Federal Republic of Nigeria Minister of Information Dora Akunyili has forcefully expressed the government's displeasure with the targeting of this oil-rich West African state as a "country of interest" related to "terrorism."
Originally uploaded by Pan-African News Wire File Photos
Tells President To Hand Over To Jonathan
By Ikechukwu Amaechi, Editor, Nigerian Daily Independent
INFORMATION and Communications Minister, Dora Akunyili, on Wednesday took a rare step by a Minister by breaking ranks with her colleagues to demand that President Umaru Yar’Adua hands over to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan.
Tempers boiled over at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja as the united front which the cabinet hitherto presented on the non-compliance with Section 145 of the Constitution by Yar’Adua splintered.
A source said Akunyili has not resigned, but is thoroughly fed up with “the charade” and is “prepared for the worst.”
She has “cleared her conscience,” whatever happens, recounted the source, an aide who did not want to be named.
On January 27, the federal Attorney General and Justice Minister, Michael Aondoakaa, told Nigerians after a FEC meeting that the cabinet unanimously agreed that Yar’Adua is fit to continue in office, even with his poor health.
But Akunyili disagreed on Wednesday, to the chagrin of most other FEC members. She bared her mind in a memo which was neither accepted nor debated, but which, nevertheless, caused much uproar in the cabinet chambers.
Another source at the meeting said Akunyili – in the memo which was later withdrawn – asked her fellow Ministers to listen to Nigerians and respect the Constitution.
“We were all surprised at the memo. We did not anticipate it. But it was very frank,” the source narrated.
Akunyili was said to have pledged her loyalty to Yar’Adua and his government, but insisted that it is morally wrong for him to refuse handing over power to Jonathan 72 days after he took ill and was hospitalised in Saudi Arabia.
She reportedly thanked Yar’Adua for giving her and her colleagues the opportunity to serve the country, stressing that “Yar’Adua is very dear to me and indeed to all of us.”
She noted, however, the debate that has trailed his inability to comply with Section 145 of the Constitution and the sharp division of opinion nationwide.
While acknowledging the argument of those who insist that Jonathan does not need to be sworn in to act as President, Akunyili, nevertheless, noted that the country is in great danger.
The source recounted: “She pointed out that several Permanent Secretaries, including that of her ministry, are yet to be sworn in due to (Yar’Adua’s) absence, thereby creating a dangerous vacuum.
“She noted that (Jonathan) cannot take any document to the Senate, and the fact that the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has resumed hostilities because they have been kept in limbo due to (Yar’Adua’s) absence.
“Akunyili also noted the unprecedented swearing in of the new Chief Justice, Aloysius Katsina-Alu, by his predecessor, Idris Kutigi, and noted that the power vacuum created in the judiciary has compounded Nigeria’s image problem.
“She observed the uncomplimentary remarks by the United States, the United Kingdom, and other European nations recently on Nigeria, insisting that all these threaten the country’s economy.”
In the memo, Akunyili noted that there is unanimity of opinion – as exemplified in the position of civil society groups, the Senate and the Eminent Persons Group (EPG) led by former Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, and former President Shehu Shagari – that Yar’Adua should comply with Section 145 by transmitting a letter to the National Assembly (NASS) so that Jonathan can act as President.
“We love our President but he is not infallible,” Akunyili stated, faulting the argument that he may not be in a position to write the letter.
“If (he) signed the 2009 supplementary budget into law from his hospital bed in Saudi Arabia, how come he could not write the letter? Before he left Nigeria, he had the moral obligation to write that letter.”
Akunyili argued that even if the mistake has been made, it behoves him to right the wrong.
She warned of a looming crisis if the impasse is allowed to persist, and advised her colleagues to do the right thing.
“The polity is overheated and posterity will judge us harshly if we fail to hearken to the voice of reason by obeying the Constitution. I wish to advise that we retrace our step because our stand on the matter is very embarrassing.”
