Former military president Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) yesterday in Minna, Niger State, said that the younger generation of Nigerian leaders are doing well, even as he allayed fears of an outbreak of crisis in 2015 that could lead to the country’s disintegration.
Babangida, who spoke to journalists yesterday ahead of his 72nd birthday today, maintained that former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s comment on Tuesday in Ibadan, Oyo State, might not mean that the younger generation has failed but an expression of high expectation the older leaders have of their successors.
“I am not sure I heard what he said, neither am I sure it is the young men that failed the nation, but our expectations on the new younger generation are very high and there are other young men who have done very good. So, I don’t think the young generations have failed us. The young generations are not doing badly,” he said when asked to comment on Obasanjo’s statement that the leaders that came after him, especially from 1999, have failed.
Babangida stated that, in the military, leadership quality was being instilled in them at all levels of training, which accounts for why a military officer by training is a leader who believes in the cohesion and unity of the country; this, he noted, Obasanjo exemplified.
He said: “I will give you one example: we talked about my boss, Obasanjo; there is one thing you cannot take away from him — he believes in the unity of this country. You cannot take it away and this is what we all believe in; so only those who believe in the unity of this country at any level, I think, are leaders.”
IBB continued: “I think there are leaders who have the unity of the nation at heart. There are quite a number of them, but if you want me to give you names, I will not, but everyone can observe — and you are listening to them. You know what they say, you know what they stand for and so on. There are a lot of them that are real nationalists; maybe they don’t have a chance, but you need to do so, interact with them and you will recognise and see the virtue in them.”
Asked whether he still believes that the military is the most cohesive institution in Nigeria, he replied: “The military is the most cohesive organisation that the country has, because all our training from day one to cadet to retirement is just about leadership. That is all what military training entails. Also, leadership is about the country and we used to teach those of us who were teachers before cadets to get them not to think of region, but should know that they are going to lead soldiers into war and that bullets coming from the other end, nobody’s name is written on it. Bullets are bullets, so we may as well work together.”
On the fear of a crisis engulfing the country in 2015 and lead to the country’s disintegration in line with the prediction of the United States, Babangida said: “Honestly, I think you should forget disintegration in 2015. I cannot see it happening; we cannot think about it. A country that will disintegrate, you will know it. It is not something that happens in one or two months. It is just out of the question. People say all sorts of things to instill fear. If you believe that the majority of the people believe in the unity of the country, why do you worry about someone saying that we will disintegrate? I know it would not be something you should give prominence, especially those of you in the media.”
The former Nigeria leader said that a book on him written by a veteran journalist, Dan Agbese, would soon be launched and that the book would capture his entire life and what surrounded him.
“General Babangida’s life symbolises statesmanship, patriotism, vision and courage which are some of the excellent leadership virtues that have guided him through his years of active public service life,” chairman of the Forum and governor of Niger State Dr Mu’azu Aliyu said in Minna yesterday.
The Forum, in a statement signed by Aliyu’s chief press secretary Danladi Ndayebo, said the former military leader excelled in his chosen profession and went on to preside over Africa’s most influential country during which period he showed rare vision, courage and exemplary leadership.
The governors noted that Babangida has consistently remained on the path of promoting national unity, integration and development with his influential networks cutting across the length and breadth of Nigeria and beyond.
They also said the history of Nigeria will always be incomplete without paying tribute to IBB’s contributions and achievements to the socio-economic and political development of our country.
It listed the achievements of the former leader to include the realisation of the vision of Abuja as the Federal Capital City by providing the most vital infrastructure and moving the seat of power from Lagos in 1991.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
THINGS are no longer the same at a Lagos brothel popularly called Odinwo (Yoruba word for reduced service charge) since The Nation published a story on the mode of operation of the prostitutes in the brothel on July 27. Insiders at the brothel located a short distance from Sawmill Bus-stop at Ifako, Gbagada, confirmed that much to our correspondent.
Before The Nation published the story headlined ‘Revealed: Lagos slave camp where underage girls are recruited into prostitution’, the brothel was notorious for a racket organised by a prostitution ring similar to what obtains in Italy.
It was gathered that the July 27 story rattled not only the operators of the brothel but other similar businesses in Gbagada, Oworonsoki and Bariga areas of Lagos. An inside source at Odinwo said the girls started moving out in droves as soon as they read the story.
Our report on the brothel had indicated that teenage girls were being lured into the prostitution ring with promises of a better future. Upon recruitment, the girls were placed under the tutelage of older and more experienced prostitutes called aunties, for a period ranging from six months to about two years. Within that period, the young girl is made to sleep with men and surrender their earnings to the aunty.
However, The Nation can authoritatively report that the managers of the brothel and several others in the Bariga and Oworonsoki areas have taken steps to rid them of underage prostitutes. According to a source, the brothels hurriedly ferried all the young girls into unknown places the morning the report hit the newsstand. By the evening of that day, all the girls were said to have been gathered somewhere and given money to transport themselves back to their respective homes.
“On the day the report was published, the proprietors of the brothel, fearing that the police could storm the place, took all the girls to a hideout to pass the night. The following morning, which was a Sunday, they gathered all the girls and gave them money to go back to their homes,” the source said.
The source also disclosed that one of the proprietors, while lamenting his loss, said about 28 young girls had to leave the brothel, leaving him with only mature prostitutes. “It was a serious thing. The man was driven to tears. He said about 28 girls had to leave his brothel, leaving him to make do with the meager income from older prostitutes.”
Describing what led to the crisis as pure greed, the source said it was believed that one of the underage prostitutes must have invited the media after her aunty extended her period of service beyond the initial six months agreed on.
He said: “The girl was supposed to spend six months to serve the aunty. But after completing the six months, the aunty said she was not impressed with her performance and extended the service period. The girl, the proprietor said, later took her story to the media.”
When our correspondent visited the area shortly after the young girls were expelled, one of the girls, while lamenting her condition, said she was feeling sick because of what had happened. Asked what the ailment was, she looked up, gave a sheepish smile and said: “You don’t know that if one suddenly stops doing what one has been doing for a long time, the person may fall sick?”
She, however, said she was tired of prostitution, saying she was ready to quit if she got a job. “Please help me to get a job. I am tired of this job. I will appreciate anything you can get for me,” she said.
At the brothel, our correspondent observed that the activities of the prostitutes were restricted to inside the walls. And unlike in the past, when the prostitutes, provocatively dressed, canvassed for clients outside the brothels, they had limited their operations to the inside.
They were also said to have been seriously warned by the proprietors to avoid troubles and maintain peace in the brothels.
It was also observed that the prostitutes now play the dumb game. Rather than engage their men in banter that may give away anything on the crisis, they keep mum, preferring to maintain a ‘strictly business’ relationship.
“That has been their attitude since the story was published. They no longer walk round or mix with strangers like they used to do. Now, they simply remain silent without giving anything away”, the source said.
Proprietors of brothels populated by prostitutes in the Gbagada, Oworonsoki and Bariga areas are said to have quickly swung into action to ensure that the underage girls don’t return to the brothels. Stung by the report, the proprietors were said to have come up with a code of conduct for the all the prostitutes in the areas. The prostitutes are made to fill a form specifying their true age, name and state of origin. They are also made to swear an oath not to bring any underage girl into the brothels.
The source said: “The proprietors gave the prostitutes a form to fill. In it, they are asked to fill their names, age and state of origin. I think the people are very serious this time around. That story really disrupted the operations of the cartel in this area.”
Meanwhile, a police team from the Special Investigation Bureau (SIB) was said to have visited the brothel to ascertain the veracity of the story. The proprietors of two brothels in the area were said to have been invited and handed a stern warning to stop the practice.
The source, who witnessed the police invitation, said the proprietors have vowed to ensure that underage prostitutes don’t operate in their brothels.
“They are very worried. As I speak with you, they are doing everything possible to make sure that the activities of the young girls don’t affect their business,” the source added.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
But for the May 14 declaration of a state of emergency in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states by President Goodluck Jonathan and the deployment of special forces of the armed forces, the police and the Department of state security to quell what clearly was an attempt to breach the territorial integrity of the nation, Nigeria would not have been one entity today.
From these states, the strategy of Boko Haram terrorists was to launch a jihadists type invasion of the entire Northern part of the country hence the gradual build up of arms depots and training/recruitment centres in several parts of Yobe, Borno and Adamawa where several raids were carried out on banks, prisons and police stations for arms caches and members recruitment and kidnapping of women.
Prior to the declaration, the Boko Haram terrorists had become so emboldened that they planned to hijack commercial aircraft fully loaded with passengers and use it to attack one of three national monuments, namely Aso Rock Villa, the seat of the federal government, the Central Bank Headquarters (CBN) Glass house and the Four Towers headquarters of the NNPC in Abuja.
Intelligence material had shown that the terrorists would not have given a hoot about the lives of the passengers that would have been on board and in carrying out the 9/11 style aircraft attacks on Aso Rock and NNPC Towers and the message would have been that having taken over the North East, the federal capital is their next target.
Of course, having successfully bombed the Nigerian Police headquarters, the United Nations House, Abacha barracks mammy market and several churches in Suleija and Madalla close to the FCT, they believed nothing was impossible for them to achieve.
