Ondo state Governor, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu has taken a swipe on a Presidential Aide, Garba Shehu, accusing him of serving a particular interest and not the Presidency.
In his reaction to Monday’s statement by Garba Shehu which faulted the outcome of last week’s meeting of Southern Governors Forum in Asaba, Delta state, Governor Akeredolu maintained that no inch of land in the Southern part of the country would be ceded to anybody under any guise.
“Anyone who has been following the utterances of this man, as well as his fellow travelers on the self-deluding, mendacious but potentially dangerous itinerary to anarchy cannot but conclude that he works, assiduously, for extraneous interests whose game plan stands at variance with the expectations of genuine lovers of peaceful coexistence among all the peoples whose ethnic extractions are indigenous to Nigeria.
“Mr Garba must disclose, this day, the real motive(s) of those he serves, definitely not the President.
“His acts are clearly those of an agent provocateur. Other closet dreamers, aspirers to colonial fantasies, must be weaned off their delusion.
“He cannot continue to hide under some opaque, omnibus and dubious directives to create confusion in the polity.
“The easy recourse to mendacious uppity in pushing a barely disguised pernicious agendum is well understood.”
Governor Akeredolu, who is Chairman, South West Governors Forum, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on special duties, Doyin Odebowale, stated that “the declaration that the recommendations of the Minister of Agriculture, Alhaji Sabo Nanono, a mere political appointee like Garba Shehu, are now the “lasting solutions” which eluded all the elected representatives of the people of the Southern part of the country, exposes this man as a pitiable messenger who does not seem to understand the limits of his relevance and charge.
“Mr Garba contends that ‘their announcement is of questionable legality’, referring to the 17 Governors of the Southern States, but the decision of certain elements to take the ancestral lands of other people to settle their kinsmen, including the gun-wielding killer herdsmen and their families, and provide ‘veterinary clinics, water points for animals, and facilities for herders and their families including schooling through these rehabilitated reserves’ for which ‘the Federal Government is making far-reaching and practical changes allowing for different communities to co-exist side-by-side’, does not appear to him as a comprehensive plan for land grabbing, a precursor to internal colonialism.
“He wants to ‘revive forest reserves’ but seems particularly uninterested in the current position of the same law, that he and his cohorts often misinterpret to serve parochialism and greed. Governors no longer have powers over the lands in their territories. They must take instructions from appointees of the Federal Government on such matters.
“It is superfluous, and that is being charitable, for anyone to remind us of the constitutional right of bona fide citizens ‘to enjoy rights and freedoms within every one of our 36 States (and FCT)-regardless of their state of birth and residence’
“There has never been any contention on this provision. It is clear that Mr Garba seems to have issues understanding the difference between licentious criminality and qualified rights under our law. It is our duty to continually nudge him off his current state of cognitive dissonance. His pronouncement betrays dubiety and mischief.
“Most traditional families in Nigeria have occupations. Pastoralism is not an exception. Any ethnic group still trapped in anachronism may be assisted to embrace modernity.
“Dispossessing communities of their ancestral lands, encouraging denizens of the forests to overrun lands belonging to other people and forcing alien bands of migrants on the local populace to live ‘side-by-side’ with other communities cannot be for the purpose of animal husbandry.
“It raises suspicion on a grand, deliberate, persistent and insidious design to use naked force to subjugate the real owners of the land. Mr Garba Shehu is a major supporter of the current pervasive anarchy in the land.”
The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN has disclosed that payment firms in the country should operate with N50 million minimum capital.
The Godwin Emefiele-led CBN made this known, on Monday, in a circular titled ‘New license requirements for the payments system’.
The apaex stated that to have a Payment Terminal Service Provider, PTSP licence, a firm was required to have N100 million shareholders’ funds unimpaired by losses.
According to the bank super agent’s licence remained at N50 million; Switching and Processing firm’s licence at N2 billion; Mobile Money Operator’s licence at N2 billion; Payment Solution Services at N250 million and Payment Solution Service Provider at N100 million.
The CBN specified non-refundable application fee of N100,000 via the licensing fees.
It stated further that the payment firms must have an escrow of refundable N2 billion into CBN PSP share capital deposit account, while the deposit for escrow must be in full (one lump sum) and must be made in the name of the company applying for licence (not an individual or related company, the bank said.
