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Monday, June 7, 2010
JUNE 7 2010
•Min of Finance, Dr. Olusegun Aganga (right) and MD, Diamond Capital, Tony Onwu at the Infrastructure Concessioon Regulatory Comm (ICRC)/International Project Finance Association (IPFA) Nigeria
Watch the THISDAY awards
11th Annual THISDAY Award Pictures
More Headlines
Jonathan Orders Power Sector Reforms Fast-tracked
‘el-Rufai, Modibbo, Aliero Allocated 18, 445 Plots’
Fresh Controversy Trails Constitution Amendment
Ribadu: Anti-corruption Programme Must Be Sustainable
Bank Directors to Partner CBN on Reforms
House Raises Alarm over Fuel Tank Farms
Plot to Remove Oyo Assembly Speaker Thickens
Senate C’ttee Summons IG over Deji of Akure
2011: Independent Newspaper Holds Forum on Credible Polls
N’Delta: 5 Oil Firms Reject ECOWAS Court
2011: Mark Tasks Politicians on National Unity
Bankole Advocates Effective Management Culture
Ghanaian Court Reinstates Nigerian Banker
Yarima: ‘Parliament Can’t Annul Islamic Marriage’
Guild of Editors Urges Support for Post-amnesty Programme
Wale Tinubu Nominated for African Business Awards
NUPENG, PENGASSAN Task NNPC on Depot Facilities
FAAN, Airlines to Fight Bird Strike Menace at Airports
Civil Society Groups Charged on Elective Positions
RMG: Nigerians Should Learn from British Elections
Golden Jubilee: Nigerians Urged to Make Country Worth Living
FG to Conduct Census of Unemployed Nigerians
Sambo to Launch ‘Access to Education’ Campaign
Chadian Govt Awards $1.2bn Housing Contract to Nigerian
Varsity Awards Goje Honorary Doctoral Degree
‘Nigerian Languages Risk Extinction’
NDLEA Foils Plan to Export Drugs in Fufu
A’Ibom: PDP Reaffirms Akpabio as Sole Guber Candidate
Jonathan Accepts Nwodo as Consensus Candidate
Nigeria Meets The world
Thisday TownHall III
AriseLive
Top Stories
Sanusi: Jonathan Backs CBN Reform Agenda
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi has said that he has no problem with President Goodluck Jonathan and that the President is in support of the banking reforms More...
FG Cancels Abuja Second Runway Project
The controversial Abuja airport second runway contract awarded to Julius Berger Nigeria Plc has been cancelled by the Federal Government More...
PDP NEC Meets Thursday to Ratify Nwodo
After more than a month of intense politicking, the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will meet Thursday to consider and ratify Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo as the new chairman of the party More...
2011: Jonathan Can Contest, Says Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has broken his silence over the issue of whether President Goodluck Jonathan should contest the presidential election in 2011 More...
SGBN to Return with N37bn Capital
Societe Generale Bank Nigeria (SGBN) plans to return to operations before the end of this year, with N37 billion fresh capital injection More...
House Conflict: Speaker, Aide Alleged Threat to Life
A nother dimension was at the weekend added to on-going rumbles in the House of Representatives, as the lives of the Speaker Dimeji Bankole and his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Ebhomiana Musa are said to have been threatened through anonymous text messages More...
Simon Kolawole Live!: Blueprint to Underdevelop Nigeria
The advent of President Goodluck Jonathan seems to have offered many Nigerians new hope. It is normal. As human beings, new things excite us.
Pendulum By Dele Momodu:The Politics of Sound and Fury
As I watched the frenetic preparations for the World Cup by South Africa, I wondered if Nigerians understood how much Nigeria has been underdeveloped by the party in power
State of the States
Fashola Advocates Proper Knowledge of Constitution
Afenifere Wants Electoral Reform Fast-tracked
Anioma People Insist on Producing Next Governor
Saraki: CPP Dissociates Self from Opposition
Yuguda’s Wife Donates to Charity
Amnesty for Kidnappers Suffers Setback
Assault: Group Seeks Prosecution of Royal Father
More on the States...
The Polity, By Yusuph Olaniyonu: Why Are We All Waiting on the PDP?
By the end of this month, it is obvious the nation’s constitution would have been successfully amended.
Engagements By Chidi Amuta: Agony of a Columnist
Among self appointed messiahs, newspaper columnists here or anywhere else rank quite high.
Watch the THISDAY awards
11th Annual THISDAY Award Pictures
More Headlines
Jonathan Orders Power Sector Reforms Fast-tracked
‘el-Rufai, Modibbo, Aliero Allocated 18, 445 Plots’
Fresh Controversy Trails Constitution Amendment
Ribadu: Anti-corruption Programme Must Be Sustainable
Bank Directors to Partner CBN on Reforms
House Raises Alarm over Fuel Tank Farms
Plot to Remove Oyo Assembly Speaker Thickens
Senate C’ttee Summons IG over Deji of Akure
2011: Independent Newspaper Holds Forum on Credible Polls
N’Delta: 5 Oil Firms Reject ECOWAS Court
2011: Mark Tasks Politicians on National Unity
Bankole Advocates Effective Management Culture
Ghanaian Court Reinstates Nigerian Banker
Yarima: ‘Parliament Can’t Annul Islamic Marriage’
Guild of Editors Urges Support for Post-amnesty Programme
Wale Tinubu Nominated for African Business Awards
NUPENG, PENGASSAN Task NNPC on Depot Facilities
FAAN, Airlines to Fight Bird Strike Menace at Airports
Civil Society Groups Charged on Elective Positions
RMG: Nigerians Should Learn from British Elections
Golden Jubilee: Nigerians Urged to Make Country Worth Living
FG to Conduct Census of Unemployed Nigerians
Sambo to Launch ‘Access to Education’ Campaign
Chadian Govt Awards $1.2bn Housing Contract to Nigerian
Varsity Awards Goje Honorary Doctoral Degree
‘Nigerian Languages Risk Extinction’
NDLEA Foils Plan to Export Drugs in Fufu
A’Ibom: PDP Reaffirms Akpabio as Sole Guber Candidate
Jonathan Accepts Nwodo as Consensus Candidate
Nigeria Meets The world
Thisday TownHall III
AriseLive
Top Stories
Sanusi: Jonathan Backs CBN Reform Agenda
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi has said that he has no problem with President Goodluck Jonathan and that the President is in support of the banking reforms More...
FG Cancels Abuja Second Runway Project
The controversial Abuja airport second runway contract awarded to Julius Berger Nigeria Plc has been cancelled by the Federal Government More...
PDP NEC Meets Thursday to Ratify Nwodo
After more than a month of intense politicking, the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will meet Thursday to consider and ratify Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo as the new chairman of the party More...
2011: Jonathan Can Contest, Says Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has broken his silence over the issue of whether President Goodluck Jonathan should contest the presidential election in 2011 More...
SGBN to Return with N37bn Capital
Societe Generale Bank Nigeria (SGBN) plans to return to operations before the end of this year, with N37 billion fresh capital injection More...
House Conflict: Speaker, Aide Alleged Threat to Life
A nother dimension was at the weekend added to on-going rumbles in the House of Representatives, as the lives of the Speaker Dimeji Bankole and his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Ebhomiana Musa are said to have been threatened through anonymous text messages More...
Simon Kolawole Live!: Blueprint to Underdevelop Nigeria
The advent of President Goodluck Jonathan seems to have offered many Nigerians new hope. It is normal. As human beings, new things excite us.
Pendulum By Dele Momodu:The Politics of Sound and Fury
As I watched the frenetic preparations for the World Cup by South Africa, I wondered if Nigerians understood how much Nigeria has been underdeveloped by the party in power
State of the States
Fashola Advocates Proper Knowledge of Constitution
Afenifere Wants Electoral Reform Fast-tracked
Anioma People Insist on Producing Next Governor
Saraki: CPP Dissociates Self from Opposition
Yuguda’s Wife Donates to Charity
Amnesty for Kidnappers Suffers Setback
Assault: Group Seeks Prosecution of Royal Father
More on the States...
The Polity, By Yusuph Olaniyonu: Why Are We All Waiting on the PDP?
By the end of this month, it is obvious the nation’s constitution would have been successfully amended.
Engagements By Chidi Amuta: Agony of a Columnist
Among self appointed messiahs, newspaper columnists here or anywhere else rank quite high.
JUNE 7 2010
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Monday, June 7, 2010 12:35
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Elan
Faith
Bankole, told to prepare a will.
Bankole gets death threat
The quarrel between the Speaker and some members takes a deadly turn as he receives death threat.
Comments 33
Related: Bankole moves against opponents
Related: Reps Plan to ambush Bankole
Related: How Bankole survived impeachment plot
Nigeria needs fresh anti-corruption approach, says Ribadu
The former anti-corruption czar calls for new strategies in the fight against financial crimes.
Comments 44
Controversy hits constitution amendment process
Review Committee disagrees on whether Jonathan should assent to amended document.
Comments 4
Party says Jonathan ‘wasted’ his time in Oyo
Opposition party says the visiting president was deliberately prevented from visiting the Ibadan king.
Comments 29
in the news
Police promise Akure queen protection
June 7, 2010 12:27AM
Activists condemn lawmakers on constitution review
June 7, 2010 12:01AM
Rep indicts Kano on poor education
June 7, 2010 12:29AM
Edo to destroy century old building for mall
June 7, 2010 12:37AM
Succession crisis rocks Anambra town unions
June 7, 2010 12:35AM
Robbers kill two police officers, abduct one
June 7, 2010 12:31AM
‘Nigeria should have three vice presidents’
June 7, 2010 12:39AM
Fourteen people confirmed dead in Ondo road crash
June 7, 2010 12:43AM
Ekiti assembly suspends council boss
June 7, 2010 12:41AM
Editors support post-amnesty programme
June 7, 2010 12:05AM
business
‘Cooperation key to global recovery’
The International Monetary Fund is canvassing for global teamwork to aid recovery.
