The calamity rocking the Peoples Democratic Party, the PDP took another twirl today when the party appointed an acting secretary in the person of Solomon Onwe, to replace the former Party’s Secretary; Oyinyola who was sacked by the court on Friday.
In a statement signed by the Party’s National Chairman, Bamanga Tukur, said that the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Bamanga Tukur, has replaced former Osun State Governor, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, as National Secretary of the party.
The statement read thus; “Pursuant to the powers conferred on the National Chairman by Chapter V Section 35 (1), 35 (1)(b) as well as section 36(2) of the constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party, (as amended), the the Deputy National Secretary of the PDP, Barr. Solomon Onwe is hereby directed to assume duties as the Acting National Secretary of the PDP.”
“Barr. Onwe shall by this directive conduct all correspondences of the party, issue notices of meetings of the National Convention, the National Executive Committee, the National Caucus and the National Working Committee as stipulated in the Constitution of our great Party,” Tukur said in his statement.
“This directive takes immediate effect and is hereby communicated to all the levels and offices of the Party.”
As part of its efforts to accelerate progress towards the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals, MDGs, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs, OSSAP-MDGs, Dr Precious Kalamba Gbeneol has announced that her office is organising a stakeholders’ briefing on the MDGs Acceleration Framework, MAF.
The stakeholders’ meeting which holds at the Transcorp Hilton Hotels in Abuja on Thursday, 17th January, 2013 will be chaired by Vice President Namadi Sambo and will be supported by Governors, Ministers, Heads and members of the International Development Agencies and Civil Society Organisations.
Vice President Namadi Sambo is expected to deliver a keynote address at the meeting.
Presentations will be made by Dr. Precious Kalamba Gbeneol, SSAP-MDGs, Mr. Daouda Toure, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System in Nigeria, and Dr. Ayodele Odusola, MDGs Advisor, UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa, New York, who will be delivering a paper on plans to deploy the UN MDGs Acceleration Framework to Fast-track Progress Against the MDGs in Nigeria.
The MDG Acceleration Framework (MAF) is a development mechanism developed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with technical inputs and collaboration of other United Nations agencies. It is also supported by the DFID as a major partner.
The mechanism aims to support countries to accelerate progress in areas where efforts towards attaining the MDGs’ target are discovered as problematic.
A statement issued from the MDGs office indicated that “the MAF is a flexible, yet systematic process of analysing bottlenecks and identifying possible high-impact solutions to achieving a country’s MDG priorities, which has been endorsed by the UN Development Group. It leads to a concrete plan of action, with coordinated roles for the government, UN agencies and all other development stakeholders.”
The MAF briefing is expected to provide national stakeholders with a systematic approach to identifying and analysing bottlenecks that are causing MDGs to veer off-track or to advance too slowly.
“It then aims to generate shared diagnostics and to recommend comprehensive, collaborative and focused actions, based on prioritized ‘acceleration’ solutions. The singular objective of MAF is to help countries overcome slow and uneven progress and meet the 2015 MDGs deadline.” The statement said.
As an immediate plan, the MDGs office is applying the full MAF methodology to the attainment of Goal 5. MAF is expected to be applied to other goals subsequently.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a Kano- based legal practitioner, one Yakubu Mohammed Na-Allah before Justice Fatu Riman of the Federal High Court Sitting in Kano on 2 count charge that borders on money laundering.
The 65 year-old lawyer allegedly duped two of his clients to the tune of N50million and used the fund to purchase a mansion in a high brow neighbourhood in Kano.
One of the charge reads: “That you Yakubu Mohammed Na-Allah ‘Male’ on or about 17th March 2008 in Kano State, within the Jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, did transfer the sum of N45, 000, 000 (Forty Five Million Naira Only) to the bank account of Bennas Nigeria Limited with account Number 0196001000009300 domiciled at Intercontinental Bank Plc ( now Access Bank) with the aim of concealing the illicit origin of the said resources being proceed of an illicit act and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 14(1) (a) of the Money Laundering (prohibition) Act 2004”
When the charge was read to the accused, he pleaded not guilty. the defence counsel S.A Nasir, immediately moved an oral application for bail but prosecuting counsel, Aisha A.T Habib objected. She argued that such application must be presented formally before the court.
The trial Judge agreed with the prosecution and urged the defence counsel to present a formal application.
