How Uduaghan Bribed Political Parties With N5Million To Endorse Delta Senatorial Bye-Election Results

As controversy trails last Saturday’s Delta Central Senatorial bye-election, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan is alleged to have doled out the sum of N5million to state chairmen of moribund political parties in the state to give the election a clean bill of health at a press conference today.
About 19 chairmen converged at the state secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Asaba for the conference, led to the event by the Special Adviser on Inter Parties Relations, Mr. Taju Isiche and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Education Monitoring, Mrs. Rhoda Ikede.
Confiding in a SaharaReporters correspondent, one of the party chairmen said they received their 30 pieces of silver following the press conference at the office of Mr. Isiche.  Each of them received a miserly N50,000.
At the event, perhaps under promises of vaster riches if they sang very loudly, they described the election as “the most transparent, free and fair election in our recent history.”

Declaring the press briefing open, Isiche, who ordered photographers to turn off their cameras, admonished the party chairmen to comport themselves in an orderly manner and to be of good behaviour in front of the journalists.

Before Isiche’s admonition, a mild drama had ensued between the Inter Party Special Adviser and some party chairmen who insisted that the SA should take a seat with them at the high table but he vehemently resisted, stating that he was not supposed to be among them in the first place.

Addressing the press on behalf of the group, the leader of the group and state chairman of a moribund ACPN, Mr. Paul Isamade, stated that earlier in the day, the party chairman met in an emergency gathering where they decided that the election should be given a clean bill of health.

“We commend INEC for the conduct of a transparent, free and fair election in which the PDP candidate, Chief (Hon) Emmanuel Edesiri Aguariavwodo polled a total 263, 024 votes to emerge the winner of the senatorial seat.”
They also congratulated Governor Uduaghan for what they described as “his role in ensuring a safe conduct of the most transparent, free and fair election in our recent history.”

The communiqué was signed by 19 party chairmen: Oke Idawene, SDP; Joe Chukwu, ADC; Efe Tobor, MPPP; Moses Abeh, APA; Chidi Odogwu, NNPP; Ngozi Ogbogo, AD; Paul Isamade, ACPN; Victor Egwuenu, PPN; Jude Eze, KOWA; Nelly Nwaka, AA; David Ebrunu, ACD; Ashikodi David, Accord Party; Peters Emuakpoje, CPP; Oluremi Mohammed, PDC; Anyanwu Ikechukwu, NCP; John Freeman Ghiadike, NPP; Tony Eboka, APGA; and Val Chichi, UDP.
Noticeably absent were the All Progressives Congress and the DPP.  They did not append their signatures to the communique, either.

The parties present also congratulated the Nigeria Police force, State Security Service (SSS), The Nigeria Civil Defence Corp’ and the military for what they called the maintenance of security law and order before, during and after the election, and called on all parties to the election to unconditionally accept the results as already announced by the electoral commission.

Curiously, not only could the chairmen not answer several questions thrown at them by the journalists, they contradicted themselves in several ways.

Some parties whose candidates had rejected the results of the election were also in attendance.  One of them was APGA chairman Tony Eboka, whose candidate, Chief Lucky Omoru, had vowed to go to the tribunal after earlier rejecting the results.  He made himself a laughing stock as he failed to answer questions put to him to reconcile his role and involvement in endorsing the results after his candidate had called for cancellation of the election.

The last may not have been heard of the apparently rigged press conference.
Lamented one chairman who spoke to our correspondent, “Each party chairman was given N50,000 each only but we learnt what the governor made available for this deal was more than what the SA gave us because he is fond of cheating us. In his office a source confided in us that the governor released the sum of N5million and if you calculate everything given us is not even half of what was released.”
If the purchasing price of the press conference by the governor was actually N5m, it means that the double-crossed party chairmen were shortchanged by an average of over N213,000.

Nigeria's Minister of Aviation Armored BMW Car Scandal: Car Sells For Only $170K In Europe And America

