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The All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Caucus in the
House of Representatives alleged yesterday that the President, Goodluck
Jonathan and his deputy, Namadi Sambo are uncomfortable with its role
in the lower legislative chamber.

The minority leader in the House of Representatives,
Mohammed Ali Ndume, disclosed this at a meeting with the leadership of
the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) in Abuja yesterday.

Mr Ndume claimed that, during a recent meeting with
the House leadership, Mr Sambo upbraided the Speaker, Dimeji Bankole
and the entire leadership for allowing the minority to make huge
impacts, especially in the area of defeating bills emanating from the
executive, even when the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has the
majority in House.

“In fact, let me tell you sir, the Vice-President
complained at a meeting with the House leadership recently that how can
they (PDP) have a majority in the House and the minority parties are
killing their bills,” Mr Ndume told the ANPP leadership.

The minority leader, from Borno State, said there are
many members of the PDP in the lower legislative chamber, who shared
the views of the minority caucus and are willing to go with it anytime
there are important issues on the floor.

He said that the ANPP caucus, whose membership
currently stands at 42, are determined to continue to offer
constructive opposition. He said his success as the leader of the
minority so far could be attributed largely to the support from the
other members, who, he said channel their views through him on issues
on the floor.

Explaining the strategy through which the minority is
achieving its feats in the House with one voice, the leader stated that
“what I do in the House is not done by me alone. My colleagues here are
the brains behind all those things I do in the House. It is not every
time all of them will want to speak and so, they channel their views
through me. The 42 of us are equal to the 320 of them.”

The lawmaker expressed gratitude to the ANPP
leadership for inviting them to the meeting, which he said never
happened in the history of the party. According him, only last week,
the party leadership invited the ANPP members in the Senate and the
House to a dinner, stressing that it was an indication that the party
had finally come alive.

He assured party leaders that the caucus will help
shop for new members but quickly noted that Nigerians expected a lot
from the new chairman, Ogbonnaya Onu.

Party recruitment

Earlier in his welcome address, Mr Onu asked the ANPP
Caucus to fan out to the 36 states and shop for members for the party.
He said that the opposition party is determined to wrest power from the
PDP and form the government at the centre, and produce the next Speaker
and majority leader of the House.

“42 of you are 42 wise men. Don’t think of yourself coming back
alone; we want you to have the majority leader and the Speaker. We need
more honourable members and it is you that can do it,” he said. “Our
party is determined to win the next general elections. We therefore
want you to go to every zone of this country and the 36 states. You are
42, share the 36 states and distribute the rest among you.” Mr Onu
commended the ANPP legislators for not bowing to pressure, like others,
to defect to other parties, saying it shows that they are not only
honourable people but also love the country.

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

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

The role of women

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The presidential candidate of the
Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) is expected to emerge at its
national convention scheduled to hold in Abuja on December 29, the
national chairman of the party, Rufa’I Hanga, has said.

Also, all aspirants on the platform of
the party may be compelled to sign an undertaking that they will not
contest the results of its forthcoming primaries.

Mr Hanga, who announced this during a
meeting between the leadership and the governorship aspirants under the
banner of the party, said that though the presidential candidate will
be elected at a congress on December 22, he will, however be ratified
alongside other successful aspirants on December 29.

He added that the congress to pick the
party’s candidates for the Senate and the House of Representatives will
hold on December 18; ward congress, November 24; local government
congress (December 1) while registration of members nationwide will
hold between October 30 and November 6.

Mr Hanga, a former senator, stated that
the party’s leader, Muhammadu Buhari, may not be the only presidential
aspirant, adding that more aspirants may emerge before the December 22
congress.

Earlier, in his remarks, Mr Buhari said
that there will be a clause in the party’s nomination form for all
prospective candidates to reflect on and appreciate the fact that
elections can go one way or the other.

This, he added will ensure that both
winners and losers feel they have been fairly treated in the process.
“The CPC is committed to addressing the challenge we have in
institutionalising democratic process in our country,” he said. “We are
deliberately seeking to evolve a precise method for achieving democracy
so that winners and losers, all alike, may get the sense that they have
been treated with fundamental fairness, having the confidence that
nobody had been cheated in the process.” “Note that in the party
nomination form, there is a concession clause that compels a
prospective candidate to reflect on, and appreciate the fact elections
can go one way or the other when it is truly free and fair. This
provision would permit the party to manage the aftermath of primary
elections more graciously. It is only the do-or-die elections that can
produce a pre-determined result.”

Internal democracy

The former military head of state
stated that the party takes the issue of internal democracy seriously,
adding that it is mindful not to create grievance among its members.

According to him, democracy cannot be
achieved through random acts of political bravado and wizardry of few
individuals, stressing “neither can arbitrary manoeuvring even by few
well-meaning people bring us the democracy we desire. Unfortunately, we
have seen it all before – we have noticed all their undemocratic and
fraudulent manipulations.” Mr Buhari said that the proper registration
of members will uniquely permit the party to conduct the most
transparent party congress even known in Sub-Sahara Africa and by
extension in Nigeria.

He added that the exercise is a
fundamental stepping stone to positioning the CPC for victory in all
tiers of government in the upcoming 2011 electoral competition.

“Considering that we are conducting
this exercise before any other political party in the country, we take
delight as a truly world-class democratic party, to set the standard
for other democratic forces in the country to follow,” he said.

Mr Buhari also urged party faithful to
participate in the membership registration so that they can assert
their membership in the party congresses, as part of the bid to jointly
defend its votes during the general elections.

Key members of the
House of Representatives yesterday held secret talks with the Minister
of Finance, Olusegun Aganga, after planning to hear the minister’s
testimony at a plenary on why funds for federal projects were withheld.

Accused of blocking
money meant for the implementation of capital projects in the 2010
budget, Mr Aganga was strangely directed last week to meet with all
members during a plenary session on Tuesday, after the initial summons
last week was shifted.

But after stating
the procedure to admit the minister into the chamber yesterday, the
Speaker, Dimeji Bankole, announced that Mr Aganga would meet only with
a select committee of the House, away from the media, fuelling
complaints by opposition members that he is being shielded by the House
leadership.

“It is the normal style of PDP; they don’t want to expose themselves,” a member said.

Ita Enang, the
Chairman House committee on Business and Rules confirmed that the
meeting held but declined to give details. “We are meeting with him
now,” he told NEXT when asked on phone.

‘Playing politics’

Other members
attended the meeting, though the sponsor of the summons last week,
Mohammed Ndume, said he does not believe that the meeting that lasted
several hours held.

According to him if
such meeting was truly held, “they are just playing politics with it.
The Speaker has no right to do what he did. The case is not over yet
because the house resolution still stands.” Mr Ndume’s motion, widely
supported by many members last week, detailed how figures from
government offices show that funds released by the Finance Ministry
averaged barely 30 per cent about two months to year ending. Money
spent by the government on the recurrent budget was over 70 per cent,
the lawmakers said.

“By the time our
people ask which projects were attracted to our areas, what are we
going to say? These projects are not there, and if they are there, they
have been stopped and yet our salaries are not stopped. The salaries of
the presidency have not been stopped,” Mr. Ndume, the minority leader,
lamented.

The minister has also been asked by the House committee on Defence
to explain funds that accrued during United Nations peacekeeping
operations which Nigeria participated in. The summons was moved last
week Thursday after the minister said he was yet to be informed.