Okowa congratulates Dickson on his election tribunal victory

Delta State Governor, Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, has congratulated Bayelsa State Governor, Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson, following his victory at the Bayelsa State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abuja.
This was contained in a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Charles Ehiedu Aniagwu, wherein the Governor described the victory as "well deserved” for Dickson, a member of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP.Governor Okowa while commending the judiciary for upholding the sanctity of the peoples mandate, thanked Bayelsans for their support to the PDP and the Restoration Government of Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson.

"On behalf of the government and people of Delta State, I congratulate you on your hard earned victory at the Bayelsa State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal.

"Your victory at the tribunal is well deserved because you campaigned vigorously, selling the party's programmes and won in seven out of eight local government areas in the state.

“The tribunal's affirmation of your election is a fulfillment of the clearly expressed wish of the people of Bayelsa State, I therefore urge you to be humble and magnanimous in victory, remain focused and ever committed to your Restoration Agenda and work for the advancement of the interests of all Bayelsa people irrespective of their political affiliations or loyalties,”

Okowa urged the opposition to accept the tribunal ruling in good fate and cooperate with the Governor to move the state forward.

Let’s restructure Nigeria now, says Wole Soyinka

Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, in apparent reference to President Muhammadu Buhari’s claim that the unity of Nigeria is not negotiable, declared that the sovereignty of the nation is negotiable.

Speaking during a visit to PUNCH Place, the corporate headquarters of PUNCH Nigeria Limited, Kilometre 14, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State, on Tuesday, Soyinka said decentralisation of the nation would ensure healthy rivalry among the component units.

Prof. Wole Soyinka

The laureate said it was wrong for previous administrations in the country to say that Nigeria’s sovereignty was non-negotiable, submitting that the position was antithetical to development.

Soyinka added, “I am on the side of those who say we must do everything to avoid disintegration. That language I understand. I don’t understand (ex-President Olusegun) Obasanjo’s language. I don’t understand (President Muhammadu) Buhari’s language and all their predecessors, saying the sovereignty of this nation is non-negotiable. It’s bloody well negotiable and we had better negotiate it. We better negotiate it, not even at meetings, not at conferences, but every day in our conduct towards one another.

“We had better understand it too that when people are saying ‘let’s restructure’, they have better things to do. It’s not an idle cry; it is a perennial demand. The Pro-National Conference Organisation was about restructuring when this same Obasanjo said it was an act of treason for people to come together to fashion a new constitution. Those were fighting words; that you’re saying, ‘I commit treason because I want to sit with my fellow citizens and negotiate the structures of staying together’ and ask the police to go and break it up and arrest us.

“I remember that policeman, who said if we met, that would be treason. I wasn’t a member of PRONACO at the time. That’s when I joined PRONACO. If you’re saying to me, ‘I am a second-class citizen; I cannot sit down and discuss the articles, the protocols of staying together’ and you’re trying to bully me, I won’t accept.”

He said Nigeria could not continue with a centralisation policy, which encouraged what he described as “monkey dey work, baboon dey chop” mentality.

Soyinka said the over centralisation of government had resulted in resentment among constituent states, adding that the phenomenon was insulting and promoted anti-healthy rivalry among states.

He stated, “We cannot continue to allow a centralisation policy which makes the constituent units of this nation resentful; they say monkey dey work, baboon dey chop. And the idea of centralising revenues, allocation system, whereby you dole out; the thing is insulting and it is what I call anti-healthy rivalry. It is against the incentives to make states viable.”

He said the centralisation of government led to the proliferation of states during the military era when, according to him, a state was created because the girlfriend of a certain military leader hailed from the state.

He said it was high time government established state police to check the rising security challenges in the country, stressing that policing was more effective when localised.

Soyinka added, “I know people get nervous about that expression. If you go to a place like England, you sometimes see two, three, four police (officers) just walking casually unarmed, but they are observing everything.

“Now, if policing is all of that, then I think the police are more efficient if they are based within a smaller constituency than a larger one. Within such constituencies, the policeman virtually knows everybody. A federal, centralised system of police lacks that advantage.

“So, I find it very difficult to accept that people can be nervous about the state police. State police has been abused. Nobody is denying that; it’s historical. Don’t tell us because we know already. But isn’t centralised police also abused? Look at what’s been coming out from the last elections, not just the police, but the military.”

Condemning the killings perpetrated by Fulani herdsmen across the country, the Professor of Comparative Literature said the phenomenon had become an albatross that must be tackled frontally by the Federal Government.

Soyinka said the intrusive nature of Fulani herdsmen was no longer a remote problem for him personally, alleging that some Fulani herdsmen had invaded the privacy of his residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

“It is no longer a remote problem for me. It is an actuality,” he said, recalling that the killings carried out by suspected Fulani herdsmen in Enugu some months ago was mismanaged by the government.

“In Enugu, why did it take so long to investigate the killings? It’s like the case of Ese Oruru. What is all this? What is security for? That thing should have been addressed immediately. (In Enugu), they shouldn’t have waited for directives from Buhari or anybody. This is a crime against humanity. There should be no debate about it.

“The military should have been drafted there immediately; the police, first of all, and the military – if necessary. I found out that the victims were arrested; what’s all that about? This menace is underestimated. If they had reached my secure place in Abeokuta, then it is no longer a remote problem.”

He faulted the proposal to create grazing reserves for herdsmen in the country, saying rather than do that, ranches, where members of the public could go to buy cows and goats, should be created.

