–
[flagallery gid=70 name=Gallery]
PhotoNews: Eko 2012, Uduaghan visits Team Delta [Gold medalists]
Sen Andy Uba, Uzor Insist On Best Candidate to Succeed Obi
*urge citizens to eschew religious and primordial sentiments
*Silverbird honours Obi, Uduaghan and others
The Senator representing Anambra South zone, Dr Andy Uba has appealed to Anambra citizens to ensure that only the right hand succeeds Gov Peter Obi in the forthcoming 2014 governorship election in the state.
This call came on the heels of similar one by another politician and governorship aspirant in the next election in the state, Dr Obinna Uzor, for the people to eschew any form of divisive and primordial tendencies when choosing the successor to the incumbent governor Obi, come next year.
Both men in their separate interviews with journalists at the 3rd anniversary celebration/awards ceremony of the Silverbird Communications, owners of the Silverbird Television and Rhythm radio station in Awka yesterday noted that every patriotic citizen including Gov Obi wants the best man to replace the governor.
Uba want a humane and industrious man, while Uzor insists on someone who would be better than Obi. He said, “we are looking forward for someone would be better than Obi. Let’s get the best man for the job. Lets eschew every form of sentiments, religion, North, South or wherever, as long as he would perform for the people”.
Uzor pointed out that since creation of the state the people have been yearning for a disciplined leader who would work for the interest of all.
A member of the House of Representatives, representing Anaocha/Dunukofia/Njikoka federal Constituency and chairman House Committee on Environment, Iyom Uche Ekwunife urges everyone in position of authority to use same to better the lot of the masses.
Ekwunife who was represented by Mrs Patricia Ufochukwu acknowledged she worked hard to touch the lives of all her constituents through job creation, roads, street lights, widowhood support, rehabilitation of schools and libraries.
She praised the Siverbird group for a quality programming in the state in the last 3 years which she stated had improved viewer ship in the state.
In his address, the Business Manager, Mr Kelly Ihetu noted the unrelenting support of the citizens of the state, but pointed out that irregular power supply and low advert patronage have remained their greatest challenge.
They presented special merit awards to oil mogul- Prince Arthur Eze; Dr Uzor; Senator Uba; Govs Obi and Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta state; former Commonwealth Secretary-Chief Emeka Anyoku, Iyom Ekwunife, Mr Dozie Nwankwo.
Akwa Ibom State Politics: The Race for 2015; the Umana Okon Umana Factor
From Ikpafak Thompson Essien
Umana Okon Umana does not only think that he owns Akwa Ibom State, he also believes strongly that he is Akwa Ibom State. In a way, he is! At least since 1999, the man has been the only Akwa Ibom man to walk the corridor of power for as long as he has. By the time Akpabio leaves the office in May, 2015 (assuming he will), Umana Okon Umana will be in the power corridor sixteen years, beginning from the administration of Obong Victor Attah.
On the surface, his record appears impeccable; Director of Budget, Permanently Secretary (Ministry of Finance), Commissioner (Ministry of Finance), and now the Secretary to the Government. This does not include the once-in-awhile special appointments, such as an appointment of him by Godswill Akpabio as the Chairman of Ibom Industrial City Project in Mbo Local Government in Oron, a project which turned out to be a conduit for money laundering; till this day the Ibom Industrial Project, which was lauded to create 200,000 jobs, has not taken off the ground, despite billions of naira expended so far.
No one can dispute the on-the-job experience and Mr. Umana’s full knowledge of the inner operations of Akwa Ibom State Government and politics. And no one will also dispute the truth that with years of occupying high top positions in government, Umana Okon Umana has used the opportunity to make perfect his corrupt practices. Umana Okon Umana is a corrupt public official, who has collaborated with Godswill Akpabio since 2007 to loot the treasury of Akwa Ibom State dry, resulting in grinding poverty, acute hunger among the masses, and sporadic payment of worker’s’ salaries and sometimes outright non-payment.
Before becoming a public servant, Umana Okon Umana never owned, operated, or acquired any business. As a career civil servant, he is supposed to be on a fixed income. Today, he is the richest man in Akwa Ibom State and one of the richest men in Nigeria. His holdings as wealth include the alleged recently acquired a 10% of 49.9% equity shares of Bilfinger Berger of Germany, an international affiliate of Julius Berger Nigeria PLC. It is worth disclosing here that Umana Okon Umana is the chairman of the Finance and General Purpose Committee (FPGC). Because of his influence, a recent Internet report confirmed that Akwa Ibom is the only State in Nigeria that is awarding state contracts to Julius Berger without any recourse to due process or competitive bidding procedures for contract awards.
