US No Longer Hiding Place For Corrupt
Nigerians – Envoy 

Nigeria says it is willing to fully cooperate with the United States to ensure that government officials who steal public funds do not find a safe harbour in the the country.

Prof. Adebowale Adefuye, Nigeria's Ambassador to the U.S., told reporters in Washington D.C yesterday,  that a zero-tolerance to corruption remained a key feature of President Goodluck Jonathan's administration.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that senior U.S. Government officials had confirmed the revocation of visas granted to some former government officials linked to corrupt practices.

U.S Government officials said the restrictions would be extended to families and cronies of such government officials.

Adefuye described the development as most ``welcome'', citing the present administration's determined efforts to curtail tendencies that give the country a bad name in the international community.

``I have not been officially informed (of the revocations) but if my opinion is sought, I will support any move to discourage corruption.

``They should not revoke only their visas but also those of their children and families not only in Nigeria, but also in Africa,'' he said.

The Nigerian envoy urged western countries to repatriate stolen funds to Africa, adding that a lack of political will and legal technicalities had made it impossible for such loot to return to national confers.

``During my days in the Commonwealth Secretariat in London (as special adviser and head of Africa section) I used to tell the British, American and the French that one way you can help us is to make sure that those who steal our money do not use technical legalities to escape.

``They must find a way of revoking their visas because when they steal that money, they take it to overseas countries to deposit in Swiss banks and the rest of them,'' he said.

He recalled that at the level of Commonwealth nations, a scheme was launched to return stolen assets to Africa, but many states in the western hemisphere had not fully cooperated with that initiative.

On the political situation in the country, Adefuye argued that there was stability, highlighting several government's efforts to diversify the nation's economy and boost its prosperity.

He said Nigeria would not allow the negative activities of a few to rub off its determination to improve relations with the international community.

Ahead of the 2011 polls, the ambassador said the current president had not made up his mind whether to contest or not. ``President Goodluck Jonathan has every right to contest if he so desires," he noted.

He expressed confidence in the ability of the new helmsman at INEC to conduct credible elections next year.

``On the international scene we want to remain an active player. Nigeria has always played a leading role in Africa and we regard it as a mark of destiny,'' he said.

He outlined the four main objectives of the present administration as ensuring good governance and democracy, rule of law, diversification of the economy and strengthening the amnesty programme for Niger Delta militants.
Source: Leadership, 18^th July 2010.

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US Revokes Visas of Nigerian Officials
Reopens investigation of Halliburton Scam, Yar'Adua's Death

From Ike Nnamdi, The Sun Reporter, New York

President Barack  Obama has authorized the State Department to revoke the visas of more former  government officials and their close relatives over their role in the controversy that surrounded the  health of former President  Umaru Yar'Adua and the looting of the nation's treasury.

Washington had also beamed its searchlight on several top Nigerian officials who  were named in the Halliburton bribery scandal preparatory to bringing  charges. Already, the search had also been expanded to include some officials who served under former president Olusegun Obasanjo and those said to have benefited  from several deals within the past 20 years.

White House sources said those affected include close security aides to the late Nigerian leader, some serving governors and assistants "who  failed to fully brief relevant  authorised government officials and institutions about the health of the late president."

Also affected by the ban are former  and serving government and political party officials who had been tried and convicted of corruption or abuse of office. The White House said some Nigerian officials benefited financially from the ordeal of  President Yar'Adua and should be made to account for their roles in the controversy.

"We know Mr. Yar' Adua was not in a position to  discharge his duties while in hospital in Saudi Arabia, but certain  decisions and expenditures were made with his authority and  some officials should be held responsible," a senior administration spokesman stated.  

Mr. Obama said the new directive was in "pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 770 which authorized all America institutions to deny entry into the  United States, persons and their relations with links to corruption." Already, the administration last week revoked the visa of former Justice Minister, Michael Aondoakaa, over his role in the  power play during  Mr. Yar'Adua's  medical trip to Saudi Arabia.
Source: The Sun, 9^th July 2010.

Visa Ban - U.S. Compiles List of Corrupt Citizens

Chinedu Offor

Washington D.c — Dozens of senior Nigerian officials, former and current, are on the verge of losing their travel privileges to the United States, as Washington begins to withdraw their visas and ban them from entering the country on the strength of their loot, proven or alleged.

Quick on the list is former federal Attorney General and Justice Minister, Michael Aondoakaa, whose visa was revoked last week. Former Plateau State Governor, Joshua Dariye, and his family were banned from entering the U.S. four years ago.

Corrupt Nigerian officials are being punished for '"undermining the growth of democracy and acts designed to hinder the strengthening of democratic institutions in Nigeria," the State Department said.

The policy, Daily Independent gathered, is a fall out of the promise President Barack Obama made to President Goodluck Jonathan to assist Nigeria in the fight against corruption by targeting officials whose "acts have bothered on undermining the democratic process."

Sources said others awaiting the punitive measure include several senior assistants and security aides to the late President Umaru Yar'Adua, as well as Governors, Ministers, and heads of agencies.

"This action will also target those identified to have played a role in the controversy over the health of Yar'Adua" Washington officials added.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the action is in pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 7750, which provides authority to deny entry to the U.S. to persons with links to corruption.

Former President George W. Bush had on January 12, 2004 signed Proclamation 7750 to restrict foreign officials and their family members allegedly linked to corruption.

Obama renewed the policy after Jonathan made a case during his visit to Washington in April.

More names will be added on the list as Washington awaits the outcome of corruption cases against several Nigerian officials, the White House said.

Two prominent Nigerians themselves lamented in Lagos on Wednesday the pervasiveness of corruption in the country, as it has become a convenient national culture for those in the corridors of power, with those outside the loop also getting in on the act.

Theophilus Danjuma and Ben Nwabueze, both members of the Presidential Advisory Council (PAC), moaned about it, but disagreed on the way out of the political and economic morass.

Nwabueze, alarmed at the rate of corruption in the system, argued that only a bloody revolution can halt the decadence in governance.

He expressed shock at "the looting spree" in the National Assembly (NASS) "where lawmakers vote billions of Naira to themselves while those who voted them into the House live in abject poverty.

"People who were voted to serve the country go there to loot - you need to know what we (members of PAC) now know."

Nwabueze announced that the deterioration in the state of affairs is such that Nigeria has been listed among the 11 failed states in Africa and among the 17 in the world.

Arguing in favour of a violent revolution, he claimed that France is what it is today because of the success of the 1789 revolution in that country.

"I don't believe in small changes; we've had ad hoc arrangements; Nigeria needs a revolutionary change, and it has to be bloody. Those who survive it will pick up the pieces. I cannot see Nigeria survive any other way."

Nwabueze spoke at the launch of his book, Colonialism in Africa: Ancient and Modern, published in two volumes.

But Danjuma, who chaired the ceremony, said while he agrees with Nwabueze that Nigeria needs transformation, he disagrees with his approach, because a bloody revolution is not the best solution.

Bloody or violent revolutions, he noted, are dangerous since it would not spare anyone and becomes untamable once it takes off.

Danjuma, a retired General, warned: "Revolution devours its scions; it knows no friends or enemies; it is an exceedingly dangerous means of transformation.