The octogenarian said the term “grazing reserve” would convey the meaning that government had carved out some people’s land for herdsmen to use for their commercial enterprise.

“The word ‘reserve’ is the problem. If there are ranches, it doesn’t matter where they are built, ranches are a commercial proposition, it isn’t a Fulani issue. You can create ranches so that cows, goats could be bought there. This shouldn’t be an instrument of politics, race or ethnicity.

“But when you talk about reserves, it suggests that people can bring cattle from Futa Djallon, Senegal, and if they get here, they can get reserve. If it’s a ranch, it’s a pure commercial proposition, you want to trade. I will like to see these cattle people go back to the position they were before in which there was mutual collaboration between them and farmers,” he said.

Soyinka called on Buhari to consider the report of the 2014 National Conference convened during the tenure of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, lamenting that the country had been moving round in circles without direction.

“We have a habit of consigning files to the dust shelves and then we start all over again. The (confab) report that came under Jonathan is even more superior to the one that I participated in as a member of PRONACO and I think that should be addressed seriously.

“The recommendations strike me as workable, practical, and in fact, as answering some of the anxieties of this nation. This is something I think that Buhari should tackle seriously,” he said.

Restructure Nigeria, to save it

By Reuben Abati                                                                          OPINION

Dr. Reuben Abati

No one should be surprised by the loud and widespread support that has attended the latest call by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that Nigeria needs to be restructured. In his words, “our current structure and the practices it has encouraged have been a major impediment to the economic and political development of our country. In short, it has not served Nigeria well, and at the risk of reproach it has not served my part of the country, the North, well. The call for restructuring is even more relevant today in the light of the governance and economic challenges facing us…Nigeria must remain a united country…I also believe that a united country, which I think most Nigerians desire, should never be taken for granted or taken as evidence that Nigerians are content with the current structure of the Federation. Making that mistake might set us on the path of losing the country we love…”

      In those words, the former Vice President and now APC chieftain simply summarized what is already well known and has helped to draw attention afresh to what has been talked about over time but which Nigeria at the expense of its citizens and its own corporate existence is yet to address frontally and forthrightly. Indeed, Nigeria as presently structured and managed is not working. To save the country, the country must be restructured, not only politically but also in terms of the relationship between the federating units and the values that hold the union together.

       Nations evolve on the basis of a creative rethinking of their processes and experiences. When the Americans came up with a Presidential/Congressional system of government in 1787, and wrote a Constitution to express their aspirations and expectations, they wanted to address the cleavages within the union and build a united country. In Nigeria, we inherited a skewed federal arrangement from the colonial masters, failed to improve on this, and ended up with the wages of that defect in the form of political crises and eventual civil war.

       We have experienced years of military rule during which an enduring culture of praetorianism and dictatorship was established and when eventually we returned to civilian rule, we simply copied and pasted the American Presidential style of government. We have also borrowed the slogan of federalism, but in reality what we have is a unitary type of federalism, a unitary state, completely de-federalized. This is ironic considering the fact that one of the reasons for the collapse of the Aguiyi-Ironsi administration is commonly accepted to be his introduction of Decree No 34 of May 25, 1966, which in effect, transformed Nigeria into a unitary state.  

      Nigeria is in urgent need of a “re-set”, a rethinking, a redesign. The view that this is necessary has been in the public domain for more than 20 years, but successive administrations either toyed with it, politicized it, or they got round to it at end of term, so late that they gave a succeeding administration the opportunity to conveniently ignore it. The latest of such efforts was in 2014 when the Jonathan administration organized a National Political Conference, where far-reaching recommendations were made to ensure a restructuring of Nigeria. Sadly, the Report of that Conference, endorsed and supported by the Nigerian people, is hidden somewhere in government closets, gathering dust.

       The new men in power claim that they have not read it, and that they have no intention whatsoever to even glance at it – another clear evidence of how ego and present-mindedness hobble the nation, and partisanship stands in the way of ideas and national progress. Former Vice President Atiku’s advocacy should begin from within his own party, the APC, now currently in power.   There can be no real restructuring of Nigeria without a governing basic law, that is the Constitution, a rule book which spells out the people’s expectations and resolutions as matters of law. There has been a clamour for a People’s Constitution since 1999, but every National Assembly simply tinkered with the process of Constitutional Amendment, thus allowing the continuing survival of a military-imposed Constitution that promotes over-centralized authority. It is a pity that the present National Assembly is so conflicted it may not be able to summon the courage, the will and the capacity to lead the process for restructuring Nigeria.

        What no one can contest nonetheless is that the prevailing system of “unitary federalism” has not served Nigeria well.  Indeed, as Atiku puts it, “the practices it has encouraged have been a major impediment to the economic and political development of our country.” We run a country where nothing constructive happens in government except it is sanctioned by Abuja, and by one man, the President of Nigeria. The Federal Government of Nigeria and the President are so constitutionally powerful that other tiers of government are at best appendages. Every month, state Governors and their accountants rush to Abuja to have their feeding bottles filled from the national baby-sitting nursery. Without the federation revenue that is dispensed by the Federal Government, the states and local governments cannot survive. Today, so many state governments cannot pay salaries or embark on any development projects.

