LEST WE FORGET OR GET DISTRACTED: "SARAKI TO FG: ACCOUNT FOR ALLEGED MISSING $20BN" - April 25, 2014 via The Sun - April 25, 2014

Former Kwara State Governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, yesterday urged the Jonathan administration to account for the alleged missing $20 billion and N620 billion kerosene subsidy in Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Senator Saraki, who represents Kwara Central in the National Assembly, said that, if the missing funds were recovered, they can be channelled into construction of roads across the country as well as provide jobs for youths. The former governor, who stated this while addressing participants during the Kwara South Youth Interactive Summit in Ilorin, decried the level of corruption in the country, stressing that it is high time the youth stand up to effect change in the leadership of the country. Represented by his Chief of Staff, Gbenga Makanjuola, he said: “In Nigeria, the sectors that lift the masses out of poverty had been grounded by corruption, inconsistent policies, state monopoly and inefficiency. “The steel industry has never taken off in spite of the fact that major steel projects in Ajaokuta, Aladja and Osogbo were initiated since 1979. “The textile industry that was the largest employer of labour is now in comatose. Manufacturing has lost its importance in Nigeria, as the country is now importing every manner of products, thereby leading to retrenchment of workers. “ Corruption is another major problem that has to be tackled. With incessant reports of unabated level of oil theft and bunkering,the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation(NNPC) is yet to account for the revenues that come in. “The allegation by the suspended CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, that NNPC has not remitted $20 billion into the Federation Account is being treated with levity while the NNPC allegedly paid itself N620 billion as subsidy on kerosene. “All these funds are yet to be recovered. Only a fraction of that money can construct Lagos-Ibadan Expressway,the East-West Road. The money could also have staved off the prolonged university teachers’ strike that almost cost a full academic session.” Saraki, who urged youths to come out to rescue Nigeria from these challenges, said if all stakeholders failed to rescue the country, the nation’s democracy would be endangered. The state Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, who was represented by the Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Saheed Popoola, appealed to youths to resist any attempt by anyone or group to incite them for violence and negative acts. In her goodwill message, the former Minister of Health,Princess Funke Adedoyin, said youths should utilise natural resources within their areas, stressing that government could intervene if they have organised themselves. She noted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is about the people and the party culture and policies are people-oriented. The former minister charged youths to work with the state government so that they would enjoy their entitlements and benefits.

LEST WE FORGET OR GET DISTRACTED: "SARAKI TO FG: ACCOUNT FOR ALLEGED MISSING $20BN" - April 25, 2014 via The Sun - April 25, 2014

Former Kwara State Governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, yesterday urged the Jonathan administration to account for the alleged missing $20 billion and N620 billion kerosene subsidy in Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Senator Saraki, who represents Kwara Central in the National Assembly, said that, if the missing funds were recovered, they can be channelled into construction of roads across the country as well as provide jobs for youths. The former governor, who stated this while addressing participants during the Kwara South Youth Interactive Summit in Ilorin, decried the level of corruption in the country, stressing that it is high time the youth stand up to effect change in the leadership of the country. Represented by his Chief of Staff, Gbenga Makanjuola, he said: “In Nigeria, the sectors that lift the masses out of poverty had been grounded by corruption, inconsistent policies, state monopoly and inefficiency. “The steel industry has never taken off in spite of the fact that major steel projects in Ajaokuta, Aladja and Osogbo were initiated since 1979. “The textile industry that was the largest employer of labour is now in comatose. Manufacturing has lost its importance in Nigeria, as the country is now importing every manner of products, thereby leading to retrenchment of workers. “ Corruption is another major problem that has to be tackled. With incessant reports of unabated level of oil theft and bunkering,the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation(NNPC) is yet to account for the revenues that come in. “The allegation by the suspended CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, that NNPC has not remitted $20 billion into the Federation Account is being treated with levity while the NNPC allegedly paid itself N620 billion as subsidy on kerosene. “All these funds are yet to be recovered. Only a fraction of that money can construct Lagos-Ibadan Expressway,the East-West Road. The money could also have staved off the prolonged university teachers’ strike that almost cost a full academic session.” Saraki, who urged youths to come out to rescue Nigeria from these challenges, said if all stakeholders failed to rescue the country, the nation’s democracy would be endangered. The state Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, who was represented by the Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Saheed Popoola, appealed to youths to resist any attempt by anyone or group to incite them for violence and negative acts. In her goodwill message, the former Minister of Health,Princess Funke Adedoyin, said youths should utilise natural resources within their areas, stressing that government could intervene if they have organised themselves. She noted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is about the people and the party culture and policies are people-oriented. The former minister charged youths to work with the state government so that they would enjoy their entitlements and benefits.

Aham Njoku: "Let’s take a close look at that Buhari-Tinubu presidential ticket" via TheScoop on April 25, 2014