Towards this end, security sources told Saturday Vanguard that the terrorists acquired Anti-Aircraft Gun and Long Range Surface to Air technical guns, meant to shoot down aircraft that flew over the North Eastern part of the country especially the Sambisa and Gwoza forest areas where they had hoisted their flags which served as headquarters of their operations.
Upon discovery that this was the plot and knowing the social, economic and political implications of the terrorists succeeding, security agencies immediately informed the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and other aviation bodies to stop all local and international aircraft from over flying the North East airspace to avoid collateral damage.
All commercial aircraft both local and international were subsequently diverted from over flying the North East areas except military aircraft. In fact, it was in furtherance to unearthing the weapons capability of the terrorists that troops of the Multi-national Joint Task Force on reconnaissance mission to a Mosque in Baga, discovered anti-aircraft guns and rockets which were to be mounted for their targets.
“As I am talking to you, many people will not know that in one of the deadly Boko Haram attacks and coordinated bombings in Kano state which resulted in the destruction of the headquarters of the AIG, Zone 1, and the killing and wounding of over 90 people including Policemen, Immigration, Customs and Federal Road Safety officers, the terrorists tried getting to the Kano Airport for a sinister motive”, a security source said. Things got so bad that during the visit of President Goodluck Jonathan to Borno and Yobe states, to assess the level of destruction by the group, as well as reassure the people of the country’s concern; intelligence agencies intercepted Boko Haram terrorists plot to shoot at the Presidential Jet.
This was however thwarted following massive deployment of security operatives as well as technical equipment to the two states with ability to intercept signals of such attacks.
Following these deployments and raids, two anti-aircraft guns, several anti-aircraft bombs, GPMG’s, AK 47 Rifles and other heavy weaponry were recovered in some houses in Maiduguri. Aside these recoveries, conservative estimates put the number of Nigerians murdered, massacred, and brutally sent to the world beyond, at over 10, 000 since 2007.
It is against the backdrop of these brazenly devilish actions and several deadly suicide attacks, bombings and maiming of thousands of innocent Nigerians, which made the populace wonder if there was a sovereign authority in place, that the declaration by President Jonathan was welcomed with a sigh of relief and celebrated.
August 14, 2013, made it three months, which is half way stage of the six months (first phase target), set for the implementation of the state of emergency to flush out terrorists, whom it has been confirmed, have links with the dreaded Al Qaeda group and the overwhelming assertion from both within and outside the country is that the state of emergency has successfully restored Nigeria’s sovereignty.
Notwithstanding the sporadic asymmetric attacks on certain soft targets like schools, places of worship, markets, the consensus is that the Joint Security operation which has wiped out many of their camps, have drastically reduced the rate of bombings and attacks in places outside the North East epicentre of the terrorists.
The improved security situation as indicated in the general assessment has resulted in the ongoing phased restoration of telecommunication services in the states where these had to be withdrawn at the beginning of the operation.
Hence Adamawa and Yobe states now have telecommunication services restored while Borno state government that has come to appreciate the wisdom in cutting off telecommunication services wants the JTF to tarry awhile for more successes before the services would be restored.
In meeting the mandate of Mr. President which includes destruction of all terrorists camps/bases, apprehension of perpetrators and bringing them to justice, the Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral Ola Sa’ad Ibrahim, ensured that both MI 35 Helicopter Gunships of the Airforce and long range Artillery guns of the Nigerian Army were used to flush out the terrorists from their mountainous hideouts.
Thus with the synergy existing between the CDS, Service Chiefs, the IGP and the DG SSS, the mandate has substantially achieved its target of destruction of the strongholds and bases of the terrorists leading to the capture of many sect members including women and children. Most of them (women & children) were however freed from the camps as their captors fled in disarray.
In several updates and briefings on the special operation in the North East, Director of Defence information, Brigadier General Chris Olukolade, did say and it was confirmed that a total of 58 detainees linked with Boko Haram terrorists were released in Borno and Yobe states in keeping with Presidential directives.
This comprised 23 women and 35 children, with some of the teenagers confessing that they were conscripted to run errands for the terrorists who paid them N5, 000 to monitor troops and set public buildings ablaze. The women and children were subsequently handed over to the governors of Borno and Yobe states for rehabilitation and reintegration.
At this juncture, one must salute the courage and supreme sacrifice that had been paid by over 30 dead military and police officers as well as the SSS since the operation started. Some were killed by landmines; some got killed during ambush while others died during crossfire.
A little over a fortnight ago, fifteen of these gallant officers including two Army Majors and thirteen soldiers killed by the terrorists were given national burial at the National Military Cemetery in Abuja. Another twelve soldiers and seven Policemen were killed near the border between Borno and Cameroon on August 4.
The 15 soldiers are Major Abdullahi Fambiya, Major Abdulllahi Kanoma, Staff Sgt. Keku Adebayo, Corporal Ahmed Usman, Cpl. Mathew Ade, Lcpl. Adamu Ibrahim, Lcpl. Suleiman Gimba, Lcpl Saduaki Salisu, Lcpl Usman David, Lcpl. Olusola Ajani, Private Zakariya Dauda, Private Daniel Kantona, Private Nya Bassey, Private Bassey Emmanuel and Private Enyenihi Effiong.
In contrast, a number of terrorists, over 1,000 of them have been apprehended by the Special Forces. Many of them have also died in battle. This was made possible by various resources including trained Military Police dogs that facilitated the arrest of insurgents who tried to infiltrate cities after being dislodged from their bases at the onset of the operation.
A recent encounter in the terrorist’s main enclaves in Balabulin Nganaram, Aljajeri and Faluja in Maiduguri metropolis led to the death of Amir of Balabulin Nganaram, one of the kingpins on the JTF wanted list. During the encounter, many women and children were rescued and handed over to their families by the JTF.
Cordon and Search operations have started enjoying tremendous support and cooperation of the locals; and several terrorists including their foreign members are being tracked down. Key terrorists especially those in the cadre of Amir and those helping their renewed mobilization and recruitment of minors are being hunted.
An outcome of the cordon and search operations in Balabulin area of Maiduguri recently, is the discovery of a vast network of underground tunnels connecting houses and many bunkers, some of which have the capacity to accommodate over 100 persons. More corpses were also discovered in soak-away. Various weapons were discovered in the same area.
Abubakar Shekau’s parent’s in-law were picked up in the raid which also discovered various audio recordings of terrorists’ messages. Since then, recoveries are made almost on a daily basis as the operation progresses. Some of the recoveries which the media had opportunity to inspect in the camps are of frightening proportion.
They include 5 Rocket Propelled Grenade, 14 IEDS, 8 AK 47 Rifles, 9 AK 47 Magazines, 1 Rocket Propelled Grenade Charger, 1 G3 Rifle, 3 FMC Magazines, 166 Rounds of 7.62 mm Special, 3.35mm Bazooka, 34 Rounds of 5.56mm.
Others include 1, 740 rounds of 303inch, 10 Rounds of 7.62 NATO, 1 round of .50mm, 1 Dane gun, 1 locally made pistol and 2 mega phones. In one of the updates on the operation, General Olukolade himself acknowledged that most of the arms and ammunition seen and recovered from the terrorists are those nobody ever thought were in this country.
The operation further exposed the ideological confusion professed by the so called Islamic sect as a lot of immorality was unmasked and their true identities of drug addicts, abusers of cocaine, heroin and Indian hemp were let out of the bag. The discovery of large storage of both used and unused condoms explained the resort to kidnapping of women also.
In fact the international community recently came to terms with the magnitude of the atrocities committed and the mass murder perpetrated by the Boko Haram terrorists when the International Criminal Court (ICC), indicted the group as a murderous terrorist organization saying its leaders and members of the group will face charges of crimes against humanity if arrested.
As a way of working to curtail the new tactic of launching isolated attacks on soft targets to try to feign relevance, the military authorities have decided to boost the security cover of states under the emergency. In this direction, additional troops are being brought back from the peace support operations in Mali to join the internal security operations.
One area of concern raised by observers is the allegation that certain human rights abuses have been committed on the part of the special forces but authorities contacted pointed out that the zeal to indict the operation on issues of human rights should also note the peculiarity of the situation in relation to infrastructural capacity for managing the insurgents preparatory to ensuring that they face justice.
Firstly, judicial officers including Judges, Lawyers have always rejected having anything to do with Boko Haram suspects. Prisons and Police Stations where these suspects would have been detained have all been attacked and destroyed thereby making it impossible to achieve quick dispensation of justice.
In another development, troops have engaged and dislodged elements of insurgent groups who carried out attacks on citizens in localities such as Gamboru ward recently.
At the end of the encounter, a total of 10 suspected terrorists were confirmed dead while weapons such as Rocket Propelled Grenade launchers, assorted ammunition and rifle magazines were recovered. The area is being combed to fish out any of the surviving insurgents.
Also, some of the fleeing insurgents from various camps have been noted to be in search of fuel from neighboring communities.
Citizens are advised to report to JTF, any group of persons roaming around the local communities with large quantities of containers in search of fuel. The advance of troops is continuing in all fronts as scheduled.
