Politicians shun meeting with police in Bayelsa

Politicians in Bayelsa State, including candidates in the 2015 elections, on Wednesday shunned a one-day stakeholders’ meeting organised by the state police command.
The major political parties and their officials, including members of the Peoples Democratic Party, stayed away from the meeting.
Candidates vying for positions in the National Assembly and state House of Assembly also shunned the stakeholders’ meeting held at the Police Officers Mess, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital.
It was noticed that only the Assembly candidate from the Kowa Party, Okidi Werin, representing Sagbama Constituency 1, was present at the gathering.

Commissioner of Police, Mr. Valentine Ntomchukwu, while addressing participants, condemned the absence of political party officers and major stakeholders in the state.
Ntomchukwu said, “No member of PDP is present; no APC members or candidates vying for any elective positions are present here. Even those seeking elective positions in the Senate, House of Representatives and state House of Assembly are not present.”

Ntomchukwu, who expressed sadness over the development, said the police would deal decisively with anybody or group of people that foment trouble before, during and after the elections in the state.
“Anybody who wants to foment trouble on the day of the election would be dealt with decisively, please do not be deceived by anybody that he can rig the election,” he said.

The police boss also said the police were fully prepared for the 2015 elections and called on the public to ensure total peace.
Ntomchukwu also urged the participants in the elections to cooperate with the Independent National Electoral Commission and the security agencies to ensure a hitch-free poll.

“The police have been advised to maintain law; you are asked to cooperate with the police and other security agencies in order to give peace a chance,” he stressed.

Director, State Security, Lassan Baba, also called on the electorate to ensure a peaceful poll and shun any act of electoral violence.
Baba insisted that the various security agencies would deal decisively with anybody who foments trouble during the poll.

At the stakeholders’ meeting, Head of Voters Education unit in INEC, Victor Agbonwaneta, said the commission was geared towards organising an awareness campaign at markets and motor parks across the state.

Agbonwaneta called on the electorate to ensure that they collect their Permanent Voter Cards to enable them vote for candidates of their choice.

The INEC official insisted that the commission was fully prepared to conduct the 2015 polls across the nation.
He charged members of the public to shun electoral violence in their domains.

Military takes delivery of attack helicopters

The Defence authorities have started taking delivery of some military hardware required for the prosecution of the war against the Boko Haram insurgents in the North-East.
Investigation revealed that the military hardware were imported from Russia, Belarus and other Eastern European countries.

It was learnt that some of the items were received at the Port of Lagos and were being moved to designated locations in Abuja and other parts of the country.
Our correspondent sighted several Russian-made Armoured Personnel Carriers being conveyed in long open military trucks along Okenne-Lokoja-Abuja Express Way.
Some other heavy trucks (painted in military green) were also sighted conveying containers of items suspected to be military hardware along the same routes.
It was however learnt that the military was receiving the items in batches from Russian, Belarus and other European countries by sea and by air.

A senior military officer said on Wednesday that the military equipment were being received at the Apapa Port, the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, the Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, and Kaduna.
The officer added that containers of spare parts for attack helicopters had also been received by the Defence authorities early in the week.
It was further learnt that the attack helicopters and other platforms would be coupled in the country.

“It is true that we have started receiving some military hardware in the country. Of course, we couldn’t get them from our friends in the West. It is no longer news that they refused to sell to us.
“We are getting the items from Russia, Belarus and other Eastern European countries. They are coming in batches. We are receiving them in batches both by sea and by air.

“Apart from the items from Lagos, there are others coming in by air from the air ports in Kaduna and Kano.
“Some of the items that are being received include the APCs that you saw, components of some Air Force platforms. Yes, there are some attack helicopters; they are to be coupled together in the country. These are expected to boost the already high morale of the troops,” the source said.

When our correspondent contacted the Director, Defence Information, Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade, for his comment on the issue, he neither confirmed nor denied the arrival of the items.
He said, “We are incrementally enhancing our stock in all the mission areas as part of the ongoing measures to enhance our effectiveness.”

Punch

US links rising B’Haram attacks to elections

The United States government has thrown its weight behind the Federal Government to conduct this year’s general elections despite the fact that the country is facing security challenges.
This view was expressed on Tuesday at the US Department of States’ daily briefing in Washington.
The US government also said that the recent incessant attacks by the Boko Haram insurgents could be as a result of the approaching general elections in Nigeria.

“There has been a sharp escalation in the number of reported casualties. I think the numbers tend to be from about 2009 to 2013 – there were a little over 1,000 casualties. I mean, we’ve obviously all seen the reported numbers just this week – which we can’t confirm exactly, but it clearly shows there’s been a sharp escalation.

