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Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko, yesterday
called on Nigerian women to rebuild the country, first by building a
strong homefront and by employing activism.

Mr Mimiko, speaking in Lagos at the 10th annual
National Women Conference, organised by the Committee of Wives of Lagos
State Officials (COWLSO), identified poor upbringing and deficient
personality esteem as the psychological reason why political office
holders abuse their offices and steal public funds. The theme of the
conference is ‘Celebrating the Passionate Woman.’ He said the existing
value system and family structure in the country cannot imbue the young
with the requirement for prudent management of public funds. “The
building of a country starts with a family,” he said. “It is only in
this part of the world that leaders will steal more than three or four
generations need. This is very unfortunate. Such leader indeed has
personality problems and defective background. They steal more than
what three or four generation can spend. And the consequence brings
about sufferings for several millions.”

The role of women

He credited his election victory, partly, to the
protest staged by half-naked Ondo State women in 2007 on the
Benin-Akure Road, and posited that women must take on activism role and
stand against all forms of social injustice and electoral frauds which
he said are responsible for the “untold hardships” Nigerians are
suffering. “If women can protest naked, this country will shake,” he
said. “And there will be desired change we pray to witness. Change will
not come in this country until women fully get involved in political
activism.” Mr Mimiko also praised the country’s judicial system for
favourably determining the petition he filed against “the usurper of
the mandate my people gave me.”

In his goodwill message, Babatunde Fashola, the Lagos State
Governor, admired the passion of Lagos women which has produced, not
only “loving wives and devoted mothers” but also key positions, like
the deputy governor, secretary to the state government, deputy speaker
of the legislative house, chief judge, and commissioners, in the
state’s public service. “It is only passion that one finds in women
that can propel such commitment to public causes and still leave them
with a reserve of energy and commitment for them to remain loving
wives,” he said. “Truly, if there is yet a glass ceiling to be
shattered, Lagos women have broken many, and are sending the clearest
possible message that whatever may remain is certainly attainable.”

The Kuramo Conference 2010 will be hosted in
Nigeria’s commercial capital between November 2 and 4, 2010, to address
issues on the recovery of stolen wealth by corrupt officials, as this
has been identified as a critical factor hampering the growth of many
economies of the developing nations.

This was made known by the chairman of the organising
committee of the conference, Olasupo Shasore, the Attorney General and
Commissioner for Justice, Lagos State, while addressing journalists on
the planning of the conference.

The Kuramo Conference is an international Colloquium
on Law and Development and it aims to identify and examine emerging
concepts and new developments in contemporary issues in criminal
jurisdiction, economic and social rights, especially as it concerns
unbridled corruption among African leaders.

The key speaker at the conference will be the
founding partner of a Miami, Florida-based Law firm, Astigarraga Davis,
Edward Davis, Jr., who will be speaking on the subject of ‘Recovery of
Stolen Wealth’ within the realm of legal arms.

Other discussants will include a former jurist of the
World Court in Hague, Bola Ajibola; the managing partner of the Legal
Resources Consortium, Olawale Fapohunda; and Oba Nsugbe, QC.

Plenary speakers are the president, International
Commission of Jurists and first female president of the Republic of
Ireland, Mary Robinson; a global civil rights activist, Jesse Jackson;
and a former UK Secretary for Treasury and British High Commissioner to
South Africa, Lord Paul Boateng.

The chairman, Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, Emmanuel Ayoola, will chair the conference.

A renowned Nollywood star, Anayo Onyekwere, popularly
called Kanayo O. Kanayo, on Wednesday in Lagos declared interest to
contest the Ahiazu/ Ezinihitte Mbaise Federal Constituency in Imo in
the 2011 polls.

He told journalists that he would vie for the
position on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). Mr
Onyekwere said his foray into politics was informed by the passion to
serve his people and also correct what he called a twin scourge of
under-representation and misrepresentation in the area.

He said there was need for a change in the leadership of the constituency to reflect the mood of the nation.

“My candidacy was borne out of the realisation that
men of conscience do not have to keep quiet when everything seems to be
going wrong.

