So, what's in the ice?

So, what's in the ice?

It’s the buzz in town and the new rave on Social Media #WhatsInTheIce. If you happen to live in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt or Benin City, then you are in luck as you stand a chance to win N1,000 airtime from any network of your choice in this competition which kicks off  today & runs for 3days. 

Gigantic ice moulds will be placed in Ozone Cinemas and Computer Village, Lagos; Silverbird Galleria, Abuja; University of Benin, Benin City and Genesis Deluxe Cinemas, Port Harcourt. Inside these molds is a treasure to be unfolded on Saturday, February 1^st. If you are able to guess correctly what’s in it, you stand the chance of winning free airtime on any network of your choice. 1st 100 correct entries only. Very simple. Continue...

For Twitter lovers, correct entries can be posted using the hashtag #WhatsInTheIce. You can also drop your answer in the comments section of this post. And if you want more than N1,000 airtime, make your way to any of the above venues on Saturday by 2pm, where they will be #BreakingTheIce and there’s N100,000 up for grabs. It’s time to break the ice!!.

11 PDP senators set to defect today

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Shekarau cross-carpets to ruling party

Barring any lastminute developments, 11 senators elected under the platform of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, will today formally defect to the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC.

Already, former Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, NGF, and the arrowhead of the defecting governors, Senator Bukola Saraki, yesterday submitted a formal letter to the Senate President, David Mark, which contained the names of the defecting senators and the request to be so recognised.

The senators are Saraki himself (Kwara Central), Magnus Abe (Rivers South- East), Wilson Ake (Rivers West), Danjuma Goje (Gombe Central) and Mohammed Jubrila (Adamawa North).

Others are: Umaru Dahiru (Sokoto South), Aisha Jumai Alhassan (Taraba North), Mohammed Lafiaji (Kwara North), Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa West), Ibrahim Gobir (Sokoto East) and Ali Ndume (Borno South).

Saraki stormed the Senate yesterday at 12.15p.m. during the plenary session and the debate on the 2014 budget was still ongoing to tender the letter to Mark.

It was not particularly clear what Saraki told Mark but shortly after Saraki had delivered the letter containing the names of the defecting senators and took his seat, Mark immediately invited the Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba and the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, for a brief conference.

Immediately after the plenary, Mark invited the principal officers of the PDP in the Senate and some other senators of the party to a meeting in his office, apparently to discuss the issue and strategies on the best way to approach the matter.

It was also learnt that Dahiru met Mark afterwards to dissociate himself from the defecting senators.

Saraki’s letter reads: “We the undersigned senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria elected under the platform of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, wish to notify you that we have severally and jointly joined the All Progressives Congress, APC.

“This action and decision is (sic) as a result of the division and factionalisation of PDP that sponsored our elections into the Senate.

“In view of the above, we write to inform you that following the division and factionalisation in the party, we have formally joined the APC.

“This communication is made pursuant to Section 68 (1) (g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) for your information, guidance and purposes.”

Senate spokesman, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, who fielded questions from correspondents, however, denied knowledge of the letter.

Abaribe said: “There is no such thing on the floor. In that case, I cannot confirm what has not been read on the floor. As at today, there is no such thing until their letters are read on the floor, then I can confirm.”

Thirteen senators had last week written a letter to the Senate president, intimating him of their plan to defect to the opposition APC.

The senators had in the letter appealed to Mark not to declare their seats vacant in the event that they formally announced their defection.

Among the reasons they advanced for the appeal was the ruling of an Abuja Federal High Court, which directed that the status quo ante be maintained by all the parties, particularly the Senate president and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal.

Mark was reported to be opposed to the defection and had consistently counselled against such moves, while efforts were being made to resolve the issues in the PDP that might have given rise to such decesions.

Mark had told the leadership of the PDP, which came to the National Assembly late last year on a fence-mending mission, that he would not declare the seat of any defecting senator vacant as required by the constitution.

Since the recently reported fresh moves by some senators of the PDP to defect to APC, Mark had maintained that if any senator was bent on defecting, he or she should write a letter to that effect.

He said that since the senators were elected differently by their separate constituents, it followed that their defection must not be done as a group.

In a related development, former Kano State governor and ex-presidential candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, Alhaji Ibrahim Shekarau, has officially defected to the PDP along with his supporters in the defunct ANPP in the state.

Shekarau, who is a foundation member of the APC, led hundreds of his supporters drawn from the 44 local government areas of the state, who thronged his Mundubawa Road residence off Hadejia Road in Nasarawa GRA, Kano yesterday.

