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Pendulum: Inside Dangote’s Wonderland In Lekki Free Zone

By Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, let me confess and reiterate that I have always known Alhaji Aliko Dangote (GCON) as an audacious businessman. I have followed his foray into the world of high stakes commodities, manufacturing and industrialization with keen interests and I had long concluded that he must possess the heart of a lion. To describe him as a serial and daredevil investor is an understatement. I will explain this fact in a jiffy.

This preamble is very necessary in order to navigate you through what may be classified as Dangote’s journey through the forests of a thousand daemons (to borrow Wole Soyinka’s translation of D. O Fagunwa’s Ogboju Ode Ninu Igbo Irunmole). Dangote is that fearless hunter who dares to tread the road less travelled. I have had the privilege of knowing him and studying his steady rise to success, fame and wealth, since those good old days when the music sensation, Sir Shina Peters used to sing himself hoarse while chanting the praise of Lanre Tejuoso, Segun Awolowo, Femi Otedola, Kweku Tandoh, Ayo Subair, Toyin Pinheiro, Kola Abiola, Ladi Williams (RIP) Aliko Dangote, Mohammed Gobi and other yuppies of the late 1980s and early 1990s. A few journalists such as Mayor Akinpelu, Kunle Bakare, Femi Akintunde-Johnson, Gboyega Okegbenro, Kayode Ajala and yours truly managed to squeeze ourselves into the class of those members of the privilegentsia and silver spoon kids, by the power and influence of being celebrity reporters, even if we were poorer than church rats. The only journalist who was confidently and comfortably rolling with them was Nduka Obaigbena, who was already living the life of the rich and famous on McEwen Road, Ikoyi.

Somehow, the name Aliko Dangote had stood out ramrod, just as he sparkled like a million diamonds. Like the rising stars of his generation, including Deji Adeleke, Sam Iwuajoku, Olu Fagbemi, and other ambitious and upwardly mobile entrepreneurs, Dangote had started his business expedition in commodities, but later dominating the business of textiles, sugar, rice, cement, flour, Salt, steel, packaging and so on. By the early 1990s, Dangote had not only become a household name, he was already on his way to being stupendously wealthy. At that stage, he was a major shareholder and Director of a bank to boot, when banking was still in vogue.
The Dangote Group has since grown into a massive conglomerate, the reason he has been on the Forbes list consistently as Africa’s richest man. Of all his ventures, his cement business has been the octopus with fingers stretching to many African countries, including Cameroon, Ethiopia, Congo, Ghana, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and still expanding. If you think Nigeria’s cement plants in Obajana, Ibese, Gboko are humongous, then you should see the wonders he has performed across the continent of Africa.

My first encounter with the Dangote magic was the invitation extended to me and the Ovation Media team in May 2015 during the launch of his cement plant in Ethiopia. Dangote had positioned his private jets and other aircrafts to convey us in turns to Addis Ababa and back to Lagos. We then drove on luxurious buses to the site which was about 90 kilometers away. The Chinese-built technological wonder was described as stretching the limits of science and was situated in the Oromia National Regional Government, West Sheba Zone, Ada Berga District, Mugher Town. The site had a robust limestone reserves of about 223 million tones and the Dangote plant is the biggest in Ethiopia. We all marveled at his capacity for doing extraordinary work and the ability to see it through, no matter how daunting the task. In the past, Ethiopia would have had to look outside and beyond Africa for an investor for such a gargantuan project but Dangote was available, willing and ready to fund the remarkable project that gulped about $650 million.

It is a miracle how Dangote was able to build the cement plants simultaneously across Africa, and in quick successions. After our trip to Ethiopia, I soon received a mail inviting me to the launch of the 1.5mta plant in Ndola, Zambia, in the second quarter of 2015. The plant was built to supply markets in the mining regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. This plant has an amazing reserve of 240 million tonnes of limestones.

Again, I was invited to the commissioning of the Dangote Cement Plant in Mtwara District, about 400 kilometers from Dar es Salaam. That turned out to be some journey. We had to pass the night and then travelled to Mtwara the following morning. The massive plant bore the special Dangote signature and we were all proud that a Nigerian was able to show the world the stuff we are made of, as opposed the negative tales some love to spread about us. We could all imagine the incredible challenges he would have had to tackle with his team. For Dangote, it was not always about doing business and making profit. It was about developing Africa and providing limitless opportunities for the people. For example, Dangote planned to build a 50MV Captive Power Plant at Mtwara District, Tanzania. The government and people of Tanzania were full of praises and appreciation for the monumental work of this great African Ambassador Plenipotentiary in their country.

Having travelled to these places, I was sure I had seen it all and there was nothing more to deliver by Alhaji Aliko Dangote but the grandmother of all projects was still on the way. And when it came, it landed spectacularly in the most unexpected of places, the Lekki Free Zone in Lagos State, Nigeria. Nothing I had read on the Dangote Refinery and it’s associated urea fertilizer factory adequately prepared me for the pleasant shock I experienced, and openly expressed, last Sunday during a visit to what had been aptly dubbed “The DANGOTE WONDERLAND.”

Our trip had been facilitated by Dangote’s bosom friend and protege, Mr Femi Otedola, a very successful African businessman with fingers in many pies, who had taken it upon himself to invite a few friends to what is believed to be the largest industrial site in Africa. Femi had called me days earlier for our periodic chats and one thing led to another and our discussions dovetailed to Dangote. “Dele, have you seen the amazing work Aliko is doing in this country at Lekki Free Zone?” Femi asked innocently. “No,” I also responded, humbly. “Dele, Haaa, Aliko is a wizard, you need to see that refinery. It is going to change the Lagos landscape and improve our economy drastically… Dele, there is hope for this country… Aliko’s investments in Nigeria is an indication that he has faith in this country and we must all draw our strength and inspiration from such serious Nigerians…” I could feel the excitement and a deep sense of admiration for Dangote in Femi’s voice. “Dele, will you like to visit the project?” That sounded like a rhetorical question to me. Who wouldn’t want to be a witness to history, I soliloquized, before responding. I told him, I would love to and he said I should join him somewhere on Lekki Road on Sunday.

Unknown to him my brains were already doing some supersonic calculations. I can’t go to Dangote’s Refinery without traveling with our crew from the Ovation Media Group, but I didn’t let out that secret. I will never miss such an opportunity to report a story of this magnitude.

