Thursday 28 June 2012

President Jonathan, you cannot run from criticism in a new media era



By Abimbola Adelakun

The presidential media chat on Sunday was, not unexpectedly, pedestrian, to put it mildly. But interestingly, the President spoke on, among other things, social media and, the penchant by Nigerians to use the same to criticise his government. I counted this positive – he is not unaware of Nigerians’ disaffection towards his administration’s perceived slackness. But he ruined it when he implied that the criticisms were coming from one source and were being replicated to orchestrate the perception that Nigerians were disillusioned at his government.

Obviously, I find this a recalcitrant mode of thinking, and the solo-source claim very disingenuous. Is this not the same President who claimed he reversed the football ban on the nation’s football teams from international competitions in 2010 because Nigerians begged him on Facebook? The man who stole the shine from his rival’s presidential declaration when he ambushed him on Facebook? The man who usually called for ideas on social media suddenly finds same problematic?

Shortly before the chat, I came across an article in New York Times, The Rise of Popularism, in which the writer, Thomas Friedman, raised questions about social networking media and democracy.

He said, “The wiring of the world through social media and web-enabled cellphones is changing the nature of conversations between leaders and the led everywhere. We’re going from largely one-way conversations — top-down — to overwhelmingly two-way conversations — bottom-up and top-down. This has many upsides: more participation, more innovation and more transparency. But can there be such a thing as too much participation — leaders listening to so many voices all the time and tracking the trends that they become prisoners of them?”

While I found the article interesting, I disagreed with its overriding assertion. Like President Goodluck Jonathan, Friedman missed the gist of the age we are now. Thanks to those social media sites, there is more “power to the people”. Unlike the Peoples Democratic Party sloganeering which comes out of their mouths as a crude joke and a mockery of political systems, the social media empowers political dialogue. Communication is largely uncensored and not guided as they are wont to be even on a live media chat.

And nowhere is this truer than a perusal of Jonathan’s Facebook account. Two years ago, when the President invited Nigerians to enter into dialogue with him on Facebook, he had some 19,000 friends. Today, that figure has risen by more than 700,000. And herein springs the charge of abuse by replication!

In an article I wrote then on Nigeria’s democracy and Facebook, I noted the “Amen, sir” syndrome pervading his wall. Virtually all the young Nigerians who swamped on that page then had a verse of Scripture to share with him and, most of them saying “Sir, sir” in a nauseating way.

Today, things have largely improved. Reality has forced Nigerians to be more critical and the level of surveillance is higher. During the fuel subsidy debate, the discussions were very robust (and this can only increase with time). I note all these ripening of Nigerians with excitement.

Imagine how different things would have been if there had been social media in the days of Ibrahim Babangida and Sani Abacha!

Today, world leaders are seeing the power of the voices of the people in a post-technology world; even countries like Nigeria which have yet to arrive properly at modernity gate are forced to confront questions that their stage of social evolution has yet to prepare them for. We know what role social media played in the Arab Spring. Oppressive leaders of the world have learnt their lessons, hopefully though; unfortunately, in the case of Syria, Bashar al-Assad has become more brutal. It’s no coincidence that Saudi Arabia — a country that restricts women from driving for some embarrassingly mundane reasons — in the wake of the Arab Spring, shifted grounds on women’s voting rights and is sending female athletes to the Olympics this year. Former Philippines President, Joseph Estrada, blamed his ouster on the SMS. In countries like India, corruption is being challenged with the power of the web.

So if Jonathan chooses to see the power of voices on the social media as negative, it’s probably because he still expects people to act docile to be model citizens. In January, he said in an interview that he was not easily swayed by public opinion because the majority could be wrong. Well, true, but the people feel the pinch and it is in their leader’s interest to pay attention. It’s a post-modernistic age and communication between the leader and the led is evolving and this manifests in various ways. Let him pay a visit to Barack Obama’s Facebook wall, if he has yet to do so, the people are as critical. The comments range from the fawning to the overtly racist. Obama dares not complain. It is democracy playing out as the conceivers of it intended: power to the people. You cannot pretend you know more than them without turning despotic.

