Anti-Saraki senators demand Ekweremadu’s resignation

Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu

Aggrieved APC senators, on Saturday, demanded for the immediate resignation of the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu.The crisis set off by the recent election of the principal officers of the National Assembly may be far from over despite the All Progressives Congress’ recent assurance that it has put its house in order.

The senators, who are loyal to Senator Ahmad Lawan, the party’s candidate for the Senate presidency, insisted that Ekweremadu’s resignation was one of the conditions that would make the faction to recognise Senator Bukola Saraki as President of the Senate.

The aggrieved lawmakers, under the auspices of the Senate Unity Forum, however, stated that they had nothing personal against Saraki and Ekweremadu.

APC senators had been divided over the leadership of the National Assembly since the controversial elections. The ruling party had chosen Lawan for the Senate presidency and Femi Gbajabiamila as its candidate for the House of Representatives’ speakership in the aftermath of a mock intra-party election conducted on June 6.

But Saraki and Yakubu Dogara had defied the ruling party, allied with the opposition parties, and emerged as the heads of the upper and lower chambers, respectively.

The alliance had led to the return of Ekweremadu, a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, as the Deputy Senate President, the position he held in the last administration.

Initially, the APC had rejected the result of the election, insisting that Saraki, Dogara and their supporters would be sanctioned for defying the position of the party. But a few days later, the National Chairman of the the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, said the party had accepted Saraki as the President of the Senate. “Of course, he (Sakari) has been duly elected by his colleagues. We have a reality and we must live with it,” he said.

However, the spokesperson of the SUF, Senator Kabir Marafa, who spoke to SUNDAY PUNCH on Saturday night, said the pro-Saraki senators must explain why they disregarded all the arrangements put in place by the leaders of the APC to produce consensus candidates for post of Senate President and Deputy Senate President.

The senator called for thorough investigations into why the Clerk of the National Assembly was in a hurry to conduct the election of the senate president and the deputy without following the normal procedure as contained in the Senate Standing Order.

He said, “We demand that Senator Ike Ekweremadu must resign his position because he needed at least 55 senators to emerge as deputy senate president. Ekweremadu is a lawyer and an experienced lawmaker. He knows he is not qualified to win the election with 54 votes.”

Marafa further said the pro-Saraki lawmakers should tell the party leadership why they rushed to the chamber on June 9 and hurriedly conducted the election, while the rest of the APC lawmakers were at the International Conference Centre, expecting the arrival of President Mohammadu Buhari.

The leadership of the APC had called a truce meeting with all lawmakers on its platform at the ICC for 9am ahead of the 10am scheduled for the inauguration of the eighth assembly.

Marafa further said, “Our colleagues, the Like Minds Senators, on three occasions failed to honour the directive of the party for an arrangement to produce consensus candidates for the senate president and deputy senate president.

“They refused to take part in the mock election when 35 APC senators elected Senators Ahmad Lawan and George Akume as the party’s consensus candidates for the two top positions in the Senate.

“They also refused to honour the invitation extended to all of us to attend a meeting with Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo on June 8, and another meeting called by President Muhammadu Buhari on June 9.”

Similarly, another prominent member of the Senate Unity Forum from the South-West, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, said the requests of the group had been forwarded to the party leadership.

He said, “The Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, was not properly elected. He requires a simple majority vote of 55 to win the election but he got 54, so he did not win and we cannot recognise him. We refuse to. Our party has asked us not to talk to the press but we will not keep quiet internally.

“Apart from Ekeweremadu resigning, we are also demanding thorough investigations into the decision of the Clerk of the National Assembly to conduct the election when he was aware that the President had summoned us to a meeting.”

The Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to Ekweremadu, Mr. Uche Anichukwu, declined comments, when contacted on the telephone on Saturday to respond to the demands of the Unity Forum.

He said, “I don’t want to react to the issue.”

Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Abdullahi Jalo, however objected to the demands of the pro-Lawan senators. According to Jalo, Ekweremadu would remain deputy senate president.

“To ask distinguished Senator Ike Ekweremadu to relinquish a mandate freely given to him by his colleagues, will be a disservice not only to the Senate but to this country. What everybody should be concerned about now, is how to move forward because the issue of election in the Senate has come and gone.

“Remember, it is the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and it belongs to all Nigerian Senators who are duly elected.”

Mathematics for Success, By Pastor Adeboye

GENERAL Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, an astute mathematics teacher recently established a link between the subject and success in every human endeavour.

Speaking at a special prayer programme organised for leaders and potential leaders in the country with a theme: “Not by might” at the RCCG national headquarters, Throne of Grace Parish, Ebute-Meta, Lagos, Adeboye revealed two linear equations to success, supporting each equation with relevant bible passages, stressing that he believed in using mathematical equations whenever he needed to explain important issues in a brief manner.

According to him, mathematics is the language of life, noting “whenever I have to say something that I believe is very deep and I have to say it in a very brief manner, I turn back to mathematics because it is the language of life and you can say a lot within a short period if you use mathematics.”

