Nigeria Content Online

A
South African court on Tuesday sentenced the country’s former police
chief to 15 years imprisonment after he was convicted of graft and
became one of the most senior officials brought to justice for
corruption.

Jackie Selebi,
formerly a leading anti-apartheid activist and well-connected in the
ruling African National Congress (ANC) party, had been found guilty
last month of receiving bribes from a drug kingpin.

Judge Meyer Joffe said in handing down the sentence that Selebi had embarrassed the state, the police force and the court.

“At no stage during
the trial did the accused display any indication of remorse. The
accused lied and fabricated evidence in an endeavour to escape the
consequences of his conduct,” Joffe said.

Selebi remains free on bail on condition that he submits an application for leave to appeal against the sentence within 14 days.

Analysts said the
conviction of Selebi — a former president of the international police
body Interpol — was a positive development for the country, showing it
was ready to tackle its growing corruption problem.

Prosecutors were
seeking more than the possible minimum sentence of 15 years in prison.
Selebi’s lawyers were seeking a suspended sentence and a fine.

Last month, Judge
Joffe said in his decision that Selebi had received at least 120,000
rand ($16,500) from Glenn Agliotti, a convicted drug trafficker who was
one of the main prosecution witnesses.

Joffe had found
Selebi not guilty of defeating the ends of justice but said he did not
find the former national commissioner of the South African Police
Service (SAPS) a credible witness.

Prosecutors had
contended that Selebi had links to organized crime figures and received
about 1.2 million rand to ignore their drug trafficking.

Selebi was a close
ally of former President Thabo Mbeki and analysts did not expect his
conviction to harm current President Jacob Zuma.

The ANC has said the guilty verdict showed no one was above the law in South Africa.

The National Drug
Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Tuesday commenced surveillance on
another suspected cocaine container belonging to the Chinese drug
suspects arrested last week in Lagos.

According to the
anti-narcotics agency, investigation into the unlawful importation of
the 450.4kg of cocaine by the Chinese suspects revealed that there was
yet another container imported by them.

“Documents
recovered from the suspects confirmed the importation of the second
container into the country by another ship,” said Ahmadu Giade, chief
executive of the agency.

Mr. Giade
disclosed that the shipment was successfully tracked by the agency in
collaboration with the British Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA),
and the United States Drug Enforcement Agency and was found to have
arrived Tin Can Island Port, Lagos.

The anti-drug
peddling boss said that the container will be publicly examined at the
port in collaboration with other security and government agencies.

“The discovery was
due to diligent investigation on the case involving the 450.4kg of
cocaine seizure worth over N4 billion. We are going to examine the
container publicly at the port in the presence of other security
officials,” he said. “The said container has been rated by the
anti-narcotic Agency as high risk and will be given 100 percent
physical examination.”

No politician involved

Mitchell Ofoyeju,
spokesperson for the agency said that, so far no politician has been
linked to the unlawful importation, and that the claims on the bill of
laden that a politician has hands in the deal is false.

According to him,
the first cocaine container was imported with a bill of laden bearing
one “Honourable Mike Njoku of No. 4 Balogun Street, Maryland Lagos.”
The agency’s spokesperson disclosed that the address was found to be
fake as there is no Balogun Street in Maryland.

“However, the
consignee’s telephone number given on the shipping document was that of
one of the Chinese suspects. The bill of laden also states that the
first container contained personal effects,” he said.

Two Chinese
business men, Richard Wang, 62; and Chiusen Fong, 54; in collaboration
with a Nigerian clearing agent, Inua Mohammed, 56; are being detained
by the NDLEA following the cocaine seizure of last week.

Meanwhile, the clearing agent denied knowing that the container is stashed with cocaine.

“I am a clearing
agent. Richard Wang came to me to clear a container. He told me the
container contained cigarettes and gave me N3 million for the
clearance. It was after my boys cleared it out of the port that NDLEA
officers intercepted them,” he said in a statement from the agency.

