The Second Coming Of Goodluck Jonathan - Dele Momodu

EXTRACT FROM DELE MOMODU's ARTICLE TITLED 'THE SECOND COMING OF GOODLUCK JONATHAN' I have been reading about the rising profile of our former President, Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, and wish to state without equivocation that no one should rule him out of the 2019 presidential race. I first hinted this possibility about two months ago and wish to reiterate that Nigerians should prepare for the shock that awaits us. The story of Donald Trump should bring us back to our senses. Nothing is impossible. The second coming of Goodluck Jonathan may be so far-fetched or even belong in those categories of impossibilities but I wish to plead with our government and my fellow citizens not to rule it out. As one of those who made our modest and humble contributions to the coming of this Buhari government, I’m pleading with trepidation. Jonathan’s popularity is rising not because of anything he has done to atone the sins that must have led to his waterloo but as a result of what our change government has failed or refused to do. The obsession of our government with going all out after Jonathan is the main reason the Otuoke man is beginning to smell like roses after the odoriferous position he landed himself last week. Only if our government had succeeded in maintaining the economy it met, Nigerians would have been ready to enter fire with Buhari. But there are just too many unresolved problems and challenges. The excuses that Jonathan and company left this peculiar mess behind has refused to fly. The groans might not be loud enough to reverberate all the way to the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, as of now, but trust me it may become deafening, sooner than later. I do not care if men and women of power dismiss my submission with a wave of the hand but they should mark my word, there is a thickening conspiracy in the clouds. It would be a shame if we inadvertently play into the hands of those hovering and ready to pounce on Buhari. I read about “persecution complex” long ago and I understand how it works. If you beat your own child so ruthlessly as if you want to kill him, the tilt of public opinion would always go against you. Many would wonder why you want to kill your own child. In our anger, let us pick our fights. There is too much tension in the land. I would be delighted if anyone could educate and convince me that Nigeria has gained much more than we’ve lost to this war of attrition. If we haven’t, we may need to retrace our steps urgently. The BBC reported on Friday how Jonathan caused a stir in Sokoto State during his visit to the state to pay his respects to Ibrahim Dasuki, the late former Sultan of Sokoto. According to the report, Jonathan was received by a large crowd of admirers, some holding banners bearing the words “Come Back Baba Jonathan”. The same voices that chanted “Sai Baba” and “Jonathan Must Go” are now fiddling with the tunes of the possibility of a Jonathan to stage a comeback. Here lies the irony of political triumph and the paradox of high expectations. The euphoria and momentum that saw the exit of Jonathan and the emergence of the Buhari change administration has since begun to wane following the inability of the new government to hit the ground running with the tenacity of a government in a hurry! There are many who believe that the poor management of the ensuing economic recession didn’t help matters. Suddenly, Nigerians who had high hopes and voted massively for change are now caught in a limbo between confusion and uncertainty. As it stands today, the average Nigerian is confronted with the reality of an economic recession they never planned for; a situation they did not experience under the Jonathan administration and under previous governments. Many of President Buhari’s supporters are worried that the humongous goodwill that engineered the Buhari change mantra is now being frittered away at the speed of light. The unfolding plot has now thrown up former President Jonathan as a new protagonist in Nigeria’s theatre of the absurd. For many of us who are ardent students of history, we have since learnt that nothing is impossible in the game called politics. Will history repeat itself again? Time is pregnant with answers!

Why Buhari Has Not Sacked Emefiele, CBN Governor

On the sidelines of a CBN Foreign Exchange (Forex) policy dialogue which held in Lagos recently, resource persons and prominent private sector stake-holders complained to Pulse about]how the monetary policies of the CBN under Emefiele have eroded investor confidence, created uncertainty in the market and left the lot of the citizenry in dire straits. Renowned economists like Bismarck Rewane and Ayo Teriba warned the CBN to stop rigging its own Forex market. The CBN has been at pains to explain whether it's operating a float or a devaluation. A few days after that Forex policy dialogue which had the Adviser to the CBN Governor, Emmanuel Ukeje in attendance however, CBN commissioned DSS (Department of State Services) personnel to raid Bureau De Change outlets in Lagos in a bid to force the value of the Naira to appreciate against the Dollar--proof that old habits die hard. Most financial analysts have described the CBN commissioned DSS raid as primitive and draconian. The exchange rate has only worsened since the raids, with traders now hoarding Forex. But if Emefiele and his CBN staff have learned anything from forcing the exchange rate, they are yet to show it. Bankers spoken to for this story lament that the CBN under Emefiele has driven the economy under. Emefielemustgo.com--a website opened by anonymous Bank executives, has since gone viral. Its main mission: to pile pressure on President Muhammadu Buhari to dispense with the services of Emefiele. According to the website, Emefiele stopped influx of much needed Forex into Nigeria through Standard Chartered Bank, but allowed the same Forex into the country through Zenith Bank; Emefiele’s last workplace address; at a cheaper rate. Standard Chartered was immediately sanctioned by the CBN Governor after the bank went ahead with another transaction without first calling to inform Emefiele. Presidency sources have told Pulse that Buhari hasn’t axed Emefiele yet because he doesn’t want to create more panic and crisis in the market. The President is also wary of sending the wrong signals to foreign investors by sacking his CBN Governor. The President is also mindful that he has to go through the Senate to sack the CBN Governor, the source added. Emefiele's term as CBN Governor will be up in 2019--the year Nigeria heads to the ballot to choose a President. He was appointed to head the apex bank in June of 2014 by former Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan.