The Defence Headquarters has further enjoined the troops to sustain the intensity of the operations. Saturday Vanguard was further told that the shooting at, of an Air force Helicopter Gunship by the terrorists from the dreaded Sambisa Forests where several camps for recruitment, training and IEDS construction were based, using anti-aircraft technical guns from mounted vehicles, confirmed that indeed the terrorists were on course to carry out that plot.
2 Majors, 13 soldiers killed by boko haram buried in abuja as Jonathan vows to win war on terror Also speaking at the event, Minister of State Defence, Dr. Erelu Olusola Obada stated that the country appreciates the bravery of the fallen officers and men, and promised federal government’s support for the military.
“On behalf of the armed forces, I want to reiterate that the gallant efforts of these men who proudly showcased the great spirit and tenacity to serve and save our nation from destructive elements shall not be in vain. We therefore see their death as noble in the course of duty to serve humanity”.
“The nation appreciates the great sacrifice of these men and other members of the armed forces of Nigeria who continued to make sacrifices to ensure enduring peace in our nation and other parts of the African continent.
We are committed to doing our best in supporting the armed forces in the call to duty and ensure the unity of Nigeria”.
She added: “Let me end by saying, and I quote, ‘good men must die but death cannot kill your names’ and the names of our fallen heroes will never die in our hearts”. Speaking on behalf of the next-of-kins at the event, Pastor Iliya Joshua called on government to thoroughly investigate the cause of death of the officers and men as their death remained a mystery to them.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
Catholic priests in the Aba Diocese of the church are locked in a renewed battle that can be described as a holy war, with a Rev. fr and his Bishop trading allegations of corruption. The war, which has been raging for some years now, has led to the suspension of some priests from the diocese and the dragging of the bishop to the Zone 9 headquarters of the Nigeria Police in Umuahia, Abia State where the Local Ordinary (Bishop) had gone on some occasions to defend himself against graft allegations levelled against him by one of the priests.
The current crisis, according to one of the priests placed on suspension, Rev. Fr. Onyebuchi Ig. Nwoko, started few years back when he preached a homily in his parish, condemning what he described as an illicit partisan romance between the Catholic Church in Aba “and the failed-corrupt insensitive government in place in Abia State at the expense of the poor and unsuspecting citizens of the state.”
This Fr. Nwoko said coupled with his stance against absolute worship of money and colossal murder of spirituality and spiritual life that drags the image of the church to the mud and made people not to have respect for it any more, made him the target of the bishop.
This homily, Saturday Sun, gathered did not go down well with the Catholic Bishop of Aba, His Lordship, Vincent Valentine Ezeonyia who felt Rev. Fr. Nwoko went too far, and allegedly promised to “deal with the priest in question.”
This pronouncement, it was also gathered, was closely followed with a letter of reprimand entitled “Precept” which the Bishop was said to have ordered should be placed against the priest’s name in the Diocese’s Curia.
Rev. Fr. Nwoko, who is also a lawyer, took exception to a passage in the precept which said, “I (Bishop) also confine you to your self-chosen legal practice.”
With this, the priest felt he was being punished for telling the truth of what was going on in the diocese and the state at large and the battle line was drawn.
In his reply, the priest said: “Most of my legal practice is pro bono as many of our institutions, and the office of the education secretary can attest to. My bishop hates to see a priest that is empowered and who swims in excellence.
“He is very cagey in placing such priests in places where his friends are residing, so that the word of God may not smack them. A good number of priests working in the diocese preach the gospel of my bishop, and not the gospel of Christ. However, I will dissect and respond adequately on the said ‘precept’ to the appropriate quarters.”
The bishop was said to have been livid with this response that some days later, Fr. Nwoko said in a memo to his traditional ruler in Ukwa East about his lingering crisis with the bishop that he was transferred to the same location where kidnappers abducted one of the priests.
This transfer, the priest said, was done for a purpose, “to throw his perceived enemy into the lion’s den, but cannot sharpen their claws to take my life. I am conscious of the fact that if there is benefit or reward at all in our apostolate, I do not stand to be rewarded by my bishop.”
The matter got to its crescendo on February 23, 2011 when Bishop Ezeonyia reposted some priests, including Nwoko of St. David, Uratta – Umuoha in Isiala Ngwa North Local Government with the new posting not having any parish.
Feeling stabbed at the back by the new posting, Fr. Nwoko refused to vacate the parsonage at Uratta until he was given a new parish and the real trouble began.
To ensure that another priest took over, the bishop was reported to have threatened to forcefully open the residence of the parish priest, which was under lock and key.
In an attempt at forestalling the threat, Nwoko on September 7, 2012 wrote a petition entitled, “The unlawful conduct of Bishop Ezeonyia capable of causing a breakdown of law and order,” to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the need for the police boss to call the bishop to order.
Before the IGP could act on the petition of the priest, his residence had been forced open.
The action prompted Nwoko to do another petition entitled, “Case of burglary, sealing, threat to life, property and conduct capable of breaching public peace”, this time to the Assistant Inspector General (AIG), Zone 9, Umuahia.
In the petition, Fr. Nwoko accused the bishop who he said has been having nocturnal meetings with Catechist Anthony Enwe, Mr. Simeon Nwokoacha, Sir Ajaegbu, Mr Chidinma Agbara and Mr Raphael Nwaeke, while he was away to Enugu sometime in 2012 for the purpose of breaking into his house.
He urged the AIG to investigate the bishop, arrest and charge him to court if found culpable.
When it appeared the AIG was delaying in acceding to his request, he wrote another letter to the Deputy Commissioner of Police “D” Department, Zone 9 headquarters.
In the letter, Fr. Nwoko narrated how one Joseph Offor of the legal department, Zone 9 Police Command thwarted every effort he made to ensure that the bishop was prosecuted, alleging that “one of the priests, Fr. Innocent Ajuonu (even) boasted that they have settled the matter and that the prosecutor had assured them that the bishop will never be prosecuted.”
As this was going on, Bishop Ezeonyia on May 7, 2013, wielded the big hammer. He issued Fr. Nwoko with ‘Canonical warning’ entitled “Second Admonition” in which the priest was accused, among other things, of disrespect to the Local Ordinary.
The bishop threatened not only to impose personal interdict/suspension if within 10 working days Fr. Nwoko failed to write him with a promise of stopping his scanting attacks on him (Bishop), but also directed that the Canonical warning “be placed in the secret archive of the Curia and maintained there in accord with the norm of law.”
In an eight-page reply captioned, “Threat to impose further interdict/suspension order”, Fr. Nwoko said unless the bishop restructure the Diocese based on truth and recall the priests he suspended particularly Rev. Fr. Ken Evurulobi, nothing will make him change his stance on issues in the diocese.
“You may think that you have the Ecclesiastical power to do what you like, but you do not have the power of the electronic pen. Be assured that in the absence of those serious and unfortunate irregularities going on in this diocese, only when the right reason, respect for the human person, justice, equity and fair play are properly put in place that this matter may seem not to proceed further,” Fr Nwoko replied Bishop Ezeonyia.
In response to the allegations leveled against him by Fr Nwoko, Bishop Ezeonyia who spoke through Rev Fr. Alex Okonkwor, Judicial Vicar of the diocese said the truth about the whole issue was that Rev Fr. Nwoko has been disrespectful to the office of the bishop in so many ways.
He accused Fr. Nwoko of refusing to honour an appointment with the bishop so that there will “be understanding and peace in the diocese, but he refused and instead chose to rage like the hectic in the body of this diocese by spinning out writings, articles and letters that are crammed with insults against the bishop.”
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
Marco Liebenow thought he hooked a submarine while fishing Norwegian waters; fish was so big it wouldn’t fit into the 19-foot boat
A fisherman from Germany caught the fish of a lifetime, a world-record Atlantic halibut that was so big it wouldn’t fit into the boat.
Marco Liebenow was fishing with three friends in a 19-foot boat in Norwegian waters when he hooked what he thought was “a submarine,” according to a Friday report in the UK Daily Mail.
By halibut fishing standards, it was a submarine. The Atlantic halibut weighed 515 pounds, smashing the existing IGFA world record of 419 pounds caught in Norwegian waters in July 2004.
After a 90-minute battle, Liebenow managed to reel the fish to the surface. But once the fishermen saw how big it was, they realized the fish was too big to haul into the small boat. So they tied a rope around its tail.
“The flounder could be towed only with the greatest effort and with great sensitivity to the port,” fishing tour company Angelreisen Hamburg explained (via translation) on its Facebook page.
At the dock, the fish was hoisted out of the water by crane and weighed. After photos, Liebenow donated the fish to a local fish dealer, and then celebrated his catch with a few beers.
“[Marco] does not speak any English but has said it was a wonderful feeling to catch it and has called it a fish of a lifetime,” David Bottcher, Angelreisen Hamburg fishing tours spokesman who arranged the trip, told the Daily Mail. “Before he left for the trip, he called us first to ask for a few hints about how and where to fish—I guess our advice paid off.”
It did, in a big way.
The 9-foot fish, caught in waters off Kjollefjord last month, is awaiting IGFA world-record approval.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
FORT MEADE, Maryland (AP) — A military judge, in a document explaining why she found U.S. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning guilty of 20 counts including six violations of the federal Espionage Act, said the enormous leak of classified information he engineered was "imminently dangerous to others."