"I am an optimist; I believe that one right man in position of authority can transform the entire country. We have not been lucky to have such a man, but we shall muddle through."
Source: Daily Independent, 8^th July 2010.

Sanders: 2011 is Transformative for Nigeria
•Govt free to pursue legal case in NLNG bribery scam

By Paul Ohia

United States ambassador to Nigeria Ms Robin RenPe Sanders has urged the Nigerian government and Nigerians to muster enough political will to make democracy work by ensuring free and fair elections next year.

She also said the Federal Government is free to initiate a legal case against companies such as Halliburton who have been heavily fined by the US for giving bribes to Nigerian public officials in order to secure contracts.

Sanders was responding to questions posed by THISDAY Editors when she visited the company. She was received at the Ikoyi residence of THISDAY Chairman Nduka Obaigbena.

According to the US ambassador, the voters and politicians in Nigeria should do the right thing by choosing their candidates  and show they are committed to democracy.

She sees her country's offer of technical assistance as no sufficient guarantee for free and fair elections, stressing the need for adequate political will from all participants in the process which "must have to be enforced by someone down the line."

"It is your election. It is your voice and your choice and all about voting for a change that would make Nigeria strong and vibrant.

"We provided technical assistance in 2007 and we're providing a lot of technical assistance now…2011 is a transformative time for Nigeria. You've got to have the political will to get to a point where a lot of things would happen in a sustainable manner."

She confirmed that the visa of the former Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Fede-ration Mr. Michael Aondoakaa was revoked but refused to go into details because of what she termed privacy reasons.

Her words: "Yes, we revoked the visa and that's how it was, the rest is a privacy issue. I won't go into the details of why there was a visa revocation."

On whether Nigeria should receive part of the $338 million fine which a US court ordered Technip to pay, in respect of the $180 million bribe allegedly paid to unnamed senior government officials by Halliburton, Sanders said she is not sure why it is a question.

"The department of justice has executed the case and they were fined after criminal charges…Nigeria's attorney-general is at liberty to pursue his own case against the companies," said Sanders.

Speaking on the blacklisting of Nigeria by the US after the attempted downing of a Detroit-bound Delta Airliner by Umaru Farouk Abdulmutallab last December, the ambassador said the issue has been resolved amicably noting that it was not a policy targeted at Nigeria.

"The type of policy we had that time was not a nationality designated one. I and my staff had to go through the same security check as well. It was not a nationality designation and unfortunately that is how it is viewed here. It is a worldwide policy and we had a number of meetings with Nigerian aviation authorities to enforce safety regulations." she explained.

On whether US President Barrack Obama has any plan to visit Nigeria in the near future, she explained that she does not have the president's future itinerary but recalled that Obama and President Goodluck Jonathan met in April and held fruitful discussions.

She recalled the speech of the US president where he stated the importance of Nigeria on the world scene including the leadership role the country has to play on the African continent.

"They talked about credible election, development and moving forward. We have respect for the leadership role of Nigeria on the continent and you're now a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. We want the best for Nigeria because you are one of our best friends," Sanders said.

On Nigeria's quest to become a permanent member of the UN, she said that the US currently supports article 23 of the world body which outlines the steps to becoming a permanent member.

The ambassador also spoke on the US/Nigeria Bi-National Commission, explaining that the working group on the Niger Delta would meet soon. On food security and agriculture, she stated that the "US is doing a lot towards food security and Nigeria is one of the recipients of the largest food security programmes that we have and this year, $25 million will be worked out as the year goes forward," she said.
Source: ThisDay, 9^th July 2010.

US Confirms Ban On Aondoakaa 

Written by Ahuraka Tusuf Isah, Abuja  

As exclusively reported by Leadership Weekend in its last week's edition, the United States of America Embassy in Nigeria yesterday confirmed that the former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Michael Kaase Aondoakaa (SAN), had been banned from entering the US. His visa had also been revoked.

According to the Public Affairs Office of the US Embassy, Aondoakaa's visa had been revoked pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 7759 and section 212 of the Immigration Act, which precludes authority to deny entry to USA to person for corruption.

When asked to tell the nature of corruption the former AGF was found liable for in their country, he simply said, "That's all the message handed over to them from their country."

While reacting to the development, the former minister of justice said that "at the time we all made an inquiry over the internet story, there was no such information at the US Embassy.

"If the event turns out that way, there is nothing I can do; that is one of the plight of holding public office, after all a whole Mandela was once banned from entering the US, it's no big deal at all."

He added, "Maybe some people are envious of my having a United Nations job after leaving office and want to scuttle it at all costs because I was in the public office for two and a half years.

"I am surprised how US Government that voted for me as a member of the governing board of the United Nations Institute for Unification of Private Laws in December 2009 could turn out last Wednesday to ban me from entering their country.

"Mind you, there are several Nigerians both high and low who are alleged to have committed one thing or the other. How come I am being singled out in the US?"

Aodoakaa said the matter will be normalised when the truth is made known to the US.

"Steps are being taken to resolve the issue," he said.

It would be recalled that the Leadership Weekend of June 26, 2010 carried the story that just weeks after a Federal High Court sitting in Calabar banned him from further holding public office in the country, Nigeria's former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Michael Kaase Aondoakaa, and some members of his immediate family were banned from entering the United States of America.

Corroborating that the order banning him was signed by the United States President, Barack Obama, the US Embassy, in a statement yesterday, said the revocation was predicated on the Presidential Proclamation 7759, an order duly signed by Obama himself.

However, the US Embassy could not confirm if the visa revocation  was also extended to other members of his immediate family.

It was also gathered that the United States government had decided never to welcome Nigeria's political functionaries who abused their offices or engaged in questionable or illegal conduct.

The United States government had deplored some of the activities that took place during Aondoakaa's tenure as justice minister.

Generally, the United States warned at the United Nations Headquarters in New York a fortnight ago that several corrupt officials in Africa would be made to face travel bans and visa revocation as a way of combating corruption.

It would be recalled that during the last days of the late President Yar'Adua's administration, several members of his kitchen cabinet were listed for visa ban by the United States government.

In an interview granted Leadership last weekend, Mr. Aondoakaa dismissed as false the story that he was banned by the US government.

He further said that the story was planted in the media outfits by those who perceived him as an enemy or threat, and that it was coming just after he openly threw his support behind those who said President Goodluck Jonathan was not precluded from contesting the 2011 presidential election by the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Source: Leadership, 1^st July 2010.

We've revoked Aondoakaa's visa – US

By Emeka Madunagu and Comfort Oseghale

The United States Government on Thursday confirmed that it had barred Nigeria's former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Chief Michael Aondoakaa, SAN, from entering its territory.

A blog, Saharareporters.com, had reported on Thursday last week that US President Barack Obama ordered the revocation of Aondoakaa's visa for unspecified links to corruption.

Aondoakaa swiftly denied the report, saying that he had not received any communication from either the US Department of State or the US Embassy in Abuja to that effect.

He had said, "In the first instance, the revocation of visa of a citizen entering the US does not go through Obama. It is just a matter of the state department revoking your visa."

However, the US Embassy in Abuja, through one of its top officials, confirmed to one of our correspondents that the former AGF and his family had indeed been barred from entering the United States.

Reading from a prepared text on the telephone, the diplomat said, "The United States has indeed revoked the visa of the former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr. Michael Aondoakaa, pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 7750, which provides authority to deny entry to the United States to persons with links to corruption."

