Fighters attack South Sudan town despite presence of U.N. peacekeepers

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Khartoum, Sudan (CNN) — Thousands of fighters attacked a remote town in South Sudan despite the presence of United Nations peacekeepers in the area, a military official said Sunday.

Authorities were counting casualties from Saturday’s attack by 6,000 fighters that occurred in a portion of the town of Pibor that was beyond the reach of the peacekeepers, said Col. Philip Auger of the South Sudan army.

Most staffers affiliated with the non-profit group Doctors Without Borders, also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres, who were in the area “fled into the bush, along with the populations” of Pibor and the village of Lekongle before the attack, said Emily Linendoll, a spokeswoman for the group.

The non-profit’s clinic in Lekongle was “burned and looted,” she said, adding that its Pibor clinic “has been targeted.”

In addition to the threat of violence, Linendoll said that Doctors Without Borders believes “thousands are currently without access to water, food or health care” in the region.

“(Doctors Without Borders) is extremely worried for the populations of … Lekongle and Pibor,” she said.

Ethnic tensions in the South Sudan state of Jonglei have flared as tribes fight over grazing lands and water rights — disagreements that have dissolved into cattle raids and abduction of women and children.

The United Nations said it sent a battalion of peacekeepers to Pibor on Friday amid reports that fighters — members of the Lou Nuer tribe — were marching toward Pibor, home to the Murle tribe.

The attack on Pibor follows reports last week that Lou Nuer fighters raided the town of Lukangol, burning it to the ground and forcing thousands to flee toward Pibor.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon last week urged the groups to work with the government of South Sudan to find solutions.

South Sudan’s vice president, Riek Machar, is leading an initiative to bridge the differences between the Lou Nuer and Murle tribes, including encouraging the armed groups to disband and go home, the U.N. has said.

The violence in Jonglei state is the latest to rock South Sudan, which officially gained its statehood in July after separating from the north.

Fighting erupted between Sudan’s army and South Sudan rebels in Southern Kordofan even before independence was formalized. The violence has since spread to other areas.

Within a few months, refugee camps filled as fighting in the border states of Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile intensified, displacing an estimated 400,000 people, according to the United Nations and aid agencies, such as Medicins Sans Frontieres (MSF) or Doctors Without Borders.

That, in addition to the crisis in the Darfur region — where war broke out in 2003 — qualifies Sudan as one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, according to the United Nations

Bonga Oil Spill Is Devastating Coastal Communities In Delta, says Uduaghan

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Delta State Governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan, has lamented the impact of the recent Bonga oil spill on some communities in Delta State and across the Niger Delta states. Governor Uduaghan has therefore called on Shell to give full disclosure of the impact and extent of damage of the spill.

He said while this is not the time for buck passing as is gradually happening over the washing up of the spilled oil on the shores of the coastal communities, whose marine life and therefore economic wellbeing are deeply threatened, he expects Shell to take steps to ensure adequate cleanup and compensation for the communities affected.

Governor Uduaghan dismissed claims by Shell that the spill was contained before spreading as not being supported by hard evidence of what is happening in Ogulaha, Beniboye and Okuntu in Delta State and Orobiri, Odiama and Aggeh communities in Bayelsa State, which have experienced the impact of the spilled oil.

Governor Uduaghan reminded Shell that BP took steps to act in cleaning up and compensating those affected by its large scale spill in the Gulf of Mexico two years ago and does not think the Niger Delta environment should be different.

Governor Uduaghan further called on the federal government through its agencies, NOSDRA and NIMASA to ensure that full remedial measures are taken to restore the environment and to mitigate further damage.

According to Governor Uduaghan, “shortly before Christmas it was reported that a blow out occurred leading to spill in the Bonga oil field. Recent events now show that my fear of the spill spreading to the shores as a likely consequence has occurred. Although Shell claims that its containment of the spill was successful, reports before me from communities indicate otherwise.

