THE EVIL DEEDS AGAINST LATE GENERAL MAMMAN VATSA AND HIS FAMILY! On 23 December 1985, the Vatsa family had just concluded plans to travel to Calabar because, usually, they spent the yuletide in the Cross River State capital, (Sufiya; the wife to late Gen M Vatsa is an Efik by tribe), the Id-el-Fitri in Minna, Niger State (Gen M Vatsa is Nupe by tribe) and the Id-el Kabir in Kaduna. After the necessary packing for the trip, the family waited for the return of General Vatsa from the Armed Forces Ruling Council, (AFRC), he had attended the meeting and returned home late, so the trip was postponed till the following day. At about 12 midnight, while Sufiya was watching a movie in her bedroom, her husband, who was working in his study, rushed in to tell her that IBB had sent for him. The wife protested that it was too late in the night, that Vatsa should phone his boss to shift the meeting to the following morning. As this debate was going on, Lt Col UK Bello led a team of soldiers to Vatsa’s home at Rumens Street, Ikoyi-Lagos. The soldiers, who came with armored vehicles and military vans, surrounded the house. Vatsa told his wife who was upstairs to peep through the window. Unable to contain her fear, she rushed downstairs and insisted that if the soldiers would take away her husband, then she had to follow them. Sufiya insisted on driving Vatsa in her own Pengeot 404. At this point, Vatsa directed that the children be woken up, and he kissed them one after the other. Haruna, the first son, who was in the Nigeria Military School (NMS) Zaria, followed them downstairs, weeping. While UK Bello drove in the fore of the convoy, Sufiya and Vatsa were chauffeur-driven in their own car in what later turned out to be a merry-go-round about Lagos till about 2 a.m when they stopped at No.7 Cameron Road, Ikoyi. Vatsa was ordered out of the car. As he made to enter the building, Sufiya ran after him but she was rudely pulled back by the soldiers. The General turned and gave his wife a bear hug, an embrace that was their last. He urged his wife to take care of their children, Haruna, Fatima, Jibrin and Aisha. Sufiya returned home dejected. To her shock, the military authorities had withdrawn the official domestic staff and guards At 5am, she prepared breakfast of fried yam and slised pawpaw, then drove to her husband’s detention centre, but was told she could not bring in any food. Another surprise awaited Vatsa’s wife. A soldier came in and said: “Madam, Oga’s wife, Mrs Mariam Babangida, said I should carry General Vatsa’s telephone handset to her.” Fatima, Vatsa’s daughter, clung to the gadget. A struggle ensued between the 15yr old girl and the soldier, whose muscles bulged like the biceps of Michaelangelo’statues. Sufiya asked her daughter to let go of the probably bugged set.Worse still, some gruff, fierced looking soldiers, led by Vatsa’s former Aide-de-Camp (ADC), Captain Maku, an intelligence officer of Idoma extraction, had led other soldiers in laying siege to the family’s house. “Madam, no visitors, no phone calls, no going out,” Maku snapped as he reclined on a settee in the living room, an improvised toothpick, peeping out of a corner of his mouth. When Sufiya protested that the family needed to buy foodstuff, Maku, whose friendly disposition when he was Vatsa’s ADC had changed, commanded that the woman and her children “to must manage.”After three days of captivity, Sufiya could not endure it any longer. She told Maku: “Look, I am going to the market. If you refuse me, it means between you and I, somebody will die. I will show you I am a soldier’s wife.” She took her car, and without bothering about the soldiers, who cocked their guns menacingly at her, she rammed it into the gate, which gave way as the soldiers scattered capriciously in different directions. She got to Falomo market, bought bread and eggs, and decided to see one of her husband’s friends, General Gado Nasko. Before the visit to Nasko, however, Sufiya had driven home and, since her daughter was, coincidentally at the gate, she dropped the food and driven to the Naskos home. Sufiya’s mission was to ask Nasko to fix a meeting between her and IBB to find a way and settle the matter. Although soldiers at Nasko’s house gave her the cold shoulder, her persistence worked. Nasko, who said he was aware of the problem and would try to arrange the meeting, asked Sufiya to see him in the evening. Her hope soared. The reason was the special relationship between her family and IBB’s. “When we got married,” Sufiya was reported as saying, “I thought IBB and my husband were of the same family. The two wore same size of dress and pair of shoes. IBB would drop his dirty wears in our house and put on my husband’s own sometimes. When IBB traveled out, for further military training, my husband took care of Mariam and her children. General Vatsa, apart from mounting the horse when IBB married Mariam; bought their first set of furniture from Leventis on hire purchase. IBB was also my husband’s best man during our wedding. Whenever Maryam’s Mercedez Benz car broke down, she used to drive my Peugeot 404. We were close.” All these, to Babangida, did not count in the field of real politics. Nasko told Sufiya later in the day that the military President was not ready to see her. Another disappointment awaited Sufiya when she returned to her Rumen’s Street residence, Ikoyi. A soldier from Bonny Camp was waiting for her with an order that the family should vacate the house. Another military officer said the car should be taken to Army Headquarters for