Nigeria Content Online

An attempt by the Presidency to ensure that political appointees
vote as delegates in political party primaries was turned down on Wednesday by
the Senate.

In the Electoral Act sent to the lawmakers some weeks ago, the
Presidency made efforts to amend the laws in a way that will enable political
office holders and their aides to participate as delegates at the party
primaries. The bill also tried to vest the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) with the power to determine the sequence of elections.

The lawmakers however said the rejection of the bill will not
have any adverse effect on the new time-line requested by INEC as it is a
constitutional matter.

Toxic bill

The bill met with stiff opposition from senators who shouted it
down. The debate almost turned rowdy as lawmakers dismissed the clause which
sought to overturn the proposal banning political appointees from voting as
undemocratic and “toxic”. “This bill is entirely killing all the work we have
done throughout last year and which Nigerians are happy with,” Kabiru Gaya
(ANPP Kano State) said. “This bill should be thrown away.” The most contentious
part of the bill was the one seeking to amend Section 87(7) by proposing that
political parties which adopt the system of indirect primaries for choosing
candidates, shall stipulate in their constitutions or guidelines those who will
be delegates at congresses or conventions.

The amendment would have allowed political parties to change at
will the rules governing procedures for primaries by issuing new guidelines
rather than relying on the provisions of the current 2010 Electoral Act which
analysts say will enshrine internal democracy in political parties.

The bill also proposed that Section 87(8) of the Electoral Act
2010 be deleted. That section provides that no political appointee at any level
shall be a voting delegate at the convention or congress of any political party
for the purpose of nomination of candidates for any election.

Section 87(8) is viewed as revolutionary because it prevents the
president and governors from inundating political party congresses with
ministers, special advisers, commissioners and other political appointees who
will normally vote for their bosses or the candidates their leaders choose.

“For the party to decide the delegate is simply undemocratic,”
Mr. Gaya said.

“This should not be accepted,” Kanti Bello (PDP Katsina State)
also said.

Various senators argued along this same line. They called for
the rejection of the bill in its entirety saying any further debate was a waste
of time. The bill was thrown out 17 minutes after debates commenced on it.

Even though the Senate president and his deputy appealed to the
senators to let the senate use the template offered by the bill to introduce
other valid amendments to the electoral act, the senators were too keyed up to
allow debates.

2011 elections on course

The senators said discarding the bill will not stop the conduct
of credible elections next year since the timeline requested by INEC has been
accommodated in the ongoing constitution review.

Voting on the constitution review could however not continue on
Wednesday as anticipated by the Senate. However, Ayogu Eze, the senate
spokesman said the voting will take place on or before Tuesday next week.

Victor Ndoma-Egba (PDP Cross River State) and Mr. Eze hinted
that the Senate is working on an in-house bill that will accommodate the
necessary changes the constitution review will cause on the electoral act.

Having been rejected by the Senate, the electoral bill
automatically dies without any discussion in the House of Representatives since
the law requires both chambers to agree on every bill before it can become law.

The Presidency cannot also return the bill until six months have
elapsed.

Local government chairmen in Ekiti State have faulted reports
that they have abandoned their duty posts since last Friday’s Appeal Court
judgment that sacked the former governor of the state, Segun Oni.

Gbenga Ogunleye, the spokesperson of the council bosses’ union,
the Association of the Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), said the local
officials have no reason to abandon their duty posts as a result of the
judgment that Kayode Fayemi was the duly elected governor of the state, because
there was no law barring them from performing their statutory roles as council
chairmen.

Mr Ogunleye said at no time did the chairmen run away from their
respective councils. “All the 16 council chairmen have been performing their
roles as recommended by law and there is no law restraining them from
discharging their duties,” he said.

‘Tissue of lies’

He also faulted allegations that ALGON members have been
perpetrating fraud since the judgment was handed down by the court, saying the
allegation was a tissue of lies designed to dent the reputations of members.

“It would be a great disservice to the people of the state if the
council chairmen engage in any form of corruption as a result of change of
government,” he said. “Ekiti speaks the same dialect and this makes us unique
in this country, so we cannot because of a change of government involve
ourselves in any corrupt practices because we are one and we will continue to
be so.”

