THE WORD OF GOD

HOW CHURCH LEADERS SHOULD TREAT POLITICAL LEADERS TO PRESERVE THE SANCTITY OF THE ALTAR. 

Recently, I made an extensive study in the Bible on how spiritual leaders treated the political leaders. I focused on spiritual leaders like Samuel, Elisha, Moses, Isaiah and some more. What I found was revealing. I will share it with you.

This research was caused by what I see of some of our church leaders who have turned themselves into slaves of politicians. So many so-called church leaders are ruled by their bellies such that they have become so powerless, their altars without fire, the words in their mouths without anointing. Their vision is obfuscated, their commission, contaminated and their inheritance in suspended animation, all because they have subdued their altars under the whims and caprices of their bellies and what to gain from powers that be. No wonder the current generation of Christians are sullied and weak. Like altars, like pews!

As a journalist and a keen observer of the Church, I am so shocked by what I see and hear some so called top church leaders do. Most of these stories are in the public space. Some have moved offices to state houses where they become prayer contractors to state governors. Some Church leaders have become the mouth pieces of governors, ministers, local govt chairs. You find some church leaders justifying the actions of presidents, state governors and politicians.There is this preacher who constantly defended the governor of his state. He marketed this governor even when EFCC was shouting that this governor was a big time rogue. Today, that governor is in jail abroad! In that same state, a reverend of one of the orthodox churches in the home town of this same governor was telling his members to emulate the governor! Such messages from the Church and so called men of God! It is sad. Certainly, the judgment of God must start from the altar, from the church!

Before I continue, let me share with you what I saw on TV some years ago. I am sure you know Kirk Franklin, the American musician. While in Nigeria to promote his music, hewas on tour of one of the South South states, and i guess his handlers were taking him round churches to perform his songs. On getting to this church, (I refuse to name the churchand the pastor. Lets forgive him) … the pastor, who was already preaching, immediately he saw Kirk entered, he suddenly burst into shouts of KIRK FRAAANKLINNNNNN… KIRK FRANKLIN IN MY CHURCH… KIRK FRANKLIN IN MY CHURCH… KIRK FRANKLIN IN MY CHURCH. He ran from the altar to embrace Kirk, and immediately handed him the microphone to sing.Do you understand what I am saying? A pastor was preaching, Kirk Franklin came in. I thought there should be procedures during church service. This man abandoned his message, the altar and began to shout Kirk Franklin.

Now what would he do if it was Jonathan or … Obama? He would roll on the floor, abi? And it was telecast like that. I thought the audio visual department ought to have edited that portion out! That is the state of some Nigerian Churches. Celebrating inanities. Majoring on minors and minoring on majors! But in checking the Bible to see the state of minds of the Prophets of old vis-à-vis their political leaders, I will cite the example of Elisha and the political leader called Naaman. Naaman was a General in the Syrian army. He came to see Elisha for healing. Can you imagine the gifts, money, silver, gold, clothes, food, cars, etc, that desperate Naaman could have brought for Elisha? If Elisha were to be a Nigerian person, he would go nuts over Naaman’s visit!Checked out Elisha properly: he wouldn’t see people unnecessarily. He would rather send messages, just as he did to Naaman … to go take shower in a river. Look at this, when Naaman was coming, he must be with pride and high expectations. Kai, shege! Na me, General Naaman! Chief of Army Staff, Federal Republic of Syria, former GOC, First Mechanised Division, former Military Attaché to Syrian embassy in the US, etc, etc. He would be expecting a gala welcome. The red carpets. The Prophet waiting for him at the gate of his church, with protocols and ushers at attention. But no. This Prophet no send. He did not come out. He sent a message.
“Prophet say make you go bath for River Jordan seven times!
Naaman would say.. “Wont he see me? I am General Naaman, fsp, css, cnn, tvc, ait, ibb…
“Ah, the man no dey see people o. He too busy praying and reading bible.
“What about the gifts? I have cars, gold, silver, ?
“Ah… e no dey take Egunje o. This prophet no get swagger!

Naaman would be immediately humbled. All his pride deflated. If Nigerian church leaders do this to politicians, they would fear God. They would respect the church. But it is sad… the church has lost face.

Some Nigerian church men will die for Naaman’s neck! They would tell him of their building projects. The university project. The orphanage. Jerusalem they want to go next year, etc. Some churches will withhold the Sunday service if General Naaman didn’t come on time. All the church ushers are in trouble that day. The Protocols will sow new garments. Listen to me, I am not saying churches should not honour political leaders, but don’t drag the Church, the anointing and the sacredness of the altar in the mud.

Take another look at Samuel when he went to the house of Jesse in Bethlehem. The people trembled on seeing him. Why? The likes of Samuel knew and had respect for the anointing on their calling. So they set themselves apart. Samuel went to the House of Jesse to perform a duty he was sent of God. Not frivolous courtesy visit. He did not even sit down in Jesse's house. They don’t become slaves to politicians or anybody at all.

What about the Prophet, Nathan, who went to see David? He spoke pointblank and left. Isaiah to Hezekiah, he spoke pointblank and left. Some Nigerian Church leaders will speak and remain there for gratification. Elisha rejected any gratification from Naaman. Gehazi who went behind to collect it did not inflict trauma on himself alone, but his generations. Today, he is a bad example that no one dares bearing that name… or have you seen a Gehazi?

Stay Connected to God and remain scarce. Only appear before political leaders when either God sent you, or they send for you. Or during Important National, Regional, or community interests to represent. Otherwise, stay away. Stop dragging the church in the mud!

