‎A socio-political organisation, Northern Youth Leaders Forum (NYLF), has described as “wicked, callous, selfish and insensitive”, the decision of the 19 Northern governors to “abandon President Muhammadu Buhari in his moment of trial.”

According to them, instead of informing their citizens about the true situation surrounding the ailing president, the governors have engaged themselves in schemes and underhand deals meant to favour them to emerge as vice president in the event that Buhari does not complete his tenure.

Sunday night, Buhari was flown out of Nigeria in the cover of the night. A statement from the presidency revealed that he is going to London for an indefinite medical leave. He handed over to Vice President Osinbajo who will function as acting president.

The organisation in a statement issued on Sunday, May 7, 2017 by its national president, Adamu Mahmuda, observed that Buhari has been left on his own since the controversy on the issues surrounding his health broke out, adding that such has exposed the governors as people who do not mean well for the region but themselves alone.

“The Northern governors who won their elections for merely identifying with Buhari have all of a sudden gone asleep not wanting to be drawn into any issue surrounding the health of the President,” Mr. Mahmuda said.

“After benefiting from his campaign and support through the provision of bail outs and other handouts for them to run their states, we find it extremely uncharitable for the governors to have gone so cold when the occasion demands they should rise up and reassure citizens in their states that there is no cause for alarm and that the president is only taking a rest.

“Nobody is fooled by their ‘see no evil, hear no evil posture’ which is deliberate so as not to make them appear too supportive of the president for fear that that might make them lose out in case the president decides not to continue. But this is wicked, selfish and insensitive”, NYLF emphasised.

The group said apart from Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State who organised a prayer session for the president some months back, the rest were busy either inviting party leaders to their states so as to intensity lobby for their vice presidential bids or busy holding clandestine meetings to serve their interest.

The Arewa youths condemned a situation where while series of meetings were being held in Kaduna and other states on the issue, none of the Northern governors either individually or collectively deemed it fit to publicly douse the tension over the matter.

The group said although it is within the governors given rights to aspire for whatever positions, they should remember that most of them would not have won their elections if not for the strategy of identifying with the overwhelming influence of Buhari.

Mahmuda said for some of the governors to try to pretend the occasion does not call for their open support and ‎ agitation is an act of deception that has not gone down well with the populace.

On Sunday, May 7, 2017, Nigerian Prophet TB Joshua predicted victory in the French election for Emmanuel Macron merely hours before results were officially announced declaring him the winner.

Speaking to congregants at The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations (SCOAN), a message equally broadcast live on the popular Christian channel Emmanuel TV, Joshua declared Macron’s victory was connected to his considerate stance on immigrants and refugees.

“It is prayer that will put him there, not anything – because of his heart for refugees and immigrants,” Joshua declared, adding that Jesus Christ too was once a refugee.

“We are praying for him and our prayer will answer,” he authoritatively declared. “I am not a politician but I pray every day for Emmanuel Macron because of what he believes,” the cleric proceeded.

Joshua appealed that most refugees were fleeing war-torn countries and should not be looked down upon because of some who perpetrate evil under such guise.

“We know there are some bad people among the refugees – but we cannot say because there are some bad people that we reject all of them,” he counselled.

The cleric further emphasised that his statements bore no political sentiment as “we are not playing politics in the Church”.

Several hours later, news broke that after an extraordinary election campaign full of twists and turns, Emmanuel Macron won a dramatic victory over his opponent Marine Le Pen to become the youngest ever French President.

Initial estimates have put Macron winning by 65% of the votes, an astonishing margin given his relatively recent burst onto the French political scene.

The video of Joshua’s prediction was hurriedly uploaded to popular video sharing site YouTube at the conclusion of the church service.

The cleric additionally told congregants that he had just arrived back from Israel where he met the Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi David Lau, as well as the Israeli Minister of Tourism, Mr Yariv Levin, further fuelling speculation of an imminent relocation.

Ihechukwu Njoku is a freelance Nigerian journalist who writes about the Synagogue Church of All Nations.

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo is under huge pressure from lobbyists pleading with his committee investigating Ayo Oke, the director general of the Nigerian Intelligence Agency, NIA, and the secretary to the government of the federation, Babachir Lawal, to find a soft landing for both suspended officials.

Lawal is being investigated over an alleged N200 million contract awarded to a company he is linked with by the Presidential Initiative for the North East, PINE, which he headed, for the clearing of ‘invasive plant species’ (weeds) in Yobe State.

It was also learnt that the ongoing probe of the two officials has divided members of the ‘kitchen cabinet’ of the President.

Professor Osinbajo is the head of the 3-person panel investigating the discovery of the funds. On Sunday, President Muhammadu Buhari left Nigeria for medical treatment in London leaving the reins of office to Osinbajo.

According to The Nation, a source in the presidency said: “Even there is a split among the kitchen cabinet members on Lawal and Oke. The sympathy is more for Oke in view of his high rating in the intelligence community. He is considered a first-class diplomat.

“As a matter of fact, Oke was the first to initiate the recovery of Abacha loot during the tenure of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo as a desk officer at the Nigerian High Commission in London. All attempts to make him compromise on Abacha loot failed.

“Of all the security chiefs, he was the only one who wrote an accurate report to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan that he would lose the 2015 presidential election to President Muhammadu Buhari at the risk of his job.

