President Buhari cannot direct EFCC to investigate Amaechi, Kyari- Femi Adesina

Special Assistant to President Buhari on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, says President Buhari cannot order EFCC to investigate any of his Ministers accused of corruption because the anti-graft agency is an independent body and is not controlled by the Presidency.

we on with clinton

#WE WANT CLINTON

Buhari Is Simply Incompetent On The Provision Of The Welfare Of The Citizens 'Cos He Was Never Ready For The Job - Ex-Jigawa Gov, Sule Lamido

A former governor of Jigawa State and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) henchman, Alhaji Sule Lamido, has reproached President Muhammadu Buhari for blaming the excruciating hardship suffered by Nigerians on recession.

Buhari Holds Secret Meeting With Yakubu Dogara & Aminu Tambuwal, At The Presidential Villa In Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari today, Tuesday, September 27 met with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara and the Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

APC responds to PDP’s call for Buhari to resign as being silly

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has called the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) call for the resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari as being silly.
In a statement by the National Secretary of the APC, Mallam Mai Mala Buni on Thursday he said the PDP should apologise to Nigerians and return stolen public funds.

4, 904 workers recruited by Jonathan may lose jobs

The jobs of 4,904 civil servants, who were recruited by the Federal Civil Service Commission in the last administration of President Goodluck Jonathan,  are under threat as  the  Federal Character Commission has queried the exercise.

 It was learnt on Monday that moves by the Federal Civil Service Commission to sack the workers had led to a crisis in the civil service.

No fewer than 247 of the affected workers had petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission over a plan by the FCSC to sack them.

Nigeria’ll be great again – Fayose

The Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele , has urged Nigerians to pray for President Muhammadu Buhari and his administration and ask God to give them the inspiration, wisdom and knowledge to lead the country.

He expressed hope that the country would be great again, urging all to adhere to the tenets of peace, perseverance, tolerance, peace and love for one another as preached by Islam.

Oby Ezekwesili reacts to reports claiming she said Buhari, not Jonathan, is responsible for the recession

Former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, took to her twitter handle to react to a report that surfaced online yesterday in which she is alleged to have sent out a Whatsapp message saying Pres. Buhari

Edo election: INEC to announce position on postponement today

The Independent Electoral Commission will announce its position on calls for the postponement of the Edo State governorship election, it has been gathered.
The Department of State Services and the Nigerian Police Force had on Wednesday called for the postponement of the election as a result of threats by insurgents and extremists to cause mayhem.
INEC, which expressed shock at the call, said it would meet with the NPF and the DSS to decide if it would go ahead with the election, which is scheduled to take place on Saturday.
The National Chairman, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, said this during a meeting with political parties and other relevant stakeholders in Benin, the Edo State capital, on Wednesday.

Jonathan’s administration owed fertiliser suppliers N65bn – Presidency

The Federal Government has decried the inability of the previous administration to settle the outstanding N65 billion fertiliser debt owed to suppliers of the commodity.

This is contained in a statement issued by Malam Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President in Abuja on Monday.

Oke rejects Ondo APC primary result

Two DAYS after the primary of the All Progressives Congress in Ondo State, some of the governorship 

aspirants of the party have been reacting to the outcome of the election.

A former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu, won the primary held on Saturday in Akure, the state capital, defeating all the 23 other aspirants of the party.

One of the governorship aspirants of the party, Chief Olusola Oke condemned the emergence of  Akeredolu as the party’s candidate for the governorship poll, faulting the result of the primary.

However, two aspirants, Dr. Segun Abraham and Mr. Victor Olabimtan, hailed the conduct of the exercise, saying the election was free and fair. They congratulated Akeredolu and pledged to support his governorship bid.

PDP should be in intensive care unit, says Obasanjo

 

former president Olusegun Obasanjo has described the Peoples Democratic Party as a dying political party which needs to be taken to an intensive care unit.

