ACN asks Jonathan to apologise, revert fuel price to N65

The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has asked President Goodluck Jonathan to apologise to Nigerians for his government’s ill-advised removal of the so-called fuel subsidy in January, saying the report of the House of Representatives Committee that probed the management of the subsidy had shown that the removal was an egregious error of judgement that had left Nigerians feeling swindled by their government.

“Against all informed pieces of advice, even from well-informed industry insiders and analysts, President Jonathan approved the removal of fuel subsidy and went ahead to defend it. Well, the President is human and therefore can also be wrong. But when he is, as it has now been proved, he should be humble enough to admit it and apologise,” the party said yesterday  in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

It said after the apology, the President should then revert the fuel price to the pre-January price of 65 kobo per litre and then proceed to implement the recommendations of the committee without delay, especially the prosecution of all indicted persons and companies.

ACN also said whether or not the committee recommended such, the President should fire all those who advised -or misadvised – him on the fuel subsidy issue, especially the officials who wasted public funds in organising the charade called stakeholders’ meetings which, as it turned out, was an orchestrated scam, as the decision to remove the subsidy had already been taken.

“In more-civilized climes, those who bandied spurious figures to Nigerians and hinted that the economy would collapse if the subsidy was not removed – would by now have tendered their resignations – with apologies – over the discovery that what the government has been subsidizing over the years are corruption and inefficiency, not fuel.

“The sectional groups who threw their weight behind the fuel subsidy removal, for no other reason than that the President is their ‘son’, should also have repeated the adverts they placed in the newspapers, but this time repudiating their earlier adverts and apologising to Nigerians.

“Since honour is in short supply here, and these people are ready to carry on as if nothing has happened, the President should show rare courage by sacking all those he has the power to sack, and recommending the removal of those he cannot single-handedly remove. Any action short of the above will be a joke which Nigerians are not ready to accept,’’ the party said.

It said though many Nigerians have expressed shock and anger at the report of the House Committee, especially the huge payments made to unknown and unqualified fuel importers and the recommendation that the NNPC, PPPRA and some oil marketers should refund over 1 trillion naira, the party is not surprised that things have turned out this way.

“In statements after statements, we told the President that there is no subsidy on fuel, and that what the government claims to be subsidising are corruption and inefficiency. We quoted informed analysts, who proved – with facts and figures – that the average true price of a litre of fuel is N34.03. We suggested ways in which the government can truly deregulate the sector without inflicting untold hardship on Nigerians. But in the end, as always, the government ignored all the interventions and went ahead with its pre-meditated action.

“Nigerians were made to pay for the corruption perpetrated by a few fat cats in the name of fuel subsidy, and a government with the primary responsibility of ensuring the well-being of its citizens inflicted untold pain on them in the new year, as the prices of goods and services shot up in the wake of the fuel price hike and many who had travelled for the holidays were stranded for days. Someone has to pay for this fraud perpetrated against Nigerians,”ACN said.

The party commended the civil society groups and individuals who have vowed to ensure the implementation of the report, and promised to also ensure that the issue is kept in the front burner.

“No amount of intimidation, through the deployments of armed policemen to places of possible protests, can stop Nigerians from asking questions and demanding answers after the exposure of the knee-deep rot in this critical sector of the economy. Those who have been elected to lead must justify the peoples votes before asking for their support again. That is the essence of leadership,” it said.

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EDO 2012: 4,000 PDP members declare for ACN

OVER four thousand members of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State, including the South-South Zonal Youth leader of the party, Mr. Ralph Osuomo, yesterday, dumped the party for Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN.

Receiving the defectors into the party, Governor Adams Oshiomhole accused the governorship candidate of PDP, Gen. Charles Airhiavbere of playing ethnic politics.

He questioned his pedigree as a retired Army officer, insisting on his earlier call for a debate between him and the PDP candidate,  so that the people of the state will know the candidates better.

He said: “I have told you how I was detained as a labour leader and I also know that Airhiavbere was also detained. You must ask him why he was detained by the Nigerian Army? He must report to the people because we are coming to dance at Oba Market.”

But Airhiavbere had in the past described the issue of being detained in the Army as a creation of Governor Oshiomhole, insisting that he served the Army meritoriously and retired with a clean record.

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Bribery allegation: ACN asks NASS to impeach Jonathan

The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has asked the National Assembly to commence impeachment proceedings against President Goodluck Jonathan, having admitted openly that he solicited a bribe from a foreign construction company, in violation of the Constitution that he swore to uphold. 

 In a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said commencing the impeachment proceedings will enable the National Assembly to investigate the matter and also reach the appropriate conclusions, since the President, by his own admission and without any prompting, has thumbed his nose at the Constitution. 

 ”To know the gravity of the President’s self admission of soliciting the church ‘gift’ from the Managing Director of Gitto Construzioni Generali Nigeria Limited (GCG), one needs to understand Section 6 of the Code of Conduct for Public officers embodied in the First Schedule of the 1999 Constitution and the Code of Conduct and Tribunal Act (CAP C15) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. 

