Nigerian Politics

James Ibori Arrested in Dubai

Published on 2010-05-13 11:06:00

Fugitive Ex-Governor of Delta State, James Onanefe Ibori has been arrested in Dubai reports reaching Nigerian Politics Blog confirmed.  Mr. Ibori is widely believed to have financially bankrolled the candidacy of the late Umaru Yar'Adua for President in 2007.  As a result of this, he wielded a lot of influence over the late President Yar'Adua, so much so that not only was he able to evade prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for gross acts of graft and mon

Goodluck Jonathan Dissolves Executive Council

Published on 2010-03-17 20:20:00

The news of the dissolution of the executive cabinet by the Nigerian Acting President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan comes at a time when most in the country have watched with chagrin the nauseating and puerile vaudeville the Nigerian political environment has become. For months, President Yar'Adua was absent from the country and said to be undergoing medical treatment in Saudi Arabia while remaining incommunicado with all of his direct reports in the Nigerian Executive Council including his Vice Presi

Yar’Adua’s Puppet Masters

Published on 2009-12-25 12:52:00

This is to wish a Merry Christmas to all my Nigerian Politics readers.  The past twelve months went so fast that it is unbelievable that this was the year that saw the first African American President sworn-in in the USA, witnessed the bottom of the world wide economic recession, saw the collapsed of several banks in Nigeria and abroad, a peace accord between Niger Delta Militants and the Nigerian Government and the despicable carnage in Northern Nigeria resulting from the Apocalyptic and N

Coding of Crude Oil a la Bankole

Published on 2009-11-12 21:25:00

Dimeji Bankole, the Nigerian Speaker of the House of Representatives’ suggestion that Nigeria should consider coding its crude oil at face value seems a rational one, except that he did not quite explain how this should be done. While chemical “coding”, in the context Bankole seems to refer, is possible and actually used to distinguish batches of certain chemical products through the use of additives to serve as chemical markers. It is used usually in highly purified substances that have i

The Importance of Being Earnest

Published on 2009-10-23 14:31:00

The importance of being earnest is the only reason why I try to tell the other side of the story to the bunch of people that make up the Nigerian Polity and their cohort.  Someone just tried to hijack my blog.  I suspect it is the Nigerian Government trying to shut me down, but their low-tech approach is no match for someone so tech savvy as myself.i will continue to blog about the truth and injustice perpetrated by the nefarious cabal of clowns that rule Nigeria.  My brethren and

Obama visits Ghana, Snubs Nigeria

Published on 2009-07-09 00:00:00

Nigerians lament the choice of Ghana as President Barack Obama’s first port of call on the highly popular first Black American President’s first official visit to Sub-Saharan Africa. Ghana, which enjoys relative peace and stability, seems a natural choice over the chaotic and fractious situations in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya, other countries deemed to have been considered for the historic visit. Nigeria, which touts itself as the giant of Africa has been stifled and plagued with civi

Published on 2009-06-02 14:38:00

"conscience is a double-edged rapier"

Yar’Adua Grows a Spine on the Niger Delta Crisis

Published on 2009-05-18 14:33:00

It appears the Yar’Adua government is taking its cue from Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Sri Lankan President whose military has just decimated the once feared LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) aka -Tamil Tigers, the terrorist separatist movement that held sway in northern Sri Lanka for 26 years under the leadership of Velupillai Prabhakaran, who was killed in the government onslaught. Like MEND and other Niger Delta militant groups, the LTTE started off as a self-determination movement for the

President Yar’Adua’s Bid for 2011

Published on 2009-02-15 21:05:00

There are rumours making the rounds about President Umaru Yar'Adua's bid for re-election in 2011. To justify re-election should not the incumbent be seen to have presided over some economic growth and improved developmental indices? Ever since Yar'Adua was foisted on Nigerians by the Obasanjo regime in 2007, the Yar'Adua led government has presided over the worst slow-down of government and a reversal of some the good deeds of the Obasanjo administration.Nigeria's foreign debt is said to have b

