Why Nigerians will never forgive Babangida - "If the foundation be destroyed, what can the righteous do?"

             

             CC™ Introspective Flashback

“On June 12: Severally and with great remorse too, I have taken responsibility as a true leader for the actions and decisions of the military administration that I led. The annulment of the June 12 election is one of the ugly spots one has to live with...I know that a day will come when Nigerians will forgive our regime because we are a godly nation that embraces the culture of forgiveness”. Gen Ibrahim Babangida, Minna, August 15 2010.

Brigadier John Dennis Profumo was a British politician. Although Profumo held a series of political posts in the 1950s, he is best known for his involvement in a 1963 scandal involving a prostitute. The scandal, now known as the Profumo Affair, led to Profumo's resignation and withdrawal from politics, and it may have helped to topple the Conservative government of Harold Macmillan. 

Profumo, a well-connected politician with a good war record was highly regarded in the Conservative party. On 5 June 1963 Profumo was forced to admit that he had lied to the British House of Parliament, an unforgivable offence in British politics. He resigned from office, from the House and from the Privy Council. The scandal rocked the Conservative government, and was generally held to have been among the causes of its defeat by Labor at the 1964 election. 

After his resignation, Profumo began to work as a volunteer cleaning toilet at Toynbee Hall, a charity based in the East End of London, and continued to work there for the rest of his life. Eventually, Profumo volunteered as the charity's chief fundraiser. These charitable activities helped to restore the fallen politician's reputation; he was awarded a CBE in 1975, and in 1995 was invited to Margaret Thatcher's 70th birthday dinner. He was a member of Boodle's club in St James's Court, London from 1969 until his death.

Tony Blair is a British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. 

The 43-year old Blair became the youngest Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on 2 May 1997 since Lord Liverpool in 1812. With electoral victories in 1997, 2001, and 2005, Blair was the Labour Party's longest-serving prime minister, the only person to lead the party to three consecutive general election victories. 

Tony Blair was a very popular and charismatic with lots of achievement including the Northern Ireland Peace Process (after 30 years of conflict) and one of the longest periods of economic prosperity in UK modern history. 

But in 2003, Blair joined the United States and invaded Iraq. This was particularly controversial, as it attracted widespread public opposition and no less than 139 of Blair's MP's opposed it. 

As a result, he faced criticism over the policy itself and the circumstances in which it was decided upon—especially his claims that Iraq was developing weapons of mass destruction, which have not been discovered. 

Blair's decision to invade Iraq in 2003 prompted huge antiwar protests and till date, Blair cannot come out in public in the UK without huge security. 

In fact, Anti-war campaigners are planning to hold a demonstration at his book-signing in central London on 1 September 2010. 

Lindsey German, from Stop The War Coalition, said: "It would have been much better for everyone if he hadn't taken us into these wars in the first place. Blair lied about the Iraq war, he refused to express any regret at the Chilcot inquiry. 

Blair was highly vilified, summoned before the Chilcot Inquiry and some people, including Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter and former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad, have accused Blair of war crimes. 

However, yesterday, August 16 2010, Tony Blair announced he will donate all the profits from his forthcoming memoirs to a new sports centre for injured troops. The former prime minister is handing over the reported £4.6 million advance he received for the book, A Journey, as well as any royalties. 

The money - which represents a significant chunk of Mr Blair's estimated £15 million-plus fortune - will go towards the Royal British Legion's Battle Back Challenge Centre, which is due to open in summer 2012. The £12 million complex will provide accommodation and a state-of-the-art gym and training facility for injured service personnel. 

For the former prime minister it was "a way of marking the enormous sacrifice" of the UK's armed forces. For some others it was little more than an attempt to assuage a guilty conscience. 

The proceeds from the book will go to the Royal British Legion's Battle Back campaign, a project that will provide a new rehabilitation centre for seriously injured troops returning from the frontline. 

Simpkins of the British Legion said: "Mr Blair's generosity is much appreciated and will help us to make a real and lasting difference to the lives of hundreds of injured personnel." 

"In making this decision Tony Blair recognises the courage and sacrifice the armed forces demonstrate day in, day out," said his spokesman. "As prime minister he witnessed that for himself in Iraq, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland, Sierra Leone and Kosovo. This is his way of honouring their courage and sacrifice."

