Acting President for Nigeria!

The Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan has been empowered by the National Assembly to step into the "shoes" of the ailing AWOLed President, Yar'Adua. The Senate President, Mr. David Mark said the telephone interview aired on the BBC served as the notification needed to allow Mr. Vice act as President. So based on the "telephone conversation" yesterday, the National Assembly passed a resolution empowering Vice President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan to assume power as the acting President, pending the return of the ailing President Yar'Adua. The Senate added that the moment they receive a "letter" from Yar'Adua informing the Senate that he (Yar'Adua) is back to the Country, then Goodluck will cease to act as President.

With all due respect to the "law makers", that is NOT the right way to go about it. The Senate has no power to confer power on the Vice-President to act as President! The applicable Latin maxim here is nemo dat qui non habet. Simply put, this phrase means "he who has not cannot give". That is, you cannot give what you do not have.

The Law is very clear on that. The 1999 Constitution is very explicit. Section 144 of the Constitution is to the effect that the President or Vice-President shall cease to hold office on the following grounds:
1) A declaration is passed by the Federal Executive Council (which is made up of all ministers, who incidentally were appointed by the President) stating that the President or Vice-President is incapable of discharging the functions of his office.

2) After this declaration is passed, it has to be verified by a medical panel comprising of 5 medical practitioners, appointed by the Senate President. The personal physician of the President shall be a member of the medical panel.

Sections 144 (2)&(3) state thus:
(2) Where the medical panel certifies in the report that in its opinion the President or Vice-President is suffering from such infirmity of body or mind as renders him permanently incapable of discharging the functions of his office, a notice thereof signed by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be published in the Official Gazette of the Government of the Federation.

(3) The President or Vice-President shall cease to hold office as from the date of publication of the notice of the medical report pursuant to subsection (2) of this section.

Now, that is the LAW! The National Assembly, in my opinion, erred in law by empowering the VP with the Presidential powers.

The BBC conversation relied on by the National Assembly IS NOT the requirement as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution. That conversation does not meet the requirement as set out in section 145 of the Constitution.

Long Live the Federal Republic of Nigeria!

73 days and still counting . . .

Fact: The President is ill.
Fact: The President has been away for 73 days today.
Fact: Most Ministers have not "spoken" to the President.
Fact: Nigerians are worried about the prolonged silence surrounding the prolonged absence of the President.
Mr. President is still at large!

Some days ago, a Federal High Court Judge, in fact, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Dan Abutu, gave the Federal Executive Council a 14 day ultimatum to decide whether the President was still capable of ruling the Nation or not. As a result of that Court Order, on the 27th of January, the Executive Council unanimously passed a resolution that only the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua could determine whether he is fit to remain in office.

It is a known fact that Nigeria has an ill President. It is also a known fact that Nigerians are praying for Yar'Adua to get well FAST! But for crying out loud, how long can we stay without a President in Office. Yes, the various Ministers and other politically minded individuals are currently manning the affairs of the Nation, but for how long?

For the records, when this guy, Mr. President, was Governor of Katsina State, news had it that he would go AWOL for months and when he does resurface, it's business as usual. Is that the same thing happening now? There had been so many rumours surrounding his disappearance from office. Some say he is dead. Some say he is brain damaged. Suddenly, there was a televised telephone conversation between Yar'Adua and a BBC correspondent. Sincerely, when I heard the shaky voice on BBC, I said thank God Yar'Adua is still alive. . . at least that will douse the rumours going on! I was so relieved that at least the nation will not be thrown into a state of chaos. Even with that, people were not still convinced. There was a general doubt that the voice was not Yar'Adua's. Some even said, it was a technological trick!

Now it is exactly 73 days since the President travelled AWOLed to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment. The Federal Executive Council still believes he is fit and proper to continue as President! Right now, the President can not carry out his duties as a President, therefore he is INCAPACITATED. Although the Executive Council has not been confirmed that he is “permanently incapacitated”, how long would a Nation should stay without its President? Our leaders are simply playing politics with us. No one is speaking out.

