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Group demands urgency in procurement of election equipment

The Conference of
Nigeria Political Parties, yesterday, asked the Independent National
Electoral Commission to immediately award the final contract for the
procurement of Direct Data Capture machines and accessories for the
forthcoming voters registration.

The group, however,
commended the electoral body for collaborating with the Bureau for
Public Procurement to appraise the companies bidding for the supply of
the machines in order to guarantee appropriate pricing and quality.

In a release by its
spokesperson, Osita Okechukwu, in Abuja, the CNPP argued that its
shocking that neither the basic award of the contract for procurement
of the equipment was yet to be concluded nor had the training of staff
for the voters registration, initially scheduled for next month before
INEC sought for postponement, commenced.

“CNPP frowns at a
sordid scenario where the National Voters Registration exercise which
could have commenced November 1st a few days time but for the extension
of time; neither the basic award of the contract for the procurement of
the equipment is yet to be concluded nor the training of the staff has
commenced,” it said.

The group said the
electoral body’s collaboration with the procurement bureau to appraise
the 12 companies bidding for the supply of the machines would guarantee
appropriate pricing, quality, value for money and maintenance.

It commended the
commission INEC for selecting an indigenous company – Zinox Technology
– to lead the two other companies which would procure the equipment,
adding as an indigenous company, the company would empower mostly
Nigerians with technological know-how since maintenance would be better
guaranteed and retention of profit would be higher.

“We salute INEC, when we understand that Zinox presented the best
bid both in terms of pricing and proving record of procuring the same
machines at short notice in the midst of confusion for INEC in 2006. As
an indigenous company with offices across the federation we can easily
hold Zinox responsible for any default,” the CNPP said.

Jonathan, Atiku trade words on economy again

Jonathan, Atiku trade words on economy again

A former vice
president and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential aspirant,
Atiku Abubakar has again raised the alarm over the state of the
nation’s economy, and warned that unless something drastic was done, it
might collapse. Mr Abubakar, in a statement sent to media houses
yesterday by his campaign outfit, said the gloomy picture of the
nation’s economy painted by foremost rating agency, Fitch Ratings, is a
matter for urgent intervention, not politicking. But in a swift
reaction, the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign Organisation dismissed Mr
Abubakar’s warning, insisting that the economy is doing well.

Mr Abubakar said
the Fitch Ratings report of October 22, which lowered Nigeria’s
investment grade by three notches to BB-minus should be a wakeup call
to all those unaware of the true status of the nation’s economy.
“Citing the depletion of its windfall oil savings and heightened
political uncertainty ahead of elections next year,” Mr Abubakar said
it is fast becoming very urgent for the federal government to pay
serious attention to the economy.” He also recalled his earlier alert
last week following Standard & Poor’s B-plus rating. Mr. Abubakar
said, “rather than taking me seriously on the concerns I expressed, my
advice only fetched me rebuke and insults from the Jonathan Campaign
Organization.”

Lessons from history

He recounted that
it was the same defiant attitude the defunct National Party of Nigeria
(NPN)-led federal government had towards repeated calls by the then
opposition leader, late Obafemi Awolowo. According to him, “they
ignored the warnings of the late sage and when they realised it, it was
too late to save anything. That was the point at which they declared
the economic emergency that gave rise to the ‘hated austerity measures’
of that era.” Mr Abubakar, however, commended the National Assembly for
its exemplary courage in faulting the handling of the economy and poor
implementation of the current budget ahead of the latest negative
report on the economy. He said that no serious government could afford
to ignore these danger signals from international credit rating
agencies as this would amount to nonchalance. He argued that the
management of the nation’s economy, the lifeline for the sustenance of
its democracy should not be sacrificed for political expediency. “Fitch
in its latest rating of our economy said continued withdrawals from the
nation’s excess crude account, into which Nigeria saves crude oil
earnings above a benchmark price, and lower foreign exchange reserves
were a threat to economic stability,” the aspirants said, alluding to
the agency’s warning that “the depletion of the excess crude account
and continued gradual fall in international reserves at a time of high
oil prices and record high oil production is a major concern.”

