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The Code of Conduct Tribunal trying
Nuhu Ribadu, former chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC), for asset declaration-related offences, has
postponed Mr. Ribadu’s official pardon by seven days.

The tribunal, in its resumed sitting in
Abuja on Thursday, said it will now sit on April 15, 2010, to deliver
its verdict on the federal government’s intention to discontinue the
case initiated against Mr. Ribadu. However, the conclusion of the
processes of documentation needed to get the suit properly terminated
is what the tribunal was supposed to initiate on Thursday.

The special assistant to the
Attorney-General of the Federation on Litigation, J.O. Olatoke, had on
March 31, revealed the intention of the federal government to withdraw
the four-count criminal charge against Mr. Ribadu. He had argued that
the 1999 Constitution gives the attorney general ‘Nolle Prosequi’ – the
power to discontinue such criminal prosecution – at any stage of the
case. He also told the court that it was within the prerogative of the
attorney general to decide the cases he wants to prosecute.

Minister’s involvement

According to court officials who sought
anonymity, the turn of events on Thursday may be connected with the
recent redeployment of ministers at the Justice Ministry. Adetokumbo
Kayode, the former attorney general of the federation, who suggested
that the case be withdrawn, was redeployed to the Ministry of Defence
in the recent reformation of the Executive Council of the Federation.
Mr. Kayode reviewed the case against Mr. Ribadu shortly after he
replaced Micheal Aaondoaka, and directed that it should be withdrawn
immediately.

Mohammed Bello Adoke, another Senior Advocate of Nigeria, replaced him as the new attorney general.

Ribadu’s Return

When asked for his reaction, counsel to
Mr. Ribadu, Femi Falana said, “I have no problem with it.” Mr. Ribadu
is being prosecuted at the Tribunal for allegedly refusing to disclose
his assets, according to constitutional provisions, while he was
chairman of the EFCC, in what many believe is a politically motivated
case to smear his name. Mr. Ribadu did not appear before the Tribunal
and this made it to declare him wanted on November 20, 2009. The former
anti-corruption boss however, denies the charges, saying he declared
his assets as at when due.

“I assert that there is no substance to
this case; that my assets were (not) declared. How could I have been
confirmed for my position in 2003 if I did not submit an asset
declaration form to the Senate, as all officers needing Senate
confirmation are obligated to do?” Mr. Ribadu had told NEXT.

The federal government had last week
indicated its willingness to drop the charges against Mr. Ribadu, as
exclusively reported by NEXT, and he has agreed to accept the position
of Special Adviser on anti-corruption and good governance to Acting
President, Goodluck Jonathan. His new designation will be to supervise
the nation’s anti-corruption agencies, which includes his former
agency, the EFCC; the Code of Conduct Tribunal; and the Independent
Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC).

Mr. Ribadu is at present concluding his fellowship at the Centre for Global Development in Washington, USA.

The Federal Civil
Service Commission (FCSC) has commenced interviews and examinations for
the promotion of civil servants to the level of directors.

An investigation by
NEXT reveals that the interviews are meant for officers due for
promotion to salary grade levels 15 to 17 in all sections of the Civil
Service as of January 1, 2009, to January 1, 2010.

The commission
issued a circular to the relevant officers, including the principal
secretary to the president and the acting president, the secretary to
the government of the federation, the head of the civil service of the
federation, all permanent secretaries, the auditor-general of the
federation, the accountant-general of the federation, the
surveyor-general of the federation, and all heads of extra- ministerial
departments, acquainting them of the promotion exercise.

Stringent requirements

The circular
directed that the eligible officers in the ministries, departments and
agencies (MDAs) have to submit separate briefs for each of the two
years in question.

Officers on salary
grade level 14 must have spent a minimum of three years at their
current grade level and must have had their last promotion on or before
January 1, 2006, for those who are due for promotion in 2009. Eligible
officers on salary grade level 15 and 16 must have spent a minimum of
four years at their current grade levels, and must have had their last
promotion on or before January 1, 2005, for 2009 and January 1, 2006,
for 2010.

