Ibori committed ‘massive theft’,

British prosecutors today began to lay out the money laundering case against associates of former Governor James Ibori by telling a London court that Ibori committed ‘massive theft’ during his eight-year tenure as governor of Delta state. In the resumed money-laundering trial of Ibori’s associates, prosecutors told the Southwark Crown court, presided over by Mr Christopher Harding, that Ibori used third party agents and nominees to siphon state funds and acquire properties and assets within and outside Nigeria. The case is being presented before a jury of 12 randomly selected members of the British public. The jurors were called in about 3:25p.m. (London time), following which the prosecution team called in Mr. Chima Umezurike as their first witness in the case. The witness, a lawyer who is a member of both the Nigerian and English bars, testified on the Nigerian constitutional requirements and code of conduct for public office holders in Nigeria, including governors. Mr. Umezurike was asked to explain the grounds on which a governor may be disqualified from public office. He spoke on section 182 of the criminal code, stating that a public official may be disqualified on the ground of theft or the handling of stolen goods, including the use of third party agents and nominees for the same purposes. Asked to clarify what items are included in the declaration of assets, according to the 5th schedule of the 1999 Nigerian constitution and the code of conduct for public officers, the witness stated the following: one, that public office holders shall not maintain a bank account outside Nigeria and, two, that public office holders shall provide written declaration of assets and properties to the Code of Conduct Bureau. He explained that any property or asset declared, but found not to be linked or attributed to known income, is deemed to be evidence of a breach of the code of conduct. Mr. Umezurike testified that the Revenue Allocation and Fiscal Commission, established by the 1999 constitution, sets the salaries for public office holders. The salaries of public office holders, which is available to the public via the official website of the commission, stipulates a basic annual salary of N849,000 for the governor, including allowances for accommodation, transport and furniture, which are, respectively, 100%, 350% and 300% of the basic salary. On the question of the punishment prescribed for breach of the stated laws, the witness responded that these are listed in section 18 of the 5th schedule of the constitution, as well as any additional penalties prescribed by the constitution. These punishments include vacation of the office (in this case governor), seizure or forfeiture to the state of any asset or property acquired corruptly, and imprisonment.

Dora Akunyili's "shock and awe" memo: Yar'Adua's kitchen cabinet faces tough week ahead

Members of Yar’Adua’s kitchen cabinet are disoriented over the shock memo presented to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) yesterday by Information Minister Dora Akunyili asking Yar’Adua to present a letter of vacation to the Senate as required by section 145 of Nigeria’s 1999 constitution. But aides and kitchen cabinet members loyal to ailing Yar’Adua are now strategizing on how to react to the memo, which we understand she will represent at the FEC's meeting next Wednesday. Already, a core member of t Yar'dua's loyalists, Nigeria's notoriously corrupt Attorney General, Michael Aondoakaa has called on Mrs. Akuyili to resign from the cabinet. Saharareporters sources say the kitchen cabinet has reactivated the option of calling in the military to take over power, in preference to handing power over to Goodluck Jonathan, Yar’Adua’s deputy. It is now known that Akunyili’s five-page memo, which she first circulated yesterday at the FEC meeting, has now been formally submitted by the minister, who is insisting that the FEC change its earlier position that Yar’Adua was fit to continue in office and therefore does not need to hand over power to his deputy. According to a minister who did not wish to be named, after Mrs. Akunyili presented her circular to the FEC yesterday, Yar’Adua's loyalists led by the Minister of Agriculture, Sayyad Abba Ruma, shouted her down, but Akunyili stood her ground and insisted that the memo be discussed. Things reportedly got out of hand as a majority of the ministers said she had not properly presented the document to the body through the office of the Secretary to the Federal Government, Ahmed Yayale. Sensing that the memo might be sabotaged, Akunyili agreed to withdraw the circular and went out of the council chamber to call on one of her aides to present it as a memo. She succeeded in submitting it to the FEC before the meeting was over. She is insisting that the memo be discussed next week and our sources confirm it is now part of the agenda for next week’s FEC meeting. Her memo specifically asked the cabinet to rescind its 3 December 2009 declaration that the President is not incapacitated.

The Time to Act is Now-Ken Nnamani

Text of a Press Conference on Thursday, January 28, 2010 by Sen. Ken Nnamani GCON, Chairman, Steering Committee, Good Governance Group (3G): As the nation slouches towards avoidable constitutional and political crisis, the words of Dante Alighieri, the Italian poet that the hottest part of hell is reserved for whoever fails to act in a moment of moral crisis should sound clear in the ears of every Nigerian. Nigeria faces crisis of unimaginable proportion today on account of the ill-health of President Yaradua. It is a big shame that a country that pretends to aspire to become the 20th leading economy in the world by the turn of this decade cannot manage the transition of power in the wake of the hospitalization of the President. The Constitution has provided sufficient guidance on what should be done when unexpectedly an elected President can no longer continue to exercise executive power as President and Commander in Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. That guidance is in Section 144 of the Constitution. It requires that the Federal Executive Council, the body with the greatest proximity to the President, should declare him incapable of exercising executive power so that he could be replaced by the Vice President.
The failure of the Executive Council of the Federation to initiate action based on the provisions of Section 144 of the Constitution is a failure of leadership. Chief Ojo Maduekwe, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, declared in an interview at the United Nations recently that he is a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and not of President Yar'adua. This is right. The implication is that the primary responsibility of the Executive Council of the Federation is to promote the efficacy of the Federal Executive power. The Federal Executive is an institution not a person. To refuse to rise up to the patriotic duty of declaring the President incapable is a fundamental breach of the Constitution by members of the Executive Council of the Federation.