“What is needed this time in Ahiazu/Ezinihitte
Mbaise is not brawn but, face and voice that can bring back confidence
and hope to the people,’’ he said.

“If people believe that I have done well as an actor, then the story can serve as a role model for our youths.’’

The foremost actor famed for his action packaged and
diabolical roles in movies called for a re-orientation of youths toward
acquiring quality education and working hard to change the country’s
system.

Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, on Wednesday,
decried the smear campaign against him and his family by some faceless
politicians and threatened to take legal action soon.

The presidential aspirant said in a statement issued
by the Atiku Abubakar Campaign Organisation in Abuja, that the
campaigns, which are both prosecuted online and in newspapers, are
carefully orchestrated and well-funded by the unnamed politicians and
are aimed at frustrating his political ambition.

“The smear campaign against Atiku through newspapers
(online and hard copies), text messages, e-mails, posters and
pamphlets, among others is the handiwork of political opponents, who
are mortally afraid of Atiku’s political ascendancy,” the statement
said. “It is most unfortunate that these politicians will not take on
Atiku on the issues of governance and welfare of Nigerians, which he
has made the hallmark of his campaign.” The statement quoted Mr Atiku
as saying that he will not be deterred in his commitment to an
issue-based campaign that will focus on the concerns and welfare of
Nigerians and the future of the country.

The former vice president said that formal complaints
have been lodged with security agencies to identify the faceless
sponsors of the campaigns and called on Nigerians to dismiss the
allegations.

While noting that his lawyers have taken legal notice
of these smear campaigns, he also warned that he will not hesitate to
drag any Global System of Mobile Telecommunication company that makes
itself available for use in the propagation of these libellous
materials against him and his family to court.

“We challenge the sponsors of this campaign of calumny to show
courage, put their faces and names to the claims and substantiate them.
Anonymity and cowardice are not attributes of leadership. Those who lay
claims to leadership should not be afraid to stake the basis of their
claims in public,” he said.

The Ogun State
government has, for the fifth time in the last one month, postponed the
much publicized official visit of President Goodluck Jonathan to the
state without giving any reason.

The state
government through the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Sina
Kawonise had announced that the planned visit, initially scheduled for
September 16 was shifted to October 22 and 23.

As residents and
citizens of the state were counting down to welcoming Mr Jonathan, the
government announced that the date was not feasible and the event was
moved to October 28 and 29. Yet again, the government announced another
date, November 5 and 6.

Barely a week after announcing the November 5/6 dates, the government yesterday announced November 11 and 12 as new dates.

No reasons were
however given for the series of postponement as the President has being
visiting other states of the federation.

There are
indications that this development may have to do with the lingering
crisis within the State’s House of Assembly, as the duo of Tunji
Egbetokun and Shoyemi Coker lay claim to the office of the Speaker.

The President,
according to sources is said not to be comfortable over the ugly
development, hence, the need to find a lasting solution by the party
authority before his visit to the state. The party is yet conclude on
who is to recognized as the Speaker of the State House of Assembly at
the ceremony.

Residents who spoke on the visit, said, they are unhappy wit the frequent postponement.

According a resident, ‘all these several postponement to me seems
like April fool, for God sake how many times is government will
continue to change dates, if they like, they can even change it to next
year, am not bothered.”

The 39-year old Deputy Speaker of the
Ekiti State House of Assembly, Saliu Adeoti, is dead. Mr. Adeoti died
at about 8.30am yesterday at the University Teaching Hospital (UCH),
Ibadan, Oyo State, after a protracted illness.

The deceased, according to the Ekiti
State government, would be buried today, October 28, 2010, in his
country home, Otun Ekiti, in accordance with Islamic injunction, after
which the 8-day Fidau Prayer will be held next Wednesday.

The former Deputy Speaker, who lost his
wife in February in the same circumstance, was said to have been rushed
to the hospital on Tuesday, when it was discovered that his health was
fast degenerating.

The 39-year old former Deputy Speaker,
who was the acting Speaker during the 79-day administration of Tunji
Odeyemi as the acting governor of the State, hailed from Otun Ekiti in
Moba local government area of the state.