“It’s because Boko Haram has tended to, particularly around something like an election, used political issues or sensitivities to try and inflame tensions. We’ve seen that as one of their tactics, and that’s why it’s so important to move forward with the election, because we believe it’s important. Well, I don’t want to prejudge.

“We’ve seen successful elections go forward in places that have pretty significant levels of violence. So, we believe the election should go forward. We know there are security challenges. We do think that the election is probably a factor. As I said, we believe the election should still go forward, even in the face of this pretty horrific violence,” Marie Harf, the US spokeswoman, told journalists.

According to her, the US government will continue to assist President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration in fighting terrorism, despite the fact that a training programme by the US for Nigeria’s military personnel was cancelled by Nigeria late last year.

Punch

Senate: Nigeria to Run 2015 Budget in Deficit

After much lamentation over the 2015 budget, the Appropriation Bill for the current fiscal year scaled second reading on the floor of the Senate on Wednesday with senators describing the estimates as a deficit budget whose content is grossly exaggerated.

Leading debate on the bill, Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba, said the budget of N4.357 trillion comprised N2.6 trillion as recurrent expenditure, N627 billion capital expenditure, N943 billion for debt service and N411 billion for statutory transfers.
He also said the document was predicated on $65 oil benchmark, projected oil production of 2.2782 million barrels per day and an exchange rate of N165 to $1.

Ndoma-Egba said the budget would focus on job creation through increasing economic diversification and leakages, roads, power, gas and aviation.
He added that the 2015 budget is a framework that will consolidate and add impetus to the transformation agenda of the federal government with the intention to promote economic growth, job creation, poverty reduction and service delivery.

In his submission, Senate Committee Chairman on Finance, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, called for “extreme caution” in the effort to appropriate the budget, noting that the benchmark for the budget had not been determined. He argued that budget could not be appropriated without first determining the benchmark.

While recalling that the capital expenditure contained in the 2014 budget was N1.4 trillion when compared with N627 billion in the current estimates, Makarfi described the estimates as “austerity budget” and insisted that the current economic downturn is a wake-up call on Nigeria to stop relying on oil “which is highly volatile and look for other areas of getting money.”

Makarfi also described the projected N165 to $1 as exchange rate as unrealistic, saying it is out of tune with reality since a dollar is currently exchanged for over N180 as he suggested the need to block wastages by ensuring that ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) declare their revenues with a view to ensuring that non-oil revenues come into government treasuries.

Also speaking, Senator Olubunmi Adetumbi (Ekiti North) argued that there is currently no money to finance the 2015 budget being considered, emphasising that the components of the budget are grossly exaggerated. He added that with the projected $65 benchmark, the budget has already begun to run in deficit of $28 even when it has not been passed.

Adetumbi also argued that the nation was shooting itself in the leg by exaggerating oil benchmark when it is common knowledge that oil now sells at $47 per barrel, remarking that the current trend implies that there would be no money at all to fund any capital project next year except by borrowing.
He therefore advocated the need to compel the executive to withdraw the estimates and submit a fresh one that will take into consideration the current circumstances.

But Senator Ita Enang described the bill as a “budget of celebration,” saying he was celebrating the fall of oil in the global market because it would force Nigeria to explore other sources of revenue.

According to him, organisations such as Nigeria Maritime Safety and Administration (NIMASA), among others, generate huge revenues and are even richer than the Presidency, alleging that the agencies are flouting the law, which authorises them to retain 20 per cent of their revenues and remit 80 per cent to government coffers.

He also argued that if the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), which “behaves as Nigeria” remits all funds as required into the consolidated revenue fund (CRF), there would be enough money to fund the economy despite the downturn. He cited countries in Europe and other continents which do not have oil and yet are extremely rich because they harness taxation and deploy it to grow their economies.

Enang further lamented that the excess crude account (ECA) has been largely depleted despite the rise of oil price to as high as $118 last year before its eventual fall, saying both the National Assembly and federal government were guilty because they failed to heed his campaign that money in ECA should not be spent except as authorised by the Appropriation Act.

The senator said whereas this position was incorporated into the 2014 Appropriation Bill, the federal government later connived with the National Assembly to delete the provision, lamenting that if the provision had been sustained, the problem threatening the nation today would have been largely averted as he described the spending of ECA fund as stealing. He also said given the drastic fall in oil price, the federal government should bring down the pump price of fuel before the organised labour decides to go on strike.