A recent front page banner headline of a major national newspaper titled, “APC Inches Towards a Buhari – Tinubu Presidential Ticket”, elicited comments not surprisingly from a few disgruntled elite. The crux of their argument was that in a multi-religious country like Nigeria, to present two persons from the same religious group for the office of the president and his vice was unacceptable. Thanks to Karl Marx, we have always known that if you want to deceive the people tell them about religion. But the level of frustration in Nigeria has risen so high that the masses can no longer be deceived by politicians. When I was in the university, one of my lecturers Epiphany Azinge, oven-fresh from the London School of Economics with a P.H.D. in Law had insisted in many of his lectures that it was better to present a weak argument strongly than to present a strong argument weakly. In the present discussion, Azinge did not imagine a third scenario where a weak argument would also be presented weakly. The travesty of a few arguments I have heard against this potential ticket is that they are both Muslims. This lame argument is further worsened by another to the effect that since the terrorist group Boko Haram is on the rampage, putting two Muslim candidates on the ballot would be rejected by Christians. When reminded that in the 1993 June 12 Presidential elections both M. K. O. Abiola and his Vice Babagana Kingibe showed by their victory that ordinary Nigerians who are in the majority unlike the elite are not interested in ethnicity and religion but a good government that would provide basic amenities like pipe borne water, electricity, good roads, houses, etc, they are quick to point out that those days are gone. Rev. Father Mathew Hassan Kukah the Lord Bishop of Sokoto Catholic Diocese in most of his public interventions has maintained that part of the problem of Nigeria can be traced to an intellectually and morally bankrupt elite that encourages the accessing of power and privileges only on the basis of religion and ethnicity and not merit and competence. I believe in meritocracy and I am against mediocrity and favouritism in public office because they retard national development and make lives of the citizens miserable. I had wanted those who are against the ticket to advance cogent reasons why the duo would not be acceptable to the electorate than make a mere appeal to religious sentiment. It was perhaps for this religious sentiment that Buhari in 2011 elections picked a Christian cleric as his vice presidential candidate. However, any objective political observer would quickly admit that the respected Pastor Tunde Bakare being on the ballot hardly made any impression on the Christian electorate throughout the country. I should have thought that at the crossroads where Nigeria is today, the only consideration for public office would be to elect a leader or leaders who can solve the key challenges confronting the nation, which includes, but not limited to mass poverty, unemployment, infrastructure deficit and corruption amongst others. I would have gladly welcomed a critique of both Buhari and Tinubu. Such a review would have shown that Buhari was reported to be autocratic as a military Head of State. On the converse his supporters would have argued that under a constitutional democracy, the parliament, the judiciary and the media are there to effectively check the excesses of any president. Besides they would have argued that Buhari is also perceived by a majority of Nigerians as being honest, disciplined and patriotic. Even till today, 30 years after, people still talk about his fight against corruption and his War Against Indiscipline (W.A.I.) program. One of his enduring legacies includes the monthly sanitation exercise which many governors have adopted in their states. On the side of Tinubu, even his worst enemies would concede that he is a rare and unique political leader. By 1999 when he assumed office as governor, many roads in Lagos were routinely blocked with refuse leading to traffic gridlock. With a rejuvenated Lagos State Waste Management Agency (LAWMA), Lagos improved dramatically into a clean city. He also introduced Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA) to address the chaotic traffic situation in Lagos State. The Kick Against Indiscipline (K.A.I.) agency has helped to reduce environmental degradation caused by lawless street traders, etc. He also introduced the Bus Rapid Transport (B.R.T.) system that has made public transportation much better than the days when the ubiquitous “Molue” held sway. He also addressed security issues through the establishment of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS). I do not intend to go into his achievements in road construction, housing, health and public education where he started paying West African Examination Council (W.A.E.C.) and National Examination Council (NECO) fees in pubic school for Senior Secondary School Certificate Students. Nor do I want to talk about his free eye diagnosis, treatment and free eye glasses to Lagosians, etc. I have only been dragged into these examples to show that performance has nothing to do with a person’s religion and to buttress that these services provided by Tinubu were enjoyed by both Christians and Muslims alike without discrimination. Therefore, it beggars the question for anybody to suggest that these type of exemplary leaders should be disqualified from contesting elections simply because they belong to a certain religion. Of course, both men have their own flip sides which can be discussed on the balance by analysts. For top confidential reasons, details of which I am precluded from disclosing here, the Buhari/Tinubu ticket remains the best option for the A.P.C. to wrest power from the Peoples Democratic Party (P.D.P.) or make a good show at the elections. It is for the same reason that I see nothing fundamentally wrong with the Buhari/Tinubu ticket that I criticize those who say that President Goodluck Jonathan should not contest the 2015 elections simply because he is from a perceived minority tribe or because he is perceived as coming from the Old Eastern Nigeria or better still that he disrupted the turn of Northerners in the shadowy P.D.P. zoning arrangement to continue with the President Umaru Yaradua’s tenure after he died. If President Jonathan provides dams for irrigation, electricity and drinking water in the north, will the Muslims or northerners refuse to enjoy it simply because it was built by a Christian or a person from the South-South geo-political region? Why do Nigerians use cars, clothes, shoes, bags and eat food imported from Asia, America and Europe without first inquiring whether the manufacturers or producers practice Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Shintoism, Judaism or are even Atheists? Finally, when a much acclaimed Governor Godswill Akpabio provides social amenities to the residents of Akwa Ibom, I do not think Muslims who live there would refuse to enjoy them because Akpabio is a Christian. Likewise, when a hardworking Governor Adams Oshiomhole delivers the dividends of democracy to Edo residents, I do not think that anybody would first try to ascertain his religion before accessing and enjoying them. In conclusion, the way we talk about tribe and religion in Nigeria, it would appear that citizens of other countries do not have ethnic nationalities or practice any religion. The United States of America, Britain and many Asian countries all have people of different ethnic nationalities and religion but they have put merit and equality before the law first, hence the progress of their different countries. Let candidates jostling for public offices in Nigeria tell us about their achievements, antecedents and manifestoes and not deceive the people with the Bible or Koran! - This Best Outside Opinion was written byAham Njoku/Daily Independent

APC governors visit yhayha Bomb blast victims

APC Governors including Rochas Okorocha of Imo state, Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti, Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State, Babatunde Fashola of Lagos, Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa, Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara and Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State,they paid a visit to Monday morning Nyanya blast victims at the Asokoro General Hospital in Abuja.  They sympathized with the patients and condemned the incessant attacks going on in the country. During a brief press statement that followed their visit, the governors asked the federal Government to step up in its responsibilities as regards security of every citizen.