Akunyili reminded the cabinet that it is in the interest of Yar’Adua, his family, and the country for him to hand over to Jonathan, because even if he returns today, he cannot assume office immediately since he would need time to recuperate.
“If we fail to act now, history will not forgive us.”
Daily Independent reliably gathered that all hell was let loose in the Council chambers, as “most of the Ministers went wild, accusing her of treachery. They insisted that the memo should not be discussed and should be withdrawn. They threatened her with sack.”
After the meeting, however, about 10 Ministers went up to thank her for speaking their minds, it was leant.
Attempts to contact Akunyili were not successful, but a source said she came to her office, picked most of her personal belongings, and left.
Asked if she has resigned from the cabinet, the aide who pleaded anonymity, said no.
“But she is so disgusted with the whole charade and is prepared for the worst. She is not afraid of anything. She will go to Anambra today (Wednesday) for the election and await the next move.
“She is happy she has cleared her conscience,” the aide added.
Dora Akunyili drops a bomb
By Elizabeth Archibong and Gowon Emakpe
Nigeria Next
February 4, 2010 09:35AM
The cabinet must stop lying to Nigerians about President Yar'Adua's illness and face up to the reality that he is no longer able to perform his duties; information minister Dora Akunyili bluntly admonished fellow ministers yesterday.
At the regular weekly meeting of the Executive Council of the Federation, Mrs Akunyili stunned her colleagues by presenting a memo in which she challenged them to tell Nigerians the truth about the president's health and stop deceiving the people.
The Council had, at its meeting last week, reiterated its position that Mr. Yar'Adua, who has been away in Saudi Arabia for medical treatment in the last 73 days, was still capable of leading the country. The ministers also said the president did not have to write a letter to the National Assembly empowering his deputy, Vice President Goodluck Jonathan to act on his behalf.
Mrs. Akunyili, however, ensured that yesterday's meeting did not follow the usual bland form when she submitted a memo to the council asking members to face up to the incapacitation of the ailing president and seek the right means to transfer power to Mr. Jonathan in the interest of the nation.
The memo said the Council should support the decision of the Senate and several other Nigerian leaders who have asked Mr. Yar'Adua to transmit a letter to the National Assembly to intimate it of his ill health and the need to stay away from office until he is well enough to return.
Hostile response
According to our sources, Mrs Akunyili had wanted to submit the memo through the cabinet office but was worried that the office might sit on the memo so she took it to the Council meeting to distribute.
NEXT however learnt that as soon as she began to do that, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation stood up to challenge her. He said what she was doing was irregular and she should have passed it through the cabinet office. Both the Minister of Water Resources, Ruma Sayyadi and his colleague in charge of transportation Diezani Allison-Madueke also supported Mr. Aondoakaa that she should follow procedures.
At this point, a perplexed Akunyili looked up to the Vice President for support but Mr. Jonathan told her to withdraw the memo and pass it through the requisite channels. With no support from her colleagues, Mrs Akunyili left the meeting and Mr. Yayale went around collecting all copies of the memo. Inevitably, the meeting which ended in less than two hours, discussed only one memo before it dispersed, without considering even the customary approval of contracts.
In a surprising twist, many of the ministers went to meet her and praised her candour after the meeting.
Mrs Akunyili told NEXT yesterday that she was not willing to speak on the event. "I do not want to discuss it," she said.
It was noticed that some of the ministers left immediately after the meeting and the rest went for a close door meeting with Mr. Jonathan.
Wednesday's disagreement was the first sign of a break in the membership of the Council, most of whom owe their positions to Mr. Yar'Adua and are therefore loath to be seen as being disloyal to their benefactor. The council, made up of ministers, the Vice President and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, is the only authority empowered by the constitution to decide on the capability or otherwise of the president to continue in office.
One of the lawyers who have taken the Council to court, Bamidele Aturu, said yesterday that the action of Mrs. Akunyili is a sign that the ministers have finally realised that the game is up. "Unfortunatey for them, I think it is too late for them to extricate themselves from the mess," he said. "Mrs Akunyili has been part of the game for the past 70 days. She could resign from the Council. I think the order we got from the court is helping us to see through the council and they are now under a lot of pressure."
