Photo gist

'New PDP' Lawmaker Aliyu Sani Madaki from Kano State (wearing red cap) in a shouting match with his colleague Saviour Udoh from Akwa Ibom State, who is loyal to the Bamanga Tukur PDP faction, during the House of Representative session on Tuesday......SMH

INEC APPROVES REGISTRATION OF APC AS A POLITICAL PARTY.

Poor Goodluck: Nigerians were not the only electrically challenged bunch (well at least for 34minutes, we weren't)

Christiane Amanpour said today "after the super bowl power outage, people in Nigeria were amused to find out they weren't the only ones electrically challenged" she brought up President Goodluck Jonathan's latest CNN interview when he said the country's electrical woes were improving "that's one area Nigerians are quite pleased with the Government..." ...cue CNNs vox pop! The people on Nigerias streets said " It's a lie"..."nothing has changed"hmmmm. Its not often you hear these two words in a sentence POOR and GOODLUCK? ...poor Goodluck!   

Lord Lugard created Nigeria to last for only a 100 years..... I regard it as a challenge

From www.naijapundit.com

From former military President, Ibrahim Babangida came a shocker yesterday when he revealed that Lord Lugard created Nigeria to last for only a 100 years.

The self acclaimed evil genius said this in Lagos yesterday at the presentation of 2 books in honor of his foreign affairs minister, Bolaji Akinyemi.

Speaking yesterday Babangida had said “As Nigerians, we are aware of the great doubts that have been cast about what 2014 portends for the continuing existence of our nation. I am aware that Nigerians have taken great umbrage at these predictions. Even Lord Lugard who founded what has been called Nigeria gave it a life-span of 100 years. I regard it as a challenge to our intelligence to ensure that these portends and prophesies do not become self-fulfilling.

“We should engage these predictions on an intellectual level, testing whether the facts justify the conclusions.

“But on a practical and public policy level, we must import honesty into our public policy assessment. First, we must identify the problems that need to be addressed. Secondly, we must address these problems honestly. Thirdly, we must identify the most current and the most appropriate mechanism for addressing these issues.

“Let me make this clear. My position is not dictated by the fact that foreigners are making these predictions. We don’t even need foreigner sources as a reference point. The Nigerian media is awash with alarming news about our problems.

“My position is dictated by my conviction that Nigeria is precious enough to be saved. It deserves an investment of our time and resources to make Project Nigeria a success. But the starting point has to be an admission that we need to fix things.”

Babangida also stated that mistakes of past administrations are putting pressure on the country today though he refused to identify the mistakes or the past administrations that made them.

Said he “Some of the mistakes of the past have now come to haunt us. But let me make one thing clear. Not all these mistakes were made out of callousness or bad faith or malice.

“Most people in office do their best. They act to the best of their ability. Unless we think that our leaders have divine ability, we have to admit that even with all the best of their abilities and even with the best faith and with the best of all intentions, human beings will still make mistakes,”

In his own comments, ProfessorAkinyemi called for a national dialogue saying “Zoning, federal character, rotation, marginalisation of the brightest and the best will only make the much prophesied collapse of Nigeria in 2014 a self- fulfilling prophecy. We cannot build a nation on a system that takes care of the few while condemning the many to penury. A system that cannot take care of the many that are poor cannot save the few who are rich."

Source 

Still on the controversy of Chinua Achebes memoirs........

I encourage more memoirs to be written as long as the writer writes it from truth, personal experiences and observations. Irrespective of the outcome.
Today the politician Alex Ekweme turns 80, now, I would love to read his memoirs!. Someone like MT Mbu, who had a lot to say about the way history has presented itself eg his surprise declaration that Tafawa Balewa died of an asthma attack not a gun shot wound never wrote his memoirs.

Its true when they say ‘Each time an old man dies a library is burnt.’

The Jan 1966 coup was the excuse given for the genocide that proceeded in Nigeria that ultimately led to the civil war.