Comments 1
Nigeria to access $5m from Global Sanitation Fund
The nation is expected to use the money to improve sanitation and hygiene.
Comments 3
CORDROS WEEKLY FINANCIAL MARKET REVIEW: Stock market in mixed session
Activities in the market were quite low due to loss of interest on the part of key
Comments 0
More Business Headlines
For the young, mobile phones mean much
Minister to focus on job creation
Dangote ups stake in S.Africa cement firm
Oil workers to resist fuel price increase
Oil reform plans face further delays
Price of food items on the increase
opinion (click for all)
NEXT Editorial
Death by poisoning
We sympathize with the victims of these disasters, and call on our governments to wake up to their responsibilities.
Comments 4
Obadiah Malafia
IMHOTEP: Counting our blessings
This house has not fallen, in spite of civil war, in spite of the recurrent cycle of ritual bloodbaths in
Comments 5
Kadaria Ahmed
OBSERVATIONS: Why our legislators deserve more pay
Their allowances are a meagre N27.2 million each, hardly commensu-rate with all the sterling contributions…
Comments 15
Mike Littwin
Gores go from liplock to breakup
Strangely, the Clintons' strange marriage continues, and now the Gores are splitting up.
Comments 0
sports
Lagerback secures first win despite stampede
After two draws, the Swede leads the Eagles to victory.
Comments 46
Nadal makes it five
Rafael Nadal is back on top of the tennis world after claiming a fifth French
June 6, 2010 11:30PM
More Sports Headlines
Policeman badly hurt in fans' stampede
Mikel, Obasi, Haruna complete World Cup cycle
Football’s biggest show rolls out in South Africa
Martins ready to die for Eagles
Ballah radiates with FCT Unity Polo title
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Post UME, is it a good idea?
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view results
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back of the book
Kelani cries piracy as Arugba goes on general release
The cinematographer reveals the devastating impact of Alaba Market gangs on his work.
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News from the world of showbiz.
You and your child’s education
Tuition should not be seen as the exclusive preserve of teachers and schools.
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Much Ado about Control
‘I’ve published less than I would have wished’
THROWBACK: Blackky
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Monday, June 7, 2010 12:35
Home
News
Money
Opinion
Arts & Culture
Sport
Multimedia
X2
Elan
Faith
Bankole, told to prepare a will.
Bankole gets death threat
The quarrel between the Speaker and some members takes a deadly turn as he receives death threat.
Comments 33
Related: Bankole moves against opponents
Related: Reps Plan to ambush Bankole
Related: How Bankole survived impeachment plot
Nigeria needs fresh anti-corruption approach, says Ribadu
The former anti-corruption czar calls for new strategies in the fight against financial crimes.
Comments 44
Controversy hits constitution amendment process
Review Committee disagrees on whether Jonathan should assent to amended document.
Comments 4
Party says Jonathan ‘wasted’ his time in Oyo
Opposition party says the visiting president was deliberately prevented from visiting the Ibadan king.
Comments 29
in the news
Police promise Akure queen protection
June 7, 2010 12:27AM
Activists condemn lawmakers on constitution review
June 7, 2010 12:01AM
Rep indicts Kano on poor education
June 7, 2010 12:29AM
Edo to destroy century old building for mall
June 7, 2010 12:37AM
Succession crisis rocks Anambra town unions
June 7, 2010 12:35AM
Robbers kill two police officers, abduct one
June 7, 2010 12:31AM
‘Nigeria should have three vice presidents’
June 7, 2010 12:39AM
Fourteen people confirmed dead in Ondo road crash
June 7, 2010 12:43AM
Ekiti assembly suspends council boss
June 7, 2010 12:41AM
Editors support post-amnesty programme
June 7, 2010 12:05AM
business
‘Cooperation key to global recovery’
The International Monetary Fund is canvassing for global teamwork to aid recovery.
Comments 1
Nigeria to access $5m from Global Sanitation Fund
The nation is expected to use the money to improve sanitation and hygiene.
Comments 3
CORDROS WEEKLY FINANCIAL MARKET REVIEW: Stock market in mixed session
Activities in the market were quite low due to loss of interest on the part of key
Comments 0
More Business Headlines
For the young, mobile phones mean much
Minister to focus on job creation
Dangote ups stake in S.Africa cement firm
Oil workers to resist fuel price increase
Oil reform plans face further delays
Price of food items on the increase
opinion (click for all)
NEXT Editorial
Death by poisoning
We sympathize with the victims of these disasters, and call on our governments to wake up to their responsibilities.
Comments 4
Obadiah Malafia
IMHOTEP: Counting our blessings
This house has not fallen, in spite of civil war, in spite of the recurrent cycle of ritual bloodbaths in
Comments 5
Kadaria Ahmed
OBSERVATIONS: Why our legislators deserve more pay
Their allowances are a meagre N27.2 million each, hardly commensu-rate with all the sterling contributions…
Comments 15
Mike Littwin
Gores go from liplock to breakup
Strangely, the Clintons' strange marriage continues, and now the Gores are splitting up.
Comments 0
sports
Lagerback secures first win despite stampede
After two draws, the Swede leads the Eagles to victory.
Comments 46
Nadal makes it five
Rafael Nadal is back on top of the tennis world after claiming a fifth French
June 6, 2010 11:30PM
More Sports Headlines
Policeman badly hurt in fans' stampede
Mikel, Obasi, Haruna complete World Cup cycle
Football’s biggest show rolls out in South Africa
Martins ready to die for Eagles
Ballah radiates with FCT Unity Polo title
NEXT Tv (Click to see all)
Join us for an exciting career
live updates
ADVERTISE ONLINE WITH 234NEXT.com
234NEXT.com gets an average of 1.1 Million total visits, 297,000 unique visitors and 4.3 Million Pageviews per month. For rates or to place your advertisement with us, please contact us by emailing advertisingsales@234NEXT.com or calling +234 (0) 803 377 3621 or +234 (0) 703 408 6021
cartoons
Post UME, is it a good idea?
Yes
No
What is Post-UME?
view results
Free vote poll
back of the book
Kelani cries piracy as Arugba goes on general release
The cinematographer reveals the devastating impact of Alaba Market gangs on his work.
Celebrity News
News from the world of showbiz.
You and your child’s education
Tuition should not be seen as the exclusive preserve of teachers and schools.
More Art & Culture Headlines
Much Ado about Control
‘I’ve published less than I would have wished’
THROWBACK: Blackky
Celebrity News
Now is the time
News
National
Metro
World
Money
Finance
Business
Opinion
Editorial
Blogs
Columns
Sports
Football
Schools
Polo
Golf
Events
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Music
Art
Film
Theatre/Dance
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LifeStyle
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©2009 234next.com. Timbuktu media.
All rights reserved.
Terms | Privacy Policy | Legal Disclaimer Advertise With Us
Contact Us
Timbuktu Media Main Office: 01-8977685
Advertising Sales: +234 703-4086021; +234 703-4086020; +234 703-4164695; +234 703-4164691; +234 703-4164692
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JUE 7 2010
Monday, June 7, 2010
Overview
Nigeria is Africa's most populous country and its second largest economy. Despite a return to civilian government in 1999 after a long spell of military dominance, Nigeria remains a fractious nation, divided along ethnic and religious lines.
Nigerians, keenly aware that their impoverished and wealth-stratified nation has not realized its potential, had hopes that President Umaru Yar'Adua might help it do so after his election in 2007. But Mr. Yar'Adua's chronic ill health sapped his initial promises of reform and led to a constitutional crisis in his country. Mr. Yar'Adua, who suffered from kidney and heart ailments, died at age 58 on May 5, 2010.
The West African nation's vice president, Goodluck Jonathan, had been acting president since February 2010, filling a power vacuum left by Mr. Yar"Adua who departed for emergency treatment in Saudi Arabia in November 2009. When Mr. Yar'Adua returned to Nigeria in late February 2010, he did not reclaim the powers which the Nigerian Parliament reluctantly transferred to his deputy. By virtue of his presence, Mr. Yar'Adua had placed a question mark over the presidency of Mr. Jonathan, a native of the rival southern half of Nigeria. That has now been removed.
For years, the predominantly Muslim region of northern Nigeria has had regular and often bloody outbreaks of sectarian unrest in which hundreds have been killed. In early March 2010, as many as 500 people, including many women and children, may have been killed near the city of Jos, long a center of tensions between Christians and Muslims. The dead were Christians. The attack appeared to be in reprisal for violence in January 2010 when dozens of Muslims were slaughtered in and around Jos, including more than 150 in one village.
Muslim-Christian violence has drawn a threat of jihad from an al-Queda linked group. And a tenuous truce in the restive, oil-producing south fell apart when Mr. Yar'Adua was hospitalized. The violence has driven down oil production by about 1 million barrels a day, causing the country, long Africa's top oil producer, to fall behind Angola in 2009.
Read More...
General Information on Nigeria
Official Name: Federal Republic of Nigeria
Capital: Abuja (Current local time)
Government Type: Federal Republic
Population: 135.03 million
Area: 356,700 square miles; about the size of California, Nevada and Arizona
Languages: English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani
GDP Per Capita: $694
Year of Independence: 1960
Reference Material on Nigeria
Columbia Encyclopedia
Nigeria (nījĭr'ēə), officially Federal Republic of Nigeria, republic (2006 provisional pop. 140,003,542), 356,667 sq mi (923,768 sq km), W Africa. It borders on the Gulf of Guinea (an arm of the Atlantic Ocean) in the south, on Benin in the west, on Niger in the northwest and north, on Chad in the northeast, and on Cameroon in the east. Abuja is the capital and Lagos is the largest city.