Following yesterday’s revelation by SaharaReporters that a cash-strapped agency of the Ministry of Aviation purchased two armored BMW 760 Li cars for the private use of Aviation Minister Stella Oduah, several automobile sales companies have indicated that the cars were massively overpriced.
Our report yesterday disclosed that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) paid approximately $1.6 million to buy the two cars from Coscharis Motors Limited in Lagos, meaning that each car cost close to $800,000. But our investigations with car sale companies revealed that the NCAA could have got eight, not two, BMW armored cars for their money.
According to Vista BMW in Coconut Creek in Florida, a fully armored BMW 760 Li car built to withstand AK 47-7.62x39 ammo and lower caliber weapons costs only $162, 195. Also, a quote provided by the armored car ballistic division of the International Armoring Corporation in Centerville, Utah revealed that each of the BMW cars could have been provided to the NCAA for $200,000 plus the cost of shipping to Nigeria.
SaharaReporters contacted other automobile sales companies in Europe who quoted even slightly lower prices for the model of the armored car purchased by the NCAA for Ms. Oduah’s personal use.
The two black BMW Li HSS vehicles had chases numbers WBAHP41050DW68032 and WBAHP41010DW68044 respectively were manufactured in Germany in 2008 according to investigations carried out about the models of the two cars by SaharaReporters.
Several officials of the Nigerian aviation authority told SaharaReporters that they were dismayed that the minister demanded that two expensive armored cars be purchased for her from the small and inadequate operating budget of the NCAA. As one of the officials stated, “We cannot even send our staff to critical training sessions, we cannot afford to update our equipment, and we need to employ more staff to ensure that every plane flying in Nigeria’s airspace is airworthy.”
Nigeria has been dogged by air crashes in the last few years, with more than 140 lives lost.
“If you consider all the priorities we have, but we don’t have the funds to meet, it is unfair that the Honorable Minister for Aviation, Mrs. Oduah, approved for us [the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority] to purchase two BMW armored cars through Coscharis Motors Limited for almost $800,000 each,” said a senior officer at the agency.
Meanwhile, since our report came out yesterday, some officials in other agencies under the Ministry of Aviation have revealed to SaharaReporters that the minister is pressuring them to make available the N150 million each to “settle” lawmakers at the National Assembly who are have scheduled a probe of the ministry on their return from the Sallah break.
One of the sources told our correspondent that Ms. Oduah had already received N300 million from two of the agencies and may have funneled the bribe funds to lawmakers who have summoned her to appear before them following the recent crash of an Associated Airline flight. The flight, which was conveying the remains of former Governor Olusegun Agagu of Ondo State, crashed on October 3, 2013 near the Murtala Muhammed International Airport. Fifteen people died in the crash, with several, including Mr. Agagu’s son, wounded.
 The minister of aviation oversees 6 agencies in charge of aviation matters in Nigeria, namely: Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) , Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), and Nigerian College Of Aviation Technology (NCAT) in Zaria. Of the six agencies, FAAN and NCAA remains most notorious for corruption and has served as the minister's cash cow.

ASUU Strike: Government Blinks, Agrees To Spend N200b Each For Four Years To Bring Nigerian Universities Up To World Standard

Towards ending the ongoing ASUU strike, the Federal Government has committed to spending N200 billion in the 2014 budget on the universities as well as on each of the next three-four years until the universities are brought to world-class standard.  This is in addition to the N100 billion dedicated and already made available for 2013.
The government has also increased to N40 billion as a first installment, funds for the payment of earned allowances to the striking lecturers, an improvement from the N30 billion previously released.
This information is contained in an internal Federal University of Otuoke statement by Professor Bolaji Aluko, its Vice-Chancellor, seen on Wednesday night by SaharaReporters.
On the earned allowances, he explained, “Government will top it up with further releases once universities are through with the disbursement of this new figure of N40 million, so Vice-Chancellors are urged to expedite this disbursement within the shortest possible time using guiding templates that have been sent by the CVC,” the circular said.
Professor Aluko said the development followed meetings on September 19 and Oct 11 of representatives of the Association of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities, led by CVC Chairman, Prof. Hamisu of ATBU and ASUU Representatives led by its President, Dr. N. Fagge with the Vice-President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Arc. Namadi. Sambo, Minister of Education Barr. N. Wike and others.
Of great interest to stakeholders, Vice-President Sambo, appealing to ASUU to call off the strike, apologized for the "take-it-or-leave-it" comments credited to the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala at the onset of the strike.  The Minister did not seem to have been involved in either meeting, perhaps as the government’s way of soothing the feelings of the university teachers.
Other points of agreement at the meetings include the following:

• Project Prioritization: Universities will now be allowed to determine their priorities and not be “rail-roaded” into implementing a pre-determined set of projects with respect to the NEEDS assessment. Decisions are not to be centralized.
• TETFund Intervention: Government assured that the operations of the TETFund will not be impaired, and that the regular TETFund intervention disbursement to Universities will continue, unaffected. So the NEEDS assessment capital outlays are in addition to regular TETFund intervention.
• Project Monitoring: A new Implementation Monitoring Committee (IMC) for the NEEDS Assessment intervention for universities has been set up to take over from the Suswan Committee. The new one is under the Federal Ministry of Education and chaired by the Honorable Minister of Education. In addition, to build confidence and ensure faithful implementation and prevent any relapse as before, the Vice President will meet quarterly with the IMC to monitor progress.
• Blueprint: ASUU was mandated to submit a blue print for revitalizing the Universities to the Vice President.

