All Progressives Congress (APC): APC to Tukur: Let Nigerians decide how long the PD...

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC to Tukur: Let Nigerians decide how long the PD...: APC to Tukur: Let Nigerians decide how long the PDP will rule The All Progressives Congress (APC) has told PDP Chairman Bamanga Tukur t...

APC to Tukur: Let Nigerians decide how long the PDP will rule

APC to Tukur: Let Nigerians decide how long the PDP will rule

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has told PDP Chairman Bamanga Tukur that only Nigerians can decide whetheror not President Goodluck Jonathan will rule beyond 2015, saying his statement that the President will rule till 2019 is nothing but an empty boast aimed at ingratiating himself to the President.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party also asked the PDP Chairman to back up his statement, that it is time for
Nigerian youths to take over the reins of power, by first stepping down from his post to pave the way for the younger generation.

It reminded Tukur that one of his predecessors once boasted, in another euphoric moment, that the PDP will rule for 60 years, only for him to leave office in disgrace shortly thereafter.

''There is nothing on ground to justify Tukur's empty boast beyond the PDP's rigging machine, which is again being oiled in readiness for 2015, going by the barefaced vote stealing and unbridled brigandage that the party exhibited in the recent bye election in Delta Central Senatorial District

''The PDP, which has presided over the affairs of Nigeria for the past 14 years, has only succeeded in pushing more people into poverty, with 112 million people now living below the poverty line and millions of
children out of school. No sector has been spared the effects of the cluelessness and visionlessness of the PDP and its leaders. What then is the empirical basis for the PDP to continue to rule.

''It is interesting that the Chairman said the future belongs to the youths and that the era of Gerontocracy is gone. The last time we checked, a 78-year-old man does not exactly belong to the generation of youths, even if he continues to hold away at the top echelon of the ruling party. The sincerity of that statement is therefore in doubt.

''As for the PDP Chairman's admonition to the youth to start preparing to take over the mantle of leadership, the question to ask is whether or not the undergraduates in the nation's public universities, who have been marooned at home for over four months now because the PDP-led federal government repudiated the agreement it signed with ASUU, are not part of the leaders of tomorrow?

''If Tukur believes they are, he should urgently prevail on the government sired by his party to meet its obligation to ASUU and end the strike by the university teachers. Then we will know that he is serious about his postulation. Until then, we say talk is cheap, because all that we can see now is that the PDP-led federal government is doing everything in its power to mortgage the future of tomorrow's leaders,'' it said.

All Progressives Congress (APC): Disruption of Oshiomhole's presentation on Nationa...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Disruption of Oshiomhole's presentation on Nationa...: Disruption of Oshiomhole's presentation on National Conference: We have been vindicated - APC The All Progressives Congress (APC...

Disruption of Oshiomhole's presentation on National Conference: We have been vindicated - APC

Disruption of Oshiomhole's presentation on National Conference: We have been vindicated - APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has strongly condemned the sponsored disruption of Gov. Adams Oshiomhole's presentation during a meeting of the Presidential Advisory Committee on National Dialogue in Benin on Monday, saying the despicable action has vindicated the party's decision not to be part of the proposed conference.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Tuesday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the Committee must thoroughly be ashamed of itself that one of its members led the show of shame that was put up in Benin on Monday.

It therefore demanded an unreserved apology from the Committee to Gov. Oshiomhole, while the member who acted so unruly and irresponsibly must be publicly cautioned at the least or be excused from the Committee.

''The truth is that in proposing the conference, the government has no sincerity of purpose, does not believe in engaging in any dialogue with anyone but itself and has only used it to distract the attention of Nigerians from the total absence of governance and sense of direction by the Jonathan Administration.

''This is why we refused to participate in what is nothing but a sheer deceit. We have already been vindicated even before the start of the conference,'' APC said.

The party said since the essence of democratic discourse is for all sides to be allowed to have their say, it was wrong to have shouted down anyone because his stand does not tally with that of the committee or the organizers of the meeting.

''Worse still is that a member of the committee led the thugs who so rudely and irresponsibly shouted down a Governor. What a contradiction, that a member of a panel set up to help forge national discourse does not even believe in the plurality of opinions. Does anyone need any further evidence that the committee has already made up its mind on the direction their so-called assignment will take? How can you sincerely hope to midwive a dialogue with Nigerians when you cannot even oversee a dialogue in a town hall meeting?'' it queried.

APC expressed total shock and disgust that the Governor of a state hosting a meeting of the advisory committee could be so primitively treated by hired thugs, led by no other than a out-of-control committee member.

''Even if they have no respect for the person of Gov. Oshiomhole, couldn't they have at least shown respect for the office he is occupying? If a person in the calibre of Gov. Oshiomhole, with his antecedents and prominent role in the national political discourse, cannot be allowed to air his opinion on any issue, what then will happen to ordinary citizens?'' the party further asked.

It commended Gov. Oshiomhole for his maturity and decency, which showed through in his handling of the whole situation despite the indignity meted out to him.

''By his comportment, from which his security and other aides apparently took a cue, Gov. Oshiomhole averted what could have been a violent confrontation and left no one in doubt that he is a true democrat. In the end, those who conspired to humiliate him have unwittingly played up his tolerance, his decency and his democratic credentials,'' the party said.

EXCLUSIVE: Stella Oduah in fresh trouble; N255m armoured cars missing in NSA’s security list

EXCLUSIVE: Stella Oduah in fresh trouble; N255m armoured cars missing in NSA’s security list

All Progressives Congress (APC): Oduagate: APC says President Jonathan may become a...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Oduagate: APC says President Jonathan may become a...: Oduahgate: APC says President Jonathan may become an accessory to corruption The All Progressives Congress (APC) has said President Good...

Oduagate: APC says President Jonathan may become an accessory to corruption.

Oduahgate: APC says President Jonathan may become an accessory to corruption

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has said President Goodluck Jonathan may become an accessory to corruption if he continues along his current path of shielding Aviation Minister Stella Oduah from the consequences of the massive corruption and abuse of office over the purchase of two armoured cars at an inflated cost and without following due process.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it reached that conclusion after juxtaposing the evidence that have come out on the scandal against the actions so far taken by the President.