“This is why he was baffled when the $43.4million was linked to the campaign funds for Jonathan.

“What the lobbyists, including some security chiefs, are saying is that Oke should not be humiliated out of office. They said he should either be allowed to go on voluntary retirement or compulsorily retired.

“Some security chiefs are of the opinion that Oke’s trial might set a dangerous precedent.”

Asked to be forthcoming, the presidency source said: “The whole thing is messy and complicated.”

Read more at The Nation.

Chimamanda Adichie, novelist and feminist icon, says she has decided to wear mostly Nigerian brands for her public appearances.

Adichie made this known in a post on her Facebook page on Monday, May 8, 2017.

She noted that patronising Nigerian brands will help to improve the country’s economy.

“The Nigerian government’s disastrous economic policies have led to a reduction in the value of the naira and therefore in disposable income, a change in values, a disorientation of the middle class, and most of all, to a debilitating sense of uncertainty,” she said.

“If we are to grasp for a silver lining, then the ‘buy Nigerian to grow the naira’ rhetoric is one.

“In that spirit, I recently decided to wear mostly Nigerian brands for my public appearances. (Before, by the way, President Buhari declared ‘made in Nigeria dress’ days.).

“In the past few weeks, I have bought more Nigerian brands than I ever have in the past. I have discovered new names. I have been filled with admiration for the women and men running their businesses despite the many challenges they face. I am particularly interested in ‘inward-looking’ brands, those for whom dressing Nigerian women is as important as other goals.”

Adichie also disclosed that she has been tasked by her nieces to open an official Instagram page where she plans on documenting her ‘Wear Nigerian’ project.

The fashion evolution of Adichie. Click on any image to enlarge. 

Read more at TheCable.

The federal government has described as indecent, inhuman an ill-timed the statement credited to a faction of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, criticising the process that led to the release of the 82 Chibok Girls over the weekend.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Monday, May 8, 2017 Lai Mohammed, the minister of information and culture, said it is patently insensitive for any individual or organization to seek to douse, on the altar of politics, the universal joy that has greeted the release of the 82 girls – the highest number so far freed since their unfortunate abduction under the watch of the PDP over three years ago.

He said from the ill-advised statement, it is clear that the PDP, whose incompetence and cluelessness precipitated the Chibok girls crisis in the first instance, is not wishing and praying for it to end with the safe return of the abducted girls.

“In his inaugural address, President Muhammadu Buhari said the administration cannot claim to have defeated Boko Haram without rescuing the Chibok girls. He also said this government WILL DO ALL IT CAN to rescue them alive.

“If that includes swapping some Boko Haram elements for the girls, so what? Will the PDP rather have the girls stay in perpetual captivity, just to prove a ludicrous point? Didn’t superpower United States engage in negotiations with the Taliban that led to the exchange of five Taliban fighters for US Army Sgt Bowe Bergdahl in 2014? Didn’t Israel release 1,027 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for one Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, in 2011?

“A lot of factors come into play when a nation has to decide whether or not to engage in prisoner/hostage swap. None, however, trounces the sanctity attached to human life and the consideration for the pains of
the loved ones of those involved,” Mohammed said.

He said it is clear that the kind of disdain for human life which the PDP exhibited in its incautious statement is the same reason the poor girls were kidnapped in the first instance, and for which then PDP-controlled Federal Government took what seemed an eternity before even acknowledging the abduction – thus losing critical time for their rescue.

“Since the PDP failed – as it did in everything – to rescue even one of the Chibok girls, the party should hold its peace while this administration continues to seek the release of all the abducted girls, using every means at its disposal, in addition to working assiduously to end all Boko Haram hostilities,” the minister said.

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A group of legal practitioners, Lawyers Network for Better Nigeria has passed a vote of confidence on the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari on its resolve to reposition Nigeria on the part of greatness.

The group also described as diversionary the call by some Nigerians on the President to resign or address the nation on the state of his health on or before May 29, vowed to resist any action capable of breaching the peace in the country.

In a statement e-mailed to The Trent on Monday, May 8, 2017 and signed by Adedotun Akintola-Idowu and Tersagh Upande, chairman and secretary of the group, regretted that despite strides made under two years of the Buhari administration, some self seeking persons were trying to explore the health of the President as if they are themselves immune to illness.

“President Muhammadu Buhari has demonstrated loads of good intentions in his service to the nation for the past two years. We therefore, consider as fallacious and faulty the argument canvassed in the media that the health status of the number one citizen of Nigeria is being shrouded in secrecy by an imaginary ‘cabal’ in Aso Villa”.

The statement further explained that the minister of information and culture, Lai Mohammed had stated at a point that the President will have to rest and operate from home but some persons are bent on creating confusion where ordinarily it should not exist.

“In recent weeks, many Nigerians have gone to town whipping sentiments in their characteristic manner that our indefatigable President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR is in the worse state of health and thus incapable of exercising the executive powers conferred on him by section 5 (1) (a) and (b) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). We wish to state clearly that such line of cheap blackmail against a man whom many have described as biblical Moses on a mission to lead Nigeria to the promised land is unnecessary, callous and any if development.

“The plot by a handful of greedy, egocentric and mischievous political elements to sabotage the restoration of the lost glory of Nigeria after they were displaced out of governance following the historic 2015 General Elections must be resisted”, they emphasised.

