Nigeria Content Online

Opposition party solicits governor’s membership

The All Progressive Party Alliance
(APGA) at the weekend offered to welcome Ogun State governor, Gbenga
Daniel, should he desire to defect to its fold, following what the
party said was Mr Daniel’s political difficulties within his ruling
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Mr. Daniel has, in the last three
years, being enmeshed in political battles with notable party leaders
in the state; including members of the House of Assembly and some
federal lawmakers.

The latest political setback was the
rejection of all his ministerial nominees by Acting President Goodluck
Jonathan in favour of those made by former president Olusegun Obasanjo
and the speaker of the House of Representatives.

Mr. Daniel had, while addressing a
rally in his office last week, attributed his political travails to the
handiwork of a ‘cabal’ within the party which he said was working
against his interest for the people.

But APGA, a largely unknown party in the state, has advised him to call it quits with the PDP and come over to their camp.

The National South-West Vice-Chairman
of the party, Tayo Sowunmi, who addressed a press conference in
Abeokuta, at the weekend, declared that Mr. Daniel had, all along,
being in a wrong party and advised him to defect to APGA in his own
interest.

“APGA will always have a place for him,
we are delighted about that, and we want him,” he said. “PDP is not
meant for him. He is in a wrong camp. We will welcome him. He is a
progressive. He is a vibrant person and we are waiting for him,” the
APGA boss said.

Case for Ogun west

The party also made a case for the Ogun
West Senatorial District as the rightful zone that should produce the
next governor of the state in the interest of fair play and justice.

“APGA wishes to reiterate, for the
umpteenth time, its opposition to the marginalization of Ogun West
Senatorial District by successive ruling parties in Ogun State from the
inception of the state, about 35 years ago,” Mr. Sowunmi said.

“To date, no indigene of the senatorial
district has been considered good enough to occupy the number one
political position in the state, contrary to the avalanche of eminently
qualified sons and daughters of this important political axis of equal
population and demographical size with each of the other two competent
districts of the state.”

Mr Daniel has been in the forefront of the campaign to ensure that the zone produces the nest governor of the state.

The APGA official also expressed the party’s preparedness to go into
alliance with any other political parties interested in ensuring that
the zone produces the next governor of the state.

Speaker urges Yoruba to engage in agriculture

Speaker urges Yoruba to engage in agriculture

The Speaker of the
House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, has lamented what he
described as the Yoruba nation’s loss of control in strategic sectors
of the economy such as banking and mass communication.

Mr. Bankole, who
spoke at the 2010 Okuku Day Celebration in Okuku, Osun State, at the
weekend, urged the people to return to agriculture as a means of
accelerating the economic development of the country.

The Speaker, who
was the special guest of honour at the event, said the Yoruba used to
occupy pre-eminent positions in some important sectors of the economy,
but regretted that over the years they lost those positions because
they were not appreciated.

He stressed that
Yoruba need to appreciate their leaders who are at the forefront of
engineering positive changes, adding that “too often we attack our
leaders unnecessarily and end up displacing them for others that may
not even be their match in terms of competence.”

Mr. Bankole noted
that in view of current socio-economic challenges facing the nation,
agriculture would provide a veritable avenue for economic development
as it did in the past.

“Since this event
encapsulate socio-economic development, let me state that over the
years we have neglected agricultural development in all its
ramifications. One recalls that the 25- storey Cocoa House in Ibadan
was build mostly from proceeds of agriculture.

Loss of revenue

“In Lagos State
alone, it is estimated that food consumption per day is about N2
billion. The regrettable aspect of this is that most of the foodstuffs
come from outside Yorubaland, leading to revenues loss to states like
Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Ekiti and Ondo that can produce most of these items.”

The Speaker
wondered that a four-day strike embarked upon by suppliers of
foodstuffs led to a major crisis and steep rises in prices.

“Yoruba must as a
race go back to agriculture, particularly modern agriculture where we
have a comparative advantage and a ready market,” he said.

Mega Party sets launch date

Mega Party sets launch date

A clearer picture of the newly formed
Mega Party of Social Democrats in the country emerged yesterday in
Lagos when initiators announced it will be launched on April 28.

A statement by the group said the
party, which has the backing of the labour unions, will hold further
negotiations over providing a formidable alternative to the Peoples
Democratic Party in the 2011 elections.

The statement signed by Olawale
Okunniyi, secretary of the Harmonisation Team that recommended the new
platform to other stakeholders, said its birth is an ingenious way to
quickly solidify opposition forces, who recently came under serious
pressure from reactionary forces.

