If the news reaching Rhipplemedia is anything to go by then is yet another round of mourning for the family of Nigeria's number one citizen. For while the President and
concerned Nigerians are still mourning the death of his half brother
Chief Meni, tragedy may have struck again in the first family, this time
taking the President’s elder sister whose identity is yet to be
disclosed.
Daily Times has been told by the same sources that hinted us of the
death of Jonathan’s half brother a few days ago, that an elder sister to
the President, the first daughter of the President’s father died two
days ago of an undisclosed ailment. The sources, usually very reliable,
say Jonathan the woman probably half- sister too, has been very sick for
quite sometime now and that she was actually the person who was of
greater concern to the first family before Meni’s sudden death.
The source also said that the woman’s condition was one of the
reasons the President’s emotions became uncontrollable during the
funeral rites for his brother.
Details later
DAILYTIMES
Now, if you enjoyed this article I’d like you to do two things for me. I’ll really appreciate it!
I have social media buttons just below
this post. Use them to share this article with your friends. I’m sure
they will appreciate reading it too.
There are two comment boxes below:
Facebook and Blogger. I’ll be so excited to read your comment on
this. Drop your own contribution, be it comment, commendation or complaint. Thank you very much
There were strong indications yesterday that the Federal
Government of Nigeria would increase the fuel pump price in 2013. Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan had on Thursday in
Abuja said total fuel subsidy removal was a must. He stated that only total
removal of subsidy on petroleum products would attract investors to the oil sector
and end the importation of fuel.
Local news agency investigations have revealed that the
President’s statement was a prelude to another partial deregulation in 2013
because the N971bn fuel subsidy budget for 2013 would not sustain importation
of the product throughout the year.
The amount is N83bn or 9.35 per cent higher than the
N888bn that is currently being spent in the 2012 fiscal year. It was reliably
gathered that government had opted for a phased deregulation of the downstream
sector, which would lead to a price hike.
Top sources, in the oil industry, who spoke with
reporters in Abuja, said the hike in fuel prices next year was “inevitable.”
The sources who pleaded on anonimity because they were not authorised to speak
on the matter, said Nigerians should prepare for the new price regime. One of
the sources said government was considering two options in 2013.
He said, “It is either the current fuel scarcity
continues or the government embarks on another partial deregulation, leading to
another price increase.
“But from all indications, the government will go for the
second option. Another price increase is inevitable in 2013.”
It would be recalled that the Nigerian government had in
January hiked the pump price of petrol from N65 to N141 but was forced to
reduce the price to N97, following mass protests organised by civil society
groups.
Meanwhile, civil society groups have told the Nigerian
Federal Government to expect the mother of all strikes if subsidy is removed.
President Goodluck Jonathan, today, presented a total
expenditure of N4.92 trillion for the 2013 fiscal year before a joint session
of the National Assembly, in Abuja. In the budget proposal, recurrent
expenditure was put at N2.41 trillion while N1.54 trillion will be spent on
capital projects.
Some key allocations in the budget proposal include:
Works – N183.5 billion;
Power – N74.26 billion;
Education – N426.53 billion;
Health – N279.23 billion;
Defence – N348.91 billion;
Police – N319.65 billion;
Agriculture & Rural Development – N81.41 billion.
One question; Why Do We Still Have A Budget With Recurrent Expenditure Higher Than Capital Budget?
President Goodluck Jonathan lied to the world in his
Independence Day anniversary speech about gains his administration has made in
the fight against corruption, investigations have revealed.
In what appears to be a major credibility stunt,
President Jonathan read a speech in which he scored his government high on all
sides.
In order to make his good performance appear holistic,
the president included in his speech that global corruption watchdog,
Transparency International, has endorsed and praised his administration’s war
against corruption.
Mr. Jonathan’s words: “…the fight against the scourge of
corruption is a top priority of our administration.
“We are fighting corruption in all facets of our economy,
and we are succeeding. We have put an end to several decades of endemic
corruption associated with fertilizer and tractor procurement and
distribution.We have exposed decades of
scam in the management of pensions and fuel subsidy, and ensured that the
culprits are being brought to book,” he added.
To give his claims international credibility, the
presidents then said: “In its latest report, Transparency International (TI)
noted that Nigeria is the second most improved country in the effort to curb
corruption.”
THE LIE
PREMIUM TIMES, an online news agency contacted
Transparency International seeking a copy of its latest report which the
President referred to in his speech.
