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President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday enjoined politicians to desist from making provocative utterances that are capable of causing division in the country.
President Jonathan spoke Wednesday while swearing in his Special Adviser on Political Affairs, Prof. Rufa’i Alkali.
The President also swore in a Commissioner with the Federal Civil Service Commission, Mr. Simon Etim; as well as three permanent secretaries -Mr. Nanpon Danjuma, Mr. Binta Bello and Dr. Babatope Ajakaiye.
Addressing Professor Alkali who took over from Ahmed Gulak who had been relieved of his appointment last month, President Jonathan liken Alkali’s position to that of a Group Managing Director on political issues who should not treat his appointment with levity.
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.
Abuja – The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) under the leadership of Gov. Jonah Jang of Pateau, has flayed the recent call for military intervention in Nigeria by Mr Festus Odimegwu.
This is contained in a statement released to newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday and signed by the Administrator of the Forum, Mr Osaro Onaiwu,
Odimegwu is a former Chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC)
“Odimegwu’s utterance is disturbing; he ought to understand that military rule is not the panacea to a nation’s issues.
“His examples of Egypt are misleading because the Egyptians are still reeling from the many decades of military rule,’’ the statement quotes Jang as saying.
Jang, in the statement, described the gains of democracy in the past 15 years as “giant strides which is in sharp contrast to the under development experienced under decades of military rule’’.
The statement called on all Nigerians to resist every attempt to oust civilian rule but instead carry out evaluations which would show how civilian rule had been of immense benefit to Nigerians.
It commended the men and women of the military for their sacrifice in the fight against terrorism and called on them to remain focused and committed to their primary role.
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.
Osogbo – The Osun State Government on Wednesday declared Thursday a work-free day for residents of the state.
The Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Sunday Akere, made this public in a press statement.
According to the statement, the gesture is to commemorate the June 12, 1993, presidential election.
The statement said the day was to mark the election presumably won by a business mogul, Chief Moshood Abiola, but annulled by the then military regime.
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 federal government has nominated the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, to succeed the long-serving incumbent Abdullah al-Badri as the Secretary-General of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Iraq's oil minister said Tuesday.
The proposal is aimed at solving the deadlock over the post created by opposing candidates from Saudi Arabia and Iran, Abdul Kareem Luaibi was quoted by the Reuters news agency as stating. Luaibi added that Iraq continues to back its own candidate, and the issue remained unresolved. Badri's latest term in the office ends in December.
If the Nigerian candidacy is successful, Alison-Madueke would be OPEC’s first female to hold the post and would have to relinquish her post as the petroleum minister.
However, she will not be the first Nigerian to hold the post, as former Petroleum Minister, Dr. Rilwanu Lukman, held the post for six years. THISDAY also gathered that the decision to forward Alison-Maduke’s name has been in the pipeline since December last year when she was elected OPEC’s Alternate President in Vienna, Austria.
A source in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) said the minister had been weighing the possibility of throwing her hat into the ring for the post of secretary-general since last year. Presidency sources also confirmed that if she succeeds, it would be the perfect exit strategy for the minister who has been mired in several controversies.
He added that her exit is deemed by the presidency as a “soft landing” for the minister and would appease those who have clamoured for her removal from the cabinet.
“Madam has been considering the post of secretary-general for sometime now. That is why her name was forwarded by the federal government, and it is likely that other OPEC member countries will back her nomination,” he said.
He explained that the minister departed Abuja for Vienna on Monday. In recent days, he added, the minister and the Nigerian delegation have met oil ministers from Iraq, Libya, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to get their support.
Inside the organisation, jockeying for the top job is often more heated than the debate over OPEC's bigger mission-setting the group's quota for oil output.
The secretary-general does not have an official vote in these decisions, but can act to broker compromise among members. OPEC members are scheduled to meet today in Vienna on the body’s production ceiling of 30 million barrels per day.
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.
Edo State House of Assembly Tuesday erupted like a volcano following a counter move led by the Deputy Speaker, Festus Ebea, and three other lawmakers who were suspended on Monday, to effect the suspension of the Speaker, Uyi Igbe, the majority leader and six others.