The court ordered that the accused be remanded in the EFCC custody and adjourned to Tuesday 15th January 2013 for hearing of the bail application.
An aide of Mrs Folorunsho Alakija, Chief Executive Officer, The Rose of Sharon, a Non-Governmental Organization, Mr Vincent Ayewah and six others have been arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in a case of abuse of office, conspiracy, forgery, impersonation and stealing of N3million ( Three million naira only).
Their arrest was sequel to a petition by Alakija, alleging that Vincent, one of her employees, fraudulently misappropriated the funds meant for the beneficiaries of the foundation’s empowerment scheme. She alleged that he impersonated and stole various cheques and withdrew monies meant for orphans and widows in care of the Foundation.
Vincent allegedly forged cheques of the Foundation’s Stanbic IBTC Bank Account and got one Miss Florence Ayewah and their friends to cash the forged cheques by presenting them with fake identity cards.
In the course of investigation it was discovered that Vincent used his position to enlist his family members as beneficiaries of the scheme. Specifically, the Foundation had been able to establish his mother who is a widow in a petty trade and was paying the school fees of his sister, Florence Ayewah who is a student of Lagos City Polytechnic.
Vincent confessed that he fell for the scam due to his poor background and being the only bread winner of his family. He admitted that when cheques are ready for some beneficiaries of the Foundation, “I divert them and get my siblings and friends to cash at banks, I also arrange ID cards bearing the name on cheques with their faces on it for bank clearance”. Florence was arrested at a Stanbic IBTC bank in Lagos while trying to cash a forged cheque number 03378 in the sum of N97, 000 in favour of one Ms Olubunmi Juliana Ishola
Besides Vincent, six other members of the syndicate involved in the scam and who have also been arrested are: George Ehizibolo, Onwuwa David, Okonkwo Chikadibia, Emmanuel Ayewah, Florence Ayewah and Chinyere Awanah
Vincent admitted to have at, various times, sent his younger sister, Florence and her friend Chinyere and his younger brother Emmanuel to banks with fake identity cards. He also admitted to have acquired a Honda Accord car with registration number: UA 845 AAA from the proceeds of the crime. The suspects will be arraigned in court soon.
The Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State, Rear Admiral Gboribiogha John Jonah (rtd) has commended the immediate-past Commander of the Joint Task Force (JTF) Operation Pulo Shield in Bayelsa State, Maj. Gen. Johnson Ochoga, for a distinguished career in the Nigerian Army.
The Bayelsa Deputy Governor made this remark at a sent-forth ceremony in honour of Gen. Ochoga, who is proceeding retirement from the Nigerian Army and the Deputy Commander of Operation Pulo Shield, Navy Commodore Abimbola Ayuba, who is on posting to a Naval Command in Rivers State.
According to him, Gen. Ochoga was leaving the service without blemish after 34 years and encouraged other officers still in service to emulate his outstanding qualities.
He further advised Gen. Ochoga to prepare for life after service, stressing that it was not easy for military personnel to leave their military families, where they spent a good number of their productive years before joining their nucleus families on retirement.
He also used the opportunity to formally welcome the new Commanding Officer of Operation Pulo Shield, Maj. Gen. B.A. Debiro, assuring him that the State Government will give him the necessary support to enable him succeed on his new assignment.
The deputy governor also expressed gratitude to officers and men of the JTF for the relative peace achieved in the State since the inception of the current administration in the State.
Rear Admiral Jonah(rtd) noted that the military constitute the power base of the country, adding that aside from protecting the territorial boundaries of the country, it also sustains the economic power of the nation by safe-guarding the country’s off-shore resources among others.
In his response, Gen. Ochoga said that he is a highly fulfilled man after 34 years of meritorious service in the Nigerian Army, noting that some of his colleagues, who started the journey with him, did not make it to the top while others lost their lives in active service.
Going down memory lane, Gen. Ochoga thanked God for sparing his life, adding that the journey was rough but exciting as he went through thick and thin.
He also thanked the State Government for the immeasurable support given to him during his duty tour in the State and requested that same be extended to his successor, Maj. Gen. B. A. Debiro.
Highlight of the occasion, was presentation of gifts to the special guests of honour, Gen. Ochoga and Commodore Ayuba.