Army Col. Denise Lind released her legal rationale, or "special findings," as the sentencing phase of Manning's court-martial neared its end Friday. Lawyers will make closing arguments Monday, and Lind said she would announce the sentence as soon as Tuesday.
Manning faces up to 90 years in prison for sending more than 700,000 military and diplomatic documents, plus some battlefield video, to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks while working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq in 2010. WikiLeaks published most of the material on its website.
Lind wrote in the 10-page document that Manning's actions were wanton and reckless.
"Pfc. Manning's conduct was of a heedless nature that made it actually and imminently dangerous to others," she wrote.
The rules for special findings require a written rationale only for guilty verdicts. Therefore, Lind provided no explanation for her decision to acquit Manning of the most serious charge, aiding the enemy. To have won a conviction on that charge, prosecutors would have had to prove that Manning knew the information he leaked would be seen by al-Qaida members.
On the espionage convictions, for transmitting defense information, Lind found that the leaked material was both potentially damaging to the United States and "closely held," meaning it had been classified by the appropriate authorities and remained classified at the time it was leaked. The defense had argued that much of the information Manning leaked either contained no damaging information or was already publicly known.
The lone computer fraud count on which Manning was convicted hinged on whether he knowingly exceeded his authorized access on a classified government network when he used his workplace computer to save the State Department cables to a CD so he could use his personal computer to transmit them to WikiLeaks.
The defense had argued that Manning was authorized to view the cables as part of his job, and that there was no prohibition on downloading or saving them. Prosecutors had argued that Manning had no authority to access such a wide range of cables since his job was narrowly focused on the threat from Shia Muslims in Iraq.
Lind drew a fine line in her legal reasoning. She said the phrase "exceeds authorized access" means Manning used the computer with authorization, and then used that access to obtain information he wasn't entitled to obtain.
The court-martial was in session for only about 30 minutes Friday. Prosecutors presented four bits of evidence retrieved from Manning's personal computer, mostly communications with his friend, Danny Clark, a Cambridge, Massachusetts, computer expert. The contents of those communications weren't revealed in open court.
A military psychiatrist who examined Manning after his arrest testified Wednesday that Clark was unavailable to Manning when Manning leaked the material under great psychological stress, largely due to his gender-identity uncertainty at a time when gay service members were prohibited from serving openly.
Manning "felt in hindsight that if he'd been able to talk with Danny Clark, that might have prevented these acts because he felt like, 'If Danny had told me not to do that, I definitely wouldn't have done that,'" the psychiatrist, Navy Capt. David Moulton, testified.
Clark did not respond Friday to telephone and email queries from The Associated Press.
Manning apologized Wednesday for the harm he caused by leaking the information. He did not apologize, though, for exposing what he considered wrongdoing by the U.S. military and duplicitous diplomacy by the State Department.
Speaking to Manning supporters after Friday's session, defense attorney David Coombs acknowledged that Wednesday had been a tough day for Manning because it was "family day." There was testimony that day from Manning's older sister and an aunt, who both spoke of his difficult childhood with an alcoholic mother and the eventual split of the family after his parents divorced. Then the soldier got to spend about an hour and a half with family after Wednesday's session, Coombs said.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
A white school teacher from New Zealand, Fiona Lovatt Davis, has found a new home in Kano where she is trying to rescue street urchins popularly called Almajiri from their penurious lives on the streets by setting them up in business, writes SEUN AKIOYE who had an interesting encounter with her.
Fiona Lovatt Davis
The telephone rang. “Hello, Assalam Alleikum,” the voice at the other end said. It belonged to a woman, probably in her early 50s. It was a big voice, the kind that usually belongs to women who carry authority or those who operate in the upper realm of the society. But there was something odd about the greeting: it came with the accent of one that was still trying to learn that Islamic way of greeting.
Fiona Lovatt Davis stood in a far corner at the domestic wing of the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos, a large brown bag stood beside her and in the chaotic environment that usually occasions early morning flights at the airport, she cut a solitary figure.
A big white woman, her head was covered with a multi-colour scarf in the strict Islamic fashion, revealing only an oblong face speckled with black spots.
“Assalam Alleikum,” she greeted again, politely declining to take the reporter’s outstretched hand. There are many names that fit into the description of Ms Davis, a woman who through her career has always found herself on the other side of societal norms and expectations. From her robust online profile, one gets the feeling of a rebel with a worthy cause or, as she put it, “a peace operative.”
She had always had a penchant for doing things differently. Many years ago in her native New Zealand, she was asked to beat a student before she could earn her teacher’s certificate. She refused and instead took the erring boy outside and spoke “sense” to him. Broken, the boy volunteered to beat himself and Ms Davies got her certificate.
But she was determined that things could be done better, and after eight years of teaching in a government school, she left to start her own school, using her own unique combination of methods to teach the children.
She once visited a school and discovered that there were no books in its library. She got home and made her children give up the books they didn’t need again. They filled several cartons, which she gave to the children in need. Soon, the initiative gained national prominence and the Books Without Borders scheme was born. She thus became a national figure in her country, revered for her unusual approach to child education and selfless service to the poor.
That was the woman that came to Nigeria in 2001 to attend the 2nd Pan African Reading Conference hosted by the Reading Association of Nigeria (RAN). Then her life took a different dimension. “I could not forget the scenes I saw when I came here in 2001, the smiling children and the warm people which was contrary to everything you heard in the news,” she said.
It was like love at first sight. In December of that year, she mobilised school children in New Zealand to donate books. The drive took on a national fervour, and using her friends at the RAN who “dealt with the bureaucracy,” a shipload of books was sent to Nigeria.
She said: “I just got this idea of sending books to Nigeria on information, literature, picture books. I had some friends in the Reading Association of Nigeria who dealt with the bureaucracy and got the books in without much expense. And people from New Zealand just joined me.”
Her book donation was not a flash in the pan as over 190 libraries across Nigeria has benefitted from her large heart.
Since then, Ms Davis has found a home in Nigeria or, rather, she found a home in Kano. Due to visa restrictions, she could not stay in Nigeria as much as she would have loved to. Hence she makes return trips every now and then. She came “home” on June 6 from New Zealand. After several hours of flight from Australia to Lagos, she had about three hours to wait before catching her flight to Kano.
For most people, this would not be a time to sit down for a two-hour chat with a reporter. But Ms Davis did.
It was an opportunity to understand her thinking, to read her mind and understand her philosophy. Her life is ruled by kindness and the necessity of being one’s brother’s keeper; the joy of doing little things that keep the world going.
She said: “Do the little things really count? If I throw a can into the drainage and it blocks the gutters when it rains, who do I blame? I can choose to recycle them or if I can’t handle my waste, I stop buying things in plastic bottles.”
Her idea of keeping climate change at bay, maintaining the sanctity of mother nature and stopping the violence against the earth is simple yet compelling, and she led by example. Dipping her hand into her handbag, she fumbled around in it for some seconds and brought out plastic cups.
“They gave me these in the plane to drink water and there is no sense in dumping them since I can reuse them later,” she said. With that, she cleaned one of them using the edge of a serviette obviously taken from the plane- and served herself a full cup of water.
Coming to Kano
Ms Davis had been struck by the life of the children in the North. It was an imagery that confronted and bullied her. She saw the privileges she had by the virtue of her birth and the sharp contrast to the experiences of others. She does not believe that the problem of the North is religion. Rather, it is the result of people’s failure to find a common ground, irrespective of their religious and cultural differences.
She said: “I don’t agree that the problems in the North are religious. I understand that people believe they are religious, but people don’t even talk to each other. They don’t find a common ground about faith and culture, and that is where the problems arise from.”
In her weird philosophy, she believes that those who have nothing materially but have freedom and are not constrained by societal norms and expectations are the rich ones. Armed with this mindset, she landed in Kano in 2011 and had a present waiting for her: the Boko Haram bombs.
“I came to Kano at the end of 2011 when the bombs started going off. A lot of foreigners were moving out of the city but I stayed. I came from the other side of the world. How can I run away? I still have three months to go and I don’t want to spend those in a hotel in Abuja. That is not why I came,” she said, an incredulous look playing out of the corner of her eyes.
If Ms Davis had imagined that her visit to Kano would be brief, she was wrong. The city was much different from anywhere she had been and she didn’t think she could last. “I was from such a green island living so close to the water. How could I have been 1,000 kilometres away from the coast? People living in Kano are the same population as the whole of my country. Different physical environment and there were a lot of motorbikes. The sky here is white, not blue. I didn’t think I would be able to last,” she said, laughing.
Her decision to live in Kano has left a permanent change in her life. In 2012, she converted to Islam and began to train the Almajiri who she often refer to as “my boys.” Living in Kano during the curfew had tremendous strain on Nigerians and even more on Ms Davis. In the evenings, she took a stroll round her neighborhood, and that was when she saw the Almajiri.
Tackling the Almajiri scourge
“Almajiri are not beggars and not all beggars are Almajiri. We need to use the proper words when referring to these guys because they are part of the society. I am not rehabilitating them because they have not left the society. What has happened is that they are only living outside of a house,” she said.
At first, the Almajiri came to her on the streets imploring her to teach them English language.
