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A political group based in Abuja, Nigeria- the African Renaiassance Party (ARP) has advocated for the amendment of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to ensure  equal representation of both genders in  elective offices in the exective arm of Government at the Federal, State and Local Government levels

The group in a statement by his National Chairman, Mr. Yahaya Udu said that: “ all elective executive positions requiring a principal and deputy, should be so construed by law that where a member of a particular gender is running for such elective executive position, the deputy must be of the opposite sex”

There are presently three elective executive positions that have a joint ticket of the Principal and a Deputy, under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. They are the President- at the Federal level, the Governor at the state level,and the Chairman – at the Local Government level.  If the positon of the group is adopted by the State and National Assemblies, statutorily charged with the responsibility to review Nigeria’s constitution, a woman must be on a Joint Presidency, Governorship, or Local Chairmanship ticket.

The Group also canvassed for the provision of a bicameral  legislatures based on unisexual assemblies.

” This means that at all levels of Government legislatures, there should be separate legislative houses for females and separate legislative bodies for males”

Yahaya Ndu said these recommendations are to ensure  gender harmony and also in line with African civilisations, ‘that have worked perfectly for the societies in the past”.

Nigeria’s 1999 constitution bequeathed by the Military is presently up for review, after two previous failed attempts to review it since the transition to democratic governance in May 29, 1999.

Chairperson of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Professor Assisi Asobie, has revealed that the Nigeria does not know the exact volume of crude oil produced from its oil fields, giving room to oil thefts and other sharp practices.

 “Presently, we do know the volume of Oil produced at Oil flow stations , because they are not installed with metres”, said Professor Asobie in a live  programme on Radio Nigeria, earlier today.

The NEITI Chair said the best way any country can measure the volume of crude oil being produced by Oil exploration firms is by installing meters at both flow and terminal stations, saying that “right now, meters are only installed at terminal stations, so we do not know how much is produced at flow stations in Nigeria”.

NEITI has therefore requested Nigerian government to install meters at flow stations to redress this loop hole.

 “When NEITI was set up, we invited International experts to assist us in identifying various acts of Oil thefts in order to know how much is being stolen and how to deal with the issue of measurement. Afterwards, we came up with the Metering Measurement Watching Group (MMWG), to come up with comprehensive measures to address the issue of oil theft.

I am aware that the body has already sent a recommendation to the Nigeria Government that meters should be installed at flow and terminal stations, so that we can exactly know the volume of crude oil being produced”

NEITI http://www.neiti.org.ng/ is a multi stakeholder oversight body that works to ensure due process and transparency in payments by Extractive Industry companies to Nigerian governments and government-linked entities.

Local Government elections are holding today in Ekiti State, South West Nigeria to elect 54 Local Government Chairmen and 411 Councillors.

Elections will hold in 2195 polling booths between the hours of 8am and 3pm. The Action Congress, the leading Opposition party is boycotting the exercise on the grounds that the State ElectoralCommission does not have the powers to conduct the exercise.

Nigeria losses N1b daily to energy crisis, spends N365b annually on diesel

Nigeria is losing N1billion naira daily due to energy outages in the power sector, and needs an investment of between 11 billion – 15 billion naira yearly between now and 2020 to meet targeted national energy demand of  40,000 megawatts.

Disclosing this during a Ministrial screening exercise in the Senate Chambers, this afternoon, Dr. Rilwan Olarewaju Babalola, a Ministerial nominee from Osun State said:  

“About 1m litres of diesels are consumed in Nigeria daily by Electricity Generators that are powering most private and commercial premises. Since a litre of diesel cost N100, this simply means that the Nigerians are spending about N1billion daily or about N365billion annually on purchase of diesel to power generators”.

Babalola is one of the 21 persons recently nominated by Nigeria’s President Umaru Yar’Adua for Cabinet positions, and one of last two whose nominations were screened  and confirmed today, by the Upper Legislative Chamber, constitionaly empowered to confirm all Presidential nominations to the Federal cabinet.

When asked to predict the time frame that Nigeria’s energy crisis will be solved, the Ministerial nominee said that there is no quick fix solutions to the problems of the sector, as a result of long term gestational nature of investments needed to turn around the sector:

“The energy sector has been in a serious situation for a long time. The situation is bad. I dont want to mention the word crisis. But It takes a long time to redress our energy problems, it takes a long time to build new capacity, to build new high voltage lines…and we cannot do this earlier than between five to ten years”

 

 Ministerial nominee disagrees with President Yar’Adua on removal of immunity clause

   In a related development, Chief Achike Udenwa, another Ministerial nominee, has faulted the position of  President Umaru Yar’ Adua on the removal of immunity clauses in the constitution which presently shields sitting President, the Vice President and the 36 state Governors from being prosecuted for civil and criminal offences

Responding to a question during the senate screening exercise  on the removal of immunity clauses,today, Chief Udenwa opposed the removal of the contentious clauses on the grounds that its removal will need filing of frivolous cases against serving Governors, and distract the State Executives from their duties.

