Catastrophic Failure: Soludo’s verdict on Anambra leadership

The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) for the February 6, 2010 election in Anambra State, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo has blamed the precarious security situation and other problems on “catastrophic failure of leadership in the state”. The former governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) who spoke during an exclusive interview with Daily Sun at his country home, Umueze village (Isuanaoma), Isuofia in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State at the weekend regretted that Anambra which ought to be a first class state was reeling under a third class leadership.

Speaking against the background of the scary security situation in the state under which his 78-year old father, Pa Simeon Soludo, was kidnapped last month, he asserted that the worrisome situation was one of the factors that nudged him into volunteering to serve and rescue his people.
He declared: “Anambra is a first class state and requires a first class material to lead them. You cannot have a first class state and offer it a third class governance. It just won’t work. In Anambra today, there are refugees, people are running away.

There is a refugee situation in Anambra. It may not be so pronounced because you are not seeing people in camps, but people are moving in droves out of the state. Go to Nnewi, its dead, literarily dead. Look at the factories that used to be; that’s a place where foreigners used to describe as the emerging Japan of Africa; go to the place today, everybody has run away. Go to Onitsha, everybody is moving across to Asaba; come to Awka, it’s a ghost town. I mean Anambra is just dead now, in economic terms.
“There are no jobs, insecurity is just second nature. It has degenerated to a level at which even the kidnappers who kidnapped my dad told me that it is part of the culture.

That’s the way they described it. Well, I don’t know much of what the governor has done, but whatever he has done, obviously has not worked, because people are so scared. You can’t even do certain things that are supposed to be done at home any longer. People are now having traditional marriages in Abuja, Lagos and so on. Why? the fear of going home. And the investors cannot come. You cannot create jobs under this state of insecurity. And therefore, for me, that is the first job of government.”

Soludo listed among aspects of his agenda to restore Anambra to a secure path, creation of hundreds of thousands of job opportunities for teeming unemployed youth, creating new models of community policing, adequate equipment for the police and other security agencies, informal policing schemes and intelligence network.

While vowing to ensure a secure Anambra “where people can sleep with their two eyes closed”, he declined to divulge further details of his security blueprint saying, “I don’t need to discuss the details of that here on the pages of newspaper or on the podium” for obvious reasons.
Appraising his chances in the February 6, 2010 governorship election, he described them as very bright because “Anambra State is a PDP state”. As he put it, Anambra is more than 85 to 90 percent PDP. He predicted a landslide victory for PDP in the election, saying “we are not leaving anything to chance. We will win landslide. We don’t just want to win; we want to win very convincingly and that is why we are not leaving any stone unturned in the mobilization process that is ongoing. As you are aware, as the largest party not only in the state but in the country and Africa at large, there were almost 50 governorship aspirants who were interested in picking the ticket of the party which is a demonstration of the fact that it is the party on ground”.

Soludo, while stressing that the reconciliation efforts of PDP was on full throttle to assuage the anger of aggrieved aspirants and stakeholders following his emergence as the candidate, admitted that a 100 percent healing may not be feasible before the poll early next year. He had this to say about the pent up anger in some quarters with the state chapter of the PDP: “And of course, following that (his choice), there were some that are nursing some feelings and we are in the process of the healing. And I can tell you right now - if you have 50 per cent of PDP members working for PDP, you have a landslide victory. And I can bet you that we have well passed 80 per cent in terms of getting the entire house together. So, I think basically, this is a PDP state and the next government will be formed by the PDP under my leadership.”

On his promise of a quick turn-around of Anambra State into a model city state as the new African Dubai-Taiwan and the feasibility of the plan, he stressed that Dubai and Taiwan were developed due to sheer vision, outstanding leadership and entrepreneurship of the people. He promised to galvanize and mobilize Anambra to achieve a similar feat.

Said Soludo, “…Anambra State is uniquely better endowed to do better than even Taiwan and Dubai because it has the largest concentration of entrepreneurs anywhere in Africa. Anambra people are all over Nigeria, all over Africa, all over the world, especially in the United States developing those climes. Anambra has a unique geographical advantage. It has a boundary with the North through Benue and Kogi; it has a boundary with the west through Delta, boundary with South-south through Rivers, boundary with Imo, Abia and Enugu states.”

He described Anambra as a very special state in the country with the highest population density after Lagos and so uniquely positioned with potentially navigable waterways by way of the River Niger, which is being dredged. “And I can see the skylines along the banks of the River Niger. What you require is leadership and vision and that is what has been lacking totally – leadership and vision for our people,” he stressed.

Speaking further on what Anambra State needs to leapfrog to the enviable levels attained by Dubai and Taiwan, the PDP candidate said the full potentials of the people would be unleashed “when they see leadership that they can trust; leadership they can believe in a proven hand that can mobilize not only the domestic but also global resources of the people to move forward.”




Sun News

PDP wanted Ngige dead –Audu Ogbeh

When Audu Ogbeh became the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and consequently an inner member of President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government, many Nigerians wondered how he would survive the onslaught of the President. There was a familiar ring to this. The Chairmen before him had left office in controversial circumstances and here was a man who had retired from politics into farming. As people would say then, Obasanjo has brought a “weather beaten” man he can lead by the nose. But they were wrong because subsequent events proved them so.

What Ogbeh’s critics did not realise was that the former Minister of Communications under President Shehu Shagari was following a beaten path. He has always been an odd man out in his crusade for social justice, fairness and harmonious living. These principles countered the inner workings of the Obasanjo regime. “I was party Chairman. I came under pressure to do certain things but I refused, including changing the nomination of people who had won their primaries. I told Mr. President that it’s not feasible. I can name names like Senator Ben Obi, Joy Emordi and Uka Chukwude.

They won their primaries and I was under pressure to change their names when I told the man that it can’t happen. When one of the reporters asked him what would happen if the 2011 polls are not credible; if imposition of candidates predominates party primaries, Ogbeh reclined on his seat. Again, he sat straight, leaned towards the edge of his right hand and began to cut the air. As he gesticulated, his voice rose as he was answering the question. Occasionally, he paused to choose his words.