The commission required that qualified candidates should submit an Annual Performance Evaluation Report (APERS).

“It should be
clearly noted that the suppression or non-disclosure of information in
respect of officers under disciplinary action or pending regularisation
will attract sanction from the FCSC.”

The circular
further warned all MDAs to comply with the guidelines and rules on
promotions and urged them to bring the content of the circulars, and
other related items, to the attention of their staff, including those
on duty posts outside the country.

All MDAs are also directed to submit their returns on vacancies for 2009 and 2010 separately to the commissions for action.

An enlarged stakeholders’ forum of the
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo state on Thursday endorsed the
state governor, Adebayo Alao-Akala, as candidate f the party in the
2011 governorship election.

The forum held a meeting at the Banquet
hall of the Government House Ibadan, but, for the umpteenth time, most
aggrieved members of the party were conspicuously absent at the meeting
and no formal reasons were given for their absence.

The likes of Lekan Balogun, Rashidi
ladoja, Yekeen Adeojo and Wole Oyelese, who have distanced themselves
from the state party hierarchy and keep agitating for a complete
departure from the legacies of the late Lamidi Adedibu within the
party, refused to show up at the meeting yesterday.

Loud silence

Unlike the one held last week, where it
was announced that all the absentees sent messages to explain the
reasons for not coming, the forum could not give any defence for the
absence of the main aggrieved members yesterday.

Their loud absence ignited open disagreement among the attendees of the meeting.

For instance, Victor Omololu Olunloyo,
former governor of the state, said the governor and his caucus have not
done enough to effectively woo the aggrieved members back to the fold,
urging more action in that direction.

But Richard Akinjide, former Minister
of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, disagreed with him
and said the governor had done more than enough to bring the aggrieved
members back, saying “there is limit to every patience”.

“The governor had bent backward to
accommodate them, we have begged them both in the open and in secret,
we have offered them money also in the secret and in the open, yet,
they have refused to be appeased. If I were the governor, I could not
have done what the governor did,” Akinjide offered as explanation of
the extent the governor has gone to win them back.

Unanimous adoption

The former chief legal officer of
Nigeria said the structure of the party empowers only the National
Vice-Chairmen of each geopolitical zone to look into issues within
their zones, and that in the case of the South-West, the leader so
empowered is based in Osogbo. He is to look into every issue concerning
the party in the zone, including Oyo State.

“If anybody feels he knows the Acting
Vice-President and runs to Abuja for issues to be handled in the zone,
we will let the people know that they don’t know him more than the rest
of us” he said.

Mr. Akinjide, who gave the welcome
address, told the gathering that the Elders’ Forum had summoned the
meeting to feed the people back on the decisions taken at the maiden
meeting of the forum held last week.

Gbenga Babalola, the senator
representing Oyo North Senatorial District at the National Assembly,
read out the communiqué of the closed door meeting. He informed that
the stakeholders unanimously adopted the candidature of the incumbent
for the 2011 governorship election.

Mr. Babalola, however, said the adoption is not ruling out the party
primary for interested candidates for the contest within the party. He
stressed the party will still make it open when the time comes, but
that the stakeholders, about 400 in number, would cast their votes for
Alao-Akala at the primary election.

As the Federal Capital Territory (FCT)
prepares for the April 10 elections in its six area councils, the
Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps yesterday said that it will
deploy 10,000 officers for an effective security coverage of the
election.

The agency’s boss, Ade Abolurin,
stressed the need for ensuring a violence-free election through the
provision of adequate security within and around various polling
centres. He said the deployment was part of his organisation’s
preparation for the coming polls and the protection of INEC officials
and voters.

He said that intelligence officers have
been informed of groups that are planning to cause chaos by hiring
thugs and hoodlums from neighbouring states to unleash terror on their
political opponents and truncate the electoral process.

Mr. Abolurin reiterated that machineries have been put in place to ensure that the political thugs and hoodlums are checkmated.

The official said officers have been
drafted from neighbouring states’ commands to beef up security within
the Federal Capital Territory.