“The kids on the street are saying to me, ‘Mama, teach us English.’ So, I said ‘come on over’ and we just sat in the candle light and learnt and set up a little library in the house. And when there were too many people using our house then, I decided to run it in a Glo booth down the road so everyone could use it. We got the whole street reading,” she said with a smile that connotes a deep sense of satisfaction.
But that was just the beginning. Soon after, the homeless kids began to sleep out on her pouch, partly because it offered them safety and partly because it shielded them from arrest. “I became particularly involved with the Almajiri because these guys were sleeping by my door when the curfew started and I couldn’t send them off. I couldn’t abandon boys the age of my own son, like 14 years. So, they had to come into the house.”
Soon, about 12 homeless youths had found refuge under her roof. They became her boys and she their “big white mama”. The kids run errands around the house while Davis taught them how to read and write. She also tried to instill some discipline into them so they would not “derail” whenever she had cause to leave them.
It was a new life for the former street boys; a world far away from the one they knew or dreamt of. They exchanged the pavement for a room, the stone for a pillow. Their room had mosquito nets and proper beds and a fan. The children began a timetable for their education and Davis inculcated science, English and Mathematics into the Almajiri curricula. The result was phenomenal, with the children becoming vast in knowledge.
Ms Davis believes the Almajiri education is not worthless and that in some instances, it is even better than the conventional education. She should know because she has her boys as proof.
But their education also extended to business. In order to properly transform their lives, she began to set them up in business. “And some of them come with business proposals. They are not just going around saying give me a job. What they say is ‘if I have a bucket and some nuggets, I can go clean the shoes and it will cost N3,000 to do. If I get that I will be in business,’ ” she said.
Ms Davis found an answer in the form of giving the kids a soft loan to establish themselves in the business of their choice. “If I find a poor person on the street and I can make a loan that sets them up in business, it is business strictly. But I am not doing what others are doing, like taking 90 per cent of the profit or charging high interest. My goal is to make it convenient for these kids to pay back their loan. Sometimes they buy me out and become loan givers too,” she said.
Ms Davis figures that the more of the Almajiri she is able to empower, the more the number of kids on the streets would reduce. Having realised her own limitations in terms of putting the kids under her roof, she was determined to empower them financially, change their mindset and make them to want a better life for themselves.
Davis’s idea of real wealth
Speaking with Davis, one gets the impression that her adventure was a result of the crisis associated with middle age. She traded the comfort of her pleasant life in New Zealand for Kano where “to get a piece of cloth to make a kite, you are a wealthy kid. Even the bonus of a rain you can do moulding and you are a rich man.” That is Ms Davis’s idea of wealth as she sees on the dusty streets of Kano half-clad children running around the streets and women hawking on the road and barely making enough to compensate for their labour. That for her is the real wealth.
She said: “I see that there is nothing you want done that you won’t get someone to do for N50. We have this huge pool of labour who would work for N50. They will really work for a little amount of money. We call them poor and treat them badly. But the poor feed us. The farmer waits all year to bring in his tomatoes and we still haggle over the price because we think he’s a scruffy poor guy who is not ripe for civilisation..,” she said.
She has also tried to live out her creed. “I have had some invitations to come to some countries for one conference or the other but I just think about it that I could send another container of books for the price of a ticket. But now I come and stay for months not some two weeks of ribbon cutting and galas. Now I can come and do the work.
“The concern was what was this white woman coming into this country to do? I said what if I had been in Oklahoma when the tornado struck? What if I had been in Christ Church during the earthquake? What if I had been in Fukushima when the tornado happened? Stop imagining that Nigeria is the worst place in the world to live in.”
But her country men were not the only ones apprehensive about a white woman coming into Kano. Even Nigerian immigration officers in Australia were not straightaway convinced about her journey and denied her visa. It took the intervention of high profile Nigerians to convince the officials about her safety.
As part of her visa rules, she was not allowed to talk about religion. And after much prodding about her conversion to Islam, she said: “I wouldn’t say convert, I would say embrace. Islam just says you are committed to peace. It was in 2005 when I realised I am a Muslim. I didn’t know I could ever use the name of Islam. But I am not allowed to talk about religion. It is a condition for my visa,” she said in a bushed tone and glanced over the five immigration officers sitting at the next table also awaiting their flight.
Her family has not raised any objections to her new religion. “My parents are the finest Christians and here I am a convert to Islam. Does that mean our lives should be divided?” she asked.
Davis believes Nigeria should export more to the world than oil. She has an idea of exporting kulikuli in replacement for peanut butter, adding: “Many children would buy that. And the leatherwork, jollof rice, egusi, how come they are not making the mark all over the world?”
Her current project is to promote Mothers Alive, a programme she designed to reduce the high rate of maternal mortality during childbirth. Called Life Wrap, it is an anti-shock garment which helps prevent blood loss during childbirth. It costs two dollars and she is determined to raise enough to distribute the garments to women in the North.
“We see a lot of kids on the street and people ask what the mother was looking at. But maybe the kid doesn’t even have a mother because this nation cannot find $2 to save her life at childbirth. This is not something I can ask the president or governor to do. I have two dollars I can do it. If you don’t have the cash, and your blood is free of HIV, go down to the blood bank and give blood.
“We must stop the practice of buying and selling blood in this country. It is repugnant and there is nowhere that practice is condoned as Christians or Muslims. If it was your mother or sister, you would give her. So, give the blood now. Do we really think women should die because we won’t donate blood?”
Ms Davis was in one of her rare angry moods. It was evident the thought of human selfishness was eating her up. She expressed her hope of finding enough money to distribute free life wraps and then grabbed her bag. It was heavy, but she dragged it all the way to the elevator.
“These are stuffs for my boys. They really need it. And even though it is heavy, it is worth it,” she said and disappeared through the elevator.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
Pastor Paul, first son of renowned televangelist, Prophet Timothy Oluwole Obadare has assured that after the burial of his father today in Ilesa, Osun state, the burial ground, on which the state government is erecting a mausoleum will turn to a healing centre for the sick.
He said the mystery behind the mausoleum to be built in memory of his late father by the Osun state government was necessary because the grave of the late spiritual icon would perform signs and wonders, the same way he did while on earth.
The young Obadare who spoke to Saturday Sun said “We are sure that papa’s grave will heal the sick and many oppressed people will receive deliverance and breakthrough for having an encounter with his grave. So, it is important to preserve such grave and that is why we appreciate the state government for deeming it fit to construct a mausoleum in his honour. The place can also be used for prayer and other spiritual activities by those who believe in the ministry of our dear Father.”
Towards this, the Osun state governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola has given the family of the Apostle the sum of N35 million to facilitate the burial ceremony as well as the building of the mausoleum.
Born in 1930 to a family of an orthodox belief in Ilesa, Prophet Obadare began his ministry with foremost Evangelists like the General Evangelist of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Apostle Ayodele Babalola, Prophet Simeon Akande and Prophet Elijah Babajide, all of blessed memory.
Married and blessed with seven children, Apostle Obadare had the most challenging part of his life time when he lost one of his sons some
years ago. However, the renowned prophet never allowed the challenge to affect his ministry as he moved ahead putting all challenges behind him. Today, six of his biological children who are all Pastors in various locations in Nigeria and abroad have continued from where he stopped when he answered the supreme call of his maker on 21st March
this year, having put in over 50 good years in evangelism.
Before breathing his last, Apostle Obadare had an encounter with his eldest son, Pastor Paul whom he specifically told to ensure that he was taken to his home town whenever he died, an instruction that is being carried out today with the burial of the cleric in Ilesa.
The young Obadare in an interview with Saturday Sun said “I was privileged to have an interaction with Papa before he died. I moved close to him and he told me so many things as if he had known that he would die. One of the things he told me was that we should ensure that we bring him back to Ilesa whenever he dies and his remains should be buried inside his church in Ilesa, his home town.
“Papa told me that I should tell the family that he insisted that his body be brought to Ilesa whenever he goes to be with his Lord and saviour. He maintained that he would want to be buried in Ilesa and that is why we have all agreed that he should be brought to Ilesa, even though he spent better part of his life and ministry in Akure, Ondo state, where we have headquarters of the church. Today papa was not just an indigene of a particular place but an international man with reputable achievements spread across various areas of human endeavours.”
He said his late father died when he completed his assignment on earth, having reached many lives and preached to many souls in his over 50 years of ministry, adding that he has no doubt that his late father was already resting in the bossom of the Lord who he said strengthened him throughout his life and ministry on earth.
According to him “The late Apostle Obadare was a fervent man of God, and there was no dull moment with him. Every time you had with him was always very interesting and exciting. He will be greatly missed by those who knew him, especially those of us who are his biological children and several other spiritual children in various parts of the world.”
Pastor Paul described his late father as a role model and a spiritual icon, saying he would specifically miss his mentorship and guidance which he said would be too difficult to get from other sources on earth.
He said further that “He was a soul that represe nted so many things to us as a family and even he represented so many things to the body of Christ on earth. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) would miss papa, so also many individuals and organizations would miss him.
Meanwhile, in recognition of the good works of the late Evangelist while on earth, the Osun state government has released a whooping sum of N35 million for the burial of the late spiritual icon.
