“Igbo Not Included In Buhari’s Development Agenda” — N.I.C.E Chief

Leader of the Nigerian Igbo Community in Europe, NICE, Chief Chris Ebede, has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari administration to strive harder to provide good governance for Nigerians in line with his campaign.

Reacting to the controversy trailing the non-inclusion of the N60 billion Lagos-Calabar coastal rail project in the 2016 Budget, he lamented that the Igbo were still under siege by the authorities in Nigeria, which, he said, had culminated in the abandonment of the South-East in key infrastructural and developmental facets in order to keep the zone in perpetual under-development and political slavery.

According to him, the region is yet to be factored into the development agenda of the current administration even when the ingenuity of the Igbo is never in doubt.

The roads there are impassable, the dredging of the River Niger and construction of a second Niger bridge have become political tools to be used at every election period to deceive the people.

The region has the largest concentration of those engaged in trading and by extension importers of goods.

The roads in the South-East are one of the worst maintained all over the federation. The state governments, especially Anambra and Enugu have done commendable jobs in rehabilitating state roads. But this is not complemented by the Federal Government”, Ebede stated.

“Anyone Criticizing Buhari Should Have His Brain Checked” — Oyegun

National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, weekend, defended President Muhammadu Buhari’s foreign trips, saying that people like Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State and other critics of the president over his foreign trips need their heads examined.

John Oyegun and President Buhari

Saying that Fayose was ignorant of the problems confronting the nation and the solutions to them, he insisted that President Buhari was on the verge of restoring the nation’s lost glory outside the country, noting that the President’s foreign trips had gone a long way in helping to save the nation after what he described as Peoples Democratic Party, PDP’s most disastrous outing in 16 years.

Speaking to journalists in Benin City, Edo State, Oyegun noted that the forces of darkness and economic saboteurs opposed to the nation’s growth and development were bent on frustrating the efforts of the APC-led administration under Buhari in his efforts at rescuing the nation from the ongoing fuel crisis and revitalizing the ailing economy.

Governor Fayose had last week allegedly written a letter to the Chinese government asking it to shun President Buhari’s proposal to secure a $6 billion loan for Nigeria. But Oyegun, who reacted to the criticisms, said:

Most people do not recognise the very sorry state of the nation’s economy and the fact that the country’s economy was run aground and crashed, which contributed in no small measure to the crash of crude oil from N120 per barrel to a miserable N30 to N40 per barrel at the international market.

Buhari Using ‘Boko Haram Donor Funds’ To Persecute Political Enemies — UK’s Telegraph

Hundreds of millions of pounds of British foreign aid given to Nigeria to help combat Boko Haram terrorists is instead being used to fund a witch-hunt against opposition politicians, it is being claimed.

Britain has committed to spending £860 million in foreign aid to Nigeria, which now boasts Africa’s largest economy, to help support the country’s efforts to crush Boko Haram terror group, which has been responsible for a spate of outrages, including the kidnapping of hundreds of Nigerian schoolgirls.

But Western officials are now raising concerns that the government of the country’s recently elected leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, is misusing the funds to persecute political opponents.

Since Mr Buhari came to power last July, a number of prominent members of the former ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) have been arrested and imprisoned without charge. Among those detained was the party’s official spokesperson.

Most of the arrests have been sanctioned by the government-controlled Economic and Financial Crime Commission, which was set up to tackle corruption and receives funding from the Department for International Development.

But while Mr Buhari’s government continues to use British aid money to target his political opponents, it is proving less effective at tackling the Islamist-run Boko Haram terrorist group.

Much of the aid Britain provides to Nigeria is aimed at helping the country’s security forces to become more effective at tackling Boko Haram, which boasts of its links with Islamic State (Isil) and achieved international notoriety two years ago after kidnapping 276 schoolgirls in northern Nigeria two years ago.

Scores of British military personnel – including members of the Special Forces – are based in Nigeria helping to train the military to tackle Boko Haram. But despite Mr Buhari’s pledge during last year’s general election campaign that he would make tackling Boko Haram one of his top priorities, there is growing concern among Western officials that the Nigerian military is failing to take effective action against the terrorists.

