Immigration tragedy: Families demand release of corpses

Clockwise: Applicants at the National Stadium, Lagos; some of the injured applicants in Abuja; and exhausted applicants in Lagos, on Saturday

Parents and family members of some  applicants, who lost their lives during the Nigerian Immigration Service recruitment test on Saturday in Abuja, have demanded for the release of the bodies of their loved ones for burial.

The family members, who gathered at the National Hospital on Sunday, told the Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, who came to sympathise with them, that they wanted the bodies to be released for burial immediately.

Seven applicants, including a pregnant woman, died in a stampede during the exercise at the National Stadium, venue of the recruitment test.

Speaking with journalists, one of the bereaved, Mohammed Hakeem, said he was informed about the death of his sister, Miss Oyiza Yusuf, a mother of one, adding that it was disheartening that the lady was defrauded of N150,000 in a job scam last year.

Hakeem said, “It is sad that people were made to suffer and die for jobs that have probably been allocated to the children of highly placed individuals. The government should be sensitive to the plight of the ordinary Nigerians.”

Moro, who consoled the grieving families, pleaded for understanding of Nigerians “so that together we can salvage the situation and lay a foundation that will forestall any future occurrence of this type of tragedy.”

The minister explained that the tragedy was caused by unruly applicants. Those that did not apply for the exercise also turned up.

He explained that the stadium was chosen for the recruitment exercise on account of the physical exercise that applicants were to go through, stressing that this was a vital component of enlistment requirement into the NIS.

Moro said, “Right from the beginning, I gave you assurance that this exercise was going to be transparent but it was going to be cost-effective.  That we are going to avoid (the mistake of the past), where all persons converge in Abuja. And so yesterday, we tried to decentralise.

“We set up 37 recruitment centres across the country, including the Federal Capital Territory, and posted senior officers of the ministry, including Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and the police across the country. All numbers were adequate to control the situation based on the received applications.”

Moro clarified that 526,650 persons applied for the exercise nationwide, adding that arrangement was made for only the number.

Confab: Bakare says he won’t receive allowance

 

 

 

Pastor Tunde Bakare
| credits: Odutayo Odusanya

Serving Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has said that he will not partake of the N12m to be paid to each delegate to the three-month National Conference to be inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday (today).

Bakare, representing Ogun State at the conference, said he made the decision not to collect the money to be paid to delegates by the Federal Government in order to dispel any speculation that his motivation for accepting to take part in the conference was material.

Each of the 492 delegates to the National Conference would be paid N4m per month for the three month duration and this has been the subject of controversy with some Nigerians condemning the amount to be spent.

Announcing to his church members that he had accepted to be a delegate to the conference, Bakare told the congregation that he would be giving them weekly report as the conference progressed.

He said, “A friend of mine called me this (Sunday) morning that he heard on the radio that ‘Pastor Bakare had accepted to go, that his own fee is N12m’. Pastor Bakare will not take a kobo in the National Conference.

“I will not take a penny. It has nothing to do with others; that is by choice. We go with integrity of heart, it is not money. The God of heaven will prosper us.

“What I say here is what I will do there. I do not say others should do it, but I intend to do that so that our heart can remain pure. That does not mean the hearts of others are not pure but I don’t want anybody to think in any slight manner that the motive is this.

Sanusi to Jonathan: Allegations against

 me baseless

 

 

 

Jonathan and Sanusi

The suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, has described the allegations of financial recklessness levelled against him by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria as a malicious and calculated attempt to mislead President Goodluck Jonathan into believing that the management of the bank is guilty of misconduct and recklessness.

In what can be described as his first official response to the allegations, Sanusi, in a letter to Jonathan, said that contrary to the claims by the Presidency that he was asked to respond to issues raised in the FRCN report, he only saw the “Briefing Note” of the council for the first time when it was attached to his suspension letter.

In the letter, sent to the President on March 10, a copy of which was made available to journalists on Sunday, the suspended governor said at no time were the allegations in the report sent to the CBN either by the President or the FRCN for comments or explanations.

He said, “On Wednesday March 10, 2014, I submitted a memorandum to His Excellency, Mr. President, with supporting documentation, effectively addressing all the allegations contained in the FRCN Briefing Note, the letter of suspension and the Akingbola petition.

“Having submitted my response to the President, I am further compelled, following the recent press briefing and comments by the Senior Special Adviser to the President on Media as well as numerous other references to the allegations in both local, international and online media, to put to the public my responses in the interest of transparency, accountability and my responsibility to the Nigerian people.

“Let me also state that I saw the FRCN Briefing Note for the first time when it was attached to the suspension letter. At no time was this report sent to the CBN either by the President or the FRCN for comments or explanations.

“A careful examination of the allegations contained in the FRCN Briefing Note to Mr President, will show that each of the allegations could easily have been resolved by a simple request for clarification or more careful review.

“There is no doubt that if the CBN had received the Briefing Note, which was prepared in June 2013, all the misconceptions, misrepresentations and erroneous inferences contained therein would have been cleared.

