Open Letter To General Muhammadu Buhari

Dear Sir,
OPEN LETTER TO GENERAL BUHARI
I have been constrained to write you through the media because I do not have an alternative way of reaching you. Permit me to share my opinion on your presidential ambition, which I think is equally shared by many Nigerians of my generation irrespective of ethnic or religious differences.
Sir, I heard about you first on the 31st of December 1983. Then I was a ten year old boy in primary six, celebrating with the whole nation on the arrival of our military Heroes. At least so we thought! The jubilations were spontaneous. |

The nationwide celebrations signalled the demise of the second republic and ushered in the military dispensation commonly referred to as the Buhari/Idiagbon regime. Immediately you launched the War Against Indiscipline and introduced the Nationwide Monthly Sanitation Exercise. The WAI crusade stuck in my brain and still reverberates up till now. To simplify the message my Teacher introduced an Igbo acronym for WAI: Wepu Ajo Ihe; which literally translates: Remove Bad Thing.
Sir, I must confess that the image that stuck in me about Buhari/Idiagbon was that of two no-nonsense characters, straight talkers, people who meant yes when they said yes and vice versa. This impression I believe was equally shared by many others in my generation.
Today, I am a 41 year old Nigerian. A lot has changed. I see things differently now. I am now a fully grown man who can analyse issues critically. One thing I believe passionately is that it is very important for one to set a standard for oneself, but equally more important to sustain the standard.
On the final lap of your presidential campaign for 2011, you made an open declaration in front of the media and your supporters, without mincing words you stated emphatically that 2011 would be your last attempt to contest the Presidency. Going by your legacy and standard, many People including I took you by your words. After all Buhari means yes when he says yes. However that promise was short lived. Before one can say Jack Robinson you have joined the race again for the fourth consecutive time, contrary to your open declaration.
Of course I concede you have every right to change your mind and contest every election as long as you live. It is however very remarkable to observe that you shot yourself in the foot when you reneged on your promise to Nigerians not to contest the Presidency again. So judging you by your own standard, you have fallen below expectations. The pertinent question people are asking now is ” HOW CAN WE EVER TRUST YOU AGAIN”? Another important questing worth asking you is ” WHAT IS NOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BUHARI AND OTHER POLITICIANS”? I would say none! Oh yes you have got the constitutional right to contest, but eating your words has done your reputation more harm than good. People now see you, and quite justifiably, just like a typical politician who is unstable and unreliable.
Some of your supporters continue to amuse me by claiming that President Jonathan allegedly signed a one term pact with them. Unlike you Jonathan never made any open declaration to serve only for one term. Those of them who continue to make this ridiculous allegation have refused to produce the transcript of the said agreement or tender any proof to substantiate this. So as far as Nigerians are concerned Jonathan never struck any one term deal with us. But you did promise openly and suddenly reneged. In fact you actually sealed the promise with your tears. An elder Statesman of your calibre and pedigree made a promise and shed tears to seal it, that should have been final. It is very symbolic when an Elder sheds tears in the continent of Africa. It was a covenant with Nigerians not to contest again. A promise abruptly broken. But this is politics. Everything is possible in this game.
Sir, I know you have many reasons for reneging on your promise but most of these reasons are laughable. Some claim your supporters put pressure on you to change your mind, but this is an old excuse which is as old as Nigeria. Even late General Abacha had people begging him to contest. A principled and disciplined officer like you should have remained steadfast to your open declaration. Others claim you are still young, after all you would be only 72 by the next Presidential election. At 72 you would still be much younger than Mugabe. So they claim! But they conveniently refused to check Mugabe’s next door neighbour Madiba. Suffice it to say that Mandela is the very opposite of Mugabe and the ideal role model for all African leaders. Mandela declined to go for a second term because according to him , age was not on his side. He could have won a second term and transformed to a life President if he wished. But he never did. He voluntarily made way for the younger generation to continue from where he stopped. This is what is expected of you now to retire voluntarily and join the respected league of Elders where you truly belong.
Another reason which some of your supporters have tendered is that you are genuinely motivated by service and patriotism. I gladly take this on board. I can give you the benefit of the doubt that you are driven by the urge to serve your fatherland. This is a very valid reason. But Sir, I have an important question here for you. The question is simple, MUST YOU SERVE NIGERIA AS A PRESIDENT ONLY? IS THERE NO OTHER CAPACITY YOU CAN SERVE US EXCEPT THE PRESIDENCY? It is very erroneous to imagine that you can only serve Nigeria only in one capacity. During the regime of late General Sani Abacha, you accepted the appointment to serve as the Chairman of the then Petroleum Trust Fund PTF. The general opinion was that you served faithfully in this capacity. Well done Sir! But you never asked Abacha to vacate office for you as your former subordinate in the army. Never! In fact that would have been a dangerous move, if not suicidal. Rather you served faithfully under your former junior in the army. Sir, imagine if you take on another job like the Chairman of EFCC or ICPC or NDLEA. Nigerians actually need you to serve in one of these capacities much more than they need you in the Presidency. Mere mentioning your name as Chairman of EFCC would drive many corrupt men underground. But you wouldn’t . Either the Presidency or nothing. So it seems!
Sir, let us examine your service records. I consider your generation a very privileged one, indeed. In 1975 at the age of 33, you were appointed the Military Governor of the North-Eastern State, present day Borno & Yobe states. In 1976 at the age of 34 you became the Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources. In 1978 at the age of 36 you became the Chairman of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Today the reverse is the case. Most Nigerians at age of 35 are still unemployed and still living with parents. Many are still not married. During your time you were already Governor at this age. One major reason for this unfortunate turn of events is that many elders like you have refused to voluntarily handover the baton to the next generation. Life should be a relay race where one runs his race and hands over to the next. In Nigeria many elders like you have run their races and are still holding on tenaciously to the baton. When are you going to handover to the next person? It is either you do it voluntarily or risk disgrace at the polls. In 1983 at the age of 41, exactly the same age as my humble self now, you became the Head of State. Most Nigerians in my age have not had the opportunity to serve, but we still remain committed to the Nigerian project. You should rather be graceful to God and to Nigerians for the numerous opportunities that have come your way to serve Nigerians. Others are begging for just one opportunity to serve.


