Rivers Crisis: Jonathan, Amaechi In Secret “Peace” Talks

After several months of mutual suspicion, distrust and sometimes snubbing and resentment, President Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Rotimi Amaechi, sat together on Friday night to talk peace.

The setting was the Presidential Villa, Abuja, which less than 24 hours later, hosted another peace meeting, this time between President Jonathan and five northern governors.

Only a week ago the governors – Sule Lamido (Jigawa State), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), and Rabiu Kwankwaso ( Kano ) – were locked in a hide and seek game with the President in Abeokuta where they had gone to seek the intervention of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo in the crisis rocking the PDP.

Jonathan was in the town to commiserate with his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, on the death of his mother, and seized the opportunity to pay a courtesy call on Obasanjo.The governors, who had arrived Abeokuta at about the same time as Jonathan, decided to avoid him and diverted somewhere else to allow the President depart Obasanjo's before going there.A few days later, the governors took their case to former military rulers, General Ibrahim Babangida and General Abdulsalami Abubakar.

Friday's meeting between the President and Governor Amaechi was brief after the Rivers Governor said he would prefer a lengthy discussion only if his colleagues from the north were in attendance having facilitated his meeting with the president, in the first instance.The President obliged him and an appointment was fixed for yesterday.The five northern governors who were on their way to Saudi Arabia for the Umrah (Lesser Hajj) consequently postponed their journey to enable them be at yesterday's meeting with the President.

The Jonathan/Amaechi meeting, according to a reliable source, reviewed the crisis in Rivers State and explored how to resolve it.The source said the talks took place in a 'large-hearted manner'.Said the source: "Following the advice of the five northern governors, Amaechi accepted to meet with the President on the security and political situation in Rivers State"I think there is peace in sight because the President hosted Amaechi on Friday night in an atmosphere devoid of security intimidation when the Rivers Governor attended a dinner a few weeks ago at the Villa.

"The mood between the President and Amaechi was reconciliatory. But Amaechi asked the President to allow the five Northern governors, who are brokering the peace talks, to be part of a meaningful discussion or reconciliation plan to resolve the crisis in Rivers State.

"The President obliged the governor's request to pave the way for another round of peace session on Saturday."

Investigation revealed that before Amaechi went for the audience with the President, he had met with the five northern governors on Friday night in Sokoto State Governor's Lodge for debriefing on their intervention.There were speculations that Amaechi also confided in the five governors on his terms for peace.

A governor said: "It is true that Amaechi had a preliminary session with the five governors at the Sokoto Lodge before going to the Villa. As a matter of fact, some of the governors postponed their trip to Saudi Arabia for Umrah (Lesser Hajj)."

But a governor said: "Some statesmen and the five northern governors have set the agenda for peace. They wanted the differences between the President and Amaechi handled beyond trading blames."They believe that an outright solution to the crisis would be better than addressing sentiments that had dominated the political space in the last two months. Once they are able to secure the commitment of President to peace, other stakeholders would be brought into the deal."

Yesterday's meeting with the five northern governors was also attended by Governor Ibrahim Geidam of Yobe State and his Borno State counterpart, Kashim Shettima.Nine governors from across the country, on a solidarity visit to Amaechi on July 18, had advised him to seek audience with the President for the purpose of briefing him on the political crisis in the state especially the role of the Police Command.

On the trip were Governors Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Babatunde Fashola (Lagos), Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun), Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo), Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), and deputy governors of Imo, Nasarawa and Zamfara.They were preceded two days earlier by Governors Kwankwaso, Wamakko, Nyako and Lamido.

They were pelted with stones by thugs on their arrival at the Port Harcourt Airport.

Julius Berger To Do Emergency Repairs On Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

The Federal Controller of Works, Lagos State, Mr Oluwatoyin Obikoya, on Sunday said that emergency repairs would be carried out on portions causing gridlock on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the bad portions had been causing hardship to road users.

"The contractors are not folding their arms; the bottlenecks at Ibafo area on the Lagos-bound lane will be cleared.

"Julius Berger will carry out emergency repair of those sections so that motorists would enjoy smooth ride and not spend long time on that road again," he said.

The controller told NAN that logistics were being put in place for the commencement of the reconstruction of the road.

NAN reports that the reconstruction, awarded to Julius Berger and RCC Nig. Ltd., was flagged off by President Goodluck Jonathan on July 5.