His heart is broken. And he now has a faraway look. He is going through pains unimaginable. The burden is too much for him to carry. How does he explain the brutal murder of children put under his care? Or that of his staff who tried to protect them from the devils who snatched milk bottles from the mouth of babies?
His name is Simon Nwakacha, an Engineer. He ventured into the provision of education for our long suffering youths.
In January, 2019, when the National Universities Commission, NUC, approved a license for him to establish a University, he celebrated and walked like he was on springs. He walked with swagger. Deservedly too. Founding a Private University is no mean feat.
Say what you would about Private Universities – they are expensive, they are for the children of the rich – you are correct. But they have come in handy.
There is an almost 100 % guarantee that their students will graduate within the stipulated years for the duration of their courses. That cannot be said of Public Universities. Most of them are definitely more prestigious, more high profile, than Private Universities. But what’s the use?
A course with a duration period of four years could keep a student for as long as eight years and counting. Between the Federal, State Governments and the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, they have made nonsense of Nigeria’s education system. They have made it boring and unattractive. For over 75 % of the period students should be in school, ASUU is on strike over one disagreement or the other with a Government that never keeps promises. As soon as ASUU calls off its strike, the Non-Academic Staff Union would start its own. It is like a competition. Students are a pawn in their chess board. Plus the Hostels that are no better than a pig’s sty and more scary than grave yards.
This other day, Saturday Punch carried a heart-rending story of a student of the Oyo State- owned Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Bernard Asefon. While trying to fix a faulty electrical device in his hostel, he fell off a pole, smack into a depleted septic tank. He had been in that University for eight years. On his death in such a horrifying manner, his devastated father lamented: “After eight years at LAUTECH, my son was brought home dead.” His course was probably a four year course. The corrupted system added four more years for him. He died in the process.
When parents consider the number of years wasted in Public Universities, they hardly consider the amount of money paid in Private Universities. And they no longer worry if a couple of the Private Universities are glorified Secondary schools. As one funny parent put it: “Degree na degree!”
So, Engr. Nwakacha walked with a swagger on the day he got the license to establish Greenfield University. A believer in one Nigeria, even though he is from Anambra State, he chose to site Greenfield in Kaduna State, along the Abuja – Kaduna road.
Now, for Nwakacha, the joy is gone. And so is the swagger. Deep pain, sorrow and regret are his constant companion. And, he is as helpless as the hopeless situation he has found himself in. Nobody can even imagine what he is going through. To worsen his pain, a couple of people from his South-east zone are mocking him. They say he is a foolish man for abandoning his Zone, to set up a University in Kaduna.
His misery started on the night of Tuesday, April 20, 2021 – barely two years after the take-off of the University.
A group of heavily armed gunmen stormed the premises of the University. They came on a mission to abduct and/or kill. They succeeded in both.
Attacking from all angles, their first victim was a Hostel Porter, who made to shut the door of the hostel as soon as she noticed the invading gunmen. To show how serious they were, they shot her dead. And you wonder why. Even if she had succeeded in shutting the door, it was not going to stop them from fulfilling their mission. The door is not bullet proof. They could easily have brought it down. But they were blood- thirsty – replicas of a Country soaked in wickedness and spilt innocent blood.
By the time they were through, they took along with them a number of frightened students – aged between 17 and 19 years. They also took three staff members of the University.
Mission accomplished, they set the price for their release at N800 million. That, or they would embark on a killing spree of the students. Both the Federal and Kaduna State Governments made some initial noise. But nothing more. The abductors laughed.
To show they were serious, they slaughtered three of the students three days after the abduction. One of those they slaughtered was the Proprietor’s niece. Was she pointed out to the devils by somebody? No matter. Afterall, they killed two others with her.
Neither the Federal Government, nor Kaduna State Government was horrified. Nigerians, we have all become shock absorbers. These days, when one reads that three people had been killed, one sighs wearily, says “only three”, and overlooks the story.
Two days after, and with no strong showing from the Government, they slaughtered another two. And, as a final warning, said they would embark on the slaughter of their remaining captives. They set a date for the horrendous blood feast.Thank God that has not happened. Instead, on that date, they released one of the students.
