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LAGOS—Dr Femi Thomas, widower of late Consultant Paediatrician at Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, Dr. Hestianna Thomas, was yesterday transferred to the State Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department, SCIID, Yaba, over alleged involvement in his wife’s death.
Dr. Thomas as reliably gathered, submitted himself to policemen at Ajao estate division immediately his wife was certified dead at the LUTH last week.
However during interrogation, he reportedly told policemen that his wife could have committed suicide, maintaining that he knew nothing about her death.
As at yesterday, policemen at the Homicide section of SCIID had reportedly swung into action in their bid to unravel the cause of the late Consultant Paediatrician’s death and subsequently bring her assailants to book. Sources at the SCIID hinted that until the contrary was proved, Dr Thomas would have to remain their guest.
Sources explained that although Dr Thomas was the complainant “ but with the marks of violence on the body of the deceased, it leaves us with no option than to detain him until the contrary is proved”.
Confirming his arrest, spokesman for the Lagos State Police Command, Mr Joe Offor, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, DSP said “ Yes, Dr Thomas has been transferred to the SCIID. He said that he found the body of his wife outside their room that fateful morning and rushed her to LUTH where doctors confirmed her dead. The man submitted himself to the Police at Ajao division .
“ We do not know the cause of her death yet. But there were marks of violence on her body. Investigation is however still on. The corpse has been deposited at the LUTH morgue”.
However, Management of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, Idi Araba, Lagos, has urged the public including to refrain from speculations about the cause of death of one of its consultants.
In a statement signed by the Chief Medical Director, LUTH, Prof Chris Bode, he appealed to members of the public to wait for the result of the Coroner’s inquest into the death of the late Consultant before jumping into conclusion.
The statement read: “On Tuesday, 14th October 2015, Dr (Mrs) Hestia Idiodi-Thomas, a young Consultant Paediatric Surgeon and staff of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital was brought to the LUTH Accidents and Emergency Department following injuries sustained in tragic circumstances within her home environment.
“ All efforts at resuscitating her failed and she was pronounced dead. The untimely death of this mother of two was a rude shock to her colleagues and the entirety of the LUTH community.
“The police were promptly informed and a Coroner’s inquest into the case is almost completed.
“Dr Heista Idiodi-Thomas was beloved by her colleagues, patients and all members of LUTH community who admired her dedication to duty, her gentle ever-smiling mien and humility to all. We shall all miss her.
“While we pray for the repose of her soul, we appeal to all to refrain from any speculations about the cause of death until the coroner’s verdict has been pronounced.
“We therefore implore the press and the general public to please respect the memory of this rare gem and leave the family to mourn as they should during this difficult period”.
Meanwhile when contacted on the release of the autopsy report, the Deputy Secretary , Nigerian Medical Association, NMA Lagos branch, Dr Peters Ogunubi, he assured that it would be ready by weekend.
According to him, “we cannot confirm if he (Dr Thomas) has been arrested by the police. But we can only tell you that the result of the autopsy will be out before weekend. And that will rest the controversy.”
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.
According to Sahara Reporters, former President Goodluck Jonathan has written a personal letter to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Jonathan is said to have written Obasanjo to seek the latter’s blessing for the launch of his personal project; the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation.
The letter reportedly reads:
“Now well-rested, I am back to work to continue to serve and dedicate my life to promoting peace and prosperity for all.”
“Furthermore, I will be devoting the rest of my life and energy to making the world a better place. I am currently finalizing efforts to set up The Goodluck Jonathan Foundation.”
“More details on the work of the Foundation will be available at the launch, which I believe should take place by the 3rd quarter of 2016.”
Obasanjo had written an 18-page open letter to Jonathan in December 2013 in which he accused the then-President of keeping 1000 political enemies on a watch list.
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.
MANY monuments have been built in honour of the man Bola Tinubu. He is acclaimed as the political genius of our times who not only engineered the taming of the PDP juggernaut, he caged it and confined it to the backwaters of Otuoke. Since the APC defeat of the PDP in the presidential election, Tinubu the tactician has been feted, celebrated and praised to high heavens. But all these encomiums have proved to be highly exaggerated.
The truth of the matter is that Tinubu, the veritable Jagaban of Borgu, is a master of political illusion. He is remarkable for the distinction of characteristically pulling defeat out of the jaws of putative victory. He mid-wifed the birth of the APC, only to be shut out of its vice-presidential sweepstakes. He engineered APC”s victory at the centre, only to see his arch-enemies take over the posts of Speaker and Senate President in the National Assembly. He piggy-backed Buhari to the presidency, only to be shut out of a say in the president’s cabinet nominees.