The four suspended members and five others had arrived the assembly in the morning and broke through the entrance of the chambers, then moved and adopted a motion for the suspension of the speaker and seven others without the mace.
According to a member of staff of the assembly, who preferred not to be named, trouble began at 9.45 am when a white bus carrying the suspended members drove into the assembly complex with some riot policemen and broke into the chambers, which was under lock and key.
He said on siting the lawmakers, the Sergeant at Arms, who apparently knew the intention of the suspended members, took to his heels. Subsequently, in a sitting that lasted about five minutes and presided over by Ebea, Igbe, the minority leader and six other lawmakers were suspended.
However, just as Ebea and his group of dissenting lawmakers were concluding their motion, Igbe and 14 other lawmakers stormed the hallowed chambers at exactly 10 am, following which a free-for-all broke out.
But before Ebea and his group could escape, some of them were beaten severely by their colleagues before the police ferried them away.
While Igbe and others resumed sitting at the chambers, supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and those of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) engaged in another fight outside the premises. Consequently, the police shot tear gas outside and into the chamber forcing the lawmakers and their supporters to scamper for safety.
The House had on Monday suspended Ebea, Friday Ogieriakhi (Orhionmwon South Constituency), Jude Ise-Idehen (Ikpoba Okhai) and Patrick Osayinmen (Oredo East).
Speaking after yesterday’s incident, Ebea insisted that they had suspended the Majority Leader and Speaker, adding that the leadership of the assembly had been changed.
Contrary to the allegation made by the Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, on Monday that some lawmakers had been given N50 million each to defect to the PDP, Ebea also disclosed that the group had been offered money by the governor, which they refused.
“I was offered money twice through the former majority leader by Mr. Governor. But I refused. The money which they said was meant for me that I refused to take, is still with the former majority leader. I wish them well,” he said.
Continuing, Ebea said: “Hell had been let loose. He (Oshiomhole) goes about suspending teachers, removing workers’ names from the payroll and kicking widows and telling them to go and die.
“We are worried about the illegal taxes here and there. We are all stakeholders in this government. It is not meant for the comrade governor alone, with his Comrade at Arms, Philip Shaibu. Oshiomhole started well but we are surprised about what is going on. “But we are still in prayers 24 hours a day to see how he can change so that we can all jointly take Edo State to the next level. They must see the voice of reason.”
But in a counter briefing, the 15 APC lawmakers loyal to Oshiomhole described the alleged suspension as laughable and accused the police of aiding the four suspended lawmakers to break into the chambers.
Kabiru Adjoto, who addressed reporters in the Office of the Speaker, alongside 13 other members, stated: “Saying that they suspended the speaker somewhere in Ugbor village is laughable. You can see the speaker and the majority leader seated here comfortably, so that rumour is arrant nonsense.”
On the whereabouts of the mace, the Clerk of the House, Robert Ogini, confirmed that he had it in his possession and was with the speaker when Ebea and others broke the doors of the chambers with the thugs. “So I don’t know how they could have suspended the speaker and the majority leader when the mace was not with them,” he said.
The Majority Leader, Hon. Shaibu, who also explained that the lawmakers had arrived the complex for their normal session, but before they got in, the police escorts, the suspended members and PDP members were already in the assembly.
“On our arrival at 10 am, we saw them hurriedly rushing out of the chambers. The police aided them to forcibly open the chambers. When they saw us they rushed away.
“A matter of urgent public importance was raised by Adjoto Kabiru over an alleged meeting that took place at the residence of a chieftain of the PDP, where the speaker, myself, Adjoto and two other members were marked for assassination. The motion went through and the order of the day continued but we had to suspend because of the tear gas shot by the police.
“We took the order of the day; after that we adjourned sitting till tomorrow. So the issue of suspending us I don’t know how they came about that, the paraphernalia of office is in the hands of the speaker, the sergeant at arms was with the speaker.
“But we were surprised that the police shot tear gas when we were sitting and the police aided their entry into the assembly which we resisted.
“We have sent a petition to the police commissioner in the state over the action by the police. Also, when we resisted them, information reached us that they mobilised to the legislative quarters and they were shooting.
"You can see the bullet holes there. That is to confirm what we said that some of us were marked for assassination. We sat and we adjourned till tomorrow, so if anybody said he sat to suspend us that is complete rubbish,” he asserted.