What is the lesson for Ibrahim Babangida in these two stories?

General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, popularly known as IBB, was a Nigerian military ruler. He ruled Nigeria from his coup against Muhammadu Buhari on August 27, 1985 until his departure from office in August 27, 1993 after his annulment of elections held on June 12 that year. 

Babangida was the Chief of Army Staff and a member of the Supreme Military Council (SMC) under the administration of Major General Muhammadu Buhari. Babangida would later overthrow Buhari's regime on 27 August 1985 in a bloodless military coup that relied on mid-level officers that Babangida silently and strategically positioned over the years. 

He came into power in a military coup promising to bring to an end the human rights abuses perpetuated by Buhari's government, and to hand over power to a civilian government by 1990. Eventually, he perpetuated one of the worst human right abuses and lots of murder of military officers on phantom coup plots and unresolved plane crash that killed dozens of military officers. 

Ibrahim Babangida is widely regarded in Nigeria as a thief and criminal and was accused of being responsible for the theft of over 12 Billion Dollars. He was also accused of institutionalizing corruption. 

In his declaration speech, August 15 2010, IBB admitted that his ambition to be president has generated “robust debate as to whether or not I should contest the highest office in the land. In fact, some people in their negative criticism continue to render acrimonious misrepresentation to distort and disparage my true character and general contributions”. 

He went to point out four controversial issues that “touch on some of the impressions and issues that you and I must have been confronted with relating to my personality and previous administration”: 

1. The murder of Dele Giwa
2. The annulment of June 12 elections widely held to be free and fair
3. The Okigbo Panel Report and the missing $12.5 billion Gulf Windfall
4. The Democratization of corruption 

On 1, 3, and 4 issues above IBB strove to exonerate himself from “the allegation for want of evidence by the prosecutors” while acknowledging that “perception, often repeated, no matter how untrue, becomes very hard to obliterate”. 

But on the issue of the annulment of June 12 election IBB said: “Severally and with great remorse too, I have taken responsibility as a true leader for the actions and decisions of the military administration that I led. The annulment of the June 12 election is one of the ugly spots one has to live with. It was a collective decision taken after series of consultations with several stakeholders. Even though ours was a military regime, yet we governed as a team, majority decision always carried the day. I know that a day will come when Nigerians will forgive our regime because we are a godly nation that embraces the culture of forgiveness”. 

Babangida in effect was asking Nigerians to forgive him and come next year, 2011, elect him as our civilian president. (I watched his declaration on NTA, he said “civilian president” with a crooked smile). 

Of the three other controversial issues above, I ask Nigerians: 

1. Is Babangida the most corrupt leader Nigeria has ever produced? I don’t think so. Otherwise, Atiku Abubakar - indicted in the USA for corruption would not be contesting and Olusegun Obasanjo would be in jail. 

Even Abacha’s son is reportedly warming up to be the next Kano State governor. 

2. Is IBB the only leader that may have killed political opponents including killed journalists? Since he left office, dozens of journalists has been murdered. Under OBJ’s watch, Bola Ige was murdered and no one has been prosecuted. 

3. Is the missing $12billion dollars reportedly stolen by IBB the worst looting Nigeria have ever witnessed?

I say, under Obasanjo, the publicly televised Elumelu Power Probe proved that $16billion earmarked for power generation under former President Olusegun Obasanjo equally disappeared. And yet OBJ remains one of the most powerful power brokers in the ruling party!

But on June 12, I tell IBB, No sir, Nigerians will not forgive you as to allow you be the next president. 

WHY?
Simple, the answer is found in the narratives above about Tony Blair and Brigadier Profumo. 

Since 1993, For seventeen years, IBB by his own account, lived with a guilty conscience for criminally annulling the freest and fairest election ever conducted in the annals of this country and thereby: 

1. Set the clock of Nigeria’s development back by some 50 years!
2. Brought the country to the brink of perdition and civil war
3. Caused the loss of many innocent lives
4. Imposed the most wicked, callous and sadist leader on Nigerians in the person of Sani Abacha.  