Tinubu is called the National Leader of the APC when there is no such post in the party’s Constitution. When a critical meeting of APC bigwigs was called to address the party’s imbroglio in the National Assembly, the “National Leader” could not attend because, in actual fact, he is not even a member of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party.
In 2011, Tinubu was hailed for cutting his nose to spite his face. The PDP nominated his kinswoman, Mulikat Akande, as Speaker of the National Assembly. However, Tinubu conspired with recalcitrant PDP party-members to frustrate the plans of their party for his South-west homestead. Instead, he engineered the election of Sokoto’s Aminu Tambuwal, an APC wolf in PDP sheep’s clothing, as Speaker.
In 2015, Tinubu received payback for these shenanigans again to the detriment of his native South-West. The same Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto he schemed into the position of Speaker in 2011, repaid Tinubu by frustrating his efforts to install his Lagos acolyte, Femi Gbajabiamila, as Speaker in 2015. Taking a leaf straight out of Tinubu’s 2011 playbook, Tambuwal conspired with opposition PDP members to install another Northern PDP turncoat, Yakubu Dogara, as Speaker.
Tinubu’s comeuppance here is particularly savage because it was actually Gbajabiamila who reportedly convinced Tinubu that Tambuwal would readily act as traitor to his PDP party in 2011. It is therefore veritable poetic justice that the same Tambuwal became an equally ready tool of the PDP in the frustration of Gbajabiamila’s ambitions and the interests of Tinubu and the APC in 2015.
Moreover, Tinubu was repaid for his 2011 manipulations with interest. The same treachery employed to Tinubu’s political disadvantage in the House was also duplicated in the Senate. Bukola Saraki, another PDP turncoat, refused to abide by the dictates of APC Central, firmly controlled by Tinubu’s ACN. He snatched the position of Senate President without official APC approval, but with the support of the opposition PDP. So doing, he sidelined both Tinubu’s first-choice of George Akume, as well as his second-choice of Ahmed Lawan.
Crumbled cookie
Just as Tinubu was licking his wounds at the denial of his “rightful inheritance” in the National Assembly after the APC victory at the polls, the news came that his political cookie had equally crumbled at Aso Rock. It had been popularly alleged that Tinubu’s portion in Buhari’s presidency would not be limited to the appointment of his political godson as vice-president, but would also include the allocation of no less than nine choice ministerial nominees to the discretion of the Jagaban of Borgu.
But by the time Buhari unfurled his ministerial list two weeks ago, the alleged dedicated slots had shrunk to zero. Many of us had warned in the heady days of the formation of the APC that those insistent that power must return to the North would be determined to checkmate Tinubu if and when the election was won. We warned Tinubu that even as he cannot conceivably be accepted nationally to rule Nigeria as president, even so can he not rule Nigeria by proxy. We warned him that the North would never allow Buhari to be his Man Friday in Aso Rock.
However, Tinubu was too far gone to listen. It would now appear that he even failed to take out insurance policies against such probable eventualities.
But once elected, Buhari started a romance with Babatunde Fashola and Kayode Fayemi designed clearly to sideline the Jagaban. While these former governors were previously members of Tinubu’s inner-circle, they had since run out of patience with the heavy handedness of their boss. Therefore, during the election campaign, both of them campaigned for Buhari above and beyond the call of party duty.
Fashola, in particular, was clearly fed up with being under Tinubu’s political shadow. In the struggle for who would be the APC governorship candidate in Lagos State, Tinubu did not allow Fashola to choose his successor, in the ignoble tradition of Nigerian governors. While Fashola favoured Dapo Sasore, the former Attorney General of Lagos State, Tinubu railroaded in Akinwunmi Ambode as the APC candidate.
While again, in the ignoble tradition of Nigerian politics, governors promptly transform themselves into Senators when their term as governor ends, this option was closed off to Fashola because Tinubu had already installed his wife as the Senator from Fashola’s constitutency. The only option left for Fashola politically was presidential ministerial appointment and, even there, Tinubu had put up a road block against him.
Tinubu prefers to nominate political nonentities for higher office in the South-West, so that he would be the only Iroko tree in the forests of the region. Therefore his candidates for ministerial appointment from Lagos were his little nationally-known former commissioners, Wale Edun and Yemi Cadosso, who could pose no threats whatsoever to his ascribed South-West political supremacy.
Alarm bells:But when Fashola and Fayemi accompanied Buhari to the G7 meeting in Germany in June 2015, alarm bells started ringing in Tinubu’s Bourdillon Road mansion in Lagos. This was clearly a signial that these former governors were intent on by-passing the official godfather of the South-West by applying to be members of Buhari’s kitchen cabinet on their own recognisance.