At the time of filing this report, there was a heavy presence of the police, officers of the Department of State Security (DSS) and men of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) at the assembly complex.
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 people of Gwoza area of Borno State, which suffered incessant Boko Haram attacks in the last one month, have resorted to eating wild fruits and roots to survive as food has become scarce, it was yesterday gathered.
Owing to the humanitarian crisis caused by the attacks, thousands of residents of the six border villages of Attagara, Amuda, Agapalawa, Ashigashiya, Ngoshe and Chikedeh in Gwoza Local Government Area have also started to leave their villages for fear of more attacks.
It was gathered that the residents started the mass exodus from the villages on Monday, moving into caves of Mandara Mountains in the Gwoza council area of the state, even as about 1,300 villagers were said to have migrated to Maiduguri. The people, according to some of them who spoke to reporters in Maiduguri yesterday, had waited for military deployment to their villages but this had not happened and made them more vulnerable to fresh attacks.
The senator representing Southern Borno at the National Assembly, Mohammed Ali Ndume, had called on stakeholders from the villages to push for military deployment, which the people claimed never came.
Some of the fleeing villagers said they had migrated to Maiduguri and others who had no means of getting to the state capital had fled into mountain caves and hilltops for safety and to prevent Boko Haram from forcibly conscripting their youths as members of the sect.
The immediate past vice-chairman of Gwoza council, Mr. Francis Mbala Nduka, and caretaker Committee Chairman, Dr. Hamman Jumba Ahmadu, said the villagers would only return if the military is deployed to the communities, as staying back would be suicidal.
Nduka said: “Our people have been gripped with fear and trauma for over two weeks and had no other place to flee than to run into caves of Gathahure, Gjigga, Kunde, Hwa’a, Hrazah and Hembe hill settlements.
“As fleeing hill dwellers cannot come down to the plains for food and water, they have resorted to eating wild fruits and roots to survive since the villages had been attacked and the insurgents are believed to be lurking within the vicinity.”
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.
In addition to corruption, inadequate armament, low morale and possible collusion with the enemy, the growing rift between officers and non-commissioned officers (NCOs) in Battalion 101 of 7Division based in Maiduguri, has been identified as one of the factors that has hindered the country’s counter-terrorism efforts in the North-east, THISDAY has learnt.
According to findings, the mistrust between officers and the NCOs is so bad that it has served to weaken the country’s offensive against Boko Haram terrorists.
Investigations have revealed that the rift has seen the parties setting each other up and helped to expose senior officers in the army currently being investigated and face court martial, contrary to the repeated denials by the Defence Headquaters and Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, that no officer is being tried in the military.
Whereas the soldiers have accused their commanders of colluding with the enemy, the officers have blamed the soldiers for deliberately refusing to fight and pushing their colleagues to their deaths.
A senior officer in the Nigerian Army who spoke to THISDAY on the issue said his fellow commissioned officers have maintained that rather than the insurgency, it is acts of cowardice, indiscipline and desertion from duty on the part of soldiers that constitute the greatest danger in the ongoing fight against terrorism in the country.
He disclosed that the troublesome Battalion 101 of 7Division, which recently mutinied against their General Officer Commanding (GOC), was made up of lily-livered soldiers whose frame of mind was not conditioned to engage terrorists in a battle.
He revealed that the pervasive rot had become so frightening that the military authorities are considering a comprehensive overhaul of both their recruitment system and more importantly, re-orientation of personnel on the professional calling of soldiers in the armed forces.
According to another top military source, the military authorities have been trying to deal with rising cases of sabotage within their ranks and soldiers refusing to fight or desertion in the heat of battle but were taken aback by the recent acts of mutiny in Maiduguri.
Worried by the ugly development, the military has traced the remote and immediate causes of this alarming trend to three major factors, including the overbearing influence of the elite during recruitment process such that candidates without a passion for the profession are being recruited into the armed forces.
It was revealed that most political figures, traditional rulers and influential personalities under the erroneous notion that the military is a money-making establishment rather than war-fighting profession put enormous pressure on the services to recruit their candidates who are not suitable for the job.