2008 - Another Wasted Year for the African Continent

Published on 2008-12-23 21:35:00

As the year 2008 draws to an end, most people the world over are taking stock of the past year, assessing what was done right and what was done wrong. In the United States of America, there is an air of enthusiasm as the citizens are excited at the historic election in November of the first African American President, Mr. Barack Obama, whose inauguration comes up on January 20, 2009. Even as America experiences its deepest recession since the Second World War, there is palpable optimism and hig

Ribadu’s Demotion – Yar’Adua’s Betrayal

Published on 2008-08-07 09:21:00

The demotion exercise supposedly carried out by the Police Service Commission which affected the former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nuhu Ribadu is clearly a vindictive assault on the fine officer, Ribadu whose stellar performance at the EFCC not only gained international respect for Nigeria in its fight against corruption, but gave hope to the millions of Nigerians who have been betrayed by their leadership, if only for the brief period of time.This goes to p

Nigerian Ex-Governors Soup it out in EFCC Detention Cells

Published on 2007-07-23 21:49:00

The recent arrest and subsequent arraignment in court of some ex-governors of the immediate past administration by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is a culmination of the much awaited show down between the commission and the indicted governors. So far the ex-governors picked up include Uzor Kalu (Abia State), Jolly Nyame (Taraba State), Saminu Turaki (Jigawa State) and Joshua Dariye (Plateau State). Chimaroke Nnamani (Enugu State) and Ayodele Fayose (Ekiti State) have been

Three-Year-Old Tot Kidnapped in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Published on 2007-07-08 09:35:00

Last week’s kidnapping of three-year old Margaret Hill in Port Harcourt by a so-called Niger Delta Militant group gives patent lucidity to the extent of decadence and depravity of the criminal organizations prowling the Nigerian Niger Delta enshrouded in the dubious cloak of environmentalism and freedom fighting. The lukewarm and conciliatory approach of the Obasanjo government in past 8 years in handling the Niger Delta crisis has done nothing but to embolden these criminals and spurned seve

President Yar’Adua’s Sham Ministerial Nominees – a Putrid Parade of Purloiners

Published on 2007-06-03 23:31:00

The manner in which the new president of Nigeria has chosen to nominate members of his ministerial cabinet is a sign of things to come. It is alleged that he has given the job of ministerial nominations to the newly elected governors of the PDP won states and as a result has had eight former governors nominated for appointment by their successor protégées. Against this backdrop, it is evident that President Yar’Adua has decided to perpetuate the decadence of the "old brigade," particularly

Letter to President Yar’Adua

Published on 2007-05-30 00:05:00

Dear Mr. President, Congratulations upon your inauguration and swearing in as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As you know, for the next few months, perhaps years, your government will be regarded as being in the penumbra of the Obasanjo regime given the situation that brought you into office. Against this you must toil to carve out a unique identity for yourself and administration. To do this, you must choose wisely your vision and the folks in your cabinet to drive this vi

Dariye – Supreme Court’s Pronouncement Proves the Judiciary’s Independence

Published on 2007-04-28 21:32:00

The Supreme Court’s upholding of the Federal Court of Appeal’s ruling of the reinstatement of Dariye as governor of Plateau State based on his unconstitutional impeachment hints at the much-desired independence of the judiciary from the legislative and executive arms of government. In as much as Dariye has been indicted for the perpetration of ignominious acts, namely embezzlement, money laundering and international bail jumping, the fact that his impeachment was effected by only 8 members

Nigerian Elections – Politics of Thuggery and Chaos

Published on 2007-04-24 07:38:00

This past couple of weeks has been illuminating for the non-initiate as regards the means and ways of politicking in Nigeria. Ballot boxes snatched, voters and security agents maimed and killed, riotous protests, arson, armed gangs of thugs, soldiers and police using coercion to force people to vote for their benefactors, polling booth officials maimed or killed, and an attempt to blow up INEC headquarters in Abuja. All these are scenes reminiscent of a D-rate Nollywood movie, except it was en