The group replied promptly disowning Mr. Jonathan and
saying it had no such report.
“Transparency International does not have a recent rating
or report that places Nigeria as the second most improved country in the fight
against corruption,” the group said in an email to this newspaper.
The group said its most recent indexing of Nigeria’s
corruption activities was in the 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index, which
measured perceived level of public sector corruption in the country.
In that index, Nigeria scored 2.4 on a scale where 0
means highly corrupt and 10 means very clean. It was ranked 143 out of 183
countries.
That rating was actually a dip in performance for Nigeria
as the country was rated 134 out of 183 countries the previous year, 2010.
The president’s spokesperson would not comment for this
story. The Special Adviser on Media, Reuben Abati as well as the Special
Assistant on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe, did not answer or return calls.
They also did not reply text messages sent to their
telephones.
CASES JONATHAN
IGNORES
Since resuming office in 2010, President Jonathan is
believed not to have shown vigour in the fight against corruption – including
corruption involving past and current actors in his administration. The tipping
point in the president’s profile, regarding reluctance in promoting
transparency, came when, in his last media chat, he scoffed at a question on
why he had not publicly declared his asset. On live television, the president snapped
“I don’t give a damn!”
The petroleum minister, Diezani Madueke, a close ally of
the president, has heaps of established corruption allegations against her, but
none has been investigated by Mr. Jonathan’s administration; while she still
remains in office as one of the favorite ministers. In August 2011, President
Goodluck Jonathan secretly ordered the payment of $155 million to Malabu oil, a
firm owned by an ex-convict and former petroleum minister, Dan Etete. Not only
was the payment done without the knowledge of the Finance Minister, Malabu
transferred the money into dubious accounts including that owned by a man with
links to Mr. Jonathan. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have
agreed to investigate the Malabu scandal.
Two members of the President’s cabinet, Godsday Orubebe
and Stella Oduah, illegally registered an NGO, Neighbour to Neighbour, on whose
board they sit, and which they then used in campaigning for the President’s
election; in contravention of CAC registration guidelines and the CAMA Act. The
presidency has kept mum on this.
There have been several cases of visitors to the
Presidential Villa being given huge sums of money after their visits. The Save
Nigeria Group was offered $30 thousand, and the Northern elders N20 million;
both groups rejected the cash gifts given to them by the presidency. There are
also mounts of corruption cases involving government officials, politicians and
‘friends of the government’ that have been lingering for years while
perpetrators roam free.
This is the unedited text of President Jonathan's address
to the nation this morning
Beloved countrymen and women, on this day, fifty-two
years ago, our founding fathers brought joy and hope to the hearts of our
people when they won independence for our great country. Nigeria made a clean
break with more than six decades of colonial rule, and emerged as a truly
independent nation. That turning point was a new beginning for our nation.
Those who witnessed the lowering of the Union Jack and
the emergence of the Green White Green flag continue to relish the memory,
because that ceremony was not just about the destiny of a nation, but the
future of a people.
That future is here; we are the inheritors of a great
legacy that goes even much farther into the past.
The worthy patriots who made this possible were young men and women in their
twenties and thirties. They worked together to restore dignity and honour to
the Nigerian people. Their resolve united a multicultural and multilingual
nation of diverse peoples, with more than 250 distinct languages and ethnic
groups.
In 1960, our diversity became a source of strength, and
the new leaders resolved to carry the flag of independence for the benefit of
future generations. They had their differences, but they placed a greater
premium on the need to come together to build a new nation.
It is that resolve, and that glorious moment that we celebrate today. We also celebrate
the patriotism of our heroes past: Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, Sir Abubakar Tafawa
Balewa, Sir Ahmadu Bello, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Sir Michael Okpara, Chief
Anthony Enahoro, Herbert Macaulay, and several others who made the case for our
independence.
We remember as always, their contributions to the making
of the Nigerian nation, and the efforts of their successors since 1960. We also
celebrate the unfailing optimism and resilience of Nigerians who remain proud
of our national identity.
On this special day, I call on every Nigerian to remain steadfast, because our
nation is indeed making progress. I call on every Nigerian to rediscover that
special spirit that enables us to triumph over every adversity as a people:
We weathered the storm of the civil war, we have refused
to be broken by sectarian crises; we have remained a strong nation. I bring to
you today, a message of renewed hope and faith in the immense possibilities
that lie ahead.