“I think there will be a great deal of frustration leading to near anarchy. I don’t want to predict doom but quite frankly, I think we must try and hold a free and fair election in 2011. I’m therefore saying to the Assembly people that the matter isn’t as simple as it looks. Let them do everything to do those amendments necessary. Let nobody feel so secured that we can get away with it,” he said.
In this interview, he speaks on a wide range of issues.

How did we get to this sorry pass?
When the structural adjustment began in 1986, I was in Hong Kong. That was when we began the first auction of the naira. The pressure on Nigeria to devalue began when (Shehu) Shagari was in office. (Obafemi) Awolowo then said it was madness to think of devaluing. Shagari refused. (Muhammadu) Buhari too refused. They got hold of IBB (Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida) and his government then and they said we had no choice. So, we began this indirect thing of auctioning the naira. The day it started, I was in Hong Kong with a friend, Chief Godwin Okoye, and I said this is the beginning of Nigeria ’s journey to doom. The economic pressure is turning Nigerians wild.

The only industry is political power. People are grossly overpaid and hopelessly under-used. If you know the salaries of some of these guys, a councillor walks away with N700,000 a month. Then you ask, who invented this fiction? They said it is because they want to attract the best minds. Go to your local government and ask if any new road has been graded in the last five years or a school rebuilt or a market constructed. Some of these local governments receive N70 million and N80 million a month. Where is this money?
As the pressure mounts, the naira is losing value and we are so import-dependent. Everybody is getting desperate and the only guys with the courage to say no are maybe you guys in the media and maybe one or two Nigerians. The rest of us have decided to keep quiet. Where in the world will such bizarre thing happen? Just walk to a school, carry children and behead them? If that doesn’t shock us, then I don’t know. Till now, I have been waiting to read something in the papers about what government will do about this but nothing. All I hear is that in Suleja, many parents have withdrawn their children from schools and schools are closed. They are scared to death. It is very bad.

You are a stakeholder in this country and you should suggest where we should go from here
Quite frankly, sometimes one is so confused and you just ask, is it hopeless? Can we do anything about it? There are those who tell you the situation is perfect and they are in charge. This is why some Nigerians are making rather extreme statements. But you can’t blame them because they have reasons to be extremely troubled. Where would this happen on this planet now that people will park a van in front of a school, wait for children, carry them, take them away and the next thing is the parents find their headless bodies in the bush.

Do you think these things are really political?
They are ritual things. What are they doing with the heads of the children?

Probably for money-making?
Maybe there are those who believe in it. So, they go and do it. But how does a country sleep with this kind of thing happening in our very midst and we want God to bless us?

You have access to the President and you discuss with him…
I have met him only once since he came in and I haven’t tried since then. Maybe one will try. It may take a while to get there but you can. I’m so troubled by this and I just thought I should ask you guys to share my views. I will probably try to talk to him because I find this as a very terrible sign that our country can start going down this way. How many more children are they going to kidnap and kill? Like I said about the kidnapping, the technology is everywhere for monitoring calls. What are we waiting for? We don’t have the money or the matter is not serious enough? Somebody carries you and he says N10 million. What is this?

This thing is actually linked to politics and boils down to the issue of reforms. Do you think reforms will ever bring credible elections?
I don’t even know if there is anybody willing to carry out the necessary reforms. Like I said somewhere, we are cheating at elections so blatantly and we are telling children not to cheat in examinations. What is the difference? It’s the same thing. In the school certificate result this year, we got only 27 per cent pass nationwide. If you discount those who did honestly from those who got people to write for them, you may find that the real figure is well below the 27 per cent. So, all our younger people are learning corruption from us. The only thing in life is cheat as much as you can, buy good cars, live a good life and be in control. It’s all the example we are setting from these elections. Ghana is now more attractive to everybody than Nigeria is. Companies are packing out and going there. We are begging Senegal to refine crude oil for us. Officially begging. Senegalese will take our crude and refine and then bring for us to buy. We like importing.

Where did we get it wrong as a nation?
Over the years and after the first coup; though I’m not saying that the First Republic was perfect. Political victimization was the extent of intolerance for opposition. It has always been there. But over the years, as the military stayed on, we all learnt this strategy of using force to achieve objectives. But the worst one was the moment the economy crashed in 1986 because Jeffrey Sacks, who was the Economic Adviser to Kofi Anan, came here at the Hilton and gave a lecture and Paul Kubmon, the current economic Nobel Prize winner in the U.S., both of them denounced the structural adjustment as the biggest crime against Africa since the slave trade. They crashed our currencies.

Due to the anxiety to survive, some of our sons and daughters are into prostitution and slavery in Mauritania and Mali, trying to cross the desert through Libya to go to Europe. Nigerians are in prisons everywhere in a desperate attempt to make money because life is getting too costly here and the economy really, the only area of growth is in oil and gas. I’m not very sure that the banking sector has added anything to growth in the last three years. The only industry is politics. If you can get in, life is nice. You hang in there and don’t leave. We had a third term agenda here and there are many third terms all over now – Senators and Governors who would like to stay forever if the Constitution doesn’t bar them.

That’s exactly why the Senate wants to review the Constitution so that we can have the people’s Constitution. Do you believe in the present effort to review the Constitution?
There are lots of weaknesses in the Constitution. But how do you manage the review when there are many powerful interests that would rather not have things changed? Ideally, there are those who want to see us as other nations, but there are individuals who would rather have it as it is. Take one issue like the creation of states, which may be another story for you. There are about 40 demands and many more. Forty new states in Nigeria would be a huge joke because we don’t have the resources to sustain them. The cost of governance is too high and the wages are crazy. I must also say that the pressure on the politicians is also high, because people see them as the only guys with the wherewithal. So, state creation may not be feasible. But there is also intensive marginalization in many states where a big ethnic group doesn’t believe that a smaller ethnic group should ever access the governorship. So, one may not be too parochial if you say rotate the governorship in Senatorial Districts. They say no; that it’s not democratic. Which is democratic? Marginalization of a segment or rotating the governorship because that’s where the tension is coming from?