Dignitaries present include; Flag Officer Commanding Central Naval Command, Rear Admiral Johnson Olutoyin, top military officers, commissioners and special advisers.
We are concerned that the government of Henry Seriake Dickson in Bayelsa State is still engaged in pushing out half-truths and lamentable lies.
In a seeming retraction of its earlier claim that former Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Timipre Sylva, left only N4, 451 in the state purse, Dickson admitted that he took over government from the former Speaker of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Nestor Binabo.
Yet, the Dickson administration insisted that Sylva left a whopping debt of N110 billion, comprising N50 billion bond and N60 billion bank debt.
The Dickson system suffers from a credibility deficit. But even a government of doubtful legitimacy can be consistent. Dickson and his lieutenants are confused. They have no idea about how to run a government. They think that running Bayelsa State is about cheap propaganda.
The Government of Bayelsa State under Chief Timipre Sylva took a N50 billion bond in 2010 following approvals by the Bayelsa State House of Assembly and the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
The idea of the bond was to fast-track infrastructural development in the state. In particular, it was to stabilise power, improve healthcare and education, construct roads and provide water. Funds from the bond were not paid to the government but directly to the contractors. At the time Sylva left office, specific projects linked to the bond were about 90 per cent complete. Since the bond was on a determined interest rate, it is absurd for the Dickson administration to suggest that Sylva left a N50 billion bond debt as if it has not been serviced since 2010. This is simple arithmetic.
More importantly, the Sylva administration inherited debts from the previous government, and some of these debts were absorbed into the bond. Thus, Sylva could not have been responsible for a N60 billion bank debt as Dickson sought to suggest.
It is irresponsible for the Dickson administration to blame Sylva continually for its incompetence. Now that he is governor, even if through an ungodly process, the Bayelsa people expect Dickson to lead in developing the state, not to make excuses.
The mother of the Bayelsa state Speaker, Hon. Konbowei Benson has been kidnapped by unidentified gun men at her residence in Korokorosei in Southern Ijaw local government Area of Bayelsa state.
The Seventy-eight year old mother, Mrs. Betinah Okunwa Benson, was reportedly kidnapped at about 12. 30 am Monday when the entire community and neighborhood were deep asleep.
It was reliably gathered that the gunmen, who came in two speed boats shot sporadically into the air to scare away people before going away with their victim.
When contacted, the Police Public Relation Officer (PPRO), Mr. Fidelis Odunna confirmed the incidence and said his men are out to unravel the situation.
It will be recalled that the present Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Kingsley Omire have had a great deal trying to unravel the kidnap incidence in the state, and have equally made several arrests on the various kidnap cases in the state.
Iran has been establishing signals intelligence stations in several parts of the Middle East, including the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, the U.S.-based World Tribune reports.
The Defense Department has indicated that one of the intelligence stations was established in the Golan Heights, close to Syria’s border with Israel, the report said.
The Pentagon’s counter-terrorist support office said the stations were established by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps together with Tehran’s leading ally, Syria, according to the World Tribune.
“Two Iranian-Syrian [signals intelligence] stations funded by the IRGC reportedly have been active since 2006, one in the Al Jazirah region in northern Syria and the other on the Golan Heights,” said the report, entitled “Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security: A Profile.”
The report, issued last month and prepared by the Library of Congress, said IRGC was planning to establish additional listening stations for northern Syria. The stations were meant to supply information on Israel to Hizbullah, Iran’s leading terror proxy.
The ongoing civil war in Syria has spilled over several times into Israel from the Golan Heights. The incidents have included mortar shells landing in the religious Zionist town of Alonei Habashan, which is less than a kilometer from the border, as well as IDF vehicles being hit by bullets fired from Syrian territory into Israel during the fighting between the sides.
The IDF changed the rules of engagement along the Syrian border after the fighting in Syria spilled over into Israel more than once.
The new orders instruct soldiers to respond if fire from Syria is dangerous and persistent.
Israel has also been monitoring Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal. Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile, which dates back to the 1970s, is the biggest in the Middle East, but its precise scope remains unclear, according to analysts.
The country has hundreds of tons of various chemical agents, including sarin and VX nerve agents, as well as older blistering agents such as mustard gas, dispersed in dozens of manufacturing and storage sites, experts say.
U.S. officials recently said there was evidence that Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s troops had not only moved deadly sarin gas that might be used against rebels, but also that its binary components, usually stored separately, had been combined and placed into bombs for use.