Boko Haram Killings: Jonathan summons governors for expanded Security Council meeting

The meeting of the National Security Council will be followed by an enlarged … to which President Jonathan has invited state governors.” Following the worsening security situation across Nigeria, President Goodluck Jonathan has summoned members of the National Security Council to a meeting on Thursday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. This was disclosed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Reuben Abati. The meeting, which will be presided over by President Jonathan, is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. Those expected at the meeting include Vice President Namadi Sambo, the Minister of Defence, Lt.-Gen Aliyu Gusau (rtd); the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd); the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh; the Service Chiefs, the Inspector-General of Police, the Director-General of the State Security Services and the Director-General of National Intelligence Agency. “The meeting of the National Security Council will be followed at 1300 Hours by an enlarged meeting on security developments in the country to which President Jonathan has invited state governors. “President Jonathan, members of the National Security Council and the state governors will review the security situation in the country as well as ongoing national security measures and operations with a view to determining the best way forward. “President Jonathan reassures all Nigerians and persons living in the country that the Federal Government remains very mindful of its responsibility for the safety of their lives and properties in all parts of Nigeria and will continue to do everything possible to protect them from the scourge of terrorism and insecurity. “The President is particularly concerned about the plight of the young Senior Secondary School girls who were reportedly abducted from their school in Borno State on Monday night and has ordered the military and national security agencies to deploy maximum efforts towards rescuing all of the girls and returning them safely to their parents. He welcomes reports that the military and security agencies have already rescued some of the girls” Mr. Abati said. It added that “President Jonathan deeply regrets the pain, sorrow and anguish brought upon many Nigerian families in recent days as a consequence of recurring security challenges which the nation is contending with. “The President remains convinced that with the patriotic commitment and support of all Nigerians, the country will ultimately overcome its present challenges and move forward in unity and strength. “In this regard, President Jonathan will be pleased to see all politicians in the country exhibiting greater responsibility and patriotism by doing more to support his administration’s sincere efforts to enhance national security rather than trying to build political capital out of the pain and misery of their compatriots”.

Ekiti, Osun Guber: We’ll Recover Our Stolen Mandate – Sambo

The vice president, Arc. Namadi Sambo, yesterday said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will recover Ekiti and Osun states and the entire South West ahead of the governorship election in 2014 and general elections in 2015, declaring that the party is heading for war. Sambo, who lamented that the states were stolen from the PDP, however, assured that the principle of one man, one vote and transparent election will be demonstrated in Ekiti and Osun states. Speaking at the inauguration of the national campaign committee ahead of the governorship elections in both states, Sambo said “We will deliver Osun and Ekiti to PDP. There is no doubt that the party will succeed.” While the Ekiti election holds on June 21, the Osun election is billed for August 9. Sambo who serves as chairman of the campaign committee for both states said, “By inaugurating us today, we will go to the war front and bring back our stolen mandate. Everybody knows that Ekiti belongs to PDP but people used different means to take it from us. “Osun is a PDP state but it was stolen from us. The end of stealing has come. There will be a free and fair election.” He further commended the national chairman of PDP, Adamu Mu’azu for providing a conducive environment for the conduct of the primaries in both states, noting that “Everybody witnessed transparent free and fair primaries”. He noted that the primary election was able to bring Fayose back, describing him as a grassroots politician “who will bring back sanity to the state”. He called on the candidates to assist in ensuring that all are carried along so that the plan to bring back PDP government in both states will succeed

Insecurity: sokoto youths challenge northern leaders on emergency summit

Aggrieved youths in Sokoto yesterday challenged northern elites and leaders in whatever capacity to keep sentiments apart and convene a regional emergency congress on the deteriorating insecurity in the region. The youths who advised that, northerners must put aside their religious inclination and see each other as one and confront the insecurity in the region said that only the north can solve its problem. According to the youths, northern leaders at all level must wake up to their responsibility and ensure that they collectively come together and make sure that they end the spate of unwarranted killings in the region. Most of the youths who did not want their names on print for security reasons, said the Boko Haram menace would have been long solved if the northern leaders are sincere and have the love and interest of the poor northern masses at heart. According to one of the youths, Shaibu Ladan, the region should stand firm and confront its challenges rather than trading blames. “Many assumed that the whole thing was simply a grand design to ensure that they cause dichotomy between the northern Christians and Muslims for some sort of political gains. “But, the truth remained, the dimension which the killings, either through bombing, shooting and slaughtering is taking has proved such observers wrong. “You and I know that, everybody is a potential target including all the leaders from the northern axis. Now, most people in some states of the north can no longer sleep with their two eyes closed.

Boko haram kill borno monarch 19 others.

“They simply walked right into the palace of the monarch and shot him in his bedroom.” About 20 villagers including a monarch were killed after gunmen, suspected to be Boko Haram terrorists, attacked two villages in different parts of Borno state on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, security sources and witnesses said. In one of the attacks, the gunmen on Wednesday morning at about 7 a.m. stormed Wala Village, killing 18 villagers and injuring several others. Wala Village is in Gwoza Local Government Area, some 130 km southwest of Maiduguri, the Borno capital. A local government official, who does not want to be named for security reasons, said “We are in difficult times in Gwoza local government; deaths and killings has become a daily affair; 18 people were killed in Wala this morning by the Boko Haram gunmen”. A senior officer of the Department of State Security Service, DSS, also confirmed the killing in Wala; but asked not to be quoted. “We have just received the report from our officers in Gwoza that the Boko Haram gunmen had attacked Wala village and killed 18 poor souls there; it is rather unfortunate and sad development despite our efforts up here”, he said. The DSS officer also confirmed that some 12 hours earlier, another set of gunmen attacked Sabon-Kasuawa Village in Hawul Local Government Area, 210km south of Maiduguri, where they killed a local monarch (district head) and his guard. A politician from Hawul Local Government, Hyeldi Bwala, confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES on phone that the gunmen attacked the monarch shortly after he returned home from the mosque where he went to observe the Tuesday night prayers at about 7:30 p.m. “They simply walked right into the palace of the monarch and shot him in his bedroom. And on their way out they also shot at his guard before fleeing away into the dark night”, said Mr. Bwala. Wala Village is also about 130km away from Chibok town where over 100 secondary school girls were abducted on Monday night by suspected members of the Boko Haram. The students are yet to be found. The top monarch of Gwoza, Idrissa Timta (who is addressed as Emir of Gwoza), had last week made a save our-soul plea to the Nigerian government and security agencies to come to the aid of Gwoza residents whom he said suffer too frequent attacks. “We in Gwoza have suffered too many attacks, killings and destruction, in the past weeks and months. There is no day that we don’t mourn the death of at least seven people who were being killed by the insurgents,” the monarch told journalists. “Our people have been forced to flee, our markets no longer operate optimally, food items, goods and wares are no longer coming into Gwoza for a long time now. We want action from government so that lives can be saved; if nothing is done we have no other option than to desert our homelands and flee in to the neighbouring Cameroon towns where we may perhaps get protection”. Gwoza is the one of the mountainous countryside of Borno State that shares borders with Cameroon in its south and Sambissa in its north. Gwoza’s rocky mountains have served as a hideout for Boko Haram terrorists. The Borno attacks have continued despite an emergency rule imposed on the state, as well as Adamawa and Yobe, since May last year.