The Tinubu brigade would have none of this. Therefore, a campaign of calumny was launched to cut Fashola in particular to dimunitive size. Suddenly, the “memo” was sent out implying the former governor had developed political leprosy. When two books were launched simultaneously celebrating his achievements as governor, none of his APC colleagues from Lagos dared to attend for fear of entering the bad books of the dreaded Jagaban.
In order to nail the coffin on Fashola’s ministerial aspirations, it was leaked to the press that a whopping 78 million naira of public money was spent on the construction of his personal website. 139 million naira was also alleged to have been spent on two boreholes constructed in Government House, Lagos during his tenure. The intention here was to ensure that Fashola becomes ineligible for ministerial consideration on grounds that he would not pass Buhari’s anti-corruption integrity test.
However, Buhari was apparently unimpressed by these political shenanigans. When his list of ministerial nominees were unfurled, Fashola and Fayemi featured prominently among Buhari’s “first eleven.” None of Tinubu’s nominees made the list. Other nominees from the South-West were precisely the kind of people Tinubu did not want in Buhari’s team; people who would not be indebted to Tinubu but to Buhari.
While Buhari completely ignored Tinubu’s candidates, he included that of another South-West bigwig. Obasanjo’s favourite-son, Prince Olagusoye Oyinlola, former governor of Osun State, was included in Buhari’s list. Thereby, the president asserted the saliency of Obasanjo’s South-West influence in Aso Rock over that of the Jagaban. He even pointedly appointed Obasanjo as his special envoy to Guinea-Bissau.
This is certainly not what Tinubu bargained for when he decided to pitch his tent with Buhari and the APC. If he were to be furthermore overlooked in the appointment of BOT chairman of the APC, the marginalisation of the Jagaban in the post-election APC would be complete.
Comeuppance: Some of us saw this coming. In the heady early days of the APC coalition, we warned that Tinubu would be used and dumped. But we were labelled as PDP lapdogs and charlatans. That is why I say today: let no one cry for Bola Tinubu.
Anyone who hears Tinubu’s recent vicious attack on Saraki would realise these are the tokens of a frustrated man. Tinubu could not attack the President, therefore he poured all his venom on the Senate President. He accused him of indiscipline and disloyalty; the very things he celebrated in the PDP rebels who joined forces with him against their party in 2011.
Face saving device
The recent declaration that Buhari appointed Babachir Lawal as Secretary to the Government of the Federation at the instance of Tinubu is a face-saving device. The Tinubu camp forgot to tell us this until now. At the time of new SGF’s appointment, all the uproar was about the Northern lopsidedness in Buhari’s choices.
Observing the sidelining of Tinubu by Buhari, Senator Femi Okunroumu said: “I am having a good laugh. This is what I expected. In any case, Tinubu is stretching his luck too far as he wants to dictate who will rule Nigeria. Tinubu’s wings need to be clipped. With the ministerial list, Tinubu has been dumped. He should not just be dumped, he should be disgraced.”
On his part, Afenifere chieftain, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, said: “APC is not a party; it is a gang of people whose sole aim was to remove Dr. Goodluck Jonathan as president. In a real party, you share the spoils of office before elections not after elections. This is what is happening in APC. We warned our people, but they failed to listen.”
In the new politics of today’s APC, it is better to be the enemy of Bola Tinubu than to be his friend. The enemies of Tinubu become Senate presidents; they become Speakers of the House of Representatives; they become ministers of the Federal government. But the friends of Tinubu are sent to Siberia.
The Jagaban of Borgu himself has been slain politically upon his high places. How are the mighty fallen!
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 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina as an embarrassment to the Presidency.
The PDP made the comment after Adesina said that its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh had begun to sound like a ‘broken record.’
The opposition party’s remarks were contained in statement released by Metuh’s aide, Richard Ihediwa.
It reads:
“Our attention has been drawn to a vacuous statement by the media aide to President Buhari, Mr. Femi Adesina, in his futile attempt to counteract facts presented by the PDP that this administration is dictatorial and selective in its fight against corruption.”
“Mr. Adesina, in his habitual deceptive and diversionary manner, left the critical issues of governance raised by Sunday’s press conference addressed by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, and as usual, embarked on insults, shadow-chasing and fouling of the media space with uncouth language.”
“This office has noted Mr. Adesina’s several previous unwarranted personal attacks and insults deliberately targeted at the person of the PDP National Publicity Secretary, in his desperate attempt to impress his paymaster and retain his job.
Our answer remains that inasmuch as we know that this Presidency aide lacks depth on his current assignment and has no credible defence, being overwhelmed in his job of trying to launder the image of this government, the characteristic resort always, to lies, malice and vituperations should not be an option.”