But they will tell you that politics is a game of numbers…
That same ethnic group forgets that no single ethnic group has the numbers to make a President in Nigeria without the support of others. Neither Hausa-Fulani alone nor the Igbo and Yoruba can say that our votes alone will make us President. So, they need everybody and the give and take. But if you go to a state or local government, a large group says no, you don’t qualify because we have the number. It’s part of that African thing in all of us.

Last night I was watching the legislators on TV. What is it about where the budget is read? The House of Reps has more space, so they have always sat there. But the original design of the National Assembly had a neutral chamber that could accommodate the two of them. But then, many people said why waste it because it will only be used three or four times in a year. So, why do you waste such a hall? In the larger chamber, everybody comes, they read the budget and you go back. But it’s now an ego matter. Is that the issue? Is that what concerns Nigerians now? Is that more serious than the abduction of four children and the cutting of their heads or a weaker Naira that you have and the lack of production at home or all the killings and the kidnappings? All the time, it’s getting worse by the day.

I’m an elder now and I have been in this business of politics for over 30 years. Is it getting better? What is it that makes us so trivial in our approach to issues? If I drop dead today, nobody will say I died too young. But, for God’s sake, I have children and grandchildren. All of you are much younger brothers. What future for the economy, power supply, interest rate. I’m trying to build a factory. I can’t get there and I get stuck halfway and the bank gave you small money because they wouldn’t give you enough. So, you can’t create the jobs you want to create for younger people. We have been talking about interest rate and it can’t come down from 24 per cent. So, we can’t generate jobs and there are one hundred and something universities and almost another hundred Colleges of Education with about 60 or 70 polytechnics; sixteen million children in secondary schools. Only one per cent enters the university.
We met once and they asked me to return to the party and I said I’m not coming back. We are in the same country. Let’s do a housing programme for a million apartments per annum so that mortgages can begin to happen. We all came.

We got a good apartment in Utako and they said it’s N10 million and that we have 15 years to pay. You know you are paying towards ownership, not to a shark of a landlord who is asking you N1.5 million. Tomorrow, he says he has doubled it and if you don’t like, you pack. Which young man in London goes looking for a plot? He looks for an apartment. In Germany, France and the U.S., it’s out of date looking for plot. Even the plot now is too difficult to get. You buy your apartment and you have 15 years to pay at maybe 5 per cent interest. They said it was a great idea. We worked it out to create 27 million jobs. I said 200,000 in Lagos, 200,000 in Abuja, 200,000 in Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Kano, Onitsha a hundred thousand each. The rest of the place, at least 20,000 and 30,000, including university hostels. Imagine the jobs for those delivering sharp sand, laterite, tipper drivers, quarries, tillers, electricians, architects, painters.

That’s how Singapore grew. Last month, they gave N2 billion to governors to share. On the other hand, if that money had gone into housing, you can imagine the boom. Add that to agric and you would have mopped up all the unemployment and reduced the crime rate. But right now, there is nobody to talk to. There is nobody that I can walk to in the system now and say let’s talk.

Is there something the legislators have not done very well that you expect them to do?
I must be fair to them that they are trying. But they must also keep away from trivial issues, which demean their status, like all these quarrels about who is Chairman. It’s not necessary. Secondly, I think there must be more robust debates on some of the issues. Even if the debate is not necessarily within the legislature, a real debate on education, on housing and even on defense. How come all those weapons came into the Niger Delta and nobody saw them. You have 900 kilometres of coastline. How strong is your Navy to patrol the place? How many warships do they have? How strong is your Airforce? I’m not a military man, but how many planes do they have now? They will tell you this is secret but it’s not because it concerns all of us.

On internal security, the Police are short of equipment. Don’t you know where to get them? England has over 2.2 million cameras monitoring the entire country. One time, they tried to buy cameras in FCT here. Nobody knows whether they were ever bought. The Assembly should question the Executive where these votes are. At the State level, of course the State assemblies have absolutely no control over their governors. The local governments are simply not functioning. Go home and check around in your local government whether anything new is going on? Where is the money? When I was chairman, I summoned all our governors to the Secretariat to ask them what they were doing dabbling with the local government funds. They were so angry with me that they sent a delegation here to protest that I was too harsh on them. Votes are going, but where is the cash? They ought to dig deeper into these things so that the democratic machine can work. If it works, there would be no need for these extreme views about revolution and so on. But people are frustrated and angry and they say maybe that’s the answer. Democracy is wonderful, but we need to get down and question each other.
But the other thing is that the common people, we don’t say anything. Nobody talks now, except the media. You guys write and write. You take all the risks. But the leaders are all quiet because what is the use in talking. That’s what they say.

Do you think we need a revolution in this country?
I don’t wish for it because I don’t like to think of the scenario. This country is a huge dam. If it breaks lose, it will sweep everything. We are too many and it will be fuelled by frustration and hunger.
May it never come! If it comes, many will go who probably are not responsible for the situation. If you are riding a decent car on the street, you are one of them. If you live in a decent house, you are one of them. If you are perceived to be comfortable, you are one of them. The calls are coming out of anger but it’s not something to wish for. We should be able, through dialogue, to correct the system to recognize that things are not good enough. I’m not saying this to help my friends who are in office. They are my friends. I’m not attacking them to say you are bad or good. A few of them will be honest enough to know that what I am saying is real and I’m not alone. If you guys can do opinion polls on the streets, you will hear anger. I’m saying lets find a way of doing it before it gets out of hand. Let’s take this step or the other. These calls are coming because there is no internal democracy even in the political parties.

I don’t want to go back to my time as Chairman when I started seeing these things and trying to raise alarm within the party. But every night, they went to the President and told him lies that Audu is an Atiku man, Audu is living in affluence; he has this and that. They worked very hard and told him that I was an enemy, especially when I told him that the Third Term wasn’t safe for Nigeria . The other tragedy of course is that if you hold a contrary view, then they hack you out because there are no men in this country left.
They are very few. The Idoma people have a name called Acheme, meaning that men are finished. There are too many cowards. Apart from you guys in the media, even the women are more courageous. They will walk up to you, abuse you thoroughly, go and cry and apologize later.