PDP Set For Peace, Dissolves Nyesom Wike-Led Convention Committee As Demanded By Modu Sheriff

Nigeria's main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), desperate for peace among its members, has conceded to some of the demands made by its factional National Chairman, Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff.

Rising from a meeting in Abuja on Monday, the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party said that the next national convention of the party would now hold in Abuja, and dissolved the national convention committee under the leadership of the Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Nyesom Wike.

Both conditions are part of the peace accord reached with the Ali Modu Sheriff faction in the quest to end the crisis ravaging the PDP.

The BoT meeting was attended by a sizeable number of members and was presided over by its Chairman, Senator Walid Jibrin. It was held at the Musa Yar’Adua Centre.

It mandated its Reconciliation Committee to continue with all “good efforts” aimed at reconciling all of the party’s aggrieved members.

Communique:

August 29, 2016

The meeting of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) just ended at the Musa Ya’Adua Center, Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The meeting was presided over by the Chairman of the BoT, Senator Walid Jubril with other members of Board of Trustees (BoT) in attendance which includes: the National Chairman, H.E. Senator Ahmed Makarfi, CON, former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ibrahim Mantu, former National Chairmen, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo and Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, OFR amongst others.

The meeting arrived at the following resolutions:

1.Passed a solid Vote of Confidence on the National Caretaker Committee led by H. E. Sen. Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, CON and urged the Committee to continue its good work of repositioning the Party;

2.That the forthcoming National Convention of the PDP be held in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT);

3.That to ensure a credible, transparent, free and fair National Convention, the BoT resolved that a new National Convention Planning Committee be constituted by the National Caretaker Committee and approve by the National Executive Committee (NEC);

4.That the BoT will facilitate the raising of adequate funds for the Party;

5.The BoT mandated its Reconciliation Committee to continue with allgood efforts of reconciling all aggrieved Party members;

6.The Meeting urged all PDP Governors to continue pursuing positive programmes of good governance so as to clearly project the people oriented manifesto of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP);

7.Finally, BoT advised the National Caretaker Committee to as soon as possible convene the Meeting of the National Executive Committee (NEC) in order to approve proposals on the way forward for Party.

Signed:

Senator Walid Jubril

Chairman, BoT

Those Sponsoring Allegations Against Me, Are Intimidated By My Rising Profile - Goodluck Jonathan Reacts

The immediate past President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has again denied allegations that he is sponsoring the Niger Delta Avengers, after reports went viral that the Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government had begun probing him over alleged link to the Niger Delta Avengers.

According to GEJ, the allegation was being sponsored by those intimidated by his rising profile in Nigeria and abroad.

In a statement by his spokesman, Mr. Ikechukwu Eze, on Thursday, GEJ said:

   ''It is sad that the publications wore the cloak of deceit from the same misguided characters that are hell-bent on pulling down the former President despite his clear record of diligent service to his country and long-standing commitment to the good of the society.

   ''There is no doubt that there exists such people who may have scores to settle with the former President, but are now feeling frustrated by the fact that his national and international profiles have continued to rise despite their recourse to endless muck-raking character assassination. Such people will stop at nothing to continue to throw obstacles, albeit futilely, on his path.

   ''We are aware that the same people approached other well-meaning newspapers with the same false information, but they were wise to turn it down on account of its absurdity.''

Jonathan advised the media to be professional and do more of investigative reporting instead of making reference to allegations of aggrieved militants.

He said no responsible security agency would release such falsehood to the press. The statement added..

   ''From what we know about intelligence gathering, there is no responsible government agency that would rush, as claimed in the newspaper stories, to adopt the accusations of a questionable rebellious organisation as its own findings, without applying the professional processes of rigour and due diligence.

   ''Our media houses should be careful not to make the country a laughing stock by being hoodwinked into passing off the perverted voices of irritant groups as that of our well-respected official and security authorities.''

The ex-President said newspapers promoting spurious allegations against him were toying with libel and destroying the image of Nigeria.

