrs. Oluranti Adebule; top government officials; Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) chieftains and traditional rulers, among others.

Fashola said on Saturdays, workers at the Ministry of Transport would attend to issues relating to drivers’ training, drivers’ licence and traffic enforcement.
Those in the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development would deal with complaints on building permits and related matters, while those in Land Bureau would deal with land issues.
The governor said the decision to commence the pilot service was informed by some people’s desire to access such services, if they are made available on Saturdays.

He said the Head of Service has been mandated to publish details of how it would work and the scope of work on Saturdays, except the last Saturday of every month, which is Sanitation Day.
Fashola said the economy of Lagos is on the upbeat and the state is gaining the confidence of investors in financial stability and integrity.
He said he was satisfied with the achievements of his administration, particularly in infrastructure provision, housing and road transportation, adding that transportation has witnessed immense transformation since the introduction of the Traffic Law.

The governor said those accusing his administration of non-performance were obviously embarrassed by his performance because it has “exposed the inefficiency of the Central Government they manage”.
He said: “No state government in the country and certainly not their government at the centre has paid such diligent attention to the presentation of budgets and submission of its yearly report of implementation.”
The governor said Nigerians would like to know how over N2 trillion of the Nation’s budget of about N4 trillion in 2011 ended up “enmeshed” in fraud.
He faulted the on-going good governance tour of the Minister of Information, adding that his administration does not need a good governance tour to showcase its achievements.

Fashola said: “Completed projects, such as the Ibeshe Road in Ikorodu, the Mother and Child Care Centres in Amuwo-Odofin and Alimosho, as well as the School of Nursing are examples of good governance.”


http://thenationonlineng.net/new/news/lagos-civil-servants-to-work-on-saturdays/

Hurry up, Jonathan

-By Reuben Abati

May 15, 2010

IT is very easy in a Presidential position in Nigeria, nay Africa, to get carried away with the ceremonies of office, to be largely overwhelmed by the fawning attention of sycophants and opportunists, and as the intensity of this increases, the man of power begins to imagine himself a superman, and he soon forgets his primary assignment and begins to enjoy the office for its own sake and what it can bring. It is both a practical and psychological pitfall, the drama of which has been played out all too often in many African states, to the great discomfort and disadvantage of the people. It looks like President Goodluck Jonathan is beginning to fall into that pit. He needs to watch his steps.

During the inauguration of a new Federal cabinet in March, Acting President Goodluck Jonathan as he then was, seemed to have demonstrated an awareness of this same pitfall when he promised that his government will "hit the ground running." He charged the new Ministers to come up with blueprints within two weeks and that this will be formally presented to the Executive Council and defended. That speech was full of excellent sound bites. In it, the Acting President also promised to focus on certain key areas of governmental activity: electoral reform, the war on corruption, the Niger Delta crisis, and the power sector. To show his determination, the then Acting President also took personal charge of the power portfolio with a promise that his government will ensure regular electricity supply in the country as a matter of urgent priority.

Although there was still so much uncertainty surrounding his Presidency, with the former President Umaru Yar'Adua still in the background on a sick bed, and reports of selective sightings of the ailing President, Jonathan's emergence brought fresh hope and helped to stabilise a drifting polity. With Yar'Adua's death on May 5, and Jonathan's assumption of full presidential powers on May 6, whatever doubts that may have existed about the legitimacy of his government were neatly resolved. But since February, and given the events of the last few days, there is no indication that President Jonathan intends to "hit the ground running." He seems to have hit the ground dancing. He should watch his footwork. Where are the blueprints from the Ministers? Three months have gone already, when will Jonathan start working? He should read the mood of the Nigerian people more carefully, the ordinary people, I mean. They are impatient.

In three years of the Yar'Adua presidency, not much transformation took place as the people continued to search in vain for the same democracy dividends they have been looking for since 1999. They were distracted by tales of Presidential illness, and the wanton irresponsibility of the professional political elite. Jonathan has enjoyed so much public goodwill because he is the beneficiary of the change that the people wanted. Any kind of change would do, and that is why not so much capital has been made out of the fact that Jonathan was in fact a part of the Yar'Adua government as No 2 man. Jonathan is expected to run a Presidency that is driven by a policy of "business unusual." A Presidency that works as if it is under the pressure of time, and it is; a carefully focused government whose only priority is service delivery within the short period available, and a man at the top who inspires fresh confidence because he knows what he is doing.