"APC calls Pres. Jonathan insensitive for campaigning the day after Abuja blast, renews call for summit on insurgency" - by: Lai Mohammed

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has said President Goodluck Jonathan is exhibiting the traits of an insensitive and utterly hardhearted leader by returning to his illegal campaign trail, barely 24 hours after 75 of his compatriots died in a bomb blast in Abuja, and as news broke that 200 school girls have been abducted by Boko Haram in Borno. In a statement issued in Lagos on Wednesday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party also renewed its call on the President to urgently convene a stakeholders' summit and pursue a nonpartisan approach towards ending the insurgency, as it is now very obvious that the challenge posed by it is beyond the capacity of the government. It said the President's quick return to the hustings was reprehensible and has shown that his visit to the scene of the blast was merely to avoid the kind of flak he has received for refusing to visit Yobe, where 43 school children were massacred recently, rather than agenuine show of sympathy by a truly compassionate leader. ''The message that President Jonathan is sending to Nigerians is that keeping his plum job, at all cost, is more important to him than the security and welfare of the same people who voted him into office. Otherwise, the President would not have rushed back to his illegal campaign trail at a time he should be leading the nation in mourning the dead. ''A President who said his ambition is not worth the blood of anyone is now dancing gleefully on the graves of over 70 of his compatriots.What is so important about the illegal campaign stop in Kano on Tuesday that could not have waited for the smoke to clear from thescene of the deadly blast on Monday? Who will President Jonathan rule over when his countrymen and women are being daily mowed down under his watch? ''Without mincing words, President Jonathan erred badly by not showing enough sympathy for the victims of Monday's blast. More people died in the blast than from Kenya's mall shooting last September, yet President Uhuru Kenyatta declared three days of national mourning during which flags at public buildings flew at half mast and the people of Kenya prayed for the dead and the injured. ''In 2012, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari ordered the immediate postponement of all activities long planned to mark his 70th birthday, following thedeath in a helicopter crash of Gen. Azazi, Gov. Yakowa and others in a helicopter crash in Bayelsa. Such is the stuff of a great leader. ''Even if President Jonathan does not want to mourn the death of the citizens, he should have at least kept a low profile for a few days toavoid a repeat of the disgusting show last February, when he led others to pop champagne corks and clink glasses at the wasteful centenary celebration right after at least 43 school children were massacred in Yobe. Nigerians are now asking; 'Would the President have returned so quickly to the soapbox if any of his family members hadsuffered the fate that befell the victims of the blast, or if any of his appointees had been a victim?' ''How can a President whose failure of leadership has led to the untimely deaths of 1,500 mostly civilians in the hands of terroriststhis year alone be so numb to the fate and plight of those who voted him into office? Or how else does one describe the action of a President who was in a celebratory mood in Kano on Tuesday, even when the surviving victims are still writhing in pain in various hospitals, the bodies of the victims are still lying cold in the morgue and the fate of dozens of abducted school girls remains unknown?'' APC queried The party urged President Jonathan, as a father, a leader and a human being, to take a moment of deep introspection, to reflect on hisactions, adding: ''Perhaps he will realize that long after the glitz of office would have dimmed and the retinue of lick-spittle aideswould have vanished, a leader would be remembered more for his humanity than his vanities.'' APC said it was imperative for the President to hearken to the voice of reason because his aides and party officials, desperate not to bepushed off the gravy train, would rather blame everyone but the President and themselves for the woes that have befallen Nigeria under the President's watch. Alhaji Lai Mohammed Interim National Publicity Secretary All Progressives Congress (APC) Lagos, April 16th 2014

Rep asks Jonthan to stop killings

A member of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Shuaibu Gwanda, on Wednesday urged President Goodluck Jonathan to immediately end the senseless killings of innocent Nigerians by insurgents. Gwanda told the News Agency of Nigeria in Sokoto that “the Federal Government should take decisive measures to flush out those responsible for planting bombs in various parts of the country.” He said that the recent bomb explosion in Nyanya, FCT, should not be allowed to happen again for the common good of the country. The legislator called on the President to expose the insurgents and those allegedly linked to them in government. He said that all the enabling laws required to stop the killings were already in place, adding that Nigerians were willing to give maximum support and cooperation to the government to expose the insurgents. Gwanda also urged all Nigerians to be vigilant and offer necessary information to relevant security agencies to end the killings and ensure the safety of all citizens.