Land and People
More on this entry »
ALSO SEE: Dictionary, Geography, Statistics, WordNet
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2010, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/. See Nigeria on Answers.com
Articles
Newest First | Oldest First
Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Next >>
Don’t Bet on Home Continent in African World Cup
By JERÉ LONGMAN
Hope is wafting across Africa that one of its teams might win. History says otherwise.
June 5, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: WORLD CUP 2010 (SOCCER), SOCCER, IVORY COAST, URUGUAY, CAMEROON, ALGERIA, SOUTH AFRICA, FIFA
The Oil Spills We Don't Hear About
By ANENE EJIKEME
In the Niger Delta, people have been living with dead fish, oily water and gas flares for 50 years.
June 4, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: OIL (PETROLEUM) AND GASOLINE, ENVIRONMENT, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC
On a Visit to the U.S., a Nigerian Witch-Hunter Explains Herself
By MARK OPPENHEIMER
A Pentecostal preacher who is the subject of a new HBO documentary says she can tell when people are possessed.
May 22, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: PENTECOSTAL CHURCHES, CHILDREN AND YOUTH, CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT, DOCUMENTARY FILMS AND PROGRAMS, WITCHCRAFT, GREAT BRITAIN, HOUSTON (TEX), HOME BOX OFFICE
President for Life, and Then Some
By HOWARD W. FRENCH
The muddled succession story of Ivory Coast has become a prevalent narrative across much of Africa, with leaders seemingly doing anything to hang onto power for as long as possible.
May 12, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: IVORY COAST, AFRICA, YAR''ADUA, UMARU
New Nigerian President Sworn In
By ADAM NOSSITER; IMAM IMAM CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM KATSINA, NIGERIA.
Nigeria swore in a new president Thursday morning, former Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, hours after the death Wednesday night of Umaru Yar’Adua.
May 7, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: JONATHAN, GOODLUCK
President of Nigeria Dies After Long Illness
By ADAM NOSSITER
President Umaru Yar’Adua did not transfer power when he left the country for emergency treatment in Saudi Arabia and Nigeria was left in limbo.
May 6, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT, DEATHS (OBITUARIES), YAR'ADUA, UMARU
Ruling Party in Nigeria Is Fractured by Infighting
By ADAM NOSSITER
Squabbles offer hints of the power struggle to come before the wide-open 2011 presidential election.
April 24, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT, YAR'ADUA, UMARU, JONATHAN, GOODLUCK
Banks Making Big Profits From Tiny Loans
By NEIL MACFARQUHAR; ELISABETH MALKIN CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM MEXICO CITY.
Despite its saintly aura, microfinancing is dominated by larger banks that often charge high interest rates.
April 14, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POVERTY, MICROFINANCE, ECONOMIC CONDITIONS AND TRENDS, THIRD WORLD AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, MEXICO, CARE, KIVA.ORG, YUNUS, MUHAMMAD
Pastors Meet With President of Nigeria
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nigeria’s ill and long unseen president met briefly with Christian religious leaders on Monday, still physically weak but “able to grunt out an amen,” a pastor who took part in the visit said.
April 6, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: YAR'ADUA, UMARU
Out of Africa
INTERVIEW BY DEBORAH SOLOMON
The Nigerian novelist talks about the latest ethnic violence in his country.
March 28, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: ACHEBE, CHINUA
Education First, Beating UConn a Close Second
By JERÉ LONGMAN
Nneka Ogwumike, whose parents emigrated from Nigeria, will be a key to Stanford’s chances of defeating Connecticut in a possible national championship game.
March 22, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: EDUCATION AND SCHOOLS, COLLEGE ATHLETICS, NCAA BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT (WOMEN), IMMIGRATION AND EMIGRATION, PACIFIC-10 CONFERENCE, UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSN, MOORE, MAYA, MULKEY, KIM, AURIEMMA, GENO
Acting Leader of Nigeria Dissolves His Cabinet
By ADAM NOSSITER; SENAN MURRAY CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM ABUJA, NIGERIA.
In an effort to put his stamp on the presidency, Goodluck Jonathan dismissed the cabinet members inherited from Umaru Yar’Adua, who is too ill to carry out his duties.
March 18, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT, JONATHAN, GOODLUCK
Where Bad News Is No News
By ADAOBI TRICIA NWAUBANI
Every time Nigeria experiences an episode of violence, the nation seems to go quiet or to have amnesia, while the rest of the world becomes fixated.
March 18, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: CIVIL WAR AND GUERRILLA WARFARE, NEWS AND NEWS MEDIA, JOS (NIGERIA), YAR'ADUA, UMARU
Nigerians Recount Night of Their Bloody Revenge
By ADAM NOSSITER
This week dozens of herdsmen slaughtered hundreds of people in a brutal act of sectarian retribution in Jos.
March 11, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: MURDERS AND ATTEMPTED MURDERS, CHRISTIANS AND CHRISTIANITY, ISLAM, FREEDOM AND HUMAN RIGHTS, BOKO HARAM, AMERICAN RED CROSS
Ravaged Nigerian Village Is Haunted by Latest Massacre
By ADAM NOSSITER; JUDE OWUAMANAM CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM DOGON NA HAUWA and JOS, NIGERIA.
After ethnic violence flared in January in Jos, the military patrolled the city, but neglected nearby villages where reprisals took place over the weekend.
March 10, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: VIOLENCE
SEARCH 1333 Articles:
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Multimedia
Video
Transforming Nigeria
A Western-educated, Nigerian gubernatorial candidate concedes to a corrupt system in a bid to transform it. (Produced by Adam B. Ellick)
Related Article
Nigeria Navigator
A list of Web sites about Nigeria as selected by editors of The New York Times.
C.I.A. World Factbook country profile
State Department -- history and overview
BBC country profile
The Economist - forecast and economic data
News and online media
National Geographic world music guide
The Nigerian Government's Portal Page
News
Links to Nigerian Newspaper Web Sites
A Nigerian News Site
Compiles reports from many sources
The Economist
Offers links to data and analysis
From the Council on Foreign Relations
Michelle D. Gavin: A Blow for Nigerian Democracy, CFR.org Podcast
Nigeria's Creaky Political System, CFR.org Backgrounder
Nigeria: Elections and Continuing Challenges, Council Special Report
MEND: The Niger Delta's Umbrella Militant Group, CFR.org Backgrounder
Islamic Law in Nigeria, CFR Transcript
From the International Crisis Group
Links to Articles and Papers About Conflict in Nigeria
Other Resources
Business
Business conditions (World Bank)
Currency conversion
Economy
Economic outlook for the most developed countries (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development)
Statistical profiles of the least developed countries (U.N.)
World Bank country brief
Education
Statistical overview (U.N.)
Colleges and universities (Braintrack)
Energy
Resources and trends (U.S. D.O.E.)
Environment
Regional assessments (U.N.)
Government
Online constitutions (University of Richmond)
Embassies in the U.S.
Health
Country profile (World Health Organization)
Children's health (Unicef)
Development indicators (World Bank)
Natural disasters and relief efforts (ReliefWeb)
Human Rights
U.S. Department of State
Amnesty International
Maps
Google Maps
Google Earth
Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection (University of Texas)
Population/Demographics
International data (Census Bureau)
Demographic profiles (Population Reference Bureau)
Travel
NYTimes.com/Travel
Travel information (State Department)
World museum directory
Other Useful Links
Weather (World Meteorological Organization)
Government statistics
International postal codes
Calling codes
Country comparisons
Multimedia
Video
Father of C.I.A. Attacker Speaks
The father of the Jordanian suicide bomber who killed eight people at a C.I.A. outpost in Afghanistan called his son a defender of the oppressed.
Video
Transforming Nigeria
A Western-educated, Nigerian gubernatorial candidate concedes to a corrupt system in a bid to transform it.
An Age-Old Problem
Thanks to a relentless campaign, Guinea worm is poised to become the first disease since smallpox to be pushed into oblivion.
Video
Diseases on the Brink: Guinea Worm
Former President Jimmy Carter and the Times's Donald G. McNeil Jr. discuss the ancient parasitic disease of guinea worm.
Land Conflicts in Nigeria
Many conflicts across the broad midsection of Africa may look like tribal or religious wars, but the very core is often a contest over land.
More Multimedia »
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Overview
Nigeria is Africa's most populous country and its second largest economy. Despite a return to civilian government in 1999 after a long spell of military dominance, Nigeria remains a fractious nation, divided along ethnic and religious lines.
Nigerians, keenly aware that their impoverished and wealth-stratified nation has not realized its potential, had hopes that President Umaru Yar'Adua might help it do so after his election in 2007. But Mr. Yar'Adua's chronic ill health sapped his initial promises of reform and led to a constitutional crisis in his country. Mr. Yar'Adua, who suffered from kidney and heart ailments, died at age 58 on May 5, 2010.
The West African nation's vice president, Goodluck Jonathan, had been acting president since February 2010, filling a power vacuum left by Mr. Yar"Adua who departed for emergency treatment in Saudi Arabia in November 2009. When Mr. Yar'Adua returned to Nigeria in late February 2010, he did not reclaim the powers which the Nigerian Parliament reluctantly transferred to his deputy. By virtue of his presence, Mr. Yar'Adua had placed a question mark over the presidency of Mr. Jonathan, a native of the rival southern half of Nigeria. That has now been removed.
