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The All Nigeria
Peoples Party (ANPP) may pick its presidential candidate for the 2011
general elections on Friday January 14, 2011 , this was learnt in Abuja
yesterday.

The presidential
primaries will hold a day to the January 15 deadline set by the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for parties to hold
their primaries. Among those seeking the ticket of the party to vie for
the nation’s highest office are the governor of Kano State, Ibrahim
Shekarau, presidential candidate of the defunct National Republican
Convention (NRC), Bashir Tofa, who is also from Kano; Harry Akande,a
businessman from Oyo State; and Dauda Birma, a former minister from
Adamawa State.

Also, the National
Assembly candidates may emerge on Saturday January 8 , 2010 while
Tuesday January 11, has been fixed for the primary election of the
governorship and state houses of assembly candidates.

The dates of the
primaries are, however, subject to ratification by the National
Executive Committee (NEC), which meets today in Abuja. The National
Working Committee (NWC)pick the dates at its meeting in Abuja last
Monday. It was presided over by the national chairman, Ogbonnaya Onu.

Although, the
details of the decisions taken at the meeting, which lasted hoursare
still sketchy, it was gathered that the NWC members agreed not to
attend the formal declaration of any candidate for any of the elective
position.

Our source said the
decision was taken to forestall suspicion that they are rooting for any
particular candidate. It,however, resolved to back and campaign for all
candidates that will emerge after the primaries in accordance with the
party’s constitution.

It was further
gathered that the working committee decided that the party will keep
its doors open to other parties who may enter into alliance to brighten
its electoral chances. This is also in view of the fact that some
aspirants who have popularity in some parts of the country may decide
to defect to the ANPP.

The party
spokesman, Emma Eneukwu confirmed yesterday that the NEC will meet
today to ratify the decisions of the NWC. However, he said the dates
for the governorship and the other primary election are not too clear
for now.

“Yes, I think the
presidential primaries will hold on January 14, but I can not readily
say when the others are holding until after the NEC meeting tomorrow,”
Mr Eneukwu said.

The Chief Judge of Lagos State, Inumidun Akande, on
Monday, declared that it is the exclusive responsibilities of the state
judiciary to review existing laws relating to probate administration
and family matters, and warned the executive not to usurp functions of
the judiciary.

Mrs Akande stated this in her address delivered at a
summit on ‘Administration of Probate’, with the theme ‘A Critical
Appraisal of Probate Administration In Lagos State’, held at the Lagos
City Hall. Probate administration deals with the application of the
right to deal with deceased person’s estate. The chief judge urged the
executive arm of government to respect the doctrine of separation of
powers. She said that by virtue of relevant provisions of the 1999
Constitution and existing high court law, the administration of probate
and related matters are under the supervision of the chief judge of the
state, and added that to deviate from this established practice would
amount to a breach of the constitution and relevant laws, as well as
breach of concept of separation of powers as contained in the 1999
Constitution.

Abiding by power separation

“Without any fear of contradiction, the
administration of probate and matters connected therewith are exclusive
preserve of the judiciary in Nigeria,” she said. “The chief judge,
being the head of the judiciary, is empowered to make rules of court
and other matters by virtue of section 59 of the administration of
Estate Law Cap A3 Vol. 1 Laws of Lagos State, 2003. It would amount to
abuse of power by the executive organ or legislature to bring under its
administration the Probate Registry which is a division of the high
court in the state judiciary. To do this will be a deliberate
infraction of the constitution.”

Mrs Akande stated that despite obvious challenges, the probate
division of the high court has lived up to expectations by rendering
quality services and generating revenues for the state government. She
said that a total number of 193 probate grants and 4, 937 letters of
administration were issued by the probate division within a period of
2007 to 2010, adding that over N1 billion was also generated within
same period.</

Norwegian energy producer Statoil said it will appeal a Nigerian court
ruling in its case against a local consultant who says he has not been paid.

The court ruled in favour of former Statoil
consultant John Abebe, who seeks 1.5 percent net profit interest from Statoil’s
stake in the 240,000 barrels per day Agbami field.

