CIA Reportedly Worked Closely With Gaddafi Intelligence Services‏

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CIA Agents in Libya

TRIPOLI, Libya — The CIA worked closely with Moammar Gadhafi’s intelligence services in the rendition of terror suspects to Libya for interrogation, according to documents seen Saturday by the AP, cooperation that could spark tensions between Washington and Libya’s new rulers.

The CIA was among a number of foreign intelligence services that worked with Libya’s agencies, according to documents found at a Libyan security agency building in Tripoli.

The discovery came as the Libyan rebels said they would surround pro-Gadhafi cities until the Sept. 10 deadline for their surrender.

“We are by the grace of God in a position of strength, capable of entering any city, to deploy any of our fighters in any direction,” the head of the rebels’ National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, told reporters in Benghazi. “However, in our desire to avoid bloodshed and to avoid more destruction to public properties and national institutions, we have given an ultimatum of one week to the areas of Sirte, Bani Walid, Jufra and Sabha.”

“It is an opportunity for these cities to peacefully join the revolution,” he said, adding the rebels were providing humanitarian aid to the besieged areas along with water and electricity services.

The intelligence documents found in Tripoli, meanwhile, provided new details on the ties between Western countries and Gadhafi’s regime. Many of those same countries backed the NATO attacks that helped Libya’s rebels force Gadhafi from power.

One notable case is that of Abdel-Hakim Belhaj, commander of the anti-Gadhafi rebel force that now controls Tripoli. Belhaj is the former leader of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, a now-dissolved militant group with links to al-Qaida. Belhaj says he was tortured by CIA agents at a secret prison, then returned to Libya.

Two documents from March 2004 appear to be American correspondence to Libyan officials to arrange Belhaj’s rendition.

Referring to him by his nom de guerre, Abdullah al-Sadiq, the documents say he will be flown from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Libya and asks for Libyan government agents to accompany him.

t also requests American “access to al-Sadiq for debriefing purposes once he is in your custody.”

“Please be advised that we must be assured that al-Sadiq will be treated humanely and that his human rights will be respected,” the document says.

Peter Bouckaert of Human Rights Watch, which found the documents, called the ties between Washington and Gadhafi’s regime “a very dark chapter in American intelligence history, and it remains a stain on the record of the American intelligence services that they cooperated with these very abusive intelligence services.”

Stop using Salami’s case to distract Nigerians from serious issues of governance, FG warned

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Justice Ayo Salami

The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has warned the federal government not to capitalize on

the controversy generated by the illegal removal of Justice Ayo Salami as President of the Court
of Appeal to distract Nigerians from serious issues of governance.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed,
the party said Nigerians are not unaware of the sponsors of the series of newspaper and television
adverts being placed by shady groups in recent days to confuse the issues involved in the Justice
Salami issue.

”There is no doubt that huge public funds are being frittered away on these self-serving adverts by
mushrooming phony groups, who are simply echoing their master’s voice and seeking to distort the
facts in a case of serious constitutional infraction.

”It is sad however that this dirty game of distraction is being played at a time of worsening insecurity in
the land from the activities of Boko Haram, armed robbers and kidnappers; at a time of rising
unemployment due to lack of ideas on the part of the government, and at a time that innocent Nigerians
are being slaughtered like chicken due to the resurgent crisis in Jos.

”Nigerians are more concerned that their country is fast becoming a police state, where public buildings
and other facilities are being guarded by armed soldiers and the entire polity is militarized, and the
government of the day spends little or no time on governance,” it said.

ACN repeated its earlier warning that the Salami issue will not go away until those who precipitated the
crisis do the right thing, which is to reverse their illegal actions and reinstate Justice Salami.

”These people can spend all the money in the coffers or use all the media in the world in their attempt to
justify their unconstitutional acts, but they will not succeed in hoodwinking Nigerians.

”All they need is a little introspection, and it will become clear to them that only by doing the right thing, which
will not even involve wasting public funds, can this lingering controversy be laid to rest,” the party said.

Alhaji Lai Mohammed
National Publicity Secretary
Action Congress of Nigeria
Lagos,
Sept 4th 2011

Criminal Liability Should Be Slammed On Shell Oil Company

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By KORNEBARI NWIKE

President Goodluck Jonathan constituted a special committee on oil pollution in Ogoniland recently, according to him; to perform a “holistic review of the UNEP report.” The committee is chaired by Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, Minister of Petroleum Resources and former Shell Oil Company employee. The committee also has Mr. Austen Oniwon, Group Managing Director of Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) as a member. Technically, this committee is a consortium of oil conglomerate. NNPC and Shell Oil Company are partners in the operation of oil business in Nigeria. A child of circumstance, the ad hoc committee was born as an aftermath of the recent shocking revelation in the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) report that almost all the Ogoni environment is contaminated by oil pollutants.

Public policy analysts expected the Nigerian Senate to invite Shell Oil Company and NNPC executives for questioning in respect to their firm’s role in the environmental tragedy in Ogoniland; instead the firm’s representatives were invited as part of the government talk shop. With this initial flaw and ethical conflict of interest, one wonders how government works in Nigeria. The presence of these two oil giants on the committee is like the presence of two eight hundred pound gorillas that kill and suddenly empowered to decide what to do with the corpses. The presence of this duo on such a committee is testament to the fact that Nigeria has long ago lost her independence to corporate multi-national oil corporations. Will the committee give a fair assessment of the UNEP report? It is yet to be determined.

Although Ogonis are very patient people, it can be felt that their patience is running thin and limited time exists to kid glove with Shell Oil Company over the contamination on their land. The Ogoni people has cause to be angry because they have stomached so much from Shell even before the era of General Abacha. In whatever the Federal government may consider as compensation to the Ogoni people for plundering their environment; such consideration should be comprehensive to include demands in the Ogoni Bill of Rights (OBR), creation of Bori state, and a Trust foundation. On the other hand, MOSOP should be ready to play hardball because Shell Oil crimes against Ogoni must not be swept under the carpet. The case may eventually end-up in international court of adjudication. It is necessary that MOSOP retain the services of reputable international real estate and environmental law firms such as Slagle, Bernard, and Gorman or Wyrsch Hobbs and Mirakian, P.C. in preparation for the coming environmental and social justice that may follow.