“There is no point allowing the CBN, NIMASA and Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) to generate money and keep it without putting it in the revenue account. I am celebrating the fall of oil so that we can go back to see the amount of money generated by these agencies and determine the 20 per cent they should spend and the 80 per cent they should transmit to the federation account. We should go back to these instruments.

“How do countries that do not produce oil survive? It is through money they generate internally. Where is the excess crude account? The benchmark for 2014 budget was $77.50 per barrel but oil sold for over $118 per barrel. Where is the excess crude share of the federal government? We are guilty because I raised an alarm that money from the excess crude account should not be expended without the consent of the National Assembly.

“My submission is that since we signed the 2014 Appropriation Act, there has not been an application for supplementary budget. The President should therefore fund the 2015 budget with the reserve from the excess crude amount,” Enang said.

In his remark, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over the session, described the economic downturn as a wake-up call on Nigeria to ensure that other sources of revenue are factored into budget projection.

He charged the committees handling the appropriation to capture other revenue sources in the budget as he recalled that Nigeria had survived a similar challenge in the past but lamented that no lesson was learnt from the previous experience.
While citing nations such as Norway, which he said ran their economies well without oil, Ekweremadu said it had become imperative for the executive to devise extra ways such as taxation to fund annual budgets and simultaneously ensure strict application of the principle of fiscal discipline.

The Senate later referred the document to committees on finance and appropriation with the mandate to report back to the house in four weeks.
Meanwhile, the Senate yesterday adjourned plenary to February 17 to enable members concentrate on their re-election campaigns.

Jonathan, Buhari, Others Sign Undertaking to Maintain Peace

Determined to ensure that the pockets of violence preceding the general election neither continue nor escalate, the presidential candidates of all political parties participating in the election, including President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Wednesday signed an accord to ensure non-violent polls.

In the undertaking signed in the presence of eminent personalities such as the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Dr. Kofi Annan, and former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, all the presidential candidates of the parties pledged to refrain from campaigns that could involve religious incitement, ethnic or tribal profiling and to get their agents to toe similar line.
All the candidates of the various parties also agreed “to refrain from making, or causing to make our names or that of our party, any public statements, pronouncements, declarations or speeches that have the capacity to incite any form of violence, before, during and after the elections”.

Other presidential candidates present at the ceremony included Tunde Anifowose Kelani of Action Alliance (AA), Dr. Rafiu Salau of Alliance for Democracy (AD), Ganiyu Galadima of Alliance Congress (AC), Alhaji Mani Ibrahim Ahmad of ADC, Chief Sam Eke of Citizens Popular Party (CPP), Ambrose Albert Oworu of Hope Party, Prof. Oluremi Sonaiya of KOWA Party and Chief Chekwas Okorie of Unity Progressive Party (UPP).
In his speech, President Jonathan said contrary to the belief that past violence were as a result of electoral malpractices, a closer study of the situation had shown that the issue could be related to other human factors.

According to him, politicians more often than not, utter provocative statements and whip up unnecessary sentiments and instigate violence as soon they notice that they have lost an election.
He said another factor is that of the religious leaders who preach the hate message, instigating their followers to be confrontational and sometimes by labelling some candidates as the enemies of their fate.
“If religious leaders do that kind of preaching, what do you expect? We always follow what our religious leaders say and if our religious leaders keep preaching such hate messages what do you expect in that instance? Your followers are not going into the election based on internationally known election principles, they will think they are going for war.

“There is also the pronouncement of our traditional rulers who make provocative statements as if they want to divide the country. This has never helped because as leaders, you have your subjects and followers. When you make these provocative statements, you are indirectly instigating them to become extremely violent,” he said.
As a way forward, the president cautioned that political party leaders, religious or traditional rulers must stop making provocative statements.
He further assured Nigerians that the federal government would strengthen security, especially due to the challenging situation in some parts of the north.

The president also spoke on the future of Nigeria’s elections and proffered ways to ensure the issues that lead to violence are addressed through the constitution.
He said: “We need to rejig our laws in a way that they will not encourage violence. If you look at the presidential system, we borrowed it. We lack the technology. I believe that the key thing is not just about violence in 2015 election, but how do we make sure that from 2019, violence is basically reduced in this country.
“If we must end electoral violence and we continue with this method, we will just be talking and talking and nothing can be done.
“The idea in Nigeria that in parliamentary election, the winner takes all is a problem.

