Group organises debate for Lagos gov hopefuls

19.Nov.2014 DISQUS_COMMENTS Bola Badmus – Lagos

A group, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL), said it will be holding a town hall meeting for governorship aspirants in Lagos State on Thursday, stating that the forum was to afford the aspirants from across party line the opportunity to showcase their programmes for Lagosians.

Chairman of CACOL, Debo Adeniran, made the disclosure in a statement made available to the Nigerian Tribune.

The keynote address will be given by Dr Tunji Baithwaite while Bisi Olateru Olagbegi will be the moderator.

According to him, the town hall parley was put together to allow Lagos residents have an interface with those aspiring to lead them and also afford the electorate the opportunity to voice out what they expected from whoever is going to lead them from 2015.

Adeniran said a gathering of about one thousand participants comprising representatives of all the original 20 local councils in Lagos were being expected to come forward with various agitations of people from their zones and match them with the programmes of aspirants.

The CACOL chairman said that the aim of the parley was also to allow the electorate have the opportunity to engage their aspiring leaders before the kick off of campaigns when communication would have become a monologue.

“We see the need for the political parties to come up with credible people to represent them as candidates in the forthcoming governorship elections in Lagos State.

“We also see the need for the masses to have a chance of engaging those that want to lead them, tell them what they want and also scrutinise their programmes to see if they go along with their aspirations.

SOURCE:Nigerian Tribune

 

 

Call for postponement of 2015 general elections.

By Chukwudi Nweje / Features Editor

Pastor Tunde Bakare’s call for the postponement of the 2015 general elections as a way to avoiding the imminent crisis that might trail the polls has sparked heated debates.

man-in-the-newsBakare, Senior Pastor of the Latter Rain Assembly, who was Vice-Presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in the 2011 presidential election suggested that a two-year transitional government should be put in place to adopt the report of the just-concluded National Conference as a way to avoiding the crisis that might follow the polls.

Speaking during a thanksgiving service marking the end of the week-long ceremony to mark his 60th anniversary, he argued that the current situation in the North-East would not allow proper election in areas affected by the activities of the Boko Haram terrorists. He argued that it would be in the best interest of the country to hold the elections at a future date.

He enthused: “With parts of the North under the siege of Boko Haram insurgents in the form of outright territorial control in some cases and guerrilla styled terror attacks in others and with the government failing to bring the situation under control, what is the guarantee that there will indeed be general elections in 2015? Continue reading “Call for postponement of 2015 general elections.”

Want to run for president of Nigeria? Only $132,000 Political analysts say exorbitant rates in Nigeria are illegal


Nigeria’s main political parties are charging eye-watering fees from election hopefuls, in a move condemned as undemocratic and a breeding ground for high-level cronyism and corruption.

Supporters of President Goodluck Jonathan pooled their resources to stump up the 22 million naira (132,000 dollars) to buy his nomination form from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) is asking for 27.5 million naira, forcing one prospective candidate, former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, to take out a bank loan.

For governorship posts, the PDP is asking for 11 million naira while the APC wants 10 million naira — all before anyone is even chosen to run at the elections next year.

Candidates for parliamentary elections are also having to pay huge sums of cash, far outstripping the fees charged elsewhere in West Africa.

Political and legal analysts say the exorbitant rates in Nigeria are illegal, discourage popular participation in the electoral process and consolidate power among the wealthy elite.

“The incredible amount of money charged by political parties for nomination forms only reflects the dangerous connection between politics and big business and the disconnect it fosters on the silent majority,” said Eneruvie Enakoko, formerly of the Transition Monitoring Group of non-profit organisations promoting democratic values.

High fees for nomination force aspiring candidates without huge financial means to raise money from super-rich backers, who will then expect pay-back if they are voted in, he added.

“If the candidate eventually gets the nomination and wins the election, he feels indebted and obligated to that tiny percentage of the population and his loyalty will be to those people and not to the rest of the populace or the silent majority who have no voice,” he told AFP.

