Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha, has named a government building after his first daughter, Uloma Nwosu (nee Okorocha).
Uloma is married to one of Governor Rochas' commissioner
Sunday 25 October 2015
Rochas Okorocha Names Government Building after Daughter Uloma Nwosu
Uloma is married to one of Governor Rochas' commissioner
Unpaid Salaries: Imo Governor Beats Wife To Pulp
If the information reaching 247ureports.com is anything to believe,
then the months of unpaid salaries owed to the civil servants in the
state has torn apart the first family in Imo State.
This is because the governor, His Excellency Owelle Rochas Anayo
Ethelbert Okorocha, OON, has beaten up his wife for urging him to pay
civil servants who were still being owed several months of salary
arrears even after the federal government’s bail out fund had been
released.
The incident was said to have followed the angry protest by the
medical students of the Imo State University Hospital, Orlu.
According to the source, trouble started when the Imo First Lady,
Nneoma Nkechi Okorocha queried her husband over his reason for
punishing the people of the state in the manner he was doing and that
she had lost words to continue to explain to the people that her
husband was in the right path.
According to reliable sources, Mrs. Okorocha was said to have angrily
told the governor that because of his actions, the first family’s name
no longer worth anything in the eyes of the people of the state over
cries across the state of bad governance foisted on them by him.
As if sent by some opponents of the governor, Mrs. Okorocha was said
to have reminded her husband that the hospitals, courts, house of
assembly and many parastatals were under lock and key because of up to
seven months arrears of salaries owed them, and questioned the
rationale behind the governor making the state a ghost state by not
funding projects and institutions such as IMSUTH, not paying salaries
and stifling the economy of the state.
This was said to have infuriated the governor and in a fit of anger,
he started beating her mercilessly, but just in time for his security
aides to have come to her rescue.
The governor was said to have flown off the handle and scolded his
wife to stop listening to gossips from his opponents who only wished
him bed, but the woman was said to have insisted and continued to
express worry and disappointment that she no longer received the same
cheer she used to receive during their first term in office.
It would be recalled that on Thursday last week, 15th-10, 2015, Imo
State University Medicine and Surgery students under the aegis of Imo
State University Medical Students, stormed the government house in
Owerri in a protest against the current status of the IMSU Teaching
Hospital, Orlu.
They were angry that because of the neglect of the institution by the
governor, medical students who were supposed to have graduated four
years ago were still in school after 10 years of gaining admission as
medical students.
They were clad in their lab coats and carried various placards with
various inscriptions including such as “10 years in school and still
counting”, “Owelle you promised to dualize road leading to IMSUTH in
September, 2014. SaveIMSU”, “No patients! No learning!! No exams!!! No
hope!!! #SaveIMSUTH”, among others.
The students including older and younger ones matched in a peaceful
protest to the government house area, Okigwe road roundabout and
refused to leave till their demands were addressed by the state
governor, His Excellency Anayo Rochas Okorocha.
They listed among other things that IMSUTH Hospital had been shut down
as a result of doctors’ strike for four months and still counting and
that examinations were cancelled and deferred indefinitely and that
years after establishing the college, the pathology laboratory and
auditorium had not been completed..
They also complained of under-staffing of various departments and the
hospital was on the verge of Losing MDCN accreditation as well as no
motorable raods and insecurity.
However, on the orders of the governor, the protesting students were
reportedly teargassed and chased by security officials of the state
which led to some getting injured and an overall fracas on the centre
of the Owerri city.
LOL! Cynthia Morgan Is Ready To Be Davido's Next Babymama?
Just weeks after Davido welcome a baby with his babymama, Cynthia Morgan has declared that she is ready to have something with him if he is ready and that she's crushing on him. Lol! Indicating her seriousness, she said:
“My celebrity crush is Davido, because for me he is hardworking. Over the years he has been able to prove himself that he is talented and not all about being a rich kid and I think he is cute too.
WHAT A LIFE? President of Nigerian Prostitutes, Jessica, Is Dead
Multiple sources have confirmed that the President of the National Association of Nigerian Prostitutes, Jessica Elvis, is dead.
She was said to have died on Sunday afternoon in an undisclosed hospital in Benin after battling a protracted heart-related disease.
Confirming Jessica's death to Daily Post, Secretary of Ashawo girls, Tamar Tion, said:
“Hi Ameh, want to inform you that we just lost our President, Jessy this
afternoon. She died after battling heart-related disease for years. It
is a sad loss to National Association of Nigerian Prostitutes, NANP, and
we pray God to give her family and 15-year-old daughter the fortitude
to bear the loss.”