The ALGON spokesperson, who is the chairman of Ekiti West Local
Government, said his colleagues shall continue to perform their duties in
accordance with the will of the people and the provision of the law, in
peaceful coexistence with the new government.

He also lauded the quick response of Mr Fayemi to the rumour that the state
government has not taken any position in respect of the status of the local
government chairmen. The 16 local government chairmen, who are all members of
the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), were elected in December 2008 by the State
Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) in an election that was boycotted by
the Action Congress of Nigeria, which was the opposition party at the time.

The Chief Judge of
the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Lawal Gummi, said on
Tuesday that the relevance of the judiciary to society is predicated
upon its ability to meet public expectations in the discharge of its
constitutional duties.

Justice Gummi, who
said this at the commencement of the 2009/2010 legal year, noted that,
of the three arms of government, it is only the judiciary that is
tasked with guarding the constitution.

“The public looks
up to us in times of doubt, weakness and crisis,” he said. “The
judiciary has always been seen as the harbinger of hope, and a
repository of trust and confidence. We cannot shirk from our
responsibility of providing the much needed assurance, strength and
guidance for the society.” He, however, admitted that the arm faced
several challenges, including poor remuneration, which has led to
several strikes by the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN).

Mr Gummi called on all relevant authorities to expedite action on the new salary structure approved for judiciary staff.

“The best incentive for efficient performance is good remuneration,” he said.

In a bid to revamp the aviation sector, the Federal Executive
Council (FEC) yesterday approved the upgrade of the Akanu Ibiam International
Airport, Enugu.

The revised sum of N10,33,078,000.98 was approved for the
upgrade of the airport, to give it an international standard. It is expected to
begin daylight operations in December.

Other approvals for the ministry of aviation include the
renovation and replacement of Air Traffic Control (ATC) consoles and Very High
Frequency (VHF) Radios in 13 ATC Towers for the Nigerian Airspace Management
Agency (NAMA); and the award of contract for direct procurement of seven
Airport Fire Crash Tenders for the airports.

The contracts were approved during the weekly FEC meeting,
chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan, which lasted for about two hours, with
a total of six memos approved.

The Council had, in September 3, 2009, approved the contract
for the upgrade of infrastructure at the Enugu airport and it has been closed
to flight operations pending the completion of works.

The approval is for the augmentation of project cost for the
completion of the upgrading (extension/expansion and resurfacing of the runway
including CAT II AFL) of the Enugu Airport.

The minister of information and communication, Dora Akunyili,
who briefed alongside the minister of aviation, Fidelia Njezeh, and the
minister of women affairs, Josephine Anenih, said the initial cost of the
contract was reduced due to inadequate budgetary provision and that the
contractor (Messrs PW Nigeria Ltd) accepted to execute the project at the
revised sum of N10 billion.

Water projects

The scope of work, according to the information minister,
involves the installation of modern Communication Control Systems and the
renovation of the Control Towers. The project is expected to be completed in
six months.

Council also approved three contracts for the Ministry of Water Resources.
One of the contracts approved is the augmentation of the Revised Estimated
Total Cost (RETC) for the Gurara Water Transfer Project; the Jada Multi-purpose
dam project; and the Kontagora dam and irrigation project.

The Progressive Peoples Alliance PPA, Abia State chapter, has
cleared former Abia State Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu, to contest as its
presidential candidate for the 2011 presidential elections.

The declaration put to rest the controversy over the legibility
of Mr Kalu to contest on the platform of the PPA, after collapsing the party
into PDP and his failed bid to join the ruling party.

The publicity Secretary of the party in Abia State, Oliver Eze
Obieze, said the PPA has succeeded in convincing Mr Kalu to contest as the
party’s presidential candidate in 2011.

Mr Obieze, who spoke to the press in Umuahia, said after due
consultations, “we have been able to convince Kalu to come back to the party
and run as its Presidential candidate. We have given him the platform to run as
our presidential candidate.”