"When a contract is awarded, the contractor usually has to build a site yard which involves acquiring land and clearing trees and grasses.

"It has to build an office, establish a quarry, an asphalt plant and all other necessary things, " he said.

Obikoya said that the process could take up to one month or more.

He said that the contractors' major challenge was land acquisition.

He, however, said that there had been negotiations with land owners for release of some portions. (NAN)

UK Visa: Nigerians To Begin Payment Of £3,000 Bond From November

Outcry against its £3,000 tourists visa bond notwithstanding, Britain will commence the scheme in the six listed Commonwealth countries in November, Financial Times report quoted the Home Office as saying.
The Commonwealth countries to be affected by the policy which was announced in June are Nigeria, India, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The affected countries are considered to be source of "high risk" tourists to the UK.

Some visitors from the six countries, under the scheme, will be asked to pay a £3,000 cash bond in return for visitor visas that allow them to stay in the UK for up to six months.

According to official data, these six countries accounted for more than half a million visa applications in 2012.

There have been outpours of anger by governments of the affected countries, especially Nigeria and India against the policy.

A protest in India last month forced the British Prime Minister David Cameron to declare that final decision had not been taken on the policy, while the Nigerian government asked Britain to renounce the scheme.

The Federal Government, through the Foreign Affairs minister, Olugbenga Ashiru, had in June expressed "the strong displeasure of the government and people of Nigeria" over the "discriminatory" policy.

Ashiru warned British High Commissioner Andrew Pocock at a meeting in the minister's office in Abuja, barely 24 hours after the policy was announced, that the move would "definitely negate" the two country's commitment to double trade by 2014.

The minister told the British diplomat that Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, had "a responsibility to take appropriate measures to protect the interest of Nigerians who may be affected by the proposed policy, if finally introduced."

The British High Commission in Nigeria after the meeting issued a statement quoting Pocock as saying that his government planned to undertake "a very small scale trial of the use of financial bonds as a way of tackling abuse in the immigration system (which occurs when some people overstay their visa terms)."

He said that the details of the pilot scheme were still being worked out and if it goes ahead in Nigeria, it would affect only a very small number of the "highest risk" visitors.

"The vast majority would not be required to pay a bond. Those paying bonds would receive the bond back, if they abided by the terms of their visa," he said.

More than 180, 000 Nigerians apply to visit Britain each year and about 70 percent or around 125, 000 of these applicants are successful, he said.

A Home Office official said the six countries highlighted were those with "the most significant risk of abuse"

The Home Office said on Friday that only individuals deemed "high-risk" would be asked to pay the bond. But some officials admits that the mere mention of a bond would be enough to deter visitors.

"In the long run, we are interested in a system of bonds that deters overstaying and recovers costs if a foreign national has used our public services," an unnamed Home Office official said.

Ashiru said on Sunday that the UK embassy had not communicated to his office the plan to commence the bond scheme.

""They have not communicated with me," the minister said when we sought his reaction to the latest development.

In the UK, luxury goods retailers have denounced the plan as an "insulting deterrent" to wealthy tourists, which will hit sales and damage London's reputation.

They are urging the government to drop the pilot, saying the restrictions will damage their business if Commonwealth tourists – particularly Nigerians, now the sixth biggest spenders on luxury goods in the UK – are put off.

"It's embarrassing that our country would consider these measures against visitors who spend so much in our stores," Managing Director of Harrods, Michael Ward, said .

"There seems to be a deeply frustrating attitude in Westminster that they should do whatever they can to actively prevent people coming to the UK," Ward added.

Harrods is reputed to be the biggest department store in Europe, occupying a five-acre site in the royal precinct in London.

ASUU Denies Plan To Call Off Strike

Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has described as speculative reports that the strike embarked upon by the union over the inability of the Federal Government to implement the 2009 agreement it willingly entered into with the union would be called off this Thursday.

National President of ASUU, Dr. Nasir Fagge, told a national daily (Vanguard) that he was surprised to hear that the union was going to call off the strike on Thursday when the issues tabled before government had not been resolved.

Faggae said: "There is nothing like that (suspending the strike). I am also surprised to hear people say that we are going to call off the strike.

He said: "Our members have made it categorically clear what they want. This meeting we had with government on Friday at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, is just exploratory.

"We are trying to look at issues holistically and see how we are going to address them. So assignments were given to various people that attended the meeting and the expectation is that we will meet tomorrow (today), Monday and look at the assignment given and also look at it on Thursday again.