Come 2015, Umana wants to top-off his credentials with the title of “Governor.” In spite of public denials, the man has flooded Akwa Ibom State with campaign vehicles, T-shirts with his campaign loco are in prints, his thugs are busy recruiting foot-soldiers expected to steal voting materials (as it happened in 2011) so that Umana can win, no matter what. Nijaleaks published an article that on Friday, October 5, 2012, Umana invited 100 leaders of his thugs to a conference at the Monty Suite in Uyo. When Umana showed up for the conference, he came with more than N50, 000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira), which was shared amongst the thug leaders, each taking home between N250, 000.00 and N500, 000.00. According to the report, “it almost caused a stampede, as people were seen sharing cash they could not account for.”
Many Akwa Ibom people contacted have already made up their minds towards the political ambition of Umana Okon Umana. Some say the only reason Umana wants to be a governor is to continue in his quest to loot Akwa Ibom State Treasury. Others say he wants to be a governor so that he can protect himself and Godswill Akpabio against possible criminal investigations, such as for money laundering, inflated costing in contracts, and general abuse of power, which may be inevitable after they leave their positions in May, 2015. But Umana is not perturbed by what he refers to as “the ranting of my enemies.” He is set. He is discreetly campaigning. And he is spending money, a lot of money.
In spite of what his critics say, Umana has supporters. But if anyone asks his supporters for reasons they think he should be the next governor of Akwa Ibom State, all one will hear is this; “The man has money.” Ask again and this is what they will say; “Oh the man is the one with money to win the election.” Continue asking, finally they will say; “He is the only Ibibio man with money to win the election.”
While everyone has the right to support or not support a political candidate, it is sometimes amazing how anyone can have the nerve to distant Umana Okon Umana from the ills of Godswill Akpabio’s administration. When this writer asked some of Umana’s supporters why they want to support a man (for governor), who has been associated with all the killings, all the kidnappings, all the assassinations, all the stealing, raping, and all the political detentions on trumped up charges, I would be told that Akpabio did all those, not Umana.
If Umana Okon Umana was an underling in the administration of Akpabio, maybe I would listen to such arguments. But for a man, who is a member of the Executive and the highest-ranking civil servant, Umana Okon Umana is guilty by association. In fact, this is the one single reason many of his critics, including this writer, do not feel that for a man whose hands have been so soiled by the ills of Akpabio’s administration, he should not be the next governor of Akwa Ibom State.
It is important to state here that while Umana Okon Umana is the talk-of-the-moment and the only known person who has made public his desire to occupy the Hilltop Mansion, other yet-to-be-known individuals are lurking in the corner. Among them are Bassey Albert Akpan (the present Commissioner in charge of Finance), Ibanga Albert Akpan (Bassey’s brother), Nsima Ekere (the recently fired, sorry, resigned, Deputy Governor), Samuel Akpan (the architect of AKPF—Akpabio’s once dreaded secret police). Analysts agree that before the end of 2013, individuals with personalities that may end up changing the course of Akwa Ibom State politics for the 2015 gubernatorial race will emerge. Insiders say if that happens, Umana Okon Umana will be insignificant, his large storage of money notwithstanding.
According to one insider, who did not want his name mentioned, “Nobody likes Umana. The reason you see people rush to him like flies is because of poverty in Akwa Ibom, they want money, they don’t want Umana. What has Umana got to offer the people that he couldn’t since 1999? He has nothing to offer, except another opportunity to steal more of our money. When the right candidate emerges, we will support that person. Meanwhile, let Umana bring out all those stolen money, we will take it. It is not his money anyway.”
Obama Breaks the Golden Rule on Drones
One day after his re-election President Obama ordered yet another drone strike in Yemen, killing an alleged al-Qaeda operative. In the process, our nation’s moral standing in the world was further downgraded.
Family members of the man killed are outraged and bewildered, wondering why their loved one was sentenced to death from above, rather than arrested and put on trial. They say that while Adnan al-Qadhi may have held an extremist ideology and may have lent some low-level support to al-Qaeda, he was not actively engaged in any terrorist activities. Relatives say the drone strike was a complete shock and that al-Qadhi could have easily been arrested, and, had he known he was being targeted, then he would have cooperated with authorities.
The details of this latest drone strike appear to violate the rules of engagement laid out by the President’s own counter-terrorism adviser John Brennan, who in April suggested drone strikes are only used when, “A significant threat might be posed by an individual who is an operational leader of al-Qaeda or one of its associated forces” and “capturing the individual is not feasible.”
As al-Qadhi’s brother told McClatchy news, “We could have made sure he turned himself in. If [he] was guilty of any crime, then arrest him, put him on trial.”
The United States used to stand for the rule of law. We used to pride ourselves as the moral beacon for the rest of the world. We didn’t summarily execute people without a trial. But those days are long gone, replaced by a semi-covert drone warfare program started by former President George W. Bush and ramped up by President Obama who has his own “kill list” and has ordered the drone execution of American citizens without due process, most notably Anwar al-Awlaki and his 16-year-old son who were blasted away in Yemen in 2011.
Driving this arguably illegal drone warfare program is a poisonous concoction of fear and nationalism.