Prodded for further details, the diplomat said the information was restricted to the text.

By this development, Aondoakaa's position as a member of the governing council of the United Nations Institute for Unification of Private Laws may be hampered.

Former US President George W. Bush had on January 12, 2004 signed Proclamation 7750, to restrict foreign officials and their family members allegedly linked to corruption.

The full text of the proclamation is posted on http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/pdf/04-957.pdf.

The proclamation had earlier been used to bar a former governor of Plateau State, Chief Joshua Dariye, and his family from entering the US in 2004.

In retrospect, a Federal High Court sitting in Calabar, Cross River State, had in early June, restrained Aondoakaa from holding the office of the AGF or any other similar public offices in future in Nigeria.

It had, therefore, advised the government to always consider Aondoakaa unfit and incompetent to hold public offices because of his conduct while serving as AGF in the administration of the late former President Umaru Yar'Adua.

Justice Adetokunbo Ademola, who delivered the judgment, had also referred the ex-minister to the Nigerian Bar Association for appropriate disciplinary action.

The judgment was on a suit filed against Aondoakaa by the Peoples Democratic Party candidate for Uyo Federal Constituency, Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Emmanuel Obot.

Obot had challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission and PDP for substituting him as the party's candidate for the 2007 election with Mr. Bassey Etim.

The Election Petitions Tribunal in Uyo had in its ruling sacked Etim and asked INEC to issue a Certificate of Return to Obot. The judgment was affirmed by the Court of Appeal sitting in Calabar.

The Court of Appeal had before its ruling ordered that a new panel be reconstituted to retry the petition, but Aondoakaa, in a letter dated January 8, 2008 to the President of the Court, had asked him not to comply with the directive.

Aondoakaa had also used his position as the AGF to volunteer a letter on February 16, 2009 to the former Chairman of INEC, Prof. Maurice Iwu, asking him not to issue a certificate of return to Obot.

He had also written the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole, imploring him to allow Etim to remain in the House despite the Court of Appeal's judgment.

Obot had, therefore, approached the Federal High Court to determine whether or not the conduct of Aondoakaa in the three separate letters did not constitute abuse of powers conferred on him by Section 150(1) of the 1999 Constitution.

In his ruling, Adetokunbo had observed that there was no counter-affidavit filed by the defendant (Aondoakaa) to deny the letters and challenge depositions in an affidavit filed by the plaintiff.

He said, "It is also settled in law that the documents tendered and admitted in court are like words uttered and do speak for themselves. They are more reliable and authentic than words from the vocal cord of man as they are neither transient nor subject to distortion or misinterpretation but remain permanent and indelible through the ages."

The judge had also noted that the conduct of Aondoakaa was a desecration of the office of AGF, adding that the position as created by law was meant for learned and eminent members of the Bar and not for political charlatans, jobbers or latter day praise singers.

He said, "A declaration is hereby made that Aondoakaa undermined and subverted the rule of law, the due administration of justice and the independence, authority and integrity of the judiciary in the letters of January 8, 2008, February 16, 2009 written by him in his capacity as the AGF.

"A declaration is hereby made that Aondoakaa is not a competent, fit and proper person to hold office as AGF having regards to the Oath of Allegiance and Office.

"A perpetual injunction is hereby made restraining Aondoakaa from occupying the office of the AGF and Minister of Justice and such other similar offices in the Federal Republic of Nigeria."

Speaking with one of our correspondents on Thursday, Aaondoakaa, however, denied knowledged of the revocation.

He said, "I am not aware that my visa has been revoked. The US Embassy had said before that they hadn't revoked the visa. If they have done so now, maybe somebody, somewhere does not want me to take up the United Nations' Job.

"If this story is true, I expect that the matter will be taken up diplomatically. The job which I am to take up at the UN is not Aaondoakaa's job. It is a job that I am representing not only Nigeria but the entire Africa. I have been in public office for two and half years and I expect the Federal Government to protect me if what you are saying is true.

"The US embassy has not informed me that they have revoked my visa. It is only when they do so that I will ask for the basis of their action. It is at this point I will then react."
Source: Punch, 2^nd  July 2010.

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Jonathan Is A Critical Leader In Africa, Says U.S.
Acting President To Meet Obama

From Laolu Akande, New York and Wole Shadare (Lagos)

AT last, Nigeria, which was excluded from the list of bilateral meetings that (U.S) President Barack Obama will be holding next week, has made a comeback. The White House has confirmed that a "courtesy call" has been scheduled for Acting President Goodluck Jonathan tomorrow afternoon with Obama. It described Jonathan as a critical leader in Africa.

The confirmation came yesterday afternoon during a White House senior official press briefing addressed by Gary Samore, Senior Advisor to the President and Senior Director for Non-Proliferation of Arms and Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications.

Rhodes said Obama, who is hosting the Nuclear Security on Monday and Tuesday in Washington DC, would begin holding bilateral meetings on Sunday and wrap up the one-on-one presidential chats with Jonathan at the Blair House adjacent to the White House.

Although informed sources had hinted that Obama and Jonathan would meet, White House announcement of the talks did not include Nigeria until yesterday's briefing.

On the same Sunday that the two leaders will meet, Obama will also consult with the Presidents of India, Pakistan, South Africa and the Prime Minister of Pakistan.

In describing the Obama-Jonathan meeting, Rhodes said it is "a courtesy call" where both presidents will discuss "several issues," without being specific. He added that the leaders would focus on American-Nigerian partnership, as Jonathan is a "critical leader in Africa."

On Monday, Jonathan will participate in a welcome ceremony for the Nuclear Summit for which Obama has invited 50 world leaders including the Acting President.

In all, the White House said, there will be 38 presidents, prime ministers, and kings at the summit to be held at the Washington DC Convention Centre. There will also be nine deputy prime ministers, vice presidents and ministers. The Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), the head of the European Union and Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, (IAEA), will also participate.

At the end of the summit on Tuesday afternoon, Obama will address a press conference detailing the communiqué of the summit.

The Obama administration has explained that it is keen on addressing threats to US and global peace, which nuclear weapons portend, using the summit the largest gathering of world leaders to discuss the nuclear threat and find common ways to controlling nuclear weapons.

By granting Jonathan a courtesy call, it is believed that Obama and the US government are sending positive signals to Nigeria that the Jonathan presidency enjoys Washington support.

Countries participating in the summit include Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Switzerland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and Vietnam."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced yesterday he would not attend for fear Arab representatives at the meet would use the platform to raise issues about Israeli undeclared nuclear weaponry.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Alhaji Yayale Ahmed has said that the signing of the bilateral agreement between Nigeria and US would

reinforce mutual respect between the two nations.

He told journalists at the Presidential Wing of the Murtala Mohammed Airport (MMA), Lagos yesterday on his return the US, that the agreement specifically focused on improvement of energy and investments, adding that the US government encourages private sector to invest in Nigeria.

The SGF further stated that with a vibrant mass media in the country, the electoral reform, which is under processing would be concluded before the 2011 general elections, assured that there would be a significant changes in the conduct of electorate and politicians before the elections.

He said: "The specific benefit of the agreement will reinforce mutual respect between Nigeria and the United State of America and identifying faulty areas whereby we will continuously review them for the purpose of making sure that we do everything correctly.