Sir, you have to accept the stark reality on ground that you have served your time already. That is life for you. You run the race, you handover the baton for others to run, you cannot hold on to the baton more than is necessary. As a former head of State you are already a member of the Council of State Meeting. You have every avenue to channel your views across. You don’t necessarily have to be in a frontline role, you can serve in an advisory capacity. That is still service.


In conclusion, let me state that the greatest beneficiary should you emerge candidate of the APC would be President Jonathan. It is crystal clear that you cannot defeat President Jonathan in a free, fair and credible election, even in Katsina State. Sentiments aside, Jonathan would cruise to a landslide victory should you emerge candidate of the APC. In fact many political analysts believe that President Jonathan wants you to emerge as the APC flag bearer in order to secure a cheap victory. In fairness to you, any of your Children would pose a serious challenge to Jonathan more than yourself. I do not see Nigerians electing a 72 year old former Head of state to lead us in this Digital era. With due respect to you Sir, you belong to the Analogue age and therefore, will not fit in as president in this digital era. This is the blunt truth. Please do not enter the Guinness book of world records on a negative note. Losing four consecutive Presidential election would not augur well for your reputation. It is in your best interest to assume your position as an elder statesman and allow others to serve. Nigeria does not belong to you alone. It belongs to us all.

Respectfully Submitted.
Edozie Okeiyi
Director of Media & Strategy
Great Nigeria Movement
http://edokeiyi.com

Police Interview Scottish Conservative Leader Over Alleged Referendum Vote Crime - Reports

© AP Photo/ Lefteris Pitarakis

Police in Scotland have questioned the leader of the Scottish Conservative Party, Ruth Davidson on Friday, over alleged criminal breaches of electoral law that purportedly took place during the Scottish independence referendum.
Davidson was interviewed as a witness rather than a suspect, BBC reported on Friday citing unnamed party sources.

It has been claimed that anti-Scottish independence supporters communicated the results of postal votes during "sample openings" prior to the referendum that was held September 18. It is a criminal offense to reveal any information witnessed by political agents during such sample openings which are conducted to verify signatures and date of birth.

Shortly after polling stations closed across Scotland Davidson appeared to reveal the broad results from the postal vote, telling the BBC, "There are people in the room that have been sampling those [postal] ballot boxes as they have been opened and they have been taking tallies and the reports have been very positive for us."

Although agents are allowed to attend the sample openings ahead of the main vote, they are not permitted to communicate any information they see. Those convicted face up to a year imprisonment.
Scottish voters went to the polls on September 18 but rejected independence by a margin of 55 percent to 45 percent.

18yr old kills his own mother & loses his virginity to her corpse

18 year old Kevin Jazrael Davis (pictured left) has been sentenced to life in prison for killing his own mother. According to reports, Kevin attacked his mother (pictured left) with a hammer, striking her 20 times on the head, on March 26th 2014 at their home and then had sex with her corpse. According to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, in a police video showed to jurors during his trial, Kevin confessed to having violent and sexual fantasies involving women, including his own mother and sister. He attacked his mother when they were alone and turned himself in to police the next day. Kevin, who told police that he was not insane and knew what he was doing, said he put his hand inside her mother's head to feel her brain and then lost his virginity to her corpse. He was sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday October 8th

Scary Pic: Bird allegedy changes into full a grown woman at Oshodi !