   ''Apart from toying with the serious issue of libel, those newspapers lending themselves to be cheaply used by miscreants are also doing gross disservice to our collective good and the image of the country.'' He said.

Why the Desperation to Rope in Dr. Goodluck Jonathan? By Reno Omokri

This is an article written by Reno Omokri. Please read on...

The coordinated attack on the integrity and credibility of former President Goodluck Jonathan is unfortunate. That the same hastily cooked up lies were reported simultaneously and almost word for word by The Nation, saharareporters.com, premiumtimesng.com and other known client media of the powers that be is evidence of the fact that someone powerful is out to get the former President.

Let us even consider the report in itself. One of the conjectures used by the propagators of this lie to pull the wool over the eyes of Nigerians is contained in this quote “It has been known in government circles that Jonathan may be behind the NDA. The speed with which he denied the allegation spoke volumes."

There has never been such a childish and amateurish justification for sullying the hard earned peaceful reputation of a man like former President Jonathan as this.

When in November of 2012 Boko Haram named Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), now the current President of Nigeria, as one of its chosen mediators did he not quickly and immediately deny and reject the nomination by Boko Haram?

Flowing from the same warped reasoning, his speedy denial is also evidence that he had a hand in the terrorism occasioned by the radical Islamic sect, but we know that is not true because Boko Haram tried to kill Mr. Buhari.

If it were that Dr. Jonathan did not quickly and completely deny any links with the Niger Delta Avengers and any other militants group, then the sponsors of this wishy washy story would have changed their tactics and would have said that his non denial is evidence of his complicity.

Another so called evidence used against the former President in this sponsored report is the fact that he called for peace and urged militants not to declare a republic or contemplate secession.

In the disturbed thinking of the sponsors of this report, this is evidence against Dr. Jonathan?

Has it occurred to these demented persons that this is precisely what a genuine statesman should do in times like these? In September of 2011, former President Olusegun Obasanjo visited Maiduguri to see the family of the late founder of Boko Haram, Mohammed Yusuf, in search of peace. He was applauded for such a courageous act, as he should have been, because that is what is expected of statesmen.

In other climes, they give people Nobel Peace Prizes for prevailing on belligerents to sheathe their swords, but apparently in Nigeria, it is evidence of your complicity. Should Nigerians be surprised then that passers by refuse to help those attacked by armed robbers or accident victims on the roadside like the Good Samaritan? If you do, the government may accuse you of being the perpetrator instead of the savior.

But these happenings are not surprising to me. We were all witnesses to the threat to withdraw the licenses of the two major fertilizer manufacturers in Nigeria, Notore Petrochemical and Indorama Eleme Petrochemical, for providing the materials used by terrorists and militants to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).

Now, according to this new tale inserted into the media, it was Dr. Jonathan who instructed militants to mine oil installations before the May 29th, 2015 handover date.

Now it is confirmed that liars do not have a good memory and so must contradict themselves. If the oil installations were rigged with mines the question to be asked is are mines made from fertilizers? Can they not get their story right?

There is a troubling pattern here. It seems that any time Dr. Jonathan is advancing on the world stage for his humanitarian and pro-democracy activities, these fallacious stories appear in the media to distract him.

When he was on his very successful international speaking tour earlier in the year, the lie was told that he was away on exile.

Now that he is back from his second successful outing as head of the African Union Elections Observation Mission to Zambia the usual suspects are up to their old tricks. Who knows what they would do next when they behold the great things that Dr. Jonathan is set to do very shortly?

And to the Minister of Information, Dr. Lai Mohammed, who was quoted in the said report as saying "these allegations have refused to go away and those making the allegations are not backing out", let me remind him that there are allegations against him that have refused to go away.

In fact, the allegations against Lai Mohammed come with documentary evidence. We remember that he was alleged to have begged his subordinates at the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) for a 'loan' of ₦13 million against civil service rules and against the rules of public decency.