Obasanjo backs Buhari over certificate


Former President Olusegun Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that at the time General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) joined the military, nobody in the Nigerian Army could have been admitted without a qualification equivalent to a school certificate.
Obasanjo was fielding questions during an event to promote his book ‘My Watch’ in London during the week, when he revealed that Buhari joined the military four years after him.
In a video of the event on Youtube, transcribed by our correspondent, he said, “When I joined the Army in the 1950s, I needed to have a Cambridge certificate or West African School Certificate or GCE with a minimum of six subjects to be able to join the military at the time.
“I don’t know of anybody who was an officer at that time that did not have similar certificates.
“Buhari joined the Army about four years after me and if I needed such a certificate to be admitted into the Army, I don’t know how he could have avoided it.
“Assuming he was able to avoid that certificate, Buhari went through a military academy, and went through what you call a staff college which would be the equivalent of a first degree. He went through what you call a war college in America where he would have got an equivalent of a master’s degree.
“Our constitution or electoral law requires a school certificate (to become President). Rather than campaign and debate on real issues, we then degenerated to trivialities.”
Obasanjo explained that during his school days, he had a record that was unrivalled, adding that if anybody were to challenge his education, “I will say, read my book (My Watch).”
He explained that Nigeria’s unification achievement after the country’s civil war had not been matched by any other nation.
Obasanjo said, “Nigeria fought a civil war for three years, and we concluded that war by uniting our country. The slogan was ‘No victor, no vanquished.’
“Within ten years of the end of that war, Alex Ekwueme, who was on the side of Biafra, became the vice president after an election in Nigeria. No country has achieved such a feat. I think we deserve applause.”

Stealing same as corruption, lawyers tell Jonathan


President Goodluck Jonathan
President Goodluck Jonathan
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Some lawyers have cautioned President Goodluck Jonathan to stop differentiating between the acts of stealing and corruption.
The President had during the 8th presidential media chat on Wednesday maintained that there was a difference between the two acts. This came several months after he first made a similar statement.
“If somebody is a thief, he is a thief. We should not use the word ‘corruption’ to cover a case of stealing. Thieves should be called thieves,” the President had said.
However, a lawyer and human rights activist, Prof. Itse Sagay, said in a telephone conversation with Saturday PUNCH that there was no technical difference between the two acts and that persons involved in either should be made to face the wrath of the law.
He said, “In a broad legal sense, they are the same. Stealing is taking what belongs to another person without the consent of the owner with the intention of keeping it permanently.
“Corruption is using an office to acquire the resources of an organisation without working for it and without the organisation’s awareness. Looking at it, using an office as a political office holder to acquire what belongs to the state results to stealing.
“Ultimately, every act of corruption is an act of stealing. There is no question about it. There is no moral or ethical difference between them. Both are criminal, immoral and anti-social acts and nobody should attempt to make one look lighter than the other. People who commit either should be dealt with seriously.”
A civil rights lawyer, Fred Agbaje, said President Jonathan’s differentiation between the acts was clear evidence that the President’s government is corrupt.
He said that the President was only giving two terms for same offence.
He said, “Defence of stealing as different from corruption is indicative of the fact that President Jonathan’s administration is morally bankrupt.
“What the President has said is an admission of guilt and that his government is corrupt. It is a distinction without substance. It is calling one object two different names.
The nomenclature may differ, but the substance of both allegations is the same.
“Which of them is allowed in our law whether he calls them in different names? They are both punishable under our penal laws. Stealing is even worse than corruption. Both of them carry a legal element of deliberately taking what does not belong to someone with the intent of depriving the taxpayers.”