Everybody is hoping to get some benefit for himself. Otherwise, what’s wrong? We used to have stakeholders meetings at the party level where we talk frankly at night. I remember we had one that Na’Abba was so rude to the President that I even had to call Na’Abba to order. But he was blunt. At such gathering, we say Mr. President, the people are angry. There is danger here. Let’s do this. Let’s not do that. At least the message will be there. The Board of Trustees used to meet with the President where we sit down and talk seriously, even though they said stubbornness and arrogance didn’t allow people to listen. I don’t know how it works now. But you said, at all party levels, if you start a party today, there is a big guy who tells you his candidate must be this or must be that. He will say after all, he is funding the party. Some of us, frankly, are even withdrawing. I’m tired of taking the blame.

The Transparency International recently released their result and Nigeria keeps sliding further down.
I think the banking thing really worsened it. Otherwise, I would have thought that now that the EFCC is beginning to prosecute, they would recognize their efforts. That’s not to say that corruption has reduced, but that somebody is addressing it with a certain degree of seriousness. Corruption can’t be cured because the factors, which force corruption on society are increasing. There is hardship and economy is not working. You want to earn a decent living, but all the doorways are closed. So, desperate people will do anything. Once they are in government and they can take what they can for their lifetime and their great-grandchildren, they are okay. In Nigeria too, if you pass through and you don’t do it, later in your family, they will say you are a useless man; they will say ‘you went there and you were speaking grammar when XYZ took plenty for themselves. That’s the other side of it. On the other hand, if this economy were free and we say we are doing a million houses and two of you decide to form a company making doors. You are producing 50,000 doors a year at N25,000; that’s good money. You don’t need to see any governor or Minister because you would be busy. If a governor wants to see you, what is it about because you have a schedule. Your products are in demand; you have distributors waiting and you want your boys to work three shifts.

You don’t have time looking for Senator XYZ or former this and that because you are busy. We are spending over a billion dollars importing tiles every year from Switzerland, Spain and Portugal and Italy. There is clay, there is kaolin and water to make tiles here, make paint and make nails. Imagine the boom. But you can’t do it. You can’t raise a bank loan and the opportunities are just closed. You have no electricity. Greece is a country of nine million people. They have 10 refineries. Abu Dhabi is the capital of United Arab Emirates.

There are 1.5 million people there. They have 11,000 megawatts for 1.5 million people. We are trying to get 6,000 megawatts for 130 million. We are now at the manufacturing levels of 1960 in this country. Go to Ogba and Ikeja in Lagos and see factories that are shut down. Go to the Southeast where the Igbo really wanted to manufacture. Go through there and see carcasses of industries.

Many owners have died.
Then the textile industries in the North are finished. We haven’t any programme for reviving industries here. So, you sit down and wonder what we are leaving behind. I’m over 60. When I go, what do I say to God, that we did a wonderful job or we ruined the country? What else can God do for Nigeria that He hasn’t done?

The international media is saying that this country is a failed nation...
I hope we will all recognize the need to do a very decent election in 2011, including those who are in office now. The danger is that some people in office today just believe that the situation is perfect and that nothing can go wrong. That excessive confidence is dangerous. People shouldn’t feel too secured by believing that everything is perfect. How do we cure ourselves of this desperation for sitting there? There are some people in office today threatening everybody and saying if you run against me, I will kill you. I want to remain there for 30 years. It’s just for them to know that this thing can bring the roof down; how to convince them that we should all try to be open about it. Those who predict doom have their reasons.

I personally will just pray that it doesn’t come because if it does, where will Nigerian refugees flee to? The Camerouns, into Niger or the Republic of Benin? We are too many. In two hours, we will overwhelm these countries. What’s the population of Ghana if you cross Benin and Togo? It’s the population of Lagos alone. So, it’s not good for us. I used to tell legislators that everyone of them should have a second address so that you don’t hang on to this too much. If this isn’t working or you haven’t won your election, you go back to what you were doing. The situation is very frightening and the degree of frustration and economic hardship is the one really bothering everybody because that’s where the real danger lies.

You are an insider and you are with the politicians...
I think there will be a great deal of frustration leading to near anarchy. I don’t want to predict doom but quite frankly, I think we must try and hold a free and fair election in 2011. I’m therefore saying to the Assembly people that the matter isn’t as simple as it looks. Let them do everything to do those amendments necessary. Let nobody feel so secured as to think that we can get away with it. I’m glad about the Senate retreat in Enugu. They are beginning to see the sense in clearing all cases before anybody is sworn in. I don’t see anywhere in the world that two and a half years later, election petitions are still disqualifying and Judges are still tied down by the fate that the political crisis is pumping out. Election can’t be forever in a country. It happens and goes and people, government sit down and face what they have to do. Ours is endless; from one election to the other. Nothing but petitions, court cases and politicians doing their best to corrupt the judiciary. Let me put it this way that the prospects of a bad election in 2011 is scary.

I was going to ask you whether you think that the appointment of the INEC Chairman by the President is proper, considering the proposal by the Uwais panel.
In many other countries, the INEC Chairman is appointed by the President. In some places like Bangladesh and some parts of Southeast Asia , they have a structure like the one recommended by the Uwais panel. The big question is: where are the men in this country? If the President makes you INEC Chairman, tell him, Mr. President, I will do the job well or I will quit. If he wouldn’t let you do your job, you leave. But there are too many men in this country that would say how could I argue with him. He appointed me. There is too much at stake at a personal level. What of the one in Ghana? He’s still there since 1992. Nobody is quarrelling with him. Why don’t any Nigerian say no to the person who appointed him? Why are we so peculiar as a people? That’s the problem.
If you get there, you must please the man in whatever he does. He put you there and you are making money. Since we can’t trust the ones named by the President, we must do what Uwais said so that we can say Mr. INEC Chairman, if you don’t do this job well, don’t tell us that they called you from the Villa or they did this and that. I was party Chairman.