He accused the APC of lacking in leadership structure, internal democracy and a detailed political programme six months after its registration that could enable it to win the 2015 general elections.

Shekarau, who had been nursing the idea of defecting to the PDP in the last three months finally, did so yesterday, following the ex-Sokoto State governor, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa, who dumped the APC a few days ago.

Some of the supporters chanted, “Nigeria, sai PDP”, “Kano sai PDP”, “PDP is now a Muslim party” among others while denouncing their membership of the APC.

They even renamed President Goodluck Jonathan as President Junaidu Garba.

Shekarau narrated his predicament in the APC leadership, citing lack of internal democracy.

The former governor said he was dumping the party because “a cabal has hijacked the leadership of the party for their own selfish interest.”

He explained that the defection of PDP governors in Kano, Rivers, Kwara, Adamawa and Sokoto states further created complex leadership problems within the APC.

“Six months after, there has not been membership registration in the APC from national to the ward level, no single member has been officially registered.”

Shekarau expressed regret that six months after installing an interim national leadership, the APC had not deemed it right to conduct elections that would usher in duly elected leadership.

The ex-governor has been at loggerheads with Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso over the leadership of the party in Kano State.

“On behalf of the leaders of the defunct ANPP, it is my great pleasure to welcome you all to this gigantic stakeholders meeting of the Kano State Elders Forum.

“In the past couple of weeks, we have held series of consultations, we have held series of interactive sessions in respect of development and growth of the new found party, APC.

“The APC is today six complete months, six months after its formal registration on July 31, 2013. Within these six months, there is nothing to show on ground, not a single member of APC has been registered, not a single leadership structure exists anywhere within the states.

“No structure of interim leadership at ward levels, at local government levels, at state levels. Up till this time, we are yet to receive any detailed programme of democratic elections to produce leaders of the party at various levels.

“To our dismay and to our surprise, within the six months, which was the formal and official constitutional period given the interim leadership of the party, we now hear that their is no limited period.

“Within these six months, various unconstitutional decisions have been passed by a clique of the leadership of the party. In our position as bona fide members of that party then, we challenged such decisions. We presented written petitions signed by over 250 stakeholders on December 18, 2013. Today is exactly six weeks since we presented that petition, no acknowledgement, no contact, no one has referred to us to address the petition we have submitted,” he said.

But members of the APC from Kano State in the House of Representatives have dissociated themselves from the defection of Shekarau.

Deputy Minority Leader of the House, Hon. Suleiman Abdulrahman Kawu, who disclosed this at a press briefing with other lawmakers, insisted that the APC “is still the party to beat in 2015”.

He said: “Eleven members of the All Progressives Congress, who were members of the defunct 9 ANPP and 2 CPC in the House of Representatives from Kano State have reaffirmed their stance on the current wave of defections and political realignment in the polity, especially in Kano State.

“We also wish to make it categorically clear today that we are not leaving the APC for any political party. We have sacrificed a lot and have come a long way in the struggle to emancipate our people from the bondage of PDP misrule.

“Today, under PDP, we are witnessing unprecedented level of corruption, insecurity, poverty and political instability in Nigeria more than ever before.

“We, therefore, see the coming of APC as an opportunity to right the many wrongs of the PDP and once again put Nigeria back on the pedestal of growth, development, economic prosperity and make it an egalitarian society where rule of law and social justice prevail for the common good.

“However, inasmuch as we express hope and aspiration for a better Nigeria under the APC, we are not unaware of the daunting challenges confronting our new party since we are all coming from different political parties and backgrounds

2015: PDP mobilises Dimeji Bankole against 

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Indication emerged yesterday that stakeholders in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Ogun State have commenced moves to field former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, as its flag-bearer in the state’s governorship race in 2015.

National Mirror reliably gathered that PDP stakeholders drawn from the four major factions of the party held a meeting at Iperu in the Remo North Local Government Area of the state, where the decision to field

Bankole was sealed. It was further gathered that the former speaker himself was at the meeting that was held at the country home of a former member of the House of Representatives, Dave Salako, last Monday.

A source further told our correspondent that the Iperu meeting was a follow up to the series of meetings held across the three senatorial districts of the state that were aimed at wrestling power from the incumbent Governor Amosun, who is currently having a hard time with stalwarts of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state.

The PDP chieftains were said to have expressed the confidence that a formidable candidate like Bankole, who is also an Egba man, remains the only credible candidate that could wrest power from Amosun.