Fellow citizens, I have an unshaken belief in the future
of our great Country. I consider it a priority and sacred duty to continue to
strengthen the bond of unity that holds our nation together and to promote and
nourish the creative energies of our people. This is a central objective of our
administration’s Transformation Agenda. Nigeria, I assure you, will continue to
grow from strength to strength.
Since I assumed office as President of our dear country on the 6th of May 2010,
I have continued to work with our countrymen and women to enhance our nation’s
growth and development.
Our vision is encapsulated in the Transformation Agenda. We are working hard
and making progress on many fronts. We have cleaned up our electoral process;
our elections are now globally acclaimed to be free and fair. Nigeria is now on
a higher pedestal regarding elections.
Over the past five years, the global economy has been
going through a weak and uncertain recovery. During the same period and
particularly in the last two years, the Nigerian economy has done appreciably
well despite the global financial crisis. Nigeria’s real Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) has grown by 7.1 per cent on average.
It is also significant that the GDP growth has been
driven largely by the non-oil sector. In pursuance of the main goals of the
Transformation Agenda, a number of reforms and initiatives are being pursued in
key sectors of the economy with a view to consolidating the gains of the
economic growth.
Our country’s power supply situation is improving gradually. We are
successfully implementing a well-integrated power sector reform programme which
includes institutional arrangements to facilitate and strengthen
private-sector-led power generation, transmission and distribution.
We have also put in place a cost-reflective tariff structure that reduces the
cost of power for a majority of electricity consumers. I am pleased with the
feedback from across the country, of improvements in power supply.
We are continuing to improve and stabilize on our crude
production volumes; our 12-month gas supply emergency plan, put in place
earlier this year, has produced more than the targeted volumes of gas for power
generation. A robust Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) has been placed before the
National Assembly. Its passage into law will ensure far-reaching reforms,
transparency, accountability, increased government revenue and predictability
for investors in the Oil and Gas sector.
Several government programmes and projects are creating wealth and millions of
job opportunities for our youth and general population. Such programmes include:
You-Win, both for the youth and for the women, Public Works, the Local Content
Initiative in the Oil and Gas Sector, and the Agricultural Transformation
programme.
We have improved on our investment environment; more
corporate bodies are investing in the Nigerian economy. Our Investment Climate
Reform Programme has helped to attract over N6.8 trillion local and foreign
direct investment commitments.
Nigeria has become the preferred destination for investment in Africa. It is
ranked first in the top 5 host economies for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in
Africa, accounting for over 20 per cent of total FDI flows into the continent.
We have streamlined bureaucratic activities at the ports to ensure greater
efficiency in the handling of ports and port-related businesses. Specifically,
we have drastically reduced the goods clearing period in our ports from about
six weeks to about one week and under. We have an ultimate target of 48 hours.
We have put in place, a new visa policy that makes it
easier for legitimate investors to receive long stay visas. We have achieved a
24-hour timeline for registration of new businesses, leading to the
registration of close to 7, 000 companies within the second quarter of 2012.
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has disclosed that, as at July
2012, 249 new members across the country had joined the Association, and that
capacity utilization has also improved. The multiplier effect of this
development on our job creation programme cannot be over-emphasized.
In the last two years, we have put in place structures for an upgrade of the
country’s health sector, to promote in every respect, the individual citizen’s
right to quality, affordable and accessible healthcare.
In this regard, we are devoting resources under the Subsidy Reinvestment
Program (SURE-P) to reducing malaria incidents, dramatically reducing maternal
and child mortality, and eradicating polio.
Fellow Nigerians, in recent times, we have witnessed serious security
challenges in parts of our country. We have taken pro-active measures to check
the menace. This has included constant consultation and collaboration with our
neighbours and other friendly nations on issues relating to internal and cross
border security, and the sharing of information on smuggling and illegal
dealing in small arms and light weapons.
Our security agencies are constantly being strengthened
and repositioned for greater efficiency. Many Nigerians have acknowledged that
there has been a significant decline in the spate of security breaches.
While expressing our condolences to the affected families, let me reiterate the
commitment of this Administration to ensure the safety of lives and property of
all Nigerians.
Even as we remain focused on the issue of security, the fight against the scourge
of corruption is a top priority of our Administration. We are fighting
corruption in all facets of our economy, and we are succeeding. We have put an
end to several decades of endemic corruption associated with fertilizer and
tractor procurement and distribution. We have exposed decades of scam in the
management of pensions and fuel subsidy, and ensured that the culprits are
being brought to book.
