Nigerian Times

"RESTORING FAITH IN GOVERNANCE : THE UZODINMA STRATEGY* *TO ALL NDI IMO.* *OUR VISION* To galvanise Imo people to aspire and achieve together. To ensure that Imo comes before self-interest as we promote the tenets of one people, one destiny. To support, promote and place Imo State on the horizon of limitless opportunities while telling it as it is without bias, compromise, prejudice, favouritism or partisanship. *OUR MISSION* The need for clarity, certainty and accuracy in understanding the workings of the government in Imo State has never been more urgent than now. A lot of issues critical to our people are deliberately twisted, spinned, unreported, underreported and even mangled to create the impression that our state is under siege, failing and therefore should be avoided by all means. The state has suffered extensive damages occasioned by an intricately contrived de-marketing agenda by agents of destablisation bent on tarring our people and the government with the brush of s...

Captain Idris Wada The Task Before The Kogi State Governor Elect ~ By Clifford Adama THE BATTLE FOR THE NEXT MAN TO MANAGE THE AFFAIRS OF KOGI STATE OF NIGERIA HAS BEEN CONTESTED AND WON. CAPTAIN IDRIS WADA HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY DECLARED WINNER OF THE CONTEST BY INEC. THE NEXT ITEM OF FOCUS NOW IS FOR HIM TO PROVE THAT THIS VICTORY IS TRULY A VICTORY OF THE MASSES… On Monday the 5th of December 2011, Captain Idris Wada, a retired pilot with over 35 years of experience in the cockpit with every international certification in the book as well as a very successful entrepreneur, emerged winner of a keenly contested and generally rated free and fair election to become the next governor of Kogi State of Nigeria. The victory was a landslide; sweeping 19 out of 21 Local Government Areas in the state away from ACN, the only other political party that made an impressive showing in the contest. Of a total of 518, 949 votes cast, Wada took 300, 372, some 57%, leaving Alhaji Abubakar Audu of ACN and ...

Ben Murray-Bruce Subsidizing Transport for the Poor: An Initiative ~ By Ben Murray Bruce A good plan is only as important as the willingness to execute it. Since Independence in 1960, successive administrations have paid little attention to the poor. Government has played the role of Robin Hood, unfortunately though in reverse: they have taken from the poor to subsidize and sustain the rich. I urge the Federal Government to reverse that role and play the real Robin Hood, and now take from the rich and give to the poor. This simply means that they must ensure that the rich make the same sacrifice that the poor have made and continue to make. After all, it is not a sin to be poor. The government of Nigeria must practice what it preaches. If it does and implements the Ben Bruce Transport Policy it will go a long way in easing the untold hardship the increase in the cost of petrol will have on the Nigerian masses. The Ben Bruce transport policy is simple, realistic and very achievable. I p...

Researchers have found that the incidence of African civil war could increase roughly 55 percent by 2030, leading to 390,000 more battle deaths if future wars are as deadly as recent wars. Photo Credit: UC Berkeley News . 14 Nov 2011 12:00 Africa/Lagos Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) meeting ADDIS ABABA, November 14, 2011/location>)/ -- The Commission of the African Union will be hosting the Meeting of the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC) on Wednesday 16 November 2011, at the African Union Headquarters, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. As mandated by the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea in July 2011, the CAHOSCC meeting will consider the key messages reviewed and refined by the Special Session of the African Ministerial Council on Environment (AMCEN) held in Bamako, Mali in September 2011. The meeting will also deliberate on the state of play of the globa...

NIGERIANS have taken to watching an old film—one of their own—since the presidential election last month. It shows intrigue and thievery at the court of an ancient king in the Niger Delta. Decked out in glittering costumes on an improvised sound stage, the wicked court at last collapses under the weight of its own sins. When it was released in 1999, “Saworoide” was seen as a commentary on the regime of Sani Abacha, who ruled (or, as some prefer, “dismembered”) Nigeria between 1993 and 1998. Once again, Nigerians are hoping to see the back of their ruling elite. Goodluck Jonathan, the president, wafts along on a wave of personal goodwill and is mostly seen as benign. It is the men and women around him whom voters blame for Nigeria’s woes. Click here to read the full report BUSINESS: African airlines Looking east Flying in Africa is getting easier Jun 16th 2011 ...