 ”The Act states: ‘A public officer shall not ask for or accept any property or benefits of any kind for himself or any other person on account of anything done or omitted to be done by him in the discharge of his duties. “For the purposes of subsection (1) of this subsection, the receipt by a public officer of any gifts or benefits from commercial firms, business enterprises or persons who have contracts with the Government shall be presumed to have been received in contravention…unless the contrary is proved’,”

 it said. ACN said by his improper and unfortunate action, the President has also undermined the country’s fight against corruption and put Nigeria’s democracy in jeopardy, hence must not be allowed to get away with such an egregious act. ”Gitto has obtained billions of contracts from the Nigerian government, amid reported allegations in the media that it has not executed such contracts well.

 How can the federal government hold the company to account, when it (firm) has obtained an ”insurance cover” by bribing the President? Is this not why the country’s anti-corruption efforts have not achieved anything? Can the EFCC and the ICPC honestly and boldly fight corruption when the President is knee-deep in the mud of corruption?” it queried. 

 The party said by openly and gleefully saying, at the inauguration of the church at his Otuoke hometown, that ”the managing director of Gitto made him a promise to build and donate the church to Otuoke community after he (the president) had complained of the aging structure of his church,” the President has demonstrated that he is either not conversant with the Constitution he swore to uphold or thinks very little of the laws of the land. 

 ”Either way, he should be held accountable for his deeds,” it said. ACN said it would amount to wishful thinking to expect the country’s anti-corruption agencies to probe President Jonathan’s admission of soliciting and receiving bribery, hence the call on the National Assembly to handle the issue. The party warned that ongoing attempts to twist the facts and make it seem as if the President did not solicit the bribe will not work, as Nigerians are too smart to be hoodwinked. 

 ”If the President and his supporters deny that he indeed solicited the bribe – as he admitted at the inauguration of the church – we challenge the presidency to play – on national radio and television – the unedited audio and video recording of his speech at the occasion for all Nigerians to hear and see. Experts must also be called in to verify that the tape has not been tampered with in any way,” the party said.

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Presidency decries ACN attack on Jonathan

The Presidency,Thursday, decried what it said was a personal attack on President Goodluck Jonathan and the office of the president by the Action Congress of Nigeria saying that the denigration of the office and person of the president is unhealthy for the country’s political landscape.

In a statement in Abuja, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati said the office of the President is a national institution that will surely outlive the current occupant.

Dr. Abati’s statement was in apparent response to a statement credited to the Spokesman of the ACN, Alhaji Lai Mohammed who allegedly advised President Jonathan “to take a long, hard look at himself in the mirror if he truly wants to see the face of a party leader who is fast turning his party into a one-man show”.

Alhaji Mohammed’s statement was in response to a statement credited to President Jonathan that the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is the only truly democratic party in Nigeria.

The ACN spokesman was also quoted as accusing President Jonathan of failing to “show deep introspection in his public comments,” of “rushing to exhibit soap-box mentality,” and calling him “a highly partisan and easily excitable President.”

But Dr Abati said ‘Far from being excitable, Jonathan has handled unprecedented attacks on his character and Presidency with dignity and hunour’

The statement reads:

“We consider this denigration of the Office and Person of the President in the name of opposition politics, as clearly unhealthy politics, and completely tactless. The ACN spokesman repeatedly resorts to personal attacks and disparaging remarks about the President. It is Mohammed who needs to take a long, hard look at himself in the mirror and ask whether his party is truly a democratic party.

“President Jonathan is a humble gentleman who has shown his value at moments of deep crisis as a loyal and thoughtful leader. Recall his measured response and handling of the constitutional crisis in 2010. Far from being excitable, Jonathan has handled unprecedented attacks on his character and Presidency with dignity and hunour. A highly experienced, scholarly and non-partisan President Jonathan cannot fit into such negative space as cast by Mohammed.

“Only national interests have dictated this President’s governance policies, choice of states to visit and events to attend, as exemplified by his consecutive visits to ACN-controlled Ogun State to commission cement factories and attending the burial of the late Ikemba Nnewi, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu in APGA-controlled Anambra State.

“The Office of the President is a national institution that must survive its temporary occupants. Those who seem to be deriving childish excitement from attacking the President, under the guise of playing politics, should refrain from bringing that institution into disrepute. The time for electioneering campaigns and trying to score cheap political points, by any means possible, must be separated from the time for delivering dividends of democracy.

“The occupant of the Number One office in the land is father of all and not of one party. President Jonathan’s description of the PDP as the only truly democratic party should be seen as a wake-up call to other political parties, as well as political leaders, to live out their democratic pretensions in the full glare of the public. Is it not public knowledge that some political parties, despite preaching democracy, lack internal democracy and thrive in imposing candidates? Indeed, we have seen a dominant culture whereby wives, children, in-laws and other family members emerge as candidates without credible primaries in the same political parties that the President complained about” he concluded.

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Between Anenih and Oshiomhole: The Character Question

quick recap of how Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, began to act indecorously towards the former Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Tony Anenih, would help to put this piece in the proper context of its title.