security check after which they broke into the car’s glove compartment and confiscated Vatsa’s manuscripts. In frustration, Sufiya hired a trailer and moved the family’s belongings to Kaduna. She and Fatima, however, returned and stayed in Nwakana Okoro, her brother-in-law’s house at Queen’s Drive Ikoyi. When the military authorities bugged Okoro’s telephone, the lawyer, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria became jittery. All attempts by Sufiya to see her husband were frustrated by the military authorities. It was only Fatima’s trick that worked a bit. Posing as a lawyer, she would follow other counsels into Vatsa’s detention centre and trial venue. Vatsa, however, sent Sufiya a note from Kirikiri, saying: “Do not beg Babangida. He is after my life. Take care of the children. I know it is not easy but God will help you.”When he was to be executed, Vatsa requested that his wrist watch and wedding ring be given to Sufiya. “But by the time they brought the watch and the wedding ring, the ring wasn’t my wedding ring, so I rejected it. “Till today, they have not returned the ring to me,” Sufiya was quoted by a family source. Sufiya was, therefore, left in the cold, without any wealth to fall back on. Vatsa had only one plot of land in Abuja, but it was taken over by the late despot, General Sani Abacha. At a point, Sufiya approached General Jeremiah Useni, one-time Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, in a bid to reclaim the land. Useni called for the file and told Vatsa’s wife to pay for the land rent. She, however complained to Useni: “When my husband was a minister in FCT, he refused to allocate land to me. He said it would be immoral for him to give me land. He said his successor would give me.” Useni looked the other way while Sufiya and her family were deprived of the land.Not all of Vatsa’s friends abandoned the family, however. “One of his friends came to our aid.” Sufiya once said. “Every other person that was dining and wining with my husband immediately switched over to IBB. Even my children today are not identified with.”To keep body, soul and the family together, Sufiya, of Efik descent, would travel to Calabar, in Cross River State, and bring food from her people to take care of her children in Kaduna where she has vowed to remain. Apart from buying and selling, Sufiya used to engage in poultry and cattle rearing. In fact, she injected life into her Sava Farm, which she set up in 1971 after the civil war. But robbers ruined the business. Sufiya believed her husband was innocent of the crime for which he was executed. She once lamented to her husband’s family:” It is painful that my husband was executed as a coup plotter even when he was not. And till this moment, we don’t know where he was buried. That Gen Domkat Bali interview published in TheNews magazine is one of the good things God has done to us in the Vatsa family. Before, some people did not believe that Vatsa was not a coup plotter; but Bali’s confession explained it all. They should release the corpse of my husband to me so that he can be given a befitting burial. That is my prayer.”It was for this reason that Sufiya wrote a letter, dated 15 June 2006, to President Olusegun Obasanjo, where she stated: “Although there was no iota of evidence linking my husband with the phantom coup, he was convicted and sentenced to death by the Special Military Tribunal which purportedly tried him and other coup suspects. My husband’s appeal to the Armed Forces Ruling Council against his illegal conviction was yet to be considered when the Head of State, General Babangida had him secretly executed along with the other coup convicts.”She claimed in the letter that Bali confirmed her husband’s innocence in TheNEWS’ interview when he said:‘“My regret is that up till now, I am not sure whether Vatsa ought to have been killed because, whatever evidence they amassed against him was weak. My only regret is that I could not say, don’t do it. I am not so sure whether we were right to have killed Vatsa.” Sufiya, therefore, requested the Obasanjo administration to prosecute General Babangida for “the murder of my husband, General Vatsa.”Born on 3 December 1940, Major General Mamman Vatsa attended the Government Secondary School, Bida-Niger State. He enlisted in the Nigerian Army on 10 December 1962 and was trained at the Nigerian Military Training College, Kaduna and the India Military Academy. Vatsa was in charge of the 21 Battalion during the Nigerian Civil War, after which he became an instructor at the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna. Apart from his position as Principal Staff Officer at Army Headquarters, he commanded the 30 infantry Brigade (Ogoja) until July 1975. As the Commander of the Brigade of Guards, a post he held until 1979, Vatsa oversaw the movement of its headquarters from Dodan Barracks to Kofo Abayomi Street, Victoria Island-Lagos. One proof of his loyalty to his Commander-in-Chief was when, as Commander, Brigade of Guards, Calabar, he was the first to go on air to kick against the 13 February 1976 coup, led by Lt Col Buka Dimka. During the trial of suspects involved in that coup, he was the Tribunal Secretary. There after, he was appointed the Commander, Brigade of Guards under General Olusegun Obasanjo. Mrs Vatsa once revealed: “My husband drove General Obasanjo to his Ota farm after he handed over power to the civilians in 1979.”As Nowa Omoigui wrote, Vatsa was Commandant of the Nigerian Army School of Infantry (NASI) from 1979. “He, along with Lt Col