''It has now emerged that the money spent to purchase the armoured cars was not appropriated, which is a violation of the Nigerian Constitution; that due process was not followed in buying the cars, as the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) has testified, and that the Minister - who was said to have approved the purchase - violated the law by approving an expenditure over the 100 million naira limit.

''These revelations make the Oduahgate a straightforward case that should have been summarily dealt with by the President. Instead, he has engaged himself in a rigmarole by setting up a diversionary administrative panel in what is now looking like an orchestrated ploy to  buy time, hoping this issue will die down and the
Minister will escape being sanctioned.

''Unfortunately for Mr. President, Oduahgate is not just another scandal, but a referendum on his Administration's fight against corruption, and on the legacy he intends to leave in this critical area,'' it said.

APC also accused the President of thumbing his nose at Nigerians, who have expressed outrage at the action of the Minister, by approving for her to travel to Israel as part of his entourage.

''No one believes the dummy that is being sold to the public, that the Minister was denied access to the President in Israel. The egregious act of putting the Minister on his entourage, at a time she is at the centre of a terrible scandal, calls to question the President's sense of propriety and his commitment to the war against corruption.

''This indecorous action of making a Minister who is under investigation for monumental corruption and abuse of office one of the faces of Nigeria in a foreign land is an embarrassment to the country and its people, and a further dent on the poor image of the Jonathan Administration. We condemn it most whole-heartedly. We now understand why corruption has grown wings under the Jonathan Presidency, and why
the Administration may well go down as the most corrupt in the country's history,'' the party said

It said through his body language, President Jonathan is sending a signal to his Ministers that it is alright to be corrupt, wondering whether the President is aware of the joke making the rounds that there are five Super Ministers in his cabinet whom he can neithersanction nor remove, irrespective of their actions, because they are the ones ferreting funds into his war chest for 2015. In other words, any of his Ministers whom he perceives as key to his re-election can even loot Aso Rock and get away with it!

''We do not know whether this is true or not, but we do know there is no smoke without fire, and that the seeming attempt to sweep Oduahgate under the carpet lends some credence to the joke,'' APC said.

The party noted that because of the President's waffling in dealing with what is a straightforward case of corruption, misguided people have now resorted to crowd hiring to protest against the growing calls
for the Minister to be sanctioned over the scandal - a very sad case since those being hired for such disgusting protests are the real victims of the mindless corruption that has permeated the land.

''These sponsored protests are just the beginning. Next, they will either engineer or hope that a spectacular violent attack, a la Boko Haram, will occur to take attention away from the scandal. They may
also charge some out-of-luck folks to court over the scandal and then say they cannot act on the issue anymore because it is sub judice,'' it said.

APC said, however, that the party as well as other concerned groups and citizens are closely following the developments on Oduahgate, and will not allow it to be swept under the carpet, in the interest of the
millions of Nigerians who have been consigned into the lowest rung of existence by a rapacious administration.

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC decries continued detention of its member in...

All Progressives Congress (APC):

APC decries continued detention of its member in...: APC decries continued detention of its member in Edo despite court order The All Progressives Congress (APC) has strongly condemned the ...

APC decries continued detention of its member in Edo despite court order

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has strongly condemned the arrest and continued detention of one of the party's leaders in Edo State, Mr. Joe Okojie, and his continued detention even after a court of competent jurisdiction has issued an order for his release.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Friday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party demanded Okojie's immediate release, without condition, in accordance with the court order, saying that transferring him to Abuja, as being speculated, will signal that the PDP government has finally decided to substitute the rule of law with arbitrary rule, with grave prognosis for the nation's democracy.

It wondered why the police, created to enforce the law and protect lives and property, will be so omfortable
violating the same law.

APC said Okojie was arrested, along with other party members, by CSP Patrick Ejedawe, a serving police officer in Lagos State who was one of the over 1,000 out-of-town policemen who were drafted to Esan North East LGA of Edo State for the Oct. 22nd election in the council.

He was alleged to have arranged for party members to steal ballot papers and thumb print same secretly, when in fact he was called to help secure the release of APC members who were hounded into a truck by the police for not having ID cards.

''While others were released, Okojie was transferred to Benin, 'on orders from above', where he was detained. After all efforts to secure his release failed, an action predicated on the fundamental human rights was then filed Thursday in a Benin High court and the court ordered his immediate release pending investigation and adjourned the case to 4 Nov. 2013.

''The order was served on the Edo State Commissioner of Police before the close of business Thursday, but up till the time of issuing this statement, he has not been released. This is impunity at its worst and a slap on the face of justice,'' the party said.

It expressed shock that a citizen's right will be so wantonly violated simply on the basis of 'orders from above', when Nigeria is running a democracy that is based on Constitutional order and the rule of law.

''What does 'order from above' mean? Does it mean the Inspector General of Police of PDP leaders? We ask because the only reason 1,000 policemen were deployed for an election in just one local government
council (without any request from the State Government or the State Electoral body) is that the Chairman
of PDP's BOT, Chief Tony Anenih, hails from that LGA. Is he the one behind the 'order from above' mantra?

''Is it true that Okojie is being pressured to denounce APC before he can be released? Has the Nigeria Police now become the PDP and Anenih Police? Is this the contribution that the Nigeria Police want to make
to Nigeria's democracy?'' it queried.

All Progressives Congress (APC): Oduahgate: Don't use politics to justify corruptio...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Oduahgate: Don't use politics to justify corruptio...: Oduahgate: Don't use politics to justify corruption, APC warns The All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned against any att...

Oduahgate: Don't use politics to justify corruption, APC warns

Oduahgate: Don't use politics to justify corruption, APC warns

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned against any attempt by the unimaginative spin doctors of the Aviation Ministry to use politics as a cover for the egregious corruption scandal surrounding the illegal purchase of two armoured cars for the Minister of Aviation.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Thursday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it is most unconscionable for anyone to blame the supposed opposition to President Jonathan's re-election in 2015 as the reason for the widespread outcry against the monumental corruption and abuse of office engendered by the scandal.

It said that the opposition, in particular, should not be blamed for the justifiable indignation of most Nigerians to the corruption scandal, as Yakubu Dati, who goes by the nebulous title of 'coordinating Spokesperson for the Aviation Ministry' (don't blame him. After all there is a coordinating Minister of the Economy, a title unknown to the Constitution) tried to do in his winding postulation on the scandal.