“What we have today is frightening. This is not an issue of morale or motivation but outright cases of cowardice with soldiers refusing to fight. They even beat up their officers and commanders and before you know it they will start calling their political godfathers who will in turn start making demoralising comments and talking about morale.
“It has been difficult getting them to imbibe the discipline required of soldiers. For example, the attitude exhibited by this battalion has been unheard of in the annals of the Nigerian Army whereby you will send a soldier on assignment, and he dictates to you where, when and how he will go, as well as the type of weapon he must be given before going.
“Those who complain of weapons and other issues are all excuses born out of fear and cowardice, not issues of motivation and morale,” the source said.
However, the soldiers have attributed the woeful performance of the military in the North-east to the army officers, whom they accused of selling information, equipment and military uniforms in exchange of Boko Haram members.
Soldiers, who spoke to THISDAY, lamented the maltreatment of their colleagues, pointing to the poor allowances they are paid and poor feeding, saying: “They treat us like slaves.”
“What kind of cowardice are they talking about when they are the problem? Our big men and our generals are the problem. If all the money that is being sent to them is well utilised, why can't we fight them (Boko Haram)?
“Look at other countries how they treat their soldiers. Since I joined this army, it was only once that I was supplied a uniform, which was during the passing out from training.
“Any uniform they bring, they will divert it and sell to Boko Haram, while those of us in the army don't even have any. It’s amongst the officers who use all these things to make money, while we other ranks are suffering.
“That is why we felt they are just using us to die for nothing and immediately you die, they freeze your account and after three months they will send your family out of the barracks.
“All those generals are using us as slaves to make money. They are not paying us all the allowance due to us, which is N45,000. What they do is to keep N30,000 and say they are using N15,000 to cook food for us. “But how could you use that to prepare food for so many soldiers.
Besides, look at the food they give us, in fact sometimes it's better to starve than to even eat the food and when you eventually eat it, it is sickening. Some soldiers end up with stomach pain, while others fall ill. The remaining N30,000 they don't even pay as and when due,” the soldiers revealed.
Army Arrests Traitors THISDAY also learnt that despite repeated denials by DHQ and Badeh, the Nigerian Army has embarked on sweeping arrests and comprehensive investigations that have helped to expose some of the officers and soldiers responsible for colluding with the terrorists. One of the officers who has been arrested and is being investigated is the former GOC of 7Division, Maiduguri, Major-General Abubakar Mohammed.
According to a military source, so many senior officers have enriched themselves by giving vital operational information to the insurgents in exchange for money, thereby sabotaging the counter-terrorism efforts including the ambush near Chibok that led to the death of about 18 soldiers and Lt-Col. Salisu, and the subsequent mutiny against the former GOC.
The source alleged that the former GOC was accused of deliberately misleading the soldiers, resulting in operational blunders, which cost several lives including some officers.
The decision to keep away the former GOC pending the final investigation by the panel set up by the DHQ was corroborated by a source in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
“If along the line the action of the GOC provoked the mutiny, the GOC has to be court-martialed. But the only thing we are sure of is that he is not likely to go back there,” the source said.
Providing further insight, a source within the 7Division said: “The Lt-Colonel died during the last ambush after the operation at Chibok as a result of the order given by the GOC who insisted we must sleep over instead of returning back to Maiduguri that night. It was in the process of sleeping over that the Boko Haram informants tipped off members of the sect and they ambushed us.
“This happened despite the fact that we told him that we wanted to come back that very night but he refused and told us that we should wait. Then there was an ambush where we lodged and suffered heavy casualties. We don't know what was his plan and that is why he has been arrested for questioning but we know that at the end of the day nothing will happen to him.
“They handcuffed the GOC for allowing the blunder that caused the heavy casualties. Even though we know they will set him free, which has always been the problem with our officers who feel they can do anything and get away with it.”
Although Mohammed was immediately replaced by Brigadier-General I.Y Ibrahim, while an investigative panel was set up by DHQ, information reaching THISDAY showed that the probe has been expanded beyond the immediate cause of the mutiny, which has led to the arrest and/or questioning of 25 other senior army officers. The army officers, THISDAY discovered, included Captains and Lt-Colonels, while nine Generals are being placed under watch but no decision has been taken on them.