In accordance with Twitter user, @davidTheGear, a few momemts ago at Oshodi, a bird fell from a higher tension wire and landed on a lawn and converted into a woman. The girl that the bird supposedly converted into had nearly all of her skin peeled. Photo above. Can this be explained apart from she's a witch?

Update: Woman who allegedly transformed from a bird dies in hospital

$9.3m scandal: Okotie calls for Oritsejafor's resignation as CAN president

House Hold of God Head pastor Chris Okotie, has called for the resignation of Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor as President of the Christian Association of Nigeria CAN over the $9.3m arms deal scandal in which his private jet was implicated in.

In a piece titled "$9.3m Scandal: Oritsejafor Should Do The Right Thing' which was posted on his Facebook page today, Okotie said the continued relationship between Oritsejafor and the Presidency has caused a lot of embarrassment to the Christian body and that it was time the elder clergyman resigned to salvage the respect of CAN. Read his piece after the cut...

The recent seizure by the South African authorities of $9.3m found in a private jet owned by Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, has aggravated the image problem of this country at a time when the narrative of this government is brimming with negatives under the leadership of President Goodluck Jonathan.

The South African government took the action on the alleged charge that the undeclared $9.3m found in the plane might have been laundered. This revelation came when the dust generated by the seemingly dubious donation of the jet to Pastor Ayo is yet to settle. His friendship with the President has been at the centre of the controversies that mark his explosive tenure as the leader of the eponymous religious organization in Nigeria.

Not that it is a sin to be the President’s Pal, but when such relationship becomes provocatively patronizing, or self-serving, it is unacceptable. The Pastor does not show restraint in the way he goes about, publicly hobnobbing with the President as if he is the Chaplain of Aso Rock. This certainly has compromised the integrity of his office as CAN President and this latest incident is just the climax of embarrassing incidents we can’t tolerate any longer.
Considering the collateral damage Pastor Ayo’s close relationship with the President has done to the Christian community, it is fit and proper for the Pastor to resign immediately as CAN President to salvage what remains of the battered image of the association.
This is without prejudice to the on-going investigation on the matter. Denials of his culpability by the Federal Government, CAN officials and his own recent defense, does nothing to reduce the moral burden this whole saga places on his shoulders. As the titular leader of Christians in Nigeria, there’s now a serious crisis of confidence on his leadership and he ought to respond to it by resigning from his exalted position.

That is what the ecclesiastic responsibility of his calling as a gospel minister dictates, once he finds himself in a situation where his continued occupation of public office suffers a moral deficit, on account of any error of commission or omission. If one may ask: why should Pastor Ayo’s jet be the one that was chartered for this ill-fated transaction when there are numerous competitors in that business in which he is obviously a new player?

It is very difficult to sustain the argument that a civilian aircraft is ideal to ferry weapons of war. A sitting President of CAN should never be involved in any way in the procurement of arms to fight insurgents like Boko Haram which claims Islamic principles in its war against the state. To do so is to expose Christians to more deadly attacks.
To whom much is given, much is expected. The Pastor has the distinction of being the first and only person to occupy the posts of CAN President, and President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, until recently when Rev. Felix Omobude succeeded him as PFN President.
Pastor Ayo’s friendship with President Jonathan is perfectly legitimate and nobody should attempt to query such relationship. However, the Pastor opens himself to criticism of this otherwise normal social interaction because of his indiscretion in identifying too closely to the President, in a way that suggests a veiled endorsement of Dr. Jonathan’s policies and actions by the entire Christian community. He ought to have identified privately with the President knowing full well that he carries the mandate of the Christian community at these trying times.
In a nation of contending faiths, Pastor Ayo literally ignores our divergent religious sensibilities as he sometimes gets himself involved in public quarrels with the President’s critics, from the muslim faith as well as in the opposition. Not all Christians are comfortable with this posture by their leader, especially at a time of intense politicking and the sectarian tensions generated by the Boko Haram insurgents and communal violence involving ethnic minorities with entrenched religious identities.
The cumulative effect of Pastor Ayo’s abrasive leadership style has also polarized the Christian community as evidenced by the current unprecedented division in CAN. Before now, leaders of this organization deliberately stayed out of politics in keeping with the traditional stance of neutrality of the body vis-a-vis the policy postures of incumbent governments. In fact, former PFN leaders like the late Archbishop Benson Idohosa and ex-CAN President, Olubunmi Cardinal Okogie kept governments on their toes during their time.
In more mature democracies, it is not unusual for public officers to resign from office when their actions appear to degrade their positions. And they would not have to wait to be found guilty in circumstances surrounding their actions before they throw in the towel. In other words, they could even be victims of circumstances; or in rare cases, subjects of blackmail. It didn’t matter. Once you are pelted in any way, you quit to protect the integrity of your office.
That was the case of Dominic Strauss-Khan who resigned his position as the President of IMF because he was accused of molesting a maid in a hotel in the United States. He was eventually acquitted after a celebrated trial. The Prime Minister of South Korea, Jong Hong-won resigned because his compatriots were drowned recently in a chartered cruise ship which carried some students on a picnic. Just last month, the First Minister of Scotland, Mr. Alex Salmond resigned because he led his country’s failed bid to gain independence from the United Kingdom. Nobody asked him to resign; he did so of his own accord because he felt it was wrong to continue to run a country he launched on a part of an unsuccessful “secession”.
If purely secular leaders could do this to affirm their integrity, Pastor Ayo should take the honourable path by leaving office, not necessarily because he is guilty as charged, but to restore honour to an exalted office he has unwittingly degraded because of his unabashed flirtation with the head of a government that is perceived as one of the most corrupt in the world. The Bible commands us to “flee from all appearance of evil”.
Nobody says Pastor Ayo cannot do business; he could have been in order, if he does so as the Pastor of his Word of Life Bible Church, WOLBC. But since his private jet was involved in a transaction gone awry in a foreign land, while he is still the sitting President of CAN, it is difficult for him to continue to command the respect of Nigerian Christians of diverse denominations who constitute the CAN group, regardless of the defense his sympathizers and the Federal Government tried to put up on his behalf.