And this is what I think: the Nigerian government needs to embrace the social reality the social media is engendering and reach out to people. Jonathan needs to stop seeing criticisms as a disadvantage.

People want to participate actively in government without the chain of command mediating them. One way to foster this is to get rid of the “media chat” system. It is too mediated and is as analogue as the two telephone numbers displayed on the screen. A one person interviewer is better as it allows a more fluid flow of follow-up questions. For instance, when he said Nigerians would begin to see changes in 2013, I expected the interviewers to grill him on the specifics: what are the indices that suggest this will be so? When he spoke on railway and agricultural revolution, he was vague. A lot of his gaffes were allowed to go unchallenged.

And rather than pretending to wait for telephone lines that are not meant to work (and whoever thought up that cheap trick should be fired and paraded along with Kabiru Sokoto), they should have taken questions from the social media.

I am saying this because, the truth is, the President cannot, like the Biblical Cain, always run from public criticism of him and his government. If he keeps running, he’ll land on the alternative highway – the al-Zaidi route. Muntadhar al-Zaidi, remember him? He was a journalist who tried to speak to President George Bush. When words failed, he removed his shoes and hauled same at Bush’s head during a press conference in Iraq some years ago.

*This was first published in The Punch

Prominent politicians plot Kaduna violence, as ‘faceless’ politicians release incendiary video



A highly placed security source in Kaduna State has told SaharaReporters that prominent politicians, several of them in government, are behind the widespread and deadly violence recently witnessed in parts of the state. The bloody events began with suicide bombings that hit Zaria and Kaduna about two weeks ago, targeting Christian churches.


The security source said the crisis became more volatile when a few prominent politicians further fueled the violence by instigating their political thugs and hoodlums.

According to the source, “The Commissioner of Police made it clear that politicians are part of the violence to achieve certain political interests.” He added that these politicians supplied sophisticated weapons and other armories that were used by the rampaging killers. He claimed that the security agents know who bought the guns, but that the agents are powerless to take action because those behind the violence “are untouchables and sacred cows.”

The source revealed that security agents had received confessions from some suspects about their sponsors. “The facts we gathered are provable, but who will prosecute the big men behind the gangsters?”

“Some of our leads indicate that politicians poured kerosene into the fire from the side,” added the source.
In a related development, SaharaReporters has learnt that copies of a macabre video from the recent chaos and terror in the state are being clandestinely circulated in Kaduna with the aim of fomenting more violence.

The video, which is being seen by a growing number of people, shows officers of the police ferrying corpses of those who died in the series of attacks and counter-attacks. Our source disclosed that the aim of those circulating the video was to cause more tension in the state.

The source accused those distributing the video of “dispatching a clip to create tension that will lead to violence.” He lamented that law enforcement and security “bosses are watching and cannot do anything.”

Edo Election: Nelson Aideyan demands apology from PDP for bribe allegation




A purported consultant to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Nelson Aideyan has denied allegations by officials of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of printing party agents’ cards to rig the forthcoming Edo state governorship elections in favour of the incumbent governor, Adams Oshiomhole.



The media officer to Mr Aideyan, Okomayin Pius Alao said in a statement in Benin City that the allegation which was widely publicised to both the print and electronic media on June 26, 2012, sounded like the cry of a drowning man.

He said the “PDP having seen its doom at the July 14, 2012 governorship election in Edo State, had resorted to concocting frivolous stories aimed at tarnishing the personality and integrity of illustrious Edo State citizens like Mr. Nelson Aideyan” who he described as a private citizen who has no personal interest in any of the political parties and is not a politician.

Mr Orbih had alleged that Mr Aideyan is an INEC consultant who was brought into Edo State by INEC to rig the forthcoming July 14, 2012 governorship election in favour of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and that he collected $40, 000 from the Governor Oshiomhole to achieve this purpose.

Meanwhile, counsel to Mr Aideyan, O.R. Adisa, has demanded a public and unequivocal apology in both the print and electronic media from the PDP and its state chairman within 48 hours.

The lawyer warned that failure to fully comply will leave them with no option than to take appropriate legal actions against the person of Mr Orbih and his party, including forwarding a petition to the appropriate authorities.