      States were created in the expectation that by carving up the country into smaller units, the kind of threat that led to the Biafran secession crisis and the civil war of 1967-70 will not reoccur, and that the centre will have firmer control of the constituent units. That has turned out to be an illusion, and a burden, with the crisis in the North East, the South East and the South South. There is so much unhealthy competition in the country, made worse by ethnic and religious cleavages. Nigerians must find a new means of reducing unhealthy competition and make our democracy more consociational, and inclusive.

      Along this line, there have been several recommendations including true federalism (to which the power elite driven by selfish, ethnic and religious considerations has shown no commitment), confederation and regional government (both of which in their purest forms, may further raise the risk of secession), a parliamentary system of government (which may not necessarily address existing fears, without a socio-cultural transformation), these, in addition to the view that there is nothing technically wrong with the current Presidential system of Government (the problem is with Nigerian practices and attitudes). What may well work for Nigeria is a combination of structures, a mix that is constitutionally made possible based on local peculiarities.

       This is another way of saying that borrowed models may not fit into local circumstances; the best way for a country to evolve is by working out its own structures and practices that best suit its purposes and historical experience. In Nigeria, the basic issues that should inform this are not hard to define. Many Nigerians feel excluded from the current power sharing arrangement; they feel marginalized, treated unfairly and alienated by a compromised state that is in need of reinvention. Groups within the union believe that they contribute more to the Federal purse than they get in return whereas those who do not contribute as much get a lion share of accrued and distributable revenue in addition to readier access to power, translated into an unfair, near-monopoly. There is also no merit, equity or justice in the management of the country and the people’s welfare and expectations.

      A common denominator in various proposals (by such groups as Movement for National Reformation, The Patriots, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Afenifere) is the demand for a different kind of arrangement, which will also result in a different set of practices.  I find attractive the thinking that Nigeria should devolve more power and responsibilities from the centre to the states as federating units. These states can be organized on a zonal basis, to reflect the existing six geopolitical zones, with each zone having its own government, and responsible for its own development, very much after the pattern of the regional system of the First Republic. In that sense, there will be six zones, each developing at its own pace, and making contributions to a central government whose functions will be limited to defence, foreign affairs, national security, management of national youth service, national currency, and whatever other functions as assigned to it under the new Constitution.

      A unicameral legislature at the centre will have equal number of members from each geopolitical zone, and Presidential power at the centre will be rotated from one geo-political zone to the other, for a single term each of about six years to give every geo-political zone a sense of belonging and establish the possibility of greater inclusiveness and access to power. This will be a matter of law not convention, and to cure the mischief of likely secession by any geo-political zone, the indivisibility of Nigeria will be retained in the new Constitution, and in any case, since the various geo-political zones are not necessarily homogenous in all respects, internal complexities may serve as a bulwark against the threat of secession. The zones should not be carved out on an ethnic basis.

     In the new Nigeria that many are asking for, the President of Nigeria will no longer function as a monarch, exercising extra-ordinary executive powers. The Federal Government will also not need to own and manage offices, vehicles, universities, colleges, guest houses, and resorts in every city. Resources will be owned and managed at the zonal level and revenue contributions made for the maintenance of the Federal Government at an agreed ratio, thus, the focus of development will shift to the geo-political zones and communities. The Federal Government won’t have to construct and maintain roads, dig boreholes, provide water and electricity or feed school children: government will be decentralized with each zonal government bearing the responsibility for the welfare of the people within its jurisdiction. These details can be negotiated once there is a commitment to change and a broad consensus on what exactly will work for Nigeria. 

     When that change comes, we will all still remain Nigerians, united by the ideals of freedom and unity, but the long-term ideal will be to ensure that no one feels cheated or oppressed, and that the country, stable, peaceful and properly re-federalized, comes first in every circumstance. Until this objective is achieved, we may well be labouring in vain to build a nation.

DIRECTORATE OF ORIENTATION ORGANISES WORKSHOP FOR INFORMATION OFFICERS

Information Officers deployed to Ministries, Departments and Agencies in Delta state have been called upon to brace up to the new trend of the new media, especially social media so as to ensure effective and proper interpretation and dissemination of the policy thrust of the present administration.

The Secretary to the Delta state Government, Hon. Festus Ovie Agas, gave this charge while declaring open a 3day workshop/Training for Public Relations Officers and Public Enlightenment Officers in the various Ministries and the 25 local Government Councils across the state.

While declaring the workshop on Website Management entitled: 'Enhancing Information Management through information and Communication Technology for State Ministries, Parastatals and Local Government Councils', open, the SSG noted that the state website has been upgraded, adding that it was a veritable window through which the world could assess the state and urged Officers to take the training seriously so as to be able to interpret the Agenda of the present administration to the world through the effective use of the  media via  ICT. 

Hon Agas noted that government organized the workshop in order to equip the Officers with the requisite skill to properly use the ICT in bringing the desired synergy between the government and the governed through effective communication.

Earlier in his speech, the Executive Assistant , Directorate of Orientation, Barr. Eugene Uzum, noted that the advent of the Social media is such that has come to stay and stressed the need for the state Information Managers to be abreast with the proper use of it enable them do their job effectively and make the government, the governed and by extension, the world be on the same page.

Delta State set to establish investment development agency, says Gov. Okowa

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has disclosed that the Delta State Investment Development Agency will soon be established to harness investment potentials in the state.

The Governor who stated this when he received on courtesy visit the Swiss Consular General, His Excellency Yves Nicolet on Tuesday [26-07-16] in Asaba said that the state Investment Development Agency amendment Bill was before the House Of Assembly and would be approved in the next few weeks.