Prof. Aluko further stated that a signed document will soon be issued to itemize the full issues on which the consensus he had outlined here, as brokered by AVCNU, was reached.

PDP crisis: Pro-Baraje Senators vow to stop Jonathan’s ministerial nominees

The pro-Kawu Baraje Senators otherwise known as G25 in the Senate may be spoiling for another show down with the Bamanga Tukur loyalists as the ‘rebel’ lawmakers vowed to stop the planned confirmation of President Goodluck Jonathan nominees for Federal Character Commission job as well as the
yet-to-be submitted Ministerial list.

The ‘rebel’ senators allegedly working with All Progressives Congress (APC) are alleged to have also perfected plot to visit similar anger on the yet to be presented ministerial nominees.
“We will make sure the Senate does not get the required two third majority to consider any nominee of the president presented to the Senate for confirmation,” one of the Baraje Senators vowed.
Already, the arrowhead in the planned offensive, former governor of Kwara State, Senator Bukola Saraki, had written to the Senate President, Senator David Mark, insisting that the nominee from his state, Prof. Shuaibu Abdulraheem, does not enjoy the support of two senators from the state as provided in the standing rule of the Senate for confirmation.
Daily Champion gathered that the Kwara State nominee enjoys the support of only senator, Simeon Ajibola, out of the three senators from the state.
Senator Ajibola is the only Senator from Kawara State that belongs to the Bamanga Tukur faction of the PDP. Senator Saraki, Governor Ahmed Fatai of Kwara and other members of the pro-Baraje group in the state are alleged to be opposed to the nomination of Prof. Abdulhareem as commissioner representing the state in the Federal Character Commission for his alleged refusal to declare support for the new PDP. The former governor who was earlier reported to be jostling for Mark’s job was alleged to have asked for a replacement of the state nominee in the Federal Character commission. The former governor was alleged to have also advised the Senate committee on Federal Character to stop the screening of the nominee.
But a member of the pro -Tukur group in the Senate who would not want his name in print told Daily Champion at the weekend that the leadership of the Senate was already in the know of the plot. The Tukur group maybe working on a counter offensive next week when the report of the Senate committee on Federal Character which screened the nominee is expected to be considered by the Senate.  
Sources alleged that the nominee may become another victim of the current implosion in PDP. He however, said that PDP senators would not allow the G25 to have their way. According to him, the Senate may settle for a division to decide the fate of the nominee and ‘if we do that, there is no way we cannot confirm the nominee’. He said that the PDP senators have uncovered plot by the ‘rebel’ senators to destabilize the Senate in the battle for the soul of the ruling party.
According to him, the group has even planned to frustrate every other confirmation of nominees of the president on the floor of the Senate.
Daily Champion recalls that the relative peace in the Senate was jolted last week as the aggrieved members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) clashed with the Bamanga Tukur loyalists over the control of the soul of the ruling party in the Senate.
Prompt intervention of the Senate President, Senator David Mark, who insisted that there cannot be two PDP in the Senate, stopped the drama from degenerating into a rowdy session. Trouble started during a debate on motion on the late former governor of Ondo State, OlusegunAgagu, when the former governor of Gombe State, Senator Danjuma Goje referred himself as a member of the new and authentic PDP. Goje’s claim pitched the two sides into a shouting match on the floor of the Senate.
 But citing order 52 of the Senate rule, Senator Smart Adeyemi described the claim by Goje as unconstitutional since according to him Goje has not decamped to any other party. Adeyemi asked the Senate President to prevail on the former governor to withdraw his claim about new PDP, insisting that such remark was not only derogatory to the party but a personal insult to himself as a member.

Nollywood Actress, Nkem Ikeh In Rumoured Romance With Eagles Star, Nnamdi Oduamadi

Romantic relationships between Nigerian footballers and Nollywood actresses are not new to many Nigerians. It is even common for Nigerian actresses to flock around Super Eagles stars due to their loaded pockets, especially those who ply their soccer trades in Europe.
Uche Jombo was once rumoured to have dated one of the Uche brothers for some years until she was allegedly dumped by the 'sharp striker'.
Though the list of actresses who have dated footballers may not be endless, however, those that have warmed the beds of Nigerian football internationals can be termed as many.
For up and coming Nollywood actress, Nkem Ikeh, she is presently being trailed with an alleged sizzling romance with Super Eagles new-boy, Nnamdi Oduamadi.
According to gist making the rounds in Nollywood, the chocolate-skinned actress is allegedly rubbing body with Odu, as the striker is fondly called by friends.
We gathered that the duo have been helping each other to keep their bodies warm when nature calls. It was further learnt that shortly after arriving Lagos from Sunday's crucial match with Ethiopia, Nkem reportedly zoomed off to Odu's house in Festac to give him the 'welcome apple'.
Rumour mills said even though Odu missed few vital chances on the field in Addis Ababa, he didn't fail to destroy every goalkeepers that almost prevented him from scoring at his alleged lover's 'Stanford Bridge', as he allegedly brought down the stubborn 'bridge'.
He was also reportedly later seen with the actress on a movie location in Festac, where she was filming at.