“We take serious exception to the uninformed position of the likes of Femi Fani-Kayode, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), Ebun Olu- Adegboruwa, Mr. Bako Usman, Ariyo-Dare Atoye, Liboros Oshoma and some other sponsored Civil Society Organisation activists suddenly turned partisan politicians who are mischievously over heating the polity by calling for street protests if president Muhammadu Buhari does not resign or address the nation on the state of his health on or before May 29, 2017″.

The group further warned that Nigeria has gone pass the dark days when people make irrational statements without the due regards to public good and the rule of law and urged Nigerians of goodwill to support the Federal Government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari to win the fight against terror, corruption and reposition the country for the good of all citizens.

“Let it be known to the whole world that we are ready, prepared and willing more than ever before to counter any form of protest from any quarter. We shall not condone any action capable of breaching the peace and throwing our dear country Nigeria into unwarranted turmoil. Nigeria is ours and the interest of Nigeria we shall always protect,” the statement added.

An FCT High Court, Maitama, on Monday, May 8, 2017 ordered Nigeria’s inspector-general of police, Idris Ibrahim to pay N1 million each to four men for violation of their fundamental right.

The men, Ozor Okolocha, Elvis Obiaku, Edward Onyenoknone, and Imoni Micah hail from Ase-Omuku in Ndokwa East local government area of Delta.

The respondents are the inspector-general of police and the FCT commissioner of police.

In his judgment, Justice Jude Okeke held that the respondents in the matter refused to renew the order of remand from the court which elapsed after 14 days.

“As compensation for the violation of their fundamental rights, N1 million should be paid to each of the applicants for the hardship and embarrassment suffered by them.

“The applicants were continuously detained at Keffi Prison without remand order, renewal and without charges preferred against them.

“This is a gross violation of their fundamental rights as provided by the provisions of section 35 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended,” the judge said.

Okeke also held that the detention of the applicants and violation of their rights to liberty were not justified by the provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.

He also ordered that the respondents should refrain from arresting the applicants over the issues in the suit.

The applicants were arrested on Dec. 17, 2015 and Jan. 6, 2016 at their home town of Ase-Omuku in Ndokwa East LGA of Delta.

They were arrested and brought to Abuja by Inspector Tony Alabi and detained at Keffi prison on remand order from an Abuja Magistrate Court.

At the expiration of the order, no renewal was made until April 5, when the suit was filed.

Following the ouster of the despotic Yahya Jammeh of the Gambia in the country’s 2016 elections, the notion that change will happen for nations with sit-tight leaders has been reinforced.

From Cameroon to Uganda, Angola, Equatorial Guinea and of course Zimbabwe where the 94-year-old Robert Mugabe who has ruled for more than 35 years but is still seeking a reelection next year, there is a renewed optimism by the resilient youth in these countries that something magical will happen.

Many young Zimbabweans have never known another leader besides Mugabe who has been prime minister since the end of white minority rule in 1980 and president since winning an election seven years later.

Like most other African nations, it is home to many young people who make up a greater part of the70% eligible voters in the country. Most of them have lost confidence in the transparency of the ballot system and their electoral process in general but still have hope in democracy and that resilience has kept their fighting spirits up amidst serial government crackdowns.

As an election monitor who has worked with ECOWAS and other stakeholders in different elections on the continent, I had an opportunity to learn and share with the Young African Leadership Initiative fellows, in a US State departments sponsored Tech-Camp. And I took it, travelling several hours from Nigeria to Zambia, with brief stops in Ethiopia and Zimbabwe. I met with young people from other countries of the continent to explain the story of democracy and what has worked in Nigeria, Kenya, Cape Verde, Ghana and other nations of the continent – using a situation room methodology that allows civil society and other passionate citizens get involved in enhancing democracy; armed with mobile phones and internet​,​ young people are supporting transparency and openness to the ballots.

I met with 26-year-old Norman Dube, working with a tech-hub in Zimbabwe who tells me he is building applications that enables voters to be educated about the process of voting and their rights to do so – and attending the networking camp reinforced that idea.

“I’m hoping to use tech to change how young people think about elections in my country,” Dube said.

“Attending this networking event to learn from others and build on what I’ve always desired made my dream and ambition to develop that app possible.”

The introduction of information and communications technologies (ICT) into the electoral process to increase voter participation is generating a lot of interest among voters and stakeholders across Africa. All of these efforts aim to ensure the credibility of the democratic process, transparency, and local ‘ownership’. From Blogging Ghana to Ushahidi in Kenya and more, civil groups/active citizens are putting together energies to better serve as watchdogs (situation rooms) during elections.

It is based on this premise however that young people in Zimbabwe are also rolling up their sleeves to apply what seems to have worked for other African countries ahead of their elections – driven by smart phone​s ​users in a bid discourage voter apathy for a nation with about a 50% internet penetration.

Dube isn’t the only Zimbabwean who feels the networking tech-camp for young African Leaders to improve democracy, accountability within the continent through information technology has been enriching and rewarding.

34-year old Shamiso Ruzvido, a firebrand lady from Harare is working with a mobile solutions technology company ahead of next year elections to get the uninterested young people, most of whom have lost faith in the process to form a critical mass and get back to the ballots if change must happen in the Southern African nation.