“If you take a state, made up of three senators, the first senate result, one party has 51% while the other has 49%, the party with 51% takes the Senate. In the second Senatorial poll one party has 52% and the other party 48% the party with 52% takes the seat, the third Senate seat, the first scores 55% and the second 45% and the one with 55% takes the seat. But if you aggregate the total votes, you will see that one has about 51% of total votes while the other 49%. Based on the winner takes all policy, the party that came first takes the three seats but the other party that is almost at par takes nothing.

“So, there must be tension in that kind of situation. That is why in other kinds of democracy they vote first and share the seat based of the performance of the parties. So the party that is also popular can get something. But based on the winner takes all the party that scored 49% will have nothing in that state. They will not go and sleep but continue to create problems in that state. So the National Assembly will need to revisit the issues of winner takes all in terms of parliamentary election.
“At the executive level, we should come up with a system that will ensure that when a party wins the governorship or the president at the national level, in forming cabinet, the parties that did very well will also, by right, by law and not by privilege or discretion of Mr Governor or Mr. President, be meant to have a share of appointments in that government.

“If this is done, they will be mindful of their conducts and utterances. Some country say 50+1 votes. In Nigeria, they say you must get majority of the votes in 25% of the 2/3 of the states, but in some it is 51+1 and the other party with 49% is completely out of the government. They cannot just go and sleep. So I believe that there must be a way out of these violence even if we made them unique to Nigeria.

“We can also have a panel instituted by the chief justices of the federation or chief judge of the states, so that if any candidate is disqualified, they can know why the person is disqualified. If they are not convinced, then that person can go and contest.

On the distribution of permanent voters card (PVC), President Jonathan called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure that every voter receives his or her card and to educate Nigerians properly regarding the deployment of any technological innovation intended to improve voting system.

“There are certain things happening now that if not properly handled could lead to violence. First, a number of Nigerians are complaining that they don’t have PVC. If some people don’t have, the assumption is that from the beginning, INEC is going to rig the election and there is the tendency for those people to go violent.

” I have mentioned it to the INEC Chairman to make sure that every eligible Nigerian votes. If they are not able to make sure that every Nigerian votes, that is a recipe for violence,” he said.

While reacting to the critics of the recent disbursement of monies for the settlement of victims of post 2011 election violence, President Jonathan said the reason Kaduna got the lion’s share of N3 billion was because the level of destruction in the state surpassed others.
Buhari in his presentation, said much of the crisis associated with the conduct of elections and its outcome had to do with a flawed process and inability to secure justice by the affected persons.

He cited several examples of frustrations he had gone through in an effort to protest what was believed to be flawed electoral processes and results, including his experiences at the courts.
“In 2011, I said, I as a presidential candidate will not go to court, but I made sure that my party went to the court. We went there, I think for about nine months or so and again it is the same story. There is no way the ruling party will lose judgment. This is nasty experience, if one looks at how the Supreme Court was split and how relatively other international observer teams made their own ruling that the election was messy.

“Again, it was said that before every election, there must be an Electoral Act. There was one in 2002 for the 2003 elections, there was one in 2006 for the 2007 elections, there was one in 2010 for the 2011 elections, Whereas 30 days to the elections we are still waiting for the amended Electoral Act for this year’s elections. I am yet to see one. So on paper, you can’t catch Nigeria.

“So, on paper, you can’t cage Nigerians. You can only cage Nigerians on the field. In terms of practical documentation, go to any ministry or parastatal, you will get instruction on how the place should be managed from the cleaner to the permanent secretary and even the minister when he comes.

“You will also get financial instruction on how to spend the money. I am afraid because of my personal experiences having gone through the system. All these credible, tested intellectual instruction may have been thrown into the waste basket, ” he said.
The former United Nations Secretary General, Annan, who was the special guest of honour while presenting the keynote address, urged the aspirants to avoid inflammatory statements as the elections present an opportunity for the country to prove itself before the international community.

He admonished the politicians to ensure a peaceful election, stating that with the strategic position of Nigeria on the African continent, it cannot afford to get it wrong come February. He urged all political parties to take the agreement seriously.
“Aside from being the eigth largest importer of oil, Nigeria has become a player in telecoms, agriculture and in banking. She is a major contributor to UN peace keeping and is now at the UN Security Council,” he said.

While declaring the event open, the Chairman of the workshop, Chief Anyaoku, said the objective of the workshop was to get all the contestants taking part in the 2015 national elections to renounce violence during elections.
“Regrettably, we cannot deny that in our country, we have history of violence occurring before, during and after elections. Already, explosion, burning of buses have been reported in some states, and we are also witnessing increasingly acrimonious pronouncements by candidates and spokespersons of political parties, ” he said.

