Home Blog Page 2484

Jonathan Tells World Leaders How To Help Africa |The Source

By
The Source
-
0
Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan
Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan

Former President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan has urged world leaders to pririotise functional multilateralism and mutually beneficial trade relations as a means of strengthening global economic growth and sharpening the competitive edge of African economies.

The former President noted that Africa, in the light of Covid-19 realities, now needs healthy partnerships with the developed economies and other initiatives that would promote businesses, entrepreneurship, industrialisation and sustainable economic growth on the continent.

Dr. Jonathan stated this on Thursday while speaking at the 2021 Horasis Extraordinary Meeting which held virtually and focused on America’s Rebuilding Trust imperative and the potential of an African Peace Engineering Corps(AfPEC).

He said: “A call for a new African renaissance in multilateralism to promote sustainable peace and economic development is therefore imperative. The huge success experienced in partnership among multilateral institutions and world leaders to combat the novel COVID 19 pandemic is a veritable case in point.”

The former President emphasized that the issue of trust is very critical in the discourse of multilateralism, stressing that “today, developing countries now believe that the developed nations pursue their economic interest to the detriment of the economies of the developing nations.”

The former President who also used the opportunity to thank world leaders for electing Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the Director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), further said: “There should be deliberate policies to address the issues of trade imbalance. It is a good thing that some multilateral institutions like the World Trade Organisation (WTO) which incidentally now has an African head, recognise this imperative, and are considering ways of building confidence and promoting mutually beneficial cooperation at both ends of the global economic divide.”

Dr. Jonathan who urged African nations to take the initiative of developing their economies in a sustainable manner through progressive leadership also called on investors from the United States and other industrialized nations to support that bid by establishing “cottage industries in Africa, just as they did and still do in other parts of the developing world.”

He stressed that “cottage industries that can process our raw materials such as minerals, farm and forest produce to some level in the value chain that will meet the global standard for export will benefit Africa more than aid in the long run.  This will help create employment and sustainable livelihoods, jumpstart industrialisation and improve the economies of African countries.

“The support African nations continue to receive by way of aid may have helped the continent solve few societal problems, but aid alone has not changed the face of Africa, neither has it translated to sustainable development. What will change Africa, is industrialization.”

He further applauded President Joe Biden’s bid to rebuild America and restore its global influence, as well as his commitment and faith in multilateralism.

Jonathan also weighed in on the issue of growing insecurity in the world and urged leaders to take action to curb arms proliferation.

He said: “The US and other super powers should also look into the issues of proliferation of small arms and light weapons.  As long as we allow the free movement of small arms and light weapons, the issue of banditry and other related crimes will continue to fester in developing countries and this will not augur well in our quest for sustainable peace and development.

“If the world must sustain relative peace, there is urgent need for the global management of the production and movement of small arms and light weapons.

World leaders must establish an international treaty to control the production and movement of small arms and light weapons just as they have done for nuclear weapons.

On the proposed African Peace Engineering Corps (AfPEC), he said:

“I am particularly thrilled with the concept of the African Peace Engineering Corps. I am also pleased to be part of this discussion because this is an exciting initiative that responds to an important part of Africa’s peace and development aspirations. Critically, it reinforces the African Peace and Security Architecture in many ways which is why I believe it should be given the necessary support.

“It is my belief that for the effective management of peace globally, there is the need for multipolar centers. The African Peace Engineering Corps should be one of such centers.

“The noble objectives of the African Peace Engineering Corps is in tandem with the philosophy of the West African Elders Forum; an initiative of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation (GJF) which is focused on preventing and addressing conflicts, especially those arising from contestation for political power, through engagement, dialogue and persuasion.”

 

Buhari Sacked Me Because Of Atiku, 2019 Presidential Election – Former CJN, Onnoghen |The Source

By
Adesina Soyooye
-
0

By Adesina Soyooye

Almost two years after he was sacked as the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Walter Onnoghen has, finally, disclosed why.