The United States and its allies, including Israel, have repeatedly expressed concern that Syria’s stockpile, believed to be one of the biggest in the world, could be stolen and fall into extremist hands or be transferred to the Hizbullah terror group by a crumbling Syrian regime.
The Petroleum Products Marketing Company Limited has said the pipeline explosion, which occurred on Saturday at Arepo, Ogun State, will not lead to another round of fuel scarcity.
Spokesman for PPMC, Mr. Nasir Imodagbe, who spoke to our correspondent in Abuja on Sunday on the pipeline fire, also said that there was an urgent need for the state government and local authorities to be involved in securing the infrastructure.
Imodagbe said there were enough products to take care of the affected areas in the days that the pipeline would remain shut.
He added that the repair of the pipeline would begin immediately since the fire had been controlled.
He said, “We have products in the areas that are affected that will take care of the demand in the few days that the pipeline is going to remain shut. Nobody should go into panic buying.”
He said the Ogun State Government as well as local authorities in the state should be involved in securing pipeline infrastructure passing through the state.
Imodagbe said in other states and communities where the Nigerian National Petroleum Cooperation had challenges with facilities security, the respective state governments and local authorities had intervened to save the situation.
He said, “We expect that the state government should brace for the challenge. The state government and local authorities should assist in securing the pipeline.
“The Inspector General of Police has set up a special task force on anti-pipeline vandalism. Local authorities need to work with the police to secure the pipelines. Pipeline vandals are human beings and they live within the communities. People know them.
“What is the state government doing? We know what the situation was in Aba. The state government took charge and today the Aba depot is working. We have had challenges in other communities such as Benin and we know the assistance we received from those places.
“Now, why is it always Arepo? What are local authorities doing to stop this? The primary responsibility of NNPC is to make products available and not to be fighting fire all the time.”
Meanwhile, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria has said the security arrangement for the nation’s petroleum pipelines is loose, making it easy for hoodlums to vandalise.
The IPMAN’s South-West Zonal Chairman, Mr. Olumide Ogunmade, who said this on Sunday, described as a national shame the latest pipeline explosion at Arepo in Ogun State, which was caused by the activities of vandals.
About 30 people were feared dead on Saturday at Arepo while siphoning petroleum products from a ruptured NNPC pipeline.
The fire reportedly broke out after the vandals started when one of them fired a shot after a quarrel.
Ogunmade said that it was shameful that this incident was happening again after the same System 2B pipeline was recently repaired at Arepo.
He stressed that it was the duty of the government to see to the security of the pipelines, stressing that NNPC must not give an impression that it could not handle the situation.
“What we are losing as a result of this vandalism is more compared to what we could have used to protect the asset. Government should live up to its responsibilities and the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company should also re-strategise,” he added.
He said Nigerians were tired of hearing the same news of pipeline vandalism, and urged government to work towards making the experience a thing of the past.
The NNPC had in November completed the repair work on the System 2B pipeline, which was vandalised in August.
A Russian-owned Mil Mi-26 transport helicopter operating on contract to the UN in South Sudan was hit by gunfire recently but the crew was not hurt, the aircraft’s operator UTair told RIA Novosti, the news agency reported.
“Everyone is alive and all is well,” a UTair source said, without clarifying when the incident took place.
The shooting, at Bau near South Sudan’s border with Ethiopia, was only detected when the flight crew noticed bullet holes in the left side of the cabin while the machine was on the ground. Damage was sustained to the air conditioning system, radio-compass and some other systems, UTair said.
“The helicopter last flew on December 31 and since then has stayed on the pad,” the airline said. “It has been regularly maintained and no damage was noticed, but there was shooting in the region of Bau airport on the night of January 5-6. We think these were stray bullets. When the aircraft was given a pre-flight service, the damage was noticed but it was insignificant. There was no threat to flight,” UTair added.
The UN says it will investigate the incident, UTair told Prime News.
“Additional security measures will be taken for staff and equipment,” the airline said.
News of the incident comes a day after the Sudanese ambassador in Russia, Omar Dahab Mohamed, accused his counterpart from South Sudan of disinformation for accusing Khartoum of responsibility for an incident in which a Russian-operated Mi-8 helicopter was shot down in South Sudan last December, killing its four Russian crew.