If Alaskan residents in the United States can enjoy yearly dividends from oil through the Alaska permanent fund; if Germans slave laborers continue to receive payments through a foundation established with $5 billion by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in 2000; and if British Petroleum was able to sacrifice $20 billion as a result of the deepwater horizon explosion in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, then Ogonis should not succumb to crumbs. The $5 billion settlement of Adolf Hitler’s slave laborers by the German government of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in 2000 was intensely negotiated by representatives of United States, Israel, four European countries and their lawyers. While German government transferred $2.5 billion to the foundation the other half was borne by companies that were involved. The augment is that the Ogoni people should be ready for negotiation when duty calls with reputable attorneys.

As part of his Oath of office, President Goodluck Jonathan swore to defend Nigerians and the constitution in case of aggression. Shell Oil Company has shown aggression toward Ogoni as presented in the UNEP report. Mr. President, this is an opportunity to show leadership more so as an indigene of the Niger Delta.  He should seek justice for the Ogoni people by directing the Ministry of Justice to commence felony proceedings against Shell Oil Company. Grounds for criminal suits are environmental degradation, ecological poisoning and oil spills, neglect, deception about oil reserves, murder and supply of arms to the Nigerian military.

Other grounds for criminal indictment can be found in the Shell report titled “SPDC in the Niger Delta 1996/97. The firm admitted arming Nigeria’s military against Ogoni. Secondly, for 55 years, Ogoni people have seen terrifying new twist in their lives and environment. The fish, birds, and animals in the wild are disappearing because of oil exploration, gas flaring, and spills. The trees, fruits, flowers, and grasses, etc.that gave Ogoniland a unique landscape and from which the region earned the accolade “food basket of south- eastern Nigeria” have unfortunately disappeared. Sadly, birds that orchestrate melodious songs that bring Ogonis closer to nature have migrated to Northern and Western Nigeria where there is no oil pollution. The rich savannah mangrove forests habitats for seafood and aquatic creatures are either dead, replaced by Nipa palm, or are submerged in crude oil.

Nigerians and the world should rally around Ogoni at this time of sadness as they mourn the extinction of their heritage. Together let us seek recompense and justice for Ogoni. The demand for justice should include a seat behind bars for Shell oil executives as long as it takes to clean the Ogoni environment. This is necessary because no nation on earth has ever been manipulated, cheated and duped by oil firms like Nigeria. Shell Oil Company manipulates Nigerian laws, lies to Nigerian governments, and commits atrocities against Nigerians for five decades and counting and no crime supersede these acts of aggression.

A felony charge is unavoidable considering that Shell Oil Company has world class engineers, operational, technical, and administrative crews that has full knowledge of the presence of benzene and other pollutants in Ogoniland but conceal and fail to disclose this information to the government as required by law. According to research, benzene is a class A carcinogenic chemical whose link was traced to leukemia in 1897. It is predominantly found in the petroleum industry as well as cigarette smoke. The impact include ailments, such as “fatigue, malaise, abdominal bleeding, excessive bruising, weakness, weight loss, bone or joint pain, infection and fever, abdominal pains and discomfort, enlarged spleen, lymph nodes, and liver.” The precarious health hazards these chemicals pose to the Ogoni people make some walking corpses and the result is that they are dying slowly. Shell oil would rather play games by engaging in cover-ups, deceptions, corrupting locales, states, and federal officials to protect her business to the detriment of the generality of the population, than keeping to the tenet of Nigerian laws.

President Jonathan should demonstrate that he could lead Nigeria by engaging the United Nations, United States, Britain, and others to assist Ogoni through technical expertise and funds to address the tragedy. His comment, “if the United Nations can intervene in places where there are civil wars, then environmental pollution calls for its attention” should be echoed beyond Aso rock. He should go above and beyond, should not retreat but join forces with Niger deltans and Ogoni to champion their cause. Record of World leaders who sided with citizens to synchronize matters exists and he should be remembered as one. For instance, in 2005 former President Nestor Korchner of Argentina called for a national boycott of Royal Dutch Shell Plc for raising fuel prices forcing the company to back down. In Nigeria late President Musa Yar-Adua took extra-ordinary steps by telling Shell Oil Company, that it was no longer wanted in Ogoniland.

Mr. President, procrastination could result in a mass health epidemic but decisive and bold initiatives could overturn a catastrophe in Ogoni and the Niger delta. History will judge your legacy as a Nigerian president of Southern extraction by the vigor and decisive steps you took to solving the Ogoni environmental dilemma. The UNEP environmental report has provided a window of opportunity for you to set a record for yourself and Nigeria.

In summary, as the world awaits the report from the special presidential committee, President Godluck Ebele Jonathan should slam a criminal lawsuit against Shell Oil Company, establish compensation funds for Ogoni, push through Ogoni demand for Bori State, begin immediate clean-up of Ogoniland as recommended by UNEP, abrogate decree No. 6 of 1978 otherwise known as Land Use Acts, and Petroleum Acts of 1969 (both of which drove Nigeria into the fox hole she finds herself today). These acts should be done in harmony with the establishment of Ogoni Restoration Authority, Integrated Contaminated Soil Management Center, and Center of Excellence in Environmental Restoration as recommended by UNEP. The world is ready to rally around Nigeria but compelling leadership is desired.

KorneBari Nwike: An Accountant, consultant, and Public Policy Analyst reside in the United States.

Amakpe Refinery and the Misguided Prophets of Doom

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Written By

Dr Inyang Oduok 


 

Opponents of Amakpe refineries are on the pew. Barely a few minutes after Amakpe’s press release, they rocketed into prominence with misguided skepticism -sounding like prophets of doom. With no known prior record of ownership of a refinery business to their credit, they argue erroneously that “the press release confirms all what Governor Akpabio has been saying.” Then a few seconds later came up with “90% “revised version.