Onnoghen was, inexplicably, forced to resign on April 5, 2019, as the Chief Justice of Nigeria. Before his sack, and replacement by the current CJN, Muhammad Tanko, Onnoghen was hauled before the Code of Coduct Tribunal, CCT, where he was found guilty, among other things, of an untidy declaration of his assets.

The National Judicial Committee, NJC, in what was seen, in many circles, as a betrayal, backed his guilty verdict and sack.

But he has finally, sensationally, revealed that he was sacked because of Abubakar Atiku, the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Describing the allegations against him at the CCT as trumped up charges, Onnoghen said he was sacked by President Muhammadu Buhari over a lie from the pit of hell.

And the lie: Onnoghen said they alleged, within the Executive Arm of Government, that he had held a meeting with Atiku in Dubai, ostensibly to influence the result of the election if it ended up in Court. At the time, Atiku was the PDP Presidential candidate.

Onnoghen made the revelations during the unveiling of a book written by a legal luminary, Ogwu James Onoja, SAN, entitled: “Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules 2009, Practice, Procedure, Forms and Precedents.”

Onnoghen’s sack shocked not a few Nigerians, and reverberated across the globe. It was unprecedented.

But speaking in the presence of his wife who accompanied him, and  a venue packed full with legal minds in Nigeria, Onnoghen said the reason behind his sack first started as a rumour from the Executive,   a rumour he never took seriously, and so, never addressed, since he never went to Dubai, how much more meeting with Atiku. Big mistake.

Onnoghen: “There had been rumour from the Executive that I held a meeting with former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, preparatory to the 2019 general elections.”

He said he was surprised that even though the Federal Government had every machinery to investigate the allegation of his rumoured meeting with Atiku, nobody  did so. Instead, Onnoghen said, they decided to unlawfully go after him and his office. He was helpless.

Onnoghen: “The rumour was thick and spread fast, but I decided not to react to it because I never travelled to Dubai or held any meeting with anybody, including Atiku.”

However, according  to him, the ante was upped with a stage- managed trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal. Prior to that, Onnoghen said he was neither invited nor accused of any wrongdoing.

“The action of the government got to the peak, when in the course of the trial, when parties had joined issues, an ex-parte application was suddenly brought in, and what followed was my  illegal and unlawful suspension as the CJN.”

Onnoghen’s sack was as controversial as the reluctance, on the path of Buhari, to  forward his name to the Senate for confirmation as the CJN, after the expiration of his acting period. It was renewed again, but was finally sent to the Senate by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, as Acting President, when Buhari was on a medical trip to the United Kingdom.

The unconfirmed speculation, then, was that Buhari preferred Tanko to Onnoghen as CJN, and so did not want him confirmed for political reasons.

With Onnoghen’s controversial sack, Tanko, then second in command, finally, became the CJN.

NBA President, Akpata, Slams Screening Of Court of Appeal Judges; Decries Low Quality; 18 Approved |The Source

By
Adesina Soyooye
-
0
Olumide Akpata

By Adesina Soyooye

President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Mr Olumide has strongly criticised  the method used in the nomination of the  Judges of the Court of Appeal.

Coming down hard on it, Akpata slammed both the poor screening and the low quality of the Judges who appeared before the screening committee.

Akpata made the startling revelations at the National  Executive Committee of the NBA held in Uyo on Wednesday, the 18th of March, 2021.

As a member of the National Judicial Council, NJC, the body which interviews Judges before their appointments, Akpata said that what he witnessed during the recent screening of nominees to the Court of Appeal, left much to be desired.

According to him, a number of them had very poor knowledge of important legal issues.  When one expressed shock at the quality, Akpata said the standard answer was: “They will learn on the job.” And he asked himsef: “Are these people really going to the Court of Appeal?” He was left aghast, he said.

Added to their poor quality, the NBA President said that only six minutes were allocated to the screening of each Judge, a time frame he dismissed as insufficient to interrogate them.

But he said the NBA, under his watch will continue to ask questions on the quality of Judges in the country.

Akpata: “What I saw and experienced at the NJC meeting on the appointment of judges to the Court of Appeal left me aghast!

