Jonathan holds media chat tomorrow

President Goodluck Jonathan will tomorrow speak on current national issues during a Presidential Media Chat to be broadcast live at 7pm, local time.

In a release by Reuben Abati, Special Adviser to the President, Media and Publicity, said, President Jonathan will in the course of the programme, answer questions from a panel of journalists on current national issues and events, as well as policies and actions of his administration.

He further asked members of the public who have questions for President to respond to on the programme to send via Twitter to @mediachatng1.

According to Abati, the programme will be broadcast live on the network services of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) and the Voice of Nigeria (VON).

What are your expectations on the President’s chat? What are your questions? Do write your expectations and questions on the comments section below.

Mall Attack: FG to offer assistance to Kenya

Abuja –  President Goodluck Jonathan on Sunday in Abuja said Nigeria would give support and render assistance to Kenya in its efforts to curtail the scourge of terrorism.
This is contained in a statement issued by his spokesman, Dr Reuben Abati, condemning Saturday’s terrorists’ attack on a Nairobi shopping mall in Kenya.
According to the statement, the attack on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi by terrorists suspected to be of the Al-Shabab sect reportedly left about 59 people dead.
Most of those killed in the attack, the statement added, were women and children, while more than 150 were reportedly injured.
President Jonathan, according to the statement, said the assistance was in line with the spirit of recent agreements for enhanced bilateral co-operation between both countries.
“Nigeria will assist Kenya to avoid a recurrence of the heinous attack,’’ it said.
The statement said Jonathan also extended heartfelt condolences to President Uhuru Kenyatta and all Kenyans over the loss of lives in Saturday’s terrorists’ attack.
It added that President Jonathan and Nigeria joined the rest of the world in condemning “the atrocious, callous and abominable attack on defenceless Kenyans and foreign nationals’’.
The statement said Jonathan assured Kenyatta and the people of Kenya of Nigeria’s full solidarity as they grapple with the attack’s consequences and strive to end the terrorist siege.
“The President prays that God Almighty will comfort all those who lost their loved ones in the attack and grant the injured speedy recovery,’’ it said.(NAN)

Nigeria: Ibori Stole Delta's N80 Billion, Ribadu Tells UK Court

 London — Former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Malam Nuhu Ribadu, has said that James Ibori "stole or wasted" more than half of all the money that accrued to Delta state when he was governor from 1999 to 2007.

Ribadu spoke in evidence at the ongoing assets confiscation hearing against Mr Ibori at Southwark Crown Court in London yesterday.

He said the state earned more than $1 billion within the period, "so Ibori must have stolen or wasted $500 million (equivalent N80 billion) or more of Delta state money."

PDP Adults Behaving Badly: House of Reps goes to the dogs…again

By Jide Ajani

Fight at National Assembly Tuesday. Photo by Gbemiga Olamikan

Did anybody recognize Hon. Binta Garba last week? She was unmistakable. You couldn’t have missed her in the recording which revealed her wrestling and hard-hitting abilities. Ask Hon.Hafiz Adenowo from Oyo State: He not only got his cloths torn by Binta, a few slaps were added. The question is: Why would a supposedly honourable individual behave in a dishonourable manner? In Chapter 5 of the 1999 Constitution as amended

The Return Of The Serial Looter

THE RETURN OF A SERIAL LOOTER A leopard never changes its skin they say. Gist is agog that the erstwhile Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr. Ahmed Modibbo Mohammed is presently scheming to return to the ‘juicy’ position of Executive Secretary again in the same parastatal, an office he left nearly a year ago after serving a full tenure of five years. If you recall, on the 11th of May 2010, a US-based online media outfit, Sahara-reporters, gave details of the multi-billion-naira scam spearheaded by the erstwhile Executive Secretary The media establishment alleged that the then, UBEC boss and his then newly-wedded wife, Aishatu Dahiru Mohammed, operating as the leader of a syndicate, used phony companies “to skim off billions of naira earmarked for the running of Nigerian primary and junior secondary schools.” Going further, Saharareporters said that Apart from his criminal record as a serial looter, Modibbo also has a reputation of being a master schemer. Saharareporters gave details of how he wangled his way to become the UBEC boss despite his bad antecedent at his previous job as the boss the National Teachers’ Institute (NTI) and the fact that his point of entry into the commission fell short of the requisite requirements of a degree or certificate in education. The erstwhile UBEC boss is also alleged to be in the vanguard of staunch supporters of known enemies of the Goodluck Jonathan administration. It is believed that he is using part of the money he stole from the coffers of these parastatals to give financial support to the presidential ambition of some opposition parties’ flag-bearers. This is aside other reports alleging that a large chunk of the stolen billions from the UBEC coffers may have been diverted to the self-acclaimed Islamist terrorist group, Boko Haram which has killed hundreds of thousands of Nigerians in cold blood. This is why it is so shocking that modibbo who some media outfits gave graphic details of how he spent millions of naira to support arch-enemies of President Goodluck Jonathan's) political ambition can be thinking of making a return to office under the same Jonathan. We are reliably informed that he had recruited the support of some of his ‘loyalists’ in high places of power who partook in the loot of his over N50 Billion during his 12 Years reign as head of two Education support Agencies, plundering the resources of these two outfits namely the National Teachers’ Institute (NTI) and the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), or how can one explain the underground moves some of his northern godfathers had been engaging in, purportedly appealing and lobbying the president on his behalf. How can one comprehend the gist that Dr. Modibbo is still interested in returning to the position after all the atrocities he had been accused of? Nigerians reading this piece, what do you think the return of this serial looter and immoral man to the agency portends for the future of the country’s education? What kind of legacy does the Goodluck Jonathan’s administration wants to leave for us in this very sensitive sector?