"There are specific sections on energy and investment and the American government is encouraging the private sector there to and invest in Nigeria . We have existing bilateral relationships and agreements with them, which we are honouring. And they also depend on us on peace-keeping internationally. The US also mentioned during my visit that Nigeria is highly respected its peacekeeping efforts in the continent.

"And in the area of electoral reforms, we know we are doing that. We have a vibrant press like yourself, which will tell us where we are wrong and where we are right. And indeed the electoral reform is on course, before the 2011 election, we will see significant changes in terms of conducting ourselves."

A ceremony inaugurating the Nigeria-U.S. Bi-National Commission (BNC) took place on Tuesday at the State Department of State in Washington D.C.
Source: The Guardian, 10^th April 2010.

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Experts Counsel Jonathan To Split Agric Ministry, Minimise Bureaucracy
By Olukayode Oyeleye

Major stakeholders and investors in agricultural businesses have advised the acting president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan to urgently look into how to position agriculture ministry in order to make impact during his tenure. They have also given suggestions on how the new minister of agriculture, Sheikh Ahmed Abdullahi, could make a difference.

Dr. Lanre Talabi, the chief executive of Talon, an agro-industrial and consultancy company, informed The Guardian that bureaucracy has been a major bane of the ministry over the years. "Jonathan should re-create the Ministry of Water Resources and minimise bureaucracy in project management in the Ministry of Agriculture." According to him, "good ideas are destroyed by bureaucracies, especially projects of National Food Reserve Agency. Agricultural research council creation is commendable, but it is stalled by due process. Long and arduous processes do no more good."

Talabi said the new minster should guard against sycophants and see Nigeria as his constituency, or resign. "The Ministry of Agriculture is too large, has only one permanent secretary, not enough directors and has a lot of things to do," and for that reason, "every department must have a unit to strengthen the public-private partnership and private sector."

Talabi, a former civil servant turned an intellectual and agricultural investor, cautioned against wrong attitude. He said "any minister of agriculture must cultivate the right attitude of working with the private sector. It is that hybridisation that can move things forward." Considering the fact that the minister and the minister of state are not experts in agriculture, Talabi was positive that, "in spite of their inadequate education in agriculture, they can still make a difference if they are committed to working with a good team."

He advised as well that "the Ministry of Water Resources should be ready to work with the private sector. Pollution of water bodies should be seen as a problem. States and local governments should provide for their people. This is not supposed to be the function of Water Resources ministry."

Having worked in the ministry before, Talabi complained that awarding contracts to increase the spending of public money should be avoided. "Each project must be seen as a challenge for the ministry, the minister and his directors. They must also carry the states and the local governments along and minimise the frequency of small projects. Bureaucracy involving buying of notebooks is a waste.

He was particularly not satisfied with what appeared as a preference for one part of the country in the choice of ministers for the ministry. "We have not had a senior minister from the south for a long time and they see it as a northern affair," Talabi said.

Jonathan's economic team, he said, should be technical people. "His cabinet has about seven lawyers but if there is any agriculturist, it is not known to us in the sector." He advised the acting president to move fisheries into Ministry of Water Resources, saying "fisheries department is hamstrung by some in the ministry" and that most of the work of the river basins should be privatised to minimise bureaucracies.

President of the Animal Science Association of Nigeria (ASAN), Mrs. Mope Omotoso, informed of the need to do a survey of the livestock population in Nigeria. She complained that "the dearth of statistics has not helped planning. This has not helped a steady growth in the production sector. This is responsible for the trend of fluctuating glut and shortage in the production sector. This applies to both inputs and products."

She expressed the need to separate the livestock and veterinary sections at the federal and state ministries of agriculture. "This will help the growth of the livestock industry as the focus on issues will be better." She hinted that some states have already done this but the federal ministry would need to do same for a visible impact.

From the industry perspective, Omotoso noted that there is a chronic shortage of day old chicks (especially pullets). "To prevent a total collapse of the poultry industry, there is need to allow selective and guided importation of some parent stock into the country now. The quantity should also be controlled as a short term and medium term solution." She expressed the need "to develop our own indigenous breed as a long term solution," which requires "dedicated funding as this will take time."

"The only livestock research institute in Nigeria (National Animal Production Research Institute, Shika) should be broken into a minimum of five to take care of the different species. The institute as it is now is not effective. An indigenous breed of poultry (the Shika Brown), developed over 20 years ago is still at the developmental stage."

Omotoso called for a guaranteed minimum price for commodities such as maize, sorghum, etc., saying "this will prevent farmers from making losses and guarantee steady growth in the production sector."

Mr. Robo Adhuze of the Cocoa Association of Nigeria has the following to say: The sacking of the Federal Executive Council last month came as a huge relief to practitioners in the Nigeria cocoa industry. This is little surprising, given the attitude of the then Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources, Dr. Sayyadi Abba Ruma, who held sway as a czar who could neither be advised nor was prepared to implement policies that would promote his much-touted strategic development agenda in the critical agricultural sector. After nearly three years, his exit has been explained as a "huge sigh of relief."

An aggrieved Adhuze noted that, "for the cocoa sector that was transformed from a regulated economy to a free market overnight without proper transition, the renewal of direct government interest under the Olusegun Obasanjo regime was a lifebuoy. Whereas the entire agricultural sector had experienced severe depreciation prior the second coming of Obasanjo as the nation's chief helmsman, the cocoa economy had been most buffeted due to its strategic importance to the country and the international socio-political environment of the commodity."

According to Adhuze, "Adamu Bello brought such dynamism into the cocoa economy through the National Cocoa Development Committee which he chaired. For one, the NCDC, the first of several Presidential Initiatives in the agricultural sector, brought cocoa to the front burner. It is instructive that the over 400,000 cocoa producing families and over 15 million other participants in the cocoa marketing chain across the country contribute substantially to socio-economic stability of many a society. In real terms, cocoa farmers were positively affected by the renewed government interest. The NCDC provided fungicides, insecticides and other pesticides along with other critical inputs at a 50 per cent subsidy. Though the programme could only affect a limited number of farmers, this led to a better organised cocoa pesticide market, lower prices and guaranteed good quality products."

"Its dwindling fortunes had adverse effects for the national economy. Compared to other African cocoa producing countries there is little doubt that Nigeria has wasted huge opportunities that could make her a most influential member of the international cocoa community."

Adhuze observed that "a look at the fortunes of the other crops, produced mainly in regions above the Rivers Niger and Benue, belie the argument that Ruma was biased against cocoa for sectional interests. Cotton, groundnuts, sesame seeds, gum Arabic and other crops did not fare any better under Ruma as agriculture minister. Perhaps what fared well were fertilizer contracts, and silo construction too!"

As Abdullah takes the mantle, Adhuze noted, "the most critical and perhaps biggest legacy he can bestow on the agricultural sector is to dust up the National Cocoa Policy and proceed to make it an official document of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. That would be a good starting point. Other things would then follow from there."

He agreed that although "the NCDC may not be optimally effective the way it was structured, there is already an alternative arrangement already prepared under Ruma which could be a working document for the minister. That way, production, marketing, consumption and the international politics of cocoa can be addressed in a holistic manner."