Have those allegations gone away, Mr. Lai Mohammed? Should we then accept them as true? Of course not! Why? Because allegations, no matter how weighty, are not evidence.

Like I said before, I am ever proud of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. Somebody asked me what I gained by working with Goodluck Jonathan. My response was that I learnt wisdom. I learnt that It is better to lose power and gain honor than to gain power and lose honor. I learnt not to defend myself when my enemies falsely accuse me. The same media that gleefully reported their lies will eventually expose them when they see that the public is no longer buying their lies.

Finally, I learnt that the best revenge against those who criticize how you do your job is to step aside and let them have the job and watch them underperform in such a manner until they get so desperate that the only achievements they can boast of are the ones you achieved during your so called underperformance. May God bless Dr. Jonathan for teaching me such wisdom! In Jesus name.

2016 Budget Padding: Abdulmumini Jibrin Seeks Court Order To Stop Suspension By House

A former Chairman, House of Representative Committee on Appropriation, Abdulmumini Jibrin, has asked the Federal High Court, Abuja, to restrain the leadership of the House of Representatives from suspending him. Jibrin, representing Kiru/Bebeji Federal Constituency of Kano State, urged the court, to set aside the decision of the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara and Uzoma Abonta pending the determination of the case.

He also asked the court to declare as illegal, the decision of the House to suspend him without allowing the external investigation committee to probe his allegations of budget padding. However, when the case came up for hearing, Justice Okon Abang, sought to know if the defendants in the case were served with the court processes.

Counsel to Jibrin, Mohammed Suleiman, informed the court that the plaintiff was yet to serve the defendants with the motion. Abang therefore directed that all parties in the suit be put on notice before he could entertain the application. He adjourned the hearing till Aug. 25.


it is good to be popular like kilode

Doyin Okupe, the PDP & the futility of compromise - by Femi Fani-Kayode

Read his article below...

When I warned the Nigerian people about what the APC represented and that, if given power, they would be the most reactionary, repressive, vindictive, insensitive, vicious, thin-skinned, paranoid, divisive and, worse of all, incompetent government in the history of Nigeria no-one listened.

When I told the people that the leaders of the APC were not only unfit to hold power but  that they were also Nigeria's local equivalent to Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood no-one listened.

When I warned the people that their initial plan was to field a Muslim/Muslim ticket for the 2015 presidential election (until public outrage killed the idea) no-one listened.

When I told the people about the future implications of the dangerous sectarian seed that the APC was planting in our politics by openly encouraging Muslim clerics in the north to preach in the mosques that a vote for Jonathan was a vote for an "infidel" and when I pointed out the fact that all those that supported the PDP from the north would eventually be subjected to violence and persecution and labelled as  "traitors", "heretics" and "unbelievers" no-one listened.

When I warned our people about the limitations of President Muhammadu Buhari and what he would do if trusted with power no-one listened.


When I warned the PDP leadership and particularly our PDP governors and Board of Trustee members about the dangers of making Ali Modu Sheriff National Chairman of our party they would not listen.

When I warned them to remove him immediately and not to let him stay as National Chairman for the three months that he asked for they would not listen.

When I told them that the government would NOT allow the National Convention of the party to hold on 17th August or indeed at any other time, no matter what, because Sheriff is working for them they would not listen.

Now I have been proved right and vindicated on all fronts. Let us consider what took place in Port Harcourt on the day of the convention.  In collusion with some questionable judges the Buhari administration set out to destabilise, destroy and silence the opposition.

It was well planned, well-orchestrated and well-executed. Governors were temporarily barred from moving around freely and were essentially put under house arrest.

The convention venue was sealed off and delegates were prevented from entering the stadium by gun-wielding mobile police men and soldiers. It was not only a show of shameful, naked brute force but it was also thoroughly evil.

Let me make a another prediction: this is just the beginning of their tyranny. It will get far worse. That is "mai chanji" for you!

