Wednesday, 02 February 2000

A major policy shift in orientation and strategies will soon be implemented for the Nigerian military.

This follows a meeting held between an American delegation and the Nigerian military high command yesterday.

The meeting which took place at the Defence Ministry Headquarters in Abuja, was attended by the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defence Bernd McConnel, its Ambassador to Nigeria, William Twaddel and Defence and Army attachee, Col. Victor Nelson.

The Nigerian delegation included the Defence Minister, Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, Minister of State, Mrs. Modupe Adelaja, Permanent Secretary Mr. David Oyegun, Chief of Defence Staff Rear Admiral Ibrahim Ogohi and the three service chiefs.

The meeting was to harmonise the two countries positions on the funding of Phase II of the Military Professional Resource Initiative (MPRI).

The MPRI, a private consultancy organisation manned by retired U.S. senior military officers, was mandated by the U.S. government to reorientate and reorganise the Nigerian military following the return of democracy.

The implementation meeting followed the adoption of an MPRI Draft Action plan for reprofessionalising the military.

The action plan contains the recommendations in the areas of roles and mission of the Nigerian Armed Forces, the organisation for the Defence Ministry to enhance civilian oversight of the military and provision of logistics, training and personnel system and initiatives to assist in professionalising the military.

By the same token, Waku’s party (PDP) has also dissociated itself from the senator’s call for a military takeover of power.

Also, a motion of censure sailed through on the floor of the Senate yesterday but full debate of the issue has been scheduled for today.

Toeing the same line, the Federal House of Representatives will formally debate the Senator Waku statement today on the floor of the House.

Criticisms from various quarters have trailed Waku’s comments since Sunday evening when Tell Magazine first circulated its edition on Senator Waku’s interview.

*Afenifere’s declaration

The Afenifere statement, signed by Ayo Opadokun, said: "We ordinarily would have ignore the irritating views of a senator who could not even speak good English, but the constant use of "We" by him suggests that he may be speaking for a group of Northern Senators under the aegis of Northern Senators Forum.

"When this group met a few weeks ago with a communiqué urging Obasanjo to impose emergency rule on Lagos, Afenifere heard it from an impeccable source that their meeting actually discussed how to destabilise the polity so as to pave way for a military coup. And they saw in Obasanjo’s threat a very perfect opportunity.

"We are not in the least surprised that Waku and perhaps his colleagues are now pushing for another military intervention. Since 1966, these people have always believed that the only way they can dominate the rest of the country, confer undue privileges on themselves and bleed the country white is through military rule.

"The Yoruba people in particular and other ethnic nationalities have borne the brunt of their misrule for several years. But perhaps the most excruciating was the five years of Abacha when their repressive machinery targeted all the first and bests in Yorubaland. We lost several of our sons and daughters to assassins bullets, many of our illustrious and worthy people spent virtually all those years either in gaol or exile and virtually all our businessmen had their businesses ruined. But we remained unbowed even when our heads were bloodied until we secured the little democratic space we have now.

"We do not believe that any sane person should be calling for military rule after all what Nigeria suffered under the military. But for any body to be openly canvassing for coup means that he must have been engaged in clandestine planning of treasonable activities. Senator Waku must therefore be arrested immediately so that he can be interrogated.

"When some weeks ago Senator Femi Okunrounmu raised an alarm that pro-Abacha senators were planning to remove Obasanjo, the senators in a very crude manner forced him to apologise to them. With Waku’s open clamour for a coup to remove Obasanjo it is now clear that Senator Okunrounmu was speaking the truth and nothing but the truth.

"Afenifere has been in the vanguard of campaign for Sovereign National Conference and restructuring of the federation so that we can all determine the terms upon which we want to be governed. Those who want to be under the military are free to do so in their zone in a restructured polity.

"We will therefore not appeal to the "professional coupists" not to plan another take-over, we will only warn them in advance not to consider an inch of Yoruba territory in their quest to impose another military rule. The Yoruba will fight to the last man and the last man will fight with the last drop of blood in his vein to defend our land against another internal recolonisation.

"If they staged another coup nothing will stop the Yorubaman again. We have said it loud and clear that Never again shall soldiers preside in any of our government houses.

"All our elected representatives are hereby put on the alert to be ready to sit tight at their duty posts in case of any military intervention, they can be sure that millions of our people are ready to defend them.