His conclusion was that "upon the shoulders of Prof. Sheikh Ahmed Abdullah rests the huge task of making a positive mark and taking cocoa to its desired level. Once you get it right with cocoa, other crops will fall in place."

Mr. Emmanuel Ijewere, an accountant of repute, and the chairman of the agricultural and food security policy commission of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), gave his own wish list. "The new Minister of Agriculture needs to believe in the following philosophies if he wishes to succeed: he must believe that agriculture is a very serious business with many parts. It is a private sector activity and as such profit motive should be the objective. All players in this business must be made to see that they are doing better than previous years; e.g. a hard working farmer should be comfortable enough to have a secured old age. Farming should be attractive for young people."

"He must believe that any policy that is put together by only civil servants or politicians is bound to fail. He must be in communication with real players, i.e. must have an open door policy for all those who genuinely have vested interest in agriculture."

According to Ijewere, the minister must see his appointment as a national assignment that involves getting meaningfully engaged with state commissioners of agriculture in leadership and co-ordinating roles. He must "in turn prevail on state commissioners to get engaged with local governments. He must understand that his term is co-terminus with this administration and therefore no time for frivolities that put his personal activities above state."

Ijewere added that the minister must, "within ten days in office, state make public what he intends to achieve this planting season so we can measure his performance and must, within sixty days, after consultation with stakeholders, come up with a national agricultural policy. Let him whole-heartedly embrace the well researched and time-tested 'nucleus estate initiative' of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group.
Source: The Guardian, 11^th April 2010.

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'Recycling Leaders, Bane of Nigeria's Politics'

By Ndubuisi Ugah,

Director of Trade and Investment in the United Kingdom High Commission, Mr. Peter Stephenson, has said the calibre of leaders, being saddled with the task of moving the nation forward, has been the clog that has been stalling Nigeria's wheel of progress.

Stephenson, while speaking at a networking reception held for Sterling Partnership, a commercial law firm to welcome its new partner in the oil and gas, Mr. Tunde Aribido, said: "I have always said the biggest problem here is more of repetition. We know there are difficulties in this country but it has got economic growth, we know it is not easy but I am quite pleased with the progress made by the Acting President, Goodluck Jonathan, in announcing the ministers."
Stephenson said though efforts have been made in the past to salvage the nation, the recycling of "tired brains" remained the greatest undoing in its quest to attain greatness.

On the political developments in the country, Stephenson said: "Well, it is not really for me as a British subject to make comments on the internal workings of the Nigerian constitution, but all I can say is that I am pleased things have leveled down here in terms of the Acting President Goodluck Jonathan and I wish President (Umaru Musa) Yar'Adua speedy recovery as well. I think there has been tensions in the country but I am pleased that this has come through."
Commending the Acting President for taking decisive steps to introduce "fresh bloods" into the Federal Executive Council of the Federation (EXCOF) Stephenson said though the decisions came a bit late, the effect would continue to linger as Nigerians were eager for a new lease of life.

"I am pleased that decisions were eventually made but it took a very long time. I am pleased with the ministerial portfolios and lets hope this brings progress. Lets hope there would be some progress as you can see this is a great country because it is full of opportunities because of its people and its resources.

"There is nothing this country cannot achieve and I think a stable political democracy would make a little more difference. We are pleased that the situation in Nigeria is gradually resolving. You know we have a lot of concerns here with so many companies settling down which is why over 20 per cent foreign direct investment comes from the United Kingdom (UK)."

"I hope there is an increase in trade because there is a whole lot of imbalance in trade in Britain's favour. What we would like to do is buy more goods and services from Nigeria. What we have seen over the last couple of years is that we have seen more of Nigerian companies starting up in London, particularly the banks but we do envisage more products being sold from Nigeria particularly agricultural commodities or may be other commodities as well. We are not really seeing that at the moment. It's quite a tough environment at the moment and it is quite competitive at the moment," he said.
Source: This Day, 11^th April 2010.

Ikemba, Unachukwu and the Rest of Us

HE who the gods want to destroy they first make mad. That was the sober conclusion I arrived at after reading a nasty piece posted by one Vin Unachukwu on the internet. In that write- up, Unachukwu showed great disrespect to the greatest Igbo icon alive, Ikemba Nnewi, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, by calling him unprintable names simply because the Ikemba had once more lent his voice to an obvious truth concerning the conduct of the February 6 Anambra election by Maurice Iwu's INEC.

The occasion was the courtesy visit by Iwu to Ojukwu in which Ojukwu commended Iwu on the outcome of that election and declared that if Iwu would continue to conduct such an election then he, Ojukwu, would endorse him to serve a second term as INEC boss.

For those who have forgotten, that election was the first time in a long, long while in the country that the votes cast by people were allowed to count. In 2003, the man Unachukwu is today supporting, Chris Ngige, was thrown up by INEC as the winner of an election it was very clear he never won. Ngige polled below 40, 000 votes to Peter Obi's 600, 000 but was still declared winner. The likes of Unachukwu never made a whimper even when it was clear to a kid that the declaration of Ngige as winner was a day light robbery.

Of course Obi went to court to challenge him and won, with the courts declaring Ngige as never being a governor. Yet Unachukwu is today still backing such a man who further showed a bad example by allegedly swearing an oath at a deadly shrine in Okija before things fell apart between him and his godfathers. This had caused Anambra all manner of problems, including the burning of the state, until Obi came to change things.

Today, Unachukwu has conveniently failed to compare those two elections just because, probably as a bird of same plumage, he is flocking with Ngige. He condemned Ikemba for 'endosing' Iwu, which betrays his poor grasp of English. Note that Ikemba stressed that "I will endorse Iwu if he continues this way", meaning that if Iwu continues to conduct such a transparent election as the one in Anambra, he will continue to gain the backing of Ikemba.

I was among those that castigated Iwu until the Anambra election. Although I am still watching him closely, I am impressed by his conduct of the Anambra election. It seems to me that Iwu is trying to show some repentance for past misdeeds. Even God told us in the Bible that there is always a great joy in heaven when a sinner repents. Looks like Iwu has repented, that's why great discernible minds like Ikemba have been hailing him. At least Iwu is better than the Unachukwus and Ngiges who are yet to acknowledge their 'sins' against the state.

It is time they repented because the clock is ticking away to a time when there will be no repentance. The election was not perfect, given logistics problems but the positive thing was that every cast vote counted. INEC's mistakes affected everybody and it was clear that given the margin of victory by Obi, he would have won by a far greater margin had everybody voted. That's why I even support the idea of a rerun so that Ngige will be thoroughly thrashed once and for all.

From the actions of Ngige and those like Unachukwu, it is clear that theirs is a classic case of if we don't have our way, let the state burn. Is that what Anambra needs at this time? Mature and responsible politicians have acknowledged Obi's victory, including those he beat like Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu, Andy Uba, Okey Nwosu and others, including Soludo who refrained from going to court. Other eminent citizens of the state have equally endorsed that election.

They include former governor Chukwuemeka Ezeife, former deputy governor in Ngige's illegal regime, Okey Udeh, PDP's Senator Joy Emordi, Tony Nwoye, Uche Emodi – both former chairmen of Anambra PDP – Olisa Metuh, South East zonal vice chairman of PDP, royal fathers, traders and market unions, Beatrice Ekwueme – wife of former Vice President of Nigeria, Alex Ekwueme, among others. They all showed their acceptance of the election result by attending Obi's swearing in on March 17. There's simply no stopping of a moving train.