It was further gathered that the stakeholders also threw their weight behind the new PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Muazu and backed his ongoing efforts at reconciling aggrieved members of the party

Members of the PDP stakeholders who attended the Iperu meeting included those from the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s faction as well as loyalists of the former Minister of Commerce, Senator Jubril Martins and those led by party financier and the Chairman of the party’s Organisation and Mobilisation Committee in the South-West, Prince Buruji Kashamu and others belonging to the former governor, Gbenga Daniel’s group.

The party chieftains said to be present at the meeting in which ‘strenuous efforts’ were made to convince the former speaker to fly the party flag against incumbent Governor Ibikunle Amosun included Dave Salako, Senator Lekan Mustapha and Chief Wale Ogunbanjo.

Others were Sina Adejobi, two serving members of the Ogun State House of Assembly – Abiodun Akovoyon and Minority Leader, Job Akitan, Pelumi Olusola, Tunji Akinosi, Nasiru Isiaka, Chief Dele Ajayi, Chief Wale Egunleti, Michael Fasinu, Alhaji Wale Abeeb Ajayi and Chief Yinka Sosinde.

Confirming the development, host of the meeting and leader of the JMK group, Dave Salako said the party in the state was currently searching for ‘a credible and strong candidate that will take the reins of governance from Amosun.’

Salako said unlike what obtains in other states, PDP members in Ogun were not willing to defect to the APC.

Reacting to the development, however, the deposed PDP state Chairman, Senator Dipo Odujinrin, who said he was yet to be briefed on the latest development, said the plan had been on before now

SURE-P coordinators to get N240.2m locally-made jeeps

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The Federal Government yesterday approved the purchase of 44 locally-made IVM G5 Jeeps for the 37 chairmen of states and Federal Capital Territory coordinators and other officers of the Subsidy Reinvestment Programme, SURE-P.

The 44 jeeps will cost N240.2 million in all, including Value Added Tax, VAT.

The government which made the disclosure yesterday after the weekly meeting of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, also said that it has approved the draft of the Nigerian Metallurgical Industry Bill, 2014.

The bill is meant to regulate the country’s metal industry.

Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku; Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu and the Minister of Solid Minerals, Mine and Steel Development, Muhammed Sada, briefed State House correspondents of the meeting’s outcome yesterday.

Wogu, who shed light on the purchase of the vehicles, said the council decided to buy the jeeps from Messrs Innoson Vehicle Manufacturer Company Limited based in Nnewi, Anambra State, in line with the Federal Government’s policy to encourage local manufacturers through direct procurement method.

He said the purchase would be carried out within one week.

His words: “The council approved a memorandum I brought to seek council’s approval for the award of contract for the direct procurement of 44 IVM G5 Jeeps for the 44 chairmen of the state and FCT Coordination and Implementation Commission, SCIC, of the Community Services, Women and Youths Employment, CSWYE, project of SURE-P and the Implementation Unit, FPIU, at the headquarters.

“To effectively implement this project, it becomes important that utility vehicles are procured which will enhance monitoring and supervision of the community services, women and youths employment activities at the state and local government levels nationwide.

“There is a budgetary provision in the 2013 appropriation for the project.”

The minister debunked insinuation that the SUREP is being used to empower only members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

INEC timetable: Political gladiators on the march again

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With the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, formally rolling out its time table for the 2015 general election, it is expected that the tempo of politicking will be on the upswing. OBIORA IFOH, OMEIZA AJAYI and UBONG UKPONG take a look at what the political climate will be like in the next one year.

Jega

The Independent National Electoral Commission!, INEC, in a statement by its Secretary, Augusta Ogakwu, at the end of its retreat in Kaduna last Friday, rolled out the much expected time table for the 2015 general election. The time table showed that the presidential and the National Assembly elections were scheduled to hold on February 14, 2015 while the governorship and states Houses of Assembly elections were slated for February 21, 2015.

The terse statement read: “Pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), the Independent National Electoral Commission has released the timetable and schedule of activities leading to the 2015 General Elections and the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections.”

As expected, the reaction to that release was instantaneous as politicians and political watchers have gone to town with critical appraisal of the election timetable; while some say that INEC ought to fix singular date for all elections, many others argue that staggered election is all the system needs because of the past experience where INEC couldn’t handle simple task of credibly holding elections in states like Anambra, Delta and Edo.

In these election, particularly, in Anambra, INEC scored itself below average and watchers are of the view that nothing has changed and that if INEC should hold all elections same day, Nigeria will certainly witness another calamitous exercise.