The statement reads:

It has come to the notice of our Client that the chairman of PDP, Edo State Chapter, Chief Dan Orbih, issued a press release on NTA Benin on 25th, June 2012 which has since been reported in various print and electronic media including, ITV Benin, Channels TV, Silverbird TV and National Mirror Newspaper of 26th June, 2012. In his press statement he alleged the following:

1. That Our Client is an INEC Consultant who has been brought into Edo State by INEC to rig the forth coming July 14th 2012 gubernatorial election in favour of ACN.

2. That the Comrade Governor has given our Client between Forty Thousand ($40,000) to Two Hundred and Thirty Thousand Dollars ($230,000 .00) to carry out the rigging.

3. That the comrade Governor and his party ACN have put our client in a guest house in Benin where he’s perfecting the work for ACN.

4. That our Client is presently printing voting cards tags to be used by ACN supporters in the forth coming election.

5. That our client has a close relationship with Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and therefore will be influencing the forthcoming election in favour of ACN.

Chief Dan Orbih further alleged that our Client has been seen in various fora with Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, Director General of Governor Oshiomhole’s campaign in Edo State and consequently issued our Client a threat and to leave Edo State within a few days.

We have our client‘s instruction to react to the above allegation as follows:

First and foremost, the allegations by PDP Edo State and its chairman are totally untrue and unfounded. Our Client is an indigene of Edo State who has the inalienable constitutional right to reside anywhere in Nigeria, especially in Edo State, where he was born and brought up. Our Client therefore considers the ultimatum as a threat to his life and person.

Furthermore, our Client is not connected in any way whatsoever, with the July 14th Governorship election. He has also not been consulted by INEC or any body or person whatsoever to act on its/his behalf with respect to the forth coming Governorship election. In addition he is not a Politician.

Our Client therefore considers the publication on both the electronic and print media by the PDP Edo State Chapter and its State Chairman, as libelous and slanderous and a calculated attempt at disparaging his personality and bringing him to public ridicule and odium.

As a result of this untoward publication our Client has been receiving strange calls from unknown persons threatening his life.

Consequently, we have our Client’s instruction to demand a public and unequivocal apology in both the print and electronic media from the PDP and its state Chairman, Chief Dan Orbih, within 48hrs from this publication. Failure to fully comply will leave us with no option than to take the appropriate legal actions against the person of Chief Dan Orbih and his party, including forwarding a petition to the appropriate authorities.

A WORD IS ENOUGH FOR THE WISE


Wednesday 27 June 2012

NIMASA building gutted by fire



The Corporate Headquarters of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) was this morning by gutted by fire.

The fire which  started around 10:00am was eventually brought under control by safety and emergency rescue workers.

A source who spoke to flexynewsonline said that so far, no casualty has been reported.

Though details of the report are still sketchy, efforts are being made to contact emergency management agencies for comments.

17 extremists, one police officer killed Kano clashes




Gun battles after suspected Islamists attacked police posts and a prison in Kano city left 17 “extremists” and one police officer dead, police said Wednesday.

“A total of 17 extremists were killed by our men. We lost a police corporal,” said Kano State Police Commissioner Ibrahim Idris regarding the clashes that took place late Tuesday.

The latest unrest in Nigeria’s second largest city, repeatedly hit by Boko Haram Islamists, began when militants launched coordinated gun and bomb attacks on the Dala, Panshekara and Shallawa police posts.

The Garan Dutse prison was also targeted.

“All these attacks were repelled,” said Idris. “Our officers responded and drove the assailants away.”

The police commissioner added that three suspects were arrested and were being interrogated, while officers recovered 14 improvised explosive devices as well as rifles, ammunition and vehicles.

No group has claimed the overnight attacks, but the violence was likely to be blamed on Boko Haram.

Kano was the site of the Islamist group’s deadliest attack yet, when coordinated bombings and shootings left at least 185 people dead in January.

The Boko Haram insurgency, concentrated in mainly Muslim north, has killed more than 1,000 people since mid-2009.

