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Despite
his insistence that his administration will organise free and fair
elections in 2011, President Goodluck Jonathan does nor appear serious
about electoral reform, the opposition Action Congress (AC) has said.

The party, in a
statement issued by its national publicity secretary, Lai Mohammed, the
party said Nigerians should not be deceived by the president’s
assurances, and should instead judge him by his efforts so far in that
direction (electoral reform).

Backing up its
assertion, the party said from all indications, all the recommendations
made to Mr Jonathan by the sub-committee on electoral reforms of the
Presidential Advisory Committee (PAC) have been jettisoned. The party
said highlights of the recommendations, made to Mr Jonathan on May
19th, include that he should invite governors elected on the platform
of opposition parties as well as all opposition presidential candidates
in the 2007 general elections to make recommendations on appointments
into INEC.

The president was
also advised to inform security agencies concerning their role before,
during and after elections; vigorous enlightenment campaigns by the
government using the National Orientation Agency and the media on why
every vote must count and ensuring that electoral materials are ready
long before elections to avoid delays in voting and ensure all voters
vote simultaneously.

“The party regrets
that none of these recommendations has been implemented by the
president, with just a few months to the next elections,” the party
said, as it urges the PAC members to resign or they would be seen as
part of what is increasingly looking like a deliberate effort to stifle
the success of the 2011 elections.

“The general
feeling is that the president is not following PAC’s recommendations in
carrying out the decisions he has made so far, especially in the
appointments into INEC. If this is not so, it is better for the members
to quit instead of soiling whatever reputation they have built over the
years,” the party said.

Look at Uwais report

The party said if
Mr Jonathan is truly committed to electoral reforms and wants to
guarantee free and fair polls in 2011, he should adopt wholesale the
recommendations of the Uwais panel, especially as it relates to
appointments into INEC.

“People have said
Prof. Attahiru Jega, the INEC chairman-designate, is a fine gentleman
with impeccable credentials. We agree, but we will like to say, again,
that those credentials may not matter much as far as the INEC job is
concerned. In the first instance, Jega is just one out of 50 INEC
commissioners, and he can only do so much in an environment polluted by
compromised national commissioners and RECs.

Secondly, there is a fatal flaw in the recent appointments of INEC
Commissioners and RECs. One of the National Commissioners is a member
of the PDP’s Board of Trustees. Another was a former gubernatorial
candidate of the PDP in Zamfara, while several others are known
sympathisers of some political parties,” added the opposition party.

Four armed men,
suspected to be hired assassins, invaded the Abuja residence of a
senator from Kwara State, Gbemisola Saraki, daughter of Olusola Saraki,
the Second Republic senate leader, in the early hours of yesterday,
after overpowering her security aides.

The men undertook a
meticulous search of the entire building, looking for Ms Saraki, but
had to abandon their mission when they couldn’t locate the senator who
had travelled out of Abuja days earlier, after the Senate announced its
recess.

The men, who made
enough racket to wake up all the senator’s aides and other residents
living in the building, had arrived around 1am yesterday and proceeded
to search the rooms, demanding to see Mrs Saraki.

“They came around
with sophisticated weapons,” a family member said. “Ms. Saraki was
however not at home when the suspected assassins forced their way into
her house. They took her security aides and other members of her family
hostage, demanding her whereabouts.” According to eyewitness account,
the thugs were speaking in Yoruba, Ms Saraki’s language, claiming that
they were sent from Ilorin, her home state, to kill the senator.

Emmanuel Ojukwu,
the Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Police, said in a telephone
that the police is treating the crime as a “burglary and theft
attempt.” He also said that his men have not discovered any new
information on the incident.

Family sources
however said the armed men ransacked Ms Saraki’s house and locked her
family inside a room after they could not find her.

A member of the
family said the raid lasted for almost one hour and the police only
arrived the scene hours after the men had left.

The senate
leadership condemned the attack and asked the police to commence
immediate investigation. “We received with shock news of the attempt on
the life of Senator Gbemisola Saraki,” Ayogu Eze, the senate
spokesperson said. “We condemn the violation of the sanctity of Ms.
Saraki’s household and the abuse of the constitutional rights of her
relations and domestic staff. We call on the Inspector General of
Police and other security agencies to step into this matter and fish
out the master-minds and the culprits in this heinous act.”

Ms Saraki could not
be reached for her comments hours after the incident. However, on her
Facebook page, she posted the message that, “The protection of Allah
shall be banner over the lives of souls whose paths are always shining
light on others.”

Bad omen for 2011

Ms Saraki, who
switched to the senate in 2003 after she had spent four years as a
member of the House of Representatives, hopes to take over from her
brother, Bukola Saraki, as the governor of Kwara State. The brother,
whose final tenure ends next year, is reportedly not keen on handing
over to his sister.

One of her aides
said the fact that the men claimed to be from Ilorin might mean that
some people were trying to frighten her away from the contest or worse,
to ensure that she was in no position to contest.