The
week I arrived Aba, a bus driver had been killed, allegedly for
stubbornness in dispensing with money at a checkpoint on the Port
Harcourt highway. My driver, as circumspect and suspicious as ever,
assured me the police regularly incriminated the innocent. If all the
vehicle and personal documents were in order, they found some fault
with the fire extinguisher or requested to see certification for
re-spraying the car, knowing fully well no such thing exists. A regular
picture encountered on my trip was of a policeman standing in the
middle of the road, gun in the right hand. The left fist into which
currency notes were pumped by drivers remained half-open. How this
effective strategy for “revenue collection” could identify kidnappers
or the kidnapped can only be properly explained by Nigeria’s
Inspector-General of Police and the Federal Minister for Interior, both
natives of the South-East.

Within Aba there is
a dangerous variation – the pedestrian checkpoint! People passing
through this contraption on the major streets must raise both arms
above their heads in surrender to the occupation forces. A humiliation
of citizens within their own country could not be more perfect!
Finally, in drumming rainfall I made it in to our tenants who had never
met me. For obvious reasons I gave no prior notice of my visit. It took
a while for someone to answer my knock on the massive steel gate. I had
begun to wonder if it was the right place. Since my last visit, the
fruit trees in the garden had grown into a lush green forest; the
cottage was hardly visible from outside. Someone unbolted the gate,
smiling. “From your face I know you must be Madam’s son,” Mr. Nwachukwu
said. “We were watching you from our hideout upstairs. No one opens
doors for a stranger these days in Aba. My friend, have you seen the
rain?” he greeted warmly. There is consternation here at the sudden
interest in their city. Hear Mr. Nwachukwu: “For more than 30 years now
we’ve been living with abductions and summary executions by Bakassi
Boys, other criminal militia and vigilante groups. Local governments
now openly kidnap family members of tenants and landlords for
defaulting on payment of various infrastructure levies. Every month
property certificates must be re-certified. They shot the son of our
neighbour, right here! Come and see blood!” he exclaimed. Reality
overtakes preconception in this place.

Restrictive life

To add insult to
misery, billboards welcome travellers to Abia with the blasphemous
slogan, “God’s Own State!” Posters eulogize South-east governors and
their spouses as “rare gems!” Despite the hallucinatory language, Aba
roadsides remain a rotten salad of hungry-looking artisans, aggressive
beggars, disease, garbage, junk vehicles and mechanics, stagnant
gutters, vendors and vultures. There is brisk business in manufacture
of steel gates and wooden coffins, perhaps to remind the visitor that
death could just be round the corner. None of the South-eastern
governors has any deep, visceral commitment to institutionalized
democracy or understanding of economic planning. Yet one of these
states produced a recent Central Bank governor.

Notices outside Aba night clubs typify the restrictive nature of
life: no shorts and sleeveless shirts; no walking sticks; no handbags;
no slippers or sandals; no smoking or drinking on the dance floor; no
hats or caps; no dancing with same sex; no fighting; no smoking of
marijuana! Before the road journey to Abuja, passengers leaving Aba
were thoroughly searched. A cameraman then took mugshots of each of us,
as though we were going to jail. But in fact, it was an exit from hell.

The
political face-off between the executive and the legislative arm of
Ogun State yesterday took another dimension, as some alleged loyalists
of the governor stormed the Assembly complex to deposit fetish pots in
the premises, owing to the refusal of the lawmakers to support the
controversial N100 billion bond bid of the state government.
The protesters,
allegedly led by the Secretary of the Abeokuta South Local Government,
Nurudeen Olaleye, arrived the complex with several fetish pots and
placards, declaring curses on the lawmakers over their opposition to
the state governor, Gbenga Daniel.
Some of the
inscriptions on the placards read: ‘No bond no peace’, ‘G-15 lawmakers,
let peace reign’ and ‘Dimeji Bankole, you are a disgrace to Ogun State’
among others. The protesters, who forced their way into the premises,
immediately started moving round the premises to deposit the pots in
various locations.
Similarly, the
protesters were also seen smashing eggs all over the premises, a
development which appeared to frighten the staff of the Assembly. Even
the security operatives, including policemen, attached to the Assembly
premises, were helpless as the fetish pots, containing rituals
ingredients, were being deposited round the complex.
Yoruba traditional
religionists believe that the use of such pots could bring either good
luck to those who prepare them or harm to those they are directed
against.
Postponed resumption
Apparently, having
received information about the fetish move of the protesters, the
lawmakers, who were expected to resume work yesterday after their
recess, did not resume sitting. They sent out a public notice that the
Assembly has suspended resumption until further notice.
The notice, signed
by the Clerk of the House, Demola Badejo, reads: ‘In accordance with
the House rule 5 {1-3}, the Speaker has suspended the resumption of the
plenary till further notice. The Speaker regrets any inconveniences
this will cause, but assured that plenary will be convened as soon as
the atmosphere in the House is conducive.’
Meanwhile, many
residents of the state who spoke with NEXT said they were fed up with
the present administration, stressing that the peace associated with
the state has been shattered by the actions of the political players in
the state.
Recently, some
members of the Assembly and the state executive exchanged accusations
of ritual oath taking. The photograph of one of the lawmakers, Wale
Alausa, was widely distributed, showing the naked man holding a fetish
object. He said he was forced to swear allegiance to Mr Daniel. He is
now a member of the group opposed to the state governor in the State
Assembly.