“Just as organised Labour was the
catalyst and mainstay of the Social Democratic Party of old, the new
social democrats of the mega party have received great impetus from the
Labour Movement, whose leadership specifically requested at the last
meeting to align with the new platform at various levels through its
political commissions,” said Mr Okunniyi.

“The Leaders of Conscience in the mega
movement and our allies in the Political Commissions of the organised
labour are therefore expected to endorse a deferred Memorandum of
Understanding, initiated at the last meeting, at the forthcoming
National Summit on April 28, when the party will be launched,” he added.

The group’s chieftain further disclosed
that while some of the leading political parties in the country have
agreed to fuse into the SDP, others have only decided for the time
being to go into patriotic alliance with the mega party for the purpose
of presenting one common presidential candidate in the 2011 elections.

According to Mr. Okunniyi, less than a
week after the party’s formation, over 45 key political figures across
the six geopolitical zones have pledged their membership and requested
to be allowed to set up branches of the party in their various states.

Direct members

He, however, stressed that the party
will, in the meantime, operate two levels of membership namely direct
membership and Parties/ group alliance. He listed those who have so far
opted for direct membership of the party include Pat Utomi (Protem
National Chairman), Olu Falae, Audu Ogbeh, Sam Ewang, Lateef Jakande,
Ayo Adebanjo, Bala Takaya, Robson Momoh, SOZ Ejiofoh and Ahmed Yusuf.

The national chairman of the Conference
of Political Parties (CNPP), Balarabe Musa, he said, leads the pack of
those who preferred to work in alliance with the mega party, adding
that the full list of the protem officers would be officially released
by the party next week to enable it prepare for a national summit,
where the Social Democratic Mega Party would be launched.

Mr. Okunniyi also said that the former
All Nigeria Peoples Party presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari and
other key leaders of the Mega Movement from the north are expected to
play a key role in the choice of the party’s leadership.

Local content bill in oil industry excites Rep

Local content bill in oil industry excites Rep

The chairman of the
House of Representatives Subcommittee on Gas, Tam Brisibe says the new
bill on local contents in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, recently
passed by the two chambers of the National Assembly, will eradicate
youth restiveness in the Niger Delta region.

He also said that
the acting president, Goodluck Jonathan will be making history if he
assents to the bill, which has already been forwarded to him by the
Clerk of the National Assembly.

If signed into law,
the bill sponsored by Senator Lee Maeba (PDP, Rivers) will be the first
member bill to be assented to by the present administration.

Mr. Brisibe told
journalists in Abuja at the weekend that the youth in the oil producing
communities would have access to employment opportunities when the law
comes into effect.

The lawmaker, who
represents Burutu federal constituency of Delta State, said the passage
of the bill marks a watershed in the accelerated development of the oil
and gas industry in the country.

Empowered Nigerians

He explained that
with law in place, all international oil companies (IOC) operating in
the Niger Delta will not only establish offices in their host
communities but also employ a particular percentage of indigenous
youth, thereby ending idleness.

He added that in
order to ensure that Nigeria’s interest is protected, the bill also
provides that, where applicable, before carrying out any work or
activity in Nigeria, the operator will establish, in the catchment area
where the project is to located, a project office where project
management and procurement decision making are to take place.

“Where Nigerians
are not employed because of their lack of training, the operator shall
ensure, to the satisfaction of the Board that every reasonable effort
is made within a reasonable time to supply such training locally or
elsewhere,” Mr. Brisibe he added.

The objectives

He also commended
the provisions of section 35 of the law, which says that “all operators
and companies operating in the Nigeria oil and gas industry shall
employ only Nigerians in their junior and intermediate cadre or any
other corresponding grades designated by the operator or company.” Mr
Brisibe, a former chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum
Resources (Upstream) proposed that the Nigerian Content Division of the
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation should be allowed to form the
nucleus of the Nigerian Content Monitoring Board. This, according to
him, would help to drive the objectives of the law because of the
experience of the members.

‘Power is transient’

‘Power is transient’

The Speaker of the
House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, yesterday called on all those
in positions of authority, including himself, to see power as transient
and something that should not get to one’s head.

Mr. Bankole stated
this at a church Service held at St James African Church, Idi-Ape,
Abeokuta, Ogun State Capital where he worshiped as part of Easter
celebration.

In his goodwill
message at the service, the lawmaker said all political office holders
in the country, both elected and appointed, should not be confused with
the position they hold.

“Those of us in
position of authority should know that it is transient, we should not
confuse ourselves with that position,” he said. “My name is Dimeji
Bankole, Speakership is a Nigerian post, so when the time comes I will
leave. Position is just for a while.”

