VOL. 9. NO.154 N50 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2014 www.osundefender.org THE 5TH MOST-VISITED NEWS- - Pg 4 - See Story On Page 3 Front Page Comment “Look at what we did in Osun State. In Osun, we had the best election conducted so far; the best election we have conducted so far as a commission since 2011.” Quote • Quote from Professor Attahiru Jega’s interview in THE GUARDIAN of Wed. Oct. 29 (2nd part of a series that started on the 28th). •Jega - See Story On Page 2 - Pg 2 •The governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf aregbesola (middle); Project Manager, engineer Oladini awoyemi (right); former Special adviser to the governor on Water Resources, engr (Mrs.) Tawakalitu Williams (left) and Mr. Sola adeeyo at the inspection tour to the Kajola Water Dam in the State of Osun, recently. Aregbesola Presents N197bn 2015 Budget Estimate • Economic Sector Takes Largest Chunk Osun Offers Free Train For Festive Season Abducted UNIOSUN ASUU Chairman’s Wife Regains Freedom A Hole-in- the-heart Girl Needs Help Yuletide: Christians Lament High Cost Of Food Items - Pg 4 Ebola: Personal Hygiene Is Key The recent declaration of Nigeria as Ebo- la-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO) came as a palatable news for the country. Of course it’s really a great thing to hear from the World Health body that Nige- ria is free of the kill- er-disease that spreads like the harmattan fire. For a country where you hardly hear any good news; a country that’s hardly associated- with anything positive, o have been given a clean bill of health with respect to EVD, is a thing to rejoice over and the govern- ment and the people of Nigeria deserve to be congratulated Continue on pg5
Transcript
VOL. 9. NO.154 N50Thursday, december 25, 2014
www.osundefender.org T h e 5 T h m O s T - V I s I T e d N e W s -
- Pg 4
- See Story On Page 3
Front Page Comment“Look at what we did in
Osun State. In Osun, we had the best election conducted so far; the best election we have conducted so far as a commission since 2011.”
Quote
• Quote from Professor Attahiru Jega’s interview in The GuardIaN of Wed. Oct. 29 (2nd part of a series that started on the 28th).
•Jega
- See Story On Page 2
- Pg 2
•The governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf aregbesola (middle); Project Manager, engineer Oladini awoyemi (right); former Special adviser to the governor on Water Resources, engr (Mrs.) Tawakalitu Williams (left) and Mr. Sola adeeyo at the inspection tour to the Kajola Water Dam in the State of Osun, recently.
Aregbesola Presents N197bn 2015 Budget Estimate•Economic Sector Takes Largest ChunkOsun Offers Free Train For Festive Season
Abducted UNIOSUN ASUU Chairman’s Wife Regains Freedom
A Hole-in-the-heart Girl Needs Help
Yuletide: Christians Lament High Cost Of Food Items - Pg 4
Ebola: Personal Hygiene Is KeyThe recent declaration of Nigeria as Ebo-la-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO) came as a palatable news for the country. Of course it’s really a great thing to hear from the World
Health body that Nige-ria is free of the kill-er-disease that spreads like the harmattan fire. For a country where you hardly hear any good news; a country that’s hardly associated-with anything positive,
o have been given a clean bill of health with respect to EVD, is a thing to rejoice over and the govern-ment and the people of Nigeria deserve to be congratulated
continue on pg5
2 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december 25,
If you have a story or advert for us, contact 08033927286, 08033880205, 08061197897, 08023191891.
News
•The governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf aregbesola (2nd left), answering questions from newsmen. With him are, all Progressive Congress (aPC) Vice Presidential candidate in nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo (left) after the sitting of the ongoing election Petition Tribunal over august 9, 2014 governorship election between governor aregbesola and the defeated PDP candidate in the state, Senator Iyiola Omisore, at State High Court, Osogbo, recently.
PrIOr to today things have started to take shape in the state of Osun especially the state capital, Osogbo.
S o m e c o m m u t e r s plying the ever-busy Gbongan-Ibadan road, which had been a constant cause of concern, heaved sigh of relief at the smooth flow of traffic, which could be attributed to the near-completion of the Oba Adesoji Aderemi East Bye-Pass Road, which was constructed speci f ica l ly to take vehicular movements away from the city centre and thereby decongesting Olaiya and other axis in the town.
The testimonies of some of the interstate t r a n s p o r t e r s a n d commuters were proofs of the improvements in the flow of traffic during festive periods.
However, the same could not be said of traders and their patrons, as al l of them were complaining that the cost of items in the markets
had increased more that three times and coupled with that there was no money in town due to the fall in allocation from the federation account to the states.
Meanwhile, the free train ride from Lagos to Osogbo had commenced in earnest and the state capital had witnessed the first batch of travellers using the state as an access route to their different states.
I n a s e p a r a t e development, the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) had issued a warning to all road users, advising that they should respect other road users and maintain the approved speed limits.
The commission stated that with the increase in traffic during this season, there was likelihood of pockets of accidents occurring, but in order
to avoid such, drivers should follow the traffic regulations and also avoid drinking, driving and night journeys.
Any erring drivers, it emphasized, will be dealt with and charged to court and the stipulated fine
paid.They also called on
all travellers to always be watchful and report drivers who broke these rules to the nearest office of the commission for quick action to be taken.
It is on record that the
rate of accidents had reduced over the years in the state due to the massive campaign embarked upon by the commission during festive periods.
Osun Offers Free Train For Festive SeasonGOVerNmeNT of the state of Osun has
again offered free train service for travellers from Lagos along the corridors
of Ogun, Oyo to Osun during christmas and New year festive periods.
The ges tu re i s in con t inua t ion of the free train ride services embarked upon by the g o v e r n m e n t d u r i n g festive periods, which started in 2010.
A statement by the Director, Bureau of Communicat ion and Strategy in the Office of the Governor, Mr. S e m i u O k a n l a w o n , said the free train ride service underscores the
responsiveness of the government to the needs of the masses.
He said: “The first batch of the train passengers will be brought in from Lagos on Wednesday 24th December from the Iddo Terminus in Lagos by 11.00am. Passengers will also be taken back to Lagos from Osogbo Train Station on December 28, 2014.
“The free train ride will
also on 31st December convey passengers from Lagos to Osogbo and on the 4th of January, it will be passengers from Osogbo back to Lagos.
“During the las t Ramadan, free train ride service was offered by the state government to take Osun-bound passengers from Lagos to Osun and other neighbouring states.
“Passengers were also taken by the train service free-of-charge to Lagos State after festive periods in the State of Osun,” Okanlawon stressed.
The statement said
since its inception in 2010, the free train service has boosted tourism in the state, as its services have encouraged thousands who desire to travel, but consider the prohibitive transport fares and the usually hectic traffic situation associated with such seasons on the Nigerian roads.
The gesture, it also said, has rekindled the trust of Nigerians in the viability of the hitherto m o r i b u n d r a i l w a y system as a means of transportation.
Aregbesola Presents N197bn 2015 Budget Estimate•Economic Sector Takes Largest ChunkGOVerNOr of the state of Osun, Ogbeni
rauf aregbesola, on Tuesday presented a budget estimate of N197,080,191,560 for
2015 fiscal year before the state House of Assembly.The budget, tagged,
“Budget of Renewed Hope” is less than that of 2014 which was N234 billion with about 15.8 per
cent decrease.The total recurrent
expenditure as presented was N87 billion naira, w h i l e t h e C a p i t a l
Expenditure is N110 billion naira, with the Economic Sector, covering agriculture and rural development, rural/urban electrification, commerce, industry, finance and transportation taking the largest chunk with N41.6 billion.