“There was a ruling in his favour. We are going to appeal,”
Statoil spokesman Baard Glad Pedersen said.

NEXT reported on Tuesday that Mr Abebe hopes to win between $1 billion and
$2 billion. Statoil would not immediately comment on the potential loss, saying
it believed it had a “strong legal case”.

Mr Abebe, the brother-in-law of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who served
from 1999 to 2007, helped Statoil secure licenses for Nigerian oilfields
between 1991 and 1999 and was on the board of Statoil’s local unit.

Statoil has said it made “no oral or written agreement” with Mr Abebe
that he should receive the payment and maintains that it has paid him for his
services.

The President, Goodluck Jonathan
yesterday urged the Joint Military Task Force, JTF, in the Niger-Delta,
which is currently operating in Ayakoromor community in Burutu Local
Government of Delta State to ensure that civilian are protected.

He also expressed his heartfelt
sympathy to the families of all those who are currently displaced as a
result of the JTF operation.The directive is coming on the heels of
widespread criticism of the JTF’s raid of camps suspected to be
harbouring John Togo, a runaway militant leader in the region, which
has led to some deaths and displacement of hundreds.

One of those already opposed to the
operation is former Deputy Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly
and the secretary of Uduaghan Campaign Organisation, Funkekeme Solomon
who has condemned the alleged killings by the JTF, stating that it is
unacceptable in a democratic setting.

Speaking on behalf of the president,
media aide, Ima Niboro, in a chat with pressmen at the statehouse, said
the president has commended the efforts of JTF so far, especially “in
fishing out criminal elements from the region” and advised “that the
defenseless civilian population be protected, while the operation
lasts”.

According to him “the army also has a responsibility to protect the
harmless civil populace”.While appealing for calm from all parties
affected by the military operation, the spokesman stated that the
government is prepared to immediately reduce the sufferings of
identified innocent civilians and all those in need of one assistance
or another.</

The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs, Timi
Alaibe has joined the governorship race in Bayelsa on the platform of
Peoples Democratic Party. Associates and friends of Mr. Alaibe from the
state were reported to have contributed money to purchase the
nomination form for him, claiming that the former NDDC chief had been
reluctant to contest the election. A group,Grassroots Initiative for
Peace and Social Orientation (GIPSO), has also issued a statement
saying Mr. Alaibe’s decision is the best thing to happen to the state.
Executive Director of GIPSO, Akinaka Richard, told newsmen in Yenagoa
on Sunday that the people of Bayelsa should have the choice to choose
their leaders. He said it is now left for the people to choose someone
that will stop the stagnation of the last four years. According to him,
“We are overjoyed by the news. If the people of Bayelsa want
change,they must effect the change. ‘‘If the people of Bayelsa are
dissatisfied with the situation in the state, the time for change has
started. We are very much delighted that Alaibe has decided to run.”
Mr. Alaibe contested the same position with former state governor,
Diepreye Alamieyeseigha in 2003 and also attempted it in 2007 but later
backed out.

Ivory Coast’s
presidential claimant, Alassane Ouattara, offered government posts on
Monday to members of his rival Laurent Gbagbo’s cabinet, if Gbagbo
stepped down.

It was the latest
manoeuvre in a power struggle that has enveloped the West African state
since an election that yielded two winners – Ouattara with
international backing, and Gbagbo, with the support of the nation’s top
legal body and military.

The November 28
poll was meant to reunite the former regional economic star after a
2002-03 civil war, but analysts warned the dispute could now pit the
army against pro-Ouattara rebels, who told Reuters they would defend
themselves from any attack.

“If Laurent Gbagbo
agrees to leave power quietly, the ministers from his party would be
welcome in the government we plan to lead,” Guillaume Soro, Ivory
Coast’s premier, who has pledged to serve Ouattara, told France’s
Europe 1 radio.

The political
deadlock gripped the world’s top cocoa grower after the Constitutional
Council – run by a Gbagbo ally – scrapped hundreds of thousands of
votes from Ouattara strongholds, reversing provisional results from the
election commission that had given Ouattara victory.