I came under pressure to do certain things but I refused, including changing the nomination of people who had won their primaries. I told Mr. President that it was not feasible. I can name names like Senator Ben Obi, Joy Emordi and Uka Chukwude. They won their primaries and I was under pressure to change their names but I told the man that it couldn’t happen. I can’t deputize for the constituency in Anambra.

I was in no position to replace them. I said Mr. President, I sent people there, they conducted the primaries and everything was okay. Nobody protested. My style then was that if there was a process, bring all the parties together and let’s hear them out. Somehow, Obasanjo didn’t like Ben Obi and he said I should replace him but I said no. I went to the Working Committee and said gentlemen, if you insist, you have my resignation. I can’t do it. If you win your primary, even if you were a small teacher in the village and the people say we like him to represent us, what right do I have before God and man to sit here and change it? I can’t and I shouldn’t. A guy loses an election, they phone you up and say declare results immediately. They go upstairs and do a Press Conference. You are a husband and you will go to your house and tell your wife that the soup is not nice whereas another man is sitting on your head.

You think the President took it in good faith?
Of course he didn’t. What followed thereafter were crises until the terminal end of this matter.

On a lighter note because you are being too serious now, I want you to reflect on the day the President came to your house to eat pounded yam.
You mean the day we ate Egusi and bush meat cooked by my dear wife? When we left the place, I think he was like let’s go and settle this matter. But then, there were the hawks – the Bode Georges, the Anenihs and the others who said you must remove him. He’s very arrogant. Who is he? He caved in. He said I’m sorry I can’t work with you anymore. I said no problem. You will have my resignation in 30 minutes. I don’t like hanging on to this job because it’s nothing. I wasn’t born a PDP Chairman. I knew I wasn’t going to die a PDP Chairman.

Did you submit your resignation while you were eating the pounded yam?
It was the second night after the Thursday we ate together. Over the weekend, he said no, I’m sorry, this and that. On Saturday evening, I said here it is. Give it to NEC.

So you consider the pounded yam eating as the last supper?
In my place, if you eat in a man’s place and you turn around to wrong him, it’s a kind of oath. But I don’t have any quarrels with him. He did what he thought was best. I did what I thought was best because at that time, I had ample information that they were going to kill Ngige before Christmas 2004 and that was the subject of my letter. I didn’t think I could sit down and supervise another death in the PDP. Bola Ige had gone, Dikibo, Harry Marshall. I thought it was too much.

Sun News

Riot in prison over Bode George

Indications emerged, Friday, that it took what could have culminated into a violent riot at the Kirikiri Maximum Prison, Apapa, Lagos for prison authorities at Maximum Prisons, Kirikiri to formally hand over the popular prison blue-and blue uniform to convicted Chieftain of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former Board Chairman of Nigerian Ports Authority, Chief Bode George.

Reliable sources inside the prison revealed that penultimate day, some of the artisan inmates in the prison who were being marched to their workshop suddenly became violent on approaching Bode George’s cell and started shouting, banging their implements on the gate, demanding that he should bring out the money he squandered for them to share.
Bode George' s bail application hits the rocks

Bode George' s bail application hits the rocks

According to the reliable source, the prisoners used their hammers, chisels and double edged bars to hit on the gate of his cell calling on the prison authorities to, without delay, provide a uniform for him or face the consequences.

The protesting prisoners reportedly also insisted that Chief George should share his loot equally with them or face their wrath.

The action of the artisans which sources said, attracted the attention of other prisoners, culminated in a general upheaval which nearly turned violent, but for the quick intervention of the Controller of the prison who ordered the immediate provision of an official uniform for Chief George.

The source said, “The prison artisans were passing by his cell when they saw him on mufti. They reacted spontaneously with their implements calling for the immediate provision of prison uniform for him or hell will be let loose. They were banging heavily on his cell until the controller was quickly invited and he ordered that a uniform be quickly provided for him and it was done. Chief George now adorns the official blue top and trousers meant for all prisoners in the country.”

Similarly, Saturday Vanguard scooped that Chief George’s feeding routine is a bowl of Quaker Oats in the morning , amala, gbegiri and ewedu in the afternoon and any other choice of food at night. It was gathered that he sits inside his cell all day long reading both national and international newspapers with deep concentration.

Sources also hinted that he has set an unenviable record since the existence of the prison by receiving the largest number of visitors on a daily basis. According to the source, he receives not less than 2000 visitors of different shades and characters daily and about 60% of them are women of different shapes and sizes.

The source revealed that one of the numerous women came last week in an Infinity Jeep and delivered well packaged dozen of boxers and singlet to him. So far, it was gathered that only two women who claim to be his lawful wives have been visiting constantly.

“They normally come with a green range Rover Jeep with his food. ” The source said Chief George has never failed to offer prayers daily in the morning and nights at the prison chapel, clad in his prison uniform.
Vanguardngr

NIPSS grandaunts return damning report on Nigeria

Participants of Course 31 of the National Institution for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) yesterday gave a damning report about the goings on in the polity, calling for urgent action to save the country from further descent. The participants who were led on a courtesy visit on President Umaru Yar’Adua in Abuja by the institute’s director-general, Prof. Danfulani Ahmed, dismissed the level of accountability and responsiveness of government officials as low and the institutional framework put in place to ensure strict compliance as very weak.

They said all officials in the country who were directly in charge of programmes needed to be frequently audited and mandated to be more open, pointing out that “lack of transparency aids corruption, slows down progress, destroys morals and promotes violence”.

As a way of promoting good governance in the country, the group said the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill which had been in the National Assembly for three years should be passed without further delay.
The report presented by two members of the delegation, Col. Ubari Gidum and Mr. Remi Desalu expressed disappointment that despite the billions of naira expended on road construction and rehabilitation in the last 10 years, most federal roads in the country had remained in a deplorable state.