His parents, reportedly, paid the sum of N20 million to secure his release. As a precautionary measure, they have refused to talk to anybody about the circumstances which led to the release of their son. It is, however, gathered that it is thanks to the self-appointed negotiator between bandits and the families of victims and/or Governments that the bandits have not sacrificed another student.
Nwakacha is in a fix. He is confused. On a visit to the families of the murdered students, he was full of lamentations. He bemoaned his fate. He wondered how his joy suddenly turned to deep sorrow. And he asked nobody in particular:
“What did I do wrong? Was it wrong of me to establish a University in my country What do I do now?”
A number of his people have since told him he did wrong to establish a University in Kaduna. They say he went to school in Anambra, but that when it came to investment, he went to Kaduna. We have become that cynical. That is what Nigeria has reduced us to. We laugh at the misery of others, and mock the dead and the bereaved. That is how divided Nigeria has become. Everything now boils down to ethnicity and religion.
There is nothing this man can do. Nothing, except, as is our usual in Nigeria, pray, and pray and pray. In case he does not know, or has not understood, he is on his own. He is carrying his cup alone. Neither the Kaduna State Government, nor the Federal Government gives a hoot. Of course, they have made the right noises, but that is where it ends. Something else has since occupied their thoughts.
Nigeria is an extremely busy country. There is no dull moment. Don’t be surprised that not a few people in Government could ask: “Oh, those students, are they still there?” That’s us. While innocent blood flows on our streets like a river, most of our Leaders are thinking of 2023. That is all they care about. But, do they know tomorrow?
Who would believe that for almost 40 days, those students are still held captive Abandoned. Forgotten. The burden left for their families. And the Proprietor. Nobody even knows which group is holding them hostage – Bandits or Boko Haram. What’s the difference, anyway?
The only contact we have with them is through Sheikh Gumi. Those who abducted the students call him. He speaks to them. So, you ask: With which phone numbers? Who registered the numbers for them? How come nobody can track them? They pass messages mainly through Gumi. Once, he assured us that the students would soon be released. We smiled wryly, yes, wryly, but a smile still – better than the agony, the heartache, and the far-away looks that have become our lot in Nigeria.
Most Nigerians no longer look forward to a new day. They are afraid of what it will bring. Every new day greets us with a worse situation than the previous day. We welcome it with thumping hearts and despondency.
Malam Nasir El-Rufai
But even the wry smile elicited by Gumi’s promise has since been wiped away.
His messages are no longer heart- warning. This other day, he let it slip that the group holding the students captive has a connection with Boko Haram. Meaning, perhaps, the students have been sold off to Boko Haram. But he seems to know what we don’t know. Gumi insists the FG should pay the Bandits. He tells the FG to look for N100m for the bandits to get the students released. He seems to have forgotten the 10 motorcycles the bandits are also insisting on. For good measure Gumi told the FG from where to get the money. Ask the CBN to provide it, he said. And why not? To the CBN, that’s nothing. Or didn’t Governor Godwin Obaseki tell us that the CBN printed about N50b to augment the March Federation Allocation for States? Gumi must have had that in mind when he directed the FG to CBN.
Not tidy. But I am in support of that. Nothing compares to the lives of those students. If my calculations are right, the hoodlums have already received the sum of N80 million. The parents of the boy, earlier released, reportedly paid N20 million. In an SOS to the Federal Government, parents whose children are still in captivity, revealed they had already paid the sum of N60 million, but that the bandits insist on an extra N100m and 10 motor cycles. Their appeal is for the FG to please pay the N100 million, and save their children. “Do the same thing in the case of our children like you did in the cases of other kidnapped students in Niger, Zamfara, and the College of Forestry, Kaduna”, they plead. There has been no response from the FG in that direction.
A couple of weeks ago, President Buhari, warned Bandits not to take him for granted. He said he is capable of dealing with them. He said they should not push him to the wall. How much pushing does the President need so we can all help to push him into action?
His party, the APC, aligned with him. The party said the Government has the capacity to deal with them. Of course, we know. But for how long? How much more blood needs to be shed before we see and feel the capacity?
The criminals must have had a good laugh at us. They knew the threats were empty. They knew nothing would be done. They were right. Proof:
A few days later, the President made an about-turn from his tough stand and appealed to them to, please, release the students. The bandits are laughing at our unseriousness.