For years, the predominantly Muslim region of northern Nigeria has had regular and often bloody outbreaks of sectarian unrest in which hundreds have been killed. In early March 2010, as many as 500 people, including many women and children, may have been killed near the city of Jos, long a center of tensions between Christians and Muslims. The dead were Christians. The attack appeared to be in reprisal for violence in January 2010 when dozens of Muslims were slaughtered in and around Jos, including more than 150 in one village.
Muslim-Christian violence has drawn a threat of jihad from an al-Queda linked group. And a tenuous truce in the restive, oil-producing south fell apart when Mr. Yar'Adua was hospitalized. The violence has driven down oil production by about 1 million barrels a day, causing the country, long Africa's top oil producer, to fall behind Angola in 2009.
Read More...
General Information on Nigeria
Official Name: Federal Republic of Nigeria
Capital: Abuja (Current local time)
Government Type: Federal Republic
Population: 135.03 million
Area: 356,700 square miles; about the size of California, Nevada and Arizona
Languages: English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani
GDP Per Capita: $694
Year of Independence: 1960
Reference Material on Nigeria
Columbia Encyclopedia
Nigeria (nījĭr'ēə), officially Federal Republic of Nigeria, republic (2006 provisional pop. 140,003,542), 356,667 sq mi (923,768 sq km), W Africa. It borders on the Gulf of Guinea (an arm of the Atlantic Ocean) in the south, on Benin in the west, on Niger in the northwest and north, on Chad in the northeast, and on Cameroon in the east. Abuja is the capital and Lagos is the largest city.
Land and People
ALSO SEE: Dictionary, Geography, Statistics, WordNet
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2010, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/. See Nigeria on Answers.com
Articles
Newest First | Oldest First
Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Next >>
Don’t Bet on Home Continent in African World Cup
By JERÉ LONGMAN
Hope is wafting across Africa that one of its teams might win. History says otherwise.
June 5, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: WORLD CUP 2010 (SOCCER), SOCCER, IVORY COAST, URUGUAY, CAMEROON, ALGERIA, SOUTH AFRICA, FIFA
The Oil Spills We Don't Hear About
By ANENE EJIKEME
In the Niger Delta, people have been living with dead fish, oily water and gas flares for 50 years.
June 4, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: OIL (PETROLEUM) AND GASOLINE, ENVIRONMENT, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC
On a Visit to the U.S., a Nigerian Witch-Hunter Explains Herself
By MARK OPPENHEIMER
A Pentecostal preacher who is the subject of a new HBO documentary says she can tell when people are possessed.
May 22, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: PENTECOSTAL CHURCHES, CHILDREN AND YOUTH, CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT, DOCUMENTARY FILMS AND PROGRAMS, WITCHCRAFT, GREAT BRITAIN, HOUSTON (TEX), HOME BOX OFFICE
President for Life, and Then Some
By HOWARD W. FRENCH
The muddled succession story of Ivory Coast has become a prevalent narrative across much of Africa, with leaders seemingly doing anything to hang onto power for as long as possible.
May 12, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: IVORY COAST, AFRICA, YAR''ADUA, UMARU
New Nigerian President Sworn In
By ADAM NOSSITER; IMAM IMAM CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM KATSINA, NIGERIA.
Nigeria swore in a new president Thursday morning, former Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, hours after the death Wednesday night of Umaru Yar’Adua.
May 7, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: JONATHAN, GOODLUCK
President of Nigeria Dies After Long Illness
By ADAM NOSSITER
President Umaru Yar’Adua did not transfer power when he left the country for emergency treatment in Saudi Arabia and Nigeria was left in limbo.
May 6, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT, DEATHS (OBITUARIES), YAR'ADUA, UMARU
Ruling Party in Nigeria Is Fractured by Infighting
By ADAM NOSSITER
Squabbles offer hints of the power struggle to come before the wide-open 2011 presidential election.
April 24, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT, YAR'ADUA, UMARU, JONATHAN, GOODLUCK
Banks Making Big Profits From Tiny Loans
By NEIL MACFARQUHAR; ELISABETH MALKIN CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM MEXICO CITY.
Despite its saintly aura, microfinancing is dominated by larger banks that often charge high interest rates.
April 14, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POVERTY, MICROFINANCE, ECONOMIC CONDITIONS AND TRENDS, THIRD WORLD AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, MEXICO, CARE, KIVA.ORG, YUNUS, MUHAMMAD
Pastors Meet With President of Nigeria
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nigeria’s ill and long unseen president met briefly with Christian religious leaders on Monday, still physically weak but “able to grunt out an amen,” a pastor who took part in the visit said.
April 6, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: YAR'ADUA, UMARU
Out of Africa
INTERVIEW BY DEBORAH SOLOMON
The Nigerian novelist talks about the latest ethnic violence in his country.
March 28, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: ACHEBE, CHINUA
Education First, Beating UConn a Close Second
By JERÉ LONGMAN
Nneka Ogwumike, whose parents emigrated from Nigeria, will be a key to Stanford’s chances of defeating Connecticut in a possible national championship game.
March 22, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: EDUCATION AND SCHOOLS, COLLEGE ATHLETICS, NCAA BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT (WOMEN), IMMIGRATION AND EMIGRATION, PACIFIC-10 CONFERENCE, UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSN, MOORE, MAYA, MULKEY, KIM, AURIEMMA, GENO
Acting Leader of Nigeria Dissolves His Cabinet
By ADAM NOSSITER; SENAN MURRAY CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM ABUJA, NIGERIA.
In an effort to put his stamp on the presidency, Goodluck Jonathan dismissed the cabinet members inherited from Umaru Yar’Adua, who is too ill to carry out his duties.
March 18, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT, JONATHAN, GOODLUCK
Where Bad News Is No News
By ADAOBI TRICIA NWAUBANI
Every time Nigeria experiences an episode of violence, the nation seems to go quiet or to have amnesia, while the rest of the world becomes fixated.
March 18, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: CIVIL WAR AND GUERRILLA WARFARE, NEWS AND NEWS MEDIA, JOS (NIGERIA), YAR'ADUA, UMARU
Nigerians Recount Night of Their Bloody Revenge
By ADAM NOSSITER
This week dozens of herdsmen slaughtered hundreds of people in a brutal act of sectarian retribution in Jos.
March 11, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: MURDERS AND ATTEMPTED MURDERS, CHRISTIANS AND CHRISTIANITY, ISLAM, FREEDOM AND HUMAN RIGHTS, BOKO HARAM, AMERICAN RED CROSS
Ravaged Nigerian Village Is Haunted by Latest Massacre
By ADAM NOSSITER; JUDE OWUAMANAM CONTRIBUTED REPORTING FROM DOGON NA HAUWA and JOS, NIGERIA.
After ethnic violence flared in January in Jos, the military patrolled the city, but neglected nearby villages where reprisals took place over the weekend.
March 10, 2010
MORE ON NIGERIA AND: VIOLENCE
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Multimedia
Video
Transforming Nigeria
A Western-educated, Nigerian gubernatorial candidate concedes to a corrupt system in a bid to transform it. (Produced by Adam B. Ellick)
Related Article
Nigeria Navigator
A list of Web sites about Nigeria as selected by editors of The New York Times.
C.I.A. World Factbook country profile
State Department -- history and overview
BBC country profile
The Economist - forecast and economic data
News and online media
National Geographic world music guide
The Nigerian Government's Portal Page
News
Links to Nigerian Newspaper Web Sites
A Nigerian News Site
Compiles reports from many sources
The Economist
Offers links to data and analysis
From the Council on Foreign Relations
Michelle D. Gavin: A Blow for Nigerian Democracy, CFR.org Podcast
Nigeria's Creaky Political System, CFR.org Backgrounder
Nigeria: Elections and Continuing Challenges, Council Special Report
MEND: The Niger Delta's Umbrella Militant Group, CFR.org Backgrounder
Islamic Law in Nigeria, CFR Transcript
From the International Crisis Group
Links to Articles and Papers About Conflict in Nigeria
Other Resources
Business
Business conditions (World Bank)
Currency conversion
Economy
Economic outlook for the most developed countries (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development)
Statistical profiles of the least developed countries (U.N.)
World Bank country brief
Education
Statistical overview (U.N.)
Colleges and universities (Braintrack)
Energy
Resources and trends (U.S. D.O.E.)
Environment
Regional assessments (U.N.)
Government
Online constitutions (University of Richmond)
Embassies in the U.S.
Health
Country profile (World Health Organization)
Children's health (Unicef)
Development indicators (World Bank)
Natural disasters and relief efforts (ReliefWeb)
Human Rights
U.S. Department of State
Amnesty International
Maps
Google Maps
Google Earth
Perry-Castaneda Library Map Collection (University of Texas)
Population/Demographics
International data (Census Bureau)
Demographic profiles (Population Reference Bureau)
Travel
NYTimes.com/Travel
Travel information (State Department)
World museum directory
Other Useful Links
Weather (World Meteorological Organization)
Government statistics
International postal codes
Calling codes
Country comparisons
Multimedia
Video
Father of C.I.A. Attacker Speaks
The father of the Jordanian suicide bomber who killed eight people at a C.I.A. outpost in Afghanistan called his son a defender of the oppressed.
Video
Transforming Nigeria
A Western-educated, Nigerian gubernatorial candidate concedes to a corrupt system in a bid to transform it.
An Age-Old Problem
Thanks to a relentless campaign, Guinea worm is poised to become the first disease since smallpox to be pushed into oblivion.
Video
Diseases on the Brink: Guinea Worm
Former President Jimmy Carter and the Times's Donald G. McNeil Jr. discuss the ancient parasitic disease of guinea worm.
Land Conflicts in Nigeria
Many conflicts across the broad midsection of Africa may look like tribal or religious wars, but the very core is often a contest over land.