Mr Eze said Nigerians should stop employing violence in politics.

“Politics of
violence and brigandage belong to our regrettable past and any attempt
to return us to that inglorious era is unfortunate and completely
unacceptable,” he said.

“Political or other differences should be resolved through dialogue
and consensus building and not by recourse to thuggery and
arm-twisting. Our new politics should not be foreshadowed by threats of
violence and thuggery. This development obviously sends a wrong signal
and we urge the police to deal with this matter comprehensively.”

The members of the South West Zonal Caucus in the
House of Representatives have passed a vote of confidence on the
embattled Speaker, Dimeji Bankole.

The Speaker, who represents Abeokuta South Federal constituency of Ogun State, is a member of the caucus.

The public relations officer of the caucus, Wole Oke,
who disclosed this to journalists in Abuja, on Sunday, said it met over
the allegations made against Mr. Bankole by ten members of the House
last Wednesday, and discovered that they were all lies and blackmail.

“The South West caucus met and thoroughly diagnosed
all the allegations raised against the Speaker by the Progressives, and
found out that there was no merit whatsoever in them, consequent upon
which the South West caucus in the House passed an unanimous vote of
confidence on Speaker Bankole.

“The Speaker has committed no sins to warrant his
resignation, as being demanded by the Progressives. There is no way
Bankole would resign; he has not committed sins. He has acted well and
we urge him to continue his good work in the larger interest of
Nigeria,” Mr. Oke stated.

The lawmakers, led by Dino Melaye (PDP, Kogi), had at
a press conference in Abuja, accused the Speaker of corruption and bad
leadership and gave him seven days to resign or be disgraced out of
office.

Embrace peace

The legislator, who represents Ijesa North Federal
Constituency of Osun State, argued that it is not possible to satisfy
all the 360 members of the House, and that the leadership has the right
to direct the affairs of the chamber in accordance with the rules.

Mr. Oke, who said that Mr. Melaye and his group lack
the numerical strength to oust Mr. Bankole, noted that the leadership
of the House has properly directed its affairs and has not abused its
position, as alleged by the group.

He asked the aggrieved “progressive members” to embrace peace and
work with the leadership, in order to move the nation forward, rather
than wasting their time on the pages of newspapers fighting an unjust
and needless cause.

Following the
cancellation of the $420million Abuja Airport runway project, the
federal government has decided to reopen the bid for the contract to
both local and international companies, the minister of Aviation,
Fidelia Njeze said. The controversial contract for the Abuja airport
runway, which was initially awarded to Julius Berger Nigeria PLC, was
cancelled following lawmakers investigation into the cost of the
project. The House of Representatives Committee on Aviation condemned
the cost of the contract for the second runway of the Nnamdi Azikiwe
International Airport, Abuja, on grounds that the N63.8billion was
excessively high. The House says the winning bid from Julius Berger
Nigeria was more than double the price of the second-placed offer. The
House had therefore recommended that the contract be terminated and new
tenders advertised as the previous one failed to follow due process.
“New advert for the design and construction will be put out soon and it
will have international companies competing for the scope of the design
and construction,” she said.

Bids to expand the
Abuja airport, including replacing its ageing runway, was opened in the
middle of last year and Julius Berger emerged ahead of five other
companies. The construction company which has its headquarters in Abuja
is considered Nigeria’s biggest construction group, with revenues of
₦112 billion in 2008 and has handled most of Nigeria’s road and major
buildings.

House hails decision

At the weekend, the
House of Representatives Committee on Aviation, hailed the decision of
the federal government to terminate the runway contract.

The chairman of the
committee, Bethel Amadi said the cancellation of the contract is a
further testimony of the excellent relationship of the legislative and
executive arms of government.

He commended
President Goodluck Jonathan for allowing the principle of separation of
powers to prevail by acting in tandem with the recommendations of the
House in terminating the runway project.

“This is indeed a
welcome development for the growth of democracy and the ability of the
various arms of government to work in harmony to ensure good
governance,” Mr Amadi said.

The lawmaker noted
that reducing the contract sum would not have been in the best interest
of the nation, adding that outright cancellation and re-tendering would
be appropriate for transparency and accountability.

The House had, via
a motion, kicked against the high contract cost, saying it was enough
to construct two new airports. It consequently directed the aviation
committee to investigate the contract award.

Cost reduction not enough

Just as the
committee began its assignment, the presidency inaugurated the
Presidential Project Assessment Committee (PAC) chaired by Ibrahim
Bunu, a former FCT Minister, which re-examined the contract award and
made recommendation to the President.

The panel recommended the review of the contract from the initial N63.5 billion to N49.6billion.

But the House
committee queried the modalities for the reduction and maintained that
the sum of N49.6billion was still on the high side. It insisted that
the nation must get value for its money in the project.

The committee, in
its subsequent report, noted that the process that led to the award of
the contract was fraught with illegalities and contravened the
provisions of Public Procurement Act.