And yet when he “stepped aside” in 1993, and through all these 17 years, IBB continued to harbor and nurture the dream of coming back to rule Nigeria, and yet he did absolutely nothing to assuage his conscience, assuage the aggrieved and heal the wounds caused by his wicked act. 

He failed to toe the path trod by Tony Blair Brigadier Profumo and even our own Moshood Abiola. 

Before June 12 no one considered Abiola a saint. In fact, when digital telephony eventually came to Nigeria in the late 90’s, I could not help then thinking that but for Moshood Abiola, we should have had digital telephony in our house 20 years earlier. 

Fela Anikulapo Kuti captured the disgraceful episode in his classic: ‘ITT, International Thief Thief’! 

And yet, by the time Abiola contested for President in 1993, what comes into the mind of Nigerians when Abiola's name is mentioned is not ITT but philanthropy! 

Unarguably, No part of Nigeria was excluded from benefitting from Abiola’s philanthropy. Even a secondary school in my home town, Nnewi, South-Eastern Nigeria got 250,000 Naira during one inter-house sports ceremony. 

So again I ask IBB: 

Since you knew even when you were stepping aside in disgrace in 1993 that you will come back to ask for our vote in a democratic Nigeria, what did you do to assuage our hurt, to win the hearts of the aggrieved, and show that you are not the evil genius you acknowledged we take you to be? 

Where is your public school (not the elite school you established with your wife) for the masses? 

You claimed to be “conscious of the geopolitical divides in the country”, how many indigent students from the all the geopolitical divides in the country benefitted from your scholarship? 

You led the Nigerian army to Liberia, What charity did you establish for those that lost their limbs or for the widows that lost their husbands in that war?

What tangible Foundations did you establish to entrench democracy and good governance in the country? 

Gen Obasanjo after handing over in 1979 and despite all his faults acted as the conscience of the Nation during the locust years of military maladministration of Nigeria including yours – we remember OBJ begging you to give your flagship economic policy, SAP, a human face and milk of human kindness, He spoke up against bad military rule, and established African Leadership Forum.

It can be argued that without the statesmanlike roles Obasanjo played between 1979 and 1994, the Federal establishment would not have approached him to assume the mantle of leadership in 1999.

So again I ask IBB: What statesmanlike role did you play in Nigeria between 1993 and 2010? 

Where were you as religious and ethnic crisis and Sharia riots engulfed parts of the North since 2001 till date? 

why didn’t you speak up when the man you nurtured, Sani Abacha was treading Nigeria with his jack-boot? You became deaf and dumb! 

Or even speak against the injustice of Obasanjo sending the Nigerian Army to massacre peaceful Odi and Zaki biam indigenes?

IBB didn’t care because he believes that he could always use his looted funds to buy some of us over to sing his praise. He was confident he could gather a few journalists to feed from the crumbs from his table. 

That to me is the height of arrogant disdain for Nigerians and a manifestation of megalomaniac sense of entitlement that should be quashed by all means! 

It shows that IBB take Nigerians to be gullible fools that could always be taken in by guile and a flash of gap-toothed smile. Or alternatively, he considers us a bunch of stupid idiots that could always be bought with money. 

And for this, we will never forgive IBB! 

I hardly agree with Alhaji Umaru Dikko on anything but on one thing I am on all fours with him; the Nigeria’s presidency is not for the highest bidder! 

This historical lesson proved again and again in Nigerian political history the daft-heads parading as presidential aspirants have always failed to learn.

To their detriment!

VIEWPOINT: HOW IBRAHIM BADAMOSI BABANGIDA STOLE $12.5 BILLION GULF WAR WINDFALL

      