Nigerians warn Jonathan, military against media clampdown
President Goodluck Jonathan
President Goodluck Jonathan
| credits: File copy
NIGERIANS on Tuesday reacted angrily to speculations that the President Goodluck Jonathan administration was planning a major clampdown on media houses considered to be “unfriendly”.
Prof. Itse Sagay, SAN, a constitutional lawyer; Mr. Yusuf Ali, another SAN; Mr. Debo Adeniran, an activist leader of the Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, and others who spoke to our correspondents said the alleged plan to clamp down on the media was symbolic of a government desperate to hold on to power by all means.
Sagay said, “I won’t be too surprised if the government clamps down on the media because as you can see, there is lot of desperation coming from the government’s side; desperation and fear of losing the election that led to postponement and a lot of very undemocratic practices that have been going on.
“But the press should just do its work as they should under the law. At the end of the day, there is no army in this world that can conquer the press. The press is the most powerful organisation and its pen is a great weapon. Ultimately, nobody, no institution can conquer the press. The press should just do its work and be courageous.”
Sagay and the others spoke as the speculation about government’s plot against the media reached a climax on Tuesday, with the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki, said to be the anchor for the government’s plan.
A ‘news alert’ on Tuesday that purportedly reported a discussion at a military meeting in Kaduna, leaked an anti-media action being championed by the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.).
The nucleus of the plot, according to the alert, is the arrest of top management personnel of the mentioned media houses: The PUNCH, The Nation and Channels, a privately-owned television station.
Worse than the clampdown on the named media houses, the ‘alert’ revealed other dangerous anti-democratic steps the government is alleged to be taking even as the nation gets set for the general elections.
The alert, unedited, read, “News Alert: Once again am back here with some of the highlights of the Military meeting in Kaduna. Like I told you yesterday, the Military is doing everything possible to derail this democratic process. The representative of the Federal Government to the meeting today made it very clear that President Jonathan would never allow GMB to take over from him. Rather, the military body should be ready to take over govt on May 29.
“As preparation for this, the meeting came up with the plans to clampdown on some notable media organisations found to be crusading for the opposition. They specifically mentioned the Channels TV, The Nation and The Punch Newspapers as some of the media houses to be dealt with. He suggested ways to go about the clampdown including the arrest of notable management of these media organisations.
“The issue of Nigerian Sovereignty also came up in the light of an expected attacks and condemnation from international communities and organisation. To our surprise, IBB sent one Bob Caleb to the meeting to add some impetus. He came in around 12pm and left about 20 minutes later after holding some private brief with the NSA. The meeting continues tomorrow, but I can say that the country will witness some strange development in some weeks to come. Stay tuned.”
The Presidency on Tuesday debunked some of the contents of the ‘alert’. For one, it denied a report that the President would rather hand over to the military on May 29 than handing over to Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress.
Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, in an interview with The PUNCH said the report was a sign of desperation by some people with partisan interest.
Abati said Jonathan remained committed to democracy and the rule of law.
He said, “That (the alert) is absolute nonsense. It is nothing but a sign of desperation on the side of certain elements with partisan interest.
“President Jonathan remains fully committed to democracy and the rule of law. He is a man who believes in one man one vote; one woman, one vote; one youth, one vote and the right of every Nigerian of voting age to exercise their franchise.
“One of the major achievements of this administration had been the conduct of free, fair and credible elections at all levels since 2011 and it is a legacy of which he is proud and he has made it clear that his ambition does not worth the blood of any Nigerian.
“It won’t happen under his watch that the gains of democracy will be reversed. He remains committed to transforming Nigeria so that democracy can be further consolidated and the rule of one man one vote will continue to be strengthened.
“I am saying categorically that the story is not true and cannot be true. It should not be taken seriously by anybody.
“What is clear is that there are a lot of unpatriotic, partisan and deliberate elements who are determined to heat up the polity for their own narrow and selfish purposes.
“But we say to such people that they should realise that this country is bigger than all of us. President Jonathan continues to call on all stakeholders to come together and work together to put Nigeria first always.”
Given that most actions of the Jonathan government, especially in recent times, often started off as a speculation, reactions on Tuesday indicated that the speculations could be true and those who spoke warned the government against its alleged plan.
Ali, who spoke to The PUNCH on the phone from Ilorin, Kwara State, described as dangerous any step to gag the media.
He said, “That is a very dangerous step to take. It is inimical to the nation; it is inimical to democracy and inimical to the rule of law. There is freedom of expression in our Constitution and any media house or other organisations whose rights are being infringed upon should approach our courts; the courts are open.”
Adeniran said, “It means the system has bared its fangs and they have decided to go all out to become tyrannical, but that would be resisted by the Nigerian populace because we rely on what the media, especially the conventional media, can dish out to us.
“So, apparently, the present system or government has a lot of things to cover up; it means they have things they don’t want the public to know, that would be the reason they want to do that. But I am not sure that they would go far because the international community is watching and the international community is ready to defend the ordinary citizen of this country. Even if they do it, they would only embarrass themselves but we pray that it is not true.”
The Executive Director, Civil Liberties Organisation, Ibuchukwu Ezike, said, “That would be undemocratic and the Civil Liberties Organisation will not support such an attempt.
“Already the President has signed the Freedom of Information Bill and it has become a law and this bill empowers the media to enquire into the activities of the government.
“Any attempt by the government to clamp down on the media is condemned and will be condemned and the Civil Liberties Organisation will resist it and lead the Nigeria people to fight against such impunity or lawlessness. We pray it doesn’t happen but it would be an opportunity for another Occupy Nigeria.”
The Independent National Electoral Commission on Friday announced a shift in the elections originally scheduled for February 14 and 28 with new dates now set at March 28 and April 11 for Presidential and Governorship polls respectively.
The shift had drawn the anger of many, especially the opposition, but the crux of the matter was that the postponement of election started as a mere speculation, just like the current speculation of a plot to deal with unfriendly media houses.
Perhaps in recognition of how mere a speculation under the present administration could take on a life of reality, the INEC chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, on Tuesday reacted to speculations that he would soon embark on a terminal leave, preparatory to the expiry of his tenure of office in June.
Jega said the condition of his engagement was different from the normal civil service practice and said he would serve till the end of his tenure on June 30.
The speculation that Jega would proceed on terminal leave before the commencement of the rescheduled polls came amid further speculations that the Jonathan administration had lost faith in the INEC boss and would want the election to be handled allegedly by a pliant INEC chairman.
Before the former Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Sanusi Lamido, was removed, there had been rumours that President Goodluck Jonathan was going to sack him for his whistle-blowing activities against the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. The Presidency had kept mum until it finally announced the suspension of Lamido in February 2014.
Meanwhile, anti-media actions are not new under the Jonathan administration.
In June 2014, armed soldiers seized and destroyed copies of newspapers, mainly The PUNCH, The Guardian, The Nation, Leadership, ThisDay, Daily Trust, Sun, Pilot, Newswatch and The Mirror.
The military authorities claimed then that the seizures were based on intelligence report that newspapers were being used to ferry arms into the country.
The action then drew the ire of Nigerians with the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project   asking Frank LA RUE, UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression to “urgently issue urgent appeal and measures to stop the government of President Goodluck Jonathan from continuing harassment and intimidation of several media houses and newspapers.”
Last year, according to the World Freedom Index, Nigeria was ranked 112 among 180 countries. The 2014 WPF index cited the negative impact of conflicts on “freedom of information and its protagonists.”
Nigeria was ranked 115 and 126 in 2013 and 2012 respectively.
The report linked the ranking of some countries like Nigeria to its government’s “tendency to interpret national security needs in an overly broad and abusive manner to the detriment of the right to inform and be informed.”
This trend, the Index noted, constituted a growing threat worldwide and “is even endangering freedom of information in countries regarded as democracies.”
The 2014 index underscored the negative correlation “between freedom of information and conflicts, both open conflicts and undeclared ones.”
It said further that, “In an unstable environment, the media become strategic goals and targets for groups or individuals whose attempts to control news and information violate the guarantees enshrined in international law, in particular, article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the 1949 Geneva Conventions and the 1977 Protocols Additional 1 and 2 to the Geneva Conventions.”
WFI, however, noted that the upsurge in violence against journalists elicited a response from the international community.

