Jonathan Visits Obasanjo In Ogun

Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan on Friday visited former President Olusegun Obasanjo at his Ibogun-Olaogun country home at Coker/Ibogun Local Council Development Area, Ogun State.

It was gathered that Jonathan arrived the village where Obasanjo was born around noon and both former presidents held a closed-door meeting which lasted for about one hour.

After the meeting, Obasanjo took him on a tour of the village before coming back to his compound.
When approached by journalists for information about the visit, Jonathan declined to comment.

Obasanjo on his part, however, called on Nigerians to always work in the interest of the country as God did not make a mistake by bringing all the tribes together in one country called Nigeria.

He said, “I want to say that we have it, Nigeria is a good country and we must never be tired of lifting the country up to the height that God has created it to be.

And God did not make a mistake when he put all of us together and if He doesn’t want us to be together no power in the world will have made us come together.”

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I Don’t Have Any Bank Account, Aircraft Or Real Estate Outside Nigeria – Jonathan

Former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday, denied media reports that he received bribes in the $1.3billion Oil Prospecting Licence, OPL 245 oil block deal involving Italian oil company, ENI and Royal Dutch Shell of the Netherlands. 

According to reports, Italian prosecutors had, in court documents filed last month in Milan, claimed that ENI Chief Executive, Claudio Descalzi, and his predecessor, Paolo Scaroni, met Dr. Jonathan personally to discuss the deal.  They further alleged that Dr. Jonathan and former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, benefited from the $466 million allegedly used to bribe some Nigerian government officials and another $54 million withdrawn by one Abubakar Aliyu, who the prosecutors claimed was Jonathan’s agent.

However, in a statement by Ikechukwu Eze, his media adviser, Dr Jonathan said he did not receive any kick-back or know any Abubakar Aliyu and insisted that his hands are clean over the Malabu deal. 

This came as the Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide, IYC, decried what it described as the sustained persecution of Ijaw people and the Niger-Delta by the present administration and wondered why the Malabu oil deal had been singled out for probe while other oil blocks awarded at the same time and through the same process were left untouched. 

The Jonathan statement read: ‘’Our attention has been drawn to news reports published mostly by online media, which suggested, through innuendo, rather than factual evidence, that former President Goodluck Jonathan received kickbacks in the $1.3bn OPL 245 oil block deal involving oil giants ENI and Royal Dutch Shell. 

‘’With regards to the publication, we wish to make it clear that former President Jonathan was not accused, indicted or charged for corruptly collecting any monies as kickbacks or bribes from ENI by the Italian authorities or any other law enforcement body the world over. 

‘’In the first place, we have to categorically state that the negotiations and transactions for the oil bloc deal pre-date the Presidency of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, which began on May 6, 2010 and ended on May 29, 2015. 

‘’It may interest those promoting this false narrative to know that all the documents relating to the transactions, issues and decisions of the Federal Government on the Malabu issue, during the Jonathan administration, are in the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation & Minister of Justice. As President of Nigeria, there is no doubt that Dr. Goodluck Jonathan met with executives of all the oil majors operating in Nigeria and urged them to, among other things, support the growth of the Nigerian oil industry by ramping up their investments and comply with the Local Content Act that he promoted and signed into law. 

‘’We, however, wish to state, for emphasis, that at no time did the former President hold private meetings with representatives of ENI to discuss pecuniary issues. All the meetings and discussions former President Jonathan had with ENI, other IOCs and some indigenous operators were conducted officially, and in the presence of relevant Nigerian Government officials, and were done in the best interest of the country. 

‘’We make bold to point out that the former President never sent any Abubakar Aliyu, as the innuendoes in the false report suggest, to ENI, the IOCs or any indigenous operator to seek favour or collect any gratification on his behalf. 

‘’We will like to point out for the umpteenth time that whether in office or out of office, former President Jonathan does not own any bank account, aircraft or real estate outside Nigeria. Anyone with contrary information is challenged to publicly publish same. 

‘’As the President who signed the Freedom of Information Act into law, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan lifted the veil on governance and encouraged transparency knowing that evil breeds in secrecy. It is the opinion of the former President that journalists and media houses should take advantage of this law in their investigative journalism, rather than rely on hearsay. We hope that these clarifications will help guide future reports which should be factual.’’

Source

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Patience Jonathan Linked With $15m Laundry Which She Plead Guilty

Four companies charged alongside a former Special Adviser to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, on Domestic Affairs, Waripamo Dudafa, with charges bordering on money laundering, on Thursday, pleaded guilty before a Lagos Federal High Court.

The four companies, Pluto Property and Investment Company Limited; Seagate Property Development & Investment Co. Limited; Trans Ocean Property and Investment Company Limited and Development Company Limited and Avalon Global Property Development Company Limited were arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, for charges bordering on money laundering.