 

They showered the Ikpes’ with praises and Usua with good citizenry then recklessly turned to set Amakpe refinery ablaze.
 

Their ire argument reached a peak when they argued that “refinery industry is not a good business.”

 

 They blamed the “inflated hopes of Akwaibomites, Amakpe’s lack of funds or financial viability or its fragility as the key elements in its painful path and not Akpabio administration’s actions.”

 

Amakpe refineries they argue, is “bad business venture for the state, bad investment decision, it won’t work. To show you why it won’t work, just look at other governments that have refineries. Start off with China. If you still don’t believe the prophet, look at the refinery in Russia and even in Kaduna. Now with these examples, would you say it is a good idea to invest in Amakpe refineries? “Obviously not, do not let Amakpe fool you believe in the prophet.”

 

Amakpe “should recapitalize with its private funds instead of public funds and refund 3.5 million dollars to Akpabio administration in compliance with the memorandum of understanding. Akpabio’s government should be bought out of the transaction as evidence of Amakpe’s financial capabilities, after all the refinery its baby.”

 

Instead of helping Amakpe succeed, it is better to promote street warfare and invest in building penitentiaries to prepare our young men and women for prison life. They should rather be in prison than in society. Then broaden Attah’s legacy –The only success story -the Five Star hotel and ready the call girls for prostitution in another grand entertainment industry.

 

Unable to recap all what Akpabio said at the town hall meeting that is consistent with Amakpe’s press release, the prophets harped on what they claim was not said “fraud” while with the same breath arguing improprieties that Akpabio allegedly suggested in his town hall speech which clearly shows that Akpabio’s allegation against Amakpe is akin to “fraud.”

 

As implausible as it may seem, it may be argued that opponents of Amakpe have real problems, here is why.  

 

“THE CLAIM THAT AMAKPE REFINERY IS NOT A GOOD BUSINESS:”


The onus of proof lies on the prophets to show that investment in refinery or petroleum industry is not a good business. They have failed woefully to sustain that burden.

 

 First, it is undisputed that prosperity and geopolitical clout comes with oil wealth. Look at United States, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Libya, Dubai and Venezuela to mention a few. Do these countries not have refineries? If they do as we all know, how many of them have failed the forum citizens might ask?  If none, why are forum citizens not cited to these successfully operated refineries?

 

CHINA:

 

In 2005, C.nooc, a large Chinese oil company tried to buy the California oil company Unocal. The transaction fell apart after members of Congress criticized the potential Chinese ownership of American oil assets. Two privately owned Chinese refineries are currently operating in two states in United States. There may be more that the writer does not know about. That forumites here and there are cited to an alleged ailing refinery in China and not about successful ones is illuminating.

 

RUSSIA:

Exxon the largest American oil company “has just won a contract with Russian Government’s owned oil Company – Rosneft to give Rosneft assets elsewhere in the world including some that Exxon owns in deep water zones in the Gulf of Mexico and on land in Texas for an investment in oil exploration in the Russian Arctic.” The scale of investment is reported to be as high as “five hundred billion dollars.” “The investment means that Exxon is taking the risk like all businesses do in wading deeper into Russia’s risky business environment. The investment will hinge on policies set by Kremlin.” “Exxon already has a production sharing investment agreement on Sakhalin Island on Russia’s Eastern Coast.”

 

“Having an American company win the Russian oil exploration contract suggests United States policy of détente toward Russia known as reset can benefit United States businesses,” said Cliff Kupchan- a consultant and senior analyst at the Eurasia Group.

 

It is reported that the “Exxon –Rosneft transaction when completed, will allow Russia access to reserves at home to gain the necessary capital and technological expertise. Russia’s economy is dependent on petroleum for about 60% of its export revenue. Russia now pumps more oil than Saudi Arabia.”

 

“The Russian Oil Company (Rosnefts’s attempt to enter into similar agreement with BP failed because BP had a joint venture with a separate group of private Russian investors, who blocked the agreement by suing BP.”      

 

All what these examples demonstrate people are:

 

 *        In business as in real life one must be curious, experiment  and take risks.

 

*        In law we also retain those who argue our frailties.

 

*        Prosperity and Geo-political clout comes with oil wealth and Gov. Akpabio might be afraid of Amakpe’s success in the state that is why he is trying to block the refinery.

 

*        Usua’s 12.5 million dollars asset is a legitimate investment capital and that attempt to make it appear that “Usua did not have money to start a refinery but came and misrepresented to ex-governor Attah that he had investor’s who were willing to come up with 250 million dollars.” is nonsense.

 

*        Failure to cite a single successfully operated refinery around the globe and using a tiny fraction of refinery that is “claimed not to do too well in China and Russia and more alarmingly Kaduna” is “illuminating.”

 

*        Failure to address why “a government would invest 6.5 million dollars in an allegedly failed refinery venture is also quite  illuminating

 

*        Failure to acknowledge that Usua Amanam and the late Dr Nsidibe Ikpe are big success stories in entrepreneurship and can make sound investment decisions is also illuminating. They do not need the prophet’s unsolicited advice.

 

 

“ALL WHAT THE PROHET CAN SUMMISE IS THAT IT APPEARS THAT COMPLIANCE WITH MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING HAS NOT BEEN MET.”

 

 That Government breached its investment agreement with Amakpe is undisputed. For example, it pressured Amakpe through the use of law suit to refund 3 million dollars to it. 1.5 million now and additional 2 million upon entering into production after Amakpe had spent millions of dollars of its own money and that of investors to build the projects’ infrastructures to be shipped to the refinery site.

 

Thus, the so called “memorandum of understanding is void” because it is an attempt to modify a pre-existing contract with no showing of adequate consideration for such modification. Amakpe would never have entered into such agreement if it were not under government duress.