Boko Haram: Niger to deploy troops in Nigeria


Boko Haram militants
Boko Haram militants
No fewer than 750 troops from the Niger Republic are to be deployed in the North-East   to assist in the ongoing efforts to end Boko Haram activities in the zone.
The Nigerien parliament approved the deployment on Monday night just as the United Nations assured Nigeria that it   was firmly behind it in the fight against Boko Haram.
Niger Republic, which hosts hundreds of Nigerians who fled from the North-East, had as of last week   witnessed   a number of attacks by the islamist sect.
“The pooling of the efforts and resources of concerned countries will contribute without doubt to crushing this group which shows scorn, through its barbaric acts, for the Muslim religion,” Niger’s National Assembly President, Adamou Salifou, said .
Hours after Salifou spoke, the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, raised concern over the activities of   Boko Haram but said Nigeria should count on its support.
Ban’s Special Representative,   Mohammed Ibn Chambas, said in Abuja that the UN, through its Department of Peacekeeping, would ensure that the concept of operations and planning and other activities to ensure a truly joint operational force with a clear commanding control and unity of purpose succeeded.
“You can count on the strong support of the United Nations,”   said Chambas.
He added that the global body was  ready   to assist Nigeria in the area of humanitarian support for displaced persons.
“The secretary-general expresses strong support in the fight against Boko Haram. The sect is not a threat only to Nigeria or the region but indeed is an international issue. It is an issue that   requires full international support   the same way the fight is taken against Al-Shabab, ISIS and AGNI in north Mali,” Chambas stated.
The UN has however noted in a new report by its   human rights agency,   that there are   increasing   attacks on schoolgirls.
According to the body, a study was carried out “seeking to analyse the problem of attacks against girls trying to access education.”
In the report yet to be published, the UN stated that schools in at least 70 countries were attacked between 2009 and 2014, with many specifically targeting girls, parents and teachers advocating for gender equality in education.
It said, “Attacks against girls accessing education persist and, alarmingly, appear in some countries to be occurring with increasing regularity.
“The educational rights of girls and women are often targeted due to the fact that they represent a challenge to existing gender and age-based systems of oppression.
“Among the examples are the murders in December 2014 of more than 100 children in a Pakistani Taliban attack at an army school in Peshawar, the abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls in April 2014 by the Boko Haram in Nigeria and the 2012 shooting of education activist Malala Yousafzai by members of the Taliban in Pakistan.”
Meanwhile, the   police in Borno State have   told journalists   that a major disaster was averted     by   their men and soldiers who uncovered 147 cluster bombs in Auno,   Konduga Local Government Area.
The state Commissioner of Police, Clement Adoda, said the security operatives       sighted the explosives, recovered and destroyed them without injuries or damage to lives and property.
He said, “I am glad that on February 8, 2015,   147 unexploded cluster ordinances   were recovered at about two Kilometres away from Auno village.”
Auno   is only about 20 kilometres to Maiduguri.
But in Cameroon, Boko Haram   abducted at least eight girls and killed seven hostages after seizing a public bus.
A Cameroonian resident, Chetima Ahmidou,   said on Tuesday that the bodies of the seven victims were dumped near Cameroon’s border with Nigeria.
Ahmidou’s brother was the driver of the bus and was among those slain.
Ahmidou said that eight girls between the ages of 11 and 14 were taken back to Nigeria by the insurgents.

WhatsApp Now Works On Personal Computers


You can now use WhatsApp, the popular social messaging app, on your personal computer. The service that enables this feature is called WhatsApp Web. The web service reproduces all conversations and messages from your mobile device.

How To Use WhatsApp Web
First make sure you are using the latest version of WhatsApp on your mobile device. To verify if you are using the latest version for your device, open Play Store and search for WhatsApp using the keyword WhatsApp. If you see "UPDATE" on WhatsApp's Play Store page, then you should click "UPDATE" and follow the prompts to have the latest version of the app.




After you have updated WhatsApp, open the app.

Click the menu button to access "WhatsApp Web." You will see it in the menu list. Click it.


Use Google Chrome to open https://web.whatsapp.com/ on your computer [download it here if you have not it on your computer already]

Scan the Quick Response [QR] code shown on https://web.whatsapp.com/ with the WhatsApp Web on your WhatsApp to pair WhatsApp on your phone with the WhatsApp web client.



All your WhatsApp conversations will automatically open on your web browser.

You can send messages from your computer. You can also send messages from your phone. Messages, whether sent from a computer or a phone are synchronised on both WhatsApp and the web client.

You can send messages and emoji, copy-and-paste text, send and replay voice notes, share images, copy image URL, save images, view contact info, profile status and picture, turn on desktop notifications, and log out. Those are the features I observed.

Note: Your phone must have Internet access for this to work, and the service currently works with only Google Chrome.


I’m ready to die for Nigeria —Obasanjo


Former President Olusegun Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo
| credits: File copy
A former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has said he can sacrifice his life in the interest of Nigeria. However, he said he would not do the same for any political party.
He said this on Thursday during a visit to his Hilltop residence in Abeokuta by the presidential candidate of the National Conscience Party, Dr. Martins Onovo.
He said since he left office his pre-occupation had been the promotion of the country’s interest, adding that it would be foolish for anyone to say Nigeria did not belong to anybody.
He said, “My first pre-occupation is what is best for Nigeria. Nigeria first, party second and any other thing, third. I can sacrifice anything in the interest of Nigeria and I can sacrifice my own life for Nigeria.
“I can’t sacrifice my life for any party’s interest but I’ll sacrifice my life in the interest of Nigeria.”
He frowned on the situation where everyone would keep quiet and watch things degenerate in the country.
While commending the late legal icon, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, the founder of the NCP, he said though some people might not agree with his brand of activism, he was a veritable voice of conscience.
He said, “Let me hasten to wish you every success in your endeavour and also pay tribute, as I have done in my recent book, to the founder of your party, Gani Fawehinmi. I believe he was a genuine social critic. Though you may not agree with all he said or how he went about it but he was definitely a genuine social critic.
“So if you, as the flag bearer of the party, believed that you should follow on his footsteps of integrity and genuine critical and committed analysis and criticism of the situation in the country, I think nobody will fault you.”
He advised the party to accept whatever was the outcome of the election, if the election was free, fair and uninterrupted. He said that people should not necessarily be in government before they could contribute to the nation’s development.
He said, “In this part of the world, we have a saying that if people sleep and they put their heads on the same pillow, they are in danger. That means there should be some people that should be critically looking and watching and also able to speak up. They should speak up, no matter what others may say.
“Because people may come up and say Nigeria doesn’t belong to anybody, I believe that is a stupid saying. Nigeria belongs to all of us because anything that doesn’t belong to anybody, anything can happen to it. For me, Nigeria belongs to all of us and we are stakeholders in this country.
“Let me make my own position clear, I am a card carrying member of the PDP, because that is the party on which platform I became the President of this country.
“If what you’re trying to do is in the best interest of Nigeria and Nigerians accept and vote for you, who I am I not to accept you as President of Nigeria, I will. But in this your campaign, try to inform, woo and to convince the electorates but whatever may be the outcome of the election after you have done all that, once the election is free and fair and undisturbed, uninterrupted, then you have to accept the verdict of the people.”
Onovo said his government, if voted, would continue with the developmental initiative of the former President.
He said, “Our programme is designed to lead to the abolition of poverty through full employment, improve health care and electricity supply and energy which are very critical to industrial development.
“We are very aware that you did very few critical things in government when you were there and some of those we wish to continue when we get to office, particularly the anti-corruption efforts, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission, we intend to continue.
“We intend, when we get elected with your guidance,ý to your effectiveness, to check the loss in national revenue so that we have funds to carry out the developmental programmes we’ve promised our people.”