U.S. president,
Barack Obama, has sided with Ouattara, leading calls from the United
Nations, France, the European Union, the African Union, and West
African bloc ECOWAS that Gbagbo accept the election commission outcome.
ECOWAS leaders are due to hold an emergency summit on Ivory Coast on
Tuesday.

Gbagbo has scorned
the international rejection as an affront to Ivorian sovereignty, and
has threatened to expel the U.N. Ivory Coast envoy for interference in
internal affairs.

Citing a
“breakdown of governance”, the World Bank and the African Development
Bank said they would reassess aid, adding pressure on Gbagbo.

Ouattara has
already named Gbagbo’s former finance minister, Charles Koffi Dibby, to
his cabinet, a move which would strip Gbagbo of an official praised for
his handling of debt talks. Dibby was not available to confirm he had
switched sides.

Financial impact

The World Bank has
tied the cancellation of $3 billion of external debt, estimated at
$12.5 billion, to smooth elections. But Gbagbo’s hand on the economy is
strengthened by revenues from cocoa, oil, and other commodities.

Benchmark ICE cocoa futures traded at a four-month high of $3,028 a tonne on Monday.

Several cocoa
exporters suspended activities in the wake of election violence that
has caused at least 15 deaths. But a regular industry estimate on
Monday put port arrivals at around 427,000 tonnes in the season to
December 5, only a few thousand tonnes less than at the same point last
year.

Despite the
political stand-off, Ivory Coast reopened international borders on
Monday that had been sealed during a tense wait for the results, and
traffic in the business district of the economic capital, Abidjan, was
nearly back to normal.

“The international
community has got to play a straight game, otherwise it will be a mess
in this country. Ouattara’s forming his government, Gbagbo’s forming
his – where will it end?” said civil servant, Maurice Fallet.

Army backing

The army chief of
staff has sworn allegiance to Gbagbo and troops appear to be on his
side for now. Ouattara has the support of the New Forces rebels
occupying the north.

“We’ve put our troops on alert,” New Forces spokesman, Seydou Ouattara, told Reuters.

“If we are
attacked, we will defend our zones and we will take the rest of the
Ivorian territory,” he said, adding he hoped diplomacy would help the
country avoid a “bloodbath”.

Mediation talks
led by former South African president, Thabo Mbeki, and the two rivals
appeared to make no breakthrough on Sunday. It was unclear whether more
talks would take place.

Gbagbo has
controlled the country for a decade but now faces isolation and
international sanctions. Diplomats said Russia, whose Lukoil is
exploring for oil there, has blocked efforts in the U.N. Security
Council for a clear endorsement of Ouattara.

The crisis in
Ivory Coast, once West Africa’s brightest economic star, has forced up
the risk premium on the country’s $2.3 billion Eurobond. It is
currently yielding 11.67 percent, from below 10 percent before the
election.

Abubakar Amuda Yusuf, a People’s
Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant in Kogi State, has
described the adoption of the party’s latest senatorial candidate as
illegal.

Mr. Yusuf,who is on official assignment
in South Korea, was represented by Ismaila Aliyu, director-general of
his campaign organisation. Mr. Aliyu said on Monday that the group that
adopted deputy governor Philip Salawu as the senatorial candidate for
the central district of the state is a faceless set of individuals who
were not authorized to do so.

“We read with dismay the press release
from some self-acclaimed PDP stakeholders and the attached communiqué
from an unrecognized forum called Supreme Council for Kogi Central
Senatorial District Affairs,” said Mr. Aliyu. “We disassociate
ourselves and our principal completely from this sponsored publication
and maintain that there has been no consensus candidate chosen for the
PDP senatorial race in the central district, hence the publication
should be disregarded by the public especially our esteemed members.”

Not recognised

Mr Aliyu said that only the Ebira
Peoples Association, the Ebira Youth Congress and the Committee of
Royal Fathers are capable of coming up with a consensus candidate for
the senatorial district.