Here’s the most confounding: It is not that the Leader of the gang is anonymous. Or unknown. He is very well known. A heartless, fearless God- forsaken guy, a couple of weeks ago, he granted an interview to the BBC, Hausa Service, where he reiterated his demands.
Question is: How did the BBC reach him? How does Gumi reach him. How do the hapless parents reach him? With all the hassles the Minister for Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami has put us through over the registration of SIM cards, over NIN, these bandits are still twisting us round their murderous fingers? Who, and what brought us to this sorry situation?
In the instant case, the main culprit is Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai. He is the one whose careless, undiplomatic utterances have hardened the criminals the more, and reduced us to grovelling jellies before them. Cold-blooded, El- Rufai, from day one, made a song and dance of his resolve not to pay any ransome to the abductors. Good. But what other diplomatic channels has he used to try and get them out?
In deed, El-Rufai has unravelled beyond recognition. Is this the same guy who, during the Goodluck Jonathan administration, pilloried former President Jonathan for not paying for the release of Chibok girls, many of whom, unfortunately, are still held captive by the murderous Boko Haram sect?
He has, suddenly, become a master of about-turn. Many of his beliefs during the Jonathan Government, he has since discarded.
Yet, El-Rufai’s stand on ransome pales in the face of his revelation of his plans to get the students out. In a blood-curdling comment, he revealed he planned to storm the location of the students with the Military. Then he, unfeelingly, added that some of the students would be lost during the rescue mission, and some saved. Just like that? As if he was discussing the fate that could befall some animals somewhere in the forest.
The questions, since then, from not a few people are: Would El-Rufai have said that so carelessly if he had a child among the abducted students? Did he consider the state of mind of the parents when he uttered those chilling words? Did he consider that the Bandits could slaughter the students knowing he was planning a rescue operation using the Military? Does El-Rufai know what his I-don’t-care statement has done to the blood pressure of the parents?
For the records, if any parent of those students dies of cardiac arrest or hypertension, Governor El-Rufai should be held responsible.
What to do? I suggest the Federal Government bends over backwards to effect the release of those students. If it pays ransome, it will not be the first time money would exchange hands for the release of student-captives. We ought to have learnt from the Chibok experience.
The Government should not give any kind of confirmation to beer parlour talks. Already, with what Nigeria has been sadly reduced to, the general talk is: The students are still there because the Proprietor is an Igbo man. A stupid comment, no doubt, but they are saying: “Good for him. Why did he not build the University in Igboland?”
Such lousy talks should worry a Government eager to present a one-Nigeria face. One of the ways to do it is to get the students back to their parents, and school. Don’t allow more of them to be killed.
In the face of the inexplicable torching, and completely razing down the offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma, has pointed fingers at an alleged possible suspect.
INEC offices Nationwide, and especially, in the South-east, have fallen victims to attacks by yet to be identified hoodlums to the extent that the Commission says the effect of the attacks could affect the 2023 General elections, and, particularly, the upcoming Anambra State Governorship election.
But while the Police are still investigating, Governor Uzodimma, has directed them to a person of interest. He said that the former National Commissioner of INEC, Prof. Lai Olurode, should be quizzed over the recent incessant attacks on INEC offices.
In a Press Release signed on his behalf by his Media Adviser/Chief Press Secretary, Oguwike Nwachuku, on Monday, May 24, 2021, the Governor said he believes that Prof. Olurode’s inciting comments over the attacks on INEC offices were mere smokescreen to cover up what the unsuspecting members of the public may not know, but which the former INEC official knows about the attacks for which he should be properly investigated.
Prof Olurode had, in a statement credited to him in The Guardian of Monday, May 24, 2021, said that “the court ruling that produced Governor Hope Uzodimma and the agitation by Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) were likely reasons for the recent attacks on the Commission’s offices.”
He did not end there. He continued: “The perception that elections do not always reflect the will of the people in the country was another factor that should not be ignored….Most of the attacks in Imo State was caused by the ill-fated election. It was more of judicial victory, because that election someone, who lacked the formidable electoral strength became Governor.”
Governor Uzodimma believes that Prof Olurode was either directly involved in the attacks on INEC offices as recently witnessed in parts of the country, or deeply connected to those perpetrating the ill.