The post-9/11 epidemic of fear that swept across the nation let Bush and Cheney completely remake America. It happened here at home, with a massive surveillance state and the destruction of civil liberties. And it happened abroad with a drone warfare program that is killing handfuls of terrorists while radicalizing thousands of average citizens. In countries we are not even at war with, people live in constant fear of robots in the sky and watch with horror as these aerial robots create cratered, bloody messes in their communities.
When Pakistan’s Foreign Minister was asked why so many people in Pakistan hate America, she responded simply, “Drones.”
And we’re doing all this in the name of stopping terrorism.
But the reality is Americans really don’t have much to fear when it comes to terrorism. Every year for the past decade, more people have died from slipping in their bathtubs just here in the United States than have been killed by Islamic terrorists worldwide…which has to be making bathtub manufacturers a little nervous.
But the greatest tragedy in this drone war is how we’ve forgotten the most basic moral principle of all: the Golden Rule – “Treat others as you wish to be treated.” It applies not just to preschoolers but also to global superpowers.
Consider this scenario: the Mexican government receives intelligence that a known narco-terrorist is holed up in a house in Arizona. They fly a drone over downtown Phoenix, fire on the building, completely destroying it and killing their target along with a handful of American civilians. How would we react? Fox so-called News would be calling for a return of the Mexican-American War!
What if a known terrorist affiliated with Basque Separatists was riding in a car down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, and a Spanish drone flying above the city launched a hell-fire missile – obliterating the car, killing and injuring dozens of nearby civilians, and leaving a giant crater in the middle of a busy Manhattan street. Do you really think Americans would say, “Well, those drone things sure are a nice, tidy way to fight terrorists”?
Drone technology isn’t exclusive to the United States. In the not-too-distant future, any nation with a couple million dollars – which is pretty much every nation on earth – can have weaponized drones. And, tragically, by firing drones into a nation that we’re not even at war with, we’re setting a dangerous moral precedent for the future of drone warfare.
A Washington Post/ABC News poll shows that 83% of Americans support the Bush/Obama drone policy. We can’t imagine that one day these same drones might be used against us – by states or by well-funded terrorists simply following our example – or that our policies will probably spark a frenzy of drone wars around the planet. The hysterical fear of terrorists that Bush and Cheney hyped up so badly has caused us to lose touch with the Golden Rule.
America needs to claim the moral high ground and stop – or limit to combat situations – our use of weaponized drones.
This article was first published on Truthout and any reprint or reproduction on any other website must acknowledge Truthout as the original site of publication. javascript:return addthis_sendto(’email’);
IMSU Gets New Acting Vice Chancellor: A Critique – By John I. Mgbe
Governor Anayo Okorocha has effected a sudden change in the top management of Imo State University: Professor B.E.B. Nwoko has been removed as Acting Vice Chancellor while Professor Ukachukwu Awuzie, the former National President of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), is now the new Acting Vice Chancellor of IMSU. What immediately flashed through my wind was whether IMSU is under a demonic spell, a jinx and who would extricate this university from its litany of travails. Perhaps, there is a need to do a brief rehash of the travails of IMSU with special emphasis on the crisis that has bedeviled IMSU in the area of having a substantive Vice Chancellor for about four years.
It all started on Friday, 18th April, 2008 when the Chief Ohakim government set up a Visitation Panel into the affairs ofImoStateUniversity from 2004 till date. The panel was inaugurated by Her Excellency, the Deputy Governor ofImoState, Dr. Ada Okwuonu, on behalf of His Excellency, Governor Chief Ikedi Ohakim. The 10-member Visitation Panel was given 16 Terms of Reference as a guide. A cursory observation of the Terms of Reference and the composition of the panel betray the fact the panel was set up to achieve a set objective of sacking Professor Innocent Chuka Okonkwo, the then substantive Vice Chancellor of IMSU. A cross section of keen analysts felt that his major sin was that he hails from Orlu Zone and, worse still, he comes from the same village,Amaifeke, with Chief Achike Udenwa, the former Governor of Imo State and who had become a sworn enemy of Chief Ikedi Ohakim.Matters took a dramatic turn when Hon. Justice S.A. Nsofor JCA (Retd) who was appointed chairman of the Visitation panel declined the offer. Hon. Justice Nsofor who belongs to the generation of the great jurists in the Temple of Justice was not satisfied with whole affair hence he opted out probably because knew that the panel was stage managed for the purpose of crucifying Professor Innocent Okonkwo. He refused to play the role of the Biblical Judas who was used to betray and crucify the risen Christ.
The Visitation Panel received 43 memoranda from the public. It conducted public hearings and received oral evidence from 150 persons including documentary evidence from some of the witnesses, most of who were hostile witnesses. When the government released the White Paper on June 2009, it became overwhelmingly clear that the Visitation Panel merely carried out the biddings of Chief Ikedi Ohakim to sack Professor Innocent Okonkwo and all those who were loyal to him.