More Multimedia »
Photos
Click on a photo to view related article
Ads by Google what's this?
Induction Lighting SOLARA
The future of lighting is extremely long lasting and eco-friendly
www.amko.com.tw/SOLARA
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MOST POPULAR
E-Mailed
Blogged
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Op-Ed Contributor: Chosen, but Not Special
Op-Ed Columnist: Don’t Get Mad, Mr. President. Get Even.
Your Brain on Computers: Hooked on Gadgets, and Paying a Mental Price
Music: Touchstones in Concert, Reweaving Harmonies
Op-Ed Columnist: Dressed to Distract
Op-Ed Columnist: A Scare, a Scar, a Silver Lining
In Gulf, It Was Unclear Who Was in Charge of Rig
Growing Obesity Increases Perils of Childbearing
Imagining Life Without Oil, and Being Ready
How a Soccer Star Is Made
Go to Complete List »
The trunk show
Also in Style »
Sam Sifton's 50 current favorite N.Y. restaurants
Pete Well's 25 current favorite N.Y. bars
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Tuesday, December 8, 2009
I didn’t ask my son to resign – Yar’Adua’s mother
By Everest Amaefule and Fidelis Soriwei, Published: Tuesday, 8 Dec 2009
The controversy surrounding President Umaru Yar’Adua’s health deepened on Monday with his mother, Hajia Dada, denying reports that she asked him to resign.
She said in a statement by her daughter, Hajia Mairo Yar’Adua, that it was untrue that she was at loggerheads with her daughter-in-law, Turai.
Hajia Dada was reacting to media reports (not in THE PUNCH) that she was unhappy with the President’s continued stay in office in spite of his ill-health and that she was not in the best of terms with Turai.
The statement by Mairo coincided with fresh revelation that Yar’Adua’s health had not recorded significant improvement. It also came just as a former President of the Senate, Chief Ken Nnamani, called for the President to prove his reported recovery by addressing Nigerians through a video conference from Saudi Arabia where he is receiving treatment.
In the statement, Hajia Dada warned those playing politics with the President’s health to desist and join her family and other well-meaning Nigerians in praying for the President’s quick recovery.
The statement reads in part, “The attention of President Yar’Adua’s family has been drawn to the false, malicious and obviously sponsored media reports that suggested that the President’s mother, Hajia Dada, asked Mr. President to resign from office on account of his ill health.
“The reports also insinuated that Hajia Dada was at loggerheads with the President’s wife, Turai, whom the newspapers claimed was urging the President to sit tight. Since this reportage, the President’s mother has been very sad because there was never a time that such statements were made by her.
“To put the records straight, the President’s mother has never spoken to the media. She enjoys a cordial relationship with her daughter-in-law, Turai. The President’s mother, contrary to media reports, is supportive of Mr. President’s foray into politics and has always encouraged him to render selfless service to the good people of Nigeria.
“All the President’s mother has been doing since her son travelled abroad for medical treatment is offering fervent prayers for his speedy recovery. She believes it is normal for human beings to fall sick and recover. She has therefore never contemplated asking the President to resign.
“It is therefore highly irresponsible for anybody to drag the President’s mother into the politics of the President’s health. What she expects from Nigerians is to pray for the quick recovery of her son.”
The statement also urged those that had dragged the name of the President’s late brother, Maj.-Gen. Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, to leave him to rest in peace.
“It is distressing that some media houses even involved the late brother of Mr. President, Gen. Shehu Musa, in this unhealthy rumour and gossips. Hajia Dada is asking these journalists and political opponents of Mr. President to leave her alone, and allow her late son to rest in peace.”
The President’s mother also threatened legal action against those she claimed had been peddling rumour with her name if they failed to apologise to the family.
She advised the media to always “strive to be more responsible in their reports and desist from being used as tools of blackmail by disgruntled politicians.
“The media should cross-check their facts before going to press. At this critical stage of the nation’s development, the media should concentrate on issues that unite us and not heat up the polity.”
Meanwhile, our correspondents learnt on Monday that there was a huge pressure on the King Faisal hospital where the President is receiving treatment in Jeddah, to transfer him to Abuja.
Our sources claimed that those behind the pressure believed that specialists could be brought into the country to continue his treatment.
“Their thinking is that if the President is in Nigeria, he will be able to carry out his functions and thereby reduce the controversy over who is in charge of government,” one of the sources claimed.
The source, however, added that going by the Saudi hospital’s calculations, it would take at least two weeks to put everything in place to move the President to Nigeria.
Some of the things that will be needed, according to the source, are an intensive care unit in the presidential jet; first-class medical facilities in the Presidential Villa; at least four specialists in oncology, nephrology, cardiology and cardiovascular surgery; as well as nurses.
The source added that a specialist on churg strauss syndrome from the United States was already in Saudi Arabia to assist in getting the specialists that would be willing to accompany the President to Nigeria.
The source said, “An alternative to the presidential jet could be the use of an air ambulance to bring him to Abuja.
“It is believed that with an air ambulance, the specialists can be arranged within one week. This means one week would be cut off from the two weeks envisaged by the hospital authorities,” the source said.
The source claimed that if the Saudi hospital yielded to the pressure, Yar’Adua would be brought into the country late at night to avoid media scrutiny.
“He will then run the country by proxy. The plan is to have him address the nation on the television or by video conference for us to know he is the one talking.”
But as the controversy on the President’s health rages, Nnamani, a former President of the Senate, has challenged the Federal Executive Council to organise a video conference in which Yar’Ádua could address Nigerians.
Nnamani, who is also the Chairman of the Steering Committee of the Good Governance Group, urged the FEC, the National Assembly and the Peoples Democratic Party to address the issues raised by the President’s sickness in compliance with the stipulations of Section 144, 145 and 146 of the 1999 Constitution.
Nnamani, who wished Yar’Adua quick recovery, said that the announcement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media, Mr. Segun Adeniyi, on November 26, 2009 that the President had acute pericarditis had triggered speculations in the media.
He noted that the management of information on Yar’Adua’s health and the functioning of the Executive arm of government had become sources of disunity in the country.
Nnamani said that it was the position of the GGG that the controversy generated by the President’s health was partly due to Yar’Adua’s failure to write to the National Assembly in accordance with Section 145 and 146 of the constitution.
He added, “The increasing politicisation of Mr. President’s health arising from the inherent gap due to his current absence from the country without complying with the enshrined constitutional process of authorising the Vice-President to serve as the Acting President of the country as provided by section 145 of the constitution further sharpens divisions and encourages all manner of political permutations, including some contemplated unconstitutional, undemocratic and clearly desperate manipulative arrangements.
“The absence of any form of direct contact between Nigerians and President Yar’Adua is a major source of legitimacy for all the speculations and the contemplated unconstitutional permutations.
“Interestingly, the response of the FEC as stated by Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, the Secretary of the Government of the Federation as reported by THE PUNCH on December 3, 2009 is to the effect that ‘issues that would require Mr. President’s express approval, contacts are being made and such approvals do come’ is further disturbing. This confirms the absence of legitimate Presidential authority in Nigeria.”
The controversy surrounding President Umaru Yar’Adua’s health deepened on Monday with his mother, Hajia Dada, denying reports that she asked him to resign.
She said in a statement by her daughter, Hajia Mairo Yar’Adua, that it was untrue that she was at loggerheads with her daughter-in-law, Turai.
Hajia Dada was reacting to media reports (not in THE PUNCH) that she was unhappy with the President’s continued stay in office in spite of his ill-health and that she was not in the best of terms with Turai.
The statement by Mairo coincided with fresh revelation that Yar’Adua’s health had not recorded significant improvement. It also came just as a former President of the Senate, Chief Ken Nnamani, called for the President to prove his reported recovery by addressing Nigerians through a video conference from Saudi Arabia where he is receiving treatment.
In the statement, Hajia Dada warned those playing politics with the President’s health to desist and join her family and other well-meaning Nigerians in praying for the President’s quick recovery.
The statement reads in part, “The attention of President Yar’Adua’s family has been drawn to the false, malicious and obviously sponsored media reports that suggested that the President’s mother, Hajia Dada, asked Mr. President to resign from office on account of his ill health.
“The reports also insinuated that Hajia Dada was at loggerheads with the President’s wife, Turai, whom the newspapers claimed was urging the President to sit tight. Since this reportage, the President’s mother has been very sad because there was never a time that such statements were made by her.
“To put the records straight, the President’s mother has never spoken to the media. She enjoys a cordial relationship with her daughter-in-law, Turai. The President’s mother, contrary to media reports, is supportive of Mr. President’s foray into politics and has always encouraged him to render selfless service to the good people of Nigeria.
“All the President’s mother has been doing since her son travelled abroad for medical treatment is offering fervent prayers for his speedy recovery. She believes it is normal for human beings to fall sick and recover. She has therefore never contemplated asking the President to resign.
“It is therefore highly irresponsible for anybody to drag the President’s mother into the politics of the President’s health. What she expects from Nigerians is to pray for the quick recovery of her son.”
The statement also urged those that had dragged the name of the President’s late brother, Maj.-Gen. Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, to leave him to rest in peace.
“It is distressing that some media houses even involved the late brother of Mr. President, Gen. Shehu Musa, in this unhealthy rumour and gossips. Hajia Dada is asking these journalists and political opponents of Mr. President to leave her alone, and allow her late son to rest in peace.”
The President’s mother also threatened legal action against those she claimed had been peddling rumour with her name if they failed to apologise to the family.
She advised the media to always “strive to be more responsible in their reports and desist from being used as tools of blackmail by disgruntled politicians.