“I have learnt so much about transparency and it made me realize how important it is to use social media during elections”, she said.

For a nation with only 50% Internet penetration nationwide, Ms Rusvido says, “I have better understanding to deploy what will work for the elections in Zambia and get young people interested again, and the time to do that is now”.

Halfway into my interview with the eloquent Ruzvido, the US Ambassador to Zambia, Eric Schultz walked into the auditorium where the young African leaders from Southern Africa ​countries ​were gathered.

In a brief remark about what led to YALI and the US State Departments tech-camps, he said the program does not only seek to advance the cause of democracy around the world, but redirect the energies’ of young people from using tech for ​just ​video games into constructive value – calling for accountability, organize, share ideas.

“Young people have better skills today and that shouldn’t go to waste,” he reiterated.

The Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) is a signature effort to invest in the next generation of African leaders identifies that nearly 1 in 3 Africans are between the ages of 10 and 24, and approximately 60 percent of Africa’s total population is below the age of 35. Former US President Barack Obama launched YALI in 2010 to support young African leaders as they spur growth and prosperity, strengthen democratic governance, and enhance peace and security across Sub-Saharan Africa.

For 30-year-old Jen Dougherty, working with YALI Network, the network focuses on grooming its members – get young leaders constructively engaged and over the years, “the young people have been the owners and the drivers of that conversation about what they want,” she tells me.

Participants during the Zambian event learnt that elections depend on collaboration with different observers and stakeholders that represent and oversee the processes that safeguard credible electoral processes – and, that collaboration bolsters institutions that allow democracy to flourish.

The more than 70 youth leaders were exposed to the workings of Situation Rooms during elections in order to encourage voter engagement and participation, respond to enquiries and to stimulate conversation with the public – monitoring events on the various social media interfaces: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Blogs and also tracking trends to better enhance democracy.

Munya Dodo, 32-year old development worker in his native Zimbabwe says the study of trends learnt during the tech-camp applied by other African countries and especially the synergy of young Ghanaians during their last elections in the operations of a situation room by Blogging Ghana (a group of young savvy people – mostly bloggers – armed with their smart phones) was a noteworthy lessons for young Zimbabweans to copy and better the electoral process.

“I learnt about the situation rooms and we hope to apply it in my country ahead of our elections – as civil society we need to join forces for change and strengthen democracy”. He maintained.

Jamie Findla, 34- year-old year team member of the tech-camp, tells me the tech-camp seeks to enhance democracy and transparency – engage youth leaders, on how to bring new emerging tech solutions to better the electoral process.

For Norman, Munya and Shamiso , the tech-camp was not another tea or pity party to state all that isn’t’ working for Africa but a platform that offering practical and new solutions for their nation and for firing up young people with smartphones ahead of next year’s crucial polls in Zimbabwe.

Mercy Abang is a freelance journalist and a media fixer with Sunday Times of London, BBC, Aljazeera and a former Stringer with the Associated Press. She tweets from @abangmercy.

Some of the Chibok schoolgirls abducted in 2014 by the Boko Haram insurgent group refused to join the 82 freed at the weekend, Zannah Mustapha, a negotiator involved in their release has said.

The girls were released on Saturday, April 5, after series of negotiations between the militant sect and the federal government.

On April 2014, the sect had kidnapped 276 girls from Government Secondary School, Chibok in Borno state.

But Zannah Mustapha, a lawyer who acted as an intermediary in the latest negotiations, told Reuters that some of the abducted girls refused to go home.

“Some girls refused to return …I have never talked to one of the girls about their reasons,” Mustapha said.

“As a mediator, it is not part of my mandate to force them to return home. And we are not just talking, we are still actively working towards peace.

“Even though we have got some of the girls back, I don’t feel we have made much progress. After the release of the 21 girls, how many hundreds have been killed by suicide bombings?

“While Boko Haram may indeed hold out in releasing all of the hostages to maintain some form of leverage, the reality is that the girls have limited value to the sect outside of public relations capital and are likely placing a strain on resources.”

Fatima Akilu, a Nigerian psychologist, also told Reuters that many women and girls abducted by the Boko Haram sect identify with their captors and may not want to give up “their new lives with their militant husbands”.

“They develop Stockholm syndrome, identify with captors and want to remain,” added Akilu who has run deradicalisation programs for Boko Haram militants and women they abducted.

“Some are afraid of what to expect, the unknown. We don’t know how much influence their husbands have in coercing them not to go back.”

The return of the 82 girls was the second group release of the Chibok girls since their abduction.

Read more at TheCable.

Capital Oil and Gas Industries Limited, one of Nigeria’s leading oil firms, has issued a statement denouncing the arrest of its chairman, Ifeanyi Ubah by the country’s secret police on a allegations of “economic sabotage” to the tune of N11 billion.

The company, in an e-mail to The Trent on Tuesday, May 9, 2017,  condemned the arrest of Mr. Ubah and called for his immediate release saying that this would be the second time that agency which serves as the country’s secret police, the State Security Services, SSS, also known as DSS, would be unlawfully arresting the oil magnet.