As already stated, the panel submitted reports in the sixteen areas under its Term Reference. Surprisingly, the only recommendation which was swiftly executed was the dismissal of Professor Innocent Okonkwo on the grounds of a number of trumped-up allegations. Professor Innocent Chuka Okonkwo swiftly addressed a press conference to express his innocence on the allegations.Professor I.C Okonkwo’s clarifications were published in the Announcer Express Newspaper of Monday,DEC 7-8th,and December 9th-10th,2009.As a market place of ideas,the Announcer Expess Newspaper donated free space to enable Professor I,C Okonwo to tell his story. Others who were sanctioned include the former Vice Chancellor of IMSU, Professor A.G. Anwuka, and a number of young academics and staff who were manifestly loyal to Professor Innocent Okonkwo(the so-called prof okonkwo boys). Dissatisfied with the White Paper report, Professor Innocent Okonkwo challenged the White Paper/Report in court. In a judgment delivered by Justice Nonye Okoronkwo, he was completely discharged and acquitted of all the alleged offences The court issued a consequential order that he be reinstated as Professor and Staff of IMSU and all his salaries and allowances must be paid in full from the day he lost his job up to date.
However the court did not allow his prayer to be reinstated as Vice Chancellor of IMSU because his five year tenure elapsed during the period he was in court. Dissatisfied with the denial of his rights to be reinstated as Vice Chancellor of IMSU, he has since challenged the decision in the Court of Appeal, Owerri. Since the case is in court, it may not be wise to go further into discussing it.
Since that judgment by Justice Nonye Okoronkwo, I have written several viewpoints calling on the then Governor Ohakim and now Governor Okorocha to reinstate Professor Innocent Okonkwo to serve out the residue of his tenure (about 14 months) but neither Ohakim nor Okorocha has acceded to my entreaties. I have severally made the point that the only authentic means of restoring tranquility and calm in IMSU is to use administrative fiat to reinstate Professor Okonkwo to the position of Vice Chancellor of IMSU. The injustice meted out to Professor Innocent Okonkwo cries to heaven for vengeance and I am afraid IMSU management will continue to be haunted and hounded by that injustice.
When Governor Okorocha became governor, I felt that he would regularize the anomally by reinstating Professor Innocent Okonkwo, more so, since he won the election as a Rescue Imo Governor. Unfortunately, he was given a bad advice by some bigwigs in the engine room of his government. Instead of reinstating Professor Innocent Okonkwo, he compounded the problem by appointing Professor B.E.B. Nwoke as Acting Vice Chancellor. He had earlier sacked the then incumbent acting Vice Chancellor, Professor Nwebo before appointing Professor Nwoko. I wrote a viewpoint in which I congratulated Professor B.E.B. Nwoko on his appointment but I was vehement in maintaining that the action was an escapist approach as the injustice meted out to Professor Innocent Okonkwo was still not redressed. I then asked in my viewpoint. “Is there any guarantee that Governor Okorocha will not sack Professor BEB Nwoko tomorrow”? Today, I am vindicated as “what goes round comes round”.
The only cogent solution to restoring normalcy in IMSU is to reinstate Professor Innocent Okonkwo and allow him to serve out his remaining tenure of about 14 months or thereabout. Within this period, the Governing Council of IMSU will commence the task of shopping for a new Vice Chancellor. A search committee will be set up to start searching for a Vice Chancellor to take over from Professor Innocent Okonkwo. This is the path of justice, equity and fair play. A Vice Chancellor is not a politician but an academic. It is only politicians that lose their tenure when they are arbitrarily sacked, suspended or the like. There are decided cases to corrobate the fact that while politicians don’t enjoy elongated tenure, the matter of academics and other employees who are on tenure many not be the same. Perhaps, while the Court of Appeal case between Professor Innocent Okonkwo and Imo State Government IMSU raises fundamental issues on a recondite point of law, Governor Okorocha should resolve the crisis by simply asking the Attorney general to withdraw the case from the Court of Appeal, Owerri and thereby reinstating Professor Okonkwo,more so since the court has declared him innocent of the allegations levelled against him.
I want to congratulate Professor Aloy Ukachukwu Awuzie on his new appointment as the Acting Vice Chancellor of IMSU. In fact, the appointment does not add much to his stature because, by his antecedent, he is already beyond a Vice Chancellor, so to speak. He was the President of Academic Staff Unionof Universities (ASUU) and Professor of landscape Architecture. In fact, some records state that he is the first (or is it the only) Professor of landscape Archtecture in Nigeria. As President of ASUU, he was “The First Academic” in Nigeria for the duration of his tenure. Still, is there any guarantee that he, Professor Awuzie, will not be sacked tomorrow, more so, since he is an independent minded academic and ,above all, after six months, the Governor can decide to drop him in the same way other Acting Vice Chancellors were removed from office unceremoniously? In an ideal situation, an Acting Vice Chancellor should not serve beyond six months. So, on a general note, a Governor who sacks an Acting Vice Chancellor after six months has committed no offence. So, a governor can always give that reason to justify the sacking of any Acting Vice Chancellor since such a sacked Acting Vice Chancellor has no locus to seek judicial intervention as he holds office at the pleasure of the Governor. He can be removed like any political appointee who is not sitting on tenure. In a free and fair search for a Vice Chancellor, Professor Awuzie will always be the man to beat, more so, since the Visitor to the University, Governor Okorocha, now favours him. So, I still advice that Professor I.C. Okonkwo be reinstated and the search for a substantive Vice Chancellor after Professor Okonkwo should continue immediately.