The PDP’s position was contained in a two-page statement signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Emmanuel Ibeshi.

The text of the statement is as follows:

"The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) received with dismay the news of a statement credited to Senator J.K.N. Waku, inviting military coupists to overthrow the democratically elected government of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Nigeria.

"This call is not only misplaced but suspect and condemnable. The reasons canvassed for such a call are equally irksome.

"Nigerians and indeed all objective observers of our country’s polity know that never a time in our recent political history have we seen a government as purposeful as the present Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led government of President Olusegun Obasanjo. It is only collaborators of the just expired dictatorship, who have sneaked into the institutions of our nascent democracy that hold contrary opinions about this fact.

"Whilst it is generally acknowledged that there are still a myriad of problems to be resolved in the country, these are problems neither created nor manufactured by the present administration.

"The Peoples Democratic Party is quite satisfied with the performance of our Executive President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.

"It is unfortunate that Senator Waku’s tactless vituperations on the state of the nation is coming at a time that our party is doing everything possible to ensure a harmonious relationship between the three arms of government.

"The seeming lack of smooth flow in the relationship between the Executive and the Legislature does not mean a clarion call for a military coup. It is unfortunate that Senator Waku has to take his frustration with learning the slow process of democracy so personally and so myopically. However, it shows the latitude of patience and tolerance expected for the success of the infant experiment.

"The party view Senator Waku’s press outing with very grave consequence and has constituted a disciplinary committee mandated to investigate and have him arraigned and also to treat other pending matters relating to discipline.

"Finally, we hasten to warn that if Senator Waku’s statement is a kite flown by would-be coupists and their apologists, it is being flown too early and too dangerously with every certainty of failure. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and indeed all democracy loving people of this country will resist any attempt by forces allied with backwardness that military coups are associated with."

The party chairman, Chief Barnabas Gemade also led a team of party officers to the National Assembly yesterday to hold talks with the legislators on the matter.

Senate censures Waku, debates today

But the fate of Senator Waku will be known today on the floor of the Senate as the matter would be fully debated against the backdrop of a detailed perusal of the Tell Magazine which published the interview in which the call was purportedly made.

The motion was moved by the Senate Chief Whip, Senator Roland Owie who said the matter is of urgent public importance and was seconded by Senator Seyi Ogunlere of the Alliance for Democracy (AD).

Senator Owie in moving the motion said that the sanity of the statements by Senator Waku demanded that he (Waku) be arrested and tried for treason by President Olusegun Obasanjo.

He consequently moved that Senator Waku be suspended from the Senate and that his matter be referred to the Ethics Committee for further appropriate sanctions.

Senator Waku in a brief statement of defence said he believed in democracy and would continue to fight for democracy.

Senator Idris Abubakar drew the attention of the Senate to Order 42 (2) which gives privilege to members of the Senate to adequately peruse the publication and in which case the matter can be stood down till the next legislative day.

Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, Senate President, sustained Senator Abubakar’s point of order, after a couple of Senators, Gbenga Aluko and Victor Oyofo, had spoken in favour and against Senator Waku’s statement respectively.

By upholding the Order 42 (2) of the standing rule, the Senate will today debate the matter fully after members must have acquainted themselves with the publication.

The Senate will take a decision whether or not to refer the matter to the Ethics Committee for a probe and recommendation of appropriate sanctions or even a reprieve as the Senate committee may deem it fit.

*Representatives too

The House of Representatives will formally debate on a motion seeking to condemn the call by Senator J.K.N. Waku in the current edition of Tell Magazine for the military to take over government.

He urged the National Assembly to consider the call an embarrassment since it is capable of eroding people’s confidence in the legislators.

The Deputy Speaker, Prince Chibudom Nwuche who presided over yesterday’s session put the question to member, as to whether the issue should be on today’s Order Paper for debate. It was unanimously adopted.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives yesterday commenced deliberation on the bill which seek to exclude all unelected former Heads of State from benefiting any entitlement after service.

The bill which was sponsored by Dr. Jerry Ugokwe (Anambra) was, however, stepped down to enable the clerk circulate the decree that gives the Heads of State the privileges.

In the same vein, Senator Peter Adeyemo (Oyo South) yesterday described the outburst of Senator Joseph Waku, calling for military coup against President Olusegun Obasanjo as a stupid talk.