This has resulted in Boko Haram now being regarded as the world’s deadliest terrorist organisation, responsible for more deaths than Isil. There are now reports that the group is trying to train kidnapped children to act as suicide bombers.

This is a scandal in the making," explained a senior U.S. official.

There is no doubt the growing strength of Boko Haram is because President Buhari is far more interested in settling scores with his political opponents that concentrating his energy on defeating terrorists.

The result is that Nigeria is starting to look more and more like a police state while Boko Haram just goes from strength to strength

Another Western diplomat added:

If Buhari was serious about fighting corruption he would be focusing all of his efforts on targeting corruption that is impeding Nigeria’s ability to focus its efforts on tackling Boko Haram.

Accusations that Nigeria is abusing British aid will add to the growing controversy over Downing Street’s commitment to spend 0.7 percent of GDP on the foreign aid budget. Last week the Telegraph reported that DFID was under pressure to cancel £200 million of foreign aid to Tanzania following concerns over a widely condemned election.

This resulted in Dr Liam Fox, the former Defence Secretary, accusing the government of “spraying money around” simply to achieve the 0.7 per cent target.

Western officials have expressed concern about Mr Buhari’s increasingly autocratic style of government since he came to power last year. A retired major-general, Mr Buhari, 73, previously headed a brutal military dictatorship following a coup in December 1983, which lasted until he was overthrown by another coup in 1985.

Now political opponents claim he is returning to his old dictatorial ways, abusing British aid meant to improve Nigeria’s ability to tackle Boko Haram to consolidate his hold on power.

Apart from the concerns over British aid, American officials are also angry that  $2.1 billion of aid given to the Nigerian military to tackle Boko Haram has not been properly accounted for.

Mr Buhari’s claim that he is winning the war against Boko Haram - recently claimed the group no longer poses a serious threat - has been undermined by recent revelations the Nigerian authorities have tried to cover up the fact that hundreds more schoolchildren have been abducted by Boko Haram.

Human rights activists have no confirmed that around 400 women and children were abducted last year by militants from the Nigerian town of Damasak.

It is now believed that some of these children may have been trained as suicide bombers. U.S. counter-terrorism experts say at least 105 women and girls trained by Boko Haram have taken part in suicide attacks since June 2014.

Source: UK Telegraph

“Arresting Jonathan Will Spell Doom For Nigeria” — IYC Warns Buhari

The umbrella body of Ijaw youths, the Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide, has alleged that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is laying a foundation for the arrest of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Goodluck Jonathan

The IYC, however, advised the anti-graft agency to shelve any plan to “persecute” the former President, insisting that such a move would spell doom for the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

Speaking at a news conference on Saturday to mark the burial of a former Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, the IYC President, Mr. Udengs Eradiri, said most of the close allies of Jonathan had been arrested by the EFCC.

He particularly condemned the recent arrest and detention of Jonathan’s cousin and contractor, Mr. Robert Azibaola, over an alleged $40m contract fraud.

Eradiri said Ijaw youths would not allow Azibaola, Jonathan or any rising Ijaw leader to be persecuted by the EFCC, the way the Federal Government dealt with the late Alamieyeseigha.

He said,

They have arrested almost all our people. Azibaola was arrested by the EFCC and we are calling on the EFCC to stop persecuting him further and charge him to court if there are issues.

They detained him for a long time, forcing him to make statements to indict former President Jonathan. Azibaola is a businessman, a contractor, and has the right, like every other Nigerian, to get contracts. Why will the Niger Delta case be a different one?

We noticed that the same way they persecuted Alamieyeseigha has continued. After Goodluck Jonathan, our people who contributed to that administration, are being persecuted by this government.

The recent one is the ploy to arrest Goodluck Jonathan, which is unfolding every day. This must stop. Goodluck Jonathan is the most performing President that Nigeria has ever had. We are proud of him.

Everyday, there is a calculated attempt to whittle down the achievements of former President Jonathan. We call on Nigerians to mount pressure on the government to focus on leading Nigeria right rather than looking for ways to bring down the achievements of Jonathan.

Buhari should please focus on governance rather than persecution of people who have added value. We are not happy about it and today, we use Alamieyeseigha’s death as a point of contact. The world has seen that from Alamieyeseigha, it has trickled down to all the Niger Delta people.”