Femi reconfirmed our trip last Saturday, that all was set for Sunday. A few friends joined us including Lanre Alfred, journalist and author and Tokunbo Amosun, a businessman. What we saw on ground was beyond my wildest imagination. After the long drive to the place, what I didn’t prepare for, nor envisage, was another two hours of driving round the super structures! What Dangote has erected in that place is totally out of this world. The Dangote refinery is designed as a 650,000 barrels per day project and it is expected to be the biggest oil refinery in Africa and the world’s biggest single-train facility. Work has reached advanced stage, about 70 percent minimum, as I write this.

A report I had read in the New York Times sometime ago was reverberating on my mind:

“It is here in this vibrant metropolis of 21 million people that Africa’s richest person, Aliko Dangote, is undertaking his most audacious gamble yet. Mr. Dangote is building a $12 billion oil refinery on 6,180 acres of swampland that, if successful, – could transform Nigeria’s corrupt and underperforming petroleum industry… Planned as the world’s largest refinery, Mr. Dangote’s project is set in a free-trade zone between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lekki Lagoon, an hour outside the city center.”
Beyond being a refinery, the facility will produce three million tons of fertilizer annually on full completion and operation. Let me say with all emphasis at my disposal that this is a world-class and well thought out project. It comes with it’s own ultramodern seaport.
My special thanks and gratitude to Mr Femi Otedola for making the trip a worthwhile one.
And a standing ovation to Alhaji Aliko Dangote…

President Buhari, The War is Brewing

For weeks, I had written passionately and copiously about an impending war in Nigeria, which many people in the corridors of power standoffishly dismissed as impossible and alarmist. Once again, President Muhammadu Buhari should be told unequivocally that Nigeria is about to collapse if urgent steps are not taken to arrest this perfidious drift towards perdition. The fire has already been ignited in Yorubaland and will definitely spread to other parts of the country at the speed of light which may be too late to quench. While I do not expect this government to feel any sense of remorse for the way it has allowed this situation to degenerate, I shall continue to place my own voice on record because I’m certain, when tomorrow comes, we shall remind them that we told them but they chose to ignore our patriotic admonition.

The obstinacy of this government in refusing to take decisive actions against the recklessly irresponsible herdsmen may ultimately and eventually signal the terminal end of a great country once known as the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This will be a big blow to all those who misplaced their faith in this government in 2015 and 2019.

What is so difficult in doing what is right by flushing out the notoriously evil bandits from every part of the country? How can a government look on indifferently while some local and foreign rogues invade people’s lives and properties while government fails to perform its statutory duties of protecting lives and properties?

But wait a minute. What shall it profit a government and a leader who God has given another chance to redeem his lost glory, some 30 years after, but stubbornly decides to repeat the same mistakes that cost him and his country so dearly! If the videos circulating from Oyo and Ondo States are confirmed to be true, about the ongoing bloody skirmishes, then Nigeria is doomed and finished and these present crop of leaders will go down in history as totally irresponsible people who watched on hopelessly as the once beautiful country was being set ablaze by some myopic, unreasonable, tribal warlords and religious terrorists. Shame!

Twitter chief Dorsey teams up with Jay-Z to back bitcoin

Twitter chief Jack Dorsey on Friday put out the word that he and rap mogul Jay-Z are creating a fund devoted to making bitcoin digital money “the internet’s currency.”

Dorsey, who is also the founder and chief of financial services and mobile payments firm Square, said in a tweet that he and Jay-Z are giving 500 bitcoin to fund an independent endowment called “Btrust.”

That amount of the cryptocurrency was worth about $24 million on Friday.

“It will be set up as a blind irrevocable trust, taking zero direction from us,” Dorsey said, adding that the fund would initially focus on bitcoin development teams in Africa and India.

He said three board members were being sought, adding a link to an online application that stated the mission is to “make bitcoin the internet’s currency.”

Launched in 2009, bitcoin has been on a meteoric rise since March, when it stood at $5,000, spurred by online payments giant PayPal saying it would allow account holders to use cryptocurrency.

Tesla this week announced a $1.5 billion investment in the digital money and plans to accept the cryptocurrency from customers buying its electric vehicles.

The announcement came on the heels of a cheeky social media embrace of bitcoin by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who temporarily changed his Twitter bio to simply read “#bitcoin.”

On Friday, Canada’s main securities regulator cleared the launch of the world’s first exchange-traded bitcoin fund, giving retail investors greater access to the booming cryptocurrency.

Sceptics say bitcoin is highly volatile and regulators warn it is vulnerable to illicit use.

Bitcoin on Friday touched a new high of $48,930 after MasterCard and US bank BNY Mellon moved to make it easier for people to use the cryptocurrency. (Thexpressng)

What is Mandamus?

By Usman Bwala

There are many types of writs, one of which is called mandamus. Mandamus is a Latin word which in English means “we command” Black’s Law Dictionary p.867. It is an order requiring that an act be done; the act to be done must be public act Exparte Sunday Odje 1961 IV All NLR 979. Mandamus is a peculiar nature of writ Layanju vs Araoye 1961 1 All NLR 83 where it was held “we are faced with the peculiar nature of the writ of mandamus.” Mandamus is issued when there are issues of exceptional importance or extraordinary in nature and requires prompt action In Re Grand Jury Subpoena 1978 58 F.S 2nd 1103. The performance expected must be clearly defined and there is no other remedy available John Vishevesky vs US 1978 F.S. 2d 1249 where it was held “Appropriateness of mandamus relief turn on existence of clear right in plaintiff to demand performance by defendant of plainly defined, peremptory and ministerial duty and lack of remedy other than mandamus.”

Mandamus is issued only by a competent court commanding or directing an inferior tribunal to perform a particular ministerial duty Minister Int. affairs vs Edmund Okoro 2003 10 F.R. 115 where it was held per C.B. Ogunbiyi JCA as “For mandamus to lie therefore, it must issue from a court of competent jurisdiction commanding an inferior body or person for the performance of a particular act of purely ministerial duty imposed by law.” The issuance of mandamus is discretionary of a court U.S. vs John Sherman 1978 56 F.S. 2d 1358.