“While we appreciate the fact that Mr. Adesina is not conversant and knowledgeable in politics and intricate issues of governance, he should have applied the common sense of covering his hollowness in this regard and save the Presidency the embarrassment of an arrogant attempt to wave off very serious questions hanging in the face of the present administration.”
“May we remind the Presidency that Nigerians are still waiting for its response to salient national issues raised by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, bordering on relentless abuse of power, selective application of war against corruption, witch-hunt of opposition elements and perceived political opponents, threats to democratic institutions and government’s clear lack of direction on economic issues.”
“How can Mr. Adesina explain the fact that while former PDP governors and ministers are being arrested, their APC counterparts, who have more damaging petitions with anti-graft agencies are being rewarded with ministerial positions, with yet others granted APC tickets for Kogi and Bayelsa governorship elections respectively?”
“Perhaps Mr. Adesina is confirming that the nation now has two separate laws for prosecuting the war against corruption; one, to nail PDP members and perceived opponents of government, and the other to protect APC members and friends of the present administration.”
“We challenge Adesina, in the euphoria of trying to satisfy his paymaster, to defend him by showing Nigerians any APC member that has so far been invited or arrested by any anti-graft agency, other than PDP members and perceived political opponents such as Senate President Bukola Saraki.”
“It is unfortunate that in trying to wear his master the garb of a democrat, Mr. Adesina has instead muddled up and bungled his assignment with his arrogant posturing on important national issues. Whereas this media aide may have done well in the confines of his newsroom as a media professional, he has so far succeeded in making a mockery of the office of a spokesperson of the President of a country like Nigeria.”
“Our final take therefore is that the Presidency must note that Nigerians are still waiting for a proper response on the issues raised instead of invectives from an aide who apparently talks before he thinks.”
Adesina had responded after Metuh accused Buhari of being selective in his war against corruption.
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—AS the Senate resumes its screening of ministerial nominees today, anxiety has gripped the senators and nominees. While nominees are bothered over the outcome of the exercise, the senators were unsettled by the decision of the court not to stop the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT from proceeding with its hearing of the false assets declaration suit against Senate President Bukola Saraki.
Those listed for screening: Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers); Khadijah Abba-Ibrahim (Yobe); Claudius Omoleye Daramola (Ondo); Anthony Anwuka Gozie (Imo); Brig-Gen. Mansur Dan Ali, retd (Zamfara); James E. Ocholi (Kogi); Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed (Kaduna); Mustapha Baba Shehuri (Borno); Aisha Abubakar (Sokoto); Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa); Adamu Adamu (Bauchi); Pastor Usani Usani Uguru (Cross River) and Abubakar Bwari Bawa (Niger)
There are also fears that former Governor of Rivers State, Hon. Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, who was the director-general of President Muhammadu Buhari campaign organisation for the 2015 polls may not be screened today. Amaechi, whose screening had been postponed twice may be screened on Wednesday because he is the 15th nominee listed for the exercise. So far, the Senators have not screened more than nine nominees per day. Amaechi has been a source of division among senators on account of petitions against him.
However, Amaechi, yesterday dismissed report in a national newspaper (not Vanguard) that he stormed the residence of the Senate President to protest the postponement of his ministerial screening, saying the report was not only a fabrication, but also part of the organised campaign to rubbish his image.
In a statement by David Iyofor of his Media Office, Amaechi insisted the report was absolutely not true and a deliberate and carefully calibrated attempt to characterize Amaechi with a very bad and demeaning mannerism.
Ethics Committee clears Amaechi
This came as the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions cleared Amaechi to be screened and cleared by the Senate.
A source told Vanguard that the committee took the decision to clear Amaechi because the case was in court and therefore it could not consider the petition by the Integrity Group. With the clean bill of health given to Amaechi, he would appear before the Senators today for screening.
To get a soft-landing, seven of the nominees billed to be screened today, visited the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Yakubu Dogara yesterday.
This is coming amid fears that the nominees from Oyo State, Barr Adebayo Shittu and his Zamfara State counterpart, General Dan Ali (retd) may be dropped. There were indications, yesterday that Shittu may be dropped for Adewole Isaac Folorunsho.
Meantime, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Senator Sam Anyanwu, assured yesterday that reports on the petitions against Amaechi and Aisha Abubakar are ready and will be submitted today before the screening.
Nominees storm Dogara’s office
The seven ministerial nominees, who held a closed-door meeting with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, included Ms Aisha Abubakar who had earlier faced the Senate Committee on Ethics and Petitions over alleged incompetence.
The meeting started at about 3.30pm.
A senior aide to the Speaker, who spoke to journalists on the condition of anonymity said that the visit was part of an ongoing intense lobby by the ministerial nominees, who are currently facing opposition from powerful forces from their respective states.