  

“Instead of helping Amakpe succeed, it is better to promote street warfare and invest in building penitentiaries to prepare our young men and women for prison life. They should rather be in prison than in society. Then broaden Attah’s legacy –The only success story -the Five Star hotel and ready the call girls for prostitution in another grand entertainment industry.”

 

 

 

 



 

The payment of 1.2 million dollars to Akpabio when the company is in need of 20 million financing shows that the motive of the law suit was to force Amakpe to enter into illegal unenforceable contract with government. It was a form of extortion. Therefore, the so called “memorandum of understanding” is void as a matter of law.

 

How about the 1.5 million already refunded, what happened to that money remains questionable?

 

 Lastly, even if it were to be determined that the so called “memorandum of understanding is valid which is here denied,” it would still not entitle Akpabio administration to the additional two million “refund” because of failure of condition president to payment.” From the release, it appears that the remaining 2 million dollars was to be paid after Amakpe has gone into production the occurrence of which condition has been prevented or obstructed by Akpabio’s actions. Therefore, Amakpe’s performance is excused by prevention/obstructive acts of Akpabio administration.  

That an investor who has invested 10 million dollars in a business would go back and ask for a refund of 3 million when the business requires 20 million to take off is telling.

 

“USUA DID NOT SAY IN THE RELEASE THAT THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD ASK OUT OF THE DEAL AND THAT ITSELF IS ILLUMINATING”

 

Should Usua be the one to “ask government to ask out of the deal”? First of all, Usua should not ask the government to breach a contract he has with Amakpe by “asking it to ask out.”  That would not make sense under contract law. Also, Government is not asking out of the deal because it knows that to do so would constitute breach of its agreement with Amakpe.

 

Moreover, why should Amakpe “buy the government out”? Should’t it be the government that should “buy Amakpe out since it claims that Amakpe has no money and that it is the sole financier of the business” despite the 12.1 million of Amakpe’s equity in the business?

 

THE HONEY VERSUS VINGAR ARGUMENT:

 

The argument that Amakpe used “vinegar instead of honey” caps it all and is very illuminating. It may be this is Amakpe’s whole problem.” The writer reasonably believes that Akpabio administration may not have endorsed this argument on its behalf. Here is why.

 

USE OF “HONEY” AS OPPOSED TO “VINEGAR”:

 

The writer is willing to concede that the prophet does not mean “greasing hand” or “bribing governor Akpabio”

 

 However, the prophet’s argument has vexatious quotient prompted by incongruity and inconsistencies of his own jurisprudence. Therefore, they do not play well among intelligent audience. There is no question that every thing the dooms day prophets argue are in furtherance of damaging Amakpe refinery and this has earned them a prominent place in Amakpe’s controversy.

 

They feed into the forum facts that are inaccurate, incomplete and misleading. The noble intention of building a refinery that will create employment opportunities for our people and give birth to other industries have been subverted by a claim of “Amakpe’s indulgence in improprieties” to tarnish the founders’ reputation.

 

The writer contends that it is not the duty of forums citizens to puzzle out the meaning and relevance of words used by the prophets. Undefined words such as “honey” will be construed against the prophets. The term “honey” is susceptible to different interpretations. “Honey” can mean “greasing of hand.” It can mean being “less arrogant and pompous”. It can mean being “nice”, it can also mean “bribing” etc.   

 

But in our society the word “honey” can easily be interpreted as meaning “greasing of hand or bribing”. Therefore, the argument does not help government’s cause in a system where “corrupt practices are allegedly frequently employed as a way of doing business.”

 

Adversaries of Amakpe refinery are advised to shade their distrust for Usua Amanam, build a good relationship with the company and bridge their differences with dialogue in the interest of our people.  

 

 

Dr.  Oduok writes from

 Atlanta, Georgia.

Unraveling the Boko Haram menace

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Mr. Azazi, National Security Adviser

Like a bolt from the blues, the Boko Haram security menace has seized the Nigerian horizon. In this report, Group Politics Editor, Taiwo Adisa, examines the growing menace and the underlying dimensions of its operations.

Bombing, suicide bombing especially, is alien to Nigeria. That accounts for why (even in the face of glaring evidence) a number of citizens gave consideration to claims by the police hierarchy that the June 16, 2011 attack on its Headquarters in Abuja was not a suicide attack. But from that moment, it appeared that the suicide mongers had weaned their flock and had not looked back in showing off their expertise. After the attack on the Force Headquarters in June came the failed attempt to blow up Police Headquarters in Maiduguri, Borno State, midway into the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan, and then the dastardly blast at the UN House, Abuja on August 26, which left no fewer than 23 persons dead.

A number of questions have been asked both at the level of ordinary citizens and at the top echelons of the security network. Many have queried how Nigeria got to this pass. What actually is the grouse of the group behind these acts and what are the possible palliatives? The questions have continued to rage till date. Not many have come up with possible answers, especially on the grouse of the Boko Haram sect. Even the Borno Elders, who visited Aso Rock in the wake of military crackdown on the sect in Maiduguri, could not explain the grievances of the sect. All that could be said were vague references to the need for government to dialogue with the group. The question among top government people, howeve, remains, how do you negotiate with a group whose agenda is not known? But for a group whose activities have continued to grow, it became imperative for the government to examine its modus operandi and projections. The Committee of Elders set up to look into the menace in the North East of the Country recently submitted its interim report.