At the hearing of the matter, all four companies pleaded guilty to conspiring with the former President’s aide and two others to launder the sum of $15, 591,700.

Recall that the anti-graft agency had recently seized the sum of $15.6m found in a Sky Bank account which was linked to the four companies.

The seized sum was, however, claimed by the wife of the former President, Mrs Patience Jonathan.

Mrs Jonathan had explained that the seized sum was meant for her hospital bills abroad.

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Over 4000 Workers Recruited By Jonathan May Lose Jobs

The jobs of 4,904 civil servants, who were recruited by the Federal Civil Service Commission in the last administration of President Goodluck Jonathan,  are under threat as  the  Federal Character Commission has queried the exercise.

It was learnt on Monday that moves by the Federal Civil Service Commission to sack the workers had led to a crisis in the civil service.

No fewer than 247 of the affected workers had petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission over a plan by the FCSC to sack them, The Punch reports.

The Acting Executive Chairman of the Federal Character Commission, Dr. Shettima Abba, had queried the Chairman of the FCSC, Mrs. Joan Ayo, for alleged violation of the principle of federal character in the employment of the civil servants in a letter dated May 3, 2016.

He said the recruitment,  which took place between 2013 and 2015,  was characterised by a flagrant abuse of the Federal Character principle.

Abba alleged that the recruitment was tilted in favour of the South-South geopolitical zone against other parts of the country.

He pointed out that the South-South got 33.6 per cent of those employed as against the 26.2 per cent allotted to applicants from the North-East, North-West and North-Central geopolitical zones.

He directed the civil service commission’s boss to ensure that the perceived inequality was addressed in the 2016 recruitment by the commission in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Character Commission.

Abba stated, “The Federal Character Commission has viewed and observed with concern the recruitment exercises undertaken by the Federal Civil Service between 2013 and 2015, which glaringly is lopsided and grossly abused the principle of Federal Character to which all institution have subscribed.

“The recruitment which recorded the engagement of about 4,904 workers, threw away all common sense and wisdom of national cohesion and integration by favouring some states to the detriment of others.

“We are worried that if this trend is allowed to continue, then some sections of the country may not only feel alienated but may feel insecure by the action of people in authority.

“It is inconceivable and a gross injustice for a geopolitical zone to be allocated 33.6 per cent of the total candidates recruited as against 26.2 per cent for three zones combined, North-East, North-West and North-Central.

 “We further request without prejudice that all processes must involve the Federal Character Commission for advice and strict adherence to the principle of federal character as contained in our circular on guidelines and procedure for recruitment.”

But the spokesperson for the FCSC, Dr. Abel Oruche,  told a Punch correspondent on the telephone  that only those employed irregularly would be removed.

He also said he was not aware of the interrogation of the chairman or any other officer of the commission by the ICPC.

He stated, “I’m not aware that anybody was interrogated by the ICPC or whether the chairman was invited.  Nobody interrogated the chairman of the FCSC, any commissioner or any official.”

Oruche explained that some people were employed without vacancies, adding that the staff audit was aimed at fishing out such people.

He stated, “The press statement we sent was not reactive, but to explain to people what we have done and what we are doing to avoid rumour or insinuations.

“It is an ongoing audit to make sure that all those people, who were employed irregularly without existing vacancies, are removed.  We didn’t issue the statement because somebody called us.”

Punch

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Photos: Buhari, Jonathan, Others At Council Of State Meeting

President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday presided over Council of State meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The meeting was the second one under the current dispensation while the first meeting was held on the 21st of October 2015.
Some former Presidents and Head of State who were at the meeting when it started around 11:07 a.m. included Goodluck Jonathan, Abdulsalami Abubakar and Ernest Shonekan.

Jonathan was attending the meeting for the first time since leaving office in May 2015.
Former leaders who were conspicuously absent at the meeting included Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida, Shehu Shagari, Yakubu Gowon. More photos below...

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Those who care only about themselves should not engage in politics - Goodluck Jonathan

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has urged politicians contesting various positions in the forth-coming August 11 general elections in Zambia to accept results of the polls and avoid violence.

He spoke, yesterday, at a press conference in Lusaka, Zambian capital, as Head of the African Union Election Observation Mission to Zambia.

In a statement issued by his media aide, Mr. Ikechukwu Eze, Dr. Jonathan appealed to political party leaders to endeavour to place the country’s interest over political ambitions.

He was quoted as saying, “Politicians going in for elective positions should be open-minded about the outcome because they can either win or lose. Politicians who want to play meaningful roles in governance should realise that it is not about them. Those who care only about themselves should quit politics and begin to manage personal businesses.