“Important legal issues that were occasionally put to the nominees could not be answered!

“The whole proceedings appeared more of an old school boys meeting. When I, as “Johnny-Just-Come” (fresh attendee), wondered at this,  and was forced to ask: “Are these people really going to the Court of Appeal?” I heard things like  “They will learn on the job”!

“We were to interview twenty nominees at a point but only 2 hours was allocated for this important exercise. That meant six minutes only for each nominee. We cannot continue like this!

“WE MUST SPEAK UP AND DO SOMETHING AS THIS IS OUR PLAYING FIELD!

“Let me assure you that the NBA will never be a rubber stamp participant at such bodies. You can quote me on that! We will continue to ask questions. If they do not want our input then we will leave.”

Akpata’s concerns add to the litany of complaints which followed the nomination of the Judges.

Among other complaints, many expressed deep concern over the lopsidedness of the nominees,  forcing the President of the Court of Appeal, Hon. Justice Monica Dongbem-Mensem, to defend the integrity of her Court.

However, the NJC, at its meeting on March 17- 18, approved the appointed of 18 out of the 20 which appeared for screening and interview.

We Are All Together |The Source

By
The Source
-
0

By Femi Adesina

“Can evil ever win? Can darkness ever overcome light?

When good and evil grapple, can good ever be worsted in such encounter? That is the state we are in now. Evil is stalking our country. In the forests. On the roads. In towns, villages, whole communities.

Call them insurgents. Bandits. Kidnappers. One thing is common to them. Evil.”

Those who are younger than 55 or thereabouts may not easily get the joke in the expression, ‘We are all together,’ which I’ve chosen as headline of this piece today.

The event happened 45 years ago in the country.

A drunken military officer, Lt Col Buka Suka Dimka, led a military coup in which the then head of state, Gen Murtala Ramat Muhammed, was killed. He then proceeded to Radio Nigeria, made a rambling broadcast, which he concluded thus:

“Everyone should be calm. Please stay by your radio for further announcements. All borders, air and sea ports are closed until further notice. Curfew is imposed from 6 am to 6 pm. Thank you. We are all together.”

Dimka was so uncoordinated, possibly tipsy and inebriated, that he declared a curfew from 6 am to 6 pm, instead of the other way round. So, the whole country was to be shut down from dawn to dusk, instead of from dusk to dawn. Laughable.

But the one that became the subject of scorn and derision for many decades after was the concluding phrase:

‘We are all together.” You only needed to use it in any enlightened setting, and guffaws followed.

The country was not with Dimka. In fact, university students trooped to the streets almost immediately the broadcast came, denouncing the coup. And the hierarchy of the military also rose with gusto, and crushed the rebellion within hours.

But the irreversible had happened. Murtala Muhammed, a fast emerging national hero, had been killed. The country was thrown into mourning. Nobody was with Dimka. We were not all together, as he had thought and declared rather superfluously. It was superfluity of nothingness.

But if Dimka misread the national mood in terms of unanimity on his misadventure, there’s one area in which we must all be together today: fighting insecurity. Though tribes and tongues may differ, in brotherhood we must stand. Political affiliations, religious adherence and persuasions may differ, but there must be convergence in one area. Abhorrence of evil, and the need to extirpate it.

What is happening in our country is EVIL, in capital letters. Terrible, horrible things which could only have emerged from the pit of hell. Crimes that the human mind finds difficult to conceive. Wanton killings. Abductions. Kidnapping for ransom. Robbery. Carnage. Murders. Insurgency. Banditry. All sorts. EVIL. EVIL. And no mistake.

We are confronted with a grim battle between darkness and light. Evil and good. Righteousness and unrighteousness. Godliness and ungodliness. It is, indeed, a tussle for the soul of Nigeria.

Can evil ever win? Can darkness ever overcome light? When good and evil grapple, can good ever be worsted in such encounter? That is the state we are in now. Evil is stalking our country. In the forests. On the roads. In towns, villages, whole communities. Call them insurgents.