Military begin search for abducted schoolgirls

The Nigerian military is joining the search for at least 100 teenage girls abducted from a school in Chibok, Borno State. It is thought that Islamist militant group Boko Haram took them to a forest near the Cameroonian border. The air force, army, police and local volunteers are all involved in the search, officials say. The BBC’s Hausa Service says the group has kidnapped civilians in the past – usually women to work as sex slaves. Gunmen reportedly arrived at the school in Chibok, a remote area of Borno State, late on Tuesday, and ordered its teenage residents on to lorries. A local politician said about 50 army soldiers had been stationed near the school ahead of annual exams, but were apparently overpowered. Local residents reported hearing explosions followed by gunfire. “Many girls were abducted by the rampaging gunmen who stormed the school in a convoy of vehicles,” local education official Emmanuel Sam told the AFP news agency. A girl, who managed to escape and did not want to be named, told the BBC that she and fellow students were sleeping when armed men burst into their hostel. The girl said she and her schoolmates were taken away in a convoy, which had to slow down after some of the vehicles developed a fault, at which point 10 to 15 girls escaped. “We ran into the bush and waited until daybreak before we went back home,” she said. Nigerian media reported that two members of the security forces had been killed, and residents said 170 houses were burnt down during the attack. The militants know the terrain well and the military has had only limited success in previous efforts to dislodge them from their forest hide-outs in the past. It will be hard for any rescue effort to succeed without further endangering the girls’ lives, the BBC’s Nigeria correspondent Will Ross says. Boko Haram is a fierce critic of Western-style education, and its militants frequently target educational institutions. This year, the group’s fighters have killed more than 1,500 civilians in three states in north-east Nigeria, which are currently under emergency rule. The government recently said that Boko Haram’s activities were confined to that part of the country. However, bombings blamed on the group killed more than 70 people in the capital city of Abuja on Monday.

Kwankwaso sweeps off Jonathan footmarks after kano campaign visit

The governor’s actions on Tuesday are seen as a cultural and political message meant to emphasise his disdain for the president. Shortly after President Goodluck Jonathan left Kano after a party rally, the governor of the state, Rabiu Kwankwaso, led his state officials to sweep off the president’s footprints in what appears a strong political message that the president and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party, are not wanted in the North’s most populous state. Mr. Kwankwaso posted the picture of his team’s action on Facebook. The governor and his team jeered at the president as they swept the venue used for the PDP rally with brooms. The broom is the main symbol of of Mr. Kwankwaso’s party and Nigeria’s largest opposition party, the All Progressives Congress. The Kano state government belongs to the opposition APC, but his actions are seen as a cultural and political message meant to emphasise his disdain for the president and his party. In Hausa culture, wherever a broom is used to sweep off the departure of a guest, it is the highest expression of disdain for the visitor, Kabiru Mohammed, an Hausa expert said. Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso sweeping the venue used for the PDP rally in Kano Political analysts say the governor’s action further underlines the rivalry between the ruling People’s Democratic Party and APC. The symbolic sweeping is also seen as a comical reaction to the president’s scathing remarks during the visit where he accused the governor of “maladministration.” Mr. Jonathan said the Kano government under Mr. Kwankwaso has received over N255 billion as local government funds since 2011. He asked the 44 council chairmen in Kano to challenge the governor on what he has done with the funds. Messrs. Jonathan and Kwankwaso were political allies. But recently, Mr. Kwankwaso, who is now in the opposition APC, strongly expressed regrets for supporting and voting the president during the last election. While Mr. Jonathan was still in Kano during the visit, Mr. Kwankwaso tweeted that President could as well use his visit to explain the missing $20 billion leaked by the now suspended Central Bank Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi. The president’s office is yet to react to Mr. Kwankwaso’s mockery of Mr. Jonathan.

EPL: Arsenal regain 4th position

Arsenal had to come from behind as Matt Jarvis broke the deadlock in the 40th minute for West Ham. Arsenal, Tuesday night, climbed up to fourth on the Premier League table after the Gunners rallied to a 3-1 win over West Ham United at the Emirates. Arsenal had to come from behind as Matt Jarvis broke the deadlock in the 40th minute for West Ham; heading in after Wojciech Szczesny palmed the ball into his path following an Antonio Nocerino shot. However, the Gunners were back on level terms before the break, as Santi Cazorla picked out Lukas Podolski, who fired the ball past Adrian for the somewhat deserved equaliser. Having ended all square in the first half, Arsenal tried to apply pressure from the start of the second half, and managed to take the lead for the first time 10 minutes in, after Thomas Vermaelen played the ball in for Olivier Giroud to score. Arsenal’s second-half dominance continued past the hour mark with Cazorla creating some space on the edge of the box before drilling the ball towards the goal; but his finish was just off target. With just over 10 minutes left to play, Arsenal took the game completely off the reach of West Ham as Podolski picked up the ball from an Aaron Ramsey header, powering it in for his second of the night. Ramsey, who was making his first Premier League start since picking up an injury on Boxing Day, had a shot in stoppage time, but he could not get enough power behind it to beat Adrian. With the title now out of reach, Arsenal know they need more of tonight’s win to retain the fourth spot and qualify for the Champions League next season.