How it all began
No one has actually put a date to the start of operations of the Boko Haram sect in the Maiduguri axis. What is clear is that the sect came into existence as an Islamic fundamentalist group around the year 2000. It was initially non-political, but was said to have been involved in the installation of Senator Alli Modu Sherrif as governor of Borno State in 2003. It was learnt that, as a reward for that feat, the then governor had made a number of promises to the sect. One of them emerged a commissioner, while others retained positions of relevance in the government. Their leader, Mohammed Yusuff, became all the more influential and the sect spread across the states of North-East. Not much was, however, heard from the sect until the bubble of its relationship with the government of Senator Alli Modu Sheriff burst though, along the line, its operations were also said to have spread to Gombe, Bauchi, Adamawa and Yobe. From 2009, the centre could no longer hold between the then state government in Borno and the sect members. Skirmishes between the police and the sect became commonplace, leading to the eventual killing of the sect’s leader, Mohammed Yusuff, in controversial circumstances in July 2009.  His death in police custody apparently signalled a breakdown in the relationship between the government of Borno and the sect as well as the relationship between the police and the sect, on another hand.

Hell was let loose in the state. Insecurity became the order of the day and in a move seen as a retaliatory measure against Governor Sheriff, his younger brother and the gubernatorial candidate of the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP) in Borno, got killed in the threshold of the April general election. It was a move seen by many as a declaration of war by the Boko Haram.  From that point, word got around that the sect had marked Sheriff and a number of governors in the North-East region for elimination. The grouse, according to reports, was that the political office holders reneged on the promises made to the group after they had been supported to win elections.

From local grouse to national platform
From what was largely a local issue, the Boko Haram sect grew in visibility, gaining attention across states of the North. It also gained the support of some eminent persons, for whatever reason, and further blossomed in size and focus. Gradually, it became a voice for fundamentalism in the North-East and it did not take a long time before it struck fear into the security operatives, especially the police. With the killing of its leader on July 30, 2009, the anger within the group grew, first against the police and the governor of their operating capital, Maiduguri, and then against the nation, Nigeria. On June 16, the sect took the battle to the police at the topmost level after it had engaged some state police commands in a prolonged tango. The June attack on Louis Edet House, Force Headquarters, left one policeman and the suicide bomber dead. No fewer than 70 cars were also burnt or badly damaged.

When it appeared the nation had lost its innocence as far as suicide bombing was concerned, police authorities preferred to paint a different picture. But it dawned on all, with subsequent incidents, that the hardliners among the fundamentalists had taken their cause to another level.

In July, the State Security Services (SSS) invited former Borno State governor, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, to its headquarters in Abuja. Snippets from the meeting indicated that there were exchanges of some home truths. Sheriff came out of SSS office to declare that he was not the founder of Boko Haram. Insights into his meeting with the security, however, showed that he once had a chummy relationship with the sect and that he terminated the alliance along the line.  The Friday Edition was told that the former governor told the security chiefs that he once helped the sect, but that he terminated this relationship in the “national interest.” His appearance was at the peak of the declaration by the sect that it was ready to snuff life out of a number of prominent citizens unless they tendered a public apology. Notwithstanding Sheriff’s apology, security operatives were to further tell him that he remained on the death list of the sect, which split into two along the line.

The split was supposed to weaken the group, but events have confirmed that the sect was not burning out. Early in July, the sect received close to 800 trainees who returned from  Somalia and Sudan. Its links with the dreaded al-Qaeda group further emboldened its bombing activities. The 800 trainees, who were tutored in the act of terrorism by the Sub-Saharan team of al-Queda  group, returned to Nigeria in batches. But it was gathered that security chiefs were able to grab eight of the first 100 that completed the training in al-Queda camp as they made to re-enter Nigeria.

Whether the pieces of information garnered from the eight arrested trainees have helped the intelligence network so far is a question that can only be answered at the topmost echelon of the agencies. But the truth of the matter is that activities of the sect have heightened since the return of the al-Queda trainees, who apparently launched the suicide attacks we have seen in recent times.

All through the month of July, intelligence networks were on the alert in at least seven states of the North, following signals that the Boko Haram group planned massive bomb attacks to commemorate the anniversary of the killing of their leader, Yusuff. States listed include Borno, Kaduna, Kano, Bauchi, Gombe, Katsina and Niger. Some strategic installations including the pipelines of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), bridges and public institutions were said to have been targeted. Though a blast occurred in Suleja, Niger state within the anniversary month, intelligence agencies were able to fence off bomb blasts in the other targets including River Niger bridge at Lokoja.

A number of questions flood the brain in rationalising the attacks of the sect, especially since it moved from a local to a national platform. What exactly are they fighting for? What is the grouse of Boko Haram with the Federal Government, for instance? Why should Boko Haram attack the UN House in Abuja? Since the literal meaning of Boko Haram is “Western education is evil”, why would they not just restrict to propagating their belief rather than killing others who have no links with them whatsoever? The answers to these questions lie in two things, the politicisation of Boko Haram and the receipt of external (al-Queda) support by the sect.

The assistance by al-Queda has completely changed the focus of the group. Today, it operates more like an arm of the dreaded group rather than a Maiduguri-based sect that has grouses with those who allegedly used its men to propagate election without bringing returns.

The political Boko Haram
When the Boko Haram split in July, many had thought that the end was near for the dreaded sect. Reports had it that the sect was split along the lines of those who wanted a continuous militarisation and bombardment of targets, as opposed to those who sought peace.

While some leaders of the group believed that public apologies tendered by the former Borno State governor, Sheriff, his Gombe state counterpart, Senator Danjuma Goje, and Bauchi State governor, Isa Yuguda,  was enough to atone for their alleged “sins” against the group, a section of its leaders insisted that nothing would remove the top politicians and several others from its death list. Some leaders were also said to be in favour of cessation of all attacks in respect of the Holy Month of Ramadan, which started early August, but the militant others refused. The tug of war within the group later blew into the open.

But the reported division did practically nothing to deaden the operational capabilities of Boko Haram. The police were only lucky to have escaped being bombed by a Boko Haram operatives right inside the Borno State Police Command Headquarters in Maiduguri two weeks ago. Then came the August 26 attack on UN House.

Investigations by The Friday Edition confirmed that operations of the militant arm of the Boko Haram sect have been taken over by a class of influential politicians who regard the violent dimension as the new way of maintaining relevance. Investigations further revealed that a number of such politicians have discovered the need to “keep President Goodluck Jonathan on his toes” and that the best way they believe this can be done is to engineer the militant group to continue to remind him that his administration can be challenged.