Speaking on the alleged removal of 10 per cent community equity from the new Petroleum Industry Bill, Eradiri asked the government to do the needful.

He added that the Federal Government ought to have known that community ownership would ameliorate the years of crises in the Niger Delta region.

The IYC President added,

For us, we will not beg for it. We will not even lobby anybody. The oil is our oil and we will take it. If they like, they should put it, if they don’t like, they should leave it. We expect that this country should have commonsense by including community participation.

In the issue of pipeline surveillance, this 10 per cent would have covered pipeline surveillance. Once the people know that they have 10 per cent in this business, they will protect it.

Source: Punch

Buhari Heads To China To Borrow $2billion

President Muhammadu Buhari will visit China on Sunday to sign a loan infrastructure projects deal worth about $2 billion and the low interest loan is to be deployed to finance the N3 trillion deficit in the budget.

Though the exact figure for the loan is yet to be confirmed, the Presidency and Chinese foreign affairs ministry confirmed the visit.

The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, who disclosed this in an interview with Reuters, said: “I can’t tell you how much until the day the loan will be signed.

Both countries will also be signing some bilateral agreements to strengthen their relationship, that is all I can say for now.” In February, financial and government sources said the loan could be as high as $2 billion, but officials have not provided an update since then.

The federal government had said it would raise about $5 billion abroad to cover part of its 2016 budget deficit which could be as high as N3 trillion.

Lu Kang, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, had earlier said Buhari would visit China from April 11-15 to sign “cooperation agreements” and attend a business forum.

When the Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun, visited China in February, a Nigerian government official said the loan deal she agreed on could be signed by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Finance Minister, in the company of the Central Bank Governor, is scheduled to be in China sometime next week to conclude negotiations on the $2 billion loan,” the official said.

Adeosun had earlier said the country was looking for a loan with about 1.5 per cent interest.

We looked at our debt profile and we recognised that one big problem is interest rate. So, we are going to try and borrow as far as possible externally.

We are borrowing at the cheapest rates. So, multilateral loans are the cheapest.  If someone offers me 1.5 per cent over 20 years, I think I should take it.

That is why we are going to the multilateral agencies first and, thereafter, concessional borrowing and also tap into the Eurobond market,” the minister had said at a KPMG forum in Lagos.

“PDP’s Wasteful 16 Years Made Nigeria Poor” — Buhari

In a manner that depicted worry and anger consequent upon the present poor state of the Nigerian economy, President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday in Abuja lashed out at the 16 years rule of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, regretting that the previous governments did not save for the “rainy day”.

Buhari spoke while receiving the President of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), Dr. Bernard O. Aliyu at the State House, Abuja.

Making a comparison of PDP governments to the first republic which he said achieved a lot with meager resources of that time, the president regretted that the PDP governments failed to help the economy grow even with the all-time rise of crude oil sales of $100 dollars per barrel then.

President Buhari who also declared that Nigeria needed to grow beyond mere emphasis on its potentials, however assured that his administration would do its best to develop the economy beyond rethorics.

He said;

Nigeria needs to work on her potentials, so that we don’t remain permanently at the level of potentials.

If Ethiopia is sustained largely by her airline industry, we have greater potentials here. But we must move out, engage with the rest of the world, as we need to re-establish the integrity of this country. We need to rebuild this country again.

The President recounted that for the greater part of the last 16 years, oil sold above $100 per barrel but expressed regret that the nation did not have much to show for it.

In the First Republic, more enduring infrastructure was built with meager resources. But in the past 16 years, we made a lot of money without planning for the rainy day.

We showed a lot of indiscipline in managing our economy, and that is why we are where we are today. But this time round, we’ll do our best.

Speaking earlier, Dr Aliyu, the Nigerian-born ICAO president commended President Buhari for strides on anti- corruption, and urged Nigeria to pay more attention to development of civil aviation.

Civil aviation is a catalyst for economic development. The level of aviation development in any country mirrors the economic development of that country,” he said.

The ICAO president also pledged to support the development of the aviation industry in Nigeria, urging the country to improve on training and capacity development, aviation security, aerodromes and air navigation, runways, control towers, terminal buildings, among others.