“Sustainable developmental projects are veritable engine of economic growth and development. Public utilities in most parts of the countries visited were inefficient. It must be told that no amount of foreign trips would attract investors if the critical infrastructures are lacking,” they contended.
They told the president that the recent ranking of Nigeria as number 35 in terms of good governance in Africa by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation index for Africa was a clear indication that a lot needed to be done by government.

The participants called for the repeal of the immunity clause in the 1999 Constitution, arguing that the removal of the clause from the constitution would not only enhance the rule of law, but would also ensure transparency, accountability and responsiveness essential for good governance.
Advising government to take concrete steps to strengthen anti-corruption agencies in order to enhance their effectiveness, they suggested the merger of the EFCC and ICPC to avoid overlapping of functions as well as stripping the police and other security agencies of the responsibility of fighting corruption.

While also calling for the establishment of special courts to handle economic and financial crimes and other cases of corruption to make for faster adjudication of corruption cases, they advised that only judges with proven integrity and track records should be appointed in the country.
On the electoral issue, the participants advised the Federal Government to put a mechanism in place to ensure the emergence of political leaders through a transparent and credible electoral process as well as to do away with the culture of ‘winner takes all, which, they contended emasculated the opposition in the country.

They threw their weight behind the call for the creation of state police for a more effective policing of the country, saying state governments should be allowed to establish police service commission to handle the recruitment and training of the personnel.
As a means of engaging the former Niger Delta militants, the participants suggested the setting of a security outfit for the monitoring of the oil pipelines and installations across the country with the ex-militants forming the bulk of the body and the rest parts of the country forming between 20 and 30 per cent.
President Yar’Adua, in his reaction, commended the group for putting up such a thought-provoking paper and promised to present it to the Federal Executive Council for discussion.
Saying the document will assist the country in the quest for transformation from an under-developed to a fast emerging economy by 2020, he assured “we will look at the recommendations and include them in our policy formulations and also get in touch with you in terms of the implementation and feedbacks.”
The president challenged them to do something similar in other areas of the economy, assuring .that the present situation in the country would soon be a thing of the past.


Sun News

Marketers, NNPC trade blames as fuel crisis worsens

LONG fuel queues have hit Lagos State and other major cities across the country, as the problem of logistics hinders efforts by the Pipeline Products and Marketing Company, PPMC, a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, to discharge products from its imported cargoes for distribution to marketers.

However, major and independent marketers, who spoke to Vanguard, punctured the claim by NNPC that it has products on the high sea.
LONG fuel queues hit Lagos State and other major cities across the country

LONG fuel queues hit Lagos State and other major cities across the country

According to them, such claim does not translate to products availability at the filling stations.
One of the independent marketers also said that his company loaded only 30 trucks yesterday as against an average of 80 trucks it used to load when products were available.

“If NNPC has products on the sea, can we go there to get the products? They have to discharge the products to the private depots they hired for us to go there and lift products. The problem is the same at MRS and Oando. They have paid for the products and they have NNPC tickets but have not been able to get products for the past four days. Before now, once you pay and NNPC gives you ticket, you go to any of the private depots and lift products within 14 hours. But now it takes up to one week to get products after you have paid,” he explained.

Also, a highly placed official of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources who spoke to Vanguard on the condition of anonymity claimed that the NNPC is simply trying to deceive the Presidency that it has enough products in stock. If they have enough products then why are there queues? He queried.

According to him, “you can only claim you have products when they are available in the tanks, if they are on the high sea, how can you take that into account as part of your stock. As a government agency in charge of these products, they are simply to ensure that there are no queues in the country, and that has failed”. He said.

Meanwhile, a close source at the NNPC told Vanguard on phone that the present scarcity of petroleum products across the country is due to the scheme by marketers not to lift products as well as their refusal to sell the stock in their tanks thereby hoarding the products.

According to him, most of the marketers believe that the deregulation plan of the Federal Government was only put on hold because of the just concluded Under-17 World Cup tournament hosted by the country. “They believe that government would go back on the deregulation plan since the tournament has ended and as such there are uncertainties as to the pricing and availability of products.”

Another marketer told Vanguard that if the marketers, both majors and independent, had been given products, there would be no queues.

He stated that under the new arrangement, it is only the NNPC that imports products, adding that the corporation claims to have enough on the high seas but none at the filling stations owing to the problem of distribution.

He stated that though the government has given the marketers approval to import, it will take a few weeks before the cargoes start coming in.

“We were only given approval last week and it takes sometime, to open letters of credit. You have to negotiate with the banks”, he said.

Executive Secretary of Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, MOMAN, Mr. Femi Olawore, also punctured the claim by the NNPC that it has enough products, adding that it was only on Sunday that some marketers started receiving products from PPMC.

“If anybody tells you that he has 40 days sufficiency, ask him where he is hiding the products,” he said. He however, noted that since the majors cover over 50 percent of the supply chain and have concluded lifting by yesterday the scarcity would still be a thing of the past and the queues would also disappear.

But the Public Affairs Manager of PPMC, Mr. Ralph Ugwu insisted that PPMC has 40 days sufficiency and argued that there was no need for the queues.

“As far as we are concerned, we have maintained the same level of supply as before. We have a robust supply and the queues are uncalled-for. We have over 40-day sufficiency and we have not changed our distribution system. There has not been any change in the supply situation”, he said.

Efforts to reach NNPC’s Levi Ajuonuma proved abortive as he was said to be in a meeting at the time of filling this report.
Vanguardngr

Explosion at Nato base in Kabul

A car bomber has struck outside a Nato base in the Afghan capital Kabul, injuring three foreign soldiers and three Afghan civilians, officials say.

The bomber targeted a coalition vehicle near Camp Phoenix, where Afghan forces are trained, Afghan officials said.

The Taliban said it carried out the suicide bombing.

British officials have meanwhile suggested a reconciliation between the Afghan government and parts of the Taliban leadership within two years.

Ministers have previously talked of the need for the reintegration of Taliban foot soldiers and local commanders.