''What Dati and his co-spin doctors tried to do is to play on President Jonathan's insecurity as far as 2015 elections are concerned. This is very insulting not only to Nigerians but also to President Jonathan himself, and it will not sell. After all, attempts to blame the opposition for the lingering ASUU strike has also failed. In any case, what is the business of a public servant, who is supposed to be apolitical, about whether a President is re-elected or not?

''We in the APC have not joined the fray over the Oduahgate scandal since it broke out because we thought this was a straightforward case of corruption and abuse of office that should be summarily dealt with. But President Jonathan has again failed to live up to expectation, thus allowing all manners of clowns to seek to pull the wool over the eyes of Nigerians in the name of defending the indefensible,'' APC said.

The party wondered why President Jonathan will engage in a diversionary and exculpatory strategy of setting up a panel to investigate the scandal, when there are statutory bodies that are supposed to do so.

''There is precedence on how to handle such a matter. In case President Jonathan has forgotten, his then boss, President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, sacked Adenike Grange and Gabriel Aduku, Minister of Health and Minister of State for Health respectively, for spending part of the ministry's unspent budget. The Permanent Secretary and other top officials of the ministry were also suspended when the issue broke out. No panel was set up before this action was taken.

''While many may argue that President Jonathan is only following 'due process' in dealing with the issue, we counter that he is only seeking to buy time while hoping that the issue will die down. The composition of the panel set up by the President itself supports our stand. It is doubtful if any of the members will act against what they perceive to be the 'interest' of the President on the issue,'' it said.

Meanwhile, APC has condemned in strong terms the arrest of Mr. Dino Melaye and other protesters against the Oduahgate scandal in Abuja, saying the police, by their action, have signalled that they will protect corrupt public officials.

The party said the reasons given by the police, obstruction of traffic and disturbance of public peace, were apparently cooked up to justify their shameful act.

''The Nigeria Police must learn to operate in accordance with the best practices around the world. Elsewhere, the police will offer protection to peaceful protests, the type that Mr. Melaye led in Abuja, and ensure that their protests are not hijacked by hoodlums, like the hired pro-Oduah protesters who reportedly attacked those protesting against corruption and abuse of office.

''This is not what is expected of a police force that is maintained with taxpayers fund, and all those involved in harassing and arresting the anti-corruption protesters must bow their heads in shame,'' APC said

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC CALLS PLOT TO FORCE AMAECHI TO RESIGN "LAST DE...

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC CALLS PLOT TO FORCE AMAECHI TO RESIGN "LAST DE...: APC calls plot to force Amaechi to resign ''last desperate act'' The All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the r...

APC CALLS PLOT TO FORCE AMAECHI TO RESIGN "LAST DESPERATE ACT"

APC calls plot to force Amaechi to resign ''last desperate act''

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the reported plot to abduct, blackmail and force Gov. Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers to resign from office, calling it the last desperate act of those who are bent
on getting rid of the Governor at all costs.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said that the plot, which was exposed by the Rivers Peoples Forum, should be taken very seriously, against the background of a similar occurrence in the past and the outcry by Gov. Amaechi that his life is in danger.

''Anyone who thinks this alarm by the Rivers Peoples Forum is outlandish should remember what happened to then Anambra State Governor Chris Ngige, who was abducted and rough handled in 2003 in what is undoubtedly the most egregious violation of democratic institutions in our country's history.

''The instigators and perpetrators of the crisis in Rivers are keenly aware that they are running out of options. Their impeachment plan has been foiled by the take over of the legislative functions of the Rivers State House of Assembly's functions by the  the National Assembly, while their plan to declare a state of emergency in the state has also failed, against the lack of support for such act by the National Assembly.

''This is the reason for this last desperate act by an increasingly-desperate Presidency, which may not exclude a final solution. We are therefore, for the umpteenth time, calling on civil society and human rights organizations, opinion leaders and indeed all lovers of democracy and believers in constitutional rule to intervene to stop the runaway culture of impunity in Rivers State,'' it said

APC said it is instructive that a day after the Rivers Peoples Forum exposed the plot against Gov. Amaechi, the so-called chair of the PDP in Rivers, Felix Obuah, set out to prepare the grounds for the devilish plot when he called a press conference to deliver a harangue against Gov. Amaechi whom he accused of ''insulting and dragging the names of President GoodLuck and the First Lady, Dame (Dr) Patience
Jonathan to the mud''.

''There can be no better confirmation of the evil plot than this,'' the party said.

It also warned that the madness in Rivers State, which is being carried out under the watch of the Presidency, which has made the state's Police Commissioner the de facto Governor with a clear instruction to neutralize the elected Governor, should not be seen as an isolated incident, but as a part of a grand plot and a test run for 2015.

''As we have said before, the crisis in Rivers is being deliberately orchestrated to test the waters ahead of the 2015 elections, with the belief that if the perpetrators get away with the massive impunity in the state, it can then be extended to other states before 2015 to ensure that the polls will be everything but free, fair and transparent, and also to satisfy the yearnings of a President who is obsessed with winning re-election.

''The daylight rape of democracy in Delta state on Oct. 12th by those who prevented elections from holding, only to announce concocted results, is also part of this plot. The new strategy is to use security agencies, especially the police and the military, to undermine democracy. We have not seen the last of these dangerous
games, hence the need for all to be vigilant,'' APC said.

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC slams FG for mounting pressure on ASUU by subt...

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC slams FG for mounting pressure on ASUU by subt...: APC slams FG for mounting pressure on ASUU by subterfuge The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as a cheap and ludicrous...

APC slams FG for mounting pressure on ASUU by subterfuge

APC slams FG for mounting pressure on ASUU by subterfuge

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as a cheap and ludicrous strategy the decision by the Federal Government to use market women, religious leaders and even students to put pressure on the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to call off its strike without resolving the issues that caused the strike in the first instance.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the strike, which is now in its fourth month, would have ended by now if the Federal Government had pursued its negotiations with ASUU with half the energy it has been using to rally various groups to protest against the union.

It described as particularly ridiculous the crowd-for-hire protest in Abuja on Monday by the so-called National Market Women Association, in which their leader vowed to chase lecturers out of Nigeria and replace them with ''jobless Nigerians''.

''This infantile statement by the leader of the apparently misguided market women is the most irresponsible statement that anyone has made on the long-drawn ASUU strike, and it is a shame that the government is the instigator of such nonsense.