“My position is that this is not the time to avoid responsibility on this issue. Shell should step forward and follow the examples of BP which had similar experience and acted responsibly. Delta state will follow closely what happens in those communities and demands that necessary action be taken to restore the environment back to the people.”

Who is Obama kidding?

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By Mike Rosen

In his campaign speech earlier this month in Osawatomie, Kan., President Obama dramatically revealed his desperate re-election strategy of class warfare and big government. He has little choice. He certainly can’t run on his record, so he’s going all in on his fundamental ideology.

The speech got rave reviews from the left, encouraged that Obama has rediscovered his inner self. Paul Krugman​ and E.J. Dionne loved it. So did Robert Reich​, the leading advocate for socialism in the Clinton administration during his stint as secretary of labor, although he did scold Obama for including the Tea Party with the Occupiers in a part of the speech about the debate over “the defining issue of our time.” Reich asserted that “the former (Tea Party) hates government; the latter focuses blame on Wall Street and corporate greed.” (And welshing on their student loans.)

No, the Tea Party doesn’t hate government. It admires many elements of government like the military, cops, firefighters, originalist judges, conservative legislators and presidents like Ronald Reagan​. It just believes in limited government. But even in the Reagan administration, the rollback of intrusive government was modest at best. The frustration for those who seek to limit government is that it’s so difficult to do. The Tea Party and many Republicans heaped criticism on George W. Bush for the expansion of government from 2001-06 while Republicans had a majority in Congress.

Obama’s biggest whopper in that speech was his misrepresentation of his conservative critics. As he put it, “Their philosophy is simple. We are better off when everybody is left to fend for themselves and play by their own rules.” What fantasy world does he live in? Does he imagine that our government, whether Democrats or Republicans are in power, comes anywhere close or is likely to leave people to “fend for themselves and play by their own rules”?

Most importantly and appropriately, we have the Department of Defense to provide military protection. Then there’s the FBI and the CIA to protect us from enemies domestic and foreign. Our water and air are protected by the Environmental Protection Agency​. Interstate business is regulated by the Department of Commerce​, which, unless the Supreme Court trumps Obamacare, will also mandate that we buy health insurance. Social Security protects our retirement. Medicare and Medicaid underwrite our health care. The IRS collects federal taxes from 53 percent of the population to subsidize the other 47 percent. Food stamps feed the poor; housing subsidies provide their shelter. The Americans with Disabilities Act protects the disabled. The Voting Rights Act protects minorities. The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights protects everyone. The Department of Education ensures that no child will be left behind. The National Labor Relations Board​, under Obama, favors labor unions at the expense of businesses. The Securities and Exchange Commission protects our investments; the FDIC, our bank accounts; the Food and Drug Administration, our food and drugs. The Consumer Product Safety Commission​ protects consumers. And I’m just scratching the surface. At about 80,000 pages, the Federal Register keeps us informed about the status of mountains of laws and regulations.

These myriad departments, agencies, bureaus, commissions, committees, services, panels, etc., regulate and seek to control, to one degree or another, most every element of our personal lives and businesses. While government is a necessary part of our society, by its very nature and its monopoly power in most of its functions, it is inherently inefficient, bureaucratic and political. Where government or a quasi-governmental undertaking does have to compete with the private sector (like the U.S. Postal Service), its inefficiencies and excessive costs are readily apparent. It all constitutes an overhead cost on our economy that’s essential to limit.

Everybody left to fend for themselves, indeed. Who’s Obama kidding?

Mike Rosen’s radio show airs weekdays from 9 a.m. to noon on 850-KOA.

End of the year tragedy: 52 massacred in Ebonyi

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Tragedy struck in the early hours of Saturday, specifically at about 5.30am, when unidentified gunmen stormed Ezillo community in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, killing 52 persons and destroyed property worth millions of naira.

Also killed in the mayhem, was a Divisional Police Officer (DPO), name withheld, attached to the Ezillo divisional police station.