Right to opinion

Reacting to claims by a leader of the party, Olu Akerele, that
Kalu cannot claim to be a presidential aspirant in a party he said he had fused
into the PDP, Obieze said Mr Akerele had a right to express his opinion as a
party member, but that the party has taken its decision.

He said the successful persuasion of Mr Kalu to fly the party’s
flag was part of their outreach efforts to other members of the party who had
one grouse or the other, and that the party has not foreclosed the aspiration
of others to contest for the presidency.

Commenting on the state of affairs in Abia, he said the party commended the
federal government for deploying soldiers to the state to arrest insecurity
caused by kidnapping in parts of the state. “We support the military
intervention to sanitize the troubled Aba zone in particular,” he said. “We,
however, urge the military personnel so deployed to restrain themselves from
the abuse of the fundamental rights of the innocent residents and indigenous
people of the area.”

Ekiti State governor, Kayode Fayemi, has appealed to supporters
not to partake in conducts that will endanger the lives and properties of
members of the opposition in the state.

He gave this warning on Wednesday at the take-off of his party
(ACN)’s official membership registration exercise, which held at the party’s
headquarters in Ado Ekiti.

Speaking to the crowd that trooped to the venue of the party
registration exercise, during which the party’s leadership registered him and
his wife and the state’s deputy governor, Mr. Fayemi said he has received
several security reports that certain individuals have been attacking
opposition politicians in Ijesha Isu, Emure, and some other areas in the state.

“These untoward attitude negates the principles of the party
which put premium on justice and peace,” he said, adding that the ACN is about
democracy, and not violence and brigandage.

Father of all

He said his supporters should realise he was no more the
governorship candidate, but now the bona fide governor of the state, a position
which he said makes him the father of all in the state.

“While recognising the excitement of our people over our court
victory, we still need to let people know that we do not believe that our party
members should be involved in any untoward attitude that will bring discomfort
to opposition politicians.

“I have received security reports which claimed that opposition
politicians are being attacked and victimized by certain individuals, and I
have instructed these reports to be investigated. I know there were bottled-up
emotions everywhere, but all these should be put in check. Anybody with
grievances should channel these to the party leaders, who will in turn address
them,” he said.

He advised party members not to focus solely on the jobs that
the government will provide, but rather focus on acts that will move the people
of the state out of the pangs of poverty.

Mr. Fayemi also approved some appointments. An announcement by
the head of service of the state, Olufemi Adewumi, stated that Ganiyu Owolabi
has been appointed Secretary to the State Government (SSG); Yemi Adaramodu, a
former campaign aide, is appointed Chief of Staff; while Mojeed Jamiu, a
journalist with Leadership, has become the media spokesperson.

Mr. Fayemi asked the people not to allow aspirants to purchase
registration forms for them, so as not to influence their choices in future
elections.

“People should pay the nominal fees of 50 naira, and not allow aspirants to
buy cards for them and later control their choices. We are a party of law and
order and we cannot be seen to be subverting the process,” he said.

This month brought the number of Nigerians I know or have heard
of, who have committed suicide, to five. It matches the number of friends and
acquaintances who have been struck down by a stroke. It may seem like a
miniscule number, but I regard it as an alarming trend. Cause of death – killed
self with work/suicide – and it seems to happen to the best people.

People who have lived three or four lifetimes by the time they
are 30 or 40. The account of their achievements and the contributions they made
to the lives of those around them is too long for them to even recall.

Yet, a significant number of people who achieve early success
also suffer from depression, feelings of inadequacy and despair. They die
young, mourned by those they leave behind who marvel at what they were able to
cram into their short lives.

A survey of tramps and homeless people in the US and the UK
unearthed, amongst them, some former CEOs and middle class people who got up
one day and simply walked away from the pressures and responsibilities of being
successful. They opted for ‘the simple life of a tramp’ – their only concern
where to get the next meal and where to rest their head each night. I have
never looked at mentally unstable people whom we occasionally see wandering our
streets and thought that their lives were simple.

I can understand what people who chose to become tramps were
running away from, though. In all the trappings of ‘civilisation’, development
and Westernisation, our free spirit is confronted with the choice of living a
life constrained by our ‘status’ or giving it all up and flying free.