The ministerial nominees were led to the Speaker’s office by the Special assistants to the President on National Assembly matters for the Senate and House of Representatives, Senator Ita Enang and Hon. Suleiman Kawu, respectively.
Also at the meeting with Dogara were Senator Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa), Hon. Khadijat Bukar Abba Ibrahim (Yobe), Brig General Monsur Dan Ali, retd (Zamfara), Hajia Zainab Ahmed (Kaduna) and Suleiman Bello (Adamawa).
The speaker’s aide hinted that the ministerial nominees were trying to lobby some senators opposed to their nomination, through some powerful members of the lower chamber.
He claimed that about seven nominees were at the closed door meeting with Dogara, while more were expected to join later.
An aide to Dogara had earlier sent invitation to journalists to cover the meeting, but there was a change of mind and the newsmen were barred from gaining access to the venue of the meeting.
Apart from the Speaker, the House leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila and other principal officers of the Green Chamber were present.
According to the aide: “Some nominees who are yet to be screened and confirmed by the Senate are with the Speaker right now. I cannot authoritatively tell you why they are there but one of them said they came to see how Dogara can help them lobby his friends in the Senate to give them a soft landing during the exercise tomorrow (today).
“I saw the nominee from Bayelsa State. I also saw that woman (Aisha Abubakar) who is trying to get the support of her senators to get confirmed. The Professor from Yoruba land was there. In all, they were about seven in number. I did not see former governor of Rivers state, Chibuike Amaechi. I do not know if he will be part of those that will come later.”
Asked whether the ministerial nominees were at the speaker’s office to seek assistance in their screening he answered: “This is politics and you cannot rule out any possibility of lobbying the speaker to speak to the Senate President on their nominations. At least, the speaker is close to the Senate President and should be able to speak on their behalf to him if that is why they are here. But I’m not saying that is why they are here. All I can say is that it is a private visit.”
Senate to get new nominee for Oyo
Strong indications emerged yesterday that Senate President Bukola Saraki will today read a letter from President Buhari on a new ministerial nominee from Oyo State.
Vanguard gathered that the initial nominee from Oyo State, Barrister Adebayo Shittu may be replaced with Adewole Isaac Folorunsho.
The nominee from Oyo State, Barrister Adebayo Shittu was one of the 21 nominees sent to the Senate, September 30 and on Wednesday, October 14, his name was number nine on the Order Paper, but was however not called probably for lack of time, just as Chairman, Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Media and Publicity, Senator Dino Melaye had said on Thursday that Shittu would be screened today.
Reports on Amaechi, others’ petitions are ready – Anyanwu
Speaking on whether or not Amaechi would be screened today in view of his committee’s inability to submit its report, which led to the postponement of Amaechi’s screening twice, Senator Anyanwu assured that his panel will submit the report today.
Anyanwu also disclosed that the report on the petition against Aisha Abubakar, another ministerial nominee, would equally be submitted at the plenary.
“We have heard Amaechi’s petition and all these reports will be ready tomorrow. Except there are further petitions, the reports on all the petitions so far received, will be submitted tomorrow. For now, what we have is that of Aisha Abubakar and that of Rotimi Amaechi, which will be submitted to the Senate tomorrow (today),” he said.
Answering questions from Journalists yesterday, Anyanwu who noted that the reports will be very straight forward and ready for submission on the floor of the Senate today, said, “Our reports on petitions against Amaechi and Aisha Abubakar are ready and will be laid before the senate tomorrow( today), to pave way for their screening.”
Outside the petition against Amaechi, there was a petition from some women from Sokoto State against the nominee from Sokoto state.
The Committee had set aside the petitions written against Amaechi by Port Harcourt based Integrity Group, in its report on the grounds of issues raised therein were already in the court of law.
The Committee yesterday threw out the petition against Aisha Abubakar by concerned Sokoto women on the grounds of being routed through wrong channels.
Aisha who appeared before the senate committee yesterday to answer to the petition against her, got a clean bill of health from all the committee members who all said the petition should not be treated for only being copied to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and not addressed to him directly.
First to raise the issue was senator Obinna Ogba Joshua ( PDP Ebonyi Central) who noted that the petition was addressed directly to President Muhammadu Buhari and not the Senate President which according to him, contravenes rule 41(5a) of the senate standing order.
Other members of the committee like Senators Dino Melaye ( APC Kogi West), Jerry Useni ( PDP Plateau South), Binta Garba Mashi ( APC Adamawa North) and Wale Omogunwa ( PDP Ondo South), agreed with Senator Obinna’s submission by urging the committee chairman to disregard the petition in its entirety for being wrongly addressed.
Speaking, Senator Melaye noted that the petition was dead on arrival because it was addressed to President Buhari and not the Senate President, adding that the committee should not consider it.