One wonders why the Governing Council of IMSU which was constituted since December, 2011 has not been formally inaugurated. A situation where IMSU does not have a Governing Council for over a year is an absurdity. Again, IMSU is the only University that does not have a substantive Vice Chancellor for about three years. It’s a monstrosity which is deleterious to effective management of a normal university. Furthermore, IMSU is the only university that operates from a temporary site for over 20years. HABA!!!I am not aware of any other University with such dismal antecedents.
.
Tasks facing Prof Awuzie:While we await the authentic reasons for the sacking of Professor B.E.B.Nwoke,I wish to state that the new Acting Vice Chancellor, Prof,Awuzie, is a classic case of a round peg in a round hole. In keeping with the adage that “a new broom sweeps well but an old broom knows all the corners”, Prof Ukachukwu Awuzie is a combination of both a new and an old broom. He is a new broom as a newly appointed Acting Vice Chancellor and an old broom because he has been in the academia for over two decades and most of which he spent in IMSU and as Professor. Furthermore, as the former National President of ASUU, he has seen it all. So, ceteris Paribus, it is believed that he will not only sweep well,he knows all the corners.He is expected to roll his sleeves and get down to work immediately in order to resolve the myriad iof contentious issues which have made Imsu a hotbed of atavism,rancour and recrimination.One major dividend of Professor Awuzie’s appointment is that his presence will chase away all those academics in politics who have been using their positions in Governor Okorocha’s Administration to fan the embers of discord in IMSU.
Some of the problems facuing IMSU include the failure to inaugurate the Governing Council of IMSU.Although members of the proposed Governing Council were appointed since December 2011,the Governing Council has yet to be formally inaugurated .The Governing Coucil has Prince Arthur EZE of Anambra State as the Pro-Chancellor.It is expected that Professor Awuzie will create the enabling environment to hasten the convocation and inauguration of the Governing Council. It is pertinent to state that some members of the citizenry are not comfortable with some of the members of the proposed Governing Council.Some of the members played an active part in the travails of IMSU in the last Administration through the ignoble roles they played in the IMSU Visitation Panel and related matters.The Governor may deem it fit to rejig the list in order to enhance its performance in the long run.In fact,witgh Professor Ukachukwu Awuzie in power in IMSU,it is expected that the IMSU Governing Coucil can be formally inaugurated before the year runs out.It is as urgent as that.Until the Governing Council is inaugurated,no reasonable progress can be done in resolving the intractable problems in the university.
Again, IMSU has been running without a substantive Vice Chancellor for over three years. This is an abnormality which must be redressed now. No meaningful work can be done in an academic environment where there is neither a Governing Council nor a substantive Vice Chancellor. It is hoped that the cankerworm of interminable crisis will be expunged from IMSU presently. An ideal university is run with a full complement of a substantive Vice Chancellor, and a Governing Council and, of course, the Senate. It shall be the responsibility of the new Acting Vice Chancellor(Prof Awuzie) kick off the machinery to get these issues resolved now.
Professor Awuzie is expexted to make a strong case for the resolution of the Prof I.C.Okonkwo/IMSU case which is now in the Court of Appeal,Owerri. Governor Okorocha’s policy of withdrawing the White Paper on IMSU has been merely used to grant reprieve to some of those who were severely indicted in the IMSU Visitation White Paper report instead of using it to resolve the festering problems in IMSU..It has been used to fan the embers of selective justice.The Rescue Imo Government should decide whether it wants the case of the suspended Vice Chancellor, Professor Innocent Okonkwo, to be resolved through Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) or through the regular court .In deciding which way to go, Governor Okorocha should be fully briefed on the pros and cons of the various options available to resolve this protracted logjam between the Government and Professor I.C. Okonkwo.
The Governor should be fully briefed of the lingering litigation between University of Ilorin and the 49 lecturers who were sacked by the UNILORIN in 2001.The crisis which started in 2001 is still in the courts with no end in sight. What happened was that the Unilorin sacked 49 of her academic staff on the grounds that they participated in a strike declared by ASUU. The 49 lecturers challenged their sack in court and asked to be reinstated and also to be paid all their outstanding salaries and entitlements. On July 26, 2005, the Federal High Court, Ilorin, presided over by Justice Peter Olayiwola ruled that the termination of the lecturers without giving them a fair hearing was illegal and unconstitutional. The Court ordered their reinstatement and ordered for the payment of their outstanding salaries and allowances. The university challenged the ruling in the Court of Appeal, Ilorin. On July 12, 2006, the Court of Appeal, Ilorin ruled in favour of UNILORIN when it held that the university was in order by sacking the lecturers.