Early signs indicate that Jonathan may find it difficult stepping up to the game. He has fallen so early into the error of doing business as usual. He is the ultimate pacifier. He seems determined to run a government of the Godfathers. Every man who imagines himself to be a custodian of the Nigerian legacy, even only a portion of it, seems to have a share of his government. Nothing has been more sordid than the silly politicking that has so far attended the appointment of a new Vice President. For comparison, Dr. Jonathan should look towards Britain where a major political situation has been resolved so decently within a matter of days, without any disruptions and the country has moved on. A general parliamentary election was held (no ballot snatching, no violence,  no iwuruwuru), the result was a hung parliament and a coalition government had to be formed (in Nigeria, that could have resulted in bloodshed), Gordon Brown resigns (if he were a Nigerian, he would have found a way of getting some MPs to cross-carpet to the Labour Party), the LibDems align with the Conservatives, David Cameron emerges as Prime Minister (born in 1966; IBB are you there?) and Nick Clegg as Deputy Prime Minister (born in 1967: IBB, you see?), and almost immediately a new cabinet is announced. Britain is moving on. It is possible to say that the circumstances are different (no Prime Minister died in Britain) but we are dealing with the same issues: change of government, management of processes and leadership; while Nigerian flounders, the British have again shown us how a modern government should run.

For a whole week, the country was held hostage by speculations about who should be the next Vice President. We have been treated not to a decisive and prompt choice by the President, but to the activities of all kinds of powerful individuals and groups: The Governors Forum, the Northern Senators Forum, Northern Emirs, the Yar'Adua family, General Theophilus Danjuma, and General Olusegun Obasanjo all associated with the nomination process. The Northern Senators Forum was divided over the issue and the Governors reportedly resolved that one of them must become the Vice President. The Middle Belt was up in protest and some characters from the North West claimed that if the Vice President did not emerge from their geographical zone, Nigeria's unity could be threatened. There has been no talk about quality or merit. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo goes to Katsina to pay a condolence visit and he reportedly told the Yar'Adua family that President Jonathan will sustain the late Yar'Adua's legacy. How does he know that?

In every manner, President Jonathan gives the impression that he is yet to take charge of his office. He should hurry up. He should appoint as Vice President, a man that he can work with, not someone whose only interest is politics and the 2011 general elections. The Governor of Kaduna State, Namadi Sambo has been named Vice president designate, but the Governors Forum is said to have imposed on him on the President. The dirty politicking over the appointment of the Vice President already exposes the dangers in the zoning arrangement and Nigeria's fragile unity. By allowing every matter to drag, Jonathan slows down his government and loses momentum.

When will his initiative on electoral reform begin? What is his blueprint for the Niger Delta? When will the construction companies begin the task of providing needed infrastructure in that region? Or if that is not possible, what structural and constitutional reforms does he want to push through to resolve existing conflicts? On corruption, is he really interested in the anti-corruption war or he is out to use the anti-corruption agencies to settle conflicts within the ruling PDP? These are not the key signals coming out of the Jonathan Presidency. His handling of the appointment of the Vice President can only further divide the PDP. Those whose names have been touted and who have been busy lobbying for support may become new enemies of the president and the new Vice president and do their utmost best to thwart the administration's efforts. In more serious societies, where there are equally divisive issues as in Nigeria, a Vice president would have been announced immediately and all mischief-makers duly neutralised.
.

.

And yet what the people want is real change: change in their circumstances or a momentum in that direction. Something has changed however: President Jonathan's wardrobe. He now oscillates between the Ijaw gear, the Arewa cap and the complete Yoruba agbada. One of these days, he will get round to the Igbo red cap, the Tivi black and white cap, and the Efik/Ibibio wrapper. No chance for the Koma people in that wardrobe arrangement, I think. But can President Jonathan just please, hurry up and focus on the important issues of national interest, the same issues that he himself has identified to start with?
Source below:

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/editorial_opinion/article02/140510?pdate=140510&ptitle=Hurry%20up,%20Jonathan
(Q


https://www.nairaland.com/445804/hurry-up-jonathan-reuben-abati

Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) has declared that President Goodluck Jonathan-led federal government lacks the requisite knowledge and capacity to tackle Nigeria’s problems, saying that there is the need to effect a change at the centre in 2015 for the country to achieve positive development.

Fashola, who stated this during an exclusive interview with a team of LEADERSHIP editors in Abuja yesterday, was giving the rationale behind the ongoing merger talks by his party, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN),  and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) towards dislodging the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the centre  in 2015.

Explaining that their push for political alignment was not only to seize power but to use it to better the lives of the people, he likened Jonathan’s government to an unskilled auto mechanic who consistently failed to correctly service a vehicle, causing it to continuously break down, a fallout that would necessitate the owner to try another technician.

“You buy a car and it breaks down and you go to a mechanic and he fixes it in the morning, and it breaks down again in the afternoon. You go back in the evening, he fixes it but it doesn’t take you home. You go and call him again; he tosses it up and says you should come back by 6am the next day.

“You take it at 6am and it doesn’t take you home. Are you going to stay with that mechanic?” he asked.