          Mandamus is issued against a body which has a public duty to perform and there was a failure or neglect to perform it Bashir Shitta Bly vs Fed. Pub. Service Commission 1981-82 BNSLR 119 where it was held “The order of mandamus of course only issues to a person or corporation requiring him or them to do some particular thing therein specified which appertains to his or their duty or office and is in nature of a public duty.” Before mandamus is issued there must be a person charged with doing a public duty and the person charged with the public duty failed or neglected to act when demanded Excelsior Ins. Co vs The Registrar Insurance 1976 1 FNLR 174.

          The public duty requirement in mandamus must be personally owned to the applicant Exparte Chief Lewis Ekpanga 1962 1 All NLR 265. Public duty can arise from native law and custom Erurhobore vs Otebrise 1972 1 U.I.L.R 33. Mandamus will issue against a father to return his daughter to a husband where necessary customary practices were completed Erurhobore vs Otebrise supra where it was held “…that an order of mandamus would lie to enforce a duty arising under native law and custom.” The appointment of a chief where all traditional rites and ceremonies were performed is enforceable by mandamus Exparte Chief Lewis Ekpanga 1962 1 All NLR 265.

          Performance of public duty must owe to the applicant Fawehinmi vs Akilu 1987 4 NWLR (Pt 67) 797. An applicant must prove that he requested for the performance of the public duty and he was denied or there a refusal R vs Habley Revising Barrister 1912 3 K.B 518 where it was held “The requirement that before the court will issue mandamus there must be a demand to perform the act sought to be enforced and a refusal to perform it…”

          Failure to request for performance of the public duty and a failure or refusal to perform the duty is fatal to mandamus proceedings Emmanuel Atungwa vs Chief Ada Okechukwu 2000 1 NWLR (Pt 641) 507 held as follows “In fact the counsel had agreed that the proceedings of an order of mandamus were taken out without satisfying a condition precedent which was a demand to perform a public duty and a refusal.”

          When mandamus is issued commanding the performance of an illegal act any affected person can apply to have the mandamus quashed Alamieyeseigba vs Yeiwa 9 WLR Feb 2001 94. An applicant must have legal right to apply for mandamus before he ask for it Queen vs Lewisham 1897 1 Q.B. 498.

          There are two stages in application for mandamus Igwe Ikemefuna vs Chief Nweke 1990 5 NWLR (Pt 150) 255 held “Mandamus proceedings is by special procedure under the Rules and is in two stages. Firstly, by an exparte application for leave, and secondly by originating motion or originating summons…” Before mandamus is issued the act complained of must be lawful The State vs COP Anambra State 1982 2 CLR 252.

          The fact that to issue mandamus will bring chaos and inconvenience is not a ground for a refusal to grant it R vs Padington 1966 1 Q.B. 380. Where a law provides for specific procedures to be followed failure to follow the specific procedure can be corrected by granting mandamus Banjo vs Abeokuta Urban Dev. Committee 1965 2 All NLR 84. Where a body acted on extraneous matters or disregarded provision of law before arriving at a conclusion mandamus will issue The Queen vs Cotham 1898 1 Q.B. 802.

          Mandamus does not issue against a party who has a discretion to do or not do a thing Exparte Chief Sunday Odje 1961 4 All NLR 206, Exparte Bank of the North 1963 All NLR 564. Mandamus will issue where an applicant was wrongfully dispossessed of office or function Malemo vs JAMB 2 NPLR 1032.

          Mandamus does not issue when there is an alternative method of performing it Queen vs Registrar Joint Stock 1888 21 Q.B D 131, Hanafi vs Board of Health 1960 SLJR 230. However, where the alternative method is less convenient, beneficial or effectual mandamus will issue Ocha Ulegede vs Com for Agric Benue State 1996 8 NWLR (Pt 467) 437.

          Mandamus does not lie against an archbishop to admit candidates to convocation The Queen vs Archbishop of New York 1888 20 Q BD 740. Mandamus will not lie against an officer of university to perform a duty because it is considered as domestic matter of the university R vs Dundhealth 1891 2 All ELR 741, see also Akintami vs Onwumecheli 1985 1 S.C. 132.

          The principal function of mandamus is to remedy defects in justice Bashir Shitta – Bey vs FPSC 1981-82 BNSLR 119. Mandamus will issue against a body which failed to pay an applicant over a contract he had executed Richard vs Manders 66 F.S. 520. Whenever a person has a duty towards another and fails to perform such duty mandamus will compel the negligent party R vs Commissioner for Wood 1850  15 Ch.D 761 held “whenever a person whether an officer under the crown or not has duty towards another person mandamus will lie to compel him to perform it.”

          To issue or not to issue mandamus has always been considered on strict basis R  vs Commissioner of Custom and Excise 1970 1 WLR 150.

Justice Usman Bukar Bwala J.P, retired from the High Court of Justice, Maiduguri, Borno State.

He was more than a friend, Justice Uwais says about the late Abdullahi Ibrahim, SAN

By Lillian Okenwa

I’ll miss almost everything about him Lillian. He had a very large heart. He gave me over 60 years of sincere friendship. He was a friend. He was a brother. He was my confidant. He consults me before taking certain decisions. I consulted him too. Really it’s difficult to describe what one will miss about him. – Hon. Justice M.L. Uwais, GCON, former Chief Justice of Nigeria

Their friendship transcended borders. It was a communion of kindred spirits.  Hon. Justice Muhammadu Lawal Uwais, former Chief Justice of Nigeria and the late Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, Senior Advocate of Nigeria were more brothers than associates. They came from different tribes in Nigeria; the former from Zaria in Kaduna State, late Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, from Kogi State.

But both have very warm and welcoming personalities yet firm as well. Again, a common thread of civility, humility, courtesy, and simplicity ran through them.

Abdullahi Ibrahim wanted to study Administration but was advised to read law. In due course, he enjoyed the best of the two worlds and more, rising to the zenith of his career in Law and serving as an astute administrator in many respects including: Commissioner for Education, Kwara State; Minister of Transport and Aviation; Minister of Education, Science and Technology; Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Director of Nigerian Coal Corporation; Chairman, Governing Council of Industrial Training Fund (ITF); First Vice President of the Nigerian Stock Exchange; Chairman of the Governing Council, Nigerian Institute of International Affairs; Chairman Benue State Transition Committee, 1983; Chairman, Body of Benchers among others.

In a brief chat with Law & Society’s Lillian Okenwa, His lordship shared snippets about Abdullahi Ibrahim who never intended to study law but eventually did and attained the highest point in his career.