''While indeed there are millions of jobless Nigerians, is it just any jobless Nigerian who can be a university teacher? How does President Goodluck Jonathan, himself a former university teacher, feel about those apparently hired by his administration treating university teachers with so much disrespect? Even if the government succeeds in forcing the lecturers back to the classroom, can it force them to teach effectively?

''Why are these groups, including students who have sold their souls to the devil, not mounting the same pressure on the Federal Government to intensify its efforts to end the strike? Why didn't these groups protest when the First Lady embarked on a junket to receive a spurious award even as Nigerian public universities remain shut? After all, a government that said it will go broke if it honours its agreement with ASUU had no compunction shelling out huge tax payers money to fund the First Lady's jamboree to South Korea,'' APC said.

The party reminded those who are blaming ASUU for the strike that all the teachers are demanding are better infrastructure for the universities, a favourable condition for teaching and research as well as an enhanced pay that will stem the tide of brain drain, which has left the country's public tertiary institutions struggling to get high-qualify faculties.

''How are these demands anti-students, as some thoughtless students and misled market women have alleged?'' it queried.

APC reiterated its earlier call on the FG to respect the agreement it signed with ASUU, saying if the government would cut waste, adequately tackle corruption and show more prudence, there will be more than enough resources to spend on the education of the nation's youth, without which there will be no development.

The party asked President Jonathan to tender an unreserved apology to ASUU for the antics of his administration in using public funds to induce fake and easy-to-manipulate individuals and groups to launch scurrilous attacks on the striking teachers.

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC criticises First Lady for receiving honorary D...

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC criticises First Lady for receiving honorary D...: APC criticizes First Lady for receiving honorary Doctorate while Nigerian universities remain shut The All Progressives Congress (APC)...

APC criticises First Lady for receiving honorary Doctorate while Nigerian universities remain shut.

APC criticizes First Lady for receiving honorary Doctorate while Nigerian universities remain shut

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as the height of insensitivity the decision by First Lady Patience Jonathan to receive an Honorary Doctorate award in far away South Korea, even as Nigeria's public universities have remained shut for many months under the watch of her husband.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Wednesday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai
Mohammed, the party said if the First Lady and her advisers had been perceptive enough, they would
have known that embarking on such a jamboree at this time is an assault on the sensibilities of Nigerians
in general, and the students who have been marooned at home for almost four months in particular.

''In their eagerness to gobble up one spurious award after another, they forgot that if the Hansei University
in South Korea had been shut by a strike because the government there has repudiated an agreement it
willingly signed with the teachers, the institution would not have been able to give any honorary degree
to anyone.

''A government that is unwilling to spend the nation's resources on the education of its youth has no qualms
about wasting the same resources for a junket by the First Lady and her cheerleaders halfway around the world for what is nothing more than an ego-massaging award,'' it said.

APC said the reasons given for the award of the Honorary Doctorate to the First Lady was particularly
interesting “She’s a humanitarian who has dedicated her life to working for the less privileged in Nigeria and
Africa especially for women and children. Her vision as the defender of the poor in Nigeria fits into Hansei University’s motto of a practising Christian.''

''What the university forgot to add is that while the First Lady may have dedicated her life working for the less privileged in Nigeria, there is no indication that she and her husband are sparing any thought for the poor Nigerian students whose dreams for a better future have been put on hold by the long strike that has paralyzed academic activities in public universities,'' the party said.

It said that since charity begins at home, the First Lady, as a mother and a 'humanitarian', would have done well to rally women to put pressure on the government led by her husband to quickly reach an agreement that will end the long-drawn ASUU strike.

''It is instructive that the First Lady would rather corral some hapless women to the Eagle Square in Abuja to illegally campaign for her husband, in furtherance of her 'humanitarian' gesture, instead of leading a campaign of concerned mothers and 'humanitarians' to protest the deadlock in ending the strike in our public universities,'' APC said

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC dismisses report on zoning of VP to SW, says r...

All Progressives Congress (APC): APC dismisses report on zoning of VP to SW, says r...: APC dismisses report on zoning of VP to SW, says report orchestrated The All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed as reckless,...

APC dismisses report on zoning of VP to SW, says report orchestrated.

APC dismisses report on zoning of VP to SW, says report orchestrated

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed as reckless, baseless and completely unfounded the report published by a local newspaper Monday that the party has zoned its vice presidential slot to the South-west instead of South-East.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Monday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the report was orchestrated by those who are threatened by the high profile and prospects of the party's candidate in the forthcoming governorship election in Anambra.

''Having realized that their attempt to milk the so-called deportation issue has fallen flat on its face, these desperate politicians have now resorted to outright lies and wild imagination. They figure that if they played the South-West against the South-East, by saying the APC has zoned the VP slot to the former over the latter, some people may just fall for it. This is cheap politics,'' it said.

APC assured Nigerians that the party has, at no time, discussed the issue of its presidential and vice presidential slots, hence could not have zoned any of the posts.

''Our party is an inclusive national party which will definitely accommodate the interest of all Nigerians in all its actions. We are therefore urging all the good people of Nigeria to ignore this fabricated story. There is no iota of truth in it,'' the party said

APC expressed concern that a newspaper with a good pedigree will lend itself to be used to push such a dangerous and irresponsible agenda by reporting fiction as fact.

''One would have expected a media organization that is worth its salt to be circumspect in reporting such fiction. It is
particularly interesting that all the media organization had - as a basis for the story - was a ''strong indication'' that the party will zone its vice presidential slot to the South-West. 

''Not once was a single source quoted by name, for such an important story. This is the height of irresponsible reporting that runs against the grain of responsibility, fairness and accuracy in journalism,'' the party said.

All Progressives Congress (APC): Charade called election ongoing in Delta Central S...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Charade called election ongoing in Delta Central S...:   Delta Central Senatorial Bye-Election: PDP uses security agents, thugs to intimidate voters - APC The All Progressives Congress ...

Charade called election ongoing in Delta Central Senatorial bye election

 

Delta Central Senatorial Bye-Election: PDP uses security agents, thugs to intimidate voters - APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the PDP of using security agents to intimidate voters while preventing voting materials from reaching polling units in opposition strongholds during Saturday's bye-election in Delta Central Senatorial district.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Saturday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said reports from its agents on the field indicate that armed soldiers and policemen were deployed strategically to intimidate voters, while trailers and tankers were used to block the roads leading to opposition strongholds, thereby preventing voting materials from reaching there.