The Governor said the only way Prof. Olurode can absolve himself from the attacks on INEC offices is if he is properly interrogated by security agents.
Governor Uzodimma noted that Prof. Olurode has shown that the years he spent in INEC were a complete waste if he could not come to terms with the role of the Judiciary in the Electoral process.
The Governor wondered how possible it is for any politician in the country to win or lose an election through the Nigerian Courts without INEC’s involvement.
Governor Uzodimma reasoned that Prof. Olurode and his likes have done great damage to the Nigerian society by playing the ostrich and feigning ignorance of how the Judiciary contributes in deepening our democracy, particularly, in an environment where electoral fraud and criminality are elevated to a faith.
The Governor, therefore, urged members of the public not to look beyond their shoulders for those destroying our democracy and of late, burning INEC offices and other government property, as Prof. Olurode, from every indication, fits the mould and ought to be made to face the law if found culpable.
Intense lobbying has already started among top Generals in the Nigerian Army to replace Lt. General Ibrahim Attahiru who died in an air crash last Friday in Kaduna, as Chief of Army Staff, COAS.
In top contention for the COAS position are Major Generals Ibrahim Manu Yusuf, a former Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, MI Aliyu of the Defence Intelligence Agency, DIA, Benjamin Ahanotu, Danjuma Ali-Kefi, amongst others.
Before President Buhari eventually appointed the late General Attahiru in January, there were initial reports that General Hanatu Ali-Kefi had been appointed to take over from General Tukur Burutai, who retired alongside other Service Chiefs.
“There is a renewed lobby for him to become COAS after the death of his boss, by those who believe that the position must remain in the north,” an APC source said.
On his part, General Benjamin Ahanotu the Chief of Policy and Planning of Nigerian Army, who was tasked with the reading of the funeral oration of the late COAS, is also among the top contestants having occupied strategic military positions, including Acting General Officer Commanding, GOC 3 Division of the Nigerian Army, Jos, Plateau state.
Apart from the fours Generals, the magazine, learnt that various sub-national groups across the country are also lobbying leaders of the ruling All Progressives Congress, for the president to appoint one of their own as COAS.
For instance, the Northern social political group, Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF while condoling with President Muhammadu Buhari on the sad incident, said the new COAS must be a competent officer who can help the country tackle the current security challenges.
The ACF, in a statement signed by its chairperson, Audu Ogbeh, said it “prays that our Lord God grants our President the wisdom to select suitable replacements for the heroes departed, particularly for the Chief of Army Staff,” because the security situation in Nigeria “calls for the best, nothing but the best.”
President Buhari, on Sunday, directed the national flag to be flown at half mast, aside declaring a public holiday for the armed forces to mark the death of the officers.
The president, it was learnt, is now faced with a serious dilemma of who to choose among these officers to occupy the position. The problems facing the president, according to Aso Rock sources, include the quest to satisfy those who believe that the new COAS should come from the south as well as others who still want the North to retain the position.
But the magazine learnt that the most important consideration of all is for the president to choose based on seniority, among the crop of qualified officers.
The list of those that have been shortlisted for the president include those in Regular Course 35 and 36 in the Nigerian Defence Academy, NDA, Nigeria’s elite school for the military. The late General Attahiru was a member of course 35.
According to sources privy to military issues, the president’s choice will determine whether he respects the tradition in the armed forces, as anything done to the contrary could send a wrong signal to the security sector.
“For instance, if the president picks a member of Course 36 as COAS, what that means is that his seniors in Course 35 will be forced to retire. This will be a great loss on the nation’s military resources, after training these Generals in top military institutions across the world, with a lot of experience to show for it,” an analyst said on Monday.
Even though the analyst requested anonymity, because of the sensitive nature of the issue and because he did not want to be seen to be taking sides, he stated that President Buhari has the prerogative as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, to choose any General among the packs.
Meanwhile, competent sources in the Presidency told the magazine that the president is considering making his choice among the Generals of Northern extraction to fill the position.
“It’s true that there is a serious lobby across the country on the president. But President Buhari as you know him has his own mind regardless of pressure from anywhere. And as long as he’s convinced that somebody can do the job, he will go for it. But the agitators can have their say, even though the president is not contemplating picking the new COAS outside where the former came from,” a top presidential aide said.