“Nigeria needs a new mechanic. The country’s problems need a new pair of eyes and pure heart that can see, and clearer minds that can articulate the problems better. That is the heart of the matter. It is now left for the electorate to decide whether they are satisfied with this mechanic.” 

Fashola insisted that the desire of the ACN and CPC to take power at the centre was to utilise it according to the general wish of Nigerians, who want the country’s myriad problems fixed immediately.

He described the ACN as an issues-based party which had a lot to offer, which is why it has consistently defeated the PDP in Lagos since the return of democracy 13 years ago.

“In Lagos, the PDP has been failing since 1999: in 2003 it failed, in 2007 it failed, in 2011 it failed again. The most interesting thing is that the margins get wider in Lagos due to the improvement of services,” he said.

He further said that, with ACN’s recurring victories and exemplary leadership across the six states it controls, its leadership was taking proactive steps to salvage Nigeria from PDP’s misrule at the national level by going into a merger with the CPC ahead of the 2015 general elections.

Fashola gave the assurance that the ACN, with its issues-based outlook, would take Nigeria to the Promised Land, just like what is happening in United States, saying that “elections without debate won’t give value and the electorate needs people who understand their problems without pretence.”

He noted that the Democrats in the US openly articulated the issue of tax while the Republicans were vague and the people swung to the side that convinced them.

“Anybody who wants to serve us must understand our problems; that’s why in America you have to debate before election. Lagos is a good example,” he stated.

Governors not against Jonathan – Fashola
Fashola also refuted the insinuations in some quarters that the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) was working against the President Jonathan.

Citing the ongoing suit on Excess Crude Account, the Lagos State governor said that the governors’ occasional disagreement with the president on certain issues was in the interest of the country.

The governor further canvassed for a proper economic management through innovation and tourism, saying they were the key to crime prevention.

He also called for a diversification of the economy since ‘what works today may not work tomorrow’.

“Thirty years ago, our economy was trading. The most prosperous people in our society were dealers. That was the economy of that time and it has changed. The new economy has emerged,” he said.

Source below:

http://leadership.ng/nga/articles/46586/2013/02/01/jonathan_cannot_fix_nigerias_vehicle_fashola.html

INVESTIGATION/SPECIAL REPORTS, NEWS.
“Now, we are generating more than 5,000MW,” another false statement by President Jonathan?
The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, has said that at no time had the country’s electricity generation capacity reached a peak of 5,000 megawatts, MW.
This contradicts President Goodluck Jonathan’s claim during his third Presidential media chat last November that the combined average power generation capacity from all the power plants in the country moved from less than 3,000 MW in 2007 to a new peak capacity above 5,000 MW.
The President had listed the 5,000MW power generation capacity as one of his administration’s major achievements under the Power Sector Reform agenda.
“Power is one area Nigerians appreciate we are moving. We are yet to get 24 hours of light in our cities, but you would agree with me the difference is clear,” the president told the panel of interviewers, which consisted of Muhammed Abubakar of Nigerian Television Authority, NTA; Martins Oloja of the Guardian; Ikedi Isighuzor of Vanguard and Gbemi Olujobi of the National Mirror.
“We moved, in 2007, from about a little below 3,000 MW production average.
“Now, we are generating more than 5,000MW (of electricity).
“But because of weak transmission infrastructure, we cannot evacuate,” the president said.
As at the time President made the claim, TCN, the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, successor company in charge of monitoring electricity transmission data in the country, had given 4,321.3MW as the country’s power generation capacity as at August, 31, 2012.
President’s Spokesman, Reuben Abati, and the Special Adviser to the Minister of Power, Garubadeen Mohammed, did not respond to calls and mails sent to them seeking clarification on the source of the President’s controversial figure.
But, the Assistant General Manager, Public Affairs of TCN, Dave Ifabiyi, said on Wednesday during a telephone chat from Abuja that at no time had the country’s power generation capacity neared 5,000 MW.
“There was never a time like that (5,000MW generation capacity), never. The highest peak generation of 4,517.6 MW was achieved on December 23, 2012,” Mr. Ifabiyi said.
Click the orange button bellow to listen to Mr Ifabiyi.
The TCN spokesman, said in a previous statement, that a new peak power generation capacity of 4,502.2 MW was achieved on December 21, 2012, an improvement on the 4,454.1 MW achieved on December 19.
He attributed the achievement to the commitment of the President to fulfill his promise to Nigerians on improved electricity supply.
Mr. Ifabiyi dispelled any insinuation that the TCN was probably not evacuating all the generated electricity when he said that transmission and distribution companies would continue to harness “every available generation to ensure delivery of stable electricity supply” even as more National Integrated Power Projects, NIPPs became functional.
This is not the first time President Jonathan would be making a public statement that turned out to be false.
In his Independence Day broadcast to Nigerians on October 1, the president had claimed that “In its latest report, Transparency International (TI) noted that Nigeria is the second most improved country in the effort to curb corruption.”
The claim turned out to be false.
Following a PREMIUM TIMES enquiry, Transparency International stated that it “does not have a recent rating or report that places Nigeria as the second most improved country in the fight against corruption.
The latest Transparency International Corruption Index report later released placed Nigeria as the 35th most corrupt country in the world.
The president is yet to apologise to Nigerians for that goof, just as he may not apologise for this.
TCN to improve operations
The TCN Chief Executive Officer, Olusola Akinniranye, said the company would not relent in its efforts to ensure that the transmission grid functions effectively for greater efficiency.
Mr. Akinniranye said part of that effort is to restore the Benin-Egbin 330kV line as well as complete the new transmission/distribution interface projects to further enhance the company’s power evacuation capacity.
He appealed to electricity consumers to continue to partner with TCN in protecting electricity installations and forestall vandalism, which he said was constituting a major setback to efforts to improve electricity supplies.
http://premiumtimesng.com/news/113699-jonathan-lies-again-tcn-faults-presidents-power-generation-claims.html