Reacting to Senator Waku’s interview in the current edition of Tell Magazine, Senator Adeyemo explained that he was not surprised at Waku’s call "because he and some of his colleagues in the North had been beneficiaries of military dictatorships."

Wednesday, 02 February 2000 Wednesday, 02 February 2000

NIGER State Government will need about N7.8 billion to combat perennial flood disaster around the communities housing the three hydro-electric dams in the state.

This, according to Governor Abdulkadir Kure would be used to resettle the communities in the flood plains, pay compensation for alternative housing and farmlands as well as rehabilitate many private and public facilities.

Speaking at a banquet organised in honour of President Olusegun Obasanjo on Monday evening, Kure said that a comprehensive detail of the resettlement programme had been prepared and would soon be submitted to the Federal Government.

He told the president that 18 council areas in the state suffered great losses last year due to flood involving over 150 villages.

The flood disasters, he said, washed away farmlands and submerged a vast portion of land along the plains of Rivers Niger and Kaduna. He lamented that over the years, inhabitants of villages along the river banks live in perpetual fear at the approach of rains.

He attributed the plight of the people to the sudden discharge of excess water from the three hydro-electric power stations in Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro dams which yearly flood the plains of the two rivers.

The governor appealed to the Federal Government to assist them find lasting solutions to the disasters which had rendered the people unproductive and the area uninhabitable.

He expressed the state governments gratitude to the Federal Government for its quick response in releasing funds to assist the affected communities and praised efforts of some individuals and non-governmental organisations for their support in cushioning the traumatic effects of the flood on the people.

Responding, Obasanjo pointed out that the Federal Government was equally concerned about the menace of the flood, promising that government would soon come up with a lasting solution.

He said details of the programme that is expected to take away some 300,000 youths from the labour market would be unfolded soon.

According to him, arrangements for a comprehensive graduate employment scheme throughout the country has equally been completed. He urged state governments to co-operate fully in this direction to make the programme successful.

FOR the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to meet the challenges of a new democracy, it must purge itself of corruption and must be adequately re-orientated, a forum said yesterday in Ibadan.

According to a communique at the end of a two-day seminar organised for Oyo State Police Command, participants concluded that the police must also be well funded and adequately remunerated so that with an improved welfare package, then efficiency could be assured.

The seminar, titled: Enhancing Nigeria Police Efficiency in the State Command, also traced the problems of the Nigeria Police to 29 years of continuous military rule during which successive administrations grossly under-funded and under-equipped the force through scanty budgetary allocations barely enough to pay staff salaries.

They observed that despite the underfunding and inadequate logistics, the police is saddled with the responsibilities of dealing with breach of law and order.

The group called on President Olusegun Obasanjo to step up measures of revitalising the nations police force.

According to them, mere revival of the nations economy without adequate security would not guarantee a buoyant economy as investors would not risk an unsafe environment.

While commending the present civilian administration for its efforts at giving the country an efficient and virile police, it urged the Federal Government to increase police personnel, noting that the policeman today is overworked and stressed because of shortage of manpower, which hinder their efficiency and disposition to work.

Papers were presented by eminent persons, including the Chief Judge of Oyo State, Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, retired senior police officers and top academia from the University of Ibadan.

GOVERNOR Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Lagos State has alerted the nation on the possible existence of an anti-democracy group whose agendum is to destabilise the country.

He spoke before a seven-man Senate committee on the activities of Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) which began sitting on Monday in Lagos.

The governor was the first to appear before the committee. He arrived at the old chambers of the National Assembly, Tafawa Balewa Square at about 3.10 p.m.

Accompanied by his commissioners, the governor was ushered into the Senate chambers and at 3.14 p.m, the chairman of the committee Senator Nuhu Aliyu said the sitting would be in camera.

The committee which will be in Lagos until Wednesday will take evidence from the police commissioner, the director of State Security Services (SSS), Gani Fawehinmi, leaders of factions of OPC, Dr. Frederick Fasehun and Gani Adams and others who may have useful information relating to the committees assignment.

Receiving members of the committee earlier in his office, Governor Tinubu stressed that Lagosians were peace loving people.

But he warned that there might be people he described as enemies of democracy whose agendum is to incite nationwide disturbance by destabilising a strategic state like Lagos.

Tinubu said that anybody who participated actively in all the processes that led to the enthronement of democracy in the country would not encourage violence to scuttle that same democracy.