Adeboye’s first linear equation states that “Power belongs to God”, in accordance with Psalm 62:11, which states that all power either on earth or in heaven belongs to the Almighty God and equation number is “God respects the humble”, which can be found in Psalm 138:6 of the bible.

Pastor Enoch Adeboye

The man of God stated that a combination of the two equations, automatically brings one face to face with the secret to success, explaining that God resist the proud, gives grace to the humble and enthrone them in place of power.

Using biblical king Nebuchadnezzar as a case study, Adeboye explained that it’s God who controls every human affair and gives power to whosoever He wishes; “God resists the proud and promotes the humble. God has the power to pick up a beggar from the dunghill and promote him to sit with princes”.   Enjoining political leaders to always put God first in all their activities and abide by God’s instructions, because on their own they are limited but they should rely solely on God who is unlimited in all ramifications.

“It is not by your power that you become anything, it is God who gives power and any power that be is from the Almighty God. Whatever you see happening, God is involved and that is why He instructed us to obey those in authority because God puts them there.

“Put your trust and limitations in the Almighty God who is unlimited. Great men are limited by sleep. No matter how strong you are, you will sleep but we have Almighty God who neither sleeps nor slumbers. No matter how powerful you are, you are limited by death, incurable disease but thank God who always heals our infirmities,” he stated.

Reminding the congregation about his prophecy years back that RCCG members would become presidents, vice presidents and hold prominent positions in the society, Pastor Adeboye said with Holy Spirit any miracle can happen.

He added that the Spirit of God can make the impossible possible and when a man of God speaks, the Holy Spirit stamps it and makes it to come to pass, saying; “It takes the Holy Spirit to make the impossible possible. Several years ago, when the Redeemed Christian Church of God was still very small and I mean very small, I told them what God said that presidents will come here to worship but their amen was very weak.

“I moved further to say that God says more than that. God said presidents will be members of the church. They will be ushers but the members then find it difficult to swallow that but mark my words, whenever God speaks, the Holy Spirit sanctioned it.

“Also in our London church which was fewer than us here in Nigeria, I told them that royalties will come to the church and worship; they giggled and said amen. I went further that God said nobody will be in government without our permission and they laughed.

IGP Arase, an advocate for change

The jubilation that greeted the announcement of the appointment and subsequent confirmation of the new Inspector General of Police, Mr. Solomon Ehigiator Arase within the rank and file of the Force as well as sections of the public, appears to be an indication that the man for the job may have been found after all. With a track record of many firsts, both in intellectual and professional prowess, Arase appears very prepared for the task at hand and many observers have attested to this.

I feel privileged to have read some of his authored writings on the Nigerian Police of his dream as well as community policing in Nigeria. And as expected, ever since taking control of the office, the IGP has made a series of pronouncements and welcoming reforms for the Force.

Mr Solomon Arase Acting IGP

Top on the list for many is the dismantling of road blocks which has been identified as the most visible link of corruption between the Police and the citizens. Should this be successfully implemented and sustained even after the end of Arase’s tenure in office, Nigerians may eventually rid their memories off the N20,00 bribe syndrome associated with the Police.

I am however, more interested in some of the issues that directly impact on me and Nigerian women in general. It is said that time and fortune make a man, I believe also that a man’s decisions are shaped by the circumstances of his life. As an only male child of his mother, young Arase reportedly grew up in a large family surrounded by many females as sisters, aunties and cousins.

So he has no doubt seen them at their various highs and lows, watched them cry and laugh and has shared in their joys and pains and all these must have helped in shaping his life and his compassionate disposition towards the female gender. Faced with numerous cases of domestic violence and related issues while serving as Assistance Commissioner of Police at the FIB, he’d set up the Gender Unit in Lagos, to investigate and prosecute offenders, within the ambience of the law, positively using his position to ameliorate the plight of women in Nigeria.

The passing of the Child’s Right Act in Lagos State as well as several Bills aimed at promoting the rights of women and children have contributed immensely to the success of this Unit of the Police in Lagos. This must have motivated him to go the whole hog in one of his recent pronouncements that he will be replicating this Unit in all 36 States of the Federation and Abuja. Perhaps, the most innovative in his quest to ensure justice for victims of gender abuse is the procurement of a $300,000 grant from the Ford Foundation, an international Non Governmental Organisation (NGO)to assist in the setting up of a modern Gender Data Centre at the Intelligence Unit of the Force.

According to IGP Arase, the unit will be responsible for coordinating intelligence relating to gender crimes, maintaining an electronic data base of gender and youth crimes, interfacing with NGOs concerned with gender and youth affairs with a view to collaborating for mutual benefits and to develop institutional capacity to investigate, prosecute and counsel abusers and victims as applicable. If successfully implemented, this will be a remarkable turn in the prosecution of gender related crimes in Nigeria.