Mr. Aturu said Mrs. Akunyili was beginning to labour under the weight of her conscience and Nigerians should expect some ministers to come clean and let Nigerians know where they stand.
"That may help mitigate the opprobrium with which Nigerian will hold them. The resolution they passed was odious. We need to know whether the FEC resolution on Yar'Adua was actually passed. I wrote the AG to ask for the resolution on behalf of my client. I have not received any feedback."
Back to court
Two weeks ago, a federal high court in Abuja ordered the Council to determine, within 14 days, the health status of Mr. Yar'Adua. But the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Michael Aondoakaa, said shortly after last week's meeting that the president was fit enough to continue in office.
Following the resolution by the Executive Council of the Federation that Mr. Yar'Adua is capable of discharging the functions of his office, Messrs Farouk Adamu Aliyu and Sani Hussaini Garun Gabbas, plaintiffs in the suit which made the High Court to direct that Mr Yar'Adua hand over to Mr. Jonathan, yesterday went back to the court, seeking for an order declaring the resolution of Executive Council of the Federation illegal and unconstitutional.
In a motion ex-parte yet to be argued, they are seeking for an order quashing the resolution of the Executive Council of the Federation passed on the 27th of January, 2010 declaring Mr. Yar'Adua capable of performing the functions of his office.
The plaintiffs, through their counsel, Mr. Aturu, are asking the court to declare that the resolution purportedly passed by FEC on the 27th of January, 2010 declaring Yar'Adua capable of performing the functions of his office was unreasonable, irrational, unconstitutional and unlawful.
Specifically, they are seeking the court to issue an order of mandamus directing Executive Council to, within seven days, consider, pass and publicise the resolution envisaged under section 144 of the 1999 Constitution.
Dora stands up
NEXT
February 4, 2010 08:54AM
It was bound to happen. Our president has vanished from public view, terminally ill, for the past 73 days. An increasingly perplexed country has been kept in the dark as to his dire condition, which we have reported categorically in this newspaper as including brain damage.
Our cowardly political class initially watched in silence. But gradually, as the days stretched into weeks and the weeks into months, many have found their voices. Prodded by elements of civil society and the press, including, proudly, this newspaper, our political leaders slowly rose to the occasion. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo delivered one of the loudest messages, calling on President Umaru Yar’Adua to follow the path of honour and resign on account of ill-health. Former heads of state and gray eminences, including the normally taciturn Shehu Shagari, also called on the vegetating Yar’Adua to resign. Even the Senate joined the action, as did the traditionalist northern council of elders, the Arewa Consultative Council.
But the most recalcitrant has been Yar’Adua’s cabinet, which is charged with the constitutional duty of triggering the process of replacing an incapacitated president. The cabinet, which has among its members at least a handful of supposedly reputable people, including petroleum minister Odein Ajumogobia, and the finance minister, Mansur Muhtar, utterly failed to do its duty to the country.
Instead, ministers buried their heads in the proverbial sand, discussing the award of contracts week after week even as state institutions crumbled and government effectively ceased to function. The cabinet, under pressure, even went so far as to issue a faceless statement claiming that the president was able to fulfil the functions of his office.
By last week, our cabinet ministers stood alone as believers in the physical and mental capacities of the president to lead our country. But yesterday, the shame proved too much for Dora Akunyili, the information minister, who proclaimed in the cabinet that the lying must stop.
While the bitter-enders sought to shout her down, according to reports, others began to find their long repressed voices. There’s hope for our country after all.
Mrs. Akunyili was hardly the most likely minister to demonstrate the spine to stand up when her colleagues were overwhelmingly prostrate. As information minister, an oxymoronic job if ever there was one, she is obliged daily to dissemble and parse and obfuscate. Her job is essentially impossible, its main requirement being to put lipstick on our national pig.