An eyewitness, Mr Ikechukwu Eze,  told newsmen, who accompanied Governor Martin Elechi  to the community  at Ezillo, that the assassins  besieged the community in six buses early in the morning and   started shooting sporadically at the villagers which left many dead, while a number of houses were also set ablaze.

Victims of the mayhem included children between the ages of 2 and 10 years as well as the aged.

According to him, “We woke up this morning and saw unknown people who stormed our village and started shooting people. There are some people whose  entire households have  been wiped out,” he declared.

Governor Martin Elechi, who visited the community in company of the state Commissioner of Police, Adeniji Adeleke, shed tears at the gory sight, as dead bodies littered the scene of the incident.

The governor urged the villagers to remain calm as government would use every means to fish out the perpetrators of the heinous crimes.

Another eyewitness, Mr Jacob Ogodo, told reporters that his entire family had been wiped out, noting that all his credentials were destroyed by the assassins.

Meanwhile, the Ezillo axis of Abakaliki/Enugu expressway has been closed to traffic to forestall motorists and commuters falling victims to the tragedy.

It will be recalled that communal clashes and conflict, had in 2007, erupted between the Ezillo community and their Ezza/Ezillo neighbours resulting in the loss of lives and destruction of property.

The Federal Government  had, at different times, drafted a combined team of mobile policemen and military officers to the community to restore peace and order.

Sudan military helicopter crashes, six killed

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KHARTOUM: The Sudanese army says a military helicopter has crashed, killing all six crew on board, including two army officers.

The official Sudan news agency quoted an army statement as saying the helicopter crashed shortly after takeoff from al Obied, the North Kordofan capital.

The statement said the military helicopter developed a technical problem. The pilot tried to land at a field outside the airport but the helicopter crashed, killing the six on board, according to the Friday statement. Two were officers and the other four were technicians.

It said the helicopter was on an administrative mission.

Madalla Bombing: Visit by Anglican Primate

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Nsukka Zone Has Been Well Represented In The Senate – Youth Leader

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Precisely on 27th December 2011, the people of Igbo Eze  North Local Government Area in Enugu State organized a civic reception in honour of one of their illustrious sons senator Ayogu Eze who is currently representing Nsukka senatorial District in the upper chamber of the National Assembly. Senator Eze is the chairman senate committee on works. In this interview Hon. Innocent Ugwu,(Okogba) a chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party and a youth  leader in  Nsukka, zone  examines the performance of the 2nd term Senator. He also spoke on the plight of the youths and the politics of Enugu State etc.

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As a youth leader, you could be very conversant with the Grassroots, how would you asses the impact of Democracy on the Grassroots in Enugu State over the years?

Thank you very much. Democracy has been actively functioning and yielding tremendous impact at all levels in Enugu  State since the  incumbent Governor, Barr. Sullivan Iheanacho Chime assumed office in 2007. it is on record  that Enugu State is one of the states that  has consistently conducted elections into the Local Government system for the past years. The Local Government election give democracy  the lee way to function  at ward level which is the Grassroots Base.

 Fortunately enough most of the people who have been privileged to serve as local government chairmen and ward councilors were able to work in line with the Governor’s ever effective 4 point Agenda thereby coming the grassroots along. For example in Igbo-Eze  North , my Local Government , villagers  now ride bicycle on Asphalt tarred roads. This is unlike past years when tarred road only exist in the cities. In addition  to this, villagers in my area also have water and medical services at their  door steps. The Igbo Eze North local government administration under Hon. Chijioke Ugwu was able to sink enough bore   holes and build health centres  around the people and as such they no long have to walk on far distance to fetch water of to see a medical doctor for health purposes.