All things work for good for those who believe, the Bible says and when God says it is time for something to happen, nothing can stop it from happening. One of the parting gifts of former President, Mr. Goodluck Jonathan was the signing into law, the Violence Against Persons (prohibition) Act 2015 as well as the Immigration Act 2015 earlier passed by the Senate on May 4. Surely, this to me is an indication that God has intervened in the situation of the Nigerian children and women. It is now up to us to embrace this opportunities with open hands.

With the new Act in place, combined with the giant strides of the Mr. Arase, many offenders of sexual and gender based violence, especially raping of little children which has now reached alarming proportions, may soon be a thing of the past, or at least, reduced to the barest minimum.

The Police will now be effectively equipped with the necessary laws to properly prosecute abusers and prevent others from committing these heinous crimes against vulnerable people. No longer will an abused Nigerian woman be turned back home to go and sort things out because it is a family matter. Already, officers are being specially trained on how to handle cases of these nature as well as acquaint them with the technicalities required for effective prosecution processes.  For instance, in the case of rape, officers will be trained to international standards for the gathering and preservation of evidence, including the use of the rape kit, post trauma counselling as well as protection of witnesses, should the need arise.

It is sad to note that violence against women and girls remains one of the biggest violation of human rights across the globe and indeed, Nigeria. Unfortunately, it is fueled and sustained primarily due to cultural and traditional practices; as well as societal norms and perceptions which continue to undermine and devalue the worth of the girl child and women in general. Worldwide, up to 50 percent of sexual assaults are committed against girls under 16 years. In 2002 alone, about 150 million girls under 18 years suffered some form of abuse.

Today, over 60 million girls worldwide are child brides with Sub Saharan Africa owning 14.1 million of them. Women and girls constitute 80 percent of the estimated 800,000 people trafficked across national borders annually and 79 percent of them are for sexual exploitations. Approximately 130 million girls and women in the world have experienced female genital mutilation/cutting and more than 3 million of them also come from Africa annually.

Violence against women include and are not limited to battery, sexual abuse of female children in the household, dowry related violence, marital rape, traditional practices harmful to women, non spousal violence and violence related to exploitation, physical, sexual and psychological violence occurring within the general community, including rape, sexual harassment, sexual abuse and intimidation at work, in educational institutions and elsewhere, trafficking in women and forced prostitution, as well as physical, sexual and psychological violence perpetuated or condoned by the state wherever they occur, as listed in article two, sub-section a, b, and c of the United Nations declaration of 1993. Interestingly, the new Act in Nigeria, went further to list forceful ejection from home and husband abandonment of spouse, children and other dependants without sustenance as part of violence against women which are punishable by law. (hmm! men you better be warned).

Beyond all the laws and prosecution, there is no doubt that we will need a holistic approach to effectively tackle and significantly eliminate violence against women and girls.

This is because, for every single case, there is always a peculiar factor, different from the other to have warranted and sustained the abuse. Coupled with this are level of education, exposure of victim and perpetrator, economic and social class, and instructively, the lower, the worse. The culture of silence and stigmatisation also prevents the law from taking its course on perpetrators, while some abused persons don’t even know they are being abused and/or have accepted their situation as the norm.

While we cannot generalise that all men are abusive, there is a great need for men to be sympathetic to the course of the female gender. Like IGP Arase, all men are blessed with mothers, sisters, nieces and daughters and would not like to see their own, suffer any form of hardship from the opposite sex for the sake of being in a relationship. A couple of years back, a young friend of mine received her first beating from her husband during an argument. It has since been the only beating so far. She called home after the beating and narrated the incident to her family.

The older brother on hearing, decided to get his pound of flesh on the quick fisted brother-in-law. So, he invited him out for a drink where unsuspecting to the “Tyson”, two other guys were laying siege for him. He received the beating of his life, plus a warning that he would lose a vital part of his body, should he raise his hands against his wife again. You may call it breeding bad blood but it sure served the purpose as macho husband got the message loud and clear.

As I have stated in my many articles on curbing violence against women and girls, the ability of the girl child to fully develop and achieve her full potentials in life depends largely on the men she comes in contact with throughout the course of her life. We need more men like Arase, ready and determined to force that positive change our society needs. Do have a wonderful weekend!

FG, marketers agree to end fuel scarcity next week

People waiting to buy fuel at a filling station along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Lagos.

The Punch had reported exclusively that the government would meet with the marketers on Friday in a bid to address the prolonged fuel scarcity problems.The Federal Government and petrol marketers on Friday agreed to put an end to Nigeria’s fuel scarcity problems before the close of business next week Saturday.

The meeting, which was well attended by stakeholders in the sector, had top officials from the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria, Pipelines and Product Marketing Company, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

Others were heads from the Department of Petroleum Resources, Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, Petroleum Equalisation Fund and the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

Reading out the resolution reached after the meeting which lasted for several hours at the headquarters of the petroleum ministry, the Permanent Secretary, Mr. Taiye Haruna, said it was agreed that the PPMC, as well as marketers, should increase the level of product supply across the country.

“We have also agreed that efforts be made to clear these long queues before the end of June 13, 2015, that is next week,” he said.