The total Recurrent Revenue is N132 billion, while the Capital Revenue is N65 billion.
Laying the budget before the House, the governor who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Office of Budget and Economic Planning ,
Mr. Segun Olorunsogo, said the budget would consolidate the various achievements made in the last four years to transform the state.
The governor explained that the budget would also ensure the completion of on-going projects
and commencement of new ones that will have positive impact on the socio-economic lives of citizens of the state.
Explaining the reason for the decrease in the budget to that of 2014, the governor attributed it to the drop in the price of international oil market, dwindling federal allocation and limitation to internal loan facility due to stringent measure and policy put in place by the Federal Government.
Other reasons for the decrease, according to the governor, were recent devaluation of naira which has led to weaker currency and the need to depend less on the federal allocation and concentrate on how to grow Inetrnally Generated Revenue (IGR).
The governor who noted that the budget has already been over-stretched, appealed to the Assembly not to entertain request that could lead to increase in the proposed figure.
He however, noted that extra efforts would be made to generate more IGR, especially through collection of existing taxes and rate without necessarily imposing new tax regime on the people of the state.
Receiving the budget, the Speaker, Mr. Najeem Salaam, said the House would do justice to it and make necessary adjustment, either upward or downward, if the need arises before it is passed.
He called on the people to exercise patience, noting that the financial challenges being faced now is due to paucity of fund as a result of the drop in the federal allocation.
3 News OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december
•Beautification of gbongan/Ibadan road in Osogbo under the administration of governor Rauf aregbesola, as captured by our cameraman, gBenga aDenIYI, last Tuesday.
Osun East Senatorial District: ‘Omoworare Is Our Candidate’The state of Osun chapter of the all
Progressives congress (aPc) has cleared the air on who won the primary elections
conducted by the party for persons who aspired for Osun east senatorial district ticket.
Sena to r Baba j ide O m o w o r a r e , t h e incumben t sena to r, won the party primaries e l e c t i o n s b o t h a t consensus primary and general affirmation held on December 9, 2014 a t Nelson Mandela
Freedom Park, Osogbo, the state capital.
This was contained in a statement issued on Tuesday in Osogbo, by the party’s chairman, P r i n c e G b o y e g a Famodun .
“We are exploring
this medium to correct the misrepresentation and wrong impression registered by an aspirant, claiming to have won the primary election.
“ O n t h e 3 r d o f December 2014 , in line with the guidelines and timetable set for primary elections of the party, screening exercises were held to scrutinise credentials of
aspirants, with a view to determining their capacity and correctness of their records to fly the party’s flag.
“On the said date and at the screening committee stage, there was no primary election. The process and stages that threw up candidates for various offices on APC platform in the state were uniform and there was no ambiguity as to how they emerged.
‘The governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, did not at any level, interfere with the process, not to talk of imposing any candidate as being misrepresented from certain quarters.
T h e s t a g e b e i n g referred to by the said aspirant was just a screening exercise and not sufficient as stipulated in the party constitution to serve the purpose of a properly-defined primary, which was finalised on December 10, 2014 at Nelson Mandela Freedom Park in Osogbo.
“From the result of the exercise conducted
for Osun East Senatorial District, Senator Babajide Omoworare won at all levels and has been issued necessary documents to proceed as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Osun East Senatorial District.
“We implore anyone spreading falsehood and disparaging the party, our candidate and the Gove rno r t o de s i s t from such diversionary exercise.”
“The party therefore, implored members of the general public to disregard any discordant t u n e , d i s r e g a r d a l l unfounded claims, remain focused and vote for the party’s carefully-chosen candidates of character and integrity flying the All Progressives Congress (APC) flags including Senator Omoworare.
“The APC remains committed and focused to give the best of people-oriented and impactful democratic governance to the electorate of the State of Osun and Nigeria in general,” the party said.
Oroki Day: Tunde Badmus Sues For Unity
The asiwaju musulumi of yorubaland, alhaji Tunde badmus, has called for peace and unity among the indigenes and residents of
Osogbo land to ensure the development of the city. He said unity of purpose and collective responsibility
of all and sundry remains a major panacea to sustain the current infrastructural a n d e c o n o m i c development in the city.
Alhaji Badmus said this while addressing Osogbo indigenes home and abroad at this year’s Oroki Day, held at Osogbo City Stadium last Saturday.
According to him, the passion of the state governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, to develop the s t a te and make Osogbo a commercial
hub of the South-West is a source of inspiration for the elite and downtrodden masses, which calls for unity of purpose.
He said: “We are all living witnesses to how the status of Osogbo has been transformed from the hitherto glorified headquarters of a local government council area to a befitting state capital.
“Thanks to the governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.
“ I t o p e n s t o n o
argument that s ince Osogbo assumed status of a state capital on August 27,1991, when Osun State was created by General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, Osogbo has never had it so good.
“As our dear town, Osogbo, is witnessing deve lopmen t s upon developments , there is no gainsaying that these developments that Osogbo is now enjoying could not be divorced from the fact that we speak with one voice.”
“Therefore, we must not lose sight of the fact that Osogbo’s unity is not negotiable and we must not allow individual’s selfish ambition to put a
cog in the wheel of the progress of this unity. It is when community interest is not sacrificed on the altar of individual’s selfish ambition that such community can witness more developments,” he said.
The religious leader also commended the A t a o j a o f O s o g b o , Oba Jimoh Olanipekun Oyetunji, Laaroye II, Pa Hammed Omidiran and the Osogbo Progressive Union led by Ambassador Rasaq Siyanmbola, for the colourful organisation of the event.
The abducted wife of the chairman, academic staff union of universities, Osun state university chapter, mrs
Olufunmilayo abiona, has been rescued on Tuesday by security operatives five days after her abduction.
Dr Oluseye Abiona, the UNIOSUN ASUU chairman, who is the husband of the abductees, confirmed the release to our reporter on Tuesday.
According to Abiona, his wife was released unharmed along Ilesa-A k u r e e x p r e s s w a y around noon.
OsuN defeNder gathered that the woman was rescued inside a bush along Ilesa-Akure express way around 4.00pm.
I t w a s n o t c l e a r whether a ransom was paid to the abductors as demanded or not as at the time of filing this report.
The medium also g a t h e r e d t h a t t w o m e m b e r s o f t h e kidnapping gang were arrested by security operatives in connection wi th the abduct ion incident.
Abiona said he was happy to see his wife regaining her freedom a f t e r f i v e d a y s o f captivity.
He said: “My wife has been released. She was released this afternoon around I lesa-Akure Expressway.”
T h e D e p u t y Vice Chancel lor of UNIOSUN, Professor Siyan Oyeweso, who first confirmed Mrs Abiona’s release, said that the university community was happy because the woman was freed
without being harmed by
her captors.It would be recalled
that Mrs Abiona was last Friday abducted by unidentified gun-wielding men at around 7:30pm while returning
home from her shop located at Oke-Baale, Osogbo.
The businesswoman was said to be driving in an unmarked ash-coloured Toyota Lexus ES 330 salon car with her
two children, when the gunmen double-crossed her, smashed the rear wind screen of the car, dragged her into their vehicle and drove her away.
Mrs Abiona was taken
away in a red car by the abductors, who also wore red clothes, according to information.