The country is going through a difficult transition and all hands must be on deck to ensure that the vicious circle of short-lived demilitarisation followed by a reversion to dictatorship is finally broken, he said.

Recalling his session with a similar committee from the House of Representatives last week, the governor urged the Senate committee to carry out its assignment objectively.

He called the attention of the committee to the large population of Lagos and the attendant security implications, reiterating the urgent need to beef up the number of police personnel in the state, and also ensure that the police were properly equipped and well-motivated.

Aliyu told the governor that the committee was a fallout of the correspondence between him (governor) and President Olusegun Obasanjo on the security situation in Lagos occasioned by the activities of OPC.

He promised that his committee would do a thorough job so that the Senate could arrive at a just and best decision that will be in the public interest.

In its terms of reference, the committee will collate data and any other relevant information from the Presidency, Minister of Justice and Federal Attorney General, Inspector-General of Police, Director-General SSS, the National Intelligence Agency in Abuja.

The committee will also verify alleged selective arson on non-Yoruba by the OPC, receive memoranda from the public and recommend ways and means of dealing with the OPC menace and other similar ethnic organisations in line with the 1999 Constitution and other laws of the federation.

Other members of the committee are: Arthur Nzeribe, Ibrahim Mantu, Abubakar Girai, Braimoh Yusuf, Saidu Dan Sadau, David Brigid and Patrick Mbessey.

ENRAGED by last Saturdays attack on their colleagues, students of the University of Ibadan, yesterday vowed to unmask all cult members in their midst.

They also resolved to arm themselves to protect their hostels, students union building and mass-gathering points.

At a crowded press conference the union president, Solomon Ben Olonade said they would resist attempts to turn the institution to an abattoir or cultists haven.

At midnight, three students including the former union leader, Segun Olaleye were attacked by an armed gang of six suspected cultists who invaded the Kunle Adepeju Students Union Building (SUB).

Specifically, Olaleye was macheted and left in a pool of blood on the basement of the building before being spirited away by his colleagues.

Olonade said: Students Union government of this university is now ready and fully prepared mentally and psychologically to return fire for fire and launch a jihad against cultism on this campus.

He criticised the institutions authorities for being lacklustre in stamping out the menace, adding that purported renunciation of cultism earlier publicised, was only to satisfy the Federal Government.

Aside rigorous enlightenment programmes, he said the body would compile names of cult groups, sponsors and their members with a view to facilitating their eventual expulsion from the university.

In order to stem the rising tide in the activities of these hoodlums who have resorted to undue gangsterism, acts of brigandage which is threatening the peaceful co-existent of students on this campus, we shall not fold our arms and allow some inept individuals who have no business being in an academic environment to threaten our right to exist, Olonade added.

A LAGOS High Court yesterday rejected the request by Mohammed Abacha, son of the late Gen. Sani Abacha, asking for the quashing of a four-count charge of conspiracy and murder of Alhaja Kudirat Abiola in 1996.

Justice Kudirat Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun of Ikeja division of the court who gave the ruling, also refused to grant the defence teams plea for a stay of proceeding pending appeal, although she acceded to their request stopping the hearing of the testimony of Sergeant Barnabas Mshelia (alias Rogers) who was also in court.

The trial, according to her, would start on February 14 and run to February 17 just as the court took the pleas of the accused persons who pleaded not guilty.

Abacha is standing trial for the murder of Kudirat along with the Chief Security Officer (CSO) to his father, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, Chief Superintendent of Police Mohammed Rabo-Lawal and protocol officer to Kudirat, Alhaji Lateef Shofolahan.

Abacha's lawyer, Mr. Joseph Daudu (SAN) and Lagos State Attorney-General, Prof. Yemi Osibajo on January 20 canvassed their arguments for and against the quashing leading to yesterdays 40-minute ruling.

Justice Kekere-Ekun began with the determination of the various laws which the request for the quashing was predicated on.

Daudu had relied on sections 167, 221(4) and 304 of the Criminal Procedure Law Cap. 33, Laws of Lagos State 1994 to file the application as well as the inherent jurisdiction of the court.

Section 167 reads: Any objection to a change for any formal change on the face thereof shall be taken immediately after the change has been read over to the accused and after.

Applying this provision, the judge held that the present application doesnt refer to the objection to the formal charge and that it was not also in compliance with sections 221 (4) and 341 (3).