Other  amenities like electricity, class room blocks for primary and secondary schools were massively put in place  by Hon. Ugwu’s Leadership. Permit me also to observe that rural dwellers in Enugu State have benefited some food developmental projects from intervention bodies like world Bank, DFID, LEEMP and UNICEF etc. for instance the world Bank in Collaboration with ministry of Agriculture recently awarded a road project contract with over N90 million in a cashed producing community  in Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State. These are evidence that Democracy is thriving on the Grassroots in the local city State.

 

There is emerging impression among political observers that Enugu is a one party state following the recent local government election as opposition parties could not filed candidates in most local governments either for chairmanship or councillorship, what’s your take one this?

 

The impression is wrong, Enugu is not a one party state. The truth of the situation is that opposition parties have completely failed to stand the test of time  in Enugu as a result of the good performance of the incumbent administration at all levels. A well  meaning observer could easily trace the failure of the oppositions the fact that Government is doing very well.

Think about a situation where villagers ride bicycle on a tarred road, have water and hospitals at  their door steps, good class rooms and electricity, you discover that any candidate from this government party could  win election. This is the true position of the politics of the local city state.

The oppositions have always accused governor Chime of not creating jobs for the youths. Can you defend His Excellency on this accusation as a stake holder of youths?

The issue of unemployment among the youths is a national problem not just in Enugu State.  However in Enugu, I can assure you that Government at all level don’t sleep over it. In fact the leaders in Enugu from the local government chairmen, state legislatures, and federal legislatures to the Governor’s office the youths have been accorded passionate attention in Enugu.

For examples as I know, Local government chairman Hon. Ugwu empowered the youths with Motorcycles and monthly stipend to keep them off crime related activities . the state and federal legislatures from my area also issued motorcycles and scholarship to a quite number of students. They also secure job opportunities for a good number of  us.   

Our distinguished Senator as I know has been able to secure jobs for over 100  youths since 2007. Quote me any where anytime. I am not a praise singer I’m stating the facts. Senator Eze is very passionate on the youths. From the governor’s office I learnt that there is on going programme on Agriculture called Songhai initiative aimed at giving the youths exposure into modern day farming. His Excellency through the initiative is making a conventional effort to redirect the youths into modern farming either to process or cultivate and we are buying into the initiative. You see the problem of the  youths is that they are more interested in white colar jobs and everybody  knows that such jobs are not readily available.

Talking about Senator Eze, what would you say he has been able to achieve in addition to getting jobs for the youths?

A lot of things. Firstly he has been able to give Nsukka zone a desired sense of belonging in the senate. He has made Nsukka man to be proud in Abuja like never before through his active participation in the activities of the senate,. Secondly he has been able to attract the presence of Federal Government for Road  projects and damming of Adada river. I learn that the Iheaka-ugwu awara-Nkalagu road project is on going.  He has also brought  projects on Education and other sectors through MDGS and other sources. There is a  magazine where he documented all his achievements, I cann’t give them off hands. What I want to assure you is that the Senator has lived up to our expectations and we are very proud of him.

What’s your expectations on the newly elected local Government administration in Enugu State?

 

They should copy His Excellency in rendering selfish service to those that elected them. Let them consolidate on the massive projects they inherited on ground  and make sure that those areas water, road, electricity, schools etc are needed get them. Then they should ensure that Songhai Initiative works in their area with a view to empower the youths as planned by His Excellency.

My Questions on Ojukwu

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By Tochukwu Ezukanma

My study and research of Nigerian history made it possible for me to extricate myself from the lingering grip of the Biafran propaganda, which still retains a powerful hold on most Igbo minds. It gave me a new perspective on Biafra and the civil war, a perspective, remarkably different from my earlier viewpoint shaped through the distorted prisms of the Biafran propaganda.  

It is common place knowledge that a student who fails all his examinations is a bad student. And that a medical doctor who looses to death every patient that gets his medical attention is a bad doctor. Why then do the Igbo consider a man whose every political move ended in failure or disaster a good leader?