Bitiyong, developed the Special Warfare Wing and established the doctrinal basis for the establishment of the 82nd Composite Division of the Nigerian Army in Enugu. In fact, it was Vatsa who suggested that the Division be called the “82nd Division” – after the 82nd West African Division, Burma.”As an accomplished poet and writer, Vatsa was able to publish eight poetry collections for adults and 11 for younger ones. Some of his book titles are Back Again At Watergate (1982), Reach For The Skies (1984), and Verses for Nigerian State Capitals (1973). His pidgin poetry collection is Tori for Geti Bow Leg (1981). His pictorial books are Bikin Suna and Stinger the Scorpion. His literary interests transcended merely reeling out volumes of verse. He organized writing workshops for soldiers and their families, assisted the Children’s Literature Association with funds, as well as allocating a piece of land in Abuja for a writers village for the Association of Nigerian Authors. Vatsa was so pre-occupied with creativity that he always carried jotters to the toilet, dining table and the bedroom. There were books strewn around in the family’s apartment so much that, Sufiya once threatened to “throw these books out.”Vatsa’s journey to the great beyond started on 17 December 1985 when the military authorities arrested over 100 officers from the Army, Navy and the Air Force. Vatsa was picked up seven days later. They were, for two weeks investigated by the Brigadier General Sani Sami-led Preliminary Special Investigation Panel. After this, 17 of them were dragged before a Special Military Tribunal, set up by General Bali, the Defence Minister, at the Brigade of Guards Headquarters, Lagos. The accused officers were 9:34:20 PM Cols Musa Bitiyong, Christian. A Oche, MA Iyorshe, M. Effiong; Majors DI Bamidele, DE West, JO Onyeke and TG Akwashiki. Others were Captain GIL Sese, Lt KG Dakpa, Commodore AA Ogwiji, Wing Commanders BE Ekele, Adamu Sakaba; Squadron Leaders Martin Luther, C Ode and A Ahura.The tribunal; Chaired by Major General Ndiomu, tried the officers under the Treason and Other Offences (Special Military Tribunal) Decree 1 of 1986. Other members of the tribunal were Brigadier Yerima Yohanna Kure, Commodore Murtala Nyako, Col Rufus Kupolati, Col E Opaleye, and Lt Col D Muhammed. Alhaji Mamman Nassarawa, a commissioner of police and Major A Kejawa, the Judge Advocate, were also members. The IBB regime accused Vatsa of trying to overthrow it by hiding behind a farming loan to Lt Col Bitiyong, a charge which the general denied. As Nowa Omogui, a military analyst explains in his essay, The Vatsa Conspiracy, Bitiyong was allegedly tortured to implicate Vatsa “by making reference to certain private political conversations they had, which Vatsa denied.”There were further allegations that Luther, Oche, Ogwiji and Bitiyong held a meeting at the Lagos Sheraton Hotel and Towers in November 1985. Iyorchie, Bitiyong, Oche, Ekele, Sakaba and Bamidele also allegedly met in Makurdi. Allegations such as the diversion of the presidential jet to a pre-arranged location by pilots in the executive fleet (Luther and Ahura), as Omogui put it, were floated. Oche allegedly held a meeting with Major Akwashiki, Commander of the 6th Battalion, Bonny Camp, and Onyeke, after a game of squash in Lagos and spoke about the International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan. Akwashiki was sentenced to death, but this was commuted to life imprisonment. He was however released 10 years later by the Abacha regime. Oche, it was also alleged, mentioned the plot to his nephew, Peter Odoba, a young lieutenant of the Brigade of Guards who, as Omogui wrote, informed then Lt Hamza al-Mustapha, an intelligence officer to the Chiefof Army Staff. Obada was charged with “concealment, recommended for dismissal and a long jail term.”On 6 March 1986, however, Vatsa, Iyorshe, Bamidele, Ogwiji, Ekele, Sakaba, Luther, Akura were executed. Vatsa had taken his trial and sentence with cheerful equanimity like the writer that he was. His vintage smiles revealed more than his words. “I leave you with smiles as smiles surprise people. But I will tell members of the Nigerian Army that the day you start insulting yourselves, others begin to join you,” he said. To buttress his position that there was rivalry between IBB and Vatsa, Omogui referred to an interview that; Eniola Bello of THISDAY had with IBB in 2001 when he turned 60. “Babangida said it was after Vatsa’s coup was foiled that he realized his childhood friend and classmate planned the coup in line with a deep-seated personal rivalry, going back to their days as young officers. He said that unconsciously, he and Vatsa had been great competitors; that as a young officer, whatever he did Vatsa equally did and whatever Vatsa achieved, he also went after. He said it was Lt Gen TY Danjuma who pointed this out to him from their military records. "Babangida gave this rationalization to justify his refusal to pardon Vatsa. He said when he first heard his childhood friend was planning a coup, he decided to do nothing but monitor him. He added, however, that Vatsa came to him to complain thus: You heard I was planning a coup and couldn’t even ask me. What kind of friend are you? To this, Babangida said he replied: I didn’t believe it, or are you planning a coup? He said Vatsa replied in the negative and the matter was forgotten until there was evidence of the plot. Babangida said he instructed that Vatsa be arrested and detained to prevent him from impeding investigation into the matter. Babangida