If this incident had happened in Pastor Ayo’s capacity as the head/founder of the Word of Life Bible Church, no one could justifiably call for his head because the Bible teaches that the “call of God is without repentance”. In other words, regardless of the conduct of a servant of God, He does not remove them from office or withdraw their anointing. This is one of the mysteries of the gospel. The Almighty has a way of chastising his errant servants.

But here, we are dealing with Pastor Ayo as the leader of CAN; the largest umbrella of Nigerian Christians. He is condemned to be judged by secular standards, which, in this case, demands that, having found himself in a quagmire which calls to question, the sanctity of his office, he must step down to redeem his image.

The Pastor should quit the CAN post and return to his church where he could then recalibrate himself, away from this season of anomie.
Rev. Okotie, a Presidential Aspirant, wrote from Lagos

Bloody Randy Naija Pastors by Charlyboy

By Charly Boy

This write up is about all the sex scandals going on in the church, about The Bloody Randy Men of God who are busy screwing their female congregation, breaking marriages and turning the bible upside down to fit their slimy nature.

So, if you are one of those Jesus people who can't see the flit in your church, sorry, keep living in denial.


STOP. You don't have to read this.

How can a man of God “fall so easily into temptation” Are they not supposed to be on a higher moral ground than simpletons like us? These predatory pastors love to prey on their victims. It is a preplanned, master manipulative, controlling, calculated ‘decision’. Sadly, most congregations are aware about the bull-crap going on in their church. But like the dumb ignorant Naijas we are, corrupted by fear and the uncertainty of tomorrow, we look the other way. Oh God!

Continue reading here  http://www.charlyboy.org/bloody-randy-naija-pastors/

Photos: Okonjo-Iweala bags African Finance Minister of the Year

Nigeria's Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister for the Economy Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been named African Finance Minister of the year 2014 by leading investment & international group, African Investor. Dr Okonjo Iweala is pictured above right with her husband Dr. Ikemba Iweala.

Okonjo-Iweala was announced winner today October 10th from a shortlist which included Finance Ministers of Kenya, Angola, Rwanda, Liberia, Seychelles, Zambia and Kingdom of Morocco. Continue..

Spanish Nurse Infected With Ebola to Receive ZMapp Experimental Drug: Reports

Teresa Romero Ramos, a nurse at a hospital in Madrid who tested positive for the Ebola virus will receive the experimental drug ZMapp, RTVE broadcaster reported Friday.

Spain Sends 300 Military Advisers to Iraq : Defense Ministry

Spain will send 300 military advisers to Iraq to train the country's soldiers to fight the Islamic state (IS) militants, Spanish Minister of Defense Pedro Morenes said Friday.
The Spanish military mission in Iraq will last seven to eight weeks. The Spanish troops will not participate in military operations. And the government's decision now must pass approval in the parliament.

The minister ruled out "the participation of Spanish soldiers in direct armed clashes." "We're not there for that," Morenes said at a press conference, adding that Spain began this mission, "with all the guarantees of security" for forces deployed in the conflict zone.
Spain previously stated that it would allow its allies to use its military bases in Rota (Cadiz) and Moron de la Frontera (Sevilla), as well as airspace and territorial waters. Madrid is also ready to supply non-lethal weapons and equipment, and is considering lethal weapons deliveries - but only with the consent of the official Baghdad.