“I’m A British Citizen, Ask Buhari To Release Me” — Nnamdi Kanu Begs UK Govt

The detained  leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, has urged the British Government  to intervene in his case by asking President Muhammadu Buhari to release him from prison.

Nnamdi Kanu

Kanu who is facing treason charge alongside  two other pro-Biafra agitators, Benjamin Madubugwu and David Nwawuisi, approached the British government through his lawyer, Mr. Ifeanyi Ejiofor.

Kanu, in a letter dated March 24 and addressed to the British High Commissioner in Abuja, described himself as a victim of travesty of justice and gross human rights violation.

According to Vanguard, he insisted that the President Buhari-led administration  has violently abused his fundamental human rights through his prolonged detention in prison custody.

Even though Kanu said he was ready to answer to the charge  against him, he however expressed doubt  in the ability of the Nigerian government to accord him fair trial, saying he has so far been subjected to immense persecution.

British citizen

Stressing that he is a British citizen, Kanu told the UK government that he was wrongly arrested and put in detention.

It is repeating the obvious to state that our client is a full British citizen, by virtue of which position he is entitled to all Rights, Privileges and Protection, guaranteed under the British Laws and conventions.

We are therefore constrained in the circumstance, to formally notify the British Government via this medium, of our well informed reservations, and apprehension, that our client is undergoing persecution in the charge above referred, and deliberate design by the persecutors to frustrate every effort of the Defense team aimed at giving our client a fair trial.

Kanu, through his lawyer, contended that his detention from October 14, 2015 till January 20, 2016, without any lawful order of court, was not only unlawful, but was in flagrant disobedience of orders of courts of competent jurisdiction which he said directed his unconditional release and discharge.

Dual citizenship

It is the position of our Law, that dual citizenship is a constitutional right of the citizens of Nigeria, clearly provided for under section 28 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended in 2011. Dual citizenship is not a crime under our Law.

Reservations on President’s comment

Our reservations on the President’s comment was underpinned by the findings made in the ruling delivered on  February 29, 2016, by Hon. Justice John Tsoho, wherein our client and the two other defendants were denied bail.

Recalled that on December   29, 2015, during the Presidential Media Chat, the President told the whole world that Nnamdi Kanu cannot be granted bail, alleging that he came into the country without a valid travelling passport.

This pronouncement was roundly condemned by both local and international commentators. His pronouncement was viewed as a clear usurpation of the functions and powers of the judiciary. 

Though very regrettable and extremely unfortunate, Nnamdi Kanu was refused bail on January 29, 2016. In refusing him and other defendants bail, the court also cited the facts of his possession of dual passports as a flight risk, and as such held that he cannot be granted bail.

Kanu maintained that Justice Tsoho denied him bail..

 ...in line with the pronouncement of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in his media chat telecasted live on December 29, 2015.

Buhari Quotes Gospel In Easter Message, Says Jesus Christ Wants Us To Love One Another

President Muhammadu Buhari has thanked Nigerians for being patient with his government while he assured the promised change will come.

President Buhari

Buhari said this in his Easter message which he also quoted the Gospel.

Read full text below;

EASTER MESSAGE TO THE NATION FROM PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI

Fellow Nigerians,

I rejoice with you all, especially our Christian brothers and sisters, as we celebrate Easter.

For Christians all over the world, this celebration is in commemoration of the supreme sacrifice which Jesus Christ made for the salvation of mankind.

The Gospels also tell us that during his earthly ministry, Jesus Christ repeatedly urged his disciples and followers to “love one another as I have loved you”.

As we celebrate Easter this year, I sincerely believe that it will serve our dear nation very well if we all imbibe this essential message of Jesus Christ and truly learn to love our countrymen and women as we love ourselves.

Indeed, we will surely make faster progress towards the achievement of the peaceful, united, strong, progressive and prosperous country we all desire if, as a nation, we eschew all divisive, parochial, ethnic and religious sentiments and rivalries, and begin to live more harmoniously with our compatriots, as Jesus Christ and the founders of the world’s other great religions enjoined mankind.

Our unfortunate notoriety in recent years as a country where the blood of men, women and children are wantonly and callously shed in frequent orgies of criminal, political, ethnic and religious violence has become very embarrassing and utterly unacceptable.