Melaye who observed another procedural defect in the petition said the petitioners did not follow the rules of letter writing adding that a petition ought to be signed by petitioners before copying other interested parties and not copying before signing.
He said: “Going by all these identified blunders, the petition is more or less, a wishy washy one which should not be treated in anyway by the committee but rather dumped into the trash can.”
The petition is addressed to the President not the Senate President, the Senate President was merely copied just like the Sokoto State governor.’’
On her part, Senator Bintu Masi,said, “I am glad that the nominee is a woman.” While decrying the petition brought against her, she sought for her clearance, saying the representation of few women in the yet to be formed federal cabinet was poor.
She noted that the petition,as read on the floor was in abeyance, adding, “Go back and bring a petition that is addressed to the Senate president.”
But the Chairman of the committee, Sam Anyanwu (PDP Imo East) before giving Aisha Abubakar clean bill of health, asked her two questions on fundamental issues raised against her in the petition.
He asked whether she was an indigene of Sokoto state and she answered yes adding that she hails from Dogondaji town in Tambuwal Local Council.
On whether she belongs to any political party, she said no because she is a serving public officer.
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.
Ministerial nominee and ex-governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, has dismissed reports that he and the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, have a score to settle.
In a statement released on Monday, October 19 by his media aide, David Oyofor, it said Amaechi did not visit Saraki at home to register displeasure over his delayed ministerial confirmation as suggested by the media reports.
The statement read; ”There was a report that Amaechi “was incensed over the deferment of his screening last week and stormed Saraki’s house to register his protest. It is absolutely not true.
“There is a deliberate and carefully calibrated attempt to characterize Amaechi with a very bad and demeaning mannerism.
“We must clarify that Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi did not visit and was not at the residence of the Senate President on Thursday of last week. Since he did not go to the residence of the Senate President on Thursday of last week, so, there is absolutely no way what the newspaper sources claimed to have transpired, happened.
“We must emphasize that former Governor Amaechi holds the office of the President of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in very high esteem and will never disrespect or act in any way that would put the office in disrepute. However, in this case, the incident reported never occurred either on Thursday or any other day.
“While we understand the constraints and pressures journalists face in doing their jobs, we would advise them to be thorough and double-check or even triple-check their sources of information.
There seems to exist an axis of fifth columnists, masquerading as ‘sources’ to journalists, but fabricate events, incidences and stories that never happened to malign and destroy the character and reputation of others, while fomenting acrimony and bad blood in the polity. Journalists must beware of such ‘sources'”.
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.
he Director of the controversial Radio Biafra and Leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has been granted bail.
Kanu, who is yet to meet his bail conditions, was arrested at Golden Tulip Essential Hotel, Ikeja, on Saturday, October 17.
In a chat with Vanguard, Lawyer of the IPOG group, Egechukwu Obetta, lamented the unfair treatment accorded Kanu in detention despite his ill health. He said he was put in the same cell with terrorists.
The legal practitioner also said that Kanu had vowed not eat any food served by the Government of Nigeria as he is selective to delicacies.
However, Kanu was released on bail in the sum of N2 million or with surety of N2 million with a civil servant of grade level 16.
“Last week, the Afenifere threatened to secede but nobody was vilified. I am talking about the recent Olu Falae’s kidnap case. The militants in the Niger Delta has done same”, Obetta further said.
IPOB is a separatist movement that call for the independence of Nigeria’s former Eastern Region – proclaimed the Republic of Biafra in 1967 and reannexed to Nigeria three years later, following a civil war that claimed between one and three million lives.
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 Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin, has said that the military was currently facing difficulties with the weather condition in the North East to effectively prosecute the war against Boko Haram insurgents.
Olonisakin disclosed this while speaking to State House Correspondents after a meeting between the service chiefs and President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Defence Chief stated that the meeting with the President yesterday was a routine one to brief the Commanderin- Chief on the general situation in the country and development concerning the war against terrorism in the North East.
“It is a normal consultation to intimate him of the issues on ground. We briefed him on the security situation on ground after a 60-day review and we had to brief him on the challenges we have and ensure that the mandate we have is properly delivered.” He noted.
Answering questions on the specific challenges being faced by the military on the war against terrorism, Olonisakin said: “Of course, the challenges we are looking at are the issues of probably the weather as it were and some other logistics that we feel we should have so that the mandate can be quickly delivered.”
Buhari, in an interview granted to a foreign media organization recently, also confirmed that the weather was posing a hurdle for the military and as soon as the rains were over, the military will have an upper hand.
Olonisakin told reporters that the military would not relent in its pursuit to chase out the insurgents from the country particularly now that a clear directive has been handed over to them by the President.