In mid-September it was announced that Spain would station a squadron of Patriot surface-to-air (SAM) systems and send 130 servicemen to Turkey.
The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), has been fighting the Syrian government since 2012. In June 2014, it extended its attacks to northern and western Iraq. In August, the United States authorized limited airstrikes against IS targets in Iraq. Washington extended its airstrikes against the militants into Syria in September, after US President Barack Obama announced his decision to form an international anti-IS coalition.

Relatives torture two children over alleged witchcraft in Akwa Ibom.

 The Nigerian government need to get involved and start arresting people who torture children for allegedly being witches. This is so wrong. Two 8 year old children named Mary Odiong and Ekong Asua (pictured above) were tortured and sent out of their homes in the Okobo LGA of Akwa Ibom State on the allegation of witchcraft.

Mother of Ex-Ogun state Dep. Speaker released by kidnappers

The mother of the former Deputy Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly and current person in the House, Hon Remmy Hassan has been released by her kidnappers. The lady, who had been kidnapped on October 1st at her Omu-Ijebu residence was published in the first hours of this morning. The kidnappers initially demanded N50million but it's unclear if the household paid the ransom.

17 yr old Malala Yousafzai gets 2014 Nobel Peace prize

 Aweseom! I'm so proud of this young woman. Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl who was simply shot by the Taliban in 2012 for advocating women's rights to get an education in her country, has just been announced the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize winner...but she shares it with another individual, Kailash Satyarthi, an Indian children's rights activist. He's been active in the Indian movement against child labour. They get $1.1million. 
Good for them !

EFCC: 2 jailed for ₦125,000 money scam

Find the EFCC Press statement below

    Justice Kudirat Jose of the Lagos State High Court, Ikeja on Thursday, October 9, 2014, convicted and sentenced the duo of Sunday John Ntephe and Olomosu Kola to one year imprisonment each for conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretence.
Continue..

Real estate opportunities in Nigeria

Currently, there is over 200 000 square metres of retail development under construction, mainly concentrated in the South of Nigeria. These include Port Harcourt Mall (11 000 square metres), which is almost 90 percent leased, The Owerri and Delta Malls measuring 12 000 square metres and 15 000 square metres respectively, and set to open in 2015.

 Ranked 120th in the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Competitiveness Report, Nigeria continues to benefit from its relatively large market, which has the potential for significant economies of scale and is an important factor for attracting investment.

Elizabeth Daniels Dazzles In New Movie

Beautiful Nollywood actress cum producer, Elizabeth Daniels, has dazzled in Folly, a new film from the stable of her production outfit.

Folly is a star-studded flick directed by Alex Mouth. Veteran actress, Joke Silva and Uche Jombo leads the array of stars in the award-winning film. Yvonne Nelson, Joseph Benjamin and Alex Ekubo are also part of the characters that added spice to the job.

D'banj bags Apple/Beats By Dre African ambassador, gets his own earphones

 Apple/Beats By Dre just made the announcement! D'banj has signed a contract with Apple to be the African ambassador for the brand...and not just that, he'll get his own customized earphones, which will be launched in December. Congrats to D'banj. See more photos after the jump...

Linda Ikeji Reacts to Alleged Plagiarism

 Linds Ikeji reacted to Plagiarism, Excerpts bellow..

    ‘I admit that I take content from other sites. Plenty of it sef, but the question is, which website in the world doesn’t? If you go on Bossip.com, 50% of what is there is from other sources. Daily Mail UK takes from other sites, re-writes and give credit. UK Mirror takes from other sites. MediaTakeOut quotes other sources. E! Online, Us Weekly, People and even CNN take news from other sources and give credit, so why is mine an offense to the extent that my blog deserves to be shut down? Even in Nigeria, which site doesn’t take news from other sites?

Nigeria: Ebola Scare - 1,332 Nigerian Soldiers Quarantined in Liberia

Leadership
By Abiodun Oluwarotimi, Winifred Ogbebo and Victor Okeke
The Nigerian Army has revealed that about 1332 of its peace keeping troops in Liberia have been placed under surveillance following their contact with a Sudanese who later died of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD).
The director of the Nigerian Army Medical Corps, Major-General Obashina Ogunbiyi stated this in Abuja yesterday.

Nigerian Refugees in Cameroon Attacked By Gunmen

By Ibrahim Kabiru Sule

Thousand of Nigerian refugees in Kereomafa town of Cameroon were attacked by gunmen, resulting in the deaths of an unknown number, the BBC Hausa Service reported yesterday.

