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There should be no room for sacred cows

By Dirisu Abdulrasheed
29 July 2015   |   6:31 am
We have watched with keen interest the actions taken so far by President Muhammadu Buhari since he assumed office on May 29, 2015.
Buhari

Buhari

We have watched with keen interest the actions taken so far by President Muhammadu Buhari since he assumed office on May 29, 2015.

As active stakeholders that worked strenuously for the success of the elections, we are proud of some of the positive initiatives and utterances that have emanated from the government and fully identify with the positive steps so far taken by it in addressing some of the country’s ‎multifarious changes.

While we agree with the argument that there is need for greater introspection in order to avoid the mistakes of the past, we however urge Buhari to expedite action in the formation of his cabinet in order to earnestly begin the process of reviving the country comatose economy and it’s infrastructure.

In this regard, while we are pleased with the declaration that the president is determined to probe some of the activities of the immediate past government, such investigations should be all-encompassing and devoid of any partisan consideration in order not to erode the noble intentions behind such genuine effort. We cannot afford to go back to the dark days of selective justice.

One other issue that will dominate national discourse in the coming weeks is the gubernatorial elections for Edo and Kogi states. The former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, upped the ante in the conduct of polls in the country with the use of card readers, which significantly engendered the holding of elections that were generally rated as free, fair and transparent. What is needed now is for the present leadership of the commission to sustain the tempo and build on the legacy left by Jega. We therefore call on the acting chairman of INEC to work hard towards improving on the standards set by Jega.

We (League of National Patriots) have mobilised our members in Edo and Kogi states to play active roles in ensuring that politicians play by the rules and INEC is ‎held accountable to its responsibilities and duties.

We, therefore, call on the leadership of INEC to ensure that the forthcoming election in the two states serves as reference point on how subsequent polls in the country would be conducted. The commission must ensure that a level playing field is created for all political parties and their candidates, a task that it cannot afford to take for granted at this critical juncture in our country’s political history.

The task of lifting the country out of the wood is the collective responsibility of all citizens. We must all join hands with the president to ensure that that the country is taken to where it ought to be.

Patriotism is doing our bit in the task of uplifting our fatherland.
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Long live Nigerian patriots.

•Prince Abdulrasheed is Publicity Secretary of the League of National Patriots.

7 Comments

  • Author’s gravatar

    Is this a political advertorial being carried as news?

  • Author’s gravatar

    Transparency in governance requires that the president should have by now declared his assets if he has not already done so and get all his certified appointees to public office to abide by the same clause prior to assuming duties. That will be a good first step for “integrity”.

    • Author’s gravatar

      There is already selective justice. For example, the DSS is only harassing PDP controlled states as if elections never took place in APC states. Appointments made so far are limited principally to the northerners as if the entire country belongs to the north. Yet, we talk oil, oil and oil everyday. Instead of Onions, potatoes, pepper, garden eggs etc. Do you think Nigerians are not watching? OK, Oil thieves were only found in Jonathan’s government . What about the regimes of IBB, OBJ and others like Abdulsalami? The truth be told, Buhari is playing with fire and the confidence is gradually being eroded. I can assure you he is loosing integrity as the day go by. Besides, him and the APC says they hold Rotimi Amaechi in high esteem. Yes, over what? Did he get 5% vote for Buhari in Rivers? The answer is obviously NO. But, he spend Rivers resources for APC and Buhari and that is why he deserves the best place in APC government. Yet, Buhari claims to be a saint that will fight corruption. No single Boko Haram member has been killed since Buhari took over the reigns of power; instead, bombings and bombings of alarming proportion more disturbing than what Nigerians noticed during Jonathan has become the order of the day. Time shall tell.