Deploy soldiers against B’Haram, not for elections – Buhari


Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd)
Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd)
| credits: nairaland.com
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THE presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) has called on President Goodluck Jonathan to deploy more soldiers and other security operatives in the troubled North-East ravaged by Boko Haram insurgents rather than keep them for the 2015 general elections.
Buhari, who made this call during a meeting with stakeholders of Ogoni ethnic nationality in the Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State on Thursday, also said that, if voted into power, his administration would implement the report of the United Nations Environment Programme on the clean-up of Ogoniland.
He argued that the Boko Haram onslaught would have been a thing of the past if the Federal Government had moved the number of soldiers, police and operatives of the State Security Service deployed during elections to Borno and Yobe states as well as the other areas affected by insurgency.
He said, “I have made this comment before and the Federal Government refused to react to it; the number of soldiers, policemen and officers of the State Security Services they deploy during elections, if they had deployed them to Borno and Yobe states to fight Boko Haram, by now, Boko Haram would have been history.
“Boko Haram is not a religious group; Boko Haram is not an ethnic group. Boko Haram is a terrorist group. They attack people in schools, they attack people in Churches, they attack people in Mosques, they attack people in markets, and they shout Allahu Akbah! No religion rejoices over the blood of innocent people.”
The former Head of State promised that he would put an end to the pollution in Ogoniland if elected as the President of the country during the February 14 election.
Buhari reiterated his promise to fight terrorism, corruption and other forms of crimes, if elected President.
Earlier, the Director-General of the Buhari/Osinbajo Campaign Organisation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, had asked President Jonathan to explain to Nigerians and the world why he had refused to implement the UNEP report on the clean-up of Ogoniland.
Amaechi said the President’s hatred for the people of Ogoni could be responsible for his   inability to implement the UNEP report since the funds that would be used to clean up Ogoniland would come from Shell Petroleum Company.
“Let President Goodluck Jonathan tell us why he has not allowed the implementation of the UNEP report. He has no reason. The money to be spent in the implementation of the report is not his; the money belongs to Shell,” he said.

38.7 million Nigerians now have voter cards –INEC



INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega
INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega
No fewer than 38,774,391 Nigerians now have the Permanent Voter Cards, the Independent National Electoral Commission has said.
The figure which is contained in a statement on Thursday   by the Chief Press Secretary to the Chairman of the commission, Mr. Kayode Idowu, represents 71.35 per cent of the 54,341,610 number of registered voters across the country.
It is however expected that the figure of the PVCs distributed will increase before next Tuesday when the commission is expected to publish the final list of voters.
Idowu   told our correspondent that distribution of PVCs will start in Borno State on Friday(today) where no one had collected.
A breakdown of the 38,774,391 PVCs shows that 22, 832, 396 prospective voters have collected the cards in the Northern part of the country   and 15,941,995 in the South.
The zonal analysis of the figure(38,774,391) indicates that the North-West and the South-West are leading the other four zones in the collection of the PVCs.
For example, in the North-West which has seven states,   12,013,961 PVCs have been collected.
The seven states in the zone are Kebbi, Zamfara, Jigawa, Sokoto, Kano, Katsina and Kaduna.
There are also 6,270,736 PVCs that have been collected in the six states of the South-West. The states are Lagos, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, Ogun and Oyo.
South-South is third among the zones with the highest number of PVC collected   with 5,756,018.
The states in the zone are Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Edo and Delta.
Trailing the zone is North-Central with 5,520,001 collectors. States in the zone are Benue, Kwara, Nasarawa, Kogi, Plateau and Niger.
Although voters in Borno State have yet to collect their PVCs, the remaining states in the North-East have 4,886,499 PVCs.
The breakdown of the states which have collected PVCs shows that Kano recorded the highest number of prospective voters who have picked their PVCs with 2,771,185. It is followed by Kaduna State with 2,643,517.
Lagos State came third with 2,159,091.
President Goodluck Jonathan’s state, Bayelsa, came last as the commission put the number of voters with the PVCs in the state at   370,062.
It follows Ekiti State where   481,199 voters have received their PVCs and Enugu State   with 662,445.
The figure also indicates that 411,935 people have collected their PVCs in the   Federal Capital Territory .
Coming last is the South-East, with   3,915,241 PVCs.
Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi, Imo and Enugu are the states in the zone.