The attackers were said to have stormed the camps of the refugees who were mainly from the neighbouring Gwoza town of Borno State in the night.

One of the refugees, who escaped the onslaught, said the gunmen were still in the vicinity of their camps and have continued to chase them.

Nigeria: PDP, Govs Fight, As NWC Cancels Endorsements

ABUJA-- The National leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has cancelled all endorsements of candidates by the state executive officers.

Rising from its National Working Committee, NWC, meeting yesterday, the national leadership of the PDP also warned all the zonal and state executives to jettison the idea of having any anointed candidate ahead of the November 29 Governorship Primary election when governorship candidates would emerge.

Nigeria: Wike's Supporters On Rampage, Hit PDP Members, Journalists

By Henry Umoru
ABUJA--Supporters of Minister of State for Education, who is also a governorship aspirant in Rivers State, Mr. Nyesom Wike yesterday unleashed terror on opponents and journalists in Abuja.
The venue was the PDP Presidential Campaign Office, Legacy House, Maitama, at the second day of the Senator Iya Abubakar led Peoples Democratic Party, PDP South South Integration Committee's sitting.

The Committee had on Wednesday met with PDP stakeholders, leaders and members from Akwa Ibom and Edo States and it was the turn of Rivers State for reconciliation.
Soon after the minister arrived the venue, the atmosphere was charged as his supporters blocked and stopped members of PDP perceived not loyal to Wike from entering the hall to submit or defend their memoranda which they had earlier submitted.


Journalists who had covered the previous meetings were harassed, humiliated and beaten. Television camera men working with Channels Television, Silverbird as well as a Vanguard correspondent were molested.


The supporters manhandled the reporters and attempted to seize their cameras,recorders and telephones. The supporters who blocked the entrance to the hall, were prepared to beat up anyone. Some of the aspirants like Kenneth Ibikani Dublin, Chief Larry Allison; Major Lanstort Annyayan, among others could not enter the venue.


Displeased with the development which saw Rivers PDP stakeholders prevented from presenting their memoranda to the Iya Abubakar Committee, former Commissioner for Water Resources in the state and Rivers State Coordinator, Yar'Adua/ Jonathan Campaign Organisation in 2007, Hon. Lolo Ibienye expressed strong concern. The protest attracted instant rebuke from the minister.
Throughout the period the Minister was in the hall with members of the committee, other aspirants were not allowed to come close to the venue as the hefty looking supporters of Wike molested and stopped everyone.


The waiting room of Legacy House was completely taken over by the Minister's supporters.
Narrating his experience to Vanguard, Lolo Ibienye claimed he was shoved by the minister, warning that if the national leadership of PDP fails to address these problems, the party in Rivers State was sitting on a keg of gun powder, waiting to explode at any time. He added that with the molestation of party members and journalists by the Minister of State for Education's thugs. It would have been disastrous if the exercise had taken place in Rivers.
Ibienye who noted that the molestation and punching was not necessary, said that the Committee received 22 petitions from the state and of the petitions received, only four persons from the state were allowed to defend their petitions.


How it happened -- Ibienye
He said: "I am Hon. Lolo Ibienye, Commissioner for Water Resources during former governor Peter Odili's tenure and Rivers Coordinator, Yar'Adua/ Jonathan Campaign Organisation in 2007. What happened there was that the group led by the Honourable Minister of State, Education, Nyesom Wike brought people intended to stop petitioners from going to defend their petitions. Only a few people were allowed into the hall. 22 petitions were received from Rivers State and only four out of the 22 persons who petitioned were allowed to defend their petitions. Professor Israel Owate presented his, Chief Paworiso Samuel Horsfall presented his report, while Barrister Alalivo Frederick and Elechukwu Ogbowu presented theirs as well.

"In an attempt to stop the molestation and harassment of party stakeholders and preventing them from entering the hall to defend their petitions, Wike then shoved me. That is not what we expect at the moment at all; the molestation of stakeholders and journalists should not have happened, it is not necessary at all. If it happened in Abuja with few of us in attendance, what would have happened if the meeting had taken place in Rivers State?


"The national leadership of the party must know that it is not well with Rivers PDP, it is a clear indication that PDP in the state is sitting on a keg of gun powder."
When asked to comment on the fracas, he said: "It happened, go ahead and use it that way, what happened there was not necessary at all."


When Vanguard called Mr. Wike and sent a text message for his response, he said he was at a meeting and would call back. He had not responded at press time. Meanwhile, a group stormed thhe Legacy House , the Wadata Plaza, National Secretariat of the party, demanding the zoning of governorship seat to the riverine area of the state was stopped by security operatives.