He called on the party’s leadership to call the forum to order
before more harm is done in the district. “We have had enough bloodshed
and discord in the central zone, let us not begin a new era of acrimony
that will plunge the area into another crisis,” he said. “A consensus
candidate will emerge when genuine and creditable individuals and
groups meet to decide on this subject matter at the appropriate time.”</

President Goodluck Jonathan has granted
masters and Ph.D scholarships to the 51 members of the National Youth
Service Corp (NYSC) honoured in this year’s president’s honours award.

He disclosed this at the 2010 award ceremony which held at the banquet hall of the presidential villa.

The president amidst cheers from the
corp members announced that “all awardees with first class and second
class upper, will have automatic scholarship for masters and Phd, while
those with second class lower who can secure admission within the next
6months in any institution in the world, will also benefit from the
scholarship”.

He also said those with science and
petroleum backgrounds will be sponsored by the Petroleum Development
Trust Fund(PTDF) while those in other disciplines will be sponsored by
the Education Trust Fund (ETF).

“The awardees will also get automatic
employment into the federal civil service” the president said, noting
that those who already have state government’s employment are free to
choose.

Mr. Jonathan further directed the Head
of the Civil Service Dapo Afolabi to compile the list and bring to him
for endorsement adding that the awardees will get their employment
letters before the 25th of December.

The president, while assuring that
votes will count in 2011 said the federal government will support the
emerging NYSC/INEC collaboration for good governance.

Mr. Jonathan also directed that the
“INEC and all security agencies should ensure that the corp members are
well protected to discharge their onerous duty”.

The president hopes that the NYSC will justify the hope and trust
reposed on them to fulfill the vision of a free and fair election.</

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been arrested by British police on a
European warrant issued by Sweden over allegations of sex crimes including
rape, London’s Metropolitan Police said Tuesday.

Swedish prosecutors issued the arrest order
for the 39-year-old Australian who is wanted in Sweden on suspicion of
committing sexual crimes, which he denies.

Police said Assange, at the center of a row
over the release of secret U.S. diplomatic cables, had been arrested at about
9.30 a.m. (0930 GMT) Tuesday by appointment at a London police station under a
European Arrest Warrant.

“He is accused by the Swedish
authorities of one count of unlawful coercion, two counts of sexual molestation
and one count of rape, all alleged to have been committed in August 2010,”
London police said in a statement.

He is due to appear before City of
Westminster Magistrates Court in London later Tuesday.

REUTERS

The abduction of a 65-year-old housewife, Juliana
Ogunleye from her residence in Akure, the Ondo State capital by three
armed bandits has sparked off protest from members the Nigerian Medical
Association (NMA) in the State.

The association has therefore given the state
government 48 hours to secure the release of the woman, who is the wife
of a Saudi-based Gynecologist, Idowu Ogunleye.

Mrs. Ogunleye was playing with her grandchildren at
her No 2, Ogunleye Street, Ijoka-Akure when she was abducted at about
7pm last month.

The three armed men, it was learnt, came to the house
on the pretext that they had come to deliver a message to the victim.
The woman was the only person kidnapped by the suspected gunmen, who
met six people in the house while carrying out the dastardly act.Her
husband, Idowu Ogunleye is at present outside the country.

A source close to the family said the abductors had
earlier placed a N100 million ransom on the woman before reducing it to
N50 million.

The family has however told the kidnappers that they
could not afford such huge amount, noting that the woman who was
neither a political office holder nor any of her siblings had been
taken away since November 25.

The Nigeria Medical Association has therefore sent a Save Our Soul letter to the state governor,Olusegun Mimiko.

The association, in the letter signed by Adetan
Oluwatoyin and I. J Adebose, chairman and the secretary respectively,
said that the latest case was the second involving wives of senior
medical practitioners in the state by criminals intent on extorting
money.

Unhappy doctors

They stated that the kidnap of doctors and their
relatives was a strange thing in the state.“Your Excellency, we need to
emphasize that as the Chief Security Officer of this state, our lives
and property are in your hand. When it concerned the politicians, the
government was there, for journalists, the whole nation was involved
and now that it involves doctors’ relatives, we do not expect anything
less”, the NMA said.

The NMA therefore called on the government and security agencies to
act fast in order to secure the release of the abducted Mrs Ogunleye,
whose abductors have now reduced the ransome to N30 million.