When asked if the president is planning to appoint any of the four Generals mentioned above, he said ” that is left to the president to decide. Yes, they are all qualified but you know Mr President, he may as usual come up with another surprise. All I can tell you is that a new COAS will be appointed soon because nature abhors vacuum.”
Meanwhile, some analysts told the magazine that President Buhari now has the opportunity to prove that he’s a detribalised leader by appointing an officer of Igbo extraction as COAS. This will also ensure that the zone is represented among the service chiefs, according to those who believe that leaving out the south east in major political appointments is fueling a serious crisis among its people, particularly, youths who believe that the area has been left out in major political decisions affecting the country.
The Presidency has written off the resolutions by the southern Governors Forum, arrived at during their meeting in Asaba, Delta State last week.
According to the Presidency, some of the decisions were laced with politics and personal interests, and have no constitutional backing.
The Presidency’s position was contained in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, released on Monday in Abuja.
The statement reads
“President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed a strong resolve to address the conflicts of herders and farmers in a sustained and lasting manner that should lead to the emergence of a permanent solution to the frequent clashes between them, as well as the associated problem of the gun-wielding “killer herdsmen.”
“The President had approved a number of specific measures to bring a permanent end to the frequent skirmishes as recommended by Alhaji Sabo Nanono, the Minister of Agriculture in a report he submitted and the President signed off on it back in April, well before the actions of the Southern Governors Forum which attempts to place a ban on open grazing and other acts of politicking intended by its signatories to demonstrate their power.
“It is very clear that there was no solution offered from their resolutions to the herder-farmer clashes that have been continuing in our country for generations.
“But the citizens of the Southern States – indeed citizens of all States of Nigeria – have a right to expect their elected leaders and representatives to find answers to challenges of governance and rights, and not to wash their hands off hard choices by, instead, issuing bans that say: “not in my State.”
“It is equally true that their announcement is of questionable legality, given the Constitutional right of all Nigerians to enjoy the same rights and freedoms within every one of our 36 states (and FCT) -regardless of the State of their birth or residence.
“Fortunately, this declaration has been preempted, for whatever it is intended to achieve, and Mr. President, who has rightly been worried about these problems more than any other citizen in consultation with farmers and herders alike, commissioned and approved an actionable plan of rehabilitating grazing reserves in the States, starting with those that are truly committed to the solution and compliant with stated requirements.
“With Veterinary clinics, water points for animals, and facilities for herders and their families, including schooling – through these rehabilitated reserves, the Federal Government is making far-reaching and practical changes allowing for different communities to co-exist side-by-side: supporting farmers to till their fields, herders to rear their livestock and Nigerians everywhere to be safe.
“The entire country is acutely aware of the strain the COVID-19 pandemic has taken on public finances, for both Federal and States.
“Still, given the pressing urgency of addressing the perennial challenges, the federal funding for the project that has been delayed is now being partly unlocked.
“Actual work for the full actualization of the modern reserve system in a few of the consenting states should take off in June.”
The ban on open grazing, as agreed upon by the Southern Governors’ Forum, has been endorsed by most groups, APC South-west Governors and stakeholders.
An influential son of Imo State and Nigeria, Chief Leo Stan Eke, OFR, has admonished Imolites to stop the destruction of the State. He said the happenings in the State should stop, adding that: “The noise is not good for the State”
He asked: “Why do you want to join in the destruction of your State when the others are moving forward.”
Eke spoke when Stakeholders in Mbaitoli Local Government Area, Imo State – men, women, youths – on Monday, May 24, paid a solidarity visit to the Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma at the Government House of Owerri.
Stan Ekeh is, unarguably, one of the most respected persons in Nigeria and Africa. A native of Ubomiri, Imo State, he is called the Bill Gates of Africa because of his foray and feats in technology.
He is the founder of ZINOX, and the biggest in Africa in his field, and the highest employer of Certified Graduates in Imo State. He remains apolitical.
Following are his remarks during the visit where he pledged loyalty to the State Government, and the Governor. He asked Imolites to calm down to enable the State move forward, adding that nobody moves forward by inciting trouble.