Yaya Toure is Africa’s best again



L-R: Delta State Governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan; African Footballer of the year, Yaya Toure; and CAF President, Issa Hayatou, during the 2014 Glo/CAF Award in Lagos
L-R: Delta State Governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan; African Footballer of the year, Yaya Toure; and CAF President, Issa Hayatou, during the 2014 Glo/CAF Award in Lagos
Yaya Toure was on Thursday named the Glo/CAF African Footballer of the Year beating Nigeria’s Vincent Enyeama and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the process.
The Ivory Coast and Manchester City player became the first African to win the award in four straight years.
Nigerians who were full of expectations were compensated with the Woman Player of the Year award which went expectedly to Asisat Oshoala. She was the Highest Goal Scorer and Most Valuable Player at the 2014 FIFA U20 championship held in Canada. The Rivers Angels player was also the MVP of the African Women Championship in Namibia last year.
African Player of the Year (Based in Africa) was won by Firmin Mubele Ndombe of the DR Congo.
Algeria won the National Team of the Year (Men). The North Africans were clearly the best African team at the 2014 World Cup after the Nigerian and Ghanaian teams were consumed by fights over dollars.
Super Falcons beat the Falconets and Cameroon to win the Team of the Year (Women).
The Club of the Year award went Es Setif of Algeria.
The CAF Fair Play Award renamed after Late Cameroonian Albert Ebosse is not up for grabs this year till next edition. The Most Promising Talent award was won by Yacine Brahimi of Algeria. He was ahead of Cameroon duo of Clinton N’jie and Vincent Aboubakar.
Kheireddine Madoui of Algeria’s ES Setif was named the Coach of the Year while Papa Bakary Gassama was voted as the Referee of the Year.
African Legend award was shared by Cameroon’s Oryx Club Class of 1964 and Stade Malien of Mali.
Nigeria pair Vincent Enyeama and Ahmed Musa made the African team XI. Moise Katumbi of DR Congo and owner of TP Mazembe got the African Football Leader award while CAF Platinum award went to Nigeria President Goodluck Jonathan and Ghana FA president Kwesi Nyantakyi.
African Player of the Year – Based in Africa
Ndombe Mubele (DR Congo and AS Vita)
Women’s Player of the Year
Asisat Oshoala
Youth Player of the Year
Asisat Oshoala
Most Promising Talent
Yacine Brahimi
Coach of the Year
Kheireddine Madoui (ES Setif)
National Team of the Year
Algeria
Women’s National Team of the Year
Nigeria
Club of the Year
ES Setif
Referee of the Year
Papa Bakary Gassama (Gambia)