My administration is determined to achieve greater peace and security across our nation by ending the avoidable conflicts and crises that hinder our national progress.

I ask for greater support from all Nigerians in this regard. We must put a stop to politically motivated killings. Our communities must be made safe again for all inhabitants to live together in peace and harmony.

Our armed forces, police and other security agencies are being progressively reformed, repositioned and empowered to win the war against terrorism and make mass killings, abductions and other criminal atrocities things of the past in our beloved country.

Let us all also play our parts as patriotic citizens and do all that we can to ensure that we make Nigeria a safer, more peaceful and happier place for its people and others.

Faith, belief and the fulfilment of expectations are also key themes of the Easter celebration. I urge you all therefore, to continue to have faith in the future greatness of our country and to believe that the CHANGE my administration promised will surely come to fruition.

That CHANGE, which we all yearn for, will certainly occur more rapidly if we all place the love of our country above selfish personal and group interests.

The National Assembly has just passed the 2016 budget. I assure all Nigerians that we will do our utmost best to ensure that the budget, the first since my election as President, is efficiently and successfully implemented towards achieving our objective of faster economic growth and development.

I thank the vast majority of Nigerians for their patience and understanding in the first ten months of this administration.

As we go forward, I assure you all that we are working very hard to overcome the challenges we encountered on assumption of office.

We are moving on with an unshaken resolve and determination to deliver on the mandate you gave us on March 28, last year.

I wish you all very happy Easter celebrations.

Muhammadu Buhari

March 26, 2016

Trump Blasts Nigeria Again, Calls Buhari ‘An Insensible President’

A shocking VIDEO has emerged showing Donald Trump, who is running as the Republican Presidential Candidate of the United States, calling Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria an ‘insensible president’.

Donald Trump

Donald Trump like we all know, is very outspoken. He is one politician who loves to air his opinion with little or no concern about how his subject receives the comment.

Some people would say Trump talks before thinking, others may say he is just being a blab, while a lot others simply love his undiplomatic approach to presenting speeches.

He said;

"No sensible president continuously travels round the globe while his country Nigeria is in terrible hardship and economic mess.

"It can only happen in Nigeria where all that matters to the President is the full introduction of Islam, annihilation of his political opponents and absolute extermination of the people of the old Eastern Nigeria. 

"Buhari, prior to his questionable victory at the polls as the President of Nigeria made lots of promises which he has obviously failed to keep and in most cases denied.”

Trump is not far from the truth, as Buhari has made tons of trips since he became the Nigerian President. The likes of Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State do not buy the idea of Buhari’s frequent trips as he says it is detrimental to the finances of the nation. No doubt President Buhari’s trips are becoming “too often,” Nigerians now wait to hear the next announcement of yet another trip.

The country is in a pitiable state and needs her President to always be on top of his game. The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo is capable of handling some trips abroad while the president stays home to take care of his people. In the past 10 months, President Buhari has made over fifteen (15) trips.

He has been to the United States of America, Benin Republic, Ghana, France, India, Chad, Germany, Iran, South Africa, United Arab Emirate, Kenya, Ethiopia, to mention but a few. Meanwhile, he has not visited up to fifteen states in the country as a President.

This is certainly what Mr. President and his All Progressives Congress (APC) meant when they said Nigeria would experience change when power gets into their hands.

Recall that just last week, Donald Trump also referred to African leaders as ‘thieves’, using the president of Nigeria and Kenya as typical examples. He also said these African countries lack civilization and leadership skills and should be colonized a second time. Considering the appalling happenings in Nigeria, the US would-be-President may not be totally wrong after all but it would even be more interesting to see what happens if he becomes the next US president.

“Rivers, Now The Most Deadly State In Nigeria” — Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, dubbed Rivers State as Nigeria’s most deadly state, even as he offered profuse apologies for the ill-tempered elections conducted under his watch in Kogi, Bayelsa and Rivers states.

On conflicting signals from Niger Delta militants, the president said:

Some have said they are ready to drop their arms and join the rest of the nation to build it.

But part of them are still sabotaging installations which is making investments in that lucrative area of Nigeria difficult because nobody will submit his riches to financial institutions, get money only to suffer huge loss. So, the environment for investment is being sabotaged by ourselves, Nigerians.