But she is a woman whose reputation previously was pristine, on account of her heroism in cleaning up the poisonous pharmaceutical industry once dominated by fake products that killed children. She was courageous in the face of assassination attempts and determined and well-funded foes. She was rightly celebrated the world over as an example of what Nigeria could achieve.
Yesterday Dora Akunyili confronted her supine colleagues and demanded that the obvious truth be finally acknowledged. She was man enough to do so where so many are such cowards.
Thursday, February 04, 2010
Reps in rowdy session over Yar'Adua, Senate acts today
From Alifa Daniel) and John-Abba Ogbodo, (Abuja)
Nigerian Guardian
TENSION, verbal abuse and near-degeneration into fisticuffs marked a debate by the House of Representatives on the absence and health status of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua yesterday.
But unlike the Senate, the House of Representatives, for the second time in two weeks, failed to demand a letter of vacation from Yar'Adua. The Nigerian leader is spending the third month in a hospital in Saudi Arabia.
With a few voices of dissent, which were not even heard by the House leadership, the members through a voice vote stopped a motion seeking to compel Yar'Adua to, within two weeks, transmit a letter to the National Assembly on his absence.
But the Senate appears relentless in its efforts to resolve the riddle over Yar'Adua's continued absence from office for three months.
Today, the Upper House will attempt to find out whether Yar'Adua actually transmitted a letter on his vacation to the Legislature that was allegedly not delivered by a presidential aide.
Also yesterday, Senate President David Mark on the floor of the Upper House announced a meeting of all Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators to address Yar'Adua's dilemma.
At the Lower House, the first sign that all was not well came even before the plenary session began. Two members from the South-South zone, Igo Aguma and Henry Dickson, exchanged hot words as they entered the chamber for the session. It got to a stage where Aguma passed through Dickson's raining insults on him and other colleagues.
Shortly after that, the Speaker's procession entered the chamber and when he (Dimeji Bankole) called for the chamber's prayers, the echoes of members confirmed that the House was in for a rowdy session.
When the session started, Sani Abdul from Bauchi State raised a point of order on matters of privilege. He said that as a Nigerian, the tension in the country over the leadership vacuum had affected him and his constituents. He submitted that the situation was a breach of his privileges and those of his constituents. Sani said the House set up a team that was supposed to visit Yar'Adua in Saudi and report back but that had not been done.
Bankole asked the leader of that delegation and Deputy Majority Leader of the House, Alhaji Baba Shehu Agaie, to brief the House and he said they had procured visas and would leave for Saudi yesterday.
Other lawmakers, including Henry Dickson, cited Order 5 of the standing rules of the House and argued that their privileges had been breached because the leadership of the House failed to make available copies of the letters presented by various groups to the House on the issue of the health of the President.
Bankole directed that copies of the letters and all the court judgments on the matter be made available to members without delay.
Then Sani Abdul raised a constitutional order but Bankole asked him to raise a motion using the right channel. Emmanuel Jimeh from Benue State also raised Order 9 (1) 6, saying that the matter had been ruled upon by the Speaker and should not be revisited until the delegation to Saudi returns.
Abdul Ningi pleaded with the House to allow Sani to raise his motion. The speaker obliged him.
Aminu Tambuwal said Sani had raised the issue and should be allowed to move the motion and let the matter be put to rest. But Ike Chinwo said since a delegation had been mandated and the committee had expressed its readiness to travel to Saudi Arabia, the matter should not be debated until the team returns.
Finally, Sani moved the motion and asked Yar'Adua to comply with section 145 by transmitting a letter to the National Assembly. He added that the President's absence had generated tension in the country. "The President should comply with the constitution within two weeks."
It was seconded by Anas Adamu. Bankole asked Sani to continue and there was a wild reaction from the members. Some protested that the matter be rested.
Some lawmakers observed that those thinking that by transmitting the letter to the National Assembly Yar'Adua would be transferring powers to the Vice President were wrong.