The judgment of the Court of Appeal, Ilorin was challenged in the Supreme Court. On December 11, 2009, the Supreme Court upheld the ruling of the Federal HIGH Court, Ilorin when it held that the 49 lecturers should be reinstated and all their outstanding salaries and entitlements should be paid to date (i.e. from 2001 to date).Even now, the lecturers have gone back to court asking that the Vice Chancellor should be jailed for non-compliance with the order of court.Unilorin is finding it difficult to pay the arrears, more so, since they allege that the lecturers were in other jobs during the period of their sack. The legal tussle is ongoing and we are watching with interest. Is this what anybody wishes for IMSU?
If a court of competent jurisdiction has ruled that somebody was unjustly sacked, why is Government afraid of sitting down with the person in order to settle out of court, more so, since the university cannot appoint a substantive Vice Chancellor while the court case persists. Do we need placard –carrying students before the Government resolves this impasse? Do we need an ultimatum from the National Universities Commission (NUC) before we attend to this singular crisis which was caused by the immediate past Administration in IMO State? Governor Okoroha who won the election on the crest of a Rescue Governor and Godfather of Education in Nigeria should not have any difficulty in rescuing all those who were the victims of the gross inequities, dichotomy, and injustice of the previous Administration. This matter has lingered because some academics at the corridors of power are giving the government toxic advice in order to serve their vested interests.Again, there is a feeling that some people both within and outside the university are enjoying some monetary leverage as a result of the huge legal fees that are being spent to retain the services of the lawyers who are handling this messy case for IMSU. This is why the Governing Council of IMSU must be inaugurated now so that Governor Okorocha can be availed of professional advice on how to resolve this issue.
I feel reluctant to state that the Commissioner for Education has been too silent and indifferent on the leadership tussle in IMSU.Often, people forget that there is a Commissioner for Education in Imo State. The Honourable Commissioner for Education who is herself a Professor and member of The Academy should please get down to work in order to redress the anomalies in IMSU. I regret that various efforts made to seek her opinion on the stalemate in IMSU proved futile. As a revered technocrat and Professor, she should assert her right over the running of IMSU, more so, at a time when there is no Governing Council and no substantive Vice Chancellor. She should not allow meddlesome interlopers and agents of vendetta and witch hunt in the political class to hoodwink her and hijack IMSU with the sole aim of fomenting interminable crisis in the university. The removal of Professor B.E.B. Nwoko should have been an opportunity to redress the injustice meted out to Professor Innocent Okonkwo. In fact, some youth groups in Okigwe had already indicated their willingness to accept the return of Professor Okonkwo as Vice Chancellor of IMSU. The reinstatement of Professor Okonkwo as Vice Chancellor would have obviated a new wave of agitation from the Okigwe nation who may now condemn the way and manner their son, Professor B.E.B. Nwoke, was removed; it is a missed opportunity to restore peace and tranquility in IMSU. But what does anybody lose by reinstating Professor I.C Okonkwo? Will his reinstatement pose any danger to either Imo State or to IMSU?
IMSU Permanent Site: Finally, it is heartwarming to hear that the Panel set up by Governor Okorocha to identify a suitable permanent site for IMSU has recommended Ogbaku in Mbaitoli Local Government Area. This is a perfect choice which must satisfy all interest groups inImoState. In fact, the IMSU Visitation Panel set up by Chief Ohakim recommended Ogbaku in its report on page 34 of the Government White Paper on IMSU Visitation Panel Report. Those who are pointing fingers on the Deputy Governor, Chief Jude Agbaso, are exhibiting shear perfidy and malice. On Ogbaku we stand because it is a line of least resistance.The panel that recommended OGBAKU was set up by the immediate past Governor,Chief Ikedi Ohakim. But, what is wrong with the present IMSU site in Owerri?I feel that with proper management of space, the present site can still be retained with several high rise buildings to serve the IMSU student community. Professor Ukachukwu Awuzie who incidentally is the new helmsman of IMSU is a Professor of Landscape Architecture and he is in a position to give professional/professorial advice on the suitability or otherwise of the present site to serve as permanent campus of IMSU.All in all,I am of the opinion that the only way to restore calm and tranquility on campus is to reinstate Professor I.C. Okonkwo to serve out his tenure as substantive Vice Chancellor. Within that period, the search for a brand new substantive Vice Chancellor should commence.It is not about Professor Okonkwo per se;rather ,it is about protecting the intergrity of the academics in general and the occupant of the office of Vice Chancellor(whoever he may be).In one of my viewpoints during Chief Okakim’s tenure,I advocated for the introduction of a bill by the ASUU-IMSU which will protect and strenghten the tenure of the Vice Chancellor.In the proposed Bill,IMO Legislature will approve a Bill to the effect that before the removal of a Vice Chancellor prior to the end of his tenure, Imo State Legislature will give its assent by a 2/3 vote.This is the only way to put an end to the arbitrary sacking of Vice Chancellors in Imsu.Since most of the members of the State Legislature are graduates coupled with the fact that the State Governor,Owelle Rochas Okorocha, is an Education-Friendly governor,any such Bill will be accorded expedited and accelerated approval. But what does anybody lose by reinstating Professor I.C Okonkwo? Will his reinstatement pose any danger to either Imo State or to IMSU?The answer is a matter for personal conjecture.