We are doing our best with the military by trying to persuade them to join the rest of the country because in unity lies our strength. Charging Nigerians to sustain the democratic enterprise through maintaining their Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs, the president offered profuse apologies for the ill-tempered elections held in Kogi, Bayelsa and Rivers states.

Buhari Disowns #IStandWithBuhari Group

President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday dissociated himself from an advocacy group, #Istandwithbuhari, and demanded that the group should immediately stop claiming any alliance with his administration.

Buhari’s position was contained in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu.

According to the statement, Buhari also demanded that those behind the group should stop using his name and that of his wife, Aisha, to promote themselves and their activities.

The statement said,

Among other reasons, we have found it necessary to distance the Presidency from the #Istandwithbuhari group because its premature and ostentatious celebration of the present administration’s achievements is totally inconsistent with President Buhari’s philosophy of service with humility.

While the present  administration has indeed recorded significant successes in its priority areas of improving security across the nation, ending the Boko Haram insurgency, curbing official corruption and revamping Nigeria’s economy, President Buhari is well aware that his government still has a lot of national challenges to overcome.

The President prefers to give his fullest attention to addressing those challenges without the unsolicited and unwelcome distraction of untimely praise-singing from groups with dubious and questionable motives.

Nigeria’s Central Bank Under Fire For Secret Employment Of Buhari, Ministers’ Relatives

Civil society leaders and lawyers have lambasted the management of the Central Bank of Nigeria for secretly recruiting dozens of family members of top government officials, including children of ministers and a nephew of President Muhammadu Buhari.

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele

In separate interviews with Premium Times on Thursday, the activists ‎demanded the immediate withdrawal of employment offers secretly awarded by the bank over several months to hundreds of beneficiaries – amongst them family members of serving and past government officials.

According to news website, SaharaReporters, the CBN hired children and relatives of politically-exposed Nigerians without advertising the positions to allow other Nigerians apply, as required by law.

What this thing has told us is that all animals are equal but some are more equal than others,” said Achike Chude, Deputy Chairman, Joint Action Front.

And this is what we see in virtually every aspect of our national life.

This tells us once more that there are two Nigerias: a Nigeria for the rich, the powerful, and the influential, and a Nigeria for those who do not have privileges, who do not have what it takes.

Debo Adeniran, the Executive Director of Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, ‎said,

It is a manifestation of the old order whereby people of privileged class are given undue advantage over others.

The Buhari administration must be seen to live up to its mantra of change and‎ equal opportunity must be given to everybody.

The CBN had responded to the scandal by saying it did nothing illegal in hiring without advertising the positions, claiming the bank sought to employ “specialists” and therefore got a waiver to recruit without advertising.

The beneficiaries of the recruitment, according to a list released by SaharaReporters, include a nephew of President Buhari, daughter of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; son of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu; daughter of former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Na’aba.

Others include the daughter of Nigeria’s Police Inspector-General, Solomon Arase; son of the Minister of Internal Affairs, Abdulrahman Danbazzau, among others.

Isaac Okoroafor, CBN’s acting Director of Corporate Communications had told Premium Times, that the bank got a waiver from the Federal Character‎ Commission, allowing them to recruit with advertising.

In the last two years, we have had cause to recruit specialists, and what the law says is that if we are going for that kind of recruitment we should apply for waiver, so that we can do targeted recruitment,” Mr. Okoroafor said.

But Monday Ubani, former chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Ikeja chapter, said those who were recruited without advertisements ought to be shown the door.

The law says there must be a proper advertisement of vacancies for such positions and every Nigerian should be in a position to compete for such a very sensitive position. And it should reflect federal character,‎” said Mr. Ubani.

Mr. Ubani also said the manner of the recruitment showed a faulty process and “that something is hidden.”

‎Why will you go and begin to head-hunt only big men’s children into the banking sector? That is discriminatory, that is contrary to the provisions of the Constitution. That is nepotism of the highest order.

‎Olanrewaju Suraju, Chairman of Civil Society Network Against Corruption, called on the CBN to make public the provisions of the law that allowed the Federal Character Commission to grant it employment waiver.