Speaking more on similar vein, the Special Adviser to the president on Inter- Party Affairs, Senator Ben Ndi Obi, said the workshop “is a product of extensive and inclusive consultations between his office, the ruling party on the one side; and all opposition parties.
“The workshop will also emphasise the role of political parties and contesting candidates in creating the enabling environment for a peaceful election in 2015 through their conduct and behaviour, and highlight the negative consequences of electoral violence in our national security.”

“It had led to a wanton destruction of lives and property in the past, cast a dark cloud of uncertainty over our nation and threatened national security and our collective existence even in elections that were adjudged to have been efficiently and credibly conducted,” he said.

Addressing the gathering, INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, identified some of the reasons why the country’s elections always result in violence.
He said apart from INEC and security agencies constitutionally required to do their jobs without bias, political stakeholders and all Nigerian as well have much to do.

He blamed lack of internal democracy within political parties, accountability, lack of conflict resolution mechanism, supremacy of rules, uncertainty of electoral outcome, unwillingness to accept outcome, need for moderation by the party leaders and their spokespersons, having trust in institutional redress, promotion of inclusiveness and training of staff on some of the ingredients of violence.
However, despite the various reasons advanced by the candidates as provocations for electoral violence, the United States (US) State Department believes that the hightening terrorist attacks are because of the 2015 elections.

In a statement on Tuesday the US State Department said it believes the February 14 elections in Nigeria is a factor behind the sharp increase in attacks by Boko Haram, a group which has killed thousands since launching an uprising five years ago.
Red Cross official, Umar Ahmed, who was on the scene of the blast, said the bomber and two other people were killed. An official at the hospital where the casualties were brought, Ibrahim Garba, said the emergency ward was treating 14 people for blast wounds.

Some were in critical condition, he said.
The US State Department yesterday said Nigeria’s election in February could be a factor behind the sharp increase in attacks by Boko Haram Islamist militants in the north of the country.
Spokeswoman Marie Harf said, however, that the February 14 presidential election should go ahead in spite of the violence, which has forced about 20,000 Nigerians to flee to neighbouring countries in recent weeks.
“There has been a sharp escalation in the number of reported casualties. We do believe the election is a factor,’’ Harf told a daily briefing.
Harf said Boko Haram previously used events such as elections to stir up tensions.

However, the election is expected to be a close contest between President Goodluck Jonathan and his leading challenger, Buhari.
“Boko Haram has tended to, particularly around something like an election, use political issues or sensitivities to try to enflame tensions.
“We have seen that as one of their tactics and that is why it is so important to move forward with the election, because we believe it is important,’’ she noted.

Boko Haram’s insurgency began in 2009, but the number and scale of the attacks has risen sharply since 2015 after the government imposed emergency rule in three worst-hit states in northern Nigeria.
Amnesty International has said Boko Haram may have killed some 2,000 people around January 3 in Baga in northern Nigeria.

However, Harf said it was hard to independently verify that figure.

Thisday

Corruption is in Goodluck’s government- Asari

Leader of the defunct Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force (NDPVF), Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, has said that corruption in the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan is endemic, although it does not stop him from supporting his administration.

The former militant leader also threatened war on any successor of Rivers State governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, that fails to probe his administration.

Dokubo-Asari spoke yesterday in Port Harcourt while fielding questions shortly after attending a town hall meeting organised by NDPVF, in conjunction with the Niger Delta People Salvation Front (NDPSF).

He queried why people should be blaming Jonathan for all the country’s woes, pointing out that the country has over 800 governments, made up of 774 local government areas,36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

The NDPVF leader said, “We have over 800 governments in Nigeria. There are 774 local government areas, 36 states and Abuja. Is Jonathan governing all of them? Is there no corruption in Rivers State? Corruption is high in the states controlled by the All Progressives Congress.”

The ex-Niger Delta agitator frowned at the politicians castigating Jonathan on corruption, stressing that failure of Amaechi’s successor to probe him would be hellish.

On the forthcoming general elections, the warlord declared,

“We condemn in its totality act of violence against our own people. There is no need for Kalabari-Kalabari violence,Ikwerre-Ikwerre violence, Ogoni-Ogoni violence, Okrika-Okrika violence. There is no need for Itsekiri-Itsekiri violence, Urhobo-Urhobo violence, Bayelsa-Bayelsa violence. There is no need and no basis for it.

“What we are saying is that our people will work amicably among ourselves. We will vote Goodluck Jonathan come February 14. We will vote Goodluck Jonathan.

Leadership