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A cholera outbreak in north-eastern Nigeria has killed 231 people this year across 11 states and infected more than 4,500 others, the country’s chief epidemiologist said on Friday. (more…)

Swedish coach Lars Lagerback is not keen on continuing as the Coach of  the Nigerian Football Team and has turned down an offer for a renewal of  his contract

Lagerback led Nigeria to the World Cup, but despite managing just one point from three games, was offered a fresh four-year deal.

NFF spokesman Robinson Okosun said that the Swede sent in the letter early this week

“He said he was not keen on taking up the offer even though he enjoyed his time in Nigeria,” Okosun said.

Samson Siasia, who led the Under-23 team to silver medal placings at the 2008 Olympic Games and 2005 Under 20 World Cup tournaments, is the favourite to take over.

Reps to debate tenant data bill

The Nigerian House of Representatives is to consider a bill which will require all landlords in the country to keep records of their tenants’ personal details for the purposes of security and public information.

The bill is titled, “A Bill for An Act To Provide for Landlords and Tenants Responsibility and For Other Matters Connected Therewith,” and sponsored Emmanuel Jime (PDP, Benue State). (more…)

Nigeria’s opposition party, the Action Congress wants the ruling  Peoples Democratic Party to stop embarrasing Nigerians. Speaking through its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed,the AC said that while ruling parties in other parts of the world were the bastion of ideas that accelerate growth and development in their countries, the PDP had been enveloped in crisis and mundane issues. It noted that in the last one week alone, the PDP had confirmed that it was, indeed, an assemblage of strange bedfellows and an instrument for the plundering of the nation‘s riches. The AC mentioned the fighting by the PDP members in the House of Representatives on Tuesday and the exchange of words by the Senate and the House over the alleged “doctoring” of a version of the constitutional reform bill sent to the state Houses of Assembly as examples of the embarrassment caused Nigerians by the ruling party. But the ruling party responded by advising the AC to address its identity problem first. The AC said, “As if the resort to fisticuffs in the hallowed chambers of the National Assembly by supposedly honourable members were not enough, the leaders of the two chambers took over by dancing naked in the public square, as they traded accusations over who sent a doctored version of the constitutional reform bill to the state Houses of Assembly. Anyway, we are not surprised. The PDP has a history of doctored bills, dating back to the inglorious tenure of (Chief Olusegun) Obasanjo in office. “To cap a string of shameful shows, the PDP has now turned against its own leader, President Goodluck Jonathan, … for daring to say the party, which by the way is a rigging machine, was afraid of the new boss of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega. “If anyone was in doubt that things have indeed fallen apart under the tattered PDP umbrella, such people should by now have shaken off such doubt.‘‘ The AC warned, however, that the show of shame exhibited in the ‘House of Representatives-turned-House of Horror‘ should not prevent the anti-graft agencies from getting to the root of the crisis in the House and unravelling what happened to the N9bn capital vote. It said, “The free-for-all by the lawmakers in the House, constituted 80 per cent by the PDP, is not about bringing food to the table for hungry Nigerians or quenching their thirst through the provision of potable water, it is about those among them who have front seats on the gravy train. ‘‘This is why the anti-corruption agencies must get to the root of the allegations over the capital vote.‘‘ A faction in the House known as the Progressive-Minded Legislators had in separate petitions asked the Economic and Finanacial Crimes Commission as well as the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other-Related Offences Commission to probe how N9bn capital vote for the House was allegedly mismanaged by the Speaker, Mr. Dimeji Bankole. Before the petitions, the group had given Bankole a one week ultimatum to resign or be disgraced out of office. But the matter developed into an exchange of blows on Tuesday when the House suspended 11 members of the PML for allegedly bringing the House into disrepute. On the constitutional reform bill, the AC hailed the Lagos State House of Assembly for alerting Nigerians to the fact that a wrong bill was sent to the Houses of Assembly. The party said, “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty, and the Lagos House of Assembly has brought this to the fore, more than any other House. In fact, while the Lagos House of Assembly was busy scrutinising the bill, in the interest of Nigerians, some other Houses were quickly adopting whatever was sent to them, warts and all. “We commend these true representatives of the people in the Lagos House of Assembly, and we urge all Nigerians to be vigilant in the days ahead, as the nation moves closer to next year‘s general elections.‘‘ Reacting to the AC statement, the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Prof. Rufai Alkali, said the AC had formed the habit of attacking the PDP anytime it wanted to attract attention. Alkali said, “We are not surprised with what the AC has said because anytime the party wants to hug the headline, its leadership will attack the PDP. That is their usual manner. “Anyway, we are not going to dignify the party by responding. All what we know is that the party is searching for a new name. We are waiting for them to see if the new name will make a difference.”

Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, said for the rescued banks to improve on their operations they must also improve on their risk management. Speaking to newsmen in Lagos, Sanusi said  the managers of these banks must also improve on their operational capacity, assets quality and corporate governance. Sanusi, who was reacting to why international financial assessment institutions rate Nigerian banks low, explained that it is only when  these conditions are met that the Nigerian banks would get better credit rating by international rating organisations like Standard &Poors. Standard and Poors recently rated some Nigerian banks as high in risk management with poor regulatory oversight. (more…)

THE nation’s weak accountability structure is beginning to  take its toll on the victims of HIV/AIDS whose support funds have  allegedly suffered criminal mismanagement at the hands of public officials, the same fate that often befalls local appropriations in the country. The bulk of these funds are donations from governments and private entities, mostly  of foreign lands.

