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