You may read the full statement below:

OFFICIAL STATEMENT RELEASED BY CAPITAL OIL AND GAS’ MANAGEMENT ON DSS’ FALSE ACCUSATIONS: AN ATTEMPT TO CRIMINALISE A COMMERCIAL DISPUTE BETWEEN CAPITAL OIL & GAS INDUSTRIES LIMITED AND THE NNPC

The incarceration of our Chairman by DSS is unlawful, a disregard for the rule of law and a breach of Dr. Ubah’s fundamental right to liberty, freedom of movement and association.

A similar invitation was extended to Dr. Ubah on the 24th of March 2017, which he honoured as a law-abiding citizen only to be detained in DSS offices in Abuja for almost a month.

During that period a Fundamental Rights Enforcement Application was brought on behalf of Dr. Ubah at the Federal High Court Lagos as Suit No. FHC/L/C/487/2017.

Although an order was made for his production in court in that action, rather than obey the order, officers DSS, using a combination of coercion and cajoling, constrained him to discontinue that action upon an understanding that he would be immediately released. He was not released until over two weeks after he had complied and completely discontinued that action.

Upon his release on the 13th of April 2017, it was now discovered that during his incarceration he had been coerced into executing various documents committing the company to make certain payments and pledge some assets to NNPC Retail Limited. He was also made to execute a document in favour of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).

As soon as his doctors permitted access to him an action was brought at the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court seeking, inter alia, an order to restrain DSS and others from further inviting, arresting or threatening to arrest or detain him in regard to the NNPC/NNPC Retail Ltd matters.

The processes originating the new action filed as Suit No. FHC/L/CS/644/2017, were served on the DSS on the 28th of April 2017.

Dr. Ubah’s lawyers wrote to the DSS pointing out that any preemption of the judicial intervention during the pendency of the new action is totally irregular, a disregard of the rule of law, the constitutional guarantees of separation of powers and breach of the doctrine of Lis Pendens.

Rather than respect its constitutional and statutory limits the DSS has brazenly abducted Dr. Ubah and commenced a media blitz to justify their illegality.

THE ACCUSATIONS OF THEFT AND ECONOMIC SABOTAGE ARE COMPLETELY FALSE.

For the avoidance of doubt and to put the records straight, NNPC owes Capital Oil & Gas Industries Limited over N16 billion represented as follows:

$5,540,000 (N2.2billion) –  unpaid berthing fees for NNPC vessels that called at our Jetty.

$2,952,555 (N1billion) -invoice for chartered vessels to carryout STS operations Lagos offshore to ferry product (PMS) to storage at the request of NNPC since 2015.

N1.170billion- amount owed to Capital Oil & Gas Industries Ltd for throughput services from March to October 2016.

N3.146billion: payment made to NNPC for 26,820m litres of PMS vide Pro-forma Invoice No. 53598 which is yet to be delivered to us.

N2.0billion- Payment to NNPC in April to facilitate the release of the Managing Director and engender reconciliation which NNPC reneged on.

N6.266billion- N0.80k and N0.40 Jetty Throughput charge on over 7 billion liters dispensed for NNPC by us.

On economic sabotage, it is unimaginable that a company which has stood by NNPC and by extension the country at very critical petroleum supply crises can now be accused of engaging in activities to undermine the effective distribution of petroleum products across the country having thwarted a nationwide industrial action called by oil marketers during the epic inauguration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

We wish to reiterate that Capital Oil and Gas Industries Limited is committed to serving the nation to the best of its capacity and ability.

Signed:
Management

President Muhammadu Buhari, and the cabal that run his presidency, have once again demonstrated the insecurities that plague his regime with regards to his ill health.

The ailing president embarked on yet another indefinite medical leave on Sunday night. A statement by Femi Adesina, one of Buhari’s spokespersons, said that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo would act on the president’s behalf while he is away. He said that letters had been transmitted to the Nigerian Senate and House of Representatives to that effect.

It turns out that President Buhari’s use of words leave Professor Osinbajo short of being an acting president.

On Tuesday, May 9, 2017, the content of the president’s letter to the Senate was revealed and it said that Osinbajo will “coordinate” the nation’s affairs while Buhari is in the United Kingdom for his medical treatment.

This important omission in the letter raises questions as to what powers Professor Osinbajo would have the president’s absence.

Since coming to power in May 2015, this is the fourth time that the ailing former brutal military dictator Buhari would leave Nigeria and his vice president would act on his behalf.

This time, the president said his stay in the United Kingdom would be determined by his doctors.

But his latest correspondence to the Senate, read by the senate president, Bukola Saraki, was questioned by a senator who argued that Professor Osinbajo should have been designated “acting president”.

Mao Ohabunwa, a Peoples Democratic Party senator, representing Abia North, said it was not proper to name the vice president “coordinator” of the nation’s affairs.

He was however ruled out of order by Mr. Saraki, after the senate leader, Ahmed Lawan, defended Mr. Buhari, citing Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution.

That section says, “Whenever the President transmits to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary such functions shall be discharged by the Vice-President as Acting President.”

Additional reports by Premium Times

The senator representing Abia-North at the National Assembly, Mao Ohuabunwa, on Tuesday, May 9, 2017 said the specifics of the transfer of power from President Muhammadu Buhari to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is unclear.

Ohuabunwa had raised the question after president of the Senate, Bukola Saraki; and speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, separately read a letter from President Buhari informing the legislature of his medical vacation in the United Kingdom.

