April 2012 Blog Posts (36)

By Adisa Adeleye

I Have heard it many times and I have read in many papers that Nigeria might break up in the year 2015.  Though I could not confirm the actual source to this terrible prediction, but many people have pointed to the credible American source.

I was a bit disturbed recently when the former Military Head of State and the last Presidential candidate of the CPC, General Mohammadu Buhari (rtd) said that the ruling party PDP might be consumed in political revolution by…

Former Delta State Governor, Chief James Ibori| credits: File copy

After running rings around the Nigerian judicial system for a number of years as well as sticking up two fingers to his detractors at home, James Ononefe Ibori, a former governor and strongman of Delta State, finally got his comeuppance in a British court on Tuesday, April 17. In a first of such trials, he was given a ‘lenient’ sentence of 13 years, mainly as a result of…

On April 17, the United States embassy in Abuja issued a warning to US citizens to be security conscious in their movements in and around Abuja. Published on its website, the emergency information warned: “The US Embassy has received information that Boko Haram may be planning attacks in Abuja, Nigeria, including against hotels frequently visited by westerners. The U.S. government has no additional information regarding the timing of these possible attacks. The Nigerian government is aware…

By Chuks N. Nwagbara Friday April 27, 2012

Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

The announcement of Jim Yong Kim of the US as the new President of the World Bank by the executive board on April 16, 2012 brought the keen contest of who heads the Bank as its 12th President to an end. Barring any unforeseen turn of events the Korean-American appointee, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, will lead the Bank from July 2012 – June 2017.

The chances of the…

BY SAMUEL E. ONWU Friday April 27, 2012

Her Excellency Dame (Dr) Patience Ebele Jonathan has influenced Nigerians, especially, Nigerian women, giving them the opportunity to become mothers through her empowerment programmes, nationally and internationally. For her charitable gestures, she has won several accolades, one being the 2008 Beyond Tears International Humanitarian Award in New York for her role in the fight against HIV/AIDS. She has also won the African Goodwill…

LAGOS, Nigeria – April, 2012:  MasterCard continues to demonstrate its support of the Cashless Nigeria initiative by incentivising its cardholders to go cashless.  The most recent project launched to promote cashless payments is in celebration of MasterCard’s continued sponsorship of the UEFA Champions…

MasterCard Worldwide  in association with Singapore Committee for UN Women and the academic partner INSEAD, are calling for youth change makers worldwide to submit their pitch ideas for…

Lagos, 18 April 2012 – MasterCard Worldwide and Starwood Hotels & Resorts are rewarding Nigerian MasterCard travelers with a breakfast buffet for two people, each time guests book and pay for their accommodation…

“NUJ Set New Standard for Nigeria Electoral System” – Princewill

By Nwaorgu Faustinus

A chieftain of the PDP in Rivers State, Prince Tonye Princewill has charged journalists in Nigeria through their enterprise to set the pace for the evolution of an electoral system in the country where the votes of the electorates  counts.

Princewill gave the charge at the concluded 5^th Triennial Delegates conference of…

FEDERAL MINISTRY OF FINANCE News release. April 19, 2012 SUBSIDY PAYMENTS: FINANCE MINISTRY TERMINATES SERVICES OF ACCOUNTANTS AND AUDITORS

Concerned about the management of the subsidy regime, the Federal Ministry of Finance has for the last two months been reviewing aspects of the implementation of the subsidy regime related to its functions. The review has produced a lot of useful details on what was wrong with the system and what needs to be done to ensure improvement…

Written by Emmanuel Uffot   Thursday, 19 April 2012

As the April 26, deadline given by Nigeria to British airlines to end discriminatory ticket fares draws closer, there is general anxiety that Nigeria and Britain are spoiling for a major face-off

The Nigerian Government and its British counterpart are heading for a major face-off that could harm their age-long colonial relationship if by April 26, British Airways, BA and Virgin Atlantic Airways, VAA, fail to end the…

Written by Anthony Akaeze Thursday, 19 April 2012

Okada riders in the Ikeja area of Lagos State are losing money due to their restriction to fewer routes and also to the police who are taking advantage of the restriction to harass them

These are not the best of times for commercial motorcycle operators, popularly called Okada, in the Ikeja axis of Lagos. Since March 13, many Okada riders have had a raw deal in the hands of security officials who are out to implement a Lagos…

Written by Chimezie Enyiocha Thursday, 19 April 2012

Survivors of the Easter Day bomb blast in Kaduna, last week, and their relations relive their agony in the hospitals where the victims were taken to for treatment

When Augustine Vincent and Aaron Idiawaje left their house in Kaduna, early morning Sunday, April 8, for Easter service at Christ Embassy Church on Kachia Road, they had no premonition that Boko Haram, the Islamic fundamentalist sect, would mar the day’s celebration…

Written by Victor Ugborgu Thursday, 19 April 2012

Jude Agbaso, deputy governor of Imo State, in an interview with Victor Ugborgu, senior staff writer, speaks on the challenge of kidnapping and the spate of development projects in the state. Excerpts:

Newswatch:Sometime ago, there was an upsurge in kidnapping activities in the state. Many prominent citizens have lost their lives to kidnappers. What is the situation now?

Agbaso: We believe that Imo State is in the hands of…

Written by Tobs Agbaegbu & Sule Elaigwu Thursday, 19 April 2012

Muktar Balewa, national co-ordinator, National Agency for Poverty Alleviation, NAPEP, speaks to Tobs Agbaegbu, senior associate editor, and Elaigwu Sule, reporter-researcher, on the level of poverty in the country and how to fight it. Excerpts:

Newswatch: How do you find your office, and what progress have you made so far in the battle against poverty in the country since you assumed duty as the co-ordinator of…

In August 2004, I penned a little noticeable essay entitled, “The Nigerian presidency and the Igbo nation,” for an online medium. The question I attempted to answer was this: “How did a people this intelligent, this savvy, and this contributive and participatory got shut out of the presidency?” In other words, why have we not had a Nigerian president of Igbo ancestry?

The Igbo of my growing up years (in Nigeria), had “attributes most other Nigerian ethnic groups could only…

Perhaps, more than any other phenomenon known to humankind, the Pleistocene epoch, sometimes referred to as the Ice Age, has been responsible for shaping and reshaping the construction of the earth. Scientists believed that this era lasted from 2,000,000-800B.C.E. And then there was another age: The Oil Age. This age, it is believed, started in the United States of America some 153 years ago, when scientific endeavours led to the discovery of what was then called the Black Liquid Gold. If…

Written by Anayo Ezugwu Friday, 06 April 2012

Michael Onoja, an educationist, leads the crusade against the falling standards in education by establishing an education summit which rewards hard working teachers and students

Like many of his colleagues, Michael Onoja, an educationist, is angry with the dismal performance of students in knowledge seeking. But rather than remain an armchair critic of the system, Onoja has chosen to be a part of the solution. Recently, he organised…

Written by Dike Onwuamaeze Friday, 06 April 2012

Although Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala Nigeria’s finance minister and co-ordinating minister for the economy, is eminently qualified for the Word Bank presidency, there is the fear that politics rather than merit will be a deciding factor in the selection process

When President Goodluck Jonathan appointed Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala minister of finance in 2011, the reaction of many Nigerians was that she would not serve for four years without…

Written by Annette Oghenerhaboke Friday, 06 April 2012

The organised labour holds a rally in Benin to garner support for Adams Oshiomhole’s second-term bid despite a court injunction against the event and protest by opposition parties in the state

It is not often that one gets to see members of the organised labour stage a political rally. They occasionally take to the streets in protest for their rights and privileges and that is the image many have of them. But it was a…