Every action has its reaction, Nigeria is adjudged to be the country going through the toughest permutations in sub Sahara Africa and going by this, we can say that Nigeria houses the toughest sets of people and a pointer to this fact is the issue of our bond regardless of what we go through day in day out, we still find a means to remain as one. It is seriously intriguing and mind bulging to analyse the series of events that has been happening post election which seem to have different dimensions and seems unending like a season film, the…
Author: Admin
Over the years, despite its constitutional and statutory authority to screen and confirm the nominees of the President, the Senate has been derelict to its responsibility of properly vetting candidates. For example, prior to the 2015 general elections, despite the overwhelming public outrage over former Lagos State Senator, Musiliu Obanikoro’s role in the Ekiti rigging scandal, the 7th Senate, under the leadership of then-Senate President David Mark, approved his appointment as the Minister of State (II) for Foreign Affairs. Many considered this politically insensitive, morally contentious, and purely partisan development as an affront to the sensibilities of everyday Nigerians. Since…
A new day has dawned for millions of Nigerian electricity consumers as the the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has directed Power Generation and Distribution Companies (GENCOs and DISCOs) to abolish the age long practices of fixed electricity charges and bulk billing of residential communities. Based on the Senate’s recent investigation into the power sector, NERC had through an official communication from its Chairman and Chief Executive, Dr. Sam Amadi, on Monday 17th August, 2015 said: ‘Consumers who do not receive power supply will henceforth be exempted from paying fixed charges’ as ‘power distribution companies have come into consensus to review fixed charge…
Nigeria’s 8th National Assembly resumed plenary on Tuesday 28th July after weeks of recess – an adjournment that was prompted by the leadership crisis of the June 9th, 2015 inauguration of the legislature. So far, the Senate, having sat at plenary for a total of 14 days, has achieved a lot in a little time. The Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has led the Senate to begin making crucial, but often, difficult decisions that aim to live up to the mantra of ‘Change’ that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) campaigned on. Saraki, after his emergence as the Senate President on…
… Present more vehicles to Operation Skolombo Governor Ben Ayade today charged the Cross River State Security Committee code-named “Operation Skolombo”,to work assiduously to move from the level of reactionary to anticipatory policing in the state. Governor Benedict Ayade of Cross River who gave the charge while handing over operational vehicles to members of the Security Committee headed by Brig. Gen. Mannix Nyiam (Rtd) at the Governor Office premises, Calabar, Tuesday, said that it was proper the security outfit move from its present level to a point where it can fore-see and advance a proactive plan before any crime occurs.…
Nigeria has now joined other countries experiencing advanced car jacking or should i say hacking. Items worth 200,000 naira was stolen from a car parked in the premises of one of the popular shopping malls in Lagos. CCTV footage showed the suspect walked up to the parked car which was already open via remote access and removed the items. The car owner testified that he met the parked car locked but the items were missing. This is just one of the many stories about the new trend of stealing from cars and in some cases stealing the car. Car Hacking…
Nigerians over the years have been battled with erratic power supply. Additionally, while many of us have enjoyed limited electricity in our homes, we have still been hurled random and crazy bills on a monthly basis due to the practice of Bulk Billing. This practice, which was endorsed by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), worked by placing fixed charges and energy charges on power supply to consumers, despite the poor power supply. However, on Monday, August 17th, this practice finally came to an end… Ever since the inauguration of the 8th National Assembly on June 9, 2015, the 8th…
Nigeria is too big and multi-ethnical a country for its ownership to be solely controlled or proclaimed by a man. This is a call from all Nigerians who believe that the best way to make Nigeria great is to have a strand mindsets by setting our motives straight to making things work for better and making a way for a new Nigeria for which we all have been praying, longing and yawning since some decades ago. A man who was generally described as hero of people’s democracy for his dogged opposition over the times and coalition with others which was…
Last week witnessed the end of bulk billing in Nigeria’s power sector as the Senate frown at the practices. The power sector experienced the end of the contentious practice of bulk billing, due to the 8th Senate’s intervention in the affair. The practice of bulk billing, which is a status quo that has been maintained for several years, began the beginning of its end on Tuesday, August 11, 2015, when the Senate directed the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to immediately abolish fixed charges on electricity consumption, and the bulk marketing of villages and communities. The Senate’s resolution/query to NERC,…
Politics de facto, is a game of wit which qualifies some of its triumphant players into crackerjack while those at the losing ends remain amateur in the eyes of the public. I ordinarily would not have revisited some of the political twists that were at the front burner before and after June 9 National Assembly Inauguration which nearly shattered the change which our angelic party represents, since majority of the aggrieved lawmakers are now in a smooth rapport with the Senate President and Chairman of the 8th National Assembly. As a patriotic Nigerian, it is high time one told ill…