PDP Calls For Postponement Of Ondo Election

Press Statement November 19, 2016. Yesterday, the Court of Appeal Panel led by Justice Ibrahim Salauwa set up to determine the appeals of Senator Ahmed Makarfi and Mr. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN) against the scandalous judgment given by Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja controversially adjourned all proceedings sine die. In doing so, Justice Ibrahim Salauwa stated that the decision to adjourn was taken in the face of a petition written against the panel to the Chief Justice of the Federation (CJN) and Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC) alleging acts of corruption, bias and breach of oaths of office amongst others. Furthermore, the respondents had filed a motion at the Supreme Court in which the Justices of Court of Appeal Panel were named as co-respondents in their personal capacities. The indefinite adjournment is a consequence of the latest of several mischievous actions taken by Messrs Biyi Poroye, Jimoh Ibrahim and their legal team led by Mr. Ben Nwofor (SAN). These actions, ranging from unsubstantiated allegations of corruption to outright disrespect and disregard for the Justices of the Court of Appeal to disruption of Court proceedings and flagrant abuse of Court processes, are all designed to achieve one aim – stall proceedings and ensure that the legitimate Candidate of the Party is prevented from contesting the November 26th, 2016 Gubernatorial Election in Ondo State. This outright bullying and intimidation of Justices of the Court of Appeal is enabled by the recent invasion of the homes of Justices of the Supreme Court, and the arrests and harassment of several judges by men of the Directorate of State Services. These actions are achieving the desired effect as Judges are now compelled to refrain from furthering the course of justice by unsubstantiated allegations of corruption. We are aware that this is only a part of a much bigger plan to use all available resources of State to prevent the legitimate Candidate of the Party from running for and winning the Ondo State Gubernatorial Election. We are aware that this is part of the plan to use the Judicial process, security agencies and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to rig the election in favour of the Ruling Party (APC) before the Election Day. We call on all well meaning Nigerians to urge the All Progressives Congress (APC) led Federal Government to desist from the use of organs of the Nigerian State as a tool with which to subvert the will of the Nigerian people. At this point, we must urge all Nigerians to hold the Federal Government, INEC, APC and the Jimoh Ibrahim group for any consequences of the dangerous games that they have chosen to play with the Nigerian people. The judiciary is seen as the last hope of the common man. When the freedom and independence of the judiciary to further the course of justice is tampered with, people often resort to self help. The current situation must not be allowed to deteriorate to that point. We call on INEC to postpone the Election pending the determination of the Suit before the Supreme Court. We make this call against the backdrop of the fact that INEC is a party to the suit before the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court and is well aware of the steps taken by certain parties to the Suit to frustrate the course of justice. We also make this call against the backdrop of the fact that INEC postponed the Edo State Gubernatorial Election and recently postponed the Rivers Rerun elections without any cogent or visible reason. We urge the Justices of the Supreme Court to stand fast in the face of this existential threat to the independence of the Judiciary and democracy itself. We urge the Justices of the Supreme Court to remember the maxim “Justice delayed is justice denied” while determining the issues before it. We use this opportunity to ask our teeming members and supporters in Ondo State and across the Country to remain calm. We believe that there are men and women of integrity in the Judiciary who will ensure that this act of injustice does not stand. May God bless Nigeria. Signed: Prince Dayo Adeyeye National Publicity Secretary