Giving a breakdown of the financial contribution of the state government, the state commissioner for Home Affairs, Culture and Tourism, Mr Sikiru Ayedun disclosed that the sum of N15 million was set aside for construction of the mausoleum, N10 million for logistics for the burial ceremony and N10million for intervention work on the premises to accommodate the multitude and the adherents coming for the burial from far and near.
Defending the state government decision to spend such huge amount on the burial of Late Obadare, the state Commissioner for Finance who is also a member of the committee, Dr Wale Bolorunduro said Obadare was not just an icon but also an institution and a blessing to the whole world.
He said the state government decided to institutionalize and immortalize him because the late spiritualist was the linkage between the present and future, and most importantly the arrangement was part of the tourism development agenda of the state government.
As the icon of christian gospel evangelism in Nigeria and across the world, Apostle Timothy Oluwole Obadare, goes home in a blaze of glory today, men who were close to him and other beneficiaries of his ministry, have poured encomiums on him. This is even as one of his children, Pastor Paul Obadare opened up on the last moments of the renowned cleric.
Obadare, a world televangelist and founder of World Soul Winning Evangelical Mission, WOSEM, and General Evangelist of Christ Apostolic Church, CAC, died in Akure, the Ondo state capital on March 21st at the age of 83. The prophet who was the second-in-command to Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola at CAC, was popular for his monthly crusade, Koseunti, that drew Christians from all denominations to Akure.
Saturday Sun spoke with his son and a number of his protégés who all lauded Obadare’s zeal in evangelism, teaching and preaching God’s word in its pure nature, adding that his service to God greatly motivated everyone around him to serve God.
“Apostle T.A Obadare is a man I admire so much” said Reverend Paul Tunde TiOluwani (a.k.a) Lesekese, and General Overseer, the Bibleway Christian Church International.
According to him, “I always wonder how greatly God was using him despite his disability. How God was able to make him perform far greater than those who do not have such limitation. He was able to climb beyond his limits and turned his scars into stars.
“He was a man that was matchless with achievements that were staggering.
He was a proof of a living prophetic icon. He was a global icon. This is in the sense that when he gives a prophecy, it happens instantly. And then, the way he quotes the bible remains a mystery to me.
“Initially, before I got close to him, I used to think that he reads brain Bible, the one read with fingers. But when I got close to him and was sleeping in his house, I discovered that there was nothing like that. And later when I probed further into his life, I discovered that when he was called by God, the Lord just opened his chest and placed a giant Bible there and He said from today, you would start quoting from Genesis to Revelation. I admire him greatly.
“I admire his exploits in the area of miracles and grassroots evangelism. Baba never rested. He spent and he was spent for the gospel. And I have always wished to be like him. And I keep praying that God would make me be like him.
The church has lost a great icon: A man that preaches Jesus raw: unwatered and undiluted. Many pastors are political preachers, they talk to favour the government for their own interest but Obadare preaches Jesus without mixing anything with it. And not that alone, throughout his life, he anchored his ministry on holiness. He was not materialistic and never gathered empires around himself , like other pastors do. So, with his glorious exit, a great vacuum had been created that would be very hard to fill, except by God’s intervention.”
Pastor Micheal Adeyemi is the Zonal head, Christ Apostolic Church (C.A.C), Lagos. He described Obadare as a man blessed with unrivaled prowess for soul winning and evangelism. His words “We will miss Baba Obadare a lot. We will miss his motivation, drive to carry us along and make us work for God. We will also miss the power of God graciously bestowed on him by God. We will miss his advices for us to work for God. He was a great shepherd who taught so many to be great disciples of Christ and did it so well. The legacy he left behind is so great and we are making a great effort to preserve it. His was a very big shoe for just anyone to wear.”
Obadare’s mentorship and fatherly love that had planted many firmly in christendom is what Pastor Jare Laoye, presiding pastor of the C.A.C, Ketu, harped on. “I will miss Obadare for so many reasons; his mentorship is the greatest of the things I will miss him for and he was like a father to all who drew close to him, unlike other men of God, he had a great fatherly care and concern for everyone.
“Most people would miss him greatly for this. You hardly could differentiate between those of us his children and his biological children, he treated all of us the same way. That is a very unique virtue of his. We will equally miss his sound instructions in encouraging us to be forthright and focused in God’s work. Describing him as a workaholic is an understatement for when you see him doing the work of God, no one will tell you to join him immediately and do it too. He motivated us to work for God. Above all, his love for evangelism was unrivaled and was one of the great things he gave to us.”
For Pastor John Adegbite, Zonal Secretary of the Christ Apostolic Church, Lagos, Obadare’s unparalleled motivation for work was what endeared him to the cleric. “He did not believe in failure. He didn’t believe in no for an answer no matter how difficult the situation may be. He never believed in impossibility, because he served a God of possibilities, especially, when it has to do with evangelism: Obadare was evangelism and evangelism was him. When you talk about grassroots motivation for winning souls in Nigeria, Obadare has no rival. He towers above all other colleagues. I have been with Obadare since 1977 when I first met him at a crusade in Ilesa. He was an erudite when it comes to exhalting people with the word of God. I still remember the title of his sermon that day: it centered on have faith in God’s word. Obadare was always instructing people to believe God’s word other than himself as a servant of God. Since I have known him then, I have personally come to realize that he is a man of God to follow. He was a man that tells you to do something on a certain issue and when you do it, you get results immediately”, he stated.
Edo State-born Pa Adeniyi Odihiri who is currently a security guard with the Lagos branch of the C.A.C, told Saturday Sun that he would miss the signs and wonders God had performed through Obadare: “ I was a wretch when I encountered Obadare and he turned my life around for good. I was practicing vodooism and was also a terrible drunk but God used Baba Obadare and some of his ministers to turn my life around for good. I have been in this church since mid 70s and I have no regret whatsoever”, he said.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
No Predator will attack what it cannot see! People might see some of us as weaklings,they are entitled to their opinion. I believe, for any society to be complete, it must have those who will say, lets die today,and those who will be afraid to die today.. That makes a complete society.
I spent two months in Rwanda in 2007 speaking with people who went through the Rwandan Genocide. It gave me a fresh perspective of what happened during Biafra because in Rwanda, I saw fresh wounds, touched them,and felt them. At times like this, restraint is a virtue.
Fani Kayode is already finished, dissipating energy on him will turn him into a victim and an underdog which will not be to our advantage. Dont beat a dead man,people will show sympathy for a corpse,even if it is a corpse of the wicked, thus you risk shifting the equation of the battle. He blocked me same day he wrote the first rubbish.
No argument will supplant the need for Ndi Igbo to start as a matter of urgency, the development of their homeland,the repatriation of their resources and a concerted efforts towards the development of Igboland. While we are st it, there are certain facts we should not be blind to; 70% of our resources and wealth are outside Igboland. This is not good.It puts us at a disadvantage.
I am not interested in fighting over who owns Lagos. I am interested in how to replicate something far better than Lagos in Igboland. And I have developed the Blueprint 6 years ago.It is workable,it is not Rocket Science and we can achieve it.
That is what I am interested in.
While some Yorubas are fighting to claim Lagos as theirs, we should be planning on how to transplant Lagos and drop it on the long stretch from Enugu through Okigwe to Aba. With one end having access to an International Airport, and another having access to a seaport.
But while we are at this. How we manage ourselves will determine the success of this project. Circumspection is a virtue.
Lets as a people focus on Igboland,refocus our energies on Igboland,ask the question; what,why,when and how.
The advantage Lagos has today is not geographical.It is the people. Las Vegas is in a desert,its economy is bigger than that of the entire Africa. We make up half of that PEOPLE that makes Lagos tick. I am among the very few Igbo people that saw the figures of the census carried out by the Lagos State Government in 2006 and the reasons why they refused to make it public. Lagos has comparative advantage because it has people. And we can unmake it, but before we unmake it, we need to create an alternative. You cant destroy what you have to get what you want.
In my humble opinion, and lets not be deceived about it, Fani Kayode spoke the minds of 90% of Yoruba people, but you will get about 25% supporting his views openly,and about 30% sitting on the window. But deep inside them,he expressed an ever present fear all of them have.How we manage this is as important as the very issue.
If all of us are shouting back, wielding our weapons and doing Akpu Obi,it wont help our cause one bit. We got to learn how to catch Monkeys in Brazil; we need to study the Monkeys.
Bravado has never helped us,it has always been our undoing.
We need to be formless, we need to articulate the right strategy for this battle,we should not go into this new war the same way we have waged all the wars we have fought, where every man does his own thing his own way,where there is no control, where people chose their own weapons at will,and use it as they deem fit.
Igboland cannot win this present battle with this mob mentality we are exhibiting,we must be organised,we must define the rules of engagement, and we must have voices of reason. That to me is not weakness.It is strength.
To be formless is not to be amorphous because everything has a form—it is impossible to avoid.According to Sun Tzu, the formlessness of power is more like that of water, or mercury, taking the form of whatever is around it, changing constantly, it is never predictable,the powerful are constantly creating form.Their power comes from the rapidity with which they can change.