As the Acting Vice Chancellor,Professor B.E.B.Nwoke put in his best in order to move the university forward.One of the areas he exhibited a superlative performance is in the area of Inaugural Lectures.Perhaps, the inaugural lectures organized durind his brief tenure supercedes the total Inaugural Lectures organized since IMSU was established.It is expected that the new Vice Chancellor will keep up the tempo in those areas of excellence since management is a continuum.It is not necessary for people to embark on all manner of speculations on why he was removed as Vice Chancellor.In fact, there is no provision for an Acting Vice Chancellor in the Law establishing IMSU.Again, the creation of the office of the Acting Vice Chancellor in IMSU is an AD HOC arrangement which should not last beyond six months.So, if Professor B.E.B.Nwoke served over a year,it is possible that the Visitor of IMSU,Governor Okorocha, removed him as Acting Vice Chancellor because he has overstayed his tenure and not because he committed any offence or because he hails from a particular Senatorial Zone as is now being speculated by propagandists and those who do not wish IMSU well.However, this is a personal opinion as I am not speaking for either the Government or for Professor B.E.B.Nwoko.IMO is in the Hands of God.
JOHN I. MGBE
Ojukwu’s Will: It’s a fake document –Emeka (Jnr)
The controversy trailing the Will of late Biafran leader, Odumegwu Ojukwu continued yesterday with Emeka Jnr who was read as the first son describing the document as fake. He dismissed the Will presented by Barr Emeka Onyemelukwe, contesting that he is a private counsel to Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu and not that of late Emeka Ojukwu.
Speaking at his country home in Nnewi, Anambra State, Ojukwu jnr argued that he has a copy of the original Will written by his father and not what he called the fraud presented as a Will. His words: “There have been rumours up to yesterday that there is an attempt to read the will and that they intend to make changes in the original will. Well, I have not seen the will that they read.
“Now, there are issues that come to mind, why were they no members of Ojukwu family when the Will was read? They were not invited and they were not told. “She was here last Sunday when we removed the mourning cloth and since she knows that the Will would be read, she would have invited us or even put us on notice. “
Now, the lawyer that is supposedly doing all this things is not our father’s lawyer, Mr Onyemelukwe is not a lawyer that is known to the family as Ezeigbo’s lawyer.
Remember when Ezeigbo was sick, the same Lawyer went to the press to claim that Ezeigbo is getting better and that he is now on exercise and would soon come home while he was lying.
It is still the same lawyer that claimed to have custody of the will. And I told everybody that it was not true and that since my father was flown to England, he never lifted an arm or spoke a word until his death finally”.
–
Source: Sun
Sultan wants collective fight against bombings
The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar 111 has called on Nigerians to come together in the fight against terrorism and other violent crimes in the country.
Speaking during a courtesy visit on Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State, yesterday, the Sultan said terrorism, robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes are not restricted to a particular religion or region of the country.
The Sultan who congratulated Governor Oshiomhole on his re-election said “the people of Edo State brought you back to continue your good works. The challenge is now for you to continue with the good works. When I came, I saw so many changes. I think the people of Edo State did the right thing to allow you to continue to steer the ship of state so that you could continue the good work you are doing”, he added.
On the violent crimes which have pervaded parts of the country in the recent times, the Sultan said: “some years back, we watched with amazement when we see suicide bombers and car bombers, we thought we could not have such things in our country. But we have them now. It is not a particular religion or ethnicity that specializes in such terrorist or criminal activities in the form of kidnapping or armed robbery, but I believe that we must all come together to resolve these issues the best way possible for our country”.
He stressed that the “challenges that come our way can ginger us to strengthen our resolve to meet them headlong, defeat them collectively in unity and forge a national cohesion.”
In his response, Governor Oshiomhole said the Sultan is a bridge-builder who commands respect in all parts of the country, noting that the honour on the Sultan by the Igbinedion University, Okada was well-deserved.
According to him, “I appreciate the leadership which your Eminence has continued to provide by way of building bridges across the length and breadth of the country and amplifying to all of us what unites us as a people and those values of unity, hardwork, tolerance and brotherhood. A lot of Nigerians admire you a lot and you have a lot of fanatical admirers.
“At this point in time Nigerians need leaders like your eminence on the side of truth, peace and unity to help build the nation”, he added.
