Japan Donates $.5 million to UNDP to Fight Terrorism in Nigeria

The Japanese government has donated $.5 million to Nigeria to support the country’s counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency war.

 

The Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Ryuichi Shoji, announced the donation yesterday at the launch of the Project in the National Defence College (NDC), Abuja. He expressed the willingness of the Japanese government to work with Nigeria to fight the reign of the terrorist organization, Boko Haram.  

Mr. Shoji said Japan has promised to strengthen cooperation with Nigeria in the defence sector, adding that the donation was aimed at strengthening the capacity of the West Africa’s Peace Support Operations (PSOs) in Nigeria.

“Japan firmly stands by the side of the Nigerian Government and people in their fight against terrorism,” he said.

“The Government of Japan is committed to Africa’s peace and stability, which is an indispensable element for the prosperity and economic transformation of Africa,” he added.

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Abuja Airport to be Shut Again

The runway of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, will again be closed this weekend for what aviation authorities have termed the second phase of the repair.

 

This was contained in a statement this afternoon by the head of media relations of aviation parastatals, Mr Yakubu Dati. He said the second phase of the repair of the runway would take place between 12 and 14 July.

 

“The runway rehabilitation is being done in two phases to minimize the inconvenience the runway closure would have on air passengers and aircraft operators if it was carried out at once,” Mr Dati said. “A NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) to this effect has already been sent to all aircraft pilots and other relevant stakeholders, informing them of the impending closure.”

 

He regretted the inconvenience the closure would cause passengers and other stakeholders.

It would be recalled that the airport was first shut last weekend and reopened on Monday.

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The Untold Costs Of Insecurity In Abuja

“I no dey carry anybody wey get bag and I no dey go all those Wuse side.” (*I don’t carry passengers with bags and I don’t ply Wuse) These are the exact words of an Abuja taxi driver.  Asked if he’d take us to Nyanya, his answer was very emphatic, ‘Argh! I no dey go Nyanya o. Nyanya? Go do wetin?’ (*I don’t go to Nyanya. Nyanya? To go and do what?) Two nights before, I had visited my favourite shawarma joint on Aminu Kano Crescent and immediately noticed something was missing. Within seconds, it dawned on me: the usual crowd that thronged the joint had become a handful of people. I often patronize the joint after midnight but unlike previous nights, I didn’t have to wait to be served because there was no queue. This was the fastest time it took the men in charge to serve my friend and me. Unlike times past, there was no crowd waiting to be called to come have their prepared shawarma. The numbers had taken a plunge!

My friend runs a human resource company in Abuja. She lost two staff members in a week. One of them got a call from her parents saying they needed her to leave Abuja for her safety, the other tendered her resignation to the boss because she no longer ‘felt safe’ in the city.

Clubs have seen their numbers reduce drastically and other points of leisure have suffered the same fate. Having explored the city over the last three nights, I can safely conclude that the terrorist attacks have taken a toll on the Federal Capital Territory. God forbid, another attack would amount to a fatal punch for small and medium scale businesses in Abuja.

As at three nights ago, the bombed EMAB Plaza had police presence and tapes, while the construction of what would be anti-bomb concrete columns seemed abandoned for the night. The columns themselves have now become a permanent feature of most government and private buildings in the city centre. One of the consequences of previous terrorist attacks.

An expatriate client required her staff members to close early days ago while also excusing them for the next two days. Everyone in the city expects a bomb to go off somewhere in the city. The fear is so palpable it is scary.

The cost of terrorism is a lot more than the billions of Naira that go into defence spending, it is much more about direct costs to the lives of citizens. Students that must change schools to avoid being kidnapped, their parents that now accommodate the reality of less turnovers because of reduced human traffic to the shops and business places.

Our authorities are doing their best but they must understand that that best can be better. If anything, Abuja cannot afford to be bombed again anytime soon. Citizens must help the authorities by reporting suspicious movements and persons. By now we must all know that our security is our collective responsibility.

The best time to know a city that works is after midnight because every city pretends to work in the day. That explains why this piece is not about what happens in the day. Needless to say, the cost of terrorism affects the day as much as the night but this is a war Nigeria can win and Nigeria, through its leaders must indeed defeat terrorism. We can win this war, first we must understand the cost of this war, pay attention to the effective distribution of resources and genuinely commit to making terrorism a thing of the past as soon as possible. Easier said than done. But it is not impossible.

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Tambuwal's Car Stopped for Search by Soldiers

Soldiers this morning insisted on searching the official car of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, before he could be allowed into an international conference in Kaduna, Metropole has gathered. 

 

Tambuwal drove in his official car with flag and insignia and in a convoy, an eye-witness disclosed.

 

Angered by the treatment of the soldiers, the Speaker reportedly stormed out of the car and trekked into the venue.

According to the source, the incident occurred at Hotel 17, venue of an  International conference on security and development challenges of pastoralism in West and Central Africa organised by the office of the National Security Adviser. The Speaker is scheduled to deliver an address at the conference.

Tambuwal,  who arrived the venue of the gathering at exactly 9.16 am for the 10.00 am opening ceremony, had his convoy stopped by soldiers who insisted they must search his official car before he could be allowed into the venue, the source said.

Despite much entreaties by security details attached to the Speaker, the soldiers refused, with some saying they have orders from above to search the Speaker.

 

The same treament was not given to other VIPs, especially Governors,  who  were allowed access into the hotel without hindrance.

 

The Speaker is the number four in protocol hierarchy in the Federation,  after the President, Vice-President, and the Senate President. 