Soldiers Raped Our Members Before Killing Them – Shiite Women

KADUNA—Female members of the Shiite Islamic Movement of Nigeria, IMN, yesterday alleged that soldiers raped their members before killing them, in December clash between the Nigeria Army and the movement. Addressing a Press Conference in Kaduna yesterday under the banner of Sisters Forum of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, the forum called on the Federal Government to release their leader, sheik Ibrahim Zakzaky, his wife and other members with immediate effect. The secretary of the forum, Hajiya Aisha Hassan who addressed the press said: “It is now over three weeks since the Nigerian Army launched a brutal attack on members of the, IMN, that killed over one thousand people in Zaria after over 27 hours of indiscriminate shooting and bombing. “This is not talking about those who have been given mass burial by the Army or even corpses burnt, amongst whom are women and children, some of the women have even been raped before they were killed by the soldiers as confirmed by some survivors who were also tortured after their arrest by the Army. “The soldiers molested our women and removed their hijab which is a serious violation of Islamic right.. “Although we are aware that it is a deliberate attempt to intimidate and instigate us into mob actions, we will never resort to anything outside the normal legal process of seeking redress. This is evident in the way we acted last year when the same Nigerian Army attacked our members and killed 34 of them including three biological sons of our leader, Sayyid Zakzaky. “Despite this display of inhumanity and gross violation of fundamental human rights, to which no remorse was shown by the state authorities for what was undoubtedly a war crime against fellow Nigerians, the homes, Islamic centers and graves of the victims have been demolished with graves dug up and desecrated. “These demonic acts perpetrated by Nigerian Army has not only raised the Army’s human rights abuse records but has also turned a lot of women into widows, children into orphans and has also succeeded in wiping out a lot of families. “We call for immediate and unconditional release of our revered leader his Eminence Sheikh El-Zakzaky (H), and his wife. “We call for the release of our husbands and children that are in illegal detention facilities across the northern states. “Corpses of our members killed by the Army should be released to us with immediate effect for burials according to Islamic rites. “We call on the government to summon courage and live up to its morality and accept its crime by paying diyyah to all affected families and relations,” it said.

How We Deceive Security Agents –suspected Vandals

“We forge Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) waybills, invoices of major oil marketers and stickers of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas workers (NUPENG), to deceive security agents.” Those were the words of suspected vandals arrested by the Inspector General of Police Taskforce on pipeline vandalism. Among the four suspects paraded at the Nigeria Police Force Headquarters annex, Lagos, were Ganiyu Oresanya ( 38), Mutiu Bello also known as Omo Oja, and one Damilare, who had fake copies of Oando, Conoil and MRS’ invoices, as well as fabricated NNPC waybill in their possession. They were reportedly arrested in Ikorodu following intelligence report that they were carrying out operations in Shagamu and Ikorodu. The suspects were caught while on their way to Ondo State to sell petroleum products they siphoned from NNPC pipelines in Shagamu and Ikorodu. Oresanya, who acknowledged that he has been in the business of vandalism for sometime, said he was in charge of forging the relevant documents. “We make sure that we do the background work of covering our loading with fake NNPC documents and fake invoice from oil marketing companies so that we would not be caught. “I have been in the business for a long time. I am a printer and I print these documents myself. I did not know we would be caught because we are very careful in our jobs by backing the stolen products with all necessary documents. “I supply all the fake documents, while Mutiu Bello produces the tanker that comes to carry the products from the pipeline. “Damilare is the one who load the products. He is our boss,” he said. For Bello, who claimed he was contracted to load the products into another truck, said he was not aware the products were stolen. He claimed that one Temidayo invited him and he was offered N70, 000 for the job. “This is my first time and I was promised N70,000. It was one Temidayo who called me for the job. They didn’t tell me that it was stolen oil. “They said I was going to trans-load products from jerry cans at that area. They told me they are into black market operation but when I got there, I saw plenty Jerry cans,” he claimed. Addressing reporters, the Taskforce’s Sector Commander, Solomon Ubani, said the Force has recorded major breakthroughs recently following improved intelligence. “We have made breakthrough in the past few days. We have rejiged our intelligence for some time now and it is yielding results. “These hoodlums have continued to break our pipelines and sabotage the efforts of the Federal government,” Ubani stated.

Raymond Dokpesi

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) today arrested the Chairman of Africa Independent Television, Raymond Dokpesi, over the spreading arms purchase scandal involving the office of the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, and the theft of N2.1billion from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Mr. Dokpesi was arrested shortly after noon, Nigerian time, and whisked to the EFCC, where he is now being interrogated. EFCC sources told SaharaRerporters that on the instructions of the Mr. Dasuki, CBN paid N2.1billion to the AIT chairman. http://saharareporters.com/2015/12/01/arms-purchase-scandal-raymond-dokpesi-arrest Re: Raymond Dokpesi Arrested Over N2.1Billion Arms Purchase by iliyande(m): 3:32pm