Fortunately, foreign donors often demand, at least, the minimum standard of accountability that is applicable in their home countries in the management of the funds donated, but this standard is seldom met by the managers of the funds in Nigeria.

LACK of transparency and official corruption is so endemic in the system that there seems to be no holds barred to misappropriation of public funds, including those earmarked for the sick by donor agencies.

Several millions of naira set aside to help the poor and the sick, often end up in the pockets of  a few privileged but wicked public servants. This tendency is not restricted to the HIV/AIDS funds alone but is applicable to other donor agencies-co-funded developmental initiatives.  And the foreign donors are already complaining.

RECENTLY, the Co-coordinator of Olabisi Onabanjo University Anti-retroviral Centre, Ogun State, Professor Phillips Olatunji, lamented the dearth of testing kits for screening of people and blood samples in many centres across the land. The kits, which are usually supplied by government, were said to be coming in quantities that are out-stripped by demands. The implication is that not every one that desires to be screened or should be screened will have access to the service both at the hospital and community levels.

Professor Olatunji, has therefore, suggested that in order to ensure that HIV pandemic does not get out of hand; Nigeria should prepare to take over the care and support of people living with HIV/AIDS. The position of the academic is very clear and understandable in the light of recent events. Since the disease is highly infectious and funding from donor agencies appears to be drying up, the government must take over the responsibility of supporting and caring for people living with HIV/AIDS.

ON the surface, there is a funding gap for care and treatment of HIV/AIDS which may lead to the incorrect conclusion capable of being misconstrued that the donor agencies have reduced their support to HIV/AIDS victims in Nigeria.  Yet, it is being strongly alleged in some informed quarters that with the level of support given by the donor agencies to HIV treatment and care in Nigeria, the question of paucity of testing kits ought not to arise at this point in time. In plain language, the seeming funding gap is actually attributable to corruption.

THERE is this penchant by public officials not to spend public funds in a transparent manner for the good of the citizenry. That has always accounted for the gap between the potential, the budget and actual performance in the country. And this may continue for a long while, unless the society as a whole re-embraces positive values, the people adopt the culture of asking questions and holding their leaders accountable.

PROFESSOR Olatunji may be right in advocating that Nigeria takes its destiny into its own hands by making more local budgetary provisions aside the usual counterpart funding for the care and support of people living with HIV/AIDS because the donor agencies may not always be available. However, this call, even if heeded, will not in itself solve the problem that prompted the don’s advocacy in the first place.

The reason is that the real challenge is not paucity of funds per se but lack of judicious, efficient and transparent use of the available funds solely for the purpose they were meant. In other words, irrespective of the funding sources, whether local or foreign, public officers  who see special fund allocations to solve problems in critical areas of the economy  as an opportunity to help themselves will still tamper with the monies for their personal use.

THOUGH there are indications that the  donor agencies may soon have a re-think over the levels of support they will be willing to give Nigeria to help its developmental initiatives, over corruption and transparency concerns, however as at date, they have lived up to their promises and commitments to Nigeria. And many of them are indeed willing to review their commitments upwards given an improved accountability structure.

RECENTLY there was a report containing an alleged disquiet of the donor agencies and the diplomatic community over the country’s inability to rein in official corruption. There was even a clear warning in the report that Nigeria will forfeit a great deal of overseas aids if it does not take steps to tighten the loose ends.

The donors reportedly broke their silence over the matter because the situation was getting worse by the day while the National Assembly, the institution, which should ordinarily be in the forefront of bringing sanity to the system, remained largely dysfunctional.

IN reality, only very few politicians whether in the executive or the legislative branch are genuinely interested in fighting corruption.  Yet, to effectively combat corruption and ensure budgetary allocations of funds, whether of local or foreign sources, are used for public good, a very strong political will that is more or less collective is required. That is currently lacking, and it is responsible for the unhealthy state of affair in the spending of public funds.

IN this era of global economic recession, when every reasonable country tries to protect the integrity of its revenue flow, it would be shameful and unacceptable for Nigeria to lose foreign inflow of aid because of lack of transparency and official corruption.

The alleged mismanagement of funds donated by foreign governments and agencies, including the one at issue, HIV/AID funds, should therefore be investigated and the culprits punished. Government should also endeavour to block all loopholes that counter transparency in the use of donor agencies’ funds.  Lack of transparency in public transactions, especially where donor agencies’ funds are involved,  has great but avoidable cost that manifests in  smeared image and discounted good will,  both of which Nigeria can ill-afford at this point in time.

There is an air of uncertainty over who will be the flag bearer of the Action Congress (AC) in Lagos State, come 2011. The party is yet to decide who will represent it in the coming general election. However, some political observers still believe that Governor Babatunde Fashola should complete his second term, due to the marvellous projects he has embarked upon in Lagos State since he came into office. (more…)

The presidential candidate of the  newly formed  Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) will be unveiled before the end of  July, 2010, said  Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the National Publicity Secretary of Action Congress (AC) during the visit of the South West Zonal Team to Osogbo, Osun state capital (more…)

Since he assumed office as Nigeria’s President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan has maximised every opportunity at his disposal to express his administration’s determination to conduct credible election in 2011. But will this move succeed? Charles Ajunwa asks (more…)