Bandits. Kidnappers. One thing is common to them. Evil.

Till recent, we didn’t seem to know the enormity of what had descended on our country like tons of bricks. So we played politics with it. The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) was always quick to deride the All Progressives Congress (APC) government at the center over any security glitch. Their reasoning was: you ran us out of town in 2015 by playing the security card, now the shoe is on the other foot. You Tarka me, I Dabo you. I’ll pay you back in your own coin.

But last week, something happened that indicated a reawakening in the land. The Governors of the PDP met in Abuja, after which they addressed a press conference, saying they were willing to support President Muhammadu Buhari in the fight against insecurity. Impressive.

For anybody to think that the severe security challenges facing the country are Buhari’s cup of tea, or just the business of APC, is to live in denial. We are all together. When the kidnapper strikes, he does not know who is Muslim or Christian, who is APC or PDP, or APGA (All Progressives Grand Alliance).

He just grabs his victim, and leaves sorrow, tears and blood as his regular trademark.

When the insurgent plants his explosives, or throws a bomb into a crowd, he doesn’t care who gets hit: Muslim, Christian, animist, anybody. He is just interested in wreaking havoc, unleashing evil. Maximum damage is what he wants. And that underscores why we must all be together in the battle against insecurity. Encourage our government, and all the security agencies in the frontlines.

President Buhari met with traditional rulers from across the country last week. He took reports from the six geopolitical zones , and the situation was, indeed, dire. And when the President responded, he unfolded what the Federal Government had been doing, and where successes had been recorded, and where a lot more needed to be done.

The President told his royal guests. We are all together. Yes, the Constitution vests the responsibility for protection of lives and property in the Federal Government, but security is also a collective responsibility. It starts from the community level, where traditional rulers have a role to play. To the local government, State level, and up to Federal. We are all together. To secure our country is a collective duty, though the weight of responsibility may differ from level to level.

Anyone that gloats when evil happens in any part of the country is an enemy of our Union. Anyone that sponsors, supports or encourages evil is an aching tooth, which is better out than in. Nigeria must survive, but it won’t survive without all of us. We have roles to play. We are all together.

Do you glean any ideology behind the many security challenges facing the country? Catch an insurgent, and ask him what he had been fighting for. He stays dumb, looking like a fool. True, he did not know why he was fighting. Apprehend a bandit, and ask him why he was doing what he did. He looks like a cornered rat, seeking a route of escape. He can’t defend what he had been doing. The same with all those engaged in various forms of evil. No ideological underpinning. Just evil. EVIL in capital letters.

And that is why this evil must be beaten. It takes all of us to do it, irrespective of political leanings. That is what the PDP Governors Forum has just demonstrated. To restore security to our land, we must all be together.

That is one good we must take away from Dimka’s evil. We are all together.

Adesina is Special Adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity

Igboho: Arewa Sacks Yoruba, Gives Them 72-Hours To Vacate North |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0

By Akinwale Kasali

The rift between Yoruba and Northerners is yet to abate, and  has again taken another twist.

The Arewa Youth Assembly, AYA, has given Yoruba Activist, Chief Sunday Igboho 72 hours to move his Yoruba people from the  North or be forced to take necessary actions by personally taking the responsibility of getting them back home.

The Group in a statement said that, “We are hereby giving him the ultimatum of 72 hours to move his people out or we will be forced to take necessary actions by personally taking the responsibility of getting his people back home.”

Speaking  on behalf of the Group, Mohammed Danlami, in a statement, noted that the entity of Nigeria is non-negotiable and called on all stakeholders in the country to reject anything that would cause confusion in the land.

He lamented, “One Mr. Sunday Igboho issued a press statement in which he was quoted as saying enough is enough that the time for Yoruba nation is now, they will no longer accommodate and accept the presence of Northerners.”

The group noted, “This is despite the fact that the constitution of the country has made it crystal clear that any Nigerian can live in any part of the country irrespective of his or her religious and tribal placements.”