Putting in place the right combination of carrot and stick, at the right moment, will be critical to changing the calculations of individual commanders and their men
British memo seen by BBC

UK 'backs Taliban reintegration'
UK to push for more Afghan troops

But a memo seen by the BBC recommends a wider dialogue within a specific time-frame of two years - including a settlement between the Afghan government and parts of the Quetta Shura, the Taliban's governing body.

The document is believed to be one of a number written by foreign governments providing advice to Afghan President Hamid Karzai's administration as it prepares for its second term in office, BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera reports.

Parts of the memo have been obtained by the BBC, including a call to reduce the insurgency by a combination of military pressure and offering an honourable exit from the fight to the Taliban, he says.

Included in the proposed action plan are the removal of reconciled Taliban leaders from the UN sanctions list within six months.

Leaked message

Speaking to the BBC, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Britain did not have a "Plan B" of talking to the Taliban.

But he said Britain favoured Afghans leading a process of reconciliation for anyone associated with the Taliban who then renounced violence and joined the political process.

He also said he was hopeful he would be able to persuade countries both in and outside Nato to send 5,000 more military personnel to Afghanistan to help train and mentor Afghan forces.

The UK has about 9,000 service personnel there and Mr Brown has said he is willing to send another 500, but only if others provide their "fair share".

Mr Brown said UK strategy was "very much in line" with that of the US, where President Barack Obama is due to make a decision on whether to deploy a significant number of extra troops.

The US has some 68,000 troops in Afghanistan, among a coalition force of more than 100,000.

The top US and Nato commander in Afghanistan, Gen Stanley McChrystal, has urged an injection of about 40,000 more troops, triggering a lengthy debate over possible reinforcements.

The US ambassador in Kabul has warned against a large troop surge, expressing concerns about corruption and poor governance under President Hamid Karzai.

In a leaked message to the White House during the past week, Ambassador Karl Eikenberry - a former top military commander in Afghanistan - reportedly said it was "not a good idea" to send substantially more soldiers.

'Big bang'

Reports say Friday's blast on the Kabul-Jalalabad road was followed by small arms fire. The area was sealed off by Western and Afghan forces.

Nabi, a taxi driver, told the Associated Press that he heard a "big bang" as he was driving down the road.

"Everything went dark," he said. "I just managed to take myself out of the area. I don't know what happened then, but the attack was on the foreigners."

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said the group claimed responsibility for the attack.

BBC News

Nigeria qualify for the World Cup

Nigeria have qualified for South Africa 2010 after defeating Kenya's Harambee Stars 3-2.

They also have Mozambique to thank for beating Tunisia 1-nil in Maputo to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Nigeria got off to a nervous start against the Harambee stars.

Kenya's Dennis Oliech was the first to draw blood scoring after 16 minutes.

Nigeria missed chance after chance in the first half which ended 1-nil.

Nigeria's 200 or so spectators at the stadium began had their spirits lifted after Nigeria's Obafemi Martins equalized on 62 minutes and Yakubu Aiyegbeni netted again just three minutes later.

Kenyan fans began throwing plastic bottles onto the pitch bringing the game to a halt briefly while the pitch was cleared of debris.

Meanwhile in Maputo the goalless deadlock was broken when Dario scored on 83 minutes.

But the goals were still coming in Nairobi.

Harambee Stars equalized through Allan Wetende with just eleven minutes remaining.

But Obafemi Martins saved the day for the Super Eagles netting his 2nd goal of the game on 83 minutes.

Fans in Maputo began celebrating wildly as did Nigeria's loyal fans in Nairobi.

This will be Nigeria's fourth appearance at the World Cup finals.

They qualified in 1994, 1998 and in 2002.
BBC Sport

Andy Uba loses bid for Anambra governorship seat

THE Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu, Friday, has dismissed the application filed by the gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) in the 2007 election in Anambra state, Dr Emmanuel Andy Uba seeking to be automatically sworn in upon the expiration of the tenure of Governor Peter Obi on March 17, 2010 without any election.

The court said it was in support of the position of the supreme court on the matter which had earlier held that there was no vacancy in the gubernatorial seat of Anambra as at the time the said election which purportedly returned Uba was conducted.
Dr Emmanuel Andy Uba

Dr Emmanuel Andy Uba

The appellate court was unequivocal in its decision to reject Uba’s prayer to declare him Governor-in-waiting on the strength of his earlier victory at the pools saying the governorship seat was not a traditional stool that should be hereditary.

In a unanimous judgment delivered by the five-man panel of justices led by Justice Sylvester Ngwuta, the appellate court held that although it had jurisdiction to entertain the application, but after due consideration and looking at the arguments by the applicant and respondents, the court had no choice than to dismiss the application in its entirety as it “lacks merit and has no moral basis and will be a judicial blunder of immense proportion to grant these reliefs being sought”.

While dismissing the application in its entirety, the court said that each party should bear the cost of litigation. It however berated the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for conducting the said governorship election in Anambra in 2007 even when Governor Obi was at the apex court seeking for the interpretation of his tenure.

In a quick reaction to the court’s verdict yesterday, National Chairman of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Victor Umeh said the judgment has further shown the judiciary is committed to the sustenance of the nation’s democracy, adding that anything contrary would have been counter-productive.

“Once again, the judiciary has shown that it remains the last hope of the common man and that it is committed to our democracy. We hail the Court of Appeal for resisting this ignoble invitation to sabotage the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Democracy can only survive by upholding the rule of law and also jealously defending the constitution of Nigeria. The court of appeal and the judiciary have this day stood very firmly on the side of the constitution and it gives so much hope that democracy can be nurtured in this country through a firm intervention by the judiciary.

“The judgment of the Court of Appeal today has vindicated an earlier position held by the National leader of APGA, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu who had patriotically called for the supremacy of the constitution in this matter.

This verdict has now cleared the coast for the forthcoming governorship election in Anambra State fixed for 6th of February 2010. APGA will continue to demand along with well meaning people of Anambra State for a credible, free and fair election in Anambra State come 2010.

Justice Ngwuta in the lead judgment which was concurred by the rest of the justices noted that it was prejudicial for the INEC to have gone ahead to conduct the April 14 gubernatorial election even when the matter in which INEC was also a party was yet to be dispensed with at the apex court.