In its latest report, Transparency International (TI) noted that Nigeria is the
second most improved country in the effort to curb corruption.
We will sustain the effort in this direction with an even
stronger determination to strengthen the institutions that are statutorily
entrusted with the task of ending this scourge.
I have given my commitment of non-interference in the work of the relevant
agencies and I am keeping my word. What we require is the full cooperation of
all tiers of government, and the public, especially civil society and the
media.
This Administration has also introduced for the first time in Nigeria’s
history, a Performance Contract System for all Ministers, and other officials
of government. This is to further place emphasis on performance, efficiency,
and service delivery.
Fellow Nigerians, our determined efforts on several fronts not-withstanding,
our country still faces a number of challenges.
Those challenges should not deter us. In the last few
weeks, for example, many of our communities have been ravaged by floods,
resulting in the loss of lives and property, and the displacement of persons.
I want to reassure all affected Nigerians that I share in their grief, and our
Administration is taking steps to address these incidents, in collaboration
with the States and Local Governments.
I have received the interim Report of the Presidential team that I set up to
assess the flooding situation across the country.
The Federal Government has taken measures to assist the affected States, while
considering long term measures to check future reoccurrence.
We must continue to work together, confidently and faithfully, to ensure that
our country’s potentials are realised to the fullest; that our dreams are
translated into reality; and that our goals are achieved.
Let me reiterate that our administration is committed to the pursuit of
fundamental objectives of an open society: the pursuit of freedom, security and
prosperity for the Nigerian people, and the rule of law.
In the next few days, I shall lay before the National
Assembly the 2013 Federal Budget Proposal so that deliberations can commence in
earnest on the key policies, programmes and projects that will mark a decisive
year for our development and transformation.
I have no doubt that by the time I address you on our next independence
anniversary, many of our reform efforts would have yielded even better results.
Over the years, several leaders have built on the foundation laid by our
Founding Fathers. The baton is now in our hands. Let me assure all Nigerians
that we shall not fail.
I am confident that Nigeria will continue to be a source of pride to its
citizens; to Africa and the Black Race and to humanity; a land that is known
for progress, freedom, peace and the promotion of human dignity.
May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. May God
bless you all.
Many christian worshippers at the National Christian
Centre in Abuja today mocked and laughed at President Goodluck Jonathan when he
described his government as second only to the United States of America in its
commitment to fighting corruption. The President was speaking during the church
service, during which several of his ministers, advisers, women organisations,
political apologists, chairmen of commissions, and former Heads of State Yakubu
Gowon and Olusegun Obasanjo were in attendance.
“Our commitment to the fight against corruption is second
to that of America’s commitment. We are very commitment to it and everybody
knows.”
As soon as he said this, members of the congregation
looked at him incredulously and began to chuckle and laugh, as if they had just
heard the punch line to a new joke. But
his appointees and friends tried to save the moment by clapping. It was unclear
whether they were clapping for the joke, or in cheers, but a senior member of
the government who spoke anonymously with newsmen after the service, said
Jonathan was merely deceiving himself.
“Who does not know that this government is weak when it
comes to fighting corruption? I think Jonathan is deceiving himself and not
Nigerians,” he said smiling.
Coming ahead of his address to the nation tomorrow on the
occasion of Nigeria’s 52nd anniversary as an independent nation, President
Jonathan’s statement about his commitment to combating corruption seems certain
to lead to a new round of jokes among Nigerians. Asked to comment on the statement today, a
New York based analyst simply described himself as “FHLA.” Asked the meaning of
that, he said, “I am Fighting Hypocrisy Like the Americans.”
It would be recalled that last Monday at a conference of
the Nigerian Institute of Management in Abuja, President Jonathan told
Nigerians he is now ready to fight corruption with everything at his disposal. “My
administration will fight corruption and associated social vices until they are
exterminated from our body polity,” he said, opening the conference.
He then left for the United Nations General Assembly,
where the American press promptly identified his delegation as one of the most
financially reckless, his Pierre Hotel suite alone costing Nigeria $10,000 per
night. The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, occupied
suites in two different hotels, one at the Four Seasons Hotel for $5,000 per
night; and the other at Mr. Jonathan’s hotel for $3,000 per night.
Reporting on Nigeria’s squandermania, America’s National
Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), said, “Nigeria’s delegation is keeping five
vehicles parked outside the Pierre Hotel where the cheapest room is about $800
a night – or roughly what most Nigerians earn in two years."