He said that anyone found fomenting
violence would be brought to book under the full weight of the law to
serve as deterrence to others.

‘Do-or-die affair’

A statement by the corps’ public
relation officer, Emmanuel Okeh, advised politicians to embrace the
spirit of sportsmanship and not make the elections a “do-or-die affair”
where violence, arson, kidnapping, hijacking of ballot boxes, rigging
or assassination is the order of the day.

“There should be fair play and
transparency and a display of good conduct by the various party
supporters and the candidates, such that the election will be seen by
all and sundry, especially the internationals observers and other
election monitoring groups, as credible,” the statement read.

“Judging by the current political
climate in the country, the elections would be used as a model to judge
the expectation of Nigerians for the 2011 election. The country cannot
afford to entertain any political disaster at this critical period in
our nation’s history.”

The Independent
Corrupt Practices Commission announced Thursday that its operatives
have arrested the Chairman of Ijebu North Local Government Area of Ogun
State, Tele Ogunjobi, on allegations of fraud that is rocking the
council.

The commission said
the council boss, who is currently held in Abuja, allegedly took loans
totalling N45 million from Skye Bank on behalf of the council and
diverted same to personal use.

The council
chairman, according to the ICPC consultant on media and public affairs,
Folu Olamiti, also stand accused of using the loan to pay Christmas and
Sallah bonuses to fictitious personalities in the council.

In the course of
investigation, several officials of the council, namely Folarin E. O.
(Director Finance & Supplies), Ayo Olawole (Director, General
Service and Administration), O. A. Osiyale (Former Head of Works) and
K. O. Popoola (Present Head of Works) were arrested and interrogated.

Though the Chairman
is still being held in the commission’s custody, the other council
officials have been released on bail while investigation into the
matter is progressing.

The Commission also declared yesterday that its pursuit against corruption will be independent of government’s political will.

The ICPC and its
sister commission, the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC),
have been accused of slowing the momentum of the nation’s
anti-corruption campaign in the past three years.

Collaboration with grassroots

But Emmanuel
Ayoola, who heads the ICPC, said on Thursday that the commission, in
the face of dwindling funding, will collaborate with civil society to
raise its campaign against corruption with or without the political
will of the government.

“The fight against
corruption can only be durable only if funding comes away from the
political sector and the government base,” he told dozens of
non-governmental organisations at a meeting yesterday. “We are
determined that whether there is political will or not, the fight
against corruption must continue.”

The NGOs, under the
National Anti-Corruption Coalition, have agreed to collaborate with the
ICPC in the corruption war. The cooperation, the ICPC says, is to reach
the grassroots and help focus attention on areas where the commission
cannot reach.

“There is no way
the ICPC can spread around the 36 states of the 774 local governments
across the country,” Mr. Ayoola told the groups. “You can assist the
commission with project monitoring, membership drive and capacity
building.”

Local government officials in Ekiti
State should concentrate their finances on the completion of all
inherited and on-going projects in their domains, in order stabilise
governance at the grassroots, the state governor, Segun Oni, said on
Wednesday.

Mr. Oni, who gave the directive while
commissioning projects undertaken by the Emure Local Government in the
south senatorial district of the state, said the step was to guard
against economic wastes usually associated with unnecessary
proliferation of projects. He urged council chairmen in the state to
ensure that no infrastructural development project was left abandoned
in favour of newer ones. He said the area would soon become the
industrial nerve of the state, as his government is set to woo
industrialists to patronise its immense agricultural outputs such as
coffee, cocoa, timber, and others.

“Ekiti State is blessed with one of the
best human resources on earth. I appeal to our people to work with
patriotic spirit and see its development as the responsibility of all.
My administration is repositioning the state for rapid development; but
this must be backed up by good performance at the local government
level. That is why there must be no abandoned projects at the local
level,” he insisted.

Democratic dividends

Mr. Oni, who assured that his
administration would always adhere to probity and accountability to
ensure its resources are utilised for the benefit of all, said the
state’s economy was viable as it was rated 10th in Nigeria by the
United Nations.