It is the beginning of accountability in the process, though the response from the CBN is still very ludicrous in terms of saying that they are catchment areas under federal character and that they deliberately refused to advertise,” Mr. Suraju said.

It is a challenge to the current government to ensure that they probe the recruitment process and if it is found to have violated any of the extant laws, then they need to actually sack all those that are beneficiaries of the recruitment.

Thereafter they should conduct a highly publicised recruitment process that gives access to every other person that is qualified.”

Last week, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project gave an ultimatum to the CBN to withdraw the letters of employment it issued to the beneficiaries of the “seriously flawed recruitment process”.

Adetokunbo Mumuni, Executive Director, SERAP, said the procedure for engaging people into public institutions is to make adequate notice and then allow eligible Nigerians to compete for positions.

We are talking about equity, justice, and fairness to all Nigerians,” Mr. Mumuni, a lawyer, told Premium Times.

It doesn’t matter to me if the cousin of the president was eventually chosen, provided the process was fair and all other Nigerians were also allowed to compete on the same level.

Why would it be that you want to recruit into a body as important as CBN and some Nigerians who are also equally qualified, even more qualified than those that were eventually selected will not know about it? That is short-changing an overwhelming population of Nigeria.

Mr. Mumuni said the waiver granted the CBN by the Federal Character Commission was a violation of the Constitution.

The Federal Character Commission cannot be superior to whatever the Constitution provides,” he said.

The Constitution says you cannot conduct the business of the any institution of government in Nigeria in a matter that deprives some Nigerians the opportunity to participate.

In any case, the Federal Character Commission itself is a creation of the Constitution and the Federal Character Commission cannot give a waiver that flouts express constitutional provisions. So that waiver is an illegal waiver.”

SERAP had given the CBN a 14-day ultimatum‎ to put in place a system of recruitment based on non-discrimination and transparency or face legal action.

We have evidence that we had written to them, we have evidence that the letter is with them, all that remains is that we wait for them to react. But we won’t wait for them forever,” said Mr. Mumuni.

Like we said in our letter, if nothing happens positively as we expected, in the interest of overwhelming majority of Nigerians, we would go to court and test this matter there.

So they would come and put it as part of their defence, that the Federal Character Commission gave them a waiver, then we’ll take it from there.

“God Is Angry With Buhari, You Can't Continue To Shed Innocent Blood” — Fayose

Following the violence and maiming that characterized last Saturday’s rerun election in Rivers state, Ekiti state governor, Ayo Fayose, says God is angry with Buhari.

Fayose, Buhari

Fayose said this while speaking with newsmen in Abuja yesterday March 22nd.

He said:

I am telling you the truth. Power doesn’t come from anywhere. God rules in the affairs of men. Oppressing, bringing and cutting people down, taking their blood, God is angry.

The way this government is taking people down, God is angry. God isn’t happy. Go to Rivers, they kill people. Go to Akwa Ibom, they kill people. Go to Bayelsa, they kill people, incarcerate innocent people.

ALSO READ: Buhari Quick To Condemn Cote d’Ivoire Attacks But Ignore Agatu, Mile 12 Deaths – Fayose

He continued,

God is angry with Buhari. You can’t continue to take the blood of the innocent. Look at my predictions for the year 2016 for Nigeria, everything has come to pass.

This is a different ball game. He that will take me, he that will go against me must first of all defeat God. If these were the kind of violence that greeted Buhari’s election would he ever be president?” he added.

 According to the governor, the president superintended over elections that were remarkably bloody.

“Change Is Not Easy” — Tinubu Begs Nigerians To Be Patient With Buhari

A leader of the governing All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, on Saturday assured Nigerians that the change agenda of President Muhammadu Buhari is still on course.

According to Mr. Tinubu, who spoke at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University convocation in Sokoto on Saturday, the change process requires time especially coming after..

 ..the conscience of our nation has been under attack for many years.

We were handed a way of governance in which anything goes and too much went – as if gone with the wind. Our present was squandered and future mortgaged.

Mr. Tinubu while pleading for support and patience with the APC administration said;

Nigeria has the greatest opportunity to get it right with a leader like Mr. Muhammad Buhari.

There is much to fix. President Buhari is committed to fixing them. But he needs your support and patience. He cannot do it all alone. We must stand beside him or else we may be knocked down and not stand at all.