The Arewa Youth said that it still affirms its position as a law-abiding civil youth organization, that notwithstanding, it would not fold its arm and watch innocent Nigerians being threatened by individuals who clearly have no regard and respect for the law like Mr. Sunday Igboho.

According to the group, “Since it is Igboho who wants his people out of the North to form a Yoruba nation, we will make it easy for him by asking Mr. Igboho to provide a means of transportation to convey his people to the southwest.”

It noted that Mr. Igboho has continuously threatened the lives and property of northerners residing in the southwest for no reason, adding, “we have kept quiet for the sake of peace and for respect of the laws of our country, but as Mr. Igboho rightly said, enough is enough.”

The group called on the northern elders, traditional rulers and all security agencies to support them in accomplishing the task of evacuating the Yorubas out of the 19 northern states and the FCT Abuja by making it a very peaceful exercise devoid of lost of lives and destruction of properties or hijack by hoodlums to prevent the re-occurrence of the End-SARS protest.

2023: Why Presidential Ticket Should Be Zoned To The South- Gov Masari |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0

By Akinwale Kasali

Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, has urged his Political Party, All Progresssives Congress, APC, to zone the 2023 Presidential ticket of the Party to the South.

Masari stressed that ahead of the 2023 general elections in the country, Southern Nigeria should produce the next President.

In an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today which aired on Friday morning, Governor Masari said a non-northerner should succeed President Buhari in 2023.

“If you ak me as a person Aminu, I think we should move the presidency to the southern part of the country,” he said when asked which zone should have the 2023 presidency.

Although he did not specify which jlparticular geographical region of the south should produce the next Presidency, he, however, added, “South is South.”

The governor is confident that the ruling APC will fare well after President Buhari’s tenure despite the challenges the country currently faces.

To Masari, the APC came at a time when the economy was in a comatose situation, hence the introduction of social programmes link the TraderMoni, AnchorBorrower, School feeding among several others.

He stated that no political party has brought social interventions for the betterment of the masses in Nigeria’s history like the APC.

When asked if the APC was the nation’s saviour, the governor replied saying: “Of course, by all means. Let everybody come with a balance sheet of what they got yesterday and what we get today and compare notes.

”Speaking on banditry activities in the northwestern region, Governor Masari kicked against the idea of granting blanket amnesty to the bandits.

He insisted that the bandits needed moral and spiritual support to realise the evil perpetrated by killing people.

GT Bank Remains Customer-Centric As Lender Declares N238b Profit

By
Bayo Bernard
-
0

By Fola James

Segun Agabje, the managing director of Guarantee Trust Bank Plc has disclosed that the bank’s customer centric strategy helped the lender to navigate the 2020 economic headwind caused by the COVID 19, successfully. The chief executive of the bank made this known on the crest of N238.1 billion Profit Before Tax, PBT declared by the bank for the 2020 business year.

The results represent over two percent of the 2019 figure and very impressive, according to analysts in the sector who said the Agabake-led commercial bank has maintained its position as one of the most profitable banks in the country.

According to Agbaje “2020 was arguably the most challenging year that the world has faced in decades. In such unprecedented times, we sought to live out the full extent of our values, safeguarding lives and livelihoods for our people, customers and across the communities where we operate.

“We were on solid footing going into 2020; the strength, scale and liquidity of our balance sheet, coupled with the quality of our past decisions and the efficacy of our digital-first customer-centric strategy gave us the resilience and flexibility to navigate the economic shocks and market volatility that dominated the year.”

According to the results submitted to the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE the PBT represents a growth of 2.8 per cent over ₦231.7billion recorded in the corresponding year. The group’s loan book (Net) grew by 10.7 per cent from ₦1.502 trillion recorded as of 2019 to ₦1.663 trillion in December 2020 while customers’ deposits increased by 38.6 per cent from ₦2.533 trillion to ₦3.509 trillion in December 2020.