It’s crazy to spend $8bn on fuel importation – Ben Bruce

Federal government came under a heavy knock from the Chairman of Silver Bird Group, Ben Bruce , when he  lashed out on the government for spending $8 billion on fuel importation annually.

Bruce was speaking in Abuja at the launching of a book entitled “Why Run Before Learning To Walk”, written by Professor Turner Isoun and Miriam Isoun .

He attributed the ongoing Academic Staff Union of University, ASUU strike in the country to lack of fund, which he said was a direct implication of the $8 billion spent by federal government annually on fuel importation and called for total removal of oil subsidy to enable government tackle other critical needs.

“The reason why Nigeria is broke is because we spend $8 billion a year, to buy patrol that generates smoke.  We need to address that issue, a lot of our problems are self inflicting. The laziness of some people in government in government must come to an end.  The expensive life style, popping of Champaign must stop.  We must go back to the era of creativity.

“When people are poor, they struggle to become rich, when people have nothing, they dream and think and use their imagination. Rich people are not going to be next NollyWood stars. They have money and resources. The stars of this country are going to come from Ajegunle, poor homes, single parent homes, homes where they have no money, homes where they have one meal a day. These are the kind of people we should have in government with imagination,” he noted.

Bruce further lambasted the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU for complaining of poor funding, after opposing total removal of fuel subsidy, saying, the union must be realistic in their demand rather than playing to the gallery.

“When ASUU went on strike, they asked President, “why will you spend $8 billion a year on fuel importation, when he could have spend it on their welfare.” When subsidy was removed, they opposed government action for removing subsidy and is now demanding for better pay, you can’t oppose deregulation and on the other hand, demand for higher pay” he  stated.

The Silver Bird boss, who expressed disappointment with the way a politicians spend public fund, called for adoption of renewable energy and a paradigm shift from being a lazy and consuming nation to a creative and manufacturing nation.

He also lambasted some state commissioners for investing public fund in the importation of tricycle, which he said is a 150 years old technology that should not be allowed into Nigeria, instead , he advocated for adoption of latest and more efficient technologies that would deliver better services to the people.

“The problem of this country can be solved, but too much money makes us lazy and incompetent. We must have renewable energy. We have the sun, so we should use solar power. We have what most people want and therefore, we should use electric cars, and we will not spend $8 billion to import fuel every year.

“Right now, a lot of ministries, federal and states, have too much money.  President and governors should not give them any money. Too much money makes them lazy and less money makes them use their imagination and think.”

- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/09/its-crazy-to-spend-8bn-on-fuel-importation-ben-bruce/#sthash.uSP3vGhS.dpuf

5 more govs to join Baraje’s nPDP

ABUJA — President Goodluck Jonathan and his Bamanga Tukur-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party may be heading for further isolation, as another five incumbent governors of the party may soon dump them for the Abubakar Baraje faction, otherwise known as New PDP (nPDP).

The five governors, who are drawn from two geo-political zones in the North and South, are said to be upset by alleged continuous manipulations in the party by the Presidency and the chairman, thereby alienating them from the mainstream.

Besides, Vanguard learnt that the affected governors maintained that there was no justification to support Jonathan’s second term bid when majority of their natives were opposed to the move.

The governors said they were convinced that the so-called peace moves will not produce any meaningful results, as they were merely stage-managed to buy time for Jonathan to secure a second term in office.

One of the governors told Vanguard that they were just waiting for the appropriate moment to defect to the nPDP with a view to actualising their political dreams.

Asked to state what the grievances of the defecting governors were, the governor said the decision was to save them from undue manipulation being orchestrated by the Presidency and the PDP leadership to give a second term chance to the President.

“What will happen is that very soon some of the PDP governors, who are watching the rest of us from the sidelines, will join and declare their support for us.

“It is because of the likely overwhelming support, which the Tukur group and the Presidency know we enjoy that they keep on talking about peace and reconciliation when in reality they are not ready for an early resolution of the crisis rocking the party.”

Vanguard learnt that the grouse of the five governors who are jumping ship might not be unconnected with the fear that most of them could be dumped and made to face severe consequences if Jonathan won a second term.

They are said to have given examples of those who were given solid assurances by the Presidency to work with him but were jettisoned after he won the election in 2011.

“What most Nigerians do not know is that we suffered a lot to make Jonathan President and today he is using people who did not know how we enthroned him, to harass and intimidate some of us,” a governor from one of the northern states lamented.

“Look at the way the President is using state apparatus to fight the Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, for instance, who risked his life and some of his supporters to give him one of the highest votes in the last election.

“What justification does the President have in persecuting the seven governors, who went out of their way to mobilise voters in their states to elect him,” a governor asked.

Vanguard learnt that the five governors were likely to move out of  mainstream PDP anytime they consider most suitable, apparently to send further shock waves to the leadership that they were unhappy with the system.

Defection bid not true — PDP

But the Tukur group, yesterday, dismissed the threat of defection as a huge joke by those trying to cause trouble in the party.  The Deputy National Chairman of the Tukur faction, Prince Uche Secondus, who was contacted last night on the development, described the information as false and a propaganda by the opposing faction to gain unmerited attention.

“The claim that five more governors are planning to defect to the other side is complete falsehood and is part of the propaganda by the opposition,” Secondus said.

The PDP split into two last August, leading to series of rapprochements, which are yet to produce a lasting peace in the party.

- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/09/5-more-govs-to-join-barajes-npdp/#sthash.igAp35ct.dpuf