“An intricate web of power play and intrigues is actually driving the security trend we have seen in recent times,” a source in the know said during the week. The source said that the Boko Haram sect had benefited from both local and foreign interests.

In July, it was discovered that a political top shot was linked with funding the sect. Investigations revealed a dragnet had been set by the intelligence circles with ongoing investigations of the financial transactions of the suspected kingpin in the last five years.

Already, the administration is said to be co-opting top class Intelligence organisations like the Mi5, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States of America, Israeli’s MOSSAD and the Russian KGB in an effort to unravel the links between the local groups, local founders of the Boko Haram sect and possible links with the al-Queda group.

Will all these lead to the final unveiling of the true modus operandi of the Boko Haram? Will there be an end to the spate of unrests in the land. Will the government damn all and name the suspected bigwigs behind the political Boko Haram? An anxious nation awaits the time a proper separation will be done between politics and religion.

Source: Tribune

Oceanic Bank of Nigeria Shareholders to Discuss Ecobank Deal

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Shareholders of Oceanic Bank International Plc (OCEANIC), a Nigerian lender that was bailed out by the central bank in 2009, will meet on Sept. 27 to decide on a plan by Ecobank Transnational Inc. (ETI) to acquire it.

Investors will discuss the transfer of 55 billion naira ($355 million) worth of shares to Lome, Togo-based Ecobank Transnational, the lender that operates in more than 30 African nations, according to an e-mailed statement from Oceanic.

Shareholders will also decide how much stock will remain in the hands of current investors in the Lagos-based lender and approve giving shares worth 290 billion naira to the Asset Management Corp. of Nigeria, known as Amcon, in order to bring shareholders’ funds from negative to zero.

Oceanic Bank was among eight lenders whose chief executives were fired by the Central Bank of Nigeria in 2009 after a lending crisis threatened to collapse some of the country’s financial institutions.

The central bank bailed out the lenders with 620 billion naira and created Amcon to buy non-performing loans of the banks to enable them to rebuild their balance sheets and resume lending. It gave the banks a Sept. 30 deadline this year to recapitalize or face liquidation or nationalization.

Critics of Obama Compare Him to Martin Luther King

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In the midst of the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial celebration, a disgruntled Washingtonian protested in front of the Washington Convention Center—which housed most MLK celebration events—and began to chant anti-Obama idioms.

On Aug. 26, right after the “Table of Brotherhood Project” panel discussion, Hassan Shabazz, 45, stood outside of the Washington Convention Center during the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial celebration week on Aug. 26 with a poster that read, “America has betrayed Dr. King’s dream” and on the flipside, “No Jobs! No second term Obama!”

Shabazz repeatedly chanted, “Obama, you can’t run forever Obama. You better help the poor Obama,” on the corner of New York Ave., N.W. in Washington, D.C.

His reason: To prove that Obama has put King’s legacy to shame. He is part of a growing chorus of Black criticism, and skepticism, about the link between the Obama presidency and Black America.

Some people say that Obama, as the first Black president of the U.S., has fulfilled a dream African Americans did not think they would see in their lifetime.

But Shabazz said that’s the only “dream” Obama has lived up to. He said the president’s policies and actions have not impacted the Black community enough to say he has lived up to King’s dream of economic prosperity.

“What is he doing for the poor? Is that following Dr. King’s dream?” Shabazz said. “All the poor Blacks are getting evicted in S.E. (D.C.) He’s got to come back to the Black community one day.”

PBS talk show host Tavis Smiley and African American scholar Cornel West have emerged as prominent critics of Obama and recently grabbed the public’s attention as the duo conducted a 16-city “Poverty Tour.” On their website, West said the tour is not an “anti-Obama tour,” but a call for the president and Congress to help Americans who were hardest hit by the recession.

“…it would be nice to hear the president say the word ‘poor.’ To say the word ‘poverty,” Smiley told the Associated Press. “We get conversations about the middle class. Well, the new poor are the former middle class. But we can’t get this president or any leaders to say the words ‘poor’ or ‘poverty,’ much less do anything about it.”

What’s Smiley and West’s inspiration for the tour? A quote from Dr. King, which reads:

“I choose to identify with the underprivileged, I choose to identify with the poor, I choose to give my life for the hungry, I choose to give my life for those who have been left out of the sunlight of opportunity. . .”

In an interview with the Tom Joyner Morning Show this week, President Obama reacted to criticism from African-American leaders and said their disapproval is expected.

“…when things are going good, you get the credit, when things are tough, you get the blame, that’s the nature of the Office. I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about that. I think about what we can do to get the economy growing faster,” Obama said.

With U.S. unemployment numbers stagnant at 9.1 percent with no added jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor statistics, Obama’s criticism may continue to grow. But the White House is pinning hopes for a public opinion reversal on a major speech Obama will give Sept. 8 at 7 p.m. Professor Harley Shaiken from the University of California, Berkley called the speech “critical.”

“It could be the opening of a renewed effort on jobs that really gets labor excited, or it could be too little too late, which really increases the frustration,” Shaiken told NPR. “It’s going to be an important speech, and it will define where labor is on Election Day.”

John Earnest, spokesman for the White House, told NPR that Obama’s speech would define a common ground between workers and employers.

“It’s the president’s view that there are a lot of aligned interests here,” Earnest said, “that there’s an opportunity for us to put in place the kind of economic policies that could be supported by Democrats and Republicans, that could be supported by American businesses and American workers, that there are American communities all across the country that could benefit from these policies.”

Shabazz, a laid-off construction worker, said that the president’s financial bailouts for major companies and other policies have led the poor to believe they are not top priority.

“We know Dr. King was a great man, we know what he represented, but [is the Obama Administration] practicing it?