A SaharaReporters investigation found that the NNPC
delegation actually rented a total of 10 limousines in New York for its seven
visiting officials, at a daily cost of $1,800 per day. It was five of those
vehicles that NBC found idling at Pierre.
“If Mr. Jonathan is going to ‘fight corruption and
associated social vices until they are exterminated’,” a Nigerian newspaper
columnist said today, “he is going to have a very large battlefield, and also a
lot of opportunities for Nigerians to laugh at a bad joke.”
Opponents of the N5000 banknote may have lost the battle,
it emerged yesterday. Minister of Planning, Shamsudeen Usman, who spoke to
journalists at the meeting of the Economic Management Team on Tuesday said that
President Goodluck Jonathan had approved the proposal to print the N5000
denomination. He added that government would push ahead with the printing.
“The discussion today (Tuesday) was basically to
endorse(the introduction of N5000 note). Mr. President had already approved and
that is the only requirement by law. The CBN (Central Bank of Nigeria) is to
propose and Mr. President is to approve,” he said.
Jonathan presided over the EMT meeting which has Alhaji
Aliko Dangote, Mr. Femi Otedola, Mr. Atedo Peterside, Mr. Aigboje
Aig-Imoukhuede and other top government officials as members.
Denomination of
controversy
The CBN governor, Lamido Sanusi, penultimate Thursday
announced a proposed comprehensive review of the nation’s currency with the
highlight been the introduction of the N5000 note and conversion to coins the
present N5, N10 and N20 notes. But Nigerians, especially economists, have
argued that the introduction of the note would lead to inflation in the system.
Just on Tuesday, about 500 protesters led by a former
member of the House of Representatives, Dino Melaye, demonstrated in front of
the CBN office in Abuja against the N5000 note. Melaye, the leader of the
placard-carrying protesters, said the proposed N5000 note would send a wrong
signal about the worth of the Naira.
Lagos-based lawyer, Femi Falana, has also written to the
Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke, to use his office to stop
the CBN from introducing the N5000 note. But Usman said there was no
correlation between higher notes and corruption and that it did not contradict
the CBN’s cash-lite policy.
No inflation,
corruption
He said, “Clearly the N5000 notes, unlike some people
misrepresent it, is not going to lead to higher inflation. There is absolutely
no link. I am an economist, and I have been Deputy Governor, Operations of the
Central Bank.
“The last review of the introduction of N1000 note and
the various coins, I was deeply involved. It was my responsibility at the
Central Bank, there is absolutely no link between inflation and the currency
denomination.” On the contradiction between higher denominations and the CBN
cashless policy, the minister said “It is not in variance. The Euro has the
€500 note. If you go to the countries where the Euro is in use, you will not
get the €500 note in normal circulation. But it is used by the banks and a few
other heavy cash users to store higher value.
“I have been in parts of the United States where you draw
the $100 bill and give it to somebody and they start looking at it as if it is
something strange, they probably have not seen it. “So the higher denominations
are there to create higher value, they will not be in the widest of
circulation. And I think what is important is that there is no link between it
and inflation.”
“I think people alleged that corruption is being done in
dollars. A $100 bill is N16, 000; N5000 note will be $30, so which one is
bigger to carry if you are doing corruption? “So I don’t think it is
necessarily going to increase the level of corruption. Those doing corruption
will probably find that too small, the $100 bill is still bigger than the N5000
note,” he added. He said the current lower currency notes would run
concurrently with their coin versions when introduced.
Usman, however, faulted Sanusi’s handling of the message
to Nigerians on the currency review. “I think even that aspect didn’t come out
well. So, the CBN is going to communicate to Nigerians that the coins will run
concurrently with the note. They are like testing the waters, if they get
accepted and are being utilised, only then will they take subsequent actions,”
he explained.
N10000 note?
While supporting the planned introduction of the N5000
notes, Peterside said if he was the CBN governor, he would have even gone ahead
to introduce a N10000 note. He argued that the country would save huge money
whenever it printed bigger denominations. He said, “If I were the CBN Governor,
I would prefer to print N10000 notes.
“Last year, Nigeria spent N47bn to print these small
notes. If we were printing bigger denominations, we will print a fewer number
and make phenomenal savings. “Secondly, money is a store of value; all these
thieves, rogues and vagabonds running around in various states and all over the
country, when they steal money, they will want to keep it outside the banking
system.