Jonathan Must Fire A Few 'Senior' Members Of His Cabinet—Says Uranta

The Secretary General of the Nigerian National Summit Group (NNSG) and member of newly inaugurated Presidential Advisory Committee on National Dialogue, Mr Tony Ipriye Uranta, has made fresh call to President Goodluck Jonathan to fire a few senior members of his cabinet as a matter of urgency.
Uranta a foremost human rights crusader from the Niger/Delta, in his renewed agitation for cabinet shakeup expressed displeasure about few of President Jonathan's cabinet members, who he said are adding no value to his government; pointing out that they are corrupt and capable of misguiding the President to lose touch of delivering on his promises to the good people of Nigeria.
In his words; ''the President must fire a few 'senior' members of his Cabinet, immediately...they are adding no value to the GEJ administration, are deeply mired in corruption and are liable to misguide Mr President. Save us the agony of failed promises, by men and women who know not what honour, integrity and service mean...liars, tricksters and thieves! If not now, when?!''
It would be recalled just recently, Mr Uranta denied establishing any contact with the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) regarding national matters as the group had purported. He described as myopic and self-destructive, claims by the group that he had been in touch with them, to solicit their support for his advocacy for the development of the Niger Delta region, convocation of a national confab, among others.
The statement reads in part: “One’s attention has been repeatedly drawn to the outlandish mendacities put out on Thursday under the pseudonym ‘MEND’, and with regard to my person.
“MEND has lied outrageously in nearly every line of its putative statement! But, then, which ‘MEND’ is this: the anti-Jonathan ‘MEND’, the Boko Haram-sourced ‘MEND’, or the phantom-’MEND’ that the founders/commanders of MEND (who have since embraced former President Yar’Adua’s amnesty offer, and ‘suspended’ the activities by the real MEND…the enigmatic Tompolos, Boyloafs, Farahs et al) have long denied knowledge of?
“I have never been in touch with any of the above ‘ersatz-MEND’, one of which must have put this bunch of ridiculous lies, and hereby, categorically, state that I never have, at any time, sought the support of any such body in my vocal pursuit of a Nigerian National Conference.”

Ogoni Banana Plantation: PDP Lampoons Minister’s Critics

The Rivers State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has defended the position of the Supervising Minister for Education, Barr Nyesom Wike on the Ogoni Banana plantation, describing the state government’s project as a huge disservice to the people.
Lashing out at the critics of the minister for his uncomplimentary remarks about the plantation, the party through a statement issued and signed by the Special Adviser, on Media to the State Party Chairman, Jerry Needam said those stunned by the Minster’s hard knocks on the exponents of the banana plantation are those feeding fat from the plantation which has impoverished the landowners the more.
The statement regrets that up to date, the commissioner of agriculture has refused to make public the consultants to the project, and billions of naira involved in paying those ‘ghost’ consultants, arguing that the real beneficiaries and management staff of the unnecessary agricultural project are Governor Amaechi’s political friends and acquaintances from outside the shores of Rivers State and Nigeria.
“Is it not wicked and inhuman that several years after its forceful acquisition, Gov Amaechi and his agric commissioner are yet to pay the necessary compensation to the real land owners or attend to the bereaved families whose relations lost their lives and property worth millions of naira as a result of the communal crisis generated by the land acquisition”, the party queried.
Even the much trumpeted employment of Ogoni youths in the plantation, the party notes that none of these Ogoni youths are permanent staff on the payroll of the Rivers State Government, and challenge the Agric Commissioner and the Minister’s critic to be bold enough to advance the reasons for the shortchange of the landowners or mention in practical terms how government’s forceful acquisition of Ogoni land for this plantation with no consideration to their plight does not amount to gross injustice and exploitation.
The party calls on the Rivers State Government to make public names of Ogoni people employed so far, if they have employed any for the project.
In the days ahead the Peoples Democratic Party in Rivers State shall petition the police against Governor Amaechi, Emma Chinda and those involved in the loss of lives and property as a result of the forceful and illegal acquisition of land for the banana plantation.