Billionaire Amancio Ortega Overtakes Bill Gates as the World’s Richest Person
Ortega is the son of a "mere" railway worker. He was born during the Spanish civil war and grew up what could be described as relative poverty. The 79-year-old left school at the age of 13 to work full time in a clothing shop.
According to Forbes, he established Zara in 1975 with his ex-wife
Rosalia Mera, selling lingerie and bathrobes the couple made in their
living room.
He reportedly lives a modest life despite his vast wealth, eats lunch with his employees in the staff canteen everyday, buys his coffee from the same cafe he frequented while growing up and often dresses in the same blazer-t-shirt combination, neither of which are from Zara. Mr Gaona is fiercely private and rarely gives interviews to the press.
He overtook Gates as the world’s richest man on Friday with an estimated real time net worth of $78.7bn. He reportedly lives a modest life despite his vast wealth, eats lunch with his employees in the staff canteen everyday, buys his coffee from the same cafe he frequented while growing up and often dresses in the same blazer-t-shirt combination, neither of which are from Zara. Mr Gaona is fiercely private and rarely gives interviews to the press.
Al-Qaeda Leader In Syria Has Been Killed (Graphic Photo)
Saraki, A Threat To Big Interests In APC – Senator Shehu Sani
In this interview with select journalists, Senator Sani said a lot about Saraki, his battle and El-Rufai:
Many were amazed that senators escorted Senate president to the court for his hearing on the case brought against him by Code of Conduct Bureau. Were they trying to intimidate the jury?
I have been taken to court on many occasions as an activists, even military tribunals and I have also taken some people to court. My view of a court is that, in as much as it is a legal and judicial institution, it is also a public arena. Journalists can go to court, observers can also go there. Your presence in court will in no way exonerate the accused nor your absence implicate him in his case. Appearance in court has no legal value to the judge and as the president of the senate and also chairman of the national assembly, if such a leader is taken to court for whatever reason, there is nothing wrong with people supporting him.
There is this belief that the senate president trial has a lot to do with the 2019 presidential elections, do you share this view?
I don’t know of any problem between the senate president and Mr. President. Buhari is the president and Nigerians elected him into office. He is not wanting to be a president, he is already one. He can take his bills and budget to the National Assembly confidently because his party is the majority. Saraki’s problem is being engineered, fanned, propelled, sponsored and sustain by forces that see him as a threat to them in 2019 or 2013…
Do you also see him as a threat?
The Saraki threat is not for this government, it is for what is coming ahead. So Saraki is a guinea pig of a conflict of ambition whereby if he wasn’t a senate president, he couldn’t have been in this spot light. And if he is not a threat in the future, he wouldn’t be passing through what he is passing through now. If saraki is in contest with Buhari, I will support Buhari, but Buhari has never said Saraki is in contest with him. He has never told us that and with his philosophy of being for everybody and for nobody, it also exonerates him from the problem saraki is facing today. But there are puppeteers who felt that pinning him down to a case of corruption will discredit him, will keep him busy and make him unsellable for the future. Buhari is not talking about future office, he is already occupying the pinnacle of that office and he can get what he wants from all the chambers of the national assembly. So Saraki does not pose a threat to Buhari.
Are these forces within the party or outside?
Of course they are within the party, where else will they come from? It is just a matter of time the identity of those who are interested in Saraki’s case will become open. Right now they are in the back shooting missiles, but it is just a question of time, light will cast on their faces and their activities will come to the open.
Going back to Kaduna state, what is your relationship with Governor Nasir el-Rufai?
He is the governor of Kaduna state with his office and residence based in Kaduna city and I am a senator, representing Kaduna Central where we host the office and resident of the state governor.
- when a man talk about his governor who is in the same party with him, then you know where he stands.
Why The Tribunal Sacked Governor Nyesom Wike
There was anxiety and palpable calmness in Rivers State on Saturday,
following the nullification of the April 11 governorship election by the
State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja.
Apart from nullifying the election, the tribunal also ordered the INEC to conduct a fresh election within 90 days but the PDP has vowed to challenge the judgement at the Court of Appeal. Wike too has insisted that he remains the state governor.
When news of the nullification filtered into the state, supporters of the APC went into jubilation.
Jubilation was seen at APC secretariat located in William Jumbo in Port
Harcourt, Mgbuoshimiri area, in Obio/Akpor and some other places by
members of the APC.Apart from nullifying the election, the tribunal also ordered the INEC to conduct a fresh election within 90 days but the PDP has vowed to challenge the judgement at the Court of Appeal. Wike too has insisted that he remains the state governor.