Political logjam

But the spokesman
of the Jonathan/Sambo Campaign Organisation, Sully Abu, said that he
(Abubakar) is merely whipping up hysteria on the matter through
selective evidence that can in no way represent the whole picture.
“Former vice President Atiku Abubakar has kept on his drumbeat of doom
and gloom on the state of the economy. We will however not join any
polemical war by those who insist on whipping up hysteria on this or on
any other issue through use of selective evidence that can in no way
present the whole picture,” Mr Abu said. “We want to reiterate that the
fundamentals of the nation’s economy remain promising on the short term
and the long term. Fitch or not, the economy remains on the path of
strong growth.”

Oil firms launch new funding for Niger Delta

25/10/2010 nigeriang One comment

Oil firms launch new funding for Niger Delta

A new development
initiative between national and international donor agencies and
development groups in the Niger Delta region was launched at the
weekend.

Foundation for
Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND) was launched in Abuja
to provide the platform for the advancement of the new development
strategy by Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL) to help redress some of the
challenges oil and gas companies operating in the region have been
facing.

Chevron
Corporation, which recently established the Niger Delta Partnership
Initiative (NDPI) Foundation, a new five year $50 million programme to
help explore fresh socio-economic opportunities in the region, said the
initiative will work with other donor agencies in public and private
sectors to administer economic development activities for commercial
agriculture and small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) development.

Other activities,
according to its Project Director, Dennis Flemming, include capacity
building to strengthen local government agencies and civil society
organizations; peace building activities to foster stability and
reconciliation in the region; analysis and advocacy programmes to
identify socio-economic needs of the people of the region.

Mr Flemming said
the organisation will implement its programmes throughout the nine oil
producing states of the region through a careful analysis and
negotiation process to identify viable projects and the most suitable
locations for them.

A new benchmark

Managing Director
of Chevron, Andrew Fawthrop, described the initiative as, “a new
benchmark in Chevron’s approach to help deliver better social and
economic outcomes in the places where we operate”, adding that the
approach to work with other development partners will offer an
opportunity to “develop dynamic new solutions for the development
challenges faced by the Niger Delta region.

Though it is
expected to operate from two main locations – Abuja and Warri – the
initial development partners will include Ministry of Niger Delta
Affairs, German technical Corporation (GTZ), United States Agency for
International Development (USAID), United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP), World Bank, United Nation’s Global Fund and the Delta State
government.

Minister of Niger
Delta Affairs, Goodsday Orubebe, said the initiative, which is designed
to help transform the socio-economic fortunes and welfare of the people
of the Niger Delta region, was in line with what the government is
putting together in collaboration with some international development
agencies to establish the Niger Delta Trust Fund (NDTF) to help tackle
the development challenges of the region.

Enugu PDP kicks against dissolution of executive

Enugu PDP kicks against dissolution of executive

The chairman of the
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Enugu State, Vitalis Abba, has said
that the dissolution of the executive committee of the party in the
state by the national secretariat last Saturday, was the handiwork of
mischievous and self-centred elements in the state.

Mr Abba said the
people responsible for the action, who he did not name, took advantage
of a parallel executive committee to mis-represent and instigate the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) into recommending
fresh congress.

The national
secretariat of the PDP, on Saturday, announced the dissolution of the
committee. In a letter signed by Ike Abonyi, the media aide to the
national chairman, Okwesilieze Nwodo, the party also set up an
eight-member Congress Committee headed by Anthony Agbo to conduct fresh
congress. Enugu is Mr Nwodo’s home state and he was its governor in the
Third Republic.

“The Enugu State
Chapter of the party wishes to state that the said action is only but
the handiwork of mischievous and self-centered elements in the state,
who want to take advantage of a non-existent parallel executive
committee of the party in the state to misrepresent, manipulate and
instigate the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) into
recommending fresh congress of the party in Enugu State,” Mr. Abba
said.

“It is on record
that the current executive committee led by Engr. Abba was duly elected
through a process that kept faith with the composition of required
delegates for the state congress as stipulated in Article 12(40) of the
PDP Constitution,” he said.