argued: “However, Vatsa tried to escape through the air conditioner hole. I couldn’t understand why he was trying to escape if he was not involved in a coup plot. But while watching the video of his execution, I turned my eyes away when I saw him remove his watch and ask a soldier to give his wife. I couldn’t continue watching. "Babangida added that he couldn’t retire or imprison Vatsa because he believed the guy could still have planned a coup either in retirement or in prison. “Rawlings did it in Ghana and you know Vatsa was very stubborn,” IBB said. Omogui, however, lamented the tragedy that befell Vatsa: “Vatsa maintained to the very end that the money was for farming. Others alleged, however, that after being tortured for two days, Bitiyong implicatedVatsa by making reference to certain private political conversations they had, which Vatsa denied. But Vatsa was accused of harbouring “bad blood” against his friend and classmate Babangida, dating back to the Buhari regime and possibly earlier. He was also obliquely accused of reporting Babangida’s coup plot to Buhari before he left the country for pilgrimage along with Major General Tunde Idiagbon in August, 1985. Actions he later took as a Minister to accelerate many military applications for certificates of occupancy for land in Abuja, came to be viewed as efforts to buy the support of one or two of the plotters. Rumors that a civilian had introduced him at a party as Nigeria’s next President were even aired. All of this was, of course, circumstantial. But they took him to the stake, which was quite an anti-climax to the career of a brilliant man who never took part in any coup in Nigeria. Indeed, Mamman Vatsa was the first to go on air in Calabar to denounce the Dimka coup, and was later the Secretary of the Obada panel that tried Dimka and others in 1976. This little detail may have earned him some latent enmity in certain circles of the Army which later contributed to his death. "There is also a very strong belief that Vatsa may have been a victim of political intrigues because of his intellectual sagacity, being a writer and soldier-poet, and his significant indifference to the military politics at that time. In fact, his ordeal had attracted three leading Nigerian literary icons, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka and John Pepper Clark Bekederemo, who had gone to plead with Babangida for clemency, only to be shocked by news of his execution few minutes after departing Dodan Barracks, venue of the meeting. Hajia Sufiya Vatsa, wife of the late former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, General Mamman Vatsa, was at the forefront of the struggle to ensure that justice is done in the Vatsa case. Her campaign was cut short in the early hours of Monday, 21 May 2007 when the grim riper came calling. She handed over the mantle to her son Jubrin who broke the news of her demise. Hajia Sufiya Vatsa, widow of the late former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, General Mamman Vatsa, died aged 56, but looked older than her age. She has been through a whole lot of psychological trauma. Hajia Safiya died in the early hours of Monday, May 21, 2007 at her residence in Kaduna after a brief illness. Jibrin, son of the late Mrs. Vatsa, who broke the news of his mother's death to DailySun on telephone, said; Hajia Sufiya took ill early last week and was getting better when she passed on. He said the deceased's remains were buried on Monday in her farm, according to Islamic rites. Only recently, Hajia Vatsa petitioned President Olusegun Obasanjo demanding a review of the circumstance surrounding the execution of her husband in 1986 by the General Ibrahim Babangida military administration. President Obasanjo later had an audience with her during which she was said to have stated her case. Until her death, Hajia Vatsa lived in her husband's farm in Kaduna. She vowed never to step foot in Minna for the rest of her life after her husband, Vatsa was executed by the military junta. Sufiya, was both Father and Mother to her kids who she brought up on a shoe-string budget. Haruna, whom Vatsa asked to be withdrawn from the Nigerian Military School Zaria, because of the way the Army treated him, is now married with two children. Fatima, who is a Medical Doctor, is in London with her husband, while Jubrin, who studied law, lived in Minna, Niger State until he died on 13 September 2015 in Calabar after a brief illness. Aisha the baby of the house is a US-based pilot. Of all the Vatsas, only Jubrin lived in Minna after Sufiya relocated the family to Kaduna. He wanted to be closer to his Father who was very fond of him. General Vatsa on page 74 in his book of Poetry REACH FOR THE SKIES has this to say about his son Jubrin:"Jib Boy'O, Jib boy; You give me joy; You look so much like me, But what else could it be!" Pg 74, REACH FOR THE SKIES (1985) by Gen Mamman Jiya Vatsa . Jibrin Mamman Jiya Vatsa, the third child of General Mamman Jiya Vatsa and Sufiya died in the early hours of Sunday, September 13, 2015 after a brief illness in Calabar. Jubrin finally made the journey to Calabar which was aborted on 23rd December, 1985 when the junta led by the "Evil Genius" took away his source of joy. Alas Father, Mother and Son reunited by the grim riper. These things are beyond anything we've seen before, and I am afraid that William Shakespeare was spot on in his epic, Julius Caesar where he posited thus: “When beggars die there are no comets seen; the heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.