When news of the nullification filtered into the state, supporters of the APC went into jubilation.
Many APC members said they foresaw the ruling of the tribunal, because it was clear that election did not take place in the state.
But there was calm around the township area of the metropolis, due to the heavy presence of heavily armed security operatives who were strategically positioned to quell any attempt to disrupt public peace.
A truck load of policemen was stationed in front of the NYSC secretariat along Ikwerre Road; opposite Government House and at Station Bus Stop, in the Port Harcourt metropolis.
Heavily armed policemen in operational vehicles were stationed at the front of most public buildings.
Some persons who spoke on the outcome of the tribunal’s verdict said they are looking forward to having a smooth re-run election in the next 90 days.
The All Progressive Congress and its governorship candidate, Dr Peterside Dakuku, had approached the Tribunal challenging the election on ground that it was marred by several irregularities. Joined as respondents in the petition were Wike, PDP and INEC.
In its judgement that lasted for about three hours, the three-man panel headed by Justice Suleiman Ambursa, held that the said election made mockery of democracy.
The tribunal further held that Wike was wrongly declared winner because of non compliance with Electoral process and added that thugs overran the state during the election.
The tribunal also held that the allegation of intimidation, harassment, snatching of ballot boxes, ballot papers, lack of result sheet, late arrival of election materials, diversion of election materials, ballot stuffing, allocation of figures, non collation of result, failure to use card readers were all established by the petitioner stressing that the petitioner produced credible evidence and documents to prove his allegation.
“The witnesses called by the respondent became unreliable during cross examination. They betrayed their character. Even INEC officials who came as witnesses at a point claimed ignorance of their own document. The second respondent (Nyesome Wike) was not duly elected”, the tribunal held.
Reacting to the judgment, counsel to the PDP, Mr. Chris Uche SAN said that the party will test the judgment at the Court of Appeal and possibly, the Supreme Court.
“It was wrong of the tribunal to lay heavy weather on the use of card reader when INEC itself admitted that both card reader and manual can be used where there are challenges”, he stated.
In his own reaction, APC candidate Dakuku said the Rivers people are happy with judgment and that it has given them an opportunity to vote for who they want.
Despite his sack by the Rivers Election Petition Tribunal, Wike spoke to newsmen shortly after returning from Abuja, along with Prince Uche Secondus, Acting National Chairman of the PDP.
He said his lawyers were already preparing papers to go on appeal, pointing out that he has a good case.
The governor said, “Let me on behalf of the deputy governor and the party chairman thank all of you for the support you have given to us. We have come back from Abuja with the national chairman and other leaders of the party, who were at Abuja with us for this period,” he said.
Meanwhile, the APC has described the judgement as a deadly body blow to impunity and hooliganism.
Saturday 24 October 2015
ROTIMI AMAECHI: The Strong Man
Amaechi And His Fanatical Fans by Dele Momodu
Fellow Nigerians, if you did not watch the much-anticipated and
long-delayed Ministerial screening of Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi,
last Thursday, October 22, 2015, at the Senate Chambers of Nigeria’s
National Assembly, you definitely missed a high drama. There was no way I
would have missed the live broadcast of that historic event. Thanks to
technology, my wife and I stayed glued to Channels TV transmitting all
the way to us in London.We received many calls from well-meaning Nigerians who were anxious to see the cup pass over Amaechi’s head. Social media platforms were instantly on overdrive. Twitter in particular was on fire. The Rock Star of Nigerian politics was on stage and the entire country was at a standstill.
I was very agitated for several reasons...
In particular, I didn’t want the world to view Nigeria as a country of ingrates who would rather destroy and bury the heroes of their struggle instead of celebrating them.
Right from the time former Governor Amaechi’s name surfaced on the President’s list of Ministerial nominees which was sent to The Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, it was obvious Amaechi had been sent, inadvertently, to the Hyenas’ den. True, Amaechi himself had been given the moniker of the Lion of the Niger Delta by his fervent and vociferous supporters but no one could envisage the outcome of a wrestle between the kings of the jungle. Many commentators had opined that President Muhammadu Buhari should have made life easier for his former Campaign Manager by offering him a job that needed no screening from anyone.
The scenario could not have been otherwise. Amaechi undoubtedly was a major catalyst that catapulted the Change Movement into power at the centre. It is only natural that the victims of such monumental defeat would neither forget nor forgive their principal tormentor in a jiffy. For them it was the first and best opportunity to have their pound of flesh and pay Amaechi back in kind. It was not surprising that the screening session was initially riotous but for the avuncular carriage and confident and astute handling of proceedings by The Senate President who calmed things down.