The abductors had called her husband to demand a N50 million ransom, saying his wife was currently unharmed and in good condition as
OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december 4 News
by IsmaeeL uThmaN
by IsmaeeL uThmaN
by shINa abubakar
UNIOSUN Gets International Grants For Research, As Workers Bag Award, ScholarshipOsuN state university and three other universities
in Nigeria have been awarded a grant of $2.9 million from the International development research
centre and the canadian department of foreign affairs, Trade and development.
Vice Chancellor of the Osun State University, Professor Bashir Okesina, in a press briefing on Monday, said that the Director, Research and Linkages of the university, Professor C l e m e n t A d e b o o y e ,
facilitated the research grant to conduct research into indigenous vegetable production.
Okesina stated that the grant was released in recogni t ion of the credibility and standard
of the university and to promote its research works.
Besides, the European Research Council has also released a sum of 1.5 million Euros for a five-year research project being handled by the Dean Faculty of Humanities, UNIOSUN, Professor Olukoya Ogen, in conjunction with Professor Insa Nolte of the University of Birmingham.
The research project, according to Okesina,
was primarily aimed at investigating the social dynamics of everyday interaction and encounter among Yoruba Muslims, Christians, traditionalists and people of other faiths.
Okesina stated that the project would enhance cohabitation, unity and religious tolerance among the three major religious faithfuls.
Professor Ogen, the facilitator of the grant, had
won the Academic Writing Residence Grant, DASA, University of Birmingham for 2014.
Similarly, the Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Siyan Oyeweso, has also been elected to the Advisory Board of the European Research Council for a “Knowing Each Other Project” and was awarded a four-year travel fellowship for the programme.
Oyeweso, a professor of history, has also been appointed as a member of the Governing Council, Federal Polytechnic, Ede.
A l s o , a l e c t u r e r of the univers i ty, Dr John Agbonifo, of the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences,
has won the prestigious S w i s s G o v e r n m e n t Excellence Scholarship for the 2014/2015 academic year.
A g b o n i f o w o n t h e competitive award with his research proposal titled: Non-State Armed Actors and the Challenges of Designing Sanctions that Effectively Constrain their Activities.
Okesina, the VC of the UNIOSUN, said the institution was proud of its numerous achievements in academic and human capacity building, promising that the university would not compromise standard.
Osun Contingent To Israel Intensifies Prayers For State, LeaderssTaTe of Osun contingent on pilgrimage to the
Israel have intensified prayers for the state in the Holy land as its activities enter fifth day.
The fourth day of the trip and final of the three days set aside for special prayers by the team was observed on Sunday at Qumeran, after a visit to the Mountain of Temptation and the Dead Sea.
The first port of call was Jericho, the place believed to be the oldest city on earth, which is a Palestinian territory.
The visit to Jericho (light without darkness) was through the cable car that took the delegation to the Mount of Temptation, from where a strenuous walk through 825 steps to the chapel built on the cave, where Jesus observed the forty days’ prayer and fasting, before the devil came to tempt him with the promise to give him the whole of his site of view if only he could jump down as angels are waiting to safe him.
At the Mountain of Temptation signifies the end of Moses’ assignment and the beginning of that of Jesus and it was there the Isrealites received the blessing for their strength, short prayers were also offered before returning back through the cable car
of Jericho, to the location of the sycamore tree that Zaccheous climbed to see Jesus.
At Qumeran, where the Essences community lived, the team was told about the exploits of the Bedouin shepherds pasturing in 1947 and looking for a stray goat only to discover a cave in which the Dead Sea scrolls were kept. Because
of harsh environmental conditions, the people of the community lived “a communion life of sharing everything in common”. It was on this mountain that Moses was provoked to incur the wrath of God, when out of anger he struck the rock for water to be made available to the Israelites.
Extensive prayers were held on the mountain on various points for the State of Osun, the governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, his administration and those that will work with
him. Also prayers of good health, strength, longevity and wisdom were raised for the deputy governor, O tunba (Mrs ) Grace Titi Laoye-Tomori, who coincidentally marked her birthday last week and the nation in general.
The team was also at the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, which is a big, salty and stagnant sea that harbours no creature and the water and mud believed to have a healing/medicinal power.
A Hole-in-the-heart Girl Needs Helpa three-year-old girl, miss Toyin adeoye, whose
photograph on hospital theatre bed is attached here immediately after a successful heart surgical
operation at biket medical centre, off Ikirun road, Osogbo, to amend a hole-in the-heart, needs financial assistance from good-spirited individual and members of the public.
Accord ing t o he r parents, the surgical operation was successfully accomplished by a team of foreign medical surgeons, specially invited by the management of Biket Medical Centre under a special agreement that all medical bills must be paid before she could be allowed to leave the hospital.
Fortunately for her, a
sum of N900,000 was paid by her poor parents before the operation over a week ago but presently, she is in dire need of N700,000 to balance up the payment of her medical bill totalling N1,600,000.
The parents of Oluwatoyin Adeoye a re therefore requesting for financial assistance with any amount into her bank account to discharge her from Biket Medical Foundation as soon
as possible. Willing donors could pay
into any of the following bank accounts: 1st account Name: miss roselyn Oluwatoyin adeoye bank acct: 4131142407bank: mainstreet bank Plcor 2 n d a c c o u n t N a m e (mother’s account):mrs. Omolola Grace adeoyeacct No. 3028907076bank: first bank Plcm o t h e r ’s Te l e p h o n e No: 07069682557 or 07052540308.
Yuletide: Christians Lament High Cost Of Food Items
as christians across the country celebrate this year’s christmas today, faithful have lamented high cost of food items and lack of money in the polity.
OsuN defeNder v i s i t ed some marke t s in Osogbo, where some Christians, who spoke with the medium lamented the rising cost of commodities amidst scarcity of funds in the build-up to the festive season.
It was gathered that as the festive seasons approached, the prices of food items, which already were on the increase, rose dramatically and some of those who spoke with the medium said it became a necessity to buy at whatever price, in the interest of the yuletide.
According to Mr Segun Lawrence, the issue of austerity measure of the Federal Government was too rash on the people, cum the festive period, saying the prices of goods in the market were just too high.
He disclosed that the price of chicken sold for between N4000 to N5000 against the usual price of N2500 and N3500, while prices of other food items suddenly became extremely high that some buyers had to return home without buying at all.
Another buyer, Mrs Omotola Olusola, described the situation at the popular Igbonna Market in Osogbo as outrageous, saying she felt
traders were out to exploit the people under the guise of austerity.
She noted that she was aware of the decision of government to introduce measures to control economic policies, but stressed the need for the measures to be taken with human concern, saying the situation at this point in time is unfortunate.
A trader told the medium that customers are finding it difficult to purchase goods, as a result of weak purchasing power of the naira, over its devaluation by the Central Bank of Nigeria early this month.
She said the rise in prices of commodities is not the fault of the traders but as a result of the economic situation in the country, particularly as the nation’s currency has been devalued.
The medium observed at three major markets in the state capital that some buyers turn back disappointed, particularly at the prices of chicken in all the markets, while others simply go for small-sized chickens or local breeds.
•all fOR XMaS/neW YeaR: a chicken seller at akindeko Market, Osogbo, State of Osun, last Tuesday. Photo: gBenga aDenIYI
5 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december 25, 2014
by IsmaeeL uThmaN
Ebola: Personal Hygiene Is Keycontinued from pg1
pro-active manner with which they approached the Ebola epi-demic. And of particular mention here is the Lagos state govern-ment. In fact, that government really exhibited exemplary pro-ac-tiveness. a feat would not amount to exaggeration and it shouldn’t be so considered.
This is why we are proud of our governments both at federal and state levels for the pro-active man-ner with which they approached the Ebola epidemic.