The National Assembly will, on Tuesday next week,
break their long vacation to hold an impromptu plenary session to
consider the N74 billion request of the chairman of the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The lawmakers will also be screening three new
ministers that were requested by President Goodluck Jonathan. Atahiru
Jega, the INEC chairman, had last week said his commission urgently
requires N74billion to conduct a new voters’ registration and perfect
other aspects of the plan for a credible free and fair election in
January next year. Meanwhile, the lawmakers had just begun a two month
long break that was supposed to terminate on 29 September. The
spokesperson of the senate, Ayogu Eze, confirmed that the lawmakers
have resolved to reconvene on Tuesday next week to specifically
consider the request of INEC.

“From our own calculation, clearly we will need N74
billion,” Mr. Jega had said, adding that the commission have tendered
the request before the executive. Mr Jega said that up to 50% of the
sum would be used to purchase 120 000 units of voter registration
machines. He added that part of the fund will be applied to voter
education, employee training and allowances, and improving the working
conditions of the state chapters of INEC. He noted that the most of the
equipment used for the last election were substandard and could not be
applied to the current process if the commission was to achieve a
credible election. According to Mr Jega, the required amount must be
made available to the commission before 11 August to ensure optimal
performance by the commission.

New ministers

Although the senate spokesman confirmed the senate
has received the nomination of three additional ministers, to be
screened by the senate when the reconvenes, he could not immediately
confirm the identities of the nominee ministers were. One of the
nominee ministers are however expected to fill the Power Ministry that
has no substantive minister. The others are expected to fill the junior
minister positions in the Federal Capital Territory Ministry and either
the Petroleum Ministry or Foreign Affairs. Mr Eze added that the change
in plans was in line with their initial pledge to provide the required
legislative support to INEC ahead of the 2011 elections. Mr. Eze made
the pledge on behalf of the senate last week, shortly before they
embarked on the long vacation. The senate is however calling off its
vacation for the second time in four months. The senate had in April
adjusted its break to screen the current ministers.

Senate President, David Mark, yesterday said that the
National Assembly would proceed with the creation of new states despite
criticisms mounting against the exercise.

Mr Mark told new state campaigners from Katsina State
on Thursday, that lawmakers will not bow to criticisms that the current
36 states be maintained, but will press on with the exercise to “meet
the yearnings and aspirations of the people.” He said despite the
condemnations, he finds the requests which have been made by several
groups “genuine, desirable and necessary to address some imbalances in
the present structures.”

“The more state we have,” he said, “the more there
will be healthy competition between and among states, which will
ultimately usher in meaningful development.” The new group, led by the
former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Masari, is
advocating the creation of Karaduwa State, out of the present Katsina
State.

The proposed area holds 11 local government councils
out of the state’s total 40, and according to Mr Masari, is endowed
with human and material resources, and would be economically and
politically viable. The area is also rich with agricultural and mineral
resources, he said.

Criticism

Critics have denounced the planned exercise which the
National Assembly has assured will be accommodated during the next
constitutional amendment.

They have urged the lawmakers to refuse the requests,
which currently total over 30, on the grounds that the new states will
compound Nigeria’s problems, since many of them would lack the capacity
to sustain themselves economically.