Ngige can go to court if he likes but that won't get him anywhere even though I pray it does so that Obi will continue to thrash him. Ngige's era is gone but it appears he does not know it. Can someone please help me remind him?

Mr. Anyiba, a commentator on national issues, writes from Awka, Anambra State.
Source: Vanguard, 2^nd April 2010.

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Senate condemns Warri blasts, wants action
on Niger Delta
Mark, Arewa fault Gaddafi on Nigeria

From Alifa Daniel (Abuja) and Saxone Akhaine (Kaduna)

CITING the incident as a clog in the wheel of progress, the Senate yesterday condemned last Monday's bomb explosions that rocked the venue of the post-amnesty conference in Warri, Delta State.

However, the Upper House unanimously agreed that the talk-shops over the development of the neglected Niger Delta region should pave way for an affirmative action.

In the same vein, the call by the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi that Nigeria be split into two countries, on Tuesday drew the ire of the Senate President, David Mark and the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF).

In a motion sponsored by the Deputy Majority Leader of the Senate, Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN), the Upper House had noted with concern, the two bomb explosions, which rocked the venue of the two-day post-amnesty dialogue, organised by Vanguard Newspapers in Warri, on Monday.

The conference, Ndoma-Egba said, attended by governors and other dignitaries and meant to proffer further solutions to the Niger Delta problems was aborted due to the interruption caused by the attack.

He said further: "Aware that the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has claimed responsibility for the bomb explosions, stating that it would no longer tolerate the endless game of deceit in the name of conferences and dialogues, which have never yielded any fruits", the Senate noted further that MEND had issued a warning of impending attacks, angered by a statement by some government officials that it existed only in the cyberspace.

Also contributing yesterday, Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, who noted that peace was returning to the Niger Delta and the conference was to achieve peace in the Niger Delta, suggested that it was time to reconsider the police structure instead of the present unitary police state in a federal state of Nigeria's size.

"A situation where you have a policeman from a relatively peaceful Sokoto State and you send him to Delta State cannot work...Let us find a final solution to the problem of lawlessness and militancy."

Abubakar Sodangi noted that the bombing was a very serious issue. "We have been hearing about bomb blasts in such places like Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. Now, we are hearing of it here in Nigeria. It is very unfortunate that they are taking this unfortunate dimension. It is a terrible dimension that the armed struggle in the Niger Delta is taking. We should support the Acting President by ensuring that all those projects earmarked receive budgetary support", he added.

In his comments, Olorunnimbe Mamora said: "I support this motion and I equally want to say that while it may be regrettable that this incident occurred, we should also look beyond this incident and look at the whole concept of peace. Peace is not just the absence of conflict but the presence of justice...

I am also constrained to say that the whole concept of amnesty as put in place by President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, I think in this instance, has not been all-inclusive because from what we heard, it is like some elements are still feeling excluded in the whole process.

"As we heard in the motion that there had been some inflammatory comments by some top officers, we have to look at the whole concept of inclusivity. There is no much distance we can go in order to achieve peace... We must go beyond intentions because intentions don't achieve anything, it is reality that is seen. Infrastructural development will go a long way in confidence building. The way we manage security information is worrying... I want to appeal to all stakeholders to give peace a chance. It is a front burner issue that needs to be addressed," he added.

But Garba Talba, while supporting the motion said: "We have been castigating the Governor of Delta State for his inflammatory statement, what of MEND itself? What of their statements? It is more or less a regional issue. We cannot just condemn the government officials. We should also condemn MEND itself. I think we should definitely, completely condemn the action of MEND."

In his comments, Effiong Bob observed that it appeared to him that there was too much talk about Niger Delta development but very little was done in practical terms.

"All the projects that were listed even before the amnesty plan of President Yar'Adua were announced, none has been implemented.

"Take the example of the East-West road project. Every year, it is in the budget but nothing is being done. This is the season for them to do the job; they will not do the job. I am urging the Senate to take a common position that something concrete should be done.

"... I don't support these conferences because nothing is going to come out from them. It is something practical that is needed to be done... Something should be done so that these youths should be employed... I completely agree for us to support state police."

The Senate Minority Leader, Maaji Maina Lawan, said he supported moves to find a lasting solution to the problems of the Niger Delta, particularly the historical disadvantages that have come as a result of the discovery of oil.

But he added: "When criminal gangs come to terrorise the community or even the Government House, do you expect top government officials not to condemn them? I think that those top government officials that condemned the actions are very (correct), they should not be condemned...

"Anybody who does not want this amnesty programme to succeed should be condemned whether it is MEND or anybody else."

Contributing, Lee Maeba said: "When South African activists surrendered their weapons, they were given accommodation and (other things). There is no programme to rehabilitate the militants. Amnesty is a very sweet English but on the ground, it is nowhere."

Observing also that the bombing has introduced a new dimension to the delicate Niger Delta situation, the Senate resolved yesterday to:

• condemn inflammatory comments from all quarters, which are capable of inciting violence and passion in the Niger Delta region;

• urge the Federal Government to pursue the post-amnesty programme with increased vigour, while trying to maintain peace in the Niger Delta region;

• condemn the bomb explosion which rocked the venue of the post amnesty dialogue in Warri; and

• urge the Federal Government to fish out those behind the dastardly act.

• Responding to contributions from Anyim Ude, who sought to get the Senate to caution external forces from making comments likely to inflame passions in Nigeria and referring to comments by the Libyan leader, an obviously infuriated Mark stopped Ude in his tracks: "Anyim Ude, with all due respect, why do you want to give a mad man that level of publicity. I am surprised that you are giving that any publicity at all. A mad man, who said the same thing about England, said the same thing about Switzerland, and he said the same thing about every other country and then you want to give him any prominence at all. I don't think he deserves any mention at all. Truly, in my candid opinion, I don't think he deserves our attention."

• Commenting on the recent crisis in Plateau State, Gaddafi had called for the division of Nigeria into two; between a Moslem North and a Christian South.

• Also, Northern elders under the umbrella of ACF, said that the Federal Government should continue to promote justice and tranquility to ensure the unity of the nation.

• Besides, the ACF members said that the crises in Jos, Plateau State, have brought credibility problem on the unity and security of the nation, asking government to ensure that punishment is meted out to the culprits of upheavals.

• The ACF National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Anthony Sani, in a statement issued in Kaduna yesterday, said that the Libyan leader's suggestion has demonstrated his ignorance and "the nature of the Nigerian society or nation state".

• Sani explained that "there are many overlapping interests among diverse people of Nigeria which is a source of strength to the country", pointing out that this "makes balkanisation along ethnic and religious lines truly difficult.

• "For example, the Yoruba in South-West are more than 25 per cent of Muslims; Borno South, Adamawa and Taraba states are predominantly Christians in the North East. The Zuru extraction in Kebbi State and the Fulanis in Wusasa of North West are Christians. The North Central states of Nasarawa, Kogi and Niger are a combination of both faiths. What is more, many families in Nigeria comprise members of the two religions".