“I will not advocate for the removal of the immunity clause. A Governor will become distracted from his office, if this clause is removed as he may be daily saddled with the task of appearing in Courts to defend one allegation or the other“, said Udenwa who was Imo state Governor between 1999-2007.

 President Umaru Yar’ Adua last week advocated for the removal of the immunity clauses, to give fillip to Nigeria’s fight against corruption. Several past State Governors who were the in charge of various states between 1999 and 2007 are presently being prosecuted for graft activities by the Economic and Financial Crimes Agency, Nigeria’s most visible anti corruption agency.

But Chief Udenwa said because a number of his colleagues abused their privileges does not warrant the exclusion of the immunity clauses from the nation’s statue books:

 ”We should not say because some Governors abused this provision, used this as a basis for the removal of the immunity clause. We should retain the immunity clause, otherwise some politicians will go to court frivolously in order to distract a sitting Governor.  I will, however, support limiting the immunity to civil cases”

The Nigerian Senate this afternoon passed the 2009 Appropriation Bill after the third reading. The highlights of the Bill are as follow:

Capital expenditure: N897 billion

Debt servicing:        N283 billion

Works and Housing: N171.71 billion

Agriculture and Water Resources: N116 billion

Power: N 86.4 billion

Federal Capital Territory Administration:  N66.4 billion

Indepedent National Electoral Commission: N5 billion

Development of Bakassi Local Governmnent: N600 million

Babatope Babalobi
Much awaited National Honours is coming on the way of Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, as he is to be conferred with one of Nigeria’s highest national academic honours, Nigerian National Merit Award (NNMA) today. A Government statement monitored on the Nigerian Television Authority 9pm Network news announced last night.
Professor Wole Soyinka who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1986, is yet to receive a National Honour from Nigeria’s Government authorities. 

Two other Nigeria’s Intellectuals to be conferred with the national academic honours alongside Soyinka  are Professor Chukwuemeka Vincent Ike, a Nigerian Novelist; and Professor Oye Gureje, Head of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
The conferment on these three distinguished Nigeria’s Intellectual  represents increased recognition of Intellectualism in public life. Nigeria’s President Umaru Yar’ Adua and Vice President Jonathan Goodluck are the first set of graduates to occupy Nigeria’s two topmost positions through the 2007 general elections.
Wole Soyinka, 74 received formal education at Government College in Ibadan, Nigeria and University of Leeds, where, in 1973, he took his doctorate. Soyinka has published about 20 works: drama, novels and poetry.
Professor Chukwuemeka Ike, 77, educated at the University of Ibadan and at Stanford in the USA. One of his popular novels is Toads for Supper (1965), which is set in a university and deals with love and the inherent problems that married couples from different ethnic backgrounds encounter.
Professor Oye Gureje is currently President of the Association of Psychiatrists in Nigeria and the World Psychiatrists Association Zonal Representative for West and Central Africa. He teaches at the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria, where is the Head Department of Psychiatry

Babatope Babalobi

Lagos, one of the fastest growing cities in the world, and the commercial capital of Nigeria, is set to witness an upgrade of its infrastructures such roads, public markets, water and sanitation, as a body that will be specifically saddled with this responsibility  will soon be set up.

Known as the Lagos State Model City Development Authority, the new body will be charged with upgrading existing facilities and  providing additional infrastructural  facilities  in the model city and oversee and supervise the day to day management of infrastructure and developments in the model city.

A ‘Bill for a law to provide for the establishment of Lagos State Model City Development Authority for other connected matters’, is already before the Lagos state House of Assembly, Ikeja, Lagos.

A public hearing on this Bill holds in the Lagos State House of Assembly Complex, Alausa, Ikeja, Nigeria, Wednesday December 17, 2008, according to a statement by the Chairman, House Committee on Physical Planning and Urban Development, Hon Egberongbe Adewale.

The new bill provides for the establishment of the Model city Development Area and Boards as part of the Lagos State Model City Development Authority. Development Areas and Boards to  be created include the Ikoyi/Victorial Island Model City Development Area, Ikeja Model City Development Area, Surulere Model City Development Area, Badagry Model City Development Area, and Model City Development Area.