''Formlessness is in the eye of the enemy who cannot see what they are up to and so has nothing solid to attack.This is the premier pose of power: ungraspable, as elusive and swift as the god Mercury, who could take any form he pleased and used this ability to wreak havoc on Mount Olympus''
The Igbo is the most predictable Nigerian, thats why he has been very good target those who wish to inflict injuries on him. Lets make adjustments and learn to do some things differently.
Kindly take my words,THINK about them,but throw me away if you wish. I am not important to this equation, but the issues are.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
The interim National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bisi Akande, in this interview with select journalists in his Ila Orangun home, speaks on a wide range of issues. Excerpts:
You were quoted as saying that the All Progressives Congress is not so keen on the presidency come 2015. What then is your focus?
I will rather say I was misquoted. How would there be a major party in 2013 and such party will not be keen about 2015? We are very much keen about 2015. The only thing I said, maybe, beclouded the one I did not say. What I said was that our preoccupation as an interim leadership of the APC was to mobilise and register members, to conduct congresses and convention to establish a good structure, a durable structure for the new party and that the priority now is the Anambra election and possibly, the Delta State senatorial election which will come up anytime from now. That is what I said, but to say that we are not concerned about 2015 is an understatement. I did not say so. I only said what we are primarily concerned about now because unless we have a proper structure, we won’t be able to face 2015 squarely. So, we should organise the party first.
Then, there was the invitation extended to President Goodluck Jonathan by you to join your party, which has been interpreted as you admiring the person of Jonathan and his administration… When the question was put to me on whether our doors are open to non-ACN, CPC or ANPP members, it is true I said our doors are open to PDP members that may be defecting and particularly to Jonathan if he gets tired of the crisis in PDP. But that does not mean we admire Jonathan. I have many reasons not to admire him. I have had two meetings with him. I have had a long conversation with him over the telephone. And on all these occasions, I did not find him to be a serious-minded leader. I can say boldly that Nigeria’s problem today is Jonathan. It could have been easier for Nigeria if to say we have the thinking leadership in Jonathan. I said I have written him twice; he had never had the courtesy of acknowledging any of the letters. I discussed serious business in the two letters on what can move Nigeria forward. That shows me that on all other issues, that is the levity with which Jonathan was taking national issues. He is the problem of this country because he is more concerned about his anxiety for his third term election, or a third term return to presidency and he reduced the Nigerian government to kindergarten governance. He reduced the totality of this country to kindergarten governance. If you remember, because Bola Tinubu insisted, which is true, which was the decision of the party, that ACN will not participate in the Government of National unity, he set the Code of Conduct Bureau after him until he got disgraced in court. When Bankole did not want to support his nomination of a candidate for the Speaker of the House of Representatives, he sent EFCC after him. See the happening in Rivers State now; he sent EFCC after Amaechi. He sends EFCC after everybody that he suspects. He is behaving like kindergarten. We want a leader in this country; we don’t want a kindergarten president; we want a thinking leadership. So, I don’t have any reason to admire Jonathan. If he comes to APC, we will be afraid so that he doesn’t bring crisis to our party.
How do you want to accommodate those that are not progressively-minded? Or is there an avenue for the incoming ones to be integrated into your ideology? When you talk about progressive, it is a matter of political environment. There is no way you can be in PDP and be a progressive, but there are a lot of ways you can come to APC and learn to be progressive. And we believe that no matter how reactionary you might be in the PDP, if you come to APC, by the time you see us demonstrating discipline; by the time you see us demonstrating efficiency, you will be ashamed to stay behind. If you can’t be a first class, you struggle to be a third class politician. That is why we believe that no matter what you are now, if you join the APC, you leave the circle of the expired leadership and you come to the circle of disciplined and efficient leadership. There is no way you will not be progressive. What progressive means is thinking less about yourself as a leader and thinking more always about the generality of the people; not allocating money for the construction of Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and doing nothing and beginning to say on the radio and television that work has started. Maybe they are already sharing the money. That is not progressive. If you are progressive, before Jonathan will go to Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to turn the sod or flag off, as the case may be, the contractor’s machinery would have been in place, go to Lagos-Ibadan Expressway now, you won’t see anything happening. Maybe next year, he will tell you why it was not possible. That is reactionary government. We want progressive leaders like Fashola, Oshiomhole, Aregbesola, Fayemi, Ajimobi in Ibadan. Go and see changes. No matter how reactionary you are, when you are among the thinking leaders, definitely, you will want to join them.
That is why we invited people from the PDP to come and join us in the APC.
How would you react to the claim by the PDP that we have expired leaders at the helm of affairs of APC? I think Chief Tom Ikimi has said it all that PDP has no leadership except for expired leadership. Why would you say people in the APC are expired leaders? I left Osun State some 10 years ago and I am happy that I am still being celebrated by the people of the state. Would you call me an expired leader? Even today, Jonathan is not being celebrated in Bayelsa State. Where will he be celebrated? What will he point to that he has done as president that will make people celebrate him? I don’t want to react to such a thing. They are fond of abuse; we are not for abuse, but for work. I mean real business. I think Jonathan has no serious capacity for accommodating serious business.
The APC was recently described as a government in waiting. How would you react to this? If you see how the APC was welcomed after registration, you will be anxious to see election come and you will be convinced that APC is a government in waiting. It is in the mind of the people to judge which party is a government in waiting.
Considering the fact that APC is made up of politicians from different parties with different backgrounds, what is the leadership doing to avoid implosion? The mere fact that people come from different political parties does not suggest implosion. What will you now say of Nigeria which contains several ethnic groups? Are you saying that Nigeria is a possible implosion? If it is yes, then, I won’t be able to answer your question.
General Muhammadu Buhari was in government while you were in prison. At what point did you have a change of mind that he is a democrat? Buhari’s military junta sent many Nigerians to prison, including myself, but Buhari as a politician demonstrated to the whole country he wanted to deviate from the military way of doing things to a democratic way of doing things. So, we have been working with him. We have been discussing issues. In the military, you don’t debate; now, we have been debating with Buhari. He said recently that he was ready to contest the primary with any member of the APC, and if he was defeated, he was going to support the winner. In the military, you don’t wait to be defeated; you arrest those who want to contest with you and you kill them. So, the environment of politics of democracy is waiting to change Buhari to a democrat.
Most of the people that are in government now are those that have been there before as administrators, governors like David Mark and Jonah Jang. How are you going to ensure that new bloods are injected into governance in Nigeria to avoid recycling of leadership? Don’t let us make mistake. Those who you mentioned were invariably leaders in the military, and there are rooms for them to be leaders again in the democracy. It is a pity that Nigeria refused to move forward at the hands of the reactionaries. Generally, our constitution is there for you to consider. You serve as a governor for two terms, no way for you again. So, if it is fully implemented and we do not replicate the kind of Obasanjo who wanted a third term, and by the time we begin to have less and less of people of that tendency, you will see that succession business becomes more reasonable. And if you remember, when we were rigged out of office, the only place where we won was Lagos. If you look at the succession system in Lagos and compare it with the succession system in Obasanjo’s Federal Government, you will be able to see a difference that succession for progress was that of the ACN government of Lagos State and succession for retrogression was that of the PDP Federal Government. If our constitution is properly adhered to, I think succession will not be a problem. But the tendency to want to circumvent the constitution is what is leading us to what you described as recycling of leadership. That is what people call expired leadership.
What are you doing to ensure success at the polls for your party? We are doing all we can. Already, in Anambra State, two weeks from now, we will start registration of members and congresses from ward to local government and the state levels in the state, and we quickly conduct a primary to produce our governorship candidate. Thereafter, election is not new to us in the state. I know that if election was transparent four years ago, we won there. But because we belong to a country where the leadership of the security like the Inspector-General of Police thought he is the Inspector-General of the President, not independent Inspector-General of Police of Nigeria. And we think with what INEC has just done coming out boldly to register the party in spite of all the pressure and the obstacle put before it by the presidency, maybe the INEC will be bold enough this time and be more courageous to give us transparent election. And if they do, election is never strange to us in Anambra State; we will win any day. Even when we were ACN, we won, not to talk of APC. Many PDP and many notable politicians in Igbo land are joining us. We have no fear at all. We only need to ensure that the election is made transparent and we are going to create what we call watch-dog forum to make sure that our votes count.
What had been the impediments before the progressives or the opposition to collaborate in the past? The impediments before the progressives or the opposition to collaborate in the past have been totally removed. The major impediment in the past was lack of trust among the leadership.
This lack of trust was brought about by lack of political education. That has been overcome now. Another impediment was that the government in power was making sure that coming together was impossible. There was a time PDP sponsored one of their own to lead the Alliance for Democracy. He contested as the national chairman of the AD in preparation for 2003 election and he won and became the chairman. He is Abdulkadri by name. And you can imagine where an opposition is put in place to become the leader of an opposition party; you know what that can bring. It was a mischief on the part of the Federal Government; using their big opportunity to use big money to destabilise us. That is overcome now. The lack of confidence is already a thing of the past. The lack of political education is already a matter of the past, and the conflict of trust or lack of trust among the leadership is already overcome. APC is a reality in the political firmament of this country today, and that is why it will be easy and convenient for us to win elections in Anambra, Ekiti, Osun in 2014 and the presidency in 2015. I am predicting we will have cause to meet like this in the future and we will remind ourselves of what I am saying today. In 2015, APC is coming to take over government.