Also the total assets and shareholders’ funds closed at ₦4.945 trillion and ₦814.4billion respectively while the capital adequacy ratio, CAR closed at 21.9 per cent.Net interest income stood at N253.668 billion during the period under review against N291.66 billion in 2019. The bank’s loan book grew by 10.7 per cent to N1.66 trillion from N1.50 trillion achieved in the corresponding period of 2019.. while customers’ deposits increased by 38.6 per cent to N3.51 trillion from N2.53 trillion in December 2019.

The result also indicate that loan and advances to customers stood at N1.66 trillion in contrast with N1.50 trillion in 2019, while Total assets and shareholders’ funds closed at N4.95 trillion and N814.4 billion, respectively.

Meanwhile the managing director of the bank said GT Bank will continue to provide opportunities and empowering people in various communities, adding that digital banking remains key for Africa’s development. He noted that the bank will carry out key decisions with customers in mind.

“Amidst the many challenges that persist, we remain ardent believers in Africa’s growth potential.Our world is increasingly digital, and we see it opening new and exciting opportunities for empowering people and uplifting our communities.“With our commitment to deepening customer relationships and intense focus on delivering innovative financial solutions, we enter 2021 well-positioned to lead this new world,”  Agabje said.

Eminent Nigerians Call For Sovereign National Conference; Give 90-Day Ultimatum |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0

By Akinwale Kasali

Pan Yoruba Leader and Second Republic Senator, Prof. Banji Akintoye,  former Chief of General Staff, Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe (rtd), former Governor of Plateau State, Jonah Jang, erstwhile President-General, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, former Vice-Chairman of Arik Air, Senator Anietie Okon, leader of Middle Belt Forum, Dr. Bitrus Pogu, Professor of religion, Prof. Yusuf Turaki, among others, in a communiqué issued after a virtual meeting held in Lagos, said unless the Constitution was changed, Nigeria may not come out of its present challenges.

These prominent leaders of different Ethnic Groups drove home their arguments by signing a  petition to the United Nations Security Council, African Union (AU), European Union (EU), United States of America and the British Government, harping on the need for Nigeria to urgently convoke a Sovereign National Conference to discuss Nigeria’s constitutionality and the 1914 Amalgamation of the Southern and Northern Nigeria within 90 days.

This, they insisted, is the only means to save the people from oppression, stagnation and squalor.

The leaders, numbering 127, spoke under the aegis of the Nigerian Indigenous Nationalities Alliance for Self-Determination. They in unison described the 1999 Constitution as a fraud; an impunity, hijack and a confiscation of the sovereignties, powers and assets of the South and Middle Belt People by those who clandestinely designed it.

The communiqué reads: “We gather here, this day, as accredited delegates of the Constituent Component Nationalities of Nigeria, under the aegis of Nigerian Indigenous Nationalities Alliance for Self-Determination, being a Joint-Cooperation Framework for the Self-Determination Initiatives of the Southern and Middle-Belt of Nigeria on behalf of our various peoples and interests, to pronounce an end to our toleration of Nigeria’s Unitary Constitutional Order, Unilaterally Imposed and Forcefully Maintained by a section of the Nigerian country, in negation of the federal basis upon which Nigeria became one political union at independence in 1960, and in brutal subjugation of our collective sovereignties currently being forcefully and fraudulently appropriated by the Nigerian State.

“We gather here today before the global community, to formally proclaim a sovereignty dispute in rejection of the further operation of the imposed, unitary constitutional arrangements of Nigeria and in assertion of our inalienable right to self-determination.

“The history of the colonial beginnings of Nigeria as a commercial venture of some colonial masters is too well-known to admit any further repetitions here but suffice it to recall that the manipulations that went into the flawed foundations laid in the 1914 Amalgamation of the Protectorates of Southern Nigeria with the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria, created a lopsided union, locking the diverse peoples of Nigeria into one political union with two mortally opposed civilizations.