          CC™ Flashback

             By Babs Ajayi

The subversive element hounded out of Nigeria is now after his old taskmasters. Not because he hates them but because he detests what they stood for: greed, selfishness, arrogance and wickedness against their own people, against humanity and against a nation that trained and equipped them. The years when intellectuals and scholars were literally driven out of Nigeria marked the gradual but steady exodus of most of Nigeria's best brains to the West. Ultimately, the goal was to frustrate them, shut them up through regular harassments, detentions, unpaid salaries, manhunt of teachers right inside the university campuses, government-sponsored suspensions, demotions, and finally rationalization of academic staff and positions.   At the University of Ibadan the situation was so bad that many academic staff members who refused to be gagged by the brain-dead (to use his word) illiterates who stole Nigeria and presided over it the way a crocodile preside over its prey, made it a point of duty to go round the campus with their toilet bag in tow. The Men State Security Service (SSS) invaded the campus. The students' union was infiltrated and its Students' Representative Council (SRC) meetings were not spared. The situation at the Ahmadu Bello University was no different. The academia were molested and tortured. Unholy visits at nocturnal hours became a regular experience. Pains and anguish were all the dictator, Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, the International Bad Boy (IBB) was prepared to offer our institutions of higher learning. The pen of the teacher terrorized the dumb dictator so much he became jittery. At that point any conceivable and imaginable excuse to Shuggabilize and deport/get rid of any perceived and presumed subversive element was considered good enough. The pen and words of the Bala Usmans, the Patrick Wilmots, and many of their compatriots in Zaria were too strong for the bad boy to cope with. He was afraid of revolution and was determined to wipe out the opposition. The fight against subversive elements is nothing but a retrogressive battle to silence the only credible opposition that has stood its ground against a corrupt and illegitimate regime with suspected involvement in drug trade and other related offences.    When the plan to rationalize academic programs were forced down the throats of the deadbeats at the National Universities Commission, then chaos became the order of the day on our campuses. I could not believe the rumour that a leading literary critic of international standing at the University of Ibadan was to be rationalized! I had met the Olohun-Iyo, as he is fondly called, a few times and had invited him to deliver a lecture at one of the English Club (the association of English students at UI) lectures. The erudite teacher did not wait for the rumour to turn to reality before relocating to Europe where he resumed his academic exploits and made more mark. With the firm and wicked determination of the cretin and his spineless sidekicks to "deal ruthlessly" with the universities and the academics came the gradual degeneration of our campuses. He starved them of funds and succeeded in making them ineffective. He has not attended one and did not know nor understand what value they add to society and humanity. Today, one of the most abused and dehumanized of the group of subversive elements, Dr. Patrick Wilmot is still actively on the case of the "brain-dead generals" who milked Nigeria into a state of economic depression and her citizens into poverty and darkness. Married to a Nigerian and a patriot of the highest standard, the Junta did not feel comfortable with him, his writings and his presence. He was declared unfit to live in Nigeria, at least he is not a Nigerian, but Patrick Wilmot showed much love, devotion, and concern for the plights of the common man and the voiceless in Nigeria than a million Babangidas ever did. For Babangida everything began and ended in his pocket and he is yet to account for the over 12 billion dollars from the Gulf War windfall. Dr. Wilmot -through his article Truth and Fiction - just surfaced (I have heard nothing about him in years) in The NewsAfrica magazine edition of June 30. From his piece it was clear the man had moved on into bigger things; Patrick Wilmot just refused to go away, a nightmare for Ibrahim Babangida and his lieutenants who rode rough shod over the nation of Nigeria and treated her like a fiefdom. Accused of teaching what he was not paid to teach and trying to overthrow the government (with his pen and paper!), Dr. Wilmot was removed just like that. His removal did not bring peace to IBB. He had Dr. Attahiru Jega, Professor Olorode, Dr. Idowu Awopetu, Dr. Festus Iyayi and many other ASUU leaders to contend with. It is on record that it was only ASUU that defeated, disgraced and humiliated Ibrahim Babangida and his mis-government, making it clear that the word is mightier than the sword. ASUU broke his back and taught him a lesson from which he refused to learn anything, the drop out and apprentice soldier who pretended to be something.

Brazil is reviving a 2008 fraud case against lying George Santos

CC™ Global News

By Tom Porter

 Rep.-elect George Santos will take his seat in Congress on Tuesday facing a renewed fraud investigation by Brazilian authorities.

A spokesperson for the Rio de Janeiro prosecutors office told The New York Times that authorities will be reviving a 2008 fraud case, which they dropped more than a decade ago after failing to locate him.

Now that Santos' whereabouts are known, they are set to contact the US Justice Department and seek his formal response to allegations, the outlet reported.

The Times, citing court records, said that the fraud case stems from a visit Santos made to a clothing store in Niterói, a city outside of Rio de Janeiro, where he allegedly paid for $700 of goods using a stolen checkbook, using a fake name.