 

When contacted for his reaction, Tambuwal's spokesman,  Malam Imam Imam, decried the conduct of the soldiers, saying their attitude undermines the institution of the legislature. 

"It is not about the person of the Speaker, but the office he is occupying," he said. "What we expect is for the security agents to show respect for the office of the Number 4 citizen of the country." 

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As a Generation, Can We 'Rice' to the Occasion?

A lot of people have reduced Ayo Fayose’s victory at the polls on Saturday to the politics of sharing rice to poor Ekiti voters. If that were the case, Fayemi would have at least had a close run because he did share his own rice too, but the results suggest Ayo Fayose, as much as this is difficult for me to write, did maul Governor Kayode Fayemi.

The intimidation of his governor friends and the arrests of his campaign officers on the eve of the elections apart, the Ekiti elections were a step above the usual rigging that have often characterized elections in Nigeria. Fayose had the might of the state behind him in the military; that power was used in harassing and intimidating Governor Fayemi’s supporters to no end, this of course was an unfair reality but it was only an episode in a process that revealed Nigeria to many in ways they probably never saw it or paid much attention to.

Friday 20th June I told a friend pointblank: any president who intends to start a genuine change process in Nigeria must forget about his/her second term or pretend in his/her first term, then get real in the second term. Deviance is our norm, impunity is our law, and absurdities are our way.

Ekiti is not the first elections in Nigeria where candidates had to share food and money to entice voters. This has always been a normal part of our elections. In fact, the smartest politician is the one who spreads the sharing over the period between one election and the next. Our people more often than not see that as their own way of sharing in the national cake. What set Ekiti apart is the mind-boggling fact that an incumbent who had actually performed and was seen to have performed was judged not based on his performance but based on how much he couldn't share directly with the people while in office.

So, as a Nigerian politician, Governor Fayemi goofed on deciding to go with technocrats as his commissioners instead of politicians. Other things being equal, technocrats focus on the job while politics could later be a distraction but politicians focus on politics while getting the job done is the distraction. Governor Fayemi's technocrats did get the job done. That was never enough.

Just a year or so into his tenure, he was already getting the vibes of the anger of those who preferred the Governor focused on ‘stomach infrastructure’ and not enduring physical infrastructure. It was a choice between directly giving the people fish or creating the environment where the people could fish and have sustainable income.

So then, if you were a Fayemi what would you do after losing elections? Get frustrated? This was out of his hands. He was a technocrat focused on getting the job done. He had no political figure in the state who managed the political side of things.

Governor Fashola survived in Lagos despite his reforms because former Governor Tinubu managed the political costs of his tough decisions. Where a Fayemi insisted on re-training and re-testing teachers to improve the standard of the educational system, he had no politician in place to manage the anger that'd naturally rise from such a bold decision. In the end, politics won and Governor Fayemi had to let go of some of his plans. It was too little too late. The people wanted business as usual, the Governor was too much of a by-the-book person.

What do Nigerians want? For all the cries about change, Nigerians do not want the change some of us in our idealistic state think they want. A lot of Nigerians actually prefer the status quo. This is a country where you can get away with virtually any crime. A leader who comes around to make the law count, to bring about costs to disobeying the law is not likely to be a popular leader.

Corruption and lawlessness have been entrenched in our society. What some other climes may see as corruption, we may see it as ordinary stealing. Anyone who intends to go head-to-head with these established unwholesome norms cannot have thoughts of second term in his or her head. Without a doubt, such a person is likely to be appreciated after office than while in office.

We want change but only when we are at the receiving end of the norm. When the norm favours us, we are just okay with the status quo.

Congratulations to Governor-elect Ayo Fayose. He is the man the people of Ekiti want and no one can say they don't deserve him. Didn't someone already say the people deserve the leader they get? As a Nigerian, one can only hope that politics does not continue to get in the way of genuine development. As for our mostly idealistic generation, how do we ‘rice’ up to this challenge? May God help Nigeria.

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India Replaces US as Largest Importer of Nigeria's crude

India has replaced the United States of America as the largest importer of Nigeria’s crude with China and Malaysia following closely.

 

This was revealed in a statement today by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr Ohi Alegbe.

 

“The US which had traditionally taken the bulk of Nigeria’s crude has in recent months drastically reduced its demand which now stands at about 250,000barrels per day,” the statement said. “India however now purchases some 30 percent of Nigeria’s daily crude production which currently hovers around 2.5million barrels.”

 

The statement also quoted the NNPC’s Coordinator Corporate Planning and Strategy, Dr. Tim Okona, as saying at the World Petroleum Congress in Russia that Nigeria would not ignore any market in its quest to remain competitive in the global oil and gas industry.

 

 

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Terror Kingpin among 486 Boko Haram Suspects Arrested in Abia

A wanted terrorist is among the 486 Boko Haram suspects arrested on Sunday by the Nigerian Army in Abia State en route to Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.

The Director of Defence Information, Major-General Chris Olukolade, in a statement in a statement yesterday said during the screening of the suspects, the terror kingpin who had been on the wanted list was identified and taken into custody.

“So far other security agencies including the para-military have joined the screening exercise to ascertain the status of the remaining suspects,” the statement said. “Those identified as possible security risks or illegal immigrants are expected to be identified for further action.”

The Nigerian Army had on Sunday arrested 486 persons who were travelling in a motorcade of 35 Totota Hummer buses along the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway. This came a few hours after a failed bomb attack on Living Faith church in Owerri, the Imo State. 

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