“I’m not for Obama. I voted for him, but not anymore,” Shabazz said.
Ray Baker, talk show host of Howard University’s radio station WHUR and brotherhood project panelist, called a comparison between King and Obama “unfair.” He said the only connection the two have is Aug. 28, Obama’s “I Have a Dream” speech in ’63 and the day Obama accepted the democratic nomination for president in ’08.’

“Let’s remember Dr. King was a preacher first, so everything he did had to make complete sense to his moral conscience,” Baker told The AFRO. “Dr. King had no constituency and no one to answer to but his own morality so he was in a position to take on the establishment and critique power in honest and ultimately life threatening ways.”

Baker said he doesn’t think Obama has let down King’s legacy because their works are in “different lanes.”

“President Obama has elected to do his work inside the metaphorical establishment, so he is either unwilling or unable to make those same unfettered critiques of power that Dr. King made,” he said.

As the president gears up for a possible re-election next year, analysts cannot definitively determine if public backlash from Black leaders could impact the “Black vote,” but leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus said Black voters may stay home next year if unemployment rates remain unchanged.

“The worry should be … are people going to be enthusiastic about getting to the polls, or are they not going to be as enthusiastic,” Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) told the Wall Street Journal.

“I’m frustrated with the president, I’m frustrated with the Senate, I’m frustrated with the House,” said Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II (D-Mo.), who is also chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. “The president and his White House team is trying to minimize the discussion of race as it relates to job creation.”

Jonathan Vows No Effort Spared Against Terrorism

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”]Nigeria’s president says the country has “strong leads” on who is involved in the “terror war” on Nigerians, a week after an attack on the U.N. headquarters in Abuja killed 23 people.

President Goodluck Jonathan said Friday Nigerian security forces will “spare no effort or resource” in bringing terrorism under control. He said he is directing security forces to place a greater emphasis on intelligence and “citizen’s participation.”

The address, also published on the government website, marked the launch of an overhaul of Nigeria’s national driver’s license and vehicle license plates. Mr. Jonathan said the “consistent use of vehicles” in recent attacks shows the importance of the project, which will help create a comprehensive database of drivers and vehicles.

He said the overhaul has been in the works for several years, but gained urgency after a car bombing last year, and again after last week’s U.N. attack, which Nigerian authorities said was orchestrated by a man with links to al-Qaida.

The State Security Service said Mamman Nur, who remains at large, is a member of the radical Islamist sect Boko Haram and masterminded the bombing of the U.N. office, “in concert” with two other suspects who are already in custody. The arrested suspects were identified as Ismail Kwaljima and Babagan Mali, also said to be members of Boko Haram.

Officials said Nur had recently returned from Somalia, where al-Qaida is actively assisting the insurgent group al-Shabab.

Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is sinful” has been blamed for many bombings and shootings of authority figures in northeastern Nigeria, mainly in the state of Borno. The group has also claimed responsibility for attacks in Abuja, including a June bombing outside Nigeria’s national police headquarters.

The group wants a strict form of Islamic law applied more widely across Nigeria.

Tighter Oil Supply in 2012?

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Predictions for the future? Here\’s one based on the available pointers: Tighter oil supplies in 2012. In fact, brace yourself, a potential demand surge could, in essence, bring this faraway calculation of next year, nearer by three months. And with it higher price for oil. Last month, the IEA announced release of strategic oil reserves to the market through August. Historically, such a measure is taken during desperate times like war. Well, goes to show how tight supply really is.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has, in a recent report, said that oil supplies would become \”critically tight\” in 2012. Analysts of the bank predict that oil prices could go even higher as spare production capacity and inventories are \”effectively exhausted.\” So, why not increase production, from say, Saudi Arabia? Well, Goldman has also shared apprehension on the ability of Saudi Arabia to raise oil production in the face of eventual scarcity as it believes that Saudi Arabia won\’t be able to pump as much extra oil as many people believe. On a scary note, the scarcity could occur as early as later this year.

First to the case of Saudi Arabia:

It\’s no secret that Saudi Arabia, in a desperate attempt to hold on to power, is trying hard to win back its people. After all, the wave of massive protest for democracy did shake the Middle East. So what does it do? Take this: King Abdullah\’s has announced generous subsidies to construct 500,000 houses for the poor, a friendly mortgage law for the common man to buy property, finances for infrastructure, religious organisations, and for improving the education and health system, a pay rise for workers in the public sector, unemployment benefits, and more education allowance for students. To be sure, it also helps that the country has massive reserves for all the spending, thanks to oil. In two packages, the first announced in February for $36 billion, and the second in March for $94 billion, the ruler is fighting to win back his people. Together, the $130 billion is equal to 30 percent of the kingdom\’s GDP, or revenues from oil export for eight months.

All this, the IMF predicted, would help Saudi Arabia\’s GDP growth by 7.5% (Since revised to 6.5 per cent ). With 24.9 percent of the 1,000 billion barrels proven oil reserves of OPEC, the country has the largest oil reserves in the world and is also one of the largest producers of oil, next only to Russia. IEA holds that Saudi Arabia is capable of producing up to 12 million barrels of oil a day, compared to nine million barrels a day in May. Early this year with tensions ranging in Libya, the IEA\’s executive director, Nobuo Tanaka had said that Saudi Arabia could easily offset any shortfall in production from Libya.

With such huge reserves, in the meeting on June 8, Saudi Arabia, along with Kuwait, and the UAE pressed for increase in production quotas. But, countries like Libya, Algeria, Venezuela, Ecuador, Iraq, Iran, were against the move. Consequently, no decision was reached and the production quotas remained unchanged. Of course, the last thing the Saudi government needs at this point is high inflation due to import of expensive food grain, offset by high transportation charges due to high oil prices. Some indicators to gauge the extent of price fluctuation in recent times: The oil price hit $101.08 (Brent crude) a barrel in February, the highest since October 2008 (In June 2008, they were jogging around $147 a barrel). In June, 2011 they fell to $90 a barrel amid fears of supply disruption due to the closure of Suez canal and Egypt unrest.