"So, that is why I'm surprised to hear people say that we are going to suspend strike on Thursday. The mandate of our members is very clear. So, we will wait and see what the Monday and Thursday meetings unfold and then we report back to our members."

On how long it would take ASUU leaders to convene a meeting with its members after the meeting with government on Thursday, the ASUU boss said "we are in constant consultation with our members, we don't really have problems with that.

"After the meeting, we will decide when to link up with our members depending upon what is placed on table on Thursday."

Commenting on the speculation that the union might suspend the strike if the government met up to 50 per cent of the agreement, Faggae said the union would prefer to get to the bridge before crossing it.

He commended the positive disposition of the Joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Education towards the resolution of the crisis.

Fagge added: "For us, the interaction we have had with the Joint Committee clearly indicates that they are concerned like other Nigerians".

"This is expected of the representatives of people. You see the problem has always been that the executive arm of government does not really hearken to advise that are given on how best to address the problems on education in this country.

"We are convinced as a union that the only thing the government can really do for Nigerians is to avail them of education.

"Once you are able to do that, you will see that people will be able to generate jobs and they will be able to take care of themselves and contribute to nation building. So that is the argument we are placing on the table."

Husband Allegedly Poisons Wife For Being Barren

The Police in Ondo State have arrested a 47-year-old bricklayer, Damilare Olotu, for allegedly poisoning his wife, Mary, for being barren.

The 45-year-old Mary who hailed from Kwara State was a trader and had been having running battle with the suspect over her inability to conceive.

Reports had it that following the condition of the deceased the suspect married a second wife, Kemi, from Igbara Oke area of the state who bore him two children.

The suspect who is from Akure used to live with the deceased in Ibuji, Ifedore council area of the state.

It was alleged that the second wife reportedly insisted on packing into the suspect's house but the deceased resisted.

The junior brother to the deceased, Mr. Lawrence Omotosho, told newsmen that the suspect and the second wife connived to poison his sister.

According to him, the sister had told him that the suspect had threatened to kill her. Omotosho asked the police to investigate the matter thoroughly and bring the culprit to book.

Also the only child of the deceased from her former marriage, Shola Olatunji who is an undergraduate in Kogi State said the family of her late mother warned her not to re-marry but she refused.

Contacted, the police image maker, Wole Ogodo, said investigation into Mary's death ws on-going, noting that the case has been transfered from Igbara Oke to the headquarters in Akure for further investigation.

Meanwhile, the corpse of the deceased has been deposited in mortuary for autopsy.

Am Happy to be A Muslim, Nobody Forced Me To Accept Islam, Convert Insists

The conversion to Islam of 25-year-oldCharity Uzoechina, daughter of Pastor Raymond Uzoechinaof Redeem Christian Church of God, Kwankwashe, Suleja, continues to generate controversy.

Her father accused the Estu Nupe Alhaji Yahaya Abubukar, of hypnotizing his daughter, who has since changed her name to A'isha, to embrace Islam. A'isha, who hails from Asaba, Delta State, came to Abuja at the age of 10 when her father relocated from Lagos. After hersecondary school education at Army Day Secondary School Asokoro, Abuja she got admission into Federal Polytechnic, Bida to read Public Administration. She, however, withdrew from the course in her first year.
She embraced Islam on February 15, 2013. A'isha said since her family relocated to Suleja, Niger State, she has been in the midst of Muslims, which accorded her the opportunity to have several Muslims friends and learnt a lot about Islam. The travails of A'isha began when she ran to the Estu Nupe's palace in Bida on March 1, this year to seek protection against any aggression she may face should her family know about her conversion to Islam. This led toa controversy that is still ongoing, with her father accusing the traditional ruler of kidnapping his daughter.

Along the line, severalmeetings were organized between A'isha and her father Pastor Uzoechina and his daughter atthe instance of the Estu Nupe, who also involved some members of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN). But despite that, A'isha refused to follow her father, alleging that he has threatened to deal with her by taking her away to a place that she will not be able to practice her new religion. A'isha has taken the matter to a Shariah court in Bida and the court is expected to rule on August 1, 2013 whether or not the 25-year-old should be released to her parents or not. She speaks exclusively to Weekly Trust.

Excerpts:

Weekly Trust: What is your name?

Aisha Uzoechina:I was formerly known as Charity Uzoechina and now A'isha Uzoechina.

Why the change of name?