The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has made adequate provisions on steps to follow when the President is unable to perform his duties as President. Sections 144, 145 and 146 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria provides thus:

144. (1) The President or Vice-President shall cease to hold office, if -
(a) by a resolution passed by two-thirds majority of all the members of the executive council of the Federation it is declared that the President or Vice-President is incapable of discharging the functions of his office; and
(b) the declaration is verified, after such medical examination as may be necessary, by a medical panel established under subsection (4) of this section in its report to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

(2) Where the medical panel certifies in the report that in its opinion the President or Vice-President is suffering from such infirmity of body or mind as renders him permanently incapable of discharging the functions of his office, a notice thereof signed by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be published in the Official Gazette of the Government of the Federation.

(3) The President or Vice-President shall cease to hold office as from the date of publication of the notice of the medical report pursuant to subsection (2) of this section.

(4) the medical panel to which this section relates shall be appointed by the President of the Senate, and shall comprise five medical practitioners in Nigeria:-
(a) one of whom shall be the personal physician of the holder of the office concerned; and

(b) four other medical practitioners who have, in the opinion of the President of the Senate, attained a high degree of eminence in the field of medicine relative to the nature of the examination to be conducted in accordance with the foregoing provisions.

(5) In this section, the reference to "executive council of the Federation" is a reference to the body of Ministers of the Government of the Federation, howsoever called, established by the President and charged with such responsibilities for the functions of government as the President may direct.

145. Whenever the President transmits to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary such functions shall be discharged by the Vice-President as Acting President.

146. (1) The Vice-President shall hold the office of President if the office of President becomes vacant by reason of death or resignation, impeachment, permanent incapacity or the removal of the President from office for any other reason in accordance with section 143 of this Constitution.

(2) Where any vacancy occurs in the circumstances mentioned in subsection (1) of this section during a period when the office of Vice-President is also vacant, the President of the Senate shall hold the office of President for a period of not more than three months, during which there shall be an election of a new President, who shall hold office for the unexpired term of office of the last holder of the office.

(3) Where the office of Vice-President becomes vacant:-
(a) by reason of death or resignation, impeachment, permanent incapacity or removal in accordance with section 143 or 144 of this Constitution;

(b) by his assumption of the office of President in accordance with subsection (1) of this section; or

(c) for any other reason,

the President shall nominate and, with the approval of each House of the National Assembly, appoint a new Vice-President.

Yar'Adua is an "advocate" of the "rule of law". Why can't the Law be respected now that it directly concerns him? When he was sworn into office as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Yar'Adua swore to an oath of allegiance to obey the letters and the spirit of the 1999 Constitution without fear or favour and to also promote peace and accord in Nigeria.

The first option under Section 144 of the Constitution has been explored, what about the second option? The Senate President should set up a medical panel in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution to verify the "declaration" of the Executive Council.

The latest development now is that the Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili has finally spoken. The news has it that Akunyili submitted a memo to the Executive Council to "prevail on Yar'Adua to hand over to the Vice-President." Hmmmmm! With this development, Akunyili has become the "lone voice" in the Federal Executive Council and as a result, she was shouted down by the pro-Yar'Adua Ministers! What a way to advocate freedom of speech in a democratic setting!

In addition, the "media" owners have given an ultimatum to the President to take "the honourable path and spare the nation the on-going political confusion."

As for now, we’ll continue to do “sidon look”, when the home video finish playing, we’ll give credits where necessary!

Nigeria we hail thee! Long live the Federal republic of Nigeria!

January 27, 2002 - Commemorating the victims

It was a beautiful Sunday in January 2002.  We just returned from Church. I had bearing entered my room when there was a sudden vibration. I rushed out and I saw hubby standing in the sitting room with shock all over his face! "What was that?" I asked. He replied, "I don't know." Some minutes later, another I felt another vibration and this time I asked hubby "Is this an earthquake? Abeg o!"

These vibrations were so serious that louvres were rattling and other items in the house were moving! That was why I thought it was an earthquake. There were also thunderous sounds following the vibrations. Somewhere in between all these, I saw the breaking news on television that the explosions and vibrations were as a result of bomb exploding in the armoury in Ikeja Military Cantonment! What!!!!

I did not know the extent of the damage and havoc until I went to work the next day. My office was somewhere on the Island. The whole office was scattered as if it was burgled. Files were all over the floor; tables upturned...

Most of that day was spent talking about the incident...

The news had it that somany lives were lost as a result of stampeding. Some people were looking for their loved ones. It was such a dark period in the city of Lagos.