“Our states are not private enterprises. You cannot be interested in governance without sufficient interest in the affairs of the people. So the interest of the country should come first as politicians tick their priority boxes.

“This also requires politicians to accept the outcome of genuine elections because of the interest of the people. You cannot instigate violence and mayhem on the one hand and pretend that you are fighting for the people on the other. It does not make any sense to get involved in bloodshed, destroy properties, frustrate businesses and collapse the economy in order to win elections. Our advice is to put public interest above other expectations by accepting the results of elections.”

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Goodluck Jonathan Spotted at Heathrow Airport as He Leaves Nigeria (Photo)

Former President Goodluck Jonathan who visited Nigeria few days ago and received a hero's welcome, has left the country.

 

We reported it here earlier this week that former President Goodluck Jonathan arrived the country on the eve of President Muhammadu Buhari’s scheduled visit to Ogoni in Rivers State, and made way to his Otuoke hometown in Bayelsa as he received a hero's welcome by friends and well-wishers at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Rivers State.

 

On Thursday night, the former president paid a visit to President Buhari's residence at Aso Rock villa as the two presidents met behind closed-door for an hour in what was reported to be a meeting about pressing national issues especially the renewed militancy in the Niger Delta. 

 

Few hours ago, Reno Omokri, the former senior special assistant to Goodluck Jonathan on social media, took to his Twitter to reveal the he and his former boss has left the country. "Just landed London Heathrow with former President @GEJonathan," he tweeted.

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Revealed! The Notable Differences Between Jonathan and Buhari's Subsidy Removal-

A concerned Nigerian has shared on a popular online Nigerian forum the major differences between the removal of fuel subsidy under the present and past administration.

 

President Muhammadu Buhari and former President, Goodluck Jonathan

  

The current removal of fuel subsidy under President Muhammadu Buhari has forced business and political analysts in Nigeria to look back at the past which entail the fail removal of the subsidy under former president Goodluck Ebele Jonathan on the Ist of January, 2012 which almost threw Nigeria in turmoil and comotion.

Read the major highlights below as written by the concerned Nigerian:

Subsidy Removal under Goodluck Ebele Jonathan

Jonathan's government announced the total removal of subsidy on Jan 1 2012.

The facts:

1. Oil sold at 113 USD per barrel as at Dec 31st 2011

2. The exchange rate as at Dec 2011 was 1 USD to N 162.3

3. Jonathan's predecessor actually dropped PMS price from N75 to N65 and was able to sustain subsidy whilst handling the amnesty program for repentant millitants till his early demise.

4. A more bouyant foreign reserve and growing economy.

The government's major basis of total removal of subsidy was sighted as massive corruption. Rather than deal with the monster, the incompetence of the government was shifted to the masses. Many Nigerians were not ready to make the government have more money to loot, as subsidy was still sustainable at that time.

After the Occupy Nigieria protests, the price of PMS was revised to N97 per littre, with the promise of urban busses, building and rehabilitation of refineries e.t.c. It is interesting to note that the only partially successful programme after the subsidy removal was SURE-P because some Nigeirans benefitted from it without the "u must know someone" clause. Till the exit of Jonathan's government, we had no functional refineries, neither were new ones built.

Please note, Boko Haram was more like rag tag millitant as at the time of subsidy removal but later grew to a sophisticated, machine guns, tanks rolling millitant. So BH as an excuse is not tenable.

Subsidy removal under President Muhammadu Buhari

1. Oil price selling below 44 USD per barrel

2. Exchange rate of N197-N199 to a dollar and N320 to a dollar in the parallel market.

3. An ailing economy, with limited FOREX, and dwindling reserves.

The major reason for the total removal of subsidy by the current government is because of scarcity of Forex and an ailing economy. NNPC could not sustain solely importing petroleum products, and there is not enough Forex to give major oil marketers to handle the importation of petroleum products. It should also be noted that the present government have been able to tackle corruption to a fault in the oil industry.

The oil Marketters have now been given the liberty to source forex from other sources to import fuel which is the major reason for the high price hike.

The current government have made moves which will see the price of PMS drop in the nearest future. For the first time in years we have the Warri, Kaduna, and Port Harcourt refineries working together but some misguided youths and miscreants in the name of avengers have decided to keep sabotaging the efforts of the present government.

There are also moves on ground to build more refineries.

In my opinion, the deregulation of the lower stream sector is right on track at this time and I stand with Buhari on this.

For now, I see no reason why this government should not be supported, as they still have more than 2 years to deliver. Should the government not meet up to expectations before next elections, then Nigerians can take their anger to the polls.

God Bless Nigeria.

Piece written by Koboko.

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