Addressing the group, PDP national publicity secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh who advised them to always imbibe democratic tenets and the rule of law, urged them to ensure that they they put their house in order to ensure that PDP wins the election in Rivers State.
There was however a reprisal action at Legacy House at 11. 40 am when an aggrieved member, and legal adviser to Network for Defence of Democracy and Good Governance, NDDGG, Barrister Tubotamuno Dick, led a group of boys who carried bottles of soft drinks, forced themselves into the premises, and it became a free-for-all among the two groups, but the police intervened.


Policeman hit me -- Dick
Barrister Tubotamuno Dick who sustained injury in his left eye in the course of battling with the Police to gain entry told journalists that the act of not allowing justice and fair hearing to prevail was not good for the nation's democracy, adding, "They were stopping people but I said we came to defend our petition. They molested our people, pushing them down. I went there and presented myself as a lawyer. Can you imagine a Nigerian Policeman hitting me in the eye? This means that the committee set up by the federal government has already been compromised.
"In Rivers PDP, we have only chairman and secretary and we have written to the national secretariat that if we allow a two-man exco as constituted to go for elections, we will have so many legal issues. As we speak, 70 per cent of PDP exco members decamped with Amaechi to APC."
Nyesom Wike who was there from 9 a.m, left the place at 12.32 p.m with his supporters, thereby giving room for some persons to enter.


Speaking with Vanguard, a governorship aspirant who was locked outside, Kenneth Ibikani Dublin, said: " I was not even allowed in; I expect that PDP National Secretariat will look at the issue. Iam going back to my people, inform them of what happened, then we will come up with a communique."

Governor Fashola’s Key Note Address @ Real Estate Unite 2014…

Experts, investors, professionals and other stakeholders in the real estate sector have said that the growth of this sector, which is considered critical to the growth of the economy, is dependent on infrastructure development and sustainable financing, noting that the sector’s contribution to national GDP estimated at 7 percent is too low given its enormous potential.

In his keynote address at the conference, Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State, highlighted approaches that could bring about sustainable financing for the sector, citing the Lagos Home Ownership Mortgage Scheme (LagosHOMS) and how the scheme underpins his administration’s ability to create a sustainable financing mechanism that could provide affordable homes for the middle class.

Fashola, who described the initiative as a typical sustainable affordable housing strategy, assured that by the scheme’s one year anniversary, it would have produced equal number of housing units which the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) has struggled to produce in its 22 years of existence.

According to him, one of the sustainable mechanisms instituted by the state to drive the scheme is the monthly savings of N500 million from the state’s internally generated revenue (IGR), revealing that as part of efforts to spur growth in the real estate sector, the state government has resolved to share the cost of providing infrastructure between itself and homeowners.

“What we do is to provide some of the infrastructure such as the main access roads into private estates and LagosHOMS but for the internal roads, the cost is shared among all the residents to be paid over a period,” he said, adding that the absence of sustained infrastructure provision in any society encourages slums development.

Oracle Launches Capacity-Building Programme to Close IT Skills Gap in Africa

Strategy to develop relevant skills among youth, graduates, employees and entrepreneurs

Oracle Corporation today announced an initiative designed to enrich and increase the skills capacity of IT practitioners in Africa. The four-pronged program was devised as a response to the rapid adoption of new technologies by governments and businesses in Africa, exacerbating the shortage of suitably skilled practitioners to use the systems to best advantage.

According to Oracle, the dramatic advancement of technology over the past five years has resulted in a gap in IT competencies and skills availability. Organizations in Africa are adopting new technologies at a rate which is outstripping the availability of appropriately qualified staff.

"Today IT holds the promise to promote social inclusion, combat corruption, expand the digital economy and enable stronger links between citizens and governments, businesses and customers, NGOs and the communities they serve," said Alfonso Di Ianni, Senior Vice President, Oracle East Central Europe, Middle East and Africa."They can do this and at the same time dramatically reduce costs and improve efficiency. However for technology to support such transformation, organizations must have ready access to people capable of setting up and maintaining these systems."

Consisting of four elements – employee readiness, ecosystem readiness, workforce readiness and youth readiness, Oracle is reaching out to governments, the private sector and non-profit organizations to implement a long term skills strategy that will help fulfill demand for relevant IT skills.

Supporting Quotes

"Using the materials and manpower from Oracle University, Oracle Academy, Oracle Partner Enablement, Oracle Sales Consulting and the Public Sector Center of Excellence, Oracle will, in partnership with the organization or community, create programs addressing their skills need," said Orfhlaith Ni Chorcora, Senior Director, Business Development at Oracle."Two such partnerships are already underway with the Lagos State government in Nigeria and Equity Group Foundation in Kenya to jointly drive successful initiatives tailored to the local needs.

