Confab has solution to southern Kaduna crisis, says Jonathan as he meets US lawmakers

The implementation of the resolutions of the 2014 national conference will prevent ethnic and religious tensions that lead to crises such as the ongoing southern Kaduna killings, former President Goodluck, has said.

According to Ikechukwu Eze, his media aide, the Nigerian leader said this when he addressed the United States congress house sub-committee on Africa.

President Muhammadu Buhari has vowed not to touch the report of the conference, which he described as a misplacement of priority.

Eze said Jonathan also identified impunity as a factor that contributes to the reoccurrence of violence, noting that if those behind previous violence were not prosecuted, then like-minded individuals and groups would be emboldened to repeat the same act.

He also spoke on the crisis in the Niger Delta region, and the challenges facing Christians in Nigeria.

Eze said the meeting was part of efforts of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation to fulfill its mission to promote peace and prosperity in Nigeria and Africa.

He said the former president, who was invited by the US congress subcommittee, spoke in his capacity as chairman of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation.

Jonathan also spoke on his efforts to end impunity, specifically citing the case of Kabiru Sokoto, the mastermind of the Christmas Day bombing of Saint Theresa’s Catholic Church in Madalla, Niger state.

Sokoto’s prosecution was the first of its kind in the trial of an attack on a place of worship in Nigeria.

“That promise was fulfilled on the 20th of December 2013 when Kabiru Umar, aka Kabiru Sokoto, was sentenced to life imprisonment after my administration investigated that crime, identified him as the mastermind, arrested him and diligently prosecuted him and some of his associates,” Jonathan reportedly said.

The former president added that his administration’s prosecution of the perpetrators of the deadly bombing of an office of the Independent National Electoral Commission also in Madalla on April 8, 2011 was the first successful prosecution of “terrorists” in Nigeria.

On the Niger Delta, the former president said he fully aligned with the views of the national conference which called for true and fiscal federalism as the way out of agitations in the region and in other parts of Nigeria.

He also said that interventionist agencies like the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) tend not to be effective due to over politicisation.

The former president said the almost overnight development of a state like Akwa Ibom proved that what the region needed was resource control not interventionist agencies.

The meeting was attended by chairman of the US house sub-committee on Africa, global health, global human rights and international organizations.

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Address to Nigerians if you are alive NLC, TUC tells Buhari

The Nigeria Labour Congress has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to come out and address the nation so as to dispel rumour about his death.

Since his trip to the UK, there has been rumour circulating about the president’s state of health and alleged demise although this has been refuted by his media aide.

In an interview with CNBC Africa, Femi Adesina who is the special adviser to the president on media and publicity said the claim about the president’s health was false and insisted he was on vacation in the UK.

The Punch however reports that Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson who is the general secretary of the NLC spoke on Thursday, January 26 urging the president to put the rumour of his death to rest by addressing the country.

He said: “In the social media, stories circulate without confirmation; I think that the easiest way is to talk publicly to the nation because the citizens are concerned about their leaders’ whereabouts.

‘If there are those who orchestrated rumours and they are not true, the easiest way is for him to reach out to Nigerians through a public appearance and a statement.

“Nigerians have a right to be certain about the health situation of their President and the people who orchestrate rumours and unsubstantiated reports, one would wish for him to call their bluff by publicly addressing the citizens.”

The Trade Union Congress (TUC) however said since Buhari has duly handed over to the vice-president, it was unnecessary to be talking about his state of health except he fails to return at the stipulated time.

Mr. Bala Kaigama who is the president of the TUC said there was no need to make noise about it as the president would come back.

“Why do we have to make noise about this? He is coming back; if he were to go and stay for a very long time, it is a different thing. If we have patience, he will come back. We are just being unnecessarily demanding.

“This is somebody who demanded a rest and he has handed over the government to the Vice-President. So our concern is how the VP is handling it; but it his health that has become the issue of the moment.

“But we should allow the old man to have his rest. It is normal for somebody of that age to need rest from time to time. If he goes to rest that does not mean that government will not work now. Let the old man enjoy his rest.

“If he does not come back on the day he is supposed to come, that is when can talk, but for now, let’s allow him to have his rest, why does he have to come and address us? It doesn’t make any sense.”

Ebenezer Oyetakin who is the executive secretary of the anti-corruption network said it was mischief to call on the president to address the nation.

“I do not subscribe to that. It smacks of mischief from such people. We are Africans. We have cultural discipline on some issues.

“He has done the appropriate thing by handing over to the VP as Acting President. Let us be patient and maintain a sense of decorum and respect to the institution of governance.”