The sooner the leaders of the PDP wake up, smell the coffee and appreciate the kind of monster they are dealing with and the sooner they elect and select leaders that are prepared to risk their lives and liberty to confront this government the better.

If you want democracy and freedom you must be prepared to confront the dictator and fight for it. Where there is no justice, there can be no peace. Where there is no freedom, there can be no development.

Where there is no equity, there can be no progress. Our land has been turned into a barren and poverty-striken shell of its former-self by President Buhari's administration.

They have stripped away the glory of our nation, ruined the economy, created ethnic and religious divisions, impoverished the people, brought tears to the eyes of the down-trodden, dashed the hopes and dreams of the young and destroyed the destiny of millions.

The only thing that is left for them to do is to crush the leading opposition party and to attempt to silence, humiliate, discredit, destroy, jail or even kill every single opposition leader that remains vocal.

That is where Senator Ali Modu Sheriff comes in and that is why his disruptive  role and questionable mission in the PDP is of so much interest and so useful to the government.

That Sheriff has turned into the proverbial stubborn bone that is stuck in the throat of the PDP is no longer news.

The role and noble efforts of the Senator Makarfi-led Caretaker Commitee have been exemplary and commendable and, in my view, they have earned the support and affection of every loyal party leader and member.

I am not surprised by that because I happen to have known Senator Makarfi, Senator Ben Obi (the Secretary of the Committee) and Hon. Minister Dayo Adeyeye (the Publicity Secretary) for many years and I can attest to the fact that they are all profoundly good men who are very restrained in their manner and approach to complicated issues and who are not only experienced but also rational, reasonable and balanced.

Yet despite their efforts the question that still needs to be answered is how best to handle Ali Modu Sheriff.

Dr. Doyin Okupe, a man for whom I have the greatest respect and affection and one of the most formidable and credible leaders in our party, suggested on his Facebook wall that we should "negotiate" with Sheriff with a view to settling this issue.

He has also said that we should "not blame Buhari and the APC for our woes" but rather we should blame ourselves. He may be right on the latter point but I beg to respectfully and humbly differ with him on the former.

There can be no question of any further negotiation with Sheriff.  My response to him, which was posted on his Facebook page and on twitter, reads as follows:

"My dearest brother, I beg to differ with you on your suggestion that we must negotiate with the former National Chairman of our party Ali Modu Sheriff.

If you remember I warned the governors about Shetiff when they imposed him on us. The PDP Ministers Forum rejected him as did the PDP Board of Trustees did at the initial stage but the governors would not listen.

Now we have been vindicated because everything that we said would happen has come to pass.

The imposition of Sheriff by the Governors Forum was the biggest mistake that we have made since President Goodluck Jonathan and the then leadership of our party conceeded the election to Buhari without at least contesting the matter in court.

Frankly, as I wrote at the time, I believe that Sheriff bewitched the governors that brought him to us and indeed those in our party that accepted him and agreed to work with him. Now the power of the spell has worne off and their eyes have opened.

Sadly though things will get worse because Sheriff is under orders: he is working a script and that script was crafted by those who commissioned him to divide, weaken and kill our party.

When you open your doors to a snake what do you expect? I am not surprised by all that he is doing because he is acting true to type: he is a green snake who has dipped his fangs deeply into our flesh and whose poison is kiling us slowly.

The truth is that there can never be any compromise with Sheriff. You cannot compromise with the devil or a snake.

You cannot wine and dine or attempt to cohabit with a creature that the great writer and teacher, Mr. David Icke, describes as a "shape-shifting sociopath and reptilian".

There can be no felllowship between light and darkness even in politics. You cannot negotiate with a narcicistic meglomaniac who wants your head to be cut off and served to him on a silver platter. Sheriff is working for Buhari to destroy the PDP and he has almost succeeded in his mission.