The lawmakers’ opposition to the recommendation of the Presidential
Committee as well as some damning revelations on the contract made
available to the Presidency were said to have informed the decision of
Mr Jonathan to cancel the contract.

Vivien Njemanze, a
committee clerk, had just finished conducting her boss, the chairperson
of the Senate Committee on Environment,

Grace Benet, round
quarry sites in Mpape, at the outskirt of Abuja when she noticed that a
bulldozer had deliberately crossed the only road, and all cars, bikes
and pedestrians have stopped moving.

People rushed out of buildings; everybody stood still, gazing expectantly at a mountain down the road.

Boom! A loud
explosion rattled off the mountain; the earth trembled, and a thick
cloud of dust covered the town, but nobody was hurt. Crush Rock
industries Ltd had just blasted a segment of the mount down the road.

Incidentally, the
Senate Committee on Environment and the National Environmental Standard
and Regulation Enforcement Agency (NESREA) had gone there to enforce
environmental regulation laws on the five stone quarry companies
operating in the suburb. The enforcement team was led by Ms Benet (PDP
Adamawa state), and comprised senators and the director general of the
environmental regulatory agency, Ngeri Benebo.

The previous week,
a similar blast produced disturbing waves which shock was felt by
buildings in the high profile Maitama district, less than 10 km away.

Apparently, the one
million people living in the community are familiar with such blasts
and with dust going down their lungs, but the enforcement team seemed
worried that the miners were not complying with the regulations guiding
their business and that their unlimited blasting was beginning to
affect the immediate environment and the adjourning Maitama district
negatively.

The enforcement
team were also checking if the various mining companies had any plan to
remedy the environment after their blasts and excavations.

Non-compliant miners

The five stone
mining companies operating in the suburb have mostly been blasting and
crushing rocks in Mpape for over 30 years but none of them have an
environmental impact assessment certificate or a plan on how to repair
the environment after mining. Neither did any of the mining companies
have a corporate social responsibility project in the community.

The worst offender
was Julius Berger Plc. They are the longest stone blasting company in
the area but had neither an Environmental Impact Assessment certificate
nor an Environmental Management Plan. Their site also had a lake
developing from their previous mining pit, “untreated and breeding
mosquitoes.” “Can Julius Berger do this in Germany?” Mrs Bent asked the
site manager. “This is totally unacceptable in Nigeria.”

The senate
committee chairman therefore gave them an ultimatum to develop an
environmental management plan and conduct an environmental impact
assessment on the site’s adjourning community.

“We are giving you
two weeks to do this or we will come back here and shut this place
down. We cannot tolerate this; it is totally unacceptable to us.” She
added.

Like Julius Berger,
Arab Contractors and the rest of the Chinese companies mining stones at
the suburb were blasting the rock, causing earth tremors, polluting the
air with dust, and producing unsafe lakes from old mining pits but have
never conducted any environmental impact assessment on the site.

Their workers were also not protected with safety kits, neither were they insured.

Kamel Eljilbaly who
represented the management of Arab Contractors ltd argued that the
company had the necessary certifications but Ihebinike Kevin, an
official from the Federal Ministry of Environment, countered saying the
ministry had no record of such certifications neither did they have any
post mining plans from the company.

Other mining companies the team visited similarly argued that they had certificates and permits but could not present them.

Soon after the
midday blast by Crushed Rock Industries Ltd, the bulldozer left the
road, and Mrs njemanze and her team had a thorough fare and life in the
community went back to normal – on the face of it.

In the meantime, residents of the suburb as well as Maitama, the
adjourning high profile city, anxiously await the full implementation
of the environmental laws by the stone blasting companies.

The political
crisis rocking the ruling Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) is not
limited to the national level of the party. There is crisis in
virtually all the state chapters and Osun, a state hitherto known for
peace, is not left out.

The house of the
PDP in the state seems to be strongly divided against itself and the
centre can hardly hold. This development is not unconnected with the
interest of some stakeholders of the party over who emerges as the
gubernatorial candidate of the party in the 2011 general election.

The party
leadership had tried to manage the crisis, but recent event has shown
that they are far from reaching a meaningful compromise.

The state
secretariat of the party has suspended the leaders of the party and
some members in Iwo Local Government Area of the state for alleged
anti-party activities, an allegation which the suspended members
strongly refuted. Aside this, a serious crisis looms in the six local
government areas in Ijesha area over who will represent the Ijesha zone
of Osun East Senatorial district of the state.

Similar crisis had
also broken out in Ifelodun Local Government Area of the state, where
party leaders and the chairman of the local council, Sarafadeen
Awotunde have disagreed. This has led to the polarization of the party
in the area.

There are parallel executives of the party in virtually all the 30 Local council branches of the party, as a result of crisis.

Political observers
say this might affect the unity of the party and its future in the
state, especially as it pertains to the 2011 governorship election. As
a result of the crisis, the party had last month suspended the chairman
of Ila Local Government, Bello over allegations of anti-party
activities. The party had also suspended the executive members of the
party in the council area, a development which the members of the party
in the area are protesting.