“The media should cross-check their facts before going to press. At this critical stage of the nation’s development, the media should concentrate on issues that unite us and not heat up the polity.”
Meanwhile, our correspondents learnt on Monday that there was a huge pressure on the King Faisal hospital where the President is receiving treatment in Jeddah, to transfer him to Abuja.
Our sources claimed that those behind the pressure believed that specialists could be brought into the country to continue his treatment.
“Their thinking is that if the President is in Nigeria, he will be able to carry out his functions and thereby reduce the controversy over who is in charge of government,” one of the sources claimed.
The source, however, added that going by the Saudi hospital’s calculations, it would take at least two weeks to put everything in place to move the President to Nigeria.
Some of the things that will be needed, according to the source, are an intensive care unit in the presidential jet; first-class medical facilities in the Presidential Villa; at least four specialists in oncology, nephrology, cardiology and cardiovascular surgery; as well as nurses.
The source added that a specialist on churg strauss syndrome from the United States was already in Saudi Arabia to assist in getting the specialists that would be willing to accompany the President to Nigeria.
The source said, “An alternative to the presidential jet could be the use of an air ambulance to bring him to Abuja.
“It is believed that with an air ambulance, the specialists can be arranged within one week. This means one week would be cut off from the two weeks envisaged by the hospital authorities,” the source said.
The source claimed that if the Saudi hospital yielded to the pressure, Yar’Adua would be brought into the country late at night to avoid media scrutiny.
“He will then run the country by proxy. The plan is to have him address the nation on the television or by video conference for us to know he is the one talking.”
But as the controversy on the President’s health rages, Nnamani, a former President of the Senate, has challenged the Federal Executive Council to organise a video conference in which Yar’Ádua could address Nigerians.
Nnamani, who is also the Chairman of the Steering Committee of the Good Governance Group, urged the FEC, the National Assembly and the Peoples Democratic Party to address the issues raised by the President’s sickness in compliance with the stipulations of Section 144, 145 and 146 of the 1999 Constitution.
Nnamani, who wished Yar’Adua quick recovery, said that the announcement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media, Mr. Segun Adeniyi, on November 26, 2009 that the President had acute pericarditis had triggered speculations in the media.
He noted that the management of information on Yar’Adua’s health and the functioning of the Executive arm of government had become sources of disunity in the country.
Nnamani said that it was the position of the GGG that the controversy generated by the President’s health was partly due to Yar’Adua’s failure to write to the National Assembly in accordance with Section 145 and 146 of the constitution.
He added, “The increasing politicisation of Mr. President’s health arising from the inherent gap due to his current absence from the country without complying with the enshrined constitutional process of authorising the Vice-President to serve as the Acting President of the country as provided by section 145 of the constitution further sharpens divisions and encourages all manner of political permutations, including some contemplated unconstitutional, undemocratic and clearly desperate manipulative arrangements.
“The absence of any form of direct contact between Nigerians and President Yar’Adua is a major source of legitimacy for all the speculations and the contemplated unconstitutional permutations.
“Interestingly, the response of the FEC as stated by Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, the Secretary of the Government of the Federation as reported by THE PUNCH on December 3, 2009 is to the effect that ‘issues that would require Mr. President’s express approval, contacts are being made and such approvals do come’ is further disturbing. This confirms the absence of legitimate Presidential authority in Nigeria.”
NEWS OF THE DAY
Another Aba women riot
Women traders at the Ngwa Road market, popularly known as Ahia Ohuru, took to the streets to protest the imposition of N3,000 tax per person by unknown authorities that claim to have been mandated by Abia State Government. | Read Story
I couldn’t reconcile NNPC account – Etiebet
The late General Sani Abacha’s minister of petroleum, Chief Don Etiebet, yesterday revealed how he was frustrated in his determination to reconcile the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) | Read Story
Woman of the sun
I had wanted to be a diplomat, says Banke Meshida Lawal...
She is one of the leading make up artists in Nigeria who hates being late for appointments. Banke Meshida Lawal knows her onions well when it comes to make up. Smiling broadly as | Read Story
Sun tech
Social Networking: Can CDMA compete with mobile broadband?
It may not really be news that technology has bridged the digital divide when it comes to social networking on the internet. At least a sizeable number of people have been able to hook up | Read Story
Education
Egwu urges institutions to generate revenue
The Minister of Education, Dr Sam Ominyi Egwu, has called on tertiary institutions in the country to initiate means of generating internal revenue to complement government’s efforts Dr Egwu | Read Story
Sports
Nigeria can win World Cup if… – Onigbinde
Former Super Eagles’ handler, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde, has tipped Nigeria to win the World Cup holding in South if we put in a good preparation before the commencement of | Read Story
South-South Report...
UNIUYO female hostel goes up in flames on VC’s anniversary
But whatever celebration, characteristically modest or unusually lavish, planned for the day, went up in flames literally and literarily, turning the planned or muted , | Read Story
Bayelsa dep gov lied – Victims of fracas
The last may not have been heard of the clash between supporters of Bayelsa State Commissioner for Youth and Conflict Resolution, Mr. Beks Etifa and the Deputy Governor, Hon. Peremobowei Ebebi over the Peoples Democratic | Read Story
MORE NEWS...
Turai, PDP can’t impose Yar’Adua on Nigerians –NBA
The bickering over the health of President Umaru Musa Yar’ Adua continued yesterday with the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Oluwarotimi Akeredolu | Read Story
President’s mum didn’t ask him to quit – Sister
Hajia Mairo Musa, President Yar’Adua’s sister, has denied reports in the media (not Daily Sun) that the ailing number one citizen was asked by his mother to quit office. | Read Story
‘He didn’t write N’Assembly for medical vacation’
The Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Mohammed Abba-Aji, stated categorically in Abuja yesterday that President Umaru Yar’Adua did not write a letter of vacation to the National Assembly before he left | Read Story
Why we’re buying generators –FG
The Federal Government yesterday explained the reason it allocated funds for the purchase of generating sets in the 2010 budget, saying that the 6000 megawatts of electricity at the end of this year will not solve the epileptic power supply. | Read Story
Today's EDITORIAL
Nigeria’s latest corruption rating
Once again, the perennial issue of non-payment of pensioners of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) is on the front burner of public discourse. The news, this time, from the chairman of the North East District of the pensioners’ union, Alhaji Muhammed Abubakar, |Read Story
MORE NEWS STORIES...
CBN set to reform microfinance banks
US, Nigeria Customs team up for greater...
Debt: NAMA threatens to ground foreign...
Skye Bank pledges support for real sector
Chevron partners NACA to reduce spread...
Fake drugs: OPPMDU executive places N10,000 reward on informant
MORE NEWS STORIES...
Conman nabbed in C’River
Ex NSITF boss wants higher contributory...
'I play my card well with men'
States, banks dump FG’s N50bn micro-credit fund
Go to school, ex-militants told
FREE KICK
Understanding Ngige
Akpabio and Unizik award
Rebranding Anambra for a better tomorrow (2)
OPINION
Ohakim, beware of Nzeribe, et al
The showdown in Dutse
SOCCERSTAR
Ike Uche blasts: Argentina are beatable
Take charge of Eagles – Siasia tells Amodu
Yobo is 50-50 for Nations Cup
BUSINESS NEWS
ECOWAS, Nigeria inaugurates committee on trade negotiations
MDGs blames banks for slow performance
FCMB makes in N4.8bn profit
FG injects N400m into Ajaokuta to avert workers' sack
Power outage: Why we can't generate 6, 000MW –Babalola
EDUCATION
OOU restructuring claims 7 professors, 955 workers
Unilag unveils Internet connectivity project
Security: Lagos procures N3bn helicopters
Sola Adekola and Kunle Awosiyan
Lagos State government has spent about $20 million (N3 billion) to procure two helicopters to fortify security in the Lagos metropolis. Each of the Bell 412 EP helicopters purchased by the government, according to the manufacturer, the Bell Helicopter and Tiltrotor with headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas, US, cost $10.4 million. Launching the helicopters at the State House, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos on Monday, the governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, said that the choice of the Bell 412 EP was informed by its multi-faceted platform, which allowed it perform paramilitary, civil and utility roles. According to him, the helicopters are specially and uniquely...
Full Story
CALL FOR YAR’ADUA’S RESIGNATION: Turai, PDP can’t dictate to us - NBA - You’re mischievous - Mark - Yar’Adua family not divided - Sibling - President has violated constitution - Nnamani
From Lanre Adewole, Taiwo Adisa, Leon Usigbe and Dare Adekambi
THE place was Nicon Luxury Hotel in Abuja and the gladiators were two presidents: Senate President, David Mark and President...
Full Story
Niger Deltans strategise - Govs, politicians make overtures to Jonathan - VP turns back emissaries
Donald Ojogo, Bureau Chief, South-South
AS uncertainty looms, even as the succession debate lingers over the state of health of President Umaru Yar’Adua, some governors...
Full Story
Deregulation ’ll take off anytime now - FG insists - It ’ll hasten bloody revolution –Gbonigi - Fuel ’ll remain scarce until ... - IPMAN
From Gbola Subair, Sam Nwaoko and Qudirat Hakeem-Apanpa
ANY moment from now, the much talked about deregulation in the downstream oil sector of the economy will take off....
Another Aba women riot
Women traders at the Ngwa Road market, popularly known as Ahia Ohuru, took to the streets to protest the imposition of N3,000 tax per person by unknown authorities that claim to have been mandated by Abia State Government. | Read Story
I couldn’t reconcile NNPC account – Etiebet
The late General Sani Abacha’s minister of petroleum, Chief Don Etiebet, yesterday revealed how he was frustrated in his determination to reconcile the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) | Read Story
Woman of the sun
I had wanted to be a diplomat, says Banke Meshida Lawal...