The January 1966 military coup took the Nigerian political crisis to new heights. It decimated the northern Nigerian leadership and brought the military into Nigerian politics. By extension, it sparked off the northern Nigerian counter coup of July ’66 and the mass murder of the Igbo in northern Nigeria and other parts of the country. There were several attempts to resolve this political crisis. As the search for peace continued, Ojukwu, as the governor of Eastern Region, refused to recognize Yakubu Gowon as the new military Head of State and repeatedly defied the Federal Government. Yet, the Federal Government did not attack Eastern Region.      

It was Ojukwu’s declaration of Biafra that triggered off the civil war. The declaration of Biafra went against the advice of the Igbo political leaders and elders, especially, Nnamdi Azikiwe. Biafranism was a monumental blunder that will continue to cast a very dark shadow over Igbo land for a very long time. It was an apogee of recklessness. It was unparalleled in its disdain for reason and caution. It did not require the most rudimentary knowledge of history or politics to know that Biafra was to be a doomed enterprise.

By 1966, history had provided the instructive precedence that there could be no secession without war. Why did the Oxford educated historian ignore that incontrovertible lesson of history by declaring Biafra without preparation for the inevitable war that was to follow?

From day one, Biafra was to be a colossal waste in human effort and human lives. For Biafra was not only ill-prepared and operating from a position of extreme weakness, she could not count on any serious support from anywhere. She could not count on the support of her neighbors, the African countries, because the Organization of African Unity (OAU), as a body, was opposed to secession. The organization’s charter recognized the gross imperfections inherent in the boundaries African countries inherited from their colonial masters. However, it was opposed to the tinkering with these boundaries for whatever reason, because attempts to change the borders in respect to cultural and ethnic homogeneity or for the self-determination of national units within multinational countries will result in unprecedented upheavals in Africa.

Secondly, there were secessionist movements in a number of the African countries: Ethiopia, Sudan, Zaire, Senegal, etc. A successful secession anywhere in Africa would encourage and embolden these secessionist movements. Therefore, the generality of the African countries were opposed to secession in general, and quite naturally, to Biafra in particular.

Nigeria is within the British sphere of influence. So, Britain reserved the sole right to determine the fate of Nigeria. No Western nation could intervene in Nigeria against British interests, because they have learnt the hard way to respect the spheres of influence of the other powers. The First World War was a war of spheres of influence. It was the explosive mix of two struggles for dominance: the struggle for global dominance that pitted Germany against France and Britain, and the rivalry for control in the Balkans between the Russian and the Hapsburg (Austrian) Empires that set off the 1st World War. And from where the 1st World War ended, the 2nd World War finished off.

Not surprisingly, the United States of America invaded Panama, a sovereign nation, arrested her president and imprisoned him in the USA, without a murmur from the corridors of power of any Western Power. Panama is within the US area of geopolitical domain. Despite American’s total abandonment of Liberia (during her civil war), no major power went into Liberia to fill the American political and diplomatic void. The peace accord that ended the war in Rhodesia, a renegade British colony, later renamed Zimbabwe, was brokered by the British government. After many years of civil war, it was the British that finally determined the political fate of Sierra Leone, a former British colony. At the outbreak of the Ivorian civil war, France naturally intervened, diplomatically and militarily, in Ivory Coast, a former French colony. She has remained the only major power handling that conflict in line with her diplomatic and other interests.

Similarly, it was the prerogative of the British government to determine the political destiny of Nigeria as of 1967. And as Britain wanted Nigeria to remain a unified country, no Western Power could have acted against that British objective. Some European powers, France and Portugal, and even the United States, especially during the Nixon administration, sympathized with Biafra, but could not get involved.

A leader who chose to ignore the lessons of history, the advice of the elders, the prevailing sentiments among African countries and the global power politics was to, unavoidably, lead his people to disaster. And indisputably, Ojukwu led the Igbo to catastrophe – a quagmire of powerlessness and helplessness.