''Worst-hit areas are Ughelli North; Udu and Uvwie Local Governments, which are the strongholds of the APC. Also, several Hilux vehicles loaded with armed soldiers were sent to Okpe Local Government Ward 8 Collation Centre since Friday night.

''Though materials were moved from the distribution centre to local government headquarters overnight, the PDP, using security agents and thugs, have succeeded in ensuring that the materials are not being ferried to polling units in several wards.

''In Sapele Ward 8, security agents even beat up voters even before the start of accreditation, thus scaring them away from polling units. In Udu LG Ward 7, election materials were seized by thugs. These strategies are all aimed at scaring away voters and suppressing votes in opposition strongholds.

''In Ughelli South, the INEC official is insisting that 19 booklets of ballot papers and 197 loose sheets (ballot papers) be given to the Jeremy Ward 2 of the Delta State Deputy Governor, even after materials have been shared to all the wards, including Jeremy Ward 2. If the INEC official has his way, the extra materials will be abused by the PDP.

''These conditions are not conducive to the conduct of a free, fair and credible elections, and we call on those saddled with providing security for the election to act fast and arrest the trend before it degenerates into violence and disenfranchises voters

All Progressives Congress (APC): Rivers State political impasse: President Jonathan...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Rivers State political impasse: President Jonathan...: Rivers State: A chronology of impunity By Lai Mohammed In its most recent intervention on the seemingly intractable crisis ...

Rivers State political impasse: President Jonathan promoting culture of impunity

Rivers State: A chronology of impunity
By Lai Mohammed

In its most recent intervention on the seemingly intractable crisis in Rivers earlier this month, my party said it is very important for Nigerians to pay attention to the situation in the state, because everything happening there suggests it is being used by President Goodluck Jonathan as a testing ground for fascism.

We made that assertion with all seriousness, considering the level of lawlessness, impunity and constitutional infraction going on in the state. As I intend to show shortly, democracy has been stifled in Rivers and this constitutes a clear and present danger to democracy in the nation at large, if left unchecked.

Suffice it to say that, shorn of all pretences, the root cause of the Rivers crisis is the 2015 elections, specifically the presidential poll.

Because he is hell bent on running and obsessed with winning at all cost, President Jonathan does not give a damn (to use his own language) if Nigeria, not to talk of Rivers, disintegrates in the process. That was why we alerted Nigerians to the situation and quoted the Iate Irish political philosopher Edmund Burke, who said all it takes for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing.

Back to the 2015 elections, I can say without equivocating that if the President and his puppets succeed in their current anarchic experiment in Rivers, they will simply re-enact the Rivers scenario in as many states as possible in the run-up to the elections, thereby ensuring the polls will be everything but free, fair and credible - with consequences too grim for anyone to contemplate.

Imagine the antics of the arrowhead of the presidential onslaught in Rivers state, Alternative Inspector-General of Police Mbu Joseph Mbu, being replicated in other states? Imagine an Mbu or his like as the Commissioner of Police in any state during an election? He will simply ask his men to disperse all monitors and party agents, coerce the electoral officers into writing the result and then dare anyone to challenge him (Mbu). In other words, he will give cover to uniformed thugs and assassins who will decide the outcome of the election.

Under President Jonathan's watch and Alternate IGP Mbu's self-assumed authority, Rivers state now has two parallel governments, one being run by Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, who was elected by the good people of Rivers State, and the other by the Commissioner of Police (now Alternate IGP) Mbu, who derives his unlawful authority from President Jonathan.

To those who may think we are exaggerating things, a few examples of what has transpired in Rivers State in the last couple of months will prove beyond doubt that we are not just crying wolf where none exists.
1   On the 6th of May 2013, Mr Mbu practically provided the needed backing for a group of hired thugs and ex-militants with dangerous weapons to unlawfully and forcefully invade the Rivers State House of Assembly to terrorize its members, sack them and other management staff members from the complex and prevent the lawful exercise of legislative functions.
2   A caretaker committee lawfully set up for Obi/Akpor Local Government Area was prevented from delivering governance to the people due to the sealing of the LGA secretariat by police operatives acting under Mr. Mbu's directive.
3   Security details were withdrawn from the principal members of the state government, including but not limited to the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Attorney-General and principal judicial officers of the state
4   On the 17th of May, 2013, the same Commissioner of Police summoned the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Otelemaba Dan Amachree, to appear before him on Monday, 20th May, 2013, following an open letter written by the Speaker to President Jonathan to intervene to restore peace to the unnecessarily-charged political climate of Rivers State.
5   On the 22nd of May, 2013, Mr Mbu again provided cover for a sponsored protest by over 5,000 ex-militants and other criminal elements brandishing dangerous weapons to completely take over and parade the streets of Port Harcourt, thereby creating fear and an atmosphere reminiscent of pre-amnesty siege in the minds of right-thinking residents. Curiously, bus-loads of ex-militants from neighboring Akwa Ibom State, Bayelsa and Delta State, complete with their dangerous weapons and paraphernalia of secret cult membership, were cleared to join in the unlawful procession by the Police.
6   On the 26th of June, 2013, Mr Mbu almost engineered an unnecessary but deadly riot by directing his men to restrain over 500 people - including traditional rulers - from the Orashi communities of Rivers State from paying a scheduled and legitimate courtesy and solidarity visit to the State Governor at Government House, Port Harcourt.
7   In July 2013, a potential bloodbath at the Island Community of Bonny was averted only by the maturity exhibited by the young members of the Rivers Leadership Advancement Foundation in the face of serial provocation by members of the Rivers State Police Command
8   When sometime in August, five colleagues of Governor Amaechi - who felt they were exercising their constitutional  rights of free movement and association - had the temerity to pay him a solidarity visit in Port Harcourt, they were molested and humiliated at the Port Harcourt Airport by hired thugs under the protection of Mr Mbu
9   On September 26th, police operatives used tear gas to cause a potentially-deadly stampede through the forceful dispersal of 13,201 newly-recruited and trained teachers who had gathered at the Liberation Stadium in Port Harcourt for the final round of their training, orientation, mobilization and deployment to primary and secondary schools.
10 To cap it all, a few weeks back, the Rivers State Command blockaded a road leading to the Government House in Port Harcourt, forcing the Governor's convoy to turn back and take another route to his official residence.