Security forces have frequently been the victims of its attacks, though it has continually widened its targets.

Gunmen attack, rob 3 banks in Taraba




Residents of Wukari in Taraba had a sleepless night on Tuesday, as gunmen suspected to armed robbers raided three commercial banks in the town and carted away large sums of money.
The Police Commissioner in Taraba, Alhaji Ibrahim Maishanu, who confirmed the robbery in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jalingo on Wednesday, said the operation lasted for three hours.

Maishanu said that his men were still gathering information on the robbery.

He said that the three banks raided by the gunmen were Zenith Bank Plc, Guarantee Trust Bank and United Bank for Africa.

The police commissioner said that no death or injuries were recorded in the attack, which took place on Tuesday between 9 p.m. and 12 midnight.

The commissioner said the police had commenced investigation into the raid on the banks, adding that details of the investigation would be made available to journalists later.

Mr Danazumi Agbu, the Chairman, Wukari Local Government Council, who also spoke to NAN on telephone, confirmed that explosives and gun shots were heard from the direction of the banks late in the night.

He said that the sound threw the residents, who thought Boko Haram gunmen had invaded their area, into panic.

Agbu said the area was now calm and people had started coming out to go about their daily businesses.

Miss Naomi Nanjo, a resident of the area, told NAN that she and several families spent their night inside the bush because they suspected the incident to be an invasion by Boko Haram.

``We returned to our houses at about 5 a.m. after confirming that they were thieves and not Boko Haram,'' Naomi said. 

UNILORIN expels 13 students for misconduct




The University of Ilorin has expelled 13 students for various acts of misconduct, the Registrar of the institution, Olufolake Oyeyemi, said in Ilorin on Tuesday.

She said the affected students were found guilty of various acts of misconduct such as examination malpractices or illegal associations.

She gave the names of the students as Lawal Ibrahim, Department of Geography; Ayanda Isaac, Department of Computer Science; Ajjayi Monsuru , Department of Arts and Social Sciences; Ijagbemi Samuel, Department of Mass Communication; and Issah Namadu, Department of Computer Science.

Others are Odeku Oluwaseun, Department of Physics; Olayiwola Yusuf, Department of Mathematics; Ademola Iyabo, Amusan Kemi, and Issa Ahmed, all of the Faculty of Education.

The rest are Ibrahim Ayobami, Statistics Department; Akanbi Adeyinka, Home Economics and Ikotun Felix, Department of Mechanical Engineering.

Mrs. Oyeyemi said the affected students have been advised to stay away from the campus in their own interest.

At last, Jim Iyke’s case of fraud thrown out


Nollywood top gun, Jim Iyke can now breathe easy knowing he doesn’t have to be back in court again. Case of fraud which has been hanging over him for some time now has been thrown out of court for lack of evidence.



The $100,000 scam case involving him has been thrown out by the court clearing Jim Iyke of any liability. The case which was instituted by one Habiba Abubakar was quashed for lack of evidence.
Commenting about the dismissal, Jim said:
“Yes it is over. It’s just a business venture and someone in the partnership wanted more because they’re connected and I won’t back down and they said I defrauded them. The judge struck it out and ended the case this week for lack of evidence. We have long resolved out of court.”

Dasuki as NSA: Issues below the surface


Garba Shehu
In the euphoria that normally accompanies public appointments, people tend to lose their heads and consequently overlook other factors below the surface. No doubt, the appointment of Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retired) is bound to create excitement among the North-west politicians and disappointment among the Niger Delta people who may feel that one of their own has been humiliated out of office.
Officially, President Goodluck Jonathan explained on his media chat on the NTA network that General Andrew Oweye Azazi, the National Security Adviser and Defence Minister, Dr. Bello Halliru Mohammed, were fired because they kept using the same strategies (that didn't work) at a time the tactics of Boko Haram militants were changing. That presupposes that they lost grip with the challenges of security and they had to go. In fact, they were blamed for giving the President an over-optimistic assessment of the security situation, which led the Commander-in-Chief's declaration that Boko Haram attacks would end in June (this month). On the contrary, we have witnessed a dangerous escalation with attacks on Churches for two weeks running, leading to fears of a religious war.
There is a school of thought that holds that the appointment of Col. Dasuki was essentially an appeasement gesture towards the North because Boko Haram is largely a northern security challenge. Another school of thought even questions the wisdom of appointing an army officer who is not remarkably steeped in core intelligence activities in his military career to be a National Security Adviser. Dasuki has had a distinguished career in the army artillery corps.