Speaking against the motion, Ningi said Nigeria as a nation is at the crossroads and should be guided by the constitution and the rules of the House. He appealed to members to realise the role of the parliament. The lawmaker advised that the matter be referred to the Executive arm of government based on the principle of separation of powers. He said section 145 deals with transmission of a letter by the Executive to the National Assembly. He consequently advised that it is not the duty of the parliament to tell the Executive to transmit the letter.
Femi Gbajabiamila said: "It is a fact that the President has been away for three months just as it is a fact that the Vice President, Senate President and the Speaker have not seen him. The motion is not asking us to compel the President to transmit the letter."
Bankole drew his attention to the prayers of the motion, which sought to give the President two weeks to transmit the letter, which amounted to compelling him.
Mohammed Ali Ndume, who also spoke against the motion, urged members to respect the constitution. He added that the Executive Council presided over by the Vice President came up with a resolution that the President is still fit to perform his duties.
The Speaker put the question and member overwhelmingly voted against the motion through a voice vote.
A drama took place as a member from Imo State, Independence Ogunlewe, who struggled to speak against the motion but was not recognised by the Speaker before the voice vote, was sighted chasing a member from Kano State, Ado Dogo. Ogunlewe towards the end of the debate stood up even when not recognised and was making an attempt to speak.
After the voice vote, Dogo was said to have jokingly told Ogunlewe that if he did not take time, the chamber would still suspend him. This, according to members close to them, made Ogunlewe who was suspended for one month last year, to attempt to fight his colleague.
Expected to meet the Senate on the letter purportedly written by Yar'Adua on his ill-health to the lawmakers is the Presidential Adviser on National Assembly Matters, Senator Mohammed Abba Aji. He is to appear before the Senate today to explain his role on the non-transmission of the said letter, which was based on Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution.
The 91 senators were billed to meet last night in the official residence of the Senate President David Mark for what sources described as part of efforts to reduce the onslaught on the party's controlled presidency in the Upper House.
Most of the lawmakers pushing for the President to transmit a letter to the Assembly are on the platform of the PDP.
Mark had announced the meeting on the floor of the Senate yesterday just as he said that Aji would meet with the lawmakers at noon today.
A national newspaper (not The Guardian) had reported early December that Aji had got a letter from the President but turned back on his way to the President on reading the content. He was said to have discouraged Yar'Adua from sending the letter.
Aji has however denied the story but the heat was turned on him when a top government official told senators that the letter was indeed written but could not explain why it was not delivered.
The Guardian had however learnt that some close personal aides were the ones whose bidding Aji carried out in failing to submit the letter.
Reps reject motion on Yar’adua’s handover
Written by Nasidi A. Yahaya
Thursday, 04 February 2010 01:03
The House of Representatives yesterday threw out a motion seeking to ask President Umaru Musa Yar’adua to send a vacation letter to the National Assembly to enable Vice President Good luck Jonathan act as president.
The House rejected the motion which aims at putting pressure on the president to comply with Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution.
Rep Muhammad Sani Abdu (ANPP, Bauchi State) had prayed that the House urge the President to transmit the letter to the national Assembly within two weeks, saying his absence has negatively affected running the affairs of the country.
But speaking against the motion, Rep Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi State) said the House must be guided by the constitution which prescribes the powers of all arms of governments, saying the House lacks power to urge the president to transmit his vacation letter to the National Assembly in order for the Vice President to be the acting President.
Rep Mohammed Ali Ndume (ANPP, Borno State) said there is no need for the president to transmit the letter to the National Assembly, pointing out that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) which the VP presides over said the President is capable to rule the country.
Rep Aminu Waziri Tambuwal (PDP, Sokoto State) opined that since the Vice president is exercising all presidential powers, there is no need in asking him to transmit the letter to the National Assembly.
But Reps Femi Gbajabiamila (AC, Lagos State), James Idachaba (PDP, Kogi State) and Henry Dickson (PDP,Bayelsa State) who spoke in favour of the motion, saying there is the need for the President to transmit the letter to the National Assembly.