Basically, the
crisis, which has almost split the party into two, is seen as a result
of the interest of the leadership of the party in a particular
governorship aspirant who hails from Ile-Ife, in the East senatorial
district, out of the 15 aspirants that had shown interest in the
governorship race and obtained the N3 million intention of interest
form sold by the party secretariat.

Supporting one candidate

Some party leaders
alleged that the state chairman of the party, Ademola Rasaq was
supporting the candidature of one of the aspirants and had mobilized
heavily for him, and had even ordered all the local government chairmen
of the party to rally round the candidate in their various council
areas. However, this situation did not go down well with some of the
chairmen who prefer other aspirants, hence the crisis.

The PDP members in
Iwo, who recently staged a peaceful protest against the dissolution of
the executives of the party in the council area, alleged that they were
victimized by the leadership of the party due to their support for
Fatai Akinbade, the former Secretary to the Osun State government who
is also vying for the governorship position.

The aggrieved
members blame the leadership of the party for destabilizing the party
structure in the area and threatened that if not curbed, the present
crisis may destroy the party before the next general election.

Some of the
placards carried by the angry PDP members, who were mostly youth, read:
“Don’t impose minority on the majority in Iwo PDP”; “Minority cannot
rule over majority in Iwo Local Government”; and “Iwo PDP exco remain
intact” among some other unprintable words directed at the state
leadership of the party.

“ The state
executive of the party had no just reason to suspend the executive of
the party in the local government, since there was no crisis in the
party,” a leader of the protesting youth, Rauf Salawu said. “The
victimization of the majority of members of the PDP in Iwo zone was
targeted at Fatai Akinbade, who is a son of the soil and whom we are
supporting in his bid to emerge as the party’s flag bearer. This does
not go down well with some executives in the state chapter of the
party, because they wanted to penetrate into us but could not have
their ways.” He also warned the leadership of the party against
imposition of executives to administer the party in Iwo, saying it will
not augur well for the party in the general elections. He also advised
all members of the party in the zone not to allow themselves to be used
by any individual for selfish reason, even as he called for more unity
and understanding amongst members of the party.

Ijesha is also divided

The crisis in
Ijesha zone was caused by the decision of the elders’ caucus of the PDP
in the area to endorse one of the six aspirants. The caucus, under the
leadership of former minister of transport, Ebenezer Babatope, recently
announced the endorsement of a member of the House of Representatives,
Gbenga Onigbogi as the sole gubernatorial aspirant of the party from
Ijesha land.

Nine aspirants have
signified intention to contest the gubernatorial election from Ijesha
zone and three have done so from the Ife axis. Those from Ijesha zone
are Gbenga Onigbogi (Ilesa West); Toye Wahab (Obokun); Diran Odeyemi
(Obokun); Lateef Bakare (Ilesa East); Tunde Odanye (Ilesa West); Remi
Olowu (Ilesa West); Dosu Fatokun (Obokun); Femi Alafe-Aluko (Ilesa
East) and Saka Sarumi (Ilesa West). The aspirants from Ife zone are
Iyiola Omisore (Ife Central), Femi Fani-Kayode Ife Central) and Baju
Bamigbetan (Ife Central).

The decision to
endorse a single aspirant as Ijesha candidate did not go down well with
other aspirants and their followers, a development which made them
query the rationale behind the endorsement of Onigbogi and the
disqualification of other aspirants.

A pressure group in
the area, Ijesha Redemption Group asked the Elders to explain the
factors considered before concluding on Mr Onigbogi. It also cautioned
the leadership of the party against acts that might affect the
successful performance of the party in the 2011 election.

The Leader of the
group, Gbenga Fowowe said the endorsement of Mr Onigbogi was against
the PDP constitution and an affront on the members of the party in the
area, alleging that the process was not transparent and was marred by
bribery and high level corruption.

“This action is a total negation of the PDP constitution and operational guidelines,” he said.

Fresh evidence in the Daimler
bribery scandal links key actors in the Nigerian presidency, heads of
law enforcement agencies, and the top echelon of the Nigerian
diplomatic community to a $15 million bribery spree in the half decade
between 2002 and 2007. Ongoing investigations in the United States,
where the German company has been indicted, has again slurred the image
of Nigeria, highlighting the systemic structure of corruption that has
permeated the Nigerian bureaucracy.

The U.S. investigation report
obtained by NEXT names Sokari Egbuson, former Nigerian Ambassador to
Brazil as one of the Nigerian officials who benefited from the slush
funds dished out by Daimler AG, the German motor manufacturing company,
in order to obtain government contracts in Nigeria.

According to US investigators,
between 2002 and 2005, Daimler AG through its Brazilian subsidiary, DC
do Brasil, paid Mr. Egbuson $60,000, which by current value amounts to
N9 million, as ‘commissions’ for a contract to supply 10 buses to the
Bayelsa State government. Mr. Egbuson allegedly carried out this
business by using his privately incorporated company, Cascadas Nigeria
Enterprises Ltd., which he co-owns with his wife, Titilope Egbuson.