In the letter, Buhari said the duration of his leave was indefinite, as his return would largely be determined by the recommendation of his doctors.

Mr Buhari left Nigeria Sunday night, shortly after receiving 82 Chibok girls who regained freedom after three years in Boko Haram captivity.

Since coming to power in May 2015, it is the fourth time Mr Osinbajo would be acting on behalf of the president.

According to a report in Punch, the letter read; “In compliance with Section 145 (1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), I wish to inform the distinguished Senate that I will be away for a scheduled medical follow-up with my doctors in London. The length of my stay will be determined by the doctor’s advice.

“While I am away, the Vice President will coordinate the activities of the government. Please accept, the distinguished Senate President, the assurances of my highest consideration.”

But Senator Ohuabunwa criticised the letter as not naming Osinbajo as Acting President and should be disregarded. He argued that the letter was not clear on the transfer of power from Buhari to Osinbajo.

He said, “Whenever the President transmits to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to them the written declaration to the contrary, such function shall be discharged by the Vice-President as Acting President.

“Mr President, I don’t think in our Constitution we have anything like ‘coordinating president’ or ‘coordinating vice president.’ It is either you are vice president or you are acting president and any letter on the transfer of power should be unambiguous and very clear. So, I am saying that this letter really does not convey anything because ‘coordinating’ has no space or any place in our Constitution.

“We have been having (receiving) letters like this in which he will tell us who is the acting president and we will know who to deal with as a Senate. This is the highest legislative body of any country and if you are sending us a letter, it should be direct, unambiguous. So, I am saying that this letter, for me, is not right and maybe it should be sent back.”

But the Majority Leader, Senator Ahmad Lawan, countered Ohuabunwa, saying Buhari had fulfilled the provisions of Section 145 of the Constitution by transmitting the letter.

He said, “Let me say that the point of order raised by my colleague and the explanation that subsequently followed should not have been and my reasons are simple. I still rely on the first paragraph of that letter which Mr President wrote to this Senate and read by President of the Senate and I will read Section 145.”

After reading the section, Lawan added, “Any other word in this letter or indeed anywhere else is irrelevant. I, therefore, feel that Mr President has done what the Constitution requires him to do and I urge this Senate not to go ahead to discuss this because it is not an issue. We have the budget and so many other serious issues for us to discuss and Nigerians are waiting.”

Saraki, who presided over the plenary, however, ruled Ohuabunwa out of order.

“I think it is a very clear issue and what we should be guided by is the Constitution, and I think that it is clear. The letter has referred to the Constitution (Section 145) and there is no ambiguity in the Constitution. So, I don’t think there is any issue there. Let me first rule you out of order, Senator Mao.”

President Buhari on March 10, 2017, returned to the country after spending 49 days on medical vacation in the UK.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Monday, May 8, 2017 said it was not involved in the negotiation that led to the release of 82 Chibok schoolgirls after three years in Boko Haram captivity.

Aleksandra Mosimann, ICRC’s communication coordinator, disclosed this in an interview with NAN in Abuja.

Mosimann said ICRC acted as a neutral intermediary based on the agreement of the two parties involved as specified in its mandate.

“We were not involved in the negotiation for their release, as negotiations often imply a political process which is contrary to the political and neutral nature of ICRC work,” she said.

“I can confirm that in the early hours of Sunday May 7, the ICRC only transferred 82 Chibok girls from the armed opposition to the government of Nigeria.

“We transferred the girls with the agreement of both parties involved.

“This however means the girls were handed over to us by the armed opposition group that had held them and we handed them over to the military.”

Mosimann also recalled that in October 2016, ICRC transferred 21Chibok girls and a baby released from armed opposition to Nigerian authorities, but was not part of the negotiation that led to their release.

She said the ICRC role of a neutral intermediary was widely recognised worldwide, adding that the organisation had performed such roles in other countries such as Colombia and Sudan, among others.

“The neutral intermediary by ICRC is an indication of the trust that parties to the conflict place on us,’’ Mosimann said.

Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday, May 9, 2017 declared the 15-man probe panel constituted by the inspector general of police, Ibrahim Idris, to investigate the violence, killings, destruction of property and other criminal activities that took place during and after the December 10, 2016 National Assembly re-run election in Rivers State, illegal.

Delivering judgement on the suit filed by Rivers State government and Governor Nyesom Wike, in January, Justice Kolawole described the police panel as “unknown to law.”

According to him, the probe lacked constitutional backing. The court therefore held that the report of the panel was not valid and of doubtful source.

The judge held that it remained to be seen whether the federal attorney general and minister of justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), would prosecute those indicted by the panel based on a report that is illegal.

“The police panel is unknown to Nigerian criminal justice system. It is a contraption. The said report is unknown to law and its validity to be used by the Attorney General of the Federation to press a charge is in great doubt,” the court said.

According Justice Kolawole, it was wrong for the IGP to constitute a police panel that had the country’s secret police, the State Security Services, SSS, also known as DSS, as a member.

He noted that under Section 11 of Police Act, the IGP required presidential assent to delegate power to another prosecutorial agency.

In addition, the court stated that it would have quashed the report but for the fact that it was not pleaded before it.