“I left secondary school in 1957. I attended Barewa College Zaria after which I joined the Nigerian Tobacco Company (NTC), Zaria in 1958. It had always been my desire to study law so I wanted to apply for scholarship since the government of Northern Nigeria was awarding scholarships to qualified persons from the region who desired to study not only law but other subjects that would be beneficial to the region. However, scholarships were awarded only those working with the government.

“This meant that since I was working with a private establishment, I wasn’t qualified for scholarship. So I joined the Ministry of Information of Northern Nigeria in 1959 as Publicity Assistant; that was where I met Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim.

“I was already working there before he joined and we became friends. We continued until I got scholarship to study law at the Institute of Administration, Zaria, which later became Ahmadu Bello University Zaria. I left for school and that temporality halted our relationship. On his part, he hadn’t made up his mind on what he wanted to study. Afterwards, he got a scholarship to study for his A ‘Levels at the City Technical College, Gloucester. I also had travelled to England to complete my legal training.

Image result for Justice Uwais and Abdullahi Ibrahim
Hon. Justice M.L Uwais and Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, SAN

“After his A Levels, he decided on Administration. It was his former principal at Government College Keffi, who encouraged him to read law instead of Administration. The former principal, Mr. Walters was on holidays in England. Apparently both of them had kept in touch even when Walters left Government College, Keffi, so he visited Abdullahi at his British Council Hostel in the UK.

Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, SAN

“In the course of their conversation he dissuaded Abdullahi from studying Administration and encouraged him to choose law. Thereafter, Abdullahi had a similar conversation the Agent General representing Northern Nigeria. Every region in those days had one. They are representatives of the Regions in the United Kingdom and usually give career and other kinds of advice to students. The Agent General also advised him to study law instead of Administration and that began his journey into the legal profession.

“Subsequently, he applied and gained admission into the Middle Temple, one of England’s four Inns of Court. I was already there completing my law programme, so his arrival rekindled our friendship.

“After being called to the English Bar in 1963 and to the Nigerian bar in 1964 he became an Assistant Legal Adviser on tax matters for the Northern Nigeria Ministry of Finance and even went back to England to train as a tax lawyer. But when states were created in 1967, he was deployed to Kano from Kaduna to help in setting up the Ministry of Justice there. He rose to become the head of prosecution; Principal State Counsel. He worked closely with the Solicitor General and worked very hard.

“When the Solicitor General, Alhaji Nuhu Usman died in a plane crash in 1969, Alhaji Abdullahi witnessed a painful discrimination. A Magistrate Grade 1 from Kano state, Sani Aikawa was appointed in his stead. They said he was not an indigene of Kano. He was very disappointed because had put in a lot of work in the ministry and thought he deserved the promotion. You know he was one of the foundation staff and next to the Solicitor General. The injustice won him a lot of sympathy from those who knew him including some indigenes of the state. They saw him as perfect gentleman, hard-working, friendly and very approachable.

“Shortly after, he took up the office of Legal Adviser at the New Nigerian Development Company (NNDC) in Kaduna. He finally left the public service and began his private legal practice with Justice Mustapha Akanbi in 1973. Akanbi had left Jos to set up private practice in Kano in 1969. While Akanbi was in Kano, Abdullahi opened the Kaduna office in 1973 and the firm changed its name to Akanbi, Ibrahim & Co. Then Babatunde Belgore who later became a judge of the Federal Revenue Court, now Federal High Court also joined them. Again the firm transformed to Belgore, Akanbi, Ibrahim & Co. It wasn’t long before Belgore and Akanbi were appointed judges of the Federal Revenue Court. That was in 1974. Abdullahi never had any interest in going to the bench.

“When his two partners moved on, the firm became Abdullahi Ibrahim & Co. That is still the name it bears today. Even when he retired from active legal practice, he handed over the firm to his lawyers who were no relations of his. He was not taking salary or anything from the firm. He just let them use his name and contacts. He truly had a large heart.

“You know his chambers have produced over twenty Senior Advocates of Nigeria. He had no bias about where his lawyers came from. He reached out to everybody no matter the tribe.  

“I’ll miss almost everything about him Lillian. He had a very large heart. He gave me over 60 years of sincere friendship. He was a friend. He was a brother. He was my confidant. He consults me before taking certain decisions. I consulted him too. Really it’s difficult to describe what one will miss about him.“

What would you remember him most for, I asked, and with a sad short laughter, he retorted, “The same thing…” A short pause after, and in a very sad voice, His lordship replied… “very loyal. Very loyal…”

ICYMI: Schools, hospitals shut as herdsmen attack Ogun communities, kill two

Daud Olatunji, Abeokuta

Suspected Fulani herdsmen, on Thursday, attacked Owode-Ketu and Ijoun villages in the Yewa-North Local Government Area of Ogun State and reportedly killed two persons.

Our correspondent gathered that the victims, Isiaka Apesin and Oguntosin Adebayo, were killed on their way to their farms by the herdsmen, who laid an ambush for them.

Eyewitnesses said after killing the farmers, the herdsmen went into the two villages and started shooting indiscriminately and scaring away residents.

According to the source, the killer herdsmen ran into the bush after perpetrating the act.

It was gathered that when the day broke, there was tension in the affected villages, a development that made schools and hospitals in the villages to shut down abruptly.

It was gathered that the incident prompted the closure of schools, hospitals and other businesses as villagers scampered for safety after the killings and the indiscriminate shooting by the assailants.

The Baale of Owode-Ketu, Rev. Sanya Fabuyi, who confirmed the incident, stated that the herdsmen came with sophisticated weapons.

Fabuyi said the villagers were helpless as the herdsmen shot indiscriminately and caused panic in the area.

The youth leader of the community, Mr Sina Olaleye, said the herdsmen, who put on bulletproof vests, immediately fled into the forest after the attack.

He said, “The herdsmen were more than 100 and some of them were putting on bulletproof vests. They are still in the forest now and the police are combing the forest.

“All schools and businesses have been shut down and our people are indoors for fear of being attacked.” (Punchng)

Coalition alerts 31 foreign missions of secret execution of 6 Igbo soldiers by Buratai, Others

…..notifies of alleged attempts by the Government of Nigeria to ‘shield and protect’ perspective via nomination as as ‘non-career ambassadors’.