However, another source within the military disclosed that some of the senior officers under investigation are on the run. “What is happening is that all these our officers normally communicate with BH, telling them the type and amount of ammunition we have. When they have also given this vital information to the enemy, they will now ambush us and that was what happened when we had the problem with the GOC.
“Its our officers who are killing us… And now the officer that was communicating with Boko Haram has run away with his family under watch,” the source said.
Also speaking to THISDAY on the issue, a top military source said the investigation was advanced and had almost been concluded at the regimental level and a more comprehensive one would be undertaken by the Military Police.
“It is the Military Police which will determine the level of charges, involvement and punishment for those involved. These are being done simultaneously. Definitely the full wrath of the law is going to be applied, which is death by firing because mutiny and sabotage during a war is a serious offence,” the source said.
Boko Haram Kills Five In a related development, suspected members of Boko Haram have laid siege to two villages in Borno State, killing at least five persons and carting away food items and livestock.
Residents of the area informed journalists that armed hoodlums believed to be members of the sect attacked the two villages – Tohya and Wurojene – near Chibok, the town where over 200 schoolgirls were abducted on April 14.
According to them, the attackers opened fire on the villagers as soon as they sneaked into the communities at about 7pm on Monday, killing at least five people.
A resident of Chibok, who preferred not to be named, said: “The attackers fired at the people and many residents had to flee into the bush. There was confusion everywhere as the attackers also went about setting fire on houses.”
He added: “They attacked for about two hours and carted away foodstuff, bags of grains and chicken belonging to our poor people.” The two villages, which share a common border, are about 14 kilometres away from Chibok in southern Borno.
The source said: “Most of the villagers were forced to sleep in the bush throughout the night and the insurgents left after the killing spree and destruction. There was no resistance from the military troops around the area.”
A security source, who was not authorised to speak to the press, confirmed the incident. He said based on reports from the residents of the two communities, the insurgents were “well armed though not as many as they usually were in previous attacks”.
He maintained that the troops stationed around the area were not alerted on time, allowing the insurgents to have a field day. Also, suspected members of the notorious Boko Haram were reported to have launched a daring attack on Bilta in Borno State on Monday, where about 50 of their members were killed by the military at the weekend.
Residents of the community said the insurgents are now in control of Bilta after troops withdrew from the area. It could not be ascertained how many people were killed in the latest attack but the insurgents were said to have destroyed many buildings in the reprisal on the village.
Security sources said over 350 insurgents armed with rocket-propelled grenades emerged from the bush and attacked the military formation in Bilta.
One of the security sources said: “The terrorists re-mobilised and attacked Bilta after the heavy casualties they recorded at the weekend. Our troops withdrew for strategic reasons only and not out of fear. Remember that we recorded a huge success on Saturday and Sunday.”
A resident of the village, who spoke to reporters on the phone, said: “The insurgents were well kitted in military fatigues and drove in about 35 vehicles and dozens of motorcycles. They also had armoured personnel carriers and they instilled fear in everyone.”
Council Boss Denies Attack on His Community In another incident, the caretaker Chairman of Dikwa Local Government area in the state, Alhaji Ali Modu Gana yesterday dismissed the report of Monday’s attack by insurgents on his council, saying it was a pack of lies.
The Hausa service of one of the foreign radio stations had reported the attack on Dikwa during which the council secretariat was set ablaze and security operatives deployed to the area chased away.
However, Gana said the report was false, adding: “There was no Boko Haram attack on Dikwa as carelessly and unprofessionally reported by the news medium. The story was baseless, unfounded, untrue and aimed at misleading the public and giving terrorists cheap publicity.” The council boss, who spoke to reporters in Maiduguri, also said sources quoted by the news outlet to have spoken to were totally falsified and concocted.
He added: “I was in Dikwa throughout yesterday (Monday), I even swore in all my appointed ward councillors in line with the constitution peacefully. But all of a sudden, people started calling me on the phone Tuesday morning sympathising with me and saying that Boko Haram attacked my town and set ablaze our local government secretariat and chased the military away.