While responding to questions whether the military was considering an extension of the dealing from the President, the Defence Chief, noted that “We have not said that. The mandate is that we should clear Boko Haram from the occupied territories and ensure that we reclaim all the lost grounds.
That is exactly what we are doing.” He said “It is a military operation and military operations have timelines and these timelines, we are working on the assiduously.”
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.
Ahead of the resumption today of screening of ministerial nominees by the Senate, some of the would-be ministers yesterday met behind closed doors with House of Representatives Speaker, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, to facilitate their clearance.
The ministerial nominees, it was gathered, visited the speaker to lobby him talk to Senate President Bukola Saraki to ensure their confirmation after screening.
Among the nominees who visited the speaker was the embattled Sokoto State representative, Miss Aisha Abubakar who has been rejected by the state Governor, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, all the senators from the state and the state chapter of the All Peoples Congress (APC).
Also at the meeting with Dogara were Senator Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa), Hon. Khadijat Bukar Abba Ibrahim (Yobe), retired Brig Gen. Monsur Dan Ali
The nominees were led to the speaker’s office by the Senior Special Assistants to the president on National Assembly Matters, Senator Ita Enang (Senate) and Hon. Abdulrahman Suleiman Kawu (House). None of the nominees, however, agreed to talk to the press after the meeting that lasted for about an hour.
Although, the nominee arrived at the House wing of the National Assembly around 3pm, the meeting could not start until about 3.30pm as the speaker was presiding over the Selection Committee meeting.
An aide of the speaker who spoke with New Telegraph on condition of anonymity, said: “It is a private meeting and that is why we were told to ask the media to stay out. I do not know what they are discussing as you can see we were not allowed into the office.”
Asked whether the ministerial nominees were at the speaker’s office to seek assistance in their screening, he said: “Well, this is politics and you cannot rule out any possibility of lobbying the speaker to speak to the Senate president on their nominations.
“At least, the speaker is close to Saraki and should be able to speaker on their behalf to him (Saraki) if that is why they are here. But I’m not saying that is why they are here. All I can say is that it is a private visit.”
The visit of the nominees to Dogara came just as New Telegraph gathered yesterday that former Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Chibuike Amaechi, would be screened today. It was learnt that the Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, whose non-submission of the report into the allegations levelled against the nominee delayed his screening, would do so today.
Chairman of the committee, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, told reporters yesterday in Abuja, at the end of the committee’s meeting, that the report would be submitted at plenary today.
Amaechi was on the list of nominees to be screened last Wednesday but because the report of the Ethics Committee was not submitted to the Senate for consideration, the former governor’s vetting was deferred.
The committee report was also expected last Thursday but the Senate did not go on with screening of the nominees because the last batch sent to the Senate by President Muhammadu Buhari had not submitted their curriculum vitae for Senate’s consideration. This made the Senate to defer further screening until today.
Anyanwu (PDP, Imo East), also said the report on petition against Abubakar would be submitted at plenary today. He said: “We have considered Amaechi’s petition and all these reports will be ready tomorrow; and if it comes out tomorrow (today), the press will have it. Except there are further petitions, the reports on all the petitions so far received will be submitted tomorrow (today). “For now, what we have is that of Aisha Abubakar and that of Rotimi Amaechi, which will be submitted to the Senate tomorrow.”
In addition, APC met yesterday in Abuja to brainstorm on how to ensure that Amaechi is screened. The meeting, which commenced around 7:45 pm at the Conference Hearing Room 1 of the House of Representatives, was attended by members of the party from different geo-political zones.
Some of those sighted at the venue of the meeting included Senators Gbenga Ashafa, Ahmad Lawan, Sabi Abdullahi, Isiaka Adeleke and Babajide Omoworare. Ashafa (APC, Lagos East), who addressed the gathering, told his colleagues that the single agenda of the meeting was the issue of the nomination of Amaechi.
He said the meeting became imperative because of the opposition Amaechi’s nomination attracted from the Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He urged them to unite to make sure that their PDP counterparts did not embarrass Buhari, saying that if the appointment of Amaechi failed, it would amount to an embarrassment to the president and APC.
According to him, Amaechi’s “sin” is his dogged support for Buhari and the APC, stressing that it is time to reward him for his contributions to the success of the party.
However, the Senate committee has thrown out the petition brought against Abubakar for procedural error.
The committee, which summoned the petitioners and the nominee during the consideration of the petition, discovered that the document was flawed with procedural errors, which if entertained, would amount to a violation of some of the provisions of the Senate Standing Rules 2015 (as amended).
The petition, which was written by the ‘Concerned Women Group’ from Sokoto, under the leadership of Mrs. Bararaba Abdullahi, was addressed to Buhari while Saraki and other people were copied.