By Chibuike Nwabuko

Abuja (Sundiata Post) – Eastern Rights & Intelligentsia Coalition has alerted 31 foreign missions in Nigeria of the secret execution of six Igbo christian soldiers and other heinous crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and other internationally prohibited acts perpetrated by immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Yusuf Buratai and over 20 other serving and retired Army or Military and Police chiefs including the newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Major Gen Ibrahim Attihiru.

The group also notified the envoys about attempts by the Government of Nigeria to ‘shield and protect’ some of the perpetrators from criminal prosecution or being locally and internationally held to account by nominating them especially (Buratai, Olanisakin and Sadique) as ‘non-career ambassadors’.

This was contained in a seven-page letter jointly signed by 27 individual/group members of the Coalition and captioned: Time For Buratai & Over 20 Others To Face International Justice & Diplomatic Sanctions For Crimes Of Genocide, War Crimes & Crimes Against Humanity Perpetrated Against Thousands Of Defenseless Civilians In Nigeria. The signatories to the letters who also signed this joint statement include: Emeka Umeagbalasi (M.Sc.), Board Chair, Int’l Society for Civil Liberties & Rule of Law, Prof Anthony Ejiofor-Chairman, World Igbo Congress (USA), Prof Uzodimma Nwala-President, Ala-Igbo Dev Foundation (ADF), Prof Justice Chidi-President, Concerned Elites for Better Society Initiative, Prof Justin Akujieze-Board Chairman, Ekwenche Research Institute (USA), Dr. Moses Nwaigwe-President, Biafra Genocide Survivors Group (USA), Austin Okeke, Esq.-Global Leader, Igbo Board of Deputies (Worldwide), Mercy Alu, PhD-Executive Coordinator (Research), the Int’l Association of African Authors & Scholars (USA), Dr. Onyenkachi Orjiako, Esq.-Rep, Int’l Society for War Against Lawlessness (USA) and Maazi Obi Okoli-Coordinator, Congress of Igbo Leaders UK & Ireland.

Other signatories are: Dr. Law Mefor-Chancellor, Igbo Bu Igbo (IBI), Dr. Okezie Kelechi-ED, Neighborhood Environment Watch Foundation, Dr. Jerry Chidozie Chukwuokoro-Rep, Int’l Solidarity for Peace & Human Rights Initiative, Comrades Chilos Godsent & Zulu Ofoelue-Reps, Igbo National Council, Ezekwike Chekwube Violet, Esq.-Founder, New Home Mentoring & Dev Initiative, Comrade Aloysius Attah-Chair, Civil Liberties Organization, Southeast, Maazi Tochukwu Ezeoke, President, Igbo Ekunie Initiative (Nigeria and UK), Comrade Justine Ijeomah-ED, Human Rights Social Dev & Environmental Foundation(HURSDEF), Comrade Vincent Ezekwueme-Chair, Civil Liberties Organization, Anambra State, Comrade Peter Onyegiri-ED, Center for Human Rights & Peace Advocacy, Comrade Alex Olisa-Rep, Southeast Good Governance Forum, Comrade Nnana Nelson Nwafor-ED, Foundation for Environment Rights Advocacy & Dev., Comrade Nkwocha Anozie-ED, Initiative for Ideal Dev & Emancipatory Leadership, Comrade Emeku Uche-Rep, Easy-life Initiative for Rural Youths , Comrade Samuel Njoku-Chair, Human Rights Organization of Nigeria, Comrade Ngwobia O. Ngwobia-Rep Primate Salvation Initiative and Nze UgoAkpe Onwuka (Oyi)-National Coordinator, Igbo Renaissance Forum.

The statement reads:

In line with our core formative objective and firm promise of getting justice for thousands of the victims of the Army and Police conduct atrocities in Nigeria since 2015, involving: crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and other internationally prohibited acts-clearly defined in various regional and international instruments acceded to by Nigeria; the Eastern Nigerian Rights and Intelligentsia Coalition has dragged the immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Yusuf Buratai and over 20 other serving and retired Army or Military and Police chiefs including the newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Major Gen Ibrahim Attihiru to 31 foreign missions in Nigeria. The respected foreign missions petitioned through their Ambassadors and High Commissioners are the Head of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS and Ambassadors of its 18 Member-States; and the Ambassadors and High Commissioners of 13 key Member-States of the United Nations spread across Americas, Europe, Asia and Oceania.

The names of the petitioned 31 key foreign missions are the Head of Delegation of EU and the Ambassadors of Netherlands, Finland, Poland, Federal Republic of Germany, France, Spain, Czech Republic, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Sweden. Others are the High Commissioners of the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada and the Ambassadors of the United States, Israel, Norway, Ireland, Switzerland, Brazil, Japan, South Korea, Mexico and the Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria. As at the end of work on Wednesday, 10th Feb 2021, the letters have been successfully delivered and received by 25 of the 31 key foreign missions, remaining France, Greece, Denmark, Portugal, Hungary and Australia.

The Eastern Rights and Intelligentsia Coalition had in the letter drawn the attention of the respected Ambassadors and High Commissioners to grievous rights abuses and violations perpetrated under the seal of, or by the immediate past Nigerian Chief of Army Staff, Retired Lt Gen Tukur Yusuf Buratai and over 20 others including the newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Major Gen Ibrahim Attahiru. The respected envoys were also informed that the named perpetrators have severally been gravely and factually accused by respected local and international rights groups and other activists of being directly or vicariously involved in the referenced heinous crimes while in office between August 2015 and Jan 26, 2021. The envoys were also notified about attempts by the Government of Nigeria to ‘shield and protect’ some of the perpetrators from criminal prosecution or being locally and internationally held to account. This, the Nigerian Government has done by nominating them (Buratai, Olanisakin and Sadique) as ‘non-career ambassadors’.

The respected envoys were further told that among the most recent heinous crimes perpetrated by the immediate past Chief of Army Staff and the Nigerian Army was secret execution on religious and ethnic grounds of six Igbo Christian soldiers on Monday, 25th Jan 2021. Before their secret execution following trumped up Court Martial, the slain were attached to the Armory Department of the Nigerian Army, located in Abacha (Mogadishu) Barracks in Asokoro, Abuja. The slain Igbo Christian soldiers are Prince Ukwuoma, son of a traditional ruler; Ebube Isaiah, Amos Azubuike, Ekene Ebere, Moses Anyim and Godwin Uchendu. Challenged to publicly produce the soldiers hale and hearty, the Nigerian Army and its immediate past Chief, Retired Lt Gen Tukur Yusuf Buratai have refused and failed to do so till date. The duo had also failed till date to disclose the whereabouts of another Igbo Christian soldier, (Trooper) Azunna Mmadubuichi who was controversially convicted and sentenced to death by a Martial Court in Northeast State of Borno in Jan 2021 and another Christian soldier, Lance Corporal Martins Idakpini, who has gone missing after he was taken into Army custody sometime around July or August 2020 for criticizing (in video) the immediate past Army Chief (Buratai) and the Army’s poor handling of counterinsurgency operations in the Northeast.