“Inasmuch as the constitution guarantees freedom of speech and expression, such freedom must not be misused to give Boko Haram cheap publicity as well as tarnishing the image and integrity of our security forces who are doing their best to ensure peace and tranquility.”
He explained that what actually took place in Dikwa on Monday was an explosion caused by faulty solar street light batteries that led to panic among some residents and was not an attack in any way.
He urged the media to always verify their information before going to press to avoid misleading their audience, even as he cautioned those that claimed to be eyewitnesses of incidents and media sources to always give authentic information and stop spreading rumours that could amplify people’s fears.
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.
Owing to his inability to gain access to the palace which has been cordoned off by the police, the new Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, has been forced to rule over his subjects from Naseer House which is situated inside the Government House, Kano.
Also, the chairman of the four kingmakers who is the Madakin Kano, Alhaji Yusuf Nabahani, has presented Sanusi with the traditional regalia and instrument of office for his coronation ceremony at Naseer House.
The ancestral traditional regalia, among others, comprises the Holy Qur’an, the twin spears, Tagwayen masu (sword), Emir Dabo’s hat and a pair of ostrich plumage shoes, which he would adorn as emir.
Sanusi was also busy receiving visitors at the Government House and had so far received prominent dignitaries like the Adamawa State Governor, Murtala Nyako, Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State and business mogul, Alhaji Aliko Dangote among others.
THISDAY further observed that for the third day, the emir’s palace had remained under lock and key by security agents, aimed at keeping trouble makers at bay and maintain law and order.
It was also observed that a hovering helicopter of the Nigerian Air force was seeing around the city and the palace, while residents in the emir’s palace also revealed that security had been increased around the palace.
Our source in the Emirate council also revealed that the family of the late emir, Ado Bayero, was yet to pay a homage visit to the new emir as part of the tradition to declare their loyalty to him.
The new emir, who is spending the night at the Government House along with his guards, was said to have been busy holding meetings with the business community in the state who are paying him homage.
Though the official day of the coronation ceremony of the new emir is yet to be known by the people, sources revealed that it would hold at the emir’s palace at a date to be announced later by either the new emir or the state government.
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 Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke and the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) have again applied to the Federal High Court in Abuja for an interlocutory injunction to stop the Senate and the House of Representatives from summoning them for the purposes of giving evidence or producing any papers, books, records or other documents which relate to the unpublished official records of the applicants pending the hearing and final determination of the substantive suit filed by them.
In the alternative, they asked the court to issue an order for the maintenance of the status quo pending the hearing and final determination of the substantive suit filed by them.
This is the fourth application by the minister and the corporation to get the court to stop the lawmakers from inviting them to answer questions on the allegation that N10 billion was spent to hire aircraft for the minister.
Two of the applications were made in two separate substantive suits, while the remaining applications were made in the interim within the two suits.
They contended that the respondents (Senate and House of Representatives) cannot investigate criminal matters when it is not a court of law.
They accused the lawmakers of abusing their powers in carrying out their oversight functions by indiscriminately dishing out invitations to them to attend series and several meetings that had to do with the way and manner they exercise and discharge their daily statutory functions.
According to them, the invitations by the House were not connected with the purpose of making laws or correcting defects in existing laws.
They said: "Within the space of one calendar year, we have been inundated with several invitations, numbering well over 40, from the several committees set up by the respondents to allegedly carry out oversight functions on the applicants.
"These several invitations which are not remotely related to the exercise of the respondents’ functions are hindering the applicants from effectively carrying out their own constitutionally and statutorily assigned responsibilities as they are regularly and serially forced to commit time, materials, personnel, energy, and huge resources to attend these frequent invitations, thus leaving them with little or no time to do their main job."
A written address in support of the application for interlocutory injunction by their counsel, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), asked the court to, in the interim, restrain the lawmakers from further sending out invitations to the applicants for the purpose of appearing before them to answer to allegations of fraud, corruption or other criminal activities in the agencies under the applicants’ supervision or control, pending the hearing and final determination of the substantive suit filed by the applicants.
They also wanted an order restraining the respondents from further conducting direct personal or physical probe, inquiry and/or investigation into any alleged fraud, corruption, or other criminal activities said to have occurred in the applicants’ establishment or agencies under the applicant’s supervision or control, pending the hearing and final determination of the substantive suit.