Mr Abba also said
that the Resident Electoral Commissioner of INEC in Enugu State, Abdu
Bulama, who monitored the congress with other officials of the
commission did a report on the exercise on March 3, 2008, adding that
the executive committee had always enjoyed the confidence and support
of the national leadership of the party since its inception till-date.

He, however, argued
that it is not the prerogative of any individual to dissolve or
reconstitute a state executive committee, adding that it breaches
laid-down procedures of the party.

The sacked chairman
urged members of the party in the state to remain calm and law-abiding
as measures are being taken to resolve the issue at stake.

“In the face of the
recent contentious development, we urge our teeming party faithful in
the state to remain calm and law abiding as measures are been taken to
constitutionally resolve the extant issues. It is also what noting here
that this matter is currently before a Federal High Court in Enugu
State,” he said.

More states in trouble

Meanwhile, anxiety has gripped the executive committees of the PDP in eight other states where elections are being contended.

The states are Ogun, Kano, Adamawa, Oyo, Plateau, Imo, Bayelsa and Delta.

INEC had in a
letter signed by Regina Omo-Agege, the INEC Director in charge of
political party monitoring, to Mr Nwodo last month, criticised the
manner the committees in the states emerge, saying it breached the
provisions of the party’s constitution.

The letter
generated heat in the party, prompting the national working committee
(NWC) to meet and direct the national legal adviser, Olusola Oke, to
ask the electoral body to stay away from the matter since, according to
it, was an internal one. However, the commission insisted on the party
following the guidelines.

Reports from the affected states on Sunday, indicated that members
of the executive committees jittery that the national secretariat may
also dissolve them. A source said that some of them are planning to
visit Abuja during the week to stop their possible sack.

Allegations against Adamu shocking, says ministry

Allegations against Adamu shocking, says ministry

The alleged
involvement of Amos Adamu, a FIFA Executive Committee member and former
Director General of the National Sports Commission (NSC) in cash for
vote scandal, has been described as shocking and disturbing.

Adamu and Reynald
Temarii, President of Oceania Confederation both members of FIFA’s
24-man executive committee, scheduled to vote on December 2 for the
nations hosting the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, were on Wednesday
provisionally suspended by FIFA, the football governing body after
their appearance before the ethics committee of the body. In a
statement signed by Olukayode Thomas, the Special Assistant (Media) to
Ibrahim Bio, Minister of Sports and Chairman of the NSC, the federal
government expressed dismay at the alleged involvement of Adamu in the
saga. In the statement, Thomas noted that while the government awaits
the outcome of the investigation by FIFA into the allegations, it has
again re-emphasized its zero tolerance for corruption at all levels.
“The alleged involvement of Dr Adamu in the cash for vote scandal is
shocking and disturbing and has negative consequences for Nigeria’s
image,” he stated. “The anti-corruption agencies are monitoring the
outcome of the investigation and will act at the appropriate time.”

‘I am innocent’

Meanwhile, Adamu
has stated he was innocent of the allegations against him. In a
statement released yesterday he said: “Allegations were made against me
by a British newspaper on 17th October 2010 which prompted a FIFA
ethics committee meeting yesterday which concluded I should be
provisionally suspended from my FIFA duties. Whilst I wholly refute all
allegations made, I fully support the inquiry since it is important
that these claims are thoroughly investigated. Only by doing this will
FIFA – and the wider football community – be able to trust that its
appointed representatives are beyond reproach. I have yet to present my
position to those investigating this matter; however I am confident
that my actions, the full and true extent of which were not detailed in
the story published, will demonstrate not only my innocence and
integrity, but also my commitment to football and to FIFA. Since
investigations are not yet complete, it would be inappropriate for me
to comment further and I will not do so until FIFA’s final conclusion
is made public.”

Soldiering on

Former Nigeria
international, Emeka Ezeugo, has thrown his weight behind Adamu, the
president of the West African Football Union (WAFU), who was
provisionally suspended along with five others pending the conclusion
of investigations by FIFA after he allegedly demanded for money from a
team of undercover reporters posing as lobbyists for the United States
of America’s World Cup bid. Adamu and the other suspended officials now
have to prepare their defence ahead of the next meeting of FIFA’s
ethics committee which meets in mid-November to take a final decision
on the case ahead of the World Cup vote on December 2. Ezeugo insists
that the former director general of the National Sports Commission
should “soldier on”. “I’m actually surprised about the whole thing,” he
said. “It is quite unfortunate how he got himself into this mess. But
it’s at times like this that you get to know those who care about you.
But irrespective of the suspension hanging on his head at the moment I
don’t think it’s entirely over for him as he hasn’t yet been found
guilty.”