People will like you to believe the first military coup was an Igbo affair. But how could it have been, when the objective was to free Awolowo and install him as leader? But no doubt that coup became the reason for a chain of events that would change the political culture of our Nation.

I still feel the truth has not fully been told. Maybe its just my suspicious mind and the conspiracy theorist within, but I think that the plotters (and some of the victims) were specifically chosen as part of an elaborate grand plan.

Maybe a memoir would have explained the bewilderment of someone like Nzeogwu, an outstandingly meticulous, young Major, clearly in possession of his senses. But uttered these words when he gave himself up:

“We have pledged allegiance to
General Ironsi on behalf of all men who were for some unknown reasons,
referred to as ‘rebels’. We feel that it is absurd that men who risked their
lives to establish the new regime should be held prisoners. We wanted to
change the government for the benefit of everybody else...” ....This reeked of betrayal.

How else do you explain their treatment?
The assassins of our founding leaders apparently going scott free?. Crazy! Nzeogwu and his colleagues were never court -martialed. Instead, they remained on government payroll and were set free after some time in protective custody. They were allowed to communicate with their families and friends.
Even when Nzeogwu was killed in the East his body was taken to Kaduna and given the honour of a military burial.

I have come to realize these young men, must have done something grossly
appreciating for the successive Juntas and governments!

Its my personal opinion that Nzeogwu was a tool in the hands of superior officers, including those who emerged as major beneficiaries of his action and they used the July counter coup of ridding those that would stand in their way.

The Olympics Torch Arrives In Nigeria

The Olympics torch has arrived in  Nigeria as part of the countdown to the London 2012 Games.
Speaking at the event in Abuja, the Deputy British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Giles Lever, said the torch represented peace wherever it goes.
He said it symbolised the power of sports to overcome divisions between countries and religions and ``to bind them all together in celebration of hope and an honest competition.’’
Lever added that the binding idea originated in Greece to suspend wars during the Olympic Games.
``During the period of the Olympics, all wars and hostilities will be suspended; athletes will be free to travel from different territories to come to the games and compete in peace.
``As far as the torch burnt there was peace and a cessation of hostility between all of the different states and cities,’’ he noted.

CELEBRATION OF ARRIVAL OF THE 2012 OLYMPIC TORCH IN ABUJA VIA NAN

Continue reading at source

Nigeria Not Producing Good Players Anymore – Wenger

Arsene Wenger,  Known  for  his ability to spot  and develop players from around the world, Speaks frankly about Nigerian player Nwankwo Kanu, Mikel Obi and the need for Nigeria to invest and develop quality players. 
I have taken excerpts from his chat with Sunday Vanguard’s Jimoh Babatunde :