The Coalition had also in the letters to the 31 key foreign missions catalogued and highlighted 19 massacres perpetrated by the named perpetrators under Retired Lt Gen Tukur Buratai as Chief of Army Staff, between 30th August 2015 and 26th Jan 2021 and enlosed the names of the key perpetrators as well as electronic links to some of the reports on the perpetrated atrocity crimes.

The Coalition respectfully prayed and demanded from the respected envoys that: the named perpetrators especially Retired Lt Gen Tukur Buratai must face prosecution and life jail at ICC or in national courts located in any foreign country operating int’l criminal jurisdictions on crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes; that int’l Governments including the petitioned and Intergovernmental agencies should ensure that the perpetrators are declared and treated as “persona non gratae” and slammed with appropriate international or diplomatic sanctions including being made ineligible and pariahs in all regional and international military, policing and other security or diplomatic engagements especially those involving corporate and individual or intergovernmental consultancies, contracts, partnerships, exchange visits, awards, honours, presentations, board or institution appointments, holidays, etc as well as denying them and their families visas, freezing their accounts and seizing or confiscating their assets abroad. Others are arresting them and taking them into custody for prosecution for directly or vicariously perpetrating internationally prohibited acts if sighted anywhere in the Home Countries of the respected envoys or those of their key allies as well as refusing to accredit ‘ambassadorial’ nominees among them or treating them as ‘pariah ambassadors’ including handing them to ICC or any regional criminal court for trial if indicted and declared wanted; in the event they dishonourably and desperately have their ways as “Nigerian ambassadors” to such countries.

Finally, the Coalition also in the letters drew the attention of the respected envoys on the need for them to be aware and extremely careful over a litany of attempts by the atrocity crimes perpetrators and the Nigerian Government especially the immediate past Army Chief to cover up their heinous atrocities by media hyping; recruitment and oiling of ‘pro bloodshed activists’ or ‘Government/Army “Human Rights Contractors” or “activists” operating in different disguises including mushroom “rights groups”, “research centers” and “columnists”. Such soiled characters have not only been responsible for series of negative writings and media attacks against the likes of Amnesty International and others, but have also been hired by Government to write or submit counter petitions in higher places within and beyond borders in favor or in defense of the named atrocity crimes’ perpetrators. (Sundiatapost)

Danger: Governor Ganduje explains why herdsmen carry arms; Governors Ishaku, Ortom want natives to carry guns, too

A herdsman

Should Nigerian farmers and natives consider carrying weapons to protect their land and line of business, if latest comments by a Nigerian Governor is anything to go by? The answer, it appears, is hanging in the air.

It was Governor Samuel Ortom (Benue), who first raised the spectre of Nigerians carrying arms to defend themselves against armed herdsmen and Fulani militia; then Governor Darius Ishaku (Taraba) repeated the fearful spectre suggested by Ortom.

To justify the suggestion on Thursday, Governor Umar Abdulahi Ganduje of Kano has confirmed that herdsmen carry weapons to protect themselves and their line of business.

Ganduje, who has been an opponent of movement of cattle from the north to the south, explained in a Channels Television interview on Thursday that climate change is forcing foreign herders, who carry firearms and no means of identification, into Nigeria; but criticised the influx of the foreign herders, advocating that the trend be stopped by the Federal Government.

His words: “The movement of cattle from one part of the country to another is not something new, even from some neighbouring countries. Foreign herders, because of climate change, they are moving into Nigeria with thousands of cattle….

“In those days, the cattle routes were enough because the population did not grow like now; farming activities because of population, was not like this. But there is a lot of encroachment.

“And not only encroachment, even the volume of cattle coming from West Africa to Nigeria has also increased because of the availability of grazing areas in the Middle Belt and in the southern part of the country….

“You cannot expect people to watch, people have to react and because of that they have learnt to carry weapons in order to protect themselves.

“And some of them are using the opportunity to carry illegal weapons, selling weapons in Nigerians and some are taking the opportunity to commit various types of criminality in the country.” (Everyday)

(Letter) Ortom to Buhari: Act before herdsmen plunge us into civil war

Buhari & Ortom

His Excellency Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR President
Federal Republic of Nigeria State House
Abuja

APPEAL TO ACT BEFORE HERDSMEN DRAG NIGERIA INTO A CIVIL WAR

It is my honour and privilege to extend warm compliments of the New Year to Your Excellency on behalf of myself, the Government and good people of Benue State.

2. As a State, we welcome and appreciate the establishment of three Federal educational institutions in Benue State namely: Federal University of Health Sciences, Federal College of Education and a Federal Polytechnic.

3. We are also thankful for the various appointments given Benue sons and daughters. We expect more of such strategic projects and appointments more so given the support you have received from our Government and the people of the State. We acknowledge and appreciate the intervention which your Administration made as Bailout to States during the first recession, although Benue is yet to receive the second Tranche which you approved and referred to the Federal Ministry of Finance to verify and pay two years ago and which Kogi State received in 2019.

4. Your Excellency, we especially want to commend you for responding to my earlier appeal to deploy, upgrade and retain Military Operations in the State. These Operations, particularly Operation Whirl Stroke, working in collaboration with other Security Agencies, have contributed to relative peace in several parts of the State even though the challenges are not yet over.

5. Mr. President, we are not oblivious of the challenges that the country has faced in the life of your Administration. These include two recessions, the COVID-19 global pandemic and the unprecedented nationwide security challenges resulting into the largest loss of lives and property since the Civil War. These security challenges especially have unsettled the country economically, socially and politically.

6. Your Excellency, these security challenges have assumed new dimensions where the now emboldened assailants and armed herdsmen daringly enforce their will on legitimate owners and occupants of ancestral lands. There are many areas of concern over the Federal Government’s actions and inactions, including the widely discussed concern over inequalities in key appointments. These have reinforced the perception that the Administration is not fair and just to all Nigerians.