By the time he was removed last week, it was clear to many that the former NSA had found the shoos too big for his foot. He was apparently overwhelmed by his predecessor, General Gusau's larger than life image not only in Nigeria but in global security circles. Going by the type of ethnical, religious and media media battles he fought, it was thought by many that Azazi had become obsessed with the office of the NSA and was apparently doing more to protect himself in office than the job for which he was hired. The direct consequence of this is that from a gang engaged in street fights with security operatives in Maiduguri township, the Ahlus-Sunnah group (Boko Haram) has, under Bello's and Azazi's watch grown to become as potent and formidable as Al-Shabab in North Africa and the Al-Qaeda in some of its formations.
Let us examine the strengths and weaknesses of the pros and cons of Dasuki's appointment as NSA. If indeed, the appointment of Dasuki is an appeasement policy towards the North, then it may produce the direct opposite result. The Boko Haram terror movement is dominated by Kanuri boys, despite the recruitment of volunteers from areas outside Borno and Yobe States. The appointment ignored the historical rivalries between the Kanuris and the North-west or more directly, the Fulani hegemony. The old Borno Empire, now made up largely of Borno and Yobe States in Nigeria and the parts of Niger, Cameroon and Chad Republics was never really conquered by the Fulani jihadist movement. These areas, not only take pride in this, but also the fact that they contacted Islam much earlier than what is today's North-West geo-political region on Nigeria.
Can a scion of the Fulani royalty, even though a Northerner cultivate the trust and confidence of the Kanuri boys against the background of these historical rivalries? Can a Fulani Northern National Security Adviser conduct negotiations for disarmament with Boko Haram in the face of these historical rivalries? This may be Sambo Dasuki’s biggest challenge. His perception as Generals Babangida and Gusau’s protégé also creates the feeling that President Jonathan is reaching out to Northern politicians as a pacification gesture through Col. Dasuki’s appointment as National Security Adviser.
It is argued that the Jonathan administration is lopsided with his Ijaw kinsmen dominating key appointments, including the office of the National Security Adviser. With Dasuki’s appointment as Azazi’s successor, how far can the President fight off that perception effectively?
Whatever theories may have developed around Sambo’s appointment, the Kanuri factor in the appeasement policy should not be ignored. No confidence building strategy can succeed which ignores the undercurrents of historical rivalries between the Kanuris and the Hausa/Fulani of the north.
It is doubtful if the North-East or Borno State in particular, lacks credible retired army officers who can do the job. Former GOC Third Armored Corps in Jos, Retired Major General Maina and the former Commander of the Brigade of Guards, Brigadier Monguno are among the officers the government could have appointment for the office of the National Security Adviser. Now that this position has gone to Col. Dasuki, government can still remedy itself by naming a new defense minister from the North-East or specifically the Kanuri. General Munguno in particular has had a career that was unblemished by scandal, controversy or partisan affiliations. He commanded the Guards Brigade and headed the most sensitive of this country's defense and intelligence departments. In these men, the President has a good pick for defence minister.

Lest one misunderstood, there is no begrudging Col. Dauski with his new position. We should not however, ignore complex issues below the surface. Psychologically, even in the United Nations code of humanitarian negotiations, terror groups tend to deal with persons or parties they can trust. Another worry is that Dasuki’s appointment may produce a sting in its tail. If his tenure produces de-escalation in terrorist violence or attacks, it may produce new theories about why the security situation is improving.
His success may play into the hands of those who believe that Northern leaders have blackmailed Jonathan into submission and that, with security situation returning to normal, these Northern leaders must have real connection to the terror groups. Col. Dasuki cannot run away from this scenario if it does happen in the end. It is a real catch-22 situation for the former ADC to General Babangida.