Ozekhome argued that the lawmakers had been usurping the powers and functions of the executive arm of government by carrying out functions outside the scope and purview of Sections 4, 88 and 89 of the constitution.
According to him, the respondents and their committees cannot personally, or physically investigate the respondents, but are only constitutionally mandated to cause other security agencies such as the police, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), among others, to carry out such investigations.
He said: "It is also the contention of the applicants that the respondents cannot investigate criminal matters not being courts of law, and that in purportedly carrying out their oversight functions, they have subjected same to abuse by indiscriminately dishing out invitations to the applicants to attend series and several meetings that have to do with the way and manner the applicants daily exercise and discharge their statutory functions, which are not connected with the purpose of making laws or correcting defects in existing laws.
"The applicants within the space of one calendar year have been inundated with several invitations, numbering well over 40, from the several committees set up by the respondents to allegedly carry out oversight functions on the applicants. These several invitations which are not remotely related to the exercise of the respondents’ functions are hindering the applicants from effectively carrying out their own constitutionally and statutorily assigned responsibilities as they are regularly and serially forced to commit time, materials, personnel, energy, and huge resources to attend these frequent invitations, thus leaving them with little or no time to do their main job."
Ozekhome explained that since the filing of this suit, the lawmakers had not shown any intention of allowing the court decide one way or the other as to the existing rights of both parties with respect to the subject matter before the court and in line with extant provisions guiding both Houses with regards to matters litigated before a court of competent jurisdiction where interpretation as to how the conduct of their constitutionally assigned role is the subject matter of litigation.
"They insist on carrying out the investigations on June 17 and compelling the applicants to pay their gross earnings into the Federation Account, notwithstanding the contention of the applicants that only the net proceeds of their earnings ought to be paid into the Federation Account," he 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.
The federal government has directed all ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) engaging in biometric registrations or data capturing activities to align their activities with a view to switching over to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) infrastructure by December 31, 2014.
Giving this directive in a circular with reference number 59803/VII/87, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, mandated the MDAs to comply with this directive in order to honour President Goodluck Jonathan’s earlier directive to the commission to register all eligible persons into the national identity database by the end of this year.
More importantly, Anyim reminded the MDAs that NIMC had the statutory responsibility to “create, manage, maintain and operate the national identity database, including harmonisation and integration of existing identification in government agencies and integrating them into the national identity database.”
This, according to him, followed establishment of the commission by the federal government in 2007 by the NIMC Act of 2007 as the primary institutional framework for managing and reforming the national identity sector in Nigeria
The circular dated May 28 and titled: ‘Guidelines on the Implementation of the Presidential Directive on the Alignment of Data Capture, Identity Verification and Authentication Activities in Government Ministries, Department and Agencies,’ was addressed to all ministers/ministers of state and their permanent secretaries, chairmen and directors-general of federal government parastatals, agencies and government-owned companies as well as the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), amongst others.
According to Anyim, to achieve the December 31, 2014 target date, the Harmonisation and Integration Implementation Committee in NIMC had been constituted with membership drawn from the Office of the SGF, the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Communications Technology.
The SGF enjoined all MDAs to note: “NIMC shall have the primary responsibility to deliver the processes and procedures for achieving a seamless integration of its National Identity Management System (NIMS), infrastructure with existing infrastructures of other agencies within the timeframe set by government. This shall include without exception, all data capture related activities, development of database, identity authentication and verification, card issuance activities and related infrastructure.
He added that they should also note: “Henceforth, all identity database-related projects and procurements, especially as they relate to data capture, development of databases, identity authentication and verification and related identity management infrastructure/issues shall be validated against the harmonisation and integration programme in view of the set deadline of December 31, 2014 to ensure seamless and timely compliance with the directive within this transition period;
In the same vein, he pointed out: “The Office of the SGF through the Governing Board of NIMC shall ensure periodic evaluation of progress report and convene review meetings as appropriate.”
Besides, he said: “Government will monitor closely the implementation of this harmonisation and integration programme so that at the appropriate time, Government will publish the commencement date for the mandatory use of the National Identification Number (NIN), in line with Section 27 of the NIMC Act No. 23 of 2007.”
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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