Hillary Clinton defends Islam, says it's a religion of peace and that Muslims have nothing to do with terrorism. Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton delivers remarks at the Brady Center's annual Brady Bear Awards Gala in the Manhattan borough in New York, on Nov. 19, 2015. Leading Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is not about to blame Muslims for terrorism, even after the Islamic State (ISIS) extremist group claimed responsibility for the terror attacks in Paris, which killed over 120 people. Speaking before the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on Thursday, Clinton sought to insulate the entire Muslim population from the notorious jihadist organisation. The former secretary of state also defended Islam, saying it is a religion advocating peace and not violence. "Let's be clear: Islam is not our adversary. Muslims are peaceful and tolerant people and have nothing whatsoever to do with terrorism," Clinton said, as quoted by WND.com. She also repeatedly used the term "radical jihadism" in her prepared comments, and warned against establishing a connection between worldwide Islamic terror networks and Islam, saying this should not be done. Clinton further said that associating Islam with terrorism only "gives these criminals, these murderers, more standing than they deserve, and it actually plays into their hands by alienating partners we need by our side." At the same time, the Democratic presidential frontrunner also called for a wide-ranging assault to crush the ISIS once and for all. "Our goal is not to deter or contain ISIS, but to defeat and destroy ISIS. It is time to begin a new phase ... to smash the would-be caliphate," she said, as quoted by Bloomberg News. To be able to do this, Clinton proposed an expanded air war and an "intelligence surge," among other efforts against the ISIS. "To be successful, airstrikes will have to be combined with ground forces actually taking back more territory from ISIS," the former state secretary said. Clinton's stand about the ISIS and Islam is in stark contrast with Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump's, who has taken a tougher stance against the Muslim community. Trump once said that he would consider closing down mosques linked to terrorism.

INAUGURAL SPEECH BY HIS EXCELLENCY, PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI FOLLOWING HIS SWEARING-IN AS PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA ON 29TH MAY, 2015

I am immensely grateful to God Who Has preserved us to witness this day and this occasion. Today marks a triumph for Nigeria and an occasion to celebrate her freedom and cherish her democracy. Nigerians have shown their commitment to democracy and are determined to entrench its culture. Our journey has not been easy but thanks to the determination of our people and strong support from friends abroad we have today a truly democratically elected government in place. I would like to thank President Goodluck Jonathan for his display of statesmanship in setting a precedent for us that has now made our people proud to be Nigerians wherever they are. With the support and cooperation he has given to the transition process, he has made it possible for us to show the world that despite the perceived tension in the land we can be a united people capable of doing what is right for our nation. Together we co-operated to surprise the world that had come to expect only the worst from Nigeria. I hope this act of graciously accepting defeat by the outgoing President will become the standard of political conduct in the country. I would like to thank the millions of our supporters who believed in us even when the cause seemed hopeless. I salute their resolve in waiting long hours in rain and hot sunshine to register and cast their votes and stay all night if necessary to protect and ensure their votes count and were counted.  I thank those who tirelessly carried the campaign on the social media. At the same time, I thank our other countrymen and women who did not vote for us but contributed to make our democratic culture truly competitive, strong and definitive. I thank all of you.   Having just a few minutes ago sworn on the Holy Book, I intend to keep my oath and serve as President to all Nigerians. I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody. A few people have privately voiced fears that on coming back to office I shall go after them. These fears are groundless. There will be no paying off old scores. The past is prologue. Our neighbours in the Sub-region and our African brethenen should rest assured that Nigeria under our administration will be ready to play any leadership role that Africa expects of it. Here I would like to thank the governments and people of Cameroon, Chad and Niger for committing their armed forces to fight Boko Haram in Nigeria. I also wish to assure the wider international community of our readiness to cooperate and help to combat threats of cross-border terrorism, sea piracy, refugees and boat people, financial crime, cyber crime, climate change, the spread of communicable diseases and other challenges of the 21st century.   