And of particular mention here is the Lagos state government. In fact, that government really exhib-ited exemplary pro-activeness.
We are indeed proud of her. For with the myriad of problems confronting us as a nation it would have been a disaster writ large for the country should we have failed to contain the lethal disease. With our population it would have
really been disastrous for us if we failed to deal successfully with the scourge. The question is ‘how many problems would we have been deal-ing with’? For instance the problem of insecurity rather than abate is getting complicated by the day. Quite sad that the administration of President GEJ for the past four years has been preoccupied with how to tackle our security challenges. This has constituted a major distraction for his government making his government’s performance to be at a lowest ebb. Thus wouldn’t it have been unspeakably woeful for his administration to be further preoccu-pied with another big challenge like EVD? This of course is a rhetorical question. However, as we rejoice over this good news we must not go to sleep with the belief that it’s over. Though it could be regarded as being over in Nigeria, we must not forget that some neighbouring West African countries are still being ravaged by this deadly disease. Thus our joy could only be complete when we
are able to get rid of Ebola from the shores of Africa, nay, the world at large. In view of this there is a challenge before all of us especially at personal level and the challenge is for us to keep to the rules of hygiene. Personal hygiene is very key in keeping Ebola at bay. Not only Ebola but various types of disease. It’s of course not disputable that personal and environ-mental hygiene play a pivotal role in keeping diseases at bay from human community. For this reason we must not take personal and environmental hygiene for granted. It’s very import-ant that we adhere strictly to hygienic rules. At personal level we must ensure that we wash our hands regularly especial-ly before eating or putting anything into our mouth. Washing our hands or making use of sanitizer and washing our fruits properly before eating, is very important. Not only because of Ebola but it’s the key to warding off certain ailments that can arise out of uncleanliness. And it’s very important
to mention here that we need to edu-cate our little children in this regard. We must ensure that they imbibe the culture of hand-washing before they eat or swallow anything. Environmental hygiene is next to personal hygiene. We cannot talk of personal hygiene without talking of environmental hygiene. In fact they both go together; hands in glove. For time immemorial the dictum has been that ‘a clean environment promotes good heath’. This is not disputable. On the contrary a dirty environment provides habitat for diseases and brings about ill-health. In the light of the above it’s im-perative for us as individuals to live by the rules of personal and environmental hygiene. This is the only way to keep Ebola and other hygiene-related diseases away from our midst. It’s also by this that gov-ernments’ efforts so far in contain-ing the spread of EVD will not be in vain.
OSUN DEFENDERPublisher – Moremi Publishing House Ltd.
Managing Editor – Kola Olabisi (0803-392-7286)
Editor – Kayode Agbaje (0803-388-0205)
Lagos Editor – Kola Odepeju (08023191891) Production Editor – Pet-Kola Taiwo Ibitowa Senior Reporter – Sola JacobsSenior Reporter – Kazeem Mohammed
Computer Operator – Saheed AfolabiComputer Operator – Mary Akintolaassistant computer Operator – Lukman Oseni OsuN defeNder is published by Moremi Publishing House Limited, Promise Point Building, Opposite Guarantee Trust Bank GTB, Gbongan Road, Osogbo, State of Osun.All correspondence to the above mail address.ISSN: 0794-8050Telephone: 0803-392-7286, 08033880205Website: www.osundefender.com/index.phpe-mail: [email protected]
Jimi Agbaje: Good Pharmacist, Wrong Prescription I n e v e r r e a l l y
thought about Jimi A g b a j e , P D P
g u b e r n a t o r i a l candidate in Lagos, a s a f o r m i d a b l e candidate, until my brother, Pastor Bayo Adeyinka in Lagos, told me great things about him early this year, when I visited Nigeria.
Bayo was cocksure (I am not sure if he still is) that Jimi will defeat any candidate, including APC’s this season. I didn’t ask Bayo why he thought so. When I read Jimi’s profile, I liked what I saw. A very solid Pharmacist, who has done great exploits for himself, a good
family guy, a level-headed person and a man who knows where his next stop ought to be in life and career.
J i m i A g b a j e ,
a l though a good pharmac i s t , i s a wrong prescription for Lagos. Jimi just described the APC as an inconsistent political party, which has changed names and camps serially. And there was a time when he camped
with the party in the metamorphosis process. If that is what makes APC inconsistent, then Jimi is the father of inconsistency based
on his records: Jimi was a member of AD, then jumped to become a member of AC, then moved to DPA, then became an arrow head of CPC, later changed to LP, before he landed in PDP. In so short a period, Jimi has
changed his dirty political diapers six times, and we are still counting. PDP, I can assure you, is not Jimi’s last stop. Who then is inconsistent?
When he was in CPC, Jimi said Buhari was the cleanest and most honest human being over and above Goodluck Jonathan; but today, Buhari is the worst, and Jonathan is the best.
W h o t h e n i s inconsistent? I like Jimi, he is a good pharmacist, but a wrong prescription fo r Lagos . Akin Ambode is the next governor; you can take it to the bank!
• f O l a O J O , United States of
OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december 6 feaTure
The Senseless Evasion Of The Nigeria EquationTHE woes and throes of collapse that befall our nation are no longer news. Nigerians, and, indeed, those who follow up the Nigerian story, are used to hearing news of monies looted from the public treasury in billions (and most recently trillions, like in the case of the fuel subsidy thieves); scores of people dying in avoidable road accidents on a daily basis; high profile criminals, who should be rightly escorted to the gallows to face the hangman, getting ridiculous sentences with options of fine (while a petty thief gets a death sentence in Delta State for stealing car stereo); trigger-happy policemen taking the lives of bona fide citizens for refusing to part with N20 bribe; and what not. All of these, and many more, which will make even the devil shudder, have left Nigerians yearning for change. I quite agree with May Akabogu-Collins, a visiting Professor of Economics at the American Business School in Paris, when she says that a Nigerian spring is long overdue.
In truth, many people have become disenchanted with the Nigeria project, as no good seems to come out of it. However, the quest for change in results without a commensurate change in the way of doing things is at best a beggar’s wish. That is to say, doing the same things over and over will only produce the same results over and over. This is because, as Dr. Yusuf Qardhawi, the great scholar and theologian puts it, corrupt realities cannot be changed by immature strategies based only upon good wishes and intentions.
In finding the solution to a problem, I used to think that the starting point is to actually know the problem itself. But that seems not to be the case with Nigeria. In our peculiar case, the problem is well known, even to the ordinary man in the street. And at more scholarly levels, you find people, both in formal and informal gatherings, discussing the problem like it is the course they studied in the university. But the unfortunate irony is that, in our case, the more we know the problem the more elusive the solution seems. More so, those who know the problem too well are usually a part of it or are mostly the ones involved in perpetuating it. If you ask an average Nigerian what the country’s problem is, he most probably will tell you: corruption! – referring to economic and financial crimes. However, that person who is quick to point at corruption as the bane of our country is also, in most cases, involved in one form of corruption or another.
For example, it is easy to find
a university lecturer accusing those at the helms of affairs of the country of financial recklessness, whereas he is full-time into trade by batter with his female students, exchanging sex for grades. Perhaps, a clearer example is that of the late Fela Anikulapo Kuti, who was foremost in criticizing the government of the day, especially with regards to financial probity and corrupt use of power for selfish ends, but who was himself involved in corrupting the youths (males and females) of our country in his Kalakuta Republic, where he promoted moral depravity, turning them into sexual perverts and drug addicts. It becomes a case of the kettle calling the pot black.