The only solution to this intractible and difficult problem is for us to continue to fight him in the courts and elsewhere and, if push comes to shove, form another political party, get our members and supporters to join that party and leave the desperate old scavanger to feed on the carcass of the old PDP.

Very few people will stay with him because, after some time, carcasses tend to stink and because he is the quintessential plague.

After some time even his most diehard supporters will get sick of him, run away and abandon him.

Permit me to conclude with the following counsel. We must never attempt to appease a bully and a tyrant: it encourages him in his tyranny and it gives him pleasure. To the bully, compromise is seen as nothing more than weakness.

We must be prepared to stand up, stand firm and speak out against the evil that has gripped our land till the very end knowing that the Lord is with us and that He will never forsake us.
 If necessary, we must also be prepared to pay the price for doing so because the future of our nation and our children depends on it. We must not waiver.

We must hold the line, firm in the knowledge that no matter how dark the night, joy comes in the morning. We must never forget that our God is mighty in battle and that with Him all things are possible.  He makes a way where there seems to be no way.

As always please send my love to my beautiful sister and the children. Fondest thoughts egbon. Shalom".

Accuse President Buhari Of Receiving Pension And Risk Criminal Investigation - Garba Shehu

The Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, , has said that anyone who claims that the President received pensions from the Army should face ''criminal investigation''.
Garba said this on Wednesday, claiming that the President did not receive pension or cars from the army, as did former commanders-in-chief.
   ''After his overthrow, they didn't remember him, even in the annual distribution of diaries or calendars. Since his overthrow as military ruler, the army did not institute a pension for him.''  Garba said.

He added that the President stopped collecting ''allowances that are usually paid to former heads of state, the moment he took office as elected President last year.

   ''This is verifiable from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.'' He said; adding that, ''If anyone is laying his/her hand on any such payment, they should face criminal investigation.''

He said though the Army was known to supply cars to former heads of the Army, Buhari did not get any.

   ''On the other hand, there is a directorate in the SGF's office paying allowances to all ex-heads of state. This is not pension. And President Buhari stopped collecting this from last year.

   ''The cars he got came from the former President through the ONSA. This was after the bomb attack on his convoy in Kaduna.

   ''Before this time, the Presidency did not supply cars to him as they did to the former heads of state.'' Garba said.

The Niger Delta Crusaders, The Muslim Pilgrims & the United States of Nigeria (Part 2)

Read the part 2 of his piece from yesterday below...

Sadly many in the conservative core north remain unconvinced. For example the Arewa Consultative Forum issued a statement on the 7th August in which they stated their total opposition to restructuring and instead of offering an olive branch of peace and understanding to its advocates who are predominantly in the south they issued the usual warnings of dire consequences if the matter is pushed too far.

Worst still a few days ago the Emir of Katsina publicly admonished all northerners to support the government of President Buhari insisting that they had a duty to do so. His words.

“President Muhammadu Buhari is trying his best to rectify the situation and we must support and encourage him. During this trying period, we as northerners are expected to support President Buhari and his team instead of joining others to criticize them.” (THE SUN NEWSPAPER, 7th AUGUST 2016).

There are no prizes for guessing who the "others" that he is referring to are because it is self-evident.

What the Emir appears to have forgotten is that had it not been for a sizeable number of votes from the south west the President would not have had a hope in hell of being elected.

Simply put what he is saying is that Buhari is effecting a clear and simple northern agenda which must be supported by all true sons and daughters of the north.

He is also suggesting that the feelings and sensibilities of those that oppose him from the south do not matter.

Meanwhile the tension that is being generated by the sectional nature of President Buhari's policies and government continues to escalate and a face-off is imminent.

Nothing reflects this fact better than the words and obvious concerns of the Ohanaeze Youth Wing who condemned the fact that whilst the Buhari administration continues to keep Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of IPOB in prison, they are releasing hundreds of murderous Boko Haram terrorists from detention. Their words:



"Buhari's Federal Government continues to jail Nnamdi Kanu and other Biafrans while Boko Haram terrorists are being released from prisons. It beats the imagination that terrorists who have been responsible for the death of innocent Nigerians are being released while unarmed freedom fighters are kept behind bars against court orders" (VANGUARD NEWSPAPER, AUGUST 8th, 2016).