FEC ruled Yar'Adua "capable of continuing his functions," says Aondoakaa

Almost a week after a Federal High Court judge directed Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council to give a concrete affirmation that Nigeria’s ailing leader, Umaru Yar’adua was capable of performing his functions as “President”, his Attorney General, Michael Aondoakaa, this afternoon organized a bizarre and combative press briefing where he claimed that the cabinet has confirmed the bedridden Yar’Adua is in no way incapacitated, and is passed “fit” to continue as president. The AGF provided no evidence to the horde of journalists who asked him questions about how he and members of the FEC arrived at the decision. Mr. Aondoakaa merely stuck to the refrain that Yar’Adua was capable of performing his functions as president. Yar’Adua was hurriedly evacuated from Nigeria on November 23, 2009, after his health failed considerably. Since his departure, no one has seen him in person except, reportedly, his wife and two close aides. Before his departure, Yar’Adua characteristically did not hand over power to his deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, as mandated by the constitution.

Nigeria and its hijackers

Nigeria is in danger of entering an unprecedented stage as a hijacked entity. In fact, the polity is in the throes of what ought to be called its proper name, a coup-in-progress. A small but desperate cabal is surreptitiously consolidating its illegitimate power grab. Nigeria has been reduced to Umaru Yar’Adua’s private toy, a plaything reserved for the sole pleasure of the man and his cronies.
As I write, Mr. Yar’Adua (whose self-appellation as servant-leader has become the cruel joke it was designed to be) has been away from Nigeria for more than forty days. Apart from his wife, and a tiny circle of associates, few Nigerians can swear that they know for certain where Yar’Adua is. All we know for sure is that he’s not in Aso Rock, the official residence of the Nigerian president. Most Nigerians imagine, of course, that the man is in a hospital in Saudi Arabia – not because it’s proven fact, but it’s simply the official line. It’s impossible to vouch for any information that comes from a government that’s raised duplicity and deception to the level of art.Forget, for a moment, that Yar’Adua’s “presidency” still reeks – despite the shameful verdict of the Supreme Court – of illegality. Worse, before our very eyes, a cabal hitched to Yar’Adua is usurping the sovereign will of Nigerians. That group is acting in the name of an enfeebled man who (at this writing) has absconded from his post.Michael Aondoakaa, Yar’Adua’s Attorney General, may not be at the center of this usurpation, but he strikes me as chief coordinator of this orchestrated conquest of Nigeria. Yar’Adua’s wife, Turai – who’s perhaps the most ambitious “presidential” spouse in Nigeria’s history – appears to be the chief engineer.It no longer startles Nigerians to hear it said that Aondoakaa is the worst attorney general in his country’s history. Nigeria has had some pretty unimpressive attorney generals, but Aondoakaa stands in a class all his own for mediocrity and crassness. Now he’s adding something even more dangerous and troubling to his resume: a facility for defending the degradation of the Nigerian constitution.

Prominent Nigerians call on Yar'adua to resign!

Eminent Nigerians today in a press statement asked Umaru Yar’Adua to “immediately and unconditionally hand over to the Vice-President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan to complete the current term of office.” As Acting President, said the 55 signatories who emanate from all over Nigeria, Jonathan should then conduct the next general elections on the basis of the report of the electoral reform committee headed by Justice Mohammed Lawal Uwais.

In the statement, which was made public only a short while ago, the concerned Nigerians offered Yar’Adua the option of resigning his office immediately, arguing that his poor health “has created a dangerous situation whereby no one is in charge of the affairs of the State contrary to the letter and spirit of the Constitution.”

On the other hand, they said that if Yar’Adua is confident of his current health, he should “request the Federal Executive Council to pass a resolution pursuant to Section 144 (1) of the Constitution to the effect that the President appears incapable of discharging the functions of his office.”

They said such an “honorable step” would enable the Senate President to appoint a Medical Panel to confirm the fitness or otherwise of Yar’Adua to continue in office.”

Sympathizing with Yar’Adua’s condition, the signatories said his health should be given priority attention, but stressed that the need to provide effective governance for this nation of over 150 million people cannot be compromised.

Nigeria’s march to sultanate

A presentation made to the members of the Justice Development and Peace Commission [JDPC] of Catholic Church at Ibadan on Thursday, October 22, 2009 S. A. Asemota Esq, S.A.N.
IntroductionPermit me to pose the question: Does one compromise one’s Christian faith when one works for the conversion of Nigeria to a Sultanate? Sultanate is defined as – the rank or position of a sultan, an area of land that is ruled over by a sultan. Events however seem to suggest that Nigeria is on the march to becoming a Sultanate, ruled by a sultan.In this presentation I intend to show that from my understanding of events in Nigeria, it would appear that the country is being steered towards becoming a Sultanate.