She is one of the leading make up artists in Nigeria who hates being late for appointments. Banke Meshida Lawal knows her onions well when it comes to make up. Smiling broadly as | Read Story
Sun tech
Social Networking: Can CDMA compete with mobile broadband?
It may not really be news that technology has bridged the digital divide when it comes to social networking on the internet. At least a sizeable number of people have been able to hook up | Read Story
Education
Egwu urges institutions to generate revenue
The Minister of Education, Dr Sam Ominyi Egwu, has called on tertiary institutions in the country to initiate means of generating internal revenue to complement government’s efforts Dr Egwu | Read Story
Sports
Nigeria can win World Cup if… – Onigbinde
Former Super Eagles’ handler, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde, has tipped Nigeria to win the World Cup holding in South if we put in a good preparation before the commencement of | Read Story
South-South Report...
UNIUYO female hostel goes up in flames on VC’s anniversary
But whatever celebration, characteristically modest or unusually lavish, planned for the day, went up in flames literally and literarily, turning the planned or muted , | Read Story
Bayelsa dep gov lied – Victims of fracas
The last may not have been heard of the clash between supporters of Bayelsa State Commissioner for Youth and Conflict Resolution, Mr. Beks Etifa and the Deputy Governor, Hon. Peremobowei Ebebi over the Peoples Democratic | Read Story
MORE NEWS...
Turai, PDP can’t impose Yar’Adua on Nigerians –NBA
The bickering over the health of President Umaru Musa Yar’ Adua continued yesterday with the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Oluwarotimi Akeredolu | Read Story
President’s mum didn’t ask him to quit – Sister
Hajia Mairo Musa, President Yar’Adua’s sister, has denied reports in the media (not Daily Sun) that the ailing number one citizen was asked by his mother to quit office. | Read Story
‘He didn’t write N’Assembly for medical vacation’
The Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Mohammed Abba-Aji, stated categorically in Abuja yesterday that President Umaru Yar’Adua did not write a letter of vacation to the National Assembly before he left | Read Story
Why we’re buying generators –FG
The Federal Government yesterday explained the reason it allocated funds for the purchase of generating sets in the 2010 budget, saying that the 6000 megawatts of electricity at the end of this year will not solve the epileptic power supply. | Read Story
Today's EDITORIAL
Nigeria’s latest corruption rating
Once again, the perennial issue of non-payment of pensioners of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) is on the front burner of public discourse. The news, this time, from the chairman of the North East District of the pensioners’ union, Alhaji Muhammed Abubakar, |Read Story
MORE NEWS STORIES...
CBN set to reform microfinance banks
US, Nigeria Customs team up for greater...
Debt: NAMA threatens to ground foreign...
Skye Bank pledges support for real sector
Chevron partners NACA to reduce spread...
Fake drugs: OPPMDU executive places N10,000 reward on informant
MORE NEWS STORIES...
Conman nabbed in C’River
Ex NSITF boss wants higher contributory...
'I play my card well with men'
States, banks dump FG’s N50bn micro-credit fund
Go to school, ex-militants told
FREE KICK
Understanding Ngige
Akpabio and Unizik award
Rebranding Anambra for a better tomorrow (2)
OPINION
Ohakim, beware of Nzeribe, et al
The showdown in Dutse
SOCCERSTAR
Ike Uche blasts: Argentina are beatable
Take charge of Eagles – Siasia tells Amodu
Yobo is 50-50 for Nations Cup
BUSINESS NEWS
ECOWAS, Nigeria inaugurates committee on trade negotiations
MDGs blames banks for slow performance
FCMB makes in N4.8bn profit
FG injects N400m into Ajaokuta to avert workers' sack
Power outage: Why we can't generate 6, 000MW –Babalola
EDUCATION
OOU restructuring claims 7 professors, 955 workers
Unilag unveils Internet connectivity project
Security: Lagos procures N3bn helicopters
Sola Adekola and Kunle Awosiyan
Lagos State government has spent about $20 million (N3 billion) to procure two helicopters to fortify security in the Lagos metropolis. Each of the Bell 412 EP helicopters purchased by the government, according to the manufacturer, the Bell Helicopter and Tiltrotor with headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas, US, cost $10.4 million. Launching the helicopters at the State House, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos on Monday, the governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, said that the choice of the Bell 412 EP was informed by its multi-faceted platform, which allowed it perform paramilitary, civil and utility roles. According to him, the helicopters are specially and uniquely...
Full Story
CALL FOR YAR’ADUA’S RESIGNATION: Turai, PDP can’t dictate to us - NBA - You’re mischievous - Mark - Yar’Adua family not divided - Sibling - President has violated constitution - Nnamani
From Lanre Adewole, Taiwo Adisa, Leon Usigbe and Dare Adekambi
THE place was Nicon Luxury Hotel in Abuja and the gladiators were two presidents: Senate President, David Mark and President...
Full Story
Niger Deltans strategise - Govs, politicians make overtures to Jonathan - VP turns back emissaries
Donald Ojogo, Bureau Chief, South-South
AS uncertainty looms, even as the succession debate lingers over the state of health of President Umaru Yar’Adua, some governors...
Full Story
Deregulation ’ll take off anytime now - FG insists - It ’ll hasten bloody revolution –Gbonigi - Fuel ’ll remain scarce until ... - IPMAN
From Gbola Subair, Sam Nwaoko and Qudirat Hakeem-Apanpa
ANY moment from now, the much talked about deregulation in the downstream oil sector of the economy will take off....
click here for image
http://www.tribune.com.ng/08122009/images/fp.jpg
One of the two Bill 412 EP helicopters acquired by the Lagos State government for aerial security monitoring in the state commissioned at the Lagos House, Ikeja, on Monday. Inset is Lagos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola SAN (middle), cutting the tape to officially commission the helicopters.
Top Stories
Banks: CBN Goes Tough on Appointment of MDs
Following issues of corporate governance in the Nigerian banking sector, which led to the removal of eight bank chief executives this year, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to roll out new criteria for the appointment of managing directors. More...
Experts Point the Way to New Jobs
Nigeria’s experience with “jobless growth” – a phenomenon in which economic growth does not translate to more jobs – can be addressed through a value chain linked to production in the economy, experts have advised. More...
…We Stand by Our Story
Contrary to claims made by Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Mohammed Abba-Aji, on his role in scuttling President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s vacation...... More...
Amaechi: JTF ’ll Leave Rivers by February 2010
Rivers State Governor Rotimi Ameachi has said operatives of the military Joint Task Force (JTF) in some areas of the state will leave by February next year. More...
Abba-Aji Denies Scuttling Yar’Adua’s Letter
Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Mohammed Abba-Aji, has denied knowledge of any letter written by President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua to the leadership of the National Assembly on his medical vacation in Saudi Arabia. More...
PDP: We Won’t Change Soludo
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the Anambra 2010 election, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, has again received the firm backing of his party, as the deadline for substitution of candidates expires by midnight today. More...
Latest News
07:48 » Intercontinental Bank sacks another 1,500 workers
07:20 » GTBank-Lagos Principals Cup reaches zonal quarter final
07:04 » Fashola launches surveillance helicopters
04:00 » Edo PDP accuses Oshiomhole of withholding N535.6m funds
01:07 » Urhobo youths won’t be ignored in post-amnesty deal – Uduaghan
01:03 » Yar’Adua: 150m Nigerians’ interest superior to individual’s, says Odigie-Oyegun
01:00 » Uduaghan gets Chevron’s commitment on gas flaring
00:54 » CSR: Julius Berger spends N7.2m on N-Delta youths
00:51 » Chevron-sponsored Itsekiri devt agency completes 45 projects
00:28 » Rufai recalls USA’94, says Eagles can beat Argentina
00:00 » Climate won’t wait
00:00 » The Law and Gospel views on Christian marriage and divorce (7)
Headlines / 0 Comments / Dec 8, 2009
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The Federal Government is in a fixed on how to generate more non-oil income for next year.
The direct implication is that the noose will be tightened around tax evaders while some concessions are to be withdrawn.
Anti-Yar’Adua forces corrupt, says family
Headlines / 89 Comments / Dec 6, 2009
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A member of the extended family of President Umaru Yar’Adua, Hajia Binta Kuraje, yesterday rose in strong defence of her brother, for the first time, describing those calling for the resignation of the ailing President as corrupt.
Speaking on behalf of the family, in Kaduna, she lashed at the anti-Yar’Adua forces, explaining that they were opposed to the Federal Government’s anti-graft war.
Ondo bye election: Police quiz Senator, 3 Reps
Headlines / 38 Comments / Dec 5, 2009
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Akure – THE Police in Ondo State, yesterday, quizzed the senator representing Ondo Central, Chief Gbenga Ogunniya and three members of the House of Representatives for allegedly being in possession of two boxes containing already thumb printed ballot papers during the bye-election into the Akoko South-West / South East constituency of the state.
Eagles to battle Argentine in South Africa 2010
Headlines / 83 Comments / Dec 4, 2009
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The 2010 World Cup draws took place in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, before a world live and television audience of close to 200 million people with Nigeria, for the third time in 15 years, facing Argentina in Group B.
Yar’Adua can stay in Saudi for one year – Senate
Headlines / 164 Comments / Dec 4, 2009
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President Umaru Yar‘Adua could well spend one year or more abroad recovering his health as there is no constitutional limitation on his absence from the country, the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, declared yesterday.
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Inside Today's Paper
Cover Stories
Fashola launches surveillance helicopters
Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State, yesterday, launched two Bell 412 EP Helicopters with...
27 Comments
Uduaghan gets Chevron’s commitment on gas flaring
A few days to the global climate summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan...