Prosecutors in Brazil charged Santos with embezzlement over a decade ago, but the case was archived in 2013 because Santos could not be found to answer a court summons.

The investigation comes as Santos is set to enter Congress under suspicion that he fabricated vast swaths of his resumé and personal history, including about his education and employment history.

Santos flipped a Democratic seat in New York to help Republicans clinch a narrow House majority in the November midterms.

Santos is also under suspicion over claims he made about his family history, including that his family fled the Holocaust as Jewish refugees, and over claims he lost employees in the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Florida. Neither appears to be true.

Santos has admitted to making false claims about his education and career.

"My sins here are embellishing my resume. I'm sorry," Santos told the New York Post.

Santos added that he has never been charged with a crime in Brazil, or anywhere else.

"I am not a criminal here – not here or in Brazil or any jurisdiction in the world. Absolutely not. That didn't happen."

Insider has contacted an attorney for Santos for comment.

The US attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York is also investigating Santos over his financial affairs, with the Nassau County district attorney investigating him over unspecified alleged fabrications.

Source - Business Insider

Buhari's killing fields as former Central Bank of Nigeria official and wife murdered in gruesome style in their own home

The murdered couple pictured here

CC™ Global News

By Sowunmi Sowemimo

Assassins on Sunday murdered Kehinde Fatinoye, a staff of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

Fatinoye was killed alongside his wife, who was until the incident a Principal Confidential Secretary at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, FUNAAB.

CC™ gathered that the unknown persons had stormed the Ibara GRA residence of the couple at a time they just returned from the New Year crossover service.

A source revealed that the couple were killed and set ablaze by their assailants inside their house.

Also, the couple’s son and domestic staff were reportedly taken away by the assassins.

Ogun State police spokesman, Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the incident, saying: “It is true the incident happened. Investigation has commenced. Somebody has been arrested in connection with the incident. The man and his wife were killed and we are yet to find their child who was taken away.”

He further confirmed: “The incident happened after 12 in the morning. This is a clear case of assassination and we are not leaving any stone unturned to unravel those behind the killings.”

Stating the obvious: Santos should consider resigning, veteran GOP lawmaker says

Source: sipsip.com

CC™ News

By Hope Yen

Even as the House GOP leadership keeps silent, a veteran Republican lawmaker said Sunday that George Santos should consider resigning after the congressman-elect from New York admitted to lying about his heritage, education and professional career.

Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, a former House Ways and Means chairman who has served in Congress for 25 years, told “Fox News Sunday” that Santos would have “to take some huge steps” to regain trust and respect in his district. Santos is set to be sworn in Tuesday when the new Congress begins.

“This is troubling in so many ways. Certainly, he’s lied repeatedly,” said Brady, who is retiring from the House. “He certainly is going to have to consider resigning.” Brady said a decision about whether Santos steps down is one "to be made between he and the voters who elected him.”

In November, Santos, 34, was elected in the 3rd Congressional District, which includes some Long Island suburbs and a small part of the New York City borough of Queens. He became the first non-incumbent, openly gay Republican to win a seat to Congress. But weeks after helping Republicans secure their razor-thin House majority, Santos is now under investigation for fabricating large swaths of his biography. His campaign spending is also being scrutinized.

He has shown no signs of stepping aside. Last week, Santos was asked on Fox News about the “blatant lies” and responded that he had “made a mistake.”

The top House Republican, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, who is running to become House speaker now that the GOP will hold the majority, has not said what action, if any, he might take against Santos.

Brady said if he headed a committee that Santos was set to serve on, “right now, he would not be on the committee.”

The congressman also said that “we’re a country of second chances. And when people are willing to turn their life around and own up to this and do what it takes and earn respect and trust again, you know, we’re willing to do that.” Brady said he was hopeful that Santos "chooses the right path here.”

Questions were raised about Santos last month when The New York Times published an investigation into his resume and found a number of major discrepancies. Since then, Santos has admitted lying about having Jewish ancestry, lying about working for Wall Street banks and lying about obtaining a college degree.

Democrats are expected to pursue several avenues against Santos, including a potential complaint with the Federal Election Commission and introducing a resolution to expel him once he’s a sitting member of Congress.