“I am publishing these responses to enable the general public see that each and every allegation levelled against the CBN under my leadership is false and unfounded, and that many of the allegations were malicious and fabricated, having been designed to mislead the President into believing that the management of the central bank was guilty of misconduct and recklessness.”

On the allegations of fraudulent takeover of the defunct Intercontinental Bank Plc by the former Managing Director, Mr. Erastus Akingbola, Sanusi described them as baseless.

He said, “As for the Akingbola petition, it is a rehash of the baseless allegations he has been making since 2010, which apparently he must have been asked to reproduce on February 9, 10 days before the suspension.

“It is, indeed, strange that the CBN governor can be suspended based on allegations written by a man who ran his bank into the ground and against whom judgement has been obtained in a London court, and who furthermore is facing criminal prosecution at home for offences, including criminal theft.”

The governor, in providing specific responses to all the allegations levelled against him and the central bank management, faulted all the claims by the FRCN in its report.

For instance, on the allegation of weak corporate governance at the CBN on account of the fact that the office of the governor is fused with that of the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Sanusi said the FRCN ignored the fact that global best practice was that the governor of the central bank was also the chairman of the board.

This, according to him, is currently the practice in about 55 countries.

On the allegation that the CBN’s breakdown of “Currency Issue Expenses” for 2011 and 2012 indicated that it paid the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Plc N38.233bn in 2011 for printing of banknotes, whereas the entire turnover of the company was N29.370bn, the suspended governor said the expense item of N38.233bn comprised N28.738bn payment to the NSPMP in 2011; N6.587bn accrued liability in 2011 but paid in 2012 when deliveries were received; and N2.829bn audit adjustment journal entry into the account at the end of 2011 in respect of prepayments to the company.

“Evidently, the difference between the numbers in the financial statements of the CBN and NSPMP is a simple reflection of timing differences between recognition of expenses by the CBN and income recognition by the NSPMP, with both entities applying conservative accounting policies,” he added.

On FRCN’s claims that the CBN made fictitious payments of N511m to Emirate Airlines, which allegedly is not operating local charter in Nigeria; N425m to Wing Airlines, which allegedly is not registered with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority; and N1.025bn to Associated Airlines, which allegedly did not have a turnover of up to N1bn in 2011, Sanusi replied, “The CBN neither engaged, paid nor claimed to have paid Emirates Airlines.

“Rather, the CBN engaged and entered into an Air Charter Services Agreement with Emirate Touch Aviation Services Limited, which is a local Nigerian charter service company.

“A simple enquiry by the FRCN would have clarified and avoided this misrepresentation. With respect to Wings Aviation Limited, the CBN contracted Wings Aviation Limited, which changed its name to Jedidiah Air Limited on August 21, 2009, but only notified the CBN of the change on  February, 28,2012.

“With respect to Associated Air Limited, the CBN did in fact pay a total of N1.025bn to Associated Airlines Limited. It is worth stating that the CBN is not responsible for how the company reports its turnover.”

Responding to the allegation that the CBN’s expenses on private guards and lunch for policemen went up from N0.919bn in 2011 to N1.257bn in 2012, he said that in 2007 before he assumed office, the CBN adopted a policy to outsource non-core functions, including security services.

This decision, he added, enabled the bank to focus on its statutory mandate and to reduce its overheads.

He said, “Accordingly, the CBN retained the services of about 13 private security companies to provide access control and security check services.

“In 2012, the CBN budgeted N600m for security services, but spent N582.2m on private guards.

“To complement the efforts of the private guards, the CBN also requested the services of security agencies in the light of the increased security challenges, especially the activities of the Boko Haram terrorist group.

“These security personnel were engaged on a daily basis and were attached to senior CBN officials; special assignments such as security coverage for currency movements; static guard duties at the bank’s premises nationwide and other sundry engagements.

“About 2,406 policemen are currently deployed on a daily basis to various branches and other locations of the CBN.

“These security personnel were paid a daily lunch and transport allowances totalling N675.02m in the year under review.”

In replying to the allegation that the CBN paid excessive legal and professional fees totalling N20.202bn in 2011, Sanusi said the bank, like any other public entity, was not immune from liabilities arising from judgments and orders of courts.

“The referenced N20.202bn spent under this head covered the CBN’s judgment debt liabilities in the year under review.

“Of particular reference is the judgment of the Supreme Court in the case of Amao vs the Central Bank of Nigeria (SC 168/2007) delivered on May 21, 2010, wherein the apex court directed that the CBN pay employees of the bank, who had retired prior to 2000, pension under the harmonised structure introduced by the Federal Government.

“Note that the negotiated litigation liability that arose from the above specified matter was approximately N19.8bn.”

The suspended governor, in his submission, urged the President to “revisit and redress the issue of my suspension.”

He also called on Jonathan to apply the same rationale and rigour to other agencies of the Federal Government that have had serious allegations and queries levied against them and prevail upon them to provide responses and explanations with the same level of clarity and transparency as he had done

Tension in Kaduna as death toll hits 114

 

 

 

 

Kaduna State Governor Mukthar Yero

Tension rose in  Kaduna town and environs on Sunday, following the killing  of no fewer than 100 people in  three  villages in Kaduna State on Friday night.