  • That as Independence approached in 1960, the diversities of the various peoples of the Nigerian union dictated the adoption of the Federal Constitutional model by the then three largely autonomous regions, namely Eastern, Western and Northern regions of Nigeria, as the basis of entering into Independence as one Political Union in 1960.
  • That amidst the early strains of post-Independence Nigeria arising mainly from the aforementioned foundational and pre-Independence manipulations by the colonial rulers of the Nigerian union, the military coups of 1966 truncated the Federal Constitutional basis and plunged the fledgling union into a catastrophic 30-month war with its breakaway Eastern region between 1967 and 1970, triggered by disputations around the terms of the Nigerian union and leaving in its trail, human carnage in excess of three million people and a fractured union now resting on an unworkable unitary Constitutional order Imposed in 1979, by the fiat of the illicit Federal Government, which emerged since 1966.
  • That the prevailing 1999 Constitution, which was a wholesale adoption of the 1979 edition via Decree No. 24 of 1999, revalidated and reinforced the aforementioned hijack and confiscation of the sovereignties, powers and assets of the four erstwhile federating regions by the aforementioned illicit Federal Government.”

The leaders also said there is a countrywide consensus against the unitary constitutional arrangements imposed incrementally on Nigeria by a combination of guile, brute force and impunity between 1966 and 1999, now codified by the 1999 Constitution, saying, the countrywide consensus had manifested in several unilateral regional and joint multi-regional actions in repudiation and rejection of the 1999 Constitution.

According to them, “the first indication was when in 2000, the 12 contiguous states of the far North, simultaneously imposed and began to implement Sharia law in their three domains against the express provision of the 1999 Constitution, which in Section 10, forbids the adoption of any state religion. This translates to a unilateral secession from the secular union of Nigeria.

“Between 2005 and 2006, a Sovereign Conference of the Ethnic Nationalities of Nigeria, convened by the Pro-National Conference Organizations (PRONACO), deliberated exhaustively and produced a Draft Peoples’ Constitution 2006, which had the potential of restoring Nigeria to its damaged federal foundations. Though ignored by successive Federal Governments, that draft became the New Federating consensus against the prevailing unitary Constitutional order in Nigeria.

“It is pertinent to note that across all the regions of Nigeria, various socio-cultural and ethnic-interests vanguard organisations have also been vehement in expressing the Constitutional grievances of their people, (some even violently), thus on the Yoruba side, we have the Afenifere, the Yoruba Elders Council (YCE), Agbekoya, the Yoruba Liberation Command, (YOLICOM), YWC and more, including the ILANA OMO OODUA, which now aggregates several Yoruba self-determination initiatives across the world.

“In the Eastern part of Southern Nigeria, we have Ohanaeze, Movement for the Survival of the Ijaw Ethnic Nationality in the Niger Delta (MOSIEND); Ijaw National Congress, (INC); Ijaw Youth Council (IYC); PANDEF, Midwest Movement, the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force, (NDPVF), MEND, MASSOB, IPOB, others. In the Middle-Belt, we have the Middle-Belt Forum, (MBF), MBC, SOKAPU, CONAECDA and many others.

“Several notable statesmen in Nigeria including Generals Olusegun Obasanjo and Yakubu Gowon, both former Heads of State, have lent their voices to the urgent imperative of the fundamental reworking of the damaged Constitutional basis of Nigeria, warning that any further delay may lead to the catastrophic collapse of the distressed Nigerian union.

“Nigeria’s former Defence Minister, Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (rtd), had also urged the Indigenous Peoples of Nigeria facing ethnic cleansing onslaught of the murderous invaders to defend themselves and their lands in the face of obvious collusion of the Federal Government and its Armed Forces with the Fulani invaders. In the aftermath of the October 2020 #EndSARS protests many, including the Nigerian Christian Elders Forum (NCEF), now insist that Nigeria needs to be renegotiated.”

The leaders added that on specific constitutional grievances touching on the sovereignties of the constituent components of the federation of Nigeria, the leaders said: “The claim in the Preamble to the 1999 Constitution that ‘We the People’ Firmly and Solemnly Resolved to live in One Political Union and that we Enacted and Gave Ourselves the 1999 Constitution, is self-evidently false as the Decree No 24 of 1999 by which the so-called 1999 Constitution was Promulgated, outlined step-by-step, the Process by which the author of the 1999 Constitution, the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council, came about the Document it labeled “the 1999 Constitution. This is a criminal usurpation of the sovereignties of the constituent components whose Exclusive Right it is to make for themselves the Constitution by which they will federate and be governed, as an incident of their sovereignty.