Change which we all saw as being imminent before the last general election as was crusaded by President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB), Senator Abubakar Bukola Saraki and others has been made realistic by some of its agents serving at federal and state levels. The entire constituents of Ilorin Northwest (Ajikobi/Alanamu) State Constituency of Kwara State which is the constituency of the Senate President of Nigeria and leader of Kwara APC, Sen. Bukola Saraki, covering seven wards viz; Ajikobi, Alanamu, Oju-Ekun/Zarumi, Ubandawaki, Adewole, Ogidi and Oloje wards of the state, stand to feel an effectual representation and good governance through their present…
Following a recent query issued to NERC by the Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki-led Senate, on Monday, August 17th, 2015, the National Electricity Regulatory Committee, agreed to finally end the practice of bulk billing. In a resolution presented on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday, August 11, 2015, entitled: “Unfair trade practices of Electricity Distribution Companies in Nigeria,” which was sponsored by Senator Sam Egwu, from Ebonyi, and Senator David Umaru of Niger East Senatorial District, the Senate instructed NERC to “immediately abolish fixed charges on electricity consumption, bulk marketing of villages and communities.” Additionally, the resolution required NERC to…
Recently, the Senate President and Chairman of the National Assembly, Senator Bukola Saraki officially inaugurated the Senator Babajide Omoworare representing Osun East Senatorial District at the Upper Chambers of the National Assembly as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Rules and Business, one of the most powerful committees of the legislature as its responsibilities being the ‘engine room’ or ‘power house’ of the Senate involves the scheduling of the day to day order of motions, bills and other matters of/for legislative deliberations and debate on the floor. Without any doubt, this as well as other committee appointments made by…
It is unfathomable that at the threshold of the 8th session of the National Assembly a piece like the one dished by Modibbo Kawu titled “Bukola Saraki: Tentative First Steps for 2019 Presidency ” in the Vanguard newspaper of August 6, 2019 and Blueprint newspaper of August 7,2019 could be authored and published. Rather than cast false innuendo on the visitation of the Senate committee led by the Senate President Dr Bukola Saraki to insurgency -ravaged Maiduguri and the North East region of Nigeria, he should have carefully bothered to gaze into the horizon and considered at least the victims…
In 2014 I met some Cross Riverians in Abuja and we got talking about the politics of Cross River State. And this perfect gentle men shared their views on the different candidates contesting the Governorship of the State. One of them made a statement that struck me immediately. He said, Tom “Ayade” might get the ticket, that man is very pushful and he gets anything he wants. And i said let’s see how it goes. After observing the political setting and seeing how the pendulum was swinging i told myself that my prophesy to Prof. Ayade on the 25 July,…
Over the years, we hear the names and success-oriented prepotency of great writers who have been mesmerising readers with skillful proficiency whenever they put the pen to work on papers. These professionals are always not only being consulted for their intellectual ascendancy but are also looked up to as models by upcoming writers as well as readers who find pansophy and erudition embedded in their intellectual cuneiform. Nowadays, diverse writers have emerged having multifarious schools of thought all striving to make their mark in the field of journalism and this they hope to achieve by relentlessly rolling-out precocious articles with…
Lagos, Nigeria (August 20 2015): With e-commerce integration into Facebook and plans in place for other social networks, brands have seen the need to adjust their social media marketing strategies to accommodate this trend. But what does this giant leap say about the future of e-commerce in Nigeria? Over time social media has become a significant tool for marketers. Companies use the visual characteristics of social network to attract fans, promote images of their products, and create viral campaigns in hope to influence consumers purchasing decisions. The shop now button on Facebook for instance radically transforms marketing as we know…
Over the years, as our collective national purse has gotten smaller, Nigerians home and abroad have been clamouring for a reduction of the National Assembly’s budget. These calls for reduction have also been accompanied with parallel calls for more transparency in the funding of the National Assembly. As it stands, the Senate – under the leadership of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, seems to have finally taken heed of Nigerians’ request, as the Senator James Manager-led committee, has submitted its recommendations on Senate budget reductions. If the report of the Manager committee, is implemented, it will show that truly,…
Cross River State Governor, Prof. Ben Ayade yesterday announced he was abolishing all forms of taxation for low income earners in the state. Ayade who disclosed this during a media parley in Calabar, said a bill to this effect is before the state House of Assembly. The governor maintained that the poor could not continue to suffer while the rich keep amassing wealth without giving back, describing the bill as people-oriented. Those affected by the governor’s tax exemption policy include civil servants on minimum wage, petty traders, commercial motorcycle riders, popularly known as Okada, recharge card vendors among others. In…
Why is it that poor people find it hard to forgive. Why is it that poor people find it difficult to unite against their common enemies? The last general election witnessed one of the hottest political scenario in the history of Nigeria. Heaven was almost let loose due to the heat and tension that occupied our political space then. Allegations and counter allegations was the order of the day. During this period, nobody could predict the next hour: there was fear of possible war outbreak as a result of plans to cancel the election results and other rumour and counter…