“It is a dangerous and vicious cycle because the candidate after getting elected cannot afford to forget where he got the money to bankroll his election.”

‘Moneybags and godfathers’

Under the military dictator Ibrahim Babangida (1985-1993), two political parties were founded and funded by government, the National Republican Convention and Social Democratic Party.

But since Nigeria returned to civilian rule in 1999, the government has stopped direct funding of political parties, forcing them to look for other ways to raise money.

While the nexus of politicians, wealthy individuals and big business is not unique to Nigeria, the phenomenon makes it less likely that the country’s catalogue of problems are tackled.

Nigeria may be Africa’s biggest economy and leading oil producer but it ranks low on the global scale for social development indicators such as access to education and healthcare.

Some 61.2 percent of Nigerians were living on $1 a day or less in 2009-10, according to the last available government figures on living standards, released in 2012.

Nigeria is also blighted by endemic graft, particularly in the huge public sector, and was ranked 144th out of 177 countries in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index 2013.

For Dapo Thomas, of Lagos State University, the exorbitant fees skew the political system, furthering a culture of patronage and keeping out poorer, but perhaps more qualified, administrators.

“It allows the moneybags and godfathers to dominate the political scene,” he said.

“If somebody of Buhari’s calibre could not afford 27.5 million naira without taking a loan from the bank, who else can afford it?”

‘Unwholesome and undemocratic’

Lagos lawyer Femi Falana said charging for nomination by both Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which oversees elections, and political parties was against the law.

Debo Adeniran, of the Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders pressure group, described charging as “unwholesome” and “undemocratic” but INEC maintained that it was powerless to act.

The electoral body cannot stop parties from collecting election fees, said INEC spokesman Kayode Idowu, but expressed concern about the trend.

“On no account should eligible Nigerians be denied the rights to participate in the electoral process. Not even money,” he said.

The electoral body will continue to monitor the finances of the parties while it had also set limits on campaign spending, he added.

A presidential candidate cannot spend above one billion naira, a governorship hopeful 200 million naira, a politician running for the senate 40 million and 10 million for the lower House of Representatives.

Parties are also not allowed to seek external funding to safeguard “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the nation”, said Idowu.

“All these measures are in place to ensure popular participation as well as preserve the integrity of the electoral system,” he added.

SOURCE: Emirates 24/7 News

 

Activists Criticise NASS For Passing Jail Sentence On Beggars


 08 Nov 2014   Posted by Administrator


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By Kevwe Ebireri, Abuja

A civil rights group. the Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, CACOL, has criticized the National Assembly passing a law that stipulates a jail term for physically-challenged beggars.

The two chambers prescribed a six-month term jail, among other punishments, for anyone using a person living with disability to solicit for arms in public.

This is contained in the harmonized Bill jointly passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives last week.

Reacting to the development on behalf of the coalition, CACOL’s executive chairman, Debo Adeniran, described the jail term as a step in the wrong direction.

Adeniran said it was ridiculous that while many pro-masses bills are gathering dust on the shelves of our lawmakers, they could pass a bill to jail beggars who are pushed into the trade because government at all levels have failed them.

“Begging to earn a living is a sign of administrative failure and an indictment on every arm of government. Government, by its various anti-masses policies, wants people to beg because every Nigerian is in one form or the other, a beggar. For instance, many of our law enforcement agents fall into one category of beggar or the other because their take home pay hardly takes them home,” Adeniran said.

The activists expressed dismay that the federal lawmakers failed to probe the causes of street begging, but were quick to pass sentence on offenders who are only victims of circumstances.

Speaking further, Adeniran, who described the jail term as misplacement of priority and oppressive, queried why it is only the physically challenged beggars that would be jailed.

“The questions begging for answers are: why must it be only physically challenged beggars that would be jailed? Why not able-bodied people who are beggars? Why focus mainly on the physically-challenged, leaving out the myriads of area boys and girls and corporate beggars who have no other thing than to beg for living? Why are we not addressing those issues that brought them into destitution? If they are physically challenged, it means they require care and if the care is not coming from the official quarters, they help themselves by seeking it from the sympathetic public,” he queried.