But with the release of the time table, the next one year will certainly witness a beehive of activities as the stage will be set for the political gladiators, starting with contentious debate over the suitability or otherwise of a Goodluck Jonathan presidency, the return ticket demand by the federal lawmakers as well the succession politics in the states.

There will also be cases of alignment and realignment by the political parties, particularly, in this era of cross carpeting and decamping from one party to another both in the floor of the legislature and by the state governors amongst others.

Will Jonathan’s declare soon?

Coincidentally, a day prior to INEC’s release of the time table, President Jonathan, who was in Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum, told CNBC Africa that it would be wrong and unlawful for him to declare his political ambition when the commission had not given its nod for politicians to do so. Before then, the President had often cited the need to concentrate on governance as reason for not openly making his intention known but his body language and the utterances of some of his lieutenants had often indicated that he is interested in taking another shot at the presidency next year.

He had told the CNBC reporter that he would declare his intention after INEC gives the go-ahead. He said: “INEC has a time frame within which candidates are expected to declare. If you declare before that time, you are actually contravening the Nigerian laws. So I won’t tell anybody that I am contesting or that I’m not contesting. It is not proper for me to do that. It is not proper for any Nigerian to declare any interest now. If you do that you are contravening our electoral laws.”

Recall that late last year, the then Bamanga Tukur led Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had shut the door on the aspiration of any other party member, insisting that all over the world, a sitting President is giving the privilege of the first right of refusal to contest the presidency. That decision had significantly contributed largely to the crack in the PDP with about seven governors (G7) opting to challenge that party position.

The heat even became unbearable latter last year when the chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees, BoT, Chief Tony Anenih openly accused President Jonathan of stoking the crisis in the party because of his reticence on the 2015 presidency particularly as it concerns his declaration.

However, since INEC has now done its part, Nigerians are waiting with bated breath to hear from the horse’s mouth. Jonathan has no other reasons why he should not clear the air about his future political ambition.

Chains of other declarations expected.

Undoubtedly, many partisan individuals and parties have been waiting for the president’s declaration before knowing their next line of action and since politics is not exactly of ideas in this part of the world, some individuals will only jump into the fray only to find a way of “reaching out” to the incumbent president, pledging electoral support and then stepping down.

In the coming weeks, some opposition politicians are also expected to declare their ambition even as these declarations will also generate a lot of debates and court cases, ostensibly because certain politicians, relying on sectional and sectarian interests, may want to stop another politician from contesting.

At the national level, the contest is expected to be between the PDP and the All Progressives Congress, APC. The other two major parties, the Labour Party and the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, appear not to be interested in the top spot and may likely not be presenting candidates for the presidency.

However, notable political top shots, including former Vice President Atiku Abubarkar, former and serving governors from both the PDP and APC are expected to context the presidency alongside President Jonathan. In a few weeks, the tempo of intention to contest declaration will intensify.

Parties putting their houses in order

Presently, both the PDP and APC are in crisis, in that while the former’s big umbrella is clearly leaking, the big broom of the latter is no longer a united bunch, but rather, mere broom sticks; but it is expected that they will also begin to put their houses in order, if they have any chances to compete favourably.

The PDP only two weeks ago had a change of leadership, with former governor of Bauchi State, Adamu Mua’zu, now in the driving seat whereas, the APC, with interim leadership still holding fort is expected to elect a substantive executive.

Mua’zu only Tuesday accused the APC of being a poaching expert but has boasted that in run to the general election, PDP would out-poach the opposition party. He has also kick-started the troubleshooting efforts by paying a visit to former President Olusegun and he is also in advanced stage of wading into the crisis in the South-West zonal chapter of the party.

As for the APC, the wind of prosperity and enlargement has not ceased as many defectors are daily besieging the party with a few also leaving. It is believed that if and when the party conducts, expectedly, a successful convention later this quarter, the party will be in a good position to put up a claim to the presidency. But observers are of the view that the convention and the possible allocation of party and elective positions to zones will make or mar the chances of the party come 2015.

In the coming weeks, more political realignments and defections would be witnessed in the National Assembly. Media reports of ‘thousands’ of people defecting to either of the two leading parties are also expected while some mushroom political parties will queue behind either of the two major parties. This time around, with the APC also having a lot of money, it is almost certain that not all the mushroom parties will queue behind the PDP.

Governance at the receiving end

President Jonathan has often maintained that one reason why he was finding it difficult to declare his intent was for the fear that governance will suffer. Already, the directives by the APC to its legislators to block all executive legislation as a result of an entirely party matter has been eliciting some condemnation from all quarters except the APC.