7. Mr. President, please recall my earlier letters drawing your attention to the murderous activities of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore and other armed Fulani socio-cultural groups and their leaders who publicly and brazenly claimed responsibility for the killings and destruction of property across States of the country. These groups and their leaders have also boasted that Nigeria belongs exclusively to them. The letters alerted you on several challenges and called for the arrest and prosecution of the leaders and proscription of the organizations in question. The letters are as follows:
(i) Incessant Violent Attacks on Benue Farmers in Benue State by Armed Herdsmen Ref. No. AI/68/T.I/64 dated 7th June 2017.

(ii) Alleged Planned Attack by Fulani Herdsmen on Benue State and the need to Support the Anti-Open Grazing Law Ref. No. AI/68/I/149 on 16th October, 2017.
(iii) Violent Attacks on Communities in Benue State by Armed Fulani Herdsmen Ref. No. AI/68/I/174 dated 2nd January, 2018.
(iv) Fresh Planned Attacks by Fulani Herdsmen on Benue people
Ref. No. AI/68/I/189 dated 18th January, 2018.

8. We are alarmed that rather than being censured, these leaders and organizations have been emboldened and intensified their atrocities. They have received encouragement in the process through various actions and inactions by the Federal Government, including the following:
(i) Open Visa Policy which has promoted unprecedented influx of Fulani herdsmen carrying sophisticated and prohibited weapons into Nigeria;

9. This ugly situation has caused devastation across the country. In Benue State, 19 out of 23 Local Government Areas have been affected by attacks by Fulani herdsmen leading to loss of lives, destruction of property and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Benue people who are now living in Internally Displaced Persons Camps and host communities across the State. The total number of Internally Displaced Persons currently in the Camps in Benue State is 483,692 persons.

10. Returning these Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to their ancestral homes has been impossible as herdsmen continue to attack, kill, maim and rape those who return. The Federal Government is also yet to redeem the pledge made on 15th May, 2018 by Vice President Prof. Yemi Osibanjo to contribute N10Billion to Benue State towards the reconstruction, rehabilitation, reintegration and resettlement of displaced persons. The failure of the IDPs to return to their ancestral homes to resume normal farming activities, together with the impact of climate change, has posed a serious threat to national food security, as evidenced by rising food prices.

11. Sir, we all remember the wise counsel of Nigeria’s former Permanent Representative to the United Nations, the late Alhaji Maitama Sule, when Northern Leaders Forum visited you as the President-Elect in 2015. He said, inter alia “…With justice, you can rule Nigeria well. Justice is the key. If you do justice to all and sundry, and I say all and sundry. If you’re going to judge between people, do justice irrespective of their tribe, religion or even political inclination. Justice must be done to whosoever deserves it.”

12. Mr. President, this call for justice is the heart cry of every patriotic Nigerian. It is not a call against the Fulani race or any other ethnic group, but a call to make Nigeria work for every Nigerian in line with the Oath of Office we took as leaders and your pledge to be a President for all Nigerians and to be for everybody and for nobody. Unfortunately, you seem to be tilting towards the Fulani at the expense of other nationalists.

13. Many citizens including patriotic Fulanis like Dr. Nura Alkali are alarmed at this tilt and the boast of Miyetti Allah that Nigeria is the heritage of the Fulani of the whole world. These citizens continue to condemn the atrocities of the Fulani across the country while also calling on the Federal Government to end these atrocities by withdrawing from their one-sided sympathy for herdsmen.

14. Only recently, the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, added his voice in this regard. He acknowledged that seven or eight out of every 10 kidnappers arrested in Nigeria are Fulani. This is not a good testimony. More so, the consequences this image has cast on the Fulani tribe should be corrected now.

15. These concerns were reiterated by the Nigerian Tribune Editorial of January 25, 2021:
“it has become an established pattern for his Presidency to swiftly intervene on issues bordering on the atrocities of Fulani herdsmen in the country, acting as their publicist in a fashion that assails the sensibility of other Nigerians, and oftentimes unabashedly descending into the arena and polarising the country along ethnic and regional lines. This sordid trend is inimical to confidence building, genuine bonding and cohesion of citizens in a multi-ethnic, multi- cultural and multi-religious society and it is really concerning, and perilously so, that such vital sensitivities are being discounted at the highest level of governance in the land. From his utterances and actions, it is clear that Muhammadu Buhari is not ready to be the President of all Nigerians.”

16. It is important to point out that these are not sentiments directed against Fulanis who are indigenous to Nigeria and have been living at peace with other Nigerians. Testimonies abound in that regard. For example, my wife and I were accommodated by a Fulani man while in school at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. Till date, we are still very good family friends and he visits me occasionally in Benue. This point underscores the pain we all have had to go through to understand the tragedy where armed herdsmen from Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger, Cameroon and other neighbouring countries are pushing the whole country to the precipice. While addressing the Nigerian community on Tuesday 19th April 2019 in Dubai, You also blamed these foreign herdsmen for the attacks on Nigeria.

17. Mr. President, as a major stakeholder in the Nigeria project, I have a responsibility to raise these major concerns and to offer some recommendations towards addressing them.
(i) The Federal Government should develop a National Ranching Policy in line with global best practice in animal husbandry. Today, open grazing is extinct in most countries of the world. In Europe, America, Asia and in many countries in Africa, pastoralism has long given way to ranching. How can Nigeria then still be battling with a problem of pastoralism that in other countries has been solved over a century ago? According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), India has 303 million cattle, Brazil, 226 million, China, 100 million, USA, 93 million, Argentina, 53 million and Australia 27 million. All these countries ranch their animals. Nigeria has less than 20 million cattle which could also be easily ranched. Unfortunately, the cows are allowed to either roam the streets freely or encroach on people’s farms and other investments. A Ranching policy in Nigeria will provide avenue for both crop farmers and those involved in animal husbandry to increase production using modern technology. This is the only way out of ending farmers/herders conflict;
(ii) Direct the Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies to enforce Prohibition of Open Grazing Laws passed by various States of the federation;
(iii) Abolish Open Visa policy and direct relevant security agencies to ensure full compliance with the ECOWAS Protocol on Transhumance;
(iv) The Federal Government should immediately pay compensation to families killed and those whose properties were destroyed by the herdsmen in various communities across the country;
(v) Condemn the atrocities perpetrated by armed herdsmen; arrest and prosecute the leadership of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore and other Fulani Socio-cultural groups who have consistently admitted to the wanton killings and destruction of communities across the country. These include Husaini Yusuf Bosso (National Vice President of Miyetti Allah Cattle