Thus, let us be resolved to see reform and change that will make Nigeria rise as the nation it should be,” Mr. Tinubu added.

The former Lagos State governor also took on the those he described as “nay Sayers and negative spinners” who argue that no change was taking place.

It’s easy for those who are greedy to think that change is easy. Change is not about comfort of today, but the success of tomorrow. Nigeria was in the rollercoaster of losing hope. Then our party brought cure. Don’t let anyone deceive you, the cure is here.

Jonathan Blasts Buhari Over Corruption, Challenges Him

Remember Buhari's comment/tweet during President Goodluck Jonathan's administration about fuel scarcity?

Buhari, who was Jonathan's rival during the presidential elections, condemned the fuel scarcity that hit former President Jonathan's regime as president.

The ex-president has however referred back to that comment, saying;

Nigeria's productivity is being hindered due to the countless man hours spent on petrol stations today.

ALSO READ: Buhari Set To Order Jonathan’s Arrest As ex-President Meets With His Former Ministers

Jonathan also condemned Buhari's method of tackling corruption. He said that his strategy for combating corruption is not by indiscriminate arrest and jail of people.

I stand by due process. Any country that does not respect due process is a jungle,” Mr. Jonathan said.

They say to be strong is to jail people indiscriminately. For 300 years. Is that where we're going to?”

Buhari Set To Order Jonathan’s Arrest As ex-President Meets With His Former Ministers

Former president Dr Goodluck Jonathan is meeting with ministers who served in his cabinet today to discuss the ongoing investigation of their government by the Buhari administration.

President Buhari (left) might order the arrest of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan (right)

Since assuming office in May, President Muhammadu Buhari has made the fight against corruption the mainstay of his government.

Anti-fraud investigators from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested several ministers, particularly in relation to the $2.1bn arms scandal in which money voted for military purposes was shared among Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftains.

Over the last week, presidency officials have said it is fine for the EFCC to extend the probe to Dr Goodluck himself, which has created panic among PDP members.

ALSO READ: “Buhari Wants To Islamise Nigeria” — Fayose

On Friday, senate leader, Senator Ali Ndume, said President Buhari should authorise the EFCC to probe and prosecute Dr Jonathan.

Senator Ndume said:

Nobody is supposed to be above the law. If Jonathan is a culprit, he should face the law. If there is evidence that the former president should face the law, then, he should. After all, he is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Mallam Garba Shehu, President Buhari's spokesman, said that did not sign any pact with Dr Jonathan or any past president to exempt them from a probe.

According to Mallam Shehu, President Buhari, being an open person, would never go into a secret pact with anybody, especially on his administration’s ongoing anti-graft war.

ALSO READ: U.S. General Counters Buhari, Says Boko Haram STILL Holds Territory In Nigeria

A leading PDP member said the pressure on President Buhari to probe Dr Jonathan would form part of the discussion when the ex-ministers meet the former president today.

Some PDP leaders have already called on President Buhari not to succumb to pressure being mounted on him to probe Dr Jonathan, adding that doing so would amount to laying a bad precedent.

Chief Ebenezer Babatope, a PDP board of trustees member, urged the Buhari-led federal government not to probe Dr Jonathan, adding that doing so would humiliate the former president.

He described those calling for the probe of Dr Jonathan as enemies of the country, adding that the former president should not be probed unless it becomes brazenly open that a lot of thefts are traced to him.

ALSO READ: “Jonathan Hates Rivers State; Wike Is A Thief; He Can Sell His Mother” — Amaechi

Chief Babatope said;

The late sage, Pa Obafemi Awolowo, said you must not humiliate your leadership. When you decide to humiliate your leadership, it is not Jonathan that you’re humiliating, it is your values that you are casting aspersions on.

When reminded that the PDP's national publicity secretary Olisa Metuh, and a former chief of defence staff, Air Chief Marshall Alex Badeh said Dr Jonathan approved the monies that they allegedly got, Chief Babatope added the duo reserved the right to tender their positions in court.

A former special assistant Dr Jonathan, Dr Doyin Okupe, said there might be nothing wrong in Buhari asking Jonathan to account for his actions while in office but that the president should be weary of setting a bad precedent.