He said that the Supreme Court eventually ruled that Peter Obi’s tenure runs from March 17, 2006 to March 17, 2010, and ordered that Uba who had been returned by INEC and sworn in as the winner of April 14 2007 governorship election of Anambra State, vacate the office immediately for Obi to complete his tenure since there was no vacancy in the first instance.

Ngwuta maintained that Uba’s argument that he was governor in waiting since no tribunal or court nullified his election, does not hold water since, according to him, the court or tribunal cannot nullify what does not exist. He wondered where Uba got the governor-in-waiting appellation.

“The April 14 2007 election is a nullity ab-initio, it is an indisputable fact that the election was conducted outside the law. The election is nullity, there is no need for court to set it aside, it does not exist in law. A court does not act in vein, so there is no need setting aside what does not exist.

“The seat of power in Anambra State is not a hereditary stool, it is only through due process as prescribed by the electoral act and the constitution can somebody be elected to occupy that seat. The election that brought Uba was an illegal act and nobody demands right or relief on illegal act. Accordingly reliefs 1 to 4 are hereby dismissed and consequently the application is dismissed. Each party should bear its cost,” he ruled.

Justice Ngwuta had argued that based on the Supreme Court judgment, which said that Obi remains governor till March 17, 2010, the election of Uba therefore violates Section 178 (2) of the 1999 Constitution which prescribes that election to the office of the governor should hold not earlier that 60 days and not less than 30 days to the expiration of the tenure of the incumbent.

Granting the application, according to him will equally rob Obi of his right to seek a second term in office in line with the law, as well as disenfranchise those who were not of voting age in April 14, 2007 but who will be in March 17, 2010.

The appellate court maintained that the consequential relief being sought by the applicant was substantial in nature after critical examination but that enough evidence were not taken in that regard. He stated that since the court remained the final court in governorship election cases, it had become very important for it to be careful in granting the relief so as not to foreclose the right of others to seek further redress.

The other justices including Justice Kekere Ekun, Paul Galinje, Abdul Adoki and Jean Omokiri all aligned themselves with the lead judgment.

Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it would abide by the judgment by going ahead with the planned governorship election scheduled to take place in Anambra on February 6, next year. It said the judgment had finally laid to rest all the ambiguities and controversies surrounding the conduct of the April 14 gubernatorial election in Anambra state.

Speaking with newsmen, Counsel to INEC in the case, Chief Amaechi Nwaiwu (SAN) hailed the judgment as been “very thorough and in-depth” noting that they had finally secured the clarification and guidance which the commission had all while the case lasted prayed the appellate court to provide to them.

“The judgment is a landmark decision in the sense that the court has laid to rest all the controversies concerning the governorship seat of Anambra after March 17 next year. We’ll abide by the judgment by going ahead to conduct the scheduled election in the state next year. We are happy,” Nwaiwu stated.

The APGA National Chairman, Chief Umeh, tasked the INEC to ensure that the forthcoming election in Anambra State was conducted in a free and fair manner. “The INEC should key into the firmness and boldness demonstrated by the Court of Appeal in this case in the discharge of its own responsibilities in the conduct of the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

APGA and the people of Anambra State will resist any attempt to compromise that election. The Federal Government has assured of providing adequate security for that election but that is not enough. The Federal Government should also ensure that INEC conducts that election in a credible, free and fair manner,” he stated.

In his reaction, the governorship candidate of the Action Congress (AC) in the next year’s gubernatorial election in Anambra state and former governor of the state, Dr Chris Ngige hailed the judgment as representing the overall interest of the people of Nigeria. He stated that the judgment has emboldened them to formally kick off the campaigns for the governorship of Anambra state.
Vanguardngr.com

We’ve arrested Pa Soludo’s kidnappers – Onovo

Police authorities in Abuja on Wednesday disclosed that they had arrested all persons involved in the kidnapping of Pa Simeon Soludo, father of immediate past governor of Central Bank of Nigeria [CBN] and gubernatorial flagbearer of the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] in the 2010 governorship election in Anambra State, Professor Chukwuma Soludo.

Inspector General of Police IGP), Mr. Ogbonna Okechukwu Onovo,who disclosed this while addressing senior police officers from the rank of Commissioners of Police and above, added that details of the kidnappers are kept under wraps for now for security reasons.

According to him, “On the issue of Soludo’s father, we have gotten the culprits. I was supposed to make a press conference today on the issue Soludo’s father. We have made some arrests and investigations are on. I believe that this crime of kidnapping will soon stop. It is still thriving because our people are paying the ransom.

“If our people refuse to pay ransom, they will stop,” he said. The IGP, however, lamented police inability to combat high profile crimes such as kidnapping and assassinations due to lack of modern facilities as well as poor working conditions.
Mr. Onovo further directed the Police Commissioners to embark on high police visibility patrol across the country as well as mounting checkpoints at high risk areas especially at Lagos – Benin, Lagos -Ibadan, Abuja – Lokoja highways among others.

He warned against extortion and other unholy practices, mandating the Commissioners of police to select and train personnel properly on courtesy and other good conduct before posting them to the checkpoints. He explained that the roadblocks were a measure to cope with high crime rates associated with the yuletide season.
According to him, “The last two months of this year will usher in Christmas and Sallah celebrations. This is a period of increased traffic on our roads and an expected upsurge in crimes. The mandate and mantle lies on us to ensure a crime-free season.

“This meeting is an opportunity to brainstorm and re-strategise on our crime prevention modalities.
“Kidnapping, armed robbery and other violent crimes must not be allowed to persist this season. I hereby order that command Commissioners of Police to embark on high visibility patrols of their areas. Officers posted to hot spots or directing traffic must adhere to the ethics of our profession and show diligence, courtesy and kindness to citizens. Officers must be neat and polite, and at all times conduct themselves professionally.
“As the police cannot do it alone, I enjoin you to partner with well-meaning members of the public and stakeholders, particularly vigilante groups,” the IGP noted.

Sun News