Now that INEC’s time table is out, it is expected that as many as are in the government that has electoral ambition would quit office as directed by the President. It is also expected that attention will shift from delivery of democratic dividends to election campaign funding.

The 2011 elections was said to have been the most expenses venture in the history of any elections in Africa and it is believed that 2015 will even be more. Opposition are already insinuating that reason why there is cash crunch in the economy is because of the 2015 and the piling of cash by the politicians for the elections.

Season for political jobbers

In 2011, one witnessed several groups lined up to drum up supports and campaign for whoever they felt paid them better or could be useful to them if eventually emerged victorious from the polls.

For instance, the Stella Oduah’s ‘Neighbour 2 Nighbour’ group suddenly emerged as a political campaign tool, aligning with President Jonathan, who deployed massive men, materials and money into the course. It paid off, as the sponsor used it to penetrate the citizens and the coordinator eventually now has a place in Aso Rock Villa, within the federal cabinet.

Special Adviser to President Jonathan on Political Matters, Ahmed Gulak, leading the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign Organisation, said that over 2000 quasi group came under the umbrella and worked for the Jonathan’s presidency in 2011 and that all of them are still there to work for the President against the 2015. There were other groups like Fresh Air, Door 2 Door amongst several others, who pursued diverse course during that season.

Political watchers and analysts have said that this kind of groups were likely to immediately begin to spring up, following the timetable released by INEC, which signals the commencement of preparations for political activities. Already, the Northern Elders Council, NEC, led by veteran Tanko Yakassai debuted only yesterday, Wednesday to lead the campaign for Jonathan in the North.

Meanwhile, sources have it that huge amounts of money had allegedly been earmarked by President Jonathan to service such groups to foster his 2015 presidential re-election. Other notable politicians were also said to be keying into this strategy.

Thus, the political jobbers may have commenced packaging programmes for politicians who are ready to finance their ideas towards the actualisation of their ambitions.

Gold mine for printing presses

Analysts have observed that another direct implication of this declaration is that politicians, their associates and political jobbers would give more business to printers and printing houses. This is because souvenirs like T-Shirts, caps, stationery, even posters, hand bills, billboards, advertisement on vehicles would become a booming business, as such businesses in the political sector were seasonal.

National Mirror spoke to an Abuja-based printer, Cyprian, who said that printrs were virtually praying for that declaration by INEC. He said: “My brother, it means good business coming to us in the printing industry. As for me, I have installed new machines. I am ready to make as much money as I could before the end of the season, because this is one good opportunity for us to benefit from democracy too.”

The rise of pressure, religious, traditional and ethnic groups

For these categories, analysts said they would commence pressing home certain demands both from government and individual politicians with a view that there would be settlements in their favour.

Such ethnic and regional bodies like the South-South Peoples Assembly, Ohaneze Ndigbo, Arewa Consultative Forum ACF, Afenifere, Odu’a Peoples Congress, OPC, Northern Elders Forum, NEF, and lots more, would actually wake up and begin to pursue some regional and ethnic interests that would foster their collective welfare and existence in the country.

It is also believed that politicians with ambition would also commence consultations with these groups with a view to winning their support and this would come with a lot of early negotiations for better chances to both parties.

Presently, politicians have devised it as a strategy to take their campaigns to the churches in the guise of going for worship. Already, President Jonathan is criticised for indulging in this action alongside other politicians.

An Abuja based cleric, who simply gave his name as Pastor Livingstone, said it was true that most religious bodies like churches and mosques and clerics are already catching in on the declaration and have began to handover their pulpits to politicians in exchange for money.

“…But God is watching from heaven. It is what God says will happen that will happen. They are free to continue, but members cannot be fooled. They will vote their consciences,” he told National Mirror in Abuja.

It was also observed that serious political consultations and endorsements would also kick start in the palaces of traditional rulers.

Militia groups to seize the opportunity

The militants and militia groups too were also said to be ready to take advantage of the declaration to strategise and seek possible ways to benefit as seen during the 2011 era. At that period, groups like Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, Boko Haram in the North, Movement for the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, in South East, OPC in the South West amongst others sought to be reckoned with, and analysts said this may immediately begin to play out again.

Politicians have been accused of arming and deploying these militia, to achieve political advantage during elections. But in their trails are bloodletting and wanton destruction of property.

These will really be interesting times, particularly with an earlier prediction by some foreign nations that Nigeria will not survive 2015. It is up to Nigerians to prove them wrong and by so doing, getting their acts right and making the best of the election period, by making it crisis-free.