The court also held that there was no merit in the second defendant’s (DSS) preliminary objection on grounds of jurisdiction, and it was consequently dismissed.

Since Tuesday, May 9, 2017, Nigerians who have reacted to the news that ailing President Muhammadu Buhari omitted to mention that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will be an acting president in his letters to the National Assembly on his departure on indefinite medical leave.

The president wrote that Professor Osinbajo would be “co-ordinating” national affairs in his absence, the use of words indicating insecurities by his inner cabinet.

Femi Fani-Kayode, a prominent thought leader in Nigeria, has reacted to this confusing omission by the ailing president by saying that denying Osinbajo his constitutional right to play the role of acting president is “insulting and dangerous”.

“The attempt by the corpsocrats to prevent the vice president from being acting president by referring to him in the letter to the Senate as a mere ‘co-ordinator’ is insulting and dangerous,” the chieftain of the main opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, said in a statement to The Trent on Tuesday.

He went on to deride the discrimination that Southerners and Christians endure in Nigeria saying that this episode is a good time for the country to re-examine its existence.

“It is time for us to decide: do we have a nation of equals or not? If not let us break it and go our separate ways,” he wrote.

“When you tell us that the vice president cannot be acting president even though the president is critically sick and on indefinite medical leave in a foreign country you are playing with fire. There are NO more slaves in Nigeria.

“To those that believe that we must stand strong for Osinbajo this is the time to do it.

“The attempt to deny him the right and role of Acting President by the corpsocrats is ominous and the implications are grave and far-reaching.

“They did it to MKO Abiola in 1993. They tried to do it to GEJ in 2010. They are doing it to Osinbajo in 2017,” he wrote.

The courageous opposition leader ended his statement with a question, “When will a southerner be treated as an equal by these hegemonists? When will this arrogance of power and modern-day apartheid stop?”

A group, the National Committee of Yoruba Youth, has issued a warning to those, it says are politicising the illness of President Muhammadu Buhari and the return of 82 Chibok schoolgirls who were, over the weekend, presented to the Nigerian public by the federal government.

In a statement, e-mailed to The Trent, the little-known group attempted to celebrate achievements of the Buhari administration while endorsing the chief of army staff, Tukur Buratai, who has been indicted by local and international human rights organisation for the genocide of more than a 1,000 unarmed Shi’ites and 150 Biafra activists under the command of the ailing former military dictator.

According to statement which was not signed by any person, the group said that those politicising the sickness of the president and the return of the 82 Chibok girls were threatening the unity of Nigeria.

On Sunday, President Buhari left Nigeria on an indefinite medical leave failing to name Vice President Yemi Osinbajo as acting president in his letter to the National Assembly. Confusion and anger trails this decision believed to be the handiwork of the Aso Rock cabal.

Read the full text of what the group said was a press conference held in Ibadan, Oyo State on Wednesday, May 10, 2017.

BEING THE TEXT OF A PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY THE NATIONAL COMMITTEE OF YORUBA YOUTH (NCYY) AND THE COALITION OF CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANISATIONS AGAINST TERRORISM, HELD IN IBADAN ON WEDNESDAY 10TH MAY 2017.

The Insidious politicization of President Muhammadu Buhari’s Health and the release of 82 of the abducted Chibok Girls.

The National Committee of Yoruba Youth is the Apex organization of Yoruba Youth groups, spread across the six states of the Southwest and other Yoruba speaking parts of the country, while the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations against Terrorism, is an amalgamation of 45 Groups, which have been at the vanguard of advocacy, against insurgency, terrorism, and any threat to our corporate existence as a Nation.

The essence of this media briefing, is to urgently address and arrest, a growing concern that could undermine, the unity and sovereignty of this great nation. We are particularly worried, that the threat to our corporate existence, might not be from the now defeated Boko Haram insurgents, but the activities of tribal war leaders, ethnic jingoists, religious zealots and some overzealous self-acclaimed activists, who feel that they can play politics with the health of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The various inciting statements and attempts to stampede the President out of office, by these self-serving individuals is perhaps, the greatest danger to our democracy.

We find their obsession on media and social commentary on President Buhari’s Health, and the constant projection of his hitherto incapability, highly distasteful and diversionary. For the sake of emphasis, governance is ongoing in our country. The Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo is a competent man and key members of the cabinet, are proving to be highly resourceful. As a country, this government is saving, despite a fall in oil prices, this government is upgrading infrastructures at ten times, the rate we have at any time in the last eighteen years.

The Buhari administration is plugging all loopholes through the Treasury Single Account and the administration has shown enough courage and effort to tackle unbridled corruption and insurgency in our country. This is to once again, condemn all the unfounded rumour mongering on President Buhari’s health. Most of the speculations from this known ethnic champions and pseudo activists are rooted, in obsession for ethnic and religious based politics.

President has transmitted to the National Assembly, his desire to proceed on medical vacation, as demanded by our law. He can stay for as long as the need to fully recover is assured and he transmits a contrary declaration to the National Assembly, to the effect that He has now resumed duties. This action of President Buhari, has effectively blocked any vacuum, or lacuna, in the governance of the country.