0 Comments
Abba-Aji denies Yar’Adua’s vacation letter
The President of the Senate, Senator David Mark, yesterday denied involvement in any plan to...
15 Comments
National News
Intercontinental Bank sacks another 1,500 workers
Edo PDP accuses Oshiomhole of withholding N535.6m funds
Urhobo youths won’t be ignored in post-amnesty deal – Uduaghan
Yar’Adua: 150m Nigerians’ interest superior to individual’s, says Odigie-Oyegun
CSR: Julius Berger spends N7.2m on N-Delta youths
Chevron-sponsored Itsekiri devt agency completes 45 projects
Pray for Yar’Adua’s recovery, says Ademowo
Investigate Yar’Adua’s adviser on NASS, says Igbini
N127bn NASS budget wasteful, say Maitama, Ikimi
Fuel scarcity looms
More National News
Akingbola’s wife’s companies institute N200bn suit against EFCC, others
sunnnewsonline
Local: 02:00am GMT:01:00am
A Lagos High Court has fixed December 16, 2009 for ruling on a N200 billion suit brought against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) by four companies allegedly linked to wife of former chief .” | Read more
2011 hits high gear, parties hold conventions
From Alifa Daniel, John-Abba Ogbodo (Abuja), Iyabo Lawal (Ibadan) and Chris Irekamba (Lagos)
ACTIVITIES have heightened in the political parties as they prepare feverishly for their conventions ahead of the 2011 general elections.
The country's two main political groupings, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Action Congress (AC), are set to hold their conventions at which plans and candidates for the polls are expected to be high on the agenda.
In fact, a crucial meeting of the PDP's National Executive Committee (NEC) has been fixed for next Thursday to address some critical issues, including the convention and President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's health.
Also, the AC is to hold its convention at Onikan Stadium in Lagos at 10.00 a.m. next Saturday, December 12, 2009.
Those eligible to attend, according to an AC statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, are the National Chairman and other officials of the party as well as governors and other government functionaries at different levels.
The Guardian learnt that the PDP's National Working Committee (NWC) led by the party's chairman, Vincent Eze Ogbulafor, took the initiative by requesting for a NEC meeting in the face of the opposition's stance on the President's health. He reassured the nation that there is no need to panic as the President was responding to treatment and would soon return to the country.
It was also gathered that at the NEC meeting, the party faithful are likely going to pass a vote of confidence on Yar'Adua to send a signal to the opposition that their wish would be fruitless.
The NEC meeting, according to sources, will discuss the modalities for the mid-term convention of the party where the NWC is supposed to render account of stewardship since assuming power in 2008.
As part of preparation for the activities, Ogbulafor led some members of the NWC to Aso Rock Villa yesterday morning to discuss with Vice President Goodluck Jonathan. The meeting, The Guardian gathered, endorsed the work plan of the NWC and went into a long discussion on the ruling of the Appeal Court in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, nullifying the candidature of the candidate of PDP for the February 6, 2010 governorship election in Anambra State, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo.
Consequently, the National Legal Adviser of the party, Olusola Oke, was asked to go to the Supreme Court to challenge the ruling.
Oke said the party had filed an appeal at the apex court and that the PDP's position remains that Soludo is its candidate unless the Supreme Court decides otherwise.
The PDP's National Publicity Secretary, Prof. Rufai Ahmed Alkali, confirmed that the party was taking some steps to strengthen its structure.
Oke also disclosed yesterday that the party would take legal steps to correct what it considered an illegality in the bye-election that took place in Ondo State at the weekend.
During the election, Senator Gbenga Ogunniya and some other federal lawmakers were allegedly arrested by the police. But Oke said the senator was mandated by the party to lead its delegation but they were allegedly attacked by the agents of Labour Party (LP). He dismissed allegation by the LP that PDP attempted to rig as false. He remarked: "I stand before you with every authority and honour I can muster to declare that it is absolutely untrue and totally unacceptable that the gentlemen could descend to that level as they did not in any manner whatsoever, hijack any ballot box in any part of that constituency."
The party called on the Inspector General of Police to set up a panel to probe the incident and asked the security agents at the election to produce their reports.
"We will take legal action to redeem the image of the Senator," he vowed.
A bye-election to fill the vacant seat of Akoko South-East and Akoko South-West Federal Constituency in Ondo State was held at the weekend and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the LP winner.
And after a rash of speculations linking him with a plot to use Yar'Adua's present indisposition to achieve an alleged presidential ambition, Senate President, David Mark, yesterday alluded to a campaign of blackmail to set him on a collision cause with the recuperating Nigerian leader.
He expressed dismay that the President's ill-health was being exploited by some people, whose names he refused to mention, to introduce disaffection among government functionaries.
His words yesterday at the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Abuja Branch Law Week: "I feel very strongly about what is happening. Sycophants and praise singers have cashed (in) on the situation; we must condemn these acts. It is inhuman and unjust. They deliberately sell dummies to newspapers. The following morning, they collect the newspapers and fly to Saudi Arabia to tell lies. It is totally mischievous and in bad faith. I do not have such ambition. If others nurse so, certainly not David Mark.
Meanwhile, more groups have continued to react to calls for the resignation of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua as a result of his ill-health.
A group, "The Association of Former Councillors and Ward Leaders in Nigeria (AFCOWN), yesterday condemned calls by some Nigerians for Yar'Adua's resignation from office on health grounds, unpatriotic and undemocratic.
The association also urged Nigerians to embark on a three-day fasting and prayers for the president to recover on time.
At a press conference addressed by its national co-ordinator, Elder Mike Omohimua, in Abuja yesterday, the group pointed out that nobody was immuned to one form of ailment or the other.
He said: "Those alleged to have signed or endorsed the resignation of the president on account of health probably do not understand the implications of their positions. They call themselves patriotic Nigerians speaking for the country but I ask them: Where were they when fuel prices were increased? Why did they not protest? I am aware they want to organize protests for a president who is ill to resign and they call themselves patriotic Nigerians."
"Lagos yesterday, the Archbishop of the Ecclesiastical Province of Lagos and Bishop of Lagos Diocese, Most Revd. Adebola Ademowo, said: "We are praying for the President for quick recovery. It is our responsibility to pray for him so that he can recover fully and be at his desk."
He said that for Nigeria to be an enviable country, Christians and Christian leaders must live like the first century Christians. According to him, this is the only way for non-Christian neighbours to respect the Christian faith when they see Christ-like-behaviour being put into practise.
He said: "A lot of people that preach now, preach churchianity, they preach denominationalism whereas they are supposed to preach the gospel. The gospel is the message that does not change, but changes lives and it is very important for the church leaders to partner with the government to make meaningful impact in the society."
He noted that church leaders had been playing a very noble role in the area of prayer and had condemned actions of the governments where necessary and commended it when they do well.
As the controversy over Yar'Adua's health rages, Nigerian students yesterday called on the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to set up a committee in line with Section 144 of the Constitution to determine whether the President has the capacity to continue leading the country or not.
Under the aegis of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), they said it would be premature to call for the resignation of the President without following due process which informed the call to set up a committee.
Although the students at a press conference by the Chairman, Joint Campus Committee (JCC) of NANS, Adeyemo Tunde, expressed sympathy with the President over his failing health, they maintained that Yar'Adua's absence has created a vacuum which must be filled without delay.
The students urged FEC to put sentiment aside and work for national interest.
The students also frowned at the state of the nation's healthcare system, saying the inability of the President to seek medical attention in Nigeria despite the large number of teaching hospitals in the country had exposed Nigerian leaders as hypocrites who had been paying lip-service to the country's affairs.
Adeyemo also opposed the planned deregulation of the oil sector saying the move was an attempt to further impoverish Nigerians and restated their resolve to resist it.
Yar'Adua's Special Adviser on National Assembly matters, Senator Mohammed Abba Aji, yesterday met with Vice President Jonathan, but was silent when he emerged from the parley.
However, he vehemently denied that there was a time he refused to submit a letter of leave from the President to Mark and the House of Representatives Speaker Dimeji Bankole.
Asked what he discussed with Jonathan, he said: "I will not be sharing with you what I discussed with the Vice President; that is not a fair question."
On the leave letter which, according to a newspaper (not The Guardian) he allegedly advised the President against sending to the National Assembly, Aji retorted: "The paper had said there is a letter written that I refused to submit, that is not true. There is no such letter, at all. So the story is baseless and it's false."
In another statement yesterday regarding the newspaper publication, Aji wrote: "More worrisome to me was the fact that the writer of that report failed to contact me to confirm the authenticity of such report before going to press.
"It is surprising that a national newspaper could go to town with a report of that gravity without bothering to seek confirmation from me..."
Last February when Yar'Adua went on leave without writing to the National Assembly, Aji had said in an interview that the President did not need to inform the lawmakers before proceeding on a yearly vacation.
His words: "The President is not required by the Constitution to write the Senate. There is no constitutional requirement for him to do so."
Quoting copiously from the Section 145 of the Constitution, he said: "This section does not say he has to write such a letter. The President is elected for a four-year term that includes every second of every minute of that period.
"Whether he is asleep, on vacation, on leave or on a trip to the moon, the Vice President is also the same under all these conditions.
"Today, the Vice President has presided over the exco-meeting. They (the President and the Vice President) have a fantastic relationship. I have never seen a President and a Vice President working so harmoniously.
"These are elected not appointed political office holders. So, the issue of the President handing over does not arise.
"In the course of Obasanjo's eight years in office, he never wrote any such letter. There is therefore no need for such a letter.
"I was in the Senate for four of those years. He (Olusegun Obasanjo) never handed over to any body. The Vice President is assisting the President."
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