At home we face enormous challenges. Insecurity, pervasive corruption, the hitherto unending and seemingly impossible fuel and power shortages are the immediate concerns. We are going to tackle them head on. Nigerians will not regret that they ha e entrusted national responsibility to us. We must not succumb to hopelessness and defeatism. We can fix our problems. In recent times Nigerian leaders appear to have misread our mission. Our founding fathers, Mr Herbert Macauley, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Malam Aminu Kano, Chief J.S. Tarka, Mr Eyo Ita, Chief Denis Osadeby, Chief Ladoke Akintola and their colleagues worked to establish certain standards of governance. They might have differed in their methods or tactics or details, but they were united in establishing a viable and progressive country. Some of their successors behaved like spoilt children breaking everything and bringing disorder to the house. Furthermore, we as Nigerians must remind ourselves that we are heirs to great civilizations: Shehu Othman Dan fodio’s caliphate, the Kanem Borno Empire, the Oyo Empire, the Benin Empire and King Jaja’s formidable domain. The blood of those great ancestors flow in our veins.   What is now required is to build on these legacies, to modernize and uplift Nigeria. Daunting as the task may be it is by no means insurmountable. There is now a national consensus that our chosen route to national development is democracy. To achieve our objectives we must consciously work the democratic system. The Federal Executive under my watch will not seek to encroach on the duties and functions of the Legislative and Judicial arms of government. The law enforcing authorities will be charged to operate within the Constitution. We shall rebuild and the public service to become more effective and moreserviceable. We shall charge them to apply themselves with integrity to stabilize the system. For their part the legislative arm must keep to their brief of making laws, carrying out over-sight functions and doing so expeditiously.   The judicial system needs reform to cleanse itself from its immediate past. The country now expects the judiciary to act with dispatch on all cases especially on corruption, serious financial crimes or abuse of office. It is only when the three arms act constitutionally that government will be enabled to serve the country optimally and avoid the confusion all too often bedeviling governance today. Elsewhere relations between Abuja and the States have to be clarified if we are to serve the country better. Constitutionally there are limits to powers of each of the three tiers of government but that should not mean the Federal Government should fold its arms and close its eyes to what is going on in the states and local governments.   Not least the operations of the Local Government Joint Account. While the Federal Government can not interfere in the details of its operations it will ensure that the gross corruption at the local level is checked. As far as the constitution allows me I will try to ensure that there is responsible and accountable governance at all levels of government in the country. For I will not have kept my own trust with the Nigerian people if I allow others abuse theirs under my watch.   However, no matter how well organized the governments of the federation are they can not succeed without the support, understanding and cooperation of labour unions, organized private sector, the press and civil society organizations. I appeal to employers and workers alike to unite in raising productivity so that everybody will have the opportunity to share in increased prosperity. The Nigerian press is the most vibrant in Africa. My appeal to the media today – and this includes the social media – is to exercise its considerable powers with responsibility and patriotism.   My appeal for unity is predicated on the seriousness of the legacy we are getting into. With depleted foreign reserves, falling oil prices, leakages and debts the Nigerian economy is in deep trouble and will require careful management to bring it round and to tackle the immediate challenges confronting us, namely; Boko Haram, the Niger Delta situation, the power shortages and unemployment especially among young people. For the longer term we have to improve the standards of our education. We have to look at the whole field of medicare. We have to upgrade our dilapidated physical infrastructure. The most immediate is Boko Haram’s insurgency. Progress has been made in recent weeks by our security forces but victory can not be achieved by basing the Command and Control Centre in Abuja. The command centre will be relocated to Maiduguri and remain until Boko Haram is completely subdued. But we can not claim to have defeated Boko Haram without rescuing the Chibok girls and all other innocent persons held hostage by insurgents.   This government will do all it can to rescue them alive. Boko Haram is a typical example of small fires causing large fires. An eccentric and unorthodox preacher with a tiny following was given posthumous fame and following by his extra judicial murder at the hands of the police. Since then through official bungling, negligence, complacency or collusion Boko Haram became a terrifying force taking tens of thousands of lives and capturing several towns and villages covering swathes of Nigerian sovereign territory. Boko Haram is a mindless, godless group who are as far away from Islam as one can think of. At the end of the hostilities when the group is subdued the Government intends to commission a sociological study to determine its origins, remote and immediate causes of the movement, its sponsors, the international connexions to ensure that measures are taken to prevent a reccurrence of this evil. For now the Armed Forces will be fully charged with prosecuting the fight against Boko haram.   