They also went as far as to suggest that Mr. Kanu's continued detention may "trigger a crisis in the south-east".

Not to be left out, the Northern youths, under the auspices of the Northern Youths Leaders Assembly issued a statement on the 8th of August threatening to deal with anyone or any group of people who continue to criticise or try to "tarnish the image" of President Buhari.

Their words:


"We will no longer tolerate any insults to the family and members of the President's cabinet and we will mobilize all our resources to take on anyone who thinks they can use their image as a chess pawn in the game playing out in the media. We hereby warn that the north will no longer tolerate any further attack on the image, family and character of President Muhammadu Buhari in his quest to make Nigeria a better place for all" (VANGUARD NEWSPAPER, 8th AUGUST 2016).

Yet the most chilling warning of all came from yet another militant group in the Niger Delta Area known as the Adaka Boro Avengers. They went a step further than their brothers in arms, the Niger Delta Crusaders, by saying

"On the threat by Boko Haram to kill Christians we are also sending this message to those Northerners who want to burn and kill Christians in North in the name of the Islamic religion to commence immediately but they must know that one Niger Delta soul will be exchanged for 100 Northern souls” (VANGUARD NEWSPAPER, 8th AUGUST, 2016).

These are dangerous words from dangerous people. We ignore them at our own peril. It is clear to the discerning that now, possibly more than at any other time in the beleagured history of our country, we need prayers to ensure a peaceful resolution to what is essentially an extreemly complicated problem that presents us with an existential threat.

Only a fool would disregard the fact that the ethnic and religious polarisation that we are faced with today is real and that the drums of war are beating in our country.


When one considers all of the above is it any wonder that yours truly wrote the following words in my column a couple of weeks ago. I said:

"The prayer is no longer 'God bless Nigeria' but rather 'God break Nigeria'.

It is no longer 'God defend Nigeria' but rather 'God restructure Nigeria'.

It is no longer 'God deliver Nigeria' but rather 'God deliver US FROM Nigeria'.

It is no longer 'God preserve Nigeria' but rather 'God redefine Nigeria'.

It is no longer 'God remember Nigeria' but rather 'God dismember Nigeria' "-  ('NIGERIA'S THIRD MAHDI AND THE LAST OF THE AMALEKITE KINGS', THE SUN NEWSPAPER, NEW TELEGRAPH NEWSPAPER, 25th JULY, 2016).

Clearly things are falling apart. Yet if the Buhari administration continues to ignore our concerns and admonitions and if they continue to insist on arresring and locking us up and attempting to intimidate us simply for our timely counsel and interventions perhaps they will listen to one of their own.

If they do not wish to hear the truth about the way forward from us perhaps they would be ready to hear it from someone who openly supported them and helped them to come to power last year.

That person is none other than the distinguished and highly respected General Alani Akinrinade, a war-hero, an elder-statesman, a reverrred and respected Yoruba elder and a leading supporter of President Buhari and the APC during the 2015 presidential electuons. In July he said the following to the Sun Newspaper:

“First, the APC must be told, in no uncertain terms that it is fraudulent. They led us down the garden path, lying to us about what is in the end of the tunnel.

What was in the end of the tunnel was restructuring and each one of them, the party chairman, the president, his vice, and in that order, are all talking from the other side of their mouths now. In other words, they lied to us in 2015 before the election.

My message to them is, they should embark on a very major exercise now to restructure the country, otherwise, how do they propose to settle the crisis in the South-South because it is becoming embarrassing.

A man whose land you went to tap resources and then he couldn’t farm or fish, because you bastardised his farmland and you then send back to him stipends from what you took away from his land, such a man can never be happy”.