“As you are fighting here, other States are progressing. Nigeria is not waiting for anybody. So, why are you destroying your ow? After building your house, you will destroy it instead of expanding. The Governor is a good man. I am loyal to him because he is the Governor. We should help him move the State forward”
I am excited that Mbaitoli is here. Mbaitoli is, technically, the biggest Local Government. Essentially our people are loyal people. We do not kick against others
Hope Uzodimma is my Governor and friend, and I am a very loyal person. As an elder now in Imo State, mine is to support what can deliver Imo State. I do not “kick”.
The Government will continue to pray for me and protect me while I am to give to Imo State. So I am not expecting anything from the Government of Imo State.
I am just saying that we should have peace so that people like us can bring to give to our people.
I think I am the highest employer of certified Imo graduates in Nigeria. Some of them you don’t know, because we are technology people. They don’t make noise. I have Imo people who are earning 4.5 million Naira a month. I have a lot of them.
So why I am here is to say that this noise is not good for us. The Governor needs peace to deliver. I know there is hunger, but the hunger did not start from him.
People like us are ready to give. I have been giving. There is no Local Government and no Community that I have not giving without making noise.
We want to support the Governor. We want to move the state forward. As you are fighting here, other states are progressing. Nigeria is not waiting for anybody. So why are you destroying your own. After building your house you will destroy it instead of expanding. I will support the Governor to make sure Imo moves forward.
After his tenure and he hands over to another person, I will support that person.
Any old man, any citizen that instigates trouble…It is unnecessary. If you have problem complain to people like us. If you cannot reach the Governor, call me. My phone is open. I will call him and he listens. Sometimes he calls me by 1.00 a.m.
We want to grow this State. There is hunger. There are no jobs. Not caused by the Government but the Coronavirus compounded it. So don’t continue to fight. Give your loyalty. This is the man in power.
You need to support him to move the state forward. When another person comes, also you can support him. People like us are not party people. We support to move the state forward because if I die, this is where they will bury me.
If you are a king in the world and you don’t have a home, it is meaningless.
I am here because if my Governor calls. I have to respect him. If they bring a 10 year old boy as Governor of this State, I will greet him with two hands. That is my own law and it is a very progressive law.
But also I need to appeal to politicians. You need to help the Governor. Any society that does not have respect for elders is not a progressive society, no matter who you are. The Governor is a humble person. Onwa Oyoko has a good heart.
Mbaitoli produced the State Chairman of the Party. Even the Deputy Governor is our brother. So we have gotten some share.
Let everybody calm down. You can reach me and I can reach the Governor. Malcolm Nlemigbo used to be the richest Igboman and he is very humble. Mbaitoli people should appreciate the things the Governor has given them. The Governor is doing well. Even the ones I have not seen, people tell me.
“I am loyal to him he is my Governor. You need to give the Governor peace to use people like me. I am not expecting anything. The Governor knows he is my brother. God has blessed me. I am the biggest African in my career.
The 774,000 participants in the Federal Government’s Speciality Public Works (SPW) programme, may have cause to smile very soon.
This is going by the disclosure that the second tranche stipends of ₦20,000 to each of them would soon be paid by the federal government.
The programme, which kicked off in January, this year, has participants drawn across all local governments in the country.
Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, who disclosed this in Abuja, however put a clause, which is, those participants without Banks Verification Number, (BVN) would still not be paid.
The Federal Government had started partial payment of ₦20,000 stipends to the 774,000 workers in April, three months after the programme kick-started.
According to the Minister, some workers under the programme were having issues about their payments from two banks, which he did not name.
He explained that the affected banks had not met the requirements set by the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), the implementing agency for the programme.
Keyamo said until the BVN of participants of the programme were verified, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would not credit those accounts.
“Those who have not received payments from two banks will be paid in due time.
“Until the two banks fulfill the mandate we gave them to ensure the credibility of the accounts and to make sure we eliminate fraud; until that is approved by us, the CBN will not credit those accounts.
“We want to appeal to everyone, especially those who have not received their first tranche from those two banks, that they will be paid, and everybody will be duly paid before the second tranche begins. And the second tranche will begin soon.
“We don’t want to make errors in haste, especially for me. This is a programme put under my care by Mr. President.
“I want to make sure that it is fraud-free. That is why I am ensuring that all indices of fraud are eliminated in those accounts before they are credited,” he added.