What is life?

The phenomenon of suicide is creeping into our culture. I
believe that a big part of this has to do with how we define what life is. I
don’t mean the life that many believe is ‘breathed into our bodies’ by God, or
the moment when the collection of cells in the womb take on a life of their
own. I mean the life that we live. What would make life unbearable for you?
What makes a decent person give up their life of honest labour, family and
community and turn to a friendless life of crime, cruelty and material gain?
What makes a person put their life on the line as do soldiers, freedom
fighters, terrorists and activists? Is there a sliding scale, a tipping point
beyond which life loses its value and potency and can be acceptably
extinguished?

It seems like people have decided that life and quality of life
are equivalent to each other. Are they? Growing up, life had its own value. For
some of us, life was accompanied by suffering. For others, life brought struggle.

Yet more found prosperity and happiness. Life was characterized
by your condition, but it was not defined by it. That distinction seems to have
blurred.

What is life without
happiness?

As Nigerians, we love life with a capital L! We did not emerge
the happiest people on earth in the University of Michigan’s World Values
Survey, for nothing. Until recent events proved us wrong, we had a multitude of
rib-cracking jokes, and a strongly held belief that no Nigerian could be a
suicide-bomber. We simply love life.

Yet, what is the relationship between life, quality of life and
happiness? In the same survey, when asked how satisfied with our lives we were,
Nigeria dropped from 1st to 19th. As defined by psychologist, Jonathan
Freedman, “happiness… is a positive, enduring state that consists of positive
feelings… and includes both peace of mind and active pleasures or joy.” We
know that we have positive feelings, a lot of it grounded in faith and nature.

That is what makes us feel happy. We mark all occasions, both
sorrowful and joyful, with celebrations of thanksgiving. So what is it that is
destroying our peace of mind? Why do people say things like, “I cannot live
with all these debts” or “I cannot live without him/her.” We won’t actually
stop breathing because of debt, or because a loved one has left our lives. Life
goes on, albeit with struggle and sorrow tagging along for a while.

If we “don’t want to live like this” – then, we don’t. We have
free will. We can change our lives with the snap of our fingers. It is very
simple to change one’s condition of life. It is simply a very difficult
decision to make.

Up to the ears in commercial debt? Declare bankruptcy. Move from
your three-bedroom house in the best part of town to a one-room apartment in
less fancier parts – or squat with friends and family. Take any job you can get
regardless of your educational qualifications and your experience.

Yet, what makes this difficult to do? History abounds with
people who have suffered devastating reversals in their lives and got up,
started anew and reached the heights again. We struggle with our self-worth,
with the fear of failing our expectations of ourselves and, more importantly,
failing the expectations others have of us.

Through it all, remember that life is sacred. That the people
who love you most value having you among the living more than your quality of
life or what you can do for them, no matter what they say about disgrace and
disappointment. If you are in despair, seek peace of mind and happiness.

No need to seek death. It knows where we are and will find us
when our time is up.

The Alliance of Kogi State Youth and Students Council, a
pressure group, has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),
on Tuesday, to conduct free, fair, and credible elections.

Speaking in Lokoja, the national president of the group, Sani
Ojochenemi Salisu, said that Nigerian youth would not accept anything short of
credible elections from the Attaihiru Jega-led electoral body.

“This time around, the nation needs free, fair, and credible
elections and we hope INEC will not disappoint us in this regard,” said Mr.
Salisu.

Mr. Salisu appealed to all people of voting age to come out and
register during the forthcoming voters’ registration exercise, stressing that
their voters card are their weapon in electing credible leaders of their choice
at all levels.

“The principle of ‘one man one vote’ should be strictly
followed. All the votes of the electorate must count and the electorate must be
allowed to elect their leaders through their vote cast, and not through
imposition of leaders by some so-called godfathers,” he further said.

Shun violence

Mr. Salisu, who is a former president of the National
Association of Kogi State Students (NAKOSS) and the immediate past deputy
senate president of Igala Students Association (ISA), also enjoined youth to
shun any form of violence and thuggery during and after the elections.