The State House deal

Mr. Egbuson was not alone. Between
1998 and 1999, Daimler AG, through its Nigerian subsidiary, Anambra
Motor Manufacturing Company (Anammco), paid about N270 million in
bribes to the Nigerian presidency, then headed by former Military
president, Abdulsalami Abubakar.

In return, the federal government
granted Daimler AG a contract to supply 23 new Mercedes Benz passenger
vehicles, and an armoured Mercedes Benz Pullman limousine. For this
deal, Daimler inflated the wholesale price of the vehicles.

“Daimler charged the State House
approximately 21 per cent over the wholesale price for the vehicles,
parts, and services,” the US investigators said, and from the profits,
made handsome payments to the relevant authorities.

“In connection with these sales to
the State House, DAIMLER made 1,427,242.65 dollars in improper
commission payments…with the understanding that these funds would be
passed on, in whole or in part, to Nigerian officials to secure the
State House Contract,” the investigators said.

In 1999, a total of about 1
million Deutschmarks were paid in two instalments to the London bank
account of a high level ‘Executive Branch official,’ in Nigeria.

Furthermore, 50,000 Deutschmarks
was paid to the administrative staff of the State House who signed the
contract while another 50,000 was disbursed to “a delegation of State
House Officials who were visiting a DAIMLER factory in Sindelfingen,
Germany.”

The FIFA deal

In 1999, Nigeria hosted the World
Youth Championship for the Federation Internationale de Football
Association (FIFA). The FIFA Championship offered another opportunity
for profits, both for Daimler AG and for corrupt Nigerian government
officials.

In February of that year, Daimler
landed another juicy deal to supply 54 buses to the Ministry of
Industry, then headed by Onikepe Akande. For this deal, valued at
almost N1 billion, Daimler paid a total of N13.4 million to government
officials who helped the German company clinch the deal “without
engaging in a public tender or bidding process”.

“The contract was dated February
12, 1999, and was signed by a senior Nigerian government official with
the Ministry of Industry, and witnessed by another Ministry of Industry
employee,” the investigators said, adding that these two officials were
subsequently paid money in bribes in May, 1999 and September, 1999.

First comes the Police

In this N2.3 billion scandal, the
Nigerian police was not left out. To be precise, the Nigerian Police
was the first government entity which received money in bribes from
Daimler AG, according to the US investigative report.

In 1997, Daimler AG entered into a
contract with the Nigerian Police Force to supply a Master Lift
Heavy-Duty Recovery vehicle. The Nigeria Police at this point was
headed by Ibrahim Coomassie who was the Inspector General but, as NEXT
investigations reveal, Mr. Coomassie was sidelined in the procurement
and the contracting process was wholly handled by a bureaucrat of the
executive branch who the American investigators listed as the
‘Permanent Secretary, Police Affairs Office, and the President’s
office’.

Mr. Coomasie headed the office
between 1993 and May 1999, and Mr. Musiliu smith succeeded him from May
1999 to March 2002. Though the contract was signed during the Coomasie
administration, payment was made in 2000 during Smith administration.

The Permanent Secretary at the
time was Abu Ogbe who later became head of service under the Obasanjo
Administration but neither he nor Mr. Smith could be reached to comment
on the claim of investigators for the story.

For this contract, however,
Daimler paid, according to indictment documents of American
investigators now available, a total of about N19 million (using
current conversion rates) to a “member of the Nigerian Police Force” in
two instalments. First, into the officer’s account in Germany and then
by cash, according to the indictment papers.

Emmanuel Ojukwu, the Police
spokesperson however told NEXT in Abuja that he was unaware of the US
investigation report, adding that the Nigerian police is not carrying
out any investigations into the Daimler bribery scandal.

“I am not sure that the police is
working on the case. I don’t have any information on the matter. I
cannot respond because I have not seen the US report. I need to see the
report myself,” Mr. Ojukwu said.

Meanwhile, the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it has launched investigations
into the matter and is looking to work with the US government to
uncover the bribe takers.

“We opened investigations into the
Daimler/ Anammco scam recently following a judgment in the U.S.” said
Femi Babafemi, spokesperson for the agency last week, adding that “So
far, we have interviewed about four officials and representatives of
Daimler and Anammco in Nigeria.”

From Nigeria’s pre-independence
electoral commission, headed by Eyo Esua, to the 21st century INEC
under former chairman, Maurice Iwu, the office, under several labels,
has hosted many teachers, professors and trade unionists.

Of the total eight former
chairpersons of the commission, at least three were professors — two,
of Political Science — like Mr. Jega, who is a former chairman of the
Academic Staff Union of Universities.

Mr Esua, who superintended
Nigeria’s first indigenous electoral commission in the early 1960s,
like Mr Jega, was an outstanding labour union member and a teacher.
Many of the office holders too, like Mr Jega, were appointed amid huge
public acclaim and optimism.