On inherent jurisdiction, Justice Kekere-Ekun also held that it is true that court has inherent jurisdiction to prevent its abuse as stated in Ikomi v. The State (1986) 3 NWLR (Pt.1) p. 28 and that on the strength of Falobi v. Falobo, the court can consider the merit of the case even if it is brought under wrong law.

Having dealt with the preliminary issues, the judge went into whether or not a prima facie case has been made to enable Abacha answer for the charges.

According to her, some paragraphs in the affidavit deposed to by Mr. Mustapha Bulama in support of the application for quashing, after a careful scrutiny amount to a legal opinion and it is accordingly struck out.

Osibajo, however, said the court does not even know the grounds upon which the accused person is filing his appeal, arguing that it is trite law that there is no automatic right of appeal.

On the issue of providing the defence with relevant documents, he stated that his office has done that and will always do as far as the documents requested are available.

Osibajo maintained that he had provided the defence with all the documents within his reach.

As regards the trial before a Lagos High Court, Osibajo argued that there are no rules against concurrent trials so long as the charges are not the same, and surely a stay (of proceedings) cannot be granted on this non-existent proposition.

It is our humble application that the plea of the accused persons be taken and that we be allowed to call our first witness so that this trial will begin, he argued.

Ruling, Justice Kekere-Ekun said a stay of proceeding could not be granted due to its nature. The accused persons, according to her, are entitled to be tried within a reasonable time as they could not be kept in prison indefinitely without trial. Being a criminal trial, it should take place expeditiously. The oral application is refused and the plea of the accused persons be taken immediately, she ruled.

After her ruling, the plea of the four accused persons was taken and they all pleaded not guilty to the charges preferred against them.

Although the prosecution wanted the trial to continue today as argued by Prof. Osibajo, defence counsel Mr Akpamgbo pleaded that the case be adjourned to February 14, an adjournment the court upheld.

THE two-month-old intra-party wranglings in the Alliance for Democracy (AD) took a dramatic turn yesterday as a team of policemen took over the national secretariat at Abeokuta Street, Abuja.

Supporters of the embattled national chairman ñ Yusuf Mamman who had earlier seized control of the secretariat from Alhaji Usman Song's supporters were chased out by the stern-looking policemen who locked up the entrance and turned visitors away.

The national secretariat which has been under the control of the factional leader, Adamu Song's supporters since December 20 last year, was temporarily seized by supporters of Mamman on Monday but not without a stiff resistance resulting in a free-for-all fight.

When The Guardian visited the secretariat yesterday afternoon, one of the police officers who spoke on condition of anonymity said the police team was instructed by FCT police commissioner, Alhaji Hamzat Ahmed to take it over to forestall what he called untoward and obviously dangerous situation.

He disclosed that the police were not interested in fanning the embers of partisanship but were interested in ensuring what he called respect for law and order.

FCT police spokesman, Mr. Matthew Obiuwevbi (ASP), speaking on the development said: I do not know anything about police deployment to the national secretariat of the Alliance for Democracy (AD). But I do know that men of the Nigerian police are constitutionally empowered to safeguard law and order.

AD national secretary Dr. Udenta Udenta said a national meeting of the party would hold on Saturday apparently to find solution to the crisis and fine-tune strategies for the partys forthcoming national convention.

The meeting, which will hold at the Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja at 10 a.m is coming just as the South-East chapter of the party endorsed Mamman and Udenta as the national chairman, and secretary of the party.

Speaking on Saturdays meeting, Chief Chuba Egolum, AD national vice chairman South-East, said the partys convention slated for April 7 and 8 would top the agenda.

He said chairman of the convention committee, Chief Olu Falae would be on hand to submit his report on the convention.

On the alleged suspension of Udenta as the national secretary of the party by 14 northern states chairmen of the AD, Egolum said the suspension should be disregarded, insisting that Udenta remains the secretary.

I am not aware that he has been suspended. As far as I am concerned, Udenta O. Udenta remains the national secretary of the AD just like Ambassador Mamman Yusuf is the national chairman of the AD, he added.

In a statement entitled: Mamman is still AD chairman, Egolum debunked media reports citing South-East AD as having disowned Mamman as chairman.

For the avoidance of doubt, Ambassador Yusuf Mamman is still the bonafide national chairman of Alliance for Democracy and the South-East recognises him as such, he said.