According to the committee, it cannot consider the petition because based on the Senate rules, all petitions to be sent to the Senate must be addressed to the President of the Senate.
Order 41(5a) of the Senate Standing Rules 2015, specifically stipulates that, “every petition must be properly addressed to the Senate, respectful, decorous and temperate in its language, and must conclude with a prayer, setting forth the relief sought by the petitioner.”
But Anyanwu told the petitioners to properly address the petition and represent it if they still wished to pursue the matter. Although the petitioners said they had submitted a properly addressed letter to the Senate, Anyanwu said the new petition must be referred to the committee before it could entertain it.
The petitioners were aggrieved that the nominee was not a member of the APC or any other political party and therefore, questioned her competence in holding such an important public office.
In her defence, Abubakar said she was a public servant and would remain one until she was confirmed by the Senate.
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 last week has seen the senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria put up a poor showing in the much vaunted ministerial screening. I expected a robust screening, punctuated with insightful questions that will test the credibility and competence of the ministerial nominees but alas it has been the usual drama of comedy. Even some questions that looked brilliant where nothing but orchestrated questions to make the nominees shine.
I think Nigeria deserve better from their elected representatives at the senate. When the revered Okoi Obono Obla wrote that the senate has no constitutional powers to screen but to only confirm the nominees, I wrote in defense of their constitutional right to screen the nominees before confirming them. But is this the screening the framers of the constitution envisaged? I don’t think so.
The excuse that the screening is made difficult by the fact that the nominees are not allocated portfolios prior to screening is just that: an excuse. Infact the letters of the constitution is even against this prior allocation of portfolios. Let’s look at section 147(2) “Any appointment to the office of Minister of the Government of the Federation shall, if the nomination of any person to such office is confirmed by the Senate, be made by the President.” What this section is saying is that a person cannot be appointed minister unless he is screened and confirmed by the senate. So the name sent to the senate are not ministers, they are mere nominees; until they are cleared by the senate they cannot be appointed ministers. Hold that thought as we look at section 148 of the Constitution.
Section 148(1) says that “The President may, in his discretion, assign to the Vice-President or any Minister of the Government of the Federation responsibility for any business of the Government of the Federation, including the administration of any department of government.” Did you see that? Section 147 was talking about their nomination, screening and confirmation. In section 148 they are referred to as ministers; this is clearly after their nomination, screening and confirmation. And it is section 148 that talks about the allocation of responsibilities and portfolios. The constitution doesn’t mandate the president to allocate portfolios to nominees but to ministers. So the senate should look for another lame excuse for their poor showing in the screening.
This shouldn’t even be an issue because it is trite law and practice that the President can appoint one a minister of Health today and move him to the ministry of Information the next day without sending him to the Senate for another round of screening and clearance. This is the certainly the purpose and wisdom behind section 148. It is to avoid a situation where a nominee is sent for screening with a portfolio attached to his name and he is confirmed as the minister of such a portfolio and when the president deems it fit to transfer him to another ministry, the issue will arise that he wasn’t screened and confirm for that portfolio and so the president can’t transfer him. Talk about whittling the powers of the president.
At this stage in our political odyssey the Nigeria Senate ought to have developed a robust and scientific set of questions and questioning pattern that is aimed at testing the Intelligence quotient, credibility quotient, performance quotient, patriotism quotient and corruption quotient of ministerial nominees. We want to tune our television sets and watch ministerial screening not Night of a Thousand Laughs.
Even some of the nominees, like Fashola, Fayemi, Audu Ogbeh, and Amina, that came out shining was clearly because the senators did not do their homework well. I’m not saying we will not see brilliant showings if the senators have asked their questions well. But these set of “brilliant” nominees have not really earned it. I know some of them can earn it but the senate poor screening didn’t give them a chance to earn it. You can’t ask a question without a follow up and clap for the nominee for giving you a flowery half answer.
With all sense of modesty, I’m a speaker and I teach public speaking. I know when moving oratory is clearly lacking substance. In public speaking reeling out statistics is different from talking about how you intend to deploy results. And this is what, for instance, Audu Ogbeh’s responses consisted of. He was telling us about how many gallons of milk cows in London, US, Australia and Nigeria produce. Those are statistics available in the public library and internet. Anyone can read that up and reel it out. You don’t have to be a farmer or Agricultural Science graduate to know that. I was expecting a senator to ask Mr Ogbeh a follow up question that will compel him to show us how he intend to use the statistics he reeled out to deploy results in the Agricultural sector but no, we are still waiting to be blessed with such a senator.
I just hope this quality of screening is not a prediction of the quality of legislature we have foisted on ourselves. Maybe you should call your senator to find out.
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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