Source - AP

Edson Arantes de Nascimento aka Pele: Rest in peace King Pele

CC™ VideoScope

White Privilege: Far-Right Activist Ammon Bundy Threatens ‘Shotgun’ Standoff Over Hospital Lawsuit

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images

CC™ News

By Kelly Weill

Six years after his last armed standoff with law enforcement, far-right leader Ammon Bundy appears to be threatening another armed action—this time over a lawsuit from an Idaho hospital he’s accused of harassing.

“They’re suing me for defamation. They’re probably going to try to get judgments of over a million dollars and take everything they have from me,” Bundy told the conservative Idaho Dispatch in a livestream video this week. “And I’m not going to let that happen. I’m making moves to stop that from happening. And if I have to meet 'em on the front door with my, you know, friends and a shotgun, I’ll do that. They’re not going to take my property.”

Bundy, who recently and unsuccessfully ran for governor of Idaho, rose to national fame during tense confrontations with federal law enforcement at his family’s Nevada ranch in 2014 and at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in 2016. Following those standoffs, Bundy launched the People’s Rights Network, a far-right activist group.

Bundy, the People’s Rights Network, and other associates are defendants in a lawsuit by St. Luke's Meridian Medical Center, which accuses the right-wing network of defamation.

In March, Bundy and the People’s Rights Network mobilized against the St. Luke's where Bundy claimed a baby had been “medically kidnapped [...] due to a missed non-emergency doctor’s appointment.”

Authorities disputed Bundy’s characterization of the case. The baby, a grandson of a People’s Rights member, was admitted to the hospital early that month for “severe malnourishment,” according to police. The 10-month-old gained weight in the hospital and was discharged with his parents, after which he “lost a significant amount of weight and the parents canceled the next follow-up appointment and could not be located.” The baby’s doctor, who was not affiliated with the hospital, reported concerns to Idaho’s Department of Health and Welfare, which flagged the baby as in “immediate danger involving a life threatening and/or emergency situation,” according to the hospital’s lawsuit.

After agreeing to another appointment and failing to appear, the parents allegedly refused to let police check on the child at home. The family was later found during a traffic stop and the baby was taken to the hospital, where he was treated for three days. The DHW returned him to his parents three days later.

During the baby’s hospital stay, Bundy and followers harassed staffers in an ambulance bay, leading to Bundy’s arrest for allegedly trespassing and resisting or obstructing officers. The People’s Rights Network campaign caused a security threat that sent the hospital into lockdown, during which it was unable to accept ambulances for an hour.

The Bundy network fabricated conspiracy theories about St. Luke’s and its staff, all while running fundraisers online, the hospital claims in its lawsuit. “These solicitations for charitable contributions were made based on defamatory statements about the St. Luke’s Parties and others kidnapping, trafficking, and killing children.”

The online campaign falsely accused the hospital of vaccinating the baby against his parents’ wishes, and claimed the baby had been forced to take “toxic poison” and “possibly could lose his life because of the decisions of people [at St. Luke’s] who don’t even care” about him. The campaign also singled out St. Luke’s doctors, whom it falsely accused of mass kidnapping.

“They told their followers to target the same individuals for doxing and harassment. Defendants mirrored false statements across the websites and social media they controlled,” the lawsuit reads. “Defendants also organized a campaign of technological disruption. They encouraged their followers to flood St. Luke’s phone lines and email inboxes in an effort to shut down St. Luke’s operations. Defendants’ followers jammed phone lines with menacing calls (including death threats), sent threatening emails, and sent spam to disrupt servers.”

St. Luke’s claims the defendants raised more than $115,000 from the protests.

Bundy, who did not return The Daily Beast’s request for comment, hasn’t been cooperating with the lawsuit. He’s skipped court appearances, including a September sanctions hearing. In his interview with the Dispatch, Bundy held up a stack of court papers and said he’s been throwing them in the garbage.

“I just throw it all away. I literally just take it from the mail and throw it in the garbage,” he said. “I haven’t responded one bit to them.” He added that “they have servers that come here all the time, knocking on the door, serving papers.”

St. Luke’s is seeking monetary damages from the defendants, which it says it will donate to the Children at Risk Evaluation Service. While it is unclear exactly how much the hospital will seek, it requested a sum total of at least $50,000, combined, from the defendants.