The entrance of Amaechi into the hallowed Chamber was grand. He looked regal and royal in his traditional Niger Delta attire. His confidence level was high and palpable. After the usual traditional bows, he took his place at the podium. The Senate President then set the ball rolling by asking Amaechi to introduce himself. Trust the consummate politician, one of Nigeria’s most effervescent leaders read from a well-scripted paper and sold himself powerfully to the influential Senators. He was friendly and conciliatory.
He killed it by recognising the three Senators representing Rivers State. The import of that was that he was able to demonstrate how they were friends once upon a time. It was a masterstroke that thawed the frozen atmosphere and eased the incredible tension in the Senate Chamber. Amaechi spoke eloquently about his political trajectory from his Student Unionist days to the present and outlined his outstanding achievements in the years he has spent as a politician. Everything appeared to be going smoothly until the moment for question and answer and then the friction that had been the root cause of so much seeming strife erupted momentarily before fizzling out.
However, it was almost an anti-climax when the Minority Leader of the Senate, former Governor Godswill Akpabio said his caucus had resolved not to ask Amaechi any question since the report of the Senate Committee investigating the allegations of corruption levelled against Amaechi was yet to be discussed. Very few observers and political commentators had expected the PDP to react to the screening of Amaechi in this manner.
Many conspiracy theorists had predicted a rigorous, strident and acrimonious question and answer session for Amaechi from amongst the PDP Senators. For them to take the path that Senator Akpabio had espoused smirked of great intrigue and suggested that there was a hidden agenda which would shortly unfold. The solid block of 49 PDP legislators against a fractious, disunited and slender APC majority loomed large in the minds of most analysts and suggested that when the time came to vote Amaechi would be played out.
But, mercifully and smartly, the APC Senators as a surprisingly and remarkable cohesive unit played a fast one when some of its Senators thereafter asked Amaechi some cogent questions. The PDP Senatorial boycott, if one can call it even that, was instantly shown to be dead on arrival. I loved the intervention of Senator Gbenga Ashafa whose question provided a veritable platform for Amaechi to defend himself against the spate of allegations of corruption. Of course, Amaechi said he was in fact never indicted by any judicial panel and that he was ready to place the relevant papers before the Senators to demonstrate this. After about 50 minutes of intense grilling, Amaechi was asked to go.
As Amaechi walked out of the chamber, the whole chamber was clearly electrified. His multitude of fans waited outside. Their joy knew no bounds as they erupted into an orgy of celebration which included much hailing of the valiant, victorious warrior and spontaneous singing. Though I had gauged and seen Amaechi’s rapidly rising popularity on social media, I did not expect anything close to what I saw displayed on live TV. The love of fans like me was very deep and I saw more enthusiastic ones on television. I received the pictures within minutes and posted them on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
I had known and predicted that the seeming victimisation of Amaechi was going to draw attention and sympathy to him. The libellous attacks on him in the last couple weeks were horrendous and sufficient to cow any weak personality. Anyone in doubt should visit Twitter. Not only was he viciously scandalised and abused, but anyone who tried to defend him was also verbally assaulted and brutalised. I became a major target of voltrons, as we call them, and all manner of obvious hirelings descended on me trying to sully and undermine my support for Amaechi.
They simply descended on Amaechi and his most visible and influential friends like locusts. Some of these guys used very foul and uncouth language including insulting my dead parents. But this got me more determined. I knew for sure that all they wanted to achieve was to bully us off cyberspace and have the opportunity to mount their scurrilous campaign of calumny against Amaechi, unhindered and undisturbed. However, on our part, we intensified the celebration of Amaechi and his stellar achievements and this served to win us more confident and ardent supporters.
This special tribute is to put on record the reason why some of us are quite zealous about Amaechi. It is impossible to meet Amaechi and not feel his deep ardour for Nigeria. His style is simple but classy. Most times his dressing is usually understated. As Governor, he drove himself most times. He believes more in action than glamour.
Our relationship was that of mutual love at first sight. I had visited his office over ten years ago when he was Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly. He sounded very intelligent, smart and passionate about the development of Nigeria in general and Rivers State in particular. He also appreciated my zeal for Nigeria and its success. We exchanged numbers and spoke a couple of times thereafter. Subsequently, on one occasion he came to Ghana for a conference of Parliamentarians. He got in touch and I invited him over to my house for lunch. I was greatly honoured when he arrived with the then Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Bello Masari and many others. Our relationship blossomed from there on.