I stopped by at my Mum's place in Isolo on my way home after work. There were large cracks on the walls and most of her dishes were broken. I got more tales about the whole incident. I was informed that people ran out of the houses out of fear and panic. Not knowing what was happenning. She said, thankfully, she waited, tried to understand before taking any action. She added that a friend of hers who lives in Ajao Estate jumped from a balcony and broke her leg in the process. My Mum was still in shock. I encouraged her to calm down and rest. My brother's gist was different. He said he was outside with some friends when the whole thing started. He saw people running down the street in panic and like a typical Lagosian, he was about to run as well. Fortunately, a neighbour called him back and told him to stay within the compound. He said the neighbour told him not to panic.

The most shocking news was that as a result of the panic and stampede, several people, including children, women and men were drowned in the Oke-Afa Canal! Some bodies have been claimed but some were not claimed. The unclaimed bodies were buried in a mass grave by the canal. A cenotaph was later erected at the mass grave for the unclaimed bodies. Year after year, the Lagos State Government set out some few hours to lay wreaths at the cenotaph in Oke-Afa.

It is exactly 8 years after that black Sunday in Lagos. The activities around that site for the past one week has got me thinking. The roads were patched and padded. The cenotaph now wears a new look. Enough beautification has taken place there. I even hear the Governor of  Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola will be on ground to give a befitting commemoration for the people buried at there.
Let us say prayers for the families that lost their loved ones on that ill fated day - Sunday 27, January 2002.

Scammers, Haiti + Crisis in Jos

In line with the plea for donations to help the Haitians after the devastating earthquake that rocked Haiti on, many Nations (including Nigeria) and Individuals all over the world have been sending monetary donations and relief items such as food, water, clothes, medications and other medical equipments to recognised Charities such as the Red Cross.

It is rather very unfortunate that while good hearted people are trying to give life, hope and love to the survivors in Haiti, some bad and evil minded people are using this as an opportunity to defraud the people with good intentions, who are genuinely sending aid and relief materials to Haiti. These scammers are capitalizing on the relief efforts to help rebuild Haiti. How can people be so wicked as to enrich themselves this way!I feel that such an act is heinous!

Please before making any donation towards rebuilding Haiti, take the extra precautionary step to ensure that the Charity is a genuine and recognised one. Please find below some tips on how to avoid such scams as posted on NowPublic.com:

Rely on expert opinion when it comes to evaluating a charity.
Donors are advised to consult experts when deciding which charity to donate to. Charity Navigator compiled a list of organizations operating to help the Haiti earthquake, among them are CARE, Doctors Without Borders, World Vision, American Red Cross.

Be wary of claims that 100 percent of donations will assist relief victims.
While administration cost may be minimized, processing fee is almost inevitable. For example, donations from credit card will incur service charges.

Find out if the charity has an on-the-ground presence in the impacted areas.
It will be difficult for charities to help the affected areas if they don't already have staff on the ground.

Find out if the charity is providing direct aid or raising money for other groups.
If the charity does not directly helping the Haiti earthquake, donors can consider skipping the "middleman" to reduce the processing cost when money is passed along to other relief organizations.

Gifts of clothing, food or other in-kind donations.
It is best to give direct monetary support instead of food or clothing because it is much more difficult to distribute such donation. It requires organizations to have the staff and infrastructure to handle donations of good properly. Be ware of inexperienced organizations asking for goods donations.

May the Almighty God, Jehovah Jireh continue to provide for all who have (and are still) sent some form of donations towards rebuilding Haiti. For those who can not send physical items, please continue to pray for the survivors of the earthquake.

While the international community are discussing on ways to help rebuild Haiti, people in Jos, Plateau State in Nigeria are also counting their loses as the recent crisis has left several dead and several others homeless. I pray for my people in Jos. I call them my people because I feel I am part of them. During my stay in Jos, in the 80s, I experienced the hospitality nature of the people of Jos. I have been asking myself  "where did all these hatred come from?" Anyway, my prayer is that God Almighty will heal the broken hearts and fill them with LOVE!  Amen!

Help Save Haiti!

The recent massive earthquake that rocked Haiti, has left over thousands of people dead and several others homeless. Somany children have become orphans as a result of this unfortunate incidence. I watched CNN news and I saw Dr. Sanjay, a CNN medical correspondent giving medical treatment to a baby whose mother died in the quake! This baby is only 15 DAYS old! My sympathy goes to the people of Haiti right now.