• The Northern elders lamented: "The Jos internecine crises have brought bad name to Nigeria. Yes, but they cannot be the reasons for calls to dismember the country along impossible lines. Precisely because the situation is not beyond redemption. After all, (Ottor Von) Bismarck brought a desperate Germany into a united whole. The same with Nyerere who united 120 tribes into a strong united Tanzania in diversity".

• Sani argued: "It is easy to overcome the distrust and suspicion that have led to the collapse of social contract among the people to flourish once more in that troubled state. Therefore, it is necessary for the feuding parties to honestly realize that war don't achieve peace, but peace conferences do. This is because qui pro quo or an eye-for-an-eye has since been supplanted by 'go and sin no more'.

• "That is to say all leaders in Plateau State, be they political, community or religious must teach their followers about the importance of peaceful coexistence as sine quo non for socio-economic and political development of the state for commonwealth. Enough of this attitude of fighting for God who has the capacity to fight His cause. What is more, He has not made such request for help".

• The ACF members stated: "Government at all levels need not be reminded that governance is an act of balancing competing demands and that no one can divorce security of a society from justice. To that end, distribution of all access to nation or state resources must be seen to be just and fair and all perpetrators of violence, irrespective of their faith, ethnicity, status and political leaning must be made to face the laws of the land.

• "The situation in Plateau State calls for purposeful leadership at all levels and for true reconciliation among the people. It is not for Gaddafi to dabble into the internal affairs of Nigeria."
  Source: The Guardian, 18^th March 2010.

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AN OPEN CHALLENGE TO ANIOMA STATE
By Gabriel Nwanze
gnwanze@yahoo.com

I mentioned Anioma State, simply because it's Nigeria's most popular and long-overdue State.  Is my assertion a little too early? Time will tell.

Ok, back to the present where we still use the term Anioma people rather than Anioma State.

The people of Anioma in Delta State have in recent times, been in the news due to more heightened interest in their affairs along with the rekindled news of state creation in Nigeria and in the South East, as well as due to the assumption of a son of Anioma, Ambassador Ralph Uwaechue as the new President of the apex Igbo organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo.

As Anioma begins to embark on what perhaps is its final journey from being a State within a State to an independent State of its own, it is very important to identify the potential factors that can possibly prevent the realization of this dream.

A strengthened and clear-cut identification with their kith and kin in the South East is a very vital step toward the entire country officially recognizing Anioma for Statehood. It's no secret that the Igbos of Delta State ( Anioma people ) have been permanently assigned the role of hewers of wood and drawers of water in present day Delta State. Other tribes in the state say Anioma are not core-Deltans. Infact, they say the capital of the state should be in Delta State ! While this may sound humourous, it's a call to identity for the Igbo community of Delta State. Firstly, some have in the past, tried hard albeit successfully, to associate Anioma with origins on Benin, Edo State, much to the embarrassment of the rest of the right-thinking Anioma people. A section of  such proponents say, without any tangible evidence, that their founders were Edo people. Not even the Isoko people and other tribes in Delta State who have clearly visible links to the Benin kingdom have so openly thrown themselves on the Edo people like some Igbos in Anioma have done. This must stop.

 It's often said around the area that Ezechima was a Bini ruler, prince or whatever, who founded many parts of the Anioma area. This is an effective abortion of the history of a great people, as the more accurate account of Ezechima clearly states that he was a great an anointed ruler in the likeness of the Biblical Joseph. The Hebrew ( Jewish ) boy called Joseph was sold into slavery and ended up in Egypt from modern day Israel. Being one who God was with, Joseph rose to the position of a Prince in Egypt and everyone was answerable to him. He became the second in command and was even sometimes running the entire Egyptian empire when the true ruler, Potiphar was around, as he had total trust from the Egyptians and effectiveness on his own part to support such trust. Joseph was considered an Egyptian, settled down, married and bore kids there, but one thing he never did was to forget his roots and who he really was. Joseph's descendants carried on this mentality and today, have all resettled in Israel, their original home, without saying they were now Egyptians.

Same is the case for Ezechima, who was a full-blooded Igbo man from Anambra State, and true to his famed extraordinary instincts as of the time ( much like the Jewish boy called Joseph ), made many intellectual and visible conquests and as a traveler and adventurer, sojourned well beyond Igboland, reaching as far as Benin and assuming top leadership position in his time. It's to be noted that just like Joseph while he was in Egypt, Ezechima didn't take over the entire power realms in the Benin Kingdom, being a stranger of sorts, but was even sometimes acting in steed of the paramount rulers and council of elders. This however didn't make the mighty Ezechima forget his roots or who he truly was, as in due time, he and his descendants left the Benin mornarchy to settle back in Igboland, which is in present day Anioma. For some to now say Ezechima, who even from his name is a purely Igbo man, is of Benin origin and indigene is to bring unnecessary and misinformed controversy on the Anioma people, and of course an intentional and obvious attempt to erode the thinking and culture of the people through brainwashing them by adulterating their rich history.

What do such people have in store for Nnebisi, the founder of Asaba and other surrounding cities in Delta North, after he migrated from Nteje, a town in modern day Anambra State? Perhaps Nnebisi is from Kenya and has links to Obama's family lineage?

I often wonder why the Yoruba people in Kwara State and other states located outside the South West do not claim they are Hausas just because they are in the North, or why the Hausas don't claim they are from Chad and Niger even though they have a rich culture of inter-mixing and inter-marriage with their neighbours. Why must it be the Igbo people? Perhaps because Igbos have been historically hard to govern. Or maybe civil war disenfranchisement? But all that is gone now and this is a new day. Behold, a new dawn! Welcome to a new Nigeria.

Of course, sadly enough, the Igbos from the South East also have some portion of blame in ensuring the modern day Anioma people remain disillusioned. I've witnessed some tell it to the face of some Anioma friends that they are not real Igbos or core-Igbos. Right. They are not core-Deltans cos the "core-Deltans" say they are full-blooded Igbos and not core-Igbos as said by some unenlightened South Easterners, then what are they?

Perhaps, this is often said in retaliation by the South Easterners, for the Igbos in Delta and Rivers States,etc claiming not to be Igbo. Perhaps, it's also a case of genuine misinformation of the Igbos from the South East and being sold to another history of their brothers in the South South, or maybe just a non-tangible, feeling-based perception ( misconception ) simply because they are located outside the South East? It's good to note that over 95% of Igbos in the South East see Igbos from the South South as full blooded Igbos.

Like I said, this is time for change. It's happening everywhere. It has to happen in Igboland too.

Let the stakeholders and elders of Anioma come together and declare they should not be called Delta Igbos anymore. They are Igbos. Why aren't Anambra Igbos called Anambra Igbos or Imo people called Imo Igbos? Pending the creation of Anioma State, they should simply be addressed as Igbos from Delta State or Anioma People. Even the funny term Anioma Igbo is beginning to surface as a general term used to describe Anioma people. Why not simply Igbo which is what they are? You know, in the years after the civil war, up to some few years back, saying you were Igbo-ish , not full Igbo or claiming not to be able to speak Igbo was seen as a thing of pride and a landmark of high education, sophistication and enlightenment. Not anymore. This falsehood and living in fantasy is a major reason why many Igbo parents in Lagos and beyond refuse to teach or speak Igbo to their young children. Such people are obsolete and still caught in the past. We're in a new era; an era where various tribes and ethnic groups in Nigeria are responding positively to globalization through closer integration.