Sports

Another tight affair between Hamburg and Bayern Munich

Another tight affair between Hamburg and Bayern Munich

The match between
Hamburg and defending champions, Bayern Munich, will kick off the
European weekend on Friday. It has always been a tight affair between
these two sides in the past four seasons and this one should not be any
different.

The margin of
victory for either has been the odd goal; and on the basis of goals
scored in the current season, it is debatable that there will be
anything different. With 13 and seven goals scored between both sides
in eight matches, Bayern will have to continue to plod on without their
most effective players of Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben. Hamburg
stopped the terrific march of Mainz last weekend and moved to fifth in
the standings; and in Ruud Van Nistelrooy, they have a rejuvenated
marksman who is still on top of his game. He will be supported by
Mladen Petric and Eljero Elia. Martin Demechelis, Bayern defender seems
set for the exit door, and Holger Badstuber will continue to pair
Daniel Van Buyten.

Spurs need a come-back victory

Harry Redknapp
needs to lift his side after their 4-3 loss to Inter Milan, and he will
be happy with the return of Rafael Van Der Vaart to the side. Ledley
King is still out and there are fears on when he will make his return.
Gareth Bale gave a master class performance and hit three neat goals
which were not enough for a draw in Italy and a return to familiar
surroundings may help Tottenham get over the first 35 minutes in Italy,
where they fell to four goals. Jermain Defoe is still weeks from a
return to the first team.

Everton on a high

Everton have been
buoyed by the Merseyside win and will be highly wound up for this trip
to West London. Against Liverpool, the midfield led by Mikel Arteta
pressurised Liverpool midfielders high up the pitch and that allowed
the Everton defence to push up and squeeze the space where Fernando
Torres and Steven Gerrard could run into. Yakubu Aiyegbeni had an
excellent outing in attack and seems to be back to his bullying best.
Louis Saha is near to a return from injury that has kept him out since
the beginning of September with Steven Pienaar still out. Marouane
Fellaini, Jack Rodwell and Victor Anichebe all remain on the long-term
injured list.

Wolves set on mission impossible

After a second
match in 42, in which the Blues did not score, it is back to Stamford
Bridge where they have scored 14 goals in four matches. Wolves will be
hard pressed to get a win at the Bridge but have scored on all their
away trips except one – last weekend’s 2-0 loss to Wigan. The major
highlight will be if one goal will be enough to get a win or a point.
Stephen Hunt looks like getting a debut on the left with Matthew Jarvis
shifted to the right and these two will cause the Chelsea defence some
problems with their pace and trickery. Jose Bosingwa could start in
place of Paulo Ferreira and Didier Drogba should make a return to the
front line to help his team get goals as they have scored just two
goals in their last three Premiership matches.

Sports

Okoro targets more goals against Mauritius

Okoro targets more goals against Mauritius

After scoring one
of the two goals in the first leg encounter between Nigeria’s Flying
Eagles and the Mauritius U-20 team, Stanley Okoro, popularly known as
“little Messi”, has promised to score more goals when both teams clash
this weekend in the second leg encounter at the Abuja National Stadium.

“I am confident I
am going to score against them again, we are ready for them and we have
actually been training hard for this match,” the Almeria of Spain
player said.

The Flying Eagles
currently have a 2-0 advantage going into the match and would need to
avoid conceding three un-replied goals to guarantee a spot at the Libya
2011 Africa Youth Championships.

In the team’s last
tune up match against Premier League side, Niger Tornadoes played on
Tuesday, the John Obuh led side defeated the Minna based team by 1-0 to
maintain their 100% record in the friendly matches.

Already the
Mauritius U-20, which breezed into the country Wednesday night, are
beaming with confidence with the promise to still give the Flying
Eagles some fight for the available ticket though admitting it would be
a mountain to climb in Abuja this weekend.