Somehow, I had a feeling that Amaechi was going to go far in politics and I watched and followed him with keen interest and rapt attention. His fearless nature was a much needed ingredient in politics. After spending two terms as Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, he made an attempt to run the Governorship race but encountered countless obstacles that were erected by powerbrokers. It appeared that he had fallen at the first hurdle and had not won his Party Primary primaries and so could not contest the General Elections. Things got dangerously bad at a time that he had to flee to Ghana for his dear life and that of his family. But mysteriously and miraculously Amaechi won his case at the Supreme Court and he was declared Governor without having contested the election. He wasted no time in attributing this unprecedented achievement to God.
Unlike many who would forget their antecedents, Amaechi never forgot his humble beginnings. He demystified power and bonded well with the people of Rivers State. Most of his enemies were members of the privilegentsia. He made education, healthcare, infrastructural development, job creation, agriculture, power generation and so on a priority and immediately sought to enhance them and, thus, the quality of life of ordinary people in Rivers State. The quality of his work was impressive and commendable. I visited some of his projects during the course of his tenure as Governor and could not believe what I saw. My admiration for him quadrupled.
The situation that led him to abandon PDP for APC was tragic but divine. President Goodluck Jonathan lost his second term bid, in advance, the day he allowed Amaechi and his fellow Governors and others to leave the PDP. I remember asking Amaechi if he thought his group could take on an incumbent African President and win. His answer was an unequivocal, Yes. He said he was ready for any fallout from their decision including harassment and victimisation by the then ruling Party, PDP. He stuck to his guns to the very end and remained unmoved and unbowed by all manner of brickbat and missiles hurled at him.
Amaechi had also made up his mind from DAY ONE to support the presidential ambition of General Muhammadu Buhari which was almost turning to a mirage after three excruciating attempts. Though he had a very soft-spot for then Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State and a very high regard for Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Amaechi never at any time prevaricated on his decision to support Buhari. At this time he was a formidable lone ranger as others chose to pit their tents elsewhere until gradually they were won over by the popularity and appeal of the person and message of President Buhari.
When Buhari later appointed him the Director-General of his Presidential Campaign, many had argued that the job was beneath a serving Governor but Amaechi said emphatically that he was ready, able and willing to embark on the arduous task. He argued that nothing was too much to sacrifice for the salvation of Nigeria. During the campaign there were rumours that Amaechi was dictatorial and that he did not carry many members of his team along, he had a convincing answer to this criticism. He said he would not wait indefinitely for those who did not understand the concept of time and money. He combined well with Dr Bukola Saraki to mobilise heavily for Buhari. They were able to secure the support of many entrepreneurs who felt President Goodluck Jonathan was safer for them but later agreed to accept the change mantra. Other political leaders like the inimitable, resourceful and redoubtable national leader, Alhaji Bola Ahmed Tinubu had been in the forefront of the team and took the campaign to another level.
For me the biggest contribution of Amaechi is how he placed national interest above sectional and primordial sentiments. History would have high regard for him in the future, and generations unborn would read about his gallant efforts, if and when this latest gamble of a Buhari Presidency pays off. This is what has acquired for him today a cult followership at home and abroad. The deafening ovation he received at the National Assembly precincts only a couple of days ago was therefore a token of our appreciation for him being a truly exceptional Nigerian.
My sincere wish is for God to grant him more wisdom and the spirit of forgiveness now and in the future. Some have wronged him no doubt just like he must also have wronged others but he must demonstrate that he has risen above the disappointment and trauma engendered by such before God and man. There is no sweeter revenge than God taking up your fight all the time and ensuring that you are victorious. Amaechi’s story is a salutary lesson in this regard.
God bless Nigeria.
UPDATE ON TRIBUNAL VERDICT: Governor Wike Cries Out
Wike is said to have alleged that the Election Petition Tribunals were directed to nullify the election of all South-South states governors. According to him, a total of N23billion was paid to the tribunal judges by the APC to pass the order that the election did not comply substantially with election guidelines and order INEC to conduct fresh elections within 90 days.
Governor Wike then asked a strong question:
"How can a party win all Senate seats, all House of Reps seats, all State Assembly seats, 97% votes in the presidential election and they could tell the public that the party did not win the governorship?"
But according to local and international observers, all the elections he mentioned were heavily rigged.
Wike has however called on his supporters to keep calm, saying he will appeal the Tribunal's verdict.
His party, the PDP has also declared that the verdict of the River state governorship election tribunal showed clear bias against Governor Wike and the PDP. They say it is unacceptable and part of an alleged script by the APC to manipulate the will of the people.
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