“Is the APC thinking that the matter of religion, ethnicity and other crises across the country are just going to go away? Even the late Sardauna of Sokoto said so, that we are a disparate people and we must recognise that fact and use it to our advantage.

Nobody is going to build Nigeria the way APC is going about it. I’m not too sure how many people sing our National Anthem again because they don’t even believe in it.

There is nothing like unity in this country. Unity can only exist when we all understand one another and there are some mutual relationships.

If I know you are always cheating me by giving 44 local councils to Kano and giving Lagos 20, which is not in the same parameter with Kano in terms of population, production and name it, how can I be happy”?

“However rickety Nigeria has become, if there is a wholesome reconstruction and re-engineering of the system, it can work.

That was the major reason the Southwest went along with the APC and Buhari, as the presidential candidate in 2015….to tell us that he didn’t read the recommendations (of the 2014 National Conference) and that it is best for the archives and that, in fact, restructuring is unnecessary and according to his Vice, what we needed is diversification and whatsoever, I remain baffled.

They were just saying we would diversify into agriculture and solid minerals, as if the items will come from heaven.. If the APC fails to do something in that direction, I’m not talking about the 2014 conference report alone, but all others preceding it that have similar recommendations to restructure this country, then President Buhari may forget it and I’m saying he is likely to be the last president of this country. It is as bad as that”- ( 'A REALITY CHECK FROM GENERAL ALANI AKINRINADE' THISDAY NEWSPAPER, 5 AUGUST, 2016).

It took courage for Akinrinade to speak up in this way and I commend him for it. His words and counsel are timely and I hope that those that are in power today are humble enough to accept them and retrace their steps.

Of all the heroes in both history and mythology the greatest were King David of Israel, William Wallace of Scotland, King Leonides of Sparta, Hector of Troy, Alexander the Great of Macedonia, King Jehu the son of Nimshi and Achilles of the Mermidans.

They all stood for the truth. They all loved their God. They all had faith and the courage of their convictions. They all refused to bow before the enemy. They all fought till the end.

O that we had just a handful of such gallant men in Nigeria: we would have restructured long ago and made waves in the comity of nations.

O that we had more men who have the courage of their convictions and who are prepared to risk all and speak truth to power.

Permit me to end this contribution with the words of Minister Louis Farrakhan the leader of the Nation of Islam in the United States of America. On August 7th he said:

"Anarchy may await America due to the daily injustices suffered by the people. There really can be no peace without justice. There can be no justice without truth. And there can be no truth unless someone rises up to tell you the truth".

I concur. And this applies in the Nigerian context and to the Nigerian situation more than any other. There can and will be no peace in this country without justice.
 That justice begins with "restructuring" and it ends with "separation" and the birth of two or more new nations out of one.

Why? Because the Bible says "there is no fellowship between light and darkness". It says "there can be no love or friendship between the children of God and the servants of Belial". It says "we must not be unequally yoked".

Prince Muhammad audu as new kogi governor

Leaders of All Progressives Congress (APC), in Kogi East Senatorial District has nominated Mr Mohammed, 43, first son of Late Prince Abubakar Audu, to replace him as the party’ s governorship candidate. The leaders, stakeholders and delegates who made this known in Lokoja on Thursday after a marathon meeting, said they arrived at the decision after due consultations. Their spokesman, Mr Daniel Isah, the Vice Chairman of APC in Kogi East, said they have resolved and are determined to back Mohammed to replace his father if the National Working Committee orders fresh primaries. Isah thanked the Independent National Electoral Commission and the national leadership of the party for the opportunity given to them to find a replacement for Audu who died on Nov. 23 at Ogbonicha, Ofu Local Government. He appealed to the national leadership of the party to give their decision utmost consideration and approval in the overall interest of the party and the state. Present at the meeting were Alhaji Lincho  Ocheje, Hon. Hassan Omale, Hon. Benjamin Ikhani, and Sen. Emmanuel Dangana, among others