Let Anioma association nationwide and world wide link up with other Igbo associations in Nigeria and abroad, and start attending monthly or periodical meetings along with their Igbo brethren. They need no bodies permission to flaunt their Igboness. The adage "core Igbos" is a mischievous term that holds no ground. An Igbo man is an Igbo man anywhere in Nigeria.

In the globalized world of today, only the strongest survive, and the way to survive is by integration through unity. Why do we think companies and large organizations are merging daily? To simply survive and gain the rewards of staying atop in a globalized wealth- higher capitalization and revenue as well as resource utilization. In the modern world, everyone is being forced to think together and move forward together. Perhaps, this is one factor that deals a deadly blow to self-determination by various regions in Nigeria seeking independence as separate countries. The globalized world no longer provides a very condusive environment for that ; unlike before. Igwe bu Ike.

Another issue the Anioma people must surmount is that of  functionality and visbility. Theoritically, I must say the Anioma people are functioning even more than some existing States in Nigeria, especially with a vibrant community in the United States. However, much still needs to be seen in terms of concrete result and result-oriented activities by a united and well recognized Anioma front in Nigeria. In my opinion, the first step to achieve this is by refusing to continue to alienating themselves. Isaac Newton's laws make us understand that the inertia and its accompanying forces demand that force must be applied on an object ( or a dream as the case may be ) before it moves, gains momentum or begins to accelerate. I think it's time the Anioma people need to add a little more bite to their genuine aspirations and intentions. To me, it starts with first of all, identifying with a clearly defined group in Nigeria, as no tree can state alone in the forest. Rather than waiting for Anioma State to be created before any other thing, the great and innovative people of the area should appoint an official representative who will act as an administrator and attend meetings like those of the Five South East governors so as to start conveying the message that they are the sixth state wether anyone likes it or not. Besides, thank God for the new initiative of Patrick Osakwe and the rest of the Nigerian House, a motion for two additional states in each region is being discussed, and of course, three states for the South East so as to equate the number of states in all regions. Anioma, Njaba and Adada States look like the three most likely states to be created from the South East. While Njaba and Adada States are still undergoing modification and discusiion with participating states as to which towns will be finally included and which will be exempted, Anioma has since carved out its own boundaries in Delta North. I see no reason why Anioma will like to remain in the South South, as their continuous marginalization will be witnessed in an even greater scale. Why not join your kith and kin and chart a common cause forward? My happiness is that over 95% of Anioma people realize this! This isn't surprising as the region has abundant human capital and intellectuals to boast about.

Let Anioma lead the way by not just appointing a functional administrator with an office and a quasi-cabinet, commissioners and all. Call it a shadow government, call it a pre-emptive step, but I term this as the right move akin to Barack Obama, who already had his campaign team and officers/cabinet men and women penciled down well before the campaign for presidency even ended and voting began. Re-writing our history and culture isn't achieved by staying mute and hopeful, but by carrying out massive enlightenment campaigns of its people about their origins, their history, who they are and what they stand for. I'll hate a situation where Anioma State is created only for it to start from the scratch, making the same old mistakes other states have made in the past. This is a new dispensation, and with the potentials already shown by the Anioma people, much is expected – expected to be done in different and better ways.   The Federal government cannot do everything for a single state in Nigeria.

We must learn that just like any other State, Anioma will have to see itself as its main revenue generator. The sooner this is started, the better. With many more states coming, the Federal government may become more restricted in the amount it can afford as disbursement to states, as well as limit itself in its roles as more purely, a regulator rather than a financer of large projects in various states. This is a good-spirited warning not just to Anioma State, but to all other states in Nigeria, both existing and about-to-exist. This cloud however, has a great silver lining as innovation and alternative resource development becomes the watch-word for each state.

Internal revenue generation and functionality of the Anioma State should start right now, so that such becomes a normal way of life when the new state is created. Lagos State has suddenly realized this. Imo State seems to be following suit, along with  Rivers State. Anambra State is recently towing similar lines. Ogun State is closely linking with Lagos state to attain growth especially in infrastructural development and industraliazation. Anioma must not make the mistake of waiting for Federal allocation to power its own economy, and neither should Njaba or Adada States. Crude oil prices are slipping daily, and the days of Father Christmas Federal Government will soon be drastically limited. Even if oil bounces back, let's remember the dangers of oil dependency. Inspite of that, Anioma can even enter a joint-ventureship with Anambra State for the development of crude oil reserves in the region as well as other projects.

This is yet another challenge for Anioma to perhaps, be the first to power people consciousness, re-orientation and revenue generation through modern technology like the internet. After all, the current U.S President-elect raised $750 Million mainly through the internet. Let Anioma people at home and abroad begin to contribute the great and the little amounts of money they have, in order to see to the development of their regions. Let it be a model state of the people by the people. Why I'm, hinging this on the area is partly because they have a University of Information and Communication Technology already situated in Agbor, with the support of an Anioma son by the name Jim Ovia.. Let that and other instiutions and individuals devise ways to anchor the development of their region through technology. There's nothing wrong with being the first to do so.

The Public-Private Sector partnership must also be actively pursued in the State. It's key to modern-day development, as companies struggle to survive, assistance to the community and making profit in the process is becoming more popular. Call it " Poverty Eradication Through Profits" and you won't be wrong.

This recipe of self-development also is prescribed to the rest of the South east and the entire great nation known as Nigeria, a country that will eventually champion the birth of the new Africa in terms of economic power. First and foremost, we have to put our house in order before we try building the houses of our other African brothers, and house building starts from home.

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Okafor gets Canadian excellence award

Nigerian-born university lecturer in Canada , Professor Obiora Okafor,  has been awarded the prestigious nationwide, 2010 prize for academic excellence by the Canadian Association of Law Teachers, CALT.

Okafor, who hails from Ukpo, Dunukofia local government area of Anambra State, is the first African and black person in history to receive a top Canadian nation-wide award for academic excellence for his outstanding contributions to legal research and teaching in Canada and around the world.

According to a press statement by the association, "he is the first African ever to be promoted to the highest academic rank of full professor at a Canadian University .

"Professor Okafor has previously received many other honours and awards, including the Governor General's Academic Gold Medal and Award of Excellence of the Canadian Association of Black Lawyers.

"One of the leading international law and human rights experts in the world, he has also served as an expert panelist for the United Nations working group on people of African descent. Professor Okafor who received his PHD in 1998, teaches at the famous Osgoode Hall Law School of York University, Toronto Canada , Canada 's top Law Faculty and one of the leading global law schools in the world.

"He has published 7 books, edited 3 special issues of leading academic journals and written over 60 scholarly papers and book chapters. His latest book on African human rights system was issued by Cambridge University Press", the association stated.

Reacting to the award, Okafor expressed happiness that he has been accorded recognition for his contributions to legal research and teaching in Canada and around the world.

The professor of International Law expressed gratitude to the prestigious Association for the award, saying that the honour would spur him towards making greater contribution to legal research and teaching and academia in general.

Okafor who promised to continue making Nigeria proud, also expressed gratitude to all those who have contributed to the success of his career, including members of his family, colleagues, friends and well wishers.
Source: Vanguard, 18^th July 2010.

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