Abuja explosion: survivor narrate experience

 “I was dumfounded at where I saw myself. In fact I was so confused that I can’t still explain how it happened.” When Oyebuchi Chigozie arrived the Nyanya motor park at about 6.00 a.m. on Monday, he thought his daily routine would continue. He would board a bus from the park to Garki, Area 11 to resume sales at his electronics shop. Over 30 minutes after he arrived at the park, Mr. Chigozie found himself at the Nyanya General hospital, trying to recollect how he got there. “I was dumfounded at where I saw myself,” the trader told PREMIUM TIMES on his hospital bed. “In fact I was so confused that I can’t still explain how it happened.” “I just dropped at Nyanya from Lafia where I stay and I entered into the garage to buy the ticket so I can get into the bus and head for work. “I was so close to the bus but not inside the bus and the next thing I heard was a loud sound and I knew I was lifted from the ground and landed on the other side of the garage and then I found myself at the hospital.” Mr. Chigozie is one of the 124 people that the Nigerian government said were injured after a bomb explosion at the motor park in Nyanya on Monday morning. At least 71 others were not as lucky as they died from the blast. The trader said the momentary heat he felt all over his body when the explosion happened was so hot that he felt he was going to explode just before he landed on the floor. “I was surprised when I woke up and I saw myself on the hospital bed with plasters and bandages on my right leg and left arm, I feel so much pain round my arm and leg,” he said. Nyanya Motor Park is located in the Abuja suburb, about 30 minutes’ drive from the city centre. Every day, thousands of people who leave in Nyanya, Karu, and other Abuja suburbs board public and private buses and cars from the park to their work places at the city centre. The park also serves as a workplace for hawkers of different age groups who sell various products like confectioneries, sachet water, books, wrist watches, and others. Other occupants of the park include the bus drivers, ticket vendors, and beggars. Onyebuchi Chigozie a victim of the Nyanya bomb blast recieving treatment at the Nyanya general hospital Just like Mr. Chigozie, Issac Okafor also arrived the Nyanya park with intention of boarding a bus to Wuse Market, where he sells clothes. “At about 6.00 a.m., I was just at the entrance of park, I have not even gone into the park when I heard a loud sound that made me feel my ears were about pulling out,” Mr. Okafor told PREMIUM TIMES on his hospital bed. “My feet were off the ground, in the next minute I landed on the ground again. For a minute, I lost my breath. I found it so hard to breathe before I was rushed to the hospital.” “As I landed on the floor with my back, I felt like I was choking, I could not breathe properly, it was as if I was struggling to breathe, I felt this sharp pain just in my chest just before I was brought to the hospital. The doctors that attended to me injected me and gave me pain killers which I think has helped my breath well,” he said. Mr. Okafor said he lost his phone and all valuables during the blast and has not been able to contact his family. Messrs Chigozie and Okafor are among the 11 victims of the blast brought to Nyanya General Hospital, the Medical Director, Frank Idegwe, told PREMIUM TIMES. He said all the patients are currently responding to treatment and eight of them have been discharged from the hospital.

Nigerian government confirm abduction of scores of female students

A soldier and a policeman were also killed during the attack. Security officials have confirmed the abduction of at least 100 female students in Borno State. The girls, final year students of the Government Girls Secondary School Chibok, Chibok Local Government Area of the state, were kidnapped from their school on Monday night. The incident occurred about three weeks after the state government closed down all public schools to avert further attacks on students. The Boko Haram terrorist group has attacked many schools in Northeast Nigeria killing scores of students and staff. PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the female students were asked to return to school to write their final year secondary school exams that was supposed to commence this week. The Borno State Police Commissioner, Tanko Lawan, confirmed the kidnap to journalists. He, however, declined comments on the exact number of students affected. “We have received the report about the kidnapping of students by gunmen in a school in Chibok Local Government Area last night,” Mr. Lawan said. “But we have no details on the actual number of the students for now; our men are still on the trail of the abductors”. A senior official of the State Security Service, who does not want his name mentioned as he is not permitted to speak to journalists, provided more details of the kidnap. “The abduction happened at about midnight when these hoodlums called Boko Haram attacked the school, killed a soldier and policeman and took away over a hundred female students in a lorry,” he said. The SSS officer added that “we have been able to locate the vehicle where it broke down and our men have moved in to intercept the gunmen; but we understand that some of the girls were able to escape and made it back to the town”. An official of Chibok local government, who sought anonymity for security reasons, told PREMIUM TIMES that “the gunmen actually came in two Hilux pickup vans but had to intercept a lorry that was conveying bags of grains to Askira-Uba Local Government. “They offloaded the grains and ordered the abducted student into the lorry and took them away.” The official said many of the girls summoned courage to escape by holding some branches of trees while the lorry was moving in the night. They hung there until the lorry went far before jumping down and made it back to town, he said. “Some others jumped off the lorry since it was not moving at high speed and the road was sandy”. “Many of the girls have been able to make it back through the bushes, but others are yet to be found; but we understand that the chairman of Chibok local government had led some security operatives to trail the track of the lorry,” the official added. The official said the number of girls kidnapped cannot be more than 200 “because we are just talking about the final year students, not all students in the school.” Chibok is an agrarian town located about 130km south-west of Maiduguri. It shares a border with Sambisa Forest, believed to be one of the major camps of the Boko Haram. The Boko Haram is responsible for the killing of thousands of people in an insurgency that began since 2009. Over 1,500 people have been killed in 2014. Monday’s abduction occurs less than 24 hours after a bomb explosion killed over 70 people in the Nigerian capital, Abuja. The Boko Haram is believed to be responsible for the attack. The attacks occur despite almost a year of emergency rule in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.

Another delegate at the national conference slumps

Security operative smashed the camera of a photo-journalist taking the photograph of the ailing delegate A National Conference delegate, Abubakar Abdulmumuni, on Tuesday slumped and was rushed to an undisclosed hospital in Abuja for medical attention. Mr. Abdulmumuni slumped after the plenary session of the Conference a few minutes after 6 p.m. while emerging from the auditorium where it was holding. It could not be immediately ascertained which of the groups the delegate represents at the Confab, which is holding at the National Judicial Institute, Airport Road, Abuja. This brings to two the number of delegates who have suffered that fate in the last one week. Last week, a delegate of the Market Women Associations, Ifeyinwa Ezenwa, slumped shortly after the Conference resumed for the afternoon session. Mrs. Ezenwa was trying to gain entrance into the auditorium when she slumped and was immediately assisted by some security operatives. Mamman Misau, a delegate representing Association of Retired Police Officers of Nigeria, ARPON, died during the first week of the Conference. Immediately he collapsed on Tuesday, Mr. Abdulmumuni was assisted by security agents, including operatives of the Department of State Security, DSS, and the National Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, who alongside a doctor rushed him to an ambulance. However, a female security operative of the NSCDC engaged a photo-journalist, who was taking the photograph of the delegate, in a fisticuff. In the process, the operative smashed the camera of the photo-journalist.