Not yet uhuru

Despite having the
advantage, the Flying Eagles coach, John Obuh, is not resting on his
oars as he posited that a match is not won before it is played.

He said even though they won the first leg by two clear goals, the game was not as easy as it seemed.

“We suffered a lot
in the first leg and only our superior individual quality carried us to
safety. The Mauritians worked very hard and displayed a surprisingly
hard appreciation of the game. Besides they will be playing under no
pressure at all because no one expects them to get anything out of this
game so if we underrate them, we are going to be punished,” he said.

“If we were able to beat them at their home they can do the same here, so that is why we are not taking anything to chance.”

Nigeria finished third at the last edition of the AYC held in Rwanda
and will be hoping to better the feat if a spot it secured at next
year’s edition

Sports

Ogbemudia Stadium gets new turf

Ogbemudia Stadium gets new turf

The Governor of Edo
State, Adams Oshiomhole, on Wednesday, commissioned the FIFA-standard
2-Star turf of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, in Benin City.

Present at the
commissioning were former members of Nigeria’s senior national football
team, the Super Eagles, including Daniel Amokachi and Austin Okocha.
Oshiomhole had noted at the inception of his administration the pitch
and other facilities at the stadium were dilapidated and given their
condition could not attract international matches. “Stakeholders,
football administrators and players were unanimous that we needed to
have a completely new pitch,” he said. “This new pitch is not only
beautiful; it is user-friendly and minimizes the potentials of injuries
to footballers.” The governor restated the commitment of his
administration to the revival of sports and football in the state. “Our
performance in sports has long been a heritage of Edo State, we have
produced sporting administrators and legends,” he said. He appealed to
the private sector to assist the state government in its quest to
restore the lost sports glory of the state.

Showering praise

Speaking on behalf
of the players, Amokachi said: “We know who you are and what you are
doing in Edo State. When I landed at the airport this morning, I saw
the massive road development you are working on. This turf is another
testimony of what you are doing. I pray God to grant you the strength
to conclude the good works you are doing.” Okocha also described
Oshiomhole as “an active governor with a vision and a mission.”

Earlier, the Edo State Commissioner for Sports, Anita Evbuomwan,
said the construction of the pitch is one of the most important
developments in the state, stressing the determination of the
Oshiomhole’s administration to develop sporting infrastructure for the
use of professional and amateur sportsmen and women. The high point of
the ceremony were two novelty matches. The first was between the
executive arm of government, captained by Oshiomhole versus the State
House of Assembly, captained by Bright Omokhodion; while the second
involved former Eagles and Bendel Insurance FC.

Sports

EFFC drills Owumi over corruption charges

EFFC drills Owumi over corruption charges

Officials of The
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in Enugu have taken over the
investigation of corruption charges levelled against the Nigeria
Premier League chairman, Davidson Owumi.

Mr. Owumi, who was
flown into Enugu Thursday, after initially been questioned in Abuja by
officials of the anti-graft body, is accused of misappropriating funds
while he was the chief executive officer of Enugu Rangers International
Football Club between 2002 and 2006. He was succeeded by Ray Nnaji, who
is believed to have sent the petition currently been acted on by the
EFCC.

Speaking to
NEXTSports on the latest development, Femi Babafemi, spokesman for
EFCC, revealed that the League boss is still in their custody and might
remain there, depending on the findings of the officials.

“Our men are
currently questioning him on the petitions we received that he used
fictitious companies to award contracts and also corruptly enriched
himself while in office. For now, he is still in our custody. But I
cannot say if he would have to remain with us,” he said.

Owumi defence

Though attempts at
getting across to Mr. Owumi proved abortive yesterday, the NPL boss was
on to a sports programme on City FM 105.1 Lagos, where he dismissed the
petitions against him. According to him, his record speaks well of him.

“The record is
there for all to see. We achieved what we achieved that time with the
leanest of allocations from the state government. The record after I
resigned is also there for all to see. Even with better funding, Ray
could not achieve anything as my successor,” Mr. Owumi told Sports
Flight.

The former Enugu Rangers chief executive officer said his invitation by the anti-graft agency was a routine invitation.