INVESTIGATION/SPECIAL REPORTS, NEWS.
“Now, we are generating more than 5,000MW,” another false statement by President Jonathan?
The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, has said that at no time had the country’s electricity generation capacity reached a peak of 5,000 megawatts, MW.
This contradicts President Goodluck Jonathan’s claim during his third Presidential media chat last November that the combined average power generation capacity from all the power plants in the country moved from less than 3,000 MW in 2007 to a new peak capacity above 5,000 MW.
The President had listed the 5,000MW power generation capacity as one of his administration’s major achievements under the Power Sector Reform agenda.
“Power is one area Nigerians appreciate we are moving. We are yet to get 24 hours of light in our cities, but you would agree with me the difference is clear,” the president told the panel of interviewers, which consisted of Muhammed Abubakar of Nigerian Television Authority, NTA; Martins Oloja of the Guardian; Ikedi Isighuzor of Vanguard and Gbemi Olujobi of the National Mirror.
“We moved, in 2007, from about a little below 3,000 MW production average.
“Now, we are generating more than 5,000MW (of electricity).
“But because of weak transmission infrastructure, we cannot evacuate,” the president said.
As at the time President made the claim, TCN, the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, successor company in charge of monitoring electricity transmission data in the country, had given 4,321.3MW as the country’s power generation capacity as at August, 31, 2012.
President’s Spokesman, Reuben Abati, and the Special Adviser to the Minister of Power, Garubadeen Mohammed, did not respond to calls and mails sent to them seeking clarification on the source of the President’s controversial figure.
But, the Assistant General Manager, Public Affairs of TCN, Dave Ifabiyi, said on Wednesday during a telephone chat from Abuja that at no time had the country’s power generation capacity neared 5,000 MW.
“There was never a time like that (5,000MW generation capacity), never. The highest peak generation of 4,517.6 MW was achieved on December 23, 2012,” Mr. Ifabiyi said.
Click the orange button bellow to listen to Mr Ifabiyi.
The TCN spokesman, said in a previous statement, that a new peak power generation capacity of 4,502.2 MW was achieved on December 21, 2012, an improvement on the 4,454.1 MW achieved on December 19.
He attributed the achievement to the commitment of the President to fulfill his promise to Nigerians on improved electricity supply.
Mr. Ifabiyi dispelled any insinuation that the TCN was probably not evacuating all the generated electricity when he said that transmission and distribution companies would continue to harness “every available generation to ensure delivery of stable electricity supply” even as more National Integrated Power Projects, NIPPs became functional.
This is not the first time President Jonathan would be making a public statement that turned out to be false.
In his Independence Day broadcast to Nigerians on October 1, the president had claimed that “In its latest report, Transparency International (TI) noted that Nigeria is the second most improved country in the effort to curb corruption.”
The claim turned out to be false.
Following a PREMIUM TIMES enquiry, Transparency International stated that it “does not have a recent rating or report that places Nigeria as the second most improved country in the fight against corruption.
The latest Transparency International Corruption Index report later released placed Nigeria as the 35th most corrupt country in the world.
The president is yet to apologise to Nigerians for that goof, just as he may not apologise for this.
TCN to improve operations
The TCN Chief Executive Officer, Olusola Akinniranye, said the company would not relent in its efforts to ensure that the transmission grid functions effectively for greater efficiency.
Mr. Akinniranye said part of that effort is to restore the Benin-Egbin 330kV line as well as complete the new transmission/distribution interface projects to further enhance the company’s power evacuation capacity.
He appealed to electricity consumers to continue to partner with TCN in protecting electricity installations and forestall vandalism, which he said was constituting a major setback to efforts to improve electricity supplies.
http://premiumtimesng.com/news/113699-jonathan-lies-again-tcn-faults-presidents-power-generation-claims.html