But the similarities he shares
have somehow conjured up concerns, more about his destination than a
robust background of academic activism, which he possesses.

In the wake of his naming last
week, the Nigerian Bar Association and the All Nigerian Peoples Party
Chairman, Edwin Umezeoke, and other commentators cautioned Nigerians
against expectations of rapid change merely by virtue of the
appointment, reminding Nigerians of an issue that has somewhat
alienated Mr Jega’s coming from the rest: “His moving into a polluted
ambience,” as the NBA put it.

Perhaps no other of the past
federal electoral commission chairmen assumed office under as much
controversy left behind by a predecessor as Mr Jega would, commentators
have said. And that poses the greatest challenge he will face when he
eventually takes office after the Senate’s two-week break.

“People will expect him to perform
miracles with the next elections coming and based on where we are
coming from, he needs to do that for Nigerians to have faith in him,”
said Joshua Ishiaka, a member of the House of Representatives from
Bornu State.

With a prolonged history of flawed
elections fresh on the nation’s psyche, and the extent of scandalous
elections handling by the immediate chairman of the INEC, Maurice Iwu,
Mr Jega’s takeover bears hope as much as it bears risk.

“Where we are now, if he just
slips, he will lose the goodwill he enjoys and Nigerians will condemn
him. That is something he needs to be careful with,” said Mr Ishiaka.

Lawmakers, like opposition parties
and other political groups, say the key to sustaining goodwill and
being able to succeed will rest on Mr Jega’s management of the new
election time-table raised by the recent constitution amendments and
the contentious question of providing a plausible voters’ register.

“We believe if there is will and
determination, a credible voters’ register can be completed within one
month,” said Musa Adar, who heads the House of Representatives
committee on Electoral Matters. “When he settles down, he should study
the situation, come up with a blueprint and assure Nigerians. Even if
the elections are to be conducted in less than one month, it will not
cause any constraint against free and fair elections. It can be done.
And even if you give two years, if there is no will, nothing can be
done.

“I expect him to do a proper
restructuring, remove those who cannot work with him and bring forward
a sense of honesty and impartiality,” said Aloysius Etok, Chairman
Senate committee on Rules and Business. “He must try and create a new
orientation that will give Nigerians a free and fair election.”

Cautious optimism

The All Nigeria Peoples Party
National Director of Publicity, Sabo Muhammed, said the enabling
environment for the conduct of a free and fair election is not
guaranteed in the present formation of INEC. “Notwithstanding Jega’s
credibility and pedigree, government must create an enabling
environment for him to conduct free, fair and credible elections in
2011,” he said. “Government must assure the new INEC helmsman of all
necessary support. First, by ensuring the neutrality of security
agencies during and after the conduct of the 2011 elections.” The
president of the Trade Union Congress, Peter Esele, also said that
whatever might have been the tradition of the commission that has not
allowed it to reputably discharge its duties must be changed.

“It is left for Jega to do a
surgical operation on INEC and remove what will not make the 2011
elections to work. We urge him to ensure credible elections next year,”
Mr Esele said.

Olisa Agbakoba, former chairman of
the Nigeria Bar Association, who was one of those mentioned in relation
to the job, however, charged the federal government and all those
involved to speed up things, as he said there is a limited time to
achieve the task of a credible election. He also asked Mr Jega to work
through the process with an open mind and reaching out to all necessary
people to ensure success.

“I have known him for a long time
and he is a very credible and principled person,” he said. “I do expect
a lot from him and I do know that he has the antecedent to tackle the
issues. But the challenge is whether we have not overplayed the issue
of who is INEC chairman and overlooked the other institutional
structures that would have to be in place to support the work of an
INEC chairman.

“So I think that more needs to be
done, even for the fact that the new INEC would have to be allowed to
run with new recommendations because we need an INEC that will be
totally independent in terms of service delivery. That is the most
crucial aspect, because INEC needs to be independent of the executive.
Not doing so will make INEC very weak and if that is the point, it will
not lead to the kind of election we so desire. We need to act very
quickly.”

According to him, having success
in an election is not a question about the INEC chairman. “We need the
new INEC chair and his commissioner to, without delay, draw a new
national election plan and also to revalidate the voters register,
whether it is manual or electronic is not the issue.”

Yinka Odumakin of the Save Nigeria
Group said, considering the position of the present acting chairman of
the commission, that the 2011 election might no more be feasible owing
to lack of preparatory time, and Mr Jega and his team need to work
extra hard.

“The Acting INEC Chairman says
election may no longer be feasible in April 2011 due to limited time.
We sincerely hope that Jega will go ahead to issue a fresh timetable
and conduct the election, notwithstanding the comments,” he said. “The
SNG is also hoping to see an INEC that will immediately begin the
process of mobilising Nigerian voters so as to discard the apathy
associated with elections in the past in Nigeria.”

Voting process

Biodun Adegboye, an economist with
the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, however, cautioned against
what he said might be over-expectation.