“Normally, if a mad
man on the streets writes a petition against someone, the EFCC must
respond and invite the person to come and give your own side of the
story,” he said.

Meanwhile, the
Nigeria Premier League season, originally meant to begin this weekend,
has been put off again. The shift, according to NPL officials, was
based on the dissolution of the all committees of the Nigeria Football
Federation (NFF), and not the arrest of its boss. The dissolution thus
affects the referees’ appointment committee, which is responsible for
the placement of match officials for Premier League games.

Incidentally, plans to pay the debt of N3.8 million to affected
referees of the Nigeria Referees Association (NRA) on Thursday by the
Nigeria Premier League (NPL) failed to take place due to the absence of
the referees’ body leadership.

Sports

FIFA’s hammer comes down on Adamu

FIFA’s hammer comes down on Adamu

Football’s world governing body, FIFA, has provisionally suspended Executive Committee members Amos Adamu of Nigeria and Tahiti’s Reynald Temarii as it investigates allegations of World Cup vote-selling by the duo.

FIFA announced this yesterday at a press conference following a meeting of its ethics committee, chaired by former Switzerland striker Claudio Sulser.
Four other FIFA officials were also provisionally suspended from taking part in any football-related activity. They are Slim Aloulou, Amadou Diakite, Ahongalu Fusimalohi and Ismael Bhamjee.
Besides Sulser, other FIFA officials present at the press conference to announce the suspensions were Jerome Valcke, the world body’s secretary general and Nicolas Maingot, its director of communications. The conference had started two hours later than advertised, without explanation for the delay.
“The decision to provisionally suspend these officials is fully justified and should not be put in question,” said Sulser.
“The evidence that has been presented to us today has led us to take this provisional measure, as we considered that the conditions were definitely met to take this decision and we deem that it is crucial to protect the integrity of the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup bidding process.
“We are determined to have zero tolerance for any breach of the code of ethics.”
Sulser added that two national football bodies, albeit unnamed, were also being investigated in connection with the scandal.
Addressing the media after the suspension, FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, said it was a sad day for football especially after having recorded success in what people thought could not be possible with the World Cup in Africa. But he dismissed claims that FIFA is corrupt by saying the immediate reaction of the body to the scandal showed its seriousness on zero tolerance for corruption.
He urged the media to trust FIFA and promised he would continue to do everything to protect the reputation of the game as the president. Blatter also played down the magnitude of the scandal by saying just as we have good players, there also bad players.
The suspended officials now have between now and the middle of November, when the ethics committee will meet again to take a final decision ahead of the World Cup vote on December 2, to prepare their defence.
Investigations to continue
In the meantime, FIFA will investigate the circumstances leading to the suspensions, and presumably, related matters surrounding alleged voting arrangements between bidding nations and parties seeking to influence the bidding process.
Valcke said the vote to decide the hosts for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups will still go ahead as planned on December 2, but added that if Adamu and Temarii are eventually found guilty then both of them will not be part of the voting process.
Five countries are vying for the right to stage the 2022 World Cup, namely Australia, Japan, Qatar, South Korea and the United States, while there are four bid groups for the 2018 World Cup.
They are England, Russia, as well as joint bids by the Netherlands and Belgium, along with another joint bid by the Iberian pair of Portugal and Spain.
EFCC trouble for Adamu
Reprieve may however be a long way off for Adamu as Nigeria’s Anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is at the moment probing the one-time Director General of the National Sports Commission.
Reporters from British newspaper, the Sunday Times, posing as lobbyists for a consortium of American companies that wanted to help bring the World Cup back to the United States, filmed Adamu asking for money to fund the construction of four artificial football pitches in Nigeria.
No money exchanged hands but Adamu requested for the sum of £500,000, and in the opinion of the EFCC, that is enough reason to commence investigations on the embattled FIFA official.
“We have already commenced our own investigations mostly as a result of the fact that he was filmed demanding for money to construct football pitches in the country,” EFCC spokesman Femi Babafemi said.
However, Babafemi declined to confirm whether the agency will arrest Adamu upon his return to the country.
“That will depend on the outcome of our own investigation and that of FIFA,” he said.