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Leave me out of Buhari’s ‘death rumour’, Bukola Saraki warns

The Senate President Bukola Saraki has decried the attempt by some section of the media to drag him into the death rumour of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Saraki advised those peddling such news not to involve him in the matter.

The Senate President through a statement signed by his spokesperson Yusuph Olaniyonu said he had first ignored the rumours after it first started.

He however said that calls from various parts of the country and abroad promoted the need to address the issue.

He said he was, “inundated with calls from across the country and abroad, it became necessary for me to make clarifications from our own end.”

The Senate President added that it is a good thing that the presidency had also addressed the rumour.

“However, I feel it should be known that those behind this baseless, empty and unintelligent mischief are those who do not love this country,” the statement said.

“Such suggestions as contained in the speculation can only bring ill-will, disunity and crisis to the country and I therefore advise the sponsors to desist immediately. More importantly, these trouble makers should refrain from linking Senator Saraki’s name to their evil plot,” it said.

The presidency through the political adviser to the president Babafemi Ojudu had said that the rumour of the president’s death is ridiculous.

"I have read many ridiculous stories saying the Vice President Prof Yemi Osinbajo is being held hostage by some governors who are trying to compel him to resign.

“I have equally received several calls regarding this. The story is simply not true. It is a fabrication. Don’t be a purveyor of fake news,” Ojudu said.

The media was agog with the death rumours of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The rumours also stated that the vice president Yemi Osinbajo was under pressure by some cabals to resign shortly after the president travelled to the United Kingdom for his 10 days’ vacation.

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Top most curropt countries in the world, see Nigeria position in 2016

The Corruption Perceptions Index compiled by Transparency International shows something remarkable for Nigeria.

The index contains 176 countries in this order: the least corrupt country is at the top, and so as the table progresses downward, you see the more corrupt countries.

Nigeria is at Number 136, this means that it is not among the top 40 most corrupt countries in the world.

Here is a breakdown of the list:

Denmark and New Zealand were tied in first place as the world's cleanest countries, followed by Finland, Sweden and Switzerland.

Singapore was the only Asian state to make the top ten of least corrupt countries.

The top 10 least corrupt countries in the world are:

1. Denmark

2. New Zealand

3. Finland

4. Sweden

5. Switzerland

6. Norway

7. Singapore

8. Netherlands

9. Canada

10. Germany

These are the 10 most corrupt countries in the world:

1. Somalia

2. South Sudan

3. North Korea

4. Syria

5. Yemen

6. Sudan

7. Libya

8. Afghanistan

9. Guinea-Bissau

10. Venezuela

Meanwhile, the anti-corruption fight of President Buhari is facing criticism. The decision of the president to absolve the secretary to the government of the federation, Mr Babachir Lawal, of allegations of corruption has been crisitcised by prominent lawyers, civil rights groups and individuals.

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Detentions Prompt Plea to Nigeria's Buhari: Stop Persecuting Journalists

ABUJA, NIGERIA — 

A group of Nigerian writers, intellectuals and media figures called on President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday to stop the persecution of journalists, after an online publication's news staff was briefly detained.

Nigerian police late Thursday arrested the editor and a reporter for the Premium Times, the rights group Amnesty International said, in a dispute raising concern about press freedom in Africa's biggest democracy. The two were released later that evening without being charged.

"What we see is a disturbing trend that suggests not just an attempt to criminalize the important work that journalists in Nigeria do, but also a drive to frighten and cower and stop this critical constitutionally mandated work through the aggressive use of the state security apparatus," said a joint letter to Buhari signed by 10 Nigerian public figures.

The letter called on the president to instruct security services to stop harassing and arresting journalists and insist that police follow the law in arresting and charging suspects "in a timely and transparent manner."

The Premium Times has angered the military with articles saying dozens of soldiers were missing and the chief of staff was facing an investigation over false asset declaration. The armed forces have accused the paper of libel and defamation, charges the publication denied.

The detainments of editor Dapo Olorunyomi and judicial correspondent Evelyn Okakwu have raised concerns about freedom of the press and the power of the military in Nigeria.

The army said in a statement Thursday that it had begun legal action against the Premium Times over its "failure to retract and apologize over false, subversive and malicious publications against the person of the Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai and the Nigerian Army."

The articles included stories about soldiers missing in Nigeria's northeast after clashes with Islamic insurgent group Boko Haram.

In a statement, the news publication said the arrest of its editor and correspondent had been made "based on a petition" by the chief of army staff.

"We call on the federal government to rein in the police and assure Nigerians that we are not living in a military dictatorship," the statement said.

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