“Tell me where he is going to
start,” he said. “Even Iwu himself was confused when he brought out two
time tables for Nigerians. Don’t be surprised to know that none of
those timetables will be useful for anything. Why? They were made by
people that were not wanted and to satisfy the wills of some
individuals.

“The issue now is which electoral
system are we following? How are the elections going to be conducted?
Are the rules still the same? So many questions and yet the answers are
still tied to the lackadaisical style of the legislative business in
the country. So, tell me if they expect magic from whomever they are
appointing,” he said.

A former governor of Ogun State,
Olusegun Osoba said in Lagos on Friday that considering the structural
inefficiencies within the INEC, “Nigerians should know that we cannot
celebrate yet. I will only celebrate when 2011 comes and I see the
right people winning the election and not some people arranging victory
for them. No, we will not take that,” he said.

Meanwhile, Abdulwahed Omar, the
NLC President said, “It is highly imperative that Mr Jega gets a team
that is competent, upright and non-partisan, so as not to sabotage any
effort at rebuilding an INEC that is genuinely independent.”

Belief in INEC

Meanwhile, with so many hurdles
ahead, Mr Jega has been described as an optimist that maintains his
belief in the possibilities of making it right. Speaking four years ago
in New Jersey on the challenges facing the 2007 elections, he
controversially reassured participants that Mr Iwu would not disappoint
in delivering the best that Nigerians needed. He also described the
situation in Nigeria as a murky political one, which he said was
dominated by “militicians” and not politicians.

“Trying to democratize a highly
militarized society like Nigeria is a tough job,” he said, adding that
leadership is critical for everything.

The Speaker of the
House of Representatives may be advised to step down next week,
following increased calls for his resignation. A highly placed security
source has revealed that Goodluck Jonathan will have crucial talks with
Dimeji Bankole ahead of the House reconvening on June 22.

“Bankole has a lot
of problems on his hands,” the source said. “I can tell you that Mr
President is unhappy with the situation and will demand a meeting with
him to account for the alleged charges brought by his own fellow
representatives.”

On Thursday, a
group of aggrieved House members gave Mr Bankole a seven-day ultimatum
to resign or they will make public some revelations about his
questionable financial practices over the last three years. Dino
Melaye, spokesperson of the group, said Mr Bankole would face
impeachment if he did not voluntarily step down.

“We are calling on Bankole to resign honourably within seven days or we will make the House ungovernable for him,” he said.

The security source
added that many of the allegations of corruption have already been
documented but that he was aware that there were new charges about to
resurface.

“Some of these charges are already in the public domain. Mind you, none has been taken up,” the source said.

“There are others
which have been made quiet but I can tell you that one includes a bogus
land deal right here in Abuja.” The Governor’s Forum may again be used
by Mr Jonathan to put pressure on Mr Bankole if he remains resolute.

“We saw with
Ogbulafor that Mr President does not court scandal in this
administration. A lot depends on whether Bankole is prepared to do the
right thing. If not, the Governors Forum would come into play again and
with Bankole’s gubernatorial ambitions, that is key.”

The rise

The son of an
Abeokuta chief, Dimeji Bankole attended elite schools in England and
the United States before returning to Nigeria to head a number of
businesses. In 2003, he was elected to the House of Representatives on
the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to represent the Abeokuta South
constituency of Ogun State.

At 37 years old, he
was the youngest person to assume the role of Speaker of the House,
following the ousting of Patricia Etteh in 2007. He was immediately
besieged by opponents who claimed he did not perform his mandatory
service in the National Youth Service Corps, though that was quickly
quashed when he produced his discharge certificate.

Travel scandal

In 2008, he was
accused of spending over N52 billion on inflated travel and vehicle
expenses. The House’s Ethics and Privileges Committee cleared the
leadership of any wrongdoing. Many of the House members called the act
‘selfish and fraudulent’. Although the case is still under
investigation with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, no
court proceedings have been initiated to date.

Last year, when
late president Umaru Yar’Adua’s illness precipitated a constitutional
crisis, Mr Bankole was perceived to be among the politicians opposed to
the transfer of power to Mr Jonathan.

This only
heightened the rift between him and his opponents, many of whom are
rumoured to be loyal to former president, Olusegun Obasanjo.

In April, the
Speaker narrowly escaped impeachment by aggrieved members of the
Nigeria First Forum (NFF), a pressure group in the House, while he was
stranded in London. The NFF had been formed in February to support Mr
Jonathan as acting president, following the resolution of the National
Assembly.

A month later, Mr
Bankole ran afoul of Representatives when he subtly opposed their
demands for a massive raise in their quarterly allowances. Members
wanted the N27.2 million they receive every four months reviewed
upwards to N42 million.

Bitter battle

Now, as supporters
of the president gear up for a possible run in 2011, the Speaker’s
troubles have only increased. Last Thursday, Mr Bankole and a member of
the House, long-time opponent Independence Ogunewe, nearly came to
blows. The brawl stemmed from the issue of the lucrative chairmanships
of various in-house committees.