Well, like I have aptly pointed out, our problem is not ignorance of the challenges confronting us as a nation and as a people, but the lack of will and passion to do things differently in order to effect positive, developmental and progressive change at the various spheres of our society. We believe in sitting back
and waiting for a Messiah to descend from the skies to turn things around for us. But manna and quails no longer fall from heaven. We must all emancipate ourselves from our conservative ways of doing things and adopt progressive alternatives, reorient our mentalities, and imbibe some appreciable level of moral uprightness, self-discipline and honesty, before we can start seeing things turn around for the better. Building a strong and ideal society means everyone must play a role.
It is a truism that when a fish is getting rotten it starts from the head. That means if we must get it right with regards to building the kind of country and society we much desire, then, in addition to refining our ways, we must get the best of us to superintend over us at all levels of leadership. But how do we expect to undermine the unimpressive antecedents of our choices of leaders, turn a blind eye to the fraudulent process that bring them to power, and yet expect them to transform into award winning leaders overnight?
For instance, we had a Goodluck Jonathan, who was a deputy governor and later governor of a small but rich state like Bayelsa, with no more than eight local government council areas, and with an estimated GDP of $4.34 billion and a per capita income of $2,484 as at the time he was there, whereas a state like Jigawa, at that same time, had twenty-seven local government council areas with an estimated GDP of $2.99 billion and a per capita income of $673. Yet, at the end of his stint at the Bayelsa Government House, his performance could best be described as dismal and lacklustre.
This same man vied for the highest office in the country and whipped up sympathy from Nigerians with the story of his shoeless childhood and the unfortunate “it is our turn” propaganda. At the end of the day, he was imposed on the country as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces by the ruling political cult, and Nigerians yet expected him to perform signs and wonders, not by his competence, capability, or antecedence, but by merely been christened “Goodluck”! Come to think of it: how can a man who could not perform in a state with only eight local government areas, and with as much resources as was at his disposal, suddenly transmogrify into a Messiah of sorts in a country of seven hundred and seventy-four local government council areas? It just does not add up.
Therefore, fellow countrymen, as the next round of general elections for change of leadership in 2015 fast approaches, and as experience has shown us that those who ascend the mantle of leadership by mere happenstance and primordial sentiments usually “don’t give a damn”, but rather turn out to be opportunists who see power only as a means for gratifying their rapacious appetite for wealth to make up for their years of shoelessness and misfortune, we must learn and commit to elect leaders based on their credibility, strength of character and proven track record. We cannot continue to evade the realities on ground and expect our “luck” to shine and just wake up one morning to see our country metamorphose into an abode of utopia and euphoria. In the words of Plato, the renowned philosopher and mathematician, “the city is what it is because our citizens are what they are”.
by abu bILaaLabduLrazaqbN beLLO bNOare
•JOnaTHan
10 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december
an Ongoing christ apostolic church (cac) araromi middle school building Project, Gbodofon, Osogbo, under The administration Of Governor rauf aregbesola, as captured by Our cameraman, GbeNGa adeNIyI, Last Tuesday.
phototalk
•front view of the building.
•an ongoing CaC araromi Middle School building project, gbodofon, Osogbo.
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8 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december
9OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december 25,
OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december 25, 2014 7PhOTOTaLk
Preparation for christmas and New year In Osogbo, state Of Osun, as captured by Our cameraman, GbeNGa adeNIyI, Last Tuesday.
•Residents of Osogbo buying clothes in preparation for Christmas festival.
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•Chicken sellers and buyers at Olu-Ode Market, Osogbo.
•Buyers and sellers at Igbona Market, Osogbo.
10 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december
an Ongoing christ apostolic church (cac) araromi middle school building Project, Gbodofon, Osogbo, under The administration Of Governor rauf aregbesola, as captured by Our cameraman, GbeNGa adeNIyI, Last Tuesday.
PHOTOTALK
•front view of the building.
•an ongoing CaC araromi Middle School building project, gbodofon, Osogbo.
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11 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december FEATURE
The Robber State Can Now Drink Her Oil THE hope of restoring normalcy to a morally-bankrupt nation to a place in the sun greater than it had ever been is ebbing gradually. Nigeria is in economic straits, maimed by official corruption, which slices off more than 50 % of her GDP in revenue. The nation’s oil deals which has been shrouded in the caucuses of bargaining and appalling crudity has left the people in abject poverty.
But President Goodluck Jonathan’s sidekick wouldn’t have any of such. They are used to thinking that the ugly picture is a mere grotesque hodgepodge concocted by half-baked, uneducated neurotics who are bent on sabotaging the humane president. It’s time Mr President summon the moral courage and pledge the reversal of the nation’s menacing presence and the future.
Regrettably, the argument of Jonathanians is not supported by Mr President’s broken promises, overt corruption, oil theft and pipeline vandalism. The gruelling grind of irony in a land flowing with energy under its belly vanquished presidential hollowness for its failure to make the
economy boom.In 2011, NNPC signed a
USD28.5 billion Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Chinese to build the NNPC Greenfield Refineries in Bayelsa, Kogi, and Lagos States’. So far, none has been built, four years down the line. In 2012, at the Nigerian Oil and Gas Conference, the bogey minister promised that Turn Around Maintenance (TAM), will gulf USD700 million for the four refineries within 12 months.
As we speak, none of the four Nigerian refineries operates with more than 60 per cent capacities. Kaduna refinery operates below 30% of her installed capacity. That is after billions of dollars was expended. How else can we explain that TAM was a waste of our common patrimony and the crudest form of corruption? The four refineries can produce 445,000 barrel of oil per day, if they are functioning at 100% capabilities; which is still below Nigeria’s current need of about 39 million litres, according to the PPPRA, per day!
President Jonathan’s government expended trillions of dollars on the so-called fuel subsidy that was reeked with hyper-corruption. When Nigerians protested the enrichment of the president’s cronies with the oil scam, Mrs Diezani Allison-madueke deadened her concerns scornfully and bluntly told the nation to go to hell or that the fuel subsidy would be reduced by half any time she chooses.
It was a show of sheer unconcealed disdain for the Nigeria masses. The protest against fuel subsidy was partly against her career of gross abuse of office
and blatant assault on the volition of the people to benefit from the resources of their nation. While the people haggled and groaned under the excruciating hike in the price of fuel, the Federal Government remained blunted in her responsibilities to the electorate as stipulated by the constitution.
That profound deadening of consciousness is the sheerest negation of nation-building, where the peoples’ demand for access to common till is viewed as doing them favour. Any surprise that President Jonathan gloated and gloried suppressing protesters, who sought the reversal of fuel increments in the past? Even after many people have lost their lives, all the promises
of palliatives never came.Till now, the consistent figure of
about N200 billion the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) pays to petroleum marketers quarterly for subsidy hasn’t changed. Yet, Nigeria remains one of the few OPEC members still importing most of its refined petroleum products to the tune of over USD15 billion yearly.
There is no doubt that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) has accumulated dust wherever
is it kept. This is due largely to the frosty relationship between the minister and the National Assembly members. This has resulted into her getting court injunction stopping them from investigating the alleged N10 billion allegedly expended on private jets. This is away from the USD20 billion missing in the NNPC accounts as alleged by the former CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, and now the Emir of Kano.
The Presidency is aware that the non-passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill is gravely affecting investment in the oil and gas industry and that continued delay is inimical to the nation’s economy. The passage of the PIB would have fast-tracked the exploration of oil in many parts of the country where oil has recently been discovered. The President is also aware that the passage of PIB will stem the tide of mega-corruption and the suitcase oil portfolios will come to an abrupt end.