Source: www.nj.com/news

International Organisations such as the UN and Red Cross have formulated ways to send relief to Haiti. Donations can also be sent by text, that is for people living in America and Canada. However, for other Countries, donations can be sent online.

Please visit these sites and do something positive for Haiti:
1.   www.unicefusa.org/haitiquake
2.  http://www.redcross.org/

Do a google search to find out how you can be of help.

In addition to monetary donations, the survivors and indeed the entire Haiti Nation need prayers from people all over the world. Let us join hands and reach out to the Haitians!

Much Ado About Yar'Adua!

Citizen A: Did you hear that Yar'Adua spoke to a foreign media yesterday?

Dee: Yes. I listened to the conversation as played on BBC yesterday morning. His voice was dull and shaky.

Citizen A: How are you sure that call was made by Yar'Adua himself? You know say these oyinbo people can do and undo!

Dee: Hmmm!

Citizen A: Yes O! Remember that there was news that said Yar'Adua is brain damaged!

Dee: Yes. I guess he chose to prove them wrong! Someone with a damaged brain can not talk. Or can they talk?

Citizen A: I no know o! But sha, I am not happy that he chose to talk to a foreign media house. Haba! Why did he not talk to NTA, VON or even Channels? It shows that he (Yar'Adua) has no regard for us. He does not believe in us.

Dee: Why are you talking as if you are not a Nigerian. No media house in Nigeria was granted audience in the first place! Even if they were granted audience, they will tread with "extra" caution so as to avoid been sealed!

Citizen A: The whole thin tire me jo!

Dee: Me too I tire! But wait o. Should we be bothered on his choice of media house? I do not care how he breaks the silence, the only thing I care about is for Peace to reign in Nigeria. You know his absence has generated a lot of concerns. It is not news that the guy has serious health challenges. You know what? As an individual, I pity him. Infact I feel sorry for his wife right now. She must stay strong.

Citizen A: I hear that your colleagues have sued him.

Dee: Wrong! My "colleagues" instituted an action in Court to compel the President to do the needful. The Lawyers are seeking an injunction to compel the President to hand over to Jonathan. As it is now, Jonathan CAN NOT ACT!

Citizen A: Okay! So that is it. So what next?

Now let me do a proper post on this issue.

For the past 50 days plus, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has been AWOL. Yes. AWOL because due process was not followed before the President left the Country for "medical treatment".

For the first FORTY days while the President was away, the main question the average Nigerian asked was where is Yar'Adua? Some politicians were clamouring for the "ailing" President to resign. Others said the Vice President can not act in his place because there was no such instruction for the VP to act upon. True.

There were SEVERAL rumours surrounding the disapperance or should I say AWOLness of the President. Some quarters said he was on a life support machine. Others said he was brain damaged. Yet some others said he was dead! Infact the American Chronicle posted on the web that Yar'Adua died as far back as the 10th of December 2009! Infact, the rumour that he was dead generated a lot of "side" talks. Thankfully, the former Governor of Abia State, Oji Uzor Kalu told the Guardian newspaper that he spoke with the President on the 31st of December 2009. Meaning, he could not have been dead!

The suspense continued and then, bam! The long silence was finally "broken" by the BBC who reported that the President spoke with a BBC reporter (I guess to prove that his brain was still intact). After the telephone conversation, the song took a new turn! Why did he choose to talk to a foreign media? Why not the Nigerian Television Authority or any other local media group?

ISSUES
1. Whether it was right (constitutionally or morally) for the President to leave the Country for such a long period without following due process?

2. Whether it ws right (constitutionally or morally) for the President to talk to BBC and not the Nigerian media?

MY VIEW
As a citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the most paramount thing on my mind is the peace and stability of the Nation. At least, we now know he is ALIVE! Whether or not he is on life support! I suggest we deal with him when he returns. He will face the music then.

As a Legal Practitioner, I have a very different opinion on this matter. The RULE OF LAW MUST PREVAIL! Let us follow the provisions of the Constitution as spelt out in Sections 144 and 145.

Long live Nigeria!

Umar Musa Yar'Adua is Alive!

Yes! At least that is the conclusion from the telephone interview President MusaYar'Adua had with a BBC correspondent. He is not "dead".