I won’t fight graft by putting people in crates –Jonathan



President Goodluck Jonathan acknowledging cheers from Peoples Democratic Party supporters on arrival at the Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos... on Thursday.
President Goodluck Jonathan acknowledging cheers from Peoples Democratic Party supporters on arrival at the Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos... on Thursday.
| credits: NAN
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President Goodluck Jonathan began his re-election campaign in Lagos   on Thursday, saying he would not fight corruption by arresting and putting people in crates.
Jonathan, in his 33-minute speech that centered more on responses to criticisms of his administration by some prominent Nigerians and the opposition, faulted a recent statement credited to the APC presidential candidate, Maj.Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, that he would send corrupt Nigerians to jail.
Although he did not mention   names, he   was indirectly making reference to   Buhari’s role in the 1984 botched attempt to smuggle a former Transport minister, the late Umaru Dikko, to Nigeria.
He said, “They said they will start fighting corruption after they have crossed the bridge. And only two days ago, somebody stood in Port Harcourt, Rivers State and said he would catch people that steal and throw them in Kirikiri(Prisons).
“I agree that we must stop corruption but I will not do so by catching people and putting them in crates and   jailing   or killing them. We can’t stop corruption that way.”
The President told the PDP chiefs, members and supporters at the carnival-like event that held at the Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos that “the   same mouth says something from the right and the left, making contradictory statements.”
Raising his voice, he asked rhetorically,“ Can you trust such a man ? Are they not deceiving you?
“They want power by all means. All they want to use power for is to lock up and imprison their enemies,” he claimed, eliciting thunderous applause from the gathering.
The President also said that if   Buhari had effectively fought corruption   between 1983 and 1985 when he was Head of State, Nigeria would not be grappling with graft today.
He argued that the kind of anti-graft war the APC presidential candidate was advocating had no place in today’s democracy.
The President said that instead of fighting corruption by making arrests, he would structure Nigeria in such a way that people holding public offices would no longer have direct access to funds.
Jonathan added   that his administration had   curbed corruption in the civil service and the agricultural sector through the computerisation of   payment system.
The President, however, explained that the   system caused the delay in paying federal civil servants   December salaries.
He said, “I apologise to those families that suffered because I believe that for you to fight corruption, you must take some measures such as establishing institutions. You don’t just wake up, enter the streets and start arresting people   and showing them on television sets and saying you are fighting corruption.
“If they had succeeded in fighting corruption, corruption would not have been with us today. If they had set up structures to manage resources, in this ICT era, we would not have been talking about corruption today.
“What happened on the issue of civil servants is something known as IPIS which is a software for protecting salaries. Sometimes people steal   salaries in some Federal Government agencies and ministries. They tried to divert funds meant for some allowances but since the system is scientific,   it shut down.   This is the only way that you can prevent corruption.
“I served in Bayelsa State as deputy governor and governor for eight years and then vice president and president for another four years. Within these periods,   fertiliser distribution was an area where both the federal   and state governments spent billions of naira. Less than 10 per cent of   the product got to farmers while the rest was stolen and sent out of the country. Even the 10 per cent was sometimes adulterated.
“What did we do? We assembled some young Nigerians that are IT gurus and developed what we call the Electronic Wallet. Through   the wallet,   farmers got   fertiliser directly and nobody is cheating the government again. Is that not a way to stop corruption?
“If somebody tells you that the best way to fight corruption is to come and arrest your mother and father and show them on   television,   will that   stop corruption? In fact, it will even encourage corruption. We are shooting armed robbers but is that stopping them? So, arresting people and showing them on television sets will do nothing. We must set up institutions and strengthen them in order to prevent people from stealing public money. That is what we are working on and we are succeeding.”
Although Jonathan was also short of mentioning names , he said that Nigeria would become a jungle if some people who did not believe in the rule of law were allowed to take over governance.
He said, “They say the government is weak and have no plan. They say we are weak because they took our fathers, mothers and uncles and drugged and put them in crates before flying them to Nigeria. They were intercepted mid-air by superior powers.
“That even blocked Nigerians from even going to Britain at a time. The relationship between Nigeria and Britain went sour and the whole world isolated Nigeria . They say that is the way to fight corruption. So the moment I suspect your uncle (of corruption), I can crate him and send them to Kirikiri (prisons).
“Is that the way to stop corruption? I served with (former President Umaru)Yar’Adua and he stood by due process and I also stand by due process.
“Any country that does not obey the rule of law is a jungle. Do you want Nigeria to be a jungle ? “Immediately I suspect you of doing something wrong, I will call the police and the army and throw you into jail. Is that the kind of country you want? They said to be strong is to jail people indiscriminately for 300 years. Is that the way to go? A country is like an industry, it must be managed properly by people who have grey and white matters upstairs.”
He said the APC was not a democratic party as the Department of State Service had exposed its plan   to clone Permanent Voter Cards in order to rig the general elections.
Jonathan warned that a vote for the APC was a vote for backwardness.
In the area of insecurity, Jonathan said Buhari could not tackle the problem because he contributed to it by failing to invest in the military when he was head of state.
He said, “They talked about insecurity. Are Nigerians in the armed forces weak? The problem is that we don’t have platforms (equipment) and somebody who wakes up and tells young people   that they want to fight insecurity, ask him:   Did he buy one rifle for a Nigerian soldier?
“These people did not buy anything; they refused to equip the military and there were no helicopters; nothing. Ask them what they did with their defence budgets and the whole time they could not equip the military.”
The President said $10bn was not enough to buy equipment for the military as it usually took   years to boost its capacity. He, however, said he had been able to curb corruption in the armed forces by eliminating middlemen in the purchase of arms.
He said, “No country equips its military overnight . Armed forces are built over the years because even if you spend $10bn today, you cannot equip the Air Force, the Navy and   the Army. They refused to build their capacity, they instigated crisis and now they are telling you they can fight insecurity.
“They said the military is corrupt. When this insecurity started, we had nothing so to tackle it very quickly, we used vendors to get equipment.   But now, we are doing government to government arrangement and so there is nothing like corruption anymore. Is that not the way to fight corruption? You must prevent people from touching public money.”
Jonathan said since   his generation had failed Nigeria,   it was important for the youths to vote for those who would invest in their future.
He said it was his dream for the next generation of Nigerians to fly to the moon.
He said, “Those of my age and above are finished; we are gone. That is why I am addressing those of you that are voting for the first time. We believe it is you that will take us to the moon. My generation has failed, we couldn’t take Nigeria to the moon.
“Look at what India is doing? I said for us to get to the moon,   our first class graduates should be sent   to the best 25 universities in the world for postgraduate studies.
“ So you must vote wisely. They will build prisons for you but I will build universities for you. I will build primary schools and secondary schools .”
He said the APC was not on a mission to fight corruption but to jail their enemies. He, therefore, urged Nigerians not to vote for the party.
Jonathan laughed at the reported endorsement of Buhari by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta.
He said it was unfortunate that the group which was responsible for killing Nigerians on October 1, 2010 was the one identifying with the APC.
He also alleged that MEND jailed leader, Henry Okah, was paid   to kill him in 2010.
Earlier, the Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio, said the alleged missing money from the treasury was a propaganda tool created by the APC.
Akpabio said,   “We (governors) were the ones that told Mr. President that we should share the 55bn. We said we could not be saving while our people are hungry. Will you be saving when your child is in the hospital?
“If your child dies, wouldn’t you be a fool? The money was shared by the three tiers of government so no money is missing.”
He did not say if the money was in naira or dollars.

Presidency, others to spend N517.9m on meals in 2015



President Goodluck JonathanPresident Goodluck Jonathan
 
The Federal Government is proposing to spend   N517.9m   this year on meals and refreshments   for the Presidency, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, ministries of power and petroleum as well as their parastatals.
The amount is contained in the details of the 2015 budget breakdown, which was obtained by our correspondents in Abuja on Sunday.
The   N517.9m proposal for refreshments and meals is 42.9 per cent or N158.94m higher than the   N359.94m approved for the offices and the MDAs   in 2014 .
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Out of the N517.9m,   a provision of N174.54m was made for refreshments and meals for the State House   in 2015.
The   N174.64m, according to the budget, is 7.4 per cent or N11.98m higher than the N162.55m approved in 2014.
For the office of the President, the budget breakdown revealed that a provision of N142.47m was made for 2015 for refreshments and meals.
However, nothing was mentioned as regards refreshments and meals for the President in the 2014 budget.
For the Vice-President,   a provision of   N25.58m was made for meals and refreshments.
The N25.58m represents   136.8 per cent increase over the N10.8m approved for the two items in the 2014 fiscal year.
However, while the State House Headquarters, Office of the President and the Vice President all have a combined budgetary provision of N342.59m for refreshments and meals, the 10 agencies under the presidency had a provision of just N67.4m for the same items.
They are the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Millennium Development Goals which has a provision of N8.49m; the Bureau for Public Enterprises, N14.72m; the National Emergency Management Agency,N14m; and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission N20m.
Others are the Bureau of Public Procurement, N5.52m; the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, N3.81m; and the Office of the Chief Economic Adviser to the President, N838,758.
In the same vein, the Presidency’s budget for meal and refreshments could be described as a sharp contrast over what was budgeted for the same purpose in the ministries of power and petroleum resources, as well as agencies under them which have a combined total provision of N48.7m.
The total budget for refreshments and meals for the Federal Ministry of Power and its agencies is N11.61m while that of Petroleum Resources is N37.1m.
In the 2014 Appropriation Act, the Petroleum ministry got N39.65m. That of     the Ministry of Power for the same year could not be obtained.
Of the eight agencies under the Federal Ministry of Power, only four had allocations for refreshments and meals.
A breakdown of the proposed budgetary allocation for 2015 shows that the headquarters of the Power ministry has N4.96m; the National Rural Electrification Agency, N2m; the Electricity Management Services Limited, N4m and the Nigeria Electricity Management Limited,   N652,111.
Also, of the six agencies under the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, only two have no allocations for refreshment and meals. These   are the Department of Petroleum Resources and the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency.
The headquarters of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources has an allocation of N27.41m; the Petroleum Training Institute, N1.81m; the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board, N5m and the Nigeria Nuclear Regulatory Authority, N2.9m.
The 2015 budget has a N4.358tn expenditure figure made up of N412bn for Statutory Transfers; N943bn for Debt Servicing; N2.61tn for Recurrent (Non-Debt) and N634bn for Capital Expenditure (inclusive of Subsidy Re-investment and Empowerment Programme).
While the recurrent vote is 85.8 per cent of aggregate budget, the capital expenditure is just 14.2 per cent of the aggregate spending (inclusive of SURE-P).