You are aware of the faceoff between the Lagos State government and Anambra State on the deportation of destitute. How would you describe the action of Lagos State? It is what I can call politics of mischief. If you remember, in 2009, shortly before the election of Anambra State, the same Obi was displaying pictures of Awolowo, raising up the hands of Ngige or something like that, trying to call our candidate a member of Yoruba party, calling the AC then a Yoruba party and it was dramatised the same way he is dramatising this Lagos/Anambra face-off. In spite of that, the Igbo rejected him then. This time, before he started, the Igbo had rejected him. If you read Lai Mohammed, he reminded us. Obi started this thing in Anambra in 2011 by throwing out people from Ebonyi State. What he is accusing Lagos of doing today? And it is not strange, if you read Lai Mohammed, even in America, it happens between states, where you exchange destitute. So, it is not a strange thing that you don’t want homeless people to come and occupy your space. What Fashola has done was the right thing, writing to Obi to say there are some destitute just arriving in Lagos from your state. What do we do about it and he asked Lagos government to bring them to Onitsha bridge where some people will take them over, and when they got to the place, nobody was there to take them. There were so many letters Lagos wrote to Anambra without reply, so, what would you expect Fashola to do? It is not strange. They are only making a mountain out of a mole hill. There is nothing in it rather than politics of mischief. I don’t think it can go anywhere. The sovereign people of Anambra State definitely understand.
You were said to have shunned Elder Peter Babalola, a former chieftain of the PDP who defected to your party when he paid you a visit in your home. How true was this claim? That I threw Peter Babalola out of my house? And you never quoted a date. He was here with me eating pounded yam and drinking palm wine yesterday celebrating the sallah with me.
Maybe that answers your question. There are pictures if you care to see. He was here throughout yesterday celebrating with me. So, there is no quarrel between Peter Babalola and the leadership of APC. Whether you are PDP or APC, whatever your party, you are all Akande’s children. If you stay long here, you will begin to see active PDP members coming here. So, we accommodate everybody. I will not reject you because of your political thought. We can only influence you to think right politically.
Do you see your party winning elections in Kwara and Kogi states in the immediate future? We don’t have problem there anymore. Since the registration of APC, things are changing for the best in Kwara. If you go to Kwara North, judging by 2011 election, they were largely CPC, while Kwara South was essentially ACN and a mixture of CAN and PDP. At the end of the day, PDP won election there. Many of the PDP members in Kwara State will soon move over to APC because I know they became worried when Jonathan started sending EFCC after Bukola Saraki because Jonathan’s style is, if you are not in speaking term with him, like Obasanjo before him, he will send EFCC after you. Since he started sending EFCC after Saraki, the signal is already going to the generality of members of PDP in Kwara State that APC is their final home. So, we are not afraid of what will happen in Kwara, but we have Kogi; we are firmly rooted there. We were rigged out in Kogi in the last election. I know in a general election, where everybody is involved, by the grace of God, in the coming election, we are going to have Kogi State.
What is your comment on the crisis in Rivers State? I don’t see it as a crisis. When I started, you will remember that I said the problem of this country is Jonathan. Amaechi is a PDP. He was thinking that the relationship between the state and the Federal Government should be according to the constitution. The Federal Government will just dip its two hands into the state money and spend it in their own usual way. And Amaechi was leading the governors to go to court to checkmate the Federal Government from squandering state money. The constitution is clear. In sharing the formula, take your own and spend it the way you like. But let the state take their own money and spend it for the people. Because of that, Jonathan does not want Amaechi to remain the chairman of Nigeria Governors forum. That is the only offence, and because of that, he sent the police, EFCC and all the things that are fearful to intimidate the governor. And it was before your own clear eyes that five members of the House of Assembly struggled to impeach 27 and you were here in this country when Amaechi won 19 governors’ votes as against 16 and the PDP embraced the minority as the winner. So, this is enough to tell you that PDP is the party of the riggers and that is why we are running away from PDP and before the 2015 election, PDP will show itself more in such a ugly pattern that Nigerians will never touch it again.
Are you considering bringing in Bukola Saraki into your political fold? I have not talked politics with Bukola Saraki before but if he and his people are desirous to come to APC today, we are going to embrace them with open arms.
We learnt that former governor of Osun State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, is likely to join APC as a result of what he is now facing in his party. How far is this true? I don’t know. Olagunsoye Oyinlola was my very good boy when we were in the AD, before he joined the PDP. His parents were in the Action Group. But he deliberately went to join bad people and I whispered it into his ears recently that, ‘Lagun, what are you doing with these bad people. Don’t you see how comfortable you are now? You better come back home.’ If he decides to come back today, he is welcome.
The incumbent governor in Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola, is one of your political products. How would you assess his performance? Honestly, I am becoming afraid about his audacity and passion. Each time I see him, I ask, ‘Rauf, how will you get money to do all this?’ And he keeps doing bigger and bigger things. So, I retired myself to praying for him that God assist him to accomplish his mission.
This is the first time the South-West will have a serious alliance with the North. Do you see it working? In 2005, myself and some other colleagues in the South-West thought that for almost 200 years, there had been bitterness between the North-West and the South-West since the jihad of Othman Dan Fodio and the resistance of the emergence of the Fulani hegemony through Oyo to the South-West, which led to the takeover of Ilorin from the Yoruba. We sat down in 2005 and said no, we can’t continue fighting. We fought for 200 years; can’t we be friends for a while? Maybe because the Yoruba and the Hausa/Fulani are fighting, maybe that is why Nigeria seemed not to have peace or progress. Then, we said we would do everything to woo the Hausa/Fulani to work with us. Maybe for once, we will have a progressive Nigeria and we stretched the hand of friendship to them, particularly to Buhari through Balarabe Musa, and we set up a committee and they were working. Suddenly, I was not in the country and a group was formed that contained Atiku and the South-West. And about a week later, there was another one led by somebody again. I tried to find out what was happening and they said no, but Atiku is from the North-East. They said no, they were metamorphosing to ACD. Then, I said no, I won’t be part of ACD. They started appealing to me to come and be the leader. I said no because that was not our original thinking. Our original thinking was that the South-West will work with the North-West. It doesn’t matter what happened to the rest of the country. And we called ourselves back to the drawing board and we agreed to align the AD and the ACD to ANPP. We agreed to bear the name ‘ANPP,’ use the logo of corn and reshaped things, but we were rejected by ANPP and hurriedly, we put together Action Congress. That was towards the 2007 elections. So, in 2009, I personally met Buhari again and said, ‘look, we have tried this thing before and it did not work, can’t we try it again.’ He agreed that we could and we set up a committee of three, to work out how we can work together again, but by 2010, when we were to materialise this arrangement, Atiku withdrew and went back to PDP. We thought we would embrace Buhari to continue with the negotiation. Suddenly, he too moved and said he was going to form his own party, and that frustrated that attempt. After the election, we started talking again, and we are happy, today, we are in a union not only of the South-West and North-West, we are the reunion of the entire country. The whole of Nigeria is in the basket now, and that is why we are sure we are going to win 2015 election. On the issue of presidential candidate, we have not got there at all. And if we start thinking about that, we will start digging political well. We want to build a political structure, digging a political well will start from the top down. You choose the presidency before building the party, but if you want to establish an endurable structure, you build the political party with a non-collapsing structure. By the time the structure is solid, we choose whoever will represent us in Aso rock and I don’t think that will give us problem.
How would you get people nominated for election? Is it through your old way of selection of candidate? You are wrong to say that we don’t embrace primaries. What we are saying is that internal democracy as conceived by certain people is an abnormality in politics. A political party is like a cult; you have a goal, and only those who understand that goal can reach it. But if you throw it open and a rich man comes, even PDP that is much richer, they can send their people to come and buy the party from us, and before we know it, they will be members of the National Assembly, governors and they will call it APC, or ACN. We don’t want that. We want those who are well groomed in our culture to represent us. So, our own is a guided internal democracy. Guided internal democracy never forbids primaries, but the primaries too will be according to the regulation of our party. We won’t contest with ourselves like a general election. That is what is destroying PDP now; they want to claim to the world that they are democratic when they are not. We don’t want that.
What is the position of APC on those people calling themselves acting this or that of the party at various levels? All those calling themselves all kinds of appellations in the name of APC in the state, local government and ward levels are unauthorised. They are all fakes. You are not a proper member until you are registered, and that is why we at the federal level call ourselves interim. There is no law that says we should be, but INEC insisted that unless we have a national interim leadership, we would not be registered, and we wanted to be registered. That was why we created the interim national leadership, and we want to go to the field and register people. You can’t be an officer of a party when you are not a registered member of the party. You can’t just hijack state executive, you can only be a former ACN or ANPP secretary or whatever as the case may be. And you can be friends of the party; you can hold meetings to assist us and ensure that registration of members goes on well. Until that is done, you can’t be anything in our party.
So, immediately after registration, we are going to congresses at ward, local and state levels, and finally, a convention at the federal level. It is then that we have substantive leaders and all this interim kind of thing will move aside for those who win elections at congresses and convention.
When is that registration coming up? Anytime from now. We are all working hard. A committee is already constituted to advise the party on that.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
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