The Bill also empowers the Lagos State Model City Development Authority to conclude any contracts with any person or corporate body for the construction or repair of dwelling houses, industrial buildings, roads, sewage, water supply, electricity, recreation centres, and  other structures within the model city; and enter in any to contracts and agreements with any public or  private corporation or any individual for the joint use of   property belonging to either to the authority or to the other contracting party

Report of a Workshop for Civil Society Organisations involved in the fight against Corruption, organised by Zero Corruption Coalition, (ZCC) Lagos, December 11-12, 2008

                                                                          By Babatope Babalobi

The World Bank defines corruption as the abuse of public office for private    gain.   Corruption is a major cause of poverty and a barrier to overcome it

 

Causes of corruption  in Nigeria

1. Weak Government institutions
2. Poor pay incentives
3. Lack of openness and Transparency in public service                                  
4. Absence of key anti corruption tools
5. Ineffective political processes
6. Culture and acceptance of corruption by the populace
   

   Yar'Adua, Nigeria's President

7. Absence of effective political financing
8.    Poverty
9. Ethnic and religious difference
10.  Resource scramble

 

 Nigeria is presently ranks 121the 178 ranked in Transparency International http://www.transparency.org/ Corruption Perception Index (TICPI). The fight against corruption in Nigeria is not working because of the following factors:

1. Insincerity of Government
2. Pre bargaining and Negotiation, highly placed officials caught of corrupt practices are made to part with some of their looted funds and are thereafter set free.
3. Low deterrent- the punitive measures for corrupt practices need to be strengthened
4. Lack of virile political and social movements to tackle corruption. The mass of the people are yet to be mobilises in the fight against corruption
5. Lack of access to public information. A lot of secrecy still pervades Government documents, and this underlies the need for the passage of the freedom of Information Bill presently before Nigeria’s National Assembly.
6. Insecurity of Informants. There is a need to enact laws to protect informants as well as reward them
7. Low public participation in Governance
8. Corrupt Electoral system
9. Nepotism

10.     Systemic disorder

11.     Weak Government Institutions

By Babatope Babalobi

A Nigerian Anti corruption activist, Mr.Chibuzo Ekwekwuo, has propounded a  three prong anti corruption theory to curtail corrupt practices in Nigeria’s public and private sector, saying that the menace can be effectively curtailed if measures are initiated to increase the costs of corruption, reduce the benefits of corruption, and increase the risks of corruption.

 

Nigeria presently ranks 121th out of the 178 countries  ranked  in the Transparency International http://www.transparency.org    Corruption Perception Index (TICPI).

 

Delivering a paper on ‘Causes and Taxonomy of Corruption’ at a 3 day Capacity Training Workshop for Civil Society Organisations involved in the fight against Corruption, Lagos, last Thursday, Mr Ekwekwuo said:

“To prevent corruption in any specific form, you need a strategy or plan that has the right mix of variables for that situation, you need to undertake a cost- benefits analysis of corruption and implement measures which must be able to address three issues. The anti corruption measures should be able to:

- increase the cost of corruption, material and otherwise;

-reduce the benefit of corruption; and

-increase the risk of corruption”

 

Chibuzo Ekwekwuo who works as the Executive Secretary, Zero Corruption Coalition, a National Network of anti -corruption civil groups in Nigeria defines the costs of corruption as the punishment or punitive measures that should be meted on those guilty of involvement in corrupt practice, what a corrupt person stands to loss by engaging in corruption and the consequences of getting involved in illegal enrichment.

 

The benefits of corruption, according to Ekwekwuo are the gains of getting involved in corrupt practices or the rewards that accrues to a corrupt person.and the task is how do you make what the corrupt person has gained illegally useless to him?; while the risks of corruption is the possibility of being caught…what are the things that have to be put in place to increase the possibility of being caught.

Participants in the workshop comprising trade unions, Non governmental organisations, and youth groups later discussed Ekwekwuo’s anti corruption thesis and came out with practical measures to implement it.

The workshop participants opined that the costs of corruption can be increased by stigmatisation of corrupt persons, banning of corrupt persons from holding offices, full enforcement of existing anti corruption laws, and increased media exposure of corrupt activities.

The benefits of corruption can be reduced by the eradication of plea bargaining and negotiation with corrupt officials and forfeiture of assets of those found guilty of corruption; while the risks of corruption can be  increased thhroug openness and accountability by public and private sector institutions.

Speaking at a Press Conference that rounded up the workshop, the Chair of the Zero Corruption Coalition, Mr. Auwal Rafsanjani said the tempo of fighting corruption has slowed down since the inception of the President Umaru Yar’Adua administration, calling on the Government to reverse this trend by strengthening the anti corruption agencies through increased funding, and amending any legal provisions that impedes their effective functioning