The Campaign For Democracy (CD), a pro- democracy group in the country, says it has put Nigerians on alert, to embark on civil unrest in case the Federal Government removes subsidy on fuel.
In a letter to the Chairman, Nigeria Governors Forum, (NGF), Dr Kayode Fayemi, CD condemned the call by the forum on the Federal Government to remove fuel subsidy.
At the end of its visual meeting last week, the NGF, after considering the report of a Committee on Subsidy Removal, headed by Kaduna State Governor, Malam El- Rufai, called on the Federal Government to, urgently, stop subsidizing fuel costs.
If subsidy is removed, it may raise the price of premium motor spirit, known as petrol, to as high as ₦380 from the current ₦163, which Nigerians still consider as high.
The CD, in the letter, signed by its National Secretary, Pastor Ifeanyi Odili, warned that: “If a dime is added to the price of fuel in this country, we will lead the rest of Nigerians to flush out APC from the Nigerian political space.
“Under this APC Government, Nigerians have been badly frustrated, as well, intimidated under the watch of NGF.
“Sir, you will agree with us that our fuel is being diverted and smuggled out of Nigeria by certain powerful business and political class. Sometime, ago, according to Mr Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of State for Petroleum, ‘a large volume of petroleum products is diverted by corrupt senior government officials.’
“Kachikwu said these officials connive with marketers and transport owners to divert already subsidized fuel from depots to neighboring West African countries including Cameroon, Chad, Togo and Benin. This is what CD thinks NGF should address rather than inflicting further pains on Nigerians.
“You will also recall that Nigerians took to the streets on Monday, 2nd January, 2012, in reaction to the fuel subsidy removal by the Federal Government of President Goodluck Jonathan on Sunday, 1st January, 2012.
“Protests raged across the country and at the premises of the Nigerian High Commission in London. The protests were characterized by civil disobedience, civil resistance, strike actions, demonstrations. We ask again, which subsidy, differently, from the one refered to herein, is NGF talking about?
“It is surprising to us and many Nigerians that NGF which ought to be a refuge for the suffering masses of Nigeria can be seen to parade itself around with the intent to impose further hardship on the already pained Nigerians.
“Since the inception of the present APC led federal government, Nigeria’s economic and security situation has gone from worse to worst, it has been worsened, deteriorated and impaled more than the dark days of the military eras.
“The said APC government has decorated Nigerians with sorrow and unending gnashing of teeth.
“We make bold to say that Nigerians have been in frustration since the adventure of APC in government. We feel it is enough. Enough of APC misrule! We stand to reject further pains on Nigerian people.”
Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has shed light on his absence at Saturday’s meeting of leaders of All Progressive Congress(APC) in Lagos.
The meeting, which Governors, Speaker, House of Representatives, Party leaders were invited was organized by Chief Bisi Akande, former interim chairman of APC.
Governors Fayemi and Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo state did not attend the meeting.
In a statement in Ado Ekiti on Monday, Governor Fayemi said he wholeheartedly supports the stance of the APC Southwest leaders at the meeting that took place in Lagos on Sunday, May 23rd, 2021 despite his absence at the meeting.
The statement, signed by the Chief Press Secretary, Mr Yinka Oyebode stated that “Dr. Fayemi’s absence at the meeting was a result of a mix up in the invitation sent out for the meeting.
“For clarity, the invitation for the meeting which was said to have been sent via Whatsapp by Mr. Tunde Rahman, an aide to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, never got to Governor Fayemi.
“The absence of an invitation for the Southwest APC leaders meeting prevented the Governor from attending the meeting, as he was not aware.
“Governor Fayemi, however, sent an apology to the meeting through former Ekiti State Governor and Minister of Industries, Trade and Investments, Otunba Niyi Adebayo; as he was already scheduled to attend another engagement at the time he came to learn of the meeting.
“Governor Fayemi, as a true democrat and Southwest leader, who is committed to the welfare of the people, is however in total support of the decisions reached by the Southwest leaders at the meeting, which include an endorsement of the positions earlier adopted by the Southern Governors’ Forum on the ban on open grazing and the need for true federalism, among others.”
Governors Fayemi and Akeredolu were in Lagos previous day, Saturday to attend the wedding ceremony of the son of the Chairman, APC, Ondo state, Mr Ade Adetimehin.