B’ Haram overruns military base in Borno


Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh
Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh
| credits: http://www.nigeriancurrent.com/
Boko Haram militants on Saturday launched fresh attacks on some communities in Borno and Yobe states, killing scores of people, including children.
The attack on Borno State   was on a military base at the fishing community of Baga, near Lake Chad.
The   base is used by the Multinational Joint Task Force which was established in 1998 to battle cross-border crimes but whose mandate was expanded to fighting Boko Haram.
The force is made up of troops from Nigeria as well as Niger and Chad.
Hundreds of fear-stricken residents of Baga and five other   towns and villages were reported to have poured into the neighbouring Chad in fishing boats and canoes to escape being attacked too by the sect members.
A military source, who pleaded anonymity,   said   the soldiers in the base were caught unawares   by the insurgents.
He said, “It was an ugly development in Baga on Saturday morning, when the Boko Haram insurgents attacked the   base   there and practically dislodged the soldiers. I can tell you that it was really bad.”
A resident, Usman Danssubdu, told the Agence France Presse   that the insurgents   seized the base   after several hours of gun battle with   the troops.
He added that most of the residents of the community were “now seeking refuge in Gubuwa, Kangallam and Kaiga villages inside Chad near the border with Nigeria.”
Another resident, Yunus Ali, told our correspondent in Maiduguri that the insurgents captured the community and hoisted their flag at the MNJTF base.
Ali, who arrived Maiduguri around 5pm on Sunday, said he slept in the bush and trekked many kilometers before he got a bus   to the state cxapital.
“It was around 5am yesterday (Saturday) when we started hearing gunshots and they entered the   MNJTF base where they killed many civilians living in the barracks,” he said.
Another fleeing resident, Ibrahim Kaka, said the insurgents also followed people fleeing to the bush where they killed many people.
“They did not spare anybody as they shot at men, women and even children who were fleeing into the bush,” Kaka claimed.
Our correspondent saw thousands of fleeing residents at the Baga motor park in Maiduguri where they were being awaited by their anxious relatives.
The PUNCH could not get the Director, Defence Information, Maj. Gen Chris Olukolade, to confirm the attack on base in Baga as   calls to his mobile telephone line did not connect.
Also, Olukolade did not respond to a text message on the issue as of the time of filing this report.
In the latest attack on Yobe, the terrorists attacked Babbangida town, the headquarters of Tarmuwa Local Government Area on Saturday.
A resident, Ibrahim Nur, said the insurgents came strong on the town at about 6.30pm, engaging security forces in a gun battle.
According to him, the places of battle   were the military base located north of the town, a police station at the southern part, as well as the LG secretariat, the government lodge and a primary school.
He said, “The insurgents had the intention of destroying all these places but the security forces from what we   have seen have been able to repel them. Our only fear is that the battle may continue today(Sunday).”
Nur added that the number of casualties still remained unknown as most of the places of the battle were still cordoned off by the military.
Babbangida is only about 50 kilometres north of Damaturu, the Yobe state capital.
Journalists also learnt in Maiduguri, Borno State on Sunday that about 40 youths were abducted on Thursday by Boko Haram members in Malari.
A security source said the abducted youths were taken to a location called Modube, a new base of the sect close to the notorious Sambisa forest
The source said, “Our office had received   Intelligence report that on January 1,   at about 5pm, some Boko Haram gunmen   invaded one Malari village in Damboa LGA, where they killed some   villagers and abducted some youths. The youths   might have been taken to one of Boko Haram’s hideouts known as Modube Camp.”
Some of the residents of Malari, who escaped the attack told journalists in Maiduguri that the Boko Haram gunmen   asked   them to come out and listen to some sermons.
Bulama Malam, a farmer, said,   “They gathered many of us near the house of the village head, after telling us that they wanted to preach to us; and then, they began to select young men aged between 12 and 25. I was lucky to escape, because they only selected very young and able-bodied men.”
It was also learnt from a senior security official that the militants “on Thursday attacked a bus that was transporting many passengers from Kousseri to Maroua in Cameroun and killed 15 persons on the spot.
The officer official, who asked not to be named, added that 10 other passengers were   severely injured but were taken to the Maroua Hospital.
Maroua is the capital of the Far North region, which has seen the worst of the spillover of Boko Haram insurgency .
A   Camerounian businessman, Foncha Ngeh,   said there had been a string of other attacks in the region by the Nigerian insurgents.
Late last month, Cameroon had to call on its air force to help troops dislodge Boko Haram fighters who briefly occupied a military camp after hundreds of militants mounted a wave of attacks on five northern towns.
Raids by Boko Haram have forced many Cameroonians living along the porous border to abandon farms, raising the risk of food shortages in the semi-arid part of the country.