He said he never
prayed to die in the position he holds currently; but he appealed to
the people not to interfere with his tenure as the Speaker of the House.

“People should not interfere, they should just allow me to finish as the Speaker, they should not interfere,” he said.

Humble leaders

Provost of the
church, Peter Ogunmuyiwa, advised people in positions of authority in
Nigeria to humble themselves and not to hold on to power unnecessarily.

The cleric, in his
Easter sermon, urged political office holders not to misuse their
positions and advised Nigerian leaders on the need to emulate Jesus
Christ by being humble.

Mr. Ogunmuyiwa
recalled that it was difficult for those who came to arrest Jesus in
the Bible because they could not distinguish between him and his
disciple.

“How many of you who are in position of authority today will emulate
Jesus Christ by being humble? Most of you, because you want to be seen
as the boss,” the cleric said. “So, you are overpowered by the position
but you have forgotten that God has the power to remove you from that.”

Heartland is ready to swim or sink

Having forced Tiko United of Cameroon to a 2-2 draw in the first
leg encounter of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Champions League,
Heartland Football Club of Owerri are ready to end the Camerounian’s ambition
on the continent at the Dan Ayiam Stadium in Owerri today.

For Heartland, the encounter is almost a done deal. One, their
opponent, who are appearing on the continent for the first time after almost 50
years of existence, do not have Heartland’s pedigree in the round leather game.

Tiko United have never won any major title, both away and at
home, until 2009 when they emerged the surprise winners of the Cameroun
national league; whereas, their host has five NPL title to its credit as well
as the six previous appearances in the continental event.

Two, Heartland will want to avoid the embarrassment of getting
eliminated in the second round by a debutante. It will be recalled that
Nigeria’s other representative in the competition this season, Bayelsa United,
were eliminated at the preliminary stages by another league debutante, Gazelle
FC of Chad.

Added to this, Heartland are known for their formidable home
form. In 2009, enroute to the final of the money spinning competition, the team
won all its home matches, twice defeating eventual winners 2-0 and 2-1 at the
group and final stages respectively.

“We will conquer for
Nigerians”

Already, Kelechi Emetole, the head coach of the Naze
Millionaires, as the 2009 silver medallist are known among fans, has boasted
that the visiting Tiko United will get drowned in goals.

Emeteole, the reigning Nigerian coach of the year, in a comment
to www.cafonline.com on the likely outcome of the encounter in Owerri, said:
“We can conquer. We’ll conquer, and we’re ready to conquer for Nigerians. All
we need is their prayers and support.” The ‘Caterpillar’, a name he bagged
during his active playing days, maintained his wards realise Tiko can stop them
from moving into the next stage and are ready to avoid their visitors trap.

“We’re talking of modern day football, and if you can defeat an
opponent on his home pitch, who says they cannot also do same on your ground?
At the moment, we’re looking at the possibility of confronting SuperSport
United of South Africa in the final round before the group stage.

“But we’re very careful to note that the team that can stop our
dream is Tiko United and I learnt they have been preparing very well, so we
must be careful not to stray into their trap.”

Poor team

Despite being optimistic about the team’s chances against their
visitors, Heartland’s current squad is poorer than the team which stormed the
continent to place second last season.

On the home front, Heartland are stuck at the 12th place with 33
points, 14 points behind NPL leaders, Enyimba FC, an offshoot in the
performance which saw the team grabbing the League second place in 2008 and
2009.

With Heartland’s poor run in the local league, forcing Emetole
to admit that the absence of Uche Agba, who now plays for Tunisian club CS
Sfaxien, and Nigeria’s FIFA U-17 World Cup silver medal winning star, Stanley
Okoro, may have strongly affected the team.

Still, the quartet of John Owoeri, Musa Koformata, Ikechukwu
Ibenegbu and Signs Chimbabo will provide enough danger for the visitors.

Tiko: a hard nut to crack

However, after eliminating 13 times Burundi Premier League Champions,
Vital’ O FC, from the continent this season, Tiko United may just grab another
upset at Heartland’s home turf today.

In the first leg encounter, played at the Price Louis Rwagasore
Stadium, Bujumbura, in Burundi, the Gérard Mbimi tutored Tiko side forced their
host to a 2-2 draw in front of their home fans.

And with Edingue Tombe and Njounkou Job who grabbed the Cameroonian’s two
away goals in Burundi still making the squad troubling the defense of the
Nigerians, Tiko may just create an upset.