We are back to the same position. My former union, Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, in alliance with the Petroleum and National Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, has embarked on industrial action,
grounding the already traumatised economy for lack of faith in the government of the day. The oil unions are accusing
the President of inability to fix existing and build new refineries, bad roads, arbitrary sacking of union members by oil companies. The Trade Union Congress even took it further.
Arising from its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, the central labour union enthuse: “The congress expresses dismay that the prices of refined petroleum products have remained unchanged despite the significant fall of crude oil prices, which the CBN acknowledged as a steady one. “We therefore called on the government to direct the appropriate agency to respond by adjusting the pump price of petroleum products, which will ameliorate the impact on the purchasing power by the devaluation of the Naira.
Now, Nigerians are reminded to be contented with the oil goddess with the burning beauty, who the alternate lot falls upon as the OPEC’s Chairman that becomes a shinning jewel on her scrap-iron crown! A fourth-grade schoolmarm could have thought that the minister even the hewers of wood and the drawers of water knew when to demand for wage increase to cushion their labour. She was the least possessed of that burning sense of mission to end the ogre of corruption the perennial crisis of fuel scarcity.
Over the weekend, the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, disclosed that Nigeria loses N24 billion yearly on waivers granted to importers of crude oil. This is in spite of the fact that those enjoying the waiver are the same people as those criminally benefiting from fuel subsidy graft.
Both the International Energy Agency and former U.S. Energy Information chief Guy Caruso predict oil prices are likely to remain lower for a while, barring a major disruption in supply. “It’s highly unlikely OPEC gets their act together, so I see prices being weak for the next six months or so,” Mr Caruso said.
It’s obvious that Nigeria will remain politically stunted, economically traumatised, developmentally backward for many years to come for refusing to diversify. It’s a stark choice we have to make. Either we diversify or we start drinking our oil! An anti-State agent? A megalomania? A sadistic fancy? All of them in part. It’s because the state itself has become the
biggest swindler and crook. A robbers’ state! The hope of nation-becoming, which early in 2011 vividly accomplished President Jonathan’s restoration’s campaigns has faded in the twilight of 2014.
by erasmus IkhIde
•alISOn-MaDueKe
13 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december
Job Vacancies In Nigeria
you can subscribe to job Vacancies in Nigeria, jobs in Nigeria via your e-mail at www.jobszila.com
Wema bank recruitment for Graduate Trainees ([email protected]) 2014/2015
Wema Bank is recruiting entry-level candidates to fill various positions across their branches nationwide.
University Degree or its equivalent (HND), with a grade not lower than Second Class Lower Division. Professional qualifications and/or certifications proffer added advantage.Communication Skills: Advanced competency in oral and written English with the ability to communicate clearly and confidently in a professional work environment.Analytical Skills:
Ability to apply strategic thought process to complex business challenges and to develop innovative, yet practical, solutions.Commitment & Aspiration: Be committed to the growth and achievement of personal and corporate goals.
Interpersonal skills: Demonstrable and proven interpersonal skills, including the ability to work and interact with people regardless of age, sex, background, religion, race, or origin.Flexibility: Be adaptable and demonstrate the ability to traverse different assignments and work locations.
application Process - Graduate careersAll fresh graduates with a minimum of a university degree not below Second Class Upper Division, or its equivalent. Candidates must have completed the mandatory one-year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme are encouraged to send their applications to: [email protected]
All eligible candidates will be batched and invited for the Computer-Based Test (CBT). This is the preliminary phase of our entry-level recruitment process. Once successful, they are scheduled for the next phase of the process, leading eventually (for successful candidates) to an exciting career with the Bank.For more information visit: http://wemabank.com/careers/available-vacancies/
Application Deadline Not Specified
—————————————————————————————————————Wema bank job Vacancies for experienced Personnel, december 2014 ([email protected])
Wema Bank is recruiting experienced candidates to fill various positions across their branches nationwide.
job Position: Experienced Hires
Location: Nationwide
Qualification:
University Degree or its equivalent (HND), with a grade not lower than Second Class Lower Division. Professional qualifications and/or certifications proffer added advantage.Analytical Skills: Ability to apply strategic thought process to complex business challenges and to develop innovative, yet practical, solutions.
commitment & aspiration:
Be committed to the growth and achievement of personal and corporate goals.Communication Skills: Advanced competency in oral and written English with the ability to communicate clearly and confidently in a professional work environment.Interpersonal Skills: Demonstrable and proven interpersonal skills, including the ability to work and interact with people regardless of age, sex, background, religion, race, or origin.Flexibility: Be adaptable and demonstrate the ability to traverse different assignments and work locations.
application Process Interested applicants should submit their resumes to Human Capital Management at the Bank’s Head Office or through any of our network of branches nationwide. You can also send your resume to: [email protected]
Applicant(s) would be contacted for a preliminary chat if the candidate’s profile matches any available or vacant job position. Subsequently, all qualified candidates will be scheduled for a series of formal interviews, prior to the Bank taking a final decision.
For more information visit: http://wemabank.com/careers/available-vacancies/
Application Deadline Not Specified
——————————————————————————————————————Nigerian bottling company Limited Vacancy for a cold drink Operations Logistics coordinator in Lagos
The Nigerian Bottling Company Limited is one of the biggest companies in the non-alcoholic beverage industry in the country and is the sole franchise bottler of The Coca-Cola Company in Nigeria.
Our company serves approximately 160 million people by producing and distributing a unique portfolio of quality brands, bringing passion to marketplace implementation, and demonstrating leadership in corporate social responsibility.
NBC Ltd started operations in Nigeria in 1951. Based in the city of Lagos, we operate 13 bottling plants across the country. In addition, we channel products through 59 warehouses and distribution centers.
Job Details The Job Holder will report to the Cold Drink Operations Manager and the vacancies exist in our thirteen Plant locations.
The responsibilities include: Lead cooperation with Third Party logistics behind agreed SLA’SCreate/Manage an efficient ice movement strategy/executionThe Jobholder will be the cost owner for CDO Logistics Activities.Performs root cause analysis & problem resolution of CDO logistics services daily issuesEnsures 3PL full compliance to CCH warehousing and delivery standardsPerforms regular performance reviews with CDO Mgr., CDE Mgr., and FS with action planningReporting on logisticCoordinates the technical disposal processControls inter - warehouse movementsIdentifies and implements initiatives to reduce CDE movement costEnsures effective cooperation between FS, CDE warehouse and 3PLFollows up to make sure that all applicable safety, occupational health, loss prevention and environmental requirements in the area of CDO logistics are applied and followedReports list of TBDI CDEs for Disposal RFA initiationCreates purchase requisitions for transport and disposal & posts service entry sheetsUpdates equipment data (deletion flag, status update and RFA number filled in)Monitors CDE inventories on a monthly basis and ensures assets are reconciled with FARCompletes technical work orders in ERPSecures achievement of KBI’s in Cooperation with Cold Drink Equipments & FSManages CDE movements order cycle to ensure they are organized & controlled in accordance with agreed SLAs for improved levels of customer service at optimum cost.Manages Ice movement and distribution up to the retail outletsEnsures high customer satisfaction and owns continuous improvement action planning with 3PLEnsures CDE inventories in all warehouses and depots regularly in accordance with proceduresEducation level First degree in any relevant discipline with Logistics and Supply chain managementExperience needed 5 yearsDesired candidate profile First degree in any relevant discipline with Logistics and Supply chain managementMinimum of 5 years Logistics and supply chain experienceExperience in Supply Chain Planning function with exposure to Commercial/Sales function will be an added advantageMember of Professional body will also be an added advantage.Strong analytical skills and ability to interface, influence, and interact professionally with external vendors.
method of applicationInterested candidates should:http://nbcltdcareers.com/mobile/jobDetails.php?jobid=55
CITA Petroleum is the pre-eminent aviation fuelling company in West Africa and a part of CITA Group LLC, Virginia, USA. CITA has a strong presence in Nigerian airfields like Lagos, Abuja,Port Harcourt, Calabar,Warri, Uyo, Owerri.CITA specializes in into-plane fuelling, offshore/onshore system maintenance and also develop and operate bulk Petroleum Storage facilities as a major function of its core business.