I changed my name because I have accepted Islam.

What brought you to Bida?

I came to Bida in 2012 to read Public Administration at the Federal Polytechnic, Bida.

Are you still a student of Federal Polytechnic Bida?

No, I am not. I have withdrawn from the school.

Did you go back home?

No, I did not go home. At the beginning I was planning to go back home, because I wanted totell my father that I have converted to Islam. When I converted, I was afraid to tell my parents, because of the way my father would behave. I know he will not take it lightly with me. So, for that I refused to go back home.

Did anybody force or enticed you to join Islam?

I joined Islam on my own. Nobody enticed me with anything to join Islam.

What informed your decision to join Islam?

I converted to Islam because I love the character of Muslims, particularly the way they behave. You know Muslims believe in God. I have Muslim friends and I watch what they do, that enticed me to join Islam. I used to read Qur'an when I was a Christian. I always join them to read Qur'an and through that I found out that it is the same one God they worship.

How did your father come to know about your change of faith?

When I ran to the palace, I told you, it was verydifficult before I could see the Emir. When I saw him, the emir refused to accept me, because my father did not know about it. He, therefore, collected my father's number from me and called him. The following day my father came and said he wanted to see me. When we met we talked one on one.

What did you tell him?

Well the emir told him that I have converted to Islam. When my father talked to me, he said let's go home, but I refused. I told him that I will not change my faith, because I have already accepted Islam and this is where I wantto stay. He, therefore, threatened me so much so that I became scared of him.

What did he do to you amounting to a threat?

In the first place you know, I put on Hijab (veil),he said I should remove the Hijab. He was angry and used some harsh words on me, directing that I should remove the Hijab, but I refused. He threatened to take me to a village where nobody will set his eyes on me. So I became scared of him, therefore I refused to follow him. That is it.

Did the emir intervene?

The emir gave him one week to come back, buthe came back even before it reached one week. He said he must take me home. He will not take me to our house, but he'll take me to somewhere that nobody will set his eyes on me. I quickly ran back to the emir and to the Shari'a Court for protection. I don't want to go back to my father, because he is threatening me.
How did you come to know about the Shari'a Court?

I found out from people. I went to them on my own to formally lodge my complaint.

Why Shari'a Court?

They have to protect me. You know when you take a case to court over life threatening issue,the court must protect you. That is it.

Did your father come back after you refused to follow him?

He came back. He kept on coming back. The other time he even threatened to bring some people to kidnap me.

Is it true that at a time your father came with the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) officials to you?

Yes.

Is it true that you also went to the Jama'atul Nasril Islam (JNI)?

Yes.

Why did you go to JNI?

I told you and I'll still repeat it, though I don't want to repeat my words again. I want them to intervene on my behalf, the threat is too much.Now I can't go anywhere, I cannot even continue with my schooling. I cannot do anything because of the way he has been threatening me. He is still bringing people up till now to keep watch on me.

How do you know that your father has assignedpeople to keep watch on you?

There was a time that I wanted to go out, information came to me that my father was around and I had to stay back since I don't want him to take me away. I know that if I goutanytime,I he'll pick me up.

How did you come to know about JNI?

I have been reading about them. That is why I went to them.

How did you present your case to JNI?

I wrote to them seeking for their intervention, because I do not know how to go about convincing my father. I also learnt that the emir wanted to hand me over to my father, because the burden of my case is becoming too much for him to bear.

If your father should promise to allow you to practice your new faith, will you go with him?

I'll not. In a family that you are the only Muslim, how can you practice in that house? You know when he (my father) came along with my mother the other time, his actions and the harsh words he used, even if I go back home, my life will not be secured in his hand. That is why I said I'll not go.

Did you start learning anything about Islam?

Yes, I started learning how to perform ablution. I have learnt how to recite Surah Al-Fatihah, I am now in my second surah.

Do you pray five times a day?

Yes I do. I am even fasting now. I have been fasting since the beginning of the month of Ramadan.

What is your massage to people wanting to join Islam?

I have only one massage. Islam is good. Muslims are truthful, everything they say, they believe in God and they carry people along. Once a person converted to Islam, he'll be carried along until he is strong to stand on his own.

What is your appeal to your parent?

I am appealing to my parents not to be angry with me. My conversion to Islam will not separate us. I still love them, even though I amhere. They can come and visit me and I can also visit them. They shouldn't think my new faith will take away the love I have for them. It will not. I am very sorry.