Herders Association), Badu Salisu Ahmadu and Umar Amir Shehu, (President and Secretary of Fulani Nationality Movement), Alhaji Abdullahi Bello Bodejo and Engr. Saleh Alhassan (President and Secretary of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore) along with their sponsors;
(vi) Proscribe Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Fulani Nationality Movement, Fulani Herders Association and other violent Fulani extremist groups, as was done in the case of the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB), given that the Global Terrorism Index ranks Fulani militia as the fourth deadliest terrorist group in the world;
(vii) LicenseLaw-abidingNigerianstocarryweaponsinself-defence;
(viii) Ensure justice, fairness and equity in all issues relating to public safety and security;
(ix)
Support the resettlement and rehabilitation of Internally Displaced Persons as a result of herdsmen atrocities in all States of the country.

18. In conclusion, Your Excellency, I am writing to you as a patriot who is concerned about your reputation and the fate of our dear country. I am imploring you once again to rise to the challenges of these times to avert the country’s drift to anarchy and disintegration, a situation that sycophants and praise-singers might be unwittingly shielding from you. In 2015, Nigerians enthusiastically welcomed your return as a leader with a reputation for uprightness, fair-mindedness and integrity. The current situation is raising doubts in the minds of many Nigerians who had believed in you. Mr. President, your compatriots are looking up to you to act fast to redress the situation.
I thank you most sincerely for your kind attention. Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

SAMUEL ORTOM
Governor

We are being kidnapped and killed and the media says it is banditry

Governor Nasir el Rufai

In the Kaduna State axis, reported security breaches in January alone total up to 17 persons kidnapped, millions of Naira paid in ransom and three persons killed. These exclude mass highway abductions of commuters in the area. In the latest incident, the terrorists descended again on the peaceful Adara Village of Kujeni in Kajuru LGA on Saturday 6/2/2021, burnt down all houses and killed five persons in a senseless orgy of unprovoked violence. Consequently, the above settlements have joined the infamous long list of displaced and or occupied villages. The modes of operations of the invaders are becoming more open, undisguised and more confident because it is clear even to government that the killers are on top of their game. In all these incidences and many others, surviving victims affirm that the perpetrators are Fulani. And at last, Governor El-rufai and others are have belatedly owned up to this wornout truth. Therefore, the pertinent questions are no longer who or how but why?

We shall therefore boldly say it for the umpteenth time that these preventable security challenges are deliberate efforts to inflict terror; deprivation; impoverishment; social, religious and economic destabilization and displacement of indigenous populations to bring about demographic restructuring. These are to ultimately pave the way for full Fulani elite imperialist hegemony being surreptitiously orchestrated by government. We are just waiting for the inevitable implosion that is being triggered by numerous government acts of commission and omission intended to culminate in the suspected climax. That is why weeks, months, and years are painfully but sluggishly passing by without any genuine and decisive action by our Local, State and Federal governments to end this lawlessness and chaos. All we see and hear are occasional and puerile ritual statements that follow some of the dastardly terrorist acts. Meanwhile, government security agents take pleasure in shows of strength on peaceful, helpless, traumatized and panicking citizens. The sight of lawless gun trotting Fulani teenagers has now become the new normal in Kaduna and other states. Peasant farmers can only till their farms or harvest their crops at the pleasure of Fulani occupiers.

We sadly wish to note another weird peculiarity of, most especially the Kaduna State Government. The February 3rd statement by Governor El-rufai is a classic example. He is now wailing loudly for the alleged wrongs supposedly being suffered in southern Nigeria by Fulani. According to the governor, the alleged wrongs include attacks, massacres, destruction of properties, violent eviction or displacement of law-abiding citizens, denial of their rights to life, liberty, peace, livelihoods wherever they choose to reside and peaceful resolution of issues. But this is the height of dishonesty, hypocrisy and double standards because Fulani terrorists have been wreaking much more havoc on other ethnicities under his watch. In all this time, the standard response of “His Excellency” has always been to sermonize, berate and even threaten the non-Fulani victims to live in peace with their tormentors. Therefore, why did Mr. Governor suddenly discover persuasive statesmanship and sensitivity to the very atrocities that have become the hallmark of his administration? It is simply because in this case, his chosen people are not in a position of strength. His claim that his government has resisted the attempt to tag all members of any ethnicity is untrue. The entire Adara community in particular and Southern Kaduna in general are practical examples of communities that have been earmarked for humiliation and dispossession. Governor El-rufai’s statement gives the impression that the primary mandate of his government is to canvass for supposedly ‘victim’ Fulani herdsmen interests, rights and privileges nationwide. By continuing to do so overzealously, exclusively and at the expense of justice, equity and fairness, he has created the dreaded El-rufai nightmare, the worst in the history of Kaduna State.

In conclusion, any honest observer will agree with me that the Governor has been consistently inconsistent in his policies, attitudes, actions, inactions and pronouncements in relation to preferred and less preferred citizens in our state and Nigeria at large. Therefore, the Governor must remedy this mortal flaw by practically showing that “What is good for the goose is also good for the gander” Failing to do so, the commendation due to him for any good works done will be certainly denied him for dubiously turning governance into a “zero sum” game in which the negative completely cancels out the positive.

▪︎ Maisamari is the President, Adara Development Association, and this was sent via WhatsApp

With one trillion Naira, Nigeria kicks off Infraco for infrastructure development

Buhari and Osinbajo at the official meeting

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the establishment of a Public Private Partnership styled Infrastructure company (Infra-Co) with an initial seed capital of N1 Trillion.
 
It is envisaged that, over time, the entity will grow to N15 Trillion in assets and capital, a statement from the Presidency announced.
 
Infra-Co will be one of the premier infrastructure finance entities in Africa and will be wholly dedicated to Nigeria’s infrastructure development. The entity has been developed with concept designs from the National Economic Council (NEC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
 
The President had asked Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, to chair a Steering Committee tasked with setting up the company.
 
The initial seed capital for the entity will come from the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, NSIA, and the Africa Finance Corporation. (Everyday)

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