As Biafra finally collapsed, not counting the at least one million Igbo that starved to death, hundreds of thousands of youths, the cream and flower of the Igbo nation, laid dead. Igbo land lay prostrate, completely prostrate; at the feet of a battle harden army flush with victory. With a collective physiognomy that revealed raw scares of unspeakable human misery, contortions of pains and sorrow and a blank stare of despondency, the Igbo trudged out of the remaining vestiges of Biafra with their future hinging precariously at the whims of Yakubu Gowon. As for Chukwuemeka Ojukwu, he was gone. He abandoned his people and ran away to the safety and comfort of an Ivorian exile.  

So, to the Igbo nation, a man who despised the advice of the Igbo political elders, ignored the lessons of history and disregarded the realities of African geopolitics and the dynamics of global power politics, and consequently, led us into disaster is our celebrated leader? And a man who had no qualms in sacrificing  countless Igbo lives for the struggle, but then, abandoned the struggle, and ran for his own dear life is our hero?

If our answers to these questions are yes, then the Igbo, as a people, have lost their sense of outrage. As such, we are in need of deep introspection, profound soul searching and reorienting our value system. We are also in a desperate need to retrieve and restore our sense of outrage. For, in the words of a United States’ Senator, Daniel Moynihan, “any nation that has lost her sense of outrage is destined for extinction”.

Tochukwu Ezukanma writes from Lagos, Nigeria.

maciln18@yahoo.com

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Weeping For The Forsaken General

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By Muhammad Ajah
 
The public will see through any cosmetic or token gestures and will not tolerate a continuation of status quo. Corruption and plunder are the root causes of unemployment, insecurity, violence and unrest, General Muhammadu Buhari, while reacting to emergency situation in Nigeria.
 
Although I was quite confident that the Supreme Court would deliver a sound judgement contrary to a popular one in regards to the court challenge from the number one Nigerian opposition party of today, the Congress of Progressive Change (CPC), I could not hold my tears as I pondered over the speech of General Muhammadu Buhari on the verdict on Tuesday December 28, 2011.
 
My continued main worry for the General is that he so much believes in Nigeria and has often felt that things are not done the right way, thus his resolve at every political dispensation to fight the evil cartels that have held the nation to nothingness in terms of development, unity and peace. Each time he mounts his horse to the warfront; the same men who prepared the horse for him would desert him and dine with his enemies.
 
The General has been forsaken. But I can’t be sure that he has really realized that the war to change this country towards the right direction is not for Godly, soft-hearted and considerably humane people. Such people much be characterized by qualities that can be the semblance of chameleon, tortoise and in the commonest quote a green serpent in green grass.
 
I had often refused to believe that there is gentility in the army. I grew up partly in an army barrack and as a small boy, I thought that the army is a set of people built to defend the weak. I also attended Army Day School where we were trained to be not only stubborn in the right direction but to be orderly and manly. So, one feels lost contending with how the General climbed to this enviable position in the army with a civic mind.  But I also know that soldiers do never surrender.
 
What are the General’s crimes that he can never be allowed to make a trial in REDIRECTING Nigeria? What did he do wrong while he was the Head of State? Why have all the Generals lost the espirit de corps bond in the military and the security force at large as it regards this lofty-hearted General? Summarily, why is this General fearfully feared by a dreadful cabal?   
 
Many compatriots are undone by the daily ugly development in the country since the return of Nigeria to democratic governance in 1999. Things have continued to worsen. Each government that comes democratically proves to be incapacitated to handle the complexity of the Nigerian nation. Four success democratic government! Is 2015 going to be any different?   
 
After a thorough scrutiny of the General’s speech, few points lined themselves up for my admiration. The first is that the nation has not conducted any widely accepted general elections since 1999. Four of such jamborees have been organized. In 2003 and 2007, the elections were also challenged at the Supreme Court and the verdict was not unexpected.  
 