Hence, Saudi Arabia has, quite unilaterally, pledged to increase production, notwithstanding the OPEC decision. According to a Platts survey, oil production from OPEC shot up by 530,000 barrels per day in June, at a total of 29.57 million barrels per day, compared to the 29.04 million b/d in May. And guess what? Saudi Arabia\’s production was up by 450,000 barrels per day to reach a total of 9.5 million b/d. Kuwait, UAE too have increased production, according to the survey. And don\’t forget most of this increase is just enough to meet the growing demand at home.

Saudi Arabia, essentially, is putting more oil on the market to pay for generous welfare programs, basically \”buying out\” its population from joining in on the unrest that spread through other oil producing nations. This is unsustainable and will accelerate well depletion. At this point, no one knows the actual reserves of the country, which is dangerous in itself.

IEA\’s move

The twenty eight member IEA, announced its decision to would release oil, about 60 million barrel, from the strategic reserves this August. This, it said, was to compensate for the loss due to the volatile situation in Libya. It is only the third time since established in 1974 that the IEA has taken such a step. One thing to be noted is that Libya, with less than two percent of the global oil output, isn\’t a huge player in the oil industry. In real terms, thus, the shortfall isn\’t going to make any significant changes to the oil supply. From a short term perspective, this move would help lower the price of oil. (The news did ease the oil price, since regained. ) However, in the long term, the reserves have to be replaced, and if the demand rises, this short term measure will push up oil prices.

Demand

As a more affluent population in BRICs consumes more goods, fuel usage for transportation and farming also increases. According to a UN report earlier this year, the world population would reach seven billion later this year and increase to 14 billion by 2100, if left unchecked. This doesn\’t necessarily abide by the math rule of \’the more people, the more pressure on the resources of the planet\’ theory, as people from the wealthy nations consume more, and waste more. However, what happens when the poor move higher on the economic scale. They have every right to the resources too, don\’t they? Still, continued growth in BRIC countries means motorized vehicle usage will increase. IMF has, in its update of the WEO World Economic Outlook, predicts a growth rate of 7.8 percent for India, and 9.2 percent for China in 2012 next year. This will have a lever effect: less oil production capacity while the demand skyrockets.

According to Bureau of Economic analysis the US economy has declined by 1.8 percent in the first quarter. The latest U.S. job report showed a weak economic recovery with just 18,000 jobs created in June, and in the revised World economic outlook, IMF has since adjusted the growth for advanced economies to 2.5 percent from 2.6 percent. Indeed, the earthquake in Japan, the resultant disruption in the supply chain, and uncertainty with the varying pace of the economic recovery in the US economy\’s progress, are some of the reasons for the low demand for crude oil for the first half of 2011.

However, when US returns to faster growth, the Japanese economy bounces back, and Europe recovers from the debt crisis and thus a global recovery, what do we have in our hands, a supply deficit for oil.

In fact, Goldman predicts that the world economy would accelerate in the second half of the year itself, increasing demand. \”Prices and returns will rise further later this year and into 2012,\” a report from the bank said, predicting that Brent crude would average at $120 in six months and $130 in 2012. An EIA report estimates that the oil demand will surpass production by 1.16 million barrels per day this year. The reports also suggests that the oil demand around the world to rise by 1.6 million bbl/d in 2012, a gap of 0.5 million barrels per day (only with increased production). The IMF, for its part, in the updated World Economic Outlook (WEO) for 2011, puts the assumed price for oil based on futures market at $105.25 in 2012. Analyst Hussein Allidina, from Morgan Stanley, said \”We remain bullish on oil, particularly in the second half, and expect inventory draws will prompt OPEC to increase production, at the expense of spare capacity\”.

Of course, by 2012, we\’ll know which of these predictions come true, though wishful thinking hopes that, somehow, we\’ve got it all wrong. Banks are bullish, you know why. But can we sit back, wait and watch as oil prices spiral, because spare capacity was exhausted?

So, really, did the Mayans predict the end of the world in 2012 or did they run out of space on their calendar? More like what Lady Macbeth said, \”Almost at odds with morning, which is which.\” Superstitions and old wives tales aside, if we look at the oil supply/demand numbers, with close to 7 billion people, we are approaching the planet\’s carrying capacity. With the oil market set to go through a lot of stress in the coming year, 2012 will surely mark a turning point to remember.

Orji Uzor Kalu Hails CNN For Saving Nigerians In Libya

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Evacuating Nigerians
Emotions overcame former Abia state governor Wednesday as he watched nine Nigerians escape death by a whisker in war ravaged Libya,thanks to correspondents of the Cable News Network[CNN].

The nine men were literally saying their last prayers under the captivity of rampaging Libyan rebels before God sent an angel in form of the CNN reporters.

Kalu said,”I was really moved.You could see our young men in tears,those nine men would have been wasted even as the Federal Government granted the rebels recognition.I saw two of them with Edo marks.I heard the voice of an Igbo boy.Thank God for CNN, we are better informed of the happenings in Tripoli.”

The ex-governor bewailed the lot of compatriots who travelled to Libya as a gateway to Europe but were forced to choose between the devil and the deep blue sea.

“It is unfortunate.Under Muammar Gaddafi,Nigerians were hounded.In the present dispensation,there is no difference.Libyans seem to have forgotten the role our fathers played,as soldiers of the West Africa Frontier Forces in cold Tobruk to liberate them from Fascism,”he cried out.

Kalu also highlighted the contributions of such stars as Victor Ikpeba and Tony Osheku to the development of Libyan sports.

“There are Nigerians doing legitimate business in Libya.When many superstars shied away from that country,Victor Ikpeba was there.Chikelue Iloenyosi followed suit.Until recently,Tony Osheku was coach of their national athletics team and produced an African quarter-mile champion.Today, Izu Azuka plays for Al-Ittihad.Our countrymen cannot all be mercenaries and migrants.We deserve some respect and apology,”Kalu pointed out.

Signed.

Emeka Obasi.

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