Governor Okowa receiving the wiss Consular general, Yves Nocolet to his office.
With them is Mr. Obiago Afam, .

He explained that the agency would  liaise with the organised private sector, embassies and investors the world over to utilise the investment opportunities and grow the state economy. “We will soon establish the Delta state Investment Development Agency whose Amendment Bill is before the House of Assembly and will be passed within the next few weeks. The agency will liaise with the organised private sector, embassies, investors from around the world to improve bi-lateral and investment relationship in the state”, the governor said.

Governor Okowa explained that given the recent financial challenges facing the country due to dwindling oil price, the state has embarked on the diversification of its economy through the agricultural sector using commercial farmers and other farmers on the ground stressing that “in the next few years, they will act as a pivot to aggregate our output, export our produce, improve our revenue  and the life of the peasant farmers”

He commended the Consular-General on the visit and assured him of the state readiness to partner with Swiss companies and investors to develop the state economy describing the state as the Economic hub of the South- South region with the best enabling investment environment.

Earlier, His Excellency, Yves Nicolet told Governor Okowa that he was in the state to explore its economic potentials stressing that the Swiss Government was interested in improving the bi-lateral trade relationship with Nigeria and diversify its investments to other states apart from Lagos.

Minister urges Delta Govt. to institute ICT policy, innovation fund

The Minister of Communication, Mr Adebayo Shittu, has urged the Delta Government to institute a special fund for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) policy and Innovation.

Shittu made the call at the public presentation of Delta State Technology Innovation Hub and Hall of Fame in Asaba.

Okowa, receiving Mr. Adebayo Shittu and Mr. Leo Stan Rkeh in his office.

He said that instituting the ICT policy and innovation fund would enable the state to key into the Federal Government’s scheme.

The minister expressed the ministry’s commitment toward making Nigerians embrace ICT innovation, and advised the state government to train the youths, especially the females in ICT.

``I am happy that the governor of Delta State has developed a platform to assist and support ICT development and that he will drive the process through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP).

``To further promote the development of this ICT Hub, I will request you to initiate a state ICT development fund to drive the innovation in the state and to ensure that this hub attracts the federal innovation funding.

``I will also appeal to the governor to mandate the Ministry of Energy to give constant power supply to the hall for effective operation of the facilities.

``There is need to establish a state ICT policy, sponsor ICT competitions and awareness training for youths, women and the girl child," Shittu said.

Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa, said that the state ICT Innovation Hub would be driven through PPP arrangement.

Okowa said that the state government would constantly be in touch with the Federal Ministry of Communication, adding that the whole idea was geared toward diversified economy.

He applauded the minister and the Zenith Bank Plc., for donating the complex to the state government, assuring them that government would make effective use of the technology centre.

``We are trying to make the Ministry of Science and Technology in the state more relevant because we realised the potential that lies therein.

``This initiative seeks idea on sustainable development instead of leaning on oil, the innovation is critical for long term economic growth and sustainable development in both the developed and the developing world.

``It will foster regional and international competitiveness, create employment and resolve social conflicts in any giving society," Okowa said.

Okowa said that the ICT was aimed at knowledge-based economy and poverty reduction in the state.

He, therefore, called on the stakeholders to support the the initiatives so as to succeed in the state.

Okowa gave assurance that the state ICT fund would be established and that all who had made their marks in the technology sector would be recognised.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Science and Technology, Mr Joyce Overah, said that State Innovation Hub was a PPP initiative between the state government and Mobile Software Solutions Limited.

Overah said that the hub provided expertise on Science Technology and Innovation, ICT policies.(NAN)

Greedy politicians creating hardship for workers, says Wabba

The President of the Nigerian Labour congress (NLC), Mr Ayuba Wabba, has said that greed by political offices holders has continued to create hardship and exploitation of workers in the country. Wabba said this at the International Trade Union Congress (ITUC-Africa) Regional Conference on "Advancing Decent Work in Global Supply Chain in Africa ' which began in Abuja on Monday. The conference was organised by the NLC in collaboration with ITUC-Africa.

Comrade Ayuba Wabba, NLC President.

Wabba said that there was therefore an urgent need to end corporate greed at all levels of the nation’s governance system.

He also said the ills and inequalities of multinational enterprises had left scars on the people.

‎"Comrades and friends, on the issue of fighting to halt and ultimately end corporate greed, we are all witnesses to the ills and iniquities of multinational enterprises.

``From 2007-08 when corporate greed and market rascality plunged the world into a financial and, later, harrowing economic crisis, working men and women, pensioners and communities suffered immense losses.

`` Till date, the miseries and hardship caused by their reckless and greedy actions left have scars on people, households, communities and economies,” he said.

Wabba blamed politicians for “offensive concessions to businesses and providing them tax havens.

‎``Shockingly, rather than side with their people, constituents and constituencies, politicians and governments have continued to make obscene and offensive concessions to businesses.”

He said that the elites have been providing them tax havens to hide their criminal and corrupt wealth and loot.

``For the poor and other citizens, they have rewarded them with damning, hard and biting austerity measures,” Wabba said.

He said that this had resulted in stagnant living and working conditions with the poor getting poorer, whilst the rich, richer at the expense and damnation of the poor.

Wabba said that African trade unions have longed resolved to move away from lamentation and self-pity.