2015: IAN holds interactive session with Isokos in Lagos, Dec.8
By Our Reporter, Delta state
In its relentless determination in making sure that Isoko nation of Delta state, South-South, Nigeria speak with one voice politically across the globe, an Isoko socio/political pressure group, Isoko Advancement Network (IAN), has concluded all arrangements to hold an enlarged interaction session with Isoko people in government and all Isoko people in general.
In a statement issued yesterday and signed by the group’s chairman, Hon. Mike Ogwah, made available to journalists in Asaba said the session which is aimed at promoting and agitating for the upliftment of Isoko land and the people will take place on Saturday, December, 8, 2012, at Regency Hall, Otunba Jobi-Fele way, MKO Abiola Gardens Hill, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos, beginning at 10:00 am prompt.
According to Ogwah, it high time Isokos come together and speak with one indivisible voice and take their place in the politics of the state and the nation. “We believe in mutual interest, therefore, the progress and growth of every Isoko man is paramount to us.”
While enjoining all and sundry both far and near to attend the epoch making meeting that will no doubt bring light to Isoko nation, the group’s chairman, stated the meeting is timely and shall break all the political yoke militating against the growth and development of the land.
“The future holds great promises for the Isoko people and the Isoko nation. So we call on all our people to join us come Saturday, December, 8, 2012. The time has come that we must take our destiny in our own hands but we cannot achieve this if we don’t put our house in order and speak with one indivisible voice.”
Prominent Isoko sons and daughters including the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Comrade Ovuozorie Macaulay are expected at the occasion.
Press Release: Nasarawa PDP-Led House of Assembly and Its Noxious Impeachment Plot
The Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) took notice of the
impeachment threat issued to the Nasarawa Governor, Umaru Tanko
Al-Makura, by the State House of Assembly on account of the violent
crisis in Agyaragu area of the state. This appears to be a
well-rehearsed plot, orchestrated by the PDP high command, in
furtherance of the political gerrymandering and destabilization agenda
of the ruling Party.
Indeed, the Governor showed his determination to tackle the problem
when he announced at a state-wide broadcast that: “it is, indeed, sad
that our state is being made to assume the status of ‘a theatre of a
communal violence, this is regrettable and unacceptable’’’. But the
State Legislators, urged on by their National Leaders, are committed
to bringing the state into unimaginable instability with their
legislative impropriety.
As a Party, we are forced to react, through this statement, to the
admonition of well-meaning individuals and institutions on the very
precipitous path the state Legislators have chosen to tread. The
Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) queried why the CPC
governor was unfairly burdened with a problem that pre-dated his
tenure and was not resolved by previous PDP-led Administrations.
Truly, on 14th April, 2000 (under a PDP-led administration), Nasarawa
state was thrown into a communal crisis in the Agyragu area because of
the location of the local Government Headquarters. Furthermore, under
the same PDP-led administration, on 18th January, 2002, the clash
between two communities in the Awe Local Government saw a few
fatalities.
What is curious is that there was never any impeachment threat on the
previous PDP governors that were helmsmen during the previous
dispensations of crisis in the State. What is more, has Nigeria ever
been enveloped under the cloud of insecurity as severe as with this
PDP-led Federal Government? Yet the President has never been
threatened with impeachment because of the intractable insecurity
within the Nation-space. But because of the massive majority of the
PDP in the Nasarawa House of Assembly, the Legislators have chosen to
thread the path of reckless partisanship and legislative indiscretion
to resolve a problem of the State. Indeed, this smacks of abuse of
legislative privilege and authority!
As a Party, we strongly believe that a noxious impeachment plot on the
state Chief Executive in a time of crisis is fore-boding and
disingenuous. On the contrary, this should be the time for greater
collaborative efforts between the Executive and the Legislature for
the greater good of the people of Nasarawa State. We therefore call on
the Legislators to tread with caution.
God bless Nigeria.
–
Rotimi Fashakin (Engr.)
National Publicity Secretary, CPC
“Taraba Governor not Brain Dead” – Chief Press Secretary
The Chief Press Secretary [CPS] to the Taraba State governor has confirmed to 247ureports.com that the injured Governor of Taraba State, Danbaba Suntai has not suffered brain damage as widely rumored in the media. The CPS indicated that the Governor has been responding to treatment and has been able to received and make telephone calls.
“He has been talking on the telephone” said the Chief Press Secretary who added that the Governor was initially incapacitated immediately following the plane crash of October 2012 over Yola in Adamawa State. It was understood that immediately following the crash, the Governor suffered head injuries that affected his brain functions – including his ability to speak – his speech was reported to be blurred.
But a source near the activities around the Governor tell 247ureports.com that the Governor has been speaking to people on the telephone and to they visitors at the medical facility. “He is clearly improving“.
Just recently two of the governor’s aide who were victims of the October 2012 crash returned to Taraba State – following the completion of a successful treatment in Germany.