The General says that all Nigerian patriots who witnessed the conduct of the elections knew that the decision of the Supreme Court has always been politically motivated, thus having little judicial content. Therefore, he bitterly posited that the 2011 Supreme Court has proved no better than the Supreme Courts of 2003 and 2007.
 
Secondly, there was the misconception that a new umpire for Nigeria’s elections would make a difference after Professor Maurice Iwu-led INEC announced prepaid results in favour of the ruling party. There was also the misconception that the judiciary was the last hope of the mass. At that time, the Justice Idris Kutigi-led Supreme Court after indiscriminate adjournments, declared the election valid, with three justices dissenting.
 
Thirdly is the significance of international observers who condemned the elections in no uncertain terms, yet their governments were quick to send congratulatory messages to the presidents from such elections. What do the observers tell their governments?
 
However, having been part and parcel of the 2003, 2007 and 2011 presidential elections, the General concluded that what happened in 2011 elections superseded all the other elections in the depth and scope of forgery and rigging. The hopes were chartered. Then, another INEC Professor, Attahiru Jega was bought in for the job, and after asking for and getting close on 100 billion naira for the elections including biometric data with all ten finger prints to conduct a thorough electoral exercise, he botched it.
 
Furthermore, the riots that broke out in parts of the country after the announcement of the 2011 Presidential result was wrongly ascribed to the General. The Justice Ahmad Lemu Panel had a different interpretation in its detailed causes of the reactions from the fallout of the election. As the General stated, the facts were that people were deeply angered and deeply provoked at the wanton conduct of the elections: the snatching and stuffing of ballot boxes, violence unleashed on opposition supporters, use of the police and elements of the army to intimidate injure and kill opposition supporters and flagrant change of results after collation such as in Niger, Bauchi and Kaduna states. Moreover, he asserted, the declaration of 86% – 90% of votes registered and cast in most part of the South-East and South-South states was highly implausible given the general turn-out of 50% – 60% in the rest of the country.
 
Wonderful how election can be regarded as credible where 100% of votes cast were for one candidate in many constituencies and 90% in some states! No election can be validated if 100% of those registered all cast their votes in favour of the same candidate! Was it for these reasons that INEC refused to release the biometric data? Why then did the Supreme Court turned a blind eye and deaf ear to all these irregularities that have run through all three elections since 2003?  
 
The General warns on an emergency situation that looms in the country. To many of Nigerians, the situation is more pathetic when law and order are broken with impunity at any time, while the political leaders feel complacent with verbal promises and theoretical solutions in place of practical actions.
 
Steps which are known to all Nigerians and which have been proffered by many citizens were re-echoed by the General. These solutions are never new but what is new is that he advocates abolishment of security votes. Other steps to assist in good governance are:
–          drastic reduction of the cost of governance in the three tiers of government
–          drastic reduction of salaries and especially allowances
–          security votes should not be increased as the 2012 Budget has done
–          votes for the Armed Forces, Police and Security Services should be transparent and accountable
–          foreign travel and estacodes should be stopped for at least six months except for the Presidency, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and medical emergencies
–          government house expenses in all the states should be drastically reduced
–          foreign travel for state officials should be suspended for a while
–          allowances for members of the National Assembly should be reduced substantially while their foreign travels should be stopped
–          savings from these sources should be channelled to education, infrastructure and agriculture with emphasis on youth employment through meaningful and practical emergency programmes.
 
In his words, if all hands are on deck to help save Nigeria from imminent collapse, the country would stabilize. When stability is attained, Nigerians can then come together to discuss the country’s structure in a calm and unemotional atmosphere. Are these Biblical and Qur’anic recitations on a seemingly ruined land and people by its people?  Hopefully not!
 
Muhammad Ajah is a writer, author, advocate of humanity and good governance based in Abuja. E-mail mobahawwah@yahoo.co.uk

Jonathan Declares State of Emergency

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Information available to 247ureports.com indicate that the Presidet of Nigeria has declared a State of Emergency in four [5] States of Nigeria – Plateau, Niger, Yobe and Borno States.