Since the exit of  Nwankwo Kanu from Arsenal, we have not had another Nigerian in the club. What’s your impression of Nigerian players in the EPL?
For me, Kanu was an exceptional player. I saw Kanu in the Olympic games, he arrived there late. It was the preparations and he was the best player there when Nigeria won. I like Kanu because he was not only a great player, but he was very brave, and you could travel with him anywhere.
I think he was very great in representing Nigeria. He was a player that everybody loved here, as well as a man everybody loved here in England.
He never complained, you could kick him from everywhere, and he would never say a word, and he was very brave.
Then he created his heart foundation, and he does a good job with that. He is brave; when you have his knees, and you still play today, you must be brave.
Why are you not taking more Nigerians to the club?
(It is) for one single reason. It is that Nigeria is a massive country, but I believe that at the moment, they do not produce enough players anymore. It is 140 million people who love football. I met the Minister of Sports during the World Cup, and he talked about that situation. I think Nigeria has a job to do with the youths, to rebuild the system.
From the explanation I got, every province is different in terms of their system, but there is no global system to educate young players. It is vital to me that they educate the young people…They do not produce any good players, not enough anymore.
Is there a window of opportunity from this tour to create the platform for a relationship between Arsenal and Nigeria?
To create a relationship, I think is a good start, but our stay is too short to create something deeper and to create the communication such that Nigeria can be very important. We are not staying for such a long time that would allow for that.
How do you rate Mikel Obi as a midfielder in the EPL?
He plays  for Chelsea, and if you play  for Chelsea, you are a great player. But he had strange  movement  out of Nigeria because he was in Norway, and then he came back for Man United  before Chelsea, so he did it in a complicated way.
But since he has shown great quality. He is as well a bit of the Kanu type, he is strong in character, he is a fighter, and he is doing extremely well, but maybe you have more of these players in Nigeria who do not get the chance to go out.
On the pre-season tour
We compromised, honestly on the sporting side because we had a rational methodical approach of our pre-season and we sacrificed some of that to go on tour…I realized when I was at the World Cup in South Africa, how popular a club like Arsenal is in Africa, especially in Nigeria. It was unbelievable. I was even frightened at some stage by how popular Arsenal is in Kenya as well. It is absolutely unbelievable, so every morning at breakfast, I had some meetings with people from all over Africa, and I realized how popular our club was over there.
I don’t really know how you can transform that popularity into market…
On football development
I believe that there again, when you think about potentially developing players, it is first to have the coaches.
So chronologically, you have to educate people to coach, and then create schools where you can develop the players.
To make it as simple as possible, football is first a technical sport. It is not natural to use your feet to do something. Your feet are made to walk through the street, not necessarily to play football.
So you have first to transform someone into a football player, and that is between ages 5 and 12 years old. When you come at 14, it is too late. That is why you have to educate people to teach the basics of our sport between five and 12.
The kind of quality the coaches need is to know what you can do to develop people, that is the exercises that you can give, and as well to teach him not to make basic mistakes.
There are two things in our job that can be very dangerous. One, not to develop the potential of a person, the other is to disturb the potential of a person by making him do the wrong things. Sometimes, we can as well do that.
Your fans in Nigeria are disappointed that you have not won a silverware for five years or so now.  As a manager, how do you feel about that?
You want to give me sleepless nights (laughter). But we have maintained our level at the top, but we couldn’t finish…It s true that we missed winning, but we were at many times very close.
Let’s not forget that in 2006, we were in the Champions League final and we have never gone out in the championship against small clubs. We went out most of the time against clubs who won it, like Barcelona, twice. That is what people forget.

Nigeria To Import Fuel From Niger Republic

                                        The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke

As the Republic of Niger initiates plans to evacuate its excess petroleum products it seems that Nigeria may soon start importing fuel from the Country.

Niger Republic’s minister of petroleum, Mr. Foumakoye Gado, is in the country to sign the African Petroleum Producers’ Association (APPA) Statute, which will make Niger become a bonafide member of the association.

Gado told journalists during the signing ceremony yesterday in Abuja that Niger’s present refining capacity is 20,000 barrels of oil per day, out of which the country can only consume 7,000 barrels, an equivalent of 1.113million litres of fuel, while the excess of 13,000 barrels, an  equivalent of 2.067million liters of fuel would be exported to Nigeria.The minister who spoke through an interpreter said, “We currently refine 20,000bpd and we consume only 7,000 barrels leaving an excess of 13,000 barrels. We hope to evacuate the excess to Nigeria. That is the major reason we are here.
He said the country in 2011 signed a contract for the commercialisation of crude production, adding that a feasibility study has been concluded to commence oil exportation which would boost  its crude production from the current 20,000bpd to 60,000bpd.
He adding, however, that Niger presently does not have any specific target country for its crude export, but said it would be done according to international standard.
The minister who was accompanied to the event by Niger’s ambassador to Nigeria, H.E Mansourmanan H.D, explained that his country resolved to join APPA, despite being a small oil producing nation, in order to tap into the experience of other member countries and ensure that her oil prospecting is a source of blessing to the country and not a resource curse, based on lessons learnt from other countries.
While noting that the association’s objective will impact on the country’s technical know-how and help build local capacity, Gado said his country will ensure that oil proceed is used to accelerate development. He said the country would begin the construction of its oil export pipeline which will be routed through Cameroon in 2013, after which exportation will commence in 2014 or 2015.
The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum, Engr. Goni I. Sheikh, who represented the minister of petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, while welcoming Niger to the association, noted  that signing the APPA Statute was mandatory for all member countries who wish to benefit fully from oil and gas exploration through the association’s support.
He said the objectives of the association include the promotion of cooperation among member countries in hydrocarbon exploration, promotion of technical assistance, coordination of marketing policies and strategies as well as studying ways of providing assistance to the oil importing African countries to meet their energy requirement.
While expressing optimism that the opportunity will further strengthen the bilateral relationship between Nigeria and Niger Republic, Sheikh added that the association operates a fund which is dedicated to financing studies and projects in the hydrocarbon and energy sector of APPA member countries