Chairman of Emure Local Government, Sesan Aruaji, commended the
governor for his zeal at developing the state. He said the good example
of the state government was a major boost for the council’s
performance. He promised to ensure that more democratic dividends get
across to the people of the area by undertaking further meaningful
projects.

Two days after it called for the arrest
and prosecution of the police officers involved in the killing that led
to last Saturday’s unrest in Ajegunle, a Lagos suburb, the Labour and
Civil Society Coalition (LASCO)’s secretary, Tolar Dagga, has been
allegedly arrested by the police.

According to a source who did not want
his name disclosed, Mr. Dagga and two others, Akpos Okoro, a community
activist; and Aderemi Ismail, community activist and organiser of the
Ajegunle Branch of the Democratic Socialist Movement (DSM), were
arrested on Wednesday after they were invited to a meeting over the
crisis in the community, with the chairman of the Ajeromi-Ifelodun
local government area and police authorities.

Activists’ arrest

In a press statement released by the
DSM and signed by its general secretary, Segun Sango, the group said
that the activists were arrested at about 1pm in the office of the
Local Government chairman, Kamal Bayewu.

“The arrest is in connection with a
protest held on April 3 following the gruesome murder of Charles Okafor
by the police on April 1 at a viewing centre in Ajegunle. The April 3
protest was peaceful until the police, on the order of Area B Apapa
Police Commander, Kenneth Ebirimson, bestially shot at the protesters
and left dead at least 4 youths, including Tunde Olotu,” said the press
statement.

When contacted on the phone, the
joint-secretary of LASCO, Abiodun Aremu, said that at a meeting held on
Tuesday between the Ajegunle community residents and the council
chairman, the police authorities threatened to declare Mr. Dagga
wanted. “We are still trying to reach our sources to confirm his
arrest. But as of now, he is missing. His mobile is no longer
available; apparently, it has been seized from him,” said Mr. Aremu.

Police denies

However, the state police Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, claimed to be in the dark regarding Mr. Dagga’s arrest.

“I can’t confirm his arrest. I’ll make some calls. You can call me back later,” said Mr. Mba, in a telephone interview.

An unnamed source said that rumours of
a second protest to be organised by the youth if their demands are not
met, may have triggered the arrest of Mr. Dagga and the others.

“We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Dagga Tolar
and other activists. Otherwise, we challenge the police to arraign them
in court, if found culpable of any offence. We hold that the police are
embarking on arbitrary and criminal arrests of the activists in order
to cover up the crime of its officers,” said Mr. Sango.

Following last weekend’s clash between
supporters of Peoples Democratic Party and Labour Party at Irele, the
headquarters of Irele Local Government, the Ondo State Police Command
have invited leaders of the two rival parties for interrogation.

Several people were injured in the
fracas while many vehicles were seriously damaged, including that of
the interim chairman of the council, Shedrack Ikujuni.

The spokesperson of the state police
Command, Adeniran Aremu, said the police would release the invitees
after questioning while those culpable would be prosecuted.

The violence occurred between the
supporters of the former Chairman of the local government, Albert
Akintoye and that of the incumbent, Mr. Ikujuni over who has the
permission to hold political rally on the said day.

Mr Akintoye, while giving his account
of the crisis, said he was leading some PDP members from Ore to
Akotogbo, his home town, for a rally when some LP members confronted
them and ordered them to make detour, an the instruction which he
refused “Some LP members led by Ikujuni insisted that the PDP members
could not hold their rally since they did not get permission from the
appropriate quarters,” he said. “We have to divert our movement to
other route.”

Dragged into conflict

The Publicity Secretary of the Labour
Party, Seyi James, however said the PDP members were the aggressors who
dragged the LP members into conflict.

He said the campaign committee of one
Dele Adetunji of LP had got police permission to flag off their
campaign in Irele for Okitipupa/Irele House of Representative seat. Mr
James said some LP, supporters including Mr. Ikujuni, were severely
injured when the PDP supporters inflicted injuries on them.