Sports

Weep for our domestic football

When Kadiri Ikhana blew the lid in 2008 that the Nigeria Premier
League will continue to suffer decline because of corruption, it caused such a
stir that the then board chairman, Oyuki Obaseki, could only accuse him of
running down the system.

“Corruption in football in Nigeria is so visible that you can
even feel it. It is a sort of cartel that needs to be checked for our football
to grow,” Ikhana, who did not exonerate himself from the rot, had declared
shortly after guiding Kano Pillars to their first Premier League title.

But Obaseki, who believed he has done so much to develop the
domestic league, cursed the people who are “trying to destroy his
achievements”. Two years on, the decline is so bad that we could not even raise
a team that could face Niger in the African Nations Championship (CHAN)
qualifiers, out of over 500 players playing in the NPL.

It was coach Okey Emordi, who led Enyimba to the 2004 CAF
Champions League success, that failed with our first CHAN Eagles team, when
they crashed to Ghana in 2008. But if Ghana could boast of having a great
football pedigree that can match our record, the same cannot be said of Niger,
who are now rejoicing after qualifying for the 2011 CHAN, their first ever
international competition since their Football Association was founded in the
mid 1960s. The Mena achieved the feat after a 2-0 aggregate win over two legs
against our Home Eagles.

The extent of failure

To explain the extent of the failure in our system, The Niger
Premier League, which produced the players that eliminated our team in the CHAN
qualifiers, has suffered a lot a since its inception in 1966, owing to
financial problems in the poor country. As recently as in 2005, several major
clubs dropped out of the championship for financial reasons, and because of the
2005 famine afflicting the south centre of the nation. Indeed some of the
Nigerien players have had to come to Nigeria for greener pastures. For
instance, goalkeeper Rabou Saminou played for Enyimba for three seasons, after
joining from Sahel SC, Niger’s most successful clubside, while defender Ismael
Alassane, is still currently on the pay roll of the Aba outfit.

Even the Niger Football Federation had turned to our country’s
football supporters to raise funds for the Mena, during the 2010 Nations Cup
qualifiers.

Fire brigade approach

Since Okey Emordi’s failure, nothing has been done by the NFF to
prepare another team for the next CHAN. Not until after our poor performance in
Angola in February did it emerge that Shuaibu Amodu would be demoted to manage
the Home Eagles for CHAN.

Niger, on the other hand, recognized its limitations and
appointed Ikhana to work as the technical consultant of the country’s football
body. It is paying some dividends. The Nigeria federation believes we can
always have our way against ‘small’ opposition and this belief backfired, like
it did in the last edition.

Amokachi’s credentials

Mention Adoulmalik Mou and you might be asked who he is. He is
the history-making coach of the Niger team. But for those who follow football
in Africa and beyond, the name Daniel Amokachi would definitely sound familiar.
It is often said that being a good footballer does not necessarily translate to
becoming a good coach.

That is probably the case with Amokachi, who bungled the chance
of showing what he is capable of doing as a coach. Da Bull has an impressive
track record of having represented Nigeria at the highest level of the game,
playing a key role in the 1994 edition where the Super Eagles endeared
themselves to the world with their beautiful brand of African football,
crashing out in the 16th round. He even scored twice; one of his goals, against
Greece, will stand out as one of the most memorable strikes at the competition.

Amokachi also featured in the 1998 in France. He would also be
remembered for helping the U-23 Eagles to win the 1996 Olympic Football gold in
Atlanta, where our Dream Team defeated Brazil and Argentina en route their
success. At club career level, he holds the record of having scored the first
goal of the UEFA Champions League while playing for Club Brugges in Belgium,
where he also won the Ebony Award given to the best foreign player featuring in
the Jupiler League. What more, he also enjoyed success in England and Turkey,
helping Everton to win the FA Cup in 1995.

Coaching flop

But with all these accolades, the former Besiktas of Turkey has
failed to justify that he has the ability to be a good coach. He has had
coaching stints at Nassarawa United and Enyimba, both as assistant coach. But
because of his accomplishments as a former international footballer, he often
took the shine off the coaches in charge. He worked under Zakari Baraje at Nassarawa
and of course Maurice Cooreman at Enyimba. Amokachi also assisted Austin
Eguavoen to the 2006 Nations Cup in Egypt and took the same role under Shuaibu
Amodu to the 2010 Nations Cup in Angola. He looked like the active man on the
sidelines during the Eagles matches, but he fumbled when he handled his own
team.

The NFF insisted it was Amodu’s team but Amokachi, who was known for his
bravado during his playing days, has had his ego bruised and his technical
frailties exposed.