82 CHIBOK GIRLS RESCUE

As a nation, we must appreciate, the determination, focus and compassion of President Buhari and the leadership of our security agencies, especially the Nigerian Army, ably led by Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, which led to the recent release of the 82, of the abducted Chibok School girls. While we implore Nigerians, not to see the willingness of the government to negotiate and meet the terms that led to the exchange for the girls as a sign of weakness. Rather, it shows compassion on the part of the country’s leadership. Prisoner exchange is a known global practice by any nation, who values the lives of her citizens.

We must at this point, equally appreciate the role of the Swiss government and other international agencies, who have supported the Buhari’s administration to ensure that more of our Chibok girls are rescued.

Finally, we want to call on nigerians, to sustain their support towards the untiring effort of President Buhari’s administration, to salvage Nigeria, from the decadence of the past. While we also want to urge nigerians to pray for the quick recovery of President Buhari, our prayers also goes to the men and officers of our armed forces, particularly the Nigerian Army, who have shown uncommon courage, dedication and commitment, in protecting our corporate existence and our society as a nation.

A gang of armed Fulani herdsmen on Wednesday, May 10, 2017 attacked travellers on the busy Abuja-Keffi Expressway, making away with valuables and a huge amount of cash.

According to an eyewitness report by Punch, the robbery took place at 10am along the busy highway close to a village called Barde, after Gidan Waya in Kaduna State, a few kilometres from Jos, Plateau state capital.

The robbers numbering about ten, with five of them wielding dangerous weapons, including guns and machetes, came from the bush, stopped vehicles and ordered passengers to lie facedown.

The newspaper’s correspondent, who was in a vehicle which was a few distance from them, saw market women and others frisked at gunpoint.

Ironically, the incident took place between two police checkpoints.

The robbers fled into the bush after 30 minutes of successful operation, when they sighted some soldiers from Keffi in Nasarawa state.

Some of the victims claimed the robbers were Fulani as they understood the language they conversed in.

A woman who was on a business trip to Jos for her boss wept uncontrollably, having lost a huge amount of money.

She begged that our correspondent should relay the incident to her boss, and from his exclamation, it was obvious that a big money has gone.

Read more at Punch.

A reverend sister who is also the principal of the School of Nursing, Umulogho in Imo, Eberechukwu Nwachukwu, was on Tuesday, May 9, 2017 arraigned in Owerri for allegedly defrauding 25 students of N8.25 million.

Nwachukwu is facing a nine-count charge bordering on obtaining money under false pretences and threat to life at an Obowo Magistrates’ Court.

The students had reported a case of fraud against the school principal at the Police Area Command in Okigwe sometime in March.

The students, in their petition, claimed that each of them paid N330,000 to the school management for Nursing and Midwifery Council Examinations, but their names were not forwarded to the appropriate quarters for the examination.

Police Prosecutor Emmanuel Wonah said the offences contravened provisions of the Criminal Code, Laws of Imo.

Giving evidence at the trial, one of the complainants, Miss Amarachi Wokenna, told the court that she paid a total of N 330,000 to the school management as registration fee for the Nursing and Midwifery Council Examination.

She said the principal acknowledged the payment by issuing a receipt to her.

Wokenna said surprisingly the principal refused to forward her name to the council for the exam which held in April.

Nwachukwu, however, denied the charges.

In her ruling, the Magistrate, Mr M.O. Onyeweotu, granted her N500, 000 bail with two sureties and adjourned the case until June 29 for continuation of trial.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the accused will remain behind bars pending when her bail condition will be perfected.

Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, former military president, will on Friday, May 12, 2017  in Minna, Niger State, give out his daughter, Halimat, in marriage.

The groom is Auwal Lawal Abdullahi, who holds the traditional title of Sarkin Sudan Gombe. He is a businessman.

Halimat is the second daughter and last child of the family. She was born by his late wife Maryam.

All arrangements have been concluded for the wedding and invitations sent to prominent Nigerians, across the country.

NAN reports that the wedding prayers will take place at the hill top villa of the former military president Minna by 2:30pm.

According to Zubairu Mu’azu, police commissioner, 4000 policemen are also expected to be deployed to provide security on the highways, major roads in Minna the airport and the venues of the ceremony.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger says it will deploy no fewer than 135 personnel to provide security before and during the wedding fatiha.

Philip Ayuba, commandant, NSCDC in the state, gave the figure in an interview with NAN.

“We have already issued an effective operational order to the officers deployed for that effect” he said.

Ibrahim Dankwambo, the governor of Gombe State, on Tuesday, May 9, 2017 addressed a crowd which gathered to welcome him home from his annual vacation during which he told the people of Gombe that hunger would be a “thing of the past’ in the northwestern state.

Dr. Dankwambo, who has just returned from the United States where he spent his six-week vacation, promised an agricultural revolution and disclosed that the state will be supplied with adequate fertilizer this farming season.

He added that he is resolved is to ensure that the state experiences good governance and that more projects will be completed as well.

The governor assured farmers in the state that the state would be “flooded with fertilizer“, which would be sold at affordable prices in the open market.

Fertilizer in the northern state is currently sold at N5,500 at the open market while the government subsidized go for less.

Government sources say that the price is expected to remain unified so as to stabilize the price and check exploitation by middlemen who divert government products and sell at higher prices in the open market.

Gombe State is a major agricultural hub in Nigeria. The state has experienced noticable development under the leadership of Dr. Dankwambo.