“Even by the admission of the 1999 Constitution at Section 14(2)(a), Sovereignty belongs to the People, from whom, Government, through this Constitution Derives all its Powers and Authority.

“This is the fountain from which all other constitutional grievances flow and there is no other remedy to this particular grievance than an autochthonous process by which the constituent components will submit their peoples and their lands into a union, and also stipulate the terms of that union, to be ratified by referendums and plebiscites.”

Jonathan Mourns Late Tanzanian President, Magufuli |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0
Former President Goodluck Jonathan
Former President Goodluck Jonathan

By Akinwale Kasali

The death of Tanzanian President, John Magufili came as shock to the African continent and the world at Large.

Former Nigerian President,  Goodluck Jonathan has expressed sadness and commiserated with the Government and people of Tanzania over the death of President Magufuli.

Magufuli’s death was announced in a televised address to the nation late  Wednesday by Vice President, Samia Suluhu.

She said that the 61-year-old president died of a heart condition which he had suffered for a decade.

Jonathan in a condolence message said a bright star has been plucked from the African continent.

He said, “I found in him a true partner in democracy and a patriot who loved his country and did his best to steer the ship of state away from the brink and to the bank of the river of peace, progress and prosperity.

“Tanzania has been blessed in the area of leadership and has enjoyed consistent stability because of men like Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, and his worthy successors like the late John Magufuli, and it is my hope and prayers that that beautiful and determined nation will continue this tradition.

“My condolences to his family, especially First Lady Janeth Magufuli, and their children, as well as the government and people of Tanzania. My thoughts go out also to his party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi.

“May God grant his soul repose, and may He comfort the grieving nation.”

Kwara: Faceoff Over Hijab Gets Messier; CAN Urges FG, IGP To Intervene |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0
Kwara Hijab Crisis

By Akinwale Kasali

There is tension in Kwara State over the reopening of 10  Schools earlier closed by  Government over the Hijab.

Christians were alleged to have forcefully blocked the entrance to one of the schools, Surulere Baptist Secondary School, Ilorin, preventing Muslim pupils from entering the school premises  because they were wearing Hijab

It would be recalled that the 10 affected schools in Ilorin were earlier shut following the barring of Muslim students from wearing Hijab in the schools.

However, the Christian Association of Nigeria has called on the Federal Government and the Inspector-General of Police to intervene in the ongoing crisis over hijab in the Mission schools, accusing Kwara Governor, Abdul AbdulRazaq, of acting in an ungodly manner.

In a statement by its General Secretary, Joseph Daramola, CAN said, “We learnt that the state government had ordered the reopening of the closed schools without resolving the crisis.

“Consequently, churches and mission schools are being vandalised with impunity by the hoodlums banking on the state government’s support in the pretext of enforcing the policy.”

He further claimed, “Some innocent Christians are being violently abused and attacked under the watch of the governor who is playing ostrich.

“Because it was his pronouncement on the issue of hijab-wearing in violation of the court directive on the matter to maintain status quo until the matter is finally resolved by the court that led to this trouble.”

CAN added that wisdom was required by those in leadership to handle sensitive issues such as.

“If any damage is done to any church or anyone is injured on this matter, the governor of Kwara state will be held responsible.

“It is disheartening and unfortunate that a government that was installed democratically will become insensitive to the plight and the yearning of the people,” the statement pointed out.

It accused the governor of supporting Muslims against Christians in Kwara.

“As if the governor was voted into the office primarily to protect his own religion. This is unfair, ungodly, and reprehensible. There are public schools and schools that belong to some Islamic organisations where those who wanted to be wearing hijab can be attending without causing the ongoing needless crisis rocking the state,” the statement argued.

1...2,4832,4842,485...2,974Page 2,484 of 2,974