Sports

No nest for the Eagles yet

Abdullah Sani Lulu,
the president of Nigeria Football Federation, ate humble pie last week
when he admitted the Hampshire Hotel, Ballito, Durban, may not be the
ideal place for the Super Eagles to camp for the South Africa 2010 FIFA
World Cup. Lulu told journalists at a media briefing at the Lagos
Sheraton Hotel that the Nigeria Football Federation has given the
management a three-point ultimatum to put things right, or they will
start looking for alternative accommodation.

Lulu had before now
given the Hampshire Hotel a passmark. So also did the Super Eagles
coach, Lars Lagerback. Their views contradicted sharply with that of NFF
scribe, Bolaji Ojo-Oba, who described the hotel as not the best they
could get for the Eagles after three visits to South Africa.

The criticism around
the Hampshire includes the lack of facilities that will enable the team
prepare properly for their matches. Some analysts say the management of
Hampshire will have to work miracles to build an Olympic sized, or
fairly big swimming pool, within three weeks, for example.

They also argue that
the possibility of providing visible and invisible security, a
functional gym, and other facilities within this period is very remote.

Lulu’s sudden
turn-around is probably due to pressure from all quarters on the NFF
following NEXT on Sunday’s exclusive story on the state of the hotel.

Many though, doubt
Lulu’s sincerity on the NFF getting a new hotel within three weeks.
They fear that the NFF will argue that since the championship is just
about a month away, it is not expedient to start looking for another
hotel, and that rather, they should just let the Eagles stay at
Hampshire Hotel in Ballito.

A senior football
official who asked for anonymity said he could not understand why the
NFF went for a clearly unsuitable hotel. “FIFA is taking care of all the
expenses,” he said. “So why can’t we just make sure that our team is in
a place that will allow them prepare and rest properly between
competitions.”

Given the urgency of the situation, the NFF, working with the staff
of Nigeria High Commission in South Africa needs to start looking for a
new abode for the Eagles immediately.

Sports

Barcelona, Arsenal have their share of pain

Barcelona versus Arsenal, what a memorable night for football.
Barcelona showed once again why they instil fear into their opponents, with
their style of play, players, and coach. Arsenal will have their share of
problems, but Barcelona will too. What are they exactly? Here are a few of
them:

Arsenal’s Pains

Andrey Arshavin, the Russian magician, will probably miss the
highly-charged return leg in Spain. Arsenal’s captain Cesc Fabregas will also
miss it, along with injured first-team choice William Gallas. That, with the
fact the Arsenal’s most dangerous striker Robin van Persie will be missing,
restricts Arsene Wenger’s choices to zero.

No one from the Gunners’ camp would like to see the one
dimensional Arsenal that this lack of first team players may cause at the Camp
Nou. It will only make life much easier for the Catalans-and they would love
that.

On top of that, the vulnerability of the Arsenal defence was
exposed by Barcelona-those long balls proved too hard to decode for Alex Song
and Thomas Vermaelen.

Zlatan Ibrahimovich’s two goals will certainly ring the alarm
bells for Wenger, and the players and will push them to improve their game and
mutual understanding in training.

Barcelona’s Pains

Barcelona, similarly, will miss both their first-team starters
at the back: Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol -hardly a problem you can easily
disregard.

The hopes of Arsenal are raised even more by other significant
factors. Despite the razor-sharp attack, Barcelona is vulnerable in the air, as
we all saw. The absences of the short Arshavin and Fabregas may prove to be not
as important as initially thought.

Another potential problem-causing issue for Pep Guardiola’s team
is their weaker physiques. We all saw how they pushed themselves to the limit
until the 70th minute at the Emirates, and then they crumbled. The reason they
conceded the first goal was more due to fitness than to psychology.

The team’s physical energy limits were drained due to their
incessant attempts to win the ball and keep it in their possession. Every time
when Arsenal won the ball, or attempted to make a counter-attack, at least
three Barcelona players were at them, trying to close them down, and win the
ball back. While being a very effective part of total football, this tactic is
very tiring to the players.

Wenger ingeniously kept the extremely quick Theo Walcott for the
closing part of the game, when the players clad in yellow were beginning to
breathe heavier. The potential choice for the England national side was a big
pain for the Catalans, ripping through the left side of their defence like a
knife through butter. The England manager, Fabio Capello, who was watching the
match, must have been impressed.

Conclusion

Barcelona are the clear favourites. Arsenal has much to avenge
for against this specific enemy, but it will not be about that this time. It
will be about proving their worth against probably the best team in the world.

Sports

Welcome to football’s red light district