Source: The Daily Beast

Flashback: Buhari Is An Ethnic Bigot, Religious Fanatic – Bola Tinubu

CC™ Retrospective

Bola Tinubu, former Governor of Lagos State and leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, once described General Muhammadu Buhari as an agent of destabilization, ethnic bigot and religious fanatic who if given the chance would ensure the disintegration of the country, according to a Wikileaks transcript of a conversation between Tinubu and the US consul-general in 2003.

Tinubu disclosed this to the United States spy posing as the consul general – in a 2003 conversation- that Buhari should not be trusted due to his bigot tendencies. He pointed to Buhari’s tribalistic nature as potentially dangerous to the unity of Nigeria. In Tinubu’s summation, he stated: ‘Buhari and his ilk are agents of destabilization who would be far worse than Obasanjo.’ The conversation was recorded by the US Consul General and wired back to Washington DC for analysis. Of which, Wikileaks got a hold of the recorded transcripts and published the conversation.

Section 6 (C) reads “Turning to the presidential contest, Tinubu disclosed that he does not like President Obasanjo because he contributed to the end of democracy in Nigeria during his tenure as a military president and is now benefiting from that history. That said, Tinubu admitted that he and his party, the Alliance for Democracy, must support Obasanjo. Southwest Nigeria is Yoruba land and the President is Yoruba. Tinubu’s party had no choice since it has not fielded a presidential candidate. Moreover, Obasanjo is the only candidate who stands a chance of blocking his rival, General Muhammadu Buhari, whose ethnocentrism would jeopardize Nigeria’s national unity. Buhari and his ilk are agents of destabilization who would be far worse than Obasanjo. Tinubu and many other governors are therefore implementing a strategy to re-elect Obasanjo, partly in an effort to prevent Sharia from spreading. Tinubu predicted that the President will follow his own course, if re-elected, since he will not need as many friends the second time around.”

However, barely 11 years after, Tinubu and Buhari have forged an alliance to upstage the PDP government. The curious marriage between both men has got many tongues wagging. While some see the new Tinubu-Buhari liaison as a marriage of convenience just to undo the PDP, others expressed suspicion at the intent of Tinubu to sell Buhari to Nigerians this time round, barely one decade after he dismissed the leadership credentials of the former military dictator.

During his reign as Head of State, Buhari introduced a notorious decree to restrict press freedom, under which two journalists were jailed. He ruled with iron fist and was unable to reflate a sagging economy.

His attempts to rebalance public finances by curbing imports led to the closure of businesses and many job losses. The economy took a downturn as prices of goods rose, while living standards fell, leading to a palace coup by Gen Ibrahim Babangida on 27 August 1985.

INDEPENDENT

Northern and Southern Governors have banned open grazing in Nigeria

CC™ ViewPoint

By Femi Falana

At the virtual meeting of Northern Governors Forum held on February 9, 2021, the members unanimously resolved to ban open grazing. According to the communique issued at the end of the meeting, it was stated that the Forum noted with concern “the growing wave of insecurity in the country particularly as it relates to the circulation of unverified video clips on social media portraying violent attacks on persons in some parts of the country. Therefore, the forum called on political leaders to segregate between criminality and social groups in their domains with a view to treating criminals as   criminals.

The forum reiterated   the   condemnation of   every form of criminality whether from herders, hunters, or farmers occupying forest reserves illegally. It also noted with concern the tension generated by the eviction order issued to herdsmen in some parts of the country. And it  expressed concern that this is heating the already fragile security atmosphere with threats of reprisals which the Northern governors are working assiduously to contain.”

The forum also noted with concern that “the current system of herding conducted mainly through open grazing is no longer sustainable in view of growing urbanization and population of the country.”

Consequently, the forum resolved to aggressively sensitize herdsmen on the need to adopt new methods of herding by ranching or other acceptable modern methods.” The forum appealed to the Federal Government “to support states with grants to directly undertake pilot projects of modern livestock production that will serve as springboard and evidence for breaking resistance to the full implementation of new methods of livestock production (and) resolved to engage elders and youths in a robust discussion with a view to dousing the tensed security environment in the North and called on all the citizens of the north to continue to live in peace with all Nigerians irrespective of their origins and backgrounds.”