“As leaders of tomorrow, the youth, who have been stakeholders in the polity
of the nation, should not allow themselves to be used as thugs by desperate
politicians who are after their pockets and not the collective socio-economic
and physical development of the country,” he said.

Lawmakers of the Nasarawa State Assembly have voted to end the tenure of all local government chairmen by November 3rd, 2010.

The decision came after lawmakers extended the
tenure of elected local government chairmen in the state’s 13 local
government and development areas.

The chairman, house committee on local government
and community development, Abdullahi Musa Aliyu, drew the attention of
the house to the issue. He noted that no election had been conducted at
the local government level, though the constitution and the local
government chairman amendment laws of 2008 only provided a tenure
period of two years for the position.

“They should hand over to the most senior civil
servants in their respective local government at the end of their
tenure,” he said.

Members of the state House of Assembly, led by Speaker of the House,
Musa Ahmed Mohammed, debated for two hours before arriving at a
unanimous decision.

The House of Representatives has ordered the minister of
finance, Olusegun Aganga, to appear before it today to explain why funding for
capital projects has averaged only 30%, barely two months to the end of the
year.

The lawmakers said Mr. Aganga must offer the explanations before
general session of the House and not a specific committee as is usually the
case.

Ahead of elections next year, lawmakers desperate to showcase
their achievements to the electorate are complaining that the federal
government’s implementation of capital budget has again failed due to poor
funding by the ministry of finance.

“All road contracts from Bauchi to Owerri have been suspended
because the contractors have not been paid,” said Mohammed Ndume, the House
minority leader, who moved the motion yesterday.

“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.”

Members said according to figures from offices in charge of
various projects, while funding for the huge recurrent expenditure which
annually saps federal revenues have remained atop 70%, those for the capital
projects stay between 10% and 30%.

Mr. Aganga is said to have confirmed the amount to the
lawmakers, acknowledging that N3.2 trillion has been released for recurrent
expenditure so far out of the total N4.6trillion budget.

“We here at the legislature, the executive and the presidency,
are the only ones affected by the releases so far,” Mr. Ndume said.

The figures sparked outrage amongst members who condemned
government’s low spending on developmental projects, and admitted that the
criticisms have become routine yearly.

The House voted to refuse approval for next year’s budget, until
the previous proposals have been satisfactorily executed.

“Since 2003 that I have been in this house, every year we complain
about budget implementation. Can the federal government tell us why we need to
bring this issue every year? Are we serving Nigeria or are we serving
ourselves?” asked Samson Positive, who represents Kogi State.

Falling federal revenue

At $67 per barrel of crude oil benchmark approved for this
year’s budget, and an unstable oil production in the Niger Delta, the federal
government has complained about a falling funding and has stated its difficulty
in implementing projects inserted into the budget by lawmakers during
appropriation.

In separate letters to the lawmakers, President Goodluck
Jonathan has argued for a revision of the benchmark and alternative sourcing of
funds. The chairman House committee of Finance, John Enoh, supported that claim
yesterday and staged a lone walk out after failing to dissuade his colleagues
from taking a hard-line position against the executive. He said based several
interactions with Mr. Aganga, his committee has confirmed that various revenues
targets of the FG have not been met.

“The daily oil production quotas have not been reached in spite
of the amnesty. It is expected that it will take a while for government to
fully reach benefit from the programme,” he said.

Current production is said to be at 2.25million barrels a day.

In approving the order to suspend further appropriations, and to
summon the Finance minister, the deputy speaker, Usman Nafada, said the
benchmark for the budget was reached after a petroleum minister, assured the
National Assembly that government can “comfortably” produce 2.35million barrels
a day against 2.4 million proposed by the lawmakers.

“For them to now come and say they cannot produce that is simply
unacceptable,” Mr. Nafada said. He said however, if there were shortfalls, the
over $15 differential currently derived as excess sales per barrel should cover
for the falling mark.

“Oil is selling now for over $80 per barrel that should take care of the
shortfall. If they cannot implement the capital, they should not implement the
recurrent, you should not pay salaries.”