I heard his voice (though shaky) on the BBC news some hours ago. The President actually spoke with a BBC correspondent. Amongst other things, he thanked Nigerians for their prayers and assured Nigerians that he will be back as soon as his doctors discharge him.

Read more here.

Long live Nigeria!

Still on Yar'Adua's Health

Source BBC.CO.UK

I just read here that Yar'adua has some problem with his brain! I just hope it is not true.

Below is an excerpt from the publication on 234next.com.

“President Umaru Yar'Adua is seriously brain damaged, is not able to recognise anyone, including his wife Turai, and can no longer perform the functions of the office of the president, according to multiple sources who have spoken to NEXT on Sunday.

But this fact, which has left a nation of 150 million people rudderless and its government in disarray, is being concealed from the public through an elaborate scam orchestrated directly and energetically by the First Lady.

Turai Yar'Adua has barred all but two security and one civilian aide, and a legislator from having access to the president in a two-tier power loop of which she is the organising principal. The inner core consists of the president's chief security officer, Mohammed Tilde, and his military ADC, Mustapha Onoedieva; an infantry colonel from Edo State. Through Mrs. Yar'Adua, this small knot works with Shehu Inuwa Imam, a member of the House of Representatives from Katsina State who is the president's childhood friend; Tanimu Yakubu, the president's chief economic adviser; and Sayyadi Abba Ruma, the agriculture minister. She is also aided by Inuwa Baba, the senior private adviser to the president on protocol matters.

Mr. Baba is an old Yar'Adua family friend, so loyal that he once got into prison uniform to stay behind bars with Shehu Musa Yar'Adua, the elder brother of the current president. who died in Abacha's gulag in 1999.

The group has blocked all direct access to the rapidly ailing president, said sources in Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf region and in Europe and the US.

Despite several trips to Saudi Arabia, no other Nigerian government official, including the president's principal private secretary, ministers, and governors, has succeeded in seeing the president, who vanished from our country 50 days ago and has not been heard from since.

Grand deception

The people working frantically to keep up this ruse, including Mr. Yakubu, have also gone to great lengths to deceive the public, by claiming they have spoken to a president who is unable to speak and has lost all powers of cognition.

In fact, we can confirm that senior government officials lied when they claimed that Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, who is next in line to succeed Mr. Yar'Adua, has spoken directly to the president.

Although Mr. Jonathan subsequently went along with the charade, he has confided in several people in recent days that he did not speak to the president at all, according to informed sources. "He is trying not to create any friction because he knows he is about to become the next president," one source told our reporters.”

Please click here to read more.

After reading this article all I could ask was - "HOW DID 234NEXT.COM GET THIS INFORMATION CONSIDERING THAT ONLY 3 PEOPLE WERE PRIVY TO THE HEALTH CONDITION OF THE PRESIDENT AS STATED IN THE ABOVE ARTICLE??

I believe in prayers . . . I believe Nigerians are praying for the good health of President Yar'Adua . . .

God help us!

Yar'adua's Health

Well, it is a known fact that the Nigerian President was flown out of the Country on the 23rd day of November 2009 for medical treatment. His location was not disclosed. The ailment was also not known to the general public as at then. A few days after, his spokesman released a press statement that the President was in Saudi Arabia receiving treatment for a heart condition. According to the BBC report, Mr. President has acute pericarditis, otherwise known as inflammation of the lining around the heart.

I am not a medical practitioner, but when I googled for more information and I found that Pericarditis, is inflammation of the pericardium. The pericardium is the sac which surrounds and protects the heart. The heart, as we all know is a vital organ in the human body which pumps blood to other parts of the body.

I read here that complications arising from pericarditis can be life threatening and require immediate treatment.

The vacum created by the absence of the President has been generating a lot of criticism and concern. Right now there are three law suits in Court on this vacum created by the prolonged absence of the President. Read more here.

The news now is that the President is responding well to treatment. That is good considering the various crisis on ground. The Nigerian President needs prayers. At least for the peace and stability of the Nation. Let us all pray for the President to recover and resume is duties.

Long Live Nigeria!

2010!

THIS IS THE YEAR 2010!

May the blessings of the Almighty God, the Creator of the Universe and ALL that is in it, continually abide with you all! AMEN.