The forum stressed the urgent need for the Nigerian Governors Forum, NGF, to meet and discuss the issue holistically with a view to resolving all areas of misunderstanding and conflicts arising from these threats and suspicion for the sake of national unity.

In response to the call of the NGF for an urgent meeting, the Nigeria Governors Forum held a virtual meeting on February 11, 2021. At the meeting the 36 state governors agreed by consensus to end nomadic cattle rearing in the country in order to end the incessant violent clashes between farmers and herders. In the communique of the governors it was categorically stated as follows: “Following an update from governors on the various initiatives taken by state governments to address the rising insecurity in the country due to the   activities of herdsmen, members reached a consensus on the need for the country to transition into modern systems of animal husbandry that will replace open, night and underage   grazing in the country.”

It was further stated in the Communique that: “State   governments are encouraged to put in place systems to accelerate the grazing initiative of the National Livestock Transformation  Plan, NLTP and ranching in the country.” However, the Forum urged state governments to respect “the right of abode of all Nigerians and strongly condemns criminality and the ethnic profiling of crime in the country in an effort to frame the widespread banditry and the herders /farmers crisis.”

At its own meeting held at Asaba, Delta State on May 11, 2021,   the Southern Governors Forum reiterated the decision of the Nigeria Governors Forum to ban open grazing in the country. Curiously, Professor Usman Yusuf has condemned the decision of the Southern Governors Forum on the ban. Even though he did not condemn the decisions of the Northern Governors Forum and the Nigeria Governors Forum, Professor Usman has argued that the decision of the Southern Governors Forum could not be justified under the Land Use Act. Such divide-and-rule tactics are designed to further polarise the masses of our people.

In any case, the decision of all the   governors to ban open grazing is in line with section 1 of the Land Use Act which has vested the entire land in every state in the governors on behalf of the people. Accordingly, any person or corporate body that wishes to use land in any state is required to apply for a certificate of occupancy issued by the governor.

In the same vein, the power to approve the physical planning of the land in every state is the exclusive responsibility of state governments.  Furthermore,   forest reserves owned by state governments are equally regulated by laws enacted by the Houses of Assembly. Under such laws it is stipulated that it is a criminal offence to occupy any part of such reserve without authorization of the state government.

By the combined effect of the Land Use Act, Regional Planning laws and Forest Laws applicable in all the states of the federation. Thus,   pursuant to such laws the Federal Government has directed state governments to take charge of all the forests in all states. It is, therefore, grossly misleading to argue that herders have unquestionable power to graze their cattle on any land without the authorization of the appropriate authorities.

As I had repeatedly maintained, the worsening insecurity in the country, including the violent clashes between herders and farmers, can only be seriously addressed if policy makers are prepared to abandon primitive ideas and embrace scientific solutions. As far back as 2016, the Buhari administration had adopted ranching in place of open grazing on farmlands without the authorization of the owners. Unfortunately, due to pressure from some selfish interest groups the Federal Government abandoned the policy of ranching.

However,   the increasing wave of insecurity in recent times has compelled the Federal Government and all the state governments to make ranching as the cornerstone of the National   Livestock   Transformation   Plan. From the information at our disposal, not fewer  than 24 state governments have applied for the special grant earmarked for the establishment of ranches by the Federal Government.

No doubt, every citizen is entitled to the fundamental right to freedom of movement and right to own and acquire land in any part of Nigeria by virtue of sections 41 and   43 of the Nigerian Constitution, respectively. To that extent, herders, like other citizens, are at liberty to acquire land for cattle business under the Land Use Act. But it is grossly misleading on the part of Professor Usman to say that governors are required to secure the permission of herders before banning the dangerous practice of open, night and underage grazing.

Those who are encouraging herders to reject modern animal husbandry are advised to learn from Botswana, South Africa,   Mozambique, Kenya and Ethiopia that have effectively adopted ranching to end clashes between herders and farmers. In those countries, farmers live in the ranches with family members, including their children and wards who attend schools in the neighbourhood.

*Femi Falana, SAN, is Interim Chair, Alliance on Surviving COVID – 19 and Beyond, ASCAB.