The lawmakers have also been accused of seeking to
set the record as the first legislature in the nation’s history to
create states.

Mr Masari admitted that the option of new states
“cannot” solve Nigeria’s problems, but said that “it is the shortest
way to solving them.” The Senate President, Mr Mark, said the National
Assembly will not back down on the exercise, and described the question
of self-sustainability as “untenable”. He said the true intent of the
exercise is to draw the people closer to the government, and
development.

“It will bring unity and harmony between and among
federating states,” he said. On the economic strength of the proposed
states, the Senate President said rather than condemning them, “we must
find out why they are not doing well.”

The re-sit of the competency test for
directorate level officers in the Civil Service will still hold as
scheduled despite opposition from civil servants, the Head of Civil
Service of the Federation, Stephen Oronsaye, has said.

Mr Oronsaye rejected calls, by the
Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, for the cancellation
of the tests on Tuesday when he met with leaders of the association in
his office in Abuja. He argued that the demand by the association was
based on wrong information. “The test will hold as scheduled,” he told
the visiting officers. Members of the Association, led by the National
President, Olakunle Olaitan, had released a four-point communiqué
calling for the cancellation of the re-sit of the competency test. In
the communiqué, they also demanded that the test should not be a
prerequisite for promotion of deserving officers in the service. The
Head of Service, however, said that the Post-Training Competency Test
is not a promotion examination but that it could be used for screening
candidates for promotion, which he said is the responsibility of his
office.

Mr. Oronsaye added that he was saddened
by the consistent complaints on the competency of officers in the civil
service which has affected service delivery and resulted in low
productivity.

Pride to the nation

He called on civil servants to join in
the efforts being made to build a service that will be a pride to the
nation. Mr Oronsaye explained that the Specialized Mandatory Training
Programme, which preceded the former test, was planned through several
events which included a stakeholders’ forum and another for the review
of modules. However, he attributed the congestion experienced towards
the end to the endemic error in staff data in the civil service.

At the end of the deliberations, both parties mutually agreed that
only officers who have good reasons to retake the training before
sitting for the re-sit would be granted such request. Mr Oronsaye also
approved that all officers taking the re-sit test next week could take
a week leave from official duties to prepare. Others issues raised in
the communiqué include demands for a better structured training
programme, harmonized promotion exercise based on collaboration between
the Office of the Head of the Civil Service and the Federal Civil
Service Commission. They also requested that officers who passed
promotion examinations but were not promoted due to lack of vacancies
should be considered for promotion whenever vacancies are available.

African ministers
of information and communication technologies, and other experts, are
meeting in Abuja to assess how much they have implemented their own
policies on issues related to the sector.

Speaking at the
opening of the Third ICT Minister’s Conference on Tuesday in Abuja, the
minister of state for communications, Labaran Maku, said this was a
follow-up to the 2008 meeting in Cairo, Egypt.

At that meeting,
the ministers adopted several recommendations to guide the sector, such
as improving national postal policies. Mr Maku said they could take
stock of the extent their various governments have gone towards the
implementation of the recommendations.

Mr Maku stated that
the five-day conference will also avail the ministers of “the
opportunity to deliberate, analyse and proffer solutions for developing
a basic framework that will advance the development of ICT in Africa
and improve its standing with the global ICT industry.”

Progress

He said the
Nigerian government has fared well in implementing the Cairo
recommendations. He pointed out the implementation of programmes aimed
at providing Internet and telephone facilities for rural communities,
as well as the School Net Project, through which primary and
post-primary schools are being provided with Internet facilities and
computers.

Brahima Sanou,
regional representative for Africa at the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU), said the African telecommunications
sector has grown geometrically since the last meeting of African ICT
heads.

“There are 80
million subscribers in Nigeria today and Africa is the fastest growing
industry in the ICTs,” he said. “In addition, Africa has proven to the
world that we can be part of the digital economy.” He said the
conference will afford the ministers the opportunity to talk about the
African agenda.

“This important for me because at ITU, we are trying to accompany
African countries to be at the driver’s seat and own their development
so that the result of the development is not owned by somebody else.”