CITA parades the best hands in Nigerian Into-plane Aviation Fuelling.
The following job vacancies exist at CITA Petroleum:
job Title: Management Trainees (MT)
requirement:
- Be a graduate of Engineering, Science, Social Sciences and Humanities. - Have a Second Class Upper Division or Second Class Lower with a Masters Degree in any field- Have completed the NYSC programme- Not more than 28-year old by next birthday.
how to applyhttp://e-recruiter.ng/vacancy/details/3122 Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted via their email address and by SMS to the telephone number provided.
Application Deadline: Monday 12th January 2015; —————————————————————————————————————jobs for POP Technicians and Generator engineers in a Lagos hotel
An international brand of hotel situated in the heart of Victoria Island, Lagos State requires the services of young dynamic and hardworking candidates with exceptional customer service skills for the under-listed positions:
1.) P.O.P Technician3.) Mechanical and Electrical Industrial Generator Engineer
Qualification Candidate should possess a Certificate from a reputable technical school
how to applyInterested and qualified candidates should send their CV’s with scanned (coloured) passport photographs online to: [email protected]
Application Deadline 31st December, 2014
14 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december feature
•MOHaMMeD
One President; Many SycophantsTHERE are many of us who have
a clear understanding of the enormity of the burden of
leadership. Leading a family, church, business or a community has its biting effect on whoever has been chosen to lead. In a convolution like Nigeria, leadership is more challenging because there are too many holes and vacuums to fill, and too many complex problems to solve. Aeschylus was the ancient Greek playwright, who made this statement: “It is an easy thing for one whose foot is on the outside of calamity to give advice and to rebuke the sufferer.” President Jonathan has his whole body immersed in the turbulence of presiding over a behemoth intricacy like Nigeria. I feel his pain and frustration. The president may or may not know this; around his throne are many liars and deceivers laying in wait daily at the gate. Around him are those chanting only songs that are mellifluous and euphonious in his ears. Gluttons are in-charge of the treasury and gerrymandering geeks are trusted confidants of this commander, and as a result, the terrain of leadership becomes tougher and more treacherous to navigate.
But alarmingly by choice, the president is salivating for more time in the turbulent whirlwind of government he does not seem to have a savvy cue about. I wish him all the best. Jonathan has been called many names by his many admirers. They have called him the best president ever in the history of Nigeria; they have called him Mandela, Obama, and Martin Luther King. To some, he is a combination of Awolowo, Sardauna and Azikiwe. A friend of mine from Anambra recently called him Ojukwu and Mbakwe put together in one Ebele. Doyin Okupe, presidential spokesman this week likened him to Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, who came to bear our burdens. From all these grandiloquent and aureate adorning names given to him, the president has not publicly answered to any. He knows he is Goodluck Jonathan, who has limitations.
Addressing the United Nation’s diplomats in Addis Ababa Monday January 31st, 2011, the president said these words: “If I’m voted into power, within the next four years, the issue of power will become a thing of the past. Four years is enough for anyone in power to make a significant improvement and if I can’t improve on power within this period, it then means I cannot do anything…” I was not surprised when the Federal Ministry of Power stated on its website that the energy sent out by the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) has dropped to 2,954.51 megawatts (MW). Goodluck knows what Jonathan is able to do. Just recently, Jonathan’s
Federal Ministry of Power stated on its website that the energy sent out by the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) has dropped to 2,954.51 megawatts(MW).
But Mr. President has fallen into the hands of vultures, whose menu is money in bales and batches. There is a video which has gone viral where the president emphatically said that he would only serve one term in office as president. Reuben Abati, the president’s spokesman, among many other personalities, echoed the same sentiments on the video, and the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) reported it. Nobody pressured the president to make this statement; that was the real Otuoke-bred Goodluck, whose words used to be his bond. But when he tasted the irresistible sweet pudding of power, and egged on by the surrounding sounds of sycophants, denial of the promise started pouring in like an abundance of rain. Goodluck should know that six years are good enough for any human-being to be president of Nigeria, with or without shoes. Goodluck should know that whatever any president cannot achieve in six years, he cannot achieve in ten. But my president
has fallen into the hands of powerful interests and cabal who know that their dinner table will be empty if a Jonathan is not in power.
A former Aviation Minister and a boisterously-loud supporter of Jonathan’s re-election said this about the president just a few years ago when he was eating at a different dinner table of an opposition political party: “If Goodluck Jonathan wants his fortunes and the fortunes of his party to change and if he wants peace to return to our shores, he simply has to do twelve things. Firstly he has to resign as president forthwith and undertake to stay out of Nigerian politics for the next ten years and confine himself to fishing in Otuoke”.
This former Minister has said worse things about this president, but today, he is on a fishing-expedition with him. These are the kinds of unstable characters around the throne. Some liars around him are pastors who prophesy lies. Friends, many of these pastors are like fallen angels; if you fall into their hands, you have fallen flat and irredeemably finished forever. They are those who organize conferences and seminars all over the nation chanting; “Goodluck Jonathan, there is none like you”.
Some of these disgusting pastors have attempted ministry-exploits abroad in times past but failed woefully and had no choice but to return to Nigeria and device lies to make a living. They are taking advantage of our president, shoving the people’s money into their building-projects and personal drive for filthy-lucre. They frequent Aso-Rock in special night-vigil prayer sessions; and there they ‘prophe-lie’ that God wants Goodluck to be in power forever. Pathetic peripatetic pastors hopping on hired private-jets to Jerusalem today, Rome tomorrow with all expenses paid by our government from funds that should build roads and hospitals for Nigerians who are dying daily unnecessarily. There is a particular pastor, who attempted to scare all of us that any Moslem presidential candidate is a terrorist, who wants to turn Nigeria to Turkey and Afghanistan. He instills a bugaboo via horrible videos of beheadings into our young people that a particular political party is about to turn every one of us into Talibans. And he knows he is wrong, and he also knows we know he is hungry. Every church he goes preaching his hate messages, fat envelopes in priestly-offerings and honorarium follow. And he shamefully does this on a choreographed Bible-Study curriculum of fear, deception and lies. Shame on you pastor!
When the baton of power changes, these same characters will immediately begin charting another course for themselves to initiate a romance with the government in power. These are the charlatan characters around this president who won’t tell him the true state of our union. No single Nigerian president in this democracy has the power to do what this pastor has been blabbing about. If it couldn’t be done during the military regime where power was in an exclusive concentration in one junta, it cannot be done now. In the present Nigerian arrangement, will either a Moslem or Christian monopolize Nigeria’s presidency and political power? Never! As long as Nigeria remains intact as one nation indivisible, leadership assignments will be shared and rotated between men and women who hold different religious beliefs. No one religion will have a controlling monopoly on leadership in our country because we are not homogenous in belief. Those who are praying to God that a Moslem or Christian candidate rules forever in Nigeria are just daydreaming.