      • Author’s gravatar

        You are ill informed and bias too.first of all, elections were only rigged massively in ss amd se. Appointments made so far were not based on tribe but professionalism and quality of services. tribal leaning favours can only be coincidental. Gej has no excuse for not probing his predecessor probabily obj was not found wanting. But it’s the duty of PMB to probe his predecessor especially in the face of unparalleled pilfering of national wealth during gej leadership. Amaech is held at high esteem because he is a good leader given the hostile environment he worked carring the people along. Bh is actually on the wane.the recent bombings are prooves of a dying monster, ie bh. And you lied sir, many bh fighters have been killed since may 29th. The fg’s strategies are working. PMB is doing just fine. Sir, the president needs your support and patience. Thaks for your concerns.

      • Author’s gravatar

        That brings me to Mr President’s latest probe panel… Does any one know why the Obasanjo-Atiku administration is not being included in this probe? Let us be realistic, one would accept that the instrumentality of the office the military exercised prior to 1999 were deployed following statutes forcefully created by them for ease of bureaucracy. As it were, no effective checks as may have been prescribed in the constitution were in place; not much will be achieved chasing shadows that long. Conversely, our new republic started just after, which was also the time Nigeria’s modern day security challenges first became public knowledge. Boko Haram reared its ugly head at that time (sometime in 2002 or just before) and was unchecked. Were there no military procurements made at the time? How much was acquired? How were they used? Who knew what and when should all be part of the conversation the panel should be having with those who held sway at that time. Many right-thinking Nigerians would not be persuaded by anything less than a forensic audit.

  • Author’s gravatar

    A BITTER AND UNSAVOURY FOOD FOR THOUGHT:
    My father land, the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a case study for students of Political Science on Flagrant Squandering of Riches – The Cardinal Points. I may be alone on this, but I am honestly starting to sympathise with our President Buhari on the herculean task he has vowed to take – Tackling the monster called Corruption in Nigeria. Just imagine this: NNPC is only a fraction of the conduit pipes where our collective wealth has been draining to private bank accounts all over the world. Please take a read: ‘Where does one start from? Is it the fact that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation failed to remit N3.8tn to the Federation Account or the mind-blowing stealing of 250,000 barrels of crude oil per day? “Is it the fact that the NNPC itself does not know how many bank accounts it had or into which ones the payments for Nigerian crude are made? Could anyone have imagined that a government minister would steal the unprecedentedly-huge amount of US $6bn of public funds as being alleged? ‘‘How does any sane person rationalise the fact that $1bn was unilaterally and illegally withdrawn from the Excess Crude Account just because, as the immediate past Minister of Finance has disclosed, the President ordered the withdrawal? ‘‘Is it not clear now that the stealing and the profligacy – more than anything else, including the fall in oil price – helped to drastically reduce the monthly allocation
    from the Federation Account from about N800bn to about N400bn , thus pauperising the states and the local governments, and by extension the citizenry? As if these are not enough to make you choke on your early money
    pepper soup, consider these for the mouth-watering and enviable lives of our lawmakers: Basic Salary – N2, 484,245.50
    Hardship Allowance – N1, 242,122.70,Constituency Allowance – N4, 968,509.00 Newspapers Allowance – N1, 242,122.70, Wardrobe Allowance – N621,061.37, Recess Allowance – N248,424.55, Accommodation – N4,968,509.00
    Utilities – N828,081.83,Domestic Staff – N1,863,184.12, Entertainment N828,081.83 , Personal Assistants – N621,061.12, Vehicle Maintenance Allowance – N1,863,184.12, Leave Allowance – N248,424.55,Severance Gratuity – N7,452,736.50 Car Allowance – N9,936,982.00. TOTAL MONTHLY SALARY = N29,479,749.00 ($181,974.00)
    TOTAL YEARLY SALARY = N29,479,749.00 x 12 = N353,756,988.00 ($2,183,685.00)
    Now you can see why our President is facing a Sodom and Gomorrah scenario to find any credible and corruption free Nigerians to appoint as Ministers. It is frightening especially as the Lawmakers are still fighting over the spoils of office three months after the election. Please join me in prayers for our President as he embarks on this battle of a lifetime.

  • Author’s gravatar

    sacred cows are not found in rooms but on hilltops…minna and abeokuta…