There was a  heavy security presence at all churches in the state capital and environs where  the Christian faithful had converged to worship.

Our correspondent observed the movement of combat-ready policemen and other security agents in trucks at the Sabo Tasha and Refinery areas of the city to maintain law and order as people spread rumours that all was not well in those parts of the state capital.

The victims of the massacre were said to have been buried in mass graves on Sunday.

The umbrella body of the Southern Kaduna people in the state, the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union,  on Sunday put the  death toll from the attacks at  114.

It said over 40 attacks had been recorded so far in the Southern Kaduna communities since 2011. The group also accused Fulani herdsmen as being behind the attacks.

Addressing newsmen on Sunday in Kaduna, the National President of  SOKAPU, Dr. Ephraim Goje,  noted that the people of the area had been under severe attacks from  Fulani herdsmen without any efforts from the authorities to stop them.

He   warned that the people might be forced to defend themselves.

Goje said, “I am addressing you this afternoon with a very heavy heart and shock over the barbaric and brutal massacre of about 114 innocent and peace-loving children, women and the aged, and burning down of over 60 houses, food, animals and assets of the people of  three villages in the Kaura Local Government area of Kaduna State by Fulani murderers on Friday night,  March 14, 2014.

“This incident is one out of the over 40 attacks on Southern Kaduna communities since 2011. In all these attacks, we have identified the perpetrators as Fulani herdsmen, but each time we raised this observation, the Fulani socio-cultural organisation within the state has always denied the involvement of its people by asking for proofs.”

PDP owes me, says Atiku

 

 

 

 

Former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar
| credits: File copy

A former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has said his former political party, the Peoples Democratic Party, owes him a debt of gratitude.

Abubakar, however, said he  did not owe the ruling party anything.

It will be recalled that the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, had recently said that Abubakar owed the party a debt of gratitude for providing him a political platform that helped him to emerge as the former Vice President.

But the former Vice President said in a statement in Abuja on Sunday, that contrary to the claim by the leadership of the PDP, it was indeed his former party that owed him a debt of thanks.

The former Vice President, who resigned his membership of the PDP in February to join the All Progressives Congress, noted that the insinuation being peddled by Metuh that he was ungrateful to the PDP was a distortion of history.

The statement particularly noted that neither Metuh nor anyone currently in position of authority in the PDP today was there when the PDP was formed.

He said, “If the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP doesn’t have the knowledge of how the party came into being, then it will be in order that he goes into the archives and read about the history of the party and the roles certain individuals, particularly former Vice President Atiku Abubakar played in building the party.

“For the avoidance of doubt, Atiku Abubakar does not owe the PDP. Rather, it is the PDP that owes him a debt of thanks. Where were Metuh and his paymasters when the PDP was in its formative stage? If he and his paymasters came as free riders into the party, that shouldn’t mean they have the licence to distort history.

“The demagogic outburst and the repeated innuendoes by which the PDP has been nursing its wounds following the exit of its founding fathers will do no good for the party to reverse the trend of how it is fast losing acceptability by the Nigerian people.”

                                  Jonathan empowers new   panel to dialogue with Boko Haram

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PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan  has constituted an eight-member committee to work outside the public view towards negotiating for ceasefire, amnesty and demobilisation of members of Boko Haram.

  The constitution of the panel is one of the recommendations of the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in the North headed by Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, Alhaji Kabiru Tanimu Turaki (SAN).

  The Kabiru Turaki-led committee had while submitting its report to President Jonathan in Abuja on November 5, 2013 recommended, among others, the setting up of an advisory committee on continuous dialogues that will have powers to advise the President on all matters related to dialogue and resolution or crisis. It also recommended the setting up of a Victims Support Fund for casualties of insurgency to be administered by a new agency established specifically to assist the victims.

Missing funds: Jonathan approves forensic audit of NNPC

President Goodluck Jonathan

The Presidency said on Wednesday that it had authorised the engagement of reputable international firms to carry out the forensic audit of the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

It, however, did not give details of the firms.

The Presidency made this disclosure in a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, in reaction to the claim by the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, that his decision to expose corruption in the management of oil revenue led to his travails.

It said Sanusi’s suspension had nothing to do with an attempt to cover up his allegation that funds due to the Federation Account were unaccounted for by the NNPC.

It described the various statements credited to the suspended CBN governor in the media lately as cheap blackmail and attempts to incite the public against the Federal Government.

The Presidency said it was unfortunate that instead of trying to provide reasonable response to the query on his official conduct as the governor of the central bank, Sanusi had chosen to whip up public sympathy for himself and anger against the government in recent press interviews.

The statement read, “We have noted with disappointment the unrelenting attempt by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, to falsely portray his recent suspension from office as an attempt by the Presidency to bury his allegation that huge sums of money due to the Federation Account are unaccounted for by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.