“So they need a higher denomination notes. Right now,
they are using the $100 notes all over Nigeria because they are the best store
of values for them.
“If you give them a better store of value in Nigeria,
they will move away from these dollars and reduce the demand for the $100 notes
and move into our own currency as opposed to the use of $100 notes to hide
their loots and so on.”
Peterside added that the country is currently losing in
two ways by importing US dollars to finance the activities of corrupt persons
and (by) squandering scarce resources printing large volumes of “worthless
notes.”
N5000 to protect
economy
Dangote also held the view that the introduction of the
N5000 notes would not cause inflation but would rather protect the economy. “People
are saying that Central Bank is going to spend N40bn on the new notes. Of
course, last year when you look at the budget, they spent N47bn to print
currencies, so it is not different at all,” he said.
Aig-Imoukhuede on his part said the negative reactions
that had trailed the planned introduction of the N5000 notes were unfortunate.He
said legal tender and restructuring of currency are normal parts of the CBN’s
functions. He said, “In the case of Nigeria, our economy is such that a N5000
note which is in effect a $30note is not strange.
“The greatest argument I have heard about it is that the
introduction will cause inflation. The other argument is that it will cost
money to introduce the new note.
“There is no relationship between the issuance of higher
legal tender and inflation. It is unfortunate that some people have misled
Nigerians into thinking that it will lead into higher inflation.
“Every Central Bank, by the nature of currency
management, will issue new notes all the time, so printing of notes is an
ongoing operation that every Central Bank engages in.
“As you are introducing N5,000 notes, you print less of
N1,000 and N500 notes. It is not going to add to the cost of printing, it is
going to basically fall into your normal annual budget for printing.”
Protest
The Melaye-led protesters complained that the currency
restructuring that would lead to the conversion of N20, N10 and N5 notes into
coins would eliminate the contributions of nationalists like Tafawa Balewa,
Alvan Ikoku and Murtala Muhammed, whose photographs grace the notes. Some of
the placards carried by them had inscriptions like, “Sanusi is wicked”, “Sanusi
must go”, “Nigerians say no to Sanusi’s crooked notes”, and “Nigerians reject
the wicked N5000 notes”, among others.
According to Melaye, the CBN’s action will send a wrong
signal to the world that the Naira value is so weak that more of it is needed
to transact businesses.
He said, “The implication of the N5000 notes on the
economy is serious. The policy is unnecessary and will serve no useful purpose.
We have more socioeconomic challenges than restructuring currency at the
moment.
“The United States, which is the strongest economy in the
world, has $100 as its highest denomination in circulation. The UK largest
denomination of the pound sterling ever printed for circulation was the £1000
note issued between 1725 and 1745. The £100 note was issued from 1725 to 1943
and was withdrawn in 1945. Since then the £50 note has remain the largest
denomination of the British pound in circulation. Saudi Arabia 500 Riyals is
its highest denomination.”
The CBN’s Deputy Governor (Operation), Mr. Tunde Lemo and
other officials of the apex bank, including its Director (Corporate
Communications), Mr. Ugochukwu Okoroafor, addressed the protesters.
Lemo said, “The most important task of CBN is to fight
inflation because inflation hurts the masses more than anybody else. I am yet
to read your paper but we will go through it. Let me tell you, for the
leadership of CBN led by Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi and his colleagues, we are
interested in ensuring that the masses of this country are well taken care of.
“But let me debunk something that I have read in the
Newspapers, we are not spending N40bn to print N5000 note. Whether we introduce
N5000 note or not, every year, we print money and whatever we decide to do, it
is to make sure that we reduce cost of printing money.
“Anything we do, we make sure we reduce the cost of
printing money. I can assure you that we are sensitive to the masses and we are
sensitive to the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We will look at all
the issues and respond.”
President Goodluck Jonathan on Sunday said he would neither resign nor
convert to Islam as demanded by the violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram, as
a condition to ceasefire.
Jonathan, who spoke through his spokesperson, Reuben Abati, on a day
that about seven soldiers died in an attack on a security patrol team in
Damaturu, Yobe State, by a suspected Boko Haram bomber, described the
call as “rude and a mere blackmail.”
“The President cannot be intimidated by any group or individual. The
President will never resign. He has the mandate of Nigerians to serve
his father land and nobody should imagine that he will succumb to
blackmail,” Abati told journalists in Abuja.
The sect, in a broadcast on Saturday asked Jonathan to either resign or
change to Islam before it could lay down its arms against the country.