We shall overhaul the rules of engagement to avoid human rights violations in operations. We shall improve operational and legal mechanisms so that disciplinary steps are taken against proven human right violations by the Armed Forces. Boko Haram is not only the security issue bedeviling our country. The spate of kidnappings, armed robberies, herdsmen/farmers clashes, cattle rustlings all help to add to the general air of insecurity inour land. We are going to erect and maintain an efficient, disciplined people – friendly and well – compensated security forces within an over – all security architecture.   The amnesty programme in the Niger Delta is due to end in December, but the Government intends to invest heavily in the projects, and programmes currently in place. I call on the leadership and people in these areas to cooperate with the State and Federal Government in the rehabilitation programmes which will be streamlined and made more effective. As ever, I am ready to listen to grievances of my fellow Nigerians. I extend my hand of fellowship to them so that we can bring peace and build prosperity for our people. No single cause can be identified to explain Nigerian’s poor economic performance over the years than the power situation. It is a national shame that an economy of 180 million generates only 4,000MW, and distributes even less. Continuous tinkering with the structures of power supply and distribution and close on $20b expanded since 1999 have only brought darkness, frustration, misery, and resignation among Nigerians. We will not allow this to go on. Careful studies are under way during this transition to identify the quickest, safest and most cost-effective way to bring light and relief to Nigerians.   Unemployment, notably youth un-employment features strongly in our Party’s Manifesto. We intend to attack the problem frontally through revival of agriculture, solid minerals mining as well as credits to small and medium size businesses to kick – start these enterprises. We shall quickly examine the best way to revive major industries and accelerate the revival and development of our railways, roads and general infrastructure. Your Excellencies, My fellow Nigerians I can not recall when Nigeria enjoyed so much goodwill abroad as now.   The messages I received from East and West, from powerful and small countries are indicative of international expectations on us. At home the newly elected government is basking in a reservoir of goodwill and high expectations. Nigeria therefore has a window of opportunity to fulfill our long – standing potential of pulling ourselves together and realizing our mission as a great nation.   Our situation somehow reminds one of a passage in Shakespeare’s Julius Ceasar There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; Omitted, all the voyage of their life, Is bound in shallows and miseries. We have an opportunity. Let us take it. Thank you

50 VOCABULARIES SPOKEN BY CHIEF PATRICK OBAHIAGBON aka OGOBOMIDO-1.

WORDS AND MEANING. 1. Gargantuan –extremely large 2. Bugaboo – an object of fear 3. Pooh-pooh – Dismiss as being foolish or impractical 4.Perfidy – deceitful or untrustworthy 5. Repugnant – extremely distasteful and unacceptable 6. Insalubrious – unwholesome and unhealthy 7. Odoriferous – having an odor. 8. Sardonic – Scornfully mournful or cynical 9. Lugubrious – mournful, sad, dismal 10. Obfuscate – To make something less clear and more difficult to understand. 11. Cascading – a large amount of something hanging down 12. Malodorous – smelling very unpleasant 13. Termagant – a woman who is very strict and who tries to tell people to do things in an unpleasant 14. Paraplegic – A person who suffers from paraplegia 15. Crinkum-crankum – Elaborate or detailed (archaic) 16. Empyrean – literary relating to Heaven 17. Conundrum – A confusing problem or question that is too difficult to solve 18. Alacrit – great willingness or enthusiasm 19. Tinge– to add a small amount of color to something 20. Braggadocio – Boost full or arrogant behavior 21. Megalomania – a mental illness or condition in which somebody has an exaggerated belief in their own importance or power. 22. Mendacious – Not telling the truth 23. Mores – the customs of a society 24. Rosicrucian – a member of a secretive society concerned in the study of metaphysical, mystical and alchemical lore. 25. Hierophants – A person especially a priest who interprets sacred or esoteric mysteries 26. Objurgates – rare and severe 27. Indubitable – impossible to doubt and unquestionable 28. Egregious – Outstandingly bad and shocking. 29. Vaudeville – a type of entertainment popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries,that includes singing,dancing 30. Audacious – lacking respect, impudent 31. Ratiocination– The forming of judgment by a process of logical reason 32. Ballyhoo – extravagant publicity 33. Quagmire – a complex or difficult situations 34. Phantasmagoria – a sequence of imaginary images 35. Plummeted – to fall from a high level or position 36. Sui Generis – Unique 37. Ferocious – Fierce, cruel or violent. 38. Miasma – an unpleasant smell 39.Apotheosis – the highest point in the development of something 40. Excrescence – an unattractive or superfluous feature 41. Mobocracy – rule or domination by the masses 42. Proclivities – An inclination or predisposition 43. Kakistocracy – Government under the control of a nation’s worst or least-qualified citizens 44. Lampoon – public satire or ridicule 45. Déjà vu – a feeling of having already experienced the present situation(FRENCH) 46. Recumbent – Inactive, Idle. 47. Terminus – The end of something 48. Perfidy – The act of violating a promise, faith or vow 49. Mephistophelean – wicked 50. Jiggery-pokery – Tricky, misrepresentation and manipulation.

INDONESIA EXECUTES DRUG SMUGGLERS BY FIRING SQUAD.