“Mr. Akintoye, who never got police permit for his own rally,
insisted that he must also flag off his campaign for the same seat same
day and it was in the process that the supporters of the former
chairman damaged the cars in the convoy of the LP supporters,” he said.

Millions of people
will be at risk if the failure of the new malaria treatment policy,
recently introduced by the World Health Organisation (WHO) spreads to
other countries of the world, a professor of Community Health and
Primary HealthCare at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital,
Oladipo Hunponu-Wusu, has said.

Because of the
increasing resistance of the Plasmodium Falciparum (malaria causative
agent) to older drugs like chloroquine, the WHO recommended the policy
of treating malaria with artemisinin-based combination therapies in
2004-5 and several malaria endemic regions have adopted the policy.

But in 2007, WHO
recorded a high failure rate of Artemisinin Combination Therapies
(ACTs) in treating Plasmodium falciparum (malaria causative agent) in
Cambodia and Thailand.

“This resistance would be disastrous for global malaria control,” Mr. Hunponu-Wusu said.

He lamented that
Nigeria, which is among the over 28 countries that have adopted this
treatment policy is yet to make progress, and a drug resistance which
is not yet discovered in Nigeria, may pose a serious threat to health.

“Despite the
African Summit in Abuja in 2005 and despite declaring 2000-2010 as the
decade to roll back malaria and reduce its morbidity and mortality by
half, we are in the last year and the statistics are not encouraging.”

According to the
WHO, there are 300-500 million cases of malaria each year, leading to
1.5-2.7 million deaths, 80 per cent of which occur in Africa.

Children under five and pregnant women are most vulnerable.

In Nigeria, the
Federal Ministry of Health, reports that malaria is responsible for 60
per cent of outpatients‘ visits in the country and about ₦32 billion is
lost yearly to its treatment and prevention.

Addressing resistance

Mr. Hunponu-Wusu said it is not through secondary or tertiary control that the disease will be eliminated.

“It is not by the
purchasing of drugs and more expensive drugs for the treatment of
malaria that this country can conquer or eradicate malaria.”

According to him, primary prevention is the key.

“I believe in the
primary prevention of malaria through the primary healthcare approach.
I see primary prevention is the saving grace; the salvation to be able
to control the disease.” Some primary prevention method, he listed ,are
vector control targeted at the environment; use of insecticide treated
nets, indoor residual spraying, larval control, clearing bushes and
getting rid of stagnant water or other breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

Tolu Arowola, the Malaria Control officer of Lagos Malaria Control
programme said plans are already on for a pilot project in Lagos. “We
have begun the pilot project of the indoor residual spray in Lagos
State now, and we are hoping to scale up into more areas; it has been
effective,” said Mr. Arowolo.

Aramide Aitejina, a
41-year old man has been arraigned before a Chief Magistrate Court
sitting in Sabo, for allegedly issuing out a dud cheque, worth about
N3.5 million.

According to the
charge sheath, he was alleged to have committed the offence on December
4, 2009 at Apapa area of Lagos. He was said to have issued the cheque
of N3, 415, 500 to Kwakyama Oil and Gas limited.

The sheet further
stated that when the cheque, was presented at Oceanic bank, it was
dishonoured on the grounds that there is no sufficient fund in the said
account.

According to the
police prosecution counsel, O Okorie, the defendant was said to have
obtained 33, 000 litres of diesel, from the oil company under the false
pretence that he had enough funds in his account, which was not true.

When the charge was read to the defendant, he pleaded not guilty.

Mr. Aitejina,
however, urged the court to grant him bail on liberal condition, to
which the prosecution counsel did not oppose her bail.

Presiding magistrate, Ayodele Isaac granted him bail in the sum of N250, 000 with one surety in like sum.

“Defendant is
hereby admitted to bail in the sum of N250, 000 with one surety in like
sum, the surety must show evidence of two-year tax payment to the Lagos
State government,” he said.

The suit was adjourned to April 22, for hearing.