14 Jun 2011 14:15 Africa/Lagos Remarks by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at African Union, June 13, 2011, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia WASHINGTON, June 14, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- Remarks by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at African Union, June 13, 2011, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia SECRETARY CLINTON: Good afternoon. It is a great honor to join you here in Addis Ababa and to address the African Union. I want to thank Chairperson Ping, members of the African Union Commission, ambassadors to the AU, representatives of United Nations agencies, and, most of all, representatives of the nations and people of Africa. Thank you for the opportunity to be here with you. It is good to be back in Africa, and it is a singular honor to address this body. During the past few days, I have traveled to Zambia, Tanzania, and now Ethiopia, meeting with leaders and citizens who are rising to meet challenges of all kinds with creativity, courage, and skill. And I am pleased to c...

Imo State: Owelle Rochas Not A Miracle Worker ~ By Nwaorgu Faustinus Majority of Imo indigenes and non indigenes will agree to some extent that the butted past administration led by one of the most hated, alleged criminal cum 419ner, cunning, heartless etc, governor Ohakim who has earned for himself the above sobriquet as well as “Ikiri/ewi” during and after his wasteful campaign outing, proved to be a “sore’ Chief Executive ever produced in the annals of Imo State politics. His perceived and proven commissions and omissions are largely responsible for his disastrous bowing out of the government house which most people see as good radiance to poor governance. However, this writer does not want to dwell on Mr. Ohakim’s political flaws which I know are in the realm of public knowledge but my advice to our nascent governor Owelle Rochas Okorocha is to guard himself from or against reenacting the tragedies of the past. Dissecting the suitability of Owelle for the governorship post prior to...

Judicial Watch Announces Freedom of Information Act Lawsuit Seeking bin Laden Photos and Videos PR Newswire WASHINGTON, May 13, 2011 WASHINGTON, May 13, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the Department of Defense (DOD) seeking "all photographs and/or video recordings of Osama (Usama) bin Laden taken during and/or after the U.S. military operation in Pakistan on or about May 1, 2011" (Judicial Watch v. DOD (No. 1:11-cv-00890) (JEB)). Judicial Watch filed a FOIA request with the DOD on May 3. Under the Freedom of Information Act, the DOD has 20 business days legally to respond. Rather than follow the law, the DOD has stated: At this time, we are unable to make a release determination on your request within the 20-day statutory time period. Judicial Watch filed an identical FOIA request with the Ce...

Dorothy Parvaz 6 May 2011 14:00 Africa/Lagos UNITY Calls for Release of Al Jazeera Journalist Dorothy Parvaz PR Newswire MCLEAN, Va., May 6, 2011 MCLEAN, Va., May 6, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- UNITY: Journalists of Color is calling on the government of Syria to release Al Jazeera reporter Dorothy Parvaz and allow her to continue her important work in the country. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110506/DC97026 ) (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110310/DC62460LOGO ) Parvaz, a former reporter for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and a 2009 Nieman Fellow at Harvard, was apparently detained shortly after arriving in Damascus on Friday to cover anti-government protests in the country. Al Jazeera has been told by Syrian officials that they're holding Parvaz. She is a citizen of the United States, Canada and Iran. She joined Al Jazeera in 2010. UNITY joins the Committee to Protect Journalists, the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University and other m...

24 Apr 2008 13:22 Africa/Lagos Blog to Focus on Government Accountability and Transparency New Government Accountants' Blog aims to stimulate discussion of government financial management ALEXANDRIA, Va., April 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Association of Government Accountants (AGA) today announced the launch of the AGA Weblog, (http://aga.typepad.com/aga ), a first-of-its-kind contribution to the government and taxpayer blogosphere. The blog aims to bring state, local and federal government financial managers into discussions about issues, solutions and priorities relating to government accountability and transparency. Senior government financial managers, including federal chief financial officers and state/local auditors and comptrollers will lead daily discussions on a wide variety of topics that will include transparency, reporting, accountability, the federal fiscal crisis and more. "It is our hope that this blog will promote wider government accountability a...