In October 2008, Mr
Ogunewe was removed from his position as the chairman of the Committee
on Cooperation and assigned a less influential post. Then in 2009, as
punishment for his role in campaigning for a probe of the Speaker over
a N3.2 billion car fraud, he was stripped of all his chairmanship
positions and suspended for two weeks.

Last Wednesday, the
Speaker announced a minor reshuffle to the current House Committee
chairmen and Mr Ogunewe was unhappy that he was once again denied a
seat, despite Mr Bankole’s promises to restore him. The Speaker had
ousted some committee leaders, replacing opponents with his loyalists –
a move the Speaker alleged earned him death threats.

On Thursday, the
deposed members came together and gave the Speaker the ultimatum. The
members, including Mr Ogunewe, claimed they had incriminating evidence
of Mr Bankole’s corruption, which they were prepared to leak to the
public.

Still, the Speaker is standing his ground – at least for now. His
loyalists have promised to deal decisively with the errant members,
promising to expose their own evidence of misconduct against the group.
The showdown is set for June 22, when the House reconvenes.

This story had
receded to the innermost part of my hard drive; but, recently, when I
heard that our newly appointed foreign coach Lars Lagerback, was being
paid a whopping amount for only five months and the same source
revealed that it was exactly what the coach was paid for one year in
Sweden before his move to Nigeria; the seed that has been sown by my
muse, immediately ignited my quill to use.

It would not be the
first time and I doubt if this will be the last time things like this
will be happening in our nation. In fact, it has become the norm; but I
can only speak of what I know, what I have seen and what I have heard.
This space cannot contain the things that I imagine.

I really do not
want you to wonder for too long how stand-up comedy connects football.
If for nothing, they are both the most entertaining events in Nigeria
and even the entire globe right now. They both attract a kind of crowd
that ordinarily you would not find anywhere except where politicians
are gathered to share the meat.

In stand-up comedy,
the comedian performs and the audience responds; in football, the
footballers play and score, then the crowd responds. If they play well,
they get cheered but are booed when the opposite happens. The same
happens with comedy. When the comedian is not funny enough, he is booed
off the stage. All football clubs have managers, most comedians have
managers or they manage themselves. All football clubs have coaches,
the comedians at one time or the other have a role model or a teacher,
or at least somebody they could refer to as a mentor who okays their
performance or their rise to stardom.

An individual who
wakes up a talented footballer or comedian must hone this skill,
otherwise he will become rusty and ineffective. Then every footballer
believes he is a superstar and most comedians believe they have grown
beyond stars; they are super-moons. We could go on and on but let me
quickly narrow the comparison to why they both do what they do: for the
money. Incidentally, from a distance they both look like the easiest of
tasks to perform, until all eyes are on you.

In Abuja, most of
the government bodies have learnt to invite foreign (Lagos) based
stand-up comedians to anchor or perform in their events. It is not
because these Lagos based comedians are better than the Abuja based
comedians. These officials go out of the FCT because it is a known fact
that a prophet does not have honour in his hometown and, secondly, they
make more money from dealing with foreign (Lagos) based comedians and
they can justify the amount paid to these comedians by saying they are
superstars.

Exactly the same
scenario goes with the Lagerback issue. How much will the NFF officials
make from re-hiring Shuabu Amodu? Everybody wants to make it in his own
time.

By now, the
accusation by Glen Hoddles, one of the foreign coaches that failed the
NFF interview, that our officials in the football house asked for a
certain amount to be added as their cut to his fee if he wants the job,
has been buried unceremoniously. It is very common knowledge that
superstar stand-up comedians based in Lagos earn about N2 million per
performance while their Abuja based counterparts, that can deliver the
same goods with the same flavour, have never been paid beyond N80,000.

How did I know?
Well, I spoke to Oma Oma, the Co-ordinator of the Abuja Body of
Comedians (ABC) and he narrated an experience after he was nominated to
handle the MC job for one ministry. The officials in the committee said
they will not make more than two or three hundred thousand from him;
whereas, if they call someone from Lagos, they will definitely realize
at least six to seven hundred thousand naira from the deal. And some
people still think Glen Hoddle was just shouting because he was not
given the job, and that he wanted to rub the good name of the NFF in
the mud.

A plumber who came to repair some damaged items in my toilet said to
me, when I caught him in his lies because he doubled the price of some
of the items he bought, “Oga, e nor get any body wey nor dey talk lie,
I never see….” I do not have anything against Lars Lagerback; but for
the connotation of his names LAST LAGER BACK and I really am no fan of
Shuabu Amodu, because he never really impressed me any day while he was
at the helm of affairs of the Super Eagles. My problem is the way
corruption has eaten deep into every fabric of society and when I say
‘every’, I mean no one or no agency or organization, whether government
or private is left out. “Let him who is without sin cast the first
stone” at this story. We need change.