Evacuated victims of Abuja bomb site faces hunger in hospitals

When Shuaibu Abukabar arrived Nyanya Motor Park early Monday, his plan was to travel to Suleja to purchase new wares for his shop as he does bi-weekly. But 15 minutes after paying for a ticket and taking a spot on a long queue of passengers, a deafening blast threw him off the ground, set off a huge fire and left bodies of injured and the dead littered around him. In three minutes, Mr. Abubakar recalled, everything seemed quiet as a thick dark smoke curled into the morning air. “At first there was quietness and suddenly I saw smoke and fire, then I passed out,” Mr. Abubakar narrated from the hospital where rescuers rushed him to. He said he was thought to have died and was hauled alongside mangled bodies, but was later confirmed to be alive. “After I fainted only to open my eyes and tried to turn only to find myself inside a truck with dismembered bodies, they noticed me and later removed me when they realized that I am still alive,” he said. “As I am talking to you now, there is so much noise inside my head, I cannot move my legs, the doctors attended to me, gave me drips and medicine.” Official statistics puts the number of the dead from Monday’s explosion at the crowded Nyanya park at 75. But a PREMIUM TIMES reporter who arrived the scene minutes after the incident insists the casualty figure was much higher. Mr. Abubakar was one of the 124 injured survivors. President Goodluck Jonathan blamed the extremist group Boko Haram for the explosion. At the Maitama hospital where Mr. Abubakar was being treated Tuesday, he said he had to endure not only pains but the pangs of hunger. He had, on the day of the incident, missed breakfast, having left so early, and throughout Monday, ate nothing. The hospital provided nothing and he remained hungry until Tuesday morning when reporters visited the hospital. “I did not eat anything I was too weak to eat but at midnight I couldn’t sleep of hunger, the last time I ate was on Sunday evening, but there was no food provision. Some people from the mosque came here to give me bread and tea this morning, the hospital only gave us injections and drips. I am still hungry, broke and with no money.” Salome Jim, a bus ticket vendor, was among those who also survived the attack. The force of the blast hurled her to a nearby rock and, fortunate to escape the death that surrounded her, she sustained a fracture. “I was selling tickets to passengers when I heard a loud bang and I saw myself flying in the air, I landed on a stone, got up to run when I felt a sharp pain in my legs,” she said from her hospital bed. Ms. Jim said she mustered strength to crawl on her buttock to safety. “My leg broke into two like a broom,” she said. Lying next to her was Isah, an okada rider well known within the park. “Isah too was badly injured, I saw his intestines coming out from his stomach, and the rescue team covered him up and packed the things back into his body that was the last time saw him,” she said. “I have been sitting down here waiting for a surgery, I am in pain, I am very hungry. No one has come here to give me food, I can neither walk nor move, the nurses and doctors are nice to me but they didn’t give me food.” “The nurse said she will come and attend to me at 9:30 am this morning and this is 9 o’ clock so I am waiting, but when I came here yesterday they took care of me, I didn’t pay for anything, but they didn’t give us food,” she narrated. “I went to bed with an empty stomach, the woman inside the ward over there (she pointed) shared her food with me at midnight, as I am here my relatives didn’t know I am here as I couldn’t find my phone.” A staff of the hospital who pleaded anonymity told PREMIUM TIMES that some cannot eat due to their medical conditions but those that can eat should be given food. “Some of the victims cannot eat just yet, but some of them who can eat do not have the money to eat, the government can’t only be administering drugs on empty stomachs it can lead to other serious cases, we all tried yesterday but not even a single word of commendations from the government. You people should let Nigerians know the bomb blast victims are hungry and are not fed,” the official said. When asked why the victims had not been fed, health minister, Onyebuchi Chukwu, who visited the hospital early Tuesday did not give a direct response.

Abuja to install bomb detectors in commercial buses- minister

Mr. Mohammed stated this while visiting victims of the Monday morning Abuja explosion in Nyanya that killed 72 people. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Bala Mohammed, said on Tuesday in Abuja that metal and explosive detectors will be installed in Abuja high capacity buses. Mr. Mohammed stated this while visiting victims of the Monday morning Abuja explosion in Nyanya that killed 72 people. Several of the buses were completely burnt in the explosion. Mr. Mohammed said the Abuja administration will take care of all the medical bills and feeding of victims of the blast in the hospitals. He also directed that bills of cases referred to any private or specialist hospitals be paid by the Abuja administration, FCTA. The minister said the Abuja administration will meet with various security agencies to work towards providing security for public places. The public places, he said, include motor parks, markets, churches, and mosques within Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city. Over 70 people were killed from the bomb blast that rocked a populous motor park in Nyanya, Abuja on Monday. The incident also left over 100 persons injured. The explosion is believed to have been carried out by the Boko Haram terrorist group.

Abuja bombing, jonathan is a hearthless president- Kwankwaso

Governor Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso of Kano has described President Goodluck Jonathan as an insensitive man oblivious of the yearnings of Nigerians. The governor also lamented that at a time the nation was mourning the Nyanya bomb explosion that left many either dead or injured, the president decided to embark on what he described as “merry-making trips”. “At a time when several innocent lives have been lost, when many of the victims are in hospital seeking blood donations to survive, the president is gallivanting round the country in the name of PDP unity rally”, the governor said. The governor, who spoke in Hausa during the 2nd matriculation ceremony of students of Northwest University, Kano, at the Government House lawn, today, Tuesday, wondered why the president should be travelling aimlessly with taxpayers’ money, while the common man is being killed daily because of failure of the Federal Government to adequately protect lives and property. Governor Kwankwaso chided the President for justifying, promoting, and sustaining corruption, pointing out that despite the allegation of corruption against the Minister of Aviation and the missing $20 billion oil funds, for instance, the president remained silent on such issues during his campaign visit to Kano. “The man came to Kano to smear our image but thank God, the man gave me free publicity by mentioning my name over 50 times in a 15 minute address,” the governor said. “The President, his Vice and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation are vultures. They want the PDP to die and feed on its carcass,” Mr. Kwankwaso said, adding that Mr. Jonathan’s posturing was adding fertilizer to his future political aspiration. “Supposing I decide to contest for the number one seat in this country, I will beg APC, APGA and Labour Party not cast their votes for me – I want to assure you that with the PDP vote that I will garner, definitely I will defeat the incumbent President hands down,” the governor said. He said the Federal Government, under Mr. Jonathan, had failed the people of Kano state and indeed other Nigerians by not doing what is expected of a responsible government to better their lives, adding that Jonathan is not the President Nigerians deserve.