Adeniran said it was a misplacement of priority and oppressive to jail beggars and urged the government to admit systemic failure in governance rather than look out for an oppressive way out.

The human rights activist also called on government to address the problem of unemployment, if it was really serious about ridding our streets of beggars.

“Basically, if we are trying to enact laws that will rid our society of unnecessary presence of beggars, caution and restraints must also be exercised to the right direction for the law to be effective. The overall interest should gear towards making life better for these physically challenged individuals rather than the eagerness to have them thrown in jail,” he added.

 

Create Employment, Stop Jailing Beggars – CACOL

The Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL) has censured the National Assembly as it passed jail term for physically-challenged beggars.

The two chambers prescribed a six-month term jail, among other punishments for anyone using a person living with disability to solicit for harms in public. This is contained in the harmonized bill jointly passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives last week.

Reacting to the development on behalf of the Coalition, its Executive Chairman, Debo Adeniran described the jail term as a step in wrong direction.

Adeniran said “It is preposterous that while many pro-masses bills are gathering dust on the shelves of our lawmakers, they could pass a bill to jail beggars who are pushed into the trade because government at all levels have failed them. Begging to earn a living is a sign of administrative failure and an indictment on every arm of government. Government, by its various anti-masses policies, wants people to beg because every Nigerian is in one form or the other, a beggar. For instance, many of our law enforcement agents fall into one category of beggar or the other because their take home pay hardly takes them home. It is so unfortunate that our lawmakers are not talking about why people are begging, because someone that is disabled and also jobless is a victim of double jeopardy. Who would be gainfully employed and go into begging? The jail term is like cutting the head because you have headache.”

 

Speaking further, Adeniran, who described the jail term as misplacement of priority and oppressive, queried why it is only the physically challenged beggars that would be jailed.

 

“The questions begging for answers are: why must it be only physically challenged beggars that would be jailed? Why not able-bodied people who are beggars? Why focus mainly on the physically-challenged, leaving out the myriads of area boys and girls and corporate beggars who have no other thing than to beg for living?  Why are we not addressing those issues that brought them into destitution? If they are physically challenged, it means they require care and if the care is not coming from the official quarters, they help themselves by seeking it from the sympathetic public.

 

It is a misplacement of priority and oppressive to jail beggars. Even when the government says it will rehabilitate them, what kind of rehabilitation are they talking about? Is that which will make them perpetually poor and incapable or that which will make them to be able to fulfill their social obligations that the society expects of them? The jail term aspect of the bill is unreasonable, oppressive, exploitative and lopsided. Sincerely speaking, the government should admit systemic failure in governance rather than look out for an oppressive way out.

 

The human rights activist however called on government to address the problem of unemployment, if it is really serious about ridding our streets of beggars.

 

“Basically, if we are trying to enact laws that will rid our society of unnecessary presence of beggars, caution and restraints must also be exercised to the right direction for the law to be effective. The overall interest should gear towards making life better for these physically challenged individuals rather than the eagerness to have them thrown in jail. Thus, adequate provision and planning should be a pre-requisite. The government should address the root of begging, which is unemployment before implementing the law.”

SOURCE:Daily Times Nigeria.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shutdown of Senate by PDP Senators

By Chukwudi Nweje / Acting Features Editor

 

For a consecutive second day after returning from recess, the Nigerian Senate on Wednesday adjourned the-man-in-the-newsplenary abruptly. Senators elected under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had first abandoned legislative process on Tuesday, threatening to initiate impeachment proceedings against President Goodluck Jonathan for allegedly allowing the governors under the PDP platform take over the party structures in their various states against their interests.

Senate President David Mark, who presided, merely read a prepared address on his intention to intervene in the crisis rocking the House of Representatives which had also adjourned till December 3 after Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, defected to All Progressives Congress (APC) on October 28. Continue reading “Shutdown of Senate by PDP Senators”