These are just a few of the reign of terror that has been unleashed on Rivers by Mr. Mbu, and it should be clear to any discerning mind that what is going on in Rivers State goes far beyond political or personal differences between the first family and Governor Amaechi. It is simply the takeover of an elected government by a clique aided and abetted by President Jonathan and Mr Mbu.

The situation in Rivers State is the worst nightmare for any democracy. The rule of Jonathan and the police has replaced the rule of law, and Rivers has become a police state in its most brutish form.

More worrisome is that in spite of the well documented allegations of abuse of office, high-handedness and disrespect for the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria against Mr Mbu, neither the Presidency nor the Police hierarchy has deemed it fit to subject his indiscretions to any review.

A petition to the Police Service Commission (PSC) by the State Governor, in his capacity as the Chief Security Officer of the State, has yet to receive any attention and, even if it did, its outcome is yet unknown. Similarly, resolutions passed by the National Assembly asking for the redeployment of Mr Mbu have been given the toilet paper treatment. Even the 21-day ultimatum issued to the Inspector General of Police and the PSC on Sept. 27th by the Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress to redeploy Mbu or face an indefinite workers' strike will fall on deaf ears.

Against this background, is anyone still in doubt that Rivers State is indeed in a state of anomie? Is anyone still in doubt that Fascism, in its classic sense, is far off? The theatre of the absurd in Rivers State must be stopped immediately to restore the rule of law and save our democracy.

Some people have accused the APC of crying more than the bereaved on the Rivers State issue. Our response is that we in  the APC are indeed the bereaved anytime the rule of law is supplanted with the rule of the jungle; and we are the bereaved anytime a democratically-elected President thumbs his nose at the Constitution of the Federal Republic.

The system of government that we operate does not make provision for an imperial presidency, who can neither be criticized nor opposed. Therefore, when an elected President begins tottering on the edge of Fascism, the mechanism built into the system to check that must automatically kick into action.

Lai Mohammed is the Interim National Publicity, All Progressives Congress (APC)

All Progressives Congress (APC): Rivers crisis: Pres Jonathan is test-running facis...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Rivers crisis: Pres Jonathan is test-running facis...: Rivers crisis: Pres.Jonathan is test-running fascism ahead of 2015 - APC The All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the presid...

Rivers crisis: Pres Jonathan is test-running facism ahead of 2015-APC

Rivers crisis: Pres.Jonathan is test-running fascism ahead of 2015 - APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused the presidency of using Rivers State as a testing ground for creeping fascism ahead of the 2015 elections, saying it is imperative for all Nigerians to pay a close attention to the apparently-instigated ugly developments in the state.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said it is raising the alarm because, as the saying goes, all it takes for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing.

The party decried the worsening impunity and the violation of constitutional provisions, including the freedom of association and freedom of movement, in the state against those perceived to be against the President.

''The arrowhead of these grave acts is none other than the Rivers Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, a malleable police officer who has put himself above the laws of the land and is now, undoubtedly, the Alternate Inspector-General of Police, who can neither be queried nor redeployed because his puppeteers are in the Aso Rock,'' APC said.

''Imagine every State Police Commissioner in Nigeria behaving like Alternate IGP Mbu, who neither respects nor takes orders from the man constitutionally saddled with ensuring security in his state. Imagine every State Police Commissioner having the powers to determine who can move around and where, or who can assembly and where, just like Alternate IGP Mbu?

''While we may think this madness is restricted only to Rivers State, the danger is that if those behind the Rivers crisis can get away with their impunity, what prevents them from extending it to other states? What prevents them from raising lick-spittle police officers like Mbu to the rarefied ranks of Alternate IGPs where they take orders only from their masters? What will be the implication for the 2015 elections if men like Mbu take charge of all states? These are the questions that should agitate the minds of all Nigerians as the Rivers crisis continues unabated. All that is needed for despotism to reign in our clime is for more and more states to have men like Mbu as Police Commissioners,'' it said.

APC said it decided to take the issue to the court of Nigerians because it is apparent that even the system of checks and balances set up by the country's Constitution is not enough, hence a resolution of the National Assembly demanding the redeployment of Mbu has been shredded by the powers that be, the puppeteers of the Rivers crisis.

''When the resolutions of the National Assembly, where the true representatives of the people hold sway, are no longer worth the paper on which they are written, something is definitely wrong,'' the party said.

It wondered what else Alternate IGP Mbu will do before he is redeployed from Rivers, where his main assignment seems to be to provide security only for the pro-Jonathan, pro-First Lady and pro-Wike elements while curtailing the Constitutionally-guaranteed rights of all other citizens in the state.

''Mbu's police have barred the man elected to run Rivers State from accessing a road to his official residence, after launching verbal tirades at the State Chief Executive; Mbu's police have dispersed citizens whose only offence is that they dared to gather for the purpose of collecting their appointment letters; Mbu's police have taken it upon themselves to determine who can visit the state, while using tear-gas to ward off those they feel should not visit, whether or not they are State Governors, House of Assembly Speakers or Central Bank of Nigeria officials on assignment. Mbu's police determine where and when students can move around.

''If Mbu's reign of the jungle and President Jonathan's testing of fascism are allowed to continue in Rivers State, it is only a matter of time before the entire country will become their playground, with deadly consequences for all. It is time to stop the madness in Rivers State, where the Chief Security Officer has been put in a position where he is fearful for his own life,'' APC said.

All Progressives Congress (APC): SURE-P: SURE PIT FOR NIGERIA'S FISCAL DRAINPIPES

All Progressives Congress (APC): SURE-P: SURE PIT FOR NIGERIA'S FISCAL DRAINPIPES:    SURE-P: SURE PIT FOR NIGERIA’S FISCAL DRAINPIPES As if the drainpipes instituted by this PDP government to siphon the ...