"Building a competitive pool of IT-skilled youth in the state is a priority for Lagos State," said Governor Babatunde Fashola(SAN). "To successfully achieve this goal, it takes multi-stakeholder support and long term collaboration with organizations such as Oracle who share our deepest commitment to building skills and creating exciting job opportunities for the youth of Lagos. We are off to a good start and look forward to increasing that impact in the coming months."

"In the emerging economic order, basic computer literacy means the ability not only to use software, but also to modify or create; in other words, to program," said Dr. Helen Gichohi, Managing Director of Equity Group Foundation. "For them to compete internationally we must also raise their ICT competencies to global standards and keep them intellectually curious, creative and motivated to critically think about their surroundings."

Supporting Resources

Download Capacity-Building Program Infographic

Video interview: Alphonso Di Ianni, Oracle Vice President, East Central Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Orfhlaith Ni Chorcora, Senior Director, Business Development, describe the components of the capacity-building programme and its importance for the Africa region.



Source: APO

Omonile Free Plots In Our Value Added Estates

Omonile Free Plots In Our Value Added Estates

Price in Naira: NGN 750,000

Location: Lagos Island West, Lagos
Last update: 2014-10-07

Vetra ventures limited is availing individuals, corporate bodies and other interested parties the opportunity to own plots in its estates free from omonile crisis and government acquisition also documentation is available for these plots. Hurry now and make Vetra ventures your partner for development. Note that all our plots are 648sqms or 60 by 120. We provide a global C of O and deed of assignment or sublease depending on the estate allocation letters and receipts of payments both for outright purchase or instalments Skygate estate ibeju lekki is beside the ibeju secretariat and it goes for 4.350m outright and 4.5m with a down payment of 1m and the rest spread for 10months crystal park estate phase 2 in mowe-ofada neighbors include sherry view estate and Christians university for 1.5m outright only. 

 

Nigeria: How Policy Somersaults, Corruption, Indiscipline Plague Public Schools, By Educationists

By Ujunwa AtueyiOPEN Educational Resources (OER) programme specialist for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Mr. Abel Caine, has commended the management of National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) for its efforts towards converting its courses to OER.

When courses are converted to OER, they are delivered as Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs).
Caine who spoke during the opening ceremony of a recent two-day UNESCO-NOUN OER/MOOC's sensitisation workshop in Lagos, said the purpose of the workshop was to extensively assess six existing NOUN courses for transformation into fully licensed OER and MOOCs format.
The OER-MOOCs are teaching, learning and research resources that reside in the public domain, or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others.


The workshop, which is a direct follow-up of the first Africa workshop for the Globalising OpenUpEd project, according to Caine, would allow participants and NOUN to have a clear understanding of the challenges, time frames and required resources.
"OER would create a platform for NOUN to share their huge intellectual wealth so that other educational institutions within Nigeria, Africa and globally could use them free of cost, as well as with the legal freedom to adapt them," Caine stated.


"It would interest you to know that through the vision of the Vice Chancellor of NOUN, Prof Vincent Tenebe, the institution has become the first tertiary institution in Nigeria and West Africa to have made a significant commitment to OER and MOOCs," the UNESCO chief informed adding, "MOOCs would also allow NOUN to deliver their courses in a new format especially for mobile phones so that millions of learners can access knowledge."
"If the NOUN OER-MOOCs project is successful, it could be highlighted at the 2015 World Education Forum in Seoul, South Korea in May 2015, and this will bring global prestige and partnership opportunities for NOUN and Nigeria as a country," he added.


He called on other tertiary institutions in the country to key into the vision in order to create opportunities to address the tertiary education access challenge facing the country's education system.
Caine further stated that if tertiary institutions in the country embrace the initiative, it would to a large extent, open more doors to, not only Nigerians, but also Africans yearning for qualitative education in the most stress freeway.


His words, "NOUN has made efforts to transform its course materials to OER and we all know that it is currently the only institution in Nigeria committed to this project. Meanwhile, in Africa, there are several institutions in South Africa and Ghana that have keyed into this project. Our organisation is always set to introduce OER to the tertiary education system in different countries."
He said the project allows access for personalised learning; fosters innovation; improved availability of materials; improved technical quality as well as improve coherence across courses.


Tenebe in his remarks hinted that OER has emerged as a concept with great potential to support educational transformation, adding that NOUN being a forerunner in Open and Distance Learning (ODL) in Africa was set to key into it.
"There is only one key differentiator between an OER and any other educational resource, which is its licence. The OER incorporates a licence that facilitates re-use and potential adaptation without first requesting permission from the copyright holder. NOUN has decided to embrace this concept and run it in order not to be left behind," Tenebe informed.