Sometimes in 2009, Anenih had, on the occasion of Kenneth Imasuangbon’s movement into the PDP from the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) at Ewohinmi in Edo State, declared that the ACN was like an air conditioner without a compressor.

Apparently encouraging his numerous party members, as was expected of any political leader, not to despair, Anenih was reported to have said that the ACN government had failed to meet the yearnings and aspirations of the people of the state.

He had advised Oshiomhole, who was president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) at a time, to advert his mind to the fact that there was difference between being governor and labour leader; and, that governance was not about making fabulous speeches and getting applause from students but about performance.

But it is understandable Oshiomhole would become aggressively offensive in his reactions to Anenih’s statements and wise counsels: the point of aggravation was the fact that Anenih was not careful in declaring the readiness of the PDP to dislodge the government of Oshiomhole from power in Edo on the grounds of non-performance.

What did he expect from Anenih?

Was he thinking the Iyasele of Esanland had forgotten his leadership of the PDP simply because he (Oshiomhole) pleaded with and/or requested him to nominate two commissioners and a special adviser into his cabinet after the Court of Appeal declared him governor having nullified the election of Oserhiemen Osunbor of the PDP?

Realising that was wishful and knowing full well that Anenih’s political influence in the government was awesome, Oshiomhole had set out to define himself by confronting him.

He deployed all manner of strategies that were contra bonus mores (against public morals) although members of his camp had considered them politically correct.

In fact, it is a matter of public record that Oshiomhole, in response to some words of encouragement by Anenih, had called him (Anenih) his father at a public function in June of 2009 and had said that he would continue to accord him respect as a “leader” irrespective of the fact that they were not in the same political party.

But the comrade governor has since broken his own words and has continued to abuse the Leader in a vulgar manner that offends the sensibilities of true sons and daughters of Edo.

When the comrade governor knocked Anenih at a public function in Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin, the two commissioners and special advisers nominated by Anenih who were present at the event did not have to be told that the revelry was over.

They got to their offices and threw their letters of resignation at the governor in protest against the public affront.

The godfather is alive and kicking. Hurray! He has become a veritable bugaboo to Oshiomhole’s re-election bid.

If anyone expects the comrade governor to be polite in his reactions to the real political threat around him as typified by Anenih, then he or she may not be fair to Oshiomhole.

Everybody knows that Oshiomhole can talk but should he, even if it is in his character to throw punches at every opponent, commit himself to the regular abuse of Anenih?

However, it is apparent that it is not in the character of Anenih to jump into the public arena to take on an aggressor or offender.

This is the truth. He has always been taciturn, preferring to work and perfect his political strategies behind the scene.

This way, it becomes difficult to misquote him. This is why the lead story of Compass newspaper of Wednesday, February 22, 2012, entitled- “Anenih to Oshiomhole: You are a drowning gov”, where a reply purported to have been made by Anenih to a derogatory statement earlier made by Oshiomhole, was quoted and displayed on the front page, amounted to a sheer misrepresentation of the Anenih persona.

Anenih has never and would not engage in a war of words with anyone, including Oshiomhole.But the peculiar political situation in Edo would not hamstring him in commenting about the institutions of the ACN and the government of the day. Although, a thorough reading of the Compass newspaper story, published on page 8, showed that the reporter actually spoke with the State Chairman of the PDP, Chief Dan Orbih, he (the reporter) had purported Orbih was speaking on behalf of Anenih.

I know that Oshiomhole’s attacks on Anenih will not abate whether before or after the July 14, 2012 governorship elections, regardless of the outcome of the poll. What I know and I readily vouch for is that Anenih, in any situation, will not jump into the arena of conflicts or descend into the gutters with Oshiomhole in a bid to join issues with him because it is not in the gene of the Iyasele of Esanland to do so.

Ojeifo, journalist and magazine publisher sent in this piece from Abuja.

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Lagos cyclists rescue unconscious ACN politicians from car

Six ward chairmen of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) were, on Friday, saved from possible death by a group of Okada drivers and residents in the Gbagada area of Lagos. The men were discovered unconscious and foaming from the mouth inside a vehicle along Deeper Life Road of the Lagos suburb.

The crowd, which intercepted the Sienna wagon car, forced the driver into the premises of the Ifako police division, Gbagada where the quick intervention of medical officials at a nearby clinic helped to revive the men. Some of the men threw up when they regained consciousness, leading to speculation that they may have been poisoned.

The politicians, who claimed to be coming from an aborted meeting with a leader of the party named Oris at his hotel in Ibafo, Ogun State said they could not explain when they lost consciousness and how they got to the police station.

Of the car's occupants, only the driver (also a local party leader), appeared unaffected as he drove the men from Ibafo to Lagos, until the lucky intervention of the crowd. The driver is now in detention and is believed to be helping the police with their enquiries. Motorcyclists said they chanced on the men after the driver, whom they accused of reckless driving, almost overran one of them. They chased and forced him to stop.

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