However, when the vote was put by the Speaker Dimeji Bankole on whether the House should compel President Yar’adua to transmit the vacation letter to the national Assembly within two weeks, majority of the MPs voted against it.
Airport screening: US may delist Nigeria
Written by Abdulmutallib A. Abubakar with Agency reports
Thursday, 04 February 2010 01:15
The United States will soon review the list of countries whose air travellers are subject to tighter screening and could remove nations such as Nigeria if they are no longer deemed to be security threats, United States Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson said in Accra, Ghana yesterday.
He said, “There is going to be a review soon and if it turns out that the warning is no longer applicable to Nigeria, it would be removed. The United States has nothing against the people and the government of Nigeria and we still maintain good relationship with that country.” He said the measure was designed to “create awareness” about possible threats.
Passengers travelling from or through the 14 countries to the United States are subject to special pre-flight screening under the measure, including body pat-downs and carry-on luggage searches.
The 14 countries on Washington’s list are Cuba, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Afghanistan, Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Yemen.
Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Algeria in particular voiced their displeasure at being included in the 14-country list, which the US Government unveiled last month after a botched Christmas Day attempt to blow up a U.S. airliner by the Nigerian student Faruk Umar Abdulmutallab.
The Assistant Secretary is expected to arrive in Nigeria shortly in continuation of his African tour.
Another military coup d’etat?
By Sabella Ogbobode
Nigerian Daily Triumph
THERE are times when the prospect of a coup can be predicted with a high degree of certainty. At other times, such predictions or expectations come to nil. Generally, coups happen because of converging factors within and outside of the political arena. Single-factor coups are rare. When they happen, however, they happen because of a gaping hole in the political landscape. That is to say, they happen because of a lingering or dangerous vacuum in leadership. And power vacuum is what we have in today’s Nigeria.
Unlike in previous years, staging a coup in Nigeria is easier said than done. Not unattainable, though. And even if it were possible, one is not sure that the military and the security wing, along with their civilian posse, have the stomach for the global outcry and condemnation that is likely to follow. What’s more, there are domestic non-state actors that are likely to challenge the coupists. How to handle such groups may be tough: curfews may be violated, borders may be abridges; and the telecommunications network may be hard to switch off.
The military and her agents may also find that the days of Nigerians -- everyday Nigerians -- laying low and or celebrating their adventures and misadventures are over. 2010 is vastly different from the 1960s or the 1970s and the 1980s. Times have changed. In an age where people are soulfully clamoring for good governance, accountability and constitutionalism, military coup d’etat may not be the solution to the countless ills that have become institutionalized in the Nigerian vein and marrow.
That Nigeriais a mess is beyond dispute. That the vast majority of the men and women in power, or within the corridors of power, are mentally challenged is beyond question.
Frankly, the apple is not just sour; it is rotten. The fish is not just emitting foul odor from its head; no, the entire fish is decaying. Reasonable people who were in doubt of the fetidity that is Nigerian-leadership have had their doubts cast aside (as a result of the events of the last 60 or so days). Nigeria is a mess, a bloody mess. But a coup?
A coup? Of course! It is why Nigeria is Nigeria and Nigeria is where anything is possible. Things that are impossible in most societies are possible in Nigeria; while things that are possible in most other societies are impossible to accomplish in Nigeria. It is precisely because of these anomalies that it would be unwise to discount coups in present day Nigeria. One only needs to listen to chatters to know that this government may be sacked within the next 120 days. It may be sacked unless the right things are done. The irony is that the right things are not difficult to do. Unbridled personal ambition has blinded most: self before country; personal aggrandizement before national security.
If a coup does happen, it may be bloody. Bloody in the sense that a lot of lives will be lost; and government buildings and installations bombed. There may be several trips to the executioner’s den. And in fact those who have been calling for Rawlings-style operation would be shocked. Regional and international outcries and condemnations may not matter. The world would understand. It may be better to clean house now, rather than wait for it to crumble. Nigeria is at once decaying and crumbling.
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