The average Nigerian on the street doesn’t care what God you serve. Religion is not the factor for many, relief from these hard times is. And this president is having a hard time bringing that about. Nigerians are sick-and-tired of being sick-and-
by fOLa OjO
15 OSun DefenDeR Thursday, december 25, 2014 PhOTOTaLkBeautification Of Osogbo In Preparation Of Christmas And New Year As Captured by Our cameraman, GbeNGa adeNIyI, Last monday and Tuesday.
•laMeCO/agunbelewo roundabout, Osogbo, at night.
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•The new look of abere roundabout in front of State Secretariat.
Thursday, december 25, 2014
www.osundefender.org T h e 6 T h m O s T - V I s I T e d N e W s -
by GOke buTIka“Wealth is not his that has it, but his who enjoys it.”——Benjamin Franklin.
NIGERIAN economy is on its death bed; the value of naira is already in the grave, the mono-product, crude oil, is no longer sweet in the market and foreign reserve is developing wings almost on hourly basis. Salary payment has become a tedious project, infrastructural development is stalled, insecurity is a normal policy, but politics and politicking are thriving. Welcome to the gate of “Banana Republic”.
For a fairly long time after the victory of the governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, I withdrew myself from the news media and faced my refresher course squarely and I made reading my second religion. Of course, I intended to make it like that for the rest of this year, but the political and economic development, which have affected other spheres of influence has compelled me to return to the ring.
While welcoming you to my thought on the state of the nation, let us quickly discuss the issues that made the emergence of General Muhammadu Buhari monikered GMB and his choice of running mate, highly respected Professor Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), viz a viz, the re-election bid of President Goodluck Jonathan, the only major item on the table for now.
Let it be clear that I have my sympathy for All Progressives Congress (APC), not because the party is constructed on any ideology, but for the fact that the pushers claim their passion for change, which is the only alternative now anyway. So, I am left with no choice than to hope against hope, having being convinced that the ruling-Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is innocent of any progressive ideas that can fix Nigeria.
Shall we quickly predicate our argument on some challenges militating against the country on the forethought of the world citizen, a Philosopher king, who lived ahead of his time, Mahatma Ghandi, on the seven deadly sins against the being of any nation:
Wealth without work;Pleasure without conscience;Science without humanity;Knowledge without character;Politics without principle;Commerce without morality;Worship without sacrifice.”
Today, the heavily-sponsored agents of President Goodluck want us to believe that “Lee Kwan Yu did it” in Singapore, so Jonathan is doing it in Nigeria, forgetting that people like Edwin Clark, Asari Dokubo and other emergency millionaires, who are busy establishing private universities in foreign countries, without traceable job, could not survive in Singapore, but here in Nigeria, “Jonathan is doing it” ensuring wealth without work, as long as you are either from his part of the country, or you can threaten fire and brimstone, if he is not re-elected.
Meanwhile, David Ricardo, a renowned Economist, once said that in the long run, all factors will become variables. Our President has no big table of ideas, and he confesses that he is surrounded by advisers, who need advice themselves, because, according to him, most times, their pieces of advice are contradictory. I will be correct to say that a lot of political jobbers are making millions of dollars from the government without adding
value. That is wealth without work and the country is paying dearly for the leakage.
I can’t ever imagine that our army with intimidating record of performance in international engagement could be punished by Boko Haram insurgency, but it should be because Department of State Security (DSS) that ought to gather intelligence and foil pre-emptive strikes, has become a political instrument in the hands of the ruling party; while the police under the watch of one IGP Sulaiman Abba has put on the garment of partisanship. The soldiers have no superior equipment, because the budgetary expenditure on defence is being diverted to private purses. Surely this wealth without work is killing Nigeria.
There was a time one of the aides of President Jonathan said the increase in acquisition of private jets is an achievement, but now that the economy of this nation is gasping for breathe, because so many political actors are living in sprawling luxury without justifiable work, you and I now know that Ghandi must be having Nigeria in mind, when he postulated the notion of seven deadly sins.
Another deadly sin is pleasure without conscience. I am constrained to follow the line of argument raised by Chief Christopher Kolade, the man, we all agree, has unimpeachable character, and based on that, President Jonathan appointed him to pioneer the so-called
safety net to cushion the pains of increase in fuel pump price in 2012. So, if such a man of impeccable character spanks any political leader, he must be taken serious, as suggested by a columnist, Simeon Kolawole.
Kolade said it loud and clear that Jonathan has failed in his capacity to provide leadership, wondered why Mr. President would be dancing Azonto in Kano, when some psychopaths were murdering young school boys in Yobe. He could not come to term with a leadership that was too timid to show up in Borno, even if it is just to encourage the military boys, who are using their blood to keep the country’s name.
Honestly speaking, Mr. Jonathan should be paid by Buhari for making him the hottest of the presidential materials in town. Just take a look at the Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces that finds pleasure in the fortress of the highly-fortified presidential villa, eating with N1 billion and dashing golden iPhones to guests, who graced his adopted daughter’s wedding in Otuoke, when daughters of countrymen are wasting away in the hands of terrorists in Sambisa Forest.
In their pleasure, stealing is different from corruption, and who cares, if $20 billion could not be accounted for in the federation accounts, what matters is that a minister must buy two BMW cars for N250 million, and another Dame of oil
must use another $10 million dollars for hiring of private jets for her engagements. Look, the Aso Rock tenants are too comfortable to know the suffering of the masses.
So, for the second sin, Jonathan presidency is as guilty as Adam to the forbidden tree of Biblical story. Mr. President has shown to us sufficiently that he could not think beyond the box. Unfortunately, he
is in short supply of good Advisors, who could make him to take good decisions. As a result, the nation has become a butt of joke in an international arena. Ditto for the tragicomedic angle of the iron lady of the villa, whose uses of syntax, grammar and morphology have begged for the award among the half-baked. I think Nigerians do not want this kind of Jonathan Presidency, and it will be a good decision to sack him from the job by 2015.
Science without humanity is the third unforgivable sin, according to Ghandi. I am of opinion that the deployment of nuclear bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, both in Japan, in 1945 by the United States, which exterminated thousands of souls and retarded growth of people, coupled with depletion of land, caused Ghandi to lament on the index of man-inhumanity to man, for that weapons of mass destruction was too much to bear; and the way and manner Goebbels dished out lies in propaganda of the second world war through electronic media to foist Adolf Hitler on the world, explained the hypothesis of science without humanity.
In Nigeria, Jonathan is a “Jesus Christ” as propounded by the lead-clown in the presidential court, Doyin Okupe, the medic, who may not remember where to keep malaria injection again. Of course, our dear CAN President, Ayo Oritsejafor, has no objection to that. As a matter of fact, when his dollar-laced private jet was arrested in South Africa, it was Jonathan that bore the cross of crucifixion. The people in-charge of the social media for Jonathan are dishing out lies and make-belief to fool Nigerians; while some smart Alec calling themselves Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) are consistently bamboozling the people about the imaginative projects that are only known to Aso Rock alone. Yes, we watch railway service, bridges and roads, functional education and security, all computer-generated, on television. That is science without humanity, because there is no nexus between the make-belief and the actuality.
We have petroleum here, yet we have a government that claims to be subsidizing imported finished premium motor spirit, where four refineries built by the military regimes have been left to rotten. Today, government contractors, businessmen and governors, who could not pay salaries of workers were made to cough out N22 billion for re-election of Jonathan in an economy that is on “life support”, yet the lies in the media continue with magistrate swagger.
Let check out for the remaining sins in the next piece.
•Goke Butika wrote in this piece from Osogbo.
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