Sylvester Obiekwe Nwolise, Okwudili Oyatanze, Raheem Agbaje Salami [aka] Jamiu Owolabi Abashin and Martin Anderson are four Nigerians executed in Indonesia with 4 others for drug trafficking. Indonesia has executed eight out of nine drug convicts by firing squad despite last-ditch appeals by Australia's foreign minister for a stay of execution so that claims of corruption during the trials of two Australian prisoners could be investigated. The executions were carried out after midnight at exactly 17:30 GMT at Besi prison on Nusakambangan Island on Tuesday, after the inmates were given 72-hours notice. Over the weekend, authorities had asked the nine convicts, which included two Australians, four Nigerian men, one man each from Brazil and Indonesia and a Filipino woman for their last wishes. However, the execution of the Filipina, Mary Jane Veloso, was spared at the last minute when someone suspected of recruiting her surrendered to police in the Philippines. The attorney general's spokesman told the Reuters news agency late on Tuesday. "The execution of Mary Jane Veloso has been postponed because there was a request from the Philippine president related to a perpetrator suspected of human trafficking who surrendered herself in the Philippines," Tony Spontana, spokesman for the attorney general said. "Mary Jane has been asked to testify." Earlier, Filipino migrants had rallied in Hong Kong on behalf of Velose, a 30yr old mother of two whose supporters said was tricked into carrying a suitcase loaded with heroin. Al Jazeera's Step Vaessen, reporting from Cilacap in Indonesia, said while there was an outpouring of joy among Filipinos that Velose had been spared, there would be a different reaction from Australia after Jakarta rejected last ditch pleas for clemency. "The executions could cause a diplomatic fallout between Australia and Indonesia similar to earlier this year when the Netherlands and Brazil recalled their ambassadors after their nationals were killed," she said. Australia had mounted a sustained campaign to save its citizens, who have been on death row for almost a decade. Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were the Australian ring-leaders of the so-called "Bali Nine" heroin trafficking group who were arrested at the main airport on the holiday island in April 2005 for trying to smuggle 8.3kg of heroin to Australia. The seven other members of the Bali Nine, all Australians, were jailed in Indonesia and did not face the death penalty. The families of the Australian convicts had paid an anguished final visit to their loved ones earlier on Tuesday, wailing in grief as ambulances carrying empty white coffins arrived at the prison. Julie Bishop, Australia's foreign minister, told media earlier in the day that she had asked for a stay in their executions, saying allegations in the Australian media that their judges had requested money to commute the death sentences were "very serious". Indonesian President Joko Widodo said that such concerns should have been conveyed a decade ago when the case went through the courts. A former lawyer of the prisoners, Muhammad Rifan, told Australia's Fairfax Media on Monday that Indonesian judges had requested more than $100,000 in return for prison terms of less than 20 years. But Rifan said the judges later told him they had been ordered by senior legal and government members in Jakarta to impose a death penalty, so the deal fell through. Among the condemned on Tuesday was Brazilian, Rodrigo Gularte, who had been diagnosed by Indonesian medics with schizophrenia. Gularte, 42, was arrested in 2004 at a Jakarta airport after trying to enter the country with 6kg of cocaine hidden in a surfboard. The four Nigerians include; Sylvester Obiekwe Nwolise, Nwolise is a 49-year-old Nigerian who was found guilty in September 2004 of trafficking 1.18 kilos of heroin through Sukarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta in 2002. His clemency appeal was rejected in February this year. The previous month, Indonesia’s national narcotics body said he was running a drugs ring in jail, according to Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). He was also sentenced to death in 2005. Okwudili Oyatanze 45yrs old, was sentenced to death for trafficking heroin, also through Sukarno-Hatta airport in 2001. Raheem Agbaje Salami. The NDLEA said Salami appears to be Nigerian but holds a Spanish passport and is thought to be also known by the name Jamiu Owolabi Abashin. He entered Indonesia using a Spanish passport under the name Raheem Agbaje Salami. He was caught with five kilos of heroin inside a suitcase at the airport in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, on September 2, 1998 and was sentenced to life imprisonment the following year. That was reduced by the high court to 20 years but he was later given the death sentence by the supreme court. Martin Anderson. There is some confusion about Anderson’s nationality. A spokesman for Indonesia’s attorney-general said he is Nigerian but Nigeria’s NDLEA said he is a Ghanaian citizen who was born in London in 1964. He was arrested in Jakarta in 2003 and sentenced to death. His clemency appeal was rejected earlier this year. Amnesty International condemned the executions saying they showed a "complete disregard for due process and human rights safeguards." "Some of the prisoners were reportedly not provided access to competent lawyers or interpreters during their arrest and initial trial, in violation of their right to a fair trial which is recognized under international and national law," Rupert Abbott, Amnesty's Research Director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific said. "Gularte, had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, and international law clearly prohibits the use of the death penalty against those with mental disabilities," Abbott added. Fourteen people have now been put to death in Indonesia this year, and the government has announced plans for further executions this year.