SURE-P: SURE PIT FOR NIGERIA'S FISCAL DRAINPIPES

  

SURE-P: SURE PIT FOR NIGERIA’S FISCAL DRAINPIPES

As if the drainpipes instituted by this PDP government to siphon the commonwealth of the people of Nigeria are not enough, the Federal Government, in the wake of the people’s revolt over the sudden removal of fuel subsidy, hurriedly tinkered together an idea for empowering presidential cronies and set the template for amassing the 2015 campaign war chests. The concept was sweetly christened SURE-P, acronym for Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme. But just exactly as the Presidency’s double standard was demonstrated by the flagrant flouting of its own promise not to remove fuel subsidy, and then presenting Nigerians with a sordid New Year gift of a N141 per liter pump price in 2012; the same helmsman has demonstrated that proceeds from withdrawal – total or partial – of subsidy will translate to nothingness for Nigerians. This is because the SURE-P committee of 21 President’s hand-picked, chaired by Dr Christopher Kolade, has proved to be another massive fiscal siphon. The committee is busy duplicating projects and paying for projects already embarked upon and financed by the various ministries, departments and agencies.

To start with, in contrast to the first term of reference of the SURE-P committee which is “to determine in liaison with the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Petroleum Resources the subsidy savings estimates for each preceding month and ensure that such funds are transferred to the Funds’ Special Account with the Central Bank of Nigeria,” the Committee now waits for monthly ‘handouts’ from the Central Bank. This much was revealed by Dr Kolade when he recently led his committee to a review visit to the newly constituted Senate Committee on SURE-P. He told the Senate Committee that the SURE-P Committee receives a monthly sum of N15billion from the CBN. He said that his committee does not award contracts but just intervenes in projects that are deemed to be of national importance by the Federal Government.

It is the duty of the Project Implementation Units (PIUs) of the SURE-P who are in all the Federal Ministries and Agencies, to map out the area of the interventions; what the cost will be, and then use the already existing Federal Government contractors to implement the identified projects. The PIUs will then raise certificates with which SURE-P pays the contractors.

Within the first seven months, the Federal Government had spent a whopping N248.85billion, the savings made from the partial fuel subsidy removal. It was shared among the three tiers of government. The amount was based on the budgeted monthly provision of N35.55billion credited to the SURE-P account by the Federation Account Allocation Committee. Of the N248.44bn, the Federal Government got N105bn, representing a monthly allocation of N15bn for the seven months; while the balance of N143.55bn was shared by the states and local governments. A breakdown of the N35.55bn shared by the states in July 2012revealed that Akwa Ibom got the highest amount of N1.83bn; while Rivers got N1.46bn; Delta, N1.40bn; and Bayelsa, N1.09bn.Abia got N364.9m; Adamawa, N393.3m; Anambra, N394.08m; Bauchi, N456.52m; Benue, N439.43m; Borno, N494m; Cross River, N389.13m; Ebonyi N285.76m; Edo N446.3m; and Ekiti, N301.1m.Others are Enugu, N347.1m; Gombe, N297.42m; Imo, N469.75m; Jigawa, N454.62m; Kaduna, N504.13m; Kano, N718.6m; Katsina, N535.7m; Kebbi, N390.29m; Kogi, N395.9m; Kwara, N335.93m; Lagos, N540.48m; and Nasarawa, N296.6m. Similarly, Niger State got N475.26m; Ogun, N376.59m; Ondo, N533.08m; Osun, N406.47m; Oyo, N515.89m; Plateau, N364.73m; Sokoto, N415.93m; Taraba, N366.13m; Yobe, N360.05m; Zamfara, N352.01m; and the Federal Capital Territory, N56.77m. Since then, no matter the amount of money earned as per the excess accruing from the new petroleum pump price, the allocation has remained more or less fixed as the above.

SURE-P is not a centrally coordinated project. The National office of the project only intervenes in national projects at the Federal level, while leaving the states to run the state SURE-P committees. The state committees are known as State Implementation Committees (SICs). The Federal Government at the onset of the programme, immediately after it reduced the pump price of petroleum as a result of the pressure from Nigerians during the January 2012 protests, said the SURE-P funds dropped from the expected N1.134 trillion to N426 billion following the reduction of PMS pump price from N141 per liter to N97 per litre. But since the inception of the programme, it has not deemed it necessary to brief Nigerians on the real money saved in the first year from the added pump price.

The aspect of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) which is patently controversial is the segment entitled "Community Services, Women and Youth Employment." Under this scheme, at least 3,000 secondary school leavers, holders of National Diploma and the Nigerian Certificate in Education (NCE) are employed in each state and Abuja in the following fractions: women (30%), disabled (20%), and others (50%). The employment scheme is at three levels. While those employed under the Federal Government's scheme get N10,000 stipend per month, those who get SURE-P jobs under states get N6,000, while those who are employed under the Local Governments scheme will be paid N4,000.00 each. In addition to this, many youths would be given the opportunity to acquire skills in various vocations with which they could be self-employed. Under the arrangement, beneficiaries are selected based on wards, while a desk officer is appointed for each local government. This officer keeps the data of the beneficiaries, ensures they carried out the community service which they were assigned to do, and approve the payment of the stipends to them. Each beneficiary opens a bank account, with the United Bank for Africa Plc, for the payment of the stipend on a monthly basis.

Investigations have however confirmed that President Goodluck Jonathan's campaign coordinators in the 2011 elections have taken charge of the scheme, giving the signal that they have oiled their machinery to facilitate Jonathan victory in 2015 presidential polls. The coordinators, include the following persons who worked for Jonathan in 2011: Alhaji Bode Oyedele(Lagos), Mr Joseph Ishekpa (Nasarawa), Alhaji Garba A. Kurfi (Katsina), Alhaji Aliyu Mamman (Niger), Alhaji Adamu Yaro Gombe (Gombe), Hon Femi Akinyemi (Ekiti), Jarigbe Agbom Jarigbe (Cross River), Chief Abdullahi Ohioma (Kogi), Dare Adeleke (Oyo), Alhaji Al-Kasim Madoka (Kano), and Mr Bulus Daren (Plateau). To buttress this suspicion is the accusation that non-PDP elements are not involved in the process of executing the projects. Although SURE –P maintains that they do not award contracts, but the projects executed are based on party patronage.

In December 2012 during a presentation to the Joint Committee on Petroleum Resources at the National Assembly, Dr Christopher Kolade, presented documents to the lawmakers which showed that N2.2billion had been spent on a line item called “secretariat services” and another N75 million on “tours” inspecting projects nationwide within a period of four months.  It was also during that hearing that it was revealed that SURE-P received funds from donor agencies. Dr Kolade could not totally explain the expenses and promised to furnish the Joint Committee with more details at a later time.