Source 

Vladimir Duthiers takes on Nigeria post for CNN

Vladimir Duthiers is to take on the role of CNN international correspondent based in Lagos, Nigeria, the network announced today.

Duthiers will join CNN’s contingent of Africa-based correspondents across the continent, as the network reaffirms its commitment to Nigeria. CNN currently has key bureaus in Lagos, Nairobi and Johannesburg – all headed up by bureau chief Kim Norgaard – as well as three weekly programs on CNN International focused on the continent: Marketplace Africa, Inside Africa and African Voices.

Parisa Khosravi, Senior Vice President for CNN Worldwide in charge of International Newsgathering, said: “Vladimir’s passion for journalism, impressive business background and his knack as a natural storyteller make him a fantastic choice to cover such a vibrant country and region.”

Duthiers joined CNN in 2009 as part of Christiane Amanpour’s original news program, Amanpour. He most recently served as an associate producer for Anderson Cooper 360°.

When an earthquake shook Haiti in January 2010, Duthiers was among the first journalists to arrive in Port-au-Prince. He spent several weeks on the ground field producing for CNN – including the AC360° team – which went on to win two Emmy awards for its coverage of the quake.

Earlier this year, Duthiers was on the scene as the Occupy Nigeria movement exploded onto the streets of Lagos. His reporting put the focus on the economic struggles of ordinary Nigerians and the tensions surrounding recent attacks by the Islamist terror group, Boko Haram.

Duthiers, who is fluent in French and Haitian Creole, has taken an unusual route to a career in journalism. Prior to joining CNN, he spent nearly 20 years in the financial services industry, travelling extensively around the world for clientele in 21 countries.

Duthiers holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Rhode Island and an M.S. from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism.

Vladimer Duthiers (vantagepointreportage.com)

Offender Rehabilitation: 181 Prisoners sit for UTME exams.

I wholeheartedly believe that it benefits society to rehabilitate those who commit crimes and have been adequately punished. It just makes sense right? what's the point of releasing angry "damaged" individuals into society?

We need to remember and accept that prisoners are members of the larger society whose movements have been restricted in mostly deplorable conditions. So prisons, apart from serving as custodians for the convicted should also double as a reformative and rehabilitative centres.

So I'm always encouraged to hear positive news regarding ways forward in the pursuit to rehabilitate these men and woman back into society.

Today, I read that Professor Dibu Ojerinde, (registrar (JAMB), confirmed that a total of 181 prisoners from Kaduna and Ikoyi prisons sat for last weekend's Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

Research has shown that, when properly implemented, work programmes, education and even psychotherapy can ease prisoners' transition to the free world. Even for those "awaiting trial" who may be psychologically healthy individuals but could become traumatised, sadistic or depressed.
Now we need to work on a positive rehabilitation process to help them be productive members of society.

In order to achieve this I really think the prison service should try to do what society failed to do by reforming and rehabilitating, in order to meet this objective , there is need to re-train these inmates.

A prison without rehabilitation is a building that just breeds and festers problems that may do more long term damage both to the individual and to society as a whole.

Apparently the inclusion of these inmates isn't new, JAMB has been allowing prison inmates to sit for entrance examinations since 2009 .

Good on you Nigeria, we are going in the right direction!