“We do not kill women and children but those who have offended us, arrested our people and kill them,” the group said in the wake of a promise by Jonathan to end its activities before the end of June this year.
Abati said it was laughable for any group in the country to hand down
such a condition to a President who was elected by both Muslims and
Christians.
He said, “When Nigerians voted overwhelmingly for President Jonathan in
the 2011 general election, they knew they were voting for a Christian.
“He continues to enjoy the goodwill and support of the good people of
Nigeria. As President, Dr. Jonathan is the leader of both Muslims and
Christians; in fact; he is the leader of persons of all faiths.
“So, it amounts to sheer blackmail for any individual or group to ask
the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to convert to Islam.”
In Damaturu on Sunday, a suicide bomber rammed his car into a military
patrol van, killing himself and at least five soldiers. It was believed
that the killer laid an ambush for the soldiers.
The state police commissioner, Patrick Egbuniwe, confirmed that there
were military casualties. Egbuniwe, who did not provide figure, said
that the suicide bomber was being chased by a military patrol vehicle
when he blew himself up.
However, a security source said the bomber, who drove a sport utility
vehicle had been parked along the roadside and then rammed into the
military convoy.
Spokesman for the police in Yobe, Mr. Toyin Gbadegesin, said, “The
gunman laid ambush on a security patrol team using explosive devices
around Shagari Low Cost Housing area.”
Some residential properties in Shagari Low Cost Housing Estate were reportedly destroyed in the attack.
For about two years, bombings and gun attacks by Boko Haram have become
commonplace in the northern part of the country including Abuja.
The sect which has made negotiation with the government impossible says
it is seeking the conversion of Nigeria to an Islamic state.
It had attacked the United Nations building in Abuja on August 26, 2011;
the headquarters of the Nigeria Police on June 16, 2011; and the St.
Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, Niger State, on Christmas Day.
Ahmed Dasuki, the National Security Adviser, had pledged to seek ceasefire with
the group before the commencement of the Islamic month of Ramadan which entered
its 18th day today.
According to Punch Nigeria, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has asked President Goodluck Jonathan to resign.
Bakare made the call while delivering a speech at the Latter Rain Assembly, Lagos, on Sunday.
Speaking on the theme, ‘How to
Change Government Peacefully and Make Society Better’, Bakare told the
President that resignation was not “a sign of weakness but a sign of
patriotic truthfulness”.
The Serving Overseer of Latter Rain
and vice-presidential candidate for Congress for Democratic Change in
the 2011 presidential election, said Jonathan should not wait to be
impeached or disgraced out of office.
Bakare
said, “Mr. President should not wait for the conclusions in the court
of law and the court of public opinion for the rape and atrocities
committed against the Appropriation Act 2011 in respect of the subsidy
scandal – a ghost that still haunts his administration and will not rest
until the truth is made known and justice is served.
“The admission of extra-budgetary
spending of over N2tn without appropriation is another impeachable time
bomb that can explode any time. It would be a total disgrace if
resignation comes after that explosion.”
The cleric added, “If change,
positive change, will ever come to our clime, it will not be engineered
by those who are benefitting without conscience from the present
cesspool of corrosive corruption.
“It will only come from a new breed
without greed and a radical opposition to corruption. True genuine
change can only come from those not infected by the present corruption
malaise.”
He predicted that the next general elections would be better, adding that they might come earlier than expected.
Bakare said, “He (Jonathan) deserves
our sympathy, our prayers and whatever else we can honourably and
legally do to make sure he gets back to his home-base safely.
“Perhaps a few suggestions may
change the course of our rapid descent into the abyss since free and
fair and credibe election is currently alien to our polity. In all
honesty, I perceive very strongly that our next general election will be
better, though it may come earlier than expected.”
He said for a successful general elections in 2015, corruption, violence and insecurity must be addressed.
Bakare said, “Without doubt, if
corruption remains king, violence its deputy and insecurity the
treasurer of the ill-fated status quo in the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, we might as well write the epitaph today: ‘Here lie the remains
of a potentially great country whose ruin came because leadership did
not give a damn.”
He said the scandalous management of
national resources, the unbriddled stealing of public funds and the
exposure of level of corruption in every arm of government called for a
change of guards.
“Mr. President may be doing his best
but the impact is not felt anywhere except in the bank accounts of oil
vultures, his corrupt political allies and corporate cowboys.”