Kalu's BBC Interview

Published on 2007-02-20 11:31:00

Did anyone catch a glimpse of the interview Orji Uzo Kalu gave to the BBC last week? It was a tragic display of the crudeness and lack of finesse that has characterized the Kalu-led government of Abia State. It was full of bombast, an arcane, mislaid arrogance and patent ignorance.When the anchor man, Allan Little tasked Kalu about the allegations of fraud leveled against him (being on the top 10 list of the EFCC), he claimed he was a very wealthy Nigerian before he became governor. He made

Leadership and Economic Prosperity

Published on 2007-02-11 22:37:00

I was going to write about Leadership and its role in economic prosperity in the third world before I came upon this McKinsey Quarterly interview with Michelle Bachelet, the new Chilean President. Her insights illuminate the role of key government officials in economic development and well being. Her vision of a free market Chile where people are free to pursue their aspirations of wealth creation while assured of security and protection for the vulnerable is one that every African leader shoul

Atiku’s Quixotic Breakfast Meeting.

Published on 2007-02-04 21:23:00

The vice president, Abubakar Atiku, in a breakfast meeting/interview with journalists last Saturday in Kano made a pronouncement that he has been out of the loop in the Obasanjo led government for the past three years. He claimed not to be in the know of what entails in the government as regards how decisions are reached and executed by the president, the ministers and parastatals. He went on to make what appears to have been an attempt at a "half-wit" joke, something about how only a woman ca

Niger Delta Malignant Militancy

Published on 2007-01-29 00:36:00

The spate of attacks and brazenness of the Niger Delta militant groups is escalating rapidly and getting out of hand. Like a malignancy, these militant groups are wreaking havoc on economic activity, safety and wellbeing in the Niger Delta. The situation in Rivers State is perhaps the most dire. Over the last few weeks, there have been the murder of about a dozen traditional chiefs and three expatriates, the kidnapping of Chinese, Korean and other expatriates of other nationalities - workers

Adedibu’s Mobocracy

Published on 2007-01-22 00:41:00

Over the past two decades most, if not all the political upheavals of the ancient town of Ibadan have been allegedly instigated or fomented by Adedibu. In a style reminiscent of Busari Adelakun (Eru obodo) the NPN mystical warlock strongman of Ibadan politics in the second republic, Adedibu's power comes from the grassroots through thuggery, coercion, bribery and organization of the many fractious sects of Oyo politics into an unwieldy but nevertheless awkwardly cohesive mobocracy. Lamidi Adedib

Atiku Returns Next Sunday with “FBI” Guards? I Think Not.

Published on 2007-01-17 00:43:00

An article titled “Atiku Seeks FBI Aid to Return Home” by The Daily Sun Washington DC correspondent, Ike Nnamdi, dated Wednesday, January 17, 2007, reports that the Vice President, Abubakar Atiku, who is rumored to be returning to Nigeria next Sunday, January the 21st will be doing so in the accompaniment of FBI agents as body guards. The reporter cites the reason as the VP’s lack of confidence in the Nigerian security agencies to secure his safety upon his return in light of recent develo

Nigerian Census – Gender Population Distribution Shift, a Red Flag

Published on 2007-01-15 14:07:00

Many have commented on the figures of the March 2006 National census, which puts the Nigerian population at 140 million. Comparing this with the November, 1991 figure of 88.992 million, this is a growth rate of about 3.07% per annum, which approximates the estimates that have been put forward by various statistical models. What is however intriguing is the population distribution along gender lines. In 1991, males accounted for 50.04% and females 49.96% of the population (a male/female ratio of

Open Letter to President Obasanjo (Part 2)

Published on 2007-01-01 01:19:00

Dear OBJ,Happy New Year! One year ago, I wrote you to thank you for your achievements in 2005, namely the Paris Club Debt forgiveness, EFCC successes amongst other issues. I also beseeched you to make a definitive statement that you would not be seeking a 3rd term in the wake of all the politicking and lobbying for a third term. Even though you had variously hinted that you were not interested in a third term, saying that you would be returning to Otta come May 29, 2007, your actions suggeste