 That later time may never come as it is becoming obvious by the day that the SURE-P programme is as rotten at the national level as it is in the States, and explanations are no longer enough to justify the waste of our commonwealth. Earlier this year, the Plateau State House of Assembly began the probe of over N5billion suspected to be missing from the state government’s account. The money is the state’s share of the SURE-P, which the Jonah Jang administration reportedly received for the state’s SURE-P implementation; and the lawmakers said the probe became necessary following public outcry that the funds might have been misappropriated by the government. Then, when the probe started, the Ad Hoc Committee, chaired by Dalyop Mancha, raised its voice concerning the refusal of government officials who appeared before it to give details of the bank accounts of the SURE-P funds. The State Government has been receiving N218 million monthly, to an accumulated amount of N3billion at the time of the probe, while it has been receiving N146 million monthly on behalf of its 17 local governments to an accumulated sum of N2 billion.

Similarly, in Kaduna State, the State Executive and the Legislature has pitched each other in a war of attrition as the Kaduna State House of Assembly had earlier this year taken the State Government to task over the composition and implementation of SURE-P in the state. The Chairman of the House ad-hoc committee on investigation into the implementation of SURE-P programmes, projects and activities in the state, Kentiok Irimiya Ishaku, said that the actual receipts by the Kaduna State Government of its share of revenue from subsidy reduction for 2012 stood at N2,243,188,906.24 at a monthly rate of N280,398,613.80 from May to December, 2012.  He said no receipts for the months of January to March, 2012, and no mention was made with regards to the month of April, 2012; while records showed that a lump sum of N560 million was said to have been received with no further details. The committee then recommended that the implementation of the SURE-P committee be composed of technocrats and people of proven integrity, and a dedicated account be opened in any commercial bank where the SURE-P funds would be lodged, while the implementation of all SURE-P programmes, projects, activities and all expenditures related thereto be subject to approval of the State Executive Council. It is however no wonder that as of the time of writing this piece, the recommendations are yet to be implemented, no doubt for the singular truth that the PDP government would not want anything to rock the SURE-P gravy train.

At the national level, the legislators are also kicking at this mother of all drainpipes. From Senator Ita Enang, who lamented that for SURE-P to be funding only peripheral projects and leave the vital issue of funding the establishment of functional refineries, it is a failure; to members of the Committee on Petroleum (Downstream) who had rubbished the programme and called for its scrapping, while affirming that it “lacks a clear sense of purpose”. They questioned the relevance of the programme and said it was fulfilling the desires of the Federal Government for more capital funding through the back door. The committee members were also furious that the programme had no clear mandate, as some of the projects undertaken by it were already provided for in the budgets of ministries, departments and agencies of the Federal Government.

Furthermore, the SURE-P programme was supposed to provide funds for the implementation of short-term social welfare schemes to alleviate the impact of subsidy removal on Nigerians, and some of these are the construction, completion and rehabilitation of rail, refineries, key federal high ways, hydro stations, information technology and water projects. It was also to fund mass transit, public works, training for unskilled youths and social services to reduce high maternal and infant mortality rates.

But the reality regrettably,is that the undefined model for appointment of the implementing officers has nipped the success of all these high sounding projects in the bud. The people handpicked by the PDP government to disburse the vaguely allocated funds are not there to serve the country but themselves and their masters who did them the favour. Only recently, Dr Kolade, when he appeared before the Senate Ad Hoc Committee on SURE-P chaired by Senator Abdul Ningi, disclosed that over 110,000 youths employed under the empowerment programme of SURE-P will be disengaged because of paucity of funds. Over 3000 youths were engaged from each of the 36 states of the federation and the FCT and were being paid N10,000 monthly.

Kolade said that the money approved by the National Assembly was inadequate to continue paying the youths. Replying him, Senators on the committee alleged that there was duplication of contracts between SURE-P and the Federal Ministry of Works on some road projects which have been provided for in the 2012 and 2013 budgets. Senator Kabiru Garba Marfa said that documents available to him indicated that whereas there were allocations for some federal roads in the budget under the works ministry, SURE-P went ahead to award contracts for same both in 2012 and 2013. Marafa cited the Abuja airport link road, Kano-Maiduguri road, Abuja-Lokoja road and some roads in the Niger Delta region as examples of duplicated contracts. Committee Chairman, Senator Ningi asked how the government arrived at N15 billion monthly accruals to the programme whereas the funding was supposed to be based on each litre of petrol sold in Nigeria.

The truth is that various so-called poverty alleviation programmes embarked upon by the PDP led government right from 1999 has always been based on political patronage. Starting from the dysfunctional National Poverty Alleviation Programme (NAPEP), they were deliberately designed t service the economic interests of the political class of the ruling party rather than the interest of the poor in the society. According to Nigeria’s former Ambassador to Argentina, Professor Edet Okon Uya, “If you are not a member of the political party, then you are definitely not part of the programmes.” This is exactly the reason why all the so-called intervention projects are marred by administrative perfidy and corruption. There is therefore no surprise that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Index for 2012 indicated a damning result for Nigeria, signifying that most of the Nigerian people are excluded from the PDP government’s much-touted ‘impressive growth’.

The UNDP report placed Nigeria amongst the last countries of the world that recorded achievement in the upgrade of the welfare of their citizens – the Low Human Development category where mostly poor nations or low-income countries belong.

Despite having spent at least N18.844trillion generated between 2011 and last year, as reported by the Budget Office of the Federation, Nigeria on the rating table attracted an overall placement of 153 out of a total number of 186 countries around the world where the survey was conducted. It is a shame that after the welter of rackets ravaging the NAPEP having thrown billions of naira down the drain, the Federal Government has decided to scrap it. Unfortunately, SURE-P has become the victim – or more aptly the next scam – of the same government failure. Whereas the recurrent expenditure for such an intervention programme is not supposed to exceed 10 per cent, a check on SURE-P’s travelling expenses alone is so mind-boggling that the Senate had to query the agency’s leadership. Therefore, Nigerians should not expect anything good from a phantom poverty alleviation programme which is a paradigm to give jobs to the boys and loot the national patrimony for campaign funding.