``We have warmly welcomed the initiative of the ITUC to aggressively drive this campaign aimed at halting and reversing corporate greed and their effects on workers, women, our communities and economies, ''he said.

Mrs Sharan Burrow, General Secretary, ITUC-Africa , in her address , urged African leaders to address the issues of social security, minimum wage, inequality, unemployment as it affect workers in their countries.

Burrow said this was imperative due to the economic recession that had affected the world globally.

``Since the global crises, the global economy is simply failing; there has been massive unemployment and inequality in the Africa and around the world.

``Internally Generated Revenue have continue to drop in the global economy and that means something is sick in the heart of the economy and that means it is corruption and greed.

`` So, unless the wealth is share and there is social protection and a living minimum wage, only then that workers will live with dignity, ''she said.

She also identified “greed of major corporations who paid their workers with poverty wages and takes no responsibility for over 94 per cent of their workers who make their wealth for them.

``We want to say that this is unacceptable and we want to say to them that this must change.''
She called on Africa government to stand by the workers and ensure that the working people have the fundamentals of social protection to support a minimum wage that would enable them to live with dignity.

She said that government must allow collective bargaining rights, rule of law, where the court system would work quickly and efficiently to resolve industrial disputes.

``This is a simply receipt that ITUC and the ILO called decent work and it is increasingly missing from countries here and everywhere.

``When I hear that local government and states government are not paying workers or are cutting salaries it breaks my heart because this is the wage that they worked for.

``So, we stand with the Nigerian workers to renegotiate the minimum wage, to say that taxes are paid by corporate organisations, social security law are implemented with efficient tripartite system that would work, ''she added. (NAN)

Okowa calls for diversification of economy at Delta Innovation Hub presentation

DELTA State Governor, Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa has advocated a paradigm shift from dependence on revenue from oil to revenue generation from knowledge-based development.

The governor dropped the hint Monday (25/07/16) in Asaba at the public presentation of the Delta State Innovation Hub (DS-HUB) cum commissioning of Innovation Hall of Fame and the e-Government Academy.

Governor Okowa (left), welcoming Communications Minister, Adebayo Shittu, and
 Mr. Leo Stan Ekeh to his office.

Communications Minister, Barr.  Adebayo Shittu, accompanied by leading names in Information Communication Technology (ICT) world including Leo Stan Ekeh of Zenox Computers, Ms Funke Opeke of Mainone, Prof. Pat Utomi, Prof. Sola Aderounmu to Asaba for the programme.

According to the governor, “Delta State Innovation Hub – from Oil to Knowledge-based Development is important in our state because, innovation is critical for long-term economic growth and sustainable development in both developed and the developing world.”

He added: “It fosters regional, national and global competitiveness, creates employment and helps to address and resolve major social conflicts in any given society.”

“In moving away from oil to a knowledge-based development, there is a comprehensive economic development blueprint and strategy to build technologically based skill capacities, support and empower entrepreneurs, generate new employment model for our youth, create wealth and reduce poverty.

“In driving the state’s economy, we are developing an innovation and science agenda as a key component in bridging the huge gaps and deficiencies in our education, health, industry, entertainment, governance, social and state security systems,” he stated.

Governor Okowa commended ICT experts for their interests in partnering with his administration to develop an innovation hub and create job opportunities, stating that the “Innovation Hub - DS-IHUB - can attain noble heights if we put our minds to work and in moving this project forward, we will rely on the support and patronage of Delta State citizens at home and in the Diaspora, entrepreneurs, the academia, students, industry leaders, stakeholders, and indeed, all friends of Delta State, to ensure that this enviable knowledge venture is not only successful, but significantly beneficial to all concerned and sustainable for generations yet unborn.”

Governor Okowa in red cap with the minister and his entourage and the Deputy
Governor and the SSG, Mr. Festus Agas.

He specifically, called for sponsorship to enable the state “establish a Delta State Innovation Development Fund – IDF; encourage all youths to acquire computer skills and encourage e-governance and digital literacy skills in the civil service and other institutions; because it is worthy to inform you that we are having full benefits of ICT as our land administration is being fully digitalized, with greater ease of doing business.”

Those who spoke at the occasion including, the Minister for Communications, Mr Ekeh, Prof. Utomi, Ms Opeke, Prof. Aderunmu and others lauded the state government initiative in diversying its economy through ICT, pledging to support the initiative and provide the platform for the growth of ICT in the state.

The Director-General of DS-HUB, Mr. Chris Uwaje had earlier said the innovation hub was in line with Governor Okowa’s SMART agenda reiterating, “DS-HUB is a unique knowledge factory with an enabling environment specially designed for originating innovation, building inno-passion, developing creativity and promoting information sharing for building functional new knowledge for the delivery of all-inclusive technology solutions and support services.

“Our faculties includes: e-government, ICT innovation platform, software & auto-card platform, multimedia centre, business process platform, e-library, research & e-learning centre, CBT practice & mentoring centre,” Mr Uwaje said.

The Minister for Communications, Barr. Shittu Adebayo on arrival in Asaba paid a courtesy call on Governor Ifeanyi Okowa.

Edo guber: PDP, Ize-Iyamu flaunt their might

By  Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, The Guardian   

• Daunting rally resonates in central senatorial district
• Royal fathers queue behind candidate
• Sends signal about determination to take over Osadebey House

The last two weeks have been one of the busiest politically for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State as it strives to win back the state which it lost to then opposition Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) now All Progressives Congress (APC) almost eight years ago.

Governorship candidate of PDP, Edo State, middled with PDP chieftains at a rally. 

Observers believe that Ize-Iyamu was diligently capitalising on his popularity among young professionals, many of the elites and students to boost his chances. He has young minds that are passionately committed to his course through the social media and several blogs where his campaign activities inundate.

Before he got the ticket, he made it a habit to visit very popular drinking spots within the city centre. Ize-yamu has been traversing the nooks and cranny of the state trying to convince voters and party supporters why they should vote for him and his party as against his erstwhile political ally, Adams Oshiomhole, the All Progressives Congress (APC) which he actively participated in enthroning, and their governorship candidate, Godwin Obaseki.

He launched his campaign at the Baptist Convention auditorium in Benin City, penultimate week where the leadership of his party vowed to mobilise its members and Edo people to vote out the APC-led government in the state on the grounds that the outgoing Oshiomhole’s government has failed the people.Former Foreign Affairs Minister, Tom Ikimi claimed that Oshiomhole betrayed them in the first four years and had to beg for him to get their support for his second term.

Senator Matthew Urhoghide alleged that Oshiomhole was ungrateful to all of them who supported him to power, while former Minister of Information, Prof. Jerry Gana, said that the High court verdict that affirmed the removal of Sheriff was a good sign that victory was in sight for PDP.

Earlier the state chairman of the party, Chief Dan Orbih flayed Governor Oshiomhole for allegedly denying PDP the use of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium as venue for the event.Addressing the mammoth crowd, Ize-Iyamu promised to give the people a change that would not result in hardship for them nor perpetuate unemployment. He said he would ensure women empowerment, industrialization, agricultural development, guarantee security, fairness to all sections of the state and to restore the lost glory of the state as well as dignity and respect for the traditional institution.

In Auchi, Edo North, few days after, Ize-Iyamu blamed Oshiomhole for decimating the state civil service from 13,000 that his government inherited, to less than 2,000 currently.On his part, Orbih, accused Oshiomhole of dividing Edo North, noting that the governor was guilty of picking out Etsako West Local Government Area for development among the six local government areas in the area, even as he added that in Etsako West council, the governor only focused on his native Iyamho village, which he said is just one of the 28 villages that make up the Uzaure clan.

The campaign train stormed Uromi, headquarters of Esan North East local government where the Enijie (traditional rulers) called for support for Ize-Iyamu and his deputy, John Yakubu at the palace of Ojuromi of Uromi, HRM Zaiki Aidenojie.

The Okpuje Primary School ground where the rally held was a carnival of a sort as the traditional Esan acrobatic dancers known as Igbabonelimi entertained the crowd with their dances and throws which added colour to the campaign while the leaders visited the traditional rulers.Present at the palace of the first class monarch, were the Enijies of Irrua, Igueben, Ekpoma, Ubiaja, Uromi, Ewu, Ewossa, Ewatto, Urohi, Ebelle, Uzea, Egoro, Idoa, Udo, Okhodua, Ujogba, Ogwa, Ekpon among others.

Orbih lamented the alleged “total neglect” of Esan people noting that the APC has not appointed an Esan person into any position of significance. According to him, the only position, which they struggled on their own to attain, was the speakership of the House of Assembly but the APC took it away on the instruction of Oshiomhole.

The PDP chairman stated that the PDP decided to choose their deputy governor from Esanland as a part of the healing and reintegration process for the Esan people to redress the injustices of the past perpetrated by the APC administration in the state.Ize-Iyamu bewailed the seeming disregard of the senatorial district by Oshiomhole, alleging that it was happening at a period when the state received very high allocation, ten times higher than previous administrations.

“Education and agriculture are some of the brands of Esanland. 2008 till now, the APC government of Adams Oshiomhole totally neglected the Ambrose Alli University. Oshiomhole has done everything to destroy whatever was left in Esanland.

“What the government of Edo state has spent in Esanland is eight per cent of the budget. For the government to spend eight percent in a senatorial district that is one of the three districts is the apogee of insult to the Esan people. I have seen schools being commissioned; I have not seen a laboratory. I will build and commission schools with laboratories and libraries when we come on board. My deputy John Yakubu shall not be a spare tyre but a co-pilot,” Ize-Iyamu asserted.

A national leader of PDP, Chief Tony Anenih thanked the Esan monarchs for their support describing Ize-Iyamu as “a man whom I have studied over the years. He is a man who says yes in the morning and it is yes in the afternoon and yes in the evening. He is a man of God.”

Speaking on behalf of the Royal fathers in Esanland, His Royal Majesty, Aidonojie, Ojuromi of Uromi, welcomed the PDP leaders and their colourful campaign train to Esanland, noting that the Ize-Iyamu had direct relationship with virtually all the enigie of Esanland.

He said: “Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu is son of the former Esogban of Benin kingdom without blemish. Your father did not betray the palace. We trust you that you will not betray us. Esan nation are part and parcel of this state. We the people of Esan are very unhappy at the relegation of the Esan people in the state. When you become Governor of Edo state we urge you to correct the ills committed against us. We are very happy that you took one of our sons and we will say thank you to you, not just by words of mouth, we will use our PVCs (permanent voters’ cards).”

28 traditional rulers from the area gathered to receive the PDP governorship candidate at the palace of the Ojuromi of Uromi. There was one dissenting voice in Onojie of Opoji and Vice Chairman, Edo State Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs, His Royal Highness (HRH), Ehidiamen Aidonojie 1, who claimed that the royal fathers have not endorsed Ize-Iyamu.

At Otuo, Afuze and Ihievbe in Owan East local government area, Ize-Iyamu promised the reactivation and repositioning of the College of Physical Education, Afuze‎ also known as Afuze Sports Centre, if elected.

He said it was shameful that Oshiomhole neglected the Afuze facility, which helped put Edo on the Sporting map of the world.“Enough is enough. Oshiomhole has treated Owan people as if they don’t exist. The support you gave him has he given you anything in return? This time around if they offer you money to vote for APC take it and vote against them” .

It is incongruous that in all the campaign trails, the issue has been Ize-Iyamu versus Oshiomhole. One would have expected to see a scenario where both Ize-Iyamu and Obaseki were put on a scale and weighed to see how they performed with respect to tackling the challenges confronting Edo people.

Observers believe that Edo senatorial district would be the battleground and perhaps the decider for who wins or lose in the September 10 election. Edo central senatorial district might easily go the way of PDP given the acceptance of party there and the generally perceived impression of having been neglected by the Oshiomhole administration, while Edo north senatorial district would be for APC to grab being the governor’s home district.

*  Culled from The Guardian

Why my regime was toppled in 1985, by BuhariMuhammadu

President Muhammadu Buhari

• Says Babangida, Gusau were arrowheads of the coup

President Muhammadu Buhari may have stirred the hornets’ nest when yesterday, he declared he was removed from office on August 27, 1985 because he was planning to purge the military hierarchy of corruption.

He specifically pointed a finger at two of his top subordinates in the army then, former Chief of Army Staff, General Ibrahim Babangida and two-time National Security Adviser (NSA), General Aliyu Gusau, as arrowheads who toppled his military government in August 1985 to save themselves from his wrath.

Buhari in the ongoing anti-corruption battle, seems to have finally taken on the military, 31 years after.In an interview published in the current edition of The Interview magazine, Buhari challenged Babangida and Gusau to tell the truth as to why they carried out the coup against him.

In a statement on www.theinterview.com.ng, the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of The Interview, Azu Ishiekwene, said: “This is one edition that won’t let sleeping dogs lie.”

Azu was part of the top editors of national dailies, who were at the State House to interview the President on the heels of his first anniversary in office.The President was quoted in the statement as having said: “I learnt that Aliyu Gusau, who was in charge of intelligence, took import licence from the Ministry of Commerce which was in charge of supplies and gave it to Alhaji Mai Deribe, a Maiduguri-based businessman, who has since passed on.

“It was worth N100,000, a lot of money at that time. I confronted them and took the case to the Army Council in a memo. I wanted Gusau punished.”Azu’s statement had quoted Babangida as having told The Interview in its December edition that there was nothing in the memo, which, Buhari said he submitted to the Army council.

“Don’t forget that I was one of Buhari’s closest aides. I was the Chief of Army Staff. So, I had an important position, an important role to play within that administration. I don’t think it had to do with a memo,” Babangida said.

But throwing a challenge which revealed that the past may neither have been forgotten nor forgiven, Buhari dares Babangida and Gusau to come clean on why they removed him, asking The Interview to choose whose story to believe.

Source: The Guardian

IBORI TRIUMPHS AGAIN, AS FORMER LAWYER AWARDED £20,000 BY UK GOVT FOR UNLAWFUL IMPRISONMENT

Mr. Gohil

The alleged conspiracy against former Delta State governor Chief James Ibori, which led to his indictment and incarceration in a London prison, has continued to unravel as a former solicitor Bhadresh Gohil, who was linked to the high-profile prosecution of the former governor, has received £20,000 from the UK Crown Prosecution Service, after claims he was wrongly deprived of his liberty.

The extraordinary payment is just the latest twist in a legal case that has led to investigations into allegations of police corruption and a cover-up of key evidence which would have arguably resulted in a different judgment in the ruling to jail Chief Ibori in London.

Chief James Ibori

Convicted of money laundering, Mr. Gohil was expecting to be released from prison on bail in November, 2015 having served half his sentence for fraud and money laundering, but the prosecution barrister, Sasha Wass QC had applied for the bail ruling to be revoked, less than a week before the release date.

This has prompted Mr. Gohil’s defence team to argue in a bail hearing that the prosecution had “manipulated dishonestly and in bad faith” the process by repeatedly telling the court that unconditional bail was unopposed, in response to the submission by Sasha Wass at same hearing, who had told the judge that she had made it plain that the Crown “would be seeking to review bail when the halfway point of Mr. Gohil’s sentence arose”.

“The defence were [put] on notice that the question of bail would be revisited,” the CPS prosecutor told the court.

Both Scotland Yard and the Crown Prosecution Service deny any wrongdoing, but the Crown Prosecution Service has now agreed to pay Mr. Gohil £20,000 “in full and final settlement” of claims that he was unlawfully detained for 33 days between 20 November and 22 December 2015. Bail was finally granted just before Christmas.

However, the CPS states that it “makes no admission of liability or of any wrongdoing” by its staff or counsel instructed by the service.

A payment of £20,000 in a case where an individual is deprived of his liberty for 33 days as a result of claims of misconduct by the Crown is significantly higher than might be expected for “basic damages”.

Mr. Gohil was jailed for 10 years in 2010 for helping Nigerian politician James Ibori launder millions in money that had been corruptly obtained.

Ibori was also jailed for 13 years in 2012 having pleaded guilty to laundering millions in the UK through the purchase of property and expensive cars.

While in prison, Mr. Gohil anonymously sent documents to the authorities which purported to show police officers investigating James Ibori had accepted bribes from private detectives hired by the man they were pursuing.

Following a £1m investigation by Scotland Yard’s Department of Professional Standards, Mr. Gohil was accused of forging the documents and subsequently charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Prosecutors alleged that he had faked the documents to try to get his conviction overturned on appeal.

The CPS “makes no admission of liability or wrongdoing” by its staff or counsel instructed by the service

However, the Crown Prosecution Service abandoned a planned trial in January this year amid defense claims that crucial evidence of alleged police corruption had been covered up.

In May this year, the CPS acknowledged that it had intelligence that “supports the assertion” that a Metropolitan Police officer was paid for information.

Det. Sgt John McDonald, who had headed the investigation into James Ibori, was then removed from the National Crime Agency’s International Corruption Unit, where he had been on secondment.

A review of Det Sgt McDonald’s status was initiated and the Metropolitan Police has confirmed that the review has been completed and the officer has now been deployed to an operational post in its specialist crime and operations unit.

Det. Sgt McDonald has always denied any wrongdoing.

The National Crime Agency is currently conducting a review into alleged evidence of police corruption, as well as claims that the CPS withheld key evidence from defense lawyers and whether the convictions of James Ibori and others including Bhadresh Gohil are safe.

This latest decision to award Mr. Bhadresh Gohil, Ibori’s former lawyer, the sum of £20,000 by UK Govt for unlawful imprisonment, is indeed for Ibori and clearly indicates that there is indeed more to process of trial and subsequent decision to incarcerate the former Delta state governor, than meets the eye.

Recall that the Ibori trial was to take a new twist recently when the Southwark Crown Court, London, earlier this year, ruled to suspend the start of the confiscation hearing against him, until the conclusion of the investigation of corruption, and misleading the court, charges against the British Police and the Prosecution in jailing the former Delta State governor.

Chief James Onanaefe Ibori’s defense lawyers had shocked the Southwark Court, London, when they adduced evidence before Judge Tomlinson of a conspiracy between Nigeria and Britain to railroad Ibori and his associates to jail and the court proceedings had been delayed for hours because the London Metropolitan Police and the Crown Prosecution Service, suddenly turned lukewarm and refused to appear in court for the day’s hearing.

A statement issued by Chief Ibori’s spokesperson, Mr. Tony Eluemunor had said that a thoroughly disappointed Judge Tomlinson had been left with no option when the prosecution lawyers had dilly-dallied over appearing in court to address a case of professional misconduct, dishonesty, perverting the course of justice and criminal non-disclosures, lying to the trial court and Court of Appeal, which the crown court had described as ‘serious and urgent’.

The worst charge so far against the British prosecution had been made, according to Eluemunor, when the court resumed by 2p.m., and Mr. Kamish, counsel to Ibori’s former lawyer, Badresh Gohil, had dropped the bombshell when he revealed a sinister conspiracy between Nigeria and Britain to railroad Ibori and associates to jail.

He had then backed this up by pointing at a document signed by British and Nigerian governments agreeing that the Department for International Development will be paid 25 million Pounds Sterling from money that will be confiscated from Ibori, before any penny is ever remitted to Nigeria.

The two prosecutors, Sasha Wass and Esther Schutzer-Weissmann and in fact, all the prosecution lawyers plus the entire police officers that have represented the British Police, were not only at the end of finger-pointing, but had all been dismissed from the Ibori case and all other cases stemming from it, following allegations of corruption against them, including lies and deliberate misleading of the court and their activities are now being challenged in court for grounds of upturning all the convictions – Ibori’s and his associates’.

The court had also held that issues raised, on behalf of Mr. Ibori was that the predecessor of the new prosecution lawyer, Mr Kinnear, had manipulated proceedings, are no longer a discreet matter, since allegations that previous counsel either misled or manipulated the court to abort the proceeding had been widely published and reported in major media outfits and cannot be allowed to go away.

The Court had then ordered a “Review which will be internal to the London Metropolitan Police, but the mass media whose exactions over the years have been drumming that the review be made, will still be there to watch and ensure that nothing inappropriate is swept under the carpet”.

With these recent developments therefore, Ibori now stands a good chance of having his guilty plea and conviction revisited and probably quashed if the Review into Disclosure and Police Corruption establishes that indeed there has been failings leading to corruption on the part of the British police during investigation and the Prosecution deliberately withheld the materials used against Ibori, just to manipulate the court in securing Ibori’s conviction.

Beyond all else, the conclusion of the Review will pave the way for Ibori’s defense team to appeal against his conviction and seek to quash it. No matter how embarrassing this may be to Britain and her anti-corruption stance, the mass media’s crusade that the rule of law has to be respected even when a government is fighting corruption and that any society that condones police corruption is already mired in corruption, is bearing fruit. Even the British Parliament is watching the case as the members of its hallowed chambers have also discussed it.

The case is likely to resume in October after the outcome of the Review and Ibori’s defense team will decide on how to proceed with the outcome.

Source: Flashpoint News online