He graduated from the defunct Ondo
State University (OSUA), now University of Ado Ekiti (UNAD) in 1999,
with a bachelors degree in Political Science Education (BSc.Ed) and was
elected in 2007 on the platform of the Action Congress (AC) to
represent Moba Constituency 1 in the State House of Assembly.

His appointment was necessitated
following the sharing of political positions between the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) and his party in the Assembly, due to the 13/13
equal strength of the two political parties in the House.

The state government, Speaker of the
House, Mr. Odeyemi, the PDP, and the Action Congress of Nigeria, have
expressed regret over the loss of the politician, who until his death,
remained a vibrant member of the Assembly.

In a statement signed by the senior
special assistant to Governor Kayode Fayemi on media, Mojeed Jamiu, the
deceased death was described as shocking to the state government. The
statement prayed for the repose of the deceased’s spirit and prayed God
to give his family the courage to bear the loss.

In a statement signed by its director
of communications and strategy, Jackson Adebayo, of the state chapter
of the PDP, sympathized with the Oore of Mobaland, Oba Adedapo Popoola,
Adeoti’s family, and the entire Ekiti populace, over the demise of the
former Assembly member.

The chairman of the ACN in the state,
Jide Awe, described the deceased as a dependable political ally,
praising him for his steadfastness, competence, and political sagacity
during his life time.

The proposed privatization of the power
sector, which the federal authorities and lawmakers have said is
irreversible, will consume the jobs of about 50,000 employees of the
Power Holding Company of Nigeria, but the government says N135 billion
is being reserved for them.

Bart Nnaji, the special adviser to
President Goodluck Jonathan on power, listed before the members of the
House of Representatives yesterday, a barrage of failures in the
sector, which he said for years found little or no investment, and the
little that came, was almost spent on staff salaries and pension.

The total workforce is about 50,000.
The operating cost is over N8 billion – of which more than 80% goes
into staff entitlements, according to a presentation Mr. Nnaji made
before the House power committee, attended by the speaker, Dimeji
Bankole.

The Power Reform Roadmap, launched
about a month ago by Mr. Jonathan, targets raising the level of
investments in the sector, which has hovered at low levels, suffering
the worst of funding between 1989 and 1996, according to Mr. Nnaji.

Investments between those years averaged at about US$0, with 2001 drawing the highest of US$400 million since 1974.

Chief amongst government’s plan to
overhaul the sector will be to disengage almost all the workers, as the
PHCN becomes privatised, with a proposed severance package of $900
million reserved for the workers.

“There are areas which we want you to
help us and the issue with labour,” Mr. Nnaji told the lawmakers at a
meeting that aimed at canvassing lawmakers support to restart the
suspended Electricity Power Sector Reform Act, 2005.

“We have laid out a plan for dealing
with labour in a way that will bring comfort to anybody that is an
employee with PHCN. So that in this partnership, that the NASS help us
to educate the workers and the Nigerian public.” Mr. Nnaji said.

In his response, Mr. Bankole faulted
the presidency for launching the reform without the collaboration of
the National Assembly, and accused the government of frustrating a
power probe carried out by the House as he took reins in 2007.

“We were not consulted when you were
putting this together, and I think that is the first problem with this
document. The power issue is not an executive problem, it is a
government problem and, therefore, the legislature and the executive
should be sitting to brainstorm before even this document comes up.

“Because we have spent a better time of
this session on the power sector for almost two years in the House and
we came up with some conclusions and those reports were sent to the
executive. Till today, I don’t know of any executive team that have
consulted the House on that report, and I know that the executive will
spend more money on the power sector since that time, and yet there is
no power,” Mr. Bankole complained.

The report was suspended in the House
after the power committee, initially headed by Ndudi Elumelu, indicted
key past and present government officials. A new committee raised by
Mr. Bankole exonerated the officials who included the former president,
Olusegun Obasanjo, and the Cross River State governor, Liyel Imoke.

Mr. Bankole said the sector had failed
due to lack of consultations between the executive and the legislature.
He made a case for Nigerians who will lose jobs when power supply is
improved.