The annoucement was made today by the President at 4pm.

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ADDRESS BY HIS EXCELLENCY, PRESIDENT GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN, GCFR, ON THE OCCASION OF THE DECLARATION OF A STATE OF EMERGENCY IN CERTAIN PARTS OF THE FEDERATION IN ORDER TO RESTORE PULIC ORDER, PEACE AND SECURITY IN THE FEDERATION, December 31, 2011

 

 

       Fellow Nigerians, it has become necessary to address you on recent events in some parts of the country that have threatened our collective security and shaken the foundations of our corporate existence as a nation.

2.    You are all aware of the security challenges which the activities of the Boko Haram sect have foisted on the country. What began as sectarian crises in the North Eastern parts of the country has gradually evolved into terrorist activities in different parts of the country with attendant negative consequences on our national security.

3.      Government in an effort to find a lasting solution to the security threats occasioned by the activities of the Boko Haram sect, constituted a Presidential Committee under the Chairmanship of Ambassador Usman Gaji Galtimari, to ascertain the immediate and remote causes of the crises. While efforts are being made to implement the recommendations of the Committee, the crises have assumed a terrorist dimension with vital institutions of government including the United Nations Building and places of worship becoming targets of terrorist attacks.

4.   While the search for lasting solutions is ongoing, it has become imperative to take some decisive measures necessary to restore normalcy in the country especially within the affected communities. Consequently, I have in the exercise of the powers conferred on me by the provisions of section 305(1) of the Constitution, declared a state of emergency in the following parts of the federation, namely:

(i)  Borno State

a)  Maidugiri Metropolitan LGA

b)  Gamboru Ngala LGA

c)   Banki Bama LGA

d)  Biu LGA

e)   Jere LGA

(ii)  Yobe State

a)  Damaturu LGA

b)  Geidam LGA

c)   Potiskum LGA

d)  Buniyadi-Gujba LGA

e)   Gasua-Bade LGA

    (iii) Plateau State

a)  Jos North LGA

b)  Jos South LGA

c)   Barkin-Ladi LGA

d)  Riyom LGA

   (iv) Niger State

a)  Suleja LGA

The details of this proclamation will be transmitted to the National Assembly as soon as they reconvene from their current recess, for their necessary action.

5.    The Chief of Defence Staff and the Inspector-General of Police have been directed to put appropriate measures in place to ensure the protection of lives and properties of residents in the affected parts of the country. I therefore urge the political leadership in the affected states and Local Government Areas to give maximum cooperation to the law enforcement agencies deployed to their respective communities to ensure that the situation is brought under control within the shortest possible time.

6.   The Chief of Defence Staff, in collaboration with other Service Chiefs, has also been directed to set up a special force unit within the Armed Forces, with dedicated counter terrorism responsibilities.

7.   As part of the overall strategy to overcome the current security challenges, I have directed the closure of the land borders contiguous to the affected Local Government Areas so as to control incidences of cross boarder terrorist activities as terrorists have taken advantage of the present situation to strike at targets in Nigeria and retreat beyond the reach of our law enforcement personnel.

8.  Let me assure our neighbours, especially within the ECOWAS sub-region, of Nigeria’s commitment to its international obligations as provided by the ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement of Persons. The temporary closure of our borders in the affected areas is only an interim measure designed to address the current security challenges and will be reviewed as soon as normalcy is restored.

9.   I commend the efforts of our political leaders at various levels as well as our traditional and religious leaders for their support for the various conflict resolution mechanisms and peace building measures that have been initiated by this administration. We call on the citizenry to continue to provide useful information to our law enforcement agencies to enable us arrest the situation.

10. Terrorism is a war against all of us. I call on all Nigerians to join hands with government to fight these terrorists.

11. I wish all Nigerians a very happy New Year.

12.   Long Live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

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