Rooney confident resurgent united can derail city's title challenge after the striker scored audacious 58 yard strike.

Manchester united forward wayne Rooney has warned manchester city to expect a side bouyed by renewed confidence and belief in this week's derby. It is fair to say life without sir Alex Ferguson has not gone to plan so far, with the reigning champions sat seventh in the barclay's premier league table ae the campaign enters the home straight. Such poor form has seen the pressure mount on manager David Moyes but there at least seems to be signs that things may be improving.

PDP insists APC promotes insurgency

PDP insists on referring to APC’s ideology as “Janjaweed.” The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Saturday, insisted that the actions, utterances and body language of the All Progressives Congress, APC, have continued to give it away as the face behind the ugly mask of insurgency in parts of the country, dismissing its denial of complicity as an ill articulated afterthought. A statement by the National Publicity Secretary of the Party, Olisa Metuh said the PDP and Nigerians do not need further proof on the unholy alliance between the APC and insurgency. Restating that the PDP firmly believes in the plurality of Nigeria’s political space, knowing full well, the cardinal role the opposition plays in any sustainable democracy, the party said it was however an outright coup against democracy for the APC to employ deceit, lies and insurgency as means of achieving political control. “When we accused the APC of being behind insurgency, we did not speak in vain and when we summarized the manifesto of the party as a product of Janjaweed ideology, we have verifiable reasons,” PDP said. The statement argued that it was not a coincidence that after (former Head of State), Muhammadu Buhari, beckoned on his supporters to go on a lynching spree should he lose the 2011 presidential election, an unprecedented violence broke out, claiming the lives of hundreds of innocent Nigerians. It noted that the Sheik Lemu committee which investigated this carnage, unequivocally established Mr. Buhari’s culpability. “Besides, the allegory of the bloody monkey and baboon in respect of the 2015 election, which is still way ahead, by the same General is still very fresh in the minds of Nigerians. The serial threats of violence should President Jonathan contest in 2015 including the most recent prophecy of violent deaths and destructions in 2015 by Nasiru El Rufai are not slips from elements at the periphery but snips from characters who know more than ordinary Nigerians, the reasons behind the mindless carnage in the country. “And when the APC boasted earlier in 2013 even before it could secure its name from counter claims that insurgency would end within 100 days of its leadership of the nation, Nigerians recalled immediately that the chief priest who dines with the deity knows the right libation to appease the gods. Insurgency is APC and APC is insurgency. “We recall also that the APC attempted to use the November, 2013 Anambra governorship election to test run its agenda by posting fake opinion poll, making inflammatory statements concerning the election, and imported armed thugs in botched bid to unleash mayhem in the election it came a distant third. Vigilant security agencies nipped their plans in the bud.” The statement further said it was laughable that the APC was regurgitating a distorted and pirated version of counter insurgency measures that have been in quiet operation as if it were original to it , wondering if the APC leadership was under “the influence” when (its) statement was authored. PDP also said it might be necessary for the APC to offer explanation for the reason insurgency gains a pitch higher each time President Jonathan takes a forward step in his transformation programme. According to the ruling party, the gender insensitivity of the APC is a direct fall-out of its Janjaweed ideology, hence the relentless vicious attacks on the female members of the Federal Executive Council and others in sensitive positions. “It is not for nothing that all the persons that the APC wants to resign from the federal cabinet or similar positions are females- Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, Diezani Alison Madueke, Arunma Oteh. In the APC’s Janjaweed ideology, no woman, no matter how brilliant should be heard or seen.” The PDP finally cautioned the APC to purge itself of evil tendencies and focus on how to build a strong and united nation instead of promoting violence and bloodshed in desperate bid for power, citing the stand of President Jonathan that “his ambition is not worth spilling the blood of any Nigerian as instructive.” Signed: Olisa Metuh National Publicity Secretary

How sincere is this government?

The suspension of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi diveides the country into two, those supporting the suspension and those against the suspension,the question here is that is SLS a PDP card memeber?,those the CBN belongs to PDP members? Are members of the opposition party not Nigerians? Are they not entitled to applying for and winning Contract in the country? When they were given they contract do they execute it or not? Why does it take 5years for the government to know that the CBN governor is recklesss? How sincere is this government About the rule of law, this is not the first time the suspension of constitution authorities are carrieD out by the presidency.same thing happened during the suspension of thE then president of the appeal court, justice Ayo Salami, even when he was asked to be reinstated,they claimed he mared the cases of the election tribunals in some states, the question here is that,was he the same Judge aat the supreme court to mare the process? How sincere is this governmment? Has the country turn to where you can only be friend with the PDP and you become enemy of the opposition? No wonder it takes the presidency just few hours to sack some minister and Many months to sack some even though its clearly seen from all angles the attrocitieS they committed. How sincere is the government in fighting corruption? How sincere is the government in fighting insurgency? How sincere is the government in fighting kidnapping? How sincere is the government in creating employment? How sincere is the government in the rule of law of law? How sincere is the government in the trransformation of Nigeria? How sincere is the government in the unity of Nigeria and Nigerians?

I am Nigerias largest employer of labour: Atiku

The former vice pesident of Nigeria Alhaji Atiku Abubakar said he the largest private employer of labour in Nigeria. the former vice president who gave this on his twitter page that he belives he is the highest private employer of labour in his various companies across the country. iinvestment cross across education, shipping, media, oil and gas among others, he said he has employed over 50000 thousand youth in various fields. He also gave insight on how he s headed the economic team when he was vice president of Nigeria and how he succeeded icreating jobs for